Happy Sunday! Here is chapter number 4. I'm liking the length I think, short and sweet really. I'm trying to be as true to the characters as I can. But if you have suggestions on how I can improve please let me know. This is my first time writing fiction like this, any tip is a good tip!

Learning

Denise sighed tossing the needle in the medical waste bin, a sag to her shoulders. The girl had been there for a week already, most of the time she was sleeping and when she was awake it lasted only fleeting moments before she panicked.

"I can't keep drugging her," Denise muttered moving a strand of hair out of her eyes. She placed the used needle in a bin to be cleaned later, waste was not something they did here. "It's not good for her body."

The biker sighed settling back down in the lounge chair beside her bed. "Her names Pandora, she told me before she." He waved his hand and let the sentence die out, not actually commenting on the issue she had just raised. She huffed a sigh and turned towards him.

Denise watched him a moment, then slid into the extra chair at his side. "I can try and help her you know; this is what I did before. I helped people like her." She remarked rubbing her eyes, trying to push a headache she felt blooming behind her eyes away. Now was not the time for her not to be feeling her best.

"Like her?" His tone was slightly offended, that startled her. The amount of care and concern he had for this women shocked her slightly. She wasn't someone he had known before, she wasn't a member of his group he referred to as family, so what was it. Maybe it was how he had found her, he had a hard moral code she had coming to learn. It was unchanging, his concept of right and wrong, fair and unfair.

"People who suffered trauma," Denise replied slowly taking care with her. "Whatever she went through it was horrible she looks like she has PTSD post traumatic stress syndrome." There were many signed, Pandora didn't need to awake for Denise to be able to diagnose her. She had all the classic signs, nightmares, panic attacks, flashbacks it was textbook even.

"You'd do that?" He questioned harshly, bright eyes fixed on her.

"This isn't something you have to do alone; I want to help her." The conviction was strong in her voice; she watches Daryl nod slowly. "Go get some sleep I'll stay with her until she wakes up."

He only nodded standing he cast one last glance over his shoulder before shutting the door behind him.

Minutes seems to stretch by like hours, just as she eyes started the close her eyes she heard the women stirring.

Like Daryl had described the times before she woke up slowly, controlling every aspect of the process. Denise waited until she watched those deep brown eyes open. There was a moment of confusion on her face when she looked at Denise.

"Hello," Denise explained softly. "My name is Denise; I am the doctor here I have been helping Daryl take care of you." Pandora opened her mouth slowly her eyes scanning the room. "Before you say anything," Denise hurried on her hands up to show that she needed her to stop. "I am going to tell you some things that I need you to remember and then repeat. Nod if you understand me."

Pandora nodded slowly, Denise watched her closely noting the way her hands clenched and unclenched around the sheets.

"Your name is Pandora. Can you repeat that for me?"

The woman stared at her, eyes scanning Denise's' face unsure. Denise felt her heartbeat pick up, but she kept her face calm. Don't let her see how frightened you are she told herself, you are the doctor now.

Finally, after she took a deep breath she whispered, "My name is Pandora."

Denise smiled, "This one may be harder if you start to feel like your panicking show me five fingers and we will stop."

Pandora drew her knees up to her chest but nodded her head, knuckles gripping the sheets tightly. All these things Denise watched closely, her trauma was so fresh flashbacks would be common and frequent.

"You were found by Daryl and Aaron." Denise watched her closely waiting.

"I was found by Daryl and Aaron." Her voice was thick, choking almost.

"Pandora, take a deep breath." The women answered with a few deep breaths eyes wide focused.

"You are safe in Alexandria."

"I am safe in Alexandria." She repeated faster this time.

Denise grinned leaning back in her chair, "Good Pandora, that's so good. Next time you get overwhelmed or feel yourself slipping away you say these out loud ok? Can you tell me all three again?"

She watched Pandora gulp and suck in more air, her hands shook where she held them. "My name is Pandora, I was found by Daryl and Aaron, I am safe in Alexandria." Something happened then Denise watched slowly, there was something different in her face, something in her eyes. "My name is Pandora, I was found by Daryl and Aaron, I am safe in Alexandria."

Denise only grinned pushing more strands of hairs from eyes, "That's really good Pandora, really good." She couldn't get but think about how happy Daryl would be to see her up with a coping method to keep her calm. "I'm going to teach you a few more things, but that's for after ok? Right now is there anything you need?"

"A shower." She answers came fast Pandora was already getting ready to move throwing the blanket off her legs.

Denise tried not to gap at the state she was in, she hadn't seen her before this moment. The night Daryl came back with her it was too much chaos, Reg dead Pete dead, she wasn't ready to be the doctor then. It has been too much then really; it was still too much now if she was honest. But this girl needed her, needed the new doctor Denise and the Psychiatrist Denise. Daryl had taken care of her, cleaning and caring for all of her wounds. She was thankful for that the sight of blood still made her a little bit sick. This was not a normal wound she knew that; this was extreme torture.

"Sure," Denise remarked after a moment. She was going to move to help her up, but Pandora was already standing to move toward the bathroom door. "I'll um wait right here, there are new clothes in there. Shout or call me if you need anything." The awkward feeling was back with Pandora on her feet. She watched the women move into the bathroom shutting the door behind her.

Denise slumped down in the chair again feeling the weight of her exhaustion pulling on her eyelids. Her head turned to the window outside the night was dark and still. Her eyes flickered to the watch on her wrist 11 pm no wonder she was so tired. Behind her, the sound of running water lulled her into a dreamless sleep.