**Keifer's POV**
Something felt wrong. As far as I remembered, I was the oldest of the three of us. But it felt like Keigan was the elder brother now.
"Why are you smarter than the doctor?" he asked, glaring at me.
I couldn't swallow my food because of his behavior. Even the butlers and maids were surprised by his attitude.
It was early morning, and he was already scolding me. He was angry because I left the hospital even though I wasn't supposed to.
We were supposed to have a normal breakfast, but my brother chose to scold me while we ate.
"Babylyn!" he called one of the maids, and we all flinched at his voice. "…Please follow the diet plan the doctor gave Kuya."
"Yes, Sir—."
I cut them off. "You don't have to."
"No! You have to," Keigan insisted.
I was starting to get angry at his attitude. He was acting like he was my superior, the boss of the house.
I drank water rapidly and looked him straight in the eye.
"I said, you don't have to," my tone calm but authoritative. "…Are you even going to control what I eat?"
"It's the doctor's orders so your wound will heal faster."
"It's not like this is new to me. I've been stabbed and broken bones countless times, but I never followed those diet plans. I don't even take my medicine."
He wiped his lips with the napkin after putting down his spoon and fork. He looked at me seriously, showing no sign of backing down.
"It's different now. You can't show weakness. We've talked about this before."
"I have no weaknesses—."
He chuckled bitterly. "Really? What do you call that wound of yours? Why were you stabbed?"
I looked away. He didn't know I saved Jay-jay. He thought it was just a simple fight. Our old enemies attacked me while I was alone.
"I was busy. I didn't notice the knife," I simply explained.
I saw him mouth 'bullshit'. I didn't like him talking like that in front of me. I crossed my arms, my forehead creasing.
"Yes, it is bullshit. Especially since you weren't there and didn't see what exactly happened!"
My voice was rising. He looked guilty before avoiding my eyes. I looked at my watch and sighed heavily.
"Get ready, you'll be late for school," I said, looking at Keiren.
He looked uncomfortable, probably because of our conversation. Keigan and I almost fought in front of him.
"I-I'm done," he whispered.
I forced a smile. "Your personal butler will drive you to school."
"Why not you?"
I pointed to my wound. He tilted his head slightly to look at it.
"It's still bothering me to drive," I explained, and he nodded.
I gestured to his butler to approach Keiren. He helped him get his bag, but my youngest brother was stubborn. He insisted on doing it himself.
Keigan followed them. "Make sure you don't do anything crazy again," he said before leaving the dining room.
I gestured for the maids to leave. I wanted to be alone.
I rubbed my face with both hands. I gave Keigan my full trust for our plans, but it felt like he was taking advantage of the situation to make me do what he wanted.
I was confused by his actions. I decided to focus on our bigger problem.
For now, I had to go to school.
I took my phone and dialed Yuri's number. He answered after a few seconds.
"Are you going to school? I'll ride with you again."
I heard him sigh. "[You know I'm picking up Jay-jay, right?]"
I smiled mischievously. "I know. That gives me more reason to ride along."
"[Fine. I'm on my way.]" He said, and I ended the call.
I stood up and grabbed my bag, which contained a single notebook. I was walking out of the house when I noticed some bodyguards in the garage. I quickly approached them.
"I told you not to show up here. What are you doing?" I asked, irritated.
"Sir… we're just reporting. We saw some of your father's men. They were circling the house."
"Any casualties?" This time, my voice was formal.
"None, Sir. But we suggest bodyguards for your protection."
I shook my head. "No. I don't want bodyguards."
"But Sir—."
"I said no!"
They all bowed their heads. I sighed, holding my temples. "Did you go to Jay-jay?"
"Sir, Keigan stopped us."
Damn it!
I knew he would interfere. He thought Clyde would suspect something if they saw me still connected to Jay-jay.
Only our friends were my hope now.
This was infuriating. It felt like we were on an island in the middle of a vast ocean. Our resources were limited, and the only way to save Jay-jay was to put her on a boat and get her off the island.
What should I do now?
I saw Yuri's car at the gate of the house. I gestured for the bodyguards to return to their posts before approaching the car waiting for me.
I knocked on his car window. I heard the door unlock, so I opened it and got in immediately.
"You okay now?" he asked. I nodded briefly.
"Last time you're riding with me, huh?"
"And why?"
His forehead creased. "You're in the way of me and Jay-jay."
"Wow… embarrassing," I said sarcastically.
He drove while talking. "How am I supposed to get her if you're always around? She's got mixed emotions now, so it's not good for her to see you."
"Around her or not, if she'll be yours—she will be. But you're not a loser."
"Tss…" He sounded pissed.
I couldn't help but smile. He probably had plans for Jay-jay today. But he obviously had to postpone it because of me.
