chasing girl wonder

dead plate

A/N: Slow updates because my depression is so annoying... and therapy is wayyyyy expensive, it only made me even more depressed... I mean, Dream MV too... =(

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The next evening, after a brief exchange of hellos in the Parks' living room, Lisa rushed to excuse herself and delay the small talk that often followed the introductions. Not that everybody needed to be reintroduced, but she did turn tomato-faced when Roseanne called her girlfriend in front of her family and Jason. And so, she tugged Roseanne's wrist to come with her to the kitchen, hoping it was a smooth excuse that would be enough to catch her breath.

"Another operation to invade kitchens, huh, chef?" Roseanne teased, sticking her tongue out.

Lisa only side-eyed her girlfriend and started pulling items from a cooler that Roseanne stared at in puzzlement. Answering the latter's confused look, she said, "It's at the back of my car, and I asked Arch to bring them here when we arrived."

Walking toward the cooler to inspect its contents, Roseanne let out a surprised, "Oh?" She did not need to ask what Lisa planned to make because, apart from the obvious menu of different types of cheese and cold cuts, Archibald was already handing Lisa a board and a set of knives. Impressed, she smiled inwardly, crossed her arms over her chest, and silently watched Lisa work.

Lisa paused from placing the Manchego on the charcuterie board. "Please tell me no one's allergic to cheese or is, uhm, lactose-intolerant?" She threw her head back, closing her eyes momentarily. "Shit. I should've asked you first. I did check everything twice, and these are all aged and, uh, hard cheeses... Low lactose. Lactose-free... I think?"

"They're good with cheese. You're good," Roseanne said, rubbing Lisa's shoulder. She tried to hide her amused smile by biting her lips.

"Uhm, this one." Lisa opened a jar of jelly, with some dark greens and reds floating in it. "It's a pepper jelly I made at The Cub."

Roseanne's eyes widened slightly. "So, you were preparing for this for at least a day or two to make this, huh?" Lisa cracked up at her teasing. She smelled the jelly and raised her eyebrows. "Is that pepper? Jalapeño?"

"Yup." Picking a teaspoon from the table, Lisa grinned from ear to ear, proud and confident of her work. "This is pepper jelly—from scratch—and it goes perfectly with the cream cheese." She took a teaspoonful of cream cheese and topped it with the pepper jelly, offering Roseanne to taste.

The second Roseanne tasted the combination, she began to nod and hum at the same time. "That tastes so good! I don't think I've had that served on a charcuterie board before."

Lisa felt confident that the Parks would have a similar reaction since it passed Roseanne's taste test. But then, her jitters came back just as she was about to top the block of cream cheese with the pepper jelly. "Wait. They're fine with spicy...?"

"Uhuh. They're foodies, too. They'll love that," Roseanne assured. "And you're sharing your recipe with me."

"Of course, babe," Lisa said, laughing for mere seconds, before turning her lips into a frown. "Is this going over the top?"

"No, it's perfect," Roseanne said, a giddy smile tugging at her lips. She reached out a hand and swept a stray strand of Lisa's hair away from her face. "But you look like a bundle of nerves right now."

Lisa, pristine in a stylish, slightly tailored, casual, black zip-up jacket she had once worn during Hyunjin's graduation, chuckled timidly. "Can you blame me?" Gazing around to make sure nobody could hear their conversation, especially Archibald, she leaned closer to Roseanne. "Meeting your parents at your home is perhaps one of the most dreadful moments of my life. I'm not sure if I'll still be alive or have a girlfriend when I step out of this place."