It didn't take long for Lisa to arrive at home.
Immediately upon entering the living room, she was greeted by the sight of Jennie lounging comfortably on the couch, reading a magazine. She'd already changed into casual home clothes and let her hair down; the effect was that her usual harsh image was softened considerably.
Coupled with the way she was resting, quiet and relaxed, it really did appear as though she had been waiting for her to come home. Warmth and contentment filled Lisa's heart.
However...
"Jennie, did you need me for something?" Lisa shook her head slightly to rid her mind of the wistful illusion.
This kind of warmth did not suit their relationship. Giving in to this intoxication would only bring her more despair.
Meanwhile, Jennie was thinking: of course, she needed her for something!
"I'm hungry."
She had waited almost an entire hour for her. At this point, she didn't even want to bother with the civilities anymore.
"..." Lisa blanked for a moment. Again, she became concerned for her own hearing.
Why else would she have heard those words come out of Jennie's mouth?
I'm hungry? Did that mean she had been waiting for her to come home and cook?
"Then I'll go make dinner?" She tried to feel out the situation.
"Mhm," Jennie confirmed.
Once again, Lisa fell silent, and she patiently waited until eventually, she asked, "What do you want to eat?"
"Doesn't matter, just be quick." As long as it tasted good, she was fine with anything.
Lisa wordlessly made her way into the kitchen, her mind in chaos as a huge question mark hovered above his head. No matter how much she pondered, she just couldn't figure out the answer.
Over the past two days, she had experienced this state of confusion numerous times.
She finally concluded that it wasn't her, but Jennie who was acting abnormally. However, two days ago when he had people go and investigate about the things that had happened to or around her recently, the results had returned as there being nothing out of the ordinary. This had only confused her more.
Half an hour later, four aromatic dishes and two bowls of soup was placed before Jennie, one for her and one for Lisa. She dug in without saying anything. Although her actions could still be considered graceful, Lisa found her eating speed funny.
And then she heard the System beep.
Congratulations on accomplishing the task once!
+1 Point
Progress: 2/10
Please continue working hard!
Jennie's chopsticks froze in mid-air, and she paused for a second before slowly lifting her head to look at Lisa. Traces of the smile could still be seen on her face. It was very faint, but she could see it clearly.
She even caught a glint of a hard-to-place emotion in his eyes. Whether it was happiness or doting, she wasn't sure, but she was sure that it was directed at her.
She, was she being made fun of by her again? Could it be that she was eating too much?
"What are you laughing at?" Instead of automatically declaring her guilty, she decided to give her a chance to explain herself.
If it was the first time, then it could still be considered tolerable, but if the second smile was also at her expense, then she definitely wouldn't stand for it!
Why was it that she had to make fool of herself to make her laugh! Why! Was she that amusing to her?!
As a self-centered and self-confident Woman, the instances of her doing anything dishonorable was probably nil. She could not recall being laughed at —not even jokingly— before either. In the eyes of her family, she represented the epitome of excellence.
And yet the outstanding Jennie had been laughed at by Lisa two times already, "helping" her make progress in the System mission that she'd been struggling with. This was clearly a provocation, and she would not tolerate it!
Meanwhile, Lisa was visibly stunned by her accusation. What was she laughing at?
Did she laugh?
"I laughed?" She asked with uncertainty.
"Yes!" Jennie gave a solemn nod. Not only did she laugh, but she laughed at her!
Lisa couldn't understand why she had supposedly laughed and why she was treating it so seriously, but the sight of her nodding her head like that, all serious and solemn, made her melt from her cuteness again.
Then, she involuntarily released a low, obvious, and very pleasant-sounding chuckle.
Congratulations on accomplishing the task once!
+1 Point
Progress: 3/10
Please continue working hard!
Unexpected surprise? Jennie blinked her eyes and thought: What a boring world! Even the unexpected surprises could render her speechless.
This time, what was Lisa's reason for laughing? Was it genuine, or was she making fun of her again?
"Why is it that every time you laugh, I feel like you're laughing at me?" If straightforwardness was a virtue, then it was definitely one that Jennie possessed.
Abruptly, Lisa stopped laughing, and she looked at her with some embarrassment.
"Of course not, you misunderstood."
She was laughing because she found her cute. She wasn't laughing at her.
"Misunderstood? Then what are you laughing at?" Jennie didn't believe her.
Lisa didn't dare openly praise her as cute, lest she elicit more of her anger. Jennie would undoubtedly be displeased by the adjective.
"Silence is a tacit agreement?"
"Jennie, how could I be laughing at you? Anyway, why did you decide to eat at home tonight? Is there something you want to discuss with me?" As clumsy as she was at covering up, she cleverly chose to change the topic and bring it to the question she'd been wanting to ask all night.
"Yes," Jennie pondered for a moment, the same solemn expression on her face. It wasn't that Lisa had succeeded in drawing her attention away from the original topic; she was just convinced that his attitude indicated tacit agreement, so she decided to move on.
"What is it?" Immediately, a very serious expression appeared on his face.
"From now on, come back and cook dinner if you have time. I'll eat at home," Jennie was also serious in her speech. As the matter of fact, she was even more serious than when she discussed official business.
"..." Lisa suddenly felt like her auditory hallucinations were beyond hopeless to cure.
Come back and cook dinner if you have time?
Come back and cook dinner if you have time!
I'll eat at home?
I'll eat at home!
Was she hearing her words correctly? Was she understanding her words correctly?
"Jennie, what kind of shock did you suffer from? If you need something, then you can say it frankly. Your behavior right now is making me worry," Lisa paused to scrutinize her body before continuing hesitantly, "Could it be that you're sick? Have you visited the hospital yet?"
Please forgive this Woman who had been neglected and treated coldly for too long. Not only did she fail at feeling the warmth, but she also held no romantic thoughts at all and could only come to this helpless conclusion.
.....