Jay POV...
The moment I stepped back inside the villa the smell of food immediately attacked my soul.
Oh my God.
Garlic rice.
Fresh sinigang.
Crispy chicken.
I could literally smell heaven.
Meanwhile my stomach betrayed me once again with another loud growl.
Keifer closed the villa door behind us while clearly trying not to laugh.
"Do not smile," I warned immediately while walking ahead with fake dignity. "I am still kidnapped."
"Hm." His voice sounded amused behind me. "A kidnapped person wearing my clothes and eating my food."
I immediately turned around dramatically.
"FIRST OF ALL," I pointed at him accusingly, "you forced me into this situation."
"You seemed comfortable upstairs."
My face heated up instantly.
Absolutely not.
"I was surviving!"
His lips twitched slightly while he walked beside me toward the dining area.
And honestly...
The dining setup itself looked insane too.
The long table near the open side of the villa faced directly toward the ocean. Warm hanging lights glowed softly above while the night breeze entered freely carrying the scent of saltwater and food together. The waves crashed gently nearby and the whole atmosphere looked weirdly romantic.
...
Disgusting.
I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at him.
"This better not be some date setup."
Keifer calmly pulled a chair for me first before replying,
"Depends."
"Depends on WHAT?"
"On whether you stop acting like you hate me."
I scoffed dramatically before sitting down anyways because priorities existed and food was currently number one.
The moment I sat my eyes widened slightly at the dishes in front of me.
Not only were they my favorites...
Everything looked homemade.
The sinigang still steamed softly from the bowl while the crispy chicken looked perfectly golden and beside it were small side dishes I liked too.
Even the mango float looked freshly made.
...
Okay that was actually sweet.
NO.
No it was not.
Manipulation.
This was emotional manipulation with food.
Keifer sat across from me casually while watching my expressions carefully.
"What?" I asked suspiciously.
"You are trying very hard not to look happy."
"I am not happy."
"Hm."
"I am literally angry."
"But eating already."
...
I aggressively grabbed the spoon.
"Shut up."
He chuckled softly under his breath while resting his arm lazily against the chair.
Meanwhile I took the first bite of garlic rice with crispy chicken and nearly cried internally.
It was SO good.
I hate rich people.
Actually no.
I hate Keifer specifically.
Because why was he good at everything annoying?!
While eating I slowly looked around the villa again properly.
The sound of waves echoed softly around us while the wind moved the curtains nearby. Somewhere outside small lights near the beach glowed faintly under the dark sky making the island look even prettier.
Honestly...
It did not even feel real.
This entire situation felt unreal.
This morning I was fighting with this idiot in school.
Now I was on a private island he BOUGHT while wearing clothes he prepared for me and eating dinner beside the ocean.
My life genuinely made no sense.
Then suddenly another thought hit me.
I immediately looked up at him suspiciously.
"Wait."
"Hm?"
"How long exactly were you planning this?"
A slow smirk appeared on his face immediately.
Interesting.
Too interesting.
He leaned back slightly against his chair while looking directly at me.
"A while."
My eyes widened.
"...You psychopath."
"You still came with me."
"Against my will!"
"You drank the water willingly though."
I gasped dramatically.
"THAT WAS A TRAP."
His shoulders shook slightly because he was clearly laughing silently now.
Meanwhile I pointed my spoon at him threateningly.
"You are actually insane."
"And yet here you are."
I opened my mouth to insult him again but suddenly the wind outside became stronger making the lights near the beach sway softly.
The ocean looked darker now under the night sky.
Beautiful.
Quiet.
Isolated.
And for the first time since waking up here...
Reality finally settled in properly.
I was really alone here with him.
No classmates.
No chaos.
No school.
No Fernandez house.
Just me and Keifer on an entire island.
...
Oh no.
That realization alone was dangerous.
After the dinner ( Keifer Pov)
I picked up the empty plates after we finished eating and carried them to the kitchen.
As I rinsed them under the sink, I glanced toward the living room—
and stopped for a second.
Jay was sitting on the couch quietly, completely unaware I was watching her.
She had taken one of the decorative pillows and was absentmindedly tracing random shapes on it with her finger while mumbling something under her breath to herself.
I couldn't even hear what she was saying.
But for some reason…
it was the cutest thing I had ever seen.
A small smile almost escaped me before I looked away quickly and focused back on the dishes.
God.
How was she still capable of making my chest feel warm after everything?
I dried my hands slowly before leaning against the kitchen entrance.
