Chapter Text
Chaeyoung sat in the parking lot of the school, peering into her rearview mirror to make sure she looked decent for the performance that day, the back to school pep rally. She pushed at the arch of her brow with her pinky absentmindedly when her phone buzzed in the cup holder. She ignored it until it buzzed again a few moments later. Rolling her eyes, she sat back in the seat, checking her notifications.
“Don’t forget about Lisa today!!!” a text from Jisoo. Another loaded up “Text me back right now!!!!” Chaeyoung tried to decipher which exclamation mark meant excitement and which meant urgency until her phone buzzed with another text. “PARK CHAEYOUNG >:[”
“I’ll meet you in Miller’s room in 5,” Chaeyoung texted back as she ripped her backpack up from the passenger’s seat and opened her car door. She stepped out in her dance team uniform and felt the weight of her school uniform folded up in her backpack. From her completely white Nike sneakers to her blonde hair in a ponytail on top of her head with a royal blue bow, she was shining with school pride. The only thing missing was her smile. Chungha snuck up behind her and Chaeyoung jumped out her daze.
“Let’s go! We’re gonna be late!” Chungha giggled as Jieqiong trailed close behind. Chaeyoung pulled her ponytail a bit tighter and hiked up her backpack sleeve. She strutted through the school’s main doors and through the hallways, through dozens of girls in their own cliques, hoping not to see Lisa on her way upstairs to Ms. Miller’s classroom. Shoulders back, she told herself. Chin up.
Jisoo was standing at the front of the somewhat empty classroom talking to a girl whose back was facing Chaeyoung. She had choppy dark hair that barely passed her shoulders. Her legs were slim and long, adding to her height. Jisoo peaked out from the other side of the mystery girl and beamed at Chaeyoung, who returned a blank expression. The mystery girl turned around to face Chaeyoung.
Her stomach dropped. It was Lisa. She felt her hands shake. It was Lisa. Her heart skipped a beat. It was Lisa. Everything happened so fast. It was Lisa. Lisa, Lisa, Lisa. Chaeyoung’s mind flooded. Her cheeks flushed. Lisa.
“I’m actually gonna be late if I stay here while you guys get to know each other,” Jisoo wedged herself into the tension. “So, Chae, don’t forget to get her down to the gym. It’s okay if she’s a bit early, Lisa could see a bit of dance team’s rehearsal!” the eldest girl patted Chaeyoung on the shoulder and left the classroom. Lisa nodded.
“Long time no see, huh?” Chaeyoung sighed. “Class usually starts in a few minutes but I’ve got to get to the gym now so if you wanna tell your homeroom teacher that you’ll be out for the period…”
“Jisoo and I already told her. Just take me where I need to go,” Lisa looked Chaeyoung up and down. “Please.”
Chaeyoung was hurt. What did she do? It wasn’t her fault that they had stopped getting along. Chaeyoung nodded and with a “follow me” she led Lisa down the stairs, through the main hallway and maneuvered through a few more narrow hallways until they reached the large gym. The atmosphere smelled like a horrible mix of rubber and sweat. Lights that hung from the ceiling reflected off the court. The combination made the air almost yellow. Lisa looked up into the balcony to see rows upon rows of bleachers as teachers moved more bleachers out from the walls. Lisa noticed Jisoo hanging a banner and waved brightly. Chaeyoung set her bag down next to the pile that had already formed and immediately spotted the dance team. Lisa recognized Chaeyeon and Chungha from middle school, but couldn’t figure out who the rest of the girls were. Chaeyoung noticed Lisa staring.
“That’s Zhou Jieqiong. She’s our exchange student for the year, lives with Chungha,” Chaeyoung nodded her head when she saw Seulgi signal her over. “I’ll be back in a few, just find a seat or something,” finishing her sentence like that made everything seem a bit too amicable so she added an “I don’t care.”
“Sorry I’m late guys, Jisoo wanted me to show Lisa her way to the gym for the pep rally. What’s up?” Chaeyoung switched from careless to bubbly in a matter of seconds.
Chungha glanced past Chaeyoung’s shoulder to stare at the spindly girl in the uniform pleated skirt sitting in the middle of the bleachers. Her head rested on her left hand while her right scrolled across her phone screen. Why did she come back after all these years?