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“Yeah, we did. It was sad when we outgrew the crowd,” I reminisced.
“Yep, it was.”
“So, Kerem…”
“Yes, Baby?”
“You’ve had a lot to say about what you are doing or will do to make sure that our relationship survives our storm. I haven’t had much to say about it,” Keeva started.
I sat up in my chair, not sure of what her next statement would be. I thought we were doing okay. Last night was amazing. I enjoyed every second with her. I took a deep, cleansing breath and waited for her to continue.
“I want us to work, too. I acknowledge the part that I played in us not focusing so much on K and K and focusing more on our careers and our money. I acknowledge that while I asked you several times what was wrong with our relationship, I didn’t take steps to get us in front of someone that could help us,” Keeva said.
“You asked about counseling, and I said no. I regret that now.”
“Yeah, I asked, but I could’ve done something, not just said something, you know?”
“Key, none of this was your fault.”
“No, Kerem, I had a part to play. So now, I want us to go to a counselor. Pastor DeLucas and his wife Elisa come highly recommended. I scheduled our appointment for next week, and I put it on your calendar,” she said.
“I’m down.”
* * *
“Please have a seat you two. Let’s get to why you are here and how we can help,” Pastor DeLucas said.
Keeva and I had arrived at the offices of Encounter Worship Center for our first counseling session. I’d driven past the large church hundreds, if not thousands of times, but had never been on the property. I’d heard a lot about Pastor Julian DeLucas from Samuel. Pastor DeLucas and I met for the first time at Samuel’s welcome home party. He seemed like a nice guy. I knew he was a very respected clergyman in the area, but I wasn’t totally sold on the idea of going to a Pastor for counseling. Just because someone was a pastor didn’t mean that they knew everything.
The office was decorated in deep blue tones and wood. The walls were covered with Pastor DeLucas’ degrees, diplomas, and awards. There was a massive picture of him and his wife hanging on the wall behind the couch where Keeva and I chose to sit. Pastor DeLucas and Elisa sat across from our couch on a smaller couch.
“To make things a little more comfortable for you, I am JD or Julian. This is my wife, Elisa. We don’t need formal titles in our sessions if that’s okay with you?” JD said.
“I’m Kerem, and this is my wife, Keeva. We are fine with no formalities,” I responded.
“We met at Samuel’s house, correct?” JD confirmed.
“Yes, sir. We did.”
“To give you a little background, Elisa and I have been married for over thirty years. We don’t have any biological children, but we raised my niece and nephew after we lost their parents. We have pastored a church for almost as many years, and we have seen the good, bad, and ugly of marriage. Both in our own and through counseling with others,” JD said.
“This is a safe space. We want you to feel comfortable enough to share so that we can help you. We are pro-marriage, but we also understand that divorce is a necessary evil. We are ready, willing and able to get down in the trenches with you both and figure this out,” Elisa said.
“Keeva, let’s start with you. Tell me why you are here?” JD said.
“My husband and I have been married for fifteen years. Recently, well a couple months ago, I found out that he’d slept with another woman,” Keeva answered.
I watched JD and Elisa to gauge their reaction. They didn’t have one. They sat still and kept their attention on Keeva as she continued to speak.
One of the reasons why I’d chosen not to go to counseling was because I didn’t want it to be a “gang up” on Kerem session. I had to convince myself to man up and take what was coming to me.
“Is this something that has happened before?” JD asked.
I shook my head.
“Not that I know of,” Keeva answered.
I hated that she had to answer that way, but I understood.