"So," I said casually, "dessert?"
Her head lifted immediately.
The excitement in her eyes appeared so fast it almost made me laugh.
But then she quickly remembered she was supposed to hate me and fixed her expression again.
She shrugged. "Whatever."
I bit back my smile and opened the freezer.
A minute later, I walked back holding a glass cup of vanilla ice cream covered in chocolate syrup and sprinkles.
The second she saw it, her eyes softened for a split second.
There she is.
She quickly straightened herself and tried acting normal again.
"Where's yours?"
I sat beside her and smirked.
"The only dessert I want is you, Jay."
She looked horrified.
"Oh my god, shut up."
I laughed softly.
"What? That was smooth."
"That was disgusting."
"Ouch."
"Deserved."
She rolled her eyes and took the spoon from me.
"Freaking waston."
"You say my last name with so much hatred."
"Because it deserves hatred."
Fair.
She scooped some ice cream slowly—
then suddenly stopped.
I frowned slightly. "Why aren't you eating?"
Her suspicious eyes lifted toward me.
"What if you added something in this?"
I blinked. "What?"
"What if it's something weird?" she said carefully. "What if you're planning to do something to me? I don't trust you, freaking waston."
The teasing smile on my face disappeared instantly.
"Jay…"
She crossed her arms tighter.
"I'm serious."
I stared at her quietly for a moment before speaking softly.
"I swear I didn't add anything to it."
She didn't answer.
Then I asked, almost hurt, "Do you really think I would do something like that to you?"
My chest tightened saying it.
Because no matter how messed up I was…
I would never violate her trust that way.
Never.
Her expression shifted slightly after hearing my voice.
And I knew she realized it too.
She looked away awkwardly.
"…Right."
Then she finally took a bite.
The second the ice cream melted in her mouth, her shoulders relaxed a little before she quickly hid it again.
I smiled without thinking.
Cute.
I leaned back comfortably against the couch.
"Well," I started casually, "I wouldn't do something like that unless you asked me to."
She froze mid-bite.
I continued teasingly, "Or if you wanted me to do something—"
Jay instantly started choking.
She hit my arm with the pillow repeatedly.
"YOU ARE SO SICK."
I burst out laughing.
"You're the one whose mind went there!"
"You literally made it go there!"
"That's talent."
"You need help."
"You still care enough to worry about my mental health. That's sweet."
She stared at me in disbelief.
"I genuinely regret talking to you."
I laughed harder while she glared at me and aggressively ate the ice cream.
But every few seconds…
when she forgot herself for just a moment…
a tiny smile would appear on her face again.
And every single one of those smiles made me fall for her all over again.
The playful atmosphere disappeared so suddenly it almost hurt.
Jay kept eating the ice cream quietly beside me while I stared ahead blankly.
And then—
that morning flashed through my mind again.
The classroom.
Her smile slowly fading while I stood there forcing myself to say words that were killing me from inside.
"It was all a plan."
I remembered how her eyes widened.
Confused first.
Then hurt.
Then completely shattered.
"I only got close to you to take revenge on Aries."
God.
Even remembering it made my chest burn.
The classroom had gone silent that day.
Everyone staring.
Everyone listening.
And Jay just stood there looking at me like she didn't recognize me anymore.
I remembered how badly I wanted to take everything back the second I saw tears gather in her eyes.
But I couldn't.
Because if she stayed close to me…
my family would eventually target her too.
And I couldn't let that happen.
Even if it meant becoming the villain in her story.
I glanced toward her beside me now.
Her movements had slowed.
She remembered it too.
I could see it in her eyes.
She quietly placed the ice cream cup down on the table.
"I'm going to sleep."
Her voice sounded distant.
My chest tightened immediately.
"Jay…"
She stood up without looking at me.
Of course she was going back to that room.
Not mine.
Not near me.
Because of course she wasn't talking properly to that asshole.
I stood quickly. "Please just listen to me for once."
She turned around sharply.
"Why?" she snapped, eyes glossy already. "So you can lie again?"
The words hit hard.
I swallowed painfully before speaking quietly,
"You think I wanted to say those things to you?"
Her expression trembled slightly.
"The plan was real, Jay," I admitted, my voice breaking. "At first…it was real."
She looked away immediately like hearing it again hurt too much.
"But it stopped being real a long time ago."
Silence.
I stepped closer slowly.
"You became important to me." My throat tightened. "Too important."
She still refused to look at me.
