Posted by Captain Calvin Marius (Captain) in How to Make a Counselor Mad as Hell

Posted by Lieutenant Junior Grade Vanessa Slade (CNS) in How to Make a Counselor Mad as Hell

Posted by Captain Calvin Marius (Captain) in How to Make a Counselor Mad as Hell
(SNIP)

He squinted. He had seen her schedule a few times and from what he could remember she was in her office quite a bit. “If I remember correctly your area is kept neat and you are in it for a protracted period of time.”

“Of course it is. It’s not like I strip naked and hang out on the therapy couch for fun like I do my quarters. Why are you so hyper-focused on my apparent lack of cleaning skills?”

“Oh, my that got dramatic suddenly. I’m certain you don’t spend any time naked on duty.” He squinted at her.

Only years and years of hearing outlandish and whack-a-doodle statements allow Vanessa to keep a poker face. “Are you really that certain?” She imitated his squint as if scrutinizing him.

“Well you’d be violating uniform code,” which would be the very least of the issues of being an undressed officer on duty. “And probably a little cold.”

And there it was: His humor. Calvin was not the belly-laughing or the guffawing type. He did not give into the braying like a donkey or high-pitched chittering like a bird when he found something funny. Calvin’s humor was more the chortle or chuckle paired with a witty comment. It fit him not because of his rank but of his personality. Calvin was more reserved and while Vanessa was sure there would be a belly laugh in there if the situation called for it, she was becoming accustomed to what she referred to as the lip twitch when she amused him.

“Betazeds get married naked. A lot of cultures find the buff really natural.” Taking a sip of her beer, hid the smile that was threatening to break the corners of her mouth. His squint at her Vanessa found slightly humorous. Calvin tended to always be so serious and that was the first time she might actually consider him being playful so she was going to run with it.

“Besides you do not know cold until you spend a day in February in Boston with a Nor’easter coming,” she teased him.

“I presume you were dressed on that day in February?’

“Not enough for a Nor’easter but enough that I would not get thrown out of a church service,” she shot back.

“A lot of races come from colder climates and have made adaptions, they have fur are carapaces.. You are human, we’ve been dressed from before we learned to master fire. So it is far from ‘human natural.’”

Depends on the types of humans you associate with, she thought to herself however Vanessa kept that inner thought to herself. There was a tipping point when teasing and tossing about innuendos.

“Dressed ones, as a rule.”

“I try my best to get my clients as relaxed as possible so whatever they want I accommodate. Rock climbing, running, axe throwing, painting,” she ran off a litany of things she therapy sessions. Leaning forward, Vanessa set her beer down and looked at Calvin with what she hoped was a sincere and purely clinical expression. “Want to know the hardest therapy session? Scuba diving. Hard to talk when there is something in your mouth.” Picking up her pizza, she took a really really large bite and used a napkin to wipe off the bit of sauce and grease from her face. Well, that is what she hoped it appeared like. It was completely to hide the smirk she could not wipe off her face.

Marius just blinked at her for a moment. “You are playing games with me.” He knew that he was commonly viewed as the straight man in most crew members’ comedy routines, or the not-funny friend in the sitcom that all the jokes happened around.

“Yes and no,” Vanessa smiled at him. “I was using word games but the scuba difficulties are real. Lt. Brockton is obsessed with scuba diving and has a lot of issues to work through. We spend fifty percent of the session looking at fish, twenty-five percent of the session talking about the fish we say and twenty-five percent talking about the issues. One of my colleagues once questioned the length of time therapy can take but I usually come back with how much wasted time is spent in therapy if you can’t get your client to open up.”

“I was also shamelessly using language to see your reaction.” Vanessa could be direct like Calvin but the way she spoke about her confession was very neutral. She was interested in him. He knew it. She knew it. Whether it went anywhere as a topic far far into the future.

“Why are you so proud of your questionable hygiene?”

