But that was two weeks ago

"Is she always that-"
"Serious?" Seulgi completed the sentence observing Jisoo patiently follow Jennie's trail in the kitchen below them.

"Hmm.. I've known her to be quiet since I met her at the academy."
"Ahhh..." Jisoo dropped her hands and held onto the metal banister of the apartment's second floor. It was obvious in her expression that she was saddened by the answer more than intrigued
"BUT! She isn't always like that. It's just that it's a little difficult making her smile sometimes especially nowadays." Seulgi added, in the hopes of uplifting her mood, if not her expectations of Jennie. Jisoo wanted to suppress her curiosity but something inside her, though unwillingly, made it impossible for her to subdue her concern for the girl who finally settled on the kitchen counter with her head buried in a book. "Is there a particular reason for her being like that? I mean, being difficult to cheer up?" She asked putting effort in making her inquiry sound less apprehensive
"Hmmm... We have a speculation but I am not entirely sure if I should tell you because it's not my story to tell. But... I also think that it's a must that you get to know us in order to trust us. And I'm certain you wouldn't squeeze anything out of Jennie.
"I can wait if you're not comfortable telling me I don't expect you to fully trust me with your personal details either. At least not yet” But she only told half of the truth. She knew the personal lives of the members since she had access to the academy's trainee database, except for Jennie and Chae who joined the group last, making their complete files unavailable digitally
"Oh, believe me it's not a matter of comfort or a trust because I never doubted you and your boss intentions. I just thought it would be better if she’Il told you. But like I said, that opportunity will not come around soon, so maybe l can provide you with a little overview." The girl winked at Jisoo who was not even remotely ready to give up her curiosity of Jennie.
"Overview... I like that." She smiled back.
"You already know that only her and Chae goes to school, and at times Lisa takes up a few units. But Jennie particularly wanted to finish a degree so she could leave this job and make a more decent living."
"Ahhhh, so it's school..."
"Wait, that's not half of it. You might think that Jennie is a character straight out of a really tragic drama. She lives for her mother who is ill in the province. Whenever we got paid, she sent almost everything back home. So, imagine how she felt when we got discharged from the academy which was her only source of income.
"Ohh..." She felt distraught more than she expected. "What illness? If it's not too much to ask”
"Uhhhmmm... wait, I always mispronounce this."
Seulgi scratched the side of her head while
her neurons struggled to locate the elusive
memory.

"Ahh! I remember now! Something like a lie-phobia." She said nodding, very convinced of
her answer
"its lymphoma, some form of malignancy. Chae appeared from her room, with a book in one hand and an empty coffee cup in another.

"l suppose your discourse is about Jennie-eomma's condition? Seulgi-eonnie will never get the right word in her lifetime."
Seulgi turned toward the genius of the group and snarled at her

"Aish, this whiz kid. Yeah, I remember now, it's lymphobia."
"See? I told you she'll never muster the right letters.” Chae and Jisoo both gave out a faint laugh upon hearing the eldest failed vindication of herself. Seulgi hissed and side-glanced at the young girl and continued her narration.

“As I was saying, Jennie seemed to have put all her effort to making sure she provides for her mother since she's her only family. She just has so much on her plate, that's why she's like that.”
"Her mom is her only family?"
"Hmmm... I didn't think this is overview through."
After taking a deep breath, "Well, aside from her
mom having that something-phomia..."Still in- correct but they let it slide. "...She lost her father and brother. But their deaths, I cannot explain to you anymore.” It was not that Seulgi did not want to, but it was because she did not have a clue. None of them knew how and why they died
"Ahh... I understand perfectly”' Jisoo's expression turned pensive as she vividly remembered her own mother's death, which she always thought was a pointless act of heroism
“l know Jennie-eonnie is innately cheerful, it shows sometimes when she forgets the burden she's enduring. She has her cute moments too; but I'm not sure if we'll ever see that again in this century." Chae injected before situating herself between the conversing eonnies.
"Well, I hope at least her boyfriend makes her smile.” Jisoo insinuated only to check the other girls reaction through her periphery. It was more of finding a hint about Jennie's love life more than being hopeful that some romance makes days better for the lady who was the center of their discreet discussion.
"Hah! Not in a thousand years would Jennie think
about being in a relationship."
"l can swear that she never uttered the words love and boyfriend for so long that they have
naturally just become archaic." Chae added
"Ohh..." Jisoo's lips quivered to a smile. "Maybe
after studies? So, does that mean none of you
have someone special too?" Now that she got
the information she wanted, she was desperate
to change the topic to conceal her sudden
elation
"Ahh... i'll leave that sensitive topic to Seulgi-eonnie." Chae was quick to evade and
flashed a rather uncomfortable smile at Jisoo.

"I need to refill my cup and finish this book today. The mark in her book suggested that she had
at the most, only twenty pages left, and so her
sudden exit was not at all academic-related. She darted down the stairs before Seulgi could
protest. Tsss... Sometimes, I want to believe
that her wit is anything but an advantage." She
shook her head, eyes glued on Chae who went
straight to the coffeemaker and offered Jennie a
fresh cup. Jisoo tried not to laugh but the sound still escaped her lips. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to
laugh. It's just that you're expression…” The whole truth is, her laughter was partly because she had to find an outlet to release her gladness and relief that rooted from the knowledge that Jennie was romantically unattached
"Aish...So anyway, yeah, technically none of us is in a relationship but some of us have been, just months ago." There was a hint of disappointment as her gaze turned to Joohyun who sat on the couch watching a foreign movie only in closed captions
"And I suppose one was Joohyun?"
“And me. But we broke up. Well, it was a mutual decision, not that we were fighting or something”. It was apparent that Seulgi just wanted to sound casual but it seemed more obvious that she was faking it.
“That explains why I never hear you call you eonnie." It was not only the dropping of honorifics that she noticed but also episodes of Joohyun's hole-drilling stares at Seulgi and their often-inconsistent body language.

"So what happened? Things got in the way? Work? Priorities?" The younger girl blurted out, certain that none of the stereotypical reasons she enumerated could have caused the breakup
“Yes, yes and yes. Whoa, are you a