JENNIE

That first week was the longest of my life. With school not started yet and me still not having anything to do all day, I had started to dwell. I felt every single second of every single minute of every single hour of every single day, tick slowly by.

Lisa did her part to try and entertain me. She chatted with me over coffee, she tried to teach me to play the guitar (which I was astoundingly bad at) and she eventually did drag me out on one of her runs. I quickly developed a dislike for Seattle; a beautiful city – yes, but friendly to runners who prefer a flat oval track to leg-cramping hills - no. I had to stop halfway through the run and turn around to walk home. Lisa laughed a little, but offered to walk with me. Feeling weak and rather stupid, I shooed her off to finish her run and went back home to wallow.

Lisa went with me to the grocery store when my supplies started running dangerously low, which was a fun, but completely embarrassing outing. Thankfully, I was fully stocked on feminine products - that would have been way too blush-inducing to buy with her there. Although, She made me blush anyway, by casually tossing a box of condoms in the cart. Grabbing the box while I looked around discretely (with I'm sure, a horrified look on my face), I gingerly handed it back to her like it was partially on fire. At first she wouldn't take it, and she only looked at me with a wry grin on her lips. But as my face and gestures became more frantic, she finally took the box from me and slipped it back on the shelf, all the while laughing at my embarrassment.

Quickly getting over the incident, I pushed the cart down the aisle while Lisa, softly singing along to the cheesy background songs (she knew every single one), tossed things in - and only things I approved first. I smiled as I watched her attractive, grinning face. We were halfway through the store and entering the cereal aisle, when suddenly the song She was singing along to, became a duet. She looked over at me expectantly on the girl part and I could feel the heat creep up my face – I was not a singer.

She laughed, amused at my unwilling expression and sang her next part louder, walking backwards and gesturing like she was serenading me. It was highly embarrassing, and a few people who walked by us, smiled and laughed at her. She ignored them and continued singing to me, watching my face turn a bright red as my blush deepened. Her eyes practically sparkled with enjoyment over my discomfort.

She again waited for me to sing the girl part, with her hands splayed out in a "go ahead" gesture and an eyebrow cocked. I stubbornly shook my head and smacked her on the arm, hoping she would stop mortifying me. She laughed and grabbed my hand, spinning me around right there in the middle of the aisle. She whirled me away and then back to her and then she even dipped me, never once stopping her serenade. An older couple smiled at us as they scooted around her.

Laughing as she stood me back up, I finally, and very softly, sang the girl part for her. She smiled charmingly at me and then chuckling, released me and we finished our shopping…and the song. After that, I just sang back whatever she wanted me to. Defying her was just too darn embarrassing.

More to pass the time than anything, I grudgingly called my parents. I'd had no intention of telling them that Taehyung had left their baby girl all alone in a strange city, but somehow it slipped out, and I had to endure an hour-long 'I knew he was no good, get your butt back here' speech. For the millionth time, I told them that I was staying here, that I was happy here. At least, I would be when Taehyung came back. I repeatedly assured them that they didn't need to worry so much.

Taehyung did call me two to three times a day, which was the highlight of my day, and I found myself hanging around the kitchen, waiting for the phone to ring so I could talk to him. Eventually, that really started to irritate me. I was my own person. I could get through the day without talking to him, if I happened to miss a call. Well, I could make it a few hours at least. I tried not to obsess so much after that…but of course, I still did, and I cherished every phone call that I did get.

"Hey, babe."

I knew I was grinning like an idiot into the phone, but I couldn't help it. I missed his voice. "Hi…" I practically sighed the word. "How are you doing…ready to come home yet?" I cringed, knowing I sounded exactly like my parents.

Taehyung chuckled into the phone, like he realized that too. "I'm great, tired…but great. We're not nearly done yet though…sorry." His voice reflected true remorse and I couldn't help but smile.

"It's alright…I guess. I miss you like crazy though."

He chuckled again. "I miss you too." This was practically our daily routine. Are you coming home? No. I miss you. I miss you too. I smiled at how much I loved that goofy boy.

"I was just about to grab something to eat and then crash. What are you up to on your night off?" He grunted softly like he had sat down, completely exhausted.

I sighed. "Absolutely nothing, and Lisa's band is playing at Razors tonight, so I'm going to be completely alone here…" I said that last part quietly as I looked around the suddenly huge seeming house.

"Why don't you go?" he said, yawning a little.

I looked at the phone, confused. "Huh?"

"With Lisa…why don't you go listen to the band? It will at least give you something to do…" He yawned again softly, and made a sound like he had flopped onto his bed or something.

"You're really tired, aren't you?" I asked, feeling bad for keeping him awake, but not wanting to get off the phone yet.

"Yeah…it's alright though." I could hear his smile through the phone. "I'll stay up to talk to you."

I felt stubborn tears brewing. I missed him so achingly bad. "I don't want to wear you out even more. I can talk to you in the morning, before your work. We'll have breakfast together." I tried to make my voice happy at that prospect when, really, I just wanted to sob at him to come home already.

He yawned again. "Are you sure? I really don't mind…"

No, I wanted to talk to him all night. "Yes… eat, get some sleep, and hurry home to me."

"I love you, Jennie," he said warmly.

"I love you too…goodnight."

"Goodnight." He yawned a final time as he hung up the phone.

I stared at the receiver for a full minute while the stubborn tear dripped down my cheek. It had only been nine days and, here I was, already crying with loneliness. That didn't sit well with me. Maybe he was right and I should go out? It would, at the very least make the evening go by faster - breakfast would be here before I knew it. That thought perking me up, I brushed aside my tear and walked upstairs to Lisa's room.

I knocked on her closed door and she immediately said, "Come on in." I immediately blushed upon entering; she hadn't exactly been decent yet. She was standing by the bed, facing the door and buttoning her jeans. Her fresh t-shirt was still lying on the bed and her absurdly defined body was still slightly damp from the shower she had just gotten out of.

