Chapter Text
Hello everyone, it's us again, Nyle and Cristina with yet another short story.
Since I (Nyle) am doing psychology studies and Cristina had those in her studies we decided to try something that lies kind of in line with that. Not everything may be super accurate but we did our best to make it as realistic as possible and we hope that you enjoy it.
TW: For alcohol abuse and a neglective mother
The story has five chapters and the updates won't be too far apart!
Please consider leaving comments, we'd appreciate it a lot. Much love ♥
------------------------------------------------------------------
Just like everyday Minji was late. She really loved her morning routine and she liked to sleep a lot and to have a big breakfast and it was her favourite moment of the day. She ran to her studio and after hanging her coat on the hanger of the little hall, she entered her office. She sat down, still finishing the take-away coffee as she looked at the list of today’s appointments. Right when she got to the end of that list, she sighed, reading the last name.
‘Kim Yoohyeon’ was a patient Minji had been trying to get to talk for 4 appointments now, but she looked like nothing was affecting her. During the first three appointments they just stared at each other, and Yoohyeon didn’t even reply to Minji’s question, while in the fourth one she talked… talked back, for the most part, but Minji considered that as a little win.
Minji had only been a therapist for a couple of years and had experience with cases like Yoohyeon, but this girl was a tough nut to crack. She took the notes she had made on the girl to practically find nothing useful written on them except for the fact she refused to cooperate and had an alcohol addiction.
She was startled by the bell ringing, showing that her first patient had arrived. She went through all her appointments, until there was just the last one left. It was already 7 pm and Minji knew she was working a lot more than was physically healthy but it’s not like she had something else to do anyway.
She sighed, finishing the coffee she had made between a set of sessions earlier, putting the cup on her desk and walking on the door. She put her hand on the handle, letting out a deep sigh before putting a smile on her face and opening it. That’s how it should be when you went to get your patients. You always needed to look friendly and to look like you were perfectly fine.
As she opened the door she found Yoohyeon sitting down on the chair in the little hall. The girl sighed and picked up her bag, walking towards Minji and entering the room.
“6 more sessions to go” she mumbled, dropping herself on the little couch in Minji’s office. Of course the black haired therapist knew that Yoohyeon was just coming here because she had to. That was the reason a lot of people came here after all. Someone would tell them to come here or else they’d lose their job or driver’s license or something of the sort. Minji was completely fine with that and used to it, but at least those people said something during their sessions and could be helped a bit while this blonde girl... she just didn’t do anything.
Yoohyeon put her bag beside her as Minji sat down on her usual spot, picking up her little notebook and a pen. The blonde woman scoffed, shaking her head, hating when therapists did that. It made her feel like she was some weird human being they needed to study and take notes about.
“Why do you keep picking that up every time even if you know I won’t talk?” Yoohyeon asked, locking eyes with the older woman. It was something she had never experienced because after 2 or 3 sessions with her not saying a word, the therapists just passed her on to the next one. Maybe they’ll be luckier.
“Just in case you feel like talking to me, Yoohyeon. I’m always ready to listen” Minji answered with a smile. “Do you want a coffee?”
Yoohyeon nodded her head, scratching her arm. Constantly drinking something actually helped her. That was one of the many techniques she had tried to stop.
“You drink… a lot of coffees” the younger woman stated, looking at all the cups in the office.
“Those are the cups my previous clients used. Mine is over there” Minji said, pointing at the white cup on her desk with a cute rabbit on it. “How do you like your coffee?” she asked, waiting for the machine to finish.
“With a little bit of milk” Yoohyeon replied, looking around the room. “Of course your cup is the pink one with the rabbit… You definitely look and sound like that kind of girl”
“Do I? I’m surprised you think that” the therapist responded, picking up the cup after putting some milk in it and handing it to her patient.
“Shouldn’t you scold me because I’m not supposed to be the one who asks the questions?” Yoohyeon asked, taking the cup in her hands.
