‼‼ TRIGGER WARNING ‼‼
The summer heat was sweltering hot, but Jisoo had no choice but to sit down outside of of their house. One strap of her denim jumper shorts was dangling loosely by her side. She did it on purpose, as her pink shirt was starting to get damp from her sweat.
She didn't understand why, but Jin always had to ask her to go outside whenever her dad was mad.
He also told her to stay in front of their porch and never talk to strangers until everything was okay again.
She didn't like it but Jin always promised her stuff so she just listened to him.
She smiled as she took from her pocket a piece of paper. She tore a small portion of it, put it in her mouth, and munched on it.
She didn't know why but she really liked eating paper. It was calming.
She looked up and was suddenly startled when she saw a small girl glaring at her. Her hair was tied up in pigtails and she wore a flowery sundress.
She had her hands on her hips and her cheeks were puffed up. She looked like an angry kitten, which Jisoo found both funny and cute.
Jisoo smiled widely at her.
"Nyeongan!" she greeted, waving at her.
The girl's eyebrows met together in confusion.
"Nyeongan? What's that?"
"It means hello!"
"Why can't you say hello normally?"
"Because that would be boring."
"But people will not understand you."
"They will when I tell them what it is."
The girl then pointed at what she was holding.
"Why are you eating paper? You can't eat paper. That is gross."
Jisoo shrugged.
"I like it. You want some?"
"Yuck. No."
"Okay."
Jisoo took another portion and ate it. The other girl was staring at her. Who was this? She never saw her around before.
The girl finally went near her and took away her paper.
"Hey! Give that back!"
The girl pouted at her.
"No! That's dirty. I am saving you, so you should be thankful. You want to have a tummyache?"
"Ppoong!"
"What?"
"You should not take anyone's stuff you dwarf!"
The girl glowered at her.
"I am not a dwarf! I am five and my mommy says I will grow tall and beautiful when I am older. Unlike you if you keep on eating paper!"
"You're mean."
"I am not mean."
Jisoo stood up.
"Give it back!"
"No!"
The small girl ran and Jisoo went after her. She was a bit taller, so she almost caught up to her when suddenly, the girl tripped on a tree branch and hit her face first into the grass.
Jisoo froze, then suddenly, she heard the girl bawl loudly.
Jisoo was still kind of miffed that she had taken her paper, but she felt pity for the crying girl.
She walked up to her and helped her sit up. The girl was still sobbing so Jisoo wiped the dirt off of her dress and from her face.
"Are you okay?" Jisoo asked.
The girl nodded vigorously but was still crying.
She wiped away her tears.
"There now. Don't cry."
The girl's lower limp trembled as she looked at Jisoo.
"I-it hurts."
Jisoo looked at her, worried.
"Where does it hurt?"
The girl looked down and Jisoo followed with her eyes and saw that her right knee was bleeding.
"Oh no, we need to clean that up. My mom says that it is important when you have a cut."
The small girl looked at her with big innocent eyes. Jisoo smiled kindly at her.
"Here, my mom does this when I am hurt and it helps a little."
She wipes away a bit of the blood and blows on it a few times, then she kisses the wound.
"There all better now."
The girl gave her a huge gummy smile, although her tears were still flowing.
It made her feel a bit lighter.
"What is your name? I'm Jisoo Turtle Rabbit Kim."
The girl sniffed.
"That's a silly name."
"But it's my name." Jisoo says proudly.
"If you say so. My name is Nini."
Jisoo took her hand and helped her stand up.
"Okay Nini. From now on, even if you took my paper, you'll be my friend okay?"
"Okay Chichu."
"Chichu?"
"Yes. It's easier to remember."
Jisoo shrugged.
"Alright. So, show me to your house so we can have that cured right away."
Nini nodded and held her hand tightly as they walked towards her house which was just across from hers.
***
Nini was just there for the summer with her grandma since her parents were busy with work.
Jisoo and her became fast friends. Seulgi was away with her family for a vacation, and she was happy she got a new playmate.
Although she can be a bit bossy sometimes, she would still follow what Jisoo wanted to do that day.
She easily laughed at her jokes and was always stuck to her like how gum sticks to your shoes, but not annoying like that.
