Healing (KTH, featuring KNJ)

Chapter 74

They were on the last stop on the tour when they discovered their return to Seoul would be delayed. There were terrible ice storms in Korea and the airport was closed. Taehyung was pulling his hair in frustration asking the managers to consider any alternative that would get them back more quickly, but nothing was working.

For her part Clara had returned to stay at the apartment before the storms began, wanting to make sure she was home when Taehyung arrived. And it was shortly after the storm really picked up when Clara felt a twinge. She ignored it at first, but couldn't ignore the ones that came after. Clara had never given birth before, but she was virtually certain that she was starting her labor. The doctor had said it was likely to happen early with twins, but Clara wasn't expecting things to happen quite this early. She still had over five weeks to go.

Clara knew she needed to labor more before she went to the hospital, and in the meantime she hoped the storm would break up so Taehyung would get home for the big event. She called her adopted mother, but discovered the police had closed the roads due to the dangerous conditions. Mrs. Kim couldn't come until the roads reopened but promised to be on her way as soon as she was able.

Clara suddenly realized she was on her own. She could call Taehyung's parents who lived just downstairs but she still felt reluctant. They hadn't fully patched things up yet and the last thing she needed right now was more stress.

Eventually she knew she needed to get to the hospital, but with many of the roads closed she felt she had no choice but to request an ambulance to collect her and take her. She'd already talked to her OB who thankfully was at the hospital when the storms hit, so at least she didn't have to worry about a stranger delivering the babies.

By the time the paramedics arrived Clara's labor seemed to be progressing rapidly. She was struggling to stay upright and was beginning to feel the need to push. They transferred her to the ambulance as quickly as possible and drove as fast as felt safe in the terrible conditions.

Clara got to the hospital and started to realize how truly alone she was. There was no one to hold her hand or help her greet the babies when they arrived. At least her OB was waiting by the hospital entrance to quickly whisk her away, avoiding the complexity of needing to register her arrival since she had no one with her to assist her.

Earlier in the day she'd spent a lot of time on the phone talking to Taehyung, but eventually trying to maintain any type of engagement felt too burdensome. While Taehyung knew she was heading for the hospital, he was left anxious waiting for any news with nobody to contact.

Dr. Park had been notified Clara was in labor, hearing the news both from Taehyung and her OB. He also would go to the hospital as soon as possible but was similarly trapped at home in the storm.

Clara was immediately moved to a delivery room, assisted to undress and put in a hospital gown. The doctor wanted to check her progress but could quickly see that it was already time. So she broke Clara's water to help the process along.

But before the doctor asked Clara to push she handed her two earbuds to put in her ears. Clara didn't know what they were for, but as soon as she had them in she could hear Taehyung's voice.

"Tae, can you hear me? I don't think I can do this."

"Clara, I promise you can. I know I'm not there physically but I'll be here with you the whole way. If you need me, I'm here. Now can you try to take some deep breaths with me?"

Clara attempted to take some deep breaths but was hit with another contraction. Taehyung could hear everything in the room from the earbud speaker so he listened in as the doctor told Clara that next time she would need to push.

And this was how the next 30 minutes went. Taehyung would spend the time between contractions reminding Clara of why she was so perfect and encouraging her to breathe. And Clara would take that time to tell Taehyung she didn't think she could do it alone.

But she did. Each push, with Taehyung's encouragement, brought her closer to the first baby. Until Taehyung could suddenly hear a new sound, the first sound of their baby crying.

The doctor quickly checked the baby over and then encouraged Clara to pull her top down so the baby could lay on her directly. And when the baby was finally in her arms, Clara began to weep.

"Tae, it's a baby."

"I know. Tell me everything about him."

"He's perfect. He has ten fingers and tiny little toes. He has a lot of hair, and it's thick like yours. And he's perfect."

Oh how Taehyung wished he could be there to see this blessing for himself, but he felt overwhelming relief knowing Clara had made it and the baby seemed well.

Before long Clara's contractions began to pick up again. The doctor gently went to retrieve the first twin back from Clara, assuring her that the baby would spend this time being fully checked over by the doctor and then cleaned. As soon as she was done delivering the second, the first twin would be back.

By now Clara felt largely spent, and she really wasn't sure she could do this again. But with Taehyung's support she was ready to try again.