"My job is to talk with people. Isn't that what we are doing?" The older woman asked with a smile. "Besides, scolding people is one of the things that isn't in my job description"
“A lot of your colleagues would disagree with that” the blonde woman whispered, taking a sip of coffee. “You get on my nerves, you know? You therapists”
"Ouch, are you looking at me like one of the bunch?" Minji asked. "We all try to help people and we have the same job, but our methods can differ"
“Still, you’re all convinced that with your little notebook, a pen and a lot of words you will be able to fix a person” Yoohyeon said, shaking her head. “Breaking news: you’re not”
"We don't fix people" Minji smiled, locking eyes with Yoohyeon. "We help people fix themselves"
“Whatever you say” Yoohyeon replied, taking another sip of coffee.
"How have you been since your last visit?" The therapist asked, hoping that after this little talk Yoohyeon would finally cooperate.
“I’ve been perfectly fine, that’s the main reason why I’m here” Yoohyeon scoffed. The one thing she liked about these meetings was that she could just make the therapists feel bad, like they did with her a bunch of times. Passing her file to the next one, because she was trouble.
"Okay..." Minji mumbled, writing something down. "What did you do in this period? Anything special happen?"
“What usually happens. I run after my sister, I bring her to school and back, I look for a job I’ll never find and so on” Yoohyeon stated.
"You didn't do something special with a friend, lover, someone else?" The older woman asked, writing down what Yoohyeon said because she never told her that before.
“Yeah of course, people usually can’t wait to spend some time with an alcoholic!” Yoohyeon stated, faking a smile.
"So... did you do anything?" Minji asked again, getting a bit frustrated by her answer but not showing it in her behavior, except for the way she clenched her pen a bit harder.
“I already told you. I looked for a job and I’ve carried my sister around” Yoohyeon replied, sounding annoyed.
"Is that all you do? You don't go shopping with a friend? Go to a restaurant? Anything like that?"
“Wow you’re a terrible therapist, aren’t you?” Yoohyeon scoffed, locking eyes with Minji. “No, I don’t go shopping, I don’t go to restaurants and I don’t have friends. Do you want me to write it down for you?”
"I'm just trying to sketch the situation, Yoohyeon. We're a few sessions behind" the latter said in a friendly and calm tone.
“You’re my therapist for my drinking habit, right? I’m trying not to drink. I don’t hang out with those people anymore and I’m trying to stay sober” Yoohyeon stated. “Aren’t those the questions you’re supposed to ask?”
"I was going to get there but thank you for already answering them" the black haired woman calmly replied, writing it down on her notepad.
“Glad to know I helped” the younger woman said, finishing her coffee and putting the cup down on the table. Minji was still writing stuff down with a little smile. Having Kim Yoohyeon as the last patient of the day was tiring but it was her job to help her.
She finished writing the info down before looking back up with a smile.
"The red haired woman who drops you here, what is your relationship with her?"
“She’s just… a neighbor who feels pity for me so she decided to give me a ride to these meetings. She is the one who sold me out after all” Yoohyeon said with a sigh. “For my own good, she says”
"I see" the older woman nodded, writing stuff down while talking. "You said she sold you. To whom?"
“I don’t know, the police?” the blonde woman sighed. “All I know is that she told me I couldn’t keep going like that and the day after there were social workers at my door”
"So am I right in saying you don't like her?"
Yoohyeon stayed silent for a while and she shook her head.
“No I-... I know she did the right thing” she whispered, not liking to admit that.
"Why don't you tell me a bit more about her? About the two of you?" The therapist encouraged, thinking that this person could be a positive factor in Yoohyeon's situation.
“We don’t really know each other. She lives next door and she knows how things go in my family. One day I was bringing my sister to school and there was a storm so she gave us a ride” Yoohyeon said, playing with her fingers. “She saw me drunk a couple of times and she said she knows it’s not my fault, but that I needed help”
"Sounds like she cares about you, doesn't she? She sounds nice"
“She is” the blonde woman agreed, nodding her head.
"Do you see her at any other time? When she doesn't need to bring you here?"
