"Don't say my name!" The little girl screamed. "Don't say it like that." The doctor looked at Sidney carefully. Sidney knew that look too well.

"Like what Sidney?"

"Stop! You did it again." He wasn't getting it. Why couldn't he understand?

"I'm not sure I see what you mean Sidn-"

"Sh." She said. It sounded fast and urgent in the doctor's ear.

"Tell me, am I saying it wrong?"

The doctor acts like he cares. But she knows better.

"The way you say my name- the way you ma-make it sound...it's just..." She couldn't find the right words. Not in a way someone like him would understand.

"Some people just can't say it." She stated. As if it was the most logical thing in the world. "Mommy can't say it either. Every time she does, I cringe. Some people just weren't meant to say my name."

"So tell me, who can say your name correctly?" The doctor asked. As if he was seriously curious. Sidney wasn't stupid. Perhaps little, but not stupid.

"Like you care." She spat. She didn't want to deal with the robotic-like doctor anymore. No more hospitals, no more supervised play dates, no more pointless checkups with clueless doctors.

"Please. I really am curious." She almost believed him. She knew that was exactly what he wanted. But even so, it would be nice to tell someone, she thought. Maybe someone would understand.

"It's just-" She still couldn't get the words out. She was still afraid of what would happen. She sighed. "Random strangers say it right." She said it fast. Wanting to get it over with. "People who really love me say it right. People with real concern for me, people with real emotion." She couldn't tell if the doctor thought she was crazy or not. "Now what do you mean by 'real emotion.'" He clicked his pen. Apparently glad he was getting somewhere.

"You wouldn't understand." She said. "Try me." He probed.

All of the sudden, something changed. He couldn't quite place it. Perhaps it was the way Sidney's body went ridged all of the sudden. Perhaps it was the sudden cold in the room. Perhaps it was the way everything was too quiet. Then he realized it. As soon as Sidney looked up. Her eyes had changed. From the crystal blue that was normal, they had changed to a complete, soulless white. She looked up and whispered, "You're not real."

The last thing he saw was a swift movement and someone reaching out to grab him.