“Kim Taeyeon?” Dr. Chaelin Lee called from the door to her office. She saw a petite, dark haired woman stand and shoulder her purse. As the woman walked towards her, Chaelin stood aside to let her pass. “Please, have a seat.”

“Thank you,” Taeyeon responded and sat on the brown leather couch.

Chaelin grabbed a notepad and sat in the armchair across from her. “First, do you mind if we are on first name basis?”

Taeyeon shook her head and smiled politely. “No, that’s fine. You can call me Taeyeon.”

“Good. And I’m Chaelin. Thank you for coming in today.” Chaelin jotted a few words down on her pad and settled back comfortably in her chair. “Okay, Taeyeon, tell me why you’re here today.”

“I want a divorce from my husband, but the judge says we have to do counseling before he will grant it,” she explained with her head hung low.

“You’re the one seeking the divorce?” Chaelin asked for clarification. Taeyeon nodded. “And your reason?”

“He ignores me,” Taeyeon replied sadly. “I can be sitting right in front of him, and he doesn’t see me anymore.”

“His name is?”   

“Baekhyun. Byun Baekhyun.”

“And how long have you been married?”

“Almost five years.”

“Okay.” The doctor wrote his name down and circled it. “What kind of work do you do, Taeyeon?”

“None now. I was part of a pop girl group for years, but we all sorta aged out of it. We found the men we loved one by one and wanted to start families.”

“I think it was noble of you to end your career to focus on family.”

“The problem is, that he didn’t. He’s still working full time, gone for months on end and that leaves me behind. I’m sick of being left behind!” Taeyeon confessed passionately.

“Hmmm.” Chaelin noted that outburst on her notepad as well. “Please answer these questions honestly; Do you love your husband?”

Quietly, Taeyeon told her, “Yes. I love him, still.”

“Have you ever been unfaithful?”

“No!”

“Do you really want to dissolve your marriage, Taeyeon?” Chaelin asked softly.

“I . . . I don’t know. I just don’t know what else to do! I’m tired. I’m so, so tired. Tired of being overlooked. Tired of coming in last. Tired of being lonely. Tired of feeling invisible,” Taeyeon told her heatedly. “I think I could shave my head and he wouldn’t notice. He pays me zero attention. I just want him to see me, doc.”

Chaelin nodded and set her pen down on her lap. “I hear you, Taeyeon, and I appreciate your honesty.”

“What . . . what should I do, Chaelin? I really don’t know what to do,” Taeyeon admitted with a broken sob. “I wouldn’t have married him if I didn’t love him, but I don’t think he loves me anymore.”

Chaelin nudged a box of tissues in her direction, then sat back to observe her. “I can’t tell you what to do, Taeyeon. And even if I could, I wouldn’t. That’s not my place. My job is to ask the right questions and help guide you to the answer that is best for you.”

“I understand.” Taeyeon wiped her eyes and ran her fingers through her hair. “What happens now, Chaelin?”

The doctor tapped a finger on her lips for a moment while she thought. “I think we should end for today. I have enough to go on from your end, but I’ll need to speak to your husband also to form a plan for the sessions.”

“When are you seeing him?” asked Taeyeon while she calmed herself.

“Tomorrow,” Chaelin answered as she stood. Taeyeon did the same. “Thank you for coming in today, Taeyeon.”

“Thank you, Chaelin.”

“It’s my pleasure. Please know that I will do everything in my power to help you.”

The women shook hands and Chaelin opened the door for her to leave. Once she was alone, she sat at her desk, closed her eyes and leaned back in the chair.

“So what do you think, Chae? Are they worth helping?”

Chaelin opened her eyes to see a black cat perched daintily on her desk. “What are you doing in here, Dara? You know you aren’t supposed to listen in on my sessions.”

“What difference does it make? Who am I going to tell? I’m a cat,” Dara responded before her paw nonchalantly.

“You’re only a cat then you want to be.” To get back at her friend for eavesdropping, she picked Dara up and scratched her belly.

“No! No! Stop, not there!” Dara hissed and clawed until Chaelin dropped her. From her spot below, Dara raised the hair on her back and hissed angrily. “How many time do I have to tell you; Don’t touch the tummy!”

“As many times as I have to tell you to not listen to my sessions,” Chaelin countered.

Dara hopped back onto the desk and gave Chaelin a dirty look. “Back to my question, Chae, ‘are they worth helping?’”

“I don’t know. I’ll know after I talk to the husband tomorrow.”

“Oh, come on, Chae. This is what Hera charged you to do. Save marriages.”

“I know that, but I have to use the powers discriminatingly,” Chaelin reminded her. Chaelin’s eyes moved to the golden peacock that adorned her wall. ‘Just because you can, doesn’t always mean that you should,’ Hera had told Chaelin upon bestowing the powers to her.

“Yeah, that’s what Bast said to me, too, but . . .” Dara did a feline version of a shrug. “Well, alright, Chae. I’ve got some more protecting to do. You get back to work.”

“I will. Later, Dara.” Chaelin watched her jump off her desk and disappear into nothing. Chaelin smiled a little and rubbed her temples. Digging through the files on her desk, Chaelin looked briefly at one, familiarizing herself with the next couple on her roster. She got up and went to the door. “Mr. Bang Yongguk? I’ll see you now.”

* / * / * / *