The Problem with Emerson

02 | The Problem with Therapists

THE PROBLEM WITH THERAPISTS, as Brie's Nana Moira would say, was that they were so bloody expensive.  Due to firsthand experience, Brie happened to share her grandmother's sentiments.  But thankfully, Brie got free shrink sessions in the form of lunch dates with Erica Tran.

Brie had met Erica in their orientation group their first year of university.  They had bonded over their mutual love of Brie's tattoos, and then they had discovered that they had a few courses in common.  For the rest of the year, Brie had been a reminder to Erica to let loose and take a break every once in a while, while Erica had been there to remind Brie that she needed to study instead of sitting on her ass watching Scrubs. 

It was a mutually beneficial friendship, but Brie would be lying if she said that she didn't rely on Erica for advice more than she probably should.  Though having Erica around definitely allowed Brie to be an actual functioning adult.

"Thanks, Dì," Erica said as her aunt set down a bowl of phở in front of Brie and then her niece.  Erica's family owned the Vietnamese restaurant they were sitting in, so it was always their go-to spot for a good meal.  "Do you need the sriracha, Brie?"

Brie shook her head vehemently.  "Absolutely not!  I'd prefer not to turn into a fire-breathing dragon, thanks."

Like all Reinhardt women, Brie had a strong aversion to anything spicy.  One bite and it turned her whole complexion red, and don't even get her started on the way her tongue seemed to swell up and burn like it was on fire. 

The Bhandari-Bishops, on the other hand, loved their spice.

One time, while she was over at Emerson's house, she had taken one bite of his mother's curry and had instantly begun to cry from the pain.  In between bouts of laughter, his other mother had managed to instruct a concerned Emerson to pour her a glass of milk.  Though even after she had downed the glass, her face had remained red for half an hour, and she had yet to live it down.

Erica shrugged as she dumped half the bottle (okay, maybe Brie was exaggerating, but it was a lot of sriracha) into her bowl.  "Suit yourself."

As they began to eat, Brie asked Erica how things were going with her boyfriend.  She and Karl had started dating at the end of the summer, and two and a half months in, they were doing great.

Throughout first year, Erica had sworn to Brie that she wasn't going to date until she graduated.  She had been determined to focus on school and work, and she had refused the distraction of a boyfriend.

And then she had met Karl Luong.

Erica and Karl had both been in a creative writing class during the winter semester, and it hadn't been long before they had become friends.  They had talked all throughout the semester, and they had kept in contact over the summer.  And at the end of August, they decided to go on a date, and the rest was history.

"So, what's new with you?" Erica asked.  She took a sip of her water, which had left a wet ring on the table in front of her.  "I feel like I haven't properly talked to you in a while."

"Oh, you know.  Just studying and avoiding seeing my father's face plastered all over the city.  The usual," Brie replied with a nonchalant shrug.

She had also been enjoying herself in more pleasurable ways, such as hooking up with Savannah.  And even though Savannah had successfully reminded Brie why they were broken up, she had managed to put her out of her mind.

Until she had woken up on Wednesday morning with a text from Savannah (Brie had deleted her number after their most recent hookup went horribly awry, but she unfortunately still knew it by heart) that brought reality crashing down.