4: The Counselor's Office

"Do I really have to do this?" Ariana groaned as she glanced at the blurred images of objects they passed.

"Yes, you do. It will calm your mind. Plus, the counselor will have a solution to your problem," Emily replied. They were in the car she borrowed from her dad. She was driving while Ariana sat in the passenger's seat on their way to a therapist.

"Emily, this is not necessary. You're just forcing me to go and waste time, energy and money there," Ariana said. "Why don't you just let me sleep at home a little?"

"Sweets, there is really nothing you'll say that will make me stop this car so why don't you get comfy and get ready to see the counselor?" Emily said. Ariana grunted in annoyance and looked out the window like a kid that was refused candy.

She watched the blurry objects they passed as she tried to think of the kind of questions the therapist was going to ask her.

What kind of bad luck is this? she thought to herself. When will Emily understand that I don't need all of this?

"What exactly are we going to this therapist for?" she asked out loud.

She saw the corner of Emily's mouth lift. "Now, that's the spirit," the brunette said. "We are going there for you to come to terms with yourself and she will also give you advice on how to deal with your bullies without exposing Elsy."

"So what? You actually think that I'll go there and tell a total stranger about my other self? Do you actually think that I will go there and tell that lady about this… this curse that I have thanks to my mom?" she asked the brunette.

"Nope. I don't expect you to go there and spill out all the secrets that even I don't know about," Emily said.

"So why are we going there?" Ariana asked.

"We are going there for you to learn how to get away from your bullies without losing control of your emotions," the other girl said. Gradually, Ariana's mind was able to wrap around what exactly her friend was saying but she wasn't ready to admit it so she kept quiet until they arrived at the counselor's office.

"Hello there, my dears," the nice young woman behind the pink glasses said when they were seated. "So which of you is Ariana?"

"That's me," Ariana said with a bored tone.

The lady never ceased her smiled. She looked at Emily and said, "You must be Emily, the one I spoke with over the phone?"

"Yes, ma'am," the other girl said.

"Alright, let's get right to it my dears. Ariana, tell me the problem," the lady said as she crossed her fingers.

Ariana shrugged. "Nothing much. Just that there are some guys at my school who bully me," the redhead said nonchalantly.

"Alright, go on," the blonde lady said. "I'm listening."

"Really, it's nothing much. They just hit me, make me do stuff for them and just generally bother my life if you can call it that."

"Alright dear." The lady cleared her throat. "Have you ever considered defying them? You know, standing up to them?"

"Yes," Ariana replied stiffly. "I've actually tried that once."

The lady pressed on. "Okay? So what happened when you did? And how did you feel after you did?" she asked.

"I beat them up," Ariana replied with her face looking down. "One of them was in the hospital for almost two months. He actually spent Christmas there."

The lady on the other side of the desk was speechless for some seconds. "Wow. That's intense. I think I understand the problem now," she said softly. "You don't want that incident to occur again, is that it? So you don't hurt anyone again, you prefer to let them have their way."

"Kind of like that. I also don't want to lose control. They help me keep things in check," Ariana replied.

The lady rested back into her swivel chair. "Darling, I need to tell you that all of that is a lie," she said.

The redhead scrunched up her face. "What do you mean by that?" she asked.

The woman smiled kindly at her. "You, my dear, are more than your emotions and lack of control. You can do something about it without having to let these boys treat you however they want," she said calmly. "You have to first of all boost the confidence you have in yourself."

"Alright then," the teenage girl said, finally deciding to give it a try.

The counselor smiled at her with enthusiasm. "That's good. So I'll recommend these steps to you. You will practice every day for the next two weeks, alright?" she said as she tore out a sheet of paper from her notebook and began jotting things down. She handed the now full sheet of paper to Ariana when she was done.

The office was silent as the girl glanced through the steps on the list. "What does exercise have to do with this?" Ariana asked when her eyes landed on that word. "I'm not looking to lose weight."

"Yes dear, I know that," the counselor said to her. "I did list out the kind of workouts I mean that bullet."

"Yeah, I can see them but that does not answer my question," the girl pressed on.

"Just do those workouts for the specified period of time and you'll understand sweetie. Oh, and please endeavor to write in a journal every night," she said to Ariana. "Just write anything you can, especially how you feel after each day, that is, after doing the things on that list."

Ariana groaned. "This is all too much work," she whined.

The woman smiled. "Just try darling. I guarantee that it will help you feel better," she said. "Well, that will be it for today's session. Have a lovely day, my dears."