session.
“I . . . I thought I was ready to talk about this, but I can’t. I’ll come back again when I’m ready.” She stood and rushed toward the door.
“Patrice, please wait,” Kasen called after her, but she ignored him and left.
Kasen felt terrible. He had managed to keep thoughts of Raine out of his head during their session, but he was still worried about his ability to treat his patients in the midst of his own crisis. Were his own issues going to make him a less effective therapist? Kasen had never had to worry about this before. He’d always been so good at getting to the heart of his patients’ issues and helping them reach conclusions that healed their hurting souls. Now that he was hurting too, he was afraid it would affect his professional ability. He hoped that Patrice would come back soon and that he would be able to give her what she needed to feel better about herself—for her sake and for his.
Fortunately for Kasen, the rest of his day felt a little more like a typical day. His next appointment was with an older man who was obsessed with playing video games. His two o’clock was a woman who didn’t want to leave her abusive boyfriend, and his four o’clock appointment was with a compulsive gambler. In each session, Kasen found he was able to listen and offer advice without letting his mind drift to thoughts of Raine. He felt good about it, but also exhausted from the effort it took. By six, Kasen was ready to call it a day.
He stood by Voncile’s desk, holding his briefcase in his hand. “How much longer are you going to be?” he asked.
“Not long at all, but I do need to get out of here and go get me something to eat. A certain someone promised me lunch today, but just like my shake, I guess he forgot again.”
Kasen slapped his palm on his forehead. “Oh, shoot. I did forget. Please forgive me. I just have a lot of things on my mind, but I promise to make it up to you.”
“You promised the same thing yesterday,” she answered, sounding a little snippy for a second, but she caught herself quickly and cleaned up her tone. “Don’t worry. All is forgiven. I can tell that you’re kind of out it.” She reached out and put a hand on his arm. “Whatever is bothering you, please know that I’m here if you ever want to talk.”
Kasen wasn’t ready to tell anyone what had happened between him and Raine. For one, he was kind of embarrassed. It would be difficult for him to explain how things just simply fell apart, especially since he didn’t totally understand it himself. He knew that sooner or later he would have to share the news with his friends and family. He could only imagine what his parents would say about the breakup. As for Voncile, she was a nice person, but certainly not the first one he would share his terrible news with.
“That’s nice of you to offer,” he said, “but I’m not really ready to talk about it yet.”
There was an awkward silence between them for a minute, so Kasen tried to ease it by saying, “Anyway, as for the promises I keep breaking, you have to tell me how I can make it up to you.”
Voncile flashed a smile. “Well, since you asked, how about dinner? I promise I won’t question you about anything, although you can feel free to talk to me about anything. I promise not to judge you—and unlike you, I do keep my word,” she teased.
Kasen laughed. The truth was, if he went home he’d probably start wallowing in self-pity anyway. Voncile’s company might do him some good.
“Sure. Why not?” he said, accepting her offer. “I need to go to the post office and drop off a few packages first, though, so how about I meet you across the street in about thirty minutes.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Voncile was ecstatic. Yes! Yes! Yes! She silently screamed while watching him exit. An intimate dinner with him was right on time.
She had thirty minutes to waste before their dinner date, so she did something she often did when he wasn’t
“I . . . I thought I was ready to talk about this, but I can’t. I’ll come back again when I’m ready.” She stood and rushed toward the door.
“Patrice, please wait,” Kasen called after her, but she ignored him and left.
Kasen felt terrible. He had managed to keep thoughts of Raine out of his head during their session, but he was still worried about his ability to treat his patients in the midst of his own crisis. Were his own issues going to make him a less effective therapist? Kasen had never had to worry about this before. He’d always been so good at getting to the heart of his patients’ issues and helping them reach conclusions that healed their hurting souls. Now that he was hurting too, he was afraid it would affect his professional ability. He hoped that Patrice would come back soon and that he would be able to give her what she needed to feel better about herself—for her sake and for his.
Fortunately for Kasen, the rest of his day felt a little more like a typical day. His next appointment was with an older man who was obsessed with playing video games. His two o’clock was a woman who didn’t want to leave her abusive boyfriend, and his four o’clock appointment was with a compulsive gambler. In each session, Kasen found he was able to listen and offer advice without letting his mind drift to thoughts of Raine. He felt good about it, but also exhausted from the effort it took. By six, Kasen was ready to call it a day.
He stood by Voncile’s desk, holding his briefcase in his hand. “How much longer are you going to be?” he asked.
“Not long at all, but I do need to get out of here and go get me something to eat. A certain someone promised me lunch today, but just like my shake, I guess he forgot again.”
Kasen slapped his palm on his forehead. “Oh, shoot. I did forget. Please forgive me. I just have a lot of things on my mind, but I promise to make it up to you.”
“You promised the same thing yesterday,” she answered, sounding a little snippy for a second, but she caught herself quickly and cleaned up her tone. “Don’t worry. All is forgiven. I can tell that you’re kind of out it.” She reached out and put a hand on his arm. “Whatever is bothering you, please know that I’m here if you ever want to talk.”
Kasen wasn’t ready to tell anyone what had happened between him and Raine. For one, he was kind of embarrassed. It would be difficult for him to explain how things just simply fell apart, especially since he didn’t totally understand it himself. He knew that sooner or later he would have to share the news with his friends and family. He could only imagine what his parents would say about the breakup. As for Voncile, she was a nice person, but certainly not the first one he would share his terrible news with.
“That’s nice of you to offer,” he said, “but I’m not really ready to talk about it yet.”
There was an awkward silence between them for a minute, so Kasen tried to ease it by saying, “Anyway, as for the promises I keep breaking, you have to tell me how I can make it up to you.”
Voncile flashed a smile. “Well, since you asked, how about dinner? I promise I won’t question you about anything, although you can feel free to talk to me about anything. I promise not to judge you—and unlike you, I do keep my word,” she teased.
Kasen laughed. The truth was, if he went home he’d probably start wallowing in self-pity anyway. Voncile’s company might do him some good.
“Sure. Why not?” he said, accepting her offer. “I need to go to the post office and drop off a few packages first, though, so how about I meet you across the street in about thirty minutes.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Voncile was ecstatic. Yes! Yes! Yes! She silently screamed while watching him exit. An intimate dinner with him was right on time.
She had thirty minutes to waste before their dinner date, so she did something she often did when he wasn’t
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