She looked up at me curiously. "What's up?"

I realized I was standing in the doorway, gaping at her stupidly, and made myself close my mouth. "Um…I was wondering…if I could go with you…to Razors…listen to the band…" I was feeling more and more like an idiot with every word escaping my lips. I suddenly wished I had opened my door, for a night of sulking, instead of her door.

Grinning broadly, she grabbed her shirt from the bed. "Really? You're not sick of listening to me yet?" She winked as she pulled the t-shirt over her fabulous body.

I swallowed a little, openly watching her, and made myself shut my mouth again. "No…not yet. It will give me something to do, anyway." I immediately regretted saying that, as it probably sounded horribly rude.

She chuckled delightfully as she ran her fingers through her thick, damp hair and then, grabbing something from her dresser, tousled it up into a wonderfully shaggy mess. I watched her curiously. I'd never seen anyone style their hair that way before. She never even looked in a mirror; she just instinctively knew how to make it look perfectly styled in a completely un-styled way – fabulously sexy.

I blinked when she spoke to me. "Sure, I'm almost ready to go." She sat on the bed to put her work boots on, and patted the space beside her. I sat and watched her, feeling silly for even coming in here. "Was that Taehyung on the phone?"

"Yeah…" I said sadly, and she paused and watched me for a moment.

"Any idea when he'll come home?" she asked, grabbing for her other boot.

"No," I sighed.

She half-grinned at me charmingly. "I'm sure it won't be too much longer." She stood up and grabbed the newer of her two guitars, shoving it in an open case on her bed. "It will fly by…really." She smiled at me so encouragingly that I smiled too. "Ready?" she asked, shutting the case and pulling the strap over her shoulder.

I nodded and we made our way downstairs. She grabbed her keys, and I grabbed my ID and some cash from tips, and we were off.

The night at Razors was surprisingly fun. Razors was a much smaller bar than Pete's. It was a long, narrow rectangle of a building with a small area for the band at the front, a long bar against one wall and tables and chairs occupying the rest of the space. Lisa plopped me down at the closest table, for a front row seat to the almost intimate show.

The band played astoundingly well, of course, but more subdued. It was almost like a private performance for me and twenty of my closest friends. Lisa sat on a stool while she sang and strummed her guitar, her flirty behavior nearly cut in half with her adoring flock of females all but gone. Not that the girls here weren't shouting for her, and the rest of the guys, but these people were mainly bar patrons who happened to come in tonight, not the zealous stalkers that seemed to hang out at Pete's, where the band was based.

I found myself absorbed in Lisa's performance, really listening to the lyrics and the timbre of her voice, and even softly singing along to a few songs, which made her smile gloriously when she noticed. Taehyung's suggestion was brilliant, and the night did fly by. Before I knew it, the guys were packing up their stuff and Lisa was saying goodbye to a few people that she knew there…and obliging a few forward women with kisses on their cheeks. Then we were back in her car and heading home.

On the ride back, Lisa smiled, and softly sang the last song the band had played, thumping a rhythm with her thumbs on the steering wheel. It happened to be the song that had moved me so much, my very first night in Seattle. The song that had really made me notice Lisa, the inner Lisa. I leaned my head back on the seat and turned to watch her. She looked over at my rapt attention and smiled wider through her words.

"I love that one." I smiled back widely and she nodded, still singing it. "It seems important to you. Does it mean something?" I hadn't meant to ask that. Oh well, too late now.

She stopped singing and looked at me curiously. "Huh," she said, pausing her fingers and returning her attention to the road.

"What?" I asked timidly, hoping I hadn't somehow offended her.

She only half-grinned at me though, not at all looking slighted. "No one's ever asked me that before. Well, no one outside the band that is." She shrugged as she looked over my face. I blushed and looked away, wondering if she thought I was an idiot for asking. "Yes…" she said softly.

I blinked and turned back to look at her, thinking maybe, once again, I had spoken my thoughts out loud and she had just agreed that I was an idiot. But smiling warmly at me, she only added, "It means a lot to me…"

She gave me an odd look, and then turned her attention back to the road and said nothing further. I bit my lip, and made the conscious decision to not ask her anymore about it, even though I desperately wanted to. I could tell from the way she too carefully watched the road, and from the way she occasionally flicked me quick glances from the corner of her eye, that she didn't want to elaborate on it. It took great effort on my part, but I was respectful, and didn't ask her anything else.

I relayed my evening to Taehyung over our phone-breakfast the next morning, and he seemed pleased that I had been able to have a fun night without him. I wasn't too pleased at that thought – I wanted to be having fun with him, but I suppose he was right. I did need to get out more and enjoy myself while he was gone. Dwelling was getting me nowhere.

So I started hanging out with Somi more. In fact, the very next Sunday afternoon, she came over to our dreary house and was as shocked as I had been that it was so barren. We spent the entire afternoon hitting every consignment shop or thrift store in town, looking for the cheapest, yet nicest, stuff we could find to spruce up the place.

We managed to find a couple of nice art-deco pieces for the living room, a couple scenic prints for my room, some coffee themed pictures (and, of course, one tea themed picture) for the kitchen, and an interesting water drop photo for the bathroom. I even happened across on old Ramones poster that I thought Lisa would like, since her room was as barren as the rest of the house.

I scooped up a whole bunch of empty photo frames and got some pictures developed that we'd taken with Taehyung's camera that first week we'd moved in. Some were of Taehyung and I, a couple were just of the boys, and a few, including my very favorite one that I planned on sharing with my family, had all three of us together. And of course, we found a whole bunch of girlier items: baskets, decorative plants, nice towels for the bathroom. I even managed to find a cheap answering machine, so I wouldn't have to stress quite so much about missing a phone call.

I wasn't sure how thrilled Lisa was going to be about us girlifying her house, but she wasn't home when we got back from our trip, so we hurried, giggling the entire time, to get everything up before she got back. We were just finishing up in the kitchen when she finally did get home.