Marius

“The truth,” she took a long swig of her beer, “I wasn’t expecting company because I never thought you would accept an invitation to come over. Don’t get me wrong I am glad you are here,” she quickly, “but I am rarely in my quarters for anything more than sleeping, showering, and changing my clothes.” Picking up a second slice of pizza, Vanessa continued to answer his question. “Yes, I am in my office for long periods of time but it is mostly to complete paperwork. I tend to do mainly immersion therapy when I counsel my clients. Depending on what the client wants to do means I might have to change my clothes eight times in a day hence my pride in my pig sty. You see it as a mess but I see it as progress.”

Vanessa Slade CNS

“Immersion therapy?” Calvin didn’t know much about therapy, not that he had anything against it. It just seemed like a lot of talking. Which he though was helpful, but he didn’t know how it was a job unless they were dealing with really mentally ill people. “Sounds you just drop them into a pool.” He paused. Many people responded very poorly even to modest jokes about their profession. Although to be fair he actually didn’t know what the heck that was.

Vanessa let out a full belly laugh. “Sir,” she said out of reflex instead of authority. It would take a while to remember to drop it in these less formal settings but Calvin sounded more odd than Sir right now. “I guess I should call it immersion with a twist. Immersion therapy is when you expose people to what scares them gradually to show them there is nothing to be scared of. It is used mainly for panic and anxiety disorders or phobias. I personally never thought scaring the hell out of someone was particularly useful however with 9 brothers it was a daily occurrence in my house.” The mirth in her tone indicated it was probably more normal sibling torture than real psychological issues. “I tend to immerse people in positive scenarios or if they claim they don’t have a single one an activity they find enjoyable. This makes people more relaxed and gives them a sense of control. Most people stick to the same boring things but it’s not about me so,” she shrugged. “People like to stay in their lane and comfort zone instead of being adventurous.”

“Life isn’t rainbows and puppies. I’m not sure how that works. Do you just say think happy thought?”Calvin actually spent a lot of time ‘not’ participating in therapy, and he never was buried in sunshine and rainbows by his therapist.

“Well you don’t look like the therapy type,” she agreed. Therapy wasn’t for everyone and for some it because a crutch working on situations for years and years because the person really didn’t implement the strategies to resolve an issue. She didn’t think Calvin was in either extreme but she did have a hard time wrapping her head around an image of him lying on her couch, feet propped up and starting off with a monologue of well it started when I was three.

“You don’t think I’ll do much. You didn’t think I’d play that paint ball game with you and your urchins.” Which actually wasn’t that far off since he didn’t like playing at war. He thought it was a little insulting somehow to turn something that people died at into a game. “Nor did you think I was going to come back for a quick bit and beer. Who doesn’t like pizza and beer?”

Marius

“Urchins,” she let out a laugh finding humor in his comment. “They are always underfoot but I can’t blame them. Starfleet recruitment posters are all about honor, glory, integrity, and following your passion set to the backdrop of exploring the galaxy. The truth is that it is a hard life. People get hurt, die, changed,” she let her voice trail off. “You know I worked at the Veterans Affairs in Boston before coming here. Healing the person is only the first step. You also have to heal the family. Kids have a really hard time with the blank statement that mommy or daddy is sick or going through something. I realized early on it had to be a multi-faceted approach so I set up activities only sometimes kids don’t get the PTSD. They want to fit in but when your parent has a slip and shows up drunk or has a panic attack.” Vanessa didn’t need to fill in the blanks. Calvin was smart and could read everything she didn’t say. “That is where I show up. If the kids want to do something and they can’t I step in. Ninety percent of life is just showing up.” Sensing she was getting a bit heavy, Vanessa cleared her throat and picked up a third slice of pizza.

Calvin shrugged. “It wasn’t much.” It was a couple of hours and he needed the exercise and he enjoyed competition. “Plus putting those scrubs and bullies in their place” His mind went back to the challenge he laid at the foot of the other team. “It might be bad, if I just turned our victory into a defeat next week.”

His comment indicated Calvin was coming back around for a return trip but he was looking at it very black and white in her opinion. “It’s not about winning or losing,” she spoke in a gentle tone that was not meant to come off as reprimanding but hopefully more as a sincere thank you regardless of the outcome.

“That’s what the losers say.” He countered automatically. “Winning isn’t everything, but losing is nothing at all.”

