𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬: 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐌𝐄𝐊𝐇𝐈

29. | P O W E R

"You said he's invincible," the therapist tapped her pen, "Well don't you think that's a bit irrational, Aiko? He's still flesh, he's still a man - - let me ask you something," she leaned closer, "Do you believe in God?" Aiko nodded that she did, "So you believe that God is the only being capable of having such powers as you described - - all knowing, immortal and so on," Aiko nodded again, "Well then it would be impossible for Mr. Mekhi to be those things as well, correct? God is the only one capable of that according to your beliefs."

"Your eyes and ears aren't open," Aiko said, "I know you're familiar with him. I know you know who he is - - everyone does, and not just the Tri-state."

"Yes," she nodded, "I'm familiar with Mr. Mekhi. I've read about him. You make a point, so he's an important person, yes but he's not a God."

"It doesn't seem that way anymore," Aiko replied and turned her eyes to the windows again, "He has the power to make anything happen - - look at what he did to me. I have everything and yet I have nothing. I feel like I've been destroyed - - I feel like nothing," she swallowed the lump in her throat, "The minute he took it all away from me I felt like nothing. If that's not power I don't know what is," the therapist listened and continued to write things down, "I honestly just feel like I want to die without him."

"Harming yourself isn't the answer, Aiko."

"Well then what is?" She turned to her therapist quickly, "You tell me what I need to do to get him to stop acting like I don't exist."

"He's married and you have to understand that. These feelings that you have for him can't be returned by him because of his other obligations to another woman. Yes, he may have entertained infidelity with you for a while but at the end of the day he chose where he wanted to be and it wasn't with you and you have to reach inside and navigate through that in order to move on," Aiko was burning up inside as the therapist spoke, "You have to let him go and take him down off this Godlike pedestal you've put him up on. The truth is there for you to see Aiko but you don't want to see it because it hurts you to see it."

"I love him."

"He didn't love you," she said straightforwardly, "He used you. He used you until he was done with you and he left you. How can you be in love with someone like that? Someone who hurts you that way? What kind of person is he to do that to you - - and his wife?"

"I need him."

"He doesn't need you," said the therapist, "If he did wouldn't he be here right now? Aiko I just want you to think rationally about the situation."

"You don't know how it feels until you've been with him," she wiped her eyes again with her sleeves, "You don't understand - - you can't."

"He's just a man - - and YOU need to understand that, Aiko. It's irrational to think of him as anything other than that. A powerful man, yes, but a man still. He isn't invincible."

"Well," she stared down at her nails beds and didn't bother to wipe the fresh tears, "Look at me," she said, feeling like she was crumbling, "Do you think a man should have power like that?"

"Well I think - - ,"

Aiko cut her off, letting the tears fall - - something she rarely did, "No one man should have all that power."

● ● ●

Since she finally came clean about the baby to Carter everything had changed so quickly. She spent the past few nights crying herself to sleep wondering what Brazil had meant, what him saying that she was his baby doll - - his girlfriend had meant, and what all the time they spent together amounted up to. Was that all nothing now that a baby had come into the picture? Could it have all just been lies?