Though one time she had forced Jisoo to eat avocado, and she hated it. But Nini insisted and so she did because she wanted to see her gummy smile. For some reason she was addicted to it, that's why she always did her best to make her laugh.
Nini had the prettiest smile after all.
In the end, she did learn how to appreciate the taste of avocado.
Nini always did what she wanted when she could get away with it.
There was a time when they were checking out a neighbor's garage sale, and Jisoo had fallen in love with a small lamp with colorful lights.
She was mesmerized by it and she really wanted to buy it, her mom and Jin gave her some spending money after all, but Nini had stopped her.
"Don't buy that." she says, frowning.
"But I like it. I think it will look good in my room."
"It looks useless and ugly. Let's go find some other stuff."
"But-"
"Come on! I think I see something cool!" Nini says as she drags her along.
She had come back a while later without Nini to get the lamp, but unfortunately, someone had already beat her to it.
She felt sad, she had really wanted that lamp.
Nini was sleeping over tonight so she tried to cheer up, but she was still feeling down.
"Chichu, what's wrong? You look sad." Nini asks her when she was listlessly playing with her favorite pink rabbit stuffed toy who she named Gaji.
"I'm okay Nini." she says, not wantimg to disappoint her friend.
Nini smiled at her.
"I know how to cheer you up!"
"How?"
"I'll show you! First, just jump on the bed, sit down and close your eyes!"
Jisoo did as she was told.
"Okay, my eyes are closed."
She could hear the other girl rustling about.
"Don't open them until I say so, okay?"
"Okay."
She wondered what the other girl was planning. She then heard a click and could sense the room had gone darker.
"Nini? Did you turn off the lights? You know you're scared of the dark right?"
"I am but you're here Chu, so I'm not afraid." she says.
A few seconds pass and Jisoo was getting impatient. She was about to question her when she felt somebody jump onto the bed beside her and held her hand.
"Okay Chu, when I count one two and...and..."
"Three."
"Yes, three, you open your eyes, okay?"
"Okay."
"Cool! Here goes! One...two...three!"
Jisoo opened her eyes and gasped when she saw what Nini had prepared for her.
The room was alight in different colors. It made it look like they were somewhere in outer space.
When she looked at what was causing it, she smiled, because she saw that it was the lamp she had wanted at the garage sale earlier.
"Tada!" Nini said, putting her hands up in the air and giving her the biggest gummy smile.
"But I thought you said it was useless and ugly."
"Maybe a little, but I wanted to get it for you. So I bought it and Mr. Jung gave it to me for this much!" she says, holding up 5 fingers proudly.
"It was all of my money."
She remembered Nini showing her she had 5 cents earlier.
"Wow. Thank you Nini!"
"Are you happy now?" she asked hopefully.
"Very!" Jisoo says, grinning widely at her.
"Good!"
Jisoo covered them both with the blanket as they lay down and looked at the lights.
"Nini?"
"Chu?"
"When I feel sad, I'll just look at the lights. It makes me think of the stars outside."
"Okay, Chu." she says as she started to yawn sleepily.
"And you know what else?"
"What else? Hurry up, I'm sleepy."
Jisoo chuckled. She held up her palm, the lights hitting on it as she did.
"You're my brightest star in this sky."
**
Jisoo was playing with Gaji inside her room when she heard a loud thump outside.
Curious, she opened the door and went out to investigate. She could hear some yelling downstairs. It seems her mom and dad were fighting again.
Her heart pounded as she went slowly descended the stairs. Jin was not home yet as he had some important things to do at school.
When she finally got to the living room, she saw her mom sobbing and her dad looking angrily at her.
"Stop this Seunghyun! Do you want Jisoo to see how you are when you're drunk?"
"Shut up you bitch! Who were you flirting with today, huh? You think I didn't see that?"
"Hyun, I was just asking for help about the garden, nothing more, I swear. I would never do that to you."
"LIES!" her father screamed and hit her mom in the face.
Jisoo's eyes were as wide as saucers when she saw what happened. Never had she expected to see her dad hit her mom like that.
She stood, frozen. She was scared, and she didn't know what to do.
"Seunghyun, please! I'm sorry! I swear it wasn't anything!" her mother pleaded as cried helplessly on the floor.
