A slower response deserves time, not an immediate conversation over the person’s head.

When somebody takes longer to answer, the room tends to fill the gap. Others begin explaining on their behalf, deciding what they probably meant, arranging things over their head while they are still forming the sentence. Slowness gets read as absence. Very often it is only processing, or tiredness, or a language that takes an extra moment to reach.

Hold the pause a little longer than feels natural and keep your attention on the person. If you must check something, ask them rather than the people beside them. Let the answer come out at its own speed, even when someone else could supply it faster.