Keifer had learned one thing very early in life—
feelings make people weak.
He sat in his car outside the college building, hands resting calmly on the steering wheel.
Everything around him was expensive, neat, and perfect. Just like people expected his life to be.
Rich family.
Good looks.
Good future.
People thought he had it all.
What they didn't know was how tired he felt.
Keifer stepped out of the car and walked toward the building.
Heads turned, as they always did. Some girls whispered. Some smiled. Some stared for a little too long.
He didn't react.
He had stopped noticing that kind of attention years ago.
Back in his teenage years, he had believed in love. Deeply. Honestly. He had trusted someone with his heart, only to watch it break slowly. Promises were made easily—and broken even easier. Since then, he had decided something very simple:
Love doesn't last.
People leave.
Feelings disappoint.
So he built walls.
In class, he took his usual seat near the window, away from people. He liked quiet. Silence made sense to him. It didn't ask questions or demand emotions.
The lecture started, but Keifer wasn't really listening.
His mind went back to something annoying.
A girl.
Loud laughter.
Carefree smile.
Endless talking.
Jay.
He frowned slightly, not understanding why she had stayed in his thoughts. She was everything he usually avoided—too noisy, too fearless, too open.
And yet…
She hadn't looked impressed by him.
She hadn't tried to impress him either.
That was new.
"She's strange," he muttered quietly.
After class, Keifer walked out with his friends Arjun and Neil.
"Bro," Arjun said, nudging him.
"You saw the new girl, right?
Jay?"
Keifer nodded once. "Hard to miss."
Neil laughed. "She's everywhere. Talking, laughing, helping people like she's running a free service."
"She's annoying," Keifer said flatly.
Arjun raised an eyebrow. "Funny. You only notice annoying people when they matter."
Keifer shot him a sharp look. "Don't start."
They reached the parking area. Just then, a burst of laughter echoed nearby. Jay stood with her friends, waving her arms dramatically while telling a story. Her smile was bright, effortless.
For a moment, Keifer watched.
She looked… happy.
Too happy.
"Fake," he thought. "No one is that happy all the time."
As if sensing his gaze, Jay suddenly looked his way. Their eyes met.
Instead of looking away, she smiled at him—easy, warm, like it meant nothing and everything at the same time.
Keifer looked away instantly.
His chest felt uncomfortable.
At home that night, his mother talked about family expectations, future plans, responsibilities. Keifer listened quietly, nodding where needed.
Later, alone in his room, he lay on his bed staring at the ceiling.
His phone buzzed. A message from an unknown number popped up—a girl trying to start a conversation.
He locked the screen without replying.
Love was complicated.
People were complicated.
He didn't want any of it.
And yet, without meaning to, his mind replayed a sound he couldn't forget—
Jay's laughter.
Bright. Loud. Alive.
Keifer turned to his side, closing his eyes.
"This is why I stay away," he told himself.
"Because getting close always hurts."
He didn't know it yet, but the girl he was trying so hard to ignore was already breaking through his walls—one smile at a time.