Eye of the Storm

Chapter 20

“And how does that make you feel?” Dr Monroe stares deeply into my eyes, studying me. “Losing your best friend?” she emphasises ‘best’. I stare around at the rest of the group, raising my eyebrows as if to say, ‘is she serious?’. Today is the first group therapy session for those fit enough to join. I half expected Leo to be here, but no such luck.
“Well, pretty shitty,” I tell the doctor, trying to hide my dry expression. She nods.
“And everyone else, how does that make you feel? Knowing your friend feels this way?” this therapy session is making me feel worse than I did before it started.
“This is bullshit,” Nic scoffs, crossing his arms. “I’m leaving,” he stands up, pushing his chair far behind him. It takes all my strength not to follow him as he walks towards the door. Dr Monroe doesn’t even bother to stop him. I turn back to the circle, knowing that the longer I look at the door the less I’ll be able to hold the urge to run back home and into my bed. I hear Nic exclaim, greeting someone. “The shithole is in there!” his voice fades as he exits the building. Someone must have shown up late.

“Welcome,” the doctor says in her monotone, robot like voice. I spin my head around. Holy shit! He stands there anxiously, rubbing his big hands along his upper arm.
“Sorry, I’m late,” I try desperately to catch his stare. It’s been so long… “My parents were being… difficult,” he walks towards the circle. How has he not seen me yet? It’s strange seeing him in such a casual appearance. A baggy hoodie drapes over his body, skinny jeans strung across his legs.
“Welcome, Leonardo. We were just talking to Esme here,” as soon as my name comes out of my mouth Leo’s head jolts towards me. His eyes widen, I’m not sure if it’s with shock or relief, though. Probably a mix of both.
“Esme!” he cries out.
“Now, now, we will have breaks soon, please take a seat and save conversation for later,” the doctor pats a seat next to her. It’s painful to break our stare but he sighs, sitting down on the chair. I don’t even need to ask him, I can already see. We’re both desperate to talk.

Eventually the therapy session comes to a long-awaited end. I can feel my heartrate increasing rapidly as I stare at Leo who sits across the circle. Seeing him is filling me with a sense of both happiness, and dread. It’s no doubt that he’s happy to see me, but he looks pained. People begin to file out of the building, the doctor leaving first. She seems to care more about her job than her patients. I don’t like her, at least, not yet. Finally, it’s just Leo, me and the thick tension between us.
“Leo, I…” I’ve been wanting to see this man for days but now that he’s standing in front of me I have no idea what to say. I can’t stand the air between us. It seems he’s the same because within seconds his arms wrap around me, pulling me in close, relief washing over me.
“I missed you, Esme,”