AFTER THE FINAL EXAM — THE CONFRONTATION
Jay finished the last exam in record time — again.
Half the class was still struggling with page two when she stood up, handed her paper in, and walked out without a single glance behind her. Not even towards Keifer, who kept lowering his pen every few seconds just to watch her leave.
For a whole week, Jay had been piecing together every scrap of movement, every shadow, every whisper that traced back to one name:
Sebastian. Subject 08.
Every night she hunted him.
Every morning she acted normal.
Every afternoon she pretended like she wasn't being watched.
Now it was over.
Exams done. Acting done. Time up.
Jay stepped into the corridor — empty, quiet.
Too quiet.
She had taken barely three steps before she felt it:
Eyes. Many of them.
Then—
"Jay."
She stopped.
The entire Section E stood there, blocking the hallway like a wall she knew she couldn't slip past.
And in the middle
like a storm she never outran—
Keifer.
His arms were crossed. Jaw locked. Eyes burning with a hundred questions he'd been forced to swallow the whole week.
Jay didn't speak. Didn't show surprise.
She just quietly scanned exits.
Cin was the first to break.
"Jay," she said softly, stepping closer, "what's going on with you?"
Jay didn't blink. "Nothing. Move."
David shook his head. "No. Not this time."
"You've been disappearing every night," felix added. "Zoning out in class. Checking shadows like they talk to you."
Cin whispered, "Are you in trouble?"
Jay flinched.
Just slightly.
But Keifer saw.
He stepped forward, eyes never leaving hers.
"Jay," he said quietly, "look at me."
She didn't.
He moved closer anyway, closing the distance until he was right in front of her.
"You've been lying," he murmured, voice steady. "To all of us. To me."
Behind him, Section E stayed silent — watching, waiting, hurting.
Jay swallowed, forcing her voice steady.
"I said I'm fine."
"Stop lying."
Keifer grabbed her wrist — not roughly, but firmly enough that she couldn't run from the truth.
"Your hands are bruised," he said. "Your knuckles are cut. You haven't slept we all can see it . Someone is following you. I can feel it."
Jay exhaled shakily.
She hated how close he was. How perceptive he was. How much he could see through her masks.
Cin stepped beside him.
"Jay… we're your friends. You don't have to fight everything alone."
David nodded. "Who's after you?"
Jay didn't answer.
She couldn't.
Her silence was the answer.
The hallway felt like it was shrinking — the walls closing in — their concern becoming another chain she didn't want them wearing.
Keifer leaned in even closer.
His next words were a whisper only she could hear.
"Who is he?"
Jay froze.
He knew. Not the details. Not the history.
But he knew there was a he.
Before she could form a single lie—
Keifer added, voice cracking just slightly:
"Jay… are you in danger?"
Her throat tightened.
Yes.
Yes, she was.
But more than that—
They were.
Jay pulled her wrist free, stepping back, walls shooting up around her heart again.
"I can handle it," she said coldly. "Just… stay out of this."
But this time,it wasn't enough.
Keifer reached forward, grabbed her shoulders gently — forcing her eyes to meet his.
"No," he said firmly. "Not anymore. We're done being kept in the dark."
Jay's breath hitched.
Section E didn't move. They didn't blink.
They were cornering her not with violence…
…but with loyalty.
With care.
With the fear of losing her.
Keifer's voice softened, breaking through her last line of defense.
"Jay… whoever he is… whatever he wants… you don't face him alone."
Her heartbeat stuttered.
Her walls trembled.
Her lungs tightened painfully.
She looked at them — all of them — her friends, her people, her heart she never wanted to risk.
And for the first time since Sebastian came back…
Jay felt something she couldn't control.
Fear.
Not for herself.
For them.
She took one shaky step back, voice barely above a whisper—
"Please… don't ask me this."
And Section E realized—
Jay wasn't avoiding them.
Jay wasn't lying to them.
Jay was protecting them.From something big.
Something dangerous.Something coming.
And Keifer…
he took a slow breath.
Then said the one sentence that made Jay's heart stop:
"Jay… we're not leaving until you tell us the truth."
THE BREAKING POINT — JAY SNAPS
The hallway felt too tight. Too loud. Too close.
Jay's breath hitched — barely audible, but Keifer heard it.
Section E saw it.
They all saw her fear.
Something Jay never showed.
Cin took a small step forward, tears threatening.
"Jay… please. We're scared for you."
David clenched his fists.
"You can trust us. You should trust us."
Felix added quietly, "We're your family, Jay."
The word stabbed.
Family.
The one thing she knew she would lose the second Sebastian touched their lives.
Keifer looked at her like she was slipping away, like he was terrified to blink and lose her forever.
"Jay…" he whispered, "tell me who he is."
Jay couldn't breathe.
Because she couldn't say his name.
Couldn't put them in his shadow.
Couldn't drag them into a war they weren't trained for.
Her heart pounded painfully in her ribs.
She took another step back.
"No," she said, voice hardening.
"You guys don't understand. This—this isn't school drama. This isn't some random threat. This is—"
She stopped.
