Chapter 2

Ava paused. "Me? Why?"

She rested the pad on her lap and looked at Klaire with scrunched eyebrows. Casey knew that she probably felt threatened by her and therefore wanted the satisfaction of grilling the poor woman.

"It's nothing important. I think we should just continue on with the session," he said, hoping that Klaire would take a hint by the tone of his voice.

But of course, she ignored him and opened her mouth. "I think that we should know a little about our consultant before she knows anything about us."

Ava chuckled a bit. "Well everything you want to know about me is on the internet but sure, ask me anything. If that makes you feel more comfortable then I will happily oblige."

Satisfied, Klaire turned up her nose and sat straighter. "Why did you become a therapist, psychologist, whatever you are?"

"I studied psychology and human relationships when I was in college so that I could mend my parents' relationship. It worked so I wanted to help more people and then years later here I am. You're not allowed to practice on family so I only gave them advice here and there while I was studying and the rest they figured out by themselves."

Klaire nodded and hummed as she thought for another question. Casey gave Ava an apologetic look and she only smiled at him and waved her hand dismissively. He would guess that maybe it happened often enough for her to feel comfortable about it. And she did say that her information was on the internet so it would not be a problem for her.

"Do you have any siblings?"

"Two brothers. I am unfortunately the middle child." she pouted.

"What do they do for a living?"

Casey looked at her. "Klaire, that's too invasive. We came here to be asked questions, not the other way around."

"Oh, it's fine. My brothers... well my older one is somewhere in Holland doing something and my younger brother is in college studying to be a doctor."

"You don't know what your older brother is doing?" she had some venom in her voice.

Embarrassment made Casey's face flush. Her very actions were the reason why they were here now. And it seemed like Ava knew that. She picked up her pen and scribbled something down before answering.

"Well we do not have the best relationship and he does not really have that much interest in me anyway. He's always been like that so it's not anything new."

Casey squeezed Klaire's arm and gave her a look. "Sorry about that. I think that's all the questions we have time to ask."

"It's alright-"

"Do you have a boyfriend?" Klaire cut her off.

Ava stayed gracious through it all. "I do not. Relationships have been tricky for me. A lot of them thought of me as their therapist and not their girlfriend. Besides. These days I have barely enough time to myself, a relationship would be a sinking ship in my opinion."

"So you give relationship advice but you don't even have a boyfriend?"

"It's not required. Many people who do this job are single. It's easier on the mind."

Klaire seemed to be satisfied and Casey wanted to sink into the couch and disappear. Ava just laughed it off and picked up her notepad.

"Ok, now, let's get down to business. I'm not going to start off with the really heavy stuff today to just relax and answer to the best of your ability."

Casey nodded.

"How long have you two been together?"

"Two years," Klaire answered.

She wrote that down. "How did you meet?"

"We met as a party through mutal friends. He was eyeing me down and so I talked to him. The next week he took me out on a date and the rest is history."

She nodded and write that down. Her expression was clear the entire time. He guessed that if she had any thoughts then her face would not show it. It would be bad if the people she was helping could tell what her face meant and then they got defensive and could cause her trouble.

"Mr. Miller, what was your impression of Klaire when you first met her, and is it different today?"

"Casey always thought of me as sexy and fun and that certainly has not changed," Klaire said with pride.

Casey's face twitched. Ava didn't write anything down and kept her gaze on him. She was waiting for him to answer.

"Oh, umm, when we first met, I thought she was really attractive and I wanted to know her personally even though she was really popular. Today I still think she is pretty and now I know that I want to spend the rest of my life with her."

She smiled and scribbled it down on her pad.

"If you have a tablet, why not write your notes on it? I'm sure you have the money for a simple Apple Pencil." Klaire blurted out.

Casey sighed and looked over at her. "Klaire, please."

"It's not a crime to ask questions like that," she looked away, crossing her arms.

"I use a pad because it's easier to use than holding a big tablet and the Apple Pencil does not feel as good. I tried to use it but I didn't like it."

Klaire simply nodded and Casey gave her a weak smile.

"Now, Ms. Owen, what was your first impression of Casey when you first met him and has that changed?"

Klaire smiled. "I thought that he was sexy and had a great body. I knew that he would treat me right when I talked to him and knew instantly that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. That hasn't changed."

Ava hummed. She didn't write anything down but instead looked at Klaire as if she was studying her. There was a look in her eyes that Casey could not figure out.

"So tell me about the time leading up to the proposal. Tell me how you felt in that time, Mr. Miller?"

Casey cleared his throat. "Well I was nervous but I knew she was going to say yes. She had stressed in the past that she wanted to marry me so although I was nervous I was confident."

"Did you feel pressured into the proposal, do you feel like more time should have passed before you did it?"

Klaire gasped. And Ava's eyes sharped. It was only because he was closely studying to see her facial expressions that he caught it. She wrote something down.

"How could you ask a question like that? Why would he feel pressured? Just because I mentioned it in the past?" she snapped at Ava.

"Well, it's actually a lot more common than you would think. Their partner would severely hint at it or just say it and not wanting to lose them they would give in and ask for marriage. They would feel obligated to do that when in fact that should never be the case and in the end, it could be the very ruin of their marriage. I'm not saying that that was the case for you all but I'm saying that I've seen it happen. So Mr. Miller, did you feel in any way pressured to propose to Ms. Owen?"

Casey was silent for a bit. He wanted to marry her one day but since she kept bringing it up he decided that there would be no harm in asking earlier. So the answer was yes but how could he admit that. The last thing he wanted was for Klaire to flip out.

"No, I didn't, I knew she wanted to get married to me and I to her, so I decided that I should do it as soon as possible so that I could have her as my wife quickly."

Klaire smiled. "Aww, how sweet baby." she cooed. "You see, he never felt pressured."

"I never said he did." Ava wrote something down. She took a deep breath and leaned back on the couch. "Now, let's get a little more serious. Communication, is it good between y'all?"

"Of course it is. Casey tells me everything and I tell him everything." Klaire declared.

"Do you feel the same way?" she looked at Casey.

"I think that our communication is just fine."

"So when you each have a problem with each other you speak about it and work on it?"

"What problems would we ever have? Our relationship is perfect."

"No relationship is inherently perfect. It may look or feel like it but there will always be something and working through that something actually brings you closer to 'perfection' than hiding or ignoring anything that could lessen the image or feeling of 'perfection'" she made air quotes with the words.

Casey nodded.

"So I ask. Is there anything you two have had problems with that you refuse to talk about to each other or have both ignored?"

There was silence in the room. It seemed like her question even left Klaire stumped. The silence lasted for a few seconds and Ava nodded and wrote something down.

"I understand completely. It is hard to just come out and say it right in front of the person. No one wants an uncomfortable situation."

After those words, it seemed like Klaire finally came back to it. "Do you have something you're hiding from me? You have a problem with me?"

Casey didn't know what to say. He thought it was obvious since they came to get advice. And he was obviously the one who made the suggestion. It seemed like the thought of becoming more perfect and having a stronger relationship was the only thing Klaire heard and cared about and so that was why she was here. It was obvious where her priorities lied.

And that, was why they were here today.