hopelessly devoted

pushing her buttons

Not for the first time, Jisoo wondered what the hell was wrong with Jennie Kim.

She wondered this at least once a day: wondered why she loved making people feel bad about themselves, why her coffee had to be hot enough to hurt her mouth when she drank it (was it a masochist thing?), why she sneered at Dior shoes but not Chanel this season, and a million other whys. But she usually didn't wonder at, well...physical symptoms. Strange things she was doing with her body.

But here they were at a Black Label meeting of heavyweights: editors from all the major magazines (plus a few right-hand women like Jisoo), vice presidents, and, of course, at the head of the table, Teddy Park himself. And Jennie seemed positively distracted. Usually her focus, her concentration, put everybody else's to shame. She'd probably be able to ask pertinent questions about funding for Odd Atelier in the middle of an earthquake. But today her cheekbones were bright red, her eyes were glazed, and she kept licking her lips, or pressing them together. She was watching Teddy as he held forth, but Jisoo doubted she was actually seeing him, or hearing anything he was saying. She seemed to be a million miles away. Every once in a while, she squirmed in her seat as if restless.

Was she sick? The flush on her cheek and the brightness of her eyes could point to a fever, and there had been a nasty flu strain going around. Great. A little thing like a crippling bout of influenza wouldn't stop Jennie from coming in to work, infecting everyone she didn't manage to kill with her foul temper. But at the same time, she seemed a little too wired to be sick. If you had the flu, you tended to be sluggish and exhausted, didn't you? You probably didn't sit with your shoulders and arms so tense, or with a muscle going in your cheek.

So maybe Jennie was angry. Yeah, bright eyes, red cheeks, quivering shoulders. She looked like that when she was enraged and trying not to show it. Jisoo's stomach twisted just at the thought. But what the hell would make her so mad? Surely she couldn't be pissed off that Teddy had just ordered a two-percent cut in the operating costs of YG?

Unless it had nothing to do with business. She might be seething over Taehyung's lawyer's latest ridiculous demands, or over a teacher at Dalton who'd dared to give the twins less than an A-plus for something, or even over losing that auction at Sotheby's last night for the Monet watercolor she'd wanted. It might be any number of things with Jennie. You never could tell.

"Jennie?" Teddy said, and Jisoo realized he wasn't the only one who had noticed.

Jennie jerked out of her trance and gave Teddy a bland smile. "Yes?" Then, for some reason, she blinked, squeaked, and dropped her Mont Blanc pen. She cleared her throat, picked the pen back up, and said, "I'm sorry. What?"

"Are you feeling all right?" Teddy asked with a frown.

Jennie blushed more. Everyone at the table was staring at her now but, with her usual good grace, she ignored them completely. "Yes, of course. Just a slight headache." She waved her hand, which trembled a little.

"All right," Teddy said, giving her a doubtful look, and the meeting resumed.

It concluded twenty minutes later. At least by the time it was over, Jennie appeared to have brought herself back under control. She was still flushed, but her voice was even enough when she said, "Jisoo, when you get back to Odd Atelier, do please give this to Accounting." Jennie gave Jisoo a folder.

"You're not coming back too?" Jisoo asked, frowning. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Oh, I'll be coming back, of course," Jennie said. "But there is an errand I have to run first. I've just thought of it."

"Well...okay," Jisoo said as they filed out of the room. Who was she to object if Jennie wanted to take her mood somewhere else for a change?

Rosie Park was sitting by the door with the other assistants who'd been exiled to the hallway, and she hopped up to join them as they left. She gave Jisoo a tight little smile. "Meeting go okay?"