A/N: Hey guys! I am honestly genuinely ashamed of myself for leaving you all on such a cliffhanger like that. Promising to finish the story and then disappearing, what a terrible author, smh. So, I finally pushed through my ultimate writer's block and finished this story. Thank you to everyone who stuck around and supported this title, you guys are awesome! I have another story in the works, but I'm honestly not sure if I'm confident enough to release it. Anyways, enough with that, please enjoy the ending of this story! (Not beta-read, sorry peeps)

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Today was finally one of the few rare free days that the company gave its hard-working artist, which includes their managers, so that’s a win for Wendy. It’s the last free day they get to enjoy before going on a week-long onslaught of extreme work in order to execute the perfect concert that the company was planning. Wendy decided to catch up on some of her much-needed sleep, and maybe meet up with an acquaintance that she hadn’t had much time to visit or talk to. She had woken up late that day and decided to go out to get something to eat and pass by Seulgi’s little shop to say hi as she hadn’t seen the girl for quite some time now. Wendy first went to her lovely little coffee shop and got herself a hearty pastry and a large coffee to go with it. She quickly inhaled the pastry since she was hungry, grabbed her coffee, and went out toward Seulgi’s shop.

Wendy would be lying if she said she wasn’t excited to see the girl. There was so much that she wanted to share, especially with the recent newfound feelings she’s been harboring for Jennie. The closer she got to the store, the more she buzzed with happiness, she really did miss her best friend, no matter the dimension or world. As she slowly approached the small store, she decided that she should surprise Seulgi by waiting for her outside and scaring her, she knew it might seem mean but she really loved teasing her friend. So, she took to a little corner by the store and waited for Seulgi to leave since it was almost time for her lunch break. Wendy looked over to check if Seulgi was out yet or not and almost collapsed in shock, in front of her was none other than Irene. Irene had apparently just walked into the store without noticing Wendy’s presence, but Wendy was taken completely by surprise. Why was Irene here and what was she doing in Seulgi’s store?

As the questions continued to fill Wendy’s head, something she would never have expected occurred in front of her. Irene walked out with Seulgi the two seemingly engaged in conversation and … hand in hand. Wendy continued to observe the events happening in front of her eyes, watching every single detail like a hawk. Seulgi was busy whispering something to Irene who had one of the biggest smiles plastered on her face. Wendy was about to move and call out to them and maybe get some answers, but she quickly froze in place as Irene slowly leaned up towards Seulgi and pecked her on the lips quickly before the two slowly fell into quiet giggles and light blushes.  

Wendy immediately her heel and left the scene, her breaths shallow and her heart aching. She had never expected Seulgi, her best friend, and Irene, her soulmate, would together in such a relationship. She knew that they were different people than her original world but it still hurt to see the looks Irene gave only to her were directed at Seulgi this time. Her heart was breaking silently as she quickly walked away, her steps quickening into a run as her tears blurred her vision. The emotions were overwhelming her all at once and she didn’t know how to handle it all, so she ran. As fast as she could, she ran away from it all. 

As the sun slowly set below the horizon, Wendy quietly sat on a bench in a park whose location she didn’t know. She just found herself there and her legs were killing her from all the running, so she decided to sit down and take a deep breath. She needed to work her emotions out or else she won’t be able to focus enough on Jennie during this crucial time, and she really didn’t want any more fall-outs between her and her boss. Not after everything they’ve been through. Wendy closed her eyes and her mind conjured up the memories from her earlier encounter, how Seulgi was trying her best to make Irene laugh and how Irene was looking at Seulgi with eyes filled with love and affection. This felt like a hard slap from reality, but if anything it was a much-needed wake-up call. The Irene from Wendy’s world was no longer and she couldn’t throw all of that history on the Irene of this world, who barely knew anything about her. Adding to that, Seulgi, her supposed best friend, was only that in her world. She barely knew anything about the Seulgi in this world, so who was she to judge their relationship the way she did? It was her fault for placing her memories and emotions on people who were mere look-alikes. 