“No, I don’t want to see her on other occasions” Yoohyeon stated, shaking her head. “She’s a nice woman, she has a job and she has friends. She doesn’t need problems”
"I'm sure she wouldn't mind" Minji smiled. "That's going to be the first task I'll give you until next session. You don't have to complete it but I suggest you to hang out with her once"
“So now I have homework” Yoohyeon said, tilting her head back and staring at the ceiling.
"Like I said, you are free to choose whether you do it or not"
“Cool” the blonde woman replied, shaking her head. “I’ll think about it”
"Thank you, Yoohyeon" the older woman smiled. "Is there anything else I need to know about you? Something you think can be important?"
“You know nothing apart from the fact that I have a sister, a nice neighbor and a big problem” Yoohyeon said, really thinking this woman wasn’t suited for this job. “I’ll give you a little help, okay? My mother is an alcoholic as well, my father couldn’t care less… So I run the family, and I get tired. Is that an accurate enough sketch?”
"That's perfect, Yoohyeon, thank you" Minji smiled, doing her best to stay calm because if this girl had cooperated the first three sessions they would've already gotten past this point. "Your mother being an alcoholic does make you more susceptible to becoming one as well so that's the core we are going to start with" she added, turning her page.
“I’m not an alcoholic because my mother is. It just… It was her way out. Her way out of problems, her way out of my sister crying all the time, her way out of my father not coming back home and I just-... I needed a way out as well” Yoohyeon said with teary eyes, not looking at Minji.
"You're doing great" the therapist said, handing her a tissue. "You just thought that because your mother 'seemed' better it could help you as well, is that right?"
"I thought that… if drinking helped her not to care, not to worry about stuff… I wanted that too. I needed a break from everything" Yoohyeon whispered. "And after the first break I felt like I needed a second and I realized I waited for that break the whole day"
"I'm happy you realized yourself that you started to depend on it. That's a good sign, Yoohyeon"
"That didn't stop me though. I just kept going" the blonde woman said. "The first time I realized I wanted to stop was when I saw my sister's expression after she found me on the ground and she thought I was dead. I can't… I can't keep doing this. I'm the only person she has" the woman added, using the tissue in her hands.
"Alcohol is a foul beast. But we're going to defeat it, okay? I'll help you find a way so your sister doesn't need to worry" Minji smiled, happy the girl finally opened up a little.
"That's what every therapist told me, before they passed my file to someone else because I was too stubborn, to impolite or whatever" Yoohyeon said, shaking her head.
"I never passed a single file in my career, unless it was necessary because I didn't have the expertise, and you aren't going to break that record" the older woman tried to reassure her.
"In your career?" Yoohyeon scoffed. "If you don't mind me asking… how old are you?"
"I'm 32" Minji responded, knowing she really didn't look like it.
"I thought you were younger. I'm 29" Yoohyeon said, feeling really stupid right after. "But you already know that of course, it's in my file"
"Exactly. So my career is made up out of a couple of years already" the black haired girl said, staying her calm self.
"Can I know your name?"
"Haven't you looked me up online?"
"No, all I know about you is that your office is here and that you're a Kim, just like me" Yoohyeon said, shaking her head. "I don't usually look therapists up online in my free time… Kim Minji" she added, with a little chuckle.
"How do you know my name then? And why did you ask for it?" The therapist chuckled.
"I just realized you have that name plate on your desk" Yoohyeon said, pointing at it.
"And my certification that I had to work a lot of years for" the older woman sighed, pointing at the plaque on the wall.
"Don't you like it? Your job?" Yoohyeon dared to ask, noticing the little sigh.
"I love my job, I really do. You just have to work a long time to get here and some days are just tiring" Minji smiled.
"And having a patient like me as the last one of the day… is not helping, I guess" Yoohyeon said, giving Minji a little smile. "I know I can be a pain in the ass"
"That's also part of the job. Believe me if you can't handle someone like you, you don't need to start studying for this" Minji chuckled. "You need to have a strong butt" she added as a joke.
