Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“On behalf of Thai Airways, the flight crew would like to welcome you to Incheon International Airport. We will be arriving at the gate momentarily. Please remain in your seats with your seat belt securely fastened until the aircraft has come to complete stop at the terminal gate.”

Lisa woke up through the soft alarm of the overhead seat belt signs of the aircraft. It was then followed by soft thud that echoed throughout the cabin as the wheels are now engaged, ready for landing. She adjusted her seat and straightened her back as she felt a mild sore from the uncomfortable sleeping position she had for the majority of the flight. She was never a fan of long haul flights but she had no choice. Her groggy state made her realized that the aircraft is now landing which prompted her to check the time on her wristwatch. It shows 9:30 PM, then it must be at least 11:30 PM here now, she thought while adjusting her wristwatch.

She began to appreciate late-night flights, since there were less people and the border control isn't packed by disembarked passengers. She breezed through everything quite easily, and she expected herself to be out of the airport in under an hour, including picking up her checked in luggage at the baggage carousel.

"Lalisa!" a voice echoed at the arrival gates.

Lisa scanned the area beyond the sliding doors, asking herself if there were at least three Lalisas on the same flight or on the same gate. Approaching the wrong person and making a fool for herself was not at the top of her list especially in a new country. She heard the voice again, this time much louder and clearer.

"Here! Lalisa! Look here!" Lisa finally recognized the voice and made her way through a bunch of clueless tourists which were unnecessarily clumped together at the front gate.

"Bambam!" She exclaimed excitedly and instinctively wrapped her childhood friend into a comforting hug. They basically grew up together until Bambam left Thailand to study in South Korea.

"How was your flight? All good?" Bambam asked after loosening the embrace and quickly took the handles of Lisa's suitcase. He moved slightly, prompting Lisa to walk with him out of the airport.

"It was not so bad! Mostly slept through it all." She responded.

"As expected,” Bambam said while grinning. “Still up for 3-4 hours more travelling?" He added while hoisting the last of the two suitcases into the trunk at the back of their parked car.

“Ugh!” Lisa shot him a defeated look and pulled the sling of her backpack as she realized that she really doesn’t much have a choice and her dreams of settling into a warm bed soon is no longer possible anytime soon.

--------

Lisa's ability to sleep in long travels seem to be working at her advantage. The much needed slumber was deep enough to regain a bit of energy. After the seemingly and endless long drive from the airport, the car finally pulled stop in front of an old apartment compound. As they approached the small hallway of the compound, the apartment door suddenly opened and a woman in her late thirties emerged. The woman turned and a wide grin formed on her face.

"Lalisa! You're here! You're finally here!" The woman practically jumped, cupped Lisa's cheeks and quickly planted a swift pecks on both sides of the younger woman.

"Auntie Sunmi! It's good to see you again." Lisa couldn't help a wide smile and tenderly held the woman's arms.

Sunmi tilted her head to get a glimpse of Bambam standing behind Lisa. "Did you kids drive all the way here from the Airport at this wee hour of the morning?"

Lisa leaned in and tried to divert her Auntie's attention. "No, it's all good Auntie, besides I wanted to help out with the move tomorrow."

Bambam slumped his shoulder. "She said she was fine with it!” Bambam pouted, “I'm also tired Auntie? Imagine eight hours round-trip?"

Sunmi shrugged. "Stop it Bambam, you’re not cute, and you, young lady, after all these years Lalisa, you're still the bull-headed kid that I know." She reached Lisa's shoulder and gave a gentle squeeze, "come on, let's get you inside. You must be tired."

--------

The apartment is almost empty. Lisa had to trudge carefully between the stacked boxes in the small lounge all the way into the narrow walkway. Cautious enough not to make unnecessary noises since her Aunt Sunmi had excused herself for the night. She thought that she’ll be asleep right away after arriving from the Airport but the sleep that she got while travelling did its magic.

"You can actually stay in one of my friend's house in Seoul you know," Bambam suddenly said, startling Lisa.

"Jesus Bam! You scared the hell out of me! Why you have to be like that? I’ll seriously get a heart attack!"

"Of course I’m always like this, handsome as always," he said while sporting a mischievous smile. “But enough me, my friend has a pretty sick place and has a spare room. I already mentioned your situation and she’s okay with it.” He added.

"I appreciate the concern buddy. But I won’t be able to help tomorrow if I stay at your friend’s house. Don’t I?” She responded.

"Make sense.” Bambam nodded. “This move is a very big risk for Auntie Sunmi. Imagine, setting up a Thai place amongst the famous chicken and beer places in Hongdae, freaking Hongdae, Lis!" He exclaimed. "But she’s Aunt Sunmi and we know how determined she can be.”

It's not that Lisa was indebted to help her “Auntie” - although they were not related by blood, Sunmi had been basically taken care off by Lisa's mother when she was studying in Thailand and had grown closer with Lisa’s family, so the older woman was more than elated when she learned that Lisa will take a post-graduate course in Hongdae. Bambam on the other hand, is now on his senior year at Hongik University, with plans of staying in the country after graduation.

Lisa and Bambam went to the spare room, she sat at the edge of the makeshift mattress while Bambam stayed at door’s entrance. “Well determined is Auntie Sunmi’s middle name, so…" She said smiling. “Guess I'll be here for a while but how about you? You're graduating soon. Don't you have plans of going back to Thailand?"

Bambam is now leaning at the doorframe, facing Lisa. "I don't know Lis. I like it here." He sighed. "It's not that I don't want to go back to Thailand, but I don't have any solid plans yet." He faced the hallway and moved away from the doorframe. "This might be a good way to practice my culinary skills while figuring out what I really want. I'll help and work for Aunt Sunmi, earning some money while enjoying what I do, sounds like a plan right?"

"Right, right." Lisa nods, "Sounds like a plan." She added.

"Yeah. Well, guess we better head off now. Its almost four in the morning, gonna be a busy day tomorrow, rather later today!" Bambam was only few steps ahead when he suddenly went back. “Oh before I forgot, moving trucks will arrive at eight o'clock sharp! You better wake up early!"

“But it’s almost four now?!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll tell Aunt Sunmi that you’re complaining.” Bambam said while smiling

“Shut up! Lisa said playfully. “Goodnight Bam!” she added.

“Goodnight Lis.”

---------

The move to Hongdae was a breeze. Sunmi had everything planned out - the Crab Curry bistro occupies the ground floor of a two-storey apartment and the three small bedrooms upstairs will be shared by each of them. Thankfully, the University was within the area which means that Lisa can cut costs on transportation from the small allowance that she's getting. Lisa realized that Bambam wasn’t joking when he said that they’re indeed setting up a Thai place in the midst of food chains that are popular for chickens and beers in Hongdae.

"Auntie. Just wondering,"

"Hmm?"

"Why crab curry? I mean, there are other cuisines that you can offer that is more familiar with their taste, why choose crab curry?

Sunmi shot a cheeky grin at the questioning girl. She carefully placed the last piece of plates into the cupboard and closed its doors. "Well, if there's one thing that kept me going while studying back in Thailand, it's crab curry. It reminds me a lot of things, including bad, but mostly good ones."

Lisa can’t help but smile, the answer was simple yet you can feel the sincerity of it. “But why crab curry, why not go with chickens and beers, its what famous here after all.”

"Oh don't give me that look. That’s exactly the reason why I’m choosing crab curry. This place is all about chicken! Beers! You're smart Lisa, people like what's new to them. I'm pretty sure that they'll love my crab curry. Who wouldn't?" Sunmi brags while smiling.

"I know! How about the supplier? Isn't it too expensive to get decent mud crabs around here?"

Sunmi moved closer to Lisa and gently tapped her shoulders. "Of course I do honey, don’t worry, I know someone who sells those! Well, you might have to pick them up from time to time when needed." Sunmi winks at her.

----

It didn't take long before everything was situated, despite Lisa's efforts to help, Sunmi was as adamant in declining whenever Lisa steps in to help around. The older woman insisted that the reason Lisa was in Korea was to study and not to "work". Soon enough, all the fixtures were fitted in – walls were designed to give Thailand vibe, a basic kitchen, menus and couple of chairs and tables. The Crab Curry bistro was ready to serve – the only thing that was lacking were the customers.

The soft opening occurred at twelve noon, a few curious students stepped in. Mostly were international students, familiar enough with southeast asian cuisine and a few well-travelled Koreans hankering for a decent Thai fix without putting a dent into their small pockets. It was a slow start, but Sunmi was not expecting much and was pleased to see a steady stream of customers, most of which left the shop smiling and satisfied.

Lisa was wiping the corner table when Sunmi stepped in and began to stow the red plastic chairs underneath the tables. "Aren't you tired? Thought you have night classes?"

"Yes Auntie, the class ended few hours ago but I'm not keen on taking an early rest tonight. So might as well do something until I feel like sleeping." Lisa responded.

"Don’t tire yourself too much okay?” Sunmi happily sighed. “Today was a good start, though we might need to buy mud crabs. Can you and Bambam pick the crabs from Yang-oppa tomorrow?

"Sure Auntie! Lisa said smiling. “Does Bambam know about this?"

Sunmi leaned in one of the tables next to her. "Yeah, I told him earlier. I hope he doesn't forget, you know how your friend is, I mean he did commit to this while in the middle of his finals! What am I expecting?" She raised her hands in frustration.

Lisa noticed the worry that crossed on Sunmi's face, the exhaustion from days work is clearly showing on her face. She folded the kitchen towel and placed it on the counter. "Don't worry Auntie, I'll make sure he remembers."

----

The drive to Noryangjin was quick - the famous seafood wet market didn't resemble the crowded and cluttered markets in Bangkok. Despite the visibly wet and frigid floors, the rest of the complex were clean and there were signs and directions for each stall. The duo went ahead using Sunmi's instructions, they were able to easily spot the ingredients needed for the Bistro. The last stop was the most important part, seafoods. Lisa planned it as their last stop so that they can pack the crabs easily in the chilled box to make sure that the crabs stays fresh as possible while travelling back to the apartment.

"Hello Ahjussi! We are here to pick up the order for our Aunt Sunmi?" Lisa asked the stall keeper that was stacking the empty Styrofoam boxes into the back of the stall.

"Uhm, I don't remember any reservation for Sunmi," the middle-aged man wiped the beads of sweat that shimmered in his forehead. He doesn’t look interested at all. "In case you did not notice, we're done for the day." he turned his back and proceeded to empty a bucket of water into the drain.

Lisa's jaw went slack. She scanned the area, looking for frozen bulk seafood boxes around the stall that marks "Sunmi". Nothing. Even the glass boxes were all empty and cleaned. There has to be some mistakes. She knew Sunmi would never miss this order as mud crabs is the main dish of the bistro. She went inside the stall, and tried to get some clarification about the mishap. Bambam looked confused as well. They had to think quick, it was getting late and the least thing that they want to happen was to open up a crab curry place without any crabs in it! Lisa and Bambam decided to split up and look for any other stall that sells mud crabs. After almost 30 minutes of searching and running around the area, without any luck, the pair decided to meet up. It was time to inform Sunmi about the dire situation they were in.

"Auntie, we're in trouble! We did not get the crabs you ordered."

"Oh no, what happened?” Sunmi asked worriedly.

"The Ahjussi said that there's no reservation for you Auntie.”

“That’s impossible, we just talked last night about it.” Sunmi sighs. “Have you tried looking from another stalls?”

“Yes we tried to look for another stalls that sells mud crabs but we can't find any. They only have blue crabs available right now. Can we use blue crabs for the meantime until we get a consistent supplier for mud crabs?"

Sunmi eventually agreed to the suggestion and ended the call. Despite the lesser option, Lisa knew that they have to look for a decent seller or risk the quality of the dish that will put their shop into the map.

----

After Bambam loaded the last chilled bin of blue crabs into the chest freezer, Sunmi handed out 2 cans of soda. "Yang-oppa said that someone bought all the orders including the one that I reserved. He said that they doubled the price and he can’t pass the offer.” She messaged her temple and continued on, "I guess I might have to look for another seller, really. But thanks for this kids - I guess we'll have to make do of what we have now." Sunmi sighs.

“Don’t worry Auntie, we have a very good cook, our customers won’t notice the difference.” Lisa tried to lighten the situation, she’s hoping that since most of the customers aren’t that familiar with Thai crab curry, they won’t notice the difference between blue crabs and mud crabs.

“I hope so too Lisa”. Sunmi went back to the front desk and carried on with the rest of the errands needed before the shop opens for lunch.

After an exhausting day, Sunmi offered Lisa for a night of chicken and beer located opposite their shop. She looked like she needed a break and Lisa did not want to disappoint her Auntie. Soon, two plates of freshly deep-fried garlic and soy chicken was served along with couple of pickled vegetables and two mugs of beer on a chilled mug. Lisa began to pick and blew on a piece of chicken before shoving it to her mouth. She didn't realize that she's starving until the food arrives.

"Poor kid, you must be very hungry" Sunmi smiled. "Let me introduce you to the owner." She added.

