Chapter 29
Jayjay's point of view
I looked and saw Keifer getting into his car and driving away.
"Come here and explain yourself," Angelo said in a calm tone.
I moved away from the window and walked towards the living room, putting on my t-shirt.
Angelo and Tita Gemma followed me.
I went and sat on the nearest armchair.
When I looked up, I made eye contact with Angelo.
He was looking at me angrily, expecting an explanation.
"I just wanted to have a drink. Then Keifer came because she was worried about me. Then I got drunk and unintentionally took my shirt off. Then Keifer made me coffee to sober me up. After drinking it, I came to my senses and then found myself naked. Then you came and misunderstood everything. But you're right, if I found my cousin half-naked with a man, I would misunderstand too," I said without looking at him.
He didn't say anything and left.
I noticed she wasn't as angry as before.
"I'm sorry, Tita," I said.
"It's okay, Jay," she said, smiling, and left, going upstairs.
I grabbed my phone and texted Keifere.
Keifere:
"I'm so sorry for what happened. I explained it to Angelo, don't worry."
A message came back shortly after.
From Keifere:
"I'm the one who should apologize. I could have called you; coming all the way to your house wasn't the right thing to do."
Keifere:
"No! I would have done the same thing! Don't be silly 🤨"
No matter how long I waited, I didn't get a reply...
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Tripp's point of view
She never came to school after that day...
Actually, I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss him.
I remembered it had been a long time since I'd gone for an evening run.
I grabbed my gear and went outside.
I tried to put Jayjay out of my mind for now.
It was quiet outside.
There were only a few people.
I wish I could turn everything back to how it used to be...
Suddenly, I found myself in front of his house...
Even though my heart didn't want him, my body still wanted him...
I looked at my watch and saw it was 11 PM.
Even though I wanted to leave, I couldn't.
I wanted to see him, even if it was just once...
A few people passing by looked at me strangely, but I didn't care.
I had to convince my brain...
I had to convince it that I wouldn't be able to see him...
Soon, my steps led me to his house.
I felt my phone vibrate.
It was a call from my mother.
"Hello?" I answered.
"Tripp... come back to New York... The company needs you..."
"O-Okay... I'll be there in a few days... Goodbye..." I said and ended the call.
How am I going to leave Jayjay...?
I quickened my pace before it got too late.
I arrived home shortly after and went inside.
I immediately went up to my room.
I took off my clothes and stepped under the warm water.
About 15 minutes later, I came out of the bathroom.
I put on a pajama set I found in the closet and got into bed.
Slowly, my eyes closed...
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Keifer's point of view
"Let go of that! Hey!"
Damn it!
What are those noises?!
I forced myself out of bed.
I hurried downstairs.
Keigan and Keiren were shouting at each other.
"I said give it to you—"
"Hey!" I yelled, interrupting Keigan.
They both looked at me.
"What are you arguing about so early in the morning?" I asked calmly.
"Kuya. He took my shirt but he won't give it back," Keigan said, glaring angrily at Keiren.
"So that's the reason for your argument at this ungodly hour?"
"Ungodly hour means almost 12 o'clock, Kuya," Keiren said.
"Whatever. Just end this fight as soon as possible," I said and left them.
Today was Sunday.
No school again.
There was nothing for me to do.
At that moment, a message arrived from Jayjay.
From Jayjay:
"Good morning! If you don't have any plans for today, would you like to come to the amusement park with me?"
To Jayjay:
"Of course, I don't have anything to do, and even if I did, I could cancel it for you 😉 Be ready at 1 PM, I'll come to pick you up. See you!"
I hung up the phone and went to take a shower.
When I came out of the shower, I saw that I had received a message from Yuri.
From Yuri:
"If you haven't had breakfast yet, could you have breakfast with us? My mother has some things to talk to you about."
To Yuri:
"Okay. I'll be there in 20 minutes."
As far as I remember, Yuri's mother was last seen with some men... for reasons I don't know... but she seems to have escaped...
I got dressed and went downstairs.
It seemed quiet.
Apparently, they had finished their fight.
I saw the maid in the kitchen.
"I'm going to my friend's. Inform Keiren and Keigan and... keep an eye on them..."
"Okay, sir."
I took my car keys and left the house.
I got my car from the parking lot and drove towards Yuri's house.
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Yuri's Perspective
I don't know what my mother wants to talk to him about.
