The Star and the Fangirl - A Lisrene Adaptation (AU)

Chapter 14 - Rollercoaster

Lisa was walking around the busy center of Seoul, smiling from what just happened. She didn't know  where exactly to go next, she just wanted to walk around and enjoy Seoul in its beauty. Some time had passed and she decided to call Jennie again:

"Hey! I'm sorry about earlier, I was still sleeping." Jennie said neutrally.

"Hey baby! No problem! I just wanted to tell you that I love you and I miss you and I can't wait to tell you everything that happened so far!"

"I see you've been a busy girl. A lot of my friends asked me about the photo of you and Irene." Jennie asked with suspicion in her voice.

"Yes! Oh my! That was so great! I can't wait to tell you the story behind that one!"

"Yeah, yeah." Jennie rushed: "But should I be worried?" Jennie was suspicious again.

"What do you mean?" Lisa literally had no idea what Jennie was talking about, she was confused.

"Don't play dumb Lisa."

"I'm not playing dumb, I'm seriously asking." Lisa wasn't playing dumb. But just as she said those last words, a light bulb appeared over her head. She asked:

"You don't think...? That....?"

"Yes Lisa, is everything okay? Should I be worried about Irene?"

Lisa nearly burst into tears from laughing. But she regained control once she heard the deafening silence from the other side.

"Babe! She's a celebrity! I'm a fan! Yes I like her, but not in that way!"

"You said she was your girlcrush... And this photo, I mean, you two are standing close next to each other." Jennnie was getting mad.

"I promise you, I have no feelings for her that way."

"Again, you said girlcrush."

"Yeah!...but like, you know... She's pretty and talented and she-"

"Oh, so I'm not pretty and talented? Jennie was getting madder by the second. Lisa knoew that Jennie was levelheaded most of the time and she really didn't give Lisa any problems when it came to other people, but apparently, Irene was a sore spot. Every other person Lisa would hang out was fine with Jennie, but Irene... Apparently, this was something else. 

Lisa was on the verge of tears because she didn't want to fight, she just wanted to have a nice time in Korea. She spoke softly and like she was about to cry:

"I'm sorry." There was silence. She continued:

"I love you, I miss you and I only want to be with you."

"Ok." Jennie grumbled, her anger slowly fading away, but still audible. Lisa changed the subject:

"So, how was my baby's night? I want to hear all about it!" Lisa tried to stay cheerful and full of love towards Jennie.

"Yeah, not much to tell, we went out, we partied hard, I came home this morning, I think it was like 7 in the morning or something." Jennie spoke in a neutral tone again. Then she added:

"But yeah, nothing to tell really."

"Did anything new happen? I mean, any other news?" Lisa tried to make the conversation longer. She wanted to make them both feel happy again during this conversation.

"No... No... It's all the same." Jennie replied quickly and disinterested.

"Oh... Okay babe... Just wanted to say "hi", I...I will talk to you later?"

"Okay, Lisa" Jennie spoke firmly.

" I love you and I miss you!"

"I miss you too!"

"Bye!"

"Bye!"

 This is okay. She's just a bit jealous when it comes to Irene, but nothing more. We're okay. Nothing's wrong. WE. ARE. OKAY. She's normal when it comes to everyone else, she never bothered me before like this. It's okay. This is just because of one person. Jennie is not usually like this. She's just... We. Are. Okay. Lisa told herself but she felt like she was about to cry.

No, no crying! No! Come on! Lisa, don't cry! You are here to enjoy yourself! And you will! She shook herself out of her trance, wiped a single tear from her eye, put a smile on her face and continued to walk around Seoul.

I guess enough time has passed, I guess I could text Irene now. Lisa was smiling again. Her heart was even racing because she did not know how to say "hi" again without it sounding like she was a clingy fan. She sat at a cafe and tried to come up with a decent text message.

Hey Joohyun! I heard your radio interview today! I didn't want to bother you earlier, so that's why I'm texting now! Thank you for all the kind words you said about me, that meant a lot! And I'm really glad that you're going to use my other photos for your accounts.

Lisa's fingers was shaking just a little, but she hit "send" in the end confidently.

Yeah! That's right! I can be cool! I'm the best! Lisa tried to give herself a pep-talk. She smiled looking at her message. Then she closed her messages and went on to drink coffee.

