CHAPTER FIFTY THREE

CHAPTER 53

*** NEXT DAY AT THE THERAPIST OFFICE ***

Caleb entered the therapist's office with a deliberately constructed attitude of indifference and squared shoulders. The room was small and ill-furnished, and there was a strong smell of desperation and old books.

Caleb allowed his eyes to roam, taking in the disorganized piles of files on the shelves and the faded inspirational posters as he sank into the worn recliner opposite the therapist's desk. It was a pitiful little room, a reflection of the school's clumsy attempts to deal with the issues that sullied inside its walls.

Dr. Lyra, the therapist, gave him a polished smile that stopped short of her eyes. With wispy grey hair and a permanent frown carved on her brow, she was a mousy woman in her late fifties who had long since given up on truly improving the lives of problematic teenagers like him.

She said, "Welcome, Caleb," with a false smile that made him uncomfortable. "I'm glad you could make it to our first session."

With