Her chest tightened.
Cin whispered, "Jay?"
And then—
Footsteps. Fast. Heavy. Familiar.
They all turned as Angelo stormed down the hallway, breath sharp, eyes blazing.
"Jay!" he called, and his tone alone told Section E enough—
He knew something.
Something terrifying.
Jay froze.
Keifer turned sharply, anger flaring.
"You know what's going on?"
Angelo ignored him.
His eyes were fixed only on Jay.
He reached her side in seconds, grabbing her arm and pulling her in close enough to whisper harshly—
"Why the hell didn't you tell me?"
Section E stiffened.
Him?
Jay's heartbeat stuttered.
Her guard shattered for half a second.
"Kuya—"
"I told you to tell me everything yet you are keeping stuff," Angelo hissed.
Keifer's blood ran cold.
Cin covered her mouth.
David's jaw dropped.
Jay pushed Angelo back slightly.
"Stop. Not here."
"No," he snapped.
"You're not doing this alone anymore. That man—"
"Stop." Jay's voice cracked, raw and unprotected.
"I said stop."
The hallway went dead silent.
Keifer stared at her like she'd just been ripped out of his hands.
"Jay…" he whispered, "who is he?"
Jay squeezed her eyes shut.
She couldn't break.
Not here.
Not in front of them.
Not when Sebastian was already watching every step she made.
She took a sharp breath and said the only thing she could—
The only thing that would keep them safe.
"Drop it."
But Keifer didn't.
"Jay—"
"I SAID DROP IT!"
Her voice echoed through the hallway, cracking like a whip.
Section E's faces fell.
Cin recoiled.
David's expression darkened with hurt.
Keifer took a step back like she had physically hit him.
And Jay—
She looked like she'd just stabbed herself in the chest.
Because hurting them was the last thing she ever wanted.
Angelo gently touched her shoulder.
"Jay… let's go."
She nodded stiffly.
Turned away.
But before she could take two steps—
Her phone buzzed.
A new message.
Unknown Number:
Meet me here tonight. Alone.Aren't you tired of running, MJ?Round 2.
Midnight. ~S08
Jay's stomach dropped.
She knew that tone.
That signature.
That taunt.
Sebastian.
Subject 08.
She tightened her grip on the phone until her knuckles went white.
Keifer noticed.
"Jay… who texted you?"
She didn't answer.
She couldn't.
Instead, she typed another message.
Encrypted. Barely three words.
Jay → Zack & Angelo:Prep. Midnight.
Plan C.
Angelo read it over her shoulder—
His face went grim.
Keifer stepped forward again, desperate now.
"Jay—don't walk away from me."
But she already was.
Already turning.
Already breaking.
Already choosing to face Sebastian alone.
She looked back once—
Eyes cold, determined, and unbearably sad.
"Please… stay out of this," she whispered.
Then Jay walked away—
Leaving Section E stunned.
Leaving Keifer shattered.
Leaving Angelo tense.
Leaving a war trail behind her.
Because tonight—
She was going to meet the monster from her childhood.
Alone.
And she didn't know if she'd come back.
KEIFER & SECTION E POV — THE MOMENT EVERYTHING SHATTERED
The exam room was too quiet.
Too still.
Keifer couldn't focus — not when Jay had turned in her paper halfway through the test and walked out like she was being chased by demons only she could see.
He watched the door long after it shut.
Something was wrong.
Badly wrong.
And he wasn't the only one who felt it.
When the bell rang, Section E exchanged silent looks — the kind that meant something's happening and we're not letting it go this time.
---
THE HALLWAY — SECTION E POV
They cornered her.
For the first time ever… they cornered their Jay Jay .
Cin swallowed hard as she stepped forward.
"Jay… what's going on?"
Jay's eyes flicked up — empty. Cold. The same eyes she had the day Cole died.
David stepped up beside Cin.
"You've been disappearing every night, Jay. Something's happening."
Jay didn't answer.
Keifer did.
"Someone's after her."
Everyone turned to him.
He didn't care.
He could feel it — the tension in her shoulders, the fear she refused to show, the way she always looked over her shoulder lately.
Jay looked at him like he was peeling her open.
Like he had figured out something she didn't want anyone touching.
"Jay," Cin said softly, "you're scaring us."
But she didn't soften.
If anything, she grew colder.
"Move."
Her voice was dangerous. Controlled. The same tone she had when she faced down Kaizer without blinking.
Section E didn't move.
Not this time.
Not when their friend looked like she was seconds away from breaking.
---
KEIFER POV
She wouldn't look at him.
That hurt more than anything.
"Jay," he said, taking one step closer, heartbeat hammering. "Talk to me."
She didn't.
She kept her gaze locked on the exit behind them — calculating, planning an escape, like they were the threat.
He reached out and gently grabbed her wrist.
Her pulse was racing.
Her skin was cold.
"Your hands are bruised," he said quietly. "You haven't slept. You're… scared."
Her breath hitched.
My Jay Jay never got scared.
Not unless it was something monstrous.
