— KEIFER POV —
Studying with Jay was genuinely one of the most dangerous things a human could experience.
We were sitting in the living room surrounded by books, notebooks, snacks, and absolute nonsense.
Jay sat cross-legged beside me looking deeply offended by education itself.
"I still think this island studying thing is illegal," she muttered while flipping pages aggressively.
"You've said that six times already."
"And I'll say it seven."
I shook my head with a laugh before opening the math book.
"Alright," I said calmly. "Solve this."
Jay looked at the equation confidently.
Way too confidently.
Then she started writing something while muttering dramatically under her breath.
A minute later she proudly pushed the notebook toward me.
I stared at it.
Then at her.
"…Jay."
"What?"
"That's wrong."
Her eyes widened immediately in offense.
"No it's not."
"You turned vector into victor."
She blinked.
"…Same thing."
"No?!"
"Yes." She nodded seriously. "Victor sounds more emotional."
I stared at her in disbelief.
"It's MATH."
"And?"
"You can't emotionally rename formulas!"
She crossed her arms instantly.
"Well maybe math needs personality."
A laugh escaped me immediately.
She narrowed her eyes dangerously.
"Don't laugh."
"You literally said 'victor quantity.'"
"They changed it."
"Who changed it?!"
"The math people."
I physically leaned back laughing while she glared at me like I betrayed her.
Then came chemistry.
Jay confidently read aloud,
"Sodium chlori-daddy."
Silence.
I turned toward her slowly.
"…What?"
She looked down at the page.
Then back at me.
Then immediately pointed accusingly at the textbook.
"THE FONT IS WEIRD."
I burst out laughing so hard I nearly dropped the book.
She smacked my arm instantly.
"STOP LAUGHING."
"You just flirted with chemistry!"
"I DID NOT."
"You literally called salt daddy."
"I HATE YOU."
Then came English.
Jay started reading dramatically.
"The poet uses menstruation to symbolize sadness—"
I choked instantly.
"…WHAT?!"
She blinked innocently.
"What?"
"It says metaphor!"
"Oh."
Silence.
Then suddenly—
I lost it completely.
I was laughing so hard my stomach hurt while Jay looked ready to commit murder.
"This is why education is toxic," she muttered angrily.
Then geography happened.
Jay confidently pointed at a diagram.
"This is the specific ocean."
I blinked.
"…Pacific."
"That's what I said."
"You said specific."
"Same emotions."
I covered my face laughing again.
Meanwhile every subject made her more offended.
Then history.
"The French Revolution happened in the nineteen seventies."
I stared at her blankly.
"…Jay."
"What?"
"That was not even CLOSE."
She pointed dramatically at me.
"Maybe if SOMEONE came back from London earlier he would know education evolved."
"You're rewriting world history."
"It needed improvement."
God.
I missed this so much.
Her arguing.
Her dramatic confidence.
The way she got angry every time I laughed.
After almost dying from laughter multiple times, we finally opened biology.
Which unfortunately was the worst mistake possible.
Jay started reading confidently without noticing the dangerous thoughts entering my brain.
"Human reproduction is a biological process where—"
Oh no.
She kept explaining seriously while I slowly smirked beside her.
Still no reaction.
Completely unaware.
Cute.
Then she started explaining fertilization in full detail like an innocent teacher.
I leaned closer slightly.
"Hm."
She continued reading.
I raised my hand dramatically.
"Teacher?"
She looked up.
"What?"
"I can't understand."
She sighed heavily already.
"What don't you understand?"
"The practical part."
Silence.
I watched realization slowly hit her.
Then her eyes widened in horror.
"KEIFER."
"What?" I asked innocently. "You should explain properly."
"You are DISGUSTING."
"I'm trying to study."
"You are trying to die."
I burst out laughing while she aggressively hit me with the biology book.
"Immature animal."
"You said reproduction first."
"IT'S LITERALLY THE CHAPTER."
"And now I need visual learning."
She tackled me with a pillow immediately while yelling threats.
The next thing I knew, we were laughing like idiots while fighting over the book.
Then somehow that turned into me tickling her.
"KEIFER STOP—"
"You called vector victor!"
She laughed loudly while trying escaping my hands.
And honestly?
Hearing her laugh like this again fixed something inside me.
For weeks all I saw was her crying because of me.
Now she looked alive again.
Happy.
Bright.
Eventually Jay collapsed dramatically against the couch breathless from laughing.
"I hate studying."
"You hate intelligence."
"Same thing."
I laughed softly before standing up.
"I'm getting water."
"Bring snacks too."
"You're unbelievable."
As I walked toward the kitchen, I suddenly remembered something.
"Oh yeah."
Jay looked up lazily from the couch.
"We still haven't named the island."
Her eyes lit up immediately.
"Oh right."
I leaned against the kitchen counter.
"You choose."
She blinked dramatically.
"Me?"
"Mhm."
"Well…" she hummed proudly. "Your wish."
Then she started thinking seriously while I watched her with amusement.
She suggested a few pretty names in Tagalog first.
Soft sounding names.
Ocean related names.
Princess level dramatic names.
Then suddenly she gasped.
"WAIT."
I already knew that expression meant danger.
"What?"
"We should name it Ulupongs Island."
I blinked slowly.
"…Are you serious?"
She immediately started giggling.
"Yes."
"Why ulupongs?"
She pointed dramatically at me.
"Because Section E are all ulupongs."
I narrowed my eyes.
"And YOU," she continued proudly, "are the king of ulupongs."
I stared at her for a second before laughing helplessly.
"You're impossible."
"It's perfect."
"It literally means snakes."
"Exactly."
