Sorority Sisters [JENLISA]

Final

Like she was in a trance, Lisa nodded and stood up.

"The balcony should be empty. It's locked but you know the master code." Minnie said.

Ten narrowed his eyes at Jennie in a silent threat, which the brunette met with a stoic expression.

Lisa led Jennie into the house, where the party was in full swing.

The music was even louder as the makeshift DJ booth was set up in the living room, surrounded by four giant speakers.

Several girls from Lisa's sorority chapter at UCLA intercepted them to say hi or drunkenly ramble.

Heads turned when they passed, their eyes on Jennie, the girls sizing her up, and the guys trying to flex.

It made her want to grab Jennie's hand and lace their fingers together.

She wasn't sure if she was just looking for an excuse to touch Jennie, because god, she wanted to.

Her body felt like it was buzzing, just from being in Jennie's proximity. Turning around, she reached for Jennie's hand-

"Lisa, who's your friend?" Sorn asked excitedly as she blocked their way up the staircase.

Her arm quickly snapped back at her side.

"This is Jennie. My, um -" There was a short pause while she mentally flipped through a rolodex of descriptors for their relationship.

"Sorority sister"

"Ohhhhh!" Sorn squealed before launching herself into Jennie for a hug.

"I love meeting sisters from other chapters. Welcome! Chi Theta Sigma for life!"

After Minnie was peeled off of Jennie and they were walking up the stairs, Lisa mumbled,

"Sorry. She gets like that when she does coke."

She felt an acute sense of embarrassment when she realized Jennie probably associated her with drunken college parties.

A hand lightly touched her elbow. Electricity traveled up her arm from the spot. "It's okay." Jennie said softly.

"I'm sure she's just having a good time during her winter break." It sounded like she meant it.

On a small digital screen mounted on the wall beside large French doors, Lisa typed in a code and the lock disengaged with a metallic click.

They walked out of the balcony into the perfect California night. The pool was on the other side of the house, so it felt relatively private.

There was too much light pollution to see the stars, but the moon shone brightly in the cloudless sky.

Below them, palm trees swayed in a gentle breeze perfumed by tropical flowers. Jennie remarked, "It's beautiful here."

Lisa couldn't wait any longer, so she interrupted the brunette with a non sequitur.

"What do you need to tell me, Jennie? And why couldn't you just have called me?"

"You blocked me. I tried a few times."

"Oh. Oh yeah." Lisa cringed as she scratched the back of her neck.

"Um. It was because of this thing, called the No-contact Rule. I'm not supposed to contact you for 30 days. It's basically like a 30-day fast from your ex. By having zero contact, you'll get to reset, and by the end of it, you won't care about them anymore."

Jennie's face fell. She pressed her lips tightly together and her throat bobbed as she swallowed.

A film of moisture covered her eyes before she dropped her gaze down at the ground.