"You became such an important part of my life…of me…that somewhere along the way I stopped seeing this as revenge and started seeing…" My voice cracked. "You."
Finally her eyes lifted toward mine.
And god they looked hurt.
"I pushed you away because I knew my family would make you a target if you stayed with me," I whispered desperately. "I thought if you hated me, you'd stay safe."
Jay's eyes watered instantly.
"But the plan still existed," she whispered shakily.
And that sentence destroyed me.
Because she was right.
No matter how real my feelings became…
I had still started this horribly.
I wiped my face angrily before laughing bitterly at myself.
"I know."
Silence filled the room again.
Then she quietly turned around and walked upstairs.
And this time…
I let her go.
— JAY POV —
I closed the bedroom door quietly behind me and leaned against it.
This was the same room I woke up in earlier that evening.
So I guessed this was where I was supposed to sleep.
Not his room.
Definitely not near him.
Not after everything.
I walked toward the bed slowly before sitting down.
My chest felt heavy.
Because the worst part?
I believed him.
I knew Keifer.
And I knew when he was lying.
What he said downstairs…
that wasn't fake.
He really did push me away because he thought it would protect me.
Idiot.
Stupid idiot.
I buried my face into the pillow with frustration.
If he actually knew who I really was…
the things I already knew…
the danger already surrounding me…
he would realize I never needed that kind of protection.
But still…
the betrayal hurt.
The classroom memory replayed again in my head.
The whispers.
The humiliation.
The way my heart dropped when he admitted everything in front of everyone.
I shut my eyes tightly.
Why does loving him have to hurt this much?
After what felt like forever, I laid down and tried sleeping.
But sleep refused to come.
Every time I closed my eyes…
I saw him crying downstairs.
Saw the guilt in his face.
Saw the pain in his eyes when he admitted the truth.
I groaned softly before sitting up.
Forget this.
I left the room quietly and walked downstairs.
The mansion was silent now.
Most of the staff were probably in the staff quarters already.
Only one dim light remained on in the living room.
And there he was.
Keifer sat alone on the couch with three empty bottles already scattered on the table.
Another bottle rested loosely in his hand.
My eyebrows furrowed instantly.
Seriously?
I walked toward him quickly and snatched the bottle away.
"Stop drinking."
He looked up slowly.
His eyes were red already.
"Why?" he laughed weakly. "You hate me anyway."
The words hurt more than they should have.
"I never said that."
"You didn't need to."
His voice sounded broken.
And suddenly seeing him like this made my anger ache instead.
He rubbed his face tiredly before speaking again.
"I loved you even before that classroom incident."
I stayed quiet.
"The revenge plan stopped mattering a long time ago." His voice cracked. "I was already completely in love with you by then."
Tears filled his eyes again.
"And when I realized my family would eventually target you because of me…" he laughed bitterly. "I panicked."
He looked down at his trembling hands.
"So I thought if I destroyed us first…you'd stay away from all of this."
Idiot.
My chest hurt so badly hearing him talk like this.
"I know I hurt you," he whispered. "And I know I don't deserve forgiveness right now."
A tear rolled down his cheek and he wiped it away angrily.
"But god, Jay…" his voice broke completely. "I love you so much it actually scares me."
The room went silent again.
And honestly?
Seeing Keifer Waston cry in front of me felt wrong.
Because this boy who always acted untouchable…
looked completely shattered now.
I sighed quietly and sat beside him.
"You really are an idiot."
A weak laugh escaped him.
"I know."
"You thought hurting me emotionally was better protection?"
"I panicked."
"You're stupid."
"Also true."
I looked away before he could notice my expression softening.
But no.
I wasn't forgiving him that easily.
Absolutely not.
Keifer looked at me carefully after a few moments.
"…Did you forgive me?"
I stared at him dramatically.
"Of course not."
His face dropped instantly.
And honestly it was a little funny.
"You caused me one whole month of emotional disaster," I huffed while pointing at him accusingly. "That doesn't magically disappear in one night, okay you idiot?"
He blinked at me quietly.
"You have to earn forgiveness."
"…How?"
I crossed my arms.
"Suffer."
He let out a small laugh through his tears.
"Anything else?"
"Yes. Buy me food. Cry more. Maybe beg a little."
He laughed again softly.
And somehow…
hearing that laugh after so long made my chest feel warm again.
Not healed.
Not fixed.
But warmer.
Just a little.
----------------------------------------------------------
So guyss how was the chapter?? I hope you liked itt
10 comments 🎯