7 YEARS LATER
KEIFER POV
The morning sun filtered through the curtains, casting a soft, golden glow over the room. I shifted slightly, my eyes landing on the woman sleeping peacefully beside me.
Jay-jay.
She looked exactly the same as the day she disappeared—the same messy hair, the same calm expression she only wore when she was deep in sleep. My heart hammered against my ribs, a mixture of disbelief and overwhelming relief washing over me.
Seven years. Seven years of searching, of mourning, and of refusing to believe the world when they told me she was gone. I reached out, my fingers trembling as I pulled her smaller frame against my chest. I needed to feel the weight of her, to know that the nightmare had finally ended and she was finally back where she belonged.
"Hmm," she murmured, her voice thick with sleep as she snuggled into my warmth.
"Morning," I whispered into her hair, my voice cracking with a raw emotion I couldn't suppress.
I closed my eyes, breathing in the scent of her, letting the peace of the moment anchor me. I had done it. I had built my empire, I had defeated my family, and I had brought our Mutya home. I pressed a kiss to her temple, my grip tightening as if I could physically hold her in this reality forever.
But then, the warmth began to bleed away.
The weight of her body against mine started to feel light—too light, like I was trying to hold onto a handful of smoke. I panicked, my heart lunging into my throat as I tried to pull her closer, but my arms passed right through her.
"Jay? Jay-jay!" I choked out.
I bolted upright, my lungs burning for air as I gasped, my eyes darting frantically around the dark, oppressive room.
Empty.
The bed was cold. The space beside me was smooth and undisturbed, as if no one had lain there in a lifetime. There was no golden sunlight, only the dim, artificial glow of the city lights reflecting off the glass of my high-rise office-apartment.
I sat there for a long time, my hands shaking as I buried my face in them. The silence of the room was deafening, a brutal reminder that it was just another trick of my mind—one of those cruel dreams that visited me whenever the guilt became too much to bear.
Seven years.
It had been seven years since the accident. Seven years since Section E shattered into pieces. I was the head of the Watson empire now, the most powerful man in the room, just like I told her I would be. I had the inheritance, the power, and the shield I promised to build for her.
But the person I built it all for was a ghost.
I looked at the small, framed photo on my nightstand—a candid shot of a girl with messy hair, a fierce glare, and a stick of fishballs in her hand.
"Still playing hide and seek, Jay?" I whispered to the empty room, my voice sounding hollow and old.
I rubbed my chest, where the phantom warmth of her still lingered like a fresh burn. I was the king of my world now, the villain everyone feared, just like the plan demanded. But as I stood up to face another day of being the man who had everything, I knew the truth.
I was just a man haunted by a memory I refused to let die.
The hollow ache in my chest was a permanent resident now, a constant reminder of the girl who vanished into the asphalt seven years ago. I stood in the center of my cold, overly organized room, trying to shake off the lingering warmth of the dream.
A sharp, impatient knocking broke the silence.
"Kuya, open the door!" Keiran yelled from the hallway.
I let out a heavy sigh, smoothing my features into the mask of the stoic Watson heir before I turned the handle. I opened the door to find my younger brother standing there, looking remarkably like I did at his age—arrogant, restless, and completely unimpressed by my mood.
"What is it?" I asked, my voice flat.
"Kuya, sign this paper," Keiran said, practically shoving a crumpled form into my chest before I could even step aside.
I took the paper, my eyes narrowing as I scanned the messy handwriting. "What is this?"
"Nothing, just a visit to a hospital," Keiran replied, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.
I looked up from the form, my protective instincts flaring out of habit. "Why do you need to go to a hospital? Are you sick? Did you get into another fight?"
"Relax, Kuya. It's for our school field trip," Keiran explained, rolling his eyes as if I were being remarkably dense. "A 'Career Orientation' or whatever. We're visiting one of the top medical research centers to see how the 'real world' works."
I looked at him in confusion. "A field trip... to a hospital?"
It felt wrong. Hospitals were places of sterile smells and bad news—places that reminded me of the weeks I spent scouring every surgical ward in the country for a girl who wasn't there.
"Yeah. It's mandatory. Just sign it so I can go," he prodded, handing me a pen.
I hesitated for a second, my thumb brushing the edge of the paper. Something about it made the hair on the back of my neck stand up, a strange, electric pull I hadn't felt in years.
"Which hospital?" I asked, my voice dropping an octave.
"St. Jude's International," Keiran muttered, checking his watch. "Come on, Kuya. The bus leaves in an hour."
I didn't say anything as I scribbled my signature on the line. I handed it back to him, my mind already drifting back to the gray shadows of my room.
"Don't cause any trouble," I warned. "And stay with your class."
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say, Boss," Keiran smirked, turning on his heel and heading down the stairs with that effortless, annoying energy he always seemed to have.
"When is the field trip?" I called out after him, leaning over the banister.
"Umm, in two weeks? Or maybe one week!" Keiran shouted back, already halfway to the front door, his footsteps echoing through the foyer. He was always in such a damn hurry.
"It's next week Thursday," Keigan interjected, his voice much quieter, much more grounded.
