"You do know that you've been acting weird this past week, don't you?" Jisoo told Jennie out of the blue. They were hanging out at Jisoo's favorite café that offered free books for reading and private salons.

Jisoo loved to read. A bookworm, by definition. And she was the one responsible of Jennie reading the Wuthering Heights. Jisoo thought it would do good for Jennie, reading. And although the book was about an undying love, it was also dealing with death and how to deal with the loss of a loved one. And Jisoo perfectly knew that Jennie was needing a good distraction, even though her bestfriend would never admit it to her. And Heathcliff would be a good distraction.

"You mean, weirder than I normally am?" Jennie asked. "Because I don't think that's still news, Chu. Weird is my middle name," she said jokingly and tried to laugh.

"I mean weird like you've been stirring the contents of your cup for the last ten minutes now and you haven't even touched your pastry. That kind of weird?" Jisoo replied. "You love that rainbow cake and that rainbow drink, yes?" she added and pointed the untouched big slice of rainbow-colored food in front of Jennie. "And I hate to break this to you, Jendeuk. But you're not weird. Never was, never will."

"I'm not hungry," Jennie told Jisoo with a sigh, instead of engaging to debate about her weirdness, and pushed the saucer away from her.

Jennie did not even try to hide the fact that she sounded tired and troubled. There was no point hiding it from Jisoo, anyway. Because Chu could see through her and because she had finally realized that she wanted badly to talk about the thing that had been bothering her for days now.

Jisoo put her copy of Murakami down on the table and snatched the pink straw away from Jennie's grasp, which Jennie was using to disturbed the contents of her cup. And surprisingly, Jennie did not even protest. Which only made Jisoo's hunch that Jennie was acting weird today.

"What is it? Is it about the chairmanship again?" Jisoo asked, concern was on her voice.

Jisoo thought Jennie looked dishevelled beneath the elegant designer clothes that she was wearing and the finesse that she was displaying. And it was so un-Jennie-like. Maybe it was more than the chairmanship, Jisoo thought.

Jennie shook her head and said, "No. I've stopped giving a damn about that thing already, Chu. That thing won't bother me anymore, unless I'll allow it."

And that confirmed Jisoo's hunch that something was off with Jennie. Because the only thing that could trouble the usually calm mind of Jennie Kim was the task given to her by the old President Kim. And whenever Jisoo would ask about it, Jennie would quickly rant about how unfair the universe had been for taking away her father from her.

"Did some stupid journalist write something about you again? I swear they're like vultures! I've talked to Dad about it. He said his I.T. people are handling it already," Jisoo said reassuringly.

But Jennie, for the second time, shook her head, sighed and pouted.

"I don't know, Chu. I haven't been online for a week now," Jennie replied. Which was a lie. Because just last night, while she was laying on her bed and surfing the Internet, she hadcome across an article from Thought Catalog about the thing that was bothering her. Which she thought had made sense about the thing that had been bothering her. Only to wake up this morning feeling more confused as ever.

"Then what is it?" the frustrated Jisoo asked. "You can tell me anything. You know that, right?"

Jennie fidgeted on her seat and suddenly clasped her both hands together. Something that Jisoo recognized as a sign that Jennie was nervous and uncomfortable.

"Fine. But promise me first that you won't laugh at me," said Jennie with a straight face and stared at Jisoo, daring her to laugh at her.

Jisoo was internally battling with herself from laughing. The look on Jennie Kim's face was enough reason for her to cackle. But she knew better than to laugh when her Jennie was looking serious and nervous at the same time.

"I won't. I promise!" Jisoo said earnestly, raising her right hand as if she was standing on a witness box in a trial court. "Spill it out already, Jendeukie!"

"And you won't tell my mother about it?" Jennie prodded on. She needed an assurance that what she's going to tell Jisoo would only be between the two of them.

"Oh, God! Fine! I promise, in the name of Dalgom! Besides, your mother and I aren't even that close, you know? So what is it?"

"Blond hair, a pair of big, round eyes and a smile that could light up the entire South Korea at night," Jennie said, hiding her face behind her hands. "Oh, God! I'm going crazy!"

