The Revelation

Too young

The next morning in Dr. Evans's office

Mike's pov

When I called Marlena and informed her of our concerns regarding Julie's childlike behavior and demeanor, she recommended Shane and I come to her office to discuss them in person. Julie sat in the waiting room while Shane and I spoke to Marlena privately.

"Shane, tell me when you first noticed Julie's change in behavior? Where were you and what was happening at the time?" Marlena asked, as she pulled out her pen and yellow note pad.

"Well, uh," Shane paused, as he thought back to the first clue Julie gave him that she was regressing. He rubbed his chin and sighed.

Looking at my best mate, I'm just now seeing how exhausted he appears. I bet he hasn't slept more than ten hours in the past three days. As much as he's trying to make solving Julie's issues his top priority, he's really struggling to meet his basic needs right now. It's quite obvious by his sallow cheeks, the bags under his eyes, and his unshaven stubble, that currently can only be described as a seven o'clock shadow, Shane has not only been ignoring his need for peaceful slumber but his nutritional requirements and personal hygiene as well. Hopefully, Marlena can handle Julie so I can focus on saving the Admiral from himself.

After careful consideration, Shane continued with his answer to Marlena's question.

"I think I first noticed Julie acting differently after I punished her in my room for disrespecting me. She was having difficulty focusing and she was overly emotional." Shane began pacing the floor of Marlena's office as he tried to recall the details of his interactions with our second oldest daughter. "Do you think this could all be explained by her being anxious about how I was going to discipline her?"

"Without speaking to Julie first, it'd be premature to make any assumptions right now." Hearing Shane sigh as his shoulders slumped in despair, Marlena set her pen and notebook down to give him her undivided attention. "Tell me what concerns you the most about the way Julie is acting," Marlena said, wanting Shane to voice his feelings.

Shane stopped pacing and looked at Marlena directly.

"Did I cause this, Marlena? Am I the reason she's regressing because of what I did that night at the park?" he asked with a notable hitch in his voice, as he fought back tears. "Is this all my fault?" My best mate turned his back to us and quickly wiped his eyes.

"I don't think we should jump to that conclusion yet," Marlena responded. "Julie may be showing signs of age regression as a coping mechanism to deal with a traumatic event from her past, or she may be regressing due to pressures and stressors she's currently facing."

"How can we determine which scenario is more likely?" Shane sighed sadly and rubbed his forehead. "I need to know if I'm at fault, Marlena, so I can fix this."

It was quite obvious to me how desperate Shane was to help Julie and make things right.

Picking up her pen and pad again, Marlena asked, "Well, tell me this, Shane, what reason did Julie give you for smoking marijuana that night?"

Shane looked stunned by Marlena's question as his eyes got wide and he struggled to form an answer.

"I don't know," he finally said, after taking some time to think.

"Mike, what did Julie tell you?" Marlena put me on the hot seat now.

I shared an embarrassed look with Shane as we both realized neither one of us bothered to ask Julie to provide an explanation for her behavior.

"She didn't say, Marlena." I tried to maintain a shred of self-respect in front of my colleague but Marlena's much too perceptive to have missed my non-verbal cues. "She's a teenager, for chrissake. Isn't that reason enough?"