THE HAPPIEST GIRL | JENLISA

Chapter 80

Jennie

Finishing up lunch out on the patio, I notice Lisa's demeanour change suddenly. Sensing something wrong, I look over my shoulder to where her gaze is set on a man across the street with a camera taking pictures of us.

I instantly go into panic mode. Abruptly standing up from the table, I take Hallie out of her booster seat and scoop her up into my arms. "Hallie, we have to go, sweetie." I say, trying to keep my voice as even as possible in order to not scare her.

With her face buried into my neck, I keep one hand at the base of her head to shield her while my other arm secures her to my hip. I briskly walk away from the deli and down the sidewalk back towards the studio.

"Auntie Jennie, what's going on?" Hallie asks, while trying to pull her face away from my neck but I keep my hand firm on the back of her head.

"Nothing, baby. We just have to get back to the studio." I say gently, picking up my pace while making sure that I don't stumble over my own two feet with her in my arms.

"Jennie." Lisa runs up behind me, with the front half of her plastered to my back as we speed walk down the sidewalk. "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

She keeps close, shielding me and Hallie from the man with the camera that's following us on the opposite side of the street. While I appreciate her help, I feel like she's only attracting more attention to us. Regardless, I keep my feet moving, with my destination being the safety of the studio, and Lisa keeps right in step with me.

The couple of blocks to the studio feel like miles, my mind is swirling and my senses are on high alert. When we reach the back door, Lisa flings it open and we go scrambling inside, finding the nearest empty room. I set Hallie down on the wood floor, pulling her sunglasses from her eyes.

"Auntie Jennie?" She looks up at me with her big blue questioning eyes.

"It's ok, baby." I reassure her again, kneeling down and sliding my own sunglasses up to rest on top of my head. I smooth out her hair and grab her tiny backpack, pulling out her crayons and colouring book. "Here." I offer them to her and she breaks out into a smile, all forgotten as she excitedly takes them from my hands and gets back to colouring.

I stand up and place my hands on my hips, starting to restlessly pace around.

"Jennie, I'm so sorry. I didn't know." Lisa reiterates, with slight distress in her voice.

I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. Damn it. Suga is going to kill me.

From the start, Suga never wanted Hallie to be exposed to the world. While they weren't the biggest band at the time when she was born, they were quickly taking off and Suga set strict boundaries early on. He's already so protective of his friends and family, that instinct is only tenfolds when it comes to his own daughter. He even forbids Hannah from posting about Hallie on her public social media accounts.

Now that the band is really taking off, attending award shows and opening up for other bands in arenas, Suga makes sure to keep Hallie hidden. He never wants her to be exploited in any way, wanting her to live as normal of a life as possible. He doesn't want anyone approaching her or her face somewhere in a magazine. He just wants to protect her at all costs.

"Jennie."

I stop pacing, turning to face Lisa. She looks worried and concerned.

"It's ok." I sigh, willing my body to relax, dropping my shoulders. "I should have known better."

Her eyes soften, looking guilt-ridden.

"It's not your fault." I'm quick to reassure. "I should have remembered that the paparazzi are around and that they were called to get pictures of you and Kaia leaving the studio."