Lisa quickly chewed and swallowed the delectable piece of perfectly fried chicken but somehow the spicy coating was caught in her throat. She winced at the burn and lightly tapped her chest to focus on avoiding the bubbling embarrassing situation she is now in and wiped her slightly greasy fingers on a table napkin and looked up to their server, or as Sunmi has insinuated, owner.

"Jisoo, I would like to introduce you to a family friend, Lalisa. She just came here a few weeks ago and she's taking up a post-graduate course in Hongik University."

Lisa, who is now thankfully recovered from the offending piece of fried bird that has bothered her throat extended her arm to greet the owner. "Pleased to meet you! God, this is embarrassing, I'm sorry, but you guys really make great fried chicken!" She flashed her mega-watt smile and shook Jisoo's hand.

"Pleasure is all mine! I know you're trying to score a free serving of chicken with that look. Nice try though!" Jisoo jokingly said. Lisa's cheeks blushed by the sudden light banter of the girl. "Sunmi-unnie, it was really nice to see you again, but I'm afraid I should head back to the kitchen since we are now cleaning up. Don't rush please, I'll send another round of our spiciest dish as a welcoming gift to Lisa". She flashed a comforting smile to the flustered girl.

"Oh Jisoo, y-you don't have to do that! Lalisa just eats anything fr-"

Sunmi was cut off by another voice in the empty dining area. "Is that Sunmi unnie?"

"Jennie!" Sunmi exclaimed. "When did you come back? How are you?"

"Long story unnie. But I'm good and might have to stay a while here for now. Good thing Jisoo-unnie lets me hang out and pig out!" She pulled up a chair and sat opposite Lisa, who is now growing confused over the sudden influx of people around their table and stalling her from devouring her newly-found favorite delicacy. But her eyes were now fixed on the new girl sitting at the other side of the table, the earlier blush not fading out, and she is pretty damn sure that she could not blame it on the asian flush that is now creeping to her whole face, since she haven't drank any of it yet.

Sunmi's voice brought her back to reality. "That's good to know. And since we are all here now, Jennie----"

Jennie leaned her elbow causing the flimsy table to slightly shake and introduced herself instead. "Hi. I'm Jennie. And you are?" she extended her arm and immediately grabbed Lisa's hands.

Lisa was slightly surprised to see the overzealous attitude. She knew that her flustered cheeks were the reason that this newcomer is clearly making fun off. She composed herself, trying to get what is remaining of her deteriorating self esteem and growing need to finish the half-eaten chicken in front of her.

"I'm Lisa. I'm a family friend of Sunmi. Pleased to meet you as well." She shook Jennie's hand and swiftly took a large swig of beer out of nervousness.

Jennie couldn't help but smile back at the clearly flustered Thai, and glanced back at Jisoo before anyone else notice on how she seemed to be stuck at those warm hazel doe-eyes, that were surprisingly looking back at her now with the same intensity, like she was this another version of the very dish they proudly serve.

The supposedly quiet and relaxing meal turned into a long catch-up between the two friends in front of her. While listening to the conversation, Lisa found out that Jennie and Jisoo are cousins, she also learned that Sunmi's parents briefly worked for the Kim's back in the late eighties, until the time Sunmi went to Thailand to study. She also heard that the chicken they just ate was a family delicacy and Jisoo manning the whole operation with the help from Jennie. Lisa's now clearly impressed at the young woman's ability to run the whole business while keeping a youthful aura and elegance of an actress. Like hell she does, she thinks, her mom would definitely mistake her for a legitimate Korean drama superstar. The conversation went until late night, now all doors were closed and Jisoo finally picked up the last empty plate.

Sunmi stood at the front of the shop before giving a quick bow to Jisoo and Jennie. "Thank you for such a nice meal, we had a great time catching up with you and I hope we could continue this. Perhaps one of these days you could pay a visit to our place?"

Jisoo smiled brightly. “We’ll definitely do unnie, I would love to taste that crab curry!”

The group bid their farewells, and proceeded to cross the street. Sunmi fumbled with her set of keys before sliding in the correct one and unlocked the door to the living quarters upstairs, "Jennie was the one who took all the crab orders from Yang-oppa," she blurted out like it's a fact she's known all along. Lisa eyes widened with the sudden outburst, her lips formed into a thin line, unsure of what to react, feeling conflicting that the seemingly nice korean women she met earlier has the ability to not play nice. "I saw the marked boxes, with my initials on it while going to the restroom," Sunmi continued, further pressing that the Kims might be unto something, like a whole grand scheme of derailing their new business.

Confused, Lisa responded as she attempted to connect the dots. "But what would they do with such an insane amount of mud crabs? Thought Koreans love those thin blue crabs that you eat raw?"

Sunmi placed the keys on a holder that was attached to the wall. "Oh Lalisa, the Kims would not be as filthy rich as they are now if they do play nice! Wise old money like them would try to undermine every chance they get to avoid possible competition!"

Lisa leaned at the chair and stared at the newly-prepared cup of tea. "Hmnn. So, what do we do now? Sneak in and take all the boxes?" Lisa said grinning. Of course they won’t do that, she’s just trying to get a reaction from her favorite Auntie which she was able to do when Sunmi eyes went wide with her stupid idea.

"Of course not you dummy. We'll just have to play nice. We barely manage to survive with blue crabs earlier. We just have to show them that we are no competition since we don't sell the same dish." Sunmi blew the top of her tea cup, and took a sip. Her relaxed features proved that the peppermint chamomile tea did its wonders in calming her down.

Lisa held the warm ceramic and stared at her tea. This relaxed demeanor and diplomatic approach of her Auntie is definitely one of the traits she must learn - but she has other things in mind.

Chapter Text

It all started when Lisa decided to turn up at the chicken shop 30 minutes before closing. It was almost midnight, she had a long day, classes and helping Sunmi, but somehow still managed to still have some energy (and appetite) to have a couple or two of fried chicken. She apparently arrived on time as the crew called her order as the last one for the night. This is the perfect opportunity to hold at least a decent conversation, away from the unnecessary noise from the shop's patrons. She thought.
 
She sat on one of the tables near the counter hoping to get a glimpse of the feline-eyed Korean that might be hanging around the shop. Her orders were placed on her table, but she looked like she was still waiting for something or someone else. She stretched her neck beyond the small kitchen window, and peered around the dining area.
 
"If you're looking for Jennie, she's not here." Jisoo suddenly quipped.
 
"U-uhhh no! Uhm, I just wanted to say hi? Yes, Hi Jisoo!" Stupid.
 
"Oookay, hello i guess?" Jisoo said smiling. "I'll just be at the kitchen if you need me." She continued while walking towards the pantry.
 
I can definitely could get used to this. She thought while munching on the last piece of chicken. She wanted to prove or at least convince herself that Sunmi was wrong, and Jennie, who definitely looks an angel who won’t do such thing, it was just a mere coincidence, and Sunmi's baseless accusations and ramblings are just pure delusion caused by her own exhaustion from overthinking things. Besides, what if the Kims were fans of crabs? South Korea is a free country after all.
 
After settling her bills and saying goodbye to Jisoo and the rest of the staff, Lisa went on her way and was about to cross the street when she saw Jennie making her way in to the kitchen back door. "What she's doing at this time of night?" She muttered.
 
 
---------
 
The second time Lisa tried "investigating" was a few weeks after, she asked Sunmi for a day off as she has something to do for her studies. She tried a different strategy and went in at the busiest time. It's a crappy plan, its Friday, and Friday means getting drunk and wasted. She had to wait for almost two hours before being seated. Again, this strategy could’ve worked if Jennie was there to help but the feline beauty was nowhere to be found. Better make the most out of it then, she muses, as she began to appreciate the dark tones of perfectly cooked minced garlic that cuts through the soy sauce marinade that beautifully coats the fried piece, with a layer thin enough that the existing potato starch breading can still hold the irresistible crunch. The insides did put a fair fight for the limelight too - moist but not undercooked, and perfectly seasoned as well, without being too salty with the premise of course, to wash everything with ice-cold beer. Steam gets out as soon as she tore the tender fiber, and a gentle tug of what seems a balanced mixture of pureed ginger and pepper that wafts through her nose - making her to eat more and cause an infinite desire to consume everything that's on the menu, with the limitation of her stomach’s capacity.
 

The almost two hours wait was worth it. Jisoo is now an acquaintance, scratch that, a friend, had regularly checks up and refills her small plate of pickled vegetables, ready to cleanse her palate once all the salt and sugar gets a bit too much. It never occurred to her that as simple as fried chicken can be perfectly paired with cold beer despite the chilly night. She then alternates her picks between the sweet-soy glaze and the spicy ones, with a slight disappointment to herself that despite her Thai roots and the inane expectation of having crazy high tolerance of every thing spicy, she could never devour all of it in one go. What's the rush anyway? She won't admit it but can't deny either - this little waiting game of hers does seem to be fun.

 
But the plan to have a talk with Jennie didn't work and so were the next attempts either. With the amount of chicken she consumed for the past weeks, she’s quite surprised that she still can’t get enough of the dish that the chicken place was offering. Now she’s questioning the purpose of the so called investigation. What was it that she wanted to prove anyway? Was it so that she can tell her Auntie Sunmi that she was wrong about the Kims? If she wanted to prove that the alleged crab supply mambo jumbo is part of an evil plot done by the Kims (to get rid of them, the competition) she could have confronted Jisoo. But Jisoo was busy and has always been nice to her, busy enough not to care about their crab place, they are doing well by the way, and Sunmi has sorted out the supplier issue. So what’s really the point? Yeah, you’re just being stupid. She thought. This little mission of hers now looks like a lost cause, a lame excuse for her to stuff her face with chicken and beer, and drain her allowance to the beautiful fried morsels that is now fueling her weird train of thoughts. Or maybe a lame excuse to see someone. Someone who has beautiful gummy smile. Cheeks like a mandu and eyes like a cat.

 
So after all of the musing and thinking she finally drops the idea. If she could count the number of times she ate chicken for the past few days, she would have grown a pair of wings now or worse, lay a couple of eggs on weekday mornings. She was feeling a little bit homesick she admits, and she's lucky enough to live on a shared apartment with a Thai curry place situated below with a little added bonus of getting a discount or an extra serving of steamed white rice. She waited until the last orders were called, the homesickness hitting her hard that she could even settle on odd crab parts and remaining curry sauce. She sat at one of the corner tables, under a dim light when her meal was laid on the table.

 
Her face lit up with the sight of bright red orange crab claws swimming in at least a bowlful of spicy-looking albeit glistening, red curry sauce. Sprigs of chopped coriander leaves and stems were sparingly scattered across the shallow plate and curdled eggs perfectly cooked in the radiating heat of the curry itself, dotted the surface. It was a cold night, in the middle of January, and Lisa was using all her power to resist to tilt all of the plate's contents to her miniscule of a plate of steamed white rice. She looked up to one of the shop's crew, brows furrowed, disbelieving everything on the table like it's a dream that's too good to be true. She raised her arms half-way to get the attention of the main cook. "Uh, Jun-oppa! This does not look like leftovers from today?" She quipped.
 
"Of course Lisa, it's not. I made this for you!" He said proudly while holding the serving tray close to his chest.
 
"But it's too much! I would not be able to finish all of these!"
 
"That’s what our fridge is for." The cook kindly smile.
 
He reminds her of an older friend back in Thailand. It has been a tough and busy week for her - and this gesture is an absolute treat for her new found family and home. “Thank you Jun-oppa.” She nodded in return, with her genuine smile reciprocating the appreciation for the kind gesture. She was about to take a spoonful when the glass door opened, breaking her concentration as a winter wind entered the warm dining area. She turned her head into the intruder, spoon mid-way to her opened mouth. The cold wind brushed her nape, surprise written all over her face, with embarrassment taking over causing blood to rush to her head.
 
"Sorry miss! But last orders were called a few minutes ago!" a voice echoed through the kitchen, sensing the customer's unfortunate timing. The declaration was followed by a short apology that she didn't catch. But that was not the reason for her now flustered state. The unlucky customer, she made no mistake, was Jennie.
 
Can't she enjoy her crab curry in peace?
 
She finally placed her first spoonful at her plate and called the Korean. How ironic, she thought, after all of those efforts visiting the chicken place across the street so that that she can talk to her, Jennie is now willfully stepping in to enemies territory. "Jennie." She called.
 
The latter turned her head with a smile that makes Lisa flustered. Jennie is now walking towards her direction, and Lisa could not help but smile back - a bit too much she thinks, but she can’t help it, Jennie’s smile seems contagious. Before everything turns into this awkward staring and grinning contest, she offered, "Would you like to join me? That is if you're looking for crab curry."
 
Jennie's smile grew wider, with her left eye slightly more closed than the other. Lisa thinks its adorable.
 
"Hey you, I would definitely love to join you.” She winks. “It's such a cold night and I was craving for some good curry tonight. Work has been a bitch, uh sorry, but-" Her own words caught in her throat as the aromatic briny crustacean in curry sauce permeated the space between them as she drew closer. She pulled a plastic chair and sat beside Lisa. Jennie realized the over-eagerness in her tone and she recoiled with a tinge of embarrassment "wait, you were not kidding right?"
 