She looked over at Somi and me putting up the last coffee print in the kitchen and, smiling, shook her head a little. Laughing softly, she turned and headed upstairs to her room. Somi and I figured that was as much of a "looks good" as we were going to get, so laughing a little ourselves, we quickly finished the décor project.

I thanked Somi, for occupying my mind and beautifying our house, when she had to leave shortly after, to start her shift. She shouted a goodbye up the stairs to Lisa and upon her "bye" response, waved to me and headed out the door. Thinking that maybe Lisa secretly wasn't thrilled about the new look, I quietly made my way upstairs.

Her door was cracked, and I could just make her out, sitting on the edge of her bed, staring at the floor with a strange expression on her face. Curious, I knocked on her door. She looked up as I opened the door wider and waved me in.

"Hey…sorry about the stuff. If you don't like it, I can take it down." I smiled at her apologetically and sat on the edge of the bed beside her.

She smiled and shook her head. "No, its fine. I guess it was a little…empty." She pointed over her shoulder, to the poster I had hung on her wall. "I do like that…thanks."

I smiled back at her. "Yeah, I thought you might…you're welcome." Wondering what she had been thinking about earlier, I blurted out, "You okay?"

She looked at me, confused. "Yeah, I'm fine…why?"

Suddenly embarrassed, I wasn't sure what to say. "Nothing, you just looked…nothing, sorry."

She looked at me thoughtfully for a moment, and I thought she was deciding whether or not to tell me something. I started holding my breath under the intensity of her brown eyes. Suddenly, she smiled at me, and shaking her head a little, asked instead, "Hungry? How about Pete's?" She smiled brilliantly. "It's been so long since we've been there."

The bar was pretty packed, even though it was early. Lisa and I sat at her usual table and Somi smiled at us again as she came over to take our orders. We picked out a couple burgers and a couple beers, and I watched the crowd while we waited for our drinks. It felt a little odd to sit alone in public with Lisa, especially at the place I worked. Rita watched us curiously and I tried to avoid eye contact with her; she tended to think the worst about us.

Lisa seemed completely comfortable, however. She sat laid back in her chair, foot propped up on her knee, watching me. It suddenly occurred to me that I had spent the whole day out with Somi, and then I'd been busy decorating, and now I was out at Pete's - I hadn't talked to Taehyung today. That thought made me frown. We hadn't gone a whole day without talking to each other. It bothered me enough that I almost asked Lisa to take me home.

She noticed. "You okay?"

Realizing I was being silly, and I could listen to his voice on our new machine over and over, if he did call while I was gone, I smiled and shrugged. "Yeah, just Taehyung-sick. I'm fine though."

She seemed to consider that for a minute, then nodded.

Somi brought us our beers and she sipped hers in silence, still watching me intently. Starting to feel slightly uncomfortable, I relaxed visibly when Somi brought our food out a few minutes later. The weirdness between us quickly passed, and we ate and talked companionably. We sat and ate and talked and drank our beers for, well, I'm not sure how long, but, eventually, we weren't alone at the table.

The rest of the D-Bags finally made their almost nightly appearance at Pete's. They joined our table without even considering that they may not be invited to. I didn't mind. The guys were entertaining to hang out with. Well, maybe not so much Jacksong, but as long as he kept his hands off of me, I could tolerate him.

Luckily, he sat over by Lisa, on the far side of the table from me. Of course, he had to smack Lisa on the shoulder and say, "Nice, man" while leering at me suggestively. I rolled my eyes while Lisa chuckled at him. Lucas sat next to me, while Evan pulled a chair up to the end and sat down.

Somi quickly brought everybody beers and just like that, I was the fifth member of the band for the night. They were interesting to watch in action this close, and with the bar so busy, there were plenty of opportunities to watch them interact with people. Okay, mostly with women. I found the differences in how the guys "interacted" with their fans interesting. Of course, they all did it, even quiet Lucas and sweet Evan. They all seemed to enjoy their pseudo-stardom, just in different ways, to different degrees.

On the extreme end, was Jackson, who, I think if he ever had the idea, would keep a running tally of his conquests on his arms. He ceaselessly reiterated his adventures to anyone who would stop and listen. I found it disgusting, and tuned out as much as I possibly could. Being typical guys, the rest of the band seemed to find it all amusing. Even some women stopped and practically drooled on themselves over his crude stories. I could almost see them mentally replacing themselves with the random woman in his tale.

Jackson also seemed to be in some weird competition with Lisa. He was always asking her if she'd been with this or that girl. To her credit, Lisa was surprisingly quiet about her dalliances. She never answered Jackson directly. She tactfully changed Jackson's line of questioning, without ever actually saying if she did or didn't "do" said girl. In fact, thinking back over our time here, if she'd been with someone, or someones, I suppose, I had never seen it. Nothing beyond flirting. Tons of flirting actually; the girl did enjoy a good snuggle. I had heard plenty about her conquests though, but mostly from the women around the bar, or the guys in the band, or, ugh, the bathroom walls. Finding it hard to believe that someone as good-looking as her wasn't "getting some" regularly, I wondered where she went.

I tore my eyes away from where Lisa was chatting with some brunette, brushing her hair away from her shoulder and leaning in to whisper in her ear, while the brunette giggled and ran a hand down Lisa's chest. Turning my head, I watched Evan sitting on the edge of the stage.

Evan was boisterous and fun…and a flirt. From what I'd heard, he tended to focus on one woman for a short period of time, and then, when it was almost beginning to get serious, he would shift focus to someone else. When he was in love, he was deeply in love, but it never held his interest for long; he was "in love" a lot. Currently, he was pledging devotion to some buxom blonde in hot pants.

I smiled and turned to look over at Lucas, the only band member just people watching, like me. He smiled back at me and sipped his beer in comfortable silence.

