JUNE 18, 2019

The kiss Jeongguk and Lisa had the other day was long forgotten, as Jeongguk stood nervously inside the VIP room of Pierre Gagnaire à Séoul, a fancy French restaurant just 15 minutes away from their apartment complex.

Taehyung had taken the liberty of choosing which restaurant they would dine is as he said he wanted a sophisticated ambiance for them and the girls - any restaurant would be fine, really, but Jeongguk knew that his members wanted to make an impression, hence the fancy restaurant name.

Plus, the seven of them were wearing clothes fit for a red carpet. Again, Taehyung had said, it's for the ambiance. Yoongi had grumbled but once Taehyung starts something, you can't stop him.

Now, he and his hyungs were sitting down surrounding a long table fit for 12 people - all famished. Lisa had said that they were on their way, and Jeongguk couldn't help but fidget.

"Hey, Guk, you okay?" Namjoon asked, seeing him bouncing his knees on the floor repeatedly.

His eyes turned to him, replying, "Kind of. I mean, the girls and I have met already but I still get intimidated by Jennie."

Namjoon chuckled, "Jennie has always been like that, ever since we were younger."

Younger? The information surprised him, "You've known her before?"

"Actually, yes. I went to New Zealand a while back and I met her there. It was just quick though, I had to return to Korea but she and I developed some sort of friendship." He tilted his head, "I thought you knew."

"Well, I never did."

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation.

Alarmed, Jeongguk looked at each of his hyungs who were already standing up in the eye and mouthed, be nice.

The door opened, and a gorgeous Jennie slowly entered, "Is this the right room?" Her eyes flitted around until it landed on Namjoon, "Joonie!" She immediately walked to him and pecked his cheek. "How have you been? Oh, I'm sorry, good evening, everyone." She bowed, stepping back, his hyungs doing the same. She gave them all her infamous gummy smile, making Jeongguk's insides churn. That smile never means good news.

"Geez, Jen, could you slow down?" Jisoo's voice sounded. She entered the room next, clad in Dior from head to toe. As soon as she saw them, she bowed, "Hello, everyone."

Rosé immediately followed - dressed in leather from Saint Laurent. Her eyes automatically turned into crescents and like the others, she bowed as well. "Hello." She greeted in a melodic voice that made Taehyung's jaw drop.

"Even her speaking voice sounds like she's singing," He whispered in Jeongguk's ear. Typical Tae, he thought. He has been a fan of them ever since their performance at the AAA 2016.

And lastly, his girlfriend entered last, wearing a paintsuit that accentuated her long, long legs. Holy shit.

"Hello, everyone. Sorry, I'm late. Had to check if there were someone following us." She sheepishly grinned. He took this as a cue to go to her side and kissed her temple - just for show. "You look good." She muttered as he stood beside her, making him grin.

"I always do," He gave her a wink.

"We all know what happened the last time they followed me." Jennie joked, but everyone in the room knew that it meant more than that.

"Let's not get awkward, shall we?" Lisa said, clapping her hands, "Everyone, these are my unnies, Jennie, Jisoo, and Rosé-"

"But you can call me Chaeyoung or just Chaeng," The said girl interrupted with an adorable smile, earning small chuckles from the boys.

"They may be intimidating but they're the sweetest girls in the planet." Lisa added with a smile.

Jeongguk was about to introduce his members as well when Namjoon spoke, "I'm sure you all know we are by now but for formalities, hello, girls. I'm Namjoon." The girls chortled, "And these are our members, introduce yourself please."

And they all did, starting from Jin, Yoongi, Hoseok, Jimin, to Taehyung. Jeongguk was surprised to see how welcoming his hyungs were, the same with Lisa's unnies. Maybe, just maybe, they'd be able to create a friendship between their groups.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's sit down." Namjoon gestured to the chairs and everyone followed suit, Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata playing in the background.

"I feel like we're doing a meeting right now," Jisoo commented as she settled into her seat next to Jin, "Does your company know that you're meeting with us?"

"Nah. If they knew, they wouldn't let us anyway." Jeongguk responded, "What did you tell your manager?"

"That we were going to eat outside." Jennie shrugged, "I told him the place was fancy as hell, hence why we came wearing designer clothing. I guess he bought it."

"That's Chanel, right?" Taehyung inserted, gesturing to her cotton tweed jacket. He had an eye for designer clothing, alright.

Jennie shot him a wink, "Precisely." She cleared her throat, "Anyway, I'm sure you all know why we're here."

"Now this is a meeting." Seokjin pointed out, earning a glare from Jennie.

"Our maknaes have decided to... what do you call this? Involve themselves in a relationship with each other," She continued, "I'm not against it, to be honest, since I've been in one as well but I just would like to say something to you, Jeon Jeongguk," She spat his name like a curse. Oh God. He thought, here she goes.

All eyes turned to him. Lisa gripped his hand under the table, as if to reassure him.

"If you ever hurt our Lisa in any way, physically, emotionally, and mentally-" Her eyes turn to slits, "I will personally go to wherever you are and drag your ass to the depths of hell." She crossed her arms, "Although I know you've already done so, regarding your fight last month. I'm letting it go just this once but if it happens again, you're dead meat."

