Ours

healing

"So," Katharine started. "Third session. How are you feeling today?"

Ben took a deep breath as he scanned the room. He'd been there before, but he can't help but feel nervous again. "Good. A little nervous."

"That's perfectly okay." She nodded. "And how is your wife?"

"We're good too. She's amazing, as always." His answers feel automatic, like something he'd reply to a relative he barely knew. It was strange.

Katharine looked down at the files on her lap. "Your form said you have nightmares. How is that? What does Dr. Bailey think about that?" She looked back up at him.

Ben cleared his throat. He didn't want to broadcast his fears, even if he was supposed to. "I…"

Apparently, she detected his hesitance. "T-that's alright. Let's move to something else. How was military life for you? From last week, you told me your father was an army surgeon, and here you are now."

"Well, he was a strict father." He let out a breath of relief. He leaned back on the couch. "He made rules, we stuck to them. But he was open-minded too. He knew Curt was gay. We all did. He accepted him anyway."

She frowned. "I thought your father didn't see Curt come out."

"He always knew. He did."

Katharine nodded. "Tell me about your life in the army, and having a wife far from from you. What's that like?"

Ben took a deep breath, and leaned forward on his thighs. He told her about the family he had, with his colleagues, and the pride he always felt, saving people who were laying their lives on the line for the country. Then, the hardship and homesickness of being away from Miranda.

The session ended. He felt more comfortable with her. His session today felt like a mix of interrogation and sharing. It kind of made him trust her more.

Ben went home with a calm heart, and a clear mind, which never did him good these days. His mind drifted to his life in the army. Through his head, different colleagues' faces flashed through, with Ollie's dirt-filled face as the glaring last one.

He shook his head as he parked at their garage at home. He closed his eyes, imagining his wife, and the people he'd saved. That always comforted him.

He spent a few minutes sitting there, unmoving, and suddenly, his phone rang. "Hello?"

"Hey, baby. Are you coming in?" Miranda's voice came through the phone. "You've been down there for a while."

Ben sighed. "Therapy was… I don't even know."

"Come up."

"I'll be right there."

He took his time getting out of the car and into their house. He didn't know why but his heart turned heavy every stepped he made towards their bedroom.

Ben knocked on the door, then turned the doorknob around.

As soon as he saw Miranda, he felt his fatigue melt away. She was looking up at him with those eyes, and her arms were open, welcoming him in.

"Come here," her voice was merely a whisper, but it was a magnet drawing him in, everytime.

He dragged himself to his side of the bed, and dropped his body into her arms. "Hey, baby." He kissed the closest part of her skin that he could reach, which was a random part of her chest.

Miranda giggled and stroked his head as he buried his face into her breasts. It was soft, and warm, and it felt like home. In her arms, he was home.