I’m practically playing with fire, but he started it first when he barged into my appointnt and had the nerve to claim we agreed on this.
When?
Obviously not with my knowledge. Just when I thought this devil wouldn’t get any more devilish, I’m proven wrong.
Now... he’s gonna get what’s coming for him.
Ares wants a couple’s therapy, he’s gonna get one.
On cue, a broad smirk spread on my lips, and I took his hand in a tight hold, intertwining our fingers in a lock before adjusting my glasses.
"We are ready, Dr. Miller. I think we can both agree that this is mutual..."
Dr. Miller cleared his throat, walking to refill his coffee before coming back to us. He sat in silence for a mont, just monitoring us both with intensity as if trying to peel our skin and see what shade we had.
I kept my bright expression even though I could feel Ares drilling a hole into my side profile with his stare.
This is not my fault... but yours. So chill!
Dr. Miller reclined on his seat and crossed his legs, pressing the end of his pen and opening a note.
"I’d like to welco you both here and thank you too for agreeing to this."
"Likewise. If you hadn’t ntioned it, we wouldn’t be here. Ares and I talked and decided this is needed to expel the bad juju in our ho."
He blinked. "Bad juju?"
"Yes, the kind that hangs above you like a dark cloud of impending doom, but this is everywhere, in our ho and office. Him."
"That’s..." he trailed, trying to follow up. "Quite the information. So you think this bad juju is what’s causing your stress?"
"Oh no... that’s just for the mood."
"The mood?"
I looked at Ares. "You know, married to soone as Ares King, it’s a regular occurrence. You can’t go a day without guessing what’s on his mind, and there’s nothing to show for it."
"Mr. King... please, we won’t start without you. What’s your input on this?"
Like a robot, Ares faced Dr. Miller, a cold, stone-like look plastered across his face. Even I got the shivers from it, but my case was different; I see that countenance as normal as seeing the sun rise.
Poor Dr. Miller.
Unable to linger, Dr. Miller leveled his gaze and wrote sothing on his note, using his handkerchief to wipe the sweat off his forehead, even though the AC was at a good temperature.
"We’re having fun, aren’t we?" I whispered to Ares. "I guess you didn’t imagine that being in therapy involves speaking more. There’s no way this will work otherwise."
The only response I got was that he lifted my hand in his hold and kissed my knuckles.
What’s that supposed to an?
Aside from the butterflies dancing, I can’t help the goosebumps rising on my skin, feeling like there was a deeper aning... the calm sea before the storm.
I can’t pull my hand away. I was the one who made contact first, and pulling back would only tell that I was intimidated.
"You two are in a tight spot..." Dr. Miller’s words snapped out of it. He pushed his glasses to the bridge of his nose. "Given Mr. King’s bad juju as you describe, there are a lot of unsaid things between you two. I have only spent four minutes observing, but I can tell there are more actions than actually speaking."
"Ares is more physical touch. That’s how he communicates."
"And you have more verbal ans. The complete opposite, but that doesn’t an you two don’t blend. In most cases, you actually really do. Mrs. King, you’re the voice, and Mr. King, you’re the action, that already is a closed knot." He emphasized with his hand. "You’re both expressing... just in different ways."
"I’m sensing a but..."
"Yes, there is... it seems Mr. King’s bad juju might be rubbing off on you. Now you have words to say, but you don’t, and are most likely using a ans to push him to be vocal. Which..." He looked to Ares, saying nothing, but his silence was loud.
"Wait... you deduce all that from simply looking at us?"
He chuckled. "I’m the King’s family doctor, and I have known him for a long ti. I’m aware, and Mrs. King, I have spent ti with you. Coming to this conclusion wasn’t hard."
Right.
"Now, how about we do this?" He changed the position of his crossed legs to his right. "I want you to be that voice."
"How?"
"Offload, because I can see you have sothing on your mind you want to tell him. It’s written all over your face."
I guess he didn’t need his expertise to figure that out. I always knew I wasn’t the kind to keep things in. I was loud in both actions and words, like my gramps would say.
I cleared my throat. "There’s plenty."
"At your pace."
For so reason, whenever he ntioned those words, I always found ease and the urge to open up. Even now, if I didn’t wanna be the voice, as he ntioned, I could easily skip, and he wouldn’t push.
I release a sharp breath. "Rember our date, I ntioned it in one of our sessions?"
"Yes, I do."
"It turned out there was a reason he stood up. A bloody reason..." I grumbled the last bit under my breath.
But thankfully, Dr. Miller didn’t tell to repeat myself or he simply didn’t hear.
"So you do understand why he stood you up."
"Unfortunately."
"Anything else?"
"His ex-fiancée, Naomi Lovecraft. Well, she didn’t have a chance to beco one, given so circumstances."
"So she resurfaced?"
"Yes... We t at the All Hallows’ Gala."
Dr. Miller nodded in understanding. "So seeing her made you—"
"Turns out Ares had a relationship with her. Do you know what I an, honey?" I looked to Ares, who peeled his eyes away from , the corner of his lips tipped a little bit, showing he was amused.
Of course he was.
"Mr. King... what do you have to say about this? Mrs. King seems troubled by this relationship with your ex-fiancée."
"She shouldn’t be troubled..." Ares spoke.
That was it. The next was a firm silence as we waited for more words to be said, but none were.
Dr. Miller sighed. "That alone speaks a great amount. Mr. King is a man of few words, but with them holds aning. He said you shouldn’t be troubled... which ans you have nothing to worry about. Does that satisfy you?"
No.
"Yes."
"Mrs. King, shall we... voice?"
I’m beginning to dislike this voice. I have said two things already, but this devilish bastard beside hasn’t moved an inch.
"His private business..." I spoke up. "I have an idea what it might be..."
"Private business?"
"Yes... sothing criminal..." I pinned him with a look. "taphorically speaking, of course."
"And how do you feel about that? From the way it seems, this is what’s bothering you."
"It depends on him. Because I would like to hear directly."
Dr. Miller glanced at Ares.
"..."
"I see... There are many unsaid things, but we’re getting sowhere. Mr. King. How much do you know about your wife?"
It took two beats before he replied. "Everything."
My breath shuddered. I anticipated that reply, yet it found a way to affect , not in a jittery feeling but more in isolation. It’s not fair that he knew everything while I’m stuck on an island trying to navigate.
"What about you, Mrs. King?" He threw the question at .
I didn’t reply.
My silence was long before the sound of his pen against his note filled the space.
"Your marriage has been for three months, yes? It is safe to assu that before that, you two have been together?"
"Y-Yes..."
Dr. Miller nodded. "Most of everything was after the knot was tied. So I think you both may have grown further apart because there was no strong foundation before marriage."
There wasn’t even a foundation to begin with; we were simply boss and secretary. It was spent with Ares, making my life hell most of the ti.
This marriage? It wasn’t even real, so I had no idea what to label this therapy, and it certainly wasn’t couples therapy.
We were just here to get under each other’s skin for God knows what.
"But rest assured, it’s not late or over. I can feel the passion between you two. You both have a magnetic pull. Mrs. King, you push and push, yet you find your way back to him. And Mr. King... you’re steadfast and on hold... fascinating."
I shifted uncomfortably in my seat, hoping he wasn’t gonna say the word love, but he didn’t.
"What you need is ti together to spark that foundation; it may not have been built, but it doesn’t an it was never there."
I forced a smile. "What are you suggesting?"
"A honeymoon."
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