The teasing from their friends had been wild. Shouting, jokes, silly chants. But Jay should have known that Adrian (who loved facts) and Lyra (who loved drama) would not stop there. They wanted to make it official.
It started quietly. Jay saw little groups of Crimson students whispering and writing things down. She saw Lyra talking very seriously to some other kids. She thought it was about school stuff.
She was wrong.
The big surprise came on Tuesday, right before history class. Jay and Keifer walked in and found a single piece of paper on each of their desks. At the top, it said:
THE JAYFER LOVE QUIZ
Made by your friends (for science!)
Jay's stomach dropped. She grabbed the paper. Keifer picked his up more slowly, one eyebrow going up.
"Lyra! Adrian!" Jay whispered, turning to glare at them. They sat a few rows back, trying to look innocent. "What is this?"
"It's a fun quiz!" Adrian said, pushing up his glasses. "We made observations!"
"It's to test how perfect you are for each other!" Lyra added, smiling widely. "Now be quiet and take it. You have fifteen minutes. Start!"
Jay looked at the first question. Her face got hot.
1. When Keifer uses his serious "President voice" in class, what does Jay usually do?
a) Roll her eyes.
b) Try to hide a smile.
c) Blush really hard (magic might spark).
d) Space out, thinking of a comeback.
From beside her, Jay heard a quiet snort. Keifer had his hand over his mouth. He was laughing.
"This isn't funny!" she whispered to him.
He just pointed at answer C and gave her a look that was pure trouble.
The questions got worse.
4. When Jay saw blood and freaked out in the courtyard, how did Keifer calm her down?
a) He told her to stop.
b) He used a spell.
c) He hugged her and didn't let go.
d) He gave her a look.
7. Last Thursday, Jay said: "You're impossible." Keifer said: "You like it." What happened to the magic in the air right after?
a) It got scary.
b) It got warm and glowy.
c) Nothing.
d) It shimmered (twelve people saw it).
Jay wanted to disappear. She looked at Keifer. He was actually *answering the quiz*, writing calmly. He saw her looking and slid his paper over. For question one, he had circled C and written next to it: Usually leads to D.
She kicked his chair.
The last question was the worst.
10. Based on everything, what will happen to "Jayfer"?
a) They'll break up after fighting.
b) They'll be a good couple.
c) They'll be a legendary love story people talk about forever.
d) They'll stay messy but entertaining for us.
Before they finished, Lyra clapped. "Time's up! Pencils down!"
Two younger Crimson kids ran up and collected all the papers like it was very important.
The old teacher woke up. "Was there a test?"
"Extra credit!" Lyra said sweetly.
The teacher went back to sleep.
For the rest of class, Jay felt like she was going to explode. Keifer was totally calm.
When the bell rang, Lyra jumped on a desk. Adrian stood next to her, holding a magnifying glass like a detective.
"Everyone!" Lyra yelled. The class stopped. "The results of the Jayfer Love Quiz are in! We have counted the answers and studied the data. We are ready to announce!"
Jay put her head in her hands.
"After careful study," Adrian said, reading from a paper, "Jay and Keifer have a compatibility score of... 99.8%!"
The room burst into cheers. Kids clapped.
"Also," Lyra shouted over the noise, "the quiz proves they are not just a silly fling!" She pointed at them. "They are a LEGENDARY LOVE STORY that people will talk about for years! It is now OFFICIALLY PROVEN!"
The yelling got louder. The "JAYFER" chant started.
Jay's face was on fire. This was the worst. They had proof now.
As everyone finally started to leave, buzzing with the news, Keifer got up. He walked to Lyra, took the results paper, and looked at it. He nodded.
"Seems right," he said, just loud enough for people to hear.
Then he walked back to Jay, who was still frozen in her seat. He held out his hand.
"Come on, Legend," he said, a real smile on his face. "We have things to do."
She looked at his hand. She was so embarrassed. But she was also... a little happy.
She took his hand and let him pull her up. The last few students watching sighed like they were watching a movie.
Walking into the hall, the whispers followed them. But they were different now.
"Did you hear? 99.8%..."
"Legendary..."
"It's science..."
Jay leaned against Keifer's arm. "I'm going to kill our friends."
He squeezed her hand. "They're not lying," he said quietly.
And the funny thing was, deep down, she knew he was right.