Chapter Sixteen
Lisa can feel her hands shaking and can feel a layer of sweat beginning to form all over her body despite the fact that it is March, and therefore Lisa should be freezing her ass off.
She runs through the steps in her head like some kind of mantra. Knock on the door, say hello, try and get through the day without falling apart. It sounds simple but Lisa is convinced that it can't possibly be.
Lisa's knock is tentative, and quiet. Possibly too quiet, and so Lisa knocks once again, shuffling from foot to foot in anticipation.
The door is quickly flung open to reveal a girl staring at her with an excited expression on her face and a grin that Lisa instantly recognises as being identical to Jennie's on her face.
"You must be Lisa," she beams.
Lisa is so taken aback by her enthusiasm – and the fact that both of the Kim siblings seem to be happiness personified – that all she can do is nod and look gormless. Irene doesn't seem to notice though and instead gestures for her to follow behind her. Lisa watches in awe as she skips down the corridor, her dark hair bouncing in its ponytail.
"Jennie's said a lot about you," Irene tells her, "and so when she said she'd invited you round I made her promise to let me meet you. She's in the shower right now, so I guess I get to interrogate you as well."
Irene must sense the look of distress on Lisa's face as she lets out a small giggle.
"Sorry," Irene says, "Jennie tells me I have a terrible sense of humour. Do you want anything to drink?"
"Please."
"Coke okay?"
"Fine thank you."
"And polite as well, Jennie really did well finding you."
Lisa really does try to stop her cheeks from blushing but her attempts fail and she can feel her entire face beginning to heat up. Irene may notice but she doesn't mention it, instead she leans over and ruffles her hair before reaching to grab a glass from the cupboard behind her.
All of Irene's actions seem to be accompanied with chatter, endless questions and explanations and embarrassing stories about Jennie to the point where Lisa is surprised to find that she's been here for quarter of an hour already and despite the fact that she is yet to lay eyes on Jennie, she still feels strangely comfortable here.
The sound of footsteps on the stairs warns Lisa of Jennie's imminent arrival and Lisa turns to the doorway with a goofy smile already on her face. The smile slips as soon as she lays eyes on Jennie.
Jennie doesn't seem to notice her at first and so Lisa has time to drink her in. Her hair is hanging from her shoulders in wet curls, and a towel wrapped around her small frame. Lisa feels her breath catch in her throat as she tries to tear her eyes away from Jennie's legs, but it's difficult. Because Lisa is starting to find it hard to distinguish between her friendly feelings for Jennie Kim and her potentially something a little bit more feelings towards Jennie Kim.
Surprise crosses Jennie's face when she sees Lisa.
"Shit," she murmurs, and Lisa notices that Jennie is refusing to meet her eye, "I thought I had another half an hour."
Lisa can't even reply. She just stares at a point on the wall just above Jennie's head.
"I guess I better go get dressed," Jennie says.
Lisa nods and keeps her gaze away from Jennie who stands awkwardly in the middle of the kitchen for a few moments before departing with a wave.
Irene has been watching the entire exchange with a bemused smile on her face.
