Dark Heels

CHAPTER 9

"Hi, Alice Wilder. I'm William Humphrey, your therapist for today.", He said, extending his hand for an handshake.

Alice took it with a smile. "Nice to meet you", She replied.

William's gaze shifted to Ann and he beamed with warmth, "And oh, What a lovely friend!", He offered Ann a handshake too. "Very nice to meet you", He added.

Ann chuckled and replied, "Same here."

William's eyes twinkled as he whispered audibly to Alice, "I must say, miss Alice, you have one great friend here. She loves you. Stick to this one." The trio laughed heartily.

With a charismatic smile, William gestured for them to follow, "This way. I assure you a very warm welcome and a splendid session."

He led them to the left wing of the room, which is tastefully arranged properly with exquisite artworks.

A floor-to-ceiling black shelf stood against the wall, packed tightly with books.
On a nearby counter, a glass container held an assortment of therapy medications and emergency supplies.

Alice and Ann sat on a plush sofa, facing a golden glass table.

"Make yourself comfortable." William said, offering them coffee.

As he handed them their cups, Alice couldn't help but notice the way he prepared the coffee wasn't to her liking but she chose not to comment.

William began to tell them about his past, about a close friend he had at teenage years.

"You see, when I was a teen, I had a friends I loved a lot. We were just like you two, or maybe even much more closer", he said with a chuckle, glancing at the duo.

"We do everything together, always seen together, at times, we'd match up our haircuts and clothes. We just had this strong bond together. My friend was  so brilliant that every of her mates were so jealous and they hated us both cause of that, so much that students rose a false rumour about us.", he said.

He took a sip of the coffee. "Hm, still too hot", he mumbled.

"The dirty rumours reached the school authorities and they began some queries, involved our parents and gave instructions that..sucked", He continued after dropped the mug.

"The situation was so intense that we were forced to distance ourselves from each other." William said and sniff, fighting back his emotions.

Alice felt a pang of sadness. She just cannot imagine being separated from Ann.

"You didn't like the separation did you?", Alice asked.

"Tsk. I hated it and till now I still do. Gregory then, was- I was all he had and when we became distant, he had to carry his burdens alone, keep his secrets to himself and the most heartbreaking thing, he moved out with his parents and we lost contact till we got into college and voila! We met in college, like a miracle!", He paused and drank his already lukewarm coffee.

"It was a blissful day for us, but also stressful and frustrating to an extent." He chuckled.  "We had a lot to catch up on."

"Greg and I were both studying medicine, so we made a pact to work together and be godparents to each other's children. As Greg opened up again, we made new friends and even found a third person in our friendship cycle. We were so inseparable until our third friend fell in love during our final year, leaving I and Greg as the remaining singles. he found the woman he fell in love with on his final year, leaving I and Greg and I as the remaining singles", He said.

William's face lit up with a warm smile. "But then, Greg found his love immediately after graduation. He was radiant with happiness and I was overjoyed with him. My friend wass in love!"