Assistance Required

Starting Therapy

TW anxiety

Fri Jan 22

Virgil took a deep breath as he stared at the door to the clinic. He could feel his hands shaking and his stomach forming tight knots. He jumped as a hand touched his shoulder. He turned to see Logan smile at him. Patton wanted to go with him, but he and Joan were comforting Thomas in the dorms so Logan offered to walk with him so he wouldn't lose his nerve. He waited patiently for Virgil to get up the nerve to walk into the building.

Virgil took another deep breath before opening the door. He entered the building and talked to the front desk. They told him where to wait. He felt bad taking up Logan's time, but he didn't want to wait alone so he didn't ask him to leave. He sat on the edge of the couch next to Logan nervously bouncing his leg. They sat in silence. It was starting to be too much. He wanted to leave. He felt so out of place here and he couldn't stop running through different scenarios all ending badly. What if they wanted to talk to his dad? His dad would kill him if he found out he was in therapy. He could almost hear his voice. "Men don't go to therapy. We deal with problems head on."

"Virgil?" Virgil jumped at the sound of Logan's voice.

"Hm?"

"There's no reason to be nervous. They just want to help. It will help."

"Do you... do you think they'll want to talk to my dad?"

Logan shook his head.

"I highly doubt it. We're technically considered adults so they're likely to treat you like one which means your dad isn't necessary. Not that it really matters. If you tell them about what he's done I'm sure they'll keep him out of any plans to better your health."

"Do I have to tell them about him?" Virgil asked.

"It'd help. They aren't going to tell anyone anything you say unless you're in danger. Like if your father was here looking for you, they might say something to the staff to prevent them from letting him find you and get him off the premises."

"It's just weird. Telling a stranger everything that's going on."

"Well, yeah, but I don't think they'll make you say anything you don't feel comfortable sharing. Today is probably going to be more of an introduction. They might go over what problems you're having and just try to get to know you."

Virgil nodded. He was still kind of nervous. Talking to strangers was never fun, but it was a little easier having an idea of what to expect.

"Virgil?"

He looked up to see a young woman standing in the doorway smiling softly at them. She had soft red hair tied up in a messy bun. She wore blue glasses which were sliding down her nose but she didn't seem bothered by it. Her face was littered with faint freckles. He glanced at Logan before standing up.

"I'll be in our dorm when you're done," Logan said before patting his shoulder gently and walking away.

He followed the woman down the hall to a room. It looked like a small office with cozy chairs in the corners. She gestured for him to sit down and closed the door before taking a seat across from him.

"You go by Virgil right?"

Virgil nodded.

"And your pronouns?"

"H-he/him."

"Okay. Well, I'm Dr. Ryans, but you can call me May. I use she/her pronouns. Your forms said you were dealing with some anxiety?"

Virgil nodded.

"Do you take any medications to help with your anxiety?"

Virgil shook his head.