The Tiger King (Chaelisa)

16| Decision

Unaware of the conflict raging in Jennie's head, Lisa greeted her sister cheerfully when the latter entered the gym.

"Back already from your girl meeting?" she called as she lifted a medicine ball above her head and squatted then stood up and repeated.

"Mmm," Jennie responded. She made a beeline for her desk to avoid Lisa's gaze—once her sister noticed her brooding mood, she was sure to ask. And Jennie needed time to think and evaluate her options. 

Somi would be soon returning to the Vault to leave with her father, but Jennie wasn't sure she could face the girl right now.

If Lisa ends up broken, it's you I'm gonna blame, Somi's words echoed in her head.

Preposterous. Lisa wasn't some fragile vase, she could take all the hits that came her way—

Do you really want to find out?  The voice sneered in her head, what if she ends up like Hwangssabu?

But  that was way different! Jennie protested yet the voice in her head was relentless.

Lisa is over-worked. She barely has a life outside of boxing. She's just existing.

She's not going to die though! Jennie argued.

 Maybe physically she can take it but go on, admit it. You're killing her from the inside, slowly but surely, the wicked voice sneered. Some trainer you are. You only care about the money.

It's still not like Hwangssabu... Jennie retorted feebly.

So it's excusable?  the voice asked. How about a quick reminder of what went down back then, hmm?

Jennie gripped the edge of the table and gritted her teeth. No please—

Memories immediately flashed in her mind's eye, terrible images she had learned to suppress but they still somehow resurfaced when she least expected them: old echoes of nightmares,  raw screams of horror, the clash of bodies and bone, the stench of blood and lastly, death—

Jennie stiffened. No, that wasn't going to happen. Not under her watch. Never ever—

"Jennie?" Lisa was waving her hand in front of Jennie's face. "Hey. You okay? You look a bit spaced. You got your hand on some weed this morning? Can I have some?"

Jennie's face split into a weak smile. 

Of course her goof of a sister would always try to crack some joke—she wasn't sure they would have made it this far in life if Lisa had turned out to be as dour and serious as herself.

Lisa still had on that mega-watt smile. "Hey, what's with the face? Turn that frown upside down sis!" she chuckled and tapped underneath Jennie's chin.

On instinct, Jennie reached out and wrapped Lisa in a hug, holding her close.

"J-Jen?" Lisa spluttered in surprise.

"I'm going to fix this," Jennie mumbled in her shoulder, coming to a decision. "Things will get better. I promise."

Lisa hesitantly returned the embrace, baffled by her sister's unusual show of affection. She glanced at Matthew who looked similarly stumped—everybody knew how Jennie wasn't one of the most effusive persons around.

"Okay, get back to working...I have to make a call...." Jennie said softly. She turned on her heel and disappeared into the bathrooms.

Lisa shared another look with Matthew before they shrugged and went back to their work-outs, the thumping music in the background helping them keep their tempo.