I Don't Need Saving

“Doctor, please!” I pleaded with the floppy-haired man in tweed. “Please help me, Doctor. I can’t do this by myself, I’m scared.” My heart raced, my mouth was dry and I was visibly shaking, but yet he still stood there about eight feet away, his brow furrowed in worry and an apologetic look in his eyes.
“I can’t, I’m sorry but I can’t. You have to do this yourself, you have to fight it.”
“Please.” I pleaded again, my voice cracking as I tried to hold back tears. “It’s too strong.”
“It’s only too strong if you let it be. You can do this.”
I’d never seen him look so serious. Usually it was all silly hats and Jammy Dodgers. Everything was wibbly-wobbly-funny-wunny, if a little bit…explosive at times too. But not now, now it wasn’t a planet that was in danger or even the entire universe, it was his friend and that was worse than anything.
“This is in your head and its feeding off your fear. The more you ask me to help, the more you’re letting it in and the stronger it gets.” The Doctor said, trying his best to soothe me.
A faint idea popped into my head.
“W-when I was little and I got scared my mum used to tell me stories about her childhood to distract me until I wasn’t scared anymore.” I said shakily.
“Can you remember the stories?” The Doctor asked. “I’d love to hear one.”
I closed my eyes and tried to picture myself as a child, snuggled up with my mum as she told me her stories.
“She was about eight years old, her sister was six and they would walk to the swing park together every day. On the way they would pass an apple orchard, so one day my mum made her little sister steal an apple and…and…I don’t know, I can’t think.” My head felt strange, like it was filling with cotton wool and my memories were clouding.
“It’s okay,” The Doctor said, “It doesn’t want you to remember because it knows the story is working, you’re starting to beat it. Just concentrate. What happened after your aunt stole the apple?”
I squeezed my eyes shut tighter and focused on the memory.
“Um…my mum took the apple off her sister and ate it, then sold her back the core for ten pence.” The Doctor laughed quietly. “My mum’s always had a head for business.” I smiled.
I smiled. I could smile. I could smile and I wasn’t scared anymore.
I opened my eyes and grinned at The Doctor, who had a distinct ‘I told you so.’ Look on his face.
I ran forward and flung my arms around him.
“Thank you, Doctor.” I smiled as he squeezed me tight.
“I didn’t do anything, it was all you. You beat it all by yourself.” I stepped back and looked at him.
He is the most wonderful, magnificent and quite frankly weird man I have ever met, but he’d just shown me that I don’t need saving, I can save myself.