Lisa smiled and shook her head and quickly stood up to get another set of plate and cutlery. She seemed excited, and no longer annoyed even if her share of curry is now to be divided with her new dining mate. She gave half of her rice, insisting to the other girl that she has not started yet and proceeded to finally take her spoonful.
 
Jennie finally broke the silence. "You know, I actually didn't come here for the crab curry. I was looking for you." She said with a shy smile.
 
Lisa almost dropped her spoon and here eyes widened at the confession. Now, what did I do? Unsure of statement, she let Jennie continue.
 
"Jisoo-unnie told me you've been hanging around our place for several times."
 
Lisa’s heart beats fast, certainly her pattern of visiting the place didn't give her away, right?
 
Jennie, now finished with the rest of her share, pressed on. "and she uhm, also noticed that you didn't drop by tonight. So I figured out and went to check if you're okay?"
 
Now Lisa is curious, does Jennie do that with the shop's missing patrons? Or was it something? Don’t get your hopes up you dummy.
 
"Lisa?"
 
Jennie's soothing voice stopped her slightly delusional train of thought that gets worse as minutes goes by. She straightened her posture, finished her glass of water and wiped the corner of her lips with a table napkin to get rid of any curry sauce that might have smudged across her face. "Yes, I'm fine. I just can't get enough of your fried chicken, it's insanely good, but tonight's a little bit cold, and I'm a bit homesick." Lisa didn't meant to steer the light conversation into a sadder tone, but it's the truth.
 
Jennie's gaze turned into a concerned look that Lisa didn't miss. "Sure. We all had those days Lisa, but how are you feeling now? I hope I did not eat a lot to deprive you of your cravings." She smiled softly.
 
They've only met once so Lisa was not sure how Jennie learned where she came from. Probably Jisoo or Sunmi have mentioned it during the time they first met at the shop across the street?
 
The conversation went on, with Jennie telling her she's a software architect from LA, and since working in technology allows her to work remotely, she requested to be back in Hongdae with the occasional visits if needed. She also helps Jisoo in running the chicken place, and is planning to go around southeast Asia if her work pipeline is manageable enough.
 
Lisa on the other hand, tells her a bit of her history, that she specifically chose South Korea because she was interested with the culture, work ethics and their ability to recover and be globally known in various industries in such a small amount of time.
 
This made sense to Jennie because Lisa was an Economics graduate, she is definitely a smart one, she thinks, and god, that smile, her rare and bright beautiful doe eyes that manages to stand out in the crowd, with an unmistakable sparkle that she could not get enough of.
 
Lisa also elaborated her history with Sunmi, how Sunmi was more strict than her own mother sometimes, and she feels really lucky to have Sunmi and Bambam around and how they make everything make easier for her to adjust in a new country. The conversation went on with Lisa mostly doing most of the talking - while Jennie leaned on her elbow, eyes and ears all on Lisa. If the almost-too bright curry place were to be replaced with dim lights and their table was laced with a table mat complete with candle-lit fixtures, both of them would seem to be in an intimate dinner date.

Jennie feels light. The warm fuzzy feeling makes her feel something. She wanted to prolong this conversation, she was having fun, a little bit too much, but this girl she is with now is a real breath of fresh air, reminds her of spring or summer, that cuts through the coldness of the deep night.
 
"I'm sorry, but I need to take those plates now, I assume you're done with it?" Jun-Oppa gave an apologetic smile as he sensed the awkward tension between his two women. He quickly collected the plates, and wiped down the table clean. "Care for some tea?" he offered as a gesture of apology for his sudden intrusion. Both women nodded and he stormed back to the kitchen. Not long after, two steaming cups of tea were served.
 
----
 
 
It was past midnight when Lisa walked Jennie to her car that was parked at the back of the Kim’s chicken resto. Both had definitely enjoyed the night, an unexpected shared dinner that’s not only to satisfied their hankering for a good crab curry, but also a meaningful conversation that beats the hell out of freezing temperatures of South Korea. Jennie maneuvered the car around the tight parking space and opened her window to bid her farewell, "Thanks for dinner! Perhaps, this time I can fancy you to a trip around the city if you are not so busy with your school and work?"
 
"I'm never too busy if it's with you." Lisa was surprised with her own response and brought a warm sensation creeping to her ears. “I m-mean I am not busy.” She puffs out a breath, the steam enveloping her small face, and she hopes it hides her blush.
 
It doesn't.
 
"Great, this Saturday maybe? I'll pick you up after school?"
 
Lisa nods in agreement and Jennie drove away thinking that she might’ve came up strong and eager. To hell with it. She thought. She likes it, she can definitely offer more than Jisoo's almost-too simple chicken and beer.
 
----
 

Saturday went by a blur. Lisa mostly breezed through all of her errands that day, with the lingering thought of her date later that afternoon. She reminded herself that it's only a simple tour around the city as Jennie has mentioned and that it’s not a date date. Yet, she couldn't help but be bothered and was clearly freaking out on what to wear. She rummaged through her limited closet options, only to find herself in another dilemma when she realized that she’s lacking clothes for winter. Great, she thinks, now she'll go on a date with a gorgeous woman wearing awful university brand hoodies. Fucking great. She had to remind herself again that it's not a date. It's just a city tour. So a hoody will do right?
 
It wasn't long when Jennie arrived at the bistro doors later that day. It was to early for dinner, just the right time to go around, with hues of orange now covering the skyline, since the sun sets early during winter. Bambam had to call Lisa twice upstairs and his annoyance now growing slightly, because Lisa was so euphoric the night before that she forgot to ask for Jennie's number. "Lisa!" he sneered as he followed his friend at the hallway, his cheeky grin suppressing his chuckle, "Use protection!" It was loud enough that caused Jennie to glance at his direction with her eyes wide, and Lisa shooting death glares at him.
 
"Ass" she mouthed. She looked over to Jennie with an embarrassed smile and excused the awkward situation. “Ugh! I assure you, we are not related by blood."
 
Jennie smiled. “It’s okay my office mates are ways worst than him.” Jennie assured her. “Ready to go?”
 
----
 
 
They walked along the narrow streets of Hongdae, with food carts lining up the street. Steam billowing over huddled people buying different kinds of street foods. It was cold, and Lisa was surprised when Jennie suddenly intertwined their arms, bodies pressed together.
 
"Sorry, did I make you uncomfortable? Jennie asked softly.
 
"No! Uh, it's f-fine Jennie, umm, I kind of actually like it, since it keeps me warm. Really." Lisa said shyly. Jennie’s lips form into a smile, their eyes meeting for a few seconds until a guy bumps into Jennie breaking the moment. “Come on.” Lisa tugged their arms so they could continue walking.
 
They spent the early evening going into obscure shops that sell random trinkets and brought several of them. Lisa was not sure if those trinkets has a significant use to her or will clutter her not so spacious apartment room. She found out that the cat-eyes beauty was so fond of those items, and well, she finds it cute so she won't mind even some of these little random stuffs would end up on her bed (due to lack of storage) and with her sleeping on top of it. They also talked about random things like Lisa's fascination over winter. It's so common for people like her who was born and raised in the tropics believes that whenever it's winter there should be snowball fighting, ice skiing and snow man. Pretty much everything, just like what it shows on movies.
 
 
Jennie could not help but be amused whenever she gets an adorable reaction from Lisa. How those big doe eyes would widen or how the perfectly shaped brows would arch in question at every piece of information she would share. The walk was halted for a moment when they bantered on not so trivial topic. Jennie mentioned that winter doesn't mean necessarily mean knee-deep snow, blizzards that causes schools to close. She also pointed out, specially in travelling, the importance of why it's more practical to buy jackets once you arrived rather than buying it beforehand.
 
Lisa's brows furrowed, eyes wide with wonder. "And why is that?"
 
Jennie softly smiled, cheeks flustered over some dorky topic. "Well, it's not one-hundred percent true and applicable all the time, it's common knowledge that the jackets you will buy here were made and equipped with the appropriate materials to withstand the local condition." She responded. Jennie stared into Lisa's eyes, arms still entwined, hoping that what she’s saying was making sense with her companion. "Look at them,” Jennie’s arms gestured at their surrounding. “In winter we mostly wear the same type of jackets and probably brought these from the same stores. Locally." She concluded.
 
She pursed her lips and took it all in before responding. "I really need to learn more about this winter thing." She said shivering. The University hoodie doesn’t give much of warm that she needed.
 
“Are you cold?” Jennie asked worriedly.
 
“Umm, n-no I’m okay.” Lie. She was freakingly cold.
 
“You don’t look fine to me.” Jennie’s eyes narrowed. “Come on let’s buy you some jacket.” The shorter girl started dragging Lisa to the nearby store.
 
Lisa stopped Jennie, feeling slightly embarrassed. “Seriously, I’ll be fine. Just not so used to with this cold weather.”
 
“Would you like me to hug you instead?” Jennie asked, left brow arch in question, say yes and I’ll do it, she thought.
 
The sudden question rendered Lisa speechless, mouth agape, it took few seconds before she can formulate a reply. Yes, she thought. “Oh, ummm, y-you don’t have to do that.” She said.
 
Jennie laughed. “Come on, I won’t take no for an answer, just consider it as your tour gift.” She waggles her eyebrows.
 
 
With new jacket and arms still entwined together, they ended in front of a small stew restaurant. The sign shows Since 1912. Jennie insisted that since she was the tour guide, then she's in-charge of everything including ordering food. It is the perfect thing to conclude the tour, and she will make sure that at least it is memorable for Lisa. Order was served right away since there were only couple of people eating inside the restaurant. They both fawned over when two different scalding stews were served on a hot stone bowl. Lisa could no longer hide her excitement, which comes from either the anticipation of trying something new or the warmth it brings into the table.
 
The first bowl was lightly bubbling, pungent, very red with pieces of chopped kimchi that floated on the surface. "Kimchi-jigae", Jennie says.
 
"Are we supposed to eat this with rice? I'm new to this kind of food. Does this have meat?" Lisa asked, picking her curiosity, sheer delight showing on her face.
 
Jennie fished out a few pieces of kimchi, and placed it on Lisa’s small stainless bowl. She proceeded to introduce the other bowl. "Doenjang jjigae. These might look similar to you, but the ingredients are not. This has zucchini, potatoes, a bit of chili, meat and soybean paste. it's has pungent aroma but taste really good. These are my favorites.” Jennie’s hands gestured on the food on the table. “All of these food and side dishes pairs well with rice." She said proudly.
 
Lisa pretty much stayed in the district of Hongdae after arriving from Thailand. With classes and helping Sunmi’s Crab Curry Bistro, she really never had the chance to walk and explore the city. This little tour with Jennie makes her appreciate what the district can offer. It’s one of the reason why she chose South Korea anyway -- to enjoy a culture different from hers. Lisa couldn't be more thankful enough to Jennie, for this is one of the most enjoyable nights for her so far.
 
 
After eating and a little bit of walking, they decided to call it a night. The drive back to the bistro was spent with a little chat and comfortable silence. "It was such a great night Jennie, I couldn't thank you enough." Lisa's lips formed a shy smile and ducked her head halfway to the opened driver side window.
 
"Pleasure is all mine, Lisa, I had a great time as well" Jennie softly smiled before buckling her safety belt. "since I finally got your number earlier, then this means, we can do this some time again?" Jennie asked hopefully, Lisa was leaning into the driver side window and her face is a little bit too close. All Jennie could see were the hypnotic big doe eyes, slightly upturned nose and plump lips. Before she can think about it, Jennie leaned in for a kiss. The kiss landed at the corner of taller girl’s mouth. Both were surprised of the action which left them frozen at the spot. Lisa looks back at Jennie, who seems to be in dazed after that kiss.
 
Jennie cleared her throat and tried to gather her composure. “Goodnight Lisa. I’ll see you soon.” The car windows was closed abruptly. Lisa was left standing in the driveway. She waited until the car’s taillights disappeared through the rows of passing vehicles and into the night.
 
She was about to turn and head back, but her eye caught something at the recycling bins. It was something familiar, she could have sworn she seen those kind boxes before. Out of curiosity, she decided to check a box, engraved at the top was the supplier’s name. Yang’s Special Mud Crabs. “That’s the name of the Ahjussi that we’re supposed to pick the mud crabs couple of weeks ago.” She muttered to herself and decided to turn the box sideward. Then to her surprised, written boldly was her Aunt’s name: SUNMI

Chapter Text

“Jennie.” Jisoo called the younger girl’s attention as she handed her a can of beer. “I have a couple of frozen stuff that is about to arrive sometime this week. What’s your plan?”

Jennie tore her gaze away from her laptop, with an irritated look on her face. She heaves a deep sigh. Working with a team that is halfway across the world with a very big time zone difference drains all of her energy. Countless production incidents caused her and the rest of the team to work round the clock to resolve all issues, and this made her really tired recently and question her reasons again why she moved back to South Korea in the first place. “Sorry Jisoo-unnie, what was that again?”

