Chapter 29

The entire day had been rather exhausting for Jennie.

Her father hadn't been kidding when he said he'd deal with this Kai situation tomorrow. He had her stay home from school so they could head over to the police station to file for a protection order.

It was a drawn out and complicated process that took the entire day, but at the end of it, they received a temporary protection order for two weeks until they could provide a permanent one.

That was all fine and dandy, but the real issue was actually finding Kai to serve the order to. The police office appointed an officer to do so for them, but they said it might take a little bit to find the man. Jennie didn't have the slightest clue where he was staying or whether he was even still in the state or not.

"I'm going to call his parents," her father had said, "they have to know something. Jennie wasn't totally confident with that approach Kai's parents had been so cooperative last time because they probably wanted to avoid their son getting into trouble with the law. It was unlikely they'd help take steps to put him in a position where he could actually get a record."

The whole day was full of running around and having to dig up traumatic experiences from her past. It was like she could still experience the paranoia she felt in middle school, knowing that he could be around any corner, that he was watching her all the time.

By evening, Jennie was utterly burnt out, and her father could see that. So he suggested they go to a local seafood restaurant to make it up to her. It was a bit fancy for what Jennie was in the mood for, but their lobster ravioli was to die for, so she sucked it up and put on a dress that wasn't exactly casual but wasn't explicitly formal either.

With her father and the boys dressed up as well, they drove over to the restaurant and spent a good fifteen minutes looking for a parking spot on Main Street.

"Geez, it's a bit crowded for a weeknight," her father muttered after they finally found a spot.

It might've been because it was a little warmer that night than usual. Or maybe because Halloween was tomorrow? People were walking up and down Main Street, past the Halloween and fall décor that adorned every shop.

Walking up to the restaurant, it appeared to be packed as well, and Jennie was already preparing for a long wait. That was going to be hell with her brothers being unable to sit still for more than five minutes,

"Are you gonna take us trick or' treating, Jennie?" Jace, the younger twin, asked.

"I always do, don't I?" she replied as they continued up the sidewalk to the restaurant.

"But you never dress up!" Jake, the other twin, chimed in.

"I'll let you guys paint my face again like last year," Jennie suggested, shuddering at the thought of walking around in a costume.

"Boring!" they both said in unison, and they ran ahead to the front door of the building.

"Hey, wait up, boys!" their father called. He sighed when they didn't appear to be listening. "Geez, they're such a handful."

Jennie cracked a smile. "Well, that's how ten-year-old's are."

"You were always such a well-behaved kid," her father said, smiling back at her. "You'd be an angel all year and all you'd want for Christmas was a book too advanced for your age range. Your mother would look all worried and say, 'Neil, maybe we should've taken her out more'."

Jennie laughed.

"But you guys would always take us out to places!"

"Yep. So, I said, 'Honey, that's just the way she is. You were a bookworm, too, back when we were in high school."

The two of them chuckled as they met up with the boys, who waited by the door to the restaurant for them, and went in. As they stepped inside, Jennie was met with the enticing scent of various food dishes.

Her stomach started to rumble, and she began to dislike the idea of waiting.

As she scanned the large amount of people waiting with buzzers by the door and near the front podium, she stopped in her tracks when her eye caught on a familiar face. Her father and brothers kept walking ahead as she stood still, recognizing the tall blonde standing against a wall.

She almost didn't recognize her own girlfriend based on what she was wearing. She hadn't seen Lisa wear something so form-fitting and stylish, her blonde hair tied up in a more elaborate way than usual. She was so beautiful, and the way her tight pants hugged her form made Jennie swallow and blush. Tall people really do look better in clothes, but...I didn't realize she had such a nice figure.

"Lisa?" she asked before she could really help it, a bit distracted in her ogling.

The blonde turned her head to look at Jennie, her eyes widening. She unfolded her arms which had been crossed over her chest and stood up from leaning on the wall.

"Jennie?" she called, obviously surprised.

That's when Jennie noticed the two women standing next to Lisa. One was an older woman, probably in her early fifties, with dark brown hair and green eyes.

She was wearing a slightly more casual version of a suit, but she still gave off the air of a high-ranking businesswoman.

