JAY JAY POV
My face feels like it's permanently on fire just thinking about what I did with the King of Assholes yesterday.
"Why are you so stupid, Jay?" I hissed at my reflection in the mirror, aggressively splashing cold water on my face. "You kissed him. You actually kissed the King of Assholes yesterday. And not just a peck—it was a full-on, tongue-to-tongue disaster!"
"Jay-Jay?"
I nearly hit my head on the sink as Mia walked into my room, with Sarah trailing right behind her looking like she'd just swallowed a whole hive of gossip-bees.
"Mia! I thought you'd already left for school," I said, trying to act like a person who hadn't just been having a mental breakdown in front of a mirror.
Sarah didn't even try to hide her smirk; she just burst out laughing.
"Sadly, she didn't," Sarah said, her eyes glinting with mischief.
"Shut up!" Mia hissed, her face turning a suspicious shade of pink.
I frowned, looking between the two of them. "Okay, what happened? What did I miss?"
"Wait, first things first," Sarah stepped forward, looking entirely too invested. "Did you and Keifer actually have that tongue kiss last night? Like, for real?"
I felt the heat rush back to my cheeks and gave a miserable nod. "I already told you that, Sarah. Stop making me relive the trauma."
"Yeah, well, it turns out you weren't the only one having a 'moment' last night," Sarah teased, nudging Mia with her elbow.
"Sarah, don't!" Mia warned, her voice going up an octave.
I leaned in, my internal drama-meter peaking. "With who, Mia? Tell me."
Sarah didn't even give her a chance to breathe. "With your twin brother!"
I froze, the hairbrush in my hand nearly clattering to the floor. "Wait... What?! Jare? My Jare? The same Jare who thinks flirting is just staring at someone until they feel uncomfortable and leave?"
Mia buried her face in her hands, her ears glowing a bright strawberry red. "Sarah, you are a traitor! I hate you!"
"Oh, come on, Mia! It was like a movie!" Sarah squealed, hopping onto my bed. "Jay-Jay, you should have seen them. Jare finally got a backbone. He pinned her against the kitchen counter when everyone was upstairs and just... bam! It was a total system override."
I stared at Mia, my jaw practically on the floor. "And you didn't punch him? You didn't kick him into the next life? You actually... kissed him back?"
Mia peeked through her fingers, looking like she wanted to evaporate. "I... I couldn't help it! He was being so serious, and he didn't call me 'Mia,' he called me 'bestie' first and then he apologized and then he just... I don't know! My brain stopped working!"
"The tongue-to-tongue virus is spreading," I muttered, slumping down next to Sarah. "Is there something in the water in the Philippines? Is it the humidity? Why are the Mariano twins suddenly losing their minds?"
The door creaked open, and the culprit himself walked in.
"Jay, hurry up! You're like a sloth!" Jare barked, but the words died in his throat the second he realized Mia was sitting right there on my bed.
I watched him. It was like watching a live-action color reel—his face went from pale to a deep, agonizing shade of red in under two seconds. He stood there frozen, looking at Mia, then at the floor, then at the ceiling, as if he'd forgotten how to exist as a human being.
"I... I will be waiting for you downstairs," he stammered, his voice three octaves higher than normal. He didn't even wait for a response before he turned on his heel and literally ran back downstairs. I could hear his footsteps thudding down the hallway like he was escaping a crime scene.
"This is how it has been since last night," Sarah said, letting out a long, dramatic sigh. "Every time they're in the same room, Jare acts like he's having a cardiovascular event and Mia looks like she's trying to merge with the wallpaper."
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MIA POV
FLASHBACK
"Jare, is Jay back?" I asked, wandering into the kitchen. I felt a bit restless; the house was too quiet without Jay-Jay's constant chatter or the sound of her trying on a dozen outfits.
"No," Jare replied shortly. He was focused on cutting a mango, his movements precise and methodical, just like everything else he did.
I hopped up and sat on the counter next to him, swinging my legs. "When will she be back?" I asked, reaching over and shamelessly stealing a slice of the mango he had just cut.
"I don't know. She went to Tita Serina's house," Jare replied, finally looking up. His eyes lingered on mine for a second longer than usual before he looked back down at the fruit.
"Ohh. Then she might not be back for the night," I said, popping the mango into my mouth. "You know how Tita Serina is—she probably fed Jay enough to put her in a food coma, or Keifer is annoying her so much she's lost track of time."
Jare nodded, but he stopped cutting. He set the knife down and turned to face me fully. The kitchen light was soft, and the only sound was the hum of the refrigerator.
