Thanks to MidFlyer for the cover to the side -- >

Across the room your silhouette

Starts to make its way to me

Chapter 03 ~ Enchanted

      Liam Slater

Marcy used to be my best friend, but now she wasn't much of anything.

Scotty, Marcy and I used to call ourselves the three musketeers when we were little, because we wouldn't let anyone into our group. I didn't even dare try to be friends with anyone who wasn't them. That's how close our bond was.

Scotty and I were a lot closer than me and Marcy will ever be, and Marcy doesn't know that. As far as she was concerned, our best friend committed suicide, not my boyfriend.

Countless times, I had contemplated whether or not to tell her. I always decided against it in the end.

Because Marcy doesn't know how I truly feel about Scotty, I couldn't consider us friends anymore. Friends were supposed to know what you were thinking and be able to console you in times of need. Marcy didn't know that I think about Scotty all hours of the day or how to make me feel better.

That wasn't her fault, but she continued to try and try and try until I became completely annoyed with her trying to fix everything. No matter how many times she said it, things will never be okay.

"You nervous?" She asked from beside me. Her big chocolate colored eyes were the kind of eyes that you can tell were smiling from the heart, which described Marcy perfectly. She was always happy.

I shrugged. "This isn't my first time here."

Marcy's lips tugged into the faintest of smiles as she placed a comforting hand on my knee and sunk back into her seat. "I know, but everyone gets a little nervous when they have to see a shrink."

I tried not to laugh at her ignorance. "How would you know? Have you ever been to one?" I snapped my eyes to her at that instant, and I knew they looked less than friendly.

She did this thing where she opens her mouth but quickly closes it when she realizes she can't counter my remark. Instead, she smiled at me. "Well, let me know when you're done so we can grab some frozen yogurt or something." Her hand left my knee at the same time she stood to her full height. Before leaving, Marcy gazed back at me to ensure I heard her. "Frozen yogurt sounds good?"

I shrugged again, knowing that I would purposely forget to tell her when my session was done and send her a quick text when I was already home. "Sure."

"Great," she breathed out with a smile. "Good luck, Liam!" Her mocha eyes twinkled with excitement as she waved at me and gathered her things. I watched as she sauntered out of the waiting room, letting the glass door slowly fall shut behind her.

A sigh of relief fell from my lips when I knew she was gone, and I shifted my attention to all the vacant chairs in the waiting room.

Dr.Reis had a very small clientele pool, because he was new in the area and he was relatively new at his job. He had only about a year of experience as a therapist, which was why his price rates were so low. Knowing this, I thought it was ridiculously optimistic to have a waiting room with so many seats that will never be filled.

It seemed I had spoken too soon, because the door opened only minutes after Marcy was gone. A slender boy strolled in with his fingers feverishly tapping on his cell phone and his eyes just as attached to the device. He looked oddly familiar, but I didn't care enough to try to remember who he was.

When he noticed my presence, he tore his eyes from his phone and gaped at me. "Oh my god," he exclaimed rather loudly. "It's you!"

He spoke as though we were friends, as though I knew who he was. He skipped over to my side and took a seat right next to me, jumping up and down excitedly.

I gave him a blank stare.

"Do you remember me?" He questioned, staring back at me with curious brown eyes. "I'm Max, from the coffee shop? Remember? Yesterday? You ordered two caramel macchiatos."

I had encountered so many annoying people that day, I could barely remember. "I order two caramel macchiatos every day."

The boy raked a hand through his gelled back black hair. "I thought you were a model," he pointed out.

My eyebrows shot up when I recalled the little boy constantly pressing me about being a model. "Oh," was all I said before I shifted my attention to one of the inspiration posters on the sea green walls, indicating I was finished with the conversation.

Apparently, he didn't get the memo. "What are you doing here?" He pressed further.

"Probably the same reason you are."

He paused to think it over, and nodded. "True. Well, what are you here for? Do your parents think you need help too?"

I had decided this conversation had gone on too long. All I wanted to do was talk to Dr.Reis until he said I could back home, where I would continue to drown myself in memories of Scotty. I didn't need all the giddy energy that was radiating from the boy next to me.

Realizing I wasn't going to respond, he continued. "Well, mine do. They think I'm out of control or something. Maybe they're right, though. Maybe I do need help. Is Dr.Reis any good?"

I shrugged.

