Jayjay'sPOV
It was lunchtime, and Keifer was looking at me seriously—way too seriously. I knew exactly why. I had been avoiding him for the past fifteen minutes because I was terrified that if I got too close, my mouth would slip and our secret plan would come spilling out. I knew for a fact that if Keifer found out what we were actually up to, he would never let me go anywhere near that girl, Claire.
Sorry, Keifer.
He was definitely angry. I could tell just by the way he was sitting—his jaw was tight, and he was tapping his fingers on the table in a rhythmic, impatient way. He looked like a volcano just waiting to erupt. Usually, we'd be sitting together, probably with him feeding me snacks or holding my hand, but today, I was glued to my girls, acting like I was deep in conversation.
I could feel his eyes burning a hole through the side of my head. Every time I laughed a little too loudly at something Freya said, I felt his gaze sharpen. He knew me too well, and this "silent treatment" was driving him crazy. Eventually, I couldn't take it anymore. I missed him, and I wanted to talk to him. I just had to control my mouth for a little while... right?
I excused myself from the girls and started walking toward him. Before I could even say a word, he stood up, grabbed my wrist, and practically dragged me toward the music room. His grip was tight—not enough to leave a mark, but enough to show he was past his limit. We stepped inside the room and he shut the door behind us, but he still hadn't let go. He just stared into my eyes, searching for the reason behind my distance.
"Keif... your grip... it hurts," I whispered.
He looked down at his hand, then immediately let go, his expression softening with regret.
"It was hurting me, too, when you told me you loved me and then spent the next hour avoiding me, Jay. Why?" he asked, his voice low and deep.
"I wasn't... I was just... talking with my girls," I stammered, looking at my feet.
"And you forgot me?" he asked. I reached out and took both of his hands in mine, squeezing them gently.
"No, never. I could never forget you. How could I?" I said. He nodded, but his expression remained guarded. "Now, smile," I commanded.
He didn't move. I reached up, grabbed his cheeks with both hands, and forced them upward into a smile. He finally broke, letting out a genuine laugh at my antics.
"See? You look so much better when you're happy," I said.
"And you look better when you're the one making me happy," he countered. I felt a blush creep up my neck and playfully hit his chest. I didn't mean to hit him that hard, though. "Oww, Jay!" he laughed, rubbing the spot.
"Okay, now before the lecture starts, I need to go," I said, turning toward the door. But before I could take a step, he grabbed my arm and pulled me right back to him.
"Where?" he asked, a playful but firm look in his eyes.
"I just told you—class!"
"Well, you're not going anywhere," he said, a smirk spreading across his face.
I crossed my arms and challenged him. "And why? Are you actually going to stop me?"
"Why? Because this is your punishment for avoiding me. And am I going to stop you? Yes," he said, his smirk widening.
"Keif, I'll be late! And you will be, too!"
"It's okay for me, but for you? Being late is the perfect punishment," he teased.
He was really getting on my nerves now. Idiot jerk. Why did I have to fall in love with him and then actually tell him? I had to find a way out. I tried using a sweet tone.
"Keif, please na..." It didn't work. He didn't budge. Okay, time for the secret weapon. "Hubby?" I said, tilting my head and making the cutest face I could manage.
"Hey, hey! Stop that," he said, suddenly flustered. He looked away, trying to avoid my eyes. "Look away... don't make that face."
I laughed, feeling victorious. "Why? Are you melting?"
"I said you're not leaving," he grumbled, trying to stay firm. "You avoided me on purpose."
"I didn't mean to!" I lied, feeling a twinge of guilt. "The girls wouldn't let me leave!"
"No," he said firmly. "You were avoiding me on purpose. I know it."
"I wasn't!" I insisted.
"You were."
"Okay, fine! I was!" I snapped, my frustration getting the better of me. "I was avoiding you because I didn't want the plan to slip out of my big mouth!"
Oh, crap. My mouth really is bigger than Freya's.
"What plan?" he asked instantly, his eyes narrowing.
"Ah... didn't David tell you?" I said, desperately trying to shift the topic. "The makeover plan. That's all."
"Oh, that," he said, looking a bit relieved. "But why did you need to avoid me for that?"
"Because... I wanted to see your reaction to the makeover after uni is over! It was supposed to be a surprise!" I said, hoping he'd buy it. He nodded slowly, seemingly satisfied.
"But you're still not going," he added, pulling me closer.
"Keif, please na!" I pleaded, taking both of his hands in mine. "Please... babe?"
He finally sighed, his resolve crumbling. "Fine."
"Thank you! You're the best! Love you!" I shouted, and before he could react, I bolted out of the room.
Wait—what did I just say? Love you? Stupid, idiot Jayjay! I didn't look back; I just ran as fast as I could toward the girls before he could come after me.
Lunch was over and the first lecture had already started. Argh, I'm late because of that stupid idiot. I rushed to the classroom door, trying to catch my breath.
"Sir, may I come in?" I asked. He nodded, but as I started walking toward my table, he stopped me.
