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“…I see,” Dr. Alevera nodded slowly, as she wrote down a few more notes. “Well, Jamie, I can assure you that it is perfectly normal for someone in your position to have nightmares of this kind.”

Jamie looked up at her, blinking in confusion and mild surprise. “It is?”

“Yes. You clearly suffered from some kind of trauma, and your mind suppressed it. Blocked it out, you could say, so that you wouldn’t have to deal with it anymore.

These dreams you’ve been having are likely nothing more than your subconscious trying to access those memories, albeit in strange and confusing ways. ”

“What do you mean?” Jamie asked.

“Well, it’s probably all quite metaphorical,” Dr. Alevera explained.

“The fire, the ice, the blood on your hands, the strange tool and the pain—your brain can’t recall what truly happened, so it’s taking the experiences you can’t remember, and substituting the details with symbolic imagery that are more easy for you to process.

For example, the fire could merely be a representation of anger, the blood might just be a symbol of guilt, the strange object…

I’m not sure; maybe it’s a cell phone, or a knife, or anything really. ”

“But it feels so real,” Jamie protested. “And I did have real blood on my hands the day Jesse found me! How could it just be symbols?”

“Well, while this is undoubtedly true, the brain is a complicated thing,” Dr. Alevera said.

“The blood you see in your dreams seems to be related, yet there’s no certainty that it actually is.

You had blood on your hands and soot on your clothes, that’s true.

But that doesn’t mean that the dreams you’re having are definitively showing you exactly how you came to find yourself in that state.

In fact, it could be the exact opposite; your mind is trying to come up with an explanation, working overtime to fill the gap in your memories, and this is simply its best guess as to what might have happened, while the truth could be just about anything.

I’ve dealt with cases like yours before.

If there’s something your mind doesn’t want to remember, and yet keeps trying to remember it anyway, this might be the result. ”

That made sense to Jesse. Whatever had happened to Jamie had left him in so much turmoil that his mind couldn’t handle it; anyone who witnessed one of Jamie’s nightmares would know how much it weighed on him.

“However,” Dr. Alevera continued. “Even though the dreams themselves are a natural response to your trauma, it’s clear that they’re affecting your daily life in a debilitating way. We need to try to reduce them, to help re-establish a good sleep cycle, and get you feeling better.”

“How would we do that?” Jesse asked. He hesitated, uncertain how he felt about what he was about to say as a faint, uneasy tightness settled in his chest. His fingers drifted there before he even realized—only stopping when he caught Jamie’s eyes flick to the motion.

Dropping his hand at once, Jesse refocused on the conversation. “Are you… suggesting medication?”

“Oh, no, I don’t think that’s necessary,” Dr. Alevera said at once. “I think this problem is one that can be solved without the use of drugs.”

Good. As a studying nurse, of course Jesse knew that medication was a perfect solution to a lot of problems. There wasn’t any difference between taking something to relieve congestion or joint pain, and taking something to relieve anxiety or depression or anything like that, but he still had reservations about over-prescribing such things.

And besides, even though he was willing to spend whatever they needed to make sure Jamie was happy and healthy, he had to admit that this was an expense they really didn’t need, on top of everything else they were already paying for.

“Instead, I’d like to start working with Jamie more regularly,” Dr. Alevera said.

“How do you feel about setting up a weekly appointment to come and talk with me? I think the best way forward is to get to the root issue—the memory behind the dreams—and deal with that. If we can solve the mystery of what exactly happened to you before you were found on that street, or at the very least provide you a structured outlet so that you can get it all off your chest, I’m sure the dreams themselves will fade. ”

“Then, it’s not too late?” Jamie asked quietly, his eyes wide, but tired, as if he was so close to losing hope that he could scarcely believe there was still some left.

Dr. Alevera blinked at him, a slight confusion crossing her expression. “Can you elaborate?” she asked. “Too late for what?”

“Too late to fix me,” Jamie explained. “I won’t be stuck like this for the rest of my life?”

“Stuck… having nightmares?” Dr. Alevera said with a frown, her confusion only seeming to grow.

“No,” Jamie frowned, clearly frustrated with himself. “I don’t know how to explain it. Nevermind.”

“…Hm,” Dr. Alevera narrowed her eyes as if in thought, but then seemed to shake it off, instead glancing down at her notepad as she wrote down another note.

“Don’t worry, I’m absolutely certain we can find a solution for you.

It’s never too late to work on certain points.

I have to admit that it would be easier if we had started earlier, but it’s definitely not impossible. ”

Jamie looked relieved, nodding once and letting out a slight breath as if he’d been holding it. “Okay.”

“I suppose it’s not surprising that you’re afraid these dreams might never go away,” Dr. Alevera said thoughtfully.

“If you’ve been having them as regularly as you say you have, it must feel like it will last forever.

So, as I said, our primary objective should be to calm everything down for you.

I’ve got some breathing techniques that should help you steady your nerves whenever you feel too overwhelmed, until we can get those dreams under control.

And, Mr. Callahan,” she turned to Jesse, offering a polite smile as she lowered her notebook and folded her hands together on her lap.

“It seems as though you’ve been a great help to Jamie already.

Can we count on you to learn a few techniques and procedures as well, that will help you assist Jamie with his nightmares more effectively moving forward? ”

“Of course,” Jesse agreed at once. “I’ll do anything for him.”

Dr. Alevera’s smile widened. “Excellent. It’s good to know that Jamie’s not alone in this.

” She turned her attention back to Jamie.

“I’m absolutely sure I’ll be able to help you find the meaning behind these dreams and reach a place where they occur less frequently—and in the meantime, my techniques will help you to feel safe and secure even after you wake from a nightmare.

We’ll take on this problem together, step by step.

So, don’t worry. From now on, things will start to get better. ”

Jamie let out another deep sigh, his shoulders relaxing some of the tension that had been built up over the past few weeks. “Okay.”

He was still holding Jesse’s hand, and Jesse was determined to be here for Jamie, and do whatever it took to help him get better.

They should have tried therapy weeks ago.