Yuri's POV
Jay-jay is acting weird. Almost everyone keeps glancing at her. She's fidgeting restlessly in her seat, like she wants to do something.
"Is Jay-jay okay?" Felix asked.
I shrugged. Even I couldn't answer that. She was so cold to us this morning, and now she's acting like this after lunch.
"Son of a—!" Jay suddenly yelled, making us all look her way. "...It's so hot!"
But it's actually a bit cold.
The weather has been overcast since this morning, so it's not that warm.
She took off her necktie and slightly unbuttoned her blouse. Her undershirt is slightly peeking through because of that.
I immediately stood up and walked over to her. She is already exposing herself from what she is doing.
"Jay... Fix your uniform," I ordered, but she just rolled her eyes at me, fanning herself with her hand.
"Jay-jay smells like alcohol," Ci-N whispered to me.
Alcohol? How...
"Who gave you alcohol?" I asked calmly.
"None of your business," she replied flatly.
She kept fanning herself. She wasn't drunk, just a little tipsy. I could tell from the way she was acting.
"Fix your uniform. You're showing—SHIT!" I cursed when she fully opened her blouse, exposing what shouldn't be seen.
I quickly took off my polo and covered her with it. She tried to remove it, but I slapped her hand away. She glared at me.
"I said it's hot!" she yelled.
That's the alcohol talking... Thank goodness she wasn't completely wasted.
"Who the hell gave you alcohol?" I asked, now a bit irritated.
"Your bald grandpa," she spat.
I just held my temples because of how she was behaving. She is so cold to deal with, full of snapping back and being sarcastic, and impossible to talk to.
That's the price, Yuri. That's the price.
"Damn it! It's so hot!" she shouted, throwing my polo shirt right at my face.
"What the..." I heard Keifer's voice.
I looked over at him as he had just walked through the door. His eyebrows were furrowed as he stared at Jay-jay.
His gaze shifted to me, and he looked like he was about to strangle me right then and there.
"Why is she like this?" he demanded.
"She's tipsy."
His scowl deepened. He quickly took off his polo shirt, but at the same time, Jay-jay also started removing hers, which left us in a panic.
I wrapped my polo around her, and Keifer did the same with his. Before Jay-jay could react, Keifer scooped her up like a sack of rice.
"Put me down, you asshole!" she screamed.
"Keifer..." I called after him. "...What are you going to do?"
"I don't know!" he shouted back, taking a deep breath. "...But I need to stop her!"
He stormed out of the room with Jay-jay still struggling in his arms. I followed right behind him.
He kept walking until he suddenly turned toward the stairs leading to the second floor.
"Where are you taking her?"
He didn't answer. He continued straight to the room at the very end of the hall, where the pictures of the previous Section E students were displayed.
"Put me down! I'm gonna puke on you!" Jay-jay kept shouting.
Keifer struggled to get the key from his pocket. He threw it to me and I caught it right away.
"Open this goddamn door!" he angrily ordered.
Even though confused, i still followed, unlocked the door and pushed it open. Keifer went straight inside. I turned on the lights.
He set Jay-jay down on the couch in the middle of the room. As soon as he did, she kicked him hard.
"Damn! You're always so good at being annoying!" Jay-jay shouted at Keifer.
"Calm down, Jay," I said, trying to approach her, but she threw our polo shirts at me.
My eyes widened when I saw her chest—her uniform was wide open. I swallowed hard and looked away immediately.
Get a grip, Yuri!
"Ahhhhh! Why is my uniform open?!" Jay-jay shouted angrily.
"You're the one who----!"
Keifer didn't even get to finish his sentence because Jay-jay immediately threw a pillow at him. She fixed her uniform and shot us both a glare.
"Why are you two here?! You're planning something against me, aren't you?!"
I could only tug at my hair in frustration. I was sure Jay-jay wasn't drunk, but judging by how she was acting, I wished she was.
"Are you sure she's not drunk?" Keifer asked me.
"She's not asking for a virgin to sacrifice. So, no, she's not drunk."
Keifer seemed to understand what I meant. Maybe she was only one bottle away from actually looking for a virgin to offer in exchange for eternal life.
I looked over at Jay-jay as she lay down on the sofa and started rolling around.
