Keifer's POV
It's been a week.
Seven whole days.
And somehow...
the guilt hasn't left.
I didn't mean to hit her that hard.
Hell, I didn't even think the ball would hit her face.
It was supposed to scare her.
Maybe annoy her.
Not...
that.
The image keeps replaying in my head anyway.
The ball.
The sound.
Her stumbling backwards.
Then that look on her face.
Not pain.
Fear.
Like she'd seen something far worse than a volleyball flying at her.
And then there was Aries.
I've asked him.
Once.
Twice.
Probably twenty times by now.
Every single conversation ends the exact same way.
"You don't know her."
"You don't know what could've happened."
That's it.
No explanation.
No context.
Nothing.
At this point, I'm convinced Aries enjoys confusing me.
One minute he tells us he doesn't care if she leaves the section.
He literally helped us come up with plans to make her quit.
The next minute I accidentally hit her with a volleyball and suddenly I'm the villain of the century.
What exactly does he want?
Because honestly...
I don't think even he knows.
...
Maybe I really crossed a line.
Or maybe there's something everyone knows except me.
Either way...
I hate not knowing.
Which somehow explains why I'm currently standing outside the Fernandez Mansion.
Holding a tub of chocolate ice cream.
...
Why chocolate?
No idea.
Maybe because every girl likes chocolate.
Actually...
that sounds incredibly sexist.
Whatever.
The point is—
I brought ice cream.
Not because I'm apologizing.
God, no.
I'm just...
making peace with the situation.
That's different.
Completely different.
...
Right?
I even ditched going to the basketball game with Aries, Yuri and Percy.
If Aries finds out I skipped because I came here—
Yeah.
Let's not think about that.
I pressed the doorbell.
A few seconds later, the massive wooden door opened.
A middle-aged maid smiled politely.
"Good afternoon, Master Keifer."
Great.
Even the maids know me.
"Is Aries home?"
She shook her head.
"Young Master Aries hasn't returned yet."
"Oh."
I should leave.
I really should.
Instead, I heard myself ask,
"Can I... wait?"
What?
Why did I say that?
"Of course."
She stepped aside.
"Please come in."
Too late now.
The mansion looked exactly how I remembered.
Ridiculously expensive.
Spotless.
Too quiet.
The maid disappeared toward the kitchen after asking if I wanted anything.
I declined.
Mostly because I suddenly forgot how to function like a normal human being.
I wandered through the hallway.
Past framed paintings.
Past a piano.
Past more rooms than one family could possibly need.
Until I heard paper rustling.
The study.
I peeked inside.
And there she was.
Jay.
She hadn't noticed me.
Yet.
She stood in front of one of the tall bookshelves, using the glass cabinet beside it as a mirror.
An oversized charcoal T-shirt swallowed her whole, the sleeves almost reaching her elbows. A pair of loose shorts peeked out just enough to be visible beneath the hem. Her hair was piled into the messiest bun imaginable, with stubborn strands escaping around her face.
She held a Band-Aid between her fingers.
Carefully...
she tried sticking it across the bridge of her nose.
Crooked.
She frowned.
Peeled it off.
Tried again.
Still crooked.
Seriously?
She sighed dramatically.
"I hate these stupid things."
Without thinking...
I walked in.
She caught my reflection.
Her shoulders immediately stiffened.
The moment she turned and saw me—
she stood up.
"I'm leaving."
"Sit."
She stopped.
Turned slowly.
"...Excuse me?"
"I said sit."
She let out the driest laugh I'd ever heard.
"Who exactly are you to order me around in my own house?"
"Tch."
"There it is."
"What?"
"The famous tch."
She folded her arms.
"I was wondering how long it'd take."
I rolled my eyes.
She reached for another Band-Aid.
Before she could open it—
I took the box out of her hands.
"Hey—"
"You clearly can't do it."
"I can."
"You've failed twice."
"I would've gotten it on the third try."
"Doubt it."
She glared.
I stared back.
"..."
"..."
"...Fine."
She dropped back into the chair with the enthusiasm of someone attending their own execution.
I pulled out another Band-Aid.
She instinctively leaned away.
"Hold still."
"I'm holding still."
"You're literally moving."
"I'm breathing."
"Stop breathing."
She blinked.
"...Are you stupid?"
"A little."
"..."
"..."
"...Fair enough."
A laugh almost escaped her.
Almost.
I peeled the backing off the Band-Aid.
Then paused.
For the first time...
I was actually looking at her.
Not the annoying transfer student.
