[JENLISA] Age of Death

Chapter 7

The next morning, Dad was waiting for Jennie and I with breakfast when we came downstairs. He had enough tact, thankfully, to not ask about our sleepover or about what I'd thought of BoA while Jennie was with us.

She left just before noon, and I walked her to the door. "I'll see you soon," she promised. "My parents want to see a movie with me tomorrow night, but I'm free every other night this week. I thought of something we might be able to do together next weekend."

"Oh no," I joked. "It'll be fun," she insisted. "Trust me." We stood together for a moment, face to face, and she looked like she wanted to say more.

"I'll see you around, then," I said. She nodded. "Not going anywhere."

"I remember," I assured her. "Just... be careful. No skydiving before I see you again, okay?"

"I can't promise that," she joked. "Message me, alright?" "Yep." She leaned in before I could react and kissed me on the cheek, then took a couple steps back, grinning, before she turned away and descended the porch steps. I sighed and leaned against the door, watching her go and, at last, turned to go inside and closed the front door behind me.

Dad was watching me from the living room, an eyebrow raised. I colored instantaneously and he asked, "Just friends, huh?"

"That looked worse than it was," I mumbled. "I'll let you off the hook," he acquiesced, "if you tell me what you genuinely thought of BoA last night."

I shrugged my shoulders. "Not much to think about. She tried kind of hard, didn't she?"

"Because it's important to her that you approve." He folded his arms across his chest, looking concerned. "It's important to me, too."

"Well... maybe she and I are just meant to coexist," I suggested, turning away from him. "We don't have to be best friends."

He let out a sigh. "I didn't say you did, Lisa. Just... promise me you'll give her a chance, alright? You hardly spoke to her last night."

"I'll give her a chance," I agreed quietly, and then mumbled, "It's not like I have much of a choice, anyway."

* * *

"Welcome to McDonalds. What can I get for you?" The man in front of me took his time with the menu on the wall. It was Three Burgers again, back for his daily meal with a 45 still etched onto his left cheek. I felt physical pain as I watched him speak. "How are you this stupid?" I wanted to ask. "There are people who care about you and you're literally killing yourself."

He stopped speaking. Now he was staring at me. I realized I'd completely spaced out while I was supposed to be taking his order. "I'm sorry, sir, could you repeat that?"

"I just spent an entire minute giving you my order," he shot back, appalled. "You didn't get any of it?"

I bit my lip to stop myself from being rude. A hand on my shoulder saved me. Hoony, of course. He looked out for me far more than I deserved. "Sorry about that, sir. I'll take your order and we'll throw in a free large fry; how does that sound?" He gave me a look that told me to scram, and I rolled my eyes and left to go on break.

When I was outside alone, I sat down on the ground, my back to the wall that was still covered in cigarette burns, and pulled my knees up to my chest. I rested my forehead on my knees and closed my eyes, willing my shift to be over soon. This was a waste of time. I could've been with Jennie all day instead.

Hoony came around a few minutes later. I heard his footsteps and the click of his lighter before he spoke, but when he did, it was with a sigh.

"You could ask Teddy if he'll give you the rest of the day off," he suggested.

I lifted my head to look up at him. "I'm thinking about quitting." "Since when?"

"Since a few weeks ago," I admitted. "I hate it here." "Well, no one likes it here." "Yeah, but..." I trailed off and then muttered, "I hate being around people."

"Me too," he agreed quietly. "This job gets morbid sometimes." "I need something where I never see anyone," I decided. "Like a data entry clerk job or something. With a desk in a back room. And the only person that ever comes in is my boss, who has super healthy eating habits and will live into his hundreds. I'm so sick of being reminded that we're all going to die one day."

"Well, hook me up when you find a job like that." He exhaled a cloud of smoke and I pressed my nose into my sleeve. "I'll tell Teddy you aren't feeling well, okay? Go see Jennie."

"What's the point?" I mumbled, only half meaning it. He studied me for a moment. The cigarette between his fingers slipped through them and fell to the ground, where he squashed it with his foot. "I'm a pretty cynical person. Even more cynical than you, which is saying something.

So as much as I'm sure you don't want to hear it, here's the truth. All of this isn't going to end well. You fucked up pretty badly by putting yourself in the position you're in. If you hook up with her and she dies, you'll be miserable." He paused, digging the heel of his shoe into the gravel beneath us. "With that said... If you don't hook up with her and she dies, you'll be miserable and you'll regret it."

I hid my face against my knees and tried to ignore how low my heart had sank. "Maybe."

"Not 'maybe'. If I was wrong, you'd just stop spending time with her, because it wouldn't be worth it. Instead, she's the only thing that's been on your mind since you met her. I kind of miss you, actually."

I wiped at the corners of my eyes and couldn't bring myself to look back at him. "This sucks."

"I warned you about this happening." His tone was blunt. Typical tactless Hoony. I tried hard to not get mad at him.

"I think I'm gonna go. Can you talk to Teddy for me?" "Of course." He stood with me for a moment, and then, awkwardly, said, "I'm here if you want to talk."

"I know."

He hesitated, lingering for another few seconds before he left. I got to my feet as his footsteps faded, and my stomach twisted into a knot. Before Jennie, Hoony had been the only person who'd understood me.

Now it felt like no one did.