JAY JAY POV
After our performance, school finally ended for the day.
My head was still buzzing from the music, the kiss, the screaming crowd — all of it — but once I got home, everything felt quieter.
Section E and Section B were staying over for a while.
My house was about to turn into a zoo
But as I sat on my bed for a moment, letting the noise fade, my thoughts drifted somewhere else.
Ben.
Mia still loved him.
Anyone with eyes could see it.
And Ben… he deserved someone who loved him back the way he loved.
I had to fix it.
I had to make them a couple again.
Because I didn't want what happened between me and Yuri to happen to Ben.
Ben was a nice guy — really nice.
The kind of guy every girl dreams of.
He always knew what I wanted before I even said it.
He always read my mind like it was the easiest thing in the world.
But I didn't love him.
Not like that.
Not like Keifer.
With Yuri… I didn't make things clear enough.
I let things blur.
I let him think there was something more.
And when everything fell apart, so did our friendship.
Now we barely talk.
We barely look at each other.
It's like there's a wall between us that neither of us knows how to break.
I don't want that for Ben.
I don't want him to get hurt because of me.
And I don't want Mia to keep pretending she's fine when she's not.
So yeah…
I had to fix this.
Before it was too late.
Keifer opened my bedroom door without knocking — as usual — and flopped down beside me like he owned the place.
His arm slid under my head, pulling me closer until I was basically lying on his chest.
"What is my chocolate thinking about?" he asked, voice soft and teasing.
"Chocolate?" I raised an eyebrow.
He nodded like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You think about chocolate 24/7."
I rolled my eyes.
It's not my fault.
Chocolate is just… too sweet.
"So," he murmured, fingers tracing lazy circles on my waist, "what were you thinking about?"
I hesitated for a second, then sighed. "I'm thinking of bringing back Mia and Ben."
He paused. "Why?"
I turned my head toward him. "You're the answer, Keifer."
His arms tightened around my waist, pulling me closer until our foreheads touched.
"I don't want Ben to get hurt because of me," I whispered.
Keifer stayed quiet, listening
"Things got messy when I didn't say anything to Yuri," I continued, my voice low. "I should've made my decision more clear. If I did, Yuri wouldn't have put up the engagement… and everything wouldn't have gotten so messy."
Keifer exhaled slowly, brushing his thumb along my cheek.
"Jay," he said softly, "you don't owe anyone pain just because you're trying to protect them."
I swallowed hard.
"But I don't want Ben to end up like Yuri," I whispered. "I don't want another friendship ruined because I wasn't honest soon enough."
Keifer pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead.
"Then this time," he murmured, "we'll fix it together."
"So why Mia?" Keifer asked, his fingers still tracing slow circles on my waist.
"They used to be a couple," I said softly. "And Mia still loves Ben. Anyone can see it. And I know… deep down… Ben still loves her too."
Keifer's lips curled into a slow, amused smile.
"My cute little meddler."
I shoved him lightly in the chest. "Shut up."
He laughed under his breath, leaning closer until his nose brushed my cheek.
"Tell me what's the plan," he said, voice low and curious, like he was ready to join whatever chaos I was about to create.
I sighed, staring up at the ceiling for a moment.
"I just… want them to have a chance again," I murmured. "A real one. Without misunderstandings. Without me getting in the way. I don't want Ben to get hurt because of me."
Keifer hummed thoughtfully, then tightened his arms around me.
"Then I have an idea," Keifer said, and the way he said it made every cell in my body suspicious.
I turned my head slowly, narrowing my eyes at him. "Keifer… what kind of idea?"
He grinned
"The kind," he said, tapping my nose lightly, "that gets Mia and Ben back together… and keeps you out of trouble."
I raised an eyebrow. "You? Keeping me out of trouble? Since when?"
He ignored that completely, rolling onto his side so he could look at me properly, his hand still warm on my waist.
"Listen," he said, voice dropping into that soft, serious tone he only used when he actually meant something. "You want them together, right? And you don't want Ben getting hurt because of you."
I nodded.
"Then we make them talk," he said simply. "Not in a group. Not with Section E screaming in the background. Just them. Alone. Face to face."
I blinked. "That's your plan?"
He smirked. "That's step one."
"What's step two?" I asked
Keifer's grin widened
I blinked. "Keifer… what does that mean?"
He shifted closer, his arm tightening around my waist like he was about to confess a crime.
"It means," he said, voice dropping into that annoyingly smooth tone, "we create a situation where Ben and Mia have no choice but to talk. Alone. No distractions. No excuses. No running away."
I stared at him. "You're planning something."
He smirked. "Of course I am."
"Keifer."
"Wifey."
I groaned. "Just tell me."
He leaned in, lips brushing my ear as he whispered:
"We lock them in a room."
I shoved him so hard he bounced on the mattress. "KEIFER!"
He burst out laughing, grabbing my wrist before I could escape.
"Relax," he said, still grinning. "Not literally. I mean we trap them in a situation. A setup. A moment where they have to face their feelings."
I glared at him, but my heart softened a little.
"And how exactly do we do that?" I asked.
He brushed a strand of hair behind my ear, his voice warm and certain.
