POV: Jay
Break time.
Finally.
After surviving an entire morning of Section E chaos, teasing, whispering, smirking, and Keifer's arm refusing to retire from my shoulder, I escaped.
Freedom.
I walked toward the cafeteria alone, tray in hand, breathing like someone who had just survived a battlefield.
Peace at last.
I grabbed lunch, ate quietly, and for the first time today, nobody was staring at me like I was part of a reality show.
Maybe today won't be that dramatic.
I finished eating and headed back toward the building, adjusting my bag on my shoulder.
Then suddenly—
Two hands covered my eyes.
"Guess who?" a familiar voice teased.
I froze.
That voice…
"Nathan?" I guessed.
The hands removed.
And there they were.
Nathan.
Hannah.
My heart jumped.
"WHAT?!" I gasped, my tray almost slipping. "YOU TWO?!"
I immediately hugged Hannah tightly.
"You're here! You're actually here!"
Nathan was smiling like an idiot, so I grabbed his face with both hands, squishing his cheeks.
"Let me see. Is this real? Are you real? Blink!"
"Jaaayyy—" he struggled.
Hannah cleared her throat.
"Um… Jay… I think you would want to turn around."
"Hannah, there is nothing more important than seeing you two here," I said dramatically, still cupping Nathan's face.
Nathan nervously removed my hands.
"Umm… J-Jay… I-I think… yyyyouuu… shhhoouulld…"
I smacked his arm lightly. "What are you even saying?"
He sighed.
Then he held my shoulders.
And turned me around.
I froze.
Standing behind me was Keifer.
And the entire Section E squad.
Felix. Yuri. Calix. David. Ci-N. Drew. Blaster. Endrix. Rory. Eman. Kit. Mayo.
All staring.
Serious.
Especially Keifer.
His expression was cold.
Very cold.
He wasn't looking at me.
He was looking at Nathan.
Oh no.
I quickly turned back to Nathan.
He leaned closer and whispered, "Umm… Jay… who are they? No… who's he?"
"That's my classmate," I whispered back. "And the class prefect."
Hannah leaned in. "Well… he looks more than a class prefect."
Nathan swallowed. "Could you… maybe change his expression? Or I might pee myself."
I inhaled.
Then slowly turned back.
"Keifer~" I said in a slightly dramatic, playful tone.
His eyes didn't soften.
"Who's he?" he asked calmly.
Um.
"Um… him? That's Nathan. And this is his cousin, Hannah."
Ci-N stepped forward immediately.
"Why were you hugging him and cupping his face like that? You barely do that to me."
I sighed.
"You see… Nathan is my boyfriend since I was sixteen. And you are my friend since seventeen. So let's say I know him more than you."
The entire Section E boys froze.
Then in unison, not loud but very clear:
"BOYFRIEND?"
Nathan tapped my arm urgently.
"Umm… Jay… I think… yyyoooouuu… made it worse."
I blinked.
"Oh! Not dating boyfriend! I meant boy who is my friend! Male best friend! That boyfriend!"
Keifer's jaw tightened.
Then slowly…
His expression changed.
Not smiling yet.
But no longer ice cold.
I stepped closer.
"Smile for me."
Nathan immediately smiled.
"Okay!"
Keifer frowned.
I glared at Nathan. "Not you, fool. I was talking to Keifer."
Then I stepped closer to Keifer.
Very close.
"Smile for me."
He stared at me for two seconds.
Then he smiled.
Nathan gasped dramatically. "OMG. He can smile that good?"
He stepped forward confidently.
"I'm Nathan Reyes," he said proudly. "And that's my cousin, Hannah Reyes."
Keifer nodded once. "Mark Keifer Watson."
Nathan blinked. "Watson? Like Watson?"
"Yes," Keifer replied calmly. "Why?"
"Nothing. Just… nice name."
Then Nathan started greeting everyone one by one.
"Yuri."
"Ci-N."
"Felix."
"Calix."
"Endrix."
"Drew."
"David."
"Eman."
"Kit."
"Mayo."
"Blaster."
like everyone name
The tension slowly thinned.
Keifer was about to speak to me when—
A hand grabbed my wrist.
Hannah.
She dragged me to a corner.
Then she lightly smacked my forehead.
"Ow! What was that for?!"
"Are you crazy?" she whispered harshly.
"What?!"
"He's a Watson. And Kaizer Watson wants to take everything from the Watson family. And you agreed to go with him!"
"I agreed to go with him," I whispered back. "Not to help him take anything."
She stared at me.
"You are one complicated girl."
"This complicated person got you a job to do," I replied.
Before she could respond—
"Jay!" Keifer called.
"Coming!"
I walked back.
Keifer looked between Nathan and Hannah.
"So… what are they doing here?"
Nathan answered confidently, "To study. What else?"
I blinked. "Huh?"
Hannah added, "We're studying in HVIS."
My eyes widened.
I pulled both their ears closer.
When I released them, Nathan whined silently in pain.
"You completed university last year. You're nineteen. How did you enter?"
Nathan shrugged. "We just said we didn't start school early."
"And they believed that?" I asked.
Hannah nodded. "Surprisingly, yes."
"Also," Nathan added, lowering his voice, "you need us closer. Things are getting crazy."
I stared at them.
Then I walked back to Keifer's side.
"Yes. They're here to study."
"Which section?" Keifer asked.
I froze.
"Umm… umm…"
Nathan whispered, "B."
"Section B!" I said quickly. "They're in Section B."
Felix tilted his head. "Why is Hannah wearing a nose mask?"
"That's a question you should ask her," I replied calmly.
Ci-N stepped forward dramatically.
"Hannahhh, could you pleeease remove the mask? We want to see your face!"
She didn't respond.
She just stared.
Nathan casually removed the mask.
Before anyone could see—
Hannah turned away, snatched it back, and wore it again.
She was about to leave.
"Wait."
It was Yuri.
The red rooster himself.
Hannah turned slowly.
Yuri walked toward her.
He raised his hand.
She slightly shifted.
"Statue. Don't move," Yuri said.
And shockingly—
She didn't move.
My eyes widened.
Hannah doesn't listen to strangers. Especially boys.
Yuri gently removed the mask.
Felix squinted. "I can't see her well."
Drew scoffed. "How would you? The rooster is blocking."
Yuri stepped aside.
And then—
Silence.
Everyone stared.
Except Keifer.
Except Nathan.
Except me.
The boys started reacting immediately.
"She's beautiful."
"Why hide that face?"
"Do you have a boyfriend?"
"Seriously, stop wearing the mask!"
Yuri looked directly at her.
"You have a beautiful face. Stop hiding it."
They just stared at each other.
And for a second…
It felt like something shifted in the air.
Then—
The bell rang.
Hannah blinked first.
"Come on, Nathan. Let's go."
They walked away.
We started heading back to our classroom.
I nudged Keifer.
"Did you see the way Yuri was looking at her? I see love."
Keifer replied calmly, "That's how I look at you too."
I stopped walking.
We looked at each other.
The hallway suddenly felt quieter.
Too quiet.
I cleared my throat.
Then quickly moved to Ci-N's side.
"I'm walking here now."
Ci-N grinned. "Avoiding someone?"
"Shut up."
We entered class.
Another long lesson ahead.
And I had a feeling…
This school just got a lot more complicated.
End of Chapter 92. 🔥