shake the dust // JENLISA

Chapter 14

Lisa reluctantly walked into Chaerin's office at 9am for their session. This was only their second one, their first being when they'd signed all those papers. She wasn't sure what to expect, and her stomach was tied up in all sorts of knots. To her absolute surprise, Jennie's car had been in the parking lot. Somehow, she'd gotten here first, and Lisa wasn't even late.

When Lisa stepped into the room, a young man glanced up from a desk. "Ah, Miss Lee is waiting for you," he said, standing and smiling kindly. He gestured for her to follow him, so she did, and he opened a door down the hallway. She gave him a nod and stepped inside.

Chaerin sat calmly in her chair, with her hands clasped together and her shoulders down. Her hair was pinned up in a bun this time, and for the first time since their odd meeting, Lisa realized that she was actually really attractive. Heat filled her cheeks and she looked away from Chaerin's excited gaze. Jennie was seated as well, opposite Chaerin, but her eyes were cast downwards. Lisa took her seat next to her.

"Good morning, Lisa," Chaerin greeted her, smiling widely. "I hope you woke up in good spirits today."

She hadn't. But she didn't say so, and merely shrugged. "So what do we do now?"

Chaerin puffed out a breath and grabbed a thick notebook on the table beside her. She took a while to page through it, reading over something. A clock on the wall ticked loudly. Tick, tick, tick. Lisa was getting annoyed.

"Before I explain the extent of step 4, I would like for us to share our feelings." She closed the book with a loud slap of enthusiasm. "Jennie, is there anything you would like to share? Have you learnt anything since step 1?"

Jennie jumped at the sound of her name. Lisa could tell that she did not want to be there at all, and felt a tiny bit of pity for a second until it melted away. She was still angry with Jennie.

"Um, I don't really..." She sighed. Her shoulders were slumped and there were dark circles underneath her eyes that even her expensive makeup couldn't conceal. Lisa wondered why she wasn't sleeping properly. Work usually kept her up late, pouring over contracts and proposals and staff papers. It surely wasn't their failing marriage causing her lack of sleep.

"Go on," Chaerin urged. "Anything you want to see. It can be good or bad. I want this to be a safe place for the both of you. We can't hope for step 4 to go well if we don't do this now. So go on, get it out. Anything stuck in there, expel it."

Jennie lifted her face. Her eyes looked more bruised than Lisa realized. "I'm incredibly tired right now and really not in the mood for this."

Chaerin nodded. "That's a start. Would you like to share what caused your exhaustion and mood?"

Lisa snorted. Both of them turned to look at her, Chaerin's eyes filled with expectation and Jennie's a glare.

"Oh, Lisa?" Chaerin asked her.

Lisa cleared her throat. "It's probably just work," she decided to stay. "Work and more work."

Chaerin looked back at Jennie, but Jennie didn't look away. The stormy look in her eyes made Lisa nervous. She hated Jennie's temper, especially when it was directed at her. "My father was in the hospital," Jennie told her quietly. She rubbed a hand over her face. "He fell overboard his boat and his staff only realized an hour later. It took them a day to find him, and another day for him to wake up."

Lisa's stomach filled with lead. She felt awful. "Jennie, I didn't know."

Jennie's eyes widened. "Yeah, you didn't." She jerked her face away. "You're always quick to make a smart comment and think you can't possibly be wrong."