After a while, her phone buzzed. Is this her already? No, it can't be. IT IS! Let's read this!:

Hey Lisaaa! I'm so glad you heard the interview! I had no idea Wendy was going to ask me about the photo, but I kind of had a feeling she would, since it was blowing up everywhere hahaha!

That was the first message, but Irene kept on adding pretty quickly:

I was glad she did bring that up because I am happy to talk about my fans, especially dedicated ones such as yourself!

She closed it with:

Oh, thank you again for the photos, I can't wait to post them online :)

Lisa's heart was pounding heavily, but she had to find the composure to write back and to keep things flowing. After all, if she really wanted them to be friends, she had to cool down with the fangirling. Not right away, and not completely of course. But just the right amount so that they could bond a bit more.

I mean, again, if she wants to have a celebrity-fan type of relationship, that's fine! I'm actually cool with that. I won't get disappointed... But then again... Being friends with Irene really seems like a dream come true. But what if  she doesn't want that in reality?  I really have to walk the line and be cool about it. Cool, but no too cool. Ah, I'm rambling, better just send a text- Lisa mused.

She then wrote and sent:

I'm glad that my photo of us is taking the internet by storm hahaha and I'm glad you are going  to use the others as well.

Lisa was smiling at her phone.

Irene's phone vibrated once again and she picked up to read Lisa's message. She mused with a smile on her face:

She's such a nice person, I mean, so humble. She really keeps pleasantly surprising me with how grounded and humble she is while she's texting me. Haha, look at that, she wrote "taking the internet by storm", she's so cute. Irene then typed and wrote:

I hope Korea was a nice experience for you and I hope your flight to Thailand was pleasant :)

She put her phone down to go get some water. When she came back, a message was waiting for her from Lisa. She smiled and read:

I'm still in Seoul :D I am going back to Thailand on Monday, I think in the morning. I'm exploring Seoul now  and I'm really loving it. Maybe next time when I visit, we can go around town together :)

While she was reading the last part, Irene was smiling and thinking to herself - Well, why not? she seems nice. I can take her out, we can see a bit of Seoul...Oh! Oh! I know a great restaurant I can take her to and we can eat cake there! Yeah! Cake! That will be great!

Her phone buzzed again and shook her out of her line of thinking. She smiled reading a new message:

I mean, I know you're probably busy, but I wanted to say that I think it would be nice if we could hang out together the next time I come. But I fully understand that you, as a performer, have a busy schedule. So i'm not pushing anything. I just thought it would be nice. But again, I understand :D

Lisa then quickly wrote:

My my! I sure can ramble on sometimes, I'm sorry :D

Irene was giggling while reading that last message and simply wrote back:

Oh you silly BanBan! We'll get together the next time you're here! Just tell me in advance so that I know when to prepare! :)

Lisa was feeling sick. She barely had the courage to write those last three messages, and was now hoping she did not come across as clingy or overly fanatic. But she had to send them. It has to be done so that she could see if Irene really wanted them to be friends. She might regret sending those texts, but she thought to herself: I'd rather regret doing this than not doing it at all.

She opened her phone to read the last message Irene wrote. She started to mouth the opening words: "Oh you silly BanBan"... She continued to read the rest of the text message in silence, her eyes getting wider by the second. In a panic, she quickly wrote back:

Oh I will! Don't worry! I'm so glad you even considered that! I will tell you in advance and then we can hang out! Yay!

Irene wrote:

Oh come on! :D Of course I will consider it, don't be silly! And not just consider it, no! We WILL hang out hahaha :D Remember, we're friends now! :)

Yeah, it still takes time getting used to it, but believe me, I'll get there :D Lisa wrote with a huge grin on her face.

She mused: I mean yeah, she said it enough times. I believe her. I mean, I truly believe that we are now friends. It will take time to adjust to it, but I really will get there. I still will be considerate to her and I won't bother her, but yeah... We are friends! IRENE BAE is my friend.

Another happy tear came down Lisa's face as she was thinking: I'm so happy with my life.

Her phone buzzed again, it was another sticker from Irene, this time it was two different cats hugging each other, even tighter than the two previous cats. Lisa replied with a GIF of two lion cubs hugging.

She was sipping her coffee happily, exhausted from the emotional roller coaster she had been on today.

Hehe! two cubs hugging. Adorable. Irene mused while putting her phone down and getting on the couch to watch some TV.

It would be pretty cool to hang out with Lisa when she comes back.