I heard Jennie call me after I went out of my room but I ignored her. I went to knock on Chipmunk's door but before my hand could even touch the wood, it opened, revealing a smirking Chipmunk behind.
"Well, that took you long enough." She opened the door wider, allowing me to enter. I plopped down on her bed, my head resting on my palms while my eyes are trained on her.
She settled beside me, grabbed a stuffed toy and hugged it.
"Have you figured it out, Lisa?"
"What do you mean about it, Chaeng? I don't get it, honestly."
She let out a breath of frustration then leaned on the wall behind her. She forced me to face her and when I saw her expression, I got more confused than ever. She seemed mad. And Chaeng rarely gets mad.
"I want to slap you so hard right now, Lisa. How dense are you?"
"I am not dense!" I pouted.
Her eyebrows shot up, not totally convinced with what I said. With her mocking tone, she asked, "Oh, yeah? Prove it."
I smirked at her. I know something you don't, Chipmunk.
I took a deep breath. With my chest puffed proudly, I boasted, "Yeah! I saw right through Jennie and-"
She rolled her eye at me. "Jennie liking Jisoo unnie? Oh, please. That is so old news." She accentuated the word "so" to put more emphasis.
I stare at her, bewildered. My mouth hanging agape in which she closed after mumbling "I'm awesome like that."
"What did you say?" I asked, still in shock.
"Jennie likes Jisoo. Jisoo doesn't. Or I don't know. That's the part I haven't figured out yet." She said while picking on her nails. The indifference on her voice was astounding.
I stood up, walked back and forth on her room, her eyes following me. "Since when did you know?"
Her nose scrunched up in concentration then her face lit up, her pointer finger raised. I saw an imaginary light bulb switching on above her head.
I stopped pacing just to face her, eager to hear more details about this. I'll probably have an information overload after this conversation.
"Do you remember the time when we were shooting the Ddu-Du-Ddu?" Her mouth twitched a little upon saying our song name.
"God, saying that still sounds weird without the music. Anyway, it was at that time I figured it out."
I started pacing again. When? Why did I not notice it? How? Where was I?
I was in her arms reach when she pulled me down."Jesus, Lisa! Sit down, will you?"
I exhaled loudly when my butt landed on the frame of the bed. I heard her stifle a laugh while I was rubbing my butt cheek. This would totally hurt tomorrow. And bruise, too.
I glared at her when she raised her arms in defense. I was still wincing when I moved to sit on the matress.
"Sorry. You were starting to give me a headache. Does it hurt that bad? Do you want me to give you an ice pack?"
I shook my head, signaling for her to continue. "Just give me the details. Please."
She adjusted her position before closing her eyes, probably reminiscing the scene on her head. "I don't know the exact moment, really but I had this feeling that something was going on with Jennie."
I was still rubbing my butt cheeks when she opened her right eye and took a peek at me, I gestured for her to continue. Damn, it still hurts.
"We were already on the set, and I believe you were filming your part so you weren't there to notice these. I remember that you and Jisoo filmed your shots at the same time, right?"
She moved to adjust her position again, now she was sitting cross legged across from me. Her eyes showed curiousity and mischief. I shrugged it off then nodded my head.
"Okay, so when Jisoo was about to go out from the tent where they were doing our make-up, we heard that she will have this bob cut pink hair."
I nodded again, "This was where she had this big mural with her face painted on it as her background, right?"
"Yes. So when we heard it, I saw how Jennie's eyes shone like a kid on a candy shop, you know. After that, she became antsy, always moving around even though it was her time to rest.
"She couldn't stop talking about how good it would look on Jisoo and how she would take lots of pictures then show it to her. She wasn't like that to-"
I sucked in a breath, feeling the tiny needles again. My heart growing heavy everytime Chaeyoung tells me what she noticed and how Jennie acted differently with Jisoo than the two of us. I winced slightly, feeling the pain in my chest worsen.
Then, everything became blurry and silent. It was that far back and I just noticed it now? Jennie knows how to keep secrets, I see.
But what bothered me was that why was Chaeyoung so nonchalant about it? It may be old news for her but I mean, we're talking about our group members here. Our family. Shouldn't she act more enthusiastic about it or more curious? Or should I just shrug this off, too?
"Hey, Lisa. Lisa!" I snapped out of my reverie. I didn't notice I was already spacing out and that she was done talking.
I looked at her, her gaze fell heavy on me, as if she was interpreting and gathering all the data about my blemishes and scars on my face. I looked away, feeling tense and anxious. "Are you okay? I kinda lost you there for a second."
I sighed, "So I'm super late for this, am I? This news isn't new anymore."
"Yeah. I was even shocked to know that you just knew about this. I'm guessing, Jennie knows that you know?"
Again, I stared at her. I admire her for always being so sharp and attentive to the things happening around us. Maybe that's the reason why she doesn't talk much when she's with us. Yes, she laughs and all, mostly eats but she doesn't interact when not needed and mostly eyeing us with such curiousity.
I smiled at her then slowly clapped my hands, "You're always suprising me, Chipmunk. Yeah, but what do think Jisoo feels for Jennie? I mean, you spend more time with her now."
She looked at me briefly, eyes shining for a moment before averting it to the plushie she's holding. "I'm not sure but I think Jisoo likes her, too. They could be a cute couple, no? Imagine seeing them more clingy."
My breathing caught in my throat that I suddenly coughed. When I recovered, her eyes twitched before settling on her nails again. "You think? Why don't you ask her or observe, like you usually do."
Her eyes found mine, the glint of mischief on her never leaving, "Why would I do that, Lisa? What would that benefit me?"
I gave her the 'Duh' look, "Information. What else?"
She laughed, shook her head then stood up. She walked towards her vanity mirror and tied her hair in a messy bun. "As if that would be benificial to me."
Disbelief was evident on my face when she glanced my way. She shot me a questioning gaze before asking, "Why are you so hyped up about this issue, Lisa?"
"Why are you so nonchalant about this, Chae? They are our unnies, may I remind you."
She walked towards me, agonizingly slow that it contradicted my heart which was pounding so fast and loudly in my chest.
"That's the point, Lisa. They are our unnies. Whatever's going on between them should stay between them. Or..." She looked at me with such burning curiousity that I involuntarily gulped.
"Or what?"
She leaned closer, my breathing hitched and my heart pounded with the close proximity. If she decided to strangle me here and there, I wouldn't even fight back due to so much nerves. Chaeyoung may be soft and fluffy but she could be scary and I am beyond frightened at this point.
"Or you wanna get in between them?" She whispered seductively that I blushed, the double meaning never leaving my mind.
I pushed her away and I heard her cute squeal of a laugh.
"Your duality baffles me."
She winked, "Well, it's called a talent, dear."
She walked towards her dresser when I cleared my throat. She looked back at me and I said in a low voice, "How much do you really know, Chaeyoung?"
She didn't speak nor move from where she waa. She just stood there, looking at me. My heart growing heavy by the second. With one final deep breath, I asked her, "Just how much have you noticed?"
She offered me a soft smile and the glint on her eyes were gone, replaced with the gentle twinkle and sympathy. The innocent and caring Chaeyoung was back but my heart squeezed at this sight. It bothered me. And it bothered me a lot.
"Everything."