Jay-jay's POV
🎶 "Rain, rain, go away... Come again another day... Little Jay-jay wants to play... Rain, rain, go away..." 🎶 I sang as I walked.
It was still raining, but not as heavily as before. Now it was just a drizzle, then the sun would peek out a little, then it would drizzle again, and then there'd be a few big raindrops. So confusing, right?
When I entered the classroom, the whole Section E looked like they'd just received terrible news. Their faces were so serious. Ci-N was the first to approach me.
"Jay... Keifer, Teacher wants to see you in the Guidance Office," he told me seriously.
I suddenly got nervous. It seemed like a really serious issue. Why would we be—oh, crap! Could it be because of that fight we had with Section D?! Oh no!
I saw Keifer stand up from his seat and walk toward me.
"Let's go so we can get this over with," he said before walking off.
Before following him, I glanced at Yuri, who was also looking at me. Oh, right. We had talked about this.
I ran to catch up with Keifer, who walked ridiculously fast. His legs were so long. The Guidance Office was in the new building, so we were totally visible to the other students.
We stopped in front of the door. I took a deep breath to gather my courage. Here we go again. I have to face this.
"You go in first," I told Keifer.
Heh... I was nervous.
"Tss." That was Keifer's response.
The magical 'Tss' of Keifer.
He knocked on the door before pushing it open. The assistant of Ma'am—I don't even know the name of our Guidance Counselor. I always forget it—greeted us.
"Take a seat first," the female assistant said.
It seemed like we were expected. She didn't even ask why we were there. How did she know we weren't just here to ask something? The assistant entered another room and was inside for a few minutes before coming back out.
"You can go in now," she told us. As usual, I let Keifer go in first. The moment I stepped inside, I froze. The two Section D guys I—wait, I mean, we fought—were here. It looked like their parents were with them.
"Take a seat," Ma'am Reyalidad instructed. Thank you, nameplate. We sat on the bench opposite the two guys. One of them had a cast on his arm, while the other had a cemented leg. That was Keifer's handiwork!
"Do you want to call your guardians?" Ma'am Reyalidad asked, pushing the telephone toward us.
Keifer just shook his head, and I did the same. Who would I even call? Kuya Angelo? He'd just smack me on the head. No way!
"Let's begin," Ma'am Reyalidad started. "Mr. Dela Cruz, can you tell us what happened?"
The guy with the cemented leg glanced at his parents before speaking.
"We were smoking behind the gym when Jay suddenly approached us. We asked what she was doing there and told her to leave. But out of nowhere, she started punching and kicking us. We tried to fight back, but since she's a girl, we couldn't bring ourselves to hurt her. We just kept taking her punches and kicks, but then Keifer arrived and did this to us," he explained dramatically.
I suddenly burst out laughing. I knew I was going to get scolded for it, but I just couldn't hold it in. Even Keifer started laughing.
"Hahahahaha... Hahahaha..."
Wow! They could be writers with a story like that. So long, and full of embellishments!
"Ms. Mariano... Is something funny?" Ma'am Reyalidad asked authoritatively.
I just shook my head and lowered it. Yeah! Exactly!
Ma'am turned back to the two guys. "Mr. Marquez, do you agree with Mr. Dela Cruz's statement?"
The guy with the cast on his arm looked at us before nodding. What are you looking at? Should I poke your eyes out?
"It's clear that you two assaulted students. The result of your actions was bone fractures, and one of them is still in the hospital," Ma'am told us.
"Mrs. Reyalidad, we want those kids expelled," one of the parents said.
Expelled?! Just like that? What about suspension first? These parents are so extreme!
"Mrs. Dela Cruz, we don't hand out expulsions right away..." Ma'am replied.
I let out a sigh of relief. I thought I was doomed with Kuya.
"...But in Keifer's case, expulsion is very much possible," Ma'am Reyalidad added with a smug smile.
I turned to look at Keifer. He didn't seem scared, but he didn't look angry either. It was as if he had expected this.
"In our last meeting with Mr. Fernandez, it was made clear that you agreed to be expelled if another parent filed a complaint. In Section D's case, three parents are complaining," Ma'am explained.
So this is why Yuri wanted me to take all the blame? Because Keifer was going to get kicked out of school? But if Keifer knew this was going to happen, why did he even help me? He could've just called someone else or left me alone.
"…So, Mr. Watson, I want you to call your parents so we can discuss this matter."
Keifer just stared at the telephone.
Keifer…
"Wait a minute, Ma'am..." I started. "...What if Keifer didn't actually do anything to them?"