Lucas was almost shy around girls. I never saw him approach anyone, they always approached him first. And he usually let them do most, if not all, of the talking and flirting. I could completely understand Lucas and his shyness. In some ways, we were a lot alike. But before the end of the night, even Lucas had caught the interest of a pretty girl, who brought over a chair to sit beside him.

I rolled my eyes and continued my people, well, band watching, sipping on my beer. The superfluous flirting going on around me suddenly made me miss Taehyung very, very much. I was sadly staring at my beer bottle when I felt someone approach. I looked up at Lisa smiling at me and holding her hand out. Confused, I took it and she stood me up.

"We're going to play some pool…join us?" She motioned back at Jackson who was downing the rest of his beer.

I wasn't eager to hang out closer to Jackson, but Lisa was smiling warmly at me, and I found myself nodding. She put her hand on my back and we made our way to the pool room. I noticed the woman she'd been flirting with earlier, following us with a couple of her friends, Jackson following them, with a highly inappropriate look in his light blue eyes.

Jackson shot first, while Lisa stood over by me, a stick upright in her hands. She grinned at me when Jackson didn't make anything on the break. Then she leaned over the pool table and, watching me with a cocky, half-smile on her lips, she made her shot. I laughed softly when her ball completely missed every other ball. She looked back at the table and frowned, then looked back up at me and laughed, shrugging her shoulders as she straightened back up. Her woman put a hand over her stomach consolingly, but she didn't look over at her.

Jackson smacked her on the back as he walked by. "Nice! Thanks."

Jackson sank the next two balls while Lisa sat on a stool beside me, her flirty friend standing close beside her, looking down at her like considering plopping onto Lisa's lap. Lisa unconsciously rubbed the skin behind her knee with her thumb, her fingers drifting up her short skirt a little, while she watched Jackson shoot.

Ignoring the flirting, that was making me slightly uncomfortable, I commentated on her playing instead. "You really aren't good at pool, are you?" I smiled widely at the thought.

Laughing, she looked over at me. "No, thanks for noticing." She looked back at Jackson while the brunette ran a hand through her hair above her ear. "I think that's why Jackson likes to play me." She laughed again and smiled up at the girl, making the girl giggle.

I rolled my eyes at her. "Maybe if you concentrated more…" She looked back at me, mock-offended and I laughed.

She looked at me silently for a second, her eyes oddly serious, and then laughed as well, shaking her head. "Yeah…maybe."

I looked away from her and watched Jackson make another two shots. She actually wasn't bad. Lisa started chuckling, highly amused at something, and I peered over at her. She was watching me watch Jackson play, a wry smile on her lips. "You get to play the winner," she said, touching my knee lightly with the hand holding her pool stick.

My eyes widened at that. I really was not good at pool…and apparently she wasn't either. Even more alarmed, I looked over at Jackson, who, in-between his shots, was attempting to lift up some girl's skirt with his stick. There was no way in hell I was playing pool with him! Lisa laughed harder as my face apparently made that clear to her.

Lisa finished up her game (okay, she lost terribly to Jackson and then called it quits) and gave her suddenly very sad brunette a kiss on the cheek. Then we said our goodbyes to Somi, the rest of the band, and an amused Rita, and she took me home. Even with my loneliness, the evening was surprisingly a lot of fun. But fun or not, the first thing I did when Lisa and I got home, was immediately check the answering machine for a missed message from Taehyung.

Nothing…nothing at all. I sighed brokenly and then shuffled off to bed.

After not hearing from him at all the evening I went to Pete's with Lisa, Taehyung's phone call the next night sparked my irritation. He apologized profusely, swearing up and down that work was crazy-busy, and he hadn't had a chance to stop and eat, much less call me. He invented a couple of creative ways to make it up to me, which eventually made me laugh and cooled my anger, somewhat. But a few nights later it happened again, and then a few nights later, again.

On top of worrying and wondering about that, the time was up for me to register for school. Taehyung had been the one who was going to show me around the new campus. Not that he knew it any better than I did, he didn't, but we'd planned on making a day of it - going on a Sunday and registering for my classes (he was a pro at creating the perfect schedule), checking out the bookstore, taking the self-guided campus tour and laughingly figuring it all out…together. But now he was away, indefinitely, and I was going to have to figure it out on my own.

I was scowling at brochures, course catalogs, and a map of the massive campus when Lisa came into the kitchen one Wednesday afternoon. Angry again at Taehyung's absence, I finally swept my arm across the table and, cursing rather dramatically, knocked everything to the floor. Of course, I hadn't realized that she was standing right behind me, or I wouldn't have been so theatrical. I just really wasn't looking forward to walking aimlessly around the school alone, looking like a lost idiot.

She laughed at my outburst and startled, I spun to face her. "I can't wait to tell Jack about that one." She smiled broadly, enjoying the moment a little too much. Blushing furiously, I groaned at the pictured amusement on Jackson's face. Great. "School starting, huh?" She nodded over to the brochures on the floor.

Sighing, I bent over to pick them up. "Yeah, and I still haven't really been on the campus. I have no idea where everything is." I straightened to look at her. "I just….Taehyung was supposed to be here for this." I hated how that sounded, like I couldn't function like a normal human being with him away. It was going to be embarrassing, figuring all this out on my own…but I should be able to do stuff on my own. I frowned at my dark thoughts. "He's been gone almost a month."

Lisa watched me intently, too intently, and I looked away. "The D-Bags play the campus every once and awhile." I looked back and she smiled oddly. "I actually know it pretty well. I can show you around if you like?"

Relief washed through me at the idea of having a guide. "Oh, please, yes." Struggling to regain my composure, I added, "I mean, if you don't mind."

She half-smiled adorably at me. "No, Jennie, I don't mind…"

Ignoring the oddity in her voice at the tail end of that sentence, I added, "There is a registration thing tomorrow. Could you take me, and then Sunday we could look around?"

She smiled broadly again. "Sounds great."

