LISA

Jennie hasn't spoken a word since I got into the cab, and I'm too busy trying to reel my temper in to comment. Seeing her out here, in the dark and running from something—running from Rosé—drives my anger full force, and it would be all too easy to give in to it. To set it free.

I can't do that, though. Not this time. This time, I will prove to her that I can control my mouth, my fists, too. I got into this cab with her instead of smashing Rosé's skull against the concrete, like she deserved. I hope Jennie recognizes that; I hope that helps my case, even if by the slightest bit.

Jennie hasn't tried to escape yet, and she didn't speak up when I told the driver to take us by her mum's to get her shit. That's a good sign. It's got to be. Her clothes are soaked, clinging to every inch of her body, and her hair is matted to her forehead. She pushes the mess back with her hand, sighing when the unruly strands won't stay put. It takes every ounce of my self-control not to reach over and tuck her hair behind her ears.

"Wait here while we go inside," I tell the driver. "We will be back in less than five minutes, so don't move this cab."

He was late to pick me up in the first place, so he shouldn't mind waiting. Not that I'm complaining; if he hadn't been, I wouldn't have run into Jennie walking alone in the damn rain.

Jennie opens the door and walks across the yard. She doesn't flinch as the rain pours down on her, shielding her body and nearly taking her from me. After reminding the driver to stay put a second time, I rush after her before the rain can separate us further.

I hold my breath, forcing myself to ignore the red truck parked in front of the house. Somehow Rosé got back here first, like she knew where I would take her. But I can't lose my temper. I have to show Jennie that I can hold myself together and put her feelings before my own.

She disappears into the house, and I follow only seconds behind. But already Rebecca is on her when I enter.

"Jennie Ruby Jane, how many times are you going to do this? You're dragging yourself right back into something that you know isn't going to work!"

Rosé is standing in the center of the living room, dripping water onto the floor. Jennie's fingers are pinching the bridge of her nose, a sign of pure distress, and once again I struggle to keep my damn mouth shut.

It will only take one wrong word from me to make her stay here, to keep her hours away from me.

Jennie holds up one hand, somewhere between commanding and pleading. "Mother, can you please just stop? I'm not doing anything, I just want to leave here. Being here isn't helping anything, and I have a job and classes in Seattle."

Seattle?

"You're going back to Seattle tonight?" Rebecca exclaims at her daughter.

"Not tonight, but tomorrow. I love you, Mother, and I know where you are coming from, but I really just want to be close to my . . . well"—Jennie gazes at me, uncertainty clear in her eyes—"Jisoo. I want to be with Jisoo right now."

Oh . . .

Rosé opens her goddamn mouth: "I'll drive you."

I just can't stop myself from cutting in at that suggestion. "No, you won't."

I'm trying to be patient and shit, but this is too much. I should have barged in here, grabbed Jennie's bag, and carried her out to the cab before Rosé could so much as look at her.

The smirk on her face right now, that same fucking smirk she gave me only minutes ago, is taunting me. She's trying to push me, trying to make me snap in front of Jennie and her mum. She wants to play games with me, like she always does.

But not tonight. I won't give her the satisfaction of being her pawn.

"Jennie, grab your bag," I say. But the mirrored scowl on both women's faces makes me reconsider my choice of words. "Please, please grab your bag?"

Jennie's hard expression softens, and she pads down the hallway and turns into her old bedroom.

Rebecca's eyes move back and forth between Rosé and me before she speaks. "What happened to make her run out into the rain? Which of you caused that?" Her glare is murderous, almost comical, really.

"She did," the two of us answer and point simultaneously, like children.

Rebecca rolls her eyes and turns to follow her daughter down the narrow hallway.

I focus on Rosé. "You can go now."

I know Rebecca can hear me, but honestly, I don't give a fuck at this point.

"Jennie didn't want me to go; she was only confused. She came on to me, she begged me to stay here with her," she spits. I shake my head, but she continues. "She doesn't want you anymore. You've spent your last dollar where she's concerned, and you know it. You see how she looks at me, how she wants me."

I ball my fists, taking deep breaths to calm myself. If Jennie doesn't hurry out with her bag, the living room will be painted red by the time she returns. That fucker and her fucking smirk.

She wouldn't kiss her. She wouldn't do that.

Visions from my nightmares swirl behind my lids, bringing me one step closer to my breaking point. Her hands on her pregnant belly, Jennie's nails raking down her back. They way she's always mixed up with other people's girls . . .

She wouldn't do that. She wouldn't kiss Rosé.

"This isn't going to work," I say, forcing the words out. "You aren't going to antagonize me into attacking you in front of her. Not again."

Fuck, I want to smash her fucking head open and watch her brain matter pour out. I want to so fucking bad.

She sits on the arm of the couch and smiles. "You've made it so easy for me. She told me how much she wants me, she told me less than a half hour ago." She glances down at her empty wrist as if she is checking the time on a watch. She's a dramatic motherfucker, always has been.

"Jennie!" I call to gauge how many more seconds I have to tolerate this asshole's presence.

Silence fills the house, followed by the murmuring voices of Jennie and her mum. I close my eyes momentarily, hoping that Rebecca hasn't convinced Jennie to stay in this shithole of a town for another night.

"That drives you crazy, doesn't it?" Rosé mocks, continuing to goad me.

