MARCH 19, 2019

Lalisa stood outside the brunch cafe near the BigHit building where Jeongguk and her were supposed to eat at.

It was 5:00 am. The sun wasn't out yet and the temperature was still too cold that she had to wear a hoodie and a pair of sweats. Hopefully, that would be appropriate for a breakfast date (she did not want to wear a dress 5am in the morning).

A moment later, a silhouette came to view. Lo and behold, it was Jeongguk.

He walked sluggishly, as if every step was draining the life out of him. Like Lisa, he was also wearing a hoodie with a pair of jogging pants and a face mask (which did nothing to hide his face, but no one was there, anyway).

"Hey." She greeted as she walked closer to him. He looked exhausted up close with his darkened eye bags that she had no choice but to put his arm around her shoulder to help him walk (it was awkward, but she managed). "Good morning to you too."

"Good morning." He muttered back, voice raspy. "I'm a literal zombie right now."

"Very obvious." She replied while rolling her eyes as they walked inside the cafe. "Let's sit down so you can rest your heavy ass."

Jeongguk let out a low chuckle, "Once I eat, I'll be back to normal, I swear." She helped him sit down in a nearby booth. "Thank you, darling."

"My pleasure." She replied with a relieved breath as she slid to his opposite side. A waiter came to their table and gave them two menus, one of which she didn't hand to Jeongguk. She believed he didn't have the ability to read as of the moment, as he was dozing off on the table. "What would you like?" She asked instead.

"Ramen will do." He replied groggily.

Lisa raised her brow at him and said, "I'll have two servings of bacon and waffles, two glasses of milk - wait make that three, and a plate of sausages." She finished off, smiling at the waiter even if he couldn't see her mouth. He nodded and went on his way.

Jeongguk raised his head and stared at her with bloodshot eyes, "What part of ramen did you not understand?"

"You need to eat, Junglebook. Ramen wouldn't help." She leaned back, "Besides, it there's no ramen here anyway."

He combed his hair back with his fingers, "Sorry about this. I was so sure I'd be fine after the rehearsals."

"It's fine. I'm here to help you and act like your nanny anyway." She gave him a look. It was silent for a few seconds before she asked, "How's practice?"

"Fine. Tiring, but fine. My muscles are aching." He sighed, "I just want to sleep for an entire day."

"Same thing. I'm tired, too." She blew a hair out of her face. Practices during midnight had become a trend in their company and sad to say, BLACKPINK had those midnight sessions, too.

"Not obvious. You look like you just woke up from an eight hour sleep." He said, looking at her up and down. "Anyway, you've piqued my interest last night." She raised her brow. "You told me that you've never had a boyfriend." He tilted his head, "Why so?"

Lisa squinted her eyes. "I don't know." She shrugged. "Probably because I was boyish than boys back then." She smiled to herself, "I had a pixie cut that I felt so proud of and I also used to wear all this boy stuff and think that I was cool." She cringed at that memory.

Jeongguk grinned, "Really? What happened to you now, then?"

"I discovered that there were more than just pants and tshirts."

"That's what we used to think before, too - me and my hyungs." He played with the tissue on the table, "We thought we were so awesome just because we wore baggy shirts and baggy jeans. Let us not forget about the sneakers and the sunglasses."

Lisa's mouth quirked to the side, "Yeah, I remember that. That was the We Are Bulletproof era, right?" He nodded. "You were still a kid back then. How'd you manage to be in the limelight at such a young age?"

Jeongguk shrugged. "No idea. I just got used to it."

"To be honest..." Her head tilted to the side, "I'm not even used to the idol life yet. I'm almost there, but sometimes, there are things that still surprise me. I wonder when will it ever stop."

"Like what?"

"Like how boy groups are more prioritized than girl groups in YG." She pursed her lips. "It's quite unfair. Still catches me by surprise when the managers announce their full albums when ours isn't even halfway through yet."

He leaned forward, staring at her. "Are you still happy at YG though?"

"I don't know, am I?" She asked, not even knowing why she suddenly felt like sharing everything to him, "Sometimes, I wonder what could have happened if Blackpink debuted in a different company. Would we be as successful as we are now? Would we have multiple comebacks like other idols? Would we do other things besides dancing, rapping, and singing?" She sighed and they were silent for a moment.

Then, all of the things she said dawned upon her. She literally just told him everything she shouldn't have. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry- I said too much, I know you're thinking of me as someone who's ungrateful but I promise you that was not- "

"No, no! It's fine. I'm willing to listen," He looked down on his hands, "And to be your friend."

Lisa analyzed him for a bit. "But..." She gulped, "You promise not to tell anyone, okay? I don't even tell Chaeyoung about this but you..."

"How about this, we're both fake dating, right?" She nodded. "In order for us to not hate each other all the while, I suggest we become friends. Good friends, best friends, I don't know. I'd be willing to listen to your problems and be your sort of sexy human diary while you'll be mine."

She contemplated. The idea wasn't so bad. She basically had no one to talk to about her problems anyway, thinking that she might be despised, but here he was, offering to listen to them. It was... sweet. In a way. "Well, whatever. Just don't tell anyone."

He rolled his eyes, "Chill, darling. Anyway, back to the topic." He looked at her again. "Do you want to do anything other than dancing, rapping, and singing?" Jeongguk asked, curiousity in his eyes. He felt grateful that she had shared this with him, and wanted to make her feel better in any way possible - as a friend and a fellow idol, of course. It was clear that this girl didn't have anyone to tell her problems to, despite having her members. Oddly, he felt the same way as her. Like his hyungs, they were all either too tired or too busy to even talk to each other most of the time. He knows the feeling all too well.

Lisa leaned forward, their elbows almost touching. "Don't laugh, okay?" She asked, he nodded. "I want to be a painter."

"What's funny with that?"

"I don't know. I just... it seems weird for me to want to be a painter when I've got zero experience whatsoever." Lisa shrugged and leaned back again, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't even have the time to paint or go to painting workshops."

Jeongguk pondered. Just as he was about to reply, the waiter came back with their orders.

He leaned back as two plates of bacon and waffles were placed in front of them, followed by three glasses of milk and a plate of sausages.

Lisa muttered her thanks and looked at him. "The other glass of milk is for you. You need to strengthen your bones or you'll be like my grandpa."

"I'd rather be your daddy instead." He smirked as he grabbed a sausage and bit into it, the oil dripping down to his lips.

Lisa stared at him as he licked it off. "Jeongguk, please don't tempt me to smack your head on the table right now." She said and sliced into her waffles. "Oh my God, they are so soft."

"That's what she said." He muttered and tried the waffle as well. "Holy hell, you're right." He exclaimed at stuffed another bite into his mouth.

"Tell me if you want more, okay?" She told him. "This is my treat."

Jeongguk stopped eating and stared at her. "No, my treat."

"Yes, it's my treat." She glared at him. "Now eat up."