Jisoo looked down at her hands, playing with the three-coloured band that hugged her left ring finger. curves at the memory of Jennie buying it for her. Ironically, she is waiting for said girl by the entrance of the gym change room. She knew that Jennie had a spare block after gym and Jisoo opted to skip out on her English class (which she was way ahead in) to talk to her.

She waited, leaning against the concrete wall, fidgeting with the circles on her button-up. Her eyes roaming up to see an unfamiliar sight: Lisa talking to Chaeyoung, not dismissively, in fact, she was laughing. Jisoo smiled at the sight but it wasn't until she heard the soft laughter of the dark-haired that readjusted her attention on the female.

"Jennie!" she called out, taking long strides behind the quickening pace of the female.

The bell rings, prompting students to dart to their classes in every direction. Jisoo swore she would have lost Jennie if it weren't for her tall stature.

She jogs after Jennie who turned around the corner, hiding behind a pillar. At this point the halls were empty, leaving Jisoo and Jennie alone in the corridor.

Jisoo sees an empty hallway but there's a gut feeling that tells her that Jennie's presence is still nearby. She didn't need to face Jennie to tell her things that came from her heart, actually, she preferred to spill her emotions this way, it saves her from Jennie catching a glimpse of her reddening visage.

Jisoo sighs, unknowingly leaning against the same pillar that Jennie used to conceal her presence.

"I can't see you but I know you're here. I mean I hope you are or else I'd just sound like a lunatic right now."

Jennie fights the giggle attempting to escape her lips and decides to settle on a smile instead.

"I realize what a jerk I became," Jisoo continued, her tone much more sombre. "Before the whole popularity thing, all I ever did was think about you, dream about being a part of your life. I hope that didn't sound too creepy."

Silence responds; not like Jisoo expected any response to begin with.

"And then I got that stupid idea and I let it turn me into something I'm not. I'm sorry," she said.

Jennie opened to respond but was interrupted by another voice.

"Ms. Kim? Aren't you supposed to be in English class?"

Jisoo looked up to see the vice principal walking towards her.

"I hope you're not skipping are you?"

Jisoo stuttered, trying to find sentences, an excuse, a lie but nothing covers up the suspicion.

"I'm afraid I'll have to give you detention young lady."

The brunette sighs and nods her head, "Sorry ma'am."

Jisoo follows the vice principal who ushered her to her English class, leaving Jennie behind to ponder on the brunette's words.

-----

Knock! Knock!

Jennie's door opens revealing her mom clutching a phone in hand.

"Cindy. Jisoo's on the line, asking for you? You guys are friends?"

The raven-haired shakes her head. "Must've mistaken me for someone else. We're not friends. Tell her I'm out of the country or something."

"Jen, she saw you at school today. I don't think that's a viable excuse."

"Mom I don't know. Make up something please."

Her mom nodded, pulling the phone back up to her ears. "Hey Jis, she's not here right now. Can I take a message?"

Jennie hears an 'It's fine,' on the speaker, followed after by silence.

The weight of her mother causes the bed to dip, the female etching curious stares at her face.

"What's going on?" her mother inquires.

She only responds with silence.

"First you consider her a geek and then I see you hanging out with her and then she's a geek again?"

Jennie smiles at her mother's keen observations, leaving all questions unanswered.

------

The beginning of her weekend was unpleasant, to say the least. She woke up to blaring music that echoed throughout the living room.

Angry and annoyed, she stomped towards the area ready to fight the person causing the racket when she meets the presence of Jisoo playing with Ella.

She turns off the speakers, crossing her arms as she glared at Jisoo. "What are you doing here?!"

Jisoo glances at Ella, tilting her head towards the girl's room as a request for privacy. Ella nodded, walking towards her room and shutting the door behind her.

"Listen, I need to talk to you. Every time I called, you were either taking a bath, washing your hair or out and about somewhere. I tried to get you alone in school but instead, I got a week's worth of detention."

"That's not my problem."

Jisoo takes a step forward causing Jennie to take a step back. "Jen, just hear me out. And then I'll leave you alone. Okay?"

Jennie doesn't respond; the absence of rejection encouraging Jisoo to continue.

"New Year's Eve, you demolished me. But see, I realize you did me a favour. You brought me back to reality."

