Exactly one month later:
Destiny sighed, looking up at the tall building. The weather in Atlanta hasn't been the best lately. It's been raining this entire week, and to make matters worse, Kaleb came down with a fever. As bad as she wanted to stay home and help Kross tend to their son, she had to do this. Pushing the glass door open, a middle-aged woman sitting behind the front desk greeted her.
"Do you have an appointment?" The woman questioned, asking basic information. "Yes. Destiny Jones, 1:15 with Doctor Melendez." She informed. The woman typed Destiny's information into the system, confirming her appointment with Stephanie Melendez, the highest recommended therapist in the office.
The receptionist sent Destiny up to the 4th floor minutes later. On the elevator ride up, she grew anxious. This is all new for her. Destiny wasn't sure if she could sit on a complete strangers couch, expressing her feelings and emotions, but she promised Kross she would try. One soft knock to the glass door was all it took for Stephanie to swing it open.
Her piercing green eyes were almost hard to not stare at. Her smooth, wrinkle free skin was slightly pail, but her long ginger spice hair made up for it. "Hello, you must be Destiny. Come on in." Stephanie smiled. Destiny walked into her spacious office, looking around at the simple decor. "I'm Doctor Stephanie Melendez, but you can call me Stephanie." She spoke, grabbing her notepad and pen from her desk.
She signaled Destiny to have a seat on the brown sofa across from her. Stephanie could sense a first timer whenever one was in the room. She's been a therapist for fourteen years, and is supposedly damn good at what she does. "Before we start, I would like for you to know, this is a safe space. Nothing you share with me leaves this room. You are free to express yourself in whatever form you feel comfortable." Stephanie stated.
Destiny nodded, trying to get as comfortable as possible. "Okay, let's begin." Stephanie slipped her a smile, opening the notepad. "What brings you here?" She questioned, looking over at Destiny. She cleared her throat, "Trauma, heartache, childhood scars... the list goes on." Destiny said. Stephanie took note of all that was said. "All of which are normal for patients." Stephanie reassured. "I've never done this before." Destiny confessed.
Stephanie took a second to look up from her lap, staring closely at Destiny. "It's perfectly normal to feel uncomfortable. Not everyone opens up right away. Some people walk in and start airing their dirty laundry, while others don't even want to discus the real reason their seeking therapy." Stephanie shared. Her statement made Destiny feel a little more at ease than when she first entered the office.
"Now, you said you're here for many reasons." Stephanie glimpsed down at the notepad with the notes she jotted down, "But first, let's get to know you." She smiled. Destiny bit down on her bottom lip before slowly shaking her head. "Do you have any family, Destiny?" Stephanie asked.
"I'm the oldest of four children." Destiny gave her a small smile, thinking about her three siblings. "What about your mother?" Stephanie questioned. Destiny toyed with her acrylic nails while looking down at the peach rug on the floor. "My mom... she's around, but she hasn't always been the best mother to her children." Destiny informed.
The doctor took note of this in her notepad as well. Although Destiny is here in sought of learning to face her trauma, Stephanie wasn't about to force her to open up in their first session. Asking a patient to tackle their trauma right away is very risky. "Destiny, what's the relationship between you and your mom like?" Stephanie asked.
There was a brief moment of silence before she spoke. "I love my mom, I really do. But sometimes I hate her ass. Hate how she always chose drugs over her kids. I hate how it took me checking her into rehab, against her will, for her to change." Destiny shook her head. Stephanie observed Destiny's body language. "Your mother, is she clean now?" She asked.
"One whole year now." Destiny said, sounding the least bit of moved. "Does it make you feel any better knowing she's not using?" Stephanie questioned. Destiny wanted to ask her why all the questions, but she quickly remembered that it's therapy. This is what happens. "Yeah, I guess. Now she can finally be a mother." Destiny voiced. "I can sense you have some resentment towards your mom." Stephanie stated.
"How do you sense that?" Destiny questioned, looking straight ahead at the doctor. Stephanie placed her pen flat onto the notepad, "Well, you made how you feel about her transparent, but you still have yet to tell me what your relationship with her is like." Stephanie waited for a response from Destiny.
"Not the best." Destiny said, "It's annoying to be around her, sometimes." She looked over at the window. "She just always knows what to say to get under my skin." She added, placing her eyes back on the doctor. "Why allow her to get underneath your skin? Do you care about what she thinks?" Stephanie asked. Destiny took a minute to throughly think about the question being asked.
"No, I don't. I guess, I don't know how to ignore her slick commentary." She told Stephanie. "And this is why you two often bump heads?" Stephanie looked at Destiny. "I guess." She shrugged. Stephanie could immediately tell Destiny's mother played a huge role in the cause of her trauma. "Are you seeing anyone?" She questioned, shifting the subject of their conversation. Destiny tried hiding her grin, but failed terribly.
"Yes." She told the therapist. "You look happy. Does this man or woman make you happy?" Stephanie asked, seeing the change in Destiny's body language. "Yes, he makes me extremely happy. We have a son together." Destiny disclosed. "How are you enjoying motherhood?" Stephanie asked. "I love it. I love my son." Destiny spoke, honestly.
"Do you allow your mother to have a bond with your son?" Stephanie questioned. Destiny twisted her mouth to the side, "I haven't let him be around her as much as a grandson should with his grandmother." She sighed. Stephanie sensed that this isn't something Destiny wanted to do, but rather, was left no choice. "How do you feel about having to make a critical decision as such?" The Doctor picked up her black ink pen.
"Sad. Every child deserves all the love they can get, but it is what it is." She shrugged. "Destiny, can you tell me what your childhood was like growing up?" Stephanie squinted her eyes. Destiny bit down on her bottom lip, thinking back to the time she was once a child. "On Christmas mornings, my siblings and I, we'd rush into the living room, tearing open our presents." She smiled.
"My father..." she paused, fidgeting with her nails again. "... my father would go all-out on the gifts, and my mom would wrap the heck out of those gifts." She chuckled.
"Since I'm the oldest, my father taught me how to be street smart. H-He taught me to keep my head held high." Her voice slightly cracked. Stephanie took notice to the difference when speaking about her mother, versus her father. "Describe the relationship you had with your father growing up, Destiny." Stephanie spoke. Destiny exhaled, looking up at the white ceilings briefly.
"I was a daddy's girl. I wanted to do everything with my daddy." She said, tears starting to form her eyes. Stephanie saw Destiny growing emotional and decided it was best to stop her from going on any further. "For this to be your first session, I must say, you did very well." Stephanie told her. Destiny swatted the tears from her eyes before they could run down, nodding her head.
"Is that all?" She asked. "For today. I saw that you were starting to get overwhelmed speaking on your father. I wanted to stop before I sent you back to a place you're obviously not ready to revisit, and that's ok." Stephanie faintly smiled. "I'd like to continue our sessions, if that's fine with you." She said.
"Yeah, sure. Okay." Destiny shook her head.
Stephanie stood up, walking over to her desk in six-inch heels. She wrote something down on a piece of sticky note before passing it off to Destiny. "Every Tuesday and Friday. 1:15pm" the note read, along with a phone number at the bottom. Destiny looked up at Stephanie for further clarification.
"It's my personal phone. Give me a call if you're ever feeling overwhelmed, even if you just need to get something off your chest." She told Destiny. "Alright. Thank you." Destiny said before slipping the note into her bag. Stephanie walked her to the door, ending their session. "Maybe this won't be so bad after all" Destiny thought, as she left the office building. Maybe.
- - -
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