the best part of me is you (baby i'm so in love with you)

if you let me, i'd be there by now (close to you)

Part II

January 21, 2021

"They had to take her to the hospital."

"What?" It comes out breathlessly, almost like a whisper. She swallows and tries calming herself. "What happened?"

"I was— I was rehearsing and then Lisa's manager came in and told me Lisa fainted and she—" Rosie pauses, a sniffle coming from her side of the phone. "She wasn't waking up, unnie."

For a moment, the world goes silent, with only the beat of her heart echoing in her ears.

Her breath hitches against her throat. She grips tightly onto the top of the closest chair to stabilise herself.

Wasn't waking up?

"What do you— what do you mean she wasn't waking up?"

"I—I don't know." She can hear Chaeyoung silently crying on the phone now. "Lisa's manager sent me the hospital's address and I was about to follow them, but management's not letting me leave rehearsals."

"They're not letting me leave, unnie." The blonde repeats, a sob echoing from the phone.

Jennie clenches her jaw. Of course. Of course their management isn't letting Chaeyoung leave. It'd be out of character for them to do so.  Whether they're overworked or underworked, their wellbeing and comfort will always be placed second.

Instead of dwelling on her anger, she takes a deep breath and tries calming herself down. Being angry won't do any help in this situation.

"It's okay, rosie." She says, her voice strained as she loosens the grip on her phone. "I'll go. Just send me the address."

"Will Teddy-oppa let you?"

"It's Lisa. I'm not taking no for an answer." She says firmly. She'll fight anyone who tells her otherwise. She can't fathom the thought of her girlfriend alone in hospital and unconscious.

Her heart aches just to be with her right now.

"I'm sending you the address right now," Chaeyoung sighs over the phone. "Unnie, I'm worried."

"Me too," she lets go of the chair and runs her fingers through her hair. Worried is an understatement. Her stomach feels like it's in knots. "But I'll go check on her, and keep you updated on the group chat, okay?"

"Okay."

"Can you let Jisoo-unnie know?"

"Yeah, I'll do that right now— hey, I have to go. They're calling me back to rehearsals."

"Okay. Thanks for calling me, Rosie. I just— thank you."

"Of course. You were the first person I thought about calling."

Both girls exchange a goodbye, before ending the call.

Jennie closes her eyes, trying to grasp the reality of the situation. Wasn't waking up? What does that even mean?

"Here," Teddy slides a box of tissues in her direction. "Why are you crying?" the producer asks.

Jennie touches her face and feels the wetness on her cheeks. She wasn't aware she was crying until now. She grabs herself a couple of tissues and wipes away her tears.

"Is everything okay?"

"I need to go, oppa." She says as she sends a text message to her driver to come to pick her up. "I know you hate cutting our sessions short but Lisa's—"