The next day, Lisa, rather cheerily, took me to school and walked me to the admissions office, since she seemed to know exactly where it was. I thanked her repeatedly, which she brushed it off with her hand, insisting it was no big deal. I told her that I had no idea how long I'd have to wait for my turn, so I would take the bus back home. She looked at me funny and then smiled and wished me luck before she left.

I waited with other nervous-looking students in the waiting area. I stared at my hands, mentally going over what classes I should take, until a woman came up to me and motioned me to an open door leading to the registration office.

The office was warm and inviting, which actually did relax me a little bit. Two incredibly large bookcases (crammed full of thick, hardbound books), multiple file cabinets and a large, clean desk in front of the window overlooking the quad, were all in a deep, dark cherry color that coordinated with the beige walls perfectly. Plants were everywhere around the room. The person who occupied this office must have a green thumb; I couldn't keep anything alive for more than three days.

That woman was currently sitting at the desk, and looked up at me as her college-aged assistant motioned me through the open door. The woman was very professional looking, and I suddenly felt very dowdy and uncomfortable. I had an odd desire for Lisa to still be here. I knew that she would be completely comfortable walking up to this woman, giving her a sly half-smile and getting whatever she wanted from her, since she would be putty in her hands. A twinge of jealousy passed through me. Life must be so much easier, when you know that you're absurdly attractive.

I sighed internally and straightened myself as I approached her. I may not be anything special to look at, but I was smart, and in a place such as this, that counted more. I held out my hand, trying to picture what Taehyung would do in this situation. "Hello. I'm Jennie Kim. I'm transferring in this year and need to register." I smiled, thinking that came out okay.

She smiled and took my hand. "Nice to meet you, Jennie, welcome to U-Dub. What can I help you with?"

I smiled and sat down. That went much better than I thought it would. We sat and talked about what I had already taken at Ohio U, and what I would still need to graduate. We debated my schedule and went over the still open classes, finding a few that fit together perfectly. I only needed three this semester, which worked out great, leaving me time to study…and quite frankly sleep, since I was working so late most nights.

By the end of the meeting, I had my three classes lined up. European Lit, with all the great classics: the Bronte sisters, Austen, Dickens. I was really looking forward to that class. Microeconomics, which Taehyung had suggested I take, insisting that he could help me study. I'd told him that I could handle it, but he had been so excited to teach me. And lastly, Psychology. I had really wanted a psych class, but the only open one that fit into my schedule was Human Sexuality. Blushing deeply, I signed up for it. I could take a seat in the very back of the room and not say a word. Besides, when Taehyung got home, he could help me study for that one too…

When I left the admissions office, quite a bit later, I blinked in surprise at seeing Lisa leaning against the wall across from the door, one foot propped up, and an espresso in each hand. Upon seeing me, she lifted one up and raised an eyebrow. I couldn't help the huge smile as I walked over to her.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, gleefully taking the coffee she offered me.

"Well, I thought you might want a ride home…and a pick me up." She lifted her own coffee and took a sip.

I could only stare at her, dumbfounded for a second, before I finally gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you, Lisa…for everything."

She looked down and, smiling, shook her head. "Come on," she said softly. "Let's go home. You can tell me all about your classes." She looked back at me and grinned. Thinking of my psych class, I blushed deeply again and she chuckled adorably.

That Sunday, Lisa took me for a tour around the campus. There were a surprising amount of people walking around, either getting ready to reenter the school, or, like me, checking it out for the first time. The campus was massive, more like a small city. Of course, the first place Lisa showed me was a small bar across the way from the University bookstore. Smiling at her, and shaking my head a little, we went inside for a quick lunch and a beer before our little adventure. Next, we went to the bookstore, where I found all the books I would need. I got most of them used, which saved me a bundle - books are dang expensive. I had to smile at Lisa while I was in line; she was flipping through a thick one on Human Anatomy, while talking to two giggling, college-age girls nearby… always the flirt.

Then we crossed the street to enter the campus. It was breathtakingly beautiful. Expertly landscaped and maintained lawns had crisscrossing paths that led to several imposing brick buildings. Dormant cherry blossoms were everywhere in the quad; the campus would be truly stunning in the spring. People of various ages and ethnicities were lounging around the grass, enjoying the sunny day.

Smiling at me, Lisa led me past the stately buildings, knowing the name of each one and what was taught there. Gowen Hall - Asian literature and political science. Smith Hall - history and geography. Savery Hall - philosophy, sociology and economics (where my micro-economics class would be). Miller Hall - the admin hall, which was the only place on campus I'd been. Raitt Hall - speech communications and nutritional sciences…

She went on and on with the detailed explanations of what and where everything was. I had brochures, but she barely looked at them. She just seemed to know most everything by heart. She was the best guide I could have asked for, and I found myself more and more appreciative of her, and her kind offer. And not entirely for the fact that she seemed to know every nook and cranny of the campus, which seemed really odd to me, since she'd made it sound like she'd only visited a of couple times for some shows (I was beginning to have some suspicions about the true source of her knowledge).

No, mostly I was grateful for the fact that walking beside her down the paths and the halls of the school, caused me to be practically invisible. She drew almost every eye to her like a flame. Women openly stared (even a few men did too) while the rest of the guys watched the women with puzzled looks on their faces, like they didn't get it. Either way was fine with me, as long as she was the one being looked at. Since Taehyung's departure, I'd been feeling really lonely, and more than a little depressed. We were walking through swarms of people I didn't know, that I didn't feel like getting to know today, and I was more than happy to disappear.

Lisa was pleasant company and chatted politely with me. She made eye contact with several of the girls in the hall, and surprisingly, avoided eye contact with others (I had suspicions about that too). We walked through a lot of the campus and through some of the various buildings and hallways. She made sure to go through the buildings where my classes were and pointed out which rooms were mine and what routes would be the best to take.

The afternoon had been pretty uneventful, aside from the stares she drew, when suddenly we came across someone that surprised us both. We were walking down the hallway to where my European Lit class would be, when from behind us we heard –

"Oh! My! God! Lisa Manoban!"

