An honest lie | Kim Taehyung (editing*)

- Therapy session -

XXXVI

"Are you okay?"

Eda's eyebrows lifted at his question. Her orbs moved down to his hands when she noticed a plastic bag hanging from his strong grip. She looked back at Taehyung and avoided his question by changing the subject.

"What's this?" She pointed with her chin to his arm as he followed her gesture and lifted his hand to display the bag.

"Oh, this?" Taehyung shook it and shoved one hand inside to grab the object. "I thought you might be hungry." He took out a small box of pizza and showed it to her with a gentle smile.

Eda widened her eyes a little, surprised by the thought, and walked closer to look at the remaining stuff inside. "A cola and a soda?"

Taehyung nodded with pressed lips. "Yeah, I didn't know which one you liked and I was in a hurry so you must forgive me for the small size of the pizza." He chuckled nervously.

Eda stared at him astonished but found herself more amused than shocked at his idea. "Why?"

Taehyung smiled at her. "Well, I saw when you had that session last time and thought it would be nice to have dinner together." His voice dropped an octave and almost stuttered if it weren't for his nervous breaths.

Eda held her face muscles from betraying a smile on her lips and composed herself before narrowing her eyes at him. "Not very professional is it, Mr. Kim?" She rhetorically asked him with a challenging tone.

Taehyung's mouth shrugged at that and made his way to her desk to place the pizza there. "What? No detective today, doctor?" He asked curiously as to why she changed the way she called him all the time.

Eda walked behind her desk and took out a blank file. "You're no detective here, Mr. Kim. Here you are my.." she trailed.

Taehyung raised his eyebrows. "Client?" He grinned.

"If it makes you uncomfortable, I can consider you my client rather than my patient." She sat down as he followed her movements.

He shook his hand as he made himself comfortable on the chair. "It doesn't matter much."

They both sat there for a silent moment before Eda pointed at the pizza and soft drinks with an amused smile. "Thanks for that by the way. Didn't have much time to think about dinner." She admitted with a resigned sigh.

Taehyung nodded and pointed a finger at her. "Speaking of which, you didn't answer my question before."

Eda stared at him with an intense gaze as she tilted her head and folded her hands with each other on her lap while observing him. "You caught that ugh?"

He nodded again, determined to get an answer.

She shook her head. "Wish I could satisfy your curiosity Mr. Kim, but we're not here for me now are we?" She noted as Taehyung couldn't deny that he might be pushing it beyond his control if he tried that again.

"You're right." Yet he wanted, no, he needed to know if she was alright. "But could I ask you a favor, doctor?" He asked with a hint of mockery that almost ticked Eda off.

"Go ahead."

"Call me Taehyung."

Eda remained unbothered and completely still; eyes gawking through his thick aura. "One condition."

He hummed and waited for her to go on.

"Leave any of your filters behind you. When you're here, there's no need to keep your alarmed and controlled attitude. As a psychologist, I have the obligation to hear the deepest concerns of my patients, as they will stay between us as Cort of law, when one does not cooperate to open up to his worries there's not much I can help with unless transferring him to another consultant. So if you please drop the arrogant behavior and respect my professionalism when you're in my habitat just as I respect yours, that would permit me to address you from your given name as well as respect you as my client. Are we clear?" Her chest suddenly tightened from her own harsh words, knowing that most of them had a counterattack to his concern for her well-being. She knew he meant no harm but could not deny her self-defense when it came to people asking her personal questions, and until now, Taehyung seemed to have had the audacity to do so more than others.