"Are we talking about Kevin from Home Alone?" asked Jisoo.

"Can you please be serious?" Jennie groaned.

"I am! But you were kinda vague about the details," Jisoo protested. "Who are you talking about?"

Jennie's face emerged from her hands, which was now sporting the color of a magenta. She was blushing real hard, Jisoo thought Jennie looked like a Washington apple.

"I'm talking about a woman, Chu. Tall, Barbie-looking. She took a photo of me! The nerve!"

"Wait, wait! Can we be more specific here, please? When did you meet this woman?"

"I did not meet that woman. I only saw her once. At The Era. Last week when I asked you to come and pick me."

"Aigoo! I knew there was something wrong with you that day. I was right!"

"Yeah. Tell me about it," said Jennie.

"But I never saw a blond woman that day, though," Jisoo said, squinting her eyes, trying to recall the day Jennie was talking about. And all she could ever remember was the less cordial attitude of the old waitress towards her when she told her that she won't be ordering anything.

"That's because they left five minutes before you arrived," Jennie said quickly with a pout. As if she was blaming Jisoo for arriving five minutes late that time.

"Oh. They?"

"She was with someone. A redhead woman. They were sitting across from me, so I was kind of looking directly at them that time. Occasionally. Because I wasn't really looking at them the entire time, you know?" explained Jennie hastily after seeing the look on Jisoo's face.

"Wait! So you were actually paying attention to them? Really? And here I am thinking that the great Jennie Kim doesn't give a damn about anyone or anything. Unless..."

"Unless what?" Jennie asked.

"Unless you found it interesting. In this case, a blond woman. Did you, Jendeukie? Aigoo! That's a first!" teased Jisoo, laughing.

"Did I what?" Jennie was starting to get pissed. Maybe it was a bad idea to tell Jisoo about it, she thought bitterly. "And why are you laughing? You promised me you won't laugh at me!" Jennie said hysterically. Which made Jisoo laughed harder and louder.

"So, did you find the blond woman you were talking about interesting? Yeah, maybe you did. Because if you didn't then we wouldn't be talking about her now," Jisoo said knowingly. "Would we?" she asked Jennie with a wide grin on her face.

"She took a photo of me without my permission!" Jennie said, as if it was the biggest problem of the world.

"So? There's probably like a thousand people taking photos of you, J, and you were unperturbed about it. In fact, there might be someone lurking behind the shelves right now, secretly documenting us, listening to you talking about a blond woman."

"Stop that. That's creepy. You know that?" Jennie said and craned her neck to check of there really was someone lurking behind the bookshelves surrounding them.

"What I'm trying to say is that you're Jennie Kim. A chaebol, a sole heiress. One of South Korea's finest. Everybody wants a piece of you," said Jisoo.

"That's actually the point, Chu. I don't think that that blond woman wanted a piece of me. I mean, she didn't look like she even knew me or whatever. She was just randomly taking photos inside The Era that day, me included," Jennie said.

"And that's what bothers you? Because she did not recognize you?" asked Jisoo.

"Of course not! If anything, it was a relief on my part. That she didn't have any idea who I am. She and the people inside The Era. I actually want to keep it that way," said Jennie.

"So what bothers you, then?" Jisoo asked in confusion.

Jennie hesitated at first and pointed her forefinger directly to where her heart was supposed to be.

"This. This was acting funny for a moment back there," she said.

"Funny how?"

"Just...funny. It's never acted like that before."

"Is that why you've stopped spending your entire week at The Era? Because I started wondering if you've finally snapped at the waitress," said Jisoo.

"I just thought I needed to get away from there for a while. I've been spending my entire time in that cafe eversince I came back from Auckland. It's my safe haven. You know that," Jennie replied.

