The Love We Had | JENSOO [18+]

Chapter Thirty-One: Proposal of Childhood Crush

Jennie stared into her glass of wine as she swirled it round and round, watching the disco ball sparkle against the shiny pale yellow liquid. With the events and awards over, she had nothing to do but watch Joy and Si-hyeon sporadically paw at each other, giggle, and steal kisses when they thought she wasn't looking.

Joy noticed Jennie's solemn demeanor and reached a hand out to squeeze her shoulder. The sudden touch startled her and Joy shrank back apologetically. Jennie had forgotten that she wasn't invisible and had sunk deep into a noticeable sulk. She flinched at Joy's touch but recovered fast.

"Sorry," she said with a sigh. "Just zoned out there."

"It's okay, Jen. I just wish you were enjoying yourself. You look stunning tonight, and the only thing missing is a smile."

Jennie genuinely smiled at that and reached out to return the comforting touch she'd received. Joy squeezed her hand.

"You did so good. You handled it like a champ,"

Si-hyeon chimed in, leaning across Joy's lap.

"Thanks," Jennie said. "I'm just relieved I can put it all behind me now. Although I hate thinking about the treehouse."

"Forget about it, girl." said Joy. "Let those two handle their own business now. You did what you could."

Jennie pursed her lips and let out a quiet hmm of agreement. Those two. Even a phrase as small as that made her stomach twist uncomfortable. It denoted such a distance between her life and theirs, as well as placing them together as a cohesive unit and her on the outskirts. She mentally punched herself for even feeling such disdain for that fact, as now it felt so obvious that of course they were one thing, and she was something else entirely. She never should have butted in.

She thought about her career too. She hadn't dared check her work email while she was in town with an internet connection. How had all of this affected her professionally? Her name was all over the firm's website, not hard to find at all, and she wondered if the press had invaded that part of her life too.

Taehyung's exposé was sure to cause her some embarrassment as well and she could only hope that her employer wouldn't hold it against her or consider it bad for business. She almost wouldn't blame them if they did. Jennie made mental notes of other firms and possible opportunities to look into. Might as well prepare for the worst.

The dance floor was now a full blown scene full of guests from twenty years old to mid-sixties all enjoying the band's rendition of Stayin' Alive. The sight of several generations laughing and boogying together was enough to pull Jennie from her brooding state and sway slightly to the beat in her chair.

The song came to an end and the crowd applauded and stood around waiting for the next tune. Mino came on stage and took the mic away from the singer.

"Now we have a special treat for you, ladies and gentlemen." His lip was curled mischievously as his eyes shifted back and forth.

The already dim lights lowered even further and the crowd ooohhhh.

"Come on," said Joy with a grin, pulling Jennie to her feet. "Let's go see!"

She pulled Jennie through the bodies until they were in the middle of the dance floor peeking over shoulders to see the stage ahead. Everyone was intrigued, whispering to each other, eager to see what was coming, as the day had already proved to be action-packed and exciting. And now more?

"As you all know, it's been a big day." Mino continued as the stage lights faded from green and white to a soft blue and gold. "You really rallied together as a community and showed that this is a great place to live and be. In fact, I'm thinking of buying a place here, if you'll have me."