Wendy took another deep breath. Amidst the darkness within, a small light shone. Jennie’s face suddenly popped into her head, followed by a series of other memories. Jennie with her gummy smile, Jennie with her small pouts, Jennie with her exhausted eyes and poker face, but most importantly, Jennie with her shy smile and soft blush. Wendy opened her eyes and stared at the sky, she really had it bad for Jennie. She then quietly giggled at her situation, how she went from slowly falling apart in tears to just smiling in peace, all thanks to Jennie. Jennie haunted every crevice of Wendy’s mind, and Wendy was starting to realize that her feelings for her were becoming deeper than ever. It was almost as though seeing Irene with Seulgi just released a weight off of her shoulders in a twisted way. Irene had always been her constant, her rock, and her partner, and that moved on with her to this world, even though it was a completely other person. She attached herself to this Irene and placed her expectations on her, almost subconsciously. But seeing her with Seulgi earlier proved her wrong. This Irene was different, and she loved someone different. This realization broke the chains linking Wendy to Irene, and all the feelings for Irene that had held her back from fully falling for Jennie had dissolved along with it. In a sense, Wendy felt free for the first time in a long while. 

The rest of the week had passed by like a blur with Wendy following Jennie to all her practice schedules. Wendy had tried to be as professional as she could but her feelings were becoming more and more apparent, especially with the way she had been treating Jennie. The constant worry when she sees the exhaustion in Jennie’s eyes, the gentleness and care she always handled her with, and the lingering looks and yearning stares she would throw toward Jennie as she was practicing. Wendy couldn’t help herself, and Jennie was starting to notice the change. It had taken her by surprise at first but she slowly started getting used to Wendy’s attention. She would bask in it happily and would even create situations just to see Wendy’s reactions, like pretending to be nervous just to get Wendy to give her a hug or a pat on the back or how during dance practice, Jennie would accentuate her moves whenever she noticed Wendy staring at her, which would cause Wendy to panic and act as if she was busy with something else. Jennie would never admit it, but she loved the feeling of having Wendy all to herself like this. Jennie had also noticed that her feelings towards her assistant were quickly changing, from admiration to something more, something deeper. Whenever she received a hug from Wendy, she would hold on a little longer and a little tighter, she would brush her fingers against Wendy’s hand as they walked and pretend like it wasn’t on purpose, she also felt more comfortable letting out her immature and cute side around Wendy since she noticed that she didn’t judge her for it, but would rather smile and go along with it. 

The week had been a major change for both Wendy and Jennie, the two quickly falling for each other without the other realizing it. All too quickly, it was finally the day of the concert. The stadium was slowly filling up with people and staff were running about everywhere. Wendy was in Jennie’s room waiting around for the makeup artists to finally finish their final touches. Jennie was a natural beauty in Wendy’s opinion, so she didn’t understand why the staff had to use so much makeup during these events, she clearly didn’t need it. But she kept her thoughts to herself and stayed silent as she watched the staff do their magic. Soon enough, Jennie was ready, outfit and all, and they just had to wait for her turn to come up, which would take quite a while since she was due right at the end. Wendy could not stop staring at the beauty that was Jennie Kim, she looked ethereal. Jennie quickly caught her staring and smirked, “Like what you see, Ms. Son?” Wendy snapped out of her trance, and pink quickly dusted her cheeks. She was embarrassed but managed a small nod upon noticing Jennie’s eager expression. Jennie’s smile widened upon seeing her reaction. All of a sudden, Jennie cleared and requested that all the staff leave the room, so she can prepare herself mentally for the performance, and since none of them could say no, they quietly scampered out. As Wendy started to head out as well, she was held back, “Not you,” Jennie said, prompting Wendy to stay back. 

Jennie got up from her seat and slowly made her way to Wendy, “I think we need to talk.” Wendy didn’t understand what she wanted to talk about but the look in her eyes had given her a slight idea. Jennie gently took Wendy’s hand in hers and led her to the couch that they had in the room. The two sat down and Jennie stared intensely into Wendy’s eyes, causing the latter to blush profusely. Jennie opened and started, “I think we should finally address the elephant in the room.” Jennie shut , hesitant, as she didn’t know how to go about this. Wendy tangled her fingers with Jennie’s and gave her an encouraging squeeze. Jennie looked down at their clasped hands and red-tinted her cheeks, which was visible to Wendy even with all the layers of heavy stage makeup. Wendy smiled softly at Jennie and decided to take over, “You’re right. This past week has been a lot. In a good way. I’ve learned a lot about me and definitely more about you.” Wendy held their hands closer to her and directed another smile at Jennie, who seemed to be at a loss for words. “I don’t know any other way to say this Jennie, but…” she didn’t know whether she should just say it or not, but Jennie’s bright eyes and growing smile prompted her to just go for it. “I really like you, Jennie,” Wendy whispered, “And I really want to be with you.” She slowly held Jennie’s hand towards her lips and gave it a soft kiss. When Wendy looked up, she saw Jennie’s glossy eyes and gummy smile. It looked like she was on the edge of crying, “God, I like you even more.” 

