"I don't know. I just know he's not into me like before. He's probably seeing someone else now."

"Babe, you know that's not true. I'm loyal."

"Loyal? Oh, that's rich. You're loyal."

"Yes. I am loyal. Do you know the number of times I've -" They started their overlapping chatter again. Julia rubbed her temples to reduce the growing headache and it wasn't really working. the pain. She wore a simple white long-sleeved shirt, tucked into black pants and flats. Thin silver earrings dangled from her ears, but they were out of view, and a small beady necklace adorned her neck.

She was supposed to be the therapist but with those two, it was like she was non-existent.

Maybe, it was because of the setting of her office.

It was a mix of both office and living room so maybe, it made them too comfy. The office wasn't extremely large but it wasn't that small either. Just homey and close.

Her desk was behind her, the files of her different patients were neatly arranged on it. Her name tag; which read "Dr. Julia Roberts" was beside it, along with a desk lamp. That was as far the official setting went. There was a large window to her right, the venetian blind wasn't drawn to allow sunlight in.

Her current patients; an engaged couple, sat side by side on a leather couch; throw pillows in their laps. A brown coffee table separated them from her.

Her darker side was tempted to throw the flower vase on the coffee table at them, but she restrained herself. She should probably start reading the anger management book her mom gave her. As a psychotherapist, it wouldn't exactly make sense for her to snap. Her job was to keep people from snapping. The book was somewhere on the bookcase by the amber-painted wall.

A knock brought her out of her thoughts. It also shut the couple up; thank God for that. "She's kind of in the middle of a session, so come back later."

Her smile became even more strained. "Or maybe the table lamp would work nicely," Julia thought darkly.

"Come in," she said. The door opened to reveal someone she hadn't seen in a while. Her smile this time wasn't forced.

"Well, as you can see, she's having a session, so come back later, okay?"

Honestly, the fiancée didn't know when to keep her mouth shut. The fiancé gave Julia a look that said, "You see what I'm dealing with?"

She did pity him.

Julia's visitor didn't really care about things like that. He didn't have to say anything. The look he gave the fiancée was enough for her to gulp nervously.

"On second thought, we'll reschedule. How is tomorrow?" she asked.

"Try next month" Julia's visitor replied.

"Next month? Next month is perfect. Right, honey?"

Her fiancé sighed and closed his eyes. "Let's just go. Thanks for listening, Julia," he said before he left, his fiancée in tow; making sure she avoided Julia's visitor. The wooden door slammed shut and they both stared at each other, observing themselves. The last time she saw him, he was in the 7th grade.

He had grown a few inches, not surprising. It was his hair that made her smile more. He inherited his father's looks; hair included. But now, his mother's brunette hair was clashing with his father's blond hair. It wasn't that noticeable but within a few years, it would be.

"You're welcome," he said.

"I didn't say thank you," Julia replied, gesturing for him to sit down.

"Well, you should. I just stopped you from committing murder," he said as he sat down, dropping his bag on the floorboards. She chuckled a little, "Thank you".

"You're welcome," he replied. The upward tug of the side of his lips indicated that he was smiling slightly.

Not that Julia was complaining or anything but why exactly was he in her office? He stopped coming for their sessions, saying it was stupid, so...

He noticed her look and said, "I need help. I didn't know anywhere else to go."

"What happened?"

"I think-I think someone wants to be my friend," he told her.

That was great news! He never really had friends to begin with. Then, his parents died and it became so much worse. He shut everyone out; her included. But it was her job to get in, any means necessary. She succeeded to an extent; he'd hold conversations with her longer than anyone else. That was an improvement in its own right.

She refrained from being overly excited. He tended to get uncomfortable when that happened. She knew from experience. "Then what's the problem?" she asked calmly, but she couldn't stop the small smile from forming on her face. He scratched his head in confusion, deep in thought. He thought way too much for someone his age.

"I'm-I'm not sure," he finally said.

