The conscious woman yelps, “That must really hurt!”

“Yes, but only in a metaphysical sense! — i.e. your friend’s persistent headache.”

The doctor hands her the model skull and moseys over to my side of the desk, waving his stupid pipe around my head. “Sometimes…in rare cases, this incredibly complex process becomes…stuck. Particularly on unpleasant memories.”

Someone is patting Alexa’s head. It feels nice.

“Yep, I could totally see this happening,” the woman attempts a mouthed subtly, “This one has a lot of trauma.”

Unfortunately, the doctor man continues talking. “Erhm, yes, a memory of approximately five years ago resisted suppression, leaving the patient in this…state of errmm…depersonalization.” He clears his throat and attempts a tone of competence, “Of course this risk is laid out in her consent forms.”