It wasn't long before we arrived at our destination. He opened the car door and got out.
"Behave!" he said with a warning in his eyes before slamming the car door. Sometimes, it was fun to tease your friend.
I couldn't help but think of a new prank.
My phone suddenly rang. I took it and got out of the car before answering.
"What?"
"[Grumpy… Where are you?]" It was Honey.
"Obviously, going to school."
"[Whatever. Uncle said we should set another meeting. We're leaving soon.]"
Leaving soon? How? Why?
"Wait! What do you mean soon?"
"[Hmm… Well, you don't talk to me, so you don't know.]"
I rubbed my face with one hand. It seemed there was a change of plans.
"What is it?"
"[We have to leave earlier than the original plan.]" No! No! That couldn't be. I couldn't leave yet. I couldn't leave Jay-jay. I hadn't properly talked to our friends. I hadn't defeated those who wanted to hurt her. My plan for her wasn't complete.
I looked at her house and stood straight when I saw her walking towards Yuri's car.
It wasn't time yet.
"I'll talk to you later." I ended the call without waiting for her answer.
I saw Jay-jay bowing as she approached Yuri's car. She was almost crawling.
I slowly walked towards her. I stopped a meter away.
From behind the car, she stood up and tried to peek inside. Maybe she was spying, checking something inside. She seemed to be checking if I was inside.
"What are you doing?"
She froze when she heard me speak. She clearly didn't expect it.
"Again… What are you doing?" I asked again.
She slowly turned to face me, but her head was slightly down. I wanted her to look at me. I wanted to see her eyes. I wanted to see her whole being, even though I knew I'd only see anger.
I missed staring at her.
"None of your business," she answered.
She was about to walk away, but I stopped her by blocking her path with my arm. She tried to go around the other side, but I did the same.
My arms were on both sides of her. She was trapped, and if I moved closer, I could claim her lips.
But I couldn't deny it. My wound throbbed from raising my arms. I hid the pain. She couldn't know.
"W-what are you doing?!" she asked, irritated, avoiding my eyes.
I didn't want her to avoid me. I badly wanted to see her eyes. I knew there was emotion inside her, and I wanted to see it. Yes, she was angry at me, but I wanted to see that too.
irder. I didn't understand why I wanted to see her emotions so badly. Maybe I was waiting to see something specific.
"Look at me," I commanded, but she didn't move a muscle. I sighed heavily. "Look. At. Me."
She still didn't react. I smiled slightly. She was still stubborn. She was the type who wouldn't budge if she didn't want to. I had to be persistent.
"Look…" I held her chin and forced her to face me. "…At…" I looked her straight in the eye. "…Me."
There it was.
I saw it immediately. I saw different emotions and feelings, a mixture of anger, pain, and what I was looking for—longing. I wished it was for me.
That's all I wanted to know, to make sure she was still mine. But this woman was teasing me. She was so unpredictable and did things her own way.
She played with her eyes, making them go cross-eyed. I didn't know why she did that.
My forehead creased slightly. "What the hell."
It didn't last long. She seemed to have hurt herself with her own antics. She closed her eyes, clutching them with her hands.
"Serves you right," I said.
She opened her eyes after a few seconds. She glared at me, ready to fight.
"Leave!" she shouted, but I didn't listen.
"Damn it! I said leave!"
Profanity.
My lips curved into a smile. Sometimes, it felt like she used profanity on purpose so I would kiss her. But I knew, right now, she wasn't doing it on purpose.
"Keifer."
I almost rolled my eyes. But this Yuri was different. He was truly disturbing us. "…Let's go," he said.
I didn't budge. My eyes were still on Jay-jay. I was still smiling like a lunatic. I really missed being this close to her.
If only I could always do this. If only I could always be this close to her. I didn't want to let go. I couldn't let her go.
"Leave!" she shouted again.
I slowly moved closer to her. I saw her trying to move away, to avoid me, but it only brought me closer to her ear.
"Profanity," I whispered, kissing her neck.
I was about to kiss her lips, but it was impossible. I stepped away from her and got into Yuri's car. I leaned back, clutching my wound.
It took a while for the pain to subside. I usually ignored this kind of pain, but this one lingered. I should be more careful; it could lead to my defeat.
Yuri and Jay-jay got into the car. The ride was silent. When we reached school, Jay-jay got out before Yuri had even parked.
My companion sighed.
"What's your plan, Keifer?" Yuri asked lifelessly.
"Huh?!"
"You pushed her away, and now you kissed her."
Shit!
I should have thought about my actions. That was a huge mistake. Yuri would probably keep asking questions.
"I was just playing around."
I didn't wait for his answer. I got out of his car and walked away, heading to the classroom.
