From Her Window - Part 3

For context, please read the first two parts of this story. Part 1, written by Rowan Finley.

Part 2, written by Shamra Sibley.

Maxine tried to rest but she kept waking up from flashbacks that plagued her. Waking up in a cold sweat, she heard a soft soothing voice greet her.

"Hello there, Maxine. My name is Julie Lowry and I am a licensed mental health counselor. I wanted to check-in with you and see if we can talk for a bit. Is that okay with you?"

Maxine rubbed her face.

"Umm. Yes. Hi, that is fine..."

"Okay, great. I have read through your chart and understand you've had a recent traumatic experience. But, I want to get to know you a bit and learn about you before we talk about the event and how to process it."

She paused and gently smiled at Maxine who still had a furrowed brow.

"What kind of work do you do?"

"I work remotely from home for an insurance company. It's nothing exciting, but it pays the bills..."

"Okay. What type of hobbies or enjoyable things do you like?"

"I love taking care of my indoor plants."

"That sounds nice to be able to care for plants and watch them grow. I have a few of my own but I don't have much of a green thumb like you probably do. Have you ever seen a therapist before?"

"When I was a teenager for a bit. My mom made me.”

“Okay. I understand that you’ve witnessed a recent murder outside your house. Are you experiencing nightmares and flashbacks?”

“Yeah. A lot of them unfortunately…”

“This is very difficult and common for people. I have experience in helping people with a therapy technique called EMDR. Have you ever heard of it?”

“No.”

Maxine said with a blank, exhausted expression on her face. The therapist continued to ask gentle, probing questions. Maxine experienced EMDR for the first time ever. When the therapy sesson was over, she felt exhausted but in a good way. It was as if the window of her soul had been opened partially.

The next morning she woke up to sun pouring in through the hospital room window. In the window sill she saw three different succulent plants. They made her smile instantly.

“I wonder where those came from…”

“Me. I brought them.”

It was detective Brett Grayson who stood in the door entrance. He smile kindly at Maxine. The nurse was right behind him, eying him with slight annoyance, it she didn’t say anything. Instead, she glanced down at a chart that she held.

“I just have one question today. Did you see what the vehicle looked like that drove by, the one that had the person who fired the shoot from the vehicle that is.”

“It was just a black vehicle I think.”

She looked back at the small plants and got out of the bed. She shuffled over to the window in neon yellow hospital socks. Picking each succulent up to closely examined them, she glanced out the window.

“Thank you for the succulents. That was nice of you.”

She thanked the detective, without looking at him.

“You’re welcome. It’s the least I could do. I just wanted to also come by to tell you that I have determined who committed the murder. Apparently, the mailman delivered more than just mail to a lady down the street from you. Well, that lady’s husband decided to seek revenge and take the mailman out. I’m terribly sorry that you had to see what you saw but it looks like you’re getting the help you need here.”

Maxine nodded.

“Yes, I’ll be okay and it’s good to hear that the murderer has been caught.”

Dr. Thomas stepped into the room and nodded at the detective to step aside.

“Good morning, Maxine. How are you feeling today?”

“Better, after getting some rest. Thank you.”

“I recommend that you work with a group for trauma recovery.”

“Thanks, but I don’t really go out much. I’m not a fan of most people and of course their germs.”

Detective Brett Grayson tried to hold back a muffled laugh. He waved at Maxine from behind the doctor and quietly left the room.

Maxine stayed a couple more days and then was released. The therapist also recommended that she join a support group. Maxine was very nervous but she went to the support group, which was led by Julie. Maxine ended up making several friends and was able to learn many techniques for overcoming, not just the traumatic imagery, but she was, also, able to overcame some of her germaphobic tendencies as well!