His comment amused her. The Captain tended to keep a level keel so his cocky comment showed how much of Calvin was in the room and not her ranking officer. She liked seeing this side and was not blind to the fact he probably didn’t relax with many on his crew. This opened up so many questions for Vanessa in her mind.

“You though are quite the conundrum,” she pointed the slice at him. “I usually can figure someone out in about ten minutes but I am clueless with your highs and lows.”

Vanessa Slade CNS

“Well that’s easy.” Marius started. “I don’t have highs and lows. There is no value to it, much like the tortoise, just stay slow and steady. It’s the same for emotions. If you get disregulated that’s when you make mistakes and damage relationships. You should know that counselor.”

That being said, Calvin didn’t have no range of emotions. it was just that he didn’t think there was much value to showing it.

Marius

“It also leads to a very dull life,” Vanessa countered. “Tell me when you are one hundred and ten years old on your death bed do you want to look back at a life that was full of calculated memories where you knew the outcome before they happened or,” she held up a finger, “do you want to smile at your grandchildren and great-grandchildren gathered around your bed and say there was that night on Risa with that slight lip curl you have patented as a smile,” she turned her finger towards his face making a swirling motion.

“Well, I’m not dying at 110, unless something odd happens. I expect to make 140 at least. And there is a lot of predictable things that are fun” He looked at her. “You telling me you can’t plan a night Risa and have fun. Hawaii, is predictable but fun. A whiskey is predictable and fun. You don’t have to play Russian roulette or run across a highway blindfolded to have a good time.”

“Agreed,” she acquiesced, “and yet there is something to say about venturing out of your comfort zone. To throw caution to the wind and do something out of the norm.”

“Besides you only truly understand someone when they are out of control. Anger, sadness, jealousy, regret, and guilt are not fun but when you come out of it on the other side with someone else, you learn so much. First, you learn that at your absolute worst that person did not walk away or check out. That is incredible for trust. It also makes obstacles and hurdles you face easier because you have a history of overcoming them. Relationships are easy when things are all rainbows and puppies. Relationships are real when you have to trudge through the mud and muck yanking your other person along at times because you are a team.” The last part would probably resonate with the Marine in Calvin and maybe drive her analogy home.

“In vino veritas? That’s only for liars. You know everything you need to know about me by asking me the right questions at the right times. What you get from me when I’m out of control is bad things. Very bad things.. My parents, both sets never fought. At least never over anything that I didn’t do.” That was a double negative.

Taking a large swig of her beer, she polished off the bottle and stood up to get more. Walking into the kitchen, Vanessa replicated another for her and Calvin carrying them between two fingers back into the living room.

Vanessa Slade CNS

“Trying to get the veritas point of your vino are you?” It was going to take more than a couple of beers to get him to be wild. In fact, Calvin actually got quieter when he drank. He didn’t like being out of control. So when he was more intoxicated he actually did less so he wouldn’t be caught being stupid. It was a weird contradiction.

Marius

“No,” she laughed holding out another beer. “I have drank with you before if you remember correctly which resulted in us clamming in the holodeck in freezing ocean water. You put away a helluva lot of whiskey and were still in complete control. It has to be a lot of pressure and stress always staying in control.” Starfleet was littered with Captains that were straight and serious. Captain Picard was such an example. Even when he was relaxing the space around him felt heavy and formal as some of his crew reported about their time on the Enterprise. Starfleet was also littered with the renegade Captains who leaned more towards the motto that it’s better to beg for forgiveness than ask for permission. These Captains could make some crew develop anxiety disorders with jump-in-both-feet-first styles.

Calvin had stated if she asked the right question, he might surprise her, so Vanessa did. “Truth or Dare,” she announced plopping back on her couch instead of just sitting down. She had zero expectation Calvin would ask for a dare. It also wasn’t like they were in middle school where an option was running up and down the halls activating door chimes and running away; therefore, she plowed ahead with her question. “What is the most impulsive and exciting thing you ever did in your life?” Oddly enough, Vanessa was very interested in the response. It was not because she didn’t think he hadn’t done something crazy. Once Calvin had been a cadet, a Marine, a hormonal teen, so the possibilities were endless.

Vanessa Slade CNS