Ruling With You | Jenlisa [COMPLETED]

Chapter 5

  "Are you ready?"

Jennie turned away from the window to look at Jisoo, giving her a small smile while she tugged at the black dress she wore. It was the day of the funeral, and it would be her first public appearance since her family had been killed. Aside from the trip to Moon Palace, where she had gone from palace to car to palace, she hadn't left the grounds of the castle, which meant that today, there would be dozens of cameras and reporters waiting to catch a glimpse of her, and Jennie had been so sick with nerves that she had barely slept all night.

"Yeah, I was just-"

"Don't worry, Chaeyoung won't let anyone near you," Jisoo assured her.

Raising her eyebrows, Jennie tilted her head to the side as she looked at her sister, "Chaeyoung? I didn't realise you were so familiar with my bodyguard."

"We're not," Jisoo quickly corrected her, "I was just ... making sure Park wouldn't leave your side today. There's going to be a lot of people."

"Thanks for reminding me," Jennie grumbled, walking over to where a pair of small black heels were waiting for her. She slipped them on and gave Jisoo a grim smile, before making for the door. Chaeyoung gave her a slight bow and murmured a respectful greeting as Jennie walked out into the hallway, and started making her way through the palace. The exquisite paintings, Persian rugs, and finely crafted furniture all seemed out of place on such a gloomy day. Making her way down to the entrance hall, Jennie saw Jessica stood with Sandara and her Uncle Hyun, and with a start, she realised that this was all the family she had now. They all bowed or dipped into curtsies as Jennie descended the stairs, and she nodded to some of the officials, servants and guards stood around.

Giving Jennie a small smile as she approached, Sandara took a step forward. "Your Majesty."

Sighing, Jennie fought back the urge to rub her tired eyes beneath her glasses – she'd just spent almost two hours being made presentable by a manner of stylists – and she gave Sandara a soft smile in return. "Dara, you really don't have to call me that. You've been my mom for half of my life, it seems a bit pointless now."

"You are just like your mother," Jessica said, reaching out to put a hand on Jennie's shoulder, "she was never one for stuffy titles."

"Is that so?" Jennie asked, her eyebrows rising slightly. If her mom hadn't been so preoccupied with ensuring that Jennie have a secure alliance with another country, for the sake of her position, she wouldn't be in this mess in the first place.

Jessica tutted her, giving her niece a tight smile, "you know what I mean."

"Well, we'd better get on with this then," Jennie glumly replied, throwing back her shoulders and walked over to the main doors of the palace. Two guards bowed slightly, before pulling the doors open, and Jennie was met with dozens of flashes as pictures were snapped, and the overwhelming sound of people shouting. She was used to it – she had spent years practicing being in the public eye – and she wouldn't falter now. Her aunt and uncle, and Sandara and Jisoo, all fell into formation behind her as she slowly walked outside and descended the front steps, keeping a blank expression on her face. Willing herself not to cry, and not to tremble, she put one foot before the other and focused solely on the black car waiting for her. It was only a minute before she was being bundled into the back of it, with Jisoo and Chaeyoung, while everyone else waited for other cars to come and get them.