When Dr. Rowlands told me in the morning that he wanted me to go to a
specialist, I freaked. First, all I had was an overactive imagination and
now...now I needed to go to a shrink. I thought Doc Rowlands was taking to
many happy pills lately. What the heck did he mean by, 'Dr. Brawning will
be able to counsel you.'?! This was rich.
Shows you how reliable doctors are these days. (at least in my district!)
"No way. I won't go." I told Darry, shaking my head.
"She's a nice girl." Darry said from over the wheel of the car. We were driving to the psychologist, Dr. Brawning.
I slumped in my chair, "You just wanna go coz Dr. Brawning is young and pretty." It was a pretty shallow thing to say. but at some level I believed it.
"Don't you get fresh with me, little buddy." He warned me with his eyes on the traffic, "how do you know her 'sides?"
"Dr. Autumn Brawning." I explained in a fake news reporter voice, "She was on T.V. for being youngest shrink and all. She's pretty."
"You speak civil to her, ok?" Darry said parking the car and pushing me forcefully into the clinic.
"You'd think I was 5 years old." I grumbled and stuffed my hands into my pockets.
"Don't act like you are and I'll consider treating you like a teenager" Darry shot back, "Talk to her. Get better. Then come back and maybe I'll give you a lollipop." My brother's teasing was merciless and he smiled toothily at me.
I punched his shoulder affectionately, "You staying?"
Darry sat down in the waiting room and flipped out his newspaper in response, "I'll be right here if you need me, Pony."
I took a deep breath. One thing I didn't want to do was tell Darry that I *was * scared. What if Dr. Brawning couldn't stop the nightmares..or maybe there was something seriously wrong with me. Attack of the what if's .what if.. what if..i told her everything..everything in the whole of my heart and she couldn't help me. What if I trusted her? What then?
When a secretary told me that Dr. Brawning was ready for me; I walked across the blue-carpeted floor into Dr. Brawning's sunny office. She looked like she had on T.V., brown hair and a welcoming smile. I didn't smile back. I almost felt ashamed of my greasy hair and black muscle shirt that I wore. But usually I'm proud of how tough I look and It wasn't like I could change or anything.
If she noticed my appearance, her smile didn't falter. But I knew.I noticed- compared Dr. Brawning's shiny clean office I was just grease.
Autumn's POV
"Hello Ponyboy Curtis. Sit down if you will." I smiled warmly at him, "I'm Dr. Brawning."
The Curtis kid looked worse for wear. He slouched on the couch beside my desk and he had dark bags underneath is beautiful gray eyes. "hi" he said untrustingly.
"Heard you've been havin' some nightmares lately." I said sitting down next to him. I'm not one who'll sugarcoat things, I like to jump straight to the problem.
"Kinda." Ponyboy said, his eyes widened with remembrance. And he visibly steeled himself against the thoughts.
"Doc Rowlands told me you've had em' afore. But they went away." I said writing notes on my notepad.
"For a little while, yah."
Jeez, this was like pulling teeth. I'm a psychologist not a dentist.
"So what do you dream about?" I asked, getting sort of impatient.
"Don't know. Can't remember." Ponyboy said quietly. He was holding something back. He was lying to me.
"I'm a doctor, Pony. You can trust me, whatever it is that's hurting you- I'm here to help." I reassured.
"You're not helping me! You're analyzing me. Everything I say and do- everything I don't." The boy looked pointedly at my notepad that I had written in, "I do not wanna be flipped inside out and poked at. I just want to sleep." Ponyboy burst out.
"kid, I'm just trying to do my job." I flung back, my temper rising. In school the prinicipal had stopped short of expelling me by a hair's length. Not because my grades were bad, but because my temper was quick to rise and blind me with it's passion.
"That's all I am to you: a job. You don't care about me one tick. So I think you should just-"
"You're wrong there Ponyboy Curtis." I said as he stalked out of the room. Then to no one in particular I whispered, "I already care about you more than I'd like to admit."
Shows you how reliable doctors are these days. (at least in my district!)
"No way. I won't go." I told Darry, shaking my head.
"She's a nice girl." Darry said from over the wheel of the car. We were driving to the psychologist, Dr. Brawning.
I slumped in my chair, "You just wanna go coz Dr. Brawning is young and pretty." It was a pretty shallow thing to say. but at some level I believed it.
"Don't you get fresh with me, little buddy." He warned me with his eyes on the traffic, "how do you know her 'sides?"
"Dr. Autumn Brawning." I explained in a fake news reporter voice, "She was on T.V. for being youngest shrink and all. She's pretty."
"You speak civil to her, ok?" Darry said parking the car and pushing me forcefully into the clinic.
"You'd think I was 5 years old." I grumbled and stuffed my hands into my pockets.
"Don't act like you are and I'll consider treating you like a teenager" Darry shot back, "Talk to her. Get better. Then come back and maybe I'll give you a lollipop." My brother's teasing was merciless and he smiled toothily at me.
I punched his shoulder affectionately, "You staying?"
Darry sat down in the waiting room and flipped out his newspaper in response, "I'll be right here if you need me, Pony."
I took a deep breath. One thing I didn't want to do was tell Darry that I *was * scared. What if Dr. Brawning couldn't stop the nightmares..or maybe there was something seriously wrong with me. Attack of the what if's .what if.. what if..i told her everything..everything in the whole of my heart and she couldn't help me. What if I trusted her? What then?
When a secretary told me that Dr. Brawning was ready for me; I walked across the blue-carpeted floor into Dr. Brawning's sunny office. She looked like she had on T.V., brown hair and a welcoming smile. I didn't smile back. I almost felt ashamed of my greasy hair and black muscle shirt that I wore. But usually I'm proud of how tough I look and It wasn't like I could change or anything.
If she noticed my appearance, her smile didn't falter. But I knew.I noticed- compared Dr. Brawning's shiny clean office I was just grease.
Autumn's POV
"Hello Ponyboy Curtis. Sit down if you will." I smiled warmly at him, "I'm Dr. Brawning."
The Curtis kid looked worse for wear. He slouched on the couch beside my desk and he had dark bags underneath is beautiful gray eyes. "hi" he said untrustingly.
"Heard you've been havin' some nightmares lately." I said sitting down next to him. I'm not one who'll sugarcoat things, I like to jump straight to the problem.
"Kinda." Ponyboy said, his eyes widened with remembrance. And he visibly steeled himself against the thoughts.
"Doc Rowlands told me you've had em' afore. But they went away." I said writing notes on my notepad.
"For a little while, yah."
Jeez, this was like pulling teeth. I'm a psychologist not a dentist.
"So what do you dream about?" I asked, getting sort of impatient.
"Don't know. Can't remember." Ponyboy said quietly. He was holding something back. He was lying to me.
"I'm a doctor, Pony. You can trust me, whatever it is that's hurting you- I'm here to help." I reassured.
"You're not helping me! You're analyzing me. Everything I say and do- everything I don't." The boy looked pointedly at my notepad that I had written in, "I do not wanna be flipped inside out and poked at. I just want to sleep." Ponyboy burst out.
"kid, I'm just trying to do my job." I flung back, my temper rising. In school the prinicipal had stopped short of expelling me by a hair's length. Not because my grades were bad, but because my temper was quick to rise and blind me with it's passion.
"That's all I am to you: a job. You don't care about me one tick. So I think you should just-"
"You're wrong there Ponyboy Curtis." I said as he stalked out of the room. Then to no one in particular I whispered, "I already care about you more than I'd like to admit."