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Special thanks to my Beta Eljay

Dr. Emmanuel stepped in to Ryan's room. She had talked to the parents and even had a session with the brother; now she was about to meet Ryan. The boy was sitting up in his bed. He was reading a book but was alert and watching her intently as she entered. The father... Sandy, had given her a copy of Ryan's state records. Dr. Emmanuel had been surprised this boy had never been recommended to another therapist during his earlier life. This boy needed to talk. Seth had warned him that Ryan 'wasn't much for talking.' But Dr. Emmanuel had her ways.

"Hi, Ryan," she smiled. "I'm Dr. Emmanuel."

Ryan didn't return her smile and seemed to be very cautious in his reply. "Are you a doctor-doctor or a shrink-doctor?"

She laughed lightly in reply. "The latter I'm afraid." It was important to keep things comfortable with this kid. He would have serious trust issues and he needed to be able to relax around her.

Ryan gave her a solemn nod but showed little emotion.

She took the chair beside his bed and sat in it casually. "Did your foster parents tell you I was coming?"

"Yeah, but I really don't need to talk to anyone, no offense." He cast his eyes down then, towards the wall.

She shrugged, "None taken, I hear you're feeling better?"

Ryan shrugged in return.

Seth had been right; Ryan wasn't very vocal. "I heard you might be able to go home soon. I hate hospitals myself."

Ryan raised his eyebrow at her. "But, you're a doctor?"

"Yup, but I'm a shrink not a doctor, doctor." She used Ryan's words. She got a small fake smile from him nothing more. He was just being polite. "So," she forged on. "You live with foster parents? Where are your folks?" She knew the answer already but she wanted to hear it from him.

"Dad's in jail. Mom took off."

"Ah, that's tough luck." She watched him for a moment. He looked way from her. He refused to meet her eyes. His fingers fidgeted with the edge of his blanket. "So, why do you think I'm here?"

A flicker of unreadable emotion crossed his face as he looked down at his hands. "I don't need to talk to anyone. I'm fine."

"That's not what I asked."

The silence grew heavy for a moment. All she could hear were the sounds of the hospital outside his door.

"They're worried," he whispered.

"Pardon me?"

"They're worried," he repeated louder.

"Why would they worry about you, Ryan? You are getting better." Once again she knew the answer but she need to see his reactions; she needed to gauge his responses.

Ryan's' mouth opened and closed a few times he was weighing his words. "Seth, my brother, we were in an accident. Did you talk to him to?"

Dr. Emmanuel nodded. "I did. I have to say though he's pretty much your polar opposite."

That drew a genuine small smirk from the boy. She also noted that he never mentioned the word 'foster' when talking about Seth. "He kept calling me Doc Oc. I'm not that old, I've seen the movie and I don't have eight mechanical arms"

That actually resulted in a sort bark of laughter from Ryan.

"Do you read comics like Seth?"

"Um, not really...sort of."

She gave him time to explain himself. It was apparent that he thought about everything he said before he said it. She wondered why he was so cautious.

Ryan finally continued. "I don't mind them but I mostly read them so I can understand what Seth is saying. He's going to be okay isn't he?"

The doctor raised her eyebrow and Ryan's concern but she didn't want to talk about Seth just then. "Seth is fine, He's worried about you though. Do you and Seth share a lot of interests? You seem like good friends?"

Ryan glanced up at her briefly but it was a big step forward. "Yeah, I guess."

"Do you like sailing?"

He grinned and shook his head. He had figured out her tactic. He was a smart kid.

"Then why did you go sailing? Do like the ocean?" she pushed but it was a push too far.

Ryan grew agitated. "I said, I'm fine. I don't need to talk. I don't know why I flipped out the other day but I'm fine. It was stupid."

Dr. Emmanuel stood up slowly and walked closer to his bedside. "You seem like a bright kid. I don't think anything about you is stupid."

Ryan glared at her.

She continued, "People do things for a reason, Ryan. But, we can't always figure out why. We can only know what's in our own head."

"There is nothing wrong with me."

"Never said there was." She replied brightly then quickly changed the subject. She had learned enough for now. "Well, I got to run, but we'll talk more tomorrow okay?"

"Whatever." Ryan's reply was a forced monotone.

Later that day Dr. Emmanuel met with Ryan's foster parents to discuss her initial assessment.

She looked over at the two fidgeting parents. They didn't seem like people who were used to being out of the loop. They didn't know what to do and it frightened them. The father forced a smile very much like Ryan had forced his indifference earlier in the day. "Well, Dr. Emmanuel, you've spoken with Ryan then?"

Dr. Emmanuel took a sip out of the chipped coffee cup that sat on her desk. "I have, but first let me tell you the exact conversations between me and Ryan are confidential. I can only tell you my over-all feel of the situation."

Both parents nodded in unison obviously eager for her to get on with it. "We understand Doctor, we're just worried about him."

"Call me Sheila please."

The mother, Kirsten gave her a small smile.

The doctor cleared her through slightly before she began. "I've read in his file that Ryan came from an abusive home before he came to be with you. Am I correct?"

Sandy, the father, confirmed the information.

"I have a theory, and it's only that until I can talk to him more thoroughly, that Ryan's biggest issue isn't this accident or his new fear of water. I think Ryan has problems with control."

"Ryan has a temper but other then that I've never seen a teenager his age more mature. I don't understand. Ryan isn't out of control."

"Actually, that partially confirms my theory." Replied Sheila. "Ryan couldn't control others when they abused him. He couldn't stop his mother's substance abuse problems. He felt out of control. I think when he moved in with your family he felt like he finally had control of his life. This accident has shaken that belief."

"Do you think he can overcome this?" Kirsten wrung her hands nervously as she waited for a reply.

"Well first I need to get him to talk to me. That alone is not going to be very easy."

Sandy gave a sly smile then. "Ryan is not known for his wordiness."

Sheila grinned herself. "I can see that." Then she grew serious and leaned forward in her chair. "The only way he's going to get better is to admit there is a problem. He needs to talk to someone. It doesn't even have to be me. Try to get him to open up. See if you can get him to admit his fears. Once we can get him to do that we'll be halfway there. Then we can focus on why he feels he needs to be in control all the time."

"Ryan's doctor mentioned that he'll probably be able to go home tomorrow, " Sandy informed her.

"I'll meet with Ryan as an out patient. It's really important that you keep a close eye on him over then next few days. He may say he's okay but he's not. He really needs someone to lean on right now and he's not going to be happy about it.

TBC