Jay-jay's POV
"Just admit it, bro! You're weak!" Blaster teased.
"Leave me alone!" Eman snapped, clearly annoyed.
They'd been at it for a while—ever since we left the cashier and all the way to the parking lot. I was the one apologizing to all the people staring at us, disturbed by these two idiots.
"Woooh! Virgin!" Blaster suddenly yelled, making me burst into loud laughter.
"Hahahahahaha…" There was nothing really wrong with what he said. It was just hilarious how pissed off Eman looked.
"You asshole! I said cut it out!" Eman shouted, turning red.
Why is it that when guys tease each other about this stuff, it's funny? But when it's about girls, it's like some super serious, offensive topic?
"Why? Are you embarrassed? Because you're still a virgin?" Blaster continued to taunt.
Eman was clearly about to snap but was doing his best to hold back.
Then my phone suddenly rang. I ignored the two and answered the call.
"Hello?"
["Done shopping?"] The King's voice came through.
Damn, I should've checked the caller ID first. Pffttt…
"Y-yeah…"
["Don't go anywhere. I'll pick you up."] He said before abruptly hanging up.
Rude as hell!
I'll pick you up? Does he even know where I am? Maybe these two told him.
Speaking of them, they were still arguing. I walked over quickly before things escalated into a full-on fight.
"You guys go ahead. I have somewhere to be." I told them.
"Where? I'll drop you off." Eman offered.
"It's just nearby."
They both nodded. Before they left, I grabbed the jar of lollipops from them. They also said goodbye since Blaster had something to do.
I watched their car disappear into the distance.
Right on cue, a Nissan GTR pulled up in front of me—the King's car.
Rich as hell!
"Get in." He greeted me.
Wow. Not even opening the door for me? How gentlemanly of you.
As soon as I got in, the jerk sped off. Animal!
"Where are we going?" I asked.
"My House."
I just nodded. What's this guy up to, wanting to meet me?
The drive didn't take long, thanks to his reckless speeding.
He parked his car alongside several other equally expensive cars. I stared at the vehicles next to his. Damn! I was jealous.
"Keifer… You're rich. Maybe you could give me one of these?" I said, pointing at his cars.
He looked at me seriously.
"Which one?"
Oh, shit! Which one he says!
"Are you serious?!"
"Yeah… Just make sure you don't marry Yuri. I'll give you anything, even my house." He said, crossing his arms.
I looked at his cars and their mansion-like house.
I already didn't want to marry Yuri, but now there's a huge reward? Hehehe… Just kidding!
"Bleeehhh…" I stuck my tongue out at him.
"Tss." He scoffed, rolling his eyes. "...Doesn't matter- you'd end up with me anyway."
So full of himself!
"In your dreams!" I shot back.
He just laughed and shook his head. His confidence was through the roof. Fine, fine, you win!
I followed him inside, and the first person I saw was Keiren.
But before I could even greet him, he gave me a glare and walked away.
So much like Keifer!
"Grumpy," I muttered before continuing to follow Keifer.
We headed to their basement—the mysterious hangout spot of the Serpents.
This was the place where Keigan brought me when I was looking for Felix before.
"What's that you're holding?" Keifer asked.
He was referring to the jar of lollipops. I handed it to him.
He took it, looking at it with curiosity.
"I just remembered, the first time I saw you, you had a lollipop in your mouth." I said with a smile.
He was silent for a moment, as if recalling something.
"I remember. That was the time I was trying to quit smoking. I used this…" He lifted the jar slightly. "...as a substitute, but it didn't work." He explained.
I nodded. Right! That was during the time when I hadn't seen him and Yuri smoking yet.
"...But thanks anyway. Too bad, though."
I looked at him, confused. "Too bad?"
"Because this isn't the kind of sweet I want as a substitute for smoking. I prefer Lips."
The first thing that came to my mind was the Lips candy.
But there was something different in the way Keifer was looking at me.
"W-why?"
"'Cause your lips are much sweeter than this lollipop." He said with a wink.
Son of a—!