Well, it was her job to make him sure. She wouldn't impose on him, of course. She'd just advise him or offer suggestions. He'd make the decision himself. That was how therapy worked, usually.

"Maybe, you don't want to be hurt again," she said.

"What do you mean?"

"The last people you cared about, your parents, they died." His eyes narrowed slightly but he said nothing. That was better than when he'd yell at her to never talk about his parents. "Well, maybe unconsciously, you don't want to open up to anyone again because you're scared."

This time, he did talk. "Scared? Scared of what?" he asked with a little laugh.

"Scared of being hurt."

He went deep in thought again. She would have to make him stop that too; one problem at a time though.

"You're scared of feeling the way you felt when your parents died," Julia said in a serious tone. He focused his eyes on her sternly. She got the message.

"Too far," his eyes said.

But she didn't relent. She had given him breathing space since when they started their sessions. Not anymore. He would have to grow out of the silly emo phase sooner or later. And she wanted to make sure it was sooner.

"There's nothing to be afraid of. Life's all about taking risks, you won't know unless you try."

"Same way you tried with your ex-husband, right?" he replied nonchalantly.

Oh, low blow! But that was new. Instead of showing shock or hurt, she smiled. She had him at the ropes, so he tried to divert her attention to stop her from pressing on.

"Nice try. Brandon and I actually got back together," she showed him the ring. He tried not to act surprised but his eyes gave him away; they widened slightly.

"Listen, Michael, I get that you're still hurting. But the world moved on, you have to move on too. That's what your parents would want."

His eyes snapped up at her, but it wasn't as venomous as he wanted it to be. She had gotten into his head and she knew it; if that smirk on her face meant anything.

"I'll think about it," he finally said.

Her smirk became wider. "Looks like I won," she said.

"Yeah. A hundred-plus to one," he responded to her. She laughed at this. She really did miss him.

"So, what's his name?" she asked.

"What?"

"Your new friend. What's his name?"

"I only said I'd think about it, we're not BFFs or anything. And also, she's she, not he," he replied. Julia's eyes widened significantly before she smiled slyly. Something that didn't go unnoticed by him.

"No no, don't start. Don't -"

"- Look who's got a girlfriend. Don't tell me you're a heart breaker already," Julia taunted him, ignoring his warning.

"Wow, okay, I'm leaving now."

"I'm just kidding, geez. Sit. Let's catch up."

«»

Sheila saw him sitting at the same place as the previous day. She would have gone over to him but getting a handful of smoke in the face was enough for her to get the message. He looked up and their eyes met. He blinked a few times before he gestured for her to come over.

It was her turn to blink a few times. Was she seeing things or did he just tell her to come over? Nah, he couldn't have.

He looked up at her again and rolled his eyes, gesturing for her to come over again. Yup, he actually did it. She wasn't seeing things.

She sat down across from him, there was an awkward silence between them.

"Michael."

"Eh," she replied intelligently. Apparently, he found it funny because he smiled slightly.

"My name. It's Michael," he said again.

"Oh. Nice to meet you, Michael."

"Likewise, Sheila." There was the awkward silence again. "Can I call you Mike?" Sheila asked, trying to break the ice. Didn't work so well.

"No" he replied seriously.

Silence...

The whispers and murmurs weren't helping either. He was tapping his lunch tray unconsciously. Finally, he said, "Why aren't you acting like yesterday?"

Immediately, she frowned.

"Gee, I'm sorry. Getting blasted with smoke can really change a person's mood, don't you think?" she told him somewhat angrily. He didn't even apologize about it!

"I wouldn't know. I wasn't the one chasing someone and got hit with smoke," he replied nonchalantly.

"So, you won't apologize?"

"For what? Running from a stranger?"

She couldn't help but smile. He was funny in a cold, sarcastic kind of way. "You're mean," she said.

"I'm glad you noticed. So, uh, where are you from?" She noticed that he wasn't looking at her when he asked. He was still tapping the lunch tray but faster, almost like he was nervous.