She turned and looked behind her instinctually to her name being called. She looked puzzled, as a petite redhead with springy hair and a face full of freckles, bounded down the hall towards us. Panic crossed her features and I thought for a second she might try and run for it. Before she could do anything though, the tiny girl had flung her arms around her neck and was kissing her voraciously.

I blinked in shock and sudden discomfort. Taking a break from her lips, the redhead sighed ecstatically. "I can't believe you're visiting me at school."

Lisa blinked, her mouth open in surprise, but remained quiet.

The girl glanced over at me and frowned. "Oh, I can see you're busy." She reached in her small purse for a piece of paper and a pen, scribbled something on it, and shoved it, rather seductively, in Lisa's front pocket. She fidgeted slightly, an odd look on her face.

"Call me," she breathed, kissing her passionately again before taking off, back down the hall.

And just like that she was gone.

She started walking again, like nothing even remotely weird had just happened, and I hurried to catch up with her. I couldn't help but stare at her in disbelief. She was sort of acting like being mauled was commonplace. Eventually, she turned to look over at me. "Who was that?" I asked curiously.

She scrunched her face adorably, in confusion and concentration. "I really have no idea." She reached in her pocket and took out the note. "Hmmm…that was, Candy." Her eyes snapped up as recognition flared. She grinned and looked back to where she had disappeared. I rolled my eyes, suddenly and surprisingly, a little irritated. My earlier suspicions were pretty much confirmed at that point.

She surprised me by crumpling the note and tossing it into a wastebasket we walked by. I wondered about that, my irritation cooling. I'd kind of figured…Candy, had been about to get a phone call later. I couldn't hold back the smile. Poor girl. And she had been so excited too.

A week later, on a bright and cheery Sunday morning, I was aimlessly flipping through channels on the television. I wasn't really watching anything, too lost in thought. Taehyung hadn't called again last night. It was starting to become a more frequent thing, and I was really starting to lose patience. I tried to remind myself over and over that he would be home in a few weeks, that this purgatory would eventually end. But nothing was lifting my mood, not today. Today I was wallowing in pity. That was my plan anyway. I was on my thousandth sigh when Lisa abruptly appeared in the living room and stepped between me and the TV.

"Come on." She held her hand out to me.

I looked up at her, confused. "Huh?"

"You're not spending, yet another day, moping on the couch." She smiled. "You're coming with me."

Not moving, and frowning at her cheeriness, I sullenly asked, "And where are we going?"

She smiled her charming half-smile. "Bumbershoot."

"Bumper-what?"

She laughed a little and smiled wider. "Bumbershoot. Don't worry, you'll love it."

I had no idea what that was and I smiled mockingly. "But that will ruin a perfectly good day of wallowing. "

"Exactly." She beamed at me and her sudden gorgeousness caught my breath. Hmmm, this could be interesting… "Fine," I sighed, and ignoring her still outstretched hand, I stood myself up and, overly exaggerating my irritation, headed upstairs to change, while she laughed at me.

She was dressed warmly and casually in shorts and a t-shirt, so I copied her and picked out my shorty-shorts and a tight tank top. She watched me as I came down the stairs, and then looked away, smiling to herself.

"Ready?" she asked, grabbing her keys and wallet.

"Sure." I still had no idea what I'd just gotten myself into.

Surprisingly, Lisa drove us to Pete's. "Bumbershoot is at Pete's?" I asked mockingly.

Lisa smiled at me and rolled her eyes. "No, the guys are at Pete's."

My heart unexpectedly dropped a little. "Oh, they're coming too?"

She put the car in park and frowned at me, noticing my disappointment. "Yeah…is that okay?"

Wondering why that had bothered me, I shook my head. "No, of course that's fine. I'm intruding on your day anyway."

She cocked her head in the cutest way. "You're not intruding on anything, Jennie."

I smiled and looked out the window and my heart sank again. There was one thing that hanging out with the guys entailed that I wasn't all too fond of, and it was currently walking right towards me. Jackson. I sighed and Lisa noticed what had my attention. She chuckled softly and leaned over to whisper in my ear, "Don't worry. I'll protect you from Jackson."

I blushed a little at her unexpected nearness, but threw her a smile in response. Jackson banged on the window, startling me, and then pressed his lips against the glass, making obscene movements with his tongue, his piercing clicking on the glass. I grimaced and looked away.

Lucas opened the rear door from Lisa's side and smiled over at me, his pale blue eyes looking genuinely pleased to see me. "Hey, Jennie, coming with us, huh? Cool." He hopped in and shut the door behind him while I nodded.

"Hi, Lucas."

Evan opened the rear door on my side and waved for Jackson to get into the middle seat. "Uh-uh. No, I'm not taking the bitch seat. You take it." Jackson stated indignantly, shaking his head at Evan.

"No way, man. I have to sit by a window or I'll get carsick." Evan sighed, giving him a 'just do it' face, and indicated the seat again. Jackson rolled his eyes and looked over at Lucas. Lucas smiled back, clearly not going to move. Jackson put his arms across his chest, clearly not moving either. Evan and Lisa both sighed.

"Oh for Pete's sake," I muttered, then carefully crawled over the front seat to sit in the "bitch seat", as Jackson so charmingly put it.

"Sweet!" Jackson quickly slid in the seat next to me and shut the door in Evan's face. I immediately regretted my decision and looked over at Lisa, who shrugged at me. I sighed again and scooted over towards Lucas while Jackson got as close to me as physically possible in the big back seat.

Evan got in the front seat, waved hello at me, and we took off for wherever we were going. Luckily, the trip didn't take too long. I only had to smack Jackson's hand from my thigh three times and only once, had to push him away from licking my neck. Lisa watched us periodically from the rear view mirror, but I couldn't quite see enough of her face to know if she was irritated, or amused.