Not the girl Aries supposedly hated.
Just...
her.
A faint bruise still stretched beneath her eye.
The cut across her nose looked smaller than before.
Her eyelashes cast tiny shadows against her cheeks.
She looked...
different.
Fragile.
No.
That wasn't the right word.
Human.
I gently placed the Band-Aid across her nose.
Straight this time.
My fingers brushed her cheek.
She froze.
So did I.
For a second...
neither of us moved.
Her eyes lifted to mine.
Dark brown.
Warmer than I'd expected.
Why am I staring?
Just move.
Move, idiot.
I pulled my hand away first.
"There."
She instinctively touched the Band-Aid.
"...It's straight."
"Obviously."
Silence.
The kind that wasn't awkward.
Just...
strange.
Her eyes drifted to the tub in my hand.
"So."
"What's with the ice cream?"
I glanced down.
Right.
The ice cream.
"It's for you."
She raised an eyebrow.
"For me?"
"Yeah."
She looked from the tub... back to me.
Then a slow, knowing smile appeared on her face.
"Oh."
"So you are trying to bribe me."
I frowned.
"I'm not."
"You are."
"I'm not."
"You brought me chocolate ice cream."
"..."
"You fixed my Band-Aid."
"..."
"And you showed up at my house."
She folded her arms.
"You're guilty."
"I'm not guilty."
She gave me a look that practically screamed Seriously?
"Keifer."
"You came all the way here."
"You skipped whatever you usually do after school."
"And now you're standing in front of me holding chocolate ice cream."
She tilted her head.
"You're guilty."
I looked away.
"That's not the point."
"That's exactly the point."
She gently pushed the ice cream back toward me.
"I won't accept your bribe."
I blinked.
"...Then what do you want?" (a/n: he just agreed that he is guilty )
She was quiet for a moment.
Then she lifted a finger and lightly tapped the center of my chest.
"I want something from here."
My eyes followed her hand.
She looked straight at me.
"A simple sorry."
Her finger slid away.
"And..."
Her expression softened just a little.
"...an explanation."
"Why did you do that?"
I held her gaze for a second.
Then looked away with a quiet scoff.
"Neither of those are my thing."
She frowned.
"What?"
"Apologizing."
A small pause.
"Neither is explaining."
Silence settled between us.
She studied my face for a few long seconds before letting out a quiet sigh.
"Then..."
She stepped away from me.
"...this won't work."
She glanced at the untouched ice cream one last time before turning toward the door.
Then she stopped.
So did I.
Three figures stood in the doorway.
Aries.
Yuri.
Percy.
None of them had made a sound.
Somewhere during that conversation...
we had ended up standing much closer than either of us had realized.
Jay quietly took a step back.
Breaking whatever strange moment had settled between us.
Then she reached over, took the tub of ice cream from my hand, and held it up with the tiniest smile.
"Well..."
She looked toward Yuri.
"I don't think this should go to waste."
She walked past all three of them without another word.
Yuri watched her disappear down the hallway before looking back at me.
"...Damn."
Percy let out a snort.
Aries didn't say anything.
He just looked at me.
Not angry.
Not confused.
Just...
thinking.
And somehow...
that expression bothered me a lot more than if he'd started yelling.
Hey besties!! 🤍
I know... I KNOW you guys are probably super, super, super mad at me right now. 😭
Trust me, I was in the biggest writing slump ever. My brain was overflowing with ideas—the plot, the build-up, the dialogues, the scenes... everything was there. But the moment I opened Wattpad to write, my mind went completely blank. Like... EMPTY. 🫠
For the past 15 days, these 2–3 chapters were just sitting in my drafts, half-finished, and I just couldn't bring myself to complete or post them. I know I've disappointed you guys, and honestly, I don't think any excuse can make up for disappearing like that. I'm really sorry. 🤍
To make it up to you all, I uploaded three chapters today! 🥹 I really hope you enjoyed them because these last two chapters were mainly building up to this one. And don't worry... this is just the beginning. There are so many more moments, twists, and chaos waiting ahead. 👀
Also... I think I've said "sorry" so many times now that I'm basically digging my own grave with it. 😭
Anyways, thank you so much for sticking around, even when I vanished for a while. Your comments, votes, s genuinely make my day and motivate me to keep writing. So please don't stop sharing them! They mean more to me than you know. 🫶
I'll see you all in the next chapter! Stay tuned, take care of yourselves, and please keep motivating me so I don't disappear into another writing slump. 😭🤍
Love you all!!
Byeee!! 🫶✨