Healing (KTH, featuring KNJ)

Chapter 55

Before Taehyung left for the company the next day he received a text from his mother instructing him to send Clara to their apartment for the day so they could keep an eye on her while Taehyung was at work. He still wasn't quite sure what had happened last week, but he was sure that he was not going to send Clara back there today, at least until he had things figured out. Instead he sent his mother a text back saying Clara already had plans for the day, but he'd stop by later to talk.

As soon as he arrived at the company he made a beeline for Dr. Park who had been checking in on Clara for the last week while Taehyung was out of town.

"Dr. Park, can I have a minute please? I wanted to hear from you how Clara was when you visited her last week."

"Oh, Taehyung-ah. It's nice to see you back. Clara seemed to be improving well. I was a little worried about whether she was eating well, but your mother assured me that it was going fine and she was actively managing it. Honestly Taehyung, it was a little odd. Clara hardly spoke at all and your mother answered every question for her. And even when I'd specifically ask her questions she would look to your mother to answer for her. Is she always like that?"

"Well, not exactly." Taehyung took a moment to consider how to answer. "She is very shy and quiet around people she doesn't know well. And she can be quite deferential. But it is unusual that she wouldn't respond to questions asked of her directly."

"Ah, well the one thing Clara did say was that she missed you and she looked forward to the two of you being back at the apartment. But she only mentioned it once when your mother had stepped out of the room for a moment to get her notebook where she kept a detailed log of Clara's sleep and calorie and liquid intake."

"There was one other odd thing. From what your mother reported Clara had cut way back on her sleep. I was surprised because I'd expect someone in her situation to need at least an additional three hours of sleep per day, maybe four. Clara must be experiencing far less side effects from the medication than I'd expected."

"I guess the only thing unusual during any of my visits was that Clara had a small cut on her foot one day. It was nothing serious but I did take a look at it. I applied some ointment and a bandage but that was all. When I was looking at the small cut Clara seemed to be getting a little teary. I asked her if it hurt, but she told me no. She said her emotions were just a bit out of whack from the pregnancy. That seemed normal so I didn't ask further."

Taehyung took a few seconds to think. "Thank you Dr. Park, I appreciate you looking out for her. In the meantime I think there was some confusion about Clara's meals. Can you tell me who on staff is making them? I'd like to go and talk to them directly."

The Doctor nodded but paused for a moment before responding. "Let me go and tell her to come and see you. I'm afraid if you show up in the kitchen unexpectedly it might cause a bit of a stir and it will be hard to keep the request private. Is there somewhere that she can find you for the next hour?"

"Ah yes, I'll be in the practice room. Thank you so much."

"Your welcome Taehyung-ah. And congratulations on the twins. It really is quite exciting."

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It wasn't long until the dietician arrived and Taehyung clarified the requirements for Clara's meals. Clara was right, his mother had called and instructed the woman to change the meals she was making. The poor cook had no reason to believe the request wasn't from Clara herself so she happily obliged, wanting to ensure the meals were being enjoyed. Taehyung provided the woman with strict instructions that she was not to make any further changes unless he or Dr. Park requested it personally.

He could tell the nutritionist felt badly about the situation, she kept asking Taehyung if Clara had any favorites that he hadn't mentioned that she could make that might lift her spirits. After taking a few moments to think, Taehyung remembered that Clara loved banana pudding but it was quite hard to find in Korea. With a large smile the woman promised to do her best and assured Taehyung that today's meals would be in line with his updated request.

Shortly after the dietician left, Namjoon found Taehyung in the practice room, looking to inquire after Clara too. Taehyung assured him that she was doing well, but in response Namjoon shared that he had been worried about her because she didn't return any of his texts last week. And perhaps even more surprising, Taehyung's mother had reached out to Namjoon twice to assure him that Clara was doing well under her care.

Apparently Taehyung's mother also sent a note to Namjoon's mother, letting her know that Clara had started working on some kind of special, hand sewn outfit for the babies. Namjoon's mom wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but it sounded like Clara must be doing well enough if she was able to continue working on some of her "educational" projects while Clara was staying with them.

Taehyung filed this note away to ask Clara about. Normally she was quite forward in sharing what she was learning, so he was surprised he hadn't heard anything about it from her directly. And he'd also ask her about the cut on her foot. Everything felt so confusing. He really couldn't figure out what happened but from what he did know it wasn't that good. He definitely had more questions for Clara before he went to talk to his parents.