"Why are you late, Ms. Mariano?"
I froze in front of my seat. "Umm, sir, I was with the seniors," I replied. It wasn't a lie—Keifer, my brother, and their friends were our seniors in this one-year university course.
"Seniors? Or was it your brother? Or your fiancé?" the professor asked with a knowing look.
"Fiancé, sir!" my girls chimed in at the exact same time. I whipped around and gave them my deadliest glare, and they immediately went silent, pressing their index fingers to their lips.
"Very well. You may sit," the professor said.
"Thanks, sir," I muttered, finally taking my seat. I leaned over and whispered to Freya, "Makeover after the last lecture." She gave me a quick, determined nod.
The rest of the lectures went by in a blur. Once the room cleared, only we girls remained. Freya began pulling an endless supply of supplies out of her bag—she basically ran a mobile salon since every girl in the uni wanted a 'Freya Makeover.' She started on my face, but I was so exhausted that I actually fell asleep while she was doing my eye makeup.
When I finally blinked my eyes open, I saw Freya packing up.
"Girl, why didn't you wake me up?" I asked, rubbing my eyes.
"We tried, sleepyhead! You just wouldn't budge," Ella laughed, and the rest of the squad joined in.
"We should go," Rakki said, checking the time.
"Yeah, someone is definitely going to faint when they see our best friend's beauty," Grace teased.
"Pass me the mirror," I demanded. Mica handed it over, and Freya stood back with a smirk.
"Look at all this talent," she bragged. I looked at my reflection and had to admit—she did a fantastic job. She hadn't changed my features; she just enhanced them with a light, perfect touch. I gave a satisfied nod, and we headed out to the parking lot.
The boys were already there waiting. As soon as we stepped into view, Keifer's eyes locked onto me. He stopped talking mid-sentence. He stopped blinking. His lips parted slightly, but no sound came out. Seeing the look on his face, everyone else quietly backed away, leaving the two of us alone.
"Babyyyyy," I teased, stepping close and taking his hand. I could see a deep shade of red creeping up his neck.
"H...huh... you look... stunning," he stammered. I smiled. Time to tease him a little more.
"Missed me?" I asked playfully.
He raised an eyebrow, his senses returning. "Yes. But why are you acting so suspicious?"
I burst out laughing—he caught me immediately. "I was just teasing you!"
He chuckled softly, but I suddenly remembered our real mission. "Oh, I need to tell you something."
"What?"
"The girls and I are going to the mall today. Just us. It's a girls' hangout... or you can call it a girls' date," I said. His face fell instantly. I reached up and cupped his face. "Keif, we'll be back soon."
"No, no, no. You're not going," he said, suddenly clinging to my arm like a child.
"Why not?"
"Because you've never gone on a proper date with me!" he complained, clinging even tighter.
"We just went to the park this morning," I reminded him.
"That wasn't a date!"
I pulled my arm away gently, holding one of his hands while cupping his cheek with the other. "Okay, I promise. As soon as I get back from the mall, I'll go on a date with you."
"Really?" he asked, his eyes brightening.
"Really," I promised. And finally, he smiled.
He looked into my eyes for a moment before clinging to my arm again.
"Keif, why now?" I asked softly.
"Nothing... I just feel like I need someone's presence," he whispered, just loud enough for me to hear. Since we were still in the parking lot, I gently pulled my arm back.
"Keif, not here," I said politely. He pouted like a spoiled kid. I cupped his face again. "Oh, is my baby angry now?" I teased. He turned his face away, so I gently pulled him back to face me. "Look at me."
"Jay, I just came out of the hospital and you're already leaving me," he said, sounding genuinely upset.
"Keif, it's just some urgent work," I said. He nodded sadly. "Smile now." He shook his head. "Keif..." I said softly. He gave me a forced smile. "A real one, not forced."
Suddenly, he laughed. This jerk was totally acting!
"Jay, I don't want to be alone," he said, dramatically overacting.
"Oh, you drama queen—no, drama king! Stop being so dramatic," I said, laughing softly. He made puppy eyes and looked down at my hand before looking back at me. To stop the drama, I just gave him my hand to hold.
Right then, the others came back. Their eyes went straight to our joined hands. Holy moly. My girls are going to tease me about this until my great-grandchildren have kids. I tried to pull my hand away, but his grip tightened. If he squeezed any harder, I felt like my bones might actually crush.
"Jayjay, did you talk to him?" Mica asked.
"I did. Did you all talk to them?" I asked, and they all nodded.
"We should head to the mall now," Ella said. Rakki looked at her watch.
"Yeah, it's our time," Rakki said, and I knew exactly what she meant.
"Hurry up, guys!" Grace urged.
"I'll drive," Freya said, twirling the car keys on her index finger.
"Bye, Keifer," I said, gently removing my hand from his. As I walked away, I felt like a part of me was missing. Why does he affect me this much? All of us girls waved to our boyfriends and piled into the car.
