I was surprised that Paul let Alex take the call during the session... I thought maintaining that closed environment of therapist and patient was a "rule", which is why I wasn't surprised to when Paul dissuaded Laura from answering the call from her boyfriend in the first episode...
But knowing of Alex's growing "feelings" for Laura, it seemed voyeuristic of him to allow Alex to take the call. Not to mention it's very manipulative of her to call during Alex's session, like she's still jockeying for more of Paul's time, even if it is by proxy
I suspect Paul didn't make more of an issue of it for a couple of reasons -- his own countertransferential response to the triangle of Alex, Laura and Paul. And of course, Laura knew Alex would be there when she called. But I also think that the therapeutic alliance between Alex and Paul is very fragile -- Alex is reluctant to surrender to the process and Paul is quite mindful of that. In any case, it is all grist for the therapeutic mill, interpretable behavior.
Commenting by HaloScan
