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Chapter 31

Author: cindyy
last update Huling Na-update: 2025-12-17 21:03:57

The week following the meeting with Dr. Meyer was a strange, suspended reality. The immediate threat of explosion had been downgraded to a constant, low-grade hum of anxiety—the pending ethics committee review. But within the eye of this storm, a new space opened up. For the first time, there were no lies between them. The secret was out, at least to the authorities that mattered. The energy that had been spent on hiding and fearing could now be redirected, tentatively, toward each other.

It was Paul’s idea, proposed with a nervousness that was almost endearing. “We could… go out. Not anywhere near campus. But just… get dinner. Like… people do.”

The word “date” hung unspoken in the air, heavy with significance and a little bit of terror.

So, on a Friday night, Leonard found himself in a small, family-owned Italian restaurant in a town twenty minutes away from the university. The air smelled of garlic and baking bread. The checkered tablecloth was a cliché, and the candle flickering be
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  • Pathological dependence    Chapter 33

    The sun beat down on the sea of black robes and colorful hoods. The university quad was packed with families, friends, and faculty, all buzzing with the celebratory chaos of graduation day. The air vibrated with laughter, cheers, and the occasional airhorn blast. For most, it was a day of uncomplicated joy.For Leonard, standing in line with his graduating class, waiting to process onto the main stage, it was a day of profound, complex emotions. The weight of the robe felt symbolic. He was shedding a skin—the skin of the broken, anxious student who had walked into Paul’s classroom two years ago.He scanned the endless rows of faces in the audience. It was impossible to pick out anyone specific in the blur of thousands. But he knew Paul was there. He’d insisted on coming, despite the risk. “I’ve watched you fight for this every step of the way,” he’d said the night before, his voice fierce with pride. “I’m not missing the finish line.”The procession began. Pomp and Circumstance swelle

  • Pathological dependence    Chapter 32

    Spring bled into early summer, bringing with it the frantic energy of finals and the looming reality of graduation. The fragile normalcy Leonard and Paul had built—their clandestine dinners, their quiet evenings in Paul’s apartment, the simple, hard-won comfort of falling asleep next to someone—was now shadowed by a pressing question: What next?The ethics committee’s review had resulted in a formal reprimand for Paul and a permanent note in his file. He was barred from teaching undergraduate courses for two years. It was a professional blow, but not a fatal one. He still had his research, his graduate students. But the university, once his kingdom, now felt like a gilded cage, a place of sidelong glances and quiet judgment.They were sitting on the floor of Paul’s living room, surrounded by a sea of Leonard’s textbooks and notecards. The air was warm, the window open to let in the evening breeze. Leonard had just finished his last final exam. A strange, weightless feeling had settled

  • Pathological dependence    Chapter 31

    The week following the meeting with Dr. Meyer was a strange, suspended reality. The immediate threat of explosion had been downgraded to a constant, low-grade hum of anxiety—the pending ethics committee review. But within the eye of this storm, a new space opened up. For the first time, there were no lies between them. The secret was out, at least to the authorities that mattered. The energy that had been spent on hiding and fearing could now be redirected, tentatively, toward each other.It was Paul’s idea, proposed with a nervousness that was almost endearing. “We could… go out. Not anywhere near campus. But just… get dinner. Like… people do.”The word “date” hung unspoken in the air, heavy with significance and a little bit of terror.So, on a Friday night, Leonard found himself in a small, family-owned Italian restaurant in a town twenty minutes away from the university. The air smelled of garlic and baking bread. The checkered tablecloth was a cliché, and the candle flickering be

  • Pathological dependence    Chapter 30

    The decision to go back to Dr. Meyer was terrifying. It felt like walking back into the lion's den after barely escaping. But the alternative—waiting for the rumors to solidify into a formal investigation, for Mark to possibly produce some shred of "evidence"—was worse. This way, they controlled the narrative. At least, that was the theory Paul, the master strategist, proposed. Now, however, he was following Leonard's lead.They met in Paul's apartment the night before the scheduled meeting. The atmosphere was tense, a far cry from the intimate, if fraught, dynamic of their recent interactions. They were co-conspirators planning a siege."We go in together," Leonard stated, his voice firm. He was pacing the living room, while Paul sat on the sofa, watching him with a mixture of anxiety and pride. "We present a united front. We admit to a personal relationship, but we insist it began after the therapeutic relationship had effectively ended. We say the 'sessions' were a pretext we both

  • Pathological dependence    Chapter 29

    Leonard didn’t tell Paul about the meeting with Dr. Meyer immediately. The lie felt like a heavy, toxic secret in his chest, a perverse mirror of the secrets Paul had once kept from him. He carried it for a day, the weight of it making him jumpy and withdrawn.Paul noticed, of course. He noticed everything about Leonard. That evening, a text came through.Paul: You’re quiet. Did something happen?The directness of the question broke the dam. Leonard couldn’t carry it alone. He called him.“Susan Meyer spoke to me today,” he said without preamble, his voice flat.There was a sharp silence on the other end of the line. Then, a soft, pained exhale. “What did she say?” Paul’s voice was tight.“She asked about us. If our relationship was professional. If you’d pressured me.” Leonard relayed the conversation in a monotone, ending with, “I lied. I told her it was all appropriate. That you were just helping me.”The silence that followed was longer this time, thick with unspoken dread. “Leona

  • Pathological dependence    Chapter 28

    The email from Dr. Susan Meyer arrived two days later. It was polite, formal, and sent a bolt of pure ice through Leonard’s veins. The subject line was innocuous: ‘Follow-up regarding student wellness.’ But it was sent from the official account of the University Counseling Center, of which Dr. Meyer was the director. She was also, Leonard knew with a sinking feeling, Paul’s former doctoral advisor.The meeting was set for that afternoon. The hours dragged by, each minute a fresh exercise in anxiety. This wasn't gossip anymore. This was an official inquiry. The walls were not just closing in; they were beginning to conduct an investigation.When Leonard walked into Dr. Meyer’s office, the atmosphere was starkly different from Paul’s warm, book-lined sanctuary. This room was modern, clean, and professionally impersonal. Dr. Meyer herself was a woman in her fifties with sharp, intelligent eyes and a no-nonsense demeanor. She gestured for him to sit in a comfortable but clearly clinical c

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