Lisa
I sit back down on the bed, exasperated, and try to calm down. This isn't the end of the world. You'll think of something else. You still have your phone. You can call someone...
There's suddenly a bang downstairs followed by heavy footsteps. I'm instantly alarmed. That's definitely not Jennie.
Before I can react - although really, what can I do? - there's a loud knocking at my bedroom door.
"Lisa? You decent?"
It's Hae-in. And as much as I don't want him to see me in this compromising situation, I'm relieved. My options are limited, and at least there's hope for me now.
"Yeah, man. I'm decent." My tone is more sullen than I intend for it to be. The door instantly swings open and Hae-in's eyes widen comically as he takes in my sweaty, dishevelled, nearly naked appearance.
"Holy shit!" he exclaims. "She really fucking did it!"
I'm more than a little peeved at his reaction. "You knew she was going to do this?" I ask angrily.
"Well, yes," he admits. "After the fact, though. But damn! I didn't think Jennie had it in her."
I sigh and lower my eyes. I try to raise my hand so I can tug at my hair - a terrible habit - but the cuffs stop me, the sensation actually stinging a bit. All the tugging and pulling has left my wrists sore.
I don't know what to say to Hae-in. Is he proud of her? Probably so. It's likely he'll never let me live this down.
"Well that's great," I say sarcastically, though in reality it's anything but. This is all one big fucking mess, and I feel like I'm going to go mad before it's over with.
Why didn't I just tell her last night? Headache be damned, I should have told her when I had the chance. But would things have ended any differently? She wouldn't be armed with handcuffs, I'd imagine. Unless she carries a secret stash in her purse for such occasions.
"Did she at least leave the key?" Hae-in asks, and I hold up the tiny broken thing for him to see. But he doesn't notice that it's useless. "So what are you waiting for? Can you not unlock yourself?"
"It's broken," I grumble. I toss it aside, onto the floor, and Hae-in quickly bends to scoop it up. He lets out a long whistle.
"Damn, dude. It's like you have an army of bad luck bitches following you around tonight."
"What the hell am I going to do, Hae-in?" I ask, feeling hopeless and annoyed. He's right - today I have the worst luck in the world.
"Are you at least able to throw some pants on or something?" he asks, and I can tell he's holding back his amusement.
"In case you didn't notice, I'm kind of fucking handcuffed over here," I snap. But I make a mental note to bite my tongue, because the last thing I want to do is run Hae-in off while I'm stuck this way.
"All right, all right. I was just asking. Here." He looks at the handcuffs a moment, jiggling them around and tugging. I hiss as they rub against my already raw skin.
"These are solid," he confirms.
No shit.
"I have an uncle who has a saw," he goes on. "Let me call him. He might be able to cut you out."
"Are you kidding me? Don't they make spare keys for these things?" I whine.
"Where the hell am I going to get a spare key to handcuffs from?"
"I don't know. A toy store?"
"These are fucking police cuffs, dude. They're different. I don't even know where the hell she got these."
I can't exactly ask him to go to the local station and request a key for his cuffed friend. I sigh in resignation.
"Fine, call your uncle."
"Give me five minutes. And at least try to put some pants on, dude. I can practically see your junk." He throws my pants at me and walks out the bedroom door. I can hear him stomping down the stairs.
For five gruesome minutes I struggle to pull my pants back on. It's no easy task with my hands chained in such an awkward position. Hae-in returns just as I'm slipping them over my ass and he praises me on a job well done.
"See man, I knew you had it in you," he says happily. "It's good thing you got them on, too. Because I kind of have bad news." He pauses, as if letting this information sink in. I grow impatient.
"So? Spit it out, Hae-in. I've been chained here almost two hours already."
"Well, his saw is part of this huge-ass machine or something," he explains. "So we're going to have to go to him."
Is he fucking kidding me?
"And how the hell are we going to do that?" I ask, my tone dripping with annoyance. Everything just seems to get worse and worse. "Should we load the bed up in my car or yours?" I ask sarcastically.
"We'll just have to take the headboard off." He seems immune to my griping, which is fortunate. I really should be nicer to him - without him here I'd be royally fucked.
I sigh loudly. "All right, then. Let's do it."
Hae-in drags the mattress and box spring off the bed and props them against the wall. We quickly discover another stroke of misfortune - the headboard is bolted to the bed frame.
"Have any tools?" Hae-in asks.
I groan. "They're at my other house."
"Well, fuck, dude. I might want to step away from you before I get struck by lightning or something," he jokes, but I can't find it within me to even crack a smile.
I wonder what Jennie is doing right now. Is she happy? Is she rejoicing? Or does she feel just as shitty about everything as I do?
Hae-in wiggles the headboard against the frame. "We'll just break it off," he says simply.
Jesus Christ.