Bumbershoot turned out to be a music and art festival at the Seattle Center. Lisa parked us in the lot across the street and waited to take my hand, which I thought was very sweet of her. As we entered the Center, it was also very practical, since the place was packed. Lisa bought my ticket, insisting that she had invited me along, so she would pay, and we made our way inside the massive campus.

It was amazing. There were art exhibits and performers everywhere. We walked near the Space Needle on the way in, and Lisa pulled me close, telling me we could go up later if I wanted. As we got further inside, the place was overwhelming. There were a dozen or so stages outside, and almost another dozen enclosed theaters, all with different types of bands. Every music style was accounted for, from Reggae to Rock. Even some comedy shows were going on as well. There were a ton of food and merchandise booths, and even an amusement park. I had no idea where to go first.

Luckily, Jackson and Lucas seemed to know exactly where they wanted to go, so we followed them through the mob of people. As we got closer to one of the outdoor stages, the crowds got even thicker. I squeezed Lisa's hand and she smiled and pulled me close to her. I was still missing Taehyung, but hanging onto Lisa was nice. It made me feel kind of…content.

Jackson, Lucas and Evan, were moving towards the front of a particularly rowdy group of fans, listening to some rock group that I hadn't ever heard of before. It looked a little violent for me, so I was relieved when Lisa stopped a distance from the chaos. We listened, and Lisa sang along to some of the songs, never dropping my hand. I pressed into her side as people behind us roughly pushed into me, trying to get by. Sensing my jostling, she slipped her arms around my waist, pulling me safely in front of her. Unlike with Jackson, I didn't smack her away. Her arms were warm, comforting.

I watched the band for awhile (personally, I thought Lisa's group was better) and then I watched the rowdy crowd. I didn't see the other D-Bags (the band's name still made me chuckle). I looked around and finally found them off to the side, standing with a small circle of people all passing around cigarettes. Only, I had the feeling that wasn't really what they were. Lisa noticed my attention and looked over. I looked up and watched her watch her friends, curious if she would go over there or not. Her brown eyes sparkled as the sunlight hit them and after a moment, she looked back down to my curious eyes and shrugged, smiling a little at me. Then she turned her attention back to the show.

I was relieved that she was happy to stay over by me. I started to wonder over that, but then decided she was pleasant to be around (and not too bad to look at), and that was a good enough answer for right now. Besides, I had been so lonely lately and, right or wrong, her closeness was making that feeling fade. Relaxing for the first time in what felt like weeks, I turned and slipped my arms around her waist, resting my head against her chest. I felt her stiffen a little at how closely we were connected, and then relax too, her thumb lightly stroking my back. I wasn't sure why I did that, but I sighed contently at the warmth of her embrace.

We spent the majority of the day that way, making our way to all the different styles of music on all the different stages. Jackson and Lucas would lead us through the crowd - Jackson hooting at cute girls that would pass by (some responded, some looked affronted). Lucas would occasionally smack him to get his attention and change what direction we were going. Evan strolled alongside Lisa and I, watching the crowds, but eyeing Lisa, who was still holding my hand, curiously. Once up to a stage, the guys would disappear, getting as close as possible to the front, with the more aggressive people, while Lisa would stay by me, seemingly happy and content farther back. I felt a little guilty that she was missing out on what guys considered "fun", but I liked having her near, so I didn't say anything.

Around mid-day we stopped at one of the numerous food stands and got some burgers and fries. Lisa grabbed my food and smiling, nodded over to an empty spot on a nearby lawn. Lucas and Evan sat down and Lucas grabbed a water bottle and started pouring something into their sodas. Jackson squatted down in front of him and handed him his drink for a fill up. I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but I was pretty sure it was alcoholic, and probably frowned upon here. I sighed, boys will be boys. Lucas held the bottle up to me politely. I sat down next to him and shook my head no. He shrugged and looked up at Lisa, who also surprisingly shook her head no. I smiled into my straw as I took a sip of pure soda, happy that Lisa didn't feel the need to "enhance" her fun. Lucas shrugged again and taking a quick swig, put the bottle back in his bag.

Jackson stood up from in front of Lucas and made a move, like he was going to sit next to me, but Lisa sat down right beside me before he could, sitting close enough that we were touching. I nestled gratefully into Lisa's side and she nudged me playfully with her shoulder. Throwing Lisa a look, Jackson stalked off to sit over by Evan, on the far side of Lucas. I laughed at his frustration, and at the fact that we were all sitting in a line on the lawn, instead of bunched together. But as words from the story Jackson started telling Evan drifted down to me, I was mostly grateful. Lucas turned to listen to him, but on the words "freaky" and "un-fucking-believable", I quickly turned my head to Lisa, who grinned and rolled her eyes. I concentrated on having a conversation with her, and tuning Jackson out.

Of course, the women here were no different than everywhere else I went with Lisa. Even just sitting on the lawn, eating and chatting with me, she attracted them. But for the first time that I had ever seen, Lisa ignored them. Usually she would, at the very least, smile and make eye contact, but today she just seemed to be happy to sit by my side and talk with me. The guys were more than happy to make up for her lack of attention to the females, and several women were only too eager to move their affections over to the other boys when Lisa appeared indifferent, making our straight line into a strange, lopsided oval of flirty girls. It made me feel oddly wonderful that, at least for today, I seemed to have her full attention.

After lunch, the guys decided to hit the small amusement park. Evan, Lucas and Jackson, all obviously feeling no pain, decided to go on this ride that looked terrifying to me. It wasn't just the fact that the ride swung rapidly back and forth, while rising higher and higher into the air, it was the fact that once it reached the top, it held you upside down. I didn't like that at all. I clenched Lisa's hand as we approached it and she looked down at me thoughtfully. She stopped a ways away, as the guys got in line. I looked up at her questioningly, but she only smiled calmly back at me. I nestled close to her arm and put my head on her shoulder, grateful that we were, apparently, not going anywhere near the ride.

