Chapter 13

Rose … Rose.

Rose, ever since I met eyes with you, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you. About your beautiful eyes and cute smile. It took me only a second to realise that there was something about you that I found attractive. But I didn’t want to go on that rollercoaster again, especially after just breaking up with Jisoo a few months ago.

When we first physically met, it was when you ran into me, right? Yeah, that was our first proper encounter. I remember thinking that I would beat the hell outa you for running into me like that, but that thought disintegrated when I saw you. You’re even prettier up close. It was so annoying having to deal with the sudden feeling of love again. I didn’t even know if it was actually love, to be honest. I thought it was just cause you were pretty, like Jisoo was. But as I got to know a little bit more about you, that thought changed. I know that it was only a few days, but something blossomed in me. Cupid had come and struck me again. You’re pretty, Rose, and I knew it was only a matter of time before some guy asked you out, so I knew I had to be quick with my actions.

But I also had another problem. I found out that you were living with Jennie Kim, a super popular, rich influencer. For some reason, I thought she might’ve had a crush on you or something, so I bought you a new phone. I’ll admit, that phone was to impress you. I didn’t want Jennie to take you away from my heart. That probably sounds super cringey, and, yeah, you ain’t wrong about that.

If you knew how much my heart raced every time I asked if you wanted to meet up, you’d probably laugh. I get that I come off as bold and confident, but I guess you could say that that’s kind of my mask. I was just as worried that you’d reject me.

I kept thinking that maybe you hadn’t made me a place in your heart, even though I made one for you in mine. Ugh, that sounds super cringe. But it’s true.

That moment when we were sitting on that bench in front of the beautiful cherry blossom tree, I thought it was the perfect moment to confess my feelings for you.
When I asked if you’d liked anyone before, that was supposed to be the line before I said I liked you. But then you said you actually did like someone. My heart, my plan, crumbled into a million pieces of disappointment.

I wanted to know who it was that had stolen your heart, like you had done to mine. And I would beat that person to a pulp because I was there was this horrid feeling of  jealousness boiling inside me.

In the end though, I just crossed my fingers and was straightforward with you. I like you Rose. I’ve liked you ever since the moment I saw you in the school cafeteria.

There was this brief thought that passed my mind before I confessed. That thought was that there was a small chance that that person you were saying you liked, was me. With that thought as my motivation, I pushed forward and broke the walls separating me from you.

I’ll be honest: I had the feeling that I might actually be the person you said you like, was true.

So, if that’s the case … then … then why are you just sitting there with the blankest expression on your face??

If you don’t like me back, then just say so! Gosh, this silence is worse than rejection, I swear!

Maybe this was a terrible idea …

Those thoughts rushed through Lisa’s mind, as she stood facing Rose, with the most uncomfortable, awkward silence amongst them.

‘You … you don’t have to give me an answer back now,’ said Lisa, not taking her eyes away from Rose, in case they gave some sort of an indication to Rose’s thoughts. ‘I – um – I guess I’ll head off now … See you around sometime …’

Lisa turned to leave, her head down with disappointment, when she felt a light grip around her wrist. Rose had grabbed her hand lightly.

‘Lisa …’ she began. ‘Lisa, I don’t know how to say this …’

‘It’s ok,’ Lisa replied, the feeling of rejection piercing through her like a knife. ‘Take your time with your answer. If you don’t feel the same way, it’s all good.’

‘No, it’s not that. It’s just-‘

Rose didn’t get to finish her sentence, as at that moment, Jisoo came running from across the courtyard.

‘ROSE!’ she cried. When she reached Rose, she had to bend down to catch her breath. ‘Rose, I need to ask you something. Where’s Jennie?’

‘Huh? Jennie? I told you, Jisoo-unnie. She’s not here today,’ said Rose, as calmly as she could.

Has something happened to her? Is that why Jisoo’s so panicked?

‘God, this is bad …’ mumbled Jisoo, biting her thumb. ‘This is not good.’

‘Wait, what? What’s not good? Has something happened to her?’ asked Rose, feeling the worry creep up inside her as well.

‘No. At least, not yet. There was a breaking news headline posted a few hours ago, saying that a dangerous criminal has somehow managed to escape the jail that was confining him, and now he’s on the run!’

‘But … what’s that got anything to do with Jennie?!’

Jisoo paused for a second.

‘Hmm … true. Huh, now that I think about it, it has got nothing to do with Jennie,’ Jisoo mumbled, having her own little sudden realisation. ‘Oh my god …’ she said, laughing. ‘I didn’t even realise that! I’m sorry Rose! I must’ve panicked you for no reason …’

‘Gah, what the hell was I thinking …’ she said, turning her back to Rose.

‘You’re worried about her, aren’t you?’ asked Rose, placing her hand on her shoulder.

Jisoo nodded. ‘Yeah … I like her. And I’m worried about her. About the whole Instagram situation. I don’t want something to bad to happen to her.’

