The Troublemaker

Chapter 8

Jennie's PoV

The last day of the conference went by so fast. Manoban has been there to help us all the way but when we were on our way back, she was just quiet even though I was initiating a conversation.

I just pretended to sleep the whole ride because I don't want to feel the cold atmosphere after the night where I actually felt like she's a friend. Manoban made me feel like she's a friend and now, she's gonna ignore me.

"Hey, Lisa!" Irene greeted when I went down the car

I unloaded my bag with the help of Manoban while the girls were chitchatting with her. We're still ignoring each other. The good thing is the girls don't seem to notice it since they were talking to the Thai.

"I'm sorry that I can't stay to talk to you, girls. I also need to unpack," Lisa explained as she got in her car

"It's fine. We understand you're tired, Lisa-yah," Chaeyoung said

"But next time, alright? I promise I'll make it up to you," She said and she rolled her window up

Turns out Lisa was friends with my friends which was weird? If she's friends with my friends, why isn't she friends with me? I mean! If she likes my friends, why doesn't she like me?

"Hey, are you good?" Chaeyoung asked when we got in the dorm

"Yeah, just tired," I told her

"You think we didn't notice that you and Lisa were giving each other the cold shoulder?" Irene suspected

I looked at them and they looked at me. I sighed. I have to tell them since they know that there's something wrong. I sat on the couch and they sat next to me.

"There was a thunderstorm last night, right? And you know how much I hate thunderstorms," And they nodded

"So, I came to her room. I asked her if we can sleep together," I stopped talking because both of them gasped

"It's not what you think!" I defended when I got a clue of what they were thinking

"And of course, Manoban being Manoban, she tried to kick me out at first but when she saw how much I was frightened of thunderstorms, she gave in and she provided a space for me," I said as I reminisce how nice she was that night

"The thunderstorm was still going and I can't distract myself from it, so she did the distraction even though I didn't ask for it. She talked to me which she never usually does. Then the day after that! She acted as if nothing happened that night! It was as if she wasn't my friend!" I told them. Annoyance was evident in my voice

"You're annoyed because Lisa is ignoring you?" Chaeyoung said

"I'm annoyed because Manoban is ignoring me for no reason!" I replied

"Lisa is not ignoring you for nothing, Jennie. According to her friends, everything for her is justified. Think about what you did," Irene sermoned

"I swear! I didn't do anything!" I said

"She's just weird and all. Ugh! I shouldn't have come to her room!" I voiced out as I closed my eyes tightly

"Come on. Isn't this a good thing? You and Lisa were always bickering so what's the difference now? You're back to normal," Irene said

"This isn't normal. I would be happy if she annoys me with something but this time, it's just... It's like I'm not there, you know? And I hate it. I hate the fact that she's acting as if I'm just air to her. She can feel me but she really doesn't interact with me," I explained

Thinking about it, it saddens me. Sure I hate the guts of Manoban, but after the conference, it's clear to me that she's just not the troublemaker. There is something more than the mask she's showing us. I want to see Lisa Manoban behind that mask she puts on.