52 The therapist

The therapist extended her hand pointing to the chairs in front of her desk. Zara looked back at Jake who gave her a reassuring look and she went ahead as the door closed behind her.

"Umm...I..I am here to talk to you about some things that have been troubling me."

Mrs. Brooke held out a glass of water to Zara, "Sure, sure honey. Just settle in a bit."

Zara wasn't thirsty but she gulped the water anxiously and set the glass on the table top.

The woman adjusted her glasses, "So, how is school?"

Zara fumbled with her fingers, "It is going okay. I am not having any anxiety issues due to studies or exams."

The woman nodded, "Very well. I think you are on the edge trying to get straight to the point. So why don't we."

Zara took a large breath and blurted out in one jumbled sentence, "I am not sure what is happening to me. I see strange people all around me. They don't always try to harm me but it drives me crazy. Am I going mad?"

Mrs. Brooke chuckled, "Humans are a strange breed my girl, no need to act so alarmed over the fact."

Zara blew out air, "No. I don't see humans and I am pretty sure of that. They don't belong to this world, whatever they are."

The woman folded her hands and sat on the edge of the desk, "Can you describe these 'other world beings' to me?"

Zara scrunched her nose trying to recall everything that she had seen in the past days, relieved that somebody was ready to believe her. "I saw some weird looking creatures attack a classmate the other day. At first, I thought they were ruffians or thugs who were trying to rob her but then I saw their green and scaly fingers. They were wearing cloaks and had horn-like things on their foreheads."

Mrs Brooke scribbled on her notepad as Zara continued to share her experiences. She smiled as she continued with her scritching and scratching, her pen making odd noises against the smooth paper. 

"Okay, was anyone with you when you saw these creatures?"

Zara hesitated a bit, she knew where this was going already. "Yep, Jake and my best friend Veronica were there with me."

Mrs. Brooke settled down on her chair and placed a glass of water in front of Zara. 

"Have you had issues falling asleep lately, my dear?" the therapist asked in her calm and friendly voice. When Zara didn't answer Mrs. Brooke continued in the same tone as she gazed out of her window, "Honey, you have been on and off antidepressants for a long time. Though, I would say there was a solid gap in the last few months. I was thinking you were getting back on track."

Zara's stomach was in knots, she didn't like to talk about her past life, about her father or her crush who had left her for good.

"I..I don't know what is happening to me."

Mrs. Brooke walked upto Zara and took her hands, "Zara, I have been meeting you since you were a child. You had always dreamt about monsters and angels as your father told you bedtime stories about the same."

Zara squirmed in her seat, talking about her father was stressful no matter how prepared she seemed. "Umm, yeah. He did tell me stories of the archangels and the demons, of how the angels tried to keep earth free of them."

Mrs. Brooke smiled and played with the paperweight as she recounted, "He accompanied you to one of your early meetings with me. I remember him as a nice and decent man. He wasn't of the opinion that his baby girl was dealing with stress or anxiety but I think your mom had coaxed him into meeting me"

Zara mumbled, "Yeah"

Mrs. Brooke put a hand on Zara's shoulder, "I understand that you miss your father and there is an innate need to be with someone who you find as nice and loving as him. Did you ever find one?"