Her dad hit her again.
Jisoo couldn't tear herself away. Tears were stinging in her eyes. She wanted to hurt her father for doing that to her mom.
She now understood why Jin asked her to go out whenever her father started getting angry.
As she watched her father hit her again, a deep seated rage coursed through her small body.
She then ran towards him, yelling, as she tried to push him away from her mom.
Her small fists were pounding against his leg as she sobbed angrily.
"DON'T HURT MY MOM! STOP HURTING HER!"
"Jisoo, no!" her mother yelled at her.
She continued pounding her fists into him when she felt strong arms hold both her hands.
Her father looked into her eyes, and as she stared back, she no longer recognized him as the jolly person who gave her piggy back rides and made her laugh.
It felt like she was staring back into the eyes of a demon.
"You dare disrespect me?" he yelled at her. Her heart was pounding in fear. He was about to do something when she felt someone take her away from his grasp.
She looked back and saw it was Jin.
"Dad, let's talk about this." he says to him calmly.
"But she needs to be punished."
"Dad. Please. I'll do whatever you want." he says, Jisoo could hear the strain in his voice.
"Fine. Make it quick."
Jin then put Jisoo down and looked at her sister.
"You go to Nini's okay? I'll get you tomorrow."
"But oppa-"
"Please Jisoo, everything will be okay. Trust me, alright?"
Jin looked at her and smiled. She trusted her brother a lot so she nodded.
She then looked at them all before she ran out and left.
Her heart tore at the the thought of what was actually happening.
She felt so useless and scared.
She ran and knocked on the door of Grandma Kim, who immediately opened it.
"Jisoo. What are you doing here?"
"Jin says I have to stay here tonight."
Grandma Kim seemed to understand. She nodded and sighed.
"Nini is upstairs. Just go straight to her room."
Jisoo did as she was told, but before she could reach the top, she heard Grandma Kim muttering.
"How many times must I call the cops on this poor family? They have done nothing! Are they going to wait till something really bad happens?"
Jisoo then went up and knocked on her friend's door.
Nini opened it and was surprised when she saw who it was.
"Chichu! You're here!" she says happily, but her smile faded when she saw the trembling girl.
"Chu! Are you okay?" she asks, worried.
Jisoo's tears finally spilled out as she sobbed uncontrollably in front of her.
Nini was at a loss on what to do, so she did the first thing she could think of, and that was to wrap Jisoo into her arms tightly.
"Chichu, don't cry! Crying makes me sad too."
Jisoo felt Nini sob as well, so she tried her best to hold back her tears as she hugged her in return.
She felt comforted by it, even just a tiny bit.
She finally let go and looked at a crying Nini.
She laughed a little as she saw the state of the girl.
"Nini, why are you crying?"
She sniffled.
"Because seeing Chu cry hurts here." she says, pointing towards her chest. "I don't want to see Chichu cry."
Jisoo held her hand and they both went into her room.
She was still kind of shocked about what she had witnessed and she was angry at herself for being scared.
Nini was holding on to her as they sat down on the bed.
She sighed.
"I'm angry, Nini."
The girl looked at her, tears welling up in her eyes again.
"You're angry at Nini?"
Jisoo laughed a little.
"No silly, I'm angry at me."
"Why is Chichu angry at Chichu?"
"Because instead of helping, I got scared. I could not do anything to help."
Nini thought about it.
"When you were scared, did you still try to help?"
"Yes, but I was useless." she says sadly.
"I think Chu was very brave."
Jisoo looked at her.
"I'm not."
Nini got up and opened something in her drawer. She sat back down on the bed and smiled at her serenely.
She took her hand and gave her something. Jisoo looked at it.
It was a yellow and white flower pin. It was a bit heavy too because it seems it was made of iron, or steel, she didn't know.
"What is this?"
"I'm giving it to you. Grandma says it's a lucky charm and helps protect you. She also said that the flower is a daisy and it means bravery!"
"But I am not-"
"Stubborn Chichu. I said you are brave, alright? My grandma said...what was that? She made me repeat it all over again. Oh yeah! Courage is not when you are faced with something and you don't feel fear. It is when you feel fear but you face it anyway. I think Chu did just that!"
