CONTINUATION — Jay POV (right after Keifer grabs her hand)
His fingers wrapped around mine before I could step away.
Not rough.
Not gentle either.
Just… firm. Like he was afraid I'd disappear if he loosened his grip even a little.
I inhaled slowly.
Didn't look at him.
"Let go," I said, calm enough to scare myself.
He didn't.
"You're enjoying this," Keifer said quietly, voice low—dangerous in a restrained way. "The snorlax. The car. The attention."
I finally turned to face him.
Up close, his jaw was tight. His eyes darker than usual—stormy, controlled, like he was holding himself together by force.
"I'm enjoying breathing," I replied flatly. "You should try it sometime."
A muscle in his jaw jumped.
"You kissed him on purpose."
I raised an eyebrow. "Are you jealous of a Pokémon now?"
A couple of people slowed nearby.
Section E hovered at a distance—Rory pretending to check his phone, Edrix whispering something under his breath. Felix stopped laughing mid-sentence. Cin's smile faded.Even Rakki and Mica glanced over, sensing the shift.
Keifer leaned in slightly. "You think this is funny?"
"No," I said, my voice sharper now. "I think you touching me without permission is interesting."
That did it.
His hand dropped instantly—like my words burned.
For a second, something crossed his face. Regret. Conflict.
Then it hardened.
"You don't get to act like I don't exist," he said.
I laughed once. Short. Humorless.
"And you don't get to act like you ever cared."
That hit.
Hard.
Cin froze. Rakki turned fully toward us. Even Section E shifted—no smirks now, just tension.
Keifer's voice shook slightly, despite himself. "You think I didn't care? You think I didn't try?"
"Oh please," I snapped. "Trying would've been standing up for me. Trying would've been stopping them."
"I couldn't control everything," he shot back. "You always expect too much."
My chest burned.
"There it is," I said loudly. "Blame me again."
"Lower your voice," he warned.
"No," I snapped. "I've been quiet for too long."
People were fully watching now.
"Bro… this is bad," Rory muttered, worried.
Edrix whispered, "Someone stop them."
Keifer exhaled sharply. "You don't see how you push people. You act untouchable, then act shocked when someone gets hurt."
I stared at him.
"You're hurt?" I said incredulously. "You watched me break and did nothing."
"I was hurting too!" he snapped. "And you didn't care!"
That snapped something in me.
My hand moved before my brain caught up.
The slap cracked across his face.
Loud.
Keifer staggered back a step, stunned. His face went numb instantly, fingers touching his cheek as a thin line of blood appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Gasps exploded around us.
"Jay!"
"Yo—"
"Someone grab them!"
He looked at me, eyes blazing now.
"You feel better?" he said bitterly. "Hitting me won't erase what you are."
That sent me over the edge.
I lunged forward.
"I'll show you—"
Hands grabbed me from behind.
"JAY!" Rakki yelled, arms locking around my shoulders.
"Stop!" Mica cried, holding my arm.
Cin rushed in, panicked. "Jay, please!"
At the same time, Rory and Edrix grabbed Keifer, pulling him back as he struggled.
"This is exactly what she does," Keifer said sharply. "Pushes people until they snap—then walks away."
My jaw tightened."You don't get to blame me for your reactions."
I thrashed, eyes wild. "Let me go!"
"Don't,You're hurting yourself!" Rakki begged.
Keifer shouted over everyone, voice raw now. "You think I didn't care? You think I'm the villain? Look at you!"
I screamed back, shaking in their grip. "You don't get to rewrite what you did to me!"
The crowd was chaos—worried whispers, panicked voices.
"This is getting serious."
"They both look messed up."
"Get them apart!"
Finally, Keifer was dragged farther back.
I went still.
Breathing hard.
Hands still holding me like I might explode again.
Mica whispered, "Are you okay?"
I swallowed, forcing my voice steady. "I'm fine."
I wasn't.
Not even close.
Across the space, Keifer wiped the blood from his lip, eyes never leaving mine.
And I knew.
This wasn't the end.
It was only the fracture.
The noise slowly died down.
People drifted back to their groups, pretending nothing just happened—pretending two people didn't almost tear each other apart in public.
My hands were still shaking.
Rakki didn't let go of me at first. Mica stood in front of me like a shield. Cin hovered nearby, biting his lip, guilt written all over his face.
Then I felt it.
A familiar presence.
"Hey."
David's voice.
Soft. Careful.
I looked up and saw him walking toward me, his usual relaxed expression completely gone. Section E followed a few steps behind—Rory, Edrix, Felix, Mayo, Kit—none of them laughing now. No teasing. No chaos.
Just concern.
David stopped in front of me and didn't ask the usual what happened.
Instead, he said, "Are you okay?"
I opened my mouth.
Nothing came out.
That was answer enough.
David's jaw tightened slightly. He glanced at the faint redness on my palm, then back to my face.
"Did he hurt you?" he asked quietly.
"No," I said immediately. Too fast. "I mean—no."
Rory shifted uncomfortably. "That didn't look… great."
Edrix crossed his arms. "You looked like you were gonna swing a chair."
"I almost did," I muttered.
Felix frowned. "That's not funny, Jay."
"I know," I said. My voice cracked. "I know."
David stepped closer, lowering his voice. "You don't have to explain anything. Just tell me one thing."
I finally met his eyes.
"Do you feel safe right now?"
That did it.
My throat burned.
I nodded once. "Yeah."
He didn't look convinced—but he didn't argue.
"That's enough for now," he said firmly, then glanced back at Section E. "Give her space."
They didn't protest.
That alone surprised me.
Mayo hesitated. "We're not here to start anything. Just… checking."
Kit nodded. "You scared us."
I let out a shaky breath. "I didn't mean to."
Rory rubbed the back of his neck. "That dude pushed you too far."
Edrix added quietly, "And yeah… we saw it. You weren't wrong."
I blinked at them, surprised.
David placed a hand lightly on my shoulder—grounding, warm. "You wanna sit somewhere quieter?"
I nodded again.
As we turned to leave, I caught a glimpse of Keifer across the room—surrounded by people but completely alone, jaw clenched, eyes dark.
I looked away.
David noticed.
He didn't say his name.
Instead, he said, "You don't owe anyone strength all the time."
The words hit deeper than anything else tonight.
We walked off together—slow, steady—leaving the noise behind.
But the weight?
That stayed.
GUYS PLEASE! if you want next chapter get me to atleast 10 comments because i feel like my work isn't good that's why your not commenting so let me know! so i can improve the chapters or i will maybe just end this book here because no one is commenting i only got 2 comments on the chapter before this one.😓