Everyone shifted their gaze to me. My heart started beating faster. I needed to think of a reason. There was a chance they wouldn't believe me.
"Ms. Mariano… If you're just trying to cover for Mr. Watson—"
"I'm not covering for him… What I'm saying is true. I'm the only one who did that to them. Keifer only came because he was picking me up and trying to stop me."
"Dear, no offense, but you're a girl, and there's no way a girl could do that to my son," one of the parents interjected.
I didn't respond. "Ma'am Reyalidad, I know you've seen my records from my previous school. So you know that I'm capable of doing that."
Ma'am didn't speak. She just stared at me. Damn it! I really didn't want to bring up my records, but I had to.
"I—I believe Ms. Mariano. She is capable of doing things like that," Ma'am replied, still looking at me.
"Ma'am! Don't believe her! She's just covering for Keifer!" the one with the cast on his arm interrupted. I think his name was Marquez.
"I'm not covering for him!"
"Liar! He's the one who did this to me!" he shouted, pointing at his arm.
"Why would Keifer even do that to you?!"
He couldn't answer. Because you hit me with a piece of wood and were planning to do it again, but Keifer caught you. You just can't say it, can you?!
I smirked. I must have asked him the right question. He went completely silent.
"Mr. Marquez… Was Keifer the one who did that to you?" Ma'am Reyalidad asked him.
Even though he didn't want to say it and it was obvious he was being forced, he finally answered, "I-It was Jay-jay…"
"If that's the case, Ms. Mariano, call your guardian… I need to speak with them regarding your expulsion."
Oh, shit! I didn't think about that!
Of course, I took the blame, so now I have to face the punishment. Jay, you idiot! I'm so dead when Kuya Angelo finds out.
Even though I really didn't want to, I dialed our home phone number. I was hoping Tita would be the one to come instead.
["Hello?"]Â Damn it! Bad luck! It was Kuya Angelo's voice on the other end. I'm really screwed now. Why did he have to come home at this exact moment?
["Hello?"] he asked again.
"H-Hello… Kuya, it's Jay-jay," I answered. My heart was pounding. I could already imagine what he was going to say to me.
["Jay? What's up?"]
"Uhm…" Everyone was staring at me. This was awkward. "...Can you come to school?" Even if I didn't ask for him specifically, he would still be the one to show up.
["Jay…"] he said, his voice full of disappointment. That feeling when he already knows the reason. My anxiety spiked even more.
"Uhmm…" ["Okay… I'm on my way."] He hung up, so I did too. I turned to Ma'am.
"He's on his way," I said.
I glanced at Keifer, who was staring straight at me. No reaction. It was as if he was waiting to see how I would react. I didn't even know myself if I should smile at him to reassure him that I was okay. But I wasn't okay…
I wasn't afraid of expulsion. I'd already been threatened with it back at my old school, but for some reason, it never pushed through.
Even now, knowing that this time it was really happening, I still wasn't scared. What I was worried about was Kuya Angelo's anger. He once threw a bench in the hospital out of rage at me. Sigh…
We waited for about 20 minutes before Kuya finally arrived. When he stepped inside, Ma'am Reyalidad and even the two from Section D looked like they had seen a ghost.
He didn't look angry, but he was extremely serious. His eyes landed on me and Keifer.
"M-Mr. Fernandez… Please have a seat," Ma'am's voice had a hint of nervousness.
Is Kuya that scary? Well, I guess even I'm scared of him.
"It's fine. Can you tell me why you called me?" Kuya asked directly.
Ma'am looked at me first before answering his question.
"Ah, well… The parents of these students have filed a complaint." She gestured towards the two.
Kuya glanced at them before looking back at us. "Who exactly are they complaining about? Jay-jay or Keifer?"
I looked at Keifer. How does he know this guy? Wait… Is he the 'Mr. Fernandez' Ma'am mentioned earlier? I thought she was referring to Aries since I knew those two were friends. But it turns out Kuya Angelo knows him too.
Keifer avoided eye contact. It was obvious he wasn't happy that Kuya was here.
"T-The truth is, both of them are being accused, but Ms. Mariano has taken full responsibility for the incident," Ma'am explained.
"I'd like to discuss what happened. I'll take full responsibility for what they both did—"
Keifer suddenly stood up and glared at Kuya. "I don't need your help, and besides, Jay-jay is the only one with a case, not me," he said before walking out of the Guidance office.
Are they close? Why is Keifer acting that way toward Kuya?