"Leave that to me," he said. "You already did step one — caring. I'll handle the chaos."
"Who's the meddler now?" I asked, pointing at Keifer with the most dramatic glare I could manage.
He froze for exactly one second.
Then his eyes narrowed.
"Oh, so that's how we're playing," he said.
Before I could even blink, his hands shot straight to my sides.
"Keifer—STOP—!" I burst out laughing instantly, twisting away from him. "PLEASEEEEE—!"
He didn't stop.
He climbed on top of me, straddling my hips like some overgrown gremlin with a mission, and kept tickling me like he was trying to summon my ghost.
"Say sorry," he said, grinning like a villain.
"NEVER—AHHH—KEIFER!" I screamed, kicking my legs helplessly.
He laughed, leaning down so close I could feel his breath on my cheek.
"You're so dramatic."
"You're EVIL!" I wheezed, tears forming from laughing too hard.
He pinned my wrists above my head with one hand — unfair, illegal, unnecessary — and kept tickling with the other.
"Keifer— I can't— breathe—!" I gasped between laughs.
Just then—
BANG.
The door burst open so hard it hit the wall.
Section E and Section B stood there in a full crowd, staring at us like they had just walked in on a federal crime scene.
Keifer was still on top of me.
I was still pinned.
I was still laughing like I was being tortured.
Perfect timing.
Of course.
"Keifer—please—stop tickling me—!" I wheezed, still laughing uncontrollably.
The room went silent.
Then—
Ci‑N: "I KNEW IT. I KNEW THEY WERE DOING SOMETHING."
Felix: "I thought they were doing something else."
My soul left my body.
Rory: "I lowkey thought we were getting Grazel 2.0."
Caleb: "WHAT DO YOU MEAN GRAZEL 2.0—"
Drew: "Bro, look at the POSITION—"
"Keifer, get off Jay," David said, sounding like a disappointed father catching his kids doing parkour on the roof.
Keifer finally moved, rolling off me and sitting up like he was the victim here.
I sat up too, still breathless, hair a mess, face red from laughing.
Mia crossed her arms. "What were you two doing?"
"Nothing! We were doing nothing," I said immediately.
Olivia raised an eyebrow so high it almost left her forehead.
"Sure didn't look like it. Or sound like it."
My stomach dropped. "What do you mean?"
Mia cleared her throat dramatically, then mimicked my voice — horribly, by the way.
"Ohhh Keifer please stop, please, I can't breathe," she said, flailing her arms like she was reenacting a telenovela.
My soul left my body.
"MIA!" I yelled.
Ben opened his mouth, eyes wide. "I seriously thought you two were—"
I snapped my head toward him and glared so hard he physically flinched.
He shut up instantly.
The room went silent for a second.
Then Ci‑N whispered loudly, "I STILL THINK THEY WERE DOING SOMETHING."
I threw a pillow at him.
My phone tinged.
I didn't think much of it at first
But when I glanced at the screen…
I froze.
My heart stopped.
"Oh my God…" I whispered, staring at the email.
Keifer sat up immediately. "What happened?"
I didn't answer.
I couldn't.
I opened the email fully, my hands shaking.
Then it hit me all at once.
"OH. MY. GODDDDD!" I yelled, louder this time.
Everyone jumped.
"Jay, what happened?" Keifer asked again, grabbing my shoulders.
Section E and Section B crowded around me like nosy aunties at a family reunion.
"What is it?"
"Are you okay?"
"Did someone die?"
"Is it the principal?"
"Is it chocolate?"
I swallowed hard, eyes still glued to the screen.
"I got into Columbia University," I said, voice trembling.
The room went silent.
"A… full scholarship," I added, breathless. "For Architecture."
For a moment, nobody moved.
Then Keifer's face lit up like the sun.
"Jay…" he whispered, eyes wide with pride.
I didn't even think — I threw myself into his arms, hugging him tightly.
He wrapped his arms around me instantly, lifting me slightly off the bed.
"You did it," he murmured into my hair. "I'm so proud of you, Wifey."
Behind us, the room exploded.
"CONGRATS, JAY!"
"I knew you could do it!"
"ARCHITECT QUEEN!"
"IVY LEAGUE BABYYY!"
Keifer's arms tightened around me, like he was trying to fuse us together. His chin rested on my shoulder, and I could feel him smiling — that soft, proud smile he only ever showed when it was about me.
Then David, of course, had to ruin the moment.
"Wait, wait, wait," he said, raising a hand like he was stopping traffic. "Isn't Columbia University in New York City?"
The entire room went silent.
You could hear a pin drop.
Rory blinked. "Keifer got into Harvard."
Mia added quietly, "And… we all got into colleges here. In the Philippines."
The silence got heavier — not sad, just… real.
I took a breath and forced a smile, looking at all of them.
"It's okay, guys. We can always meet," I said. "It's not like we're disappearing from each other's lives."
They nodded, but the worry was still there — especially in Keifer's eyes.
He turned to me, cupping my cheek gently.
"It won't be that bad," he said softly. "Plus, the ride from Massachusetts to New York is only four hours. We can do long distance."
My chest tightened — not with fear, but with something warm.
I smiled at him — a real, steady smile.
"Yeah," I whispered. "We can."