"I think the same goes for Lisa, too." Yoongi suddenly spoke up, making Jennie look at him, "I don't want to deliver the same boring ass speech as she did, but you get the point."

"Excuse me?"

Lisa held Jennie's shoulder, "Unnie-"

Jeongguk took this as a cue to say, "I promise I won't, noona. I love Lisa too much to even hurt her." He heard Jimin snort, making him snap his head to him, "Hey, Chaeng."

"Yes?" The girl asked, turning her head from Taehyung to look at him. How they both managed to engage in a conversation, Jeongguk didn't know.

"Did you know that Jimin here," He pointed to the guy, "likes your voice?"

Jimin's eyes widened, "Guk, you're a-"

"And did you know," He continued, "He often listens to your Eyes Closed cover?" Jimin looked like he wanted to bury himself alive now.

Chaeyoung looked amused, "Wow, I never would've thought that. Thank you so much, Jimin-ssi." The guy gave a her an awkward smile and scooted closer to her and Taehyung. Wow, the nerve.

"I think we should stop with the formalities," Namjoon suggested, "Since I already know we're all going to be great friends." He gestured to everyone in the table.

Chaeyoung, Jimin, and Taehyung were already talking, the girl looking interested in whatever Taehyung was telling them and Jimin butting in every few seconds or so - possibly gaining confidence from Jeongguk's revelation.

At the opposite side of the table, Jeongguk could hear Jin telling Jisoo, "Can we take a selfie? You look so much like me, it's awesome." with Jisoo responding, "I know, right? You don't see this kind of face everyday." To which Jin high fived her.

On the other hand, he could see Jennie, Namjoon, and Yoongi in a conversation - Namjoon seeming to be introducing Jennie to Yoongi, ignoring their little exchange a while ago. He knew Jennie had an admiration for his hyungs' rap skills though, probably why Yoongi joined in the conversation.

Next to him, Lisa and Hoseok were laughing on some dumb joke his hyung had said.

They were all getting together really well - under thirty minutes.

"Lis," He heard Hoseok say, "Have you ever thought of joining Hit the Stage?"

Lisa shrugged, "I did but you know YG," She rolled her eyes, "They suck."

Hoseok almost choked on his water upon hearing it, "Wow. She's straight to the point, huh?"

Jeongguk smiled, "It depends on her mood."

The bell inside the room rang, quieting everyone. The doors opened, revealing three waiters carrying trays filled with numerous plates - their first course.

As soon as it was placed on their table, Seokjin announced, "Bon appetit."

Everyone dug in to their food, each eager and hungry. The sound of utensils clicking filled the room, along with chatters from everyone around the table.

"So," Hoseok started, "You guys never told us your love story."

Lisa's hand immediately went to his knee, panicked.

Smoothly, he replied, "Well, actually, we started as just friends, you know. Bambam introduced me to her and from then on we kind of developed a friendship." It was the same story he'd told Jisoo and the rest of the girls. Thank God he still memorised it.

"Oh, really? When did you make it official?" Jimin asked, "Was it the day I caught you texting her?"

"We made it official last March." Lisa answered for him. His members nodded in understanding.

"I don't even know what she sees in me," He added, looking at her lovingly. He had no idea why, but he grabbed her hand under the table and gave it a squeeze.

Jennie's eyes widened, "I was just wondering the same thing." That earned her a deadly look from Jisoo.

▪️

The rest of the dinner went well, their members surprisingly becoming comfortable with each other. The entire room was filled with their voices, talking about whatever comes into their minds.

Eventually, they all ordered a bottle of wine - much to Chaeng's excitement. They weren't allowed to drink, but since Jeongguk and Lisa were breaking they rules, they might as well follow suit.

"A toast," Namjoon started standing up, the rest following, "For both our groups, for Jeongguk and Lisa, and for the friendship we've created." They all clinked their glasses and drank.

"Wow, one shot, huh?" Chaeyoung jokingly asked, appearing beside Lalisa. "Wine tastes good?"

"Very." She smiled at her bestfriend, "What did you guys talk about?" She asked, referring to her, Taehyung, and Jimin.

The girl shrugged, "Nothing much. Just about our lives, you know. I actually even teared up a little when Jimin talked about his mom."

Lisa snorted, "You always do that whenever someone talks about their mom. Remember Joy?"

"Can't blame me."

She chuckled again, turning back to their members. The both of them were quiet for a while.

That is, until Chaeyoung spoke again, "You really love him, don't you?"

"Mmm?" Lisa turned back to her, "What makes you say that?" Love? Pft.

"You have this look in your eyes whenever you look at him," Chaeyoung smiled to herself, "It's as if he hung the moon and the stars."

"What? I don't-"

"Oh, shush, Lalisa. It's pretty obvious, you know." She waved her off, "I haven't seen you exert that much effort into somebody ever since you entered YG." Chaeng played with her glass, "Every free time you get, you spend it with him. Whenever he's injured, you're worried sick. When you guys text each other, you have this stupid smile in your face that I want to erase."

