The Beginning of the End - Jenlisa

Chapter Twenty-Six

Jennie was dressed in a red Reformation Klara Dress accentuated with some necklaces and tall heels, her khaki hair tucked behind ears while tumbling over her back and shoulders in silky straight.

Jennie rolled her eyes. "Because he's six, arrasseo? That's way too young to be going anywhere without his mother. Actually, that's way too young to be even thinking of going anywhere without me!"

I frowned. "I think six is a pretty acceptable age to—"

"I have my patience tested; I'm negative so shut up!" Jennie commanded, immediately turning the tables in her favor.

"See?!" Riley exclaimed. "LILI understands!"

"Well, I would like to confirm that I do not care however I'm glad she does." Jennie replied faking a smile. "Maybe your LILI here can cook you dinner tonight~."

The handsome boy sighed.

I coughed a laugh.

"NINI, it's not like we're going to be by ourselves!"

Jennie raised her eyebrows. "No?" she asked.

Blinded by excitement, Riley failed to notice she was merely feigning her surprise. "No! Miss Wendy is coming with us!"

"Well, that changes everything!" Jennie exclaimed, clapping her hands.

"It does?" both I and my son spoke in unison, surprised, yet nonetheless pleased.

"Of course it does!" Jennie answered. "Why didn't you say so from the very beginning? After all, Miss Wendy is like a third mother to you. You listen to her better than you listen to me. You love Miss Wendy!"

Both Riley and my face fell upon hearing her snarky speech. We latter recovered more quickly, though, beginning to laugh.

Jennie took that as her cue to drop the façade, and with a roll of her eyes. "Ugh." She turned to exit the room.

"Hey, how about we make a deal?" I asked, stopping her.

She turned around to face me with her hands on her hips and an unimpressed Resting Bitch Face expression on her appearance. "A deal... Since when did you have some charming luck for scheming such a deal?" Jennie amusingly paraphrased.

"Ever since I had you, and from the moment this handsome boy was born." I nonsensically blurted, creating an awkward silence. Jennie was ogling me like I was some kind of Martian who had a two heads. "Yes~." I said again, breaking the quietness. "Riley will do something to prove to you that he is worthy of your trust."

"Is that so?" Jennie drawled, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes. Something like—cook you dinner."

"Sure thing!" Jennie smiled sarcastically. "Are you ready to have your house set on fire?"

"I will help him."

She would normally ask. "Oh really? You will help him, eh? And what would that prove?"

But that would be useless in such circumstances, because the truth was; the house would burn down with or without my aid. Eheeh!

"So, the catch is... you two make me dinner—edible dinner." Jennie specified. "And in exchange, I will allow Riley to go on that trip."

"Yes~." Riley and I, mutually said at once.

Jennie barked a sarcastic laugh. "Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha, in your delusional heads." Jennie scoffed. Her phone beeped in her bag then, and she took it out, checking the screen with a mere glance. "But..." She added. "You two can still make me dinner. I have matters to attend to, anyway."

"Where are you going?" Riley asked as Jennie brushed past him, bag on her shoulder, phone still cradled in her hand. "Didn't you finish work?"

"Get a life~." Jennie said, poking his forehead adoringly.

Riley grinned.

∞

When Jennie returned home later that evening, she was prevented from entering the kitchen by both of her kids – Riley, who was in a very shambolic state and Lisa, childlike grinning upon the sight of Jennie stylishly standing in front her.

"We've been thinking..." Lisa declared.

Riley nodded from Lisa's arms.

Jennie raised an eyebrow, amused. "Is that so?"

"Yes~." Riley said.

"And we've come to the conclusion that it would be better for all of us if we just ate out..." Lisa finished.

At that point, Jennie wasn't able to stop the smile that spread on her pretty Korean features, nor the small giggle that tumbled past her lips.

"Can I see...?" Jennie made a move to push past the tall Thai but Lisa blocked the brunette's path. Jennie raised an eyebrow. "Do I want to see?"

Lisa laughed. "Nope~." The tall blonde said. Putting her son down, Lisa placed her hands on the small woman's bare shoulders, turned her around, and began to lead her down the hallway.

"Where are we going?" Jennie asked.

"Buying some construction supply, obviously we will have a dinner..." Lisa replied sarcastically, meekly. "No need to change, we—"

"LILI promised to take me to McDonald's."

"The trash gets picked up tomorrow... ready yourself~." Jennie replied, contesting the blonde. "If you did what?" Jennie replied to her son. "Don't tell me you burned down the whole kitchen?"

"We did no such thing... Well... hmmm... Kind of..." Lisa defended. "And besides, I promised Riley because I promised him. No catch."

"What?!" Jennie blurted, adapting the comical state they were into.

"Leave this." Lisa said, unceremoniously extracting Jennie's phone from her hand and throwing it at a small table near the entrance. "You won't need it."