"It's so hot," she mumbled, covering her face with a throw pillow.
"Who gave her alcohol?" Keifer asked as he walked to the couch across from Jay-jay.
"I don't know. She was already acting weird when she came back after lunch."
Keifer sighed deeply, rubbing his face with both hands. I sat beside him, watching Jay-jay, who now seemed fast asleep.
This was definitely better than her almost stripping in front of the whole class earlier. She didn't eat lunch with us either. According to Felix, he tried talking to her, but she brushed him off.
I checked my watch. We wouldn't make it to the next class. Another deep sigh escaped me. This was our fault. We should never have let Jay-jay end up like this. Now we're the ones suffering because of what she's doing.
I glanced at Keifer, who was leaning his head back with his eyes closed.
"Can you..." I started, but he still didn't move. "...just tell me the truth?"
"Truth about what?" he asked, playing dumb.
He was avoiding the question again. It was so obvious he was hiding something. Maybe they believe what you say, but not me.
You can't lie to me.
"I'm not damn stupid, Keifer."
"If you're not damn stupid, then what are you trying to do? Shouldn't you be happy that I'm out of your way now? You can finally have the girl you want," he said, looking me straight in the eyes.
That's true. I should be celebrating this situation. Keifer is no longer in my way. Anytime now, Jay-jay can be mine.
But not like this.
I looked at Jay-jay, who was sound asleep. Not in this kind of situation. Not when she feels so far away from us even though she's right in front of us. Not when she's this angry at all of us.
"I still want to know the truth."
"What for?" he asked, lighting a cigarette.
He offered one to me, but I shook my head. I had quit smoking months ago.
Keifer chuckled. "You're really serious about quitting? I thought you were just kidding."
"Don't change the topic. Please answer me, Keifer."
He blew out smoke and looked in another direction.. His attitude was starting to irritate me.
"You already know the answer, so why are you asking?" he said, taking another drag from his cigarette.
"I don't, Keifer. I don't know the exact answer."
"You were there when I planned all this. I actually thought you were part of it, but you backed out halfway through."
I chuckled bitterly. "Your plan. Again?" I shook my head. "That's your reason for this shit! That's your reason for hurting Jay-jay?!"
I couldn't help but raise my voice. His response was so ridiculous, it made me furious.
"That's the fvcking truth." he said indifferently.
I let out a laugh at what he said—a laugh devoid of amusement. Talking to him was so frustrating—might as well be talking to a wall.
"I was the happiest guy in town when you stayed away from jay-jay. Finally, I could have a chance with her. But when I saw her hurting..." I clenched my fists. "...I wanted to punch you. I wanted to blame you for everything and make you pay."
"Why didn't you?" he asked challengingly.
"Because I know there's something else."
"And that something is?"
"You're lying," I answered, which made him stop in the middle of taking a drag. "You lied to us. You lied to Jay-jay. And you lied to yourself."
"I lied to no one."
"I told you, I'm not damn stupid!" I took a deep breath to calm myself. "You stopped your plan a long time ago. That's why the whole Section E backed off. We're not oblivious—we felt it."
He didn't answer me. He just finished the stick he was holding and took out another one to light. It's so hard to read his mind when he's like this.
"Keifer," I called out to him, my voice mixed with a plea. "...If you can't tell Jay-jay or the rest of Section E, but at least tell me."
"I have nothing to say to you."
I couldn't hold back anymore. I grabbed him by the collar.
"Damn it, Keifer! You're in love with Jay-jay, but you chose to hurt her! Why?! What's the fvcking reason?!"I asked angrily.
His lifeless eyes met mine. "I'm not, Yuri. I'm not in love with her."
I punched him hard. He didn't fight back or even try to block it. He just sat there on the floor, wiping the blood from his lip.
So frustrating! Damn!
"You know I can tell when you're lying, but you just keep doing it over and over!"
"I'm not."
I ran my hands through my hair in frustration. There's really no point in talking to him about this anymore.
I'm about to leave when I remembered something.
"If you don't have feelings for Jay-jay, then why do you get so angry whenever other guys approach her?"
He couldn't answer. I smirked secretly. I knew he couldn't deny it when it came to jealousy. He stood up from the floor and looked at Jay-jay.
