New Life : A Second Chance

Chapter 758 - Dealing with Joseph

Kay lay down in her bed while taking stock of everything.

There were so many things going on at the same time, that Kay wondered how Kyle was managing it. Then again, when she thought about it, he had quite a good support system.

While he was handling his kids during this time of grieving, she was the one that was basically dealing with company matters. Though to be more accurate, Beatrice and Sam were doing most of the work while she was the first 'filter' before it reached Kyle.

Thus, Kyle only needed to deal with whatever she handed him, which, by that time, was mostly taken care of already. Other matters that could be dealt with by either her, or the efficient PA team back home, were not given to Kyle.

So he didn't have that headache and luckily, he wasn't the type to micromanage everything. Otherwise, he would have gone crazy long ago.

One of the things Kyle had done for his kids was getting a child psychologist to monitor the two kids. Finding out that Lianne was Aspergers was certainly a surprise, and the first thing that had been on Kay's mind was … what about Joseph?

The moment Kay knew of Lianne's condition, she also knew the amount of burden that Joseph must have placed upon himself.

Unlike Kyle, Kay knew about Aspergers.

The University she had attended was big on having their students learn more than what their d.e.s.i.r.ed course was about - mainly to create a more holistic type of students. Thus, out of interest, one of the courses she had taken that wasn't within the field of her specialisation, was psychology.

As it was an external optional course (which basically meant that the Psychology Department offered the course to non-psychology students), it wasn't a comprehensive subject.

It basically had the outline of various types of conditions such as depression, anxiety, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism - and Aspergers was one of the conditions under autism that was looked at.

In addition, the course also had a look at the effects of the carers of people with those conditions.

It was not easy to deal and handle people with Aspergers. They looked normal and acted normal, but there were certain things that could trigger them. Joseph was only 13 years old, so how would he know how to deal with Lianne?

Did Lianne ever have a meltdown? Kay thought that possibility was very high, due to the sudden death of their mother. In fact, Dr. Marveen, the child psychologist that Kyle had hired, had stated that Lianne lost her anchor when her mother passed on.

So, who filled that void? Was it Joseph?

Most likely.

How could a 13-year-old carry such a burden?

Yet, he had done so without complaint. Even now, he didn't show how affected he was by the death - most likely to be the anchor for his sister. He was sacrificing so much of himself, for his sister.

Kay's heart went out to him even more.

Kay's thoughts were broken when Kyle sat down on the sofa next to her, looking weary. He had just walked Dr. Marveen to the door.

He turned to look at her and asked seriously, "Kay, could you please look after Joseph?"

Kay frowned, "What do you mean by that? I mean, sure, but the way you say it sounds pretty strange."

Kyle gave a brief laugh, "Sorry, my mind's a bit frazzled after what Dr. Marveen said."

Kay patted him on the shoulder and then rubbed his back, giving him some comfort. She kept quiet, allowing him to gather his thoughts first.

"She'll be fine," Kay said after a while, noting the concern on his face.

"Should I tell her?" Kyle asked.

"What? That you're her mother's reincarnation?" Kay asked, tilting her head as she looked at him.

"Dr. Marveen said she lost her anchor when I ... she … died. I don't know whether telling her would be better, or worse," Kyle admitted, confused and unsure of the next step.

"You had been a wonderful mother, Kyle," Kay said softly, "I can see that, based on how your kids turned out. Naturally, losing their mother would have a huge impact on them. Anyone would be affected, let alone them."

Kyle gave a huge sigh, and rubbed his head, "… I will need to think about this further."

He turned to her, his eyes pleading, "I need to figure out a solution or how to deal with Lianne, but I can't ignore Joseph as well. Which is why I asked if you could take care of Joseph. I don't want him to feel left out."

"He's already in so much pain, but he's not opening up at all," Kyle said with regret, "I don't know what to do and now, the issue with Lianne is worse than I thought."

Kay gave Kyle a hug and said, "Don't worry, brother. I've got your back. Leave Joseph to me. I'll take care of him."

Kyle gave her a huge smile of relief, "Thank you, Kay."

He kissed her forehead, truly glad that he had his twin with him right now. Little did either of them realise how prophetic Kay's words were - or rather, what her words truly meant in the future.

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That night, Kay was thinking hard about Joseph and his grief.

She thought back on what she had learned in the psychology class. What would be the best way to help him heal? The thoughts were on her mind as she fell asleep, and when she awoke early next morning, some ideas were already in her mind.

It was like that for her. If she had a problem, a good night's sleep would solve it.

Then, she heard some low m.o.a.ns from the adjoining room and g.r.o.a.n.e.d. Kyle may have managed to block his feelings better now, but not the sounds. Looks like some soundproofing was needed.