Jennie
Now her eyes go glassy again. Her vision darts downward to the massacred napkin in her lap. "What if he doesn't love me?" she whispers. "I mean... sure, yes. Maybe he does now. Some... puppy love infatuation because I'm pretty and pregnant. But one of these mornings, he's just going to wake up and look at me and think, why did I have to get this one pregnant? He could have someone stable, someone more like him... like Irene... or anyone. Anyone else would be better than me."
Her eyes have glazed, but there are no tears there. There's nothing but hollowness. She turns to Lisa like a limp doll. "We're not good people." she announces with alarming calmness. "We don't deserve happy endings."
It's chilling to watch her like this. She's like a pumpkin scooped clean of all its innards. She and Lisa have scars. The kind that burn the inside of your mind and never fully heal.
Lisa even seems at a loss for words. She simply rubs her hand up Mina's back, comforting, and pulls Mina against her so she rests her head at Lisa's shoulder. She looks so small now, so tiny, and my heart breaks for the other woman.
Enough. I clear my throat and say, "Mina... there's something you need to know."
She lifts her head enough to look blankly at me.
I take in a deep breath. "Lisa and I are... seeing each other. And we have been, since we've got here."
I see Lisa's bones go stiff. Where are you going with this? Her eyes read.
I wet my lips. Trust me.
"Okay..." Mina says. She still sounds resigned and numb, as though the information hasn't quite hit her yet.
"And... over that time... she's told me a lot. About your father... everything." I see her fragile body tense up at that as though she's waiting for me to give her the final blow. I press my lips together and say, "And I told her about me and... the point is... we were able to talk to each other. Open up. And that meant everything." I'm procrastinating, drawing my words out. Mina squints at me, totally confused, and Lisa looks equally lost.
Get to the point, Jennie. I take in a deep breath, brace myself, and then finally confess, "The point is... over the last week... I've grown to really care about Lisa. Love her, even." My eyes lift from the table, and I look directly at the siblings. "I love Lisa, your only kin."
I look at Lisa and expect to see anger, maybe, or that cold nothingness. Instead, she looks soft. Warm. Even hopeful.
Mina looks shocked. She turns to Lisa. "Is this true?"
Lisa's eyes don't leave me. "Yes." she says.
"And how do you... feel about her?" There's a tentative hopefulness in Mina's voice.
Lisa doesn't miss a beat. She stares directly into my eyes and says, "I love her too. I love Jennie very much."
My heat clenches in my chest, and relief spreads its fingers through my body. Lisa Manoban loves me. I want to stay serious and strong for Mina, but I can't help the tiny smile that breaks across my lips. This isn't the fleeting kind of butterfly love that I've felt with Taehyung. Lisa has set her anchor in my heart, and I know, somehow, that she's going to stay there for a very, very long time.
"Oh my God." Mina lets out a tiny, tinkering laugh as she dabs the edges of her eyes with her napkin again. "If you can get someone to fall for you, Lisa, there's hope for all of us, right?"
I reach across the table to take Mina's hand again. "You're not damaged. Bambam loves you. I promise. And if you come back with us, he'll tell you himself." I squeeze her hand. "Everyone deserves a happy ending. Everyone. And don't let anyone take that away from you... especially not yourself."
"She's right." Lisa speaks up. "I'll support you in whatever you decide."
She scoffs. "You hate Bambam. You've made that so obvious."
Lisa presses her lips together. "He loves you. I couldn't ask for anything more."
Mina blinks at her. "Do you mean that?"
"Nothing would make me happier than to give you away to him."
