Jennie
Lisa has used up all of her smiles for today, apparently, so I stop pushing my luck. I do say, "Thank you." and press a quick kiss to her cheek before slipping out the door. The lining of the jacket is kitten soft, and it keeps me warm as Lisa and I pile into Bambam's car. We leave the property and drive through thick trees and quaint gingerbread houses. There's hardly a chain store in sight. I spot a Lotte Mart and Starbucks, but everything else is Mom 'n Pops This and That. I find it unbearably charming. I drive us to the Holiday Inn where Ren and Nayeon are staying and park outside. "Stay here." I tell Lisa.
She lifts her eyebrows. "You want me to babysit the car?"
I bite my lip. "I'll only be a second. Promise."
She frown, but then says, "Don't be long."
I slip out of the car and leave it running for her. I cross the parking lot to go to the entrance. As I step inside, I text Ren and ask for their room number. My phone buzzes with a text when he sends it seconds later. I take the elevator and follow the room numbers to get to theirs. A 'Do Not Disturb' sign hangs on the doorknob. I knock anyway.
Nayeon answers the door with her toothbrush hanging out of her mouth. I feel like I've walked in on a dorm room.
"Hi, Jennie!" she says cheerily. "Come on in!"
I step inside. My dorm room assumption wasn't far from the truth, they've got one room complete with twin beds. Both their bags are open, stuff splayed out on the floor and on the beds.
"Still unpacking?" I ask.
"It's a process." Ren says defensively, waving the mess off. He's ready to go, at least, dressed in white slacks and a smart cable-knit sweater. His eyes flicker over me and catch on the jacket. "Nice look."
I beam. "Lisa's waiting downstairs, so."
Nayeon rinses out her mouth before she comes back in and dives into her bag. "Almost ready!"
I rub my hand over the back of my pants and wince when I feel a sting there. Truthfully, I have an ulterior motive for coming upstairs.
"Ren." I tilt my head to the bathroom. "Can I borrow you for a second?"
"Certainly." Ren gets up and follows me into the bathroom.
"Do you have tweezers?" I ask him.
He scoffs a laugh. "Darling. Who do you think I am? Of course I have tweezers. What do you need?"
"I have a splinter. But it's kind of. Well. Hard to reach."
"All right. Show me."
I grimace. "Well... it's kind of..." Ren lifts his eyebrows and makes a hurry up motion with his hand. "On my butt."
"For heaven's sakes, Jennie." Ren sighs. "I will never understand how you get yourself into these messes. Turn around."
I do and unbutton my pants, dropping them. "It's a funny story, really." I tell him as I brace myself on the sink.
Ren goes into his vanity kit, pulls out a pair of tweezers, and positions himself behind me. I pull down the side of my underwear just enough to expose the offending cheek.
"Do tell." Ren says.
"Well..." I'm leaning over the sink with my ass in the air. I don't have a lot of secrets I can keep from Ren now, so I just blurt out "... I had sex with Lisa."
I feel a pinch on my rear, and I let out a quick yelp of pain.
"Ow!" I say and glance over my shoulder. "Did you get it?"
Ren stands there with the splinter trapped between his tweezers. "Yes. Pull your trousers up, please. You're as pasty as a ghost, have you thought about tanning?"
I pull my pants back up. "Thank you."
"Jennie, what are you doing?" Ren asks. There's an accusatory tone to his voice.
"I just figured you wouldn't mind..."
"This, I can do all day. We're friends. What frightens me is the fact that you're apparently sleeping around with the bride's family now."
"Not all the bride's family, just one... it happened before I knew who she is and... it's complicated."
Ren's lips are pressed in a thin line. He's unimpressed. "I have to tell Jessi." he says.
Bolts of panic shoot through my chest. "No! Ren, you can't tell Jessi. Please!" I beg him. "The wedding is too important to me."
"The assignment, you mean." Ren says sceptically. "You're part of the planning crew, not part of the family. Don't forget that."
"I've got it under control." I tell him firmly. "I promise."
He doesn't seem entirely convinced, but he lets out a deep sigh. "Let's hope so." With that, he opens the bathroom door and calls out to Nayeon. "Muffin! Time to go!"
