You Had Me at Goodbye

Lovers

The sun has slowly made its way to the end of the horizon; the sky is burned in a beautiful amber colour of fallen leaves welcoming the season of autumn and the birds are finally flying back to the embrace of their homes when a ding above her head announces Lisa's presence in a bookstore somewhere down in Lisson Grove, automatically drawing the attention of the woman standing behind the cashier counter a few steps away, who immediately smiles her heart-shaped lipped smile so warmly towards Lisa.

"Welcome," Jisoo excitedly exclaims.

Lisa greets a good evening to Jisoo as she smiles towards the woman who slowly has made a comfortable nest in her heart. Long gone Jisoo's unapproachable distant demeanour Lisa was so scared of since she has come to know the ball of sunshine better. After the incident that happened a few weeks ago where Jennie went missing, Jisoo and Lisa have been exchanging texts and even ending up having conversations without involving Jennie in the middle. Lisa finds the brutality in Jisoo's honesty to be refreshing, while Jisoo finds the innocence in Lisa's awkwardness to be entertaining. So, within each other, they find things they have not encountered before; something new, something light, and something easy.

This is the second time they meet again in person and Jisoo is happy that she can catch the neurosurgeon before Jennie drags her away again like the last time Jennie did when she was still enjoying teasing the neurosurgeon to her heart's content. There are things she can only leave unuttered until they both share the same space. She has not thanked Lisa enough, for things she is sure even Lisa does not know.

Jisoo can see how the thing between Jennie and Lisa has grown deeper than what is visible to the eyes—to the point where she as the spectator outside the arena can only start to wonder about what actually is happening between the two women. Although she must admit that she does not quite care about their nature, or the term, or the label or whatever word it is to call what the two have because all she knows is Jennie is more like herself lately.

The 'herself' whom Jisoo knew before the accident took place. The 'herself' whom Jisoo is finally able to recognise. The 'herself' who is free. And she knows she has no one but Lisa to be thankful for because it was when she stepped into Jennie's life that Jennie had found it in her heart to smile the way she used to.

"Thank you for bringing her back," Jisoo smiles as she suddenly and seems quite randomly speaks to the neurosurgeon who is taken aback in her seat next to the cashier counter.

Lisa clearly does not see the point of Jisoo's gratitude, because if she is referring to the event taking place a few weeks ago when Jennie went MIA then she has to shake the gratitude off for it is unnecessary. Lisa just did what she ought to do and there is no need to thank her for that, Jennie is her friend too, so she will always care about her well-being is what Lisa wants to say when Jisoo speaks again.

"You don't understand," And it creates this furrow on Lisa's eyebrows, "I was the one who told her that her parents didn't make it," Jisoo continues then stops to heave a small breath before she goes on.

"Do you know what she did after I told her so?"

Lisa gives no response to the question, waiting for the woman to continue her story.

"She asked me to leave and when I came back she gave me nothing but her broken smile that she had been taking anywhere with her ever since." Lisa can taste the bitterness in Jisoo's voice as if a tint of guilt seeping within her words; as if she was the one who had taken Jennie's smile and changed it into a crooked one all this time.