“I was asking about your plan with the remaining boxes of crabs in my freezer. There were still 4 boxes left and once the new orders arrive, they would not all fit in. What are you gonna do with those frozen crabs anyway?”

“Fuck, I forgot to tell Yang-oppa to stop the delivery.” Jennie sighs. This won’t be good, she thought.

The boxes of crabs were the outcome of a stupid drunken bet made over bottles of soju between the two of them. They found out that Sunmi’s moving just in front of their chicken restaurant and will be opening a crab bistro. So, the bet was made. Jennie whose pride’s as high as Mt. Everest lost the bet and decided to proceed with it even after Jisoo telling her not to do so, Sunmi’s a friend anyway. Little did they know that it would cost a lot of trouble on the latter’s part.

“Earth to Jennie!” Jisoo called the younger Kim again who look so worried and seems lost with her train of thoughts.

“Oh. Right! I will cook the remaining batch. Crab fried rice and curry.” She closed her laptop, opened her beer which she hopes is still cold enough and continued, “I will also tell Yang-oppa that we won’t order crabs anymore. Speaking of crabs Jisoo-unnie, have you tried Sunmi-unnies crab curry? I was there few days ago and oh boy! It was really good!

“Wait Jendeukie, you went there and ate without telling me?” Jisoo pouted.

“Silly, remember you told me Lisa always comes here almost everyday then suddenly stopped? I went there to check if she is okay. I was just lucky enough that she’s eating crab curry and shared it with me.” Jennie nods her head. Satisfied with her explanation.

“I actually stopped listening after to check if she’s okay.” Jisoo’s eyes narrowed, smiling at Jennie. “She must be a very important customer, way too important to grace by our mighty Jennie’s presence.” She added.

“Yah unnie! Stop teasing me!” Jennie said, cheeks turning red.
-----

Lisa could not sleep. It has been a perfect night. The small banters, the jacket, the food and the kiss. Specially the kiss. She still feels euphoric every time she remembers that kiss. So yes, it has been perfect night until she saw those boxes. “Ugh! Damn those boxes.” She said to herself. “Does that mean that Aunt Sunmi was right all along?” Great, I’m talking to myself now. She thought. After few tossed and turned, a decision was made. She’ll talk to Jennie about it.

The plan to talk to Jennie went down the drain. The end of first semester was fast approaching and she was piled up with a lot of research papers that she needed to submit. While she regularly exchanged messages with Jennie, she can’t bring up the topic about the discovered boxes. For her, it should be discussed face to face and not over the phone. Although, she could not help but smile at the idea of spending another afternoon with Jennie, or over dinner or whatever.

Suddenly that confrontation about those boxes no longer matter, does it?
----

Lisa stretched her arms in relief after hitting the save button. She has been working on those documents for few weeks now. She folded her laptop and bagged the rest of her belongings off the desk when she noticed the screen of her iPhone briefly lit up, indicating a received message. It was only just half past five, and she thought it might be tad early to do some errands since her Aunt Sunmi was out of town for the rest of the week, thinking that it might be an emergency. She quickly fished the device out of the bag to check, only to find out that the message came from the person that occupies her mind, not only during her free time but most of the day.

Jen: “Hey you. How is it going?”

She was already typing a response when the phone suddenly rang, the sound cuts through the silent university library hall disturbing the teachers and students whose either studying or just wanted to escape from the noise of the outside world. All eyes darted towards her in question. “Shit!” She hissed. She frantically swipe the green phone icon and sprinted behind a vacant aisle between the bookshelves.
“Hello?” She whispered and looked around, with her mouth half covered by her palm to modulate the loudness of her voice.

“Hey. I’m sorry. Are you busy?”

“Wait, let me just get out of here before these people kills me. I’m in the Library.” She hushed.

Lisa heard a muffled smile. “Ooops, sorry.”

“Yeah right, doesn’t sound like you are though.” She said jokingly while walking back to the table to gather her things. She switched the phone to her other free hand as she slung the strap of her backpack to her shoulder. And she could not help but smile at the tone of hesitation and embarrassment of Jennie’s voice at the other end of the line. “No. I’m still at the University. I have a class in ten minutes. What’s up?”

“Umm, yeah, I was just about to ask if you’re maybe free tonight? Jisoo’s got a new recipe, and she wanted the staffs to try it first before adding it on the menu.”

“Oh, you said staffs right? Isn’t it quite bizarre if join? I’m not really part of the crew, I’m just a customer.” Lisa said hesitantly.

Jennie caught her reluctance to the offer, but she pressed on. “Exactly Lalisa. That is the reason why I’m tagging you along. It’s like hitting two birds in one stone, well get a feedback from a customer and I get to spend time with you. So, can I pick you up after your last class tonight? Chu will do the taste test after they closed. Please?”

Lisa’s stride was halted, hand suspended in the air about to grip the door handle.

I get to spend time with you.

Back are the butterflies.

Back those warm fuzzy feeling again.

“Lisa? Still there?”

Lisa was brought back to world. She noticed that she was still inside the Library hall, eyes still pierced on her, people might think she’s crazy, frozen standing at the door wearing a stupid smile.

“Ah, yes, sorry. Last class is at seven thirty so I’ll be free by nine however the group decided to go out to celebrate and I really can’t bail on them since I already promised that I’ll go tonight.”

“Is that so? umm, I understand.”

Lisa heard the deep sigh. “I promise I’ll be there.” The words came out of her mouth before she could even think about it.

“Oh. Really? You might be tired by then.”

“No, It’s alright. Its free food. Who says no to a free food?”

“Okay, see you later?”

“You will definitely see me later!” whoa! where did that confidence come from? She smiled to herself while shaking her head.

----

Jennie must not have noticed the time. 11:30. It was unusually busy on a weekday night and it didn’t take long before she realized the staff cleaning up and they are now closing the shop. The rest of the kitchen staff gathered around at the table as one of the fry cooks served the first batch of fried chicken made with the new recipe.

Jennie fidgeted and moved away from the small crowd. She quickly peeked at the glass doors for any sign of Lisa but there was none. She was about to call Lisa when Jisoo tapped her shoulder.

“Bambam’s outside.”

Jennie stormed into the back-kitchen doors, uneasiness grows with each passing second. She found Bambam leaning at the side walls, clutching his mobile phone.

“Is Lisa inside?”

Jennie closed the kitchen door behind her and drew a deep breath to catch up on her thoughts before facing Bambam. I should have insisted to pick her up tonight, she thought worriedly. “No. I’m actually waiting for her, she said that she’ll drop by after some celebration? When was the last time you talked to her?”

“Umm, it was around seven-thirty. But she mentioned about a dinner at some pachongmoja in Bomun-Ro with her group mates and that she will be late tonight.” Bambam quickly glanced again at his mobile phone to check for any new messages and back to Jennie with a worried look. “Lisa is not returning any of my calls and messages, Jennie. Oh god, Aunt Sunmi’s out of town this week, she’s gonna kill me if anything happens to Lisa.”

Thoughts of Lisa being alone and drunk suddenly made her nauseous. Her breathe started to struggle and starting to turn into a full-blown panic. No, not now, Jennie thought. She tried to take a deep breaths, willing herself to relax. She ran towards her car with Bambam trailing behind her.
----

“Oh my God Jennie! For Christ’s sake! Slow down! Do you want us get killed?” Bambam exclaimed as he tightly held the overhead handles with both of his hands, literally hanging on for his dear life. He squirmed on his seat trying to make himself comfortable as Jennie expertly swerved her Audi A3 in between cars at the narrow alleyways.

Jennie glanced at the GPS navigator screen at the dashboard. 27 Bomun-Ro 13na-gil, Bomun-dong, Seongbuk-gu. She’s been alternately looking at road and the GPS Navigator since they left the restaurant. There are a lot of scenarios going through her head but she’s trying to push it all at the back of her mind. She then abruptly stopped the car when she saw a familiar figure wobbling towards them. Jennie was out of the car before she knows it.

“W-where you going?” Bambam said, who’s just recovering from the speedy driving of the brunette. “I’ll never ride with you again.” He continued after moving out of the car.

Lisa who’s fumbling on her phone was suddenly engulfed to a bone crashing hug. “God, I was so worried, please don’t do this again.” Jennie said, body visibly shaking. Now she can finally let go and relax.

“You look like shit Lis, we’ve been trying to call you, wait until Aunt Sunmi learn about this.” Bambam said while shaking his head.

“H-hey J-jennie.” Lisa squinted her eyes, trying to focus on the smaller girls face who just released her from the hug. “And I’m not drunk Bam, look,” she tried to walk but was tripped on her own foot.

Jennie’s quick reflex caught the taller girl’s arm and pulled her back to her. “Hey, I got you.” She said softly her arms on Lisa waist holding her securely.

“Hmmnn...Y-you s-smell g-good.” Lisa giggled while partially hugging the smaller girl.

“Not drunk my ass.” Bambam whispered, quite amused with his friend’s childish behaviour

Jennie cleared her throat. “Come on Bambam, help me with her, she’s not that light you know.”

“Wait, are you driving again?” Bambam said, eyes getting bigger.

“Of course I’m driving, its my car you know.” Jennie rolled her eyes. She’s now calmer with Lisa beside her.

“Shit.” He muttered followed by deep sigh.

----

The trip back to the apartment was total opposite of earlier, Jennie's driving has since calmed down, and she is finally relieved to see that Lisa was somehow fine despite being drunk. She glanced over at her rear-view mirror to check on her. Lisa was sprawled out horizontally on the seat; her face looks clear even after being drunk, knees were bent to fit herself at the cramped space and arms below her chin. Cute, she thought.

Bambam cleared his throat.

With flushed cheeks, she shifted her gaze away back on the road before she got too distracted.

It has been past midnight when they arrived at the apartment. The two dragged the taller girl to her room upstairs.

“Thank you for the help Jennie and I know that this maybe too much but can you maybe change her clothes?" Bambam said while scratching his nape, looking a bit embarrassed.

“Oh,” Jennie was surprised with sudden request. Say no, she thought.

“Sorry I wasn’t really thinking when I asked that, I’ll check downstairs if-“

“It’s okay, I’ll do it.” Jennie cuts him off, just thinking of someone taking care of the drunk girl doesn’t feel right for her.

“Thanks Jennie, I’ll just be downstairs, holler if you need me.” Bambam said before closing the door.

Jennie breathe deeply before walking towards the sleeping girl. With trembling hands, she started to carefully remove the soaked clothing, leaving Lisa with only her undergarments. She bit her lower lip seeing the toned abs of the drunk girl. The bedside lamp illuminates the whole room, the soft light gives a warm glow against Lisa's sharp jawline. Jennie was so mesmerized with the beauty in front of her, she feels like Icarus and Lisa was the sun, she can’t help herself but be drawn to her light. She started tracing her brows, to the tip of her nose, and to her lips. Those soft plum lips. Jennie what are you doing? She thought. Gathering all the self restraints that she has, she started wiping the drunk girl’s body. After several minutes, Jennie finally tucked her in, she placed a glass of water and painkillers on the bedside table that Lisa will definitely need once she wakes up.

“Goodnight Gorgeous. Sleep tight.” With one last look, Jennie went out and slowly closed the door.

----

“I did all that?” Lisa’s eyes getting bigger each second while listening to Bambam.

“Yes. Everything. God, you can be really embarrassing sometimes.”

She was a bit disoriented, sporting a headache when she woke up that morning. She was surprised that she was in her room and wearing pyjamas. She tried to remember on how she got in her room after the group celebration but everything was so blurry. She was thankful when she found a painkiller and a glass of water on her bedside table. After taking a painkiller, she went downstairs and found Bambam drinking his coffee.

Her childhood friend’s continuous teasing broke her train of thoughts. “I heard you mumbling some questionable stuff to Jennie’s ears too last night.” He wiggled his eyebrows, as if he’s insinuating that Lisa has said something inappropriate. “and I think you were smelling her or something.”

Lisa felt embarrassed at the thought, though she recalled losing her balance at some point and vague images of Jennie’s neck close to hers flashed to her mind. She rolled her eyes and rubbed her temples. Her throbbing headache does not seem to go away anytime soon, and she must make it up to Jennie.

----

After the last subject, Lisa stopped by an ice cream store before going home. She found out from Jisoo that Jennie loves milk flavoured ice cream, she still feel embarrassed every time she remember what Bambam told her that morning. So, with great resolve, she went to the Kim’s chicken and beer restaurant.

“Just in time princess. She should be here in a few.” Jisoo wink at her before proceeding towards the kitchen.

She still have a bit of a headache but much tolerable unlike when she woke up that morning. The dining area is not spinning or anything, I should be okay, she thought. However she felt a little bit lightheaded and surprised when Jennie pulled her into a quick hug and sat beside her.

“Hey I didn’t notice you coming in.” Lisa said shyly after being released from a hug.

“How are you feeling? Any bad hangovers?” Jennie asked.

Two plates of chicken were laid on their tables but instead of the chilled mugs of beer, Lisa opted to have soda instead.

