“So what you’re saying is that I’m basically going to be forced to sit through the awkwardness along with you, then.” 

“Basically,” I agreed, nodding over at Jennie. She smirked at me from the passenger’s seat. 

“Okay. But I’m staying over afterward.” She let out a squeal as Kuma surprised her from the back seat, jumping into her lap and at her face. “Careful, I’m driving,” I reminded her. 

“Slowly. Where are we even going? You should just tell me.” 

“To one of my favorite places in Seoul,” was all I said. “Is it a gay bar? I hope it’s not. I don’t want to meet other girls.” 

“I’m flattered,” I joked and ignored the way my stomach flopped. “I have this theory,” Jennie began. “You have a lot of theories.” She ignored me and continued, “-that if I hit on you relentlessly enough, you’ll crack eventually. See, when guys do it, it’s creepy and gross, but I’m female and pretty and you actually like hanging out with me, so it’s okay.” 

“Is it?” 

She nodded simply and proceeded to kiss Kuma over and over on his head. He at and she saw me pull a face. “You’re just jealous he gets to kiss me and you don’t.” 

“Uh huh.” I pulled into a parking lot and Jennie tugged at Kuma’s leash until he was under control. Then we got out of the car together. “Okay.” I pointed to the woods nearby. “We’re following that trail there for only about half a mile or so. My dad told me about this place a few years back. He and mom went here in high school on their first date.” 

“Are you serious? And you try to act like you don’t like me,” Jennie marveled, wide open. 

“You wanted to see where I go for fun and which places I like around here,” I insisted. “This is it.” 

“And it’s a romantic dating spot your parents used to use. How convenient,” she drawled, sauntering past me. Or... attempting to. Kuma pulling at his leash ruined it a little. 

We wound our way down the trail for ten minutes or so before we came to my parents’ hidden gem of a spot. Buried in the woods was a drop-off that led to a small body of water, distantly connected to the ocean. Up at the top of the cliff above the water’s edge was where I liked best, but nearby, the land sloped down to the water’s level, complete with a small beach, and it was easy to wade into the water from there. 

“Whoa. Does anyone else know about this place?” Jennie asked me, already leading Kuma down the slope. “This is awesome! We have to bring swimwear next time; I wanna try jumping off of that cliff.” 

“Hoony knows I like it here. And you can’t jump from there,” I warned her. “There are rocks below; it’s really dangerous. You have to just get in from where you are now.” 

I followed her down the slope, pointing out the rocks in question. A few jutted out just visibly from beneath the water, but there were more underneath. “You’d have to be pretty lucky to miss them all. The drop itself isn’t too bad; it’s the landing that’s the problem.” 

She frowned. “Gotta get your thrills somewhere else,” I lamented, patting her on the shoulder. She unleashed Kuma and he leapt into the water, splashing the both of us. I sat down on the sand as we watched him swim, and after a moment, Jennie joined me, admiring our surroundings. 

“This is really beautiful, Lisa.” 

“Thanks.” I didn’t know what else to say, and we both fell silent. As Kuma paddled back and forth, I felt Jennie shift closer to me. She leaned over and surprised me by kissing me gently on the cheek, and then rested her head on my shoulder. It felt natural, and I didn’t stop her. I didn’t want to. 

“I imagined Seoul to be all about drama and pop. I watch a lot of KDrama and I gotta say.. This is the genre I constantly watch.”

“A 22 years old socially awkward with a job at a fast food place. And I’m refusing to date you. You sure hit the jackpot,” I joked. 

“I must break you,” she replied in what sounded like a Russian accent. I pulled away to shoot her a confused look, and she looked disappointed. 

“Rocky IV? No? Doesn’t ring a bell?” “They kept going after the first one?” She sighed deeply, shaking her head. “What do you even watch?” “I like older movies,” I explained. 

She sighed out, pretending to swoon. “Oh, come on. Like, what’s so great about Rocky IV?” 

“Sylvester Stallone punches !” 

“You’re such a dude and I recall you saying you watch plenty of KDrama, a romantic one to be exact.”

“Because Sylvester Stallone is such a paragon of love and acceptance. Whatever. KDrama is a gift. He’s the exception,” Jennie conceded. 

“But still. I grew up on action movies the same way you grew up on your old timey stuff. We’ll have to swap sometime. Or maybe watch one of each when I stay over.” She seemed excited by the idea. “Oh. I can show you the Terminator movies! Have you seen them? You know: ‘I’ll be back!’” 

“That Schwarzenegger impression was abysmal. No, I haven’t. I’m showing you Endless Love because I know you haven’t seen it.” 

“Okay.” She nodded, grinning. “Deal.” 

* * *

Dinner with BoA went, honestly, as expected. I didn’t learn much about her. She was overly polite and asked me about my interests, and tried too hard to forge some kind of bond between us. We didn’t have very much in common from what I could tell; some of her favorite activities included going on hikes and singing. That wasn’t anything like my dad at all either, so I couldn’t see why he liked her so much.

She seemed nice, sure, she’s gorgeous but I took everything she said and did with a grain of salt. She was trying to make me like her, so, naturally, I wasn't exactly warm to her. 

Jennie was more polite than usual, too. It was her first time really getting to know my dad. They got along better than BoA and I did. In fact, most of the conversation over dinner consisted of just the two of them talking. I stayed quiet unless someone addressed me directly. 

Most of the time it was BoA, with a question like,

“So do you play any sports?” (“No.”) or  “Are you excited for your senior year to start?” (“I guess. I don’t know.”) All in all, it wasn’t fun. 

Eventually, Dad made the mistake of asking Jennie if she had any plans yet or if she knew what she wanted to do when she got older, and I felt like sinking down into my seat until I disappeared. I didn’t want to hear about Jennie’s hopes and dreams and plans for her life. Not u