To All The Girls I've Loved Before - Jenlisa

Chapter 21

Lisa clutched her unworn tweed jacket closer to her chest, the thickness rubbing on the grey cashmere long sleeves she changed into after her meeting. The cold in New York was so much tougher than what they have in Seoul, so she's not even sure why she's shivering inside the coffee shop.

Maybe it's because she's meeting a shadow of her life again for the first time in a long time.

She eyed the cheap dal.komm coffee in front of her. She can't believe she'll ever have a reunion in a second rate coffee shop in Seoul but Jen did say that this location just a few streets down Lisa's offices was usually less packed than usual at 3pm.

It could be a blessing in disguise. She didn't want to meet anywhere more intimate, at least not yet. A dal.komm gives you the feeling of a more casual how-are-you than maybe a hotel patisserie that goes straight into what-happened-to-us.

Her doe eyes find the Korean strolling in the café and towards her table. Now that she had the time to breathe, Lisa noticed that she's wearing a white satin deep necked blouse tucked in a black skirt that's wrapped with a heavy tweed black overcoat, paired with a similarly hued stilettos. She looked just like her New York days except perhaps there's more certitude in her steps, owning the space.

The minute she slides into the lounge chair in front of Lisa, however, a certain demeanour slipped: a softer, more unsure, more familiar side of the Korean.

A side she used to reserve only for Lisa.

Lisa's lips pressed into a thin line when the blonde realised that, after seeing Jen again, it seemed like it's inevitable:

She wanted answers.

Her heart hurt, even after convincing herself for more than two years that shit just happens and she doesn't need to hear Jen's explanations anymore. The latter has apologised a lot in the past, and she numbly just said yes to help the Korean. Even in her pain, she refused to be selfish about giving Jen her peace. The girl needed it more than she did.

But for years, she replayed various scenarios in her head on how they would meet again. Nothing bad about preparing herself for the inevitable, after all.

Often she thought it would be on her own time, her call. When she's ready. They would meet again somewhere maybe over wine. She would be nonchalant, say she's over it, she'll be glad to remain friends. Maybe in some scenarios it even involves a one night stand, just for old times' sake.

In all the scenarios, she was never shivering and almost scared. She was never anxious about repeating the past and getting her heartbroken again. She was never hesitant.

And yet she's all those at the moment, hiding behind her stiff jaw, pressed lips and guarded eyes.

No one ever told her that unravelling behind her fortified walls can be this quick when the love of your life just did something as simple as breathe in front of you.

"Thanks for the coffee," Jennie started. When Lisa only nodded, she tried again. "How much time do you have?"

"I told them I'll be running a few errands for the rest of the afternoon. I kind of needed to fix a few things in my new place anyway."

"You have a new place? Here?"

Lisa nodded stiffly. Jennie's eyebrows knitted in confusion.

"You're moving back to Seoul for the long term?"

The blonde's fingers fidgeted on her tweed jacket. She was trying to pace herself with the information.

"I...will be here often in the foreseeable future," She started. The trail of her thoughts got distracted by the tip of Jen's tongue nervously licking her lower lip.