Healing (KTH, featuring KNJ)

Chapter 5

Namjoon's recovery was going well, although there was no way to really hide his cast. The boys at the dorm were helping him with daily chores that were difficult with one hand, and he was returning to his regular patterns. Clara visited him at Big Hit even more often than before, mostly to assure herself that he was in fact recovering. He welcomed the increased visits with open arms.  He fully recognized everyone had been terribly frightened and still needed to become comfortable with the idea that he was, in fact, doing well and healing well with no permanent damage.

While Clara and Namjoon would often tuck away his studio for lunch, increasingly she was spending more time with the rest of the band. As visits had become more frequent, Namjoon didn't always have time to devote just to her.  She was happy to simply be in his orbit, confirming for herself that he was recovering well. The boys were welcoming, treating her respectfully and kindly, but from a distance. They would offer to share their lunch when they all ate together and would ask about her day. But beyond that they largely kept to themselves, which offered Clara more time to spend with Namjoon.

Taehyung had become the exception. When he was in the room he would seek Clara out to tell a story, show a picture he had taken, or follow up on things she had mentioned she was going to do since the last visit. At the same time he had become more comfortable being close physically. Gently nudging, holding an elbow, or even putting his hand on her back as a guide. She had seen all the videos and had seen him with the other guys in the band. He was uniquely tactile and seemed to thrive off of physical touch. Growing up in America that kind of gentle nudging and touching was less foreign, so Clara thought very little about it.

But the same wasn't true of all of the members of BTS, particularly the ever observant Yoongi. After lunch one day Yoongi pulled Taehyung aside, "Hey, what's going on with you and Clara?"

Taehyung quickly looked away, "What do you mean? I'm not sure what you're talking about."

Yoongi rolled his eyes as he saw Taehyung's cheeks begin to blush.  "I don't know, it seems like you are giving her a lot of attention, more than you normally give to others that you don't know. You out of all of us are the most stand-offish with casual acquaintances because I know you've been burned in the past by people trying to get close to you for the wrong reasons."

"I don't know" Taehyung shrugged while still avoiding eye contact. "I just think she's nice to talk to. She seems kind and like she isn't here to be attached to our fame or our money. And knowing how much Namjoon has embraced her into his family makes me think maybe she could be different and someone that could be a friend."

"A friend? Or something more than a friend?"

Taehyung breathed a sigh of relief when they were called back to dance practice, leaving Yoongi's question hanging in the air. In fact he did look at her sometimes and think it would be nice to spend time with just her, getting to know her and opening himself up a bit more. But he wasn't sure what to do. As their fame grew he stopped trusting his judgment to recognize people who liked him just for him. And she had so recently lost her fiance, would she even consider spending a bit of time with someone else, even if it wasn't serious? And Namjoon was a whole other issue. He had become fiercely protective of her, going so far as to shout at staff that asked her to leave the boys reception room. What would he think? Would he even view Taehyung as good enough?

He knew he needed some more time to think, but in the meantime he would continue to try to spend small moments of extra time with Clara, hoping that eventually he would feel more confident moving forward. Normally he'd talk to Jimin about these types of things, but he felt like he wasn't ready for that. He was equally anxious that Jimin would tell him it was a bad idea, as he was that Jimin would tell him to go for it. For now he just needed some time to settle in his own mind.