Jisoo looked at her, speechless.
"Also, grandma says that it means true love. And I know I love you so much Chichu! You're the bestest friend in the whole world! Grandma says I have to leave soon, so keep that and wait for me till I get back, okay?"
"Okay." Jisoo croaked.
"The pin will protect you, so don't cry anymore, even when I am not there."
Jisoo looked at Nini, and for the first time since she saw what happened that day, she felt everything would be okay in the end.
**************************************
Jisoo held on to the pin as the memories came crashing back to her.
The past had become pretty vague, especially with what she had to go through with her family. Nini's face had disappeared as time went by, and all she had left was the feelings she took with her. The pin had helped keep herself together for all these years.
Of course, she and Jennie wasn't able to meet again the year after that because they had to move to another house.
Although it wasn't too far from her original home, Jin and her mom didn't agree to let her go there during the summer. She had arguments with them about it, but they wouldn't budge.
She had Seulgi though and they had become neighbors, but she had missed Jennie as each year passed.
She sighed as she put the pin in her jacket's interior pocket.
What was she going to do now?
She breathed the mountain air deeply.
She smiled. Funny how she loved looking at the stars, it was still connected to her.
She furrowed her eyebrows and realized that she didn't really want things to end this way between them.
Yes, Jennie hated her guts right now, but she had to try one last time.
She had to fight, with every ounce of her being.
Even if it hurt, even if she was scared, she was going to try.
Courage huh? she chuckles.
She then quickly took her helmet and rode off towards Jennie's house.
It was still 8pm when Jisoo got to her house. For some reason she felt uneasy, like something was terribly wrong, but she couldn't quite put a finger on it.
She tried to shrug it off, but that feeling didn't leave her.
She just pegged it as anxiety. She was anxious after all, so it was normal to feel some sort of dread.
Right?
She rang the doorbell and waited. To her surprise, she saw a woman who ran towards the gate.
When she saw who it was, her face fell.
"Oh, I thought you were...nevermind. Yes, how may I help you?"
"Uhm...hi. I was wondering if Jennie was available?"
"Oh, you're friends with Jennie?"
She wondered if that still was the case.
"Yes."
She was taken aback when the woman started crying.
"I-I am sorry. It's just that Jennie heard an argument with me and her father and...and...she heard something she shouldn't have. She has been gone since this afternoon and I couldn't reach her! Her father has been trying to find her and I asked some of the househelp too and I had to stay behind in case she returned, but she hasn't! She is not taking any of our calls and I am worried sick! Her other friends, Irene and Chaeyoung, swears that they don't know where she is. And I don't know what to do."
Jennie was missing?
"Mrs. Kim. I understand that this is a delicate situation for you, but in order to understand how bad this is. Can you at least tell me what she had heard?"
Mrs. Kim hesitated, but then drooped her head low.
"She heard her father say that I wanted her aborted when she was still in the womb with me."
Jisoo's heart dropped.
Her anger started simmering.
"Why? Why did you think that?"
"It's true that I did think about it. When I was still pregnant with her, I was still in school at that time. My family wasn't rich, and I had to make sure to finish my course so I could at least give them a better life. Becoming pregnant made that dream much harder to reach, so me and her dad often fought about it. In the end, I decided to keep her after much consideration. It was one of the best decisions I ever made and I regret every day thinking about aborting her. I was young and I was lost, and I want her to know that I have always loved her to the best of my ability." she explains, crying.
Jisoo could see how utterly devastated Jennie's mom was. She understood her situation, it wasn't always ideal to become pregnant at a time where you are at your wit's end over a problem.
But she was really worried about Jennie. Where was she? She clenched her fists.
"It's fine Mrs. Kim. Thank you for being honest with me. I'll go ahead and try and help to find her."
"Oh my God, thank you! Thank you very much!" she cried.
"I'll come back later, hopefully, with Jennie."
She revved up her motorcycle and drove away.
She scoured the streets for her.
She looked at every convenience store, restaurant, gas station, alley, you name it, Jisoo was there.
She also tried calling her but the girl wasn't picking up.
She was getting really ansty and that feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach got even worse.