"Oh, California. You?" The look he gave her was enough to shame her. "Well, of course, he's from here, dummy," she told herself. He chose to ignore her question.

"California's nice. Why'd you move here?"

"I didn't want to, but my dad got a job he just couldn't turn down. One night, he just came home and said we were moving to New Jersey," she answered.

"And how do you like it so far?"

"To be honest, I expected New Jersey to be some backwater boring place, but I'm impressed. This place is really nice".

"It's just Crestville".

"Eh?" Wow, another intelligent statement from her. She was on a roll today.

"New Jersey is a backwater boring place, it's just Crestville that's really nice," he explained.

"Oh. I slept through the entire trip so I didn't see New Jersey on the way here."

He chuckled softly at what she said. He had a nice laugh. What made it better was that he obviously rarely laughed.

"Why didn't you wait till next session to enroll here?" Michael asked.

"Dad," she replied shortly. A girl passed behind her and 'accidentally' bumped into her back.

"Hey! Watch it!" she yelled at the girl. The girl apologized immediately but her eyes were full of mirth. But Sheila didn't notice. She puffed her chest a little bit and looked satisfied.

Michael looked between her and the retreating girl. He also noticed the other people in the cafeteria trying to restrain their laughter; and failing. He knew something was up.

He stood up and went behind Sheila, gently touching her back. "How about we get out of here?" he suggested. Sheila was none the wiser.

"Sure. Let's go," she replied.

She went ahead of him, which gave him enough time to throw the "Kick Me" sign in the bin.

"Really?" he asked the whole cafeteria when Sheila was out of earshot. They feigned ignorance, focusing on their food. The food wasn't even that good, but they ate it anyway; just to avoid him. He smirked at this. Then he left the cafeteria, meeting Sheila out in the hallway, waiting for him.

"What's up? Did something happen?" she asked.

"No, no, I just had to take care of stuff. Can I have your number?"

They exchanged phones and numbers before they parted ways, going to their different homerooms; both with smiles on their faces, Sheila's wider than Michael's.

«»

Sheila was at her locker, keeping her books when she felt someone beside her. It was the girl from the cafeteria; the one who bumped into her. had pale, white skin but gave herself a bit of color through some make-up. Her wavy black hair was glistening with too much hair product and her brown eyes stared at her condescendingly.

"Hey," she said cautiously. The girl didn't reply, she was busy observing her closely.

"You aren't all that," she finally said.

Sheila was taken aback by this. "I'm sorry. What?" she asked. Was the girl deaf or something? Because she ignored everything Sheila was saying.

"What does Michael see in you anyway?"

Okay, she understood a little now. The girl probably had a crush on Michael. She giggled a little, "Look, I'm not -"

Apparently, the girl wasn't done talking. "Stay away from him. He's mine," she said, trying her best intimidating look which wasn't even close to being intimidating at all.

Sheila decided to play along. "Whatever you say, ma'am," she replied with a smile. She closed her locker and carried her bag. She didn't look back to see the girl smile victoriously and walk away.

She walked out the gate and met a black SUV parked by the side of the road. The tinted window slid down and she saw the person inside.

She checked her perimeter to make sure no one was around before she entered the car. As soon the door closed, the car sped off.

"Well?" the person asked her. He almost blended in with the darkness, thanks to his dark skin.

"I established contact with him today. But I'm not sure if he's the one yet. Apart from what he did yesterday, there's nothing else. He's-he's completely normal," Sheila replied, her voice losing its giddiness, becoming more... serious.

"That's strange indeed. Our scout knows what he saw. He can't be wrong, can he?" the person said to himself.

He seemed to be deep in thought for a while. The car slowed down as the traffic light flashed red.

"You'll remain with the boy and observe him for some more time. If you don't notice anything, you're advised to withdraw. Understood?" he said after a while.

"Understood, director" Sheila replied, staring out the window.