I knew it! This bastard was talking about something else! I shot him a glare, but he just laughed.
We continued walking. When the door to their mysterious hangout opened, I saw Edrix, Rory, and Felix.
"Hi, Jay!" They greeted.
"Hello. What's going on? Why are you guys here?" I asked as I sat beside them.
"Why? Is there a problem? Looks like you want Keifer all to yourself." Edrix teased.
I immediately smacked the back of his head. Annoying! I was asking a serious question!
"That hurt…" He complained, rubbing his head.
"You deserved it. My question was serious."
Rory and Felix chuckled slightly.
Keifer sat across from us, holding a glass of alcohol.
Alcohol again?!
Doesn't this guy have a drinking problem? Every single time I see him, he's either holding a bottle or a glass of alcohol.
But honestly, it takes forever for him to get drunk when he drinks. His liver must be ridiculously strong.
"We want to show you something." Keifer said, signaling to the others.
Edrix pulled out a laptop and placed it in front of me. The screen showed a picture of a man getting into a car.
"What's that?" I asked.
"Your father." Edrix answered.
Instead of feeling happy or emotional at what he said, I felt annoyed.
"Are you messing with me?" I asked in irritation.
"Huh?"
"How am I supposed to know that's my dad? The guy's facing away!"
Edrix scratched his head and started clicking on something on the laptop. Then the next picture came up, and everything changed.
My annoyance with Edrix disappeared.
All my attention was now focused on the laptop screen.
It was really my dad!
He was dressed in golf attire, staring into the distance. I wasn't sure where the picture was taken, but it was clear as day that it was him.
Edrix pressed the next button, and the picture changed. He was now in business attire, facing another person dressed the same way.
The picture changed again, and this time, he was seated at a long table with several men, all wearing business suits.
Edrix continued showing me the pictures, and I had to admit—I didn't want him to stop. But he had to because some of the pictures started repeating. It seemed like Edrix had only managed to gather a few.
"W-where did you get these pictures?" I asked.
"Some are from a business magazine, and others are from a news website." Edrix answered.
A magazine? A website?
"H-how did my dad's pictures end up there?"
"I searched for information about your dad and found out that he's the son of a business tycoon. He's also listed among those with impressive business records both here and abroad." Rory explained.
I froze. A businessman? My dad is rich?
But if he had the means, then why didn't he do anything to find me?
I didn't understand. My head started to hurt again. I felt like my father and I had become even more distant.
"...He's currently in New York." Rory added.
It felt so heavy inside. I had no idea what kind of life he was living.
"Aside from that… there's something else we want to show you." Felix interjected.
Edrix clicked on something on the laptop. A folder opened, revealing more pictures of my dad—but this time, he wasn't alone.
P-P-Percy?
I turned to Felix. He didn't show any reaction, but I knew he had a lot of questions too.
"H-he's with Percy?"
Edrix showed more pictures of them together, and they looked just like a father and son. Playing golf, laughing together, eating at a restaurant—they looked like a real family.
Aside from confusion, I also felt envy. I wanted to be with my dad like that too.
"He introduced himself as Percy Rey Mariano." Rory said.
Is that what this means?!
Is that why we have the same last name? But what is their relationship?
Felix had already shown me Percy's father before, and it wasn't my dad.
"...Aside from this, we couldn't find any other information. There's very little publicly available about them." Rory explained.
I ran my fingers through my hair, and before I knew it, my tears had started falling.
It felt so heavy. I had always wanted to meet my dad, and now I found out that he had been with Percy all this time.
Percy—the person I had met and spoken to several times.
"Jay…" they called out to me.
"I'm fine… It's just so unfair." I said.
Felix handed me a tissue. I looked at Keifer, who was also staring at me seriously.
"Thank you… At least now I have a clue about him." I said, forcing a smile.
"But you don't look happy about it." he said.
"I am happy… I'm just frustrated. This only added more questions to my mind."
"I know… It makes you feel even more lost."
I nodded. It was true. I was drowning in questions, yet I had no answers.
"...But no matter what happens, we will help you find the answers to your questions."