Danielle
He wasn't over her.
"Sex on the Beach, please." I ordered.
I didn't blame him for not being over her.
"Alright." The bartender nodded.
I also didn't have any reason to be upset about anything. He hadn't betrayed me.
As far as I knew, he didn't have any plans on betraying me either.
Maybe it was just my insecurities speaking, but I wouldn't blame him if he did choose Amari.
He knew her and I bet she'd be able to carry his children.
The bartender handed me my drink and I thanked him.
"Anything for you sir?" The bartender asked.
"Yeah." The man sighed. "Rum and coke."
It was Amari's boyfriend.
I guess he noticed me staring because he looked up and sighed.
Justin
Just my luck.
I would run into anyone but the person I'm looking for.
"Why are you here?" Danielle asked moving to the seat beside me.
Something was off about her. I didn't trust her. I definitely didn't trust her around Amari especially with this newfound knowledge about Amari and Tyler. She had every reason to hate Amari.
"You aren't gonna talk to me?" She asked. "That's fine. We can just sit here."
The bartender handed me my drink and left to serve someone else.
"I just saw Amari..." Danielle started. "She came by the house to see Tyler."
Suddenly I wasn't in the mood for a drink anymore.
"You probably already knew that, though." Danielle shrugged sipping her drink. "You two are very close."
"Yeah. I knew that." I lied taking a swig of my drink.
I paid the bartender and hurried to leave before Danielle said anything else.
I needed a clear head so when I asked Amari about this, I wouldn't have a made up mind about what she went over there for.
I got in the car and immediately called Amari's phone.
"This is Amari. I can't come to the phone right now..."
I hung up the phone.
I forgot she left the house without her bag. I sped back home and saw the car Amari had taken back in the driveway.
"Amari!" I pushed the front door open and saw her standing there.
"I did it." She said. "I vetoed the contract."
That's why she went over there?
"Amari..." She cut me off.
"That doesn't mean I changed my mind about you going." She said. "A year? That's too long for me. If you go, I'm not sticking around and I'm not promising to be emotionally available to you when you get back, Justin. I can't."
"I know." I nodded my head.
I pulled her to my chest and hugged her tightly.
"Y'all need counseling." I heard Lana mumble as she walked out of the kitchen with a bowl of strawberries. "And I know just the lady."
Amari
A Week Later
Lana introduced us to her third cousin who was a marriage counselor and had agreed to see us.
This wasn't something either of us were interested in, but it was something we knew we probably needed.
"I don't wanna go..." Justin mumbled falling onto the floor like a child.
"Me neither, but we have to." I laughed nudging him with my foot. "Lana's cousin pushed back her lunch for us. It'd be rude not to go."
"Tell her to push it back up." Justin said sitting up. "We can talk here."
"We've tried talking, but that always end with us arguing." I shook my head. "And I'm tired of yelling."
"Fine." He held his hand out and I helped him back up. "But if she starts getting rude, I'm not being held responsible for anything I may say."
We showered and got dressed.
Then we left out.
When we made it to the address Lana sent us, we were greeted by a woman that looked crazy similar to Lana.
"Third cousin?" Justin asked in a whisper.
"I know." I nodded.
"Hi!" She greeted us happily.
We shook her hand.
"You must be Amari and Justin." She said. "I'm Jessica Reynolds."
"Yeah. Lana told us about your work and we were thinking that you could help us." I said.
"Of course." She nodded. "I've set aside an hour for you two. So, if you'll follow me into my office..."
We walked into the office with her and she sat behind her desk as we sat on the other side.
"Okay." She said opening up a draw. "I'm gonna have you two look over these documents. It's just an overview of what you can expect from these sessions, how much the hourly rate will cost you, and payment methods I accept. It also outlines how to make appointments and has the phone numbers of my office, my secretary, and my personal work phone."
She held the paper out and I grabbed it glancing over the document.
"The back sheet is going to require your signature and you can just hand it back to me. The other papers are yours to keep." She said handing me a pen.
Justin and I signed the papers and handed the contract back to her while I folded the other papers and put them in my bag.