"That's one of my best features" Yoohyeon chuckled, shaking her head. "Can't say the same thing about you though"
"You should be happy that everything said here stays between these 4 walls. Kind of flirting with your therapist isn't a normal thing" the older girl chuckled.
"I'm definitely not flirting" Yoohyeon shook her head. "Just stating the facts"
"Alright, I'll ask my personal trainer that I totally have to work on that then"
"Great, you should" Yoohyeon nodded as her phone buzzed a couple of times. She looked at it and she quickly reached for her purse. "Shit, I have to go"
"I was already planning on ending the meeting since we got to a subject like this" the older woman said with a smile, happy that Yoohyeon seemed to finally trust her a little more.
"Great" Yoohyeon mumbled, quickly waving at Minji and stopping in the hallway to make a phone call and Minji couldn't help but eavesdrop because Yoohyeon left the door open. "Hey Handong, I really need a lift to get to my sister. The girl who was looking after her is-... Oh, alright. Yeah no, don't worry" the blonde woman sighed, saying goodbye and putting her phone away, cursing under her breath.
Minji guessed that the girl called 'Handong' couldn't give her a lift and she knew Yoohyeon lived quite far. She of course couldn't just say that she eavesdropped so she put on her coat and took her purse, leaving her office, acting like she didn't hear anything.
Yoohyeon looked at her and understood that Minji was leaving so she probably had to close the studio and Yoohyeon was still in the hall.
"I'm sorry, I had an urgent call to do" she said as both of them walked out of the door and the younger woman looked at Minji. "Do you know which bus I have to take to go here? And how long will it take?" She asked, showing Minji an address.
"The bus that goes straight there is pretty far away. There is another bus but you would have to move on a second one at a stop" Minji said, really wanting to offer her ride, knowing she wasn't really allowed to do that.
"I'll… I'll take the fastest option" Yoohyeon said, sounding worried and looking at her phone. "I need to get to this address in less than 20 minutes"
"You wouldn't make it in 20 minutes" Minji said, dimming the lights of the hallway.
"But I have to! It's almost 8 pm and it's dark" Yoohyeon said, trying to find an alternative solution on her phone. "The girl who was taking care of my sister for tonight had an emergency and she needs to leave in less than 20 minutes. I can't leave my sister out there alone, in the dark"
"I can give you a ride" the older woman said, knowing that this was something she really shouldn't do in her line of work.
"You-... Really? You know you're not supposed to, right?" Yoohyeon said, locking eyes with Minji.
"I know but... what's the big deal? You just need to get somewhere right? And I have my own office, who's going to scold me?"
"Thank you, Minji" Yoohyeon nodded, really grateful for her offer. "Will you be able to make it in 15 minutes?"
"We can try" the latter smiled, letting Yoohyeon leave the building first and pointing at the red car parked in front.
Yoohyeon quickly walked to the car and as soon as both of them stepped in, she put her seat belt on and took her phone out, checking for new messages.
Minji didn't really say anything, not wanting to get into something deep outside of her office but it was really hard to switch away from her therapist mode with a patient.
"Will you… Will you drop us home as well?" Yoohyeon dared to ask, looking down at her phone.
"Sure, but don't tell your sister who I am. I don't know how old she is but a 'my sister went home with a therapist' is easily said" the older woman asked.
"She wouldn't… But I won't tell her" Yoohyeon nodded as they spent the rest of the ride in a really awkward silence because both of them knew this wasn't professional at all. "It's that one" Yoohyeon said, pointing at a house
Minji parked the car right in front of the place. As Yoohyeon got out she turned on the radio and checked her phone. No messages. Like usual.
As they waited for Yoohyeon's sister to arrive, the taller girl leaned a little towards the window of the car.
“These are the kinds of things that push me to drink when I’m trying to stay sober” she whispered, really needing to get that out. “They know I have a problem and I’m trying to cope with it by coming to the sessions and… if something like this happens I have to drop everything and run because I’m the only one who cares if a 10 year old is left alone in the dark”
"Do your parents really not care?" The therapist asked, really not able to refrain herself from asking.
