“But why didn’t you tell me? We could have gone together. Talk about it with family. “
“Because you were exhausted every night. You weren’t laughing anymore. You barely ate. I didn’t want to be another problem you had to solve. “
“So you hid the truth from me. “
“You barely ate. “
“And I’m sorry. I didn’t think carefully. “
Ruby, feeling the tension, approached me. She wrapped her little arms around my legs.
“I didn’t want you to be sad, Mom”, she said.
I dropped to my knees and pulled her into my arms. “Oh, baby. I’m not sad because of you. I’m sad because I didn’t see how much pain you were in. “
“And I’m sorry. “
“I want us all to be together”, she said. “As before. “
“Me too. “
Molly waited a moment, then said, “I can replace today’s session with a family consultation, if that’s okay with you. “
I hesitated, then looked at Dan.
He nodded.
So we stayed. We sat on the blue sofa.
We really talked.
“Me too. “
Molly guided the conversation, helping us unpack the things we had buried for months. Dan apologized again. He admitted that leaving me in the dark had been a mistake, and he took responsibility for the damage it had caused.
I admitted how distant I had become. I told him I missed him too.
Dan apologized again…
And in that moment, I realized something important. The enemy here wasn’t Molly or even the secret sessions. There was silence between us. The assumption was that protecting each other meant hiding things.
