"Good morning!" Parker chirped, as I came trudging out into the kitchen.

The smile dropped off his face when he actually saw me.

"What are you wearing?"

I looked down at my outfit. I'd thrown on a pair of sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt, hoping to blend into the crowd.

I ignored him, going to swipe my keys off the counter so I could head to school.

Emmett had gone in early for a school project.

"Not so fast," Parker said, swiping my keys off the counter before I could. "I made you breakfast."

The very thought of food made me feel nauseated.

"I'll pass," I muttered.

"Not an option." He slid two eggs over easy and a piece of toast across the counter. "So hurry up and eat."

"Not hungry."

"Well that just sucks."

I glared at him and he just stared back at me, waiting for me to take a seat.

"Give me my keys Parker."

"I'm not playing games with you Emily," he said, his voice hard. "It was a mistake to let you stay locked up in your room during dinner last night."

It was not a mistake.

"Then I'll just catch a ride to school," I muttered, heading into the living room to locate my backpack.

"You're a bit of a hypocrite!" he called after me.

I turned to face him, my eyebrows raised.

"You're always on me about not opening up," he stated, leaning against the counter. "About bottling up my emotions? Yet here you are."

"Just shut up Parker."

"If I ever said that to you, you'd probably punch me."

My eyes flickered back down to the breakfast he'd made me, and I felt the tears start to build up in my eyes.

Parker was almost immediately by my side, wrapping me up into a hug.

I pressed my face into his chest, letting out a sob, which was like opening up the floodgates.

"It's okay," he promised, rubbing my back soothingly.

"It's not," I sobbed.

Parker kissed the top of my head, letting his lips linger there. "It pains me to see you like this princess."

"I just want to be pretty."

Parker took a seat on the couch, tugging me down next to him.

"And what makes you think that you aren't?" he asked, wiping a tear off my cheek.

"The mirror would be a good place to start."

"The mirror can be deceiving," he informed me.

I reached up and wiped underneath my eyes, getting rid of the excess tears.

I hate crying in front of people, as if I'm not already weak enough.

"Was it something that happened yesterday?" Parker asked.

I took a moment to compose myself and my thoughts.

"I hate the scale," I admitted, just the thought of it causing an intense pain in my chest. "I hate watching the numbers go up, watching myself get fatter right before my own eyes."

"The scale isn't your enemy," Parker reminded me, in a soothing tone. "And in all honesty, what it has to say doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things."

I couldn't help but let out a sarcastic laugh.

"You are beautiful," he reminded me. "You are worthy. And that scale does not define you."

I wanted to believe him, more than anything I wanted to accept his words.

But the voice inside was louder than Parker, disagreeing with everything he had to say.

~*~

"So our goal here today is just to even out your plate a bit," Dr. Whittman explained.

I nodded.

"We want to be hitting about 2,000 calories a day."

I remember that from rehab. In London they prepared all your meals for you, so there weren't many days that I didn't hit 2,000 calories.

But here at home, after adding up my calories, I was barely hitting the 1,300 mark, usually more towards the 1,000.

"I always like to say that you want a colorful plate," she said, setting up what would be an ideal plate for breakfast.

"Colorful?" I asked.

"It's important to keep in mind that for breakfast you want to try and have whole grains, dairy, fruit, and around 20 grams of protein."

Now is when I'd usually exchange glances with Emmett, my head spinning with information.

But I'd told him he didn't have to come.

"Your plate should be ¼ grains, ¼ protein, ¼ fruits or veggies, and then ¼ fruits or grains, with a side of dairy."

She handed me a pamphlet for which I was grateful, because there's no way I'd ever be able to remember that.

"So an ideal breakfast could be two slices of toast with butter, berries and yogurt."

I'm lucky if I eat an entire container of yogurt for breakfast.

"Okay," I said, with a nod.

"Lunch could be a salad with dressing, a dinner roll, and an apple with perhaps a side of pudding."

Once again, my lunch usually consisted of a simple salad.

"And then an example of a dinner could be chicken, rice, broccoli, and then a cookie with some milk."

Okay that did sound close to my dinner, minus the cookie part.

"I'm not sure how people could actually eat all of that," I said, my mind swirling with all of this new information.

"It will take some time for you to adjust," she admitted, with a nod. "But it's important to have a well-balanced plate to lead a healthy lifestyle."

~*~

"Hey Emily," Lee said, his face etched with concern.

"Do you have a minute?" I asked.

He nodded, shifting in his desk chair a bit. "I did answer your video chat didn't I?"

I couldn't help but smile. There's my sass queen.

"What's up?" he added.

I took a minute just to compose myself, to be sure that I wasn't going to break down again.

"I'm a bit of a mess," I admitted, after a full minute of silence.