"I'm just playing around," he said and walked away.
I was left staring at the door he passed through. I thought I could finally make him admit it, but I guess I was wrong.
I'm not trying to make him confess to humiliate him. I'm doing this because it hurts. It hurts me to see Jay-jay like this. Every time she looks at Keifer, I feel her pain, and it kills me.
I didn't know it could also hurt so much to see someone I care about in pain. I thought I should be happy now that there was no more obstacle in my way, but I was wrong again.
I wiped my face with my hand and was about to approach Jay-jay when I suddenly stopped. She was already sitting on the sofa, tightly hugging a throw pillow.
Fvcking shit!
That means she's been awake this whole time. She heard us!
"Jay-jay…" I called out, taking a step toward her, but she stopped me.
"P-please... go away for n-now. L-leave me a-alone for a bit," her voice cracked as she spoke.
Instead of doing what she said, I sat beside her and pulled her into a tight hug. She tried to push me away, but at the same time, her tears started falling, and she eventually gave in.
Jay-jay cried like a child who had just been robbed of their favorite candy. I let her pour out all her resentment toward us and toward Keifer.
I'm so sorry you had to hear those words.
"Damn it!" she screamed in between sobs. "I told myself I wouldn't cry anymore, but here I am again!"
"I'm sorry, Jay. I'm so sorry."
She kept on crying. She kept crying until she fell asleep. Her head rested on my chest while her body was besides me.
I gently brushed her hair with my hand. Because of our position, I could smell the alcohol on her. Whoever gave Jay-jay that alcohol probably didn't intend to get her drunk. But if I were them, they better not show their face to me. My fist will leave a mark on their face.
"K-Keifer…" I heard Jay-jay whisper in her sleep.
Even in her dreams.
It hurts me to see her like this. Even in her sleep, Keifer is still the one she's thinking of. If I could help her forget him, I would.
"Aishiteru…" I whispered.
I let her sleep for a while longer. By the time she woke up, classes were almost over, so we just decided to go home. I drove her home, just as I had promised Angelo. She was quiet the entire ride. When we stopped in front of her house, I grabbed her arm before she could get out.
"Jay… I'm sorry—"
"Stop apologizing, Yuri," she cut me off.
"…Your sorry won't change anything."
She slowly pulled her arm away from my grip. I didn't want to let go, but I knew I had to—for her sake. She quickly got out of the car and went inside the gate of their house. I saw Aries watching me from the porch, but I ignored him and drove away.
Halfway home, my phone rang. I immediately pulled over and answered the call. It was Hahaoya.
["That's good to hear."]
"Is there a problem?"
["Keifer is here. He's waiting for you."]
At home? Keifer?
"Okay… I'm almost there," I replied and ended the call.
I quickly drove the rest of the way home. After parking the car, I went straight to the elevator. I had a weird feeling about this. Our conversation earlier didn't end well, so I found it strange that he was here.
When I reached our floor, the maids greeted me, but I didn't wait for their formalities. I walked straight to my room, and sure enough, Keifer was there—standing on the balcony. The balcony was right next to my room. From there, you could see the entire city. The wooden floors and plants at the corners gave it a serene vibe.
"Keifer," I called his name.
He looked at me and tossed his cigarette away. He gave me his usual cold stare.
"Do me a favor," he said without hesitation.
Even though I was confused, I waited for him to continue.
"…Keep Jay-jay safe."
My forehead creased. Out of nowhere, he came here just to ask me that?
"Why are you saying that?"
"You love Jay-jay, don't you?" he asked, making me freeze. Of course, I do!
"O-of course…"
"Then here I am, letting her go. I'm stepping aside for you."
I shook my head slightly. "What are you talking about? What's going on with you?"
He didn't answer. He just stared out at the city and shook his head. Slowly, he turned around to face me and smiled. I thought he was about to say something else, but instead, he walked toward my room.
I followed him immediately. "Keifer."
"This is the only way," he said, stopping in his tracks. "The only way I can save Jay-jay…" He let out a heavy sigh. "…Is by hurting her."
He quickly left the room and disappeared.
I didn't want to overthink things, but I couldn't help but feel that his family had something to do with this.
What have you done, Keifer?