A New Form of Therapy

Turning My World Upside Down

In hindsight, I should have seen all of this coming. I created a little bubble around myself that allowed me to forget about everything that was going on. The seriousness of the situation. It wasn't going to just go away this time. There would be consequences. This was one of them.

I lock the door to the bathroom and pull out my phone. My mind is so focused on texting Marcus that the texts and missed calls from different people surprise me. I guess I never turned my ringer back on from being on the plane. I look through the texts. One is from Selena, another is from Scarlet- which I definitely ignored- and the phone calls were from numbers that were not in my contacts. Probably magazines. There are voicemails too, but I open Selena's text before listening to them.

Hey, I just got a call from my manager asking if I knew anything about a trial that is going to happen. He said he was asked if I would be willing to speak in court. Please call me.

I close out my texts and listen to the first voicemail. It is from the head of the company I report to. There are a couple issues with my situation that they "wanted to go over with me" and that I should "call them as soon as I get the message". My hands start to shake as I go to the second voicemail. It is a magazine journalist. I immediately delete it. The third and final voicemail is from my lawyer. It says much of the same as the first one. He seems more urgent though and "couldn't stress enough how important it was that we speak today".

I debate on whether to call them back now or wait. It is urgent, of course, but I am hundreds of miles away. What could be done right now? Justin had gone through so much trouble to plan this trip on such short notice and I didn't want to cut it so short. We just got here.

"Linds?" I could hear Justin's voice calling my name.

I shove my phone into my back pocket and head out of the bathroom. I paint a smile on my face as I reenter the kitchen. My mom is putting something in the oven. My dad is leaning against the counter. Justin is sitting in the same spot he'd been in when I left. The only thing that didn't seem to belong was the worried look on all of their faces. It was clear why too.

"I'm assuming you just got a call from your manager." It wasn't a question but Justin nods silently. "I just got the texts and calls myself. I guess this isn't going to just blow over this time."

"Guess not," Justin says solemnly. We share a long look before my dad clears his throat. I turn from Justin and look at my dad.

"There's a situation back home to do with my work that I really need to deal with. Hopefully it isn't anything too serious." Okay, yes, I completely lied about that. I just don't want to worry my parents. "I really hate to leave right after getting here, but I don't think this should wait. We need to get back."

"We can stay for dinner, at least," Justin says. He doesn't sound worried at all, but the look in his eyes betrays him. "Just call them and explain that you aren't in town right now and we'll fly back in a couple hours. They aren't going to be able to do anything today anyways."

I nod, agreeing to his logic. It is already past five. Offices were closed. I duck out onto the front porch, Justin following close behind me, and pull out my phone again. I decide to call my lawyer back, figuring that would be the best person to reach right now. He seems to live at his office. Thankfully, he answers on the second ring.

"Thank you for calling me back," he says without any formalities. "This is heating up quick and we need to go over what is going to go on." I want to interrupt him and explain my end right now but I can't get a word in. I want to know what he knows too so I just listen to him give me everything at once. "The head of the therapy company has decided that your situation has breached protocol and they want to take it to court. If we lose, you will lose your license and you will not be able to practice therapy for over a decade."

I can feel the tears knocking on the back of my eyes, unwanted guests to an already crappy situation. I keep listening though. Justin is sitting beside me on the porch swing, his arm wrapped tight around my shoulders. I can tell he is trying to listen in on what the lawyer is saying, but I turn the volume down just enough so only I can hear it. I refocus on what he is saying.

"We need to meet up and go over details. They are already contacting other clients and asking them about your sessions and if you ever broke protocol with them."

Crap. I break protocol all the time with my clients. I meet at my house. Technically not a crime because that is also my office, but still. I let them stay over. We go way past their usual time and I don't charge them for it. We talk outside of scheduled visits. We got smashed. I pray that that night with Selena doesn't come up during the entire trial.

"Can you meet me first thing in the morning? We need to get ahead on this."

"Yeah," I say, finally able to get a word in. "I'll be in your office at eight."

"I'll see you then."

The phone call ends and I just stare off the porch. I've missed it here, in my childhood neighborhood. There are so many memories I could tell you about, but that would take way too long. I have more important things on my mind at the moment anyways.

"What did they say?"

"It's going to trial and they just want to get ahead of it while they still can. Apparently the board that I answer to has started contacting some of my other clients to see if I've bent the rules or done something that I shouldn't have with them."

"You haven't, though." Justin says it so matter-of-factly that I immediately feel guilty about the scoff that comes out of me.

"I bend the rules with every single client I have," I say. "It isn't because I want to go against what I was taught and what I know procedure is, but I just found that it was way easier if I became invested in my clients' lives. I needed to know who they really were outside of our sessions. Client- therapist relationships don't usually include texting each other, staying the night, getting drunk." I knew Justin would know what I meant by that last one. "I mean, even before we admitted our feelings to each other, we had already crossed several lines. You stayed the night and then that time we ate dinner together. None of that should have happened."

"Don't talk like that," Justin says. His arm moves from around my shoulders to grab my hand. He squeezes it, clearly trying to reassure me. It doesn't work. I can still feel the knot in my stomach. "No one is going to give you up. You have helped a lot of people."

"That's what I'm afraid of," I say. I clarify when I see the look on his face. "Yeah, there are the basics that people know. Don't sleep with your client, don't get personally involved, and so on. But there are so many small things- protocols- that I don't follow because I personally don't believe in them. That or they are just hard to follow with my clientele. It is going to get very messy before this is all over, one way or another."

On top of all of this, I still haven't texted Marcus.

**Hey guys... So this is the beginning of the end of ANFOT. I hope you have enjoyed this sequel as much as the first one. Please comment below your predictions of what is to come! There are going to be a couple more updates but we are very close to the end!**