The Quiet Contract

A date???

Jennie POV

The rest of breakfast was suffocating. My parents didn't say a word, though their shared glances made my skin prickle with discomfort. Jisoo, on the other hand, seemed to enjoy the silence. She casually sipped her juice, occasionally smirking in my direction as if she knew something I didn't.

I could feel my dad's gaze lingering on me as I pushed my food around on the plate. Finally, he cleared his throat.

"Jennie," he began, his tone measured. "You know this arrangement with Lisa isn't just for show. It's a reflection of our family. We need to tread carefully."

I looked up at him sharply. "I know that. I've been doing everything you've asked."

"And yet," my mom chimed in, her tone softer but no less pointed, "the way you're talking about her this morning doesn't seem... respectful."

I clenched my jaw, avoiding her gaze. "It's complicated," I muttered.

"Complicated or not," my dad said firmly, "we don't speak about people like that, especially someone as important as Lisa in this situation. She's done nothing but hold up her end of the arrangement. In fact, she's gone above and beyond to make this partnership look real."

I bit the inside of my cheek. They weren't wrong, and that only made me angrier. I hated how Lisa could so effortlessly embody everything this arrangement demanded while I was barely holding myself together.

Jisoo suddenly leaned forward, her playful smirk returning. "You know, Jennie, for someone who supposedly doesn't care about Lisa, you sure spend a lot of time thinking and talking about her."

"Shut up," I snapped, standing up abruptly.

"Jennie," my mom said warningly.

"I'm not hungry anymore," I said, leaving the table without another word.

As I climbed the stairs to my room, I couldn't shake the suffocating mix of emotions twisting in my chest. Guilt. Frustration. And something else I couldn't quite name.

Once inside my room, I slammed the door shut and leaned against it, exhaling shakily. Jisoo's words echoed in my mind, and the truth of them stung more than I wanted to admit.

I grabbed my phone and stared at the screen, my fingers itching to text Lisa. But what would I even say? "Goodmorning" That wasn't happening.

Instead, I tossed my phone onto the bed and collapsed beside it, staring at the ceiling. The memory of the kiss crept back into my mind, unbidden and relentless.

Her lips had been soft, warm. Her hands steady as they held me, like she was grounding me even when I was a mess. And that damned look on her face afterward—like I was something she cherished.

I groaned, covering my face with a pillow. "This is ridiculous," I muttered to myself.

But no matter how much I tried to shake it, I couldn't escape the truth: Lisa was getting under my skin in ways I didn't understand, and it was driving me crazy.

As I lay on my bed, trying to banish all thoughts of Lisa, my phone buzzed. My heart leaped for no reason, but I ignored it. Probably just work. Or Jisoo trying to mess with me again.

But then it buzzed again. And again.

Reluctantly, I reached for it, unlocking the screen with a sigh. My chest tightened when I saw the name flashing at the top of the messages: Lisa.