The Tiger King (Chaelisa)

73| Playing with Fire

previously: jennie spilled out her and lisa's story. rosie found out about the deal jennie had struck with jinyoung. chanyeol and dasoni come to an understanding.

Momo, Seulgi, Ella and Irene rushed into the living room just in time to catch Rosé violently shaking Jennie from the shoulders as she straddled her and screamed in her face.

"How could you?! You piece of shit, how could you just give up Lisa? You fucking scum—"

"Rosé," Jennie wheezed, caught off-guard by Rosé's outburst as she grappled with the hysteric girl shrieking her head off on top of her. "Rosé, what are you talking about?"

"She's lost it," Momo grunted and rushed forward, catching Rosé from the waist and pulling her back. "Down girl down! Come on, chill out!"

"Let me go!" Rosé screamed.

Seulgi also dived into the fray, catching Rosé's flailing hands before a stray fist could punch Jennie in the face. "Rosé calm down. What's going on?"

"Ask her!" Rosé shouted, red in the face, "ask her about the deal!"

"What deal?"

"The blood contract," Rosé bellowed, thrashing in Momo's grip, "she's a lying piece of shit and she was going to give away Lisa in exchange for Jisoo! She's a traitor! Let me go!"

Jennie went white as a sheet. All heads swivelled to her as the room suddenly fell silent. She swallowed.

"I—I can explain—"

"A blood contract? With Jinyoung?" Momo said appalled. She dropped Rosé like a sack of rice and stomped up to Jennie, voice shaking with fury. "You signed a blood contract with that psychopath? Are you insane? Jennie, what the actual fuck?"

"I know, alright?" Jennie snapped, holding her hands up. "I was backed into the corner, I saw no way out and he coerced me into doing it. I figured I'd buy myself some more time. I was a wreck and I had nobody to back me up so I don't particularly need you of all people to preach to me, Momo."

"More time to do what? To do what, Jennie? You fool!" Momo cried. She held her head, laughing hysterically. "A blood contract with Jinyoung and Lisa is MIA? Oh my god, you're so dead. We're all dead."

"You have nothing to do with this," Jennie snorted.

"That's what you think!" Momo fired back. She pointed at Jennie, fury in her eyes. "But the moment Jinyoung learns about the people around you, you think he will stop with just you and Jisoo? We'll be roped into the mess. He'll murder an entire village if that's what it takes to keep his secrets, can't you understand that? You went and made a deal with the devil."

"What's a blood contract?" Ella frowned.

"I'd like to know too. It doesn't sound anything good," Seulgi said, staring in between Jennie and Rosé. "Rosé, who told you about this?"

"Jinyoung. He...he told me he's gonna turf me out of my apartment. Tomorrow his thugs are coming around to make sure I'm all packed and hand over the keys," Rosé whispered.

"What?"

"He said my debt was transferred to him when he took over from Yang," Rosé said, trembling, "he said he's going to seize the apartment to downsize and I won't have to pay the rent on it anymore. He's pretending to be all Mr Nice Guy to save me money but really, he's a conniving little snake."

"He's wielding his power to break you, both of you," Seulgi said in realisation, "to make you crack and give in to his demands."

"Depraved piece of shit," Irene spat out, rolling her eyes when Seulgi looked surprised. "Oh come on, you're surprised I'm cussing when we've been cussing all day?"