YOUNG LOVE || 𝐉𝐄𝐍𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐀 ✔︎

twenty-eight

Lisa stood at the kitchen counter, watching through the window as her mother and Jennie chatted outside. It was a warm and humid day with rain in the forecast, but Sunday brunch—eaten outside on the patio—had become their norm lately. But seeing as it was already past noon, brunch would be a late lunch today.

She turned away from the view and went back to slicing the mushrooms. Since their afternoon swim party and subsequent dinner, she and Jennie had seen each other often, but never alone. They’d gone to lunch a couple of times, arriving and leaving separately. Bambam had included Jennie when he’d had a pizza party for Crissy’s birthday. Last Saturday, Jennie had invited her and her mother over for hamburgers. She wanted Lisa to teach her how to use the new gas grill she’d purchased for her patio. And this week, Jennie had been to the store twice—once to watch as the freezers were installed and then again when they were bringing in the kitchen for the food court.

Neither of them ever suggested they have dinner alone and Jennie did not invite Lisa back over to swim. Because the tension was there. Always. Lisa paused, staring at nothing as she remembered watching Jennie in the store, looking so comfortable in her shorts and sandals, her legs tan, providing evidence that she was spending many afternoons by her pool. When Jennie had turned, finding Lisa watching her, the look in her eyes made Lisa want to drag her into a back room and kiss her senseless.

And that was the problem. Yes, Jennie was still married. And no, she didn’t want an affair with her. But God, sometimes the pull was so strong, she just wanted to hold Jennie, kiss her, touch her, be with her…get naked with her. And the look in Jennie's eyes said she wanted the same things.

But they weren’t teens anymore, they weren’t the young women they’d been when their raging hormones had overridden any good sense they might have had. They were adults, both so far removed from who they’d been back then. They’d changed—both of them. Yet sometimes, when she looked at Jennie, nothing had changed at all.

But here they were, trying to form a new friendship, trying to eliminate the chasm that was between them and learn to trust again. Which would be all well and good, if only she didn’t still have this want—need—to know Jennie in a much more intimate manner.

“Daydreaming?”

Lisa turned, finding Jennie watching her. She still held the knife, but she’d barely made a dent in the mushrooms. She smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, daydreaming.”

Jennie came closer, stopping only a few feet away. Again, the look in her eyes was nearly too much to resist. Lisa's gaze dropped to her lips, and God, she wanted a taste.  “About?”

The question was barely a whisper, letting her know that Jennie knew exactly what she’d been daydreaming about. Lisa decided it would be too dangerous to play this game, however she couldn’t resist a little tease.

“Well, if my mother wasn’t here, I’d show you,” she said with a smile. She handed Jennie the knife. “Finish this, would you? I need to start the sauce.”

“What am I doing exactly?”

“Just slice them and add them to the pan with the onions.”

* * *

As much as Jennie loved Alice, this was one of those times she wished she and Lisa were alone. Those times were becoming more and more frequent. Of course, she and Lisa had no business being alone, not with the direction her thoughts had been taking lately.

“Will Minjoon be here long?” Alice asked.

“No, no. Just the weekend. I’ll only get to see him Friday night,” she said. “He’s going with his father to his cousin’s wedding Saturday evening. He wants me to come up and visit him soon though. We were so rushed when I took him to Seoul, I didn’t really get a chance to see anything. Minjoon has a whole list of places he wants me to see.”

“So the Whiz Kid likes it up there?” Lisa asked as she took their plates inside.

“Loves it. He seems thrilled every time I talk to him.”

As soon as Lisa was out of earshot, Alice leaned closer. “How long are you two going to keep this up?” she asked quietly.

“What do you mean?”

“Tiptoeing around each other like you do.”

Jennie feigned ignorance. “Is that what we’re doing?”

“Isn’t it?”

“Maybe we’re taking baby steps,” she conceded. She stood. “We should help Lisa clean up.”

“Yes, we should.” Alice took all three of their tea glasses. “I’ll admit, I’m getting used to her vegetarian cooking.” She laughed. “Please don’t tell her that.”

Lisa was on her way out as they were coming in. “You didn’t have to do that. I can get it,” she offered.

“You cooked. We should clean up,” Jennie said with a playful bump of her arm.
“Relax.” Knocking brought all three of their gazes to the front door.

“Wonder who that could be,” Alice said.

“Bambam wouldn’t knock.”

Lisa shrugged and went to open it. Three women stood there. Jennie watched Lisa's expression turn from shocked surprise to slight embarrassment.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Lisa asked with a laugh.

“We wanted to surprise you.”

“Well…it’s…certainly a surprise,”
Lisa said as she accepted a hug from each of them. She stepped back. “Come in.”

Lisa looked around, meeting Jennie's eyes only briefly before looking away again. “This is my mother,” she said, pointing to Alice. “And this is a…a friend of mine, Jennie Song.” Lisa turned to a strikingly tall dark haired woman. “This is Dr. Kang Seulgi  and her partner, Irene Bae. And this,” she said, turning to a beautiful woman with shiny auburn hair, “is Dr. Im Nayeon.”

Doctor? She’s been dating a doctor? Jennie kept her expression even, and she stepped forward, shaking each of their hands. “Nice to meet you all,” she said politely. She glanced at Alice, who finally moved forward as well.

“Always nice to meet Lisa's friends,” she said. “Welcome to my home.”

“I hope we’re not interrupting anything,” Nayeon said, “but we did want to surprise you.”

“You just drove down for the day?” Lisa asked.

“No, no. We got rooms. We thought maybe you could show us the town.”

Jennie took this as her cue to leave. She turned to Alice. “I should get going,” she said quietly.

She and Alice slipped into the kitchen as Lisa and her friends chatted. Her chest felt tight and she kept glancing at the woman—Nayeon—who obviously was very comfortable with Lisa. Her arm was linked possessively through Lisa's. She turned to Alice and was surprised to find herself enveloped in a tight hug.

“Don’t run away from this,” Alice whispered in her ear. “Don’t run from Lisa.”

Jennie pulled away. “It’s so hard.”
“Yes. Love is hard. If it wasn’t, it wouldn’t be so special.” Jennie looked at her helplessly and Alice hugged her again. “It’ll all work out.”

Jennie nodded skeptically. “Maybe.” She picked up her purse. She wanted to just dart from the house, but she wouldn’t be rude. “Nice to meet you all, but I need to get going. Enjoy your stay in Daegu,” she said as she smiled at them, neatly avoiding looking at Lisa. She was out the door in a flash, but she heard Lisa's voice behind her.

“Jennie.” She turned, finding Lisa standing at the door.

“You don’t have to leave,” Lisa said.

Jennie met her eyes, holding them for a long moment as the first drops of rain began to fall. “Yes. Yes, I do.”