“Do you see them parked here somewhere, waiting for my sister?” Yoohyeon asked. “My father is probably just tired of everything and my mother is always too drunk to care”
"What about the woman you called? Handong?"
“She already told me that maybe she wouldn’t be able to pick me up after the session tonight. She has shifts at work and sometimes they want her to stay longer” Yoohyeon explained.
"She's your neighbor then I assume?" Minji asked and Yoohyeon nodded her head. "And about these kinds of moments, I know it's really hard but just try to think of something to push those thoughts out"
“That’s what I try to-... wait. How do you know who I was talking to?” Yoohyeon realized, shifting on the car door so she could face Minji.
"I-..." the therapist tried to come up with something, cursing herself. "I might've heard the name when I left my office"
“You eavesdropped, didn’t you?” Yoohyeon said, not breaking eye contact.
"I... I did... but on accident"
“On accident” the taller girl repeated as someone called her name and ran to hug her. Yoohyeon ruffled the little girl’s hair and pecked her head. “I told you I would be right on time, didn’t I?”
"You did" the girl who was probably Yoohyeon's sister smiled. "Where is Handong?" She asked when she saw Minji.
“Handong was busy” Yoohyeon smiled, pointing at Minji. “So another friend helped me out today. She’s Minji and Minji, this is Yubin”
"Hey Yubin" the therapist smiled at the girl, happy that Yoohyeon remembered to not call her by her profession.
“Hi, Minji” the brunette said, as she entered the car and sat down on the backseat. “Did you pick Yoohyeon up from the therapist?”
"Uhmm... yeah, I did. Handong was busy at work so Yoohyeon called me"
“Thank you for helping her” Yubin smiled as Yoohyeon stepped in the car as well. “I’m surprised you still haven't changed your therapist” she added, looking at her sister.
Minji stayed silent, starting the engine. It was really awkward to be there while they talked about her.
“I know… but this one might really help me, if I give her a chance” Yoohyeon replied, turning towards her sister and ruffling her hair again, before putting her seatbelt on.
The black haired woman drove them to the address Yoohyeon gave her, not really engaging in the conversation unless one of the two asked her something. She wasn't supposed to do this in the first place after all.
As they arrived in front of the house, Minji parked the car and Yoohyeon turned back to her sister, who shook her head a little, not wanting to go back home and honestly, Yoohyeon couldn’t blame her.
“Come on, I got you” the older sister said, offering her hand to Yubin and giving her a big smile, trying to reassure her.
"I don't want to go... The lady called mom first and I heard her yell..." Yubin pouted.
“You won’t even hear the yell. You know why? We will go straight upstairs, I’ll put on some music and we will do your homework together while we eat a nice takeaway dinner” Yoohyeon tried to convince her. “You won’t have to see mom”
"Okay" the little girl sighed, waving at Minji. "Thank you for bringing us home, miss!"
Minji waved at the girl, feeling really bad for both of them. What she did tonight was unprofessional but it helped her understand Yoohyeon more because now she knew what she was going through and it wasn’t just her… she also had to stay strong and act happy all the time so that her sister wouldn’t be scared to come home.
-=-
After that day, Yoohyeon had two more sessions with Minji in which she cooperated a bit better. The younger girl still hadn't done the task that her therapist gave her but she was planning to... until something happened and she found herself waiting in the waiting room of Minji's office on a day she normally didn't have an appointment.
She was nervously moving her legs up and down, playing with her fingers, really needing to just grab a bottle and make it all stop. That’s exactly why she called Minji this morning, asking her for an extraordinary appointment even though their last session wasn’t even a week ago.
She waited for a few minutes until Minji walked out of her office, walking the last of her scheduled patients outside with a smile, locking the door before returning to Yoohyeon.
"Hey, are you okay? What happened for you to call me?" She asked, asking her inside.