The other three guys, all with girls scrunched close to their sides, thoroughly enjoyed the crazy thing. I had to look away as they reached the very top. Lisa chuckled at me, then turned and pulled me towards some less terrifying entertainment. Smiling and laughing with her, we attempted some of the carnival games. Eventually, she won me a stuffed animal at a ball toss game, and I gave her a swift kiss on the cheek in thanks.

As we were leaving the games section, a little girl in front of us started crying as her ice cream cone hit the hot pavement. Her mother tried consoling her, but the girl was having none of it. Lisa watched the exasperated mom and her red-faced child as we walked around them. She looked back once at them behind us and then over to me. I eyed her curiously as she glanced down to the bear she had won for me. "Do you mind?" she asked, nodding her head at the child, still crying over her puddle of ice cream.

I smiled warmly at her thoughtfulness, and handed the bear to her. "No. Go ahead."

She excused herself and walked over to the little girl. With an 'is this okay' glance at her mother, who smiled warmly and nodded, she squatted to the girl's level and handed her the stuffed animal. She immediately hugged it and stopped crying. Clutching her mother's leg shyly with one arm, and her new prize with the other, she thanked Lisa quietly and started giggling. Lisa rustled her hair and stood to face the mother, who sincerely thanked her. Lisa nodded and, smiling warmly at them, said it was no problem. My heart warmed as I watched her walk back to me.

Reaching out for her hand, I smiled a half-grin as she took it and interlaced our fingers. "You're just a big softy, aren't you?"

She looked around discreetly. "Shhh, don't tell anyone." Then she grinned and laughed. Looking down on me she said, "Do you want me to win you another one?"

Thinking that no toy could replace the sweet memory that had just imprinted on my brain, I smiled and shook my head. "No, I'm fine." She smiled sweetly at me and then led me back to where we had left the guys.

When it started getting dark, and I could barely keep walking I was so exhausted, we headed back to the car. Deciding I was not going to put up with Jackson again, I crawled into the middle of the front seat, between Lisa and Evan. I couldn't help but smile as Jackson pouted in the back seat.

The rocking of the car was slowly pulling my body towards sleep, and I laid my head on Lisa's shoulder. A full day of holding hands and having her arms around me had made me feel really comfortable around her. And it was oddly appealing to me to touch her. I was nearly asleep when I felt the car stop and heard the doors open. I wanted to open my eyes and say goodnight to the guys, I just couldn't get my body to respond.

"Hey, Lisa, we're gonna stay at Pete's. You comin'?" I couldn't tell which one had asked it…maybe Evan.

I felt Lisa move a little, like she had looked down at me, nearly asleep on her shoulder. "No, I'll pass tonight. I think I'll get her to bed."

There was a long pause from the still open door. "Be careful, Lisa. You don't need another Joey and…Taehyung is a friend, man." I wanted to say something to that, my irritation tried to rise, but my tired brain couldn't focus long enough to be able to respond.

An even longer pause came from Lisa. "Evan, it's not like that. I wouldn't…" She didn't finish that thought, and I was really curious where it had been going. "Don't worry. Yeah, maybe I'll drop in later."

"Alright, see ya." The door closed softly.

Lisa sighed deeply and then drove the car out of the parking lot. I faded in and out of consciousness as we drove home. I really wanted to lie down in her lap, but thought that might be pushing the limits of our friendship. Feeling like we had only driven for a few seconds, the car stopped again.

She waited in the dark, silent car for a moment, and I could feel her eyes on me. I wondered if I should get up now and go inside, so she could leave for Pete's, but I was really curious as to what she would do, and honestly, quite relaxed. The silence grew while we sat in the car. It started to make my heart beat faster, which started to make me uncomfortable, so I yawned and stretched a little.

I lifted my head to find her beautiful brown eyes watching me. "Hey, sleepy," she whispered. "I was beginning to think I'd have to carry you."

"Oh…sorry." I blushed at the thought.

She laughed a little. "It's alright. I wouldn't have minded." She paused for a second. "Did you have fun?"

I thought back over the day and realized that I had. "Yes, a lot. Thank you for inviting me."

She half-smiled and looked away, almost shyly. "You're welcome."

"Sorry you had to hang back with me and miss all the moshing," I laughed.

She laughed once and then looked back over at me. "Don't be. I'd rather hold a beautiful girl than be all bruised tomorrow." She smiled, looking a little embarrassed. I blushed and looked down. Someone as good-looking as her calling me beautiful, was beyond ridiculous, but, sweet anyway. "Well, come on. I'll get you inside."

I shook my head at her. "No, you don't have to do that. I can manage. You can go on to Pete's."

She looked over at me, suddenly alarmed. I realized then, that she'd assumed I was sleeping through that whole conversation with Evan. I tried to cover with, "I'm guessing that's where the other D-Bags went off to?"

She visibly relaxed. "Yeah, I don't have to go though. I mean, if you don't want to be alone. We could order pizza, watch a movie or something."

Suddenly starving, that sounded like a great idea. My stomach noisily agreed. I laughed, slightly embarrassed. "Okay, apparently my stomach votes for option two."

"All right then." She smiled.

We ordered our large, pepperoni pizza and ate it standing in the kitchen, laughing over some of the absurdly goofy things Jackson and the guys had done throughout the day. Afterwards, I snuggled up on the chair while she sprawled across the couch and turned on 'The Princess Bride'. I vaguely remembered the little boy talking to his grandfather, before I was sound asleep. I woke up when Lisa laid me down on my bed and started pulling the covers over me.

"Lisa…" I whispered.

Her hands stopped moving. "Yeah?"

I looked over to what little of her I could see in the darkness. "We forgot the Space Needle."

She smiled at me and finished tucking me in. "Next time."

When she was done she paused, still leaning over me. Her eyes were unreadable in the darkness, but, weirdly enough, she was giving me butterflies, looking at me like she was. After another second, she smiled, then whispered good night and left. My stomach settling, I smiled at remembering the day and how, for almost the entirety of it, I hadn't missed Taehyung…too much.