"So it's just us?" he asked. His voice had dropped an octave, losing that "annoyed twin" edge and replacing it with something... different. Something that made my breath hitch.
"Yeah," I whispered, suddenly very aware of how close we were hanging out on the counter. "Just us."
I expected him to make a joke or tell me to get off the counter because it wasn't hygienic. Instead, Jare stepped into the space between my knees
"Mia," he said, leaning in. My heart started drumming against my ribs. "I've been trying to be the 'logical one.' I've been trying to be patient. But you're sitting here eating my mango and acting like you don't know what you're doing to me."
"I'm just eating fruit, Jare!" I squeaked, my face heating up.
"Liars don't get prizes," he murmured. He reached out, his hand resting on the counter on either side of my hips, effectively pinning me against the cupboards.
I looked up at him, my brain screaming danger and finally at the same time. He looked so intense, so focused on me, that I couldn't look away even if I wanted to.
"Jare, we're best friends," I tried to reason, though my voice was trembling.
"We were," he agreed, his face inches from mine. "But I don't think friends look at each other like this."
Before I could process that, he leaned in. He didn't wait for a "yes" or a "no" because he probably saw the answer in my eyes. When his lips met mine, it wasn't a gentle, polite kiss. It was the "Mariano intensity" coming out in full force.
It was messy, it was sudden, and when I felt his tongue graze mine, I didn't pull away
I just grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him closer, meeting his energy with my own.
PRESENT DAY
I shook my head, trying to clear the memory as I walked through the school hallways. Stupid, stupid, stupid!
I stole a glance at Jare walking a few paces ahead of me toward Section B. He looked so composed, so "normal," but I could see the way his neck was still a faint shade of pink.
We had definitely crossed a line, and there was no going back.
Why does my life hate me?
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JAY JAY POV
I had one golden rule for today: ignore the King of Assholes at all costs. Unfortunately, that's easier said than done when the school's seating chart has cursed me with the spot right next to him.
I was walking down the hallway, attempting to focus on my own business, when a familiar high-pitched voice shattered my peace.
"Jay-Jay!" Ci-N chirped, scurrying over to me like an over-caffeinated squirrel.
"What now, brat?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.
"So, you remember our big exam, right?" Ci-N asked, his eyes dancing with mischief.
I nodded. I'd technically forgotten to study for it, but honestly, it was so easy I wasn't sweating the results.
"If I get a perfect one-hundred percent, what are you going to do for me?" Ci-N challenged, stopping in front of me with a smirk.
I snorted. "Impossible. You almost failed the last one, pretty sure you were thinking about food"
"No, I'm serious! The results are coming out. If I actually pull off a hundred, what's the prize?"
I looked him up and down, feeling confident. "Fine. If you get a perfect score, I'll dye my hair bright ginger."
Ci-N burst out laughing. "Ginger?! Jay-Jay, you wouldn't be allowed in Section E anymore. You'd look like a fire hazard."
I laughed along with him. "Hey, don't knock the look. Are you telling me Yuri was actually born looking like a red rooster, or is that just his way of screaming for attention?"
Ci-N's laughter died instantly. He stopped walking, his expression turning uncharacteristically sober.
"He dyed it after Ella started dating Keifer," Ci-N said quietly.
I froze. The humor evaporated from the air. I thought back to Ella—Aries' current girlfriend—and the way Keifer's name always seemed to be at the center of every disaster in this school.
"Wait," I whispered, leaning in. "Are you saying Yuri liked her too? Or was it just... a statement?"
"It was messy, Jay," Ci-N muttered, glancing around to make sure the Lollipop King wasn't lurking nearby. "Yuri and Keifer used to be even closer, if that's possible. But when Keifer started seeing Ella, Yuri went through a bit of a crisis. The red hair? It was his way of changing everything about himself so he wouldn't feel like the guy who lost out. Then Ella left Keifer for Aries, and well... you've seen the tension."
I swallowed hard.
"So the hair is a scar," I realized.
"Exactly," Ci-N said, his usual bubbly energy returning in a forced burst. He leaned in, a wicked glint in his eyes. "So, new deal. Since ginger hair is too easy... if I get a hundred, you have to kiss Keifer in front of all of us. And I mean all of Section E."
"No!" I shot back immediately.
"Why? Are you scared?" Ci-N teased, circling me like a shark that smelled blood in the water.
Now, if there's one thing you should know about me, it's that I never back down from a dare. It's a matter of Mariano pride. But the problem was, I had already kissed Keifer—twice—and dear God, I hadn't been able to stop thinking about it for a single second. Doing it in front of a live audience of the school's most chaotic delinquents was a one-way ticket to a permanent heart attack.
