Toxic Obsession BWWM (SLOW UPDATES)

Capitolo Uno

Zara Cole

This might sound corny but I genuinely love my job, I grew up being hyper observant of my surroundings, how people acted and reacted around me. Over time I learned how to listen and understand what others needed, whether that was a shoulder to cry on, or someone to vent to. It became second nature.

I won't deny that I have gained and lost several friendships to this skill of mine, others tend to see people like me as someone who can 'take it', I can listen to them for hours and absorb all the energy that is given to me, whether its positive or negative, it didn't matter as long as I listened.

People would compliment this aspect of me, 'Zara, you are a great listener' or 'I love talking to you, we should do it more often', only thing is I am not doing any speaking, just the listening. Not only does this lead me into a spiral of overthinking about how and what I can do to help these people, and if I am enough to help them, but it has also made me somewhat numb, I care but I don't, I want to help but said 'help' ends up being nothing more than a nod and a knowing silence - that is where I lose them, when my silence isn't enough.

This morning was no different than the others. It was a typical Monday, the jarring sound of my Alexa alarm dragging me out of sleep, just as it has every weekday for the past three years. I got dressed, slipping into my usual work attire: wide-legged black trousers held up by my favourite leather belt with a silver buckle, paired with a simple white crew-neck bodysuit. I threw on a cropped grey cardigan, buttoned just enough to reveal my silver jewellery.

The streets of London buzzed with the usual morning chaos—workers hurrying to their 9 to 5s, cars clogging the roads, and buses accommodating familiar passengers to the same destinations. It was the same predictable routine, day in and day out. Nothing ever really changes here, but somehow, I love it all the same.

As I arrived at the office, I head to the receptionists with a smile plastered on my lips, ready to hear everything about their weekends before dealing with my first patient, which wasn't till 11am. The office was modern and sleek, the click of my heels muffled by the dark grey carpets that extended all throughout the floor, the floor to sealing windows illuminated the office space beautifully, but also allowing whoever was within the space to observe the whole city of London, maybe not the whole of London, but enough to satisfy us.

As I approached the front desk, something caught my eye—my assistant speaking with an unfamiliar man in the corridor. I turned my head, trying to place him. He wasn't one of my usual patients; they tended to show up in more casual attire. This man, however, looked to be in his late 30s or early 40s, with neatly styled dark curls and a perfectly tailored black suit. He stood out—confident and well polished. And needless to say, he looked great.

My assistant on the other hand looks nervous, perhaps because this was the first time she dealt with a patient on her own accord, she's new to the office but I knew she was perfect for the role the moment I realised how much I resonated with her story. She's a recent graduate who was looking for an internship and after she reached out to us about a position we had ongoing, and chit chatting with her, I offered her the role immediately.

She was clutching on the file given to her by the man firmly as she looked up at him with confusion and slight fear. Before I could head over to deal with the man, he turned towards me with a smile and made his way out the office.

I glanced at Serena, our receptionist, hoping for answers, but her expression mirrored my own confusion. She shrugged. "He came in and went straight to Jade," she said.

That was strange.

All appointments were supposed to go through the front desk for verification of name, age and reason for needing therapy, before a file was created and sent out for scheduling. The fact that he bypassed that process completely was... interesting. It made me wonder what his connection to Jade was, and why he seemed to ignore the usual procedures entirely.