Lee cracked a smile. "Aren't we all?"

"What's your biggest struggle Lee?" I asked.

He leaned forward in chair, folding his arms on top of his desk as he pondered my question for a few moments.

"I struggle with normality," Lee admitted. "You know, I have all these mental disorders, and it sets me apart from society. And I guess my biggest struggle is trying to find the balance between it all."

I nodded, absorbing what he was saying.

"What's troubling you Em?" he asked, after a few more moments of silence. "What's your biggest struggle?"

"Perfection," I said, the word practically rolling off my tongue.

Lee leaned back in his chair, nodding. "That's a good one."

"For as long as I can remember I've just wanted to be perfect," I said, reaching up to twirl a piece of hair around my finger. "I wanted to be the perfect daughter, the perfect sister, the perfect student, just the perfect human being all around."

Lee just nodded.

"And I can't get there."

"Perfection is a perception," Lee mused, shifting back to his original position. "We as a society, and as individual humans, decide what perfection is. We assign it to an unattainable image or idea."

I sat in silence, absorbing what he had to say.

"I guess you need to ask yourself why you feel the need to be perfect in the first place," Lee added.

"Because perfection is the ultimate goal."

Lee shifted in his seat again, moving to sit criss-cross.

"Normality is the ultimate goal," he said, with a nod. "But as a person suffering from Bipolar Disorder, ADHD, and a panic disorder, I understand that normality is unattainable. So I have to learn that find that balance."

"And how do you do that?"

Lee switched positions once again, moving so that his left leg was tucked underneath his right.

"Feeling it out day-by-day," he admitted, with a laugh. "I'm not the poster boy for mental illness."

"And what about the low days?"

"Those suck," he admitted. "Those are pretty much the worst. But I know that I have people like Parker, who although I may hate at the time, have my best interest in mind."

I nodded.

"You have people like Emmett," he added. "And Parker for that matter. And hell, you might even have me if you catch me on a good day at the right moment."

I couldn't help but laugh.

"Perfection is a perception," he reminded me. "It's important to find a balance in life, something attainable."

I nodded.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay?" Lee asked, concernedly.

"I think that I am," I said, and for the first time I actually believed it.

~*~

"I don't know if I'm comfortable with this," Emmett said, leaning against the counter.

"Well good thing you aren't my dad," I said, raising my eyebrows at him.

"Let's not get heated here twins," Parker called from the living room, without looking away from his show.

"You've been down all week," Emmett pointed out. "And now you want me to believe that all is well? And that you're ready to make a trip to Miami?"

"Well not to be rude sir, but I think I know myself better than you do. And in the end run, it's ultimately up to me whether I get to do something or not, not you."

"Twins!" Parker called from the living room, with a warning tone.

"I don't feel comfortable with the idea of you taking off for the weekend after being so emotionally unstable all week is all."

"And I don't feel comfortable with you trying to step in as my father."

"Okay," Parker said, getting up off of the couch and joining us in the kitchen. "I can already see the end to this argument, and let me tell you that it doesn't end well. So can we compromise here?"

"Oh great and mighty one, what do you suggest?" Emmett asked Parker, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"Love the new nickname," Parker said, with a smirk. "And Emily will be with me, do remember that. She's not just packing up and heading down to Miami. So in that aspect, I do promise to keep a good eye on her."

Emmett eyed the two of us warily.

"And," Parker added. "Emily promises to call you Saturday night and answer any fatherly questions you have to throw your way, no attitude."

"I do not," I muttered.

"You do so," Parker retaliated, mocking me.

"You promise to keep a good eye on her?" Emmett asked.

"I'm not five," I pointed out.

"I promise," Parker said, ignoring my comment.

Emmett nodded. "Fine."

"Well what makes you say fine to him?" I asked, indignantly.

"If you were smart, you wouldn't argue," Parker whispered. "That's the first rule of winning."

Emmett rolled his eyes, grabbing his bottle of water before heading back to his bedroom.

"We're leaving in five!" Parker called after him.

Emmett let his bedroom door slam behind him.

"I'll take that as a sign he got my message," Parker said to me.

************************************************************************************************************

So what did you guys think about Parker & Emily's talk in the beginning of the chapter? What about her meeting with the Nutritionist? All of that is true, btw. I pulled it off of a legit Nutrition website. And then what about her talk with Lee, did you see it coming? Plus the ending of course, with Emmett's overprotectiveness, we should've all expected that by now.

The picture off to the right was submitted by Harrys_bae___ Check it out! -->

Just got home from the beach a couple of hours ago. Did anyone else do anything special for Labor Day? Other than enjoy the day off of school :D

Teaser: Parker & Emily receiving some shocking news from Lee.