Lost In The Echo (Sean)

[Jesse Adams]

The explanation was met with a less than friendly gaze, his pierced eyebrow raised slightly in question. “That doesn’t make sense. You said the dose is too low to do anything to my blood.” Yes, he was going to argue it, or at least drag his heels on the subject. “I’m fine.” He had no idea what would or wouldn’t affect the medication, but he was pretty damn sure that he was just fine, thank you. Of course, his most recent medical experiences had been things like submitting to a brief exam for Max under duress, after his dislocated shoulder had been properly aligned again. Or the impromptu surgery he’d had to undergo after he’d been shot during the fight between M.S.A.D. and Hammel. And then there was the whole strep throat incident most recently. None of that painted any kind of picture in the terms Sean was talking about.

The teenager wouldn’t have agreed he was so fortunate. At least, not now. Perhaps in a few years, when he finally smartened up. Until then, he was going to remain ungrateful and difficult. He didn’t know why he was scared of doctors, but he was. Just like people were scared of spiders or clowns or anything else. If he could avoid the infirmary, he would. Even if the end results was medication to help curb his dreams.

Still, he was glad to switch gears. He’d fought himself over and over again on the pros and cons of what he was proposing. On the plus side, it might allow him to finally move on. It was a bandaid fix, true, but if it allowed him to move past Gabriel, it would be worth it. On the down side... he didn’t know what it would be like to not have his mentor in his head. At least not as strongly. If he was honest, it scared him. “That’s all I wanted to know. If you could do it.” His fingers flexed nervously, though he tried not to show it. “I’m not... ready for it.” After taking a moment to steel up his nerves again, he tried to go back to looking aloof and unbothered by any of this. “Are you going to ask me anything else about Gabriel, or are we done for today?” Not that he wanted to answer anything else. He just wanted to go, now he had his answers. He needed to think.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean didn’t glare in return; instead, he met the boy’s reaction as an impassive wall. It would take more than mild stubbornness to get a reaction from him. “Precaution is precaution, Jesse. If you don’t want to submit to blood work, then I won’t write you a prescription.” The psychiatrist had no intention of risking his medical license because Jesse Adams wanted to be argumentative and didn’t want to allow standard screening tests.

Since Jesse was an adult, in the end he would have to decide if the prospect of suppressing the nightmares outweighed the inconvenience of blood work. Sean had laid out the requirements, and that was all that he could do.

“Whether you’re ready is another matter entirely.” That they would discuss in greater detail in upcoming sessions, since Sean would not allow that to slip by without further assessment. However, there would be plenty of time for that discussion in the future, because Jesse had so many sessions left with the psychiatrist.

“You’re free to go for now.” They had made enough progress for the day, all matters considered. “But we will discuss Gabriel in the future.” That was a warning, because it was not optional. Since they had finally broached the topic today, the psychiatrist wanted Jesse to be aware of what would follow next time.

[Jesse Adams]

Jesse sighed heavily at the answer. This was ridiculous. The stupid medication wasn't even enough to do anything to his damn blood pressure, so why in the hell was this so... ugh. This was frustrating, and there was no way he'd go deal with Dr. Nik on this. Not unless things got worse, which at this point, he couldn't see how. He'd just suck it up the way he always did. By mainlining Red Bull and coffee if he woke up from a particularly bad dream. "Whatever. I'll just deal with it."

As for his readiness, at least Sean understood that one. Just because he wanted to explore the option didn't mean that he was actually ready to do it. He just... wanted his options. Who knew? Maybe the medication would help with it. If he actually wanted to go through the stupid hoops. ... Now he was going in circles, but it was all things he needed to figure out for himself. Maybe by the next session, he'd have come to some kind of conclusions.

The teenager flinched slightly at his mentor's name being spoken, but he said nothing. Simply gathered his things and lifted his hand in a brief good bye motion before leaving. He wasn't looking forward to their next session.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean was not going to argue about the ethical and chemical requirements for being prescribed a medication. Jesse was a student with no background in psychiatry or pharmacology, and Sean, as a psychiatrist, had his license on the line whenever he wrote a prescription or engaged in any other aspect of professional conduct or the practice of medicine. He had explained the necessary conditions and prerequisites to the boy; whether Jesse wanted to avail himself of the benefits of medication in exchange for blood work was his – not Sean’s – assessment to make.

“That’s your choice,” the psychiatrist replied. Should Jesse change his mind, they could rehash this another time.

Sean also did not lecture the boy about manners or propriety. He did nothing to keep Jesse a moment past when he had dismissed the dream manipulator. Instead, he returned the wave and watched as the boy exited his office with haste.

The session had gone about as expected. That Jesse arrived at all without being dragged by security was progress, and Sean wouldn’t let him shy away from the topic of Gabriel Underwood any longer.

Gabriel Underwood was the elephant in the room that needed to be addressed for Jesse to make a breakthrough.

They would tackle him at the boy’s next session.