"And?" Lisa didn't know what she was asking, but she wanted to hear her next words anyway.

"And the same thing goes for him. Although, he loves you more."

"Wow, what an insult."

Chaeyoung slapped her arm lightly, "It's true, idiot." She shrugged, "You know, on your birthday, we were actually surprised on how polite he was. He asked us about what you like, what food you prefer, your hobbies, etcetera." The corner of her mouth tilted up, "Jennie was against it at first, but eventually, she gave in. You noticed that she went easy on him a while ago? It's because the guy was really determined. He came into our apartment that other day instead of heading to his own to rest. Mind you, he had an 11 hour flight from a Paris and he went straight to our place.

"Plus, remember that time when you fought and I was your bridge? He was asking me questions like how were you doing, if you were sleeping well, if you're eating three meals a day, if you were getting enough rest and stuff like that. Heck, he even had me print an apology letter and buy a single rose just for you."

Lisa was silent all throughout. Jeongguk loving... her? It was impossible. What they had was fake... yet...

"And that time where he flew from the other side of America just to see you? Good God, he just stayed for a few hours for you and then left. If that isn't love then I don't know what is."

Lisa remembered the way he stared at her, with pure adoration and love in his eyes. The way they danced that night on her birthday, the way he sang to her when she couldn't sleep the other day. Could it be? But he said no feelings should be involved...

"Excuse me, I need air." She wanted to go to the balcony as she needed a place to think, and the room was not helping. She heard Chaeyoung mutter sure before wandering off to God knows where.

As soon as the quietness of the balcony greeted her, all her thoughts came crashing down.

She liked Jeongguk, alright. She liked him too much, but she didn’t know if it can be considered as love. Sure, she cared for his well-being and for him yet...

Does she love him?

He makes her feel all these odd things whenever he says something that makes her laugh... her heart does flips whenever he teases her... what does this all mean?

She didn’t even know if he loved her back. If what Chaeyoung said was true, then what does this all mean? What does this mean for the both of them? Where do they both stand?

Lisa had too many questions. Too many questions and no answers.

Goddammit.

“Why the long face?” A voice said from behind her. She already knew who it was.

“Guk,” She groaned, “Shut up.”

“Chill, darling,” He stood at her side by the railing, “What are you doing here?”

Jeongguk stood a little too close to her, but she didn’t mind. He looked ravishing, with his black turtle neck and the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, that detail making Lisa feel things that she shouldn’t... what the hell, Lisa.

“Just thinking,” She answered simply.

“Go ahead then, I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

And he did.

Silence engulfed them both, but even that didn’t help her case. How could she think when the man she was thinking about was right beside her? Instead, she opted to just look at the magnificent view of Seoul below, him doing the same.

“Do you know,” He started, “That you have the loveliest side profile I’ve ever seen?”

“If you don’t stop lying, I’ll throw you off this railing.”

“Wow, darling, you really make my heart flutter,” He sarcastically responded, “But it’s true, though.”

“Thanks, I guess.” She turned her head, already finding him looking at her. Their close proximity made her heart beat faster, but she didn’t mind. She didn’t realize how close they were until she could already take a whiff of his hypnotic perfume, “Why... why are you so close?”

“I don’t know either,” He replied lowly, looking into her eyes.

Lisa knew it was wrong timing, but still she felt like she needed to say it, “Listen, Guk, about that kiss the other day,” She licked her lips, “I’m sorry, I didn’t-“

“No, no, it’s fine.” He shook his head, still looking at her, “In fact...”

When he didn’t continue, she asked, “In fact what?”

“In fact...” His gaze fell to her lips, “I would like to do it again.”

Lisa blinked. Again? “W-what?”

“But if you don’t want to, then-“

“Guk.” She interrupted, “Just... just kiss me.” What did I just say?

Heat rose from her stomach to her chest as the space between them diminished. One of his hands moved to cup her face, his thumb caressing her cheek. Her heart skip a beat as finally, finally his lips touched hers – soft and gentle.

He washed over her like a wave of warmth, unfurling all her thoughts as the taste of him silenced everything. She could not think of anything else, not the restaurant, not her members, not his members, not the city below them. She could only think of Jeongguk, of his hands on her cheek, on her waist.

She encircled her hands around his neck, pulling him closer, needing him to be closer. Her toes curled as he pressed his body to hers, the sensation bringing a tingling feeling to her skin.

Finally, he pulled away, resting his forehead to hers.

“Darling,” He murmured, breathless, “Has anyone ever told you that you’re a good kisser?”

She scoffed, “Of course.”

He pulled back to tilt his head, “Who?”

“Jennie did.”

That earned her a smack on her forehead.

Little did they know, Jennie was staring at them from behind the room with a small smile on her face, her heart feeling bittersweet.

Love, she thought sadly.

a/n: sorry for the late late update. this is actually the third time that i wrote this since wattpad decided to be a bitch and delete the previous two that i’ve written lol.

anyway, about joon and jennie meeting in new zealand way before, i actually saw that in youtube. they said that joon went to nz a few years back and there, he met jen. they became friends and eventually he had to go back to korea.

anyway, hope you all liked this. nanite!