A/N Jessica just deserves a third-person follow-up, telling of her life on Sodor.
Jessica had come to Sodor for a heritage railway on the Mainland, because they didn't have the money to overhaul her. She told the Sodor engines her backstory after her overhaul at the Steamworks, but had to stop at one point because she began to cry, wailing loudly. Her Sodor driver dried her tears with a cloth her heritage railway controller gave him.
"There, there, Jessica," he said, gently rubbing her sodden cheeks and softly wiping her tear-filled eyes. "I don't know you that well yet, in a way. However, I care so very deeply about you, caring and affectionate person I am. I want you to cry, because crying's comfort and you need that. You've got my support in your hurting.". He listened attentively to pick up on her values and cues, trying to understand how she felt.
Jessica wailed her hurting heart out. She was sniffling hard, coughing, choking on her tears and hiccupping. She gasped and gulped, huge tears pouring from her eyes, not once stopping as her newest driver did his best to help and comfort her.
He said, as he continued to wipe her tears away, "I'm an extremely sensitive soul, not afraid of emotions, so I'm not afraid to cry. When I've got emotions, I need to express them. Emotion's part of life and I know how powerful and overwhelming it can be, so I can be understanding when others are emotional. No judgment from me, just care and compassion. I'm not here to fix your mood, just to wipe your eyes. Let it all out and I shall dry your eyes. He tried to reassure her without being overbearing, just there to patiently listen and supoort her in her pain and wiped all her tears away as best he could.
Jessica bawled her eyes out, crying in endless great wails, so hard she couldn't breathe properly and wept non-stop until she could weep no more. Her driver dried her last tears away, wiping her cheeks and eyes dry of tears. He went back to the cab with the tear-soaked cloth and her crew gave her a drink.
Thomas began to cry, his kind heart deeply hit. "Dr-Driver, c-can y-you dr-dry m-my t-tears?" he said, through heartfelt sobs and sniffles. "J-Jessica's st-story m-made m-me v-very s-sad.". His face was wet with tears
"There, there, Thomas," his driver said, taking a cloth from his pocket. "It's dreadful what her driver when she was a baby engine did." He tuned into the tank engine, listening attentively to pick up on his values and cues, as he rubbed his engine's cheeks and wiped his weeping eyes. "Just let it all out."
Thomas cried more. He sniffled again hard, coughed as he choked on his tears and hiccupped. He gasped and gulped, shaking with sobs as his great tears constantly came and let his driver comfort him.
He said, as he continued to wipe the tears away, "You don't like her being sad, so maybe you can help her feel better. Just be the friend she needs and maybe talk to Sir Topham Hatt about getting her in engine therapy." He pressed the cloth to the tank engine's eyes and wiped all his tears away as best he could.
Thomas sobbed and sobbed, but then his sobs died down and slowly his tears subsided. His driver dried his last tears away, wiping his cheeks and eyes until they were dry, then went back to the cab with the sodden cloth. Thomas smiled, feeling better and his crew gave him a drink. I want Jessica to be happy and enjoy life again, like she did before she was abused.
"Your backstory made me cry," Thomas said to Jessica the next time they met up. "I truly sobbed hearing you wail.".
Jessica said, "I'm so sad all the time. I'm a worthless, useless engine who belongs in the scrapyard because I've got no reason to live." She began to cry, huge wailing sobs and her driver did his best to comfort her and dried her tears with a cloth.
Thomas gave her a buffer press and smiled a cheer up my friend type version of his cheeky smile. He shunted her to the water column after her cry and told her "You're not a worthless, useless engine." and did what he could to try to help her.
Thomas found Jessica weeping and wailing loudly at the station one day, her driver comforting her, drying her eyes with a piece of cotton waffle cloth. He pressed his buffers against hers and cried with her, sobbing loudly because her emotional pain was upsetting to him. His driver comforted him, drying his tears with a cloth.
"I-I sh-shall t-tell S-Sir T-Topham H-Hatt a-about J-Jessica," Thomas sobbed. "I-I j-just f-feel s-so b-bad f-for h-her. E-Either sh-she's g-got t-tears i-in h-her e-eyes, st-stinging th-them o-or sh-she's t-tearstained i-in th-the m-morning o-or a-at l-least h-her f-face i-is a-all r-ed a-and h-her e-eyes a-are a-all bl-bloodshot l-looking, s-sore and p-puffy."
