Jay POV
Lunch break was loud as always.
Section E sounded like a battlefield.
Cin and David were arguing over food again.Edrix kept throwing chips at someone across the table.Chairs scraped. Someone shouted. Someone laughed too loudly.
I slipped out before anyone noticed.
The rooftop door creaked open.
Silence.
Wind brushed against my face as I walked toward the railing and leaned forward, breathing slowly.
Finally… quiet.
Then—
Arms wrapped around me from behind.
I gasped.
A chin rested on my shoulder.
"Running away from your fans again?" Zane teased.
"You scared me," I said, exhaling.
He laughed softly. "You looked stressed."
"I am."
He leaned beside me casually.
Then his eyes narrowed.
"Wait… what's that?"
I looked down.
Ink covered my hand.
"Oh great. My pen leaked."
"Hold still," he said, grabbing my wrist lightly.
His thumb rubbed against my skin, trying to wipe it off.
Too close.
My heartbeat stumbled.
"There," he murmured.
Then he smiled — playful, careless — and pressed a quick kiss to my cheek.
My brain froze.
And then—
BAM!
A fist slammed into Zane's face.
He staggered back.
"YOU STUPID BASTARD!"
The shout echoed across the rooftop.
Keifer stood there, breathing hard, eyes dark with anger.
My stomach dropped.
"Keifer—"
"Don't," he snapped.
Zane straightened, stunned. "Relax, man. It wasn't—"
"Go," I said quickly, grabbing Zane's sleeve. "Please."
He looked between us, reading the tension.
"….Okay."
He backed away toward the door.
The moment it closed—
The air turned heavy.
Keifer's gaze dragged slowly from my cheek… to my lips… then back to my eyes.
"What was that?" he asked.
"It was nothing."
"You call that nothing?"
"It was a joke!"
"You let him touch you."
My chest tightened. "It wasn't like that!"
He laughed once — sharp and cold.
"Right. Because people usually kiss their friends for fun."
Anger rose inside me. "You've been ignoring me all week!"
"I was giving you space."
"Well it felt like you disappeared!"
His jaw tightened.
"I step back for one week," he said, voice low, "and suddenly you're comfortable with someone else all over you."
"That's not fair!"
"Isn't it?" he shot back. "You didn't look uncomfortable."
Tears burned my eyes.
"You didn't even ask what happened!"
"I saw enough."
"No, you assumed enough!"
Silence stretched.
Then he said quietly—
"Maybe you liked it."
My breath hitched. "What?"
"Maybe you really enjoyed kissing him."
My heart broke.
But he wasn't stopping.
"Or maybe," he continued, voice colder now, "you just moved on faster than I thought."
My vision blurred.
"You think that little of me?"
"I don't know what to think anymore," he said harshly. "Every time I look away, someone else is standing where I should be."
"That's because you pushed me away!"
"I didn't push you toward another guy."
The words landed heavy.
My hands trembled.
"I waited for you," I said softly. "You never came."
He ran a frustrated hand through his hair.
"You always do this."
"Do what?!"
"Act innocent when you know exactly what you're doing."
That one hurt.
Badly.
"I wasn't doing anything," I said, voice breaking.
He looked at me — eyes sharp, defensive.
"Then maybe I was wrong about you."
The sentence shattered something inside my chest.
Silence.
Wind rushed between us.
"K-keifer...No..," I whispered.
He didn't answer.
Just turned away.
"Keifer…" my voice cracked.
He paused for half a second.
Then said without looking back—
"Don't follow me."
He walked to the door.
Stopped again.
And added, quieter but sharper—
"I don't want to see you right now."
The door slammed shut.
My knees gave out.
I dropped down, kneeling on the concrete.
Tears fell fast, uncontrollable.
"I didn't do anything…" I whispered.
Everything felt heavy.
A moment later, footsteps returned.
Zane crouched beside me carefully.
"…You okay?" he asked gently.
I shook my head.
"I ruined everything."
He sighed softly. "No. He's just jealous and angry."
I wiped my face, trying to breathe.
After a few minutes, I forced myself to stand.
"I should go back."
𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬-
The classroom was already loud when I came back.
Chairs dragging.
Someone shouting about lunch money.
Edrix laughing too loudly at something that wasn't even funny.
Normal.
Everything normal.
I walked to my seat and sat down without saying anything.
Cin was scrolling through his phone, feet on the chair in front of him.
David was writing something neatly in his notebook.
David looked up first.
His eyes paused on my face.
Just a second.
Then his brows pulled together slightly.
"…Jay?"
His voice was quiet. Careful.
I hummed. "Yeah?"
"You okay?"
Simple question.
Soft tone.
That almost broke me again.
"I'm fine," I said quickly, opening my bag.
David didn't argue.
He just nodded once, like he understood I didn't want questions.
He slid his water bottle toward me anyway.
"In case you're not," he said politely.
I stared at it for a moment… then took it.
"…Thanks."
Cin finally looked up from his phone.
He blinked.
Then squinted.
"…Why do you look like that?"
"I don't know," I muttered.
He leaned closer, inspecting my face dramatically.
"Hm. Red eyes. Quiet behavior."
David sighed. "Cin."
"What? I'm diagnosing."
"I'm fine," I repeated.
Cin stared another second.
And something in his expression changed — less teasing, more understanding.
He leaned back suddenly and clapped once.
"Alright.!."
I frowned. "What?"
He pointed at David. "Tell her a fun fact."
David looked confused. "Why me?"
"Because you look like a responsible documentary narrator."
David exhaled slowly but played along.
"…Octopuses have three hearts."
Cin nodded seriously. "See? Educational healing."
Despite myself, a small laugh escaped.
Cin immediately pointed at me like he'd won.
"There. Smile detected. Mission successful."
I shook my head. "You're stupid."
"Correct," he said proudly.
Around us, Section E stayed chaotic and loud.
Nobody noticed anything.
Nobody cared.
Just noise and normal conversations filling the room.
The door opened.
Keifer walked in.
My fingers tightened around the bottle.
I kept my eyes on the desk.
He didn't say anything.
Didn't look my way.
Just walked past and sat down.
Like we were strangers again.
Silence settled inside my chest.
David quietly tapped his pen against my desk once.
Not asking.
Just grounding me back in the moment.
Cin leaned over and whispered,
"If you stop eating again, I'm stealing your snacks permanently."
"That's robbery."
"That's friendship."
And somehow…
their normal talking made breathing a little easier