“Just a bit of headache, but I can manage. I got the painkillers you left at the table.” Lisa looked down, embarrassed at the sudden memory of the previous night’s events. “I was not able to properly say ‘thank you’ to you.”

Jennie propped her elbows and picked on a piece. “Mmmhm. That’s okay. No, don’t worry about it.” She flashed a smile that made the younger girl blush. “but you had me really worried last night. It was really late and if it were not for Bambam, I would not know where to look for you since you said that you’ll be here after your group’s dinner.”

Lisa pouts. “I’m sorry.” She wanted to say more but there’s really no excuse on what she did last night.

Damn those lips. All of her will power to chastise Lisa has now dissipated from that look. “Just be careful next time, okay? I know you don’t want Sunmi-unnie to worry about you.” And I don’t want worrying about you too, she thought.

They started eating the new dish that was added last night. Although they missed the opportunity to have an exclusive first taste of the new recipe, Jisoo was kind enough cook it all again for them – bigger fist-sized boneless chicken pieces are coated with slivers of roasted almonds beneath a slightly sweet but with still crunchy layer. A sweet-looking glaze enveloped the perfectly cooked breading, that blended nicely against the ginger-and-soy-marinated moist interior which Lisa absolutely loved. Though she’ll be avoiding any alcohol beverages for the time being, the carbonated sugary drink helped cleanse her palate and cleared a bit of space on her stomach that enabled her to eat more, to her delight.

Jennie loved it as well. Although it was still deep fried, she really appreciated the balance between the sticky glaze and crunchy exterior, but still managed to be not too greasy. She decided to teased the other girl when she licked the sweet glaze off her all fingers after she ate the last piece, which caused Lisa to get flustered and looked away. Gotcha.

Lisa looked every where but Jennie. Gone was the headache and was replaced by something else that hits her through her core. Two can play this game, she thought. She wet her lower lip and smirk on Jennie. “Tell you what.”

“Hmm?”

“Let me make it up to you.”

“I thought we are over this, Lisa.”

“Well, just consider this,” She cleared her throat and looked directly to Jennie’s eyes. “I’ve been wanting to invite you to a park somewhere, but it’s really cold lately, so..” She notices that Jennie is now leaning close to her. Her eyes darted from Jennie’s inviting lips before continuing. “So, can I take you out for a home-cooked lunch instead? I’ll cook.”

Chapter Text

The next day, Lisa spent her early Friday night watching the Bistro’s chief cook, Jun, prepare the crab dish at the pantry. She delightfully stares when the myriad of red curry sauce, chopped herbs and disjointed crab pieces gracefully sloshed across the surface of the fiery jet-black wok. The chef was providing the step by step process and was kind enough to share his secret to make the crab curry a perfect dish, however Lisa was so mesmerized on how the crabs were being cooked that she remiss the information given to her. Lisa’s attention quickly moved to Jun-oppa’s steady grip on the handles as he skilfully flip the wok's contents in one swift motion, without the crabs and curry sauce splashing all over the tiled kitchen walls.

“I am so dead. What was I thinking? Why did I offer to cook for Jennie when I can’t even cook myself? Stupid.” Lisa chastised herself. Suddenly conscious of the impending doom, she leaned at the cool edge of the burner and stared as Jun poured the wok's content into a plate. “But it shouldn't be that hard, right?” she thinks.

After few minutes of thinking. Comes realization, acceptance and a bit of panic. “No, no, no! I can’t do this, I need plan B.” She looked around the pantry and realised that she can make something simple to start with - nothing too complicated and is easily available in the kitchen. “Come on Lisa, think.” She told herself while snapping her fingers. Lisa opened the fridge and checked what she can come up with. “Okay, what do we have here...fish, beef, pork and chicken. You can’t go wrong with chicken, right?” she said to herself. So, with a pen and paper in hand, first menu has been decided: Spicy stir-fried chicken mince with holy basil, which is also one of her favourite dishes while she was in Thailand. “Okay, sounds good, uhm, what else? Oh! Prawn Tom Yum Soup for dinner? Now its Perfect. Oops... I almost forgot the most important thing!” With a smiley next to it, written was:

3. Not set the whole kitchen on fire.

After placing the freshly made plate of crab curry into the small serving window. She then turned around to ask the main chef for a favour. "Jun-Oppa, can I use the kitchen after the bistro closed tonight? And on Sunday night as well?"

Jun placed the hot wok onto the sink and opened the faucet to let the water loosen up the bits of food that stuck to the pan. "Of course, you can, but you need to ask the boss, your Aunt Sunmi, for that. Is there a special occasion that I need to know about? Are you planning to cook something?" The water from the faucet sizzled against the hot metal and the resulting steam enveloped a part of the sink area while the chef scrubs the surface of the wok.

"Kind of like that. But I'll like to start simple." She hesitated for a bit and gave a bashful smile. "I'll start with, let's say, that stir-fried chicken mince with basil?"

He placed the clean wok back to the burner and cleaned off the excess water and wiped the moisture off his arms with a kitchen towel that hanged over the apron string that was tied around his waist. “Simple but definitely taste good. I can help you with that. Would you like me to stay around later?”

“Oh, you don’t---"

Before Lisa could finish, Bambam entered the kitchen area holding a paper bag with a smug look on his face. "Did I hear it right? Lisa, you’re cooking? Are you sick?”

Startled at the intrusion, Lisa glared at Bambam. "Were you eavesdropping all this time?" and rolled her eyes. "How long have you been here?"

Bambam ignored all the questions and decided to further tease his childhood friend. "I might need to say good luck to this person who will eat your dish Lis." He said while shaking his head and trying not to laugh.

"Ugh, shut it Bam"

"Uh, uh, uh. " Bambam wiggled his index finger and placed the paper bag into the stainless kitchen counter. "Don’t sulk Lis, here, someone gave this to you." He took out the contents of the paper bag and placed it on the countertop. "See? I'm such a nice person to actually give this to you instead of having these all to myself."

It was a takeaway box of fried chicken and cans of cold beer. On top of the box was a folded piece of coloured paper flushed securely against the flap, which Lisa immediately grabbed before Bambam took notice of it. She unfolded the piece of paper and saw a hand-written note:

Got a bit of free time tonight so I cooked a batch. I wanted to give these personally to you but had to take an emergency video call for work. See you soon. Happy Friday! :-*

--J

Lisa stopped herself from smiling, she did, really, she even tried to bite her lower lip but the futile effort was unsuccessful, the giddiness that she’s feeling right now makes her feel warm. There was really nothing special about the letter but knowing that Jennie exerted an effort to cook for her makes her heart flutter. She tried to clear her throat and wear a poker face, being teased by Bambam was enough for the day, and she won’t be able to take it if Jun-oppa will tease her as well.

The little piece of heaven ended abruptly when she noticed Bambam opens the box and peered over its contents. "Hey!" She yelled. "Get your filthy hands off that box!" Before she could swat the offending hand, Bambam was nimble enough to sneak out a hot piece and quickly shove it into his mouth.

"Oh Boy!" His eyes flinched as his tongue made contact with the scorching piece. He slightly thumped his chest to assist himself in swallowing the entire chunk and cleared his throat. “That was hot but is really good, no wonder why you're always at that chicken place Lisa! Aside from being pretty, Jennie can really cook some mean chicken! Now, I know why you acted weird the night when we have to drag you back home because you were very drunk to do that yourself.” He said smiling while nodding his head.

“You didn’t just say that.” Lisa said squinting her eyes, a bit embarrassed, she tried to come after Bambam who let out a hearty chuckle running back towards the rear kitchen door while evading a kick from Lisa. "You better ace that whatever you’re cooking Lis!" He waves his hands as he disappears at the other side of the door.

Lisa went back to the counter smiling while shaking her head. "Jun-oppa, this chicken is really good and definitely taste better when shared. Here have some." She opened a can of beer and offered the box of fried chicken at the head chef who was sporting a kind smile after witnessing their small banter a while ago.

----

Lisa stayed in her room and has been staring at the bedroom’s ceiling all Sunday morning. It's just a simple dinner, there should be no reason to be nervous as hell, right?  She mumbled to herself. To her dismay, the bistro downstairs had been unreasonably busy all Saturday, apparently people tend to go out more on weekends than Friday nights. She even tried to sneak into the kitchen for the sake of observation and research, however her Aunt Sunmi asked her to run some errands after her Saturday classes. The plan to practice cooking the chicken dish and prawn tom yum soup just went to the drain. She whimpered at the naked truth that she has to rely from the crashed class that she got from Jun-oppa on Friday night and in addition to that, it would be the first time that she’s cooking crab curry and has to rely on a bit of her knowledge to make everything right. “I’m screwed.” She groaned.

The gods must be in her favour when Sunmi decided to close the bistro earlier that day for an inventory check, okay, it might not be because of the gods whose probably just drinking or sleeping in Mt. Olympus but it was because her Aunt Sunmi loved her so much that when she asked permission the other day a resounding “yes” was given.

Lisa was donning her makeshift apron on her waist when Sunmi teased her that her date has arrived. Jennie came in through the bistro's glass doors wearing a cute puffy jacket that hugged her petite built and a pair of eyeglasses with a thin metal frame. Her fluffy cheeks were kind of pinkish due to the weather outside. Dangling in her left arm was a brown paper bag that she placed on one of the dining tables.

Lisa who’s now gazing from the pantry’s small window was transfixed to the brunette girl that just came in the Bistro. “I really have to nail this darn dish.” She muttered.

Jennie went straight at the back of the dining area and peered into the small kitchen window. "Hey." Her face glowed with sheer excitement that taller girl could not help but smile back. "I brought champagne."

"Hi." Lisa gestured to Jennie to go around the narrow hallway and through the kitchen doors. She pointed on chair near the door. "Please sit there, I don't want my guest to get any oil splatters or end up smelling any cooked seafood."

"But Lisaaaa, how can I see anything if I sit all the way here?" Jennie crossed her arms and tiptoed to get a better view of the kitchen surface. She walked closer until she's got a better view and pouted at Lisa.

Cute. Lisa thought. “Unfair...” she sighs. “All right, you can come here. But not too close, okay?” She really couldn't resist that adorable pout.

“Yes, ma’am.” Jennie salutes at her while wearing a gummy smile.

When the wok surface was hot enough, a small plate of finely minced garlic went in first. It created a gentle sizzle, and it gave off the nutty fried garlic aroma throughout the entire kitchen while it swam and danced across the slick wok. She moved the rest of the ingredients closer to the wok for easier access.

"That smells nice."

"Jennie, it's just the garlic."

"Oh, look at you Chef. Acting way too cool for me now eh? Just the garlic." She said smiling while trying to imitate the taller girl.

The rest of the ingredients were neatly placed on small plates, she’s grateful that Lisa has really prepared for their “special day” not to mention that she looked undeniably hot with the apron that accentuates her slim waist. She find it endearing on how Lisa lightly grips the wok handle shows that she rarely or never cook at all, she noticed that the taller girl tends to bite her lower lip when she’s focus on something and she also flinches every time a water droplets hits the hot surface.

Lisa carefully placed several pieces of cracked, mud crab claws and sliced thick chunks of yellow onions as the garlic burns fast. After a quick toss, a glass lid was put on top that looked quite too small for the wok but covers enough surface around the crabs to prevent the steam from coming out. Jun suddenly stepped in, and lowered the fire.

“Whoa! I thought you won’t be here, Jun-oppa?” Lisa asked surprisingly.

“I’m here for the inventory and noticed that the fire is too strong, sorry to startle you.” He said amiably. The Bistro’s main Cook mumbled something to Lisa that Jennie couldn’t catch.

In a small stainless bowl, Lisa placed a mixture of it what it seems to be milk, chili oil, several tablespoons of light soy sauce, then followed by curry powder, chili paste, an unmeasured portion of oyster sauce and a couple of eggs. Lisa looked over her shoulder with a cheeky grin. "I'm almost done!"

"I love the way on how you infused everything Lalisa." Jennie said proudly.

Lisa suddenly felt anxious at Jennie's observation. She followed everything Jun-oppa has told her two days ago. Oh shit! What if it's too salty?! What if everything’s bland?!  Her eyes darted to Jun-oppa, who was now sitting casually at the at the other side of the kitchen window and seems to be too engrossed scrolling through some stuff at his mobile phone. ‘Inhale. Exhale. Repeat. You got this Lisa, you’re almost done.’ Lisa thought. She tries to lessen the uneasiness using that mantra. She clenched her jaws and lifted the lid off the crabs that glistened with fried garlic after the steam got out and picked up the stainless bowl and carefully poured the sauce on top and around the delectable cooked crustaceans. After tossing the mixture with a metal spatula, she took a quick glance at Jennie, flexed both of her arms, and held the wok's handles with a hard grip and with one swift motion, the entire wok's contents gracefully flipped over in mid-air, and promptly landed into the pan. She herself was stunned that she was able to do it. She could swear that she saw Jennie’s mouth agape because of that boldness.

She teased and looked over her slightly raised shoulder to Jennie. “Did you see that? That’s Chef Lisa for you." She winked.

