Chapter 4
Jennie wakes up half an hour earlier than usual so she can spend a few extra minutes putting on makeup and finding an outfit that shows off her skin just enough to have Lisa stare, but not enough so that the rest of the school will call her a whore behind her back.
Not that clothes would really stop or encourage that. The sheep will do what they do best and follow what the popular crowd says. Jennie could pull an elderly man out of a burning fire, but if Im Nayeon told them that she was the devil in disguise, they would listen. Not that Nayeon would do that to her, she’s better than most of the student body.
Jennie, even being one of the most popular of all, is not excused from the toxic behavior known as gossip. It’s sad, how quickly people’s opinions change based on another’s. Jennie herself is subject to it as well, but she has Jisoo around to pull her head out of her ass if needed.
“You look nice.” her mother tells her when she comes down for breakfast.
It’s one of the few days of the month that they’ll actually have time to spend with her, and usually she craves the time she’s allowed to spend with them between the busy schedules, but she would rather be anywhere else right now. She feels guilt low in the pit of her stomach, knowing that if her parents found out who she was fraternizing with, they’d be terribly disappointed in her. More than usual.
“Thank you.” Jennie settles onto the stool next to her mother, making sure not to rest her elbows on the kitchen island. That had been trained out of her at the young age of ten with a wooden ruler. “You have work today?”
“Of course. When do we not?” Her mother takes a gentle sip from her coffee mug, ever a woman of grace. “Is it picture day?”
Jennie blinks, surprised at the sudden interest in something other than her grades. “No, I just felt like dressing up is all.”
Her mother hums, pleased. “Well, that’s good then. It’s important to look nice, show off a little.”
Jennie nods silently, eyeing her father as he comes in, adjusting the tie on his neck. Jennie thinks she catches the hint of color on his neck, but before she can look further, he’s pulled his collar up properly. Odd.
“Hello, sweetheart.” He gives a kiss to Jennie’s temple. “Are you trying to impress someone? A boy?”
Jennie furrows her brow. “Does it have to be for a boy?
He pauses, exchanging a glance with her mother. “I suppose not. A girl then?”
“What?” She chokes on her own spit. “No, I meant… can’t I just dress up for myself?
“Oh!” His face lights up, like he hadn’t thought of that. “Sure you can, sweetie. That’s fine.”
Her mother takes over when her father seems at a loss for words. “It would be fine if it was for a girl of course. Oh! You know the Minatozaki family, don’t you? I heard their daughter was a lesbian! How exciting for them. They’re rich too! If you wanted to take a lady, we could find a way to set you up.”
Jennie wants to scoff, but she refrains from doing so in fear that she would anger her parents. Of course, they have no cares for her sexuality being a little different, but they still want her to fall into a family with money. It figures.
“So I can date a woman as long as she’s rich?” Jennie asks carefully, making sure not to let any emotion slip into her voice.
“Sweetie, really, we’re not monsters. You can date whatever gender you want. Or someone without a gender, we don’t care.” Her mother pats her cheek, like she thinks Jennie is the silliest thing she’s ever encountered in her life. “As long as you don’t make the family look bad, you can have whoever you want.”
Right now Jennie wants a poor, foreign girl that loves the stray cat that lingers around their home, but that’s not something she can speak aloud.
“Right.” Jennie nods, like their words make sense to her.
Mrs. Lee, their longest hired cook in the house, struts in a moment later, starting up the stove top. She looks a little ruffled, her makeup lighter than normal, especially her lipstick. Jennie kind of wants to laugh, she’s never seen Mrs. Lee look anything other than perfect.
How funny, even the help needs to look perfect in her parent’s eyes.
“I’m not terribly hungry, Mrs. Lee. I think I’ll skip breakfast.” Jennie tells the cook.
Mrs. Lee gives a scolding look, but there’s a fondness there that can only come from a woman that’s looked after a child that is not her own for years. “You’re already too skinny, Jennie.”
“No such thing.” Her mother says, eyes closed in content as she sips at her sugarless drink. “I would kill to have my daughter’s metabolism again.”
Her father frowns. “No, she’s right. You need to make sure you’re eating properly, Jennie.”
“Jisoo will probably have something. I’ll eat once my stomach has settled.” Jennie lies. Jisoo never has any extra food. She downs it minutes after she gets it.
“Fine.” Her father nods, although not too happily. It’s moments like this when she thinks they really care about her, more than they do about the status she would bring their family.
---
They have volleyball practice that morning, and by the end of it Jennie really starts to wish that she would have eaten breakfast. Her stomach is rumbling and her body feels weaker than it should. It doesn’t help that the rest of the girl’s pull out snacks, protein bars mostly, afterwards.