“I had a… a huge fight with my mother and I just-” Yoohyeon said, walking in and sitting down on the couch. “I had one… one single glass”
"Was that after or before the fight?" Minji asked, since it wasn't too clear.
“After. It was because of the fight” Yoohyeon clarified. “But after that one I just… I crashed the bottle on the ground so I couldn’t have more and I laid down in bed”
"Would you mind telling me what the fight was about? How it came to be?"
“She was yelling at me because I’m 29 and I’m not bringing money home” Yoohyeon said, nervously shifting on the couch. “But how can I? No one is hiring me and I get that. I have to run away every time there is a problem because no one else would”
"I assume you already brought those points up with her so... is there anything else you think you can do?"
“No” Yoohyeon stated, shaking her head. “Any suggestions?”
"Have you ever considered moving out?" The therapist carefully asked.
“Of course! But what about my sister?” Yoohyeon asked, raising her voice a little.
"You can take her with you? You're an adult and you can take care of her" Minji said in a soft tone, noticing Yoohyeon was pretty sensitive right now.
“I can’t take care of her. I’m an alcoholic” Yoohyeon whispered, shaking her head. “And how would I provide for her without a job? How would I pay rent?”
"I-..." the older woman said, not really knowing how to respond to that. It would indeed be hard without an income.
“I don’t know what to do, Minji” Yoohyeon whispered. “These meetings with you are helping me a lot but… every time I go back home I risk to fall back. I’m trying to stay sober with my mother drinking in front of me. There are… bottles everywhere”
"I really think you should leave that place... I assume your mother doesn't want to get help so... the first thing we need to think about is you finding a job"
"Alright… I would exclude something like waitress or barwoman or everything involving bottles" Yoohyeon said, tapping her foot on the floor. "Babysitter wouldn't work either even though I'm great with kids…"
"What about an office job? Or a cleaning job or something? And why wouldn't babysitting work?" Minji asked.
"Because what parent would leave their kid with an addict?" Yoohyeon sighed. "I would love to work in an office… something like a receptionist? I was actually working in an office and I was doing great but… I showed up drunk twice"
"Then that's going to be your next task aside from the other one I gave you" the black haired girl said with a little smile to show that it wasn't a problem that she didn't do it yet.
"Hang out with Handong and find a job" Yoohyeon mumbled, locking eyes with Minji. "Can I do them together? Does that count? I can ask her to come with me while I drop curricula around?"
"Of course as long as you spend time with her I will consider it a task complete!" Minji nodded her head. "I suppose you don't want a piece of candy for that like I do with the children I receive here?" She added with a chuckle.
"I actually love candy so… why not?" Yoohyeon asked with a smile as she stopped moving her legs up and down, relaxing a little bit.
"I'm really proud and happy that you called me when something like this happened, you know?" The older woman said. "Most people don't have the determination to do that"
"I-... I really needed to talk to someone" Yoohyeon admitted. "Not just about what happened… I meant, in general. I get… lonely, sometimes" she whispered.
"That... that should make the task with Handong even more efficient" the therapist said, doing her best to keep her voice steady. That was a problem she also had a lot.
"But I… I don't think me and Handong could be friends" Yoohyeon admitted with a sigh. "She is nice and she would probably spend time with me but… I don't think we click, you know"
“You never know till you try” Minji simply responded because she really couldn’t talk about the subject. She only had one friend whom she only saw once in a week, if she wasn’t too busy.
"I'm not good at socializing" the taller woman sighed, moving a little on the couch. "I don't open up and I… I live my life at home, with a young sister and an alcoholic mother. I never did what normal kids do. I'm always on my own"
The older woman nodded her head to say she understood because she really did, but she didn’t know what to say so the easiest thing to do was to switch the subject.
“Would you like me to send a recommendation letter to your home for your mother? I could send some folders for some therapists or if she wants to I can also put a folder for a clinic in there that works with alcoholics”
"She won't accept any kind of help. She doesn't want to stop drinking" Yoohyeon replied, shaking her head.
“Does she have anyone to talk to about it? Anyone who can get through to her?”
