the blind side of love | chaennie

thirty-two

Roseanne glanced at the time on her cell phone as she hurried out of the Barney Building. Class had ended early, for a change. The professor's obsession with a certain Tuesday night television show meant that class was held in turbo speed.

"Hey, beautiful," a voice said near her ear, and Roseanne turned to see Jaehyun standing there.

She smiled. "Hey stranger," she said, as he fell in step beside her. "Long time no see."

"I kept meaning to call and say hi, but family holiday stuff, you know? How are your classes this semester?"

He'd cut his hair, Roseanne noticed. The sides were shaved off and the top was spiked. She thought it made his eyes look browner somehow. "Art & Contemporary Culture is going to kick my ass. I'm sure of it. The rest are okay. What about you?"

"Lots of electives. I'm loving Media Fundamentals, though. I opted for Digital Art."

"Bold move for a sculptor." She smiled. "Are you headed to class?"

"I've got Psych in a couple of hours," he said. "You?"

"I'm done, thankfully. I'm meeting Lisa in Central Park. Did she tell you? She's shooting a film there."

"No kidding?" He looked impressed. "That's awesome. I hadn't talked to her in a while."

"Yeah, I think today's the last day, though. I'm Lisa's date to the wrap-up party."

"Lisa's got good taste." He grinned in a way that managed to look sweet, somehow, and Roseanne looked away, feeling shy all of a sudden.

They came to a stop at 3rd Avenue. "I'm headed to Lafayette," Roseanne told him.

"I'm gonna get something to eat before class. We should get together sometime," he said, looking hopeful.

"That'd be nice. Give me a call?"

"Count on it."

They headed in opposite directions, and Roseanne stuffed her hands in the pockets of her jacket to keep them from freezing. Despite her love of winter, she was looking forward to spring. The muddy piles of snow and leafless trees were beginning to depress her. And it was only the first week of February.

Her phone began to chime somewhere inside her messenger bag, with a tune assigned to unknown numbers. She dug the object from the depths of her bag, and stared at the unfamiliar number on the display screen. "Hello?"

"Hello, is this Roseanne Park?" a female voice asked.

"This is me, well, her." Roseanne rolled her eyes at herself. "What can I do for you?"

"I'm Jisoo Kim, Jennie Kim's assistant. Do you have a moment?"

Roseanne halted in her steps, and nearly got trampled by a stroller. She got out of the way, and quickly said, "Ah, yeah! Sure. I mean, I do."

"Ms. Kim was wondering if you were still interested in contributing your art to her new apartment?"

"Sure, yeah. I'd love to." Roseanne rolled her eyes again, knowing she sounded like an idiot.

"Great. Would you be available to meet with her sometime this week?"

Roseanne's stomach fluttered at the prospect of meeting with the actress. "Um, sure. I have classes but maybe after..." She paused, then said, "I'm free on Friday."

"That works. How about Friday at two?"

"Great."

"I'll send you a text message with the address. Thanks for your time, Ms. Park."

"Take care." Roseanne dropped the phone from her ear and shook her head. A minute later a text message came through with the details of the appointment and Roseanne stared at the series of letters and numbers in mild disbelief.

She snapped the cell phone closed and threw it back in her bag. Her hands were cold again and she rubbed them together before putting them back in her pockets. Then she hurried toward the subway station.

Somewhere along the way it hit her that the phone call she'd been both anticipating and dreading had finally come. She didn't forget about me, Roseanne thought, as she headed down the stairs and into the warmth.

-

Jennie stared expectantly at Jisoo the moment her assistant hung up the phone. "Well? What did she say? How did she sound?"

Jisoo lifted an eyebrow, looking amused as she put the phone down on the kitchen counter. "Like ... she's terrified." She regarded Jennie seriously. "Are you sure you've thought this through?"

"Yes," Jennie said. "And by yes, I mean of course not. If I thought this through I'd be forced to have myself committed." She took a deep breath. "What do you mean by 'terrified'?"

"Just that."

Jennie frowned. "Do I seem intimidating? I don't want to intimidate her."

"Yeah, good luck with that." Jisoo shook her head and looked around. "I love this apartment."

Jennie allowed the change of topic, and surveyed her surroundings. She'd fallen in love with the apartment the second she'd seen the pictures. She loved the hardwood floors, the floor-to-ceiling windows, the state of the art kitchen, the gorgeous view. It had cost almost as much as her beach front property and it was worth every penny. "Do you think it comes across as pompous?"

Jisoo glanced at her curiously. "Is this about Roseanne again?"

"No," Jennie lied. "Okay, maybe. I just don't want her to think I'm a snob."

"Jennie, I doubt she thinks you live in a cardboard box." Jisoo looked around again. "Besides you have no furniture. The only thing it comes across as is ... empty."

Jennie smiled at that. "Like a canvas."

Jisoo rolled her eyes. "Okay, on that note, I'm out of here. I have to go finish unpacking before Kai gets here tomorrow."

"Have fun."

Jisoo disappeared out of view and a few seconds later, the sound of the door echoed through the apartment. Jennie let the stillness settle before disrupting the silence with her movement. She climbed the stairs that led to her bedroom and collapsed on the bed. She turned the stereo on and let the radio pick the soundtrack for the evening.

Jennie hadn't brought much to New York. The bed was new. She'd had it delivered before arriving. The stereo, the flat-screen TV, the bedside tables, all of that she'd purchased in the days following her arrival. She wanted New York to feel like a fresh start.

KT Tunstall began to play just as her cell phone chimed and Jennie grabbed it off the nightstand and checked her missed messages. She had only a text message. From Roseanne.

J. K. actually called. Sort of. Details later. Off 2 party w/ strangers. Ick.

Jennie smiled and replied.

Have fun :)

She let the phone slide out of her hand and onto the covers. She wanted to pretend that she wasn't petrified about Roseanne coming to her apartment. She wanted to pretend that she and Jane were entirely different people, and that she wasn't actually lying to anyone but herself. But none of that was the truth.

Roseanne would be stepping into the apartment in a few days and Jennie Kim would be there to welcome her. And at some point, preferably before things got any more complicated than they already were, the truth would have to come out.

How or when, Jennie had no idea.