"Let's get started." She smiled opening up her notebook. "Right off the back I noticed how you instinctively grabbed the documents before he did. I also noticed how you, Justin, didn't react to it too much. You didn't even lean over to get a quick look at it while Amari was looking at it. Why not?"
"What are you trying to say?" Justin asked glancing from me to her.
"I'm not saying anything." Jessica shook her head. "I'm just asking you a question. Does Amari typically take on the dominant persona in your relationship?"
"Amari is definitely not the dominant." Justin said sitting up straight. "She's a business woman and knows more about contracts and paperwork than I do so she handles that stuff."
"Hm." She nodded writing in her notebook. "Amari, do you feel as though you're the dominant in this relationship?"
"I mean..." I shrugged. "It really just depends on the situation. It's instinct for me to grab the paperwork because that's an essential part of my job. My career. He doesn't fight about it because that's something that's been happening since the start of our relationship. It wouldn't make sense for us to overthink it now."
"I see." She nodded writing again. "Well, Today we're going to indulge in a new exercise. At first glance, I got the impression that Amari was the dominant figure in this relationship, but you're both refuting that. So, Justin, during this session I would like for you to be more assertive. More in charge. You reach for the paperwork. You answer questions that aren't directed to anyone in particular. You be the dominant. Alright?"
"Okay." Justin sighed.
He wasn't enjoying this. I could tell.
"Okay. Amari." She looked over to me. "What would you say has been the biggest problem in your relationship?"
"The biggest problem?" I repeated and she nodded. "Before now I didn't see any problems. I was happy in my relationship. I was happy with Justin. I was an all around happy camper. So, I'm not sure what the biggest problem could've been."
"Really? No arguments about money? About how much one of you may go out and party? Drinking habits? Nothing?" She asked.
"No." I shook my head. "Justin is in the National Guard so he gets deployed a few times a year. We rarely drink, we're better off than most in regards to money, and partying has never been an issue because we both have jobs and other things to worry about than what songs the DJ is gonna shuffle."
"National Guard?" She asked looking over to Justin who nodded his head. "How long was your last deployment?"
"Three months." Justin answered.
"And how often did you two talk during that time?" She asked.
"Whenever we could." Justin said. "The base doesn't exactly give you unlimited WiFi and internet time. I tried to email her as often as I was allowed to."
"Yes, but how often was that?" Jessica asked again.
"I don't know." Justin mumbled. "Once a week at best. Once every two weeks at worse."
"Amari, were the emails enough?" She asked glancing over to me.
"I mean, emails don't make up for physical contact, but I support his decisions and knowing that he's alright when he's away will always be enough for me." I said.
"Very well put." She nodded writing. "Amari's job. What is it?"
"She's an interior decorator. She has her own company and she teams with construction crews and carpenters to redo entire houses and buildings." Justin answered. "She's great at it, too."
"Thank you, baby." I whispered grabbing his hand and he smiled at me.
"Has her career choices ever negatively affected you?" Jessica asked.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"Has her owning her own business ever taken away from you or put you in an unfair position?" She repeated her question.
"No. I don't think it has." Justin shook his head. "I've always been okay with her owning her own business and how much time she dedicated to it. She always finds time for me and that's enough."
"Are you sure about that?" Jessica asked.
"Positive." Justin said getting defensive. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"Well, both of you are saying that your jobs aren't creating any friction between the two of you which is strange given..." Justin cut her off.
"That's not what we said because that's not what you asked." He said. "You asked if we had any problems with the other's career choices and we don't."
"I just asked if her job ever negatively affected you and you said..." He cut her off again.
"I said no." He nodded. "Because it hasn't."
"Justin, calm down." I said quietly and he shook his head.
"What do you think started your problems?" Jessica asked.
"Not her job." Justin said.
"Then what?" She repeated.
"A client of hers." Justin said.
"I'm sorry. Is that not an aspect of her job?" Jessica asked.
"I'm sorry. Her history with a client of hers." Justin mocked her. "That's not an aspect of her job, miss."