"I'm not scared," I lied, my voice wavering just enough to betray me. "It's just… unhygienic. And public. And stupid."
Ci-N stopped in his tracks and peered closely at my face. A slow, mischievous grin spread across his lips. "Then why are your cheeks so red, Jay-Jay? You're blushing like a sunset!"
"It's the humidity!" I snapped, fanning my face with my hand. "Global warming, Ci-N! Look it up!"
"Liars don't get prizes!" Ci-N sang out, identical to the way Jare had teased Mia.
I was about to grab his collar and shake some sense into him when a shadow loomed over both of us. The air suddenly felt heavier, charged with that familiar, magnetic tension.
"What am I being used for as a prize now?" Keifer asked.
He was leaning against the lockers, his arms crossed over his chest. He looked effortlessly cool, a fresh lollipop stick poking out from his lips. His dark eyes flicked from Ci-N's ecstatic face to my burning one, settling on me with a look that said he knew exactly what we were talking about.
"Jay-Jay bet that I couldn't get a hundred on the exam!" Ci-N announced, ignoring my frantic 'shut up' gestures. "And if I win, she has to kiss you! In front of the whole class!"
Keifer's eyebrows shot up. He pulled the lollipop out of his mouth with a slow pop and pushed off the lockers, closing the gap between us until I was forced to crane my neck to look at him. He pulled a folded piece of paper from his pocket—the official results.
"I already checked your score, Ci-N," Keifer said, his voice dripping with mock sympathy. "Ninety-nine percent."
"HA!" I shouted, practically jumping for joy. The relief was so immense I felt like I could fly. "That means I don't have to kiss him! Better luck next time"
"Wait, for real?" Ci-N's face crumpled. "I missed a hundred by one point? Which question did I get wrong? I'm a genius! This is an outrage!"
"Yep," Keifer said, popping the lollipop back into his mouth. "One point short."
I didn't waste a second. I leaned over and stuck my tongue out at Ci-N, enjoying his defeat far more than a mature London girl probably should. "No kiss for you, and definitely no kiss for the King of Assholes. My lips are safe!"
Keifer let out a low chuckle, his eyes scanning the paper again. "By the way, Jay-Jay… you got a ninety-five."
"Ninety-five?" I grinned, crossing my arms. "I'll take it. Especially considering I spent more time worrying about my nose than studying for the past week."
"What about you?" I asked, squinting at the paper in his hand. "Did the great King of Section E actually manage to pass, or did you just threaten the teacher into giving you a grade?"
"Ninety-nine point nine percent," Keifer stated, looking entirely too smug for his own good.
I blinked. Then I let out a snort of laughter. "Ninety-nine point nine? What are you, a germ killer or something? Why is there a point-nine attached to your score?"
"It was an extra credit question," Keifer explained, leaning down until his face was level with mine. "Technicality."
"You're basically hand sanitizer in a leather jacket," I teased, poking him in the chest. "Strong enough to kill almost everything, but still not quite perfect."
Keifer didn't move. He just looked down at my finger on his chest, then back into my eyes, his smirk softening into something a bit more dangerous.
"Maybe," he whispered. "But remember, London… nine-nine point nine is still high enough to get what I want. And just because Ci-N lost the bet doesn't mean I've given up on the prize."
I felt my breath hitch. I quickly pulled my hand away and turned to Ci-N, who was still muttering about "one-point conspiracies."
"Come on, Ci-N," I said, grabbing his arm to drag him toward class before Keifer could say anything else that made my brain melt. "Let's go find out which 'point' cost us our dignity."
But as we walked away, I could feel Keifer's gaze lingering on my back. I might have won the bet, but looking at his ninety-nine point nine percent score, I realized that playing games with the King was never going to be as simple as a grade on a piece of paper.
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Hey lovies 🤍✨🌸
The next two chapters are what I'd call my "boring era," so please bear with me 😭🌿💫✨ Once those are done, I have something fun coming — my kind of fun, and yes, it definitely includes Jayfer 💙🔥✨🌙
Thank you so much for keeping up with me and supporting the story 🤍📚🌸🌿 I've also been thinking about starting a new book since one of my current ones is ending soon — not this one, but Finding Light in the Darkness 🌙✨💙 It's getting close to the finale, maybe in about two weeks or so, depending on how my brain behaves 😭💭🌿✨
It's running low on ideas lately… my brain is a bit dumb when it comes to writing 😭🧠💔🌧️
But thank you for staying with me through all of it. Your support truly means everything 🤍📚✨🌸💫