Jayjay (pov)
Sir Alvin left.
And for a second—
no one moved.
Then—
slowly…
everyone turned.
At the same time.
Towards—
Keifer.
No one said anything.
Just stared.
I blinked.
Then looked at him too.
He noticed.
Of course he did.
"…what?" he said, slightly narrowing his eyes.
Silence.
Then—
"Keifer pleeeease," Kit said, dragging the word.
Keifer shook his head immediately.
"No."
Everyone groaned.
"Last time," he continued, voice calm but firm, "you all created a mess."
"That was one time—" someone said.
"That was every time," he corrected.
I leaned slightly forward.
"Keifer… please," I said softly.
He didn't even look convinced.
"No."
Flat.
Final.
I sighed.
Fine.
Then I leaned closer.
Very close.
Near his ear.
Lowered my voice.
"If you say yes…" I whispered, "I'll give you two kisses… please, Keif…"
And then—
I stretched it.
"Baaaby…"
He froze.
Literally froze.
I pulled back slowly.
Watched him.
His jaw tightened.
Eyes shifted to me.
And just like that—
he melted.
"…wow," he said under his breath, looking at me.
Then a small smirk.
"Blackmail, wifey?"
I smiled innocently.
"Whatever works."
A pause.
He exhaled.
"…fine."
The class—
exploded.
"YES—"
"I KNEW IT—"
I just leaned back in my seat—
smiling.
Because clearly—
I knew exactly how to deal with him.
The dining table was huge.
Long.
Dark wood.
Polished so clean—
it reflected the lights above.
Chairs placed properly.
Everything neat.
Perfect.
And then—
us.
Not perfect.
Books everywhere.
Open notebooks.
Pens rolling.
Someone already took one side.
Someone else stretched across two chairs.
I sat beside Keifer.
Of course.
His side?
Clean.
Books stacked.
Notes aligned.
Everything straight.
Mine?
A mess.
I pushed one notebook.
Then another.
Still a mess.
"Start."
Keifer's voice.
Calm.
Flat.
Like a command.
No one moved.
Cin leaned back in his chair.
"Start what?" he said lazily.
"Studying," Keifer replied without looking up.
Eran snorted.
"Wow. Didn't expect that."
Kit flipped a page loudly.
"For show," he muttered.
"I hate all of you," Edrix said, already writing properly.
"You love us," Eran replied.
"I don't."
Calix stretched slightly.
"This already feels tiring."
David sat quietly—
just watching everything.
I opened my book.
Read one line.
Closed it.
"…this is hard."
Keifer glanced at me.
"You didn't try."
"I did."
"For two seconds."
"…that counts."
"No."
Cin pointed at me.
"See? This is why group study is needed."
I pointed back.
"This is why you're failing."
"I'm not failing."
"You are."
Eran laughed.
"He is."
"I'm surrounded by traitors," Cin said dramatically.
Edrix looked up.
"Can you all be quiet?"
"No," Eran said immediately.
A chair scraped.
Someone dropped a pen.
Noise.
More noise than studying.
Keifer closed his book.
The sound was sharp.
Clear.
Everyone stopped.
He looked around.
One by one.
Expression—
blank.
"You all said you wanted to study."
Calm.
Controlled.
"This is not studying."
Silence.
Kit raised his hand slightly.
"Technically… we opened books."
I covered my mouth.
Cin laughed out loud.
Edrix closed his eyes.
Calix shook his head.
David looked down—
hiding a small smile.
Keifer didn't react.
Of course.
He just leaned back slightly.
Then—
his eyes shifted.
To me.
"You," he said.
I blinked.
"…me?"
"Yes. Read."
Everyone looked at me.
Great.
I sighed.
Opened my book again.
"This is embarrassing."
"Read," he repeated.
I started.
Slowly.
Cin leaned toward Eran.
"Ten seconds before she stops."
"I say five."
"I can hear you," I said without looking up.
"Focus," Keifer said.
I rolled my eyes—
but continued.
And somehow—
between the chaos,
the noise,
the random comments—
the studying actually started.
A little.
Not perfectly.
But enough.
And for once—
no one left.
Somehow—
we actually started studying.
Not perfectly.
But properly.
Pages turning.
Pens moving.
Less talking.
More focus.
Time passed.
Slow at first—
then fast.
Almost two hours.
No one noticed.
Not even me.
Until—
I got stuck.
Again.
I stared at the same question.
For a long time.
"…this makes no sense."
I tapped my pen on the page.
Then turned slightly.
"Keif…"
He looked at me immediately.
"Yes?"
"I don't get this."
I pushed the notebook toward him.
He looked down.
Read it once.
And then—
a small smile.
Very small.
Almost unnoticeable.
But there.
"…you skipped the step," he said.
"I didn't."
"You did."
"I didn't."
He glanced at me.
"You always do."
I frowned.
"That's rude."
"That's true."
Cin snorted from across the table.
"Focus," Keifer said without even looking at him.
Then—
he pulled my notebook slightly closer.
Took my pen.
"Look," he said calmly.
His voice softer now.
Not strict.
Just explaining.
Step by step.
Slow.
Clear.
I watched.
Actually understood.
"…oh."
He nodded.
"Now try."
I took the pen back.
Solved it again.
Correctly.
"I got it," I said.
"Good."
And then—
he went back to his work.
Like nothing happened.
But I knew.
This wasn't the first time.
And definitely—
not the last.
I closed my notebook.
Slowly.
Stretched my fingers a little.
Then looked around.
Everyone was still studying.
Too seriously.
"…don't you think we are hungry?" I said.
David looked up first.
Calm.
Expression unreadable.
"Jay," he said, "we or you?"
A small giggle came from Cin.
Eran leaned back.
"I think it's just her."
I rolled my eyes.
"I mean all of us," I said quickly, then added, "and me also."
I laughed lightly.
Kit shook his head.
"Of course."
Calix closed his book halfway.
"Actually… I am hungry."
"See?" I pointed.
"Support."
Edrix didn't even look up.
"Finish one more topic."
"No," Cin said immediately.
"Yes," Edrix replied.
"No."
"Yes."
"Stop," Keifer's voice cut in.
Calm.
Flat.
Everyone went quiet.
He looked up from his book.
Then at me.
Just for a second.
Then—
"I and Jay will go to the store," he said.
"And bring something to eat."
Cin straightened instantly.
"Get chips."
"Cold drink."
"Something sweet—"
"Not too much junk," Edrix added.
"No one asked you," Eran muttered.
Keifer stood up.
Didn't respond.
Just looked at me.
"Come."
I smiled slightly.
Stood up.
And followed him.
Finally—
a break.