Where are you Jendeukie?
She heard her phone ring and she answered it.
"Seul, what's up? I'm kinda in the middle of something important."
"Jisoo, I need you to come over here at Sooyoung's. It's an emergency."
She cursed.
"You guys can handle it. I'm also dealing with my own emergency right here."
"Jisoo, they have her."
"What do you mean they have her?"
Jisoo could feel Seulgi hesitating on the other line.
"They have Jennie."
**
Jisoo never drove so fast in her life.
She reached Sooyoung's place and knocked rapidly on the door.
It was immediately opened by Solar.
"Why is she here?" Jisoo asked as she entered the house.
"She knows what we are doing." Moonbyul told her.
"What? Why? You want her in danger too?"
Moonbyul sighed.
"She was there when some people were after Sooyoung. She was beaten up pretty bad and she helped us out. They recently sent Soo a message with a picture telling and proving to us that Jennie is with them."
She stared at her friends, who looked down guiltily.
"Why didn't anyone tell me this?!"
Seulgi stood up and faced her.
"I was going to, honestly, but some things just came up. I'm sorry."
Jisoo fixed her hair in frustration.
"So now because you dumbasses decided to leave me out of this, Jennie is now in danger?"
"We had no choice Jis, because I know you wouldn't readily agree to what we have planned so we can all get out of this alive."
Jisoo glared at her best friend.
"And what Seul is this super awesome idea that I might have trouble agreeing to?"
Seulgi inhaled.
"Solar's dad is a cop, and a good one. They will be helping us investigate the syndicate in this town and at the same time help keep us safe."
Jisoo shook her head incredulously. Then she laughed.
"Seriously? The cops? What have they done for us in all these years? Why do you THINK we took matters into our own hands? BECAUSE THEY ARE USELESS!"
"Jis, please. This is the only way we can move forward. Plus they are already doing what they can to get Jennie back."
Jisoo felt like hyperventilating. She couldn't believe what was happening.
"By the time they get to her, she might be DEAD!" she says as she pushed Seulgi away angrily.
All of her friends held her down.
"Jisoo, please don't make this harder for us." Momo pleaded.
"THEY HAVE JENNIE! YOU EXPECT ME TO STAND HERE AND DO NOTHING?!"
"Jisoo, they are really doing what they can to get her. My dad, he knows what he is doing." Solar says, trying to convince her.
"You are not a part of us so keep out!" she snapped at her. She was trying to break free from their grasps.
"Jisoo, listen, please. This is for us." Sooyoung added.
"Let me go! Those cops won't do anything! I have to get to her!"
Seulgi sighed.
"Let's take her to your room so she can cool down."
"She would still be able to get out. The basement would be better." Sooyoung told them.
"You bastards! Let me go! LET ME GO!" she bellowed, but her friends still held her down and took her to the basement door.
"I'm sorry Jis, but this is for your own good." Seulgi told her.
They pushed her inside and locked it.
"Let me out! Let me out! You morons! If something happens to her THIS WILL BE ALL ON YOUR HEADS!" she shouted as she pounded on the door.
She felt so frustrated and helpless. How could her friends turn around and betray her like this?
She slumped down on the floor.
What was she going to do?
Minutes passed and thoughts raced across her head. Time was of the essence, and Jennie needed to be saved as soon as possible. But how can she get out of here?
Then an idea hit her.
She dialed the only number she felt she could count on at this time.
"Hey, I need your help. It's an emergency. I'll just explain later, time is running out. Yes...do you know where Sooyoung's house is? Alright...so this is what you're going to do."
**
Seulgi felt so guilty and frustrated. On one hand she understood Jisoo's frustration and anger. On the other, she didn't want Jisoo to go over there and risk her life.
She knew how utterly stubborn her best friend was. It would only end up badly for both her and Jennie.
She sighed and was about to get up and go drink some water when she heard a motorcylce rev up outside.
They all looked at each other and immediately ran out.
Seulgi saw Jisoo drive away into the night, with Lisa riding along with her.
"Shit, that fucking moron! She's going get themselves killed!" Seulgi says, punching the door in anger.
"What now Seul?" Moonbyul asked worridly.
"What else? We have go and save those idiots!"