"Hello."
When I looked, I saw Keifer coming.
"Hello."
"I'm seeing your house for the first time. It's beautiful."
He was examining the house.
"Thank you. Actually, this is a family home."
"Hmm."
"My mother will be here soon. Let's wait."
Shortly after, I saw my mother coming down the stairs.
Keifer went to her, hugged her, and said, "Hello."
"Well, let's go have breakfast before it gets too late," my mother said.
We sat down at the breakfast table.
"How is Jayjay?" I asked Keifer.
"Why are you asking me?"
"You're quite close... That's why..."
"She's fine. But not as close as before," he said, continuing to eat.
"Is there something going on between you two, Keifer?" my mother asked, sipping her coffee.
"We used to just love each other. But now we're just friends," Keifer said.
"Mom, what about the wedding?" I asked.
My mother paused.
Keifer continued eating, completely ignoring my question.
"You know. The problems at the company are decreasing. But now your grandfather doesn't want a wedding. I don't know, Yuri, but I'll try to resolve this issue as soon as possible."
I just nodded and sipped my coffee.
Silence ensued, and everyone continued eating.
"Mom, weren't you going to talk to Keifer about something?" I asked, breaking the silence.
"We'll talk later, sweetie. Let's eat our meal for now," she said, smiling.
I smiled.
Keifer got up from the table to receive a phone call.
"I'll be back in a moment," he said and left.
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Keifer's Perspective
The caller was Honeydi.
I entered a room, closed the door, and answered the call.
"Hello?"
"Keifer, your father isn't in the Philippines right now. But he could make a move at any moment, be careful."
"Okay. Thanks for the information," I said and hung up.
Just as I was about to turn back, I saw Yuri's mother approaching me.
"I don't want Yuri to hear what we're going to talk about. I know you don't want her to know either," she said, getting closer.
"What are we going to talk about?"
"What's your relationship with Jayjay?"
"I told you... we're just friends."
"Don't lie to me, Keifer."
"I don't understand."
"I know you were with Jayjay on your engagement day."
"How do you know?"
"A friend of mine saw you. I wonder what would happen if Yuri found out?"
I couldn't say anything.
"You know how much I care about Yuri. I do everything I can for his happiness. He was so in love with Ella, but she wasn't the right person for Yuri. I asked you for help, and you helped me. I thought I was making Yuri happy, but I made him worse. Then I saw that Jayjay was making him happy. She wasn't like Ella. She was the right person for Yuri, but you were with him, and this time you hurt my son. You disappointed me, Keifer. I understand. You love Jayjay, but please... let my son be happy..." She pleaded, tears streaming down his face.
"Actually... marrying Jayjay was Yuri's idea... Again, I only agreed for his happiness... I knew they were too young... But I did it just for him..." She said.
"What?" was all I could manage to say.
She said nothing and continued to cry.
I hugged him.
"I'll try..." I said.
But I didn't trust myself at all...
"Thank you..."
We parted shortly after.
I looked at the clock.
12:43.
"I need to meet someone. Thanks for breakfast," I said, smiling.
She smiled back.
Then we left the room.
After saying goodbye to Yuri one last time, I got into my car and drove to Jayjay's house.
After a short drive, I arrived at his house.
She came out shortly after.
She was wearing a simple t-shirt and skirt.
But she still looked very beautiful.
I got out of the car and opened the door for him.
After she sat down, I closed the door and sat in the driver's seat.
"Um, Keifer..."
"Yes?"
"Actually, it's last minute... Ci-n is coming with us too. Sorry."
"Oh no, it's okay."
There is a problem!
I drove to Ci-n's house.
The child was standing in front of the house door.
He quickly got into the car.
"Good morning!" he shouted cheerfully.
"Good morning," said Jayjay.
"Good morning," I said.
I started the car and drove towards the amusement park.
All the way, Ci-n told Jayjay something.
Jayjay seemed to be listening, but he wasn't really.
She just nodded his head at every sentence Ci-n said.
We arrived at the amusement park.
Ci-n and Jayjay immediately got out of the car.
I got out too.
Ci-n kept jumping up and down.
Why did we take her with us...😔
Ci-n took Jayjay's hand and led him to a cotton candy stand.
I followed them quickly.
"Everything's on me today," I told them.
Ci-n was even happier when he heard this.
Jayjay just looked at me and smiled.
