Chapter Eighty-Six: Office Jealousy (The Return)
The morning started normally enough.
Jay kissed Keifer goodbye at home—he had an early meeting, so they drove separately. She'd come in later, after dropping Keiran at school.
She walked into the office at 9:30, coffee in hand, ready for a normal day.
Then she saw her.
A woman. Tall. Blonde. Impossibly beautiful. Standing at Keifer's desk.
Leaning close to him.
Laughing at something he said.
Touching his arm.
Jay stopped.
Her coffee cup paused halfway to her lips.
---
Yuri appeared beside her instantly. "Oh no."
"What?"
"You've got the face."
"What face?"
"The jealous face. I've seen it before. It's legendary."
Jay ignored him. Walked toward her desk.
Keifer looked up. Saw her. Smiled.
"Jay! Come here. I want you to meet someone."
She walked over. Forced a smile.
The woman turned. Smiled. Extended a perfectly manicured hand.
"Hi! You must be Jay! I'm Vanessa. Keifer and I go way back."
Way back.
Jay's eye twitched.
---
Vanessa was... a lot.
Beautiful. Confident. Familiar with Keifer in ways that made Jay's skin crawl.
"We grew up together," Vanessa explained. "Our families were close. He was always so SERIOUS, even as a kid."
Keifer laughed. "I was not."
"You WERE. Always working, even at birthday parties."
Jay's smile felt like it was carved from stone.
"So you're... old friends?"
"The oldest. He's like a brother to me."
Brother. Right.
---
Keifer, completely oblivious to Jay's rising blood pressure, put an arm around Vanessa. "She's in town for a conference. I told her she had to stop by."
Vanessa beamed. "And he's taking me to lunch! To catch up properly."
Lunch.
Alone.
Jay's vision went red.
---
She somehow made it back to her desk.
Yuri appeared again. "On a scale of 1 to 10, how much do you want to murder her?"
"12."
"Respect."
C.N. appeared via video call on Yuri's phone. "I heard there's jealousy brewing. Mother, do you need backup?"
Jay pointed at the phone. "Don't 'mother' me right now."
"I'm just saying. We have protocols for this."
"There are no protocols!"
"There are NOW. Rakii's already planning the 'jealousy photoshoot.'"
---
Keifer and Vanessa walked toward the elevator.
Vanessa waved at Jay. "So nice to meet you! I'll bring him back in one piece!"
Jay waved back. Smile still frozen.
The elevator doors closed.
Jay's face dropped.
Yuri whispered, "She's going to kill him."
C.N. nodded on screen. "Statistically probable."
---
The next two hours were torture.
Jay couldn't focus. Couldn't work. Couldn't do anything but imagine Vanessa laughing at Keifer's jokes. Touching his arm. Leaning close.
Her phone buzzed.
Shreya: Yuri sent us updates. We're with you in spirit.
Akshi: KILL HER! KILL HER WITH KINDNESS! OR ACTUAL KILLING! WHICHEVER!
Chethan: Bro, if you need backup, I'm available.
Mithun: Observe. Gather information. Strike when ready.
Jay stared at the messages.
Her family was insane.
She loved them.
---
Keifer returned at 2 PM.
Alone.
Smiling.
"Hey! I'm back."
Jay looked up. "Fun lunch?"
"It was great! Vanessa's doing really well. Her company is—" He stopped. Looked at her face. "Jay? You okay?"
"I'm fine."
"You don't look fine."
"I said I'm fine."
He walked closer. "Are you... jealous?"
"No."
"You're jealous."
"I'm NOT."
He knelt beside her desk. "Jay. Vanessa is like a sister. I've known her since we were kids. There's nothing there."
"I know."
"Then why the face?"
"What face?"
"The 'I'm going to murder someone' face."
She sighed. "I don't know. She's just... beautiful. And confident. And she knows you in ways I don't."
He cupped her face. "She knows kid-me. You know ME. The real me. The one who leaves his socks everywhere and cries at movies and loves you more than anything."
She blinked. "You cry at movies?"
"Once. At Encanto. Keiran made me watch it seventeen times."
She laughed despite herself.
"That's better." He kissed her forehead. "I love you. Only you. Always you."
"I love you too."
"No more jealousy?"
"No promises."
"Fair enough."
---
From across the office, Yuri filmed everything.
C.N. commented via video call, "Jealousy resolved in 4.3 minutes. New record."
Rakii texted: Got the photos. The 'after' shot is adorable.
Shreya messaged: Told you. He's yours.
Akshi: NEXT TIME WE FIGHT HER!
Jay smiled at her phone.
Her family was insane.
But they were hers.
---
That night, Jay curled against Keifer.
"I'm sorry I was jealous."
"It's okay. It means you love me."
"I do. Even when you're annoying."
"Especially when I'm annoying?"
"Especially then."
He kissed her hair. "I love you, Mrs. Watson."
"I love you too, Mr. Watson."
She fell asleep smiling.
No more jealousy.
For now.
---
End of Chapter Eighty-Six