Never Knew I Needed (Chaelisa)

Chapter 20

Why do I pull you close,
And then ask you for space?
If all it is is eight letters,
Why is it so hard to say?

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I throw a few bills at the taxi driver when we get to the hospital and follow Rosé out the car. I'm panting as I approach the desk and ask for Somi's room, but I don't even get a response because I hear mine and Rosé's name being called and turn to the left to find Jisoo rushing toward us, her cheeks pink and eyes glassy. I wonder why, but then I suppose Jisoo and Vernon have always had a weird bond so it wouldn't surprise me if he rang her first and she's been here for a while.

"Rosie! Lisa!" She calls and I give the nurse behind the desk a smile before walking over to my friend. "You're here!"

I look down at myself and then back at her. "Looks like it," I retort sarcastically and she throws me a sharp look, but I can't help but make a remark about her appearance. "And may I say, Kim, you really do look like a dream."

Jisoo's face drops and I see Rosé suck in her lips to hide the giggle I know she wants to let out, but Rosé still tries to chide me by nudging mu arm and shaking her head. But it was pretty funny and I'm not going to lie, Jisoo's hair is all over the place, she has no make up on and I'm pretty sure she's in her pajamas beneath that big ass trench coat. At least Rosé and I had the mindset to get dressed, so I get to mock her. It's like a right as a best friend.

"Screw you," she spits and my eyes drift down to her side to find the little person I'm so accustomed to seeing beside her not there.

"Where's Stella?"

"With Haein," she explains but then her head tilts and eyes narrow, flickering between the both of us. "Did you two arrive together?"

I tense up a little, but Rosé's there, shifting a little closer and shrugging. "We live like two blocks away from each other," she lies and if I didn't know it was a lie, you'd have a hard time calling it. "Lisa rang me as soon as Vernon called her and the taxi came by to pick me up."

Jisoo nods, but she doesn't seem to buy it and folds her arms over her chest, chin tilting up. "The taxi came by to pick you up?"

I decide to chime in. I'm getting used to lying to my friends and I think I'm getting better at it. "Yeah," I agree with a firm bob of my head. "Is there a problem with that?"

"Huh," Jisoo's eyes narrow and she studies us two for a long moment, twisting her face like she's trying to figure something out as she sucks her lips into her mouth. I have to admit, I do feel a little fear sink into my veins but I know that there's no way she could know that we two were together before coming here, and it makes me feel a little better.

I still wish she'd stop looking at me like she's examining me though. It's making me feel uneasy.

"No," she finally lands on, shaking her head and squinting at me fiercely. "There's no problem."

"Good," I quirk with a sharp lift of my eyebrow and it's at that moment, thank fuck, that the others (Jennie, Jaehyun, Tzuyu, Eunwoo, Mingyu and Mina) all come barreling around the corner, all grinning at me. They take their turn in hugging me seeing as I haven't seen most of them for a while now, and I wonder whether they just flew back from their respective homes just because Somi asked for them all to be here, but then I realize that even if they did, Rosé and I are still the last here and I know that's making us look super suspicious.