They'd been dating for a little over two months, although Lisa was hesitant to label it. Jennie was okay with that, knowing that it was Lisa's first relationship.
It was like Jennie had come alive and broken out of the box of her normal life. They ate lunch together, and Lisa became a permanent fixture at drinks every Friday night. She got along great with Jackson, the two of them spending hours talking about mechanics and technology.
Lisa took Jennie to expensive restaurants and upscale art museums, and Jennie took Lisa to the cinema and ice skating. Lisa still came into the library every couple of days, surprising Jennie at work and picking up another one of Jennie's favourite books, and Jennie became a frequent visitor at L-Corp, bringing Lisa flowers and making sure she left the office occasionally. Sometimes late at night they would walk to Jennie's park and walk around the pond hand in hand, feeding the ducks some bread.
The more time they spent together, the more they learnt about each other, and the closer they became, picking up each other's habits and vocabulary. Jennie had been thinking about introducing Lisa to Eliza soon, wanting her adoptive mom's approval. She wanted Lisa to be included in her family, seeing as she wasn't close to her own. Rosé had suggested that Jennie bring Lisa to Thanksgiving at their mom's house so that Eliza could meet her.
They filled in the gaps for each other, and everything was perfect.
They were happy.
-----
Cal and Irene were in town, so the next Friday night, they skipped the bar and everyone met at one of the more popular clubs. Jackson couldn't make it this Friday because he had a World of Warcraft tournament with his computer friends.
"Jennie!" Irene squealed, pulling her into a hug as soon as she saw her. Smiling widely, Jennie embraced Cal as well, happy to have her friends back in town. She hadn't seen them in a few months and she missed them. She was excited to introduce them to Lisa though.
'This is Lisa' she signed, gesturing to Lisa.
Cal had actually photographed and interviewed Lisa before, when she still lived in Metropolis, and fell into an easy conversation about L-Corp and Cal's latest article he was working on.
Jisoo and Rosé showed up not long after, Jisoo complaining about having to drag Rosé away from work, and the party got started. Lisa had used her name to snag VIP access for them, so they all settled down in one of the large booths, away from the dancefloor.
They all caught up over a few drinks, laughing at the stories Irene and Cal told. The tipsier they got they got tipsier as the night wore on, and Irene decided talking time was over and dragged Cal over to the dancefloor.
Jennie raised her eyebrows at Rosé, smiling widely at her.
"Oh no, you're not getting me up there," Rosé argued, understanding what Jennie was getting at. Jennie protested, gesturing at Jisoo to help her out. Jisoo just shrugged.
"Your sister's not the dancing type little Kim," Jisoo said, matter of factly.
Jennie shot Jisoo a confused look.
'Not the dancing type? So Rosé didn't tell you about her wild college parties?'
"No way, I have to see this," Jisoo laughed, dragging Rosé out of the booth. Rosé sighed, giving in easily as Jisoo led them onto the dancefloor.
Jennie turned to Lisa, smiling at her.
'Your turn' she signed, sliding to the end of the seat and pulling Lisa along with her.
"No, definitely not, I don't dance," Lisa protested. Her sign language had improved a lot over the past two months, and they didn't have to rely on the whiteboard quite as much.
'Everyone dances' Jennie signed back, gesturing towards the heaving crowd moving with the beat. 'You don't have to be a good dancer to dance, and you can't be worse than me' Jennie silently laughed as she replied.
Lisa rolled her eyes, giving in as she scooted along the bench. Jennie threw her hands up in victory, leaning in to give Lisa a quick kiss in thanks.
Jennie had been right. There was no way Lisa could have been worse than her. She didn't even dance in time with the music, and Lisa had no idea where she got her dance moves from. She thought it was adorable. Jennie clearly didn't care, she was too drunk and having too much fun.
-----
They didn't leave until the club closed in the early hours of the morning. Everyone stumbled out of the club, too drunk to stand properly. Lisa, probably the soberest out of them all, held Jennie up as she swayed on her feet.
Everyone was waiting for a cab, and Jennie hugged everyone goodbye as one pulled up alongside them. Rosé cast a worried look at Jennie, who she knew wouldn't get into the cab even in her drunken state.
"It's okay, I'll make sure she gets home safe," Lisa promised Rosé, as Jisoo slipped into the back of the cab next to Irene.
"Thank you, I'll see you later," Rosé replied, sliding in after Jisoo.
"Come on, let's get you home," Lisa said, smiling to Jennie, whose head was resting on Lisa's shoulder.
Placing Jennie's arm around her shoulder, Lisa took half of her weight and got Jennie to start walking forward. They staggered home towards Jennie's apartment.
-----
Lisa half carried Jennie up the stairs, trying to be quiet so she didn't wake up the neighbours. Stopping outside Jennie's door, she propped her up against the wall, digging into Jennie's pocket for her key.
Flicking the lights on, Lisa led Jennie inside, shutting the door behind her.
"Come on, let's get you into bed," Lisa whispered, leading Jennie towards her bedroom. Lisa sat Jennie down on the edge of the bed, catching her as she fell forwards. Jennie's shoulders shook with silent giggles as Lisa sat her back up and she flopped backwards. She laid there staring at the ceiling, still giggling, as Lisa took her shoes off for her. Pulling the sheets back, Lisa dragged Jennie up the bed, resting her against the pillows as Jennie smiled at her. She helped Jennie out of her jumper and jeans, and took her hair out for her so she'd be more comfortable. Covering her with the quilt, Lisa slid Jennie's glasses off, placing them on the bedside table. "Stay here," she whispered, walking out of the bedroom.
She came back a moment later with a glass of water and some aspirin, putting them down next to Jennie's glasses, ready for the morning. Lisa figured that Jennie was in for a not so fun hangover tomorrow.
She brushed Jennie's hair out of her face, smiling at her as Jennie squinted up at her through half-closed eyes. A slow smile spread across Jennie's face as she pulled Lisa down towards her, placing a clumsy kiss on her lips. Lisa pulled back slowly.
"Jennie, that's not a good idea," Lisa whispered, stroking Jennie's cheekbone with her thumb. A little frown line formed between Jennie's eyebrows as she gave Lisa a confused look, signing something at her. The movements were clumsy, but Lisa's breathing hitched as she understood what Jennie was saying.
'But I love you'
Lisa knew it didn't mean anything. Jennie was drunk, she wasn't her usual self, and she wouldn't remember it in the morning.
She smiled sadly down at Jennie, "I wish I could hear you say it."
Once Jennie had passed out, Lisa placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and stood up. She made her way outside, switching the lights off and locking the door as she went. She flagged down the next taxi she saw, heading back to her apartment.
She didn't stop smiling the entire walk home.