Jisoo's eyes began to water, the liquid increasing at every confession that spilled from her lips. "All I ever wanted to do was get close to you. And then, when I finally got there, it wasn't me anymore."

Jennie's angered expression softens. Her defence was melting under Jisoo's confession and she didn't know whether that was a good thing or a bad one.

"Jen I was just hoping we could sort this out, you know? The real me and the real you. That's all."

Jennie's lips twitch upward, it wasn't a smile, but it was something that had the same feeling. "Fine. But not at six in the morning."

Jisoo wipes her tears away, presenting Jennie a gummy smile. "Okay, I'll come back at eleven."

"I'll be washing my hair somewhere that's not here."

The brunette giggles. "Real funny."

They both look down on the ground, a comfortable silence filling the room.

"You should get some more sleep else it'll take a toll on your pretty face," Jisoo jokes and she could swear she saw a hint of pink on Jennie's cheeks.

"It doesn't take much to maintain this beauty," Jennie quipped.

"I bet."

Their eyes meet and there's a glint of attraction that's reflected in both of their eyes but neither make a move. Instead, they depart, Jisoo returning to Ella and Jennie going back to sleep or just laying on her bed, thinking about Jisoo.

-----

"Is that right?" Lisa asks the red-haired beside her, motioning towards the equation on the paper.

Chaeyoung smiles, nodding. "Good job!"

"Really!?" Lisa's eyes widen, a grin complimenting it.

Jisoo watches the interaction from afar, smiling from ear to ear as she munched on her sandwich. Although the two weren't friends, she was happy for Chaeyoung; she managed to talk to her crush without having to change herself. How she wishes she could have done the same.

-----

"What's happening guys?" Jaebum asked, slapping the hands extended towards him, greeting both Yugyeom and Jackson.

They tilted their head towards Lisa and Chaeyoung. "Nerd alert. He's in our quadrant too."

Jaebum narrows his eyes, his eyebrows knitting closer. "Chaeyoung Park with our Lisa? No way!"

His suspicions were answered when Lisa pulls the red-haired in for a hug.

"Chaeyoung Park is trying to pull a Jisoo Kim scam on us," he commented, eyes never leaving the pair. "She's probably trying to pay her off."

"Relax man. She's harmless," Jackson defended.

Jackson shook his head, gripping his baseball glove, tearing it off his hand. "I'm sending him back to the minor leagues."

With that, he stood up striding towards the two, ignoring Yugyeom and Jackson's attempts to cool him down.

". He's gonna make a fool out of himself," Yugyeom muttered, clenching his temples.

He was right. Jaebum pulled Chaeyoung out of her seat, hands tightly gripping her wrist. "What do you think you're doing here, wimp?"

Fear flashed through Chaeyoung's eyes. "H-helping her with some math," she confessed, trying to release herself from the male's hold.

"Bull. You're trying to pull a Jisoo Kim scam."

"A what?" Chaeyoung answers.

"You better get back to your side, or I'm gonna send you back to Geeksville in a milk carton," he threatened.

Jennie spectated the interaction, twisting her head back at Yugyeom and Jackson. "Would you guys do something!"

They stayed silent, eyes roaming down to the food on their trays. They wanted to, but that would cost their position on the baseball team.

The situation was increasing in danger and no one was making a move. That is until Jisoo stood up from her seat, grabbing a baseball bat beside the team's table, and making her way to Jaebum.

Her presence was acknowledged when Jaebum slightly released his hold on Chaeyoung to focus on Jisoo. "Oh look, the return of the living dread!"

"Why don't you lay off?!" Jisoo warned, gripping onto the wooden bat until her knuckles turned white. She has never held a baseball bat before but she figured it didn't take much practice to know how hard she needed to swing, especially with her expertise in physics.

Jaebum steps forward, his posture overpowering Jisoo's small stature. "Why don't you go back to where you belong?"

Admittedly, Jisoo was a bit frightened but she gulps down her fears. "Let her go...or I'll break your arm. Your pitching arm."

"Oh yeah? Don't make me laugh, scammer."

Jisoo's expression was unwavering, showing no signs of retreat. "Let go," she commanded. Adrenaline was rushing through her veins and it was ready to be released sometime soon.

Jaebum scoffs.

"Let go!"

