“Hey Lisa, you coming to the café later with us today?”

Lisa looks up from her desk with a rueful smile. “Sorry guys, not today.”

Her friends frown. “Aw, why not? You really wanted to go last time, didn’t you?”

Lisa shrugs disappointedly, but she’s resolute. “Yeah, but I’ll come next time. Chaeyoung is sick.”

“exCUSe mE?!”

Her friends are shoved aside and all part like the Red Sea. Jennie Kim stands before her, breathing fast, incredulous, and slightly pissy (but when is she not). “What do you mean Chaeyoung is sick??”

Lisa looks at her, blinking. “Chaeyoung came down with something a couple of days ago and she’s developed a fever. I’m going to drop by after school to check up on her.”

“Wait, which Chaeyoung? My Chaeyoung or Tzuyu’s Chaeyoung?”

“Leave me out of this!” Tzuyu’s Chaeyoung screeches from a couple desks down. Lisa laughs and waves apologetically at the fun-sized girl, while Jennie’s attention remains (frighteningly) transfixed on her.

Lisa arches a brow at the expectant glare but answers anyway. “Park Chaeyoung. Park Chaeyoung is sick, not Son Chaeyoung. As you can see, Son Chaeyoung is thriving and striving right over there.”

Jennie’s jaw all but drops to the ground at the acquisition of this information. “Wh- who- when- the - why wasn’t I informed?!?”

Lisa looks at her disapprovingly. “I can’t answer that for you.” She looks past Jennie’s shoulder and sees Kim Jisoo hovering a few feet behind them. Lisa asks for help with her eyes. The older girl shrugs passively at Lisa’s dilemma. Lisa internally groans.

“Wh- I’m coming with you!”

Lisa’s attention snaps back to the girl in front of her. “Excuse me?!”

“You heard me.” Jennie’s hands are on her hips, feet shoulder width apart, and she looks totally ready to annihilate Lisa should she disagree. “I’m coming with you after school today to see Chaeyoung!”

Lisa feels her right eye twitch. “You- you can’t just barge in uninvited! She didn’t even tell you she was sick, did she?”

Jennie’s ears flush red. “Th- that is beside the point! I’m coming, and that’s final!”

Lisa slumps over on her desk.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chaeyoung’s head is throbbing. She’d come down with a fever last night, and she’d been coughing for a couple of days before- being sick is just an overall miserable time. At least Lisa had promised to come visit her today, after classes were over. She sighs, sinking down into her pillows. She misses Lisa. Lisa makes everything better. She should be here soon.

“Where is my husband?!”

Jennie all but knocks down the door to the vacant Park household and bursts inside. Lisa and Jisoo trail in, much quieter, behind her.

Chaeyoung looks at Lisa, slightly incredulous, from her spot on the couch. Lisa shrugs helplessly. Jisoo waves cheerfully.

“Hi Chaeyoung. How’re you feeling?” The older girl greets her, dropping on the end of the couch. “Sorry for just barging in like this.”

Jennie seems to be finished turning over everything in the kitchen looking for Chaeyoung and is now making her way upstairs. Chaeyoung glances at the raging girl briefly before turning back to Jisoo. “I’m alright. And it’s fine- thanks for coming by, unnie.”

Jisoo frowns, carding a quick hand through the strands on Chaeyoung’s forehead, moving them from her face. “We would’ve come sooner if we’d known you were this sick.”

Chaeyoung coughs. “It’s fine, I was just resting up and all that.”

Lisa reemerges from the kitchen with a fresh mug of hot tea. “I’m sorry Chaeng- they followed me here.” She says remorsefully as she sets the mug on the end table.

“She followed you here.” Jisoo is quick to correct. Lisa glares at her. “And I think she’s still looking for you. Guess she’s looked everywhere but here.”

“Honestly, I can’t believe she didn’t see you.” Lisa glances warily upstairs, where sounds of Jennie’s search are audible even from the living room.

Jisoo just shrugs. “You’ll have to excuse her- she’s kind of an idiot.”

Jennie finally descends the spiraling staircase and halts in her steps when she sees both Lisa and Jisoo sitting by a fatigued Chaeyoung. “There you are!” She charges down the remaining stairs and doesn’t hesitate to shove Lisa out of her way, dropping on her knees to Chaeyoung’s eye-level. “Why didn’t you tell me you were sick?”

The drastic change in her tone of voice is enough to give anyone whiplash. Lisa rolls her eyes but sits down on the adjacent loveseat instead. Jisoo laughs silently behind her hand.

Chaeyoung coughs in Jennie’s face. “Sorry babe. I fell asleep.”

Jennie frowns disapprovingly. “How are you feeling?”

“Alright.” Chaeyoung heaves up some more mucus. “My face is burning though, and I’ve got the chills.”

Jennie holds a trash can in front of her. “You should’ve called me.”

Chaeyoung throws her tissues out. “I forgot. Sorry.”

“But you called Lisa?”

Chaeyoung shrugs weakly. “She would’ve found out even if I hadn’t said anything.”

Jennie looks hurt, like a kicked puppy. Lisa rolls her eyes from her seat; it’s so strange, yet so Jennie. “But you’re my girlfriend.”

“I just didn’t want to bother you, Jen. I promise I’ll text you next time, okay?

Jennie seems temporarily appeased by the promise, although that doesn’t stop her from turning and glowering at Lisa. “What’s so great about her anyway.” She grumbles crossly under her breath.

Lisa’s jaw drops. “Excuse me?!?”