Max's brows knitted together in confusion. "You're not much of a talker, are you?"

My response was another shrug. "But I can tell that you are," I spat. My intent was to be completely short and uninteresting, so he would leave me alone.

He didn't. "Yeah, Jamie says I talk a lot."

I found myself wondering who Jamie was, but I didn't bother to ask.

"What's your name?" He asked me.

My hand was already making its way into the pockets of my sweatpants, where I kept my headphones. "I don't have a name," I said as I tugged the tangled cord out of its secured position and shook it loose.

Max's pink lips pressed together as he watched me, studying my every move. It was almost like he was trying to calculate what to say next. "It's very nice to meet you, I-don't-have-a-name. I'm Max." He held out his hand for me to shake.

I glanced at his opened hand, then snapped my attention to his hopeful brown eyes. I tried to maintain my straight face, but I could feel my lips twitching into a smile. It wasn't necessarily because of anything he said, but because of how persistent he was. He wasn't going to leave me alone until I reciprocated.

"It's Liam," I said gruffly.

"Liam," he repeated with a smile that stretched across his face so wide that I swore it was permanent. He looked oddly adorable, and I hated myself for thinking that. "It's nice to meet you, Liam."

I attempted a small smile but it came out like more of a grimace. It had been a while since I'd given someone a genuine smile, and I wasn't about to start now.

As though to answer my prayers, the door opened and Dr.Reis popped his head out through the narrow opening. "Mr.Slater," he announced in his thick, velvety voice.

I practically scrambled out of my seat and approached the fairly tanned man. I had never been so eager to start a session before, but I was desperate to escape whatever was going on in the waiting room.

Dr.Reis shut the door behind me and ushered me towards the lounge sofa in front of his desk. "How are you today, Liam?" It was always the first question he asked.

"Fine," I muttered and took a seat on the sofa.

"Did you take your medication for today?" He asked me, which was always the second question.

"Yes," I responded like it was routine. After half a year of these weekly sessions, it was starting to seem like it was an actual routine. Sometimes my responses wouldn't be close to being true, but I said them anyway because Dr.Reis expected me to.

He nodded just as he plopped down on his office chair and grabbed his clipboard. "That's great. Now, do you have anything you want to say? Anything that's been on your mind?"

I knew what he was asking. He was asking me to talk about Scotty. It must've been obvious because he knew I thought about Scotty all the time. Like Marcy, he thought he was only my friend.

"No, not really," I replied, short.

Dr.Reis gazed at me with tentative, silver eyes as he waited for me to say something he could use. He was young, in his late twenties, maybe. He had a lot of a patience for his age, I'd give him that.

He sighed. "Your parents told me that you're still pulling away from them."

I laughed bitterly. "So is every teenage boy my age."

He folded his fingers together on his desk and leaned forward, analyzing me with his critical gaze. "Not every teenage boy your age has lost their best friend. This is a tough time for you, I know. Your parents are always going to be there for you, so you shouldn't pull away from them. They want you to get better, just like I do."

"Get better?" I questioned, raising a brow. "I'm fine."

His eyebrows raised. "Is that so?"

"Yes."

Dr.Reis lips pulled back into a unsettling smile and he ran a hand over his shaven head. "Then why can't you talk to me about him? We've been seeing each other for seven months now. You still haven't said his name to me."

My gaze narrowed on him. "You already know his name."

"That may be true, but I want you to say his name. If you can do that for me, then I'll believe that you're completely fine and we can end your therapy treatment." His lips folded together into a thin line.

I kept my eyes trained on him for a brief moment, before sighing and slapping my hands on my thighs in defeat. "Okay, fine." I took a deep breath. "Scotty."

I thought I would be able to control myself, but the minute I said his name, my voice wavered and tears formed in his eyes. I couldn't understand how Scotty could leave such a heavy toll on me without even trying.

"You're fine, huh?" Dr.Reis mused. "You're not fine, Liam."

I wiped my tears away with the back of my hand and glanced down at the plush, textured carpet beneath me.

He tapped his pen on the clipboard, setting it down carefully on his desk. His eyes flicked to mine as he brought all his attention to me. "Liam, it's been seven months. You need to talk about him or you're never going to be able to heal."

I knew he was right. In a practical world, I would've opened up to him. I would've told him about all the long nights I spent with Scotty on the phone. I would have told him how Scotty helped me work through my emotional breakdown when I realized I was gay. I would have told him these things, but I couldn't.