"Let's ride the Ferris wheel!" Ci-n shouted cheerfully.
Then he ran towards the Ferris wheel.
Jayjay and I followed her.
There wasn't a long line.
After waiting a bit, we got on the Ferris wheel.
While Jayjay seemed quite calm, Ci-n was, of course, incredibly energetic.
I remembered the time we rode the Ferris wheel before.
"Do you remember? The three of us, plus Yuri, rode the Ferris wheel again, and we even got stuck on it!"
"Yes," said Jayjay, chuckling to himself.
Ci-n excitedly nodded her head.
"Stay still this time. I don't want to get stuck on the Ferris wheel again," Jayjay said to Ci-n in a serious tone.
Ci-n pouted and slowly shook her head.
Soon after, the Ferris wheel started moving.
Actually, it was quite boring 😐
While I waited quietly on the side, Jayjay and Ci-n were taking pictures.
After about 10 minutes, the Ferris wheel stopped and we got off.
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Ci-n's point of view
Suddenly, a notification sound came from my phone.
Jayjay and Keifer were walking in front of me.
Trippten:
"Jayjay and Keifer aren't checking my messages or calls. Do you know anything about them?"
I took a picture of Jayjay and Keifer and sent it to Tripp.
Trippten:
(Photo)
"We're together, don't worry. Don't keep us busy too much. Bye bye 😝"
I ignored the notification on my phone and went over to Jayjay and Keifer.
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Jayjay's point of view
Although I wasn't having a lot of fun, it wasn't that boring either.
"I want to ride everything!" Ci-n shouted right in my ear.
I looked at Keifer.
He was looking at me too.
Then he looked at Ci-n.
"Okay," he said.
6 HOURS LATER...
At the end of a long day, Keifer dropped me and Ci-n off at home.
"Thanks for today. Good evening," I said, smiling at him.
He smiled back.
Then I went inside.
I went straight to my room.
When I turned on my phone, I saw thousands of missed calls and messages from Tripp.
Damn!
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Tripp's point of view
I couldn't get a reply from anyone I messaged...
On top of that, the fact that Keifer and Jayjay were together was driving me crazy.
I decided to go to Keifer's house.
I got in the car and drove.
I must have driven at full speed because the half-hour drive felt like five minutes.
I got out of the car and knocked on the door.
The maid opened the door.
"Yes?" she said hesitantly.
"I'm Keifer's classmate. Is Keifer home?"
"He hasn't come home yet."
"Okay, thank you."
She smiled and closed the door.
I took a few steps and stood in front of my car.
I leaned against the car and waited for him.
Soon his car appeared in the distance.
After parking the car, he came towards me with a surprised look.
"You? Why are you here?"
"How was your day with Jayjay?"
"How do you know?"
"Thanks to Ci-n."
"Hmm... Did you come for that?"
"No... Actually, to say goodbye..."
"To say goodbye?"
"Yes. I have to go back to New York. I don't think I'll be able to come back again."
"Hmm... I see..."
"How is Jayjay?"
"Better than before."
"Okay."
"Actually... That day... When Jayjay had a fever... While I was at your house... I'm so, so sorry for what I did... It was just jealousy..."
"It's okay... I understand how you're feeling right now... So? How did you feel when you found out we're siblings?"
"Actually, thanks to Edrix, I found out we were born in the same hospital and on the same day... But it never even crossed my mind that we could be siblings... I was surprised, of course... But I guess I don't regret it at all... You're not actually that bad of a person... My brother..."
I laughed.
"Actually, neither are you... You understand a person's true character when you talk to them..."
My phone rang.
It was Jayjay calling...
I silenced the call.
"I'm going to ask you something, but please, please never forget this and do it..." I said.
"Okay."
"Please take very, very good care of Jayjay... I know you can do it, and please don't tell him I'm leaving."
"O-Okay."
"I have more work to do, goodbye."
Just as I was about to get into the car, he called out to me.
I looked at him.
He came and suddenly hugged me.
"You're really a good brother..."
I hugged him back.
"You are too..." I said, tears falling from my eyes.
We separated.
I noticed he was crying too.
"I wish we had known we were siblings sooner," he said.
"Yes..."
"Anyway... goodbye," he said, smiling.
"Goodbye," I said and got in the car and drove away.
I wish I had been brave enough to tell you... that I knew we were siblings from the very beginning...
My brother...