CHAPTER THREE

As Jennie hurriedly tugs Chaeyoung’s wrist towards the exit of the library, the lyricist releases a worried yelp, making Jennie giggle in return. Though Chaeyoung won’t lie that the sound does make the butterflies from her insides fly higher, she still does not like the idea of getting dragged out of nowhere only to be pulled to a place she has no clue as to where it leads. Heck, she barely even knows the woman.

Jennie pushes the door aggressively, steps getting more agile, forcing Chaeyoung to match her pace with her’s. They pass through a couple of unbothered students among them who didn’t really seem interested and were only paying attention to their own business. The pair eventually reach the exit to the school building, to which they were met by the cold wind seeping through along the chattering of all sorts of people. The trees in their university seem to be blooming at its finest, as a series of bright pigments paint itself in each leaf. Chaeyoung takes a look at the woman next to her, who was looking at the leaves and was oddly keeping a small grin to herself.

“Jennie-ssi, we’re outside,” the lyricist states the fact as she allows herself to shift her head in different angles, observing her own surroundings. Jennie’s smile grows wider with Chaeyoung’s previous sentence, nodding eagerly as if to agree.

“Yeah. I just didn’t want us to be cooped up in that hell, if you catch my drift.” Jennie’s hand slides down from Chaeyoung’s wrist down to her own hand, interlacing them together like childhood friends that have known each other for a long time. Caution is immediately thrown out of the wind as soon as Chaeyoung takes notice of the woman’s grip getting tighter, feeling her own palms sweat at the gesture. Her eyes can’t seem to dart away at the sight of such gentle hands intertwined with her own, causing her to freeze at the moment.

“Jennie-ssi, I--”

“Oh come on, Chaeyoung,” Jennie starts, “You can drop the honorifics. It’s not like I’m older than you.”

Jennie nudges the aspiring lyricist further to a quite familiar path, but she cannot seem to recall. The delve forward and turn to a couple of roads before Chaeyoung’s mind starts to light up a bulb.

Just how old was Jennie?

“I’m a senior, just in case you needed a peace of mind.” Jennie interrupts Chaeyoung’s never ending cloud of thought. The girl seemed to overthinking every single thing, so maybe Jennie eventually caught up with her.

“How did you even--”

“Dummy, I see the gears shifting around that head of yours,” Jennie’s chuckle fills the air, fills up the butterflies in Chaeyoung’s stomach too. Their wings flutter inside her stomach, but she denies it, treats it like an itch she couldn’t scratch. She shrugs it off and continues to walk along the woman. Not like she had any choice anyway, Jennie’s grip wasn’t an easy escape.

Despite still being in the university, Chaeyoung’s feet were getting tired. It’s obvious that she’s not a master of exercise, but this presumable lunatic in front of her did not seem like the type to run out of energy at all.

They finally arrive to a familiar garden Chaeyoung’s been in not too long ago. It still had the familiar feel, the blooms around them serving as a decor for the greenery they’re in. The air flows through, and she notes its freshness. Chaeyoung won’t lie, this scene felt like they were in some college drama where all things seem to happen like fairytales. She recalls familiar scenes of leading actors and actresses alone in some sort of sanctuary, and eventually, the long, awaited, and typically cringe-worthy kiss comes along the way. Most of the people find it beautiful, and Chaeyoung may have thought of it like that too.

But this was not a drama that she and Jisoo watch on the daily. This is reality.

The older woman eventually lets go of her hand, letting her palm fall limp and disconnected on her side. Chaeyoung’s hand tingles, adjusting to the lack of warmth she just had earlier from Jennie’s own. It feels weird now that it’s gone.

The older woman prances further, seemingly already lost in her own world. Chaeyoung’s own mind drifts off, recalls the fact that Jennie is a bit shockingly older than her. Not that it was wrong, really. She just thought that they would’ve been the same age, considering Jennie’s appearance.

(And well, maybe her personality too. But Chaeyoung thinks that if she’s going to judge Jennie’s personality, she might as well been perceived as a child.)

“Ah, this is more like it!” the older woman spreads out her hands a does a little spin, eliciting a soft giggle from Chaeyoung. The lyricist immediately holds herself back, putting her hand to her own mouth to a stop.

Jennie snaps her head towards the younger woman’s direction, cocking her head to express obliviousness.

“S-sorry for laughing.” Chaeyoung shoots her an apologetic look, shutting her eyes and preparing herself to be spat by probable annoyance.

But Jennie does the opposite.

Chaeyoung opens her eyes from the lack of sound, only hearing the cold, gentle breeze passing through the both of them. The wind blows Jennie’s hair sideways, allowing her long, brunette strands to flow wildly in the air. The hairs covering up the younger’s skin rises from the wind.

She gives Chaeyoung a gummy smile, a smile that she’s used not too long ago, and looks at the younger woman with squinted eyes that looked like it twinkled. One of her eyebrows is slowly raised up, probably a minimal habit she has whenever she smiles. The faint sunrays reflect on Jennie’s face, allowing Chaeyoung to have an even better look at her features, to bask in the glow of the woman in front of her.

The scenery is a perfect theme for a drama. With