Reaching My Star | A Chaennie AU

Chapter 27: Contact Numbers (Jennie 28; Rosé 31)

Jennie woke up, her body still heavy with sleep. The events of the previous night felt like a dream she hadn't fully processed yet. As she lay there, eyes half-closed, she replayed every moment in her mind—Rosé's soft voice, the way their eyes met, the flowers. It all seemed surreal. But then, one thought jolted her awake: the necklace.

Her heart raced as she sat up, scrambling to remember where she had last placed it. The necklace had been one of the few things she took when moving out of the apartment with Minwoo. She hadn't unpacked all her things yet, and feared that in the chaos, it might have been lost. Frantically, she searched through boxes and drawers, her panic rising with every passing second.

"No... it has to be here," Jennie muttered under her breath, her hands shaking as she rifled through the last box.

Finally, her fingers brushed against the familiar chain. Relief washed over her as she held the necklace up to the light. She studied it closely, her eyes narrowing as she noticed something she had never seen before—a tiny engraving on the back. Her breath caught in her throat.

It was Rosé's signature.

Jennie sat down, holding the necklace gently between her fingers. All this time, it had been Rosé who gave it to her. She felt a wave of guilt. She had worn the necklace for years, drawn to it without ever realizing it was from her. Jennie closed her eyes, feeling regret that she never got to thank her.

"How did I miss this?" she whispered to herself, tracing the delicate letters of Rosé's name. The thought that Rosé had given her something so personal, and she hadn't even known, weighed heavily on her.

But there wasn't much time to dwell on it. The morning routine with Hayoon couldn't wait. As Jennie headed to the kitchen, Hayoon toddled in behind her, full of energy. "Mommy! Hungry!"

Jennie smiled, putting the necklace around her neck as she cracked eggs into the pan. While she prepared breakfast and got Hayoon ready for daycare, her mind wandered back to Rosé. They had exchanged contact information last night, and Jennie had to fight the urge to text her right away.

"It's too early," she muttered, shaking her head. "I don't want to come off as obsessive."

She poured some milk into Hayoon's cereal, trying to focus on the present. But her heart fluttered as she thought about seeing Rosé again, a feeling she hadn't experienced in years. It wasn't so much a starstruck excitement—she'd seen Rosé a million times before. This was something else...

After dropping Hayoon off at daycare, Jennie checked her phone multiple times. No texts. She frowned slightly, trying not to let it bother her, but a small part of her wondered if Rosé had only said they'd meet again out of politeness. Maybe she didn't mean it.

"But that doesn't make any sense," Jennie thought, trying to rationalize it. "She asked her staff to page me... she wanted to talk. She has my number, and I have hers."

Still, as the hours passed and she worked at her ice cream parlor, the doubt tugged at her. By the time she closed the shop that evening, Hayoon was sitting on the counter, happily licking her favorite ice cream. But Jennie couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

"Maybe it wasn't that big of a deal," Jennie told herself as she watched her daughter. She sighed and smiled softly, brushing a strand of hair from Hayoon's face. "That part of me is in the past now."

Meanwhile, Rosé had slept through most of the day. She woke up groggy, the remnants of last night's adrenaline still running through her body. Her first thoughts were about the concert. Did everyone enjoy it? Did I do well?

But then, Jennie's face flashed through her mind. That unexpected reunion lingered. Rosé sat up, reaching for her phone. Is it too early to ask her to meet up again?

She stared at her phone for a while, her thumb hovering over the screen. She distracted herself with fan interactions, replying to comments and scrolling through messages. But no matter how hard she tried, her mind kept drifting back to Jennie.

By the time evening rolled around, Rosé still hadn't texted. It wasn't that she didn't want to—she did, desperately. But she didn't want to seem too eager.

Almost midnight. Rosé lay in bed, staring at her ceiling, her phone clutched in her hand. She sighed, then impulsively typed out a message.

"Hey, Jennie! I know it's a little soon to ask, but how about meeting up again? How's dinner next Friday? I'd love for your daughter to come as well!"

Without giving herself a chance to rethink it, she hit send. For a moment, Rosé felt proud of herself for taking the leap. But almost instantly, her stomach twisted. Was that too much? Do I sound desperate?

She tossed her phone aside, groaning in frustration.

Back at home, Jennie's phone buzzed just as she was finishing cleaning up after Hayoon's bedtime routine. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the name flash on her screen.

Rosé.

She opened the message, her breath catching in her throat as she read Rosé's casual yet warm invitation. Her heart raced with excitement, though she tried to play it cool.

"I'd love that! Friday sounds great, and I'm sure Hayoon would be excited too!" she typed back quickly, hitting send before she could second-guess herself.

But as soon as she hit send, she realized replying so quickly didn't exactly scream 'nonchalant.' Well, that didn't give off the vibe I was going for, Jennie thought with a sheepish smile.

Rosé, on the other hand, saw the reply almost immediately. Her face lit up with a grin she couldn't suppress. She felt a flutter of joy that caught her off guard, her fingers tapping a rhythm on her blanket.

At Jennie's house, she couldn't stop smiling. She laughed, feeling giddy like a teenager, and caught Hayoon looking at her curiously.

"Why you laughing, Mommy?" Hayoon asked, giggling.

Jennie scooped her up and spun her around, her heart light. "Mommy's just happy, baby," she said, hugging her daughter tightly. "Really, really happy."