Chapter 22 - The BasementClaire avoided the basement for fourteen months.
Nobody pushed.
Nobody called it exposure therapy.
Nobody told her she had to conquer anything.
If she needed something stored downstairs, Teresa got it.
Then one rainy Saturday Claire stood at the top of the stairs.
Teresa was folding laundry.
“You need something?”
Claire shook her head.
“I want to go down.”
“Okay.”
Teresa did not lead.
Claire went first.
One step.
Then another.
At the storage-room door she stopped.
The old lock had been removed long ago.
The door remained.
Open.
Claire touched the handle.
Her breathing changed.
Teresa stood several feet behind.
Not crowding.
Claire looked inside.
Same shelves.
Same utility light.
Different arrangement.
No fear immediately.
Then some.
She stepped back.
“I’m done.”
Teresa nodded.
“Okay.”
They went upstairs.
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That was progress too.
Agency included the right to stop.
