Jennie
Anxiousness crawls through me when I lock my front door and take small steps over to Jisoo's.
It's four in the morning, and I can't sleep. All I can think about is where her head is, though I'm not sure I'll be able to sleep even when I find out.
I want to kick Joohyun's ass for telling Roger about Jiyong being Mingsoon's father. Roger's outburst cost everyone so much. When Jiyong finds out people know about his secret child, he'll cut Joohyun off. She no longer holds any leverage over him. No longer will the I'll call your wife and expose you threats work. Jiyong has supported Mingsoon since his birth, supported our family, and all that will be gone.
Eventually, I came to learn that Sam wasn't Sam's real name. It was Jiyong. Mayor Kim Jiyong, to be exact. I was shocked at first, but it taught me a valuable lesson—not to trust anyone.
Jiyong's attorney signed and sent out all payments, so there'd be no trace of Jiyong being involved. His money put food on the table, gave Mingsoon what he needed, and paid our bills. He promised this in exchange for our silence. When I turned sixteen, those checks were no longer made out to Joohyun. My name was on them, and I cashed them with guilt.
After I graduated from college and started making decent money, I stopped accepting his money. Joohyun's threats never stopped, so the checks went back to her.
I can grasp Jisoo's anger. I was searching for the right time to tell her. With every call, hang-out, and touch, the desire to unmask the truth was like a knife to my throat. It wasn't my life I would be hurting if I opened my mouth, so it was too risky. Jisoo would've confronted her father.
She sees me as a liar and someone who blackmailed her father for financial gain.
"I know it's late, but we need to talk," I say as soon as she answers the door.
I smell the liquor on her breath when she steps to the side to allow me entrance. Her glossy eyes confirm that not only can't she sleep, too, but she's also wasted—something I've never seen from her.
There's a glass in her hand, and she takes a drink before replying. "There's nothing to say, Jennie."
I stop, knowing I need to be careful with my words. "If you'll let me explain ..." I should've thought this through before coming over.
"Let you explain?" she shouts, her voice cold and callous. "Let you explain how I spent an hour on the phone with my heartbroken mother, how she's embarrassed the entire town knows, how you chose to keep it from me, or how you've been blackmailing my father for fourteen fucking years?" She scoffs. "Unless it's to explain any of that, I don't want to hear shit from you." She downs her drink and sets it down. "Were you ever going to tell me?"
I bite into the edge of my lip. "I ... I think so."
"You think so?" she repeats slowly. "When? A year? Two? Never?"
Tears glisten in my eyes. "I can't answer that because I don't know."
"You've been lying this entire time."
I shake my head. "When you asked who Mingsoon and Ella's father was, I never said I didn't know. I never lied."
Her upper lip curls. "Wow, really? I didn't find it necessary to specify my father, but I did ask who his dad was."
She did, and I was careful with my wording for this reason.
"I told you he was a deadbeat asshole. That's the truth in my opinion—no offense."
My answer isn't met with approval.
"You also said you didn't know where he was."
Again, I was careful with my words.
"At the time, I didn't know where he was." I press my lips together.
My response only pisses her off further. "Bullshit, Jennie!"
"I never lied to you." I fight to keep my voice strong.
"You selectively left out details."
"I still didn't lie."
She glares. "You've had years to tell me."
Anger surfaces, and I push through the incoming tears. "There was never a reason to tell you! I hated you!"
She lifts her chin. "So, when you were in my bed, you hated me. While I was going to my brother's football games, you hated me. When you told me you had feelings for me, it was all a lie, and you hated me?"
I press my finger into my chest. "You came to me, Jisoo! I didn't come knocking on your door, asking you to hang out." I swallow hard, and tears are streaming down my face. "I did hate you. I never pursued you in the beginning."
"And perusing you was a big fucking mistake!"
I jump when she throws her glass across the room, and it hits a picture of her family, shattering it.
"One big fucking mistake!" She points to the door. "Leave, Jennie. I don't want you here, and I don't trust you."
I wipe away tears, forcing myself to not give up yet, to not give up on us. "Can you please hear me out?"
"Like you heard me out years ago?" She deepens her tone. "Please, Jennie, it took you years to finally hear me out. You had all this time to say something, anything, and you said nothing." A cold laugh rumbles from her throat. "And here I thought, I was falling in love with you." She holds up a finger. "I thought we were falling for each other. I'll never trust you again. Mark my fucking words. My father confessed everything to my mother. You and your sister blackmailed him for years, accepting over a hundred thousand dollars, and it didn't stop when we began dating. That's where you crossed the goddamn line. Now, get the fuck out of my house."
"Please," I beg. Salty tears hit my lips, and my chin quivers. I've never been so terrified of losing someone in my life. I inhale a pained breath. "I'm sorry, I really am, but I was protecting my family."
"And that's what I'm doing." She glares at me. "My guilt for what happened in high school is gone. Looks like you got your revenge. Con-fucking-gratulations. Now, you can fuck off."