"I tried that for years… I talked to her, I tried to do more chores as a kid so she wouldn't have too many things to do, and I started taking care of my sister since she was born" Yoohyeon said, locking eyes with Minji. "Nothing can get through to her"
The latter thought hard for a while, realizing that she was in a sticky situation. Yoohyeon was constantly being stimulated to drink by seeing her alcoholic mother but leaving the house was also not an option because she had no income to sustain herself.
"I can literally see your head fuming" Yoohyeon said with a little smile. "I'm sure I'm the cause of you walking home with a really bad headache every Friday… or Wednesday in this case"
“You think so? I’m happy to end with you instead of some other more embarrassing patient I have” Minji chuckled, cursing herself again because she wasn’t allowed to talk about others. But she didn’t reveal someone’s identity so maybe it was okay to vent to Yoohyeon?
"Really? I'm giving you less problems than someone else? That's a first" Yoohyeon chuckled.
“I’m experienced with your problem so I’m pretty comfortable to handle it. There is one case that has a problem I’ve never tackled before so... I’m not that confident in it and it’s pretty unusual”
"What is it?" Yoohyeon asked with a little smile.
“Are you sure you want to know?” the black haired woman asked, clearing her throat.
"Yeah, of course, you made me curious" Yoohyeon chuckled.
“Well uhm... there is this woman right before you on Friday that is... addicted to ‘the deed’” Minji said, shifting in her chair to a more comfortable position.
"The deed?" Yoohyeon asked, confused. "What do you mean?"
“Do you really need me to explain?” Minji asked, her voice a bit toned done as if it would help the awkwardness.
"So she… she's addicted to sex? That can happen?" Yoohyeon asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Of course it can, you can get addicted to anything. It’s just not something I’ve encountered in my career so it’s a bit of a challenge let’s say”
"I think I'd rather get addicted to sex than to alcohol" Yoohyeon sighed. "That sounds fun"
“Does it really?” Minji said. “Alcohol is easy to find anywhere”
"Yeah… it's a constant temptation" the blonde woman sighed. "I don't know anything about the other addiction but… I mean, if you have a partner you can go for a couple of rounds every night and everyone is happy"
"I don't have much experience with the practical side of it since I only got the theoretical one at uni but... let's just say things aren't as easy when you don't have a partner"
"When you said you didn't have practical experience but only the theoretical one, I thought you meant about sex in general" Yoohyeon chuckled.
"I'm 32! Of course I was talking about the addiction" the therapist defended herself.
"That's why I was surprised" Yoohyeon laughed. "I will look that addiction up on the internet"
"Why would you do that? Does it interest you?" Minji asked, realizing that could be interpreted in the wrong way.
"I just… no, I mean…" Yoohyeon mumbled, faking to be really embarrassed for what Minji said. "This is weird"
"No wait, not like that! I just meant... the theoretical side"
Yoohyeon bursted into laughter and locked eyes with Minji.
"Your expression was priceless" she laughed.
"You... you're a brat" the older woman chuckled as well. She knew the conversation they were having was FAR from professional but it really seemed to have lifted Yoohyeon's mood so maybe this was okay... for once.
"Thank you for agreeing to this extraordinary meeting, Minji. It's 9 pm and you're still here at work" Yoohyeon said with a grateful smile.
"My job is to help my patients so I'd gladly do the extra effort" Minji smiled back.
"It really helped me and maybe, it will get me through another week without any alcohol" Yoohyeon smiled, standing up from the couch.
"And hopefully soon enough you'll be able to not touch it at all anymore" the therapist said, standing up and reaching her hand out. "Don't forget your tasks"
"I won't" Yoohyeon smiled, holding Minji's hand and shaking it. "I'll see you for the next appointment. Have a nice evening"
"Same for you, see you Friday" the black haired woman responded, giving her a little wave as Yoohyeon left her office. "Have a nice evening... alone... again" she added, mumbling to herself.
Thank you for reading part 1, we hope you liked it, much love ♥