24 Dates

Date Twenty Three

Date Twenty-three:

Place: Bridal Cake Factory

Time: February 20th, 2017 2:00 pm

Yelp: 4/5 | Date: Jen is always five stars :-)

Chaeyoung doesn't know if she's ever seen Jennie like this. Even after receiving her first rejection Jennie bounced back up and got back out there, but now it's been a week and there is still no bounce. She's just sad.

"Try this one," Chaeyoung says, pushing the strawberry filled over. She figures that maybe cake shopping will help.

"This is stupid. We picked the cake three weeks ago."

Chaeyoung frowns. She's not wrong, Lisa had been there for that. "You need cheering up. Besides, it's not like they know," Chaeyoung whispers before taking a bite out of another sample. "We haven't gone out just the two of us in a while."

Jennie grumbles something that Chaeyoung doesn't catch and tries the strawberry filled. "The marble, cherry topped is still the best."

"Would the lovely couple like to try another flavor," the consultant asks coming up to them. Chaeyoung wonders if he lives under a rock because he's yet to recognize Jennie. He does seem the snooty type, though.

Jennie groans. "She's not my--"

"Yes. We'd love to try the dark chocolate champagne."

"Of course," he says with a thin smile.

Chaeyoung can feel Jennie glaring, but she doesn't actually say anything. "Are you ever going to tell me what happened?"

"No."

"Are you ever going to say why you're sad?"

"Are you ever going to shut up?" Jennie asks. It lacks the usual bite.

And Chaeyoung's getting kind of bored with the whole sad Jennie thing, and annoyed. She sighs, loud and over the top in order to get Jennie to look up at her. "That wasn't really nice, Jen. And you know what happens when people aren't nice."

Jennie's eyes widen. "I'm sorry - I - look, I-" Chaeyoung shakes her head and continues to lean in. She flexes her hands. "We're in public!"

They are, but they aren't. The room is mostly private. Not that it would stop Chaeyoung in the first place.

She does the only thing that will garner a real reaction from Jennie; comes behind and squeezes. Jennie squirms and struggles, and Chaeyoung latches tighter.

"Chaeyoung! Stop - St--"

"Tell me."

"Fuck off!"

"Tell me... " Chaeyoung presses further into Jennie until she hears the sound of a throat clearing.

"Ladies, you can't do that in here. I'm going to need to ask you to leave." It's the same man from before, his oily mustache crinkles with his frown. Chaeyoung almost laughs.

"Pre wedding jitters," she says and lets go. "We'll be leaving now."

Jennie stands and follows Chaeyoung out, murmuring a hushed, "I hate you," as they exit.

They walk together. Jennie puts her sunglasses on and hitches her scarf high enough to cover her face. "Why do you keep doing that?" she asks.

"Doing what?"

"Pushing. It's nothing - I'm just staying with you and Lisa to think."

"Oh? What about the engagement ring in your drawer?" Chaeyoung giggles when Jennie's head pops up.

"Stop going through my stuff!"

She wasn't, though. Not really - she was looking for batteries and hoping that Jennie had some. It was then that she saw the little box. "Did she say no?"

Jennie groans and leans her head back. "No, okay. She didn't. You can't say no to a question that was never asked."

"Jen," Chaeyoung sighs, "What's going on?" Chaeyoung sets her lips into a straight line, and her heart beats fast. Anyone who knows Jennie would be worried.

"You aren't going to let this go, are you?"

Chaeyoung nudges Jennie with her elbow. "You've known me for how long?"

" Fine. " Jennie grinds her teeth together. "I asked her father for permission and he told me no."

Chaeyoung stops dead in her tracks, chews the inside of her lip. "That's...that's all?" And Jennie glares. It takes Chaeyoung a second to realize of course Jennie would want Jisoo's Father's permission. " Oh. "

"And, he - he made me think. What if in the end, Jisoo ends up regretting it because we're too different. I'm already where I wanted to be, but it's not the same for her, right?"

"You love her?"

"Duh."

Chaeyoung fishes through her pocket and grabs her deck of tarot cards.

"What the hell? Why do you always carry those around?"

"For the occasional epiphany." She winks and grabs a card directly from the middle of her deck, then flicks it out to Jennie between two gloved fingers.

"You're so weird." She looks up at the card. "It's two people with a cup." Chaeyoung smiles until she eventually gets a begrudging, "What's it mean?"

" We."

"That doesn't answer my question."

Chaeyoung laughs and hands the card over to Jennie. "It means we ."

"What kind of bullshit - Chaeyoung, I-" she slumps and looks at the ground. "I don't know what to do."

Gingerly, Chaeyoung pulls her into a hug and Jennie is too exhausted to fight it. She feels Jennie's face fall into the cloth of her scarf. "I love her," Jennie says. She says it over and over and Chaeyoung can hear the shake in her voice.

"Do what you do best," Chaeyoung says.

Jennie gives a wet laugh. "And what do I do best?"

"Go for what you want."