Chapter Nineteen: In Need Of a Shot of Jack




I’m sorry I can’t make it today again. I’m really busy. >< Mianhe~

                                   I know it’s busy around this time. I understand. :]

I feel bad though! It’s been almost a week since I last visited. ><”

                                   I know it’s been awhile, but I really understand why you can’t.

                                   Don’t stress about it, okay?

><”
I miss your cooking though!

                                   Just my cooking? Haha!
                                   Have someone pick up the food then. I’ll cook for you.

I need to go now. Meeting. ><
I’ll have my driver pick it up later around 3ish?

                                     Perfect. Just inform the host.



“What’s with the long face?” Tiffany asked as she entered the kitchen.

Jessica looked up, placing her cell phone back in her pocket. “Nothing,” she said as she proceeded to check on everything their crew was doing before cooking Taeyeon’s pasta and calling it a day.

The blonde had been looking forward to seeing Taeyeon since the day she visited her in the Kim’s mansion. However, since then, Taeyeon’s activities seemed to have doubled. Sad enough, Jessica understood how important it was to be the president of her alma mater. She was once responsible for every decision made in that institute; she just wished that even for a couple of second, she could see Taeyeon.

However, she didn’t want to push herself on the girl. How could she when their relationship was, as she defined it, premature. Would her feelings alone be enough? Did they truly know each other to even commit to such a relationship? But then again, they already were in a relationship even before the officiality of things.

Sure, she did confess her real feelings to Taeyeon, but never did the other girl tell her how she felt for the former. The blonde even tried to convince herself that it wasn’t needed. But somewhere deep down, she hoped to hear those words from her now official girlfriend. It wasn’t bad to hope, right? Like everyone out there, she just wished to hear that she was loved or, at least, liked by the girl she held feelings for.

And seeming as though that Taeyeon was too busy to show the chef her face, this created feelings that the latter hated. She worried if she pushed this relationship on Taeyeon, but why would the girl say yes to her? Would she agree if she didn’t like Jessica? Or maybe she did something wrong to the younger? But she couldn’t think of anything.

“Jessica,” Yuri called as she walked out of the walk-in fridge, carrying trays of prepared food in hands. She then noticed Tiffany standing close to their best friend. She looked at her girlfriend apologetically; however, the latter simply raised her brow at her as she walked away.

“I need to go do some termination paperworks. I’ll talk to you later, Jessi.”

The blonde simply looked at her best friend, nodding. The other girl simply walked out of the kitchen, heading towards her office. As for Yuri, she looked at Jessica with a pair of melancholic eyes.

“Stop looking at me like that, Yuri.”

Flashing a sad smile, Yuri placed the trays on the counter top. “Today’s my last day and she still hasn’t talked to me.”

Jessica reached for the ingredients to prepare Taeyeon’s pasta. “Well, you should know Tiffany by now. She’ll probably still act this way for the next few days.”

“It’s been two weeks, Jessica.”

“I know.” As the blonde looked up to see her best friend, she stopped chopping the tomatoes. “Just go to your farewell party tonight, okay? I’ll make sure she’ll be there.”

“You promise?” Yuri’s eyes lit up. “You sure?! You promise?!”

“Yeah, yeah.” Jessica resumed on preparing the food. “Just stop...”

“Okay! I’ll do a walk-through now.”

“Good.”

Yuri then walked to Jessica’s side, bending a little to have a better view of the blonde’s face. “How are things between you and Taeyeon? I haven’t seen her this week.”

“Yeah...”

Jessica felt a hand on her shoulder so she looked at the girl standing next to her. Yuri then said, “I’m sure she’s just busy. You didn’t do anything stupid, right?”

The blonde simply shook her head. “I didn’t.” It was the truth, right? She never really did anything stupid that may cause Taeyeon to hate her. It was because the kid was busy, right?

“Are you sure?”

Jessica confirmed that there wasn’t anything idiotic that she did to her partner, but it seemed like she did. Maybe she was thinking too much, but somewhere in her mind, she felt as though she did. It just so happened that she couldn’t recall whatever wrong she had committed.

“Isn’t it weird that she doesn’t visit though?”

Like Jessica didn’t know that. But what else could she do? If Taeyeon said she was busy, she was busy. Even if it was iffy, she just had no other choice but to believe her.

“I mean, before, didn’t she visit even though she had her SAT exam?”

A sigh escaped Jessica’s lips as she dropped the knife on the chopping board. “To be honest, I don’t even know. After I told her I like her, it seems like she’s been avoiding me.” Jessica looked at the ingredients in front of her. “The only reason why I’m still thinking otherwise is because of her text messages.”