I turned to look at my other brother. Keigan was standing by the doorway, his expression calm but guarded. I nodded slowly, my gaze softening just a fraction as I studied him. He was getting better. The trauma that had once threatened to swallow him whole was still there, lurking in the shadows of his eyes, but he was fighting his way back. He wasn't completely well—the road to recovery was a long, jagged one—but he was getting there. Step by step.
"When is your hospital visit again?" I asked him, my tone shifting to something more careful. "Your psychiatrist?"
Keigan shifted his weight, his fingers tracing the edge of his sleeve. "Monday. Two o'clock."
"I'll have the driver take you. Or I can go with you if you want," I offered. I was the head of the Watson empire, with a schedule that could strangle a lesser man, but for them, I would always make the time. They were all I had left.
"I can handle it, Kuya," Keigan replied with a small, reassuring nod. "I'm not a kid anymore."
I watched him for a moment, the silence between us heavy with the things we didn't say. Seven years had changed all of us. Keiran was the fire, Keigan was the steady rain, and I... I was the stone they leaned on, even as I felt myself crumbling from the inside out.
"Fine. Just make sure you go," I said, reaching out to pat his shoulder.
He nodded and headed toward the kitchen, leaving me alone in the hallway. I looked down at the signature Keiran had tricked out of me. St. Jude's International.
A hospital.
I hated hospitals. They were reminders of everything I couldn't save, of the girl who disappeared into a pool of red on the pavement
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
JAY JAY POV
I finally finished my medical degree six months ago! Now, I'm officially taking a break—not because I actually wanted to, but because Kuya Luan practically staged an intervention to make me. After years of burying my head in textbooks and surviving on caffeine and sheer willpower, he insisted I "reconnect with the real world" before starting my residency.
"Kuya!" I called out, my voice echoing through the marble hallways of the estate.
Silence. He was nowhere to be found again. Probably off doing "boring paperwork" or whatever high-stakes business he handles in those closed-door meetings of his. I looked around and spotted one of the maids polishing a vase in the foyer.
"Tell Kuya I'm going out with friends," I told her, flashing a quick smile.
The maid nodded respectfully, and I pulled out my phone, dialing a familiar number as I stepped out into the crisp morning air.
"Hey, Mia," I said the moment the line picked up.
"Where the hell are you? I've been sitting here for ten minutes!" she barked into my ear.
"I just started the car, relax!" I lied, suppressed a giggle as I hopped into the driver's seat of the sporty coupe Luan bought me for graduation.
Mia and I met back in college. She's a psychiatrist—brilliant, blunt, and arguably more stressed than I am—while I, on the other hand, am a surgeon in the making. We're like two sides of a very medical coin.
"You better be here in fifteen minutes, Luna Jay, or I'm eating your share of the Samgyup!" Mia threatened.
"Don't you dare touch my meat!" I shrieked, peeling down the driveway.
Even after all these years and the degree hanging on my wall, some things never changed. My stomach still led the way, and I still had that nagging feeling that I was missing something—or someone—from a life I couldn't remember. But as I watched the city blur past, I pushed the thought away.
I had a lunch date, a degree, and a brother who treated me like a princess. Life was good.
"I'm on my way, Mia! Just keep the grill hot!"
I hung up, a small smile playing on my lips.
It felt so good to finally breathe after years of high-pressure exams and hospital rotations. I pulled up to the restaurant and spotted Mia immediately, her hand waving frantically over a table already beginning to fill with appetizers.
"Jay, over here!" Mia called out.
I smiled and made my way through the crowded restaurant, sliding into the seat beside her just as the rest of our group arrived.
"Luna, when is your new post? I heard it was back in the Philippines," Zade asked, leaning across the table with a curious grin.
"Actually, yes," I answered, feeling a tiny spark of nerves at the thought of returning to a place I only knew through Luan's stories. "I applied for a hospital there. Mia actually applied for the same one, so we should be just fine as long as we're together."
"That's nice," Zade said, nodding thoughtfully. "It'll be like a college reunion, just with more stethoscopes and less sleep."
"I guess so," I said with a laugh, reaching for a piece of lettuce to start my wrap. "But I'm excited. It feels like... like I'm supposed to go back there."
"Guys," Zade said suddenly, his tone turning serious for a split second before a massive grin broke across his face.
"Yes?" I asked, pausing with my chopsticks mid-air.
"I also got a spot at the same hospital as you guys!" Zade announced.
"OMG, that's so great!" I shrieked excitedly, nearly dropping my food in the process.
The table erupted into cheers and laughter. The thought of starting my career of saving lives alongside my best friends made the move feel less like a daunting leap into the unknown and more like an adventure.
"To the three of us!" Mia toasted, raising her glass. "The dream team, taking on the Philippines!"
"To us!" we echoed, clinking our glasses together.
As the meat sizzled on the grill and the conversation flowed around me, I felt a strange, fleeting sense of déjà vu—a memory of sitting at a table with a much larger, much noisier group of boys. For a second, I could almost hear the sound of sixteen voices arguing over the last piece of beef, but it vanished as quickly as it had come.
Must be the hunger, I thought, shaking my head and taking a huge bite of my samgyup.
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