Cin whispered, "Jay… we're your friends."
Jay's jaw clenched.
Keifer's voice dropped into something fragile.
"Is it a guy? Someone from your past?"
She froze.
That was the answer.
Keifer felt his stomach drop.
He stepped closer — enough that she couldn't dodge the truth.
"Jay," he whispered, "are you in danger?"
Her eyes flickered — the tiniest crack in her armor.
Yes.
He could see it.
But she didn't say it.
She just whispered, "Stay out of this."
And that — that lit a fire in him.
"No," he said. "Not anymore."
She looked at him then.
Really looked.
Eyes shaking.
Walls crumbling.
She looked… scared.
And that was the moment Keifer,and all of Section E silently decided:
They weren't letting her fight alone. Not again.
---
SECTION E POV — THE DECISION
Jay stepped back — distancing herself.
"Please," she whispered, "don't ask me this."
Cin felt her chest twist.
David's fists clenched.
Felix looked away, jaw tight.
And Keifer…
He stepped forward, voice breaking but firm.
"Jay… we're not leaving until you tell us the truth."
Jay blinked — one sharp, shaky blink — then turned away.
She walked.
Fast.
Running from them.
Running to something darker.
---
KEIFER POV — THE MOMENT THEY CHASE
"Edrix," Keifer snapped, "track her. Now."
Edrix was already pulling out his phone.
Rory started linking the school Wi-Fi, fingers flying across his tablet.
"Got her signal—"
"…she's moving fast—"
"Almost got the location—"
Then—
All screens went black.
Code flooded the devices. Encrypted. Uncrackable.
Rory cursed. "Someone blocked us."
Edrix's eyes widened. "This is… high-level. Like military grade."
Keifer felt his blood run cold.
Jay never looked back as she disappeared around the corner.
But Keifer whispered to the others:
"We're following her."
Cin nodded fiercely.
David cracked his knuckles.
Rory and Edrix tried rebooting their devices, but the same error kept flashing:
ACCESS DENIED — CODE: 09
Keifer didn't understand the code.
But he understood one thing.
Jay was walking into danger.
And they were going with her.Whether she liked it or not....
Edrix stared at the scrambled code on his screen, throat tightening.
"This isn't just encryption," he whispered. "This is… designed to block us. It's like whoever's behind this knew we'd try to track her."
Rory's eyebrows knitted tightly.
"And Jay's phone runs this? What the hell does she even have in there?"
Keifer wasn't listening.
He was already moving.
"Grab your stuff," he said, voice low. Cold. "We're going after her."
Cin grabbed her bag.
David cursed under his breath.
Felix looked pale but determined.
They ran.
Because Jay had walked away like she was going to her own execution.
And Keifer felt dread crawling up his spine like ice.
---
OUTSIDE JAY'S HOUSE — SECTION E POV
It was dark.
Too dark.
Jay's house sat silent — no lights, no movement, nothing.
Keifer slowed, raising a hand.
"Stay alert."
Cin whispered, trembling, "Do you think she's inside?"
But before Keifer could answer—
A sound behind them.
A soft crunch of gravel.
They spun around—
And saw nothing.
David cursed. "I don't like this."
Keifer stepped forward, scanning the shadows.
"Jay?" he called quietly. "If you're here, answer me."
Silence.
Rory checked his device. "Still nothing. Her signal's gone. Like… wiped."
Cin swallowed hard.
"That means she's close, right? Devices glitch when she—"
"No," Edrix interrupted.
"This wasn't a glitch."
He looked up, face turning paper white.
"This was a jam. A deliberate one."
Keifer tensed.
"Which means… someone else is here."
THE FIRST HIT
The attack came out of nowhere.
A blur.
A shadow.
A fist.
It slammed into David's ribs, sending him crashing into the wall.
Cin screamed, jumping back, but something swept his legs out and he hit the ground hard.
Felix swung blindly, but a hand caught his wrist — twisted — and Felix dropped with a shout.
Rory barely had time to gasp before an elbow slammed into the back of his neck.
Edrix tried to run diagnostics on his hacked tablet but—
And the rest of the entire section e snapped in one go...
Crack.
A boot pinned his chest.
All were on the ground.
Groaning.
Dazed.
Defeated in seconds.
Only Keifer was still standing.
Just barely.
---
KEIFER POV — THE VOICE HE DREADED
Keifer's breath heaved as he tried to locate the attacker.
He felt them behind him before he heard them.
A presence.
Calm.
Cold.
Deadly.
Then a voice — smooth, mocking, too familiar from Jay's fear:
"You should've stayed away."
Keifer froze.
His blood ran ice-cold.
The man leaned closer, his breath warm against Keifer's ear, his tone shifting into a chilling smirk:
"Oh—" he corrected himself softly, "my mistake."
Keifer's fists clenched.
The man whispered, almost fondly:
"You should have stayed away from her."
And in the distance, like a cruel echo:
A soft, amused laugh.
Sebastian.
The man Jay was meeting tonight.
And Keifer realized—
They weren't just following Jay into danger.
They had walked straight into a trap...