Jennie's cheeks turned crimson, she licked her upper lip that suddenly got dry, and shook her head. "Wh...what? Umm, yeah? Pretty cool move you got there Lis!"

Jennie's reaction was all it took to gain back the confidence that she lost momentarily. Feeling a little bit too proud of the chef that she is now, she lowered the flame even further to reduce the curry sauce and egg mixture into simmer. She tossed in with the rest of the chopped herbs from the small plate and gave a final mix before pouring it all to a shallow platter.

Lisa found herself amazed at the table before her, she’s not sure who prepared the table but she’s happy nonetheless. The table was covered with linen, a pair of half-filled champagne glasses and a set of silver cutleries she has not seen anywhere before. Jennie who was already sitting there was wearing the same astonished look. Jun served the crab curry dish at the middle of the table, followed by two small plates of steamed rice. He gave Lisa a final wave before going back to the pantry.

Jennie broke the silence as she spooned a portion of the curry sauce onto the side of her plate. "You know, this is fancier than I've ever expected."

"You think?"

"Yeah, too fancy for a make-up lunch that you initially proposed."

 "Well, I it's my first time to cook, and I wanted to do this right, so I kind of prepared for this, because I wanted to---"

Before Lisa could finish, Jennie gently shoved a spoonful to her. "Relax Lisa, it’s really sweet of you to go all through this." She smiled sweetly at her and took a spoonful herself and stared at the younger girl.

Both of them grimaced. "It's too salty!!" They said in unison.

Jennie covered her mouth to contain her laughter while Lisa rushed to the self-service counter to get two glasses of water and drank half a glass from her own to wash everything down. "Oh God, Jennie, I'm so sorry – see? this was the reason why I’m so anxious!"

After restraining herself, Jennie tasted a portion of the crab meat. "Mmmm, the crab tastes fine. It's just the sauce I guess?"

Lisa leaned back into her seat and covered her face with her hands. "Man, what a waste of good crabs. I should not have added a lot of that oyster sauce." Lisa groaned. She scratched her nape and sheepishly looked at Jennie, who looked unfazed with her own disappointment. "We should have just settled for pizza."

"But I don't like pizza."

"Oh, you don’t?"

"Yeah, it's way saltier than this, I supposed?" She ate the rest of the small portion of the crab flesh on her plate and flashed a smile to Lisa. "Lis. Don't worry alright? For someone who made this for the first time, less the saltiness, it's really not that bad." She reached out and gave Lisa's hand a gentle squeeze. "I'll take this anytime over pizza."

Lisa knows that she’s blushing profusely. She was so enraptured with the beauty in front of her. “You look really beautiful.” She said softly.

“What did you say?”

The question snapped her out of stupor. “Oh, I was saying that we can’t eat this, it’s terrible.” She said and quickly picked up her iPhone that was on the table. “We can order Chinese and have it delivered. Is Chinese okay with you?” She continued swiping on the screen not waiting for an answer embarrassment evident on her face.

Jennie wanted to protest but didn’t want to argue for the sake of not ruining their lunch. She could see the clear disappointed look from Lisa and doesn’t want to add to her frustration. After an hour, their fancy table were filled with empty takeaway boxes and a half-empty champagne bottle.

“That went better than expected, I guess?” as Jennie drank the last drop of her champagne and placed the empty glass on the table.

“Yeah it did. Thanks to that app hah!”

“But seriously Lisa, I appreciate all of these. Please don’t feel bad about it.”

Lisa turned to face Jennie with a gentle smile. “Thanks Jen. Definitely learned something today.” She said, voice turning seriously.

“Stay away from Oyster Sauce.”

----

It wasn't long until they were back at the pantry cleaning the kitchenware that they’ve used earlier. Sunmi and the rest of the Bistro staff were out for the rest of the day after the inventory. They were standing side by side, and Jennie had to admit – she enjoys the domestic feeling and she wanted it to last. To last, she emphasizes on the phrase, but she knows that won’t happen anytime soon. She has to take a short work-related trip back to LA in a couple of weeks. She sighs. She turns her head to face Lisa, who was rinsing off the soap suds of the small plates, and began picturing Lisa casually strolling with her along the bay walk of Santa Monica Pier, hands intertwined together, ice cream cones on each hand, under the bright Californian sun. She’s thinking in bringing her ball of sunshine along with her, now that the semester has ended, and Lisa will finally have some free time. Yes, easier said than done. She does not know where to start, would Lisa be okay in spending her spring break with a person she barely knew? Does Lisa even like her enough to come with her? Her train of thoughts were interrupted when the taller girl spoke suddenly.

“You know, by the way you grip those plates, you might break them in half and Auntie Sunmi might no longer allow us again here in the kitchen.” She said jokingly.

Jennie’s mind was still reeling with a thousand questions and couldn’t say anything when she opened her mouth to speak. So, she shakes her head, loosened her grip on the plate and stows the rest of the dishes in the shelf. She quickly glances out through the glass windows of the Bistro and sees that it’s still early in the afternoon, she looks back at Lisa, whose eyes are on her like she had grown three heads and asked, “Coffee?”

----

They drove to a nearby park, where they picked up a warm drink for each from a café. They settled on a wooden bench, overlooking the city skyline, with the afternoon sun, slowly settling into the horizon. They sat in comfortable silence, not minding the cold as they cupped their hot beverages on their hands.

“I saw the boxes, Jennie.”

Jennie was surprised by the sudden revelation, causing her to quickly turn her gaze at the younger girl. “W-what?”

Lisa didn’t look her way. “The boxes. They had Sunmi’s name.” She took a sip of her peppermint chamomile tea, which was different from what has Jennie offered a couple of hours ago back in the kitchen. “Bambam and I were supposed to pick those crabs from the wet market.” She let out a small chuckle at the memory. It no longer stung, a distant reminder of their struggling days when they opened the Bistro. “We were so worried that day but we’re able to improvise.  Aunt Sunmi doesn’t know anything.” She knew she struck a chord and tried her best to be subtle about it, since it’s all in the past now.

Jennie pursed her lips and ducked her head in embarrassment. She didn’t ever expect to be caught, it was a foolish bet that has been abandoned centuries ago but for some weird coincidence, the girl beside her stumbled upon the goddamn boxes, and now her chances of asking Lisa to come with her to LA gets thinner by the moment. She swallowed a lump on her throat, hopefully making time for her mind to come up with an excuse. But what will I make of this if I lie and be caught again? She mused.

“We – I, it was a stupid drunken bet between Jisoo unnie and I.” Lisa’s doe eyes was looking into her own. Vulnerable, piercing and searching for truthful answers. “We knew Sunmi-unnie was moving opposite the resto. I forgot how I lost the bet but I’m a Kim and we always keep our words. Jisoo unnie said that I don’t have to proceed with the consequence ‘cause who with be in the right mind will do that shallow and dumb bet? But I was too full of myself and so I purchased all the mud crabs from the wet market right after you guys opened.”

Lisa shook her head in disbelief. “That was the reason? No dirty competition and all that? You did that not because you guys feel threatened but because of the dumb bet?”

“Sorry. We didn’t mean any harm.” Jennie is holding Lisa’s wrists now, fearing that the other girl might not believe her empty reasoning and leave her at the park. No, they really didn’t mean any harm and that is the truth, she no longer cares about her ego, if she need to grovel for the rest of the day, a week or a month, she’ll gladly do it. “I’m really sorry if it caused any inconvenience to you and to Sunmi.”

Lisa placed her empty takeaway cup at the ground and held Jennie’s hand on top of hers. “It’s fine.” She said. “I think you knew Sunmi enough that she can sort that out, and well, she did.” A mischievous smirk formed on her lips. “But I guess she won’t like it if I’ll tell her that you guys almost sabotaged her crab supply. Right?”

“I know that what we did is shameful. What can I do to fix it?” Jennie said awkwardly.

Lisa shrugged and leaned back on the bench. “I don’t know. Maybe, uhm, teach me how to cook?”

Jennie’s brows furrowed, “Crab curry? Again?”

“No. Fried chicken. You don’t have to tell your secret recipe or any formula sauce. Just teach me the basics.”

“Let me think about it.” Jennie was somehow thankful that atmosphere and the obvious tension have settled. “Because I’m still slightly disappointed at your salty crab curry.” She teased.

“Don’t pull that one on me Jen. At least I didn’t buy someone’s crab supplies just for crappy ideas!” Lisa quipped.

“Really now? Ok, I’ll teach you. But you got to play by my rules.”  She says and scrunches up her nose to pull an almost too-real disappointed look. “Jisoo unnie doesn’t really like the idea of turning her workplace into an open kitchen like Sunmi unnie did.”

Lies.

Jennie leans in closer. “So, I guess we will have to cook at my place?”

“Deal.”

Hooked, lined and sinkered.

Chapter Text

Lisa knew Sunmi would eventually catch up to ask about the mysterious crab boxes, so when she found herself being dragged inside into an old restaurant in Hongdae on a cold Tuesday night, she anticipated for the worst.

The small, but brightly lit restaurant was filled to the brim, with patrons hunched over round tables, leaving the walkways with very little space to move around. The smell of grease mixed with all sorts of everything that can be deep-fried permeated throughout the whole dining area, and Lisa groaned at the thought of how her favourite new jacket would now smell the next morning, but she no longer cared, as she was going to get free dinner. And if it were not for the questioning that’s bound to happen anytime soon, she would have thought she hit the jackpot - the quintessential birthplace of one of Hongdae’s street food pride, Korean Fried Chicken.

Sunmi settled on a corner table situated at the far end of the dining area, where Lisa thinks it's far and quiet enough to hold a conversation. A staff followed them and crouched beside Sunmi, who whispered and nodded at the waitress and promptly left. Lisa looked around, her consciousness bringing her back to the reality of how Auntie Sunmi looked so calm yet she felt her Auntie’s eyes boring into her. She tried to break the tension as she leaned on the rickety wooden chair, and asked a rather simple question just to see what’s on Sunmi’s mind.   “Aunt Sunmi? What brings us here? If we wanted fried chicken, we could’ve just---“, 

But Sunmi was not in a rush; She fancied the look on Lisa’s face - a bit confused but with just a hint of excitement that was probably caused by the realisation that Sunmi was paying for dinner. To make everything worthwhile, she took her time and decided to hear the tragic crab story for herself. “So, what happened last Sunday? Chef says you got a little bit too trippy with the oyster sauce and ruined your crab dish.” 

Lisa was taken aback by the sudden turn of the topic - but she went along with it, hoping it would give her time to be in the right headspace before Sunmi would pounce her over with the dreaded question. “I just went in and followed how Chef did it.” She lets out a defeated sigh. “I wanted to try it again, but I’m not too sure if Jennie would give me another chance.” 

“Of course you will. But if you want to get another attempt for crab curry, you should remember that the difference between you and Chef is that he can pretty much do all his dishes by instinct, and it will still come out consistent and tasty, right?”  

Lisa’s brows furrowed as she wondered on the direction their conversation was heading into. “Yes, I’m aware of that, but Jennie was fine with it and we got food delivered instead.” She leaned on the table, and flashed a questioning smirk, trying to make sense of Sunmi’s intention. “Surely, we did not come all the way here just for you to remind me that I suck in the kitchen and almost ruined my date, don’t we?” 

Lisa was indeed smart, she will get the hint that her aunt won’t pay for dinner over some sad, almost-failed date that Sunmi herself can hear from her kitchen staff. “Of course! I brought you here because I wanted you to try a different style of Korean Fried Chicken.”  

“Are you sure that’s all? Because I think I knew you enough to say that is not the only reason why.” Lisa decided to drive the conversation home as she sensed that her Auntie was waiting for her to open up.

And Lisa couldn’t wait for the question herself. “And if this is about the boxes Auntie, I asked her about that too.”  

Sunmi’s calm mood slowly brightened up with the admission, now that she is now able to get Lisa within her level of understanding, and finally her signal to tirade her the questions that had been swirling above her head these past few days. It’s not a big deal, Sunmi thinks, she just wanted to clear this up, and since Lisa was able to score a simple dinner date, then she might have the chance to ask about the crab boxes.  But before she could speak, a staff crew joined them and quickly placed their ordered dish on the table, along with 2 chilled mugs of beer. 

Lisa felt torn – While she promised not to snitch Jennie and Jisoo about the silly bet, she also thought that she was being unfair to her Auntie, that despite being cool about everything, Sunmi also deserves the proper closure so that she can finally run the business in peace.

And worse, Lisa was getting too distracted - Her gaze was slowly drawn into the glistening baby fist-sized chunks of battered, deep-fried chicken with cylindrical-looking bite-sized tubes that were coated in a spicy looking sauce. Rice Cakes? She wonders. And when she finally gave in, she curiously picked on a coated rice cake and a small chicken piece, blew into it before shoving it quickly into her mouth. The contrasting crunch of the breading against the silky texture of the rice cakes that danced with comforting heat for every chew sent her senses into overdrive, and into a new kind of realisation that she never thought she’ll experience beyond the Kim’s fried chicken.  