Thomas finished his cry, had a drink, then shunted Jessica to the water column after she stopped crying.
Thomas told Sir Topham Hatt, "I think my new friend Jessica's depressed to the point she needs Dr. Tom, our engine therapist here, sir."
"I shall tell her and her crew about her getting therapy for her depression," he replied.
"She's just so sad. She wails herself to sleep, frequently wakes up crying and wailing and also during the day. Running out of coal or having a crash, for example would make her wail. If a mean diesel wanted to shunt her to the Smelter's Yard, freeze and then wail. Bad coal makes her wail. Someone looking at her wrong makes her wail. If another engine made her late, that makes her wail when she's depressed. Having to take scrap to the scrapyard makes her wail, because she feels so useless, she thinks she belongs there. If she's ill or she sneezes her ashes all over, wail. She's got her driver or maybe in the morning, or whenever her driver's not around but her fireman is, him to dry her tears, but they're just constantly wiping her eyes or rubbing her sodden cheeks all the time she's able to cry."
"Thomas, you're my buffers to cry on," Jessica said, after a morning crying spell. "One of my old crew told me people can be a shoulder to cry on, but we've got no shoulders, just buffers.". Her cheeks were dry now, as were her eyes, but her face was red and tear-stained and her eyes were sore, red and puffy. "Whether you smile at me or cry with me, as Driver wipes my pain away."
Jessica had her first therapy session with Dr. Tom, Sodor's engine therapist. He told Jessica, "I want to hear your story." He held out a handkerchief. "Want me to dry your tears if you cry?", as her crew were off-duty at the moment.
"If you don't want me to rust or any other reason, you can dry my tears. I know I shall cry and wail telling my story. I bawl my eyes out over tiny things, because I just feel so sad and worthless constantly, like a Really Useless Engine who should be scrapped because I've got no reason to live." She told the therapist her story.
"If you've got to cry, Jessica, just let the pain out of your eyes." Dr. Tom said. Jessica had told him how her mild depression began and was bawling her eyes out, wailing sobs so hard she was unable to catch her breath. Her face was wet with huge tears as she sniffled and wept. As she wailed her heart out, he just let her cry into his hanky, until it was drippy wet from her weeping. He did this a total of 5 times, because she couldn't stop the tears. "I love to wipe your eyes," he said. "Go on with your story. Tell me what happened after your first driver's abuse started."
"The abuse went on and I got depressed from it," she said. "But my abusive driver retired, so I got a 2nd driver, who was nicer. When I had my first driver, I always had a fireman to comfort me, when my crew were on duty. I wail myself to sleep every night, often wake up wailing from nightmares of being abused, flashbacks and have frequent crying spells during the day, like after I pull a train or am not moving." Their session went on.
Dr. Tom ended their session eventually, "You did splendid, Jessica," he said, as he wrapped it up. "Don't worry about the floods of tears. It's brilliant that you cried in therapy. I shall find the best way to help you with your depression, so you don't wail over tiny thing. I'm aware every little hurt or disappointment causes you to have crying spells, based on your story. I see you as an extremely sensitive sort, Jessica, dreadfully hurt. I quite like it when my clients cry to me, without holding back. I can tell you're not scared or uncomfortable regarding emotion from those loud wails, but you were overwhelmed with emotion. I shall support you and listen to you every time we've got therapy and if your crew won't be there, bring hankies. I'm not scared or uncomfortable with someone being emotional. I just want to help those who are deeply hurting. I'm a safe person to wail to, if someone needs to. Therapy's to place to talk if you want or need to, cry and wail as long and loud as you want and just be you, but it's also to help you be a better you. In your case, it's to help you feel happy again, like you were before the abuse, instead of this howling being who feels nothing but extremely sad and useless, so worthless you can't a find a reason to live. The you that you were before the depression took her away. It's clear you throw your mechanical heart into your wails. I'm glad you can cry so deeply, Jessica. Gulping, shaking, the red face and also eyes, sore and swollen from crying's what I encourage for those who need to cry. If you've got to cry, I want you to cry.".
Jessica's day then went on.
A/N The station where Thomas cries with Jessica's Knapford. Someone said an engine's eyes look bloodshot in TRS. Someone talked somewhere about a woman who was depressed and cried loudly. Brilliant, when Dr. Tom says it's a British use, as he thinks it's wonderful when his clients cry to him during their therapy.