I shook my head smiling before casually saying,
"Fine. It's yours anyway."
She blinked.
"…What?"
"The island. It's a gift for you."
Silence.
Jay stared at me blankly.
Then slowly—
her eyes widened.
"Wait."
I smirked slightly watching her process it.
"You bought me an island?"
"Mhm."
"AN ACTUAL ISLAND?!"
"Yes."
Her mouth literally fell open.
And for the first time in my life—
Jay became speechless.
Then suddenly—
— JAY POV —
"OH MY GOD."
I jumped up from the couch so fast I almost fell.
HE BOUGHT ME AN ISLAND.
AN ENTIRE ISLAND.
FOR ME.
I stared at Keifer in complete shock while my brain failed to process rich people behavior.
I mean yes.
I was rich too.
VERY rich actually.
And yes I was secretly a Mariano princess.
BUT STILL.
Nobody had ever gifted me a whole island before.
That was INSANE.
My heart exploded happily.
Then suddenly I screamed dramatically and started dancing around the living room.
"OH MY GOD."
Keifer started laughing immediately while watching me spin around like a maniac.
"You're happy?"
"HAPPY?!" I gasped dramatically. "YOU BOUGHT ME LAND."
I started running around the villa excitedly.
"This is billionaire flirting!"
Keifer leaned against the kitchen counter laughing helplessly while I continued celebrating.
"I HAVE AN ISLAND."
"You do."
"OH MY GOD I'M A LANDOWNER."
"You were already rich."
"NOT ISLAND RICH."
I pointed proudly at the windows.
"That beach is technically mine now."
"Mhm."
"That palm tree?"
"Also yours."
"I'M BASICALLY A DISNEY PRINCESS."
I immediately ran outside barefoot before my excitement killed me.
The warm sand touched my feet while I laughed happily and started spinning dramatically near the beach.
Honestly?
This was probably the best gift anyone had ever given me.
— KEIFER POV —
Jay looked way too happy for someone who called me an emotional criminal yesterday.
The second she ran outside barefoot onto the sand, I already knew peace was over.
She was spinning around dramatically near the shore while the wind moved loose strands of her messy bun.
"I HAVE AN ISLAND!" she yelled proudly.
I leaned against the villa doorway watching her with a helpless smile.
"You're terrifyingly rich."
"And beautiful," she corrected confidently.
"That too."
She grinned proudly before starting to play with the sand using her feet like an overexcited child.
Honestly?
Seeing her happy like this made my chest feel lighter.
For weeks all I could think about was the pain I caused her.
But right now…
she was smiling again.
And maybe that was enough for me.
Then suddenly—
Jay kicked the sand dramatically into the air.
Unfortunately…
the wind betrayed us immediately.
The sand flew straight toward our faces.
"Oh my GOD—"
I shut my eyes instantly while Jay gasped loudly beside me.
"KEIFER I'M BLIND."
I opened my eyes just enough to see her panicking dramatically while rubbing her eyes aggressively.
"You dramatic idiot stop rubbing them!"
"I CAN'T SEE ANYTHING."
"You can literally see."
"I SEE DARKNESS."
I burst out laughing while she blindly reached forward and accidentally smacked my shoulder.
"THIS IS NOT FUNNY."
"It's a little funny."
"I AM DYING."
I walked toward her quickly before gently grabbing her wrists to stop her from rubbing her eyes more.
"Relax."
"I trusted the sand."
"That was your first mistake."
She kept blinking rapidly while whining dramatically and honestly?
Cutest disaster alive.
Without thinking much, I picked her up bridal style immediately.
Jay gasped softly and grabbed onto my shirt automatically.
"…What are you doing?"
"Saving the blind princess."
"I hate you."
"No you don't."
She still looked annoyed but relaxed against me anyway while I carried her toward the outdoor water area near the villa.
The sunlight reflected softly against the water while she kept her eyes squeezed shut dramatically.
"I can never see again."
"You're so dramatic."
"Tell my future children I fought bravely."
I laughed quietly before carefully sitting her down near the sink area.
Then I gently tilted her face upward.
"Open your eyes slowly."
"I don't trust you."
"That hurts."
"You kidnapped me."
"Fair."
I carefully poured clean water over her eyes while holding her face softly.
"There," I murmured. "Blink slowly."
She blinked a few times before finally opening her eyes slightly.
Immediately she looked at me.
And god.
Even with wet lashes, messy hair, and sand on her face somehow…
she looked beautiful.
Too beautiful.
I brushed a wet strand of hair away from her cheek gently while she stared at me quietly now.
No dramatic yelling.
No teasing.
Just those eyes looking at me softly.
My chest tightened painfully.
"Oh my god," I whispered helplessly while smiling at her. "What would I even do without you?"
Her expression softened immediately.
"You're literally chaos in human form," I continued quietly. "But somehow you make everything feel alive."
A tiny smile appeared on her lips.
I couldn't stop myself from smiling back.
"You're like sunshine, Jay." My thumb brushed softly against her cheek. "Even when you're threatening murder or fighting with textbooks…you still brighten every place you walk into."
She blinked slowly at me.
"And when you're not around," I admitted softly, "everything feels…quiet in the worst way."
The ocean waves moved softly behind us while the wind brushed against her dress gently.
And honestly?
At that moment…
she looked like home.
I leaned my forehead lightly against hers before speaking quietly again,
"I think I fell in love with your chaos before I even realized it."
Jay's breath hitched softly.
Then after a few seconds she whispered dramatically,
"…You're being suspiciously romantic."
A laugh escaped me immediately.
"There she is."
"The blind experience changed me."
"You were blind for twelve seconds."
"It was traumatic."
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