Page 76 of Even in the Dark

Dylan:I know that. Okay?I fucking know that.I just really don’t want to talk about it anymore.

Dr. Morley:Not tonight, then.

Dylan:Yeah. Not tonight.

Dr. Morley:Alright. Let me ask you this, then. Do you think Scarlett could tell you felt uncomfortable when she lay on your bed?

Dylan:[No response]

Dr. Morley:Just thinking?

Dylan:Un-huh… Yeah. She could tell.

Dr. Morley:Did she say anything?

Dylan:She didn’t get it at first. Why I was pissed… I told her to leave. Then I went outside, and she came out a few minutes later. She’d figured it out… Apologized. Which made it fucking worse.

Dr. Morley:Okay… and then what happened?

Dylan:It’s gonna sound weird as fuck.

Dr. Morley:That’s fine.

Dylan:She gave me… uh, pine nut… something muffins.

Dr. Morley:Okay… you’re going to have to explain that one to me.

Dylan:Said it was an apology gift for making meuncomfortable. Gave me one of these disgusting weird healthy muffins her mom makes. Like a joke. Because they’re so bad.

Dr. Morley:Well, that sounds like she was trying to make you laugh after she knew she’d done something that made you uncomfortable—not like she was trying to jump your bones… Right?

Dylan:I guess. Yeah.

Dr. Morley:Either that, or shereallyhates your guts, and she’s trying to make you severely ill with these pine nut muffins—which sound horrible, by the way.

Dylan:They’re pretty bad.

Dr. Morley:Okay, so how about this? How about you get a good night’s rest… You’re going back to school tomorrow? Is that still the plan?

Dylan:Yeah.

Dr. Morley:Hand’s healing okay?

Dylan:Yeah.

Dr. Morley:Great stuff. So, you take it easy tonight. All these thoughts about this girl, and about Eli and any of those things that feel like they’re a tangled mess right now in your head, set them aside… They’ll still be there tomorrow. We’ll schedule an extra session for tomorrow and talk more about everything then.

Dylan:Sure.

Dr. Morley:Good. So we’ll chat more tomorrow. Tonight, I want you to go watch tv for a bit. Or read one of your comics. Something like that.

Dylan:Okay.

Dr. Morley:Because you want to be well rested for school tomorrow.

Dylan:You guys get I’m not five, right? I get the whole sleeping thing—just like I figured out the breathing thing.

Dr. Morley:[laughs] Sorry. That did sound patronizing. Guess I’ve just read so many studies on the effects of good sleepinghabits, and breathing, and things like that—on emotions. Now I can’t seem to stress its importance enough.

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