Chapter Text
"So…do you want to talk about what happened?"
Lucia ignores her, just adjusting her beanie and curling up tighter in her chair.
"I know it was bad, your parents told me that much. But I don't know any details. Now, you don't have to get into it all right away. I know that can be way too much for your first session."
"Yeah, and you know what? I think it's gonna be too much for the rest of them, too. So why don't we just give up on this before we both waste too much of our time?"
Dr. Waybright right doesn't take her bait, just raising an eyebrow.
"You think you're the first kid to not want therapy? Please, I was one of them. I know the idea of baring your soul to a stranger is absolutely mortifying, but…I can say from experience, it really does help."
Lucia hesitates, considering that. It doesn't take long for her walls to slam back up, though.
"Yeah, well, just cause you needed therapy doesn't mean you get what happened to me."
Sasha shrugs.
"Fair enough, I'm not trying to claim I do." She pauses, considering her words. "Alright, how about this. I may not know your tragic backstory, but I'm willing to bet you're severely underestimating how fucked up my childhood was. So…why don't we make it a challenge?"
Lucia looks up at her, confused…but slightly intrigued.
"What do you mean, 'challenge'? How would that even work?"
"Simple: we take turns listing shitty things that've happened to us, and at the end of the session, whoever has a less fucked up childhood gives the other twenty bucks."
Lucia narrows her eyes.
"You think I'm stupid? This is obviously just you trying to get me to talk."
"Yeah," Sasha agrees, looking at her nails, "Is it working?"
Lucia opens her mouth to snap back, before pausing. She looks at her lap, slightly puzzled.
"I…I think it is. Huh."
"There's a reason I got my license, sweetheart. Now, do you wanna start, or should I?"
"Be my guest, it's your idea." Sasha taps her chin.
"Okay. Hmmm…you think I should start with the time I threw myself off a tower, or the time my girlfriend got stabbed?"
Sasha almost laughs at the way Lucia's eyes bug out of her head, but to her credit, she keeps her cool pretty well.
"Hmm, hard to say. Though I have to say, what are the odds that we both watched our girlfriends get stabbed?"
Sasha claps. "Ooh, we should start a club!"
Lucia snorts. "Yeah, 'Impalement Anonymous'".
Sasha cracks up at that, giving the 16-year-old a weak glare.
"Hey, that makes it sound like we got stabbed. How about…'Friends of Caesar'?"
The two both take a minute to laugh, Lucia wiping a tear from her eye.
"Heh, that's…you're pretty funny, Waybright."
"Right back at you, kid. Now, where were we?"
Lucia finally uncurls a bit, spreading herself out in her chair. She's still not quite sold on therapy, but…well, there are worse therapists, she supposes. Maybe this won't be so bad after all.