Miss J | Jensoo

Ch27. The Snowball

Time flew by over dinner in a modern two-storey restaurant by the beach. Neither noticed how long they had spent chatting and laughing and sharing little nuggets of their lives, until a waiter boy came forth and sheepishly reminded them that they were due to retire for the night.

Under Jennie's subtle tugs during their casual walk, they found themselves now holding hands and treading leisurely on the soft wet sand with the cold waves lapping rhythmically at their bare feet.

Whether it was light chatting or soft confiding or comfortable silence, every moment with Jisoo was equally heartfelt and true for Jennie, although she could tell by now that Jisoo was good at masking her feelings. It did not make Jisoo any less honest though, it just meant that she was usually taken at face value by most people, her real inner feelings lost and neglected in the undercurrent. And Jennie decided she did not want to be most people.

Pulling Jisoo down to sit beside her on the sand, Jennie hugged her knees and smiled at how the raven plonked her butt down and kicked out her legs, relaxing backwards against her hands on the sand like it was her couch at home.

"Tell me about your love life," Jennie rested her cheek on her knees as she gauged Jisoo's reaction.

The raven scoffed a little and threw a wry smile, "Practically the whole school knows my reputation, Jennie."

Jennie let out a soft laugh and scooted closer so that they were hip to hip, facing the endless ocean. She waited for Jisoo to make eye contact before she whispered sincerely, "I want to hear it from you, Jisoo." The gulp that went down the raven's throat did not go unnoticed, but Jennie was willing to wait for as long as it would take for Jisoo to open up.

She watched as Jisoo's smirk grew and her tone was playful and confident, "I'll tell you everything you want to hear, baby." A week ago, Jennie would have easily been thrown off track by Jisoo's captivating charm and witty remarks; but now, she could decipher the times when such smooth talk was just Jisoo's defense mechanism – not lies, but distraction and avoidance. And this was one of those times.

"So... have you ever been in love?" Jennie pressed on with a tender smile.

Jisoo laughed, almost bitterly, "Will you believe me if I say I've never?"

"I'll be surprised, but I'll believe you nonetheless," Jennie offered truthfully, with a swirl of unknown disappointment in her stomach. "I mean, rumour has it you're very... active in your love life, is that not true?"

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Jisoo could feel Jennie's questions knocking on the walls within her, asking to be let in. Although Jennie was polite and patient, she was also making it darn difficult for Jisoo to answer without lying, which was one thing Jisoo had never done to Jennie and never wanted to do.

"Well," Jisoo exhaled as she drew in her knees and threw a twig into the sea, "I have gone out or dated before, as you've probably already heard, but... with all those girls, I've never felt anything that swept me off my feet, you know?" Not until recently.

That was as far as Jisoo could go without lying or exposing the fact that there was no love life to begin with, because she had not been looking for love at all. It was something else she was seeking, all part of the plan to complete the mission.

"Hmm," Jennie hummed thoughtfully, mixed with something Jisoo found similar to disappointment. But then the brunette rested a hand on Jisoo's shoulder, beaming with a bright smile that did not quite reach her eyes, "I think I can help! Do you have a type?"

Jisoo inwardly flinched. An achingly beautiful brunette who has a birthmark that will uncover her identity, an identity that will forbid me of any possibility with her. But no, she could not tell Jennie that, nor could she lie to her, so Jisoo settled on a summarized version of the truth, "You."