But this is not to say that Jisoo’s current offering is pale compared to this joint. Lisa tried to hide her growing smile as she knew the sole reason why she was always on that fried chicken place- it was never just about the perfectly fried tasty delicacy that Seoul nightlife was famous for; And her grin grew wider when she perceives the same feeling, that when she gets to experience great food, she always associates this with the warm rush of happy thoughts with that smart feline-eyed Korean that never fails to make the butterflies in her stomach, flutter.

A smile crept into Sunmi when she saw the younger Thai flustering over their ordered dish. “Wow. Was it that good? I knew I brought you to the right place.” 

Lisa let out a satisfied sigh. “Jennie told me about the boxes.” She drank a bit of her beer and continued, “ And you have nothing to worry about it,  Auntie. It was part of a simple bet between Jennie and Jisoo. Jennie lost to it and part of the wager was to buy all of your supplies from your previous mud crab supplier.” 

Sunmi’s eyes widened at the revelation. She couldn’t believe that her business almost had never opened that day all because of a simple bet. And ever since she discovered the boxes in the chicken shop, all sorts of reasons ran through her mind, but this stupid bet never occurred to her. She felt ordering another round of beer just for herself, just to drown out all of her thoughts, since she has no plans of making sense in all of this yet.

But Sunmi will never go down without a fight, and since she never really saw any of the Kim’s played dirty before, nor their parents, she just wanted to be sure. “That’s it? No other agenda? Aren’t they going to kidnap our chef? No spies?” 

“Yes, auntie. That is all. And Jennie said Jisoo is getting sick of her crab dishes. When they bought everything that we were supposed to buy and cook, Jennie had to cook a lot as the boxes are taking up precious freezer space meant for their frozen chicken supply.” Lisa felt getting buzzed at her second mug of beer, but she went on, hoping that anything she said now still made sense.  “It was good at first, Jisoo was excited for all sorts of the crab dishes Jennie was able to whip up, but I guess they got tired after two weeks.” 

So all that overthinking about a non-existent plot to take her down was just a sad coincidence of pure alcohol-fueled recklessness and the careless lack of consideration for other people. So while Sunmi listened to Lisa’s last push into ending this close-call conflict as a silly bet, she also thought that Lisa had overlooked something significant, and whether it’s intentional or not, she was more than ready to make her realise that.

“Not to sound like I still hold a grudge against those two dorks, but honestly, I couldn’t help but feel a bit offended.”

Lisa shot her a puzzled look. She might be in a slightly tipsy state, but she heard this clearly and was not expecting this from her Auntie, and felt at loss for words now that she laid out everything thinking that Sunmi will at least understand, despite putting herself at risk for breaking her promise to Jennie.  “That’s why Jennie did not hesitate to tell me everything, and if you didn’t get a new supplier that time, then I and Bambam will---”

“Then I won’t be able to open the shop. You know how important this is to me Lalisa, I’m operating in a tough market, you know how mud crabs are rare and expensive. If we swap our ingredients to just any type of crab, then it’s no longer special, and I might as well close the shop.”

“That won’t ever happen Auntie, Bambam and I will help you in every way we can.”

“And I won’t let you always do that. You and Bambam should focus on the reasons why you’re here. I can’t expect you guys to be at my side the whole time I run this business. And I know this is not the first and last time I’ll encounter such instances, whether it’s from rich, bored kids who decide to place a bet and pick on me or real supplier issues.”

“You know, that is not what they meant to happen.” Lisa could no longer argue about this, as this was the reason why she told Sunmi everything - Sunmi’s concerns are valid, and at this point, she’ll just have to bear the brunt of the older Korean’s outburst, as long as they could all move on from this.

 “So what do you think they’ll do if they see if my doors are closed? Ask for an apology and hand me over those boxes like some bike they stole? Is it going to be that easy? Jennie wasn’t forced to do anything - as you said, she said, it was all just a drunken bet. She could’ve picked another wager or just about anything.”

“It means, at the back of their heads, in their stupid drunken state, they considered something so grand that it could potentially ruin a day’s worth of business, like some form of a prank they won’t be accountable for. So, tell me now Lisa, if they had known that we would bust their guilty ass over those boxes, would they even consider sending an apology?”

Sunmi took a moment to realise she was holding all her breath all along as she dropped her last reason, hoping that this would finally knock some sense into Lisa’s clouded mind. She was careful now, instantly feeling guilty about her sudden burst of emotions to someone who cared, cared enough to tell everything to her.

“And Jennie didn’t deny it the moment I said it to her. No alibis, no bullshit. And I know that both of them will personally apologise to you soon. And if they saw that the bistro won’t open, I think they are empathetic enough to see the damage of that wager. I’m not sure how they are going to do it, but that apology might come sooner than you think.”

Sunmi smirked as she saw a glimpse of sparkle in Lisa’s eyes - somehow she knows now that it’s no longer about the bet, the boxes, or that crab curry. And Lisa looked so unaware that she is now in total defence when it comes to Jennie, and Sunmi thought she is barely sober enough to even feel she felt played in her own confession game. Did Lisa plan to tell everything herself to trick her to be into this angry mess so that she will no longer have the reason to lash out at the Kims when the actual apology might happen? 

“If there’s one thing that sits well on me now, it is that we finally know everything, and while I guess it is a little bit too late for me to be upset, trust me on this one Lisa, I’ll be fine.”

The dining area was a bit emptier now and based on Sunmi’s more sombre mood, Lisa was relieved that she might have single-handedly put out all the pent-up anger in Sumni. And she learned a new thing about Sunmi too:  that when she’s angry, she tends to order a lot. So for a moment, she considered prolonging whatever that got Sunmi so bothered, then she might get a few more servings of fried chicken and tteokbokki, right? A couple of small empty plates were heaped at the table’s edge, placed alongside a couple of more with panko-crumbed deep-fried vegetables and assorted seafood. But Sunmi wasn’t eating anymore, she just stared blankly right through the hazy glass of the chilled beer mug, and there, Lisa knew, everything would be fine indeed.

“Are you sure? Tell you what, my semester is ending soon and I’ll have the time to help around the bistro soon. Can I make it up to you on behalf of them and we can move on from this?”

For once, Lisa thought she came up with the most brilliant idea. She gets Sunmi to forgive the girls and she makes good use of her time during the semestral break. Pretty sweet deal if you ask her.

“Great timing, you know I have to go out of the city sometime next week to sort out paperwork. Would you mind taking care of the bistro for me when I’m gone? I’d pay for your time, of course, and don’t worry about Jennie and Jisoo, just give me time to let everything sink in. And perhaps, make sure it won’t happen again?”

“Deal.”

“And one more thing, Pay my last 2 mugs of beer. And we’re good. Now let’s go home before I change my mind.”

--------------------------------------------------------------

The next night, Lisa wandered around the surrounding area of the University. It was the last week of the semester and there was a slight festive mood - smiles were painted on every student’s faces and for some, relief. She could feel it herself, and she liked it - as she realised that she survived her first semester at graduate school, but this time far away from the comforts of her home.

It was just a couple of hours ago when she last called Jennie, who was still swamped with work and couldn’t find the time to buy the ingredients they needed for her fried chicken lesson tonight. So their conversation rolled around how Jen should take it easy and take some time off to relax. Lisa got so engrossed in easing up with Jen’s working habits that she mixed up the details of the Korean girl’s address. She fished out her phone and typed the building number of what she could remember to see if something can come outright. 

467-5 Seogyo Dong, Mapo-Gu

That doesn’t look right. Her thumb hovered over her on-screen keyboard and deleted the suggested address on the search bar. Or was it,

476-5 Seogyo Dong, Mapo-Gu?

If she could partly blame her disastrous date for her lack of luck in cooking, this time it is all her fault. She’s too ashamed to call now - now that Jen might be too busy to accommodate any interruptions or she would not be able to pick up any calls. Lisa shook her head in an attempt to remember which building number is correct, as the numbers she jumbled up probably exist blocks away from each other. It’s still early, she figures, that if she moved now and picked up dinner along the way, then she could have the time to deduce which address is correct. 

Unless the building numbers are both apartments.

But before spiralling in to further panic, she has to get her priorities straight - Dinner. Mentally kicking herself for being such a mess, she roamed her eyes on the crowded food stalls around, hoping to come up with something she can be proud of to bring home to this girl she liked. Also, the fact that it’s now peak dinner time means she has to find a place where she could be served first. If only she remembered that darn address then she could’ve picked up something better. Pasta, perhaps? No. Time is no longer on her side now and she needs to think fast. It would be such a shame if she settled for McDonald’s or Burger King now does it?

After finally trying her luck by picking up a takeaway from an unknown fancy fusion burger joint without any waiting customers, Lisa rushed to a bus stop when a car suddenly stopped in front of her. Jisoo’s face emerged when the driver’s window rolled down. “You’re going the wrong way if you’re taking this bus!”

“Aren’t you supposed to be in your shop’s kitchen? What are you doing here?”

“For someone so dense, you ask a lot of questions. Don’t waste my time. Hop in, Lisa.”

Lisa quickly got into the shotgun seat. “How do you know where I’m going?”

“No, the question is - How am I supposed to forget when Jen won’t shut up about you going to her place?” Jisoo glanced at her mirrors before merging in with the rest of the traffic. 

“Did she ever tell you why I’m going?”

“I didn’t ask. That’s none of my business anyway.” Jisoo glued her eyes in downtown Seoul traffic. It was the typical rush hour jam and she was beginning to thank herself for picking up Lisa along the way just to keep herself entertained. 

“Right.”

It was not too long after until Jisoo pulled in front of a small, yet modern apartment building. “Jen’s currently living in my brother’s old unit. When she first arrived, I asked her to stay close to our shop until she could find a place that suits her. Fast forward to today, she never left. I guess she found what she was looking for.”

“Okay? What am I going to do with all this information?” Lisa peeked beyond the dashboard to get a glimpse of the building, glanced back at Jisoo and tried to make sense at the unrelatable detail.

“What? Jen hasn’t told you anything yet?”

“Told me what?”

Jisoo pursed her lips to prevent herself from spilling more details. She didn’t expect that Jennie hadn't mentioned her flight in a couple of days. Of course, Lisa will eventually know about this but Jennie won’t probably be thrilled if Lisa would find this out from somebody else. 

“I uh, right. Jen asked me to sign on some papers so that the interiors of the apartment will be improved. She wanted the apartment to be completely overhauled.”

“But where would she stay? How long is it going to take?”

“That’s for you to ask, Lisa. Now, get your ass out of my car. We’re here”

Chapter Text

Lisa stood outside the apartment door. She held her knuckles up against it, with the slight anticipation as she could still feel the nervousness after forgetting about Jennie’s address and almost ruining her date again.

She thanked her remaining lucky stars for making Jisoo appear in front of her during such a crucial moment, and while she thought of all the possibilities that could go wrong if she combed the whole street and tried to find Jennie’s apartment - she might never make it on time.

“Aren’t you going to come in? Or are you looking at the wrong door?” Lisa never noticed that the door had already opened and Jennie briefly turned her head back to the unit to see if there was anything that caught Lisa’s gaze.

As if Lisa could embarrass herself further by zoning out. A bashful smile crept to her face once she saw her host. “Oh. No. I mean, Yes. Hi?”

“Hey.” Jennie swung the door open. “Come in. I got the ingredients ordered online. Good thing they got this delivered before you arrived.”

When Lisa stepped in, she looked up and around the unit – it was far from what she usually saw in other moderately sized apartments. It was not as huge as she expected like in those Korean drama sets, yet she thought it was better because polished hardwood floors decked the whole space, emanating a warm glow from the sunset’s reflection that bounced throughout the walls. The kitchen where they were currently standing was surprisingly adorned with modern and European-branded appliances that can put any bigger kitchens to shame too. The place was decorated with exquisite taste, but not losing the practicality and warmth for the dweller.

Lisa scooted over to the counter to get a better look at the whole apartment. “You got a nice place, it’s spacious. And you live here alone?”

“Ever since I came here.”

“Here,” Lisa says, “In case I mess it up again, I bought dinner in advance.” She slowly raised her arms and held out a small paper bag. “But that’s not to say you’re going to be a bad teacher.”

Jennie placed the paper bag into the dining table before taking out the plastic-covered boneless chicken thighs from the fridge. A couple of small spice containers from the cupboard and a few bowls were also laid out.

“Move Closer.” Jennie nodded her head to prompt the younger girl to follow her. “One of my rules around my kitchen is to follow first, ask later.”

Lisa contemplated on the lesson she’s having later. Would Jennie teach her one of those fancy healthy air-fried stuff? Or is it going to be a simpler one, which she thinks she prefers, a comforting meal that better shared over a glass of wine, relaxing music and –

Her body stiffened at the sudden wave of warmth behind her when she felt Jennie's arms snake around her midsection. But when she looked down and saw that Jennie was simply pulling and tightening the string of an apron to her waist, she was relieved.

“You know, I could have done that myself.”

“You’re my guest. And I wouldn’t want your clothes to get stained with grease splatters later. Also, have you been in school all day today?”