Wendy’s heart immediately swelled with warmth and she couldn’t help herself as she gently held Jennie’s chin in place and softly pressed their lips together. It took only a second before Jennie returned the kiss passionately, their arms wrapped tightly around each other as if holding on for dear life. Moments later and the two had split apart enough to catch their breaths, their foreheads still touching and their eyes still closed. Wendy was bathing in the rush of all these new feelings, taking a moment to bask in it all. Jennie opened her eyes and stared at Wendy’s face before falling into a fit of giggles, causing Wendy to look at her in confusion, “Why are you laughing?” Jennie looked at Wendy again and laughed once more, “My lipstick smudged all over your face,” she answered as she wiped Wendy’s lips with her thumb. The two sat in silence as Jennie continued to remove her lipstick off of Wendy’s face, “This is the best day of my life,” Wendy muttered as watched Jennie intently with a bright smile. Jennie opened to say something before she was quickly interrupted by a knock on the door. A staff member quickly peeked through the door and announced that it was almost Jennie’s performance and that she had to go on standby. Jennie nodded and squeezed Wendy’s hand one last time, “You better be waiting for me after the concert, I have a lot to talk to you about.” She then let go and walked out after the staff member, leaving Wendy behind. In the silence, Wendy took a deep breath and tried to calm her pounding heart, everything about tonight has just been so unexpected in the best ways possible. 

When Jennie was finally announced as the final act on the screen in front of her, she pulled out the creepy camera she had fixed previously. It has been sitting on her shelf collecting dust, so she decided to take it and use it more often. In a sense, she had been trying to use the camera more often as a way to challenge its existence. While the camera held painful memories of the past, she wanted to make newer happy ones, to prove that her life was getting better. So, she would walk around with the camera and snap pictures of her favorite places and people. She had pictures of Joy, Jisoo, Lisa, Yeri, Rose, Seulgi, Irene, and even Jennie; those who brought her happiness. As she turned it on and checked the battery, she realized something almost horrifying, there was a video on the camera from today’s date. She could have sworn that she hadn’t her camera once today, so how could there have been a recording from this date? She looked around and realized that maybe someone turned it on and used it without her knowing, but that couldn’t have been possible as she was carrying it with her the whole time. Maybe a file got corrupted and was labeled with today’s date, Wendy shook her head, as it was highly unlikely. A shiver ran down her spine as her thoughts began to darken, was something going to happen today? Will there be another accident shown in this video? Is Jennie going to be in danger? In an attempt to hide her rising panic, she quickly walked to the bathroom, which was thankfully empty, and locked herself in the farthest stall. Her fingers trembled as she hesitantly clicked the play button on the camera.  

As the static quickly cleared, the face of a person showed on the screen and Wendy’s heart quickly plummeted. “Thank you for opening this Wendy, I was waiting.” It was none other than Irene, her Irene, speaking directly to her through the screen. Wendy was too shaken up to make any coherent response, so she opted to just listen, “You receiving this message means you have finally achieved what you were sent to this world to do. I am so very proud of you, my dearest Wendy.” Irene’s smile was radiant, making her seem almost real, alive even. But Wendy didn’t understand what she was talking about, a simple “What?” was all she managed. “I don’t have much time, but I will try to explain as much as I can. The world that you are in is one that was created because of the deep regrets I had about leaving you behind, all alone with your pain and suffering. This place is your second chance or was by the end of this recording. You have finally broken the illusion that is this world.” Wendy couldn’t process this, what is Irene saying right now? “How?” she musters. “Oh Wendy, the moment you finally let someone in was the moment that you completed the goal of this world. You overcame your biggest challenge, me. Now, you will have to go back and apply that to your world.” That immediately garnered Wendy’s attention, “What do you mean go back? I don’t want to go back. I still have to talk to Jennie, I promised to wait for her after the concert. I’m not ready, you can’t take me away like this. Not after everything I have done.” Wendy was hyperventilating and tears were pouring from her eyes. She couldn’t just allow herself to be removed forcefully like this. She still had so much she wanted to do here, so much to see, and so much to feel. She didn’t want to go back to being miserable and lonely, ridden with the guilt of her past mistakes every waking second. “I know that this isn’t what you want, Wendy,” Irene starts off sadly, “But it was all I could give you, I’m sorry.” The video ends after Irene’s last sad smile disappears into the darkness. Suddenly, the stall walls began to close in on Wendy, “No!” she tried to push back before everything disappeared into black.