Auckland, New Zealand was Jennie's second home. She spent her puberty in that place, where she went to school in a fancy private school. After her father's burial, she then booked a flight to Auckland without her mother knowing about it. She wanted to distance herself from all the things that would remind her of the late Chairman Kim. But five months after the burial, as per her father's instruction to the family lawyer, the last will and testament of Chairman Kim was read in front of her and her mother, and a few close relatives and business associates. That was when she was told that she would be the next chairman of the company, her mother the interim CEO until Jenie would feel that she's ready to fill in the shoes of the late Chairman Kim, much to the silent dismay and protest of the board. They all thought that Jennie was still too young and incapable of such huge responsibility.

"Yes. And that was before you started acting weird because you saw a blond woman who piqued your interest," Jisoo pointed out.

"Promise me again you will not tell Mom about this, Chu. She's been trying to set me up on a date with the Vice Chairman's son. And if she'll hear about this, she might just sign me up for my own bethrotal in a jiffy. I bet you anything, she plans to play the mat-seon."

"What? With Yi Eun? But he's a flower boy! You hate flower boys! What was your mother thinking? Aigoo!" Jisoo said and returned her attention to her book.

"Mom thought Yi Eun could help me run the company someday," said Jennie, now sounding more relax.

"But?" coaxed Jisso.

"But...I don't like him," Jennie answered.

Jisoo snorted.

"You don't like everyone, Jendeukie. Excluding me, of course. And Dalgom. Because he's Kuma's bestfriend. And that's still debatable," she said.

"True. So you and Dalgom better stick on my good side, Chu. I don't think I can afford to lose the both of you, too. I've lost Dad already," Jennie said.

"Of course. Besides, I don't want you to play hermit again inside your Auckland manor," Jisoo said jokingly. "Anyway, what about that blond woman, though?"

"What about her?" Jennie muttered, now playing with the frosting of her rainbow cake with her fork.

"I could find her for you, if you want me to," Jisoo said. Her family owned one of the biggest security and detective agency in the country. The elite men of her family's company are providing Jennie's family security 24/7, for the last ten years. The late Chairman Kim hired the service of Jisoo's family's company and made a partnership. That's when Jisoo and Jennie started hanging out during weekends and became the best of friends.

"And then what? Tell her that she made me feel funny with those big, round eyes of hers? No. I do not want you to do that, Chu. For all we know, she could be foreign who was just in the country for a short visit. She looked like one, anyway. And for all we know, it was just nothing."

"And if ever you'll see her again? Like, coincidentally?" Jisoo asked.

"I don't know. I might say hi? I'm not sure. She looked apologetic enough though after she took a photo of me. And I kind of just scowled at her," said Jennie.

"You've made an impression, then. As always," Jisoo said. "I bet the blond woman was recoiling when you showed her your infamous bitch face," she added, laughing.

Jennie smiled, recalling the way the blond woman named Lisa just smiled at her, unaffected by Jennie's hostility that time. Which was a first.

"Actually, no. It did not affect her at all. She just smiled and shrugged and continued being a shutterbug until the redhead arrived."

Jisoo gasped and then laughed out loud and clasped her hands on her mouth, looking at Jennie with a triumphant look, as if she just figured out the answer to the most complicated mathematical question in the world.

"What?" asked Jennie.

"Omo! It's obvious, isn't it?" Jisoo said excitedly.

"What is?" Jennie prodded, irritation was now all over her face. She particularly hated it when Jisoo would talk like Gandalf.

"Nothing," Jisoo shrugged. Gone was the excitement on her voice. "I might be jumping into conclusions a little too early," said Jisoo. "Anyway, you have to finish that cake and that drink, Jendeukie. Not everyone gets to eat a rainbow cake and slurp rainbow drinks nowadays, Jennie Kim. I'm serious. Do not waste a good food," she said sternly. Jisoo was a philanthropist who's involved in charity events in and out of the country. And she particularly hated it when someone wastes food just because they can.

"Then I'll make everyone eat a rainbow cake and have a rainbow drink on my birthday," Jennie said with a faint smile on her exquisite face, while seriously wondering how a rainbow cake and a chocolate milk drink would taste like.

"You don't like celebrating your birthday, Jendeuk. What are you talking about?" Jisoo said, shaking her head while her eyes were fixed on her book.