A few days passed after Jay and Keifer talked.
Things were calmer.
But still distant.
Keifer continued staying away from the group.
Not because he hated them.
But because everything still felt complicated.
The laughter under the big tree had faded.
Everyone felt it.
One afternoon Grace saw Keifer sitting alone near the basketball court again.
She watched him for a moment.
Then she stood up from the bench.
Ella noticed.
"Where are you going?"
Grace replied calmly.
"To fix something."
Freya raised an eyebrow.
"Good luck."
Grace walked slowly toward Keifer.
He noticed her footsteps and looked up.
"Grace."
She gave a small smile.
"Hi."
Keifer leaned back against the bench.
"What's up?"
Grace didn't sit.
She stood in front of him.
Then she spoke honestly.
"I want to apologize."
Keifer frowned slightly.
"For what?"
Grace sighed.
"For the other day."
"When we all shouted at you."
Keifer looked surprised.
Grace continued calmly.
"You were hurting."
"And instead of understanding that…"
"We blamed you."
Keifer stayed silent.
Grace spoke again.
"You had every right to be angry."
"You had every right to take your time."
Her voice was gentle but sincere.
"So I'm sorry."
For a moment Keifer didn't say anything.
Then he let out a small breath.
"You didn't have to apologize."
Grace shook her head.
"I did."
Keifer looked at her for a few seconds.
Then he shrugged lightly.
"It's fine."
Grace smiled a little.
"That means you forgive us?"
Keifer didn't even hesitate.
"Of course."
Grace looked relieved.
"You didn't even think about it."
Keifer gave a small smile.
"You're my friends."
Grace finally sat beside him.
"Then come back."
Keifer looked toward the big tree in the distance.
The rest of the group was sitting there.
Talking quietly.
Waiting.
He stayed silent for a moment.
Then he stood up.
Grace smiled softly.
Together they started walking toward the tree.
When Ella saw them approaching…
Her eyes widened.
"Look."
Freya immediately turned.
Rakki grinned.
"No way."
Keifer walked up to the bench casually.
Like nothing had happened.
Ella crossed her arms dramatically.
"So you finally remembered us?"
Keifer smirked slightly.
"Maybe."
Freya pointed at him.
"You better not disappear again."
Rakki laughed.
"The gang is complete again."
Grace sat down calmly.
Jay was also sitting there.
Quiet.
She didn't say anything.
But when Keifer sat on the bench again…
For the first time in many days…
The group felt whole.
Not perfect yet.
But slowly healing.
Just like their friendship. 💙