Rose took in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. ‘Jisoo … I’ll be honest with you.’

‘Huh?’ was Jisoo’s response.

‘Well … you see, I … don’t actually know where Jennie is.’

‘What??’

Rose bit her lip. ‘I-I don’t know where she’s gone … and it’s all my fault!’

‘It’s not your fault. How’s it your fault?’ said Jisoo, now holding Rose’s shoulders lightly to console the trembling girl.

‘I … I did something I probably shouldn’t have done.’

‘What do you mean by that?’ asked Jisoo, her eyes wide with concern.

Lisa stepped in and laid a hand on Rose’s shoulder, which for some reason, calmed down Rose’s racing heart. In a good way.

‘It’s okay, Rose. You can tell us if you want, but right now, I think the most important thing is for to you find your friend,’ Lisa said calmly.

Rose nodded. ‘Yeah, I should do that. But where should I start? Seoul’s HUGE! It’d be impossible to find where she is. And it’s not like she lives here too. She lives back in New Zealand. Does she have any relatives that live here by any chance?’

Jisoo promptly took out her phone. ‘Yeah, her father lives in Seoul. He’s the head of one of the biggest entertainment companies in Korea, by the way. She might’ve gone over to his house.’

‘Um … do you, by any chance, know where he lives?’ asked Rose.

‘No, I don’t. That’d be creepy if I did,’ said Jisoo. ‘But I do know where their main building is. Like, their HQ building. It’s smack-bang in the middle of Seoul. It’s not too far from the school. I can text you the address of the building when you get to the city.’

‘That sounds like a good plan,’ said Rose.

‘Do you want me to go with you?’ Lisa asked.

As much as Rose wanted her to come as well, she knew that it was probably best if she went alone.

‘It’s okay, Lisa. I think I can manage,’ she replied with a smile.

Lisa nodded. ‘If you’re sure. Then at least let me walk you to the bus-stop that’s across from the school. It’s in a pretty hidden area, so you might not find it if someone doesn’t show you.’

Jisoo was about to interject, saying that there wasn’t actually a bus stop there. But the look on Lisa’s face was the same look she had given to her a year ago. Back when they liked each other. And something in her heart told her that she should let their love blossom to, just as hers had done a year ago. So she kept quiet.

She wished Rose good-luck, gave Lisa an awkward wave, and crossed the court-yard and back inside the school.

----

Lisa and Rose walked in silence for a while, as Lisa led the way to the bus-stop. Since there wasn’t actually a bus-stop, Lisa just stopped at the entrance to one of the streets.

‘Um … where’s the bus-stop?’ asked Rose, looking around.

Lisa laughed awkwardly. ‘Uh, you see, there isn’t actually a – uh – bus-stop here. I made it up.’

Rose looked at Lisa with a confused expression on her face. ‘What? Why?’

‘I wanted to walk with you.’

‘You wanted to walk with me??’ was Rose’s response. ‘Oh … that’s, um, sweet … I guess. But how am I going to get to the city without a bus?’

‘Taxi’s occasionally come by here. You can hail one,’ said Lisa.

‘Oh, okay. Thanks.’

‘Um, about what I said earlier …’ started Lisa.

‘What you said earlier …? Oh, that .. right.’

Rose didn’t know how to put together her response. ‘Um, you see Lisa … -‘

It’s okay,’ said Lisa suddenly, interjecting Rose’s response. ‘I totally understand if there’s someone else you like, or I’m just not your type. All good, I get it, I understand.’

Rose reached out and took hold of Lisa’s hands. ‘No, silly. I was going to say that I feel the same way as you do about me. I like you too, Lisa.’

Lisa was too stunned to respond. Damn, I thought I’d be the one to make that move … she thought.

She cleared and diverted her eyes to the ground, to stop the blush crawling up her cheeks. ‘Oh, okay. That’s … that’s great!’

‘Oh, there’s a taxi coming …’ said Rose, letting go of Lisa’s hands and waving her hand madly for the taxi driver to see her.

As the taxi pulled up to the pair, Lisa grabbed Rose’s hand just before she opened the door to get in.

‘I – um – wish you luck with finding your friend …’ she said.

Rose nodded and smiled. ‘Thanks, Lisa.’

Lisa leaned in and gave Rose a warm hug, then with all her courage, gave her a peck on the forehead. Then she opened the car door and ushered Rose in.

‘Take care!’ she said. Then she turned to the driver. ‘Please take her to the city safely, sir. Thank you.’

The driver nodded, and as the taxi pulled away, Rose kept waving at Lisa until she was no longer in view. Rose sat down properly and gazed at her hands.

I can’t believe I did that. I held her hands and said I also liked her. Gosh, what I’d do to see that expression on her face again when I confessed to her!

And with that, Rose made her way into the city, feeling warm with her heart thumping with joy.