He doesn't listen.

"Now!" she demands, swinging the bat onto a nearby table, almost breaking it in half.

Everyone fell silent at the action; teachers sprung up from the lunch line but none moved forward to stop the two.

"You broke your arm once before, remember?" Jisoo reminded, eyes piercing Jaebum's pair. "You fell out of the school treehouse. Chaeng picked you up and we carried you twelve blocks to the hospital."

Chaeyoung smiled. "Yeah, you cried all the way."

The comment earned her a glare from Jaebum.

"We were all friends then, remember? And now you're threatening to end her life because she's talking to Patty on your side of the cafeteria."

Jaebum remains silent, eyes never leaving Jisoo's.

"That's stupid. I know, because that's where I wanted to be. On your side. With your crowd. I messed up. I tried to buy my way in but Chaeyoung... she's not trying to buy anyone."

His expression softens.

"She's just trying to make friends. Being herself. Cools, nerds, your side, my side. It's all bull. It's tough enough to be yourself."

Jisoo flips the bat, extending its handle towards Jaebum, encouraging him to take it. It's a simple action but it means a lot; it's an unspoken agreement that exemplifies her point.

She walks away, walking towards an undesignated location. She doesn't look back at the awed expression on multiple student's faces, she's just happy no one got hurt.

Jaebum extends his hands towards Chaeyoung and apologizes, the latter smiles and accepts it. The interaction is followed by applause, unifying the nerds, the jocks, and the freaks. For once, they're all accepted as who they are and it was all because of Jisoo.

-----

Jisoo sat beneath a tree, scribbling some notes on her notebook as she enjoyed the light summer breeze. Her attention is fixated on her textbook until she sees a pair of feet enter her view. She looks up and sees Jennie, smiling down at her.

"My mom told me to pass you this," she says, extending an envelope towards Jisoo.

Jisoo grips the envelope, making sure she feels Jennie's skin under her grasp.

The fleeting interaction was enough to tint a pink hue on both girl's faces.

"Thanks," Jisoo replied. She opened to talk more but a honk interrupted her from doing so.

They both looked towards the noise, it was Lisa and Irene along with Jaebum, Jackson and Yugyeom. They gestured for Jennie to come, a faint 'hurry up,' and 'let's go,' directed towards her.

Jennie turned her head back at Jisoo. "I'll see you around."

Jisoo returned a smile, watching Jennie's back as she walked towards the packed vehicle.

As much as the brunette wanted to be with Jennie, she knew that the latter had set up some defences and it would only take time for Jisoo to warm up to her. The brunette didn't mind, she could wait for Jennie for years if she had to.

She turned her attention back to the set of notes in front of her before hearing a ding emitted from her phone. It was Chaeyoung offering her gratification and an invitation for their next movie night.

Jisoo accepted the invitation, feeling giddy at the fact that things were settling into place.

She remained content with how things were but fell into a sudden surprise when she found Jennie running towards her, stopping just right in front of her, panting, gasping for air.

Jisoo stood up, rubbing comforting circles at the dark-haired's back as the female bent over.

Jennie laughed, springing up from her exhaustion to pull Jisoo into a hug, locking her arms around the girl's neck. Jisoo was taken aback, not sure how to respond but eventually found herself encircling her arms around Jennie's bare waist. Her blazing warmth prickling the hairs on Jisoo's skin.

Jisoo wanted to hold the shorter girl forever, not wanting to let go. She's been waiting for this moment for as long as she thought about it.

Jennie pulled back from the embrace, looking up at Jisoo's chocolate eyes. All she sees is the look of affection and admiration that was only reserved for her, and she melted under her gaze.

She pulls Jisoo towards her, closing the gap between them and sealing it with a kiss. Jisoo tasted of cherries, a strawberry scent filling Jennie's nose.

It was exactly like she imagined: soft, not too sloppy but filled with want and need.

They pulled back, foreheads resting against each other, both catching their breaths.

They stood there, underneath the tree that speckled traces of sunlight above them; within the breeze that pulled them closer for warmth and the air that was filled with love. They were unsure of what was to come next but they were certain that they needed to be together.

Jisoo was her geek and Jennie was her poet, no money could ever get in the way of these two.

-----AN-----

Finally done!!! Expect an epilogue sometime soon.