“You’re not excused. Stop hanging out so much with my girlfriend.”

Jisoo sighs on the side as Lisa splutters. “Wh- you-“

“Jennie, be nice to her.”

“Sorry babe.”

Lisa throws her hands up in exasperation. “The disrespect in this house!”

Jisoo chuckles as she brings Chaeyoung another box of tissues. “Well, now that that’s all sorted out- is there anything we can do for you while we’re here?”

Chaeyoung smiles tiredly, gratefully up at the older girl. “I’m alright for now. Thank you, guys.”

“No problem!” Jennie brashly inserts herself in front of Lisa, who really just wants to give up at this point (she can’t win against this woman, really; not when Chaeyoung’s involved at least). “Let me make you something so you don’t have to cook!”

Chaeyoung’s eyes kind of flutter shut as she ignores Jennie, who’s already long gone and making a break to the kitchen. Lisa looks a little concerned.

“Can she cook?”

Jisoo glances in Jennie’s direction. The girl is currently wearing a pot on her head and waving a colander at the Park’s refrigerator. “Don’t think so.”

Lisa sighs.

Four hours and a slightly singed Lisa later, there are four plates of ravioli and a ton of Tupperware containers filled with miscellaneous food items that Lisa had made from whatever was left in Chaeyoung’s fridge.

Jennie rushes to the living room on her tippy toes to quietly peer at Chaeyoung, who has finally started to stir. “Chaeng?”

“Hmm?” Comes Chaeyoung’s tired response. Jennie blinks down at her, carding a soft hand through matted locks.

“We made you dinner. Are you hungry?”

Lisa has never known Chaeyoung to turn down food of any sort, and today is no exception. Chaeyoung rises from the couch with some sort of old-person groan. Lisa would laugh at her had she not been too intimidated by Jennie hovering protectively by her side (she doesn’t feel like being annihilated today).

Jisoo pokes her head out from the kitchen, where she’s washing the dishes from their cooking adventures. “Chaeyoung, come eat something!”

Chaeyoung smiles gratefully as she ambles to the table, where Jennie eagerly slams a plate of ravioli in front of her. “Go on, try it!” Jennie encourages her happily, thrumming in anticipation when Chaeyoung finally takes her first bite.

“It’s good!” Chaeyoung smiles through a mouth full of cheese, and all is right with the world again. 

Lisa sighs because let’s be real, Jennie is high-key ridiculous and she honestly was really surprised when Jennie came out of nowhere that fated Saturday evening and confessed to Chaeyoung- calm, collected, level-headed Chaeyoung. She can’t really say anything about Jennie being a bad girlfriend though; Jennie is loyal as a puppy, head lolling to the side as she watches carefully over Chaeyoung who is chewing on the last of her pasta. 

Jisoo looks up some time after they’ve finished eating and Chaeyoung has made her way back to the couch. “Jen, don’t you have to get going soon?”

Jennie peeks at the clock on the wall behind Jisoo’s head. “Oh.”

Chaeyoung glances up through sleepy eyes from her phone. “Are you late again?”

Jennie frowns. “Yeah, I have to go pick up my mom from the airport later.” She sighs forlornly, gazing at Chaeyoung.

“You better get going then- don’t keep her waiting.” Chaeyoung lifts her phone screen to show the older girl the time. “Traffic should have died down by now, so it’s best to get going soon.”

“Will you be okay for the rest of today?”

Chaeyoung smiles up at her from the blanket mass. “Of course.”

Jennie’s brows furrow together in some sort of adorable expression of concern. “Call me first thing tomorrow morning.”

“I will.”

“Call me tonight if you need anything.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Call me if you need a ride anywhere. Or if you need medicine. Or if you can’t sleep. Or-”

Chaeyoung rolls her eyes in fond exasperation as she half-heartedly pushes Jennie’s shoulder away from her. “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine. Plus, Lisa’s here.”

Jennie glares at aforementioned best friend. Lisa rolls her eyes.

“Goodbye, Jennie.”

Jennie glares at Lisa once more before kissing Chaeyoung’s forehead tenderly and possessively, heading out the door with Jisoo in tow. The older girl waves at the fatigues Chaeyoung and makes a funny face at Lisa before following Jennie outside.

Lisa glances warily at the door where the older girls had been standing. “You have questionable taste in women, don’t you?”

Chaeyoung shrugs. “Eh. I like her a lot, so.”

Lisa just sighs, plopping down on the loveseat across from Chaeyoung. “Are you going to take your medicine today?”

Chaeyoung scrunches her nose. “You know I hate that stuff. I’ll just drink some more water- I’ll be fine!” She waves a hand about cheerfully despite her feverish state.

Lisa doesn’t look convinced, but relents nonetheless. “Well then you better get some rest then. I don’t need her on my tomorrow about why you’re not getting better.”

Chaeyoung just laughs sleepily, brushing off Lisa’s concern with a light heart. “Don’t be silly Lisa. Jennie wouldn’t do that.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“What do you mean Chaeyoung isn’t better yet?!”

A glowering Jennie towers above Lisa’s desk, dark eyes fiercely trained on Lisa’s sitting form. She looks like she’s ready to attack the younger girl, height difference be dammed. Jisoo shrugs from behind her, looking on amusedly. 

Lisa is incredulous. “It’s been less than twenty-four hours!”

Jennie doesn’t budge. “So?! Just what have you been doing while I was away?!”

Lisa just groans.

“You better have a good explanation for this Manoban, or I’m going to end you!”

Note to self: always gonna force Chaeyoung to drink the medicine.