D.E.B.S (Chaelisa)

18| Disgraced

D.E.B.S Dorm, 03:30

Chaeyoung barely heard the commotion in the living room when she entered the house after an awkward drive with Kook.

All her senses were numb, the ghost of Lisa's touch on her skin still vivid in her mind, her taste, her scent...

But reality caught up to her, cruelly interrupting Chaeyoung's blissful sojourn. Now she had to face the music and shoulder the consequences, alone.

She wondered what prison they would send her to. She carefully packed up the memories of her time with Lisa and locked her heart before stepping inside the house.

Her head was stuffed with cotton wool, her legs stilted and stiff as a marionette's when she walked past the living room and saw all the people gathered there.

Ms Young and her assistant, both in velvet tracksuits and and with hastily pinned up hair, likely jolted out of bed. Ms Young was pacing and muttering frantically while her assistant tried to hand her a glass of milk.

Mr Teddy stood looking immaculate as usual with his ubiquitous mask hiding his face as always. Chanyeol stood to the side speaking with him and looking very out of place while the girls huddled together opposite them, conversing in hushed whispers.

Everyone stopped when they saw Chaeyoung.

"Are you kidding me?" Ms Young barked. "We conduct a nationwide manhunt for you and you're boning the suspect?"

Chaeyoung stood her ground, ignoring the lump in her throat that threatened to crack and flood the world with tears as Ms Young approached her, cold fury in her voice.

"What did you think this was, a joke? 'Let's divert federal resources and man-hours so I can have my collegiate lesbian fling in style,' " Ms Young mocked. "Disappointment doesn't even begin to describe what I'm feeling right now."

"I was doing research," Chaeyoung croaked. She didn't know where the stupid excuse came from but it slipped from her mouth, her weakest attempt at defence.

"I'll bet," Ms Young scoffed.

Chaeyoung couldn't meet Jennie's disgusted face, nor look at Yeri or Jisoo or Chanyeol or Mr Teddy. She felt all their gazes on her, judging her, bewildered by her.

The Perfect Score had descended to such depraved depths that it was utterly inconceivable in their minds.

"Treason. Consorting with the enemy. Aiding and abetting," Ms Young fretted by herself, but everyone heard her as she gave a muted hysterical laugh, on the verge of a breakdown. "I'm going to be the laughing stock of the entire intelligence community."

Then she turned to Chaeyoung again, her eyes flashing. "I'm going to send you so far away that luxuries like toilet paper and Diet Coke will be as a distant dream to you as— "

"Ms Young?" Jennie piped up, shocking everybody, Ms Young included.

"Is somebody talking to me? Because that would be extremely ill-advised right now," the principal gritted over her shoulder.

"Ms Young, this infraction is a considerable embarrassment to you and the Academy, right?" Jennie said calmly.

"Have I not been speaking in English?" Ms Young burst out.

Jennie stepped forward, arms crossed and Chaeyoung recognised the look: it was her tactical scheming face.

Jennie glanced at Chaeyoung. "Well, there is a way that we can turn it all around."

Everyone straightened up, immediately interested, especially Ms Young who now turned her full attention on Jennie.

"Explain."