He claimed our sessions were private and he didn't share them with anyone, but my parents hired him so he could report back to them about any progress I've made. If I told him about Scotty, the real Scotty, it would ruin everything.

"We've been friends for a long time," I said through the silence, giving him what he wanted to hear. "He was a really cool dude. He got me, you know? It's just hard to accept the fact he's gone, is all. It's not a bad thing to mourn a friend."

Dr.Reis rubbed his chin in deep thought. "Maybe not, but the grieving stage is much shorter than a year, Liam. By now, you should be able to talk about him and not tear up like you do. I think the reason why you're so emotional is because you don't talk about him."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever."

He tapped his clipboard again. "I want us to work on that some more. Each session from now on, I want you to tell me a story about Scotty. Good or bad, it's for you to choose. The point is to get you to open your mind and not keep your feelings bottled inside."

I gazed back at him with absentminded eyes, feeling completely annoyed with him telling me what I should and should not do.

"And I also want you to start socializing more," he added. "Find a new friend to hang out with."

I almost couldn't believe my ears. "You want me to replace Scotty?"

His eyes went wide once he realized what he said. "Oh, no. Of course not, Liam. There will be no replacement. Perhaps, you should make some room for someone else to become a close friend of yours. It won't hurt to try."

My mind instantly snapped to Marcy and I felt instantly repulsed by the thought of being stuck with her 24/7. Even though it may not seem like it, I wanted my parents to stop worrying about me. I wanted my dad to stop buying me video games in an effort to cheer me up. I wanted to start being social again.

If finding a new friend was all it took for me to get my life together, then I'd have to try.

"Fine," I spat, poking the inside of my cheek with my tongue as I did so. "Is our session over?"

He nodded. "I'll see you next Wednesday, Liam."

Nearly leaping from the sofa, I quickly rushed to the door before Dr.Reis could say anything else. In the matter of seconds, I was back in the waiting room.

The boy who I was talking to earlier, Max, was typing on his phone but he glanced up as soon as he realized I was finished. He flashed me a smile. "You're done, already?"

I kept my hands at my sides as I walked towards him, nodding.

"I hope I don't have to stay long," he muttered under his breath. He lifted himself up from the chair and stuck his phone into one of the pockets of his skin tight jeans. He started to make his way to the door when Dr.Reis popped his head out and addressed him by his last name.

I contemplated what to say about a thousand times in my head before I finally whipped around. "Wait."

He glanced back at me with curious eyes. Dr.Reis looked to be just as interested.

"Do you want to, maybe, hang out later?" The words sounded so weird coming from my mouth. I hadn't said that to anyone in a long time.

Max's furry brows merged together in a line. "Really? I thought you had that whole don't-talk-to-me-or-I'll-fuck-you-up thing going on."

He said it with a straight face and I had no idea why it made me chuckle. "Yeah, but," I looked at Dr.Reis, who was nodding his head, "you seem cool."

Max was surprised by my compliment. "Cool?" He questioned.

The more small talk we did, the more uncomfortable I felt, especially with Dr.Reis watching. "Yeah."

He pretended to think it over for a moment, but I already had a feeling he would agree. "Sure," he exclaimed with excitement. "How about tomorrow at six? We can meet at the coffee shop."

I nodded. "That sounds perfect."

"Okay." That smile reappeared again, the one that made me feel all weird inside. "I'll see you then." He turned away from me when Dr.Reis ushered him into the therapy room, leaving me alone in the vacant waiting room.

As I made my way to the door, I couldn't help but notice how I didn't think of Scotty once when I was talking to Max.

And that made me smile.

**

A/N: Hello everyone! Here's another chapter and I think I'm falling in love with Liam the more I write about him.

Now that you've gotten two chapters in Liam's point of view, what do you think of him? Could he potentially be the one for Max?

Thanks to everyone who've transferred over here from reading Kissing Booth. It warms my heart to know you're still interested in my stories and are willing to continue to KB journey with Liam and Max.

More books are to follow in the KB series, but of course, I'll only be working on them one at a time to avoid my mind getting scrambled.

If you happened to like this chapter, then why don't you vote and leave a comment? I do this thing where random commenters get chapters dedicated to them, so get those fingers typing!

Until next time,
Lara <3