Chapter: What I Couldn't Tell Her
(Aries' POV)
I knew today would be bad.
But I didn't think it would be this bad.
The hallway outside Section E was noisy like always. Students walking, laughing, talking about lunch.
But my attention wasn't on any of that.
It was on the classroom door.
Because inside that room, Keif was about to do something none of us wanted him to do.
Something we had planned.
Something we hated.
And something Jay would never forgive him for.
Beside me stood Percy Mariano.
He leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, staring at the floor.
Neither of us were talking.
There was nothing to say.
We both knew what was happening inside.
Percy muttered quietly,
"…This is messed up."
I nodded.
"Yeah."
He ran a hand through his hair.
"She's going to hate him."
I didn't answer.
Because we both already knew that.
That was the point.
A few minutes passed.
Then suddenly—
The classroom door opened.
And Jay ran out.
The moment I saw her face, my chest tightened.
She looked completely shattered.
Tears were already falling down her face, and she looked like she couldn't even breathe properly.
"Aries…"
Her voice cracked the moment she said my name.
I didn't even think.
I stepped forward immediately.
"Jay?"
She grabbed my shirt like she was trying to hold herself together.
And then the crying started.
Not the quiet crying.
The kind that shakes your entire body.
"He… he…"
She couldn't even finish the sentence.
I held her shoulders gently.
"Hey, hey… calm down."
But she couldn't.
Her hands tightened in my shirt.
"He said he used me."
My chest felt like someone punched it.
Even though I already knew those words were coming.
Even though we planned it.
Hearing her say it still hurt.
"He said everything was a plan."
Her voice broke completely.
"He said he never loved me… not before… not now."
For a second I closed my eyes.
Because I knew Keif.
And I knew how much those words must have hurt him to say.
But right now Jay didn't know that.
Right now all she knew was pain.
I pulled her into a hug immediately.
Jay buried her face into my shoulder and started crying harder.
Her fingers gripped the back of my shirt like she was afraid to let go.
And I just stood there.
Holding her.
Trying to keep my own anger under control.
Not at Keif.
Never at Keif.
But at the situation.
At Yuri.
At the fact that we had no other choice.
Jay's voice came out broken against my shoulder.
"…I believed him."
My hand slowly rested on the back of her head.
"I know."
"I trusted him."
"I know."
She shook her head slightly.
"I thought he actually cared."
That sentence hurt the most.
Because the truth was…
He did care.
More than she probably realized.
But I couldn't say that.
Not yet.
Not while Yuri was still watching.
Jay pulled back slightly, her eyes red and wet.
"Was I stupid?"
My chest tightened again.
"No."
Her voice trembled.
"Then why would he do that?"
I didn't have an answer I could give her.
Not the real one.
So instead I gently wiped the tear from her cheek.
"Some people… make bad choices."
The lie tasted bitter in my mouth.
But it was the only thing I could say.
Behind Jay, I noticed someone standing at the end of the hallway.
Keif.
He wasn't close enough to hear us.
But he could see us.
See Jay crying.
See me holding her.
His expression looked completely empty.
But I knew him well enough to see the truth.
His fists were clenched.
His shoulders tense.
He looked like he wanted to walk over here.
But he didn't.
Because if he did…
Everything we planned would fall apart.
Jay sniffed quietly.
"I hate him."
I didn't answer.
Because I knew she didn't really mean that.
She was just hurt.
Right now hate felt easier than heartbreak.
Jay wiped her eyes slightly but the tears kept coming.
Aries… did he ever even like me?"
The question hit harder than everything else.
I swallowed.
But I still couldn't tell her the truth.
Not yet.
So I gently pulled her back into a hug again.
"It's okay," I said quietly.
Even though I knew it wasn't.
Not yet.
Behind her, Keif turned away and started walking down the hallway.
Alone.
And for the first time since this whole thing started…
I wondered how long all of us could survive this plan before it destroyed us completely.