First Session: Emily

Well, that was actually slightly better than he'd initially thought. A defensive boyfriend was better than a possessive one, although he wasn't ruling anything out.

"It sounds as if he was defending you, but went beyond what you wanted," Valli noted, although he didn't point out that Emily's priorities were distinctly unusual. "I wasn't there, so I don't know the full situation, but generally when misunderstandings like that occur, they can be avoided in the future by being clear. In this case, by clearly telling Jason that you're uncomfortable with the way he's touching you if it happens again, and by speaking to your boyfriend in private about when it's appropriate for him to defend you. It isn't necessarily wrong to defend someone you care about, but it can be easy to be overly vigilant in an attempt to impress."

Maybe he was a bit out of touch with younger patients. Really, part of it was that he was just used to dealing with a lot more serious trauma, so the day to day minutiae didn't matter quite as much.

Ah well.

"That would depend on how you played it off. If you were firm and confident, the embarrassment would be turned on Jason, as it should be. People follow examples. If you're uncertain about turning him away, they'll believe Jason was in the right. If you're confident, and you throw Jason off, they'll side with you. If you learn how to say things the right way, you can get away with saying almost anything."

It was almost a mischievous suggestion, which he hoped would appeal to Emily a bit.

Valli knew better then to push when someone wasn't taking answers. A huge part of therapy was guiding someone around to help them make their own conclusions. You planted the idea, and then you had to water it over and over again until it grew.

"You can't change what happened, but you can still prevent it from happening again. If you're upset, you should speak to your boyfriend about why what he did upset you. If you don't tell him, he might do it again, after all."

It wasn't quite a threat, but it was sort of an implication of a threat. If she didn't correct her boyfriend's behaviour, she'd end up running into the exact same situation again and embarrass herself even more.

"Respect and communication are both important parts of a relationship," Valli pointed out, well aware that Emily had probably heard it before. Even if she had heard it before, hearing things again could be helpful. "If he isn't willing to listen to what you have to say and take it into account, why even be with him? I would think it would be embarrassing for you socially to be bossed around in your own relationship, especially when it leads to things like what happened today."

If Emily had started with 'I don't want to talk about him anymore', she probably could have gotten away with it. He probably would have said something polite like we can talk about what you'd like and moved on.

But saying something like I don't have a choice effectively locked the conversation in, and Valli lost his easy smile, turning significantly more serious in a moment.

It wasn't something he wanted to hear from anyone, least of all a sixteen year old girl. If he had a bit more space--a bit more time--he probably would have excused himself entirely, and let someone else take over. But no one knew more how important reaching out was, which meant time was of the essence.

"There's always a choice, even if it doesn't seem like it. There are resources, no matter why you feel you can't leave."

Her reaction was hard to guage, with a lot of different options. It was possible she was in an abusive relationship, but didn't realize it. It was possible she wasn't, and he'd misread the situation.

There were a lot of options, and he had to handle things carefully.

"You shouldn't have to feel like you have to be in a relationship with someone, you know," he said, guessing she'd probably make some comment about not being a child. It was an obvious fact, a simple statement and yet one she seemed to be ignoring.

"Relationships are supposed to be fun, not something you dread."

Especially at her age.

A mutual agreement sounded unhealthy, but Valli was aware he was on shaky ground. He had to step carefully if he wanted to keep up the rapport they'd already established.

"Alright," he said, making a point of clarifying that he was moving the conversation on at her request. "What about school? You'll be going into your last year of highschool soon, which normally means a lot of pressure to make career choices. How have your studies been?"

Minor annoyance, obviously, but it didn't seem that she considered grades to be of monumental importance. It was bothersome, but not serious, and therefore, for the most part, not something Valli was going to focus on.

"An A is a good grade," Valli observed. It was hard to miss the fact that she'd completely avoided his gentle prodding. "If you're pulling all As, your grades would be good enough for any career you wanted--have you given thought to that?"

The evasion indicated it was a possible source of stress, and the better an idea he got of Emily's life, the easier time he'd have helping.

I don't have a future was never something Valli wanted to hear. It wasn't a happy sentiment, not by any means, but it was also one he could understand.

He'd felt that way once, after all.

"There's always a future," Valli said gently, his voice soft. "Even if it often doesn't feel like there is. The world continues to turn, even when you feel like it would stop, and it continues to turn even when you wish it would just get on with it."

He knew he was probably coming off as lecturing, but it deserved to be said.

"There isn't anything wrong with living day to day, but before long those days will want you to make a choice, and it's worth thinking about, even if you feel it doesn't matter."

"No," Valli said simply. He'd let her sit in silence, and now he would tell her the things she needed to hear. "You don't have to. No one can make you, least of all me. Only you can decide for yourself if you want to."

He took a moment to let that sink in, and then he continued.

"But ignoring it--putting it off--will only make things worse. The more you put it off, the worse things will get. Instead, you have to be brave and face it head on. You have to make your own choices, and decide what you want to do with your life."

Emily had murdered someone, and Valli didn't think for even a moment that they were talking about just a choice of career.