didn't know you were cold ('til you felt my fire) // JENLISA AU

Chapter 16

The sound of her feet hitting the dirt combined her ragged breathing filled her ears as she ran down the worn path that made up the track in the school's sports field. Her lungs were burning from the exertion as she pushed herself, ignoring the protests from her muscles, the twinge of pain that still lingered in her leg from the injury, the stitch making itself known in her side.

Jennie ignored them like she ignored every damn thing that made her uncomfortable in pursuit of a goal. She ignored the pain in her body in pursuit of a better track time. She ignored the crick in her neck when she stayed up late studying for important tests. She ignored the guilt in the pit of her stomach when she lied to her parents about her post secondary plans.

And she was going to ignore this fucking crush she'd developed on the absolute worst person in her life to get one on.

As she neared the end and slowed her run with Coach in her sights, she glanced up at the bleacher stands. Among the dotted spectators of friends, partners and siblings waiting for the other various athletes to finish practice, Jennie could see the bright pink hair of Lisa sitting casually in the top row.

You weren't supposed to get a crush on your best friend.

You especially weren't supposed to get a crush on your best friend when you'd only become friends with through a dishonest scheme in the first place. The developing friendship was accident already in itself, scared Jennie with how much it affected her and once she realized how badly it had gone she was in too deep. Now trying to try and end things, get out of it, not only meant losing valuable time in finishing the car.

It would mean hurting Lisa.

Lisa who made her heart flutter and stomach flip every time she smiled at her. Lisa who made her skin burn every time they touched, a burn Jennie was starting to find herself addicted to, seeking it out with any excuse she could imagine. Brushing fingers when they passed papers between them, sitting too close-

God, when Lisa had asked if she'd wanted to hold hands at the movie, Jennie might have exaggerated just slightly how frightened she was to justify maintaining it.

Her plan had been to ignore this crush, ignore the bet, ignore the guilt and shame and just try to survive the rest of the school year without losing Lisa to any of it. A task easier said and done if it weren't for Jennie's partner in crime, blackmailer, whatever she could be called.

Beside the shock of pink hair in the stands was a messy mop of braided blue and Jennie's eyes narrowed as she slowed to a stop, hands on her throbbing knees as she caught her breath. Coach came up and was saying something - probably chiding her for going the extra lap and potential injury - and Jennie just nodded along as if she were listening and not glaring at the younger girl sitting too far away to see her expression.

*

"Plans changing."

Another plastic bag of car parts fell to Jennie's feet. She looked in it curiously - the gear shift and connectors she'd been missing. "You're going to prom and you're taking Lisa."

Jennie snapped her attention to look at Ella, who was standing incredibly casually given what she had just said. "I- what?" Jennie stammered, feeling her ears grow hot.

"Lisa never said she needed a date as an excuse to go to prom, just someone to go with. And guess what, she's like, yeah I'll go with Jennie as friends. You don't date so, it's not like you're missing out." Ella jammed her hands in her pockets, an incredibly Lisa-like gesture as she rocked on the balls of her feet to lean forward. "Just tell her you really want to go for any dumb reason you can think of. She does whatever you tell her to anyway, you don't even have to come up with a lie about it."