Little did he know that he would be sitting in this chaise lounge with his ex as the psychologist, all for that woman.
Vernon gritted his teeth silently, 'If it's not for her, then I would never think about doing this. This is so embarrassing.'
Shailene had faced many clients knowing that Vernon was very uncomfortable right now, and it was a natural reaction for many, especially men.
Shailene knew that many men were still trapped in their toxic pride and masculinity, which prevented them from seeking emotional help.
'They don't even speak about their problems to their loved ones most of the time, let alone coming to a psychologist like this,' Shailene thought.
"Don't worry about yourself, Vernon. You're here not to talk about yourself—" Shailene said. '—Even though I know that you have a lot of psychological issues as well,' she added in her heart.
"You're here to talk about this woman named Chloe. I want to know what makes become so attached to her, and what kind of person she is in your eyes," Shailene said.
Vernon nodded slightly, but it didn't help him ease his nervousness and discomfort.
The topic might not be about him but the woman he had dreamed about since the first time they met. It is something that he thought he would hide for the rest of his life.
But when confronted by a stranger like this, it made him very nervous.
Shailene sighed. This would take forever for Vernon to speak if he stayed like this.
Thus, Shailene said, "Close your eyes, Vernon."
"Huh? Why do I need to?"
"Close your eyes so you don't need to look at me. I know that you're very nervous right now," Shailene said. "With your eyes closed, you can imagine you're talking to yourself about that woman named Chloe."
Vernon felt really exposed right now, but what Shailene said made sense.
Besides, she was the expert in this, not him.
So, Vernon closed his eyes slowly.
With only darkness in front of him, Vernon's other senses heightened. His ears and nose became more sensitive to sound and scent.
He heard the sound of the water from the aquascape and the relaxing scent of chamomile and lavender blowing out of the air conditioner.
Vernon's muscles gradually relaxed, and his breathing stabilized.
"Okay, that's good, relax yourself first, and think about that woman who filled your life day and night," Shailene said. "Think about any kind of memory about her, whether it's good or bad."
Vernon's mind created a vivid imagination about his Big sis, his sister-in-law, and his Chloe Gray.
In his head, Chloe had just finished cooking. She was wearing a simple shirt and jeans.
She was wearing a pink apron and smiled at Vernon as she put the food on the table in front of him.
Vernon felt his body had shrunk. He looked down and saw a pair of tiny hands holding utensils for kids.
It seemed that he had regressed back when he was only seven.
'Vernon, don't forget to eat a lot, okay? Don't you want to grow big and strong? You said that you will carry Big sis Chloe on your back like a bear,' Chloe said jokingly.
Vernon stared at Big sis Chloe, who was young, bright, and beautiful.
Ever since he was a baby, Vernon had met many women of various social statuses, races, and ages.
His father— Vaughn Gray, would often carry him around as a toddler while flirting and talking about raunchy stuff with those women he met in many events.
His father often whispered many things to small Vernon about women, saying that Vernon must be a powerful man in the future and fuck as many women as he could get his hands on.
He needed to show how much of a man he was by fucking many women; that was the only way for Vernon to get his father's validation.
Vernon listened to everything since he was a toddler, but the more his dad whispered about those things, the more he found the women his dad brought distasteful and gross.
As he grew up, he became increasingly hateful towards those women who became the source of a fight between his parents. His life at the age of seven became hell on earth.
His parents didn't give a shit about him, he could literally jump from the rooftop, and his parents wouldn't even know about it. They were too busy with their affairs and fights.
He had his Big brother close to him, but his Big bro got noticeably busier as he focused in high school and would scold Vernon if he tried to disturb him.
He started breaking things to gain attention, hoping his parents would see him again, even if he had to be scolded.
But his parents usually told the housekeepers to clean the mess he made and locked Vernon inside his room as a punishment before they were busy with their own things.
All nannies had given up on him, and he had no intention of becoming close to anyone.
That was until his Big brother brought a girl to their mansion.
She was a woman around his Big bro's age. She had wavy chestnut hair, big doe eyes that made her look very kind, and an aura that made everyone who talked with her feel comfortable.
To top it all off, she was gorgeous. She was the most beautiful woman little Vernon ever saw in his life.
'That's my little brother, the one I talked about with you,' Vincent said as he pointed at young Vernon.
Chloe approached little Vernon who stared at her, trying to guess her intention. She crouched until they were about the same eye level.
'Hey, Vernon, my name is Chloe Carlson. Your Big brother told me a lot about you,' Chloe said as she gently patted Vernon's head. 'You can call me Chloe, but I would prefer you to call me Big sis, since you call Vincent as Big bro, right?'
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