Chapter 2

Marianne paused. "Me? Why?"

She rested the pad on her lap and looked at Vivienne with scrunched eyebrows. Dylan 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 Vivienne would take a hint from 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."

Marianne 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, I will happily oblige."

Satisfied, Vivienne 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 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."

Vivienne nodded and hummed as she thought of another question. Dylan gave Marianne an apologetic look, and she only smiled at him and waved her hand dismissively. He guessed that maybe it happened often enough for her to feel comfortable about it. And she did say 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?"

Dylan looked at her. "Vivienne, 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?" Vivienne had some venom in her voice.

Embarrassment made Dylan's face flush. Her very actions were the reason they were here now. And it seemed like Marianne 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."

Dylan squeezed Vivienne'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?" Vivienne cut her off.

Marianne 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 for 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."

Vivienne seemed satisfied, and Dylan wanted to sink into the couch and disappear. Marianne 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, so just relax and answer to the best of your ability."

Dylan nodded.

"How long have you two been together?"

"Two years," Vivienne answered.

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

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

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

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

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

Dylan's face twitched. Marianne 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," Vivienne blurted out.

Dylan sighed and looked over at her. "Vivienne, please."

"It's not a crime to ask questions like that," she said, looking away and 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 didn't like it."

Vivienne simply nodded, and Dylan gave her a weak smile.

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

Vivienne smiled. "I thought he was sexy and had a great body. I knew 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."

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

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

Dylan 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?"

Vivienne gasped, and Marianne's eyes sharpened. He caught it because he was closely studying her facial expressions. 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 Marianne.

"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 was the case for you, but I've seen it happen. So Mr. Carter, did you feel in any way pressured to propose to Ms. Cross?"

Dylan 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. The answer was yes—but how could he admit that? The last thing he wanted was for Vivienne to flip out.

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

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

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

"Of course it is. Dylan tells me everything, and I tell him everything," Vivienne declared.

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

"I think 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 said, making air quotes with the words.

Dylan 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 Vivienne stumped. The silence lasted for a few seconds, and Marianne 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, Vivienne finally came back to it. "Do you have something you're hiding from me? You have a problem with me?"

Dylan 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 Vivienne heard and cared about, and so that was why she was here. It was obvious where her priorities lay—not actually fixing the problems.

And that, was why they were here today.