"How do you think I felt when you fucked Sam? It was one thousand times worse than the petty jealousy you feel right now."

As if she could possibly fathom the depth of what I feel regarding Jennie.

I give her a bored look. "I told you to shut the fuck up and leave. No one gives two fucks about you and Sam. She was easy, too fucking easy for my liking, really, and that was that." Rosé takes a step toward me, and I straighten my back, reminding her that my height is one of my many advantages against her. It's my turn to fuck with her. "What? You don't like hearing about your precious Samantha?"

Rosé's eyes turn dark, warning me to stop, but I refuse. She has the fucking nerve to kiss Jennie and try to use her feelings as ammunition against me? She obviously doesn't know that I have an entire arsenal up my fucking sleeve.

"Shut up," she snaps, pushing me further. I may keep my hands to myself this time, but my words will make more of an impact anyway.

"Why?" I glance down the hallway to make sure Jennie is still occupied by her mum while I torture Rosé with my words. "You don't want to hear about the night I fucked her? I can barely remember it, really, but I understand it was so new a feeling for her that she was writing about it in that little diary of hers. She wasn't very memorable, I suppose, but at least she was eager."

I knew how into her she was, and at the time I assumed their relationship would make her more of a challenge. The joke was on me when she ended up being more of a hassle than a toy. "I fucked her brains out, though, I can assure you that. That must be why she pulled that pregnancy shit afterwards. You remember that, don't you?"

For a moment—a brief moment—I pause and consider how she must have felt when she found out. I try to remember what was going through my mind when I decided to pursue her. I knew they were dating. I'd heard her mention her name in the copy room at Vance, and I was instantly intrigued.

I had only known Rosé for a few weeks, and I thought it would be fun to fuck with her.

"You were supposed to be my friend." Her pathetic words fall between us. "Your friend? None of those degenerates were your friends. I barely knew you; it was nothing personal." I look down the hallway, to make sure Jennie isn't around, then I step closer and wrap my fist around the collar of her shirt. "Just like it was nothing personal when Wendy introduced Soojoo to you, even though she knew Kai was seeing her. Personal is what you're aiming for by fucking with Jennie. You know what she means to me—more than any office whore could ever mean to you."

I'm caught off guard when she pushes back, slamming me against the wall. Picture frames rattle and fall to the ground, causing Jennie and her mum to rush into the hallway.

"Fuck you! I could have fucked Jennie, too—she would have easily given herself to me tonight if you wouldn't have shown up!" Her fist connects with my mouth, and Jennie shrieks in horror. The harsh taste of copper fills my mouth, and I swallow the blood in a quick gulp before wiping my sleeve across my lips and chin.

"Rosé!" Jennie scolds, rushing to my side. "Leave! Now!" She shoves her small fists against her chest and I grab hold of her, gently putting space between them.

The pure experience of Jennie hearing her speak of her that way makes me fucking ecstatic. This is what I've been warning her of all along: She has never been the sweet, innocent woman she was manipulated into thinking she was. Granted, I do know that she has some feelings for her—I'm not completely blind to that—but her intentions were never pure. She just proved that to her, and I couldn't be happier. I'm a selfish bastard, but I never claimed otherwise.

Without another word, Rosé walks out the front door and into the rain.

Headlights flash through the front windows as she peels off and disappears down the street.

"Lisa?" Jennie's voice is soft and laced with exhaustion. We've been in the backseat of this cab for almost an hour without a single word between the two of us.

"Yeah?" My voice breaks and I clear my throat.

"Who's Samantha?"

I have been waiting for her to ask this question since we pulled away from her mum's house. I could lie to her, I could make up a bullshit story to make Rosé look like the piece of shit she is, or I could be honest for once.

"She's a girl who had an internship at Vance. I fucked her while she was dating Rosé." I decide not to lie, but regret the harsh words when Jennie flinches. "Sorry, I just want to be honest," I add in an attempt to soften the words.

"You knew she was Rosé's girlfriend when you slept with her?" She stares straight into me in that way only she can.

"Yeah, I knew. That's why I did it." I shrug, ignoring the pinch of remorse threatening to surface.

"Why?" Her eyes search mine for a decent answer, but I don't have one.

I only have the truth. The filthy, fucked-up truth.

"I have no excuse, it was just a game for me." I sigh, wishing I weren't such a piece of shit. Not for Rosé's sake, or Samantha's, but for this beautiful, sweet girl who even now doesn't have a hint of judgment in her eyes as she looks at me, waiting for further explanation.

"You forget that I wasn't the same before I met you. I was nothing like the woman you know. Well, I know you think I'm fucked-up now, but trust me, you would hate me even more if you knew me then." I look away from her and out the window. "I know it doesn't seem like it, but you really have helped me so much, you've given me a purpose, Jen."

I hear her sharp exhale of breath and I cringe at the thought of how my words must sound. Pathetic and insincere, I'm sure.

"And what's that purpose?" she asks timidly in the sudden stillness of the night.

"I'm still trying to figure that out. But I will figure it out, so please try and stick around long enough for me to find the answer?"

She looks at me but stays quiet.

I'm thankful for that, I don't think I could handle her rejection right now. I turn my head and look out into the black-black darkness of the landscape around us and am glad that nothing final and devastating came from her mouth.