pictures of ocean views decorated her walls while the faintest sound of a flowing stream could be heard coming from a sound machine in the corner of the room.
“ Thank you for fitting me into your schedule, Dr. Appell. My father was rather insistent about my seeing you,” I said nervously while trying to absorb the relaxing atmosphere emanating from the room.
Dr. Appell studied me for a moment with her warm brown eyes. “Well, from what you told me on the phone, your father sounds very worried about you.” She motioned to the brown leather couch behind her. “Why don’t you have a seat here and we’ll get started.”
I gingerly took my place on the couch and warily watched as Dr. Appell had a seat in an overstuffed brown leather chair across from me.
She picked up a pen and notebook that were sitting on a glass table to her right. “I got a little bit from you on the phone, but why don’t you tell me what has brought you here today. Why do you feel you need counseling?”
I looked at the woman dumbfounded. “My father wanted me to come.”
“ I understand that, but this is about you and not your father, Nicci.” She nodded. “What has led you here? What has brought you to this point in your life?”
“ What has led me here?” I shook my head and smiled at her. “That’s simple,” I assured her.
Dr. Appell laughed slightly. “I’m glad you find that a simple request. Most of my clients think that’s one of the hardest questions they have ever had to answer.” Dr. Appell wrote something in her notebook.
“ For me there is only one thing, no…one person who has brought me to this point in my life. His name was David. He’s the reason I’m here today. He made me what I am.”
She glanced up from her notepad and slowly smiled. “Tell me about David.”
“ About David…” I felt my voice catch in my throat at the mention of his name. My heart started beating wildly and my palms began to sweat. Every detail about David that I had tried to suppress since moving in with Dallas came barreling up from deep inside of me. It was as if the past three years had finally caught up with me and I was confronted by all of the death, violence, intrigue, and danger I had endured. I was blindsided by a wall of mixed emotions. I felt my stomach tighten with anxiety as my eyes filled with tears. Into my mind popped an image of David, standing before me and smiling down on me with his warm gray eyes.
“ David was…” I took a deep breath and fought for control over my emotions. “He was everything to me. And then he died.”
Dr. Appell grabbed a box of tissue from the table beside her. She handed the tissue to me and nodded. “Why don’t you start at the beginning? Tell me about the day you and David met,” she suggested in a soothing voice.
And for the next hour I told the psychologist about my life with David; our love affair, his painting, and his sudden murder. I went on and on about the enigma that had been David Alexander.
***
“ Not long after the whole Michael Fagles incident, Dallas and I moved to Connecticut and started living together. He took over his family’s yacht building business while I finished my next novel,” I explained as our time came to a close.
Dr. Appell put her pen down on the notebook in her lap and sat back in her chair. She watched my expression for a few moments with her warm brown eyes.
“ That’s quite a lot of living crammed into a few short years, Nicci. And when did David first appear to you? And how many times have you seen him since?”
“ I’ve just seen him once. A few days ago, after my cousin’s wedding in the French Quarter.”
Dr. Appell quietly contemplated me as I sat on the couch in front of her.
“ Do you think what you saw was real, Nicci?” she inquired.
Like most situations involving mental illness there is no right answer, but a hell of a lot of wrong ones. I just hoped I could offer the answer that no longer brought my sanity into
“ Thank you for fitting me into your schedule, Dr. Appell. My father was rather insistent about my seeing you,” I said nervously while trying to absorb the relaxing atmosphere emanating from the room.
Dr. Appell studied me for a moment with her warm brown eyes. “Well, from what you told me on the phone, your father sounds very worried about you.” She motioned to the brown leather couch behind her. “Why don’t you have a seat here and we’ll get started.”
I gingerly took my place on the couch and warily watched as Dr. Appell had a seat in an overstuffed brown leather chair across from me.
She picked up a pen and notebook that were sitting on a glass table to her right. “I got a little bit from you on the phone, but why don’t you tell me what has brought you here today. Why do you feel you need counseling?”
I looked at the woman dumbfounded. “My father wanted me to come.”
“ I understand that, but this is about you and not your father, Nicci.” She nodded. “What has led you here? What has brought you to this point in your life?”
“ What has led me here?” I shook my head and smiled at her. “That’s simple,” I assured her.
Dr. Appell laughed slightly. “I’m glad you find that a simple request. Most of my clients think that’s one of the hardest questions they have ever had to answer.” Dr. Appell wrote something in her notebook.
“ For me there is only one thing, no…one person who has brought me to this point in my life. His name was David. He’s the reason I’m here today. He made me what I am.”
She glanced up from her notepad and slowly smiled. “Tell me about David.”
“ About David…” I felt my voice catch in my throat at the mention of his name. My heart started beating wildly and my palms began to sweat. Every detail about David that I had tried to suppress since moving in with Dallas came barreling up from deep inside of me. It was as if the past three years had finally caught up with me and I was confronted by all of the death, violence, intrigue, and danger I had endured. I was blindsided by a wall of mixed emotions. I felt my stomach tighten with anxiety as my eyes filled with tears. Into my mind popped an image of David, standing before me and smiling down on me with his warm gray eyes.
“ David was…” I took a deep breath and fought for control over my emotions. “He was everything to me. And then he died.”
Dr. Appell grabbed a box of tissue from the table beside her. She handed the tissue to me and nodded. “Why don’t you start at the beginning? Tell me about the day you and David met,” she suggested in a soothing voice.
And for the next hour I told the psychologist about my life with David; our love affair, his painting, and his sudden murder. I went on and on about the enigma that had been David Alexander.
***
“ Not long after the whole Michael Fagles incident, Dallas and I moved to Connecticut and started living together. He took over his family’s yacht building business while I finished my next novel,” I explained as our time came to a close.
Dr. Appell put her pen down on the notebook in her lap and sat back in her chair. She watched my expression for a few moments with her warm brown eyes.
“ That’s quite a lot of living crammed into a few short years, Nicci. And when did David first appear to you? And how many times have you seen him since?”
“ I’ve just seen him once. A few days ago, after my cousin’s wedding in the French Quarter.”
Dr. Appell quietly contemplated me as I sat on the couch in front of her.
“ Do you think what you saw was real, Nicci?” she inquired.
Like most situations involving mental illness there is no right answer, but a hell of a lot of wrong ones. I just hoped I could offer the answer that no longer brought my sanity into
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