"I think we need to make an alliance."
"Is that your way of apologizing for yesterday? In my country, we usually just say sorry but I guess I'll accep-"
"It is not an apology Manoban." Jennie sighed. "Look, I suppose you've heard of the news concerning my cousin dating Nayeon? Well, I hate to put it like that but we are both in trouble."
"We are?" Lisa raised her brows, amused.
"Yes we are. Nayeon is after both of us and she's now dating the son of the director, which means she's under his protection. I therefore won't be able to do anything to her and expect him not to intervene. But I know she is just using him to get closer to me and get her revenge. And you can be sure to be next on her list."
"Sounds like a Game of Thrones type of plot." The Thai girl commented, still smiling.
"Whatever Manoban. My point is, I want you to make Taehyung and Nayeon break up."
Lisa almost choked at those words.
"Excuse me?!"
"Me and my friends will help you if necessary," Jennie continued, "but, to be honest, I think only you would be able to do it."
"And why is that?"
The brunette was getting impatient.
"If there was any other way, believe me I would have chosen it. But you are much closer to Taehyung than any of us, so he won't suspect anything. Plus, you're very good with manipulating others, so messing up their relationship that should be a piece of cake for you."
Those last words made Lisa flinch a little bit. The way Jennie had formulated her phrasing had reminded her of some unpleasant memories she hadn't thought about in a while. She stayed silence for a while, her eyes lazily wandering until they laid upon her book in front of her. Realizing a funny coincidence, she immediately started laughing.
"What is up with you?" Frowned Jennie.
"Oh I don't know, don't you have a little déjà vu concerning all of this?" She answered, pointing at the book.
It took a second to the other girl to understand, and as soon as she did, her eyes widened in surprise as she realized the parallel between Dangerous liaisons and this situation. Jennie and Lisa. Merteuil and Valmont. Two people with no morals making an alliance in order to accomplish their individual goals, one being revenge, and the other one entertainment.
The brunette would have almost found it funny if the situation wasn't as urgent as it was now.
"So, do you accept the deal?"
But Lisa's face got serious again. She lightly sighed as she closed her eyes.
"No I don't. This alliance, as you call it, literally only serves you. I don't care about them being together, and I'm not afraid of Nayeon. If she does something to me, I'll make sure to get back at her in proper form, but right now she isn't bothering me in any way. I just have no interest in obeying you and destroy my friend's relationship with this girl."
"But what if she is the one planning on destroying your relationship with Taehyung? Are you just going to wait until she fucks up everything before acting?" Jennie argued.
"You don't even know if she's after me! For all we know, she may not even hold any grudges against me. I'm a very likable person, you know?" The Thai girl retorted, a cocky smile growing on her face.
"Oh my God, you are so frustrating..." The other girl said, bringing her hands to her temples. She knew the conversation was over, and at this point, she just wanted to leave. But Lisa wasn't done.
"Hey. I know you don't necessarily hold me in your heart, but you can't blame me for refusing. We both play the same game, but for different reasons and toward different goals and I do not consider this battle important for me to fight."
She stopped for a moment, waiting for her partner to object or at least react, but she seeing Jennie's face, she understood the girl wouldn't try to convince her more.
"Look," she continued, uncertain, "as much as I hate to admit it, those study sessions are fun to me, so can't we just forget what happened today and yesterday and go back to what we did before?"
Jennie raised her brows at the latter's request and thought about it for a moment. She knew it would be useless to blackmail Lisa, the girl wasn't going to accept to help her just for the sake of those sessions. She laughed internally. She had never been able to tame her after all, not even a bit. From the beginning, Lisa had been cooperative only because she wanted to. The plan had sunk.
And now?
She could maybe cancel those meetings they had as a punishment, or even calling off the whole deal the two had made last week, in the gym hall. Jennie was still Jennie after all, she could totally go back to bully Lisa and her friends. Heck, with a some effort, she could maybe even make them expelled! But a wave of fatigue washed over her. Was it really worth it?
No.
Jennie was tired. As much as she hated the girl in front of her, her battle was with Nayeon from now on. Lisa was out of the game; bringing her back in would just complicate things more. She needed to set her priorities straight without changing her habits. Those study sessions were the key to get the top grades in French, and giving up on them would do more bad than good.
"Alright Manoban, you win." She said flatly. "Let's just focus on the work. Making an alliance with you would have been too complicated anyway."
Lisa was about to respond to the last comment, but decided at the last moment to let Jennie's snarky remark win, simply nodding as she opened her book.
"Okay so Valmont just refused Merteuil's request and now she isn't happy about it, so she writes..."
The girls continued analyzing the book as if nothing had happened at all. And surprisingly, they were able to recover their usual rhythm and interactions quite fast. Lisa had never felt angry or awkward after all. And as for Jennie, well, let's just say that although the rejection left a bad taste in her mouth, she quickly got over it.