“Maybe you need to let loose?”

Jessica shrugged. “Maybe so.”

“At tonight’s party, just have fun!” Yuri then shook her, trying her best to comfort Jessica. “Maybe being in a relationship is just really new to her that she doesn’t know how to react to it?”

“Maybe,” Jessica sounded dejected.

“Cheer up! If you’re sad, your pasta will taste bitter.” Yuri smiled at her best friend. “I’m supposed to be the one that’s sad, you know? Since today’s my last day.”

“Right. You’re an . You’re leaving me.” The blonde joked, finally capable of smiling.

“Well, you know this is my day, so quit trying to take away the spotlight.” Yuri winked before walking away, finally doing her final walk-through as the assistant-chef to Jessica.

The blonde took a glance of Yuri as the latter did her job. Maybe her friend was right. This was Taeyeon’s first relationship, and it didn’t help that she was older than her. Another sigh escaped from the chef’s lips as her shoulders dropped. There wasn’t any option but to wait for Taeyeon anyway. Like thinking would help.


******

“Why do I have to be here?” Tiffany walked to Jessica with a pink cocktail in hand.

Jessica simply looked at her best friend as she approached, when the latter was close enough, she spoke, “Because it’s your girlfriend’s farewell party.” she cocked her head once towards Yuri, who was mingling with other employees, telling her that they will miss her and the kitchen will not be the same without her.

“You know, if you don’t fix it now, you won’t really have time to talk to her.” Jessica said as she took the shot of Jack in front of her.

“Jack? This early?” Tiffany’s forehead creased a little as sat on the stool next to Jessica. “You have a problem?”

Jessica laughed, slightly shaking her head. “Kamikaze, please,” she told the bartender. She then looked at Tiffany and said she was okay. Nothing was wrong.

“You should try cocktails. Why are you even drinking hard liquor?” Her best friend eyed the shot glass suspiciously while trying to coax the blonde to try something lighter.

The blonde ignored the suggestion, downing the Jack as fast as she could. When she was about to order another shot, Jessica caught a glance of Yuri, who was standing behind Tiffany.“You have a visitor.”

Tiffany then slowly turned around, seeing that her lover was behind her, wearing a nervous smile. “Can I talk to you?” Yuri, finally had muster the courage to come and pick Tiffany up.

“Talk,” Tiffany commanded.

Yuri’s gaze then met with Jessica’s. The blonde caught the hidden message. She grabbed the kamikaze that was laid by the bartender seconds ago in front of her, raised it with a smile as a toast, or at least to cheer Yuri on with whatever she was going to do with Tiffany. She gulped it down like it was nothing. “I’m leaving now.”

Tiffany abruptly turned to face Jessica, “You are not driving, missy!”

“Car service,” was the only thing Jessica said before dropping the glass on the counter. They usually went to high-end bars that offered car services to responsible guests, who wished to be driven home.

Jessica walked towards the VIP lounge, talked to a gentleman and was led to a limousine.



*****

A familiar tone of Jessica’s mobile phone rang, waking the blonde up from slumber. She tried tapping her nightstand, aimlessly searching for the device that was causing ruckus. When she felt the smooth, flat surface of her white iPhone, she grabbed it. Without bothering to look who it was, she tapped the screen and placed it on her ear. “Hello?” she answered groggily.

“Did I wake you up?”

The blonde slowly slithered back into the bed, clutching the iPhone close to her ear, as she tried her best to recall whose voice was on the other line. With her mind distracted by the strong urge to continue her sleep, she covered herself with her blankets and laid her head against one of the pillows.

“Uhmm? What?”

“I’m sorry for calling so late.”

Jessica then slowly opened her eyes, moved her phone in front of her and read who the caller was. Taeyeon? Was it really Taeyeon? This was unusual. She then placed the phone back on her ear, and moved to a more comfortable position, readying herself to go back to dreamland. “Is there something wrong?” Jessica mumbled.

“Nothing,” Taeyeon said from the other line. “I just...”

Waiting for the kid to continue her sentence, Jessica became anxious. “Just?”

It took Taeyeon awhile, but she continued, “I just had a dream of you,” which caused a smile to creep on Jessica’s face.

“It was a good dream, right?”

“Mmmhmm” Taeyeon murmured. “It was nice.”

“That’s good.” Jessica was slowly drifting to sleep. “Really good,” she merely whispered.

“I called because...” With Taeyeon’s voice, Jessica became slightly more alert. She made a sound, encouraging the girl to continue. “It made me realize how much I miss you.”