They all group together in threes or fours as they eat, gossiping about something Jennie isn’t interested in. To be fair, it’s probably not anything malicious. Most of the volleyball team is pretty uninterested in drama, sans some of the younger girls that are looking for a way to fit in with the upperclassmen.
Nayeon ignores most of them after her short appraisal, skipping over to plop onto the bench next to Jennie. She, like the others, is hungry enough to pull out a protein bar of her own. It’s raisin. Jennie loves raisin.
Nayeon catches her staring a little too intently at it. “Hey. Hungry?”
Jennie shakes her head, looking away. “No.”
Nayeon snorts. “Well, you’re either interested in my boobs or the protein bar so…”
“I could have anyone I want in this school, why would I want you?” Jennie snarls, although with less killing intent than usual.
“True.” Nayeon admits, eyeing her carefully. “It wouldn’t happen to be that Hyunjin boy that you want, is it? Because there’s rumors that he’s going to ask you out today.”
Jennie whips her head back around. “Who told you that?”
She shrugs, leaning back to lay against the second row of benches. “Momo told Dahyun who told Mina who told Jeongyeon-”
“Who told you because Yoo Jeongyeon tells you everything.”
“Yeah, she does.” Nayeon smiles at that, a real, genuine smile. Jennie hadn’t expected it. “So, what are you going to say?”
“That I’m not interested, obviously.”
Nayeon nods, head smacking into the bench. “Ow- obviously. No one is a match for you, right? Except…”
Jennie narrows her gaze. “Except?”
Nayeon shrugs. “Oh, nothing. Just a thought.”
Jennie doesn’t know what to think about Im Nayeon sometimes. The girl is the perfect example of high school royalty, but is quite the contradiction. She should be spiteful and mean if you’re going by the textbook definition, but Nayeon is typically charitable and nice.
She stepped out of the race for student council president so her friend, Park Jihyo, could have it and she takes care of the girl from Taiwan, Tzuyu. The smart thing for her to do would have been to beat out Park Jihyo for the position and plummet Chou Tzuyu’s social life before she became popular from her ethereal looks. It would have kept her closer to the top in academics and popularity, but Nayeon just isn’t like that.
Still, she’s about as sly as a fox and her implying something about Jennie’s love life is not something she wants. “Good. Keep it a thought.”
Nayeon throws her hands up in surrender. “Sure thing.”
Jennie is ready to ignore her until the bell rings, but the new protein bar shoved in her face has her facing the girl once again. She doesn’t speak, but she does grab the snack from her hands, tearing into it in a way that would make her mother disappointed.
Jennie gives her a nod as she walks away. Nayeon’s only acknowledgment is the barely there lift of her lip.
---
When Jennie walks into the lunch room, her expensively out-of-place lunch plate in hand, a few people eye her curiously. She scowls, not particularly directing it at anyone, hoping that it’s enough to get her nosy peers to leave her alone.
It’s not.
She catches sight of Chaeyoung alone, picking at the moldy strawberries on her plate. Jennie sucks in a breath, gathering her courage, and walks over to the girl. Chaeyoung gives one last poke to her nasty strawberry before looking up.
“Hey, wasn’t sure if you were actually going to come.” Chaeyoung admits.
It shouldn’t offend her, she’s been dodging Chaeyoung for years at school, but it does send an arrow of guilt through her chest. She wonders if any part of Chaeyoung is angry at her, for ignoring her for so long only to lower her walls for someone she’s known for a week. Jennie would be angry. Chaeyoung is a better person than her though, so maybe not.
“I wasn’t sure if I was either.” She tells her, taking the seat next to Chaeyoung.
“It’s nice.” Chaeyoung hums. “Talking to you at school for once. I could do without your stalkers…”
Jennie glances around, taking in the students watching and whispering. She sits up properly, straightening out her back when she realizes how laid back she had been just from talking with Chaeyoung.
This is part of the reason she never dared speak with the girl on school grounds. There’s something about Chaeyoung that has her relaxing when she shouldn’t be. After years of being conditioned for a perfect posture, it takes one conversation with Park Chaeyoung to have her body bending over like a sloppy teenage boy.
“Sorry, they don’t really go away.” Jennie takes her fork and jams it into her lunch.
“Is that lobster?” Chaeyoung blinks down at Jennie’s food. “Who buys lobster for a school lunch.”
Jennie laughs, genuinely amused at her baffled expression. “Someone who missed breakfast.”
“I miss breakfast all the time. Can you buy me a lobster?” Chaeyoung leans over and whispers.
