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beige button-down, with a slightly darker brown sports coat on top, the man appeared in every way unremarkable. His hair matched his jacket, and his eyes too. When he smiled, his flaccid lips revealed teeth only a shade lighter than his clothes.
    Crossing gracefully to her husband’s side, Melissa simpered a little as Robert slid an arm around her waist. “Well, have a seat everybody,” she continued, smiling at Vaughn and then turning the expression on Cole with the addition of sugary daggers in her eyes. “Can I get anyone a drink?”
    Cole met her gaze without expression, realizing the source of the couple’s earlier disagreement. Tonight was going to be fun. The only question was whether she chose to get Vaughn involved in the argumentative festivities.
    “Oh, you needn’t trouble yourself, Mrs. Smith,” the counselor said blithely. “Though the offer really is too kind.”
    He motioned for her to join them, and then turned to Cole, waiting patiently till he lowered himself onto the couch as well. A cloyingly understanding look taking up residence on his face, Vaughn thumbed open his pocket notebook and then drew out a pen from his brown sports coat. “So… it’s been a while since we’ve seen each other, hasn’t it?”
    Cole didn’t answer. It’d only been two months, and not remotely long enough.
    Undeterred, Vaughn continued. “How’s school going?”
    Silence greeted the question.
    “Sweetheart,” Melissa admonished lovingly. “We didn’t bring Dr. Vaughn all this way for you to ignore him. Come on. He wants to help you.”
    Paternally, Robert nodded, playing his part with a dedication born of knowing the consequences for any other behavior. “Go ahead, son. We’re all here for you.”
    A scoff evaluated the benefits of emerging, and then reconsidered.
    “School’s fine.”
    Vaughn beamed. “Oh, good. And friends? I know your mom mentioned you’d had some trouble staying connected to a good crowd. How’s that been going?”
    “Fine,” Cole replied, barely keeping the dry note from his voice.
    Pleased, the counselor nodded. “I’m very glad to hear that.” Thumbing to a new page in his notebook, he took a deep breath. “So, Cole. Can you tell me about what happened today?”
    A list of potential responses ran through his head, ranging from the sarcastic to the downright rude. Melissa would make him pay for any of them, and after a moment’s further reflection, he dropped them all as pointless.
    “Wrecked my truck,” he said, settling for facts.
    “I can see that,” Vaughn chuckled.
    Fondly, Melissa cocked her head and raised an eyebrow in encouragement.
    “Tried to impress a girl,” Cole elaborated flatly. “Didn’t work.”
    “Pretty dangerous way to get her attention, wouldn’t you say?” Vaughn replied, mildly chastising.
    Cole didn’t bother responding.
    “And you’re feeling alright? Not too shaken up, I hope?”
    “I’m fine.”
    Vaughn paused, jotting down a few notes. “And what did your friends think of what you did?”
    Cole hesitated. “What did my friends think?”
    “Well, the school reported you left with friends,” Vaughn explained. “We’re just trying to assess if they put you up to anything. If they’re a bad element, you see. Were they the ones you were hanging out with this evening?”
    His skin crawling, Cole glanced to Melissa before he could stop himself. That’s what this was about? Learning the identities of his friends, as much as any concern his actions might’ve stemmed from some inherent flaw?
    Struggling to keep his anger from showing, he tried to decide what to say. Any answer could cause trouble, but the truth would be worst. The perfect crowd was as much a priority to the woman as anything, but her quest for elitism left her isolated, and so she targeted his friends’ families as a way of ingratiating herself with the ‘right people’. Over the years, he’d lost more friends than he cared to count to her overeager interest,