Wait for me to come Home

Chapter 71

The next month passed by in a flurry of activity, and June fast approached. Lisa made a small amount of progress, but it was a relief to them both that she was actually starting to get somewhere. After Jisoo had slammed the cupboard door and triggered a flashback, Jennie had had every cupboard, drawer and door hinge and runner changed to ones that couldn't be slammed. When they fought it was almost frustrating not being able to slam a door shut behind them when they stormed off, but Jennie had everything in the apartment practically baby proofed to try and help Lisa. Slowly she started to have less nightmares at night, and each morning they woke up after a peaceful night's sleep, it felt like a small victory.

It started with therapy, which caused a few arguments between not just Jennie and Lisa, but everyone. Eventually though, Lisa let Jennie make an appointment; once a week individually, and then another weekly session for couples counselling. Lisa had fought against the couple's therapy, insisting that there was nothing wrong with their relationship, but Jennie had been adamant, because although she wouldn't admit it, she was close to breaking. They were three weeks in, and it was hard for them both, but they were managing. Jennie attributed most of Lisa's recovery to the fact that they'd put Kuma through the compulsory training and registered him as a service dog. He never left Lisa's side, and while Lisa rarely ventured outside of the apartment, it was a comfort to her to know that she would have someone to keep her grounded if something triggered a flashback or an anxiety attack when she did go out – not that Jennie had let her go anywhere alone yet anyway.

Now, they were in the process of packing up all of Lisa's stuff at Rosé's old apartment, and moving it all into Jennie's place. Their place. Lisa was finally fully moving in, because she'd insisted that they do something. One of their arguments had been about Jennie going back to work, and Lisa taking Chaerin up on her work offer, but Jennie had put her foot down. Instead, they'd compromised on moving all of Lisa's belongings into the apartment, because at least that was they were both occupied, and Jennie had started working with Chaerin, taking on paperwork that she could do at home with Lisa. On top of therapy and moving, Lisa was so worn out that she had no motivation to do anything – not that Jennie suspected she would want to do anything even if they weren't busy. Most days, she would sit in the photography room that Jennie had set up for her as a birthday gift, and Jennie left her to do whatever she did in there, giving her privacy with her photos and cameras. At least that was one thing she showed some interest in.

Lisa had her individual therapy that day, and Jennie was sat in the waiting room for the session to finish. She'd promised Lisa that she would come with her to every session and sit outside, and afterwards they'd do something fun to help Lisa unwind, because Jennie knew how draining therapy was. She had started getting back into the routine of therapy with her mom, and Jennie wasn't sure whether or not it was a blessing or a curse, because for that hour, it was the only time she was away from Lisa, but at the same time, she hated the fact that she was away from Lisa. She was on Jennie's mind every second, no matter what she was doing her mind would always run away to thoughts of Lisa, and she'd find herself panicking about whether or not she was okay doing whatever she was doing with Rosé or Jisoo. Even now, with Jennie sat in the waiting room, she was thinking about Lisa and wondering how the session was going. It was another fifteen minutes before Lisa came out, holding Kuma's leash in her hand, and Jennie climbed to her feet, giving her a small smile.

Lisa sorted out her next appointment, before walking over to Jennie and holding out a hand. "Let's go."

They walked through the city, having walked to the clinic, and Jennie gave Lisa's hand a quick squeeze. "Where do you want to go? There's that new art exhibit at the gallery," Jennie suggested. "Or we can go and get tacos from that Mexican restaurant you like and go and walk through the botanical gardens. I bet the flowers are blooming nicely now."