Jennie shakes her head fondly, pushing her back over to her moldy fruit. Chaeyoung gives a mock frown, but never gets to tease like Jennie is sure she wants, because Lisa and Jisoo plop down.
“If the red crayon and the blue crayon have a baby, it should be purple. The only logical explanation is that the blue crayon had an affair with the Yellow crayon.” Jisoo looks very serious as she explains this to Lisa.
Lisa frowns. “But how do you know it was the blue crayon? What if it was the red crayon that cheated?”
Jennie and Chaeyoung exchanged a glance. Chaeyoung doesn’t seem to have any more of a clue than Jennie why they’re together or what they’re talking about. Jennie is used to Jisoo’s nonsense, but she’s starting to wonder if she’ll have to put up with even more crazy if the two become friends.
At least she has Chaeyoung around to keep her sane.
Hopefully.
“Because the blue is the mom. She gave birth to the baby crayon.” Jisoo says blankly
Lisa shakes her head. “The dad still could have-”
Jisoo doesn’t let her finish, cutting her off with a baffled exclamation. “Do you understand how babies are made?”
Chaeyoung snorts. “Probably not. It’s a good thing she likes girls.”
“Hey!” Lisa pouts, stuffing her chin into her palm. “I do too know how babies are made.”
“How?” Jisoo challenges, a smirk on her lips. She’s out to embarrass her new friend apparently. Jennie is wondering if she should intervene.
“A stork comes and leaves them outside.” Lisa pauses at the odd looks she’s given before breaking into laughter. “I’m kidding! Of course I know! I passed health class, jeez.”
Jennie can’t help but smile at the carefree grin coming from Lisa. Had Jisoo made that joke, Jennie probably would have been unamused, but Lisa is endearing.
“Hey!” Lisa perks up when she catches Jennie’s gaze. “I knew you would come.”
Jennie’s chest swells with pride. She herself, and the other two at the table, definitely weren't sure if she would really go through with it today, but Lisa trusted her to keep her promise. Jennie kind of likes that she’s the reason for Lisa’s pleased grin.
“Of course I did.”
Chaeyoung rolls her eyes, coughing under her breath a small, “Whipped.”
Jennie glares.
---
The devil works hard, but highschooler’s gossip works harder. By the end of the day, everyone is talking about how Jennie is friends with Chaeyoung and Lisa. The worst part is that they don’t even try and hide it, they just openly whisper it just feet away from Jennie. It's More annoying than harmful, but still, Jennie resents them for not being able to find something else to keep themselves occupied with.
“You’re friends with Lisa and Chaeyoung now.” Hyunjin is the first one that speaks to her directly about it, however.
Jennie eyes him warily, remembering Nayeon’s words from earlier today. She hopes he isn't here to ask her on a date. “Yes.”
He nods, eyeing the clock on the wall. Jennie had been doing the same moments ago, ready to leave. If she knew that the teacher wouldn’t be back before the end of the class, she’d probably make break for it.
“I like them,” He says bluntly, settling against the wall by her seat. Jennie’s guard drops ever so slightly at the admittance. “Do you think they’ll debut as idols one day? I heard they’re going to train full time once they’ve graduated.”
Jennie honestly doesn’t know. She hasn’t asked them about it at all, but now that Hyunjin has brought it up, she’s curious to know the answer herself. “Don’t most idols train during school?”
He shrugs, his hair swaying with the movement. “No idea.”
The conversation stills, almost uncomfortably, which is odd because Jennie doesn’t usually have this problem with Hyunjin the few times they’ve had actual conversations past small talk about the weather or class assignments.
“So-” He takes a breath. “-would you…. maybe… want to-”
“Are you trying to ask me out?” Jennie asks. She can’t stand the awkwardness.
Hyunjin blinks down at her, surprise coating his eyes. “I- Yeah.”
Jennie nods. “I’m not going to beat around the bush then. You’re very nice, but there’s someone I’m interested in.”
Hyunjin picks himself off the wall and rocks on the heels of his feet. “Oh. Okay.”
Jennie waits for something else, an explosion of anger or a pre-prepared paragraph to guilt her into a date like some of the other boys that have asked her out, but none of that ever comes.
“Okay.” Jennie eyes the clock again, just for something to look at.
“I hope things go well for you then.” Hyunjin walks away, giving a simple wave over his shoulder.
Jennie is a little baffled. That went about as well as she could have hoped for.
Except maybe the girls giggling in the corner, staring at her. Jennie has a feeling that her name is going to be thrown into the gossip pool once again today. Perhaps she should do something else crazy and go for a personal record on becoming the school’s main topic.
Now let’s hope that the school gossip stays in here. The last thing she needs is her parent’s meddling in her social life.