I took the passenger seat, Freya was driving, and the rest squeezed into the back. Thank God none of us are fat, or we never would have fit into one car! I quickly took out my phone to text Aries.
To: Horoscope 💖💝
Bro, please drop Keifer home. He's still injured. If he says no, just show him this message.
A minute hadn't even passed before my phone buzzed.
From: Horoscope 💖💝
Ok... so caring! 😏🤭
If this guy were in front of me right now, I would have punched him straight in the nose.
"So, who became that slut's online friend?" I asked, turning to the girls.
"Rakki, of course," Ella said.
"Our tech expert," Freya added, and we all laughed.
"Oh, she's already at the mall," Rakki said, eyes glued to her phone.
"Freya, speed up!" Mica shouted. Freya hit the gas.
"Not that much!" Grace yelled, gripping the back of my seat.
We reached the mall, and there she was: Claire. Our plan was simple. Rakki would spike her drink with something to make her sleep, and then we'd take her to the old, abandoned building behind the uni. We had a rule: if any of us had a rival, that's where the "talk" happened. We had only done it once before to a boy in our class. We always wore black masks so no one would ever recognize us.
We stood outside the mall, and Rakki handed me a water bottle. I quickly stirred in the powder. Rakki went inside, and through the glass, I watched them talk and laugh. Honestly, I felt a pang of jealousy. Even though I knew the laugh wasn't real, it annoyed me to see my bestie with another girl.
Rakki handed her the bottle. She drank it, and within minutes, she started looking dizzy. It was working. As soon as Claire's eyes drifted shut, Rakki motioned for us to come in. We draped Claire's arms over Ella's and Freya's shoulders—they were the tallest, so they could carry her weight.
We were almost at the gate when a guard stepped in our way. Crap.
"Miss, who is she?" he asked, suspicious.
"She's our classmate," I said smoothly. "She's had too much to drink. I can show you our IDs if you want." He looked at us for a second, then nodded and let us pass.
We got to the car and realized we had a problem. Claire was taking up way too much space. We shoved her, Freya, and Ella in the back, while Mica and I squeezed into the front. Grace volunteered to take a taxi since we were totally out of room. I got behind the wheel and drove so fast we reached the old building in three minutes.
Inside, we tied her to a chair with thick ropes. You're going to see hell. We pulled on our masks and gloves. Mica started the show by dumping a full bucket of cold water over Claire's head. She woke up panting, gasping for air. Punishment number one. Grace stepped up and taped Claire's mouth, wrapping the tape around her head so it would pull her hair when we ripped it off. Then came Rakki—five sharp punches to the stomach. Freya went next, kicking the chair so hard it flipped, sending Claire's head slamming against the floor. Ella pulled her back up by her hair.
Then it was my turn. I delivered a slap to her right cheek, one to the left, and finished with a solid punch. The girls cheered. That was six punishments down, and we were just getting started.
We ripped the tape off, and she screamed so loud that Rakki had to shut her up with another slap. Our baddie mode was fully activated.
"W...who a...are y...you? W...what d...did I d...do?" she stammered, her voice shaking.
"We're your rivals," Ella said, and we all let out a dark, mocking laugh.
"H...huh?"
At that exact moment, we all pulled off our masks. Her eyes went wide. "Y...you guys? Y....you go...got y....your rev...enge, so w...hat now?"
"Baby girl... revenge?" Freya mocked.
"We're not just friends we're a family dear, Ella is a our mother as she takes care of us as a mom" I said.
"Freya is the eldest daughter, always there for the girls when I'm not around" Ella added.
"Grace is like the second daughter, be kind to her and you'll get kindness be rude and you'll meet fire" freya continued.
"Rakki is like middle a daughter quiet until someone is doing something to any of us," grace said.
"Mica is like the second last since she's the quietest one in us but if you you're giving her something bad she'll give you worse" Rakki finished.
"And Jayjay?" Mica said, looking Claire dead in the eye. "She is youngest one. She is the Heart. And you made the heart cry. When a heart cries, it doesn't cry with tears—it cries with blood."
Grace poured another bucket of water over her. Slaps and punches flew from every side as the girls took turns. Finally, it was my turn again. I punched her in the stomach and followed up with a hit to the jaw. I was not hurting her for making me cry, but kuya Angelo have always taught me that if someone is bad with you, you need to be worst, even if you have to force yourself.
"Jayjay," Freya said, her voice cold. "Mercy has vanished from our dictionary."
"No was that's to much" I said and they all looked at me.
"But jay—"
"I'm not doing it" I said and they all looked at me.
"I think we're being to much" Rakki said.
"But still, she hurted you, she made you cry, she cursed you" Ella said to me.
"And I took my revenge that day" I reasoned.
"Still—"
"Ok then I'm doing it" Freya said and she swung it through the air, ready to end this, but just before it could make contact with her head, I held her wrist.
"No way" I said and took the rod from her, Freya tried to take the rod back from me but I held it in the air, far from her, suddenly someone from behind gripped my wrist.
The End 🌸.