Chapter One: The Switch Pt. 2
Carlton
Reese and I went back to college ball — same team, same grind, different positions. He was one of the best point guards I’d ever played with, but more than that, he was the kind of guy who stuck with you long after the season ended.
Over the years, we’d talked about everything: injuries, business moves, life off the court. Relationships too. Reese had a way of listening without judging, which made him easy to be real with.
So when I told him I needed a different therapist, I knew he’d hear me out.
“Everything okay?” he asked, leaning back in his chair. “Michelle’s solid. She’s got a great reputation already, and my clients love her.”
“I know.”
“You mad at her?”
“No.”
“You trying to get under my skin?”
I laughed. “No.”
“It’s me,” I said, running a hand over my face. “She’s great. Amazing even. And I like her — more than I should if I’m trying to keep this professional.”
Reese gave a low chuckle. “You’ve been on her schedule for six months, man. You just noticing?”
I smirked. “Nah. I knew early on. But I’ve been careful. Thing is…I don’t want to be careful anymore. You know she yelled at me last week?”
Reese reached for the fax that just came through, shaking his head. “You probably deserved it.”
“It was a tough week. My contract is up for negotiation. I actually told her what was going on.”
“And…” Reese prodded.
“She sat there and listened. Then she prayed for me.”
That made him pause. His pen tapped against the desk, and he gave me a look that cut deeper than words. “She did what?”
“Prayed for me,” I repeated, leaning back. “Not some quick little ‘hope it works out’ either. She meant it. Like she wanted to cover me. I’ve never had a woman do that for me, Reese. Not once.”
He let out a low whistle, shaking his head. “That explains it.”
“Yeah,” I said, my voice quieter. “And if I’m being real…I think she likes me too. Not just as her client. I see it in the way she looks at me sometimes. The way she remembers the little things I say. She doesn’t push past it, but it’s there. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t notice.”
Reese leaned back, studying me with that long pause that only a friend of years can hold. “CJ, that’s not something you just brush off.”
“Exactly. And that’s why I can’t sit in there, week after week, pretending I don’t feel what I feel. She’s not just helping get me back on the court. She’s reaching places I don’t usually let people touch and I don’t even know how that happened. I can’t cross that line while she’s working on me. She doesn’t deserve that mess, and you don’t either.”
He nodded slowly, reading between the lines. “Alright. I’ll make the switch. But you know she’s gonna notice.”
“That’s the idea,” I said, leaning back with a quiet smile.
Crystal Writes 