Between the two was a woman who looked just like a slightly older version of Lisa, which caught Jennie off guard. She was very beautiful, with long blonde hair and perfect makeup, wearing an expensive-looking blouse and skirt. Jennie couldn't exactly recall whether Lisa mentioned having a sister, but this woman had to be related to the transfer student in some way.

"Is this a friend of yours?" the older woman, who Jennie presumed to be Lisa's mother, asked. Lisa nodded a bit hesitantly, seeming extremely uncomfortable.

"Uh, yeah...this is Jennie, from my school. She was the one that tutored me in math."

Lisa's mom's eyes lit a little bit. "Oh, the honour student, right?" She reached out a hand to Jennie who tentatively took it. "I'm Therese, Lalisa's mother. I hope she hasn't been giving you any trouble."

Jennie put on that fake smile she normally used on her teachers. Remembering all the things Lisa told her about her mother made meeting the woman a bit unpleasant. But she was still Lisa's mother, after all, so she wanted to make a good impression.

"Not at all, she hardly needed my tutoring anyway," Jennie replied. "It's nice to meet you."

"Oh, and this is my older daughter, Jieun," Therese introduced, taking a step back to put an arm around the blonde woman's shoulders.

"She just started law school this fall."

Jennie noticed the frown that immediately formed on Lisa's expression. She was shifting around as if she was eager to get this exchange over with. The thought sort of offended Jennie, but she wasn't exactly sure why.

"It's nice to meet you," Jennie said to the older sister.

The pretty blond smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Nice to meet you, too."

Although the two sisters looked alike, they gave off extremely different auras. Whereas Lisa had always seemed outgoing, approachable, and confident, Jieun seemed downright stuck up and stand- offish. Jennie wondered if this was actually reflective of the woman's personality - she knew that she herself tended to give off the same unapproachable air.

"Jennie! There you are!"

Jennie turned to see her father and brothers returning from the front desk, buzzer in hand.

Oh, this is turning into a bit of a mess, Jennie thought.

"I looked behind and you just disappeared," her father said. Then he took notice of the other three people standing in front of Jennie. He recognized Lisa and smiled.

"Hey! You're Jennie's friend. Lisa, wasn't it?"

"Yes," Lisa replied, "I'm just here with my mom and sister."

Before Lisa could introduce the two of them, her mother stepped forward once again. Jennie seemed to notice that the woman liked to take charge of situations. The two exchanged pleasantries, Jennie's dad introducing her brothers and Lisa's mom introducing Jieun once more. While Therese chatted up Jennie's father, Jennie stepped over to Lisa.

"I'm sorry about this," she apologized.

"Why are you sorry?" Lisa laughed, and Jennie was happy to see her lighten up a little bit after being completely tense.

"I'm sorry about my mom. She goes overboard when she meets people...guess it comes from being a lawyer or something."

"No, my dad's a chatterbox since he's in sales," Jennie said with a sigh.

For a second, the two of them locked eyes and were silent. Jennie found herself unable to avert her gaze, and her brain was short-circuiting on things to say. A sudden urge to hug Lisa, or touch her in some way, bottled up, but she knew she couldn't do it in front of both of their families in a restaurant. Lisa got this pained expression on her face, and Jennie assumed she was feeling the same way.

Suddenly, a loud vibrating sound went off, startling the two out of their moment. The buzzer, which Lisa had been holding, was lighting up.

"Oh, is that us already?" Lisa's mom said. She turned back to Jennie's father. "It was so nice meeting you, Neil."

"Likewise," her father said with a smile.

Lisa looked down at Jennie before they headed over to the front. "Well...I'll text you later?" she said, more of a question than a statement.

"Please do," Jennie replied with a smile.

They exchanged another glance before Lisa forced herself to follow her mother. On her heels was Jieun, who looked at Jennie as if she was watching her the whole time. The blonde's expression was difficult to read, but her eyes had a faint twinkle in them.

After the elder sister looked away, Jennie found her heart pounding, as if she'd just been caught doing something wrong. Was Jieun watching them during that whole stare down exchange?

Was she catching on to the nature of their relationship?

No, no...

People wouldn't normally assume that two girls were dating. They'd already said that they were friends, basically, so it wasn't strange to act familiar. But still, it was likely that Lisa's sister knew about her previous relationship from last year.

So perhaps that twinkle in her eye was actually just suspicion.