Greeting the receptionist on my way in, I sat down in the sitting area and waited for Pandora to come and call me in. As normal, I was a few minutes early. Looking around at the calm environment, I sat there patiently until Pandora opened the door to her private room and smiled widely at me. I got up to my feet and made my way over to her.

Pandora Andris was in her early forties and she had a dark, shiny bob haircut that shimmered as much as her polished red nails. She had on a matching red necklace that looked like bright painted pebbles against her tanned skin. Her maturity was only visible through subtle things like the faint smile lines she had on her face. She was a beautiful woman with warm brown eyes, eyes that I could look into with reliance.

“Hey there, Coral,” she gave me a hug.

“Hey,” I smiled as I hugged her back.

“Come on in,” she said and I walked inside.

I took a seat on the leather sofa and Pandora sat in her armchair. There was a coffee table in the middle of the room and a box of tissues as well as a plate of biscuits.

“How have you been? Would you like anything to drink?” Pandora asked me as usual.

“I’ve been good, and yourself? And yes, some tea please,” I smiled as I gave her my normal answer.

“Good thing I’ve already heated the kettle up,” she grinned and reached for it on the small table beside her.

Pandora asked me how my week had been whilst she made me a cup of tea and I told her that it had been pretty standard. I was busy these days and I quite liked that. Like every session, everything we discussed was confidential and Pandora wasn’t allowed to tell anyone else. She often took a couple notes and had already explained that they were to help her decide the most effective way of helping me.

“And have you had any nightmares or flashbacks?” she looked at me as she added a teaspoon of sugar to the tea.

I shook my head, “Not in a while actually.”

Pandora smiled and handed me the mug of hot tea, “That’s good to hear.”

“Thanks,” I smiled as I took it from her.

“So, how’s Walter?” she asked me.

I couldn’t help but beam, “He’s good, focusing on his boxing a lot these days, which is great. He and I are still taking things slow, but I do feel more comfortable with him.”

“That’s brilliant,” she nodded in encouragement as I took a sip of my hot drink.

Pandora wasn’t supposed to give me direct advice on what to do with my life. She was only there to ask questions and guide me in finding the answers to my problems. I talked to her about Walter a lot, but I mentioned nothing about the gang or even the Santiagos. Pandora had no idea that the abusive father I talked about had been their boss and was now dead. Phoenix had said that I couldn’t speak a word about any of those things, and I had already planned not to before I’d even started the counselling.

Today, we spoke more about my relationship with Walter and how he had calmed down a lot since I’d met him. His brothers sometimes mentioned that Walter had changed and that his temper was shorter, because of me. Walter still fought with them, especially Eli, but he wasn’t as explosive anymore. I guessed it depended on what the fight was about, but either way, nothing extreme had happened for a long while.

I told Pandora that Walter was like an anchor for me to hold onto whenever I had bad dreams. It was also because of him that they were so rare nowadays. She asked me where I thought the relationship was leading and I had shyly admitted that I saw myself spending the rest of my life with Walter. I just knew there was no one else out there who I could love more. We completed each other.

“You’re very lucky to have a man like Walter,” Pandora said to me as our thirty minute session came to a close.

I grinned. I always thought of Walter as a boy, but he was actually a man now. Not just because he was nineteen, but because he had matured in the last year that I’d known him, and to be honest, he was one of the best things that had ever happened to me. I loved him.

“Thank you,” I replied.

“You should bring him in one day so I can meet him,” Pandora grinned. “I bet he’s gorgeous.”

I blushed at that and shrugged, “I like to think he is.”

She chuckled at my modest answer and I set my empty mug on the coffee table before getting to my feet. Pandora stood and gave me a hug before walking me to the door of her office.

“Give me a call if you need anything,” she said to me before I left. “I’m always here to talk.”

“Sure. Thank you,” I said. “I’ll see you next week.”

“Take care, Coral,” she smiled.

“You too,” I returned it.

I left the building feeling like life had a brighter filter on it and I made my way to work, hoping that time would pass fast so that I could spend some time with Walter again.