"He was an absolute dream boat when we first met, which was in college," started Mrs. Dawkins. "He would pick me up off my feet, and my heart would flutter. We'd kiss and, it'd feel like fireworks. There would be this look in his eye that sparkled. But then after... three years, we entered this cycle where we would wake up, get dressed, go to work, come home, mutter about our days, have leftovers and by nine, pass out. There was this space where we had this, like... well, moment where we'd have these passionate love sessions like before and a bit after we were married, but that lulled soon."
"I see," responded Ms. Roland tapping her notepad with a pen. "So you think he cheated because he was bored?"
She swung her arms to either side and pursed her lips. "I suppose so, I just-I don't know what else could be the case. He tells me I'm still beautiful and that he still loves me; and I said, well, if that were the case then go to counseling with me and, you know... here we are."
The raven-haired counselor cocked her head towards the man sitting with his legs wide open twiddling his thumbs. "And do you agree with what you're wife is saying, Mr. Dawkins?" he nodded solemnly, eyes pointing towards the ground. "Well then... what I would suggest is to spice up your lifestyle a bit. Adopt a hobby you two can share-travel maybe. It might bring you two closer together."
"See, that's the thing," the brunette sighed. "We both work very demanding jobs. I work day-shifts and he works night-shifts, and our schedules seemingly never line up to give us a day off together."
Ms. Roland hummed. "So you don't even see each other at nighttime or the daytime."
"We do, it's just not enough time."
"And vacation time is off the table?"
"We simply can't afford to." Ms. Roland hummed again. She squinted through her thinly framed lenses at the couple; Mrs. Dawkins and her crossed legs but pleading eyes while Mr. Dawkins didn't move a muscle. His eyes had probably never even left the dull grey carpeting.
"Then, if it's okay with you Mrs. Dawkins, if I could have a private session with your husband about his infidelity?" For the first time during the session, Mr. Dawkins made eye contact with Ms. Roland.
The brunette cautiously glanced towards the counselor and her husband. "I-I'm sorry, but, why?"
"Well, I think your husband would benefit more if you weren't in the room. He seems nervous, disengaged. Uncomfortable. And I think it'd calm his nerves if he talked to just me in the room." The wife eyed Ms. Roland who only calmly stared back. Then, without saying another word, stood and stepped towards the door. "I'll let you know when our session is done, and you can come back in. That's when we'll discuss what needs to happen forwards." She nodded, opening and closing the door behind her.
Ms. Roland watched as Mr. Dawkins shifted in his seat, straightening his back and closing his legs by a bit. "So," she started. "I know I heard about the affair through your wife and how she discovered it, her feelings and all, but I wanted to hear your perspective on it. What happened? But first, tell me how it started. Remember, my job here is not to judge but to help." He nodded.
Obviously, you didn't get into a marriage thinking that someday you or your partner are going to cheat. But you also didn't think how eventually your marriage would just slowly die without realizing it. And when you do, you feel stuck by circumstance and commitment. Commitment to my job, commitment to my wife whom I definitely loved dearly. But there was a moment where I just... didn't feel it. I didn't feel happy or grateful sleeping next to her and waking up to her. But I thought, maybe that's just what happened in marriages, the honeymoon phase was long over, and that's okay.
