Nevertheless - A Jenlisa Story

Chapter 1

It's always been fun to play on the line.
A thin imaginary line drawn tacitly between Lisa and Jennie.
After all, it's just work and friendly affection. It's just fanservice made for the enjoyment of the audience and the cheers of the crowd at every date of their concerts was proof: they were doing it right.
They were the queens of fanservice.
They were also doing it with Jisoo and Rosé of course.
They had to take turns doing it between all of them but, when it was Jennie and Lisa's turn, there was something different. There was a something.
What it was was hard to say, even they probably couldn't explain it.
Yet, that something was definitely there. Always.

Lisa knew very well that when something works it is better to leave it as it is, without running the risk of ruining it, and that is exactly why she never, never, dreamed of crossing that imaginary line drawn between her and Jennie: on stage fanservice for the audience, off stage good and affectionate friends. Period.
Never did Lisa think that Jennie's behavior was the result of anything other than that. Never.
Nevertheless... some thought in Lisa's mind has occasionally been there.
After all, always living in close contact and sharing the house and spaces with Jennie Kim does not leave indifferent, especially if the girl proves to be in need of cuddles and attention outside the cameras.
It wouldn't be the first time, in fact, if Jennie came home after a day of shooting and, while greeting each other, her arms encircled Lisa's body and her nose sank into her neck, inhaling the familiar scent of Thai, only to quickly detach from her to turn to Jisoo or Rosè who were preparing dinner in the kitchen.
It wouldn't be the first time Jennie fell asleep on the couch with her head on Lisa's shoulder in the middle of a K-drama, amidst Jisoo's teasing that she picked the title and didn't even last two episodes.

No, it wouldn't be the first time.
And it wouldn't be the first time, either, if Lisa had to suppress the shiver caused by Jennie's breath on her neck or the beating of her own heart lest someone else hear it as she loses herself in staring into the face of a sleeping Jennie.

Lisa is well aware that the line cannot and should not be crossed for any reason, yet....

"Hey there, are you okay? Why are you sighing in front of the mirror?"

Lisa turned her head as soon as she heard Rosé's voice behind her.
She was already ready dressed in her stage clothes and was sipping a juice as she walked into Lisa's dressing room with a leisurely pace.

"I'm a little nervous like I always am before a concert, nothing to worry about."

Rosé sat down on the table across from Lisa looking at her inquiringly.

"Um...are you sure? You seemed absorbed in some thought more than agitated."

"Yes yes...I'm sure."

Rosé's eyes narrowed in search of any hint of the lie Lisa told.
She kept staring at her from the mirror as if she wanted to dissect her friend's every little expression to see if she was really saying the truth.

"Okay come on, I believe you on this one," she said giving a comforting smile and Lisa couldn't help but be grateful that she didn't want to investigate further.

Lisa smiled back at her and finished getting ready in front of the mirror as the Staff continued to go back and forth from the dressing room to bring in the last few things.
Once the earrings were on, Lisa finally turned back to the mirror to admire herself in her entirety.
She was dressed in a pair of black pants that were open at the thighs, enhancing the perfect shape of her legs, and she wore a short top that let the features of her abs show.

"Wow Lis, you look great dressed like that!"
Rosé couldn't control her excitement at seeing Lisa finally ready in her stage dress while Lisa couldn't hold back a smile at seeing her friend share such excitement over a simple dress.

"Seriously Lis, you look great! Hey Unnie, come over and see how great our Lisa looks tonight too!"

Jennie was walking down the hallway with Jisoo when Rosé's voice drew them into Lisa's dressing room.

"Hey what happened to our Limario? I almost didn't recognize you dressed like that," Jisoo said with a big laugh, amused by her own joke.

"Stop it, Unnie, Lisa is a woman now! And she's very attractive too, isn't she?"

"Chaeng, she who is born a little brother stays a little brother, remember that."

Lisa was smiling at her friends' antics when she suddenly looked up and met Jennie's gaze.

While Jisoo had entered the dressing room and was now friendly bantering with Rosie, Jennie had remained in the doorway, as if stuck in place.
Jennie's eyes were fixed, kept moving down her figure, from bottom to top, until they locked onto her abs. It seemed to Lisa for a moment that she swallowed.

"Uhm...Jen are you okay?"

No response. Lisa tried to move closer, maybe she didn't hear her with the commotion the others were making.

"...Jennie?"

"...Huh? Oh yes...yes of course everything is fine."
She looked up sharply to meet Lisa's as if she had been caught doing something wrong and Lisa could almost swear she saw a slight blush appear on her cheeks as she looked away.

"So are we girls ready? Ten minutes to start, let's get to our spots and start the show."

Jisoo gave a small cheer of encouragement, grabbed Rosé by the arm and they ran off at a brisk pace to their seats leaving Lisa and Jennie behind.

"Ready?" said Lisa turning a smile to Jennie.

"Always," said Jennie smiling back at her.

Jennie seemed to have regained all her confidence. She barely leaned over to eliminate the distance between them and reach for Lisa's ear.

"Ready for our show?"

Jennie quickly pulled away, giving Lisa a mischievous smile and a glaring look before preceding her out of the dressing room.

Lisa felt herself shaking and it had nothing to do with pre-show panic.