chaelisa prologues: you switch from vodka, lime, and soda

stand with your feet shoulder-width apart

A/N: Dumping this one here too. 

Complete title: stand with your feet shoulder-width apart (there's no decoy and i know i have to have you)

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Five university students--seemingly normal on the outside but miserable misfits on the inside--struggle through the challenges of finding their own path amidst the pressure of fulfilling their parents' dreams and dealing with the emotional downturns that made them want to quit many times over. They found comfort in a secret club they formed for young adults like them who once felt like they could seize the world, only to realize the great heights they had to reach were too difficult to achieve their dreams.

Standing on the side street, waiting for the pedestrian light to turn green, Roseanne Park shoved one hand inside her black, slim-fit tailored trousers while the other slid along the strap of her sling bag. She was feeling a little too nostalgic after meeting up with her friends over dinner and reminiscing about their days at the university.

Perhaps the waxing crescent moon was to blame for the subsiding of her yearning for the way things used to be in her idealized version of the past—where the five of them leaned on each other to survive university angst with their limitless ambition to fulfill their dreams. And so, the tidal waves within her had started to reach their minimum at neap tides.

But guilt nagged at her like the undertow that swept her toward holding on to that past where Lisa was still there, cheering her on every step of the way, staying up all night to accompany her while studying, and always making sure they took vitamins at the same time every day.

Does she still have that reminder set in her phone to take vitamins first thing in the morning—at six thirty? she wondered.

The warmth of March turned cold, hitting her hard. She felt a shiver run down her spine at the possibility that maybe Lisa was scolding someone else now to take those vitamins first before even texting her. Or maybe Lisa was really getting married to her first crush in two weeks. Huh. No. No. Noooooo. She gave her head a little shake to wake up from another pointless overthinking.

"Rosé, real talk, that idiot isn't worth waiting for anymore," Jennie said.

"Who said I'm waiting?" Roseanne countered.

"You didn't, but it's obvious when you still haven't gone out on your second date with Suzy," Yeri chided.

And so, Roseanne turned defensive to prove they were all wrong. "Ugh, fine, I. Am. Texting. Her. Now."

Yeri nodded condescendingly. "Show me receipts or I'll force you to eat avocado right now."

Rolling her eyes at Yeri, Roseanne turned to Jisoo with a suspicious look. "Complete the holy trinity scolding now, please."

"Why? Out of all the people here, I'm the one who gets you. Your waiting, my dear friend, is nothing compared to mine," Jisoo said, winking in the end and causing Jennie to let out an annoyed huff at the shade thrown at her.

"Please. It's over. It's over since she left." Roseanne said it scared; her words flew out as a grumble as she herself did not want to hear those words coming out of her lips.