“Yeah, why?”

“You sure? Because you still smell good.”

Lisa blushed at the compliment. It wasn’t smooth, sure, but the thought of Jennie smelling her isn’t helping right now nor she hopes her one-liner responses wouldn’t expose her bubbling self-consciousness.

She noticed that Jennie nonchalantly went to the other side of the counter, grabbed the rest of the spice containers and measured out portions into a small mixing bowl.

“So I just need to put all these spices into the bowl and blend it with the chicken?”

“What’s my rule again?”

“Sorry. What I meant to say was, please tell me what you need me to do so that I’ll know how you want it done.” Lisa gritted her teeth at her last sentence. She needed to get out of this funk she’s feeling because she thinks what she has just said was slightly inappropriate. She saw Jennie smirking as she leaned on the counter.

Was she doing this on purpose?

In an attempt to distract herself, Lisa took hold of the container where the chicken was, and with her other free hand, grabbed the smaller bowl and began to gradually scatter the spices in an even layer. Jennie then moved closer and held the base of the spice bowl, covering her hand. She swallowed the lump in her throat when Jennie took control - halting her movement.

“You can mix the chicken with the spices with your hand while I pour the rest in. Make sure each piece is evenly coated.”

So Lisa did as she was told. Her hand swirled around, effectively scraping all bits of clumped spices at the side of the bowl. Finally, Lisa folded the whole mixture from the bottom to the top so that Jennie’s movements covered all sides.

“Remember to massage the chicken, feel the flesh and warmth of the spices between your fingers so you’ll know how everything is mixed in perfectly.”

“Are you serious? A Massage?” There’s no way Jennie was not messing with her. She rested both of her wrists on top of the bowl’s edge, both hands dripping with wet batter. She held a chuckle at the realisation that she broke the rule again but found it funnier at the thought that Jennie was telling all these lame innuendo-laced instructions. She wondered at the objective but decided to play along, just to see where all of this would go.

Jennie cleaned up after pouring the last bit of the spice mix. “That’ll be your last warning Lisa. You questioned after every step that I’ve told you.”

“I did not ask to defy you. I asked because I’m trying to make sense, I want to understand the reason why you’re telling me to Massage the chicken?”

Jennie couldn’t believe the unfolding scene in her kitchen. It’s hilarious, she thinks, that she expected herself to nail this pseudo-kitchen-teacher-dominatrix role, but her stubborn student kept tripping off her lines and could not play along. If she can’t play her cards right tonight, then she might blow up her only chance at asking Lisa to come with her to LA.

“Because you never wait for me to explain!” she finally blurted out before both of them gave in to a fit of laughter. She’s struggling, to be honest - that she can no longer tell if these lame hints that she casually blended in with steps on how to marinate a chicken is doing her a favour of charming her guest.

But seeing Lisa laughing along with her gave her a glimpse of hope. That she still has a chance.

They finished the rest of the recipe, with Jennie stowing the marinated chicken into the fridge to set and joked that for every time Lisa would break a rule, she would have to ask to remove a piece of Lisa's clothing, as a punishment. Jennie blushed profusely at her thought - a stunning girl cooking at her kitchen, wearing nothing but an apron. That is, of course, assuming that Lisa would ask questions at every step of the way.

Wait, that doesn’t look safe. But sure it is hot. And inappropriate. But it's still hot.

They found themselves waiting at the dinner table after cleaning up in the kitchen. She didn’t realise that she was staring into Lisa - who was now pulling out a neatly wrapped bun of what seemed like a burger, and placed it in front of her.

While Jennie didn’t plan on eating a lot that night she found herself mindlessly unwrapping her food, while listening to Lisa’s story of how she forgot her address right after their phone call hours ago, and Jisoo’s timely rescue. But the burger’s interesting scent diverted her attention away - she was entranced by the strange-looking brioche, which glistened by a thin layer of frosting that dripped to the sides. It was a glazed doughnut used as a burger bun, she concludes. Her deepening curiosity got the best of her when she carefully closed the gap between her and the interesting sandwich. And when she unceremoniously sank her teeth against the pillowy surface, a resisting layer of crunch hit her together with a myriad of flavours that immediately exploded within her mouth - The sharp sweetness of the delightful chiffon blended nicely with the tangy and juicy deep-fried breaded chicken thigh meat that was seemed to be marinated in kimchi juice. And as if things were not fantastic enough, a generous dressing of dill-infused mayo and sliced American cheddar cheese encapsulated all flavours in perfect balance. With every bite and chew, a whole new different flavour profile coated her whole consciousness, making her unexpectedly giddy. This odd combination of hot Nashville chicken sandwich laced with the unmistakable spicy, pungent and sour notes of perfectly fermented kimchi never occurred to her as the antithesis of everything she hated about pretentious Asian fusion food.

Oh, how Jennie would imagine enjoying a blissful life of eating all sorts of wonderful stuff with Lisa. She’s a keeper, definitely. All that work-related stress that she has to endure all day can only become just a walk in the park, and she wouldn’t mind some more if it just means ending her day with this beautiful ray of sunshine ready to kiss all her tiredness away. But all of this would only be possible - if she gets this girl to go to Los Angeles with her.

“Jisoo said something about you having a renovation at this place.”

Jisoo said what? She frowned at the possibility that Jisoo might have accidentally spilled what she’s going to do. Or say. To what extent has she told Lisa about this? But if Lisa indeed knew that she’s leaving in a few days, then Jennie assumed that she would have outright asked her when and where the hell she’s going to and would not open about the apartment renovation.

“Yeah. This is all her brother’s stuff. But everything here is too big for me, a huge fridge, stove, everything. I just wanted to transform this into something practical, like having my own dedicated working space.”

“Fair enough. But since the whole apartment would be under construction in a few days, and you still got work, where would you stay? How long would that be?”

Bingo. So Jisoo has not told Lisa everything yet. She cupped her soda can and wiped the condensation away as she braced herself to finally come clean --- again. She looked at Lisa’s face, whom she finds slightly amusing with her perfect brows creasing into a moderately concerned look.

So while she didn’t expect her grand proposal to awkwardly start off this way, it seems she has no other choice. What she did realise, however, was that it was easier to explain how the apartment renovations had the perfect timing with Lisa’s semester end. Now, why was she thinking too much anyway?

“Listen. I’ve got to go to Los Angeles in 3 days. And I’ll need to stay there for a minimum of 2 weeks. The renovations will start on my flight date and Jisoo will oversee everything.” She reached for the other girl’s hand and tentatively squeezed it before looking into her eyes. “Would you like to come with me?”

The room fell silent. Much to Jennie’s horror, Lisa’s eyes fell, unable to speak a word.

Lisa couldn’t believe it. This Jennie, whom she has a big fat crush on just asked to come with her to Los Angeles? That would have been amazing if she hadn't just committed her whole semester break to help out Sunmi. But what can she do now? Call Sunmi and tell her she’s off to Los Angeles with Jennie (of all people) and have the best summer ever?

But since when did a harmless vacation to Los Angeles become such a treacherous thought? Sunmi would always have her back and went as far as brushing the crab mishap away in exchange for her time (despite getting paid for it too). But Lisa remembered the reason why she did all of this and as much as she hated the response that she was about to make, she thought it was for everyone’s best interest.

Except her.

“Lisa?”

“I’m sorry Jennie, but I…” She pulled out from Jennie’s hold and clasped her own hands together. “ I’ve already made a promise to Sunmi that I’ll help with the bistro for the entire break. But thanks.” She tried to put up a warm smile in contrast to Jennie’s dejected look, secretly hoping it would lessen the blow.

“I see. I guess that will be a better experience for you then.” Jennie slowly stood up from where’s she’s seated and went back to the kitchen, putting out the bowl of raw chicken from the fridge. “Would you like to go ahead and fry these? They’ve been sitting for a while now, and I think they are good to go.”

“Jennie…”

Just when Jennie thought that she had it all covered, she missed a crucial part - Lisa’s time isn’t hers and therefore she just can’t assume that Lisa won’t be busy during her school break, right? But why would Lisa spend a chunk of her precious free time with her like this one, a silly fried chicken lesson which she could easily get from youtube? Why would she give this much attention to her just to say right in her face that she’s too damn busy in that stupid kitchen? And how is this more important than an all-expense-paid trip to LA?

But then maybe she’s the only one who’s seeing things this way. And maybe she was reading Lisa wrong after all.

“The earlier we can do this, the earlier we can finish, Lisa. And besides, it's getting late. I wouldn't like to keep you for too long.”

Lisa froze on where she’s seated. What was that?

You blew it, Dumbass. What are you going to do now? Tell Jennie that the reason why you're staying is because of what she and Jisoo have done?

If Jennie's sudden change of tone was not a clear indicator of how things between them are standing now, then Lisa has no choice but to follow or risk being kicked out of the apartment. So Lisa tried to salvage what was remaining of this awkward situation just to see and try if she can undo whatever this is, and convince herself that she can still make the other girl feel special.

“When is your flight? Can I drop you off at the airport?”

“No, it’s fine. Jisoo is sorting that out for me. Sunmi’s bistro has an earlier opening time so your presence is much more valued than dropping off someone.”

They fell into a comfortable silence, with the occasional sizzle when the wet batter hits the hot oil. Jennie’s instructions went through quite easily too, Lisa picking up all the basic pointers of laying the chicken pieces away from her body and not crowding the pan. They enjoyed the cooked pieces as they went along to finish the remaining batch until Lisa volunteered to clean up.

“What’s your plan after finishing your graduate degree?”

“That’s easy. I’ll try to find a job here until South Korea is sick of me and kick my ass back to Thailand. ”

“Are you sure about that? But South Korea is cold, and Thailand has a far warmer climate. What about your family?”

“I guess I found my reason to stay. And I’m sure they would understand and be happy for me if they see me in a place where I could explore and find what I want.”

“What’s your reason to stay then?”

Lisa stared at her.

“Is it someone? Because I don’t think it’s a great idea, Lisa, to rely on a person as a reason for you to stay.” She gulped. “The reason should come from what you desire, your dreams, or perhaps, a goal?”

“What if I wanted to be with that person? Wouldn’t that be enough reason?”

“Then that person should feel that they are. Don’t you think so?”

Lisa stood dumbfounded. What has she gotten herself into? As much as she wanted to say that she really wanted to come with, at this point she could only hope and pray that after a couple of weeks, Jennie and her would remain close.

It wasn’t long until all the dishes were cleaned and the kitchen counters were cleared. They settled into a more casual conversation on where in LA Jennie would stay and if Lisa can call her after work. But Jennie was now reluctant at this point - she honestly does not know where she stands and no longer sure if she wants to take things to the next level.

“Maybe can you at least let me pick you up when you return?” Lisa pleaded as she stood at the doorway. But before she reached for the doorknob, Jennie held her wrist and moved closer to her, slightly pinning her against the door.

“Look, Lisa. We might be going too fast with this and I’ve just realised that maybe this time apart would make us think about what we really need for ourselves? Of course, I’ll come home soon, but I can’t hold you down and let you wait for me especially when you have a lot of things going on for you.”

Jennie could visibly tell Lisa’s nervousness by the way the taller girl swallowed, and let out a sigh of relief.

“Even if you’re going home with someone. I’d still pick you up. We’re friends, right?”

Yup, Jennie heard that right. Friends.

Instinctively, Jennie stepped backward, giving enough space to allow Lisa’s hands to reach for the doorknob behind her. But the door remained closed, with one hand now holding Jennie’s arms gently.

This might be the only chance that she got. Her ears were ringing, she could no longer hear her thoughts and a million words raced through her mind. She really wanted to come with her, but what can she do now?

“Even if it’s not obvious, I really like you a lot Jen. Maybe more than I realise. But things aren’t really going well for us at this time, isn’t it? But that’s okay. I’ll miss you and will wait for you.”

And Jennie could no longer hold it back. She finally closed the space between them and engulfed Lisa into a hug, tiptoeing just so she could reach and wrap her arms around Lisa’s neck.

“And I’ll miss you too. And we’re just so busy, aren’t we?”

Lisa hugged her tighter and tried to breathe in the faint strawberry scent that she will surely miss. Surely, Jennie won’t be away for too long, but she wished for time so that they can have more spontaneous fast food dinners and failed kitchen encounters. And now that she finally said it, and only got a friendly, but pathetic hug, she could only hope for the best. When she pulled out from that embrace, she gave the other girl a tired smile that failed to reach her once-lively eyes.

“So, I guess I’ll see you soon? Don’t miss me too much! I’ll call whenever I can, alright?”

Jennie stood behind the apartment door minutes after Lisa had left. An unexplainable feeling of guilt washed over her because she should’ve said something, to reassure Lisa that she liked her too. That she liked her enough that she wanted to take her to LA, to get to know her more and spend a lot of time with her. ‘We’re just so busy?’ How pathetic was that? What was the reason she blurted that out instead of saying sensible and easy as ‘I like you too? Please take care of yourself and wait for me?’

But I guess she was the one that was reassured. And that should do - enough for her to hold on to for two weeks.