(Keifer's POV)
For a moment, it was just her and me.
No noise.
No shouting.
Just the wind and the sea behind us.
She still had the camera in her hand.
Still sitting on the rock.
Feet near the water.
Calm.
Like nothing else existed.
Then she glanced at me.
Just briefly.
Before looking back at the view.
I didn't move yet.
I stayed there.
Watching her.
Because she always did this.
Pull me in.
Then act like she didn't.
A splash hit somewhere behind us.
Loud.
Too loud.
"OH MY GOD—THEY'RE STILL DOING IT!"
Cin.
Of course.
She closed her eyes for a second.
"…I hate him," she muttered.
"No you don't," I said.
She didn't answer.
Just lifted the camera again.
Click.
And then—
another voice.
"GET HIM BACK HERE!" Percy shouted.
"I'M NOT COMING!" I heard myself get dragged into it.
Literally.
Cin grabbed my arm.
Blaster grabbed the other.
"COME ON!"
"Let go."
"No."
"Absolutely not."
Before I could stop it—
they pulled me toward the water.
I turned slightly.
She was still on the rock.
Watching.
Camera raised.
Click.
Of course she was taking pictures.
"…really?" I muttered.
She shrugged slightly.
Like it wasn't her problem.
Then—
I was in the water.
Cold hit instantly.
"Finally!" Cin shouted.
Blaster splashed me immediately.
I pushed him back.
Water everywhere.
Noise again.
Same chaos.
But I wasn't fully in it.
My eyes kept going back to her.
Every time.
She wasn't moving.
Still sitting.
Still watching.
Still clicking.
Click.
Freya running past.
Click.
Percy yelling at Honey.
Click.
Cin falling for no reason.
And then—
she changed position slightly.
Camera lifted again.
And for once—
she wasn't hiding her smile.
I moved through the water slowly.
Not fully joining them.
Just enough.
Then a wave hit slightly harder.
Someone pushed me from the side.
I turned.
Blaster.
Smirking.
"Oops."
I pushed him back instantly.
Water exploded between us.
And then I heard it.
Her laugh.
Not loud.
Not forced.
Just real.
I turned again.
She was still watching.
Camera up.
Click.
Then she tilted her head slightly.
Like she was framing something.
And for a second—
I stopped.
Because I realized something.
She wasn't just taking pictures.
She was keeping us.
Every stupid moment.
Every loud second.
Every mess.
And I didn't even notice when I started smiling.
Small.
But real.
Then she noticed me.
Of course she did.
She lowered the camera slightly.
Just enough to see me properly.
"…don't look at me like that," she mouthed.
I didn't answer.
Just smirked.
And stayed exactly where I was.
(Keifer's POV)
Dinner wasn't quiet.
It never was with them.
Plates clinked.
Voices overlapped.
Someone was always arguing.
Drew was eating like he hadn't seen food in days.
"Slow down," Felix said.
"You slow down," Drew replied with a full mouth.
"Don't talk while eating," Ella said calmly.
"He won't listen," Aries added.
Freya leaned back in her chair.
"This is chaos."
"You're part of it," Blaster said.
"I'm the best part."
Mica laughed softly.
Calix moved a dish closer to her without saying anything.
Percy took something from Honey's plate.
"Seriously?" she said.
"You weren't eating it."
"I was about to."
"You're too slow."
She gave him a look.
He smiled.
Normal.
I didn't join most of it.
I was sitting beside her.
Jay didn't fight for food.
She never needed to.
She ate properly.
Like she always did.
Still—
I moved the water closer to her.
Shifted a dish slightly.
She noticed.
Of course she did.
"Don't," she said quietly.
"Don't what?"
"Act like that."
"Like what?"
She looked at me for a second.
Then looked away.
"…nothing."
I didn't push it.
Under the table—
her leg brushed mine.
Accidental.
She didn't move.
Neither did I.
Percy noticed something.
Of course he did.
"Oh, this is interesting—"
"Finish your food," Honey cut him off.
"…rude."
Good.
Jay kept eating.
Talking when needed.
Ignoring most of them.
Then—
it changed.
Just for a second.
Her expression.
Small.
Almost nothing.
But I saw it.
A slight pause.
A tightness around her eyes.
Pain.
She hid it immediately.
Went back to normal.
No one else noticed.
I didn't react.
Didn't stop anything.
Didn't make it obvious.
I just leaned slightly closer.
"…what happened?" I asked quietly.
She didn't look at me.
"Nothing."
"Jay."
A pause.
"…just little pain," she said.
Calm.
Too calm.
I watched her for a second.
"Do you need something?"
"No."
"Then tell me, okay."
She nodded.
Simple.
Conversation around us didn't stop.
Cin was arguing about something pointless.
Blaster shouting again.
Freya adding fuel for no reason.
But I wasn't listening anymore.
I was watching her.
The way she held herself.
The way she didn't show it.
Like it didn't matter.
But it did.
And now—
I noticed everything.
Even the smallest change.
Because she said it was nothing.
But I didn't believe that.