When I got there, I found Ci-N still bothering Jay-jay. As expected, they were arguing again. I felt sorry for the kid. He would have a hard time appeasing Jay-jay. Maybe I should talk to him later. I would need his help when I left—.
"I don't want to! What don't you understand about 'I don't want to'?!" she suddenly shouted.
We all looked at them. Ci-N looked down. I knew he was about to cry but was trying his best to hold it back.
"Okay, I'll put it aside. We can eat it later," he said quietly.
Jay-jay looked at us, so everyone quickly looked away, returning to what they were doing.
Her eyes turned to me. My heart skipped a beat when our gazes met.
Fvck this heart!
Thankfully, I didn't react immediately. She just rolled her eyes before sitting down. I went to my seat as well.
I looked at Yuri when he sat down. He gave me a strange, meaningful look. Like he was saying he would find out what I was hiding.
I wished he wouldn't know. I didn't want to involve him; it might ruin his family. His status in his clan wasn't the same as before, even if he didn't admit it, I knew.
I didn't want to force him to speak. Because like him, that's what I was thinking too. Damn! After all this time, I was having second thoughts about our friendship. We were becoming too alike in many ways.
I sighed until I noticed Jay-jay walking towards Edrix. They were talking about something I couldn't hear. She even handed him her phone, but he rejected it by looking down.
I didn't like what was happening. I had a bad feeling about this. Did she find out about the app on her phone? Edrix said the icon was unnoticeable, safe with a password, and hard to uninstall.
They continued talking until Jay-jay shouted at him. She looked so pissed. Edrix, on the other hand, obviously didn't know what to do. He even looked at me as if asking for help.
"Answer me! I'm getting annoyed!" she shouted.
Everyone's eyes were on her again. They clearly didn't like what Jay-jay was doing. Until she punched the table in front of her. Others stood up in alarm. I saw Edrix's shoulders rise and fall before he finally took Jay-jay's phone.
She looked a bit shocked when she noticed he could access her phone without her permission.
Damn! Edrix had no choice.
"OTJ101 stands for Operation Tracking Jay-jay Version 10.1," Edrix said, putting down the phone. "I programmed that app to track your phone's location. It uses signals, so it's easier to use than what the police and regular people use."
I saw Jay-jay's mouth slightly open. Definitely shocked. Now she knew how we found her.
"Besides…" He continued. "…That app is linked to another phone." He looked at me, causing Jay-jay to turn and meet my gaze.
"All your text messages and phone calls go to that app. So, the linked phone can also read your messages and hear your calls."
I almost hissed. Now she knew that too. I admitted I read some of her messages and conversations—especially her talks with Yuri. But I never listened to her calls or conversations with others.
I only checked the call logs.
Jay-jay obviously tried her best to calm down. She was amazing. She could still control herself despite what she had just learned.
"Whose phone is it linked to?" she asked, her voice draining my blood.
"K-Keifer's," Edrix answered.
Dammit!
Jay-jay suddenly grabbed her phone and threw it at me. I knew where it would hit, so I tilted my head in another direction.
I heard it hit something and break.
"You're terrible!" She was furious. "You're unforgivable!" I remained calm, expressionless. I had to be careful with my words; they could cause more trouble in the room.
"You're really serious about your plan, aren't you?! You're even invading my privacy!" she shouted. "…Are you really that cruel?!"
For some reason, I enjoyed watching her get mad at me. Even though I shouldn't, because she was really angry, that's what I felt.
No wonder men are called assholes by women. Because we enjoy seeing them pissed.
Now I was a class A asshole.
I rolled my eyes at my own thoughts. Jay-jay suddenly approached me. With her fist clenched, she was about to punch me, but Yuri immediately held her from behind.
I almost stood up to separate them, but Yuri quickly pulled Jay-jay away. I had to control myself. I couldn't always act for her.
"Let go of me!" she shouted, trying to escape. When they left the classroom, everyone looked at Edrix. He was looking down, massaging his nape.
"You're an idiot, Pre!" Eren said angrily.
"He did the right thing," Eman defended him. "…What? Are we going to lie to Jay-jay again? She already knows!"
"What now? What if she gets hurt again? How are we going to track her?" Denzel asked.
Edrix didn't react to their words. He approached Jay-jay's phone, which was behind me. He bent down and picked up the broken pieces of the phone from the floor.
"Let's just get her a new phone," Rory suggested.
"That's impossible! She won't let us touch her new phone if she knows there's an app she didn't notice," Blaster said.
"We really messed up with Jay-jay," Calix commented. We all sighed almost simultaneously.
That app was a huge loss for us. It would be hard to find her again.
"Jay-jay fainted!" Blaster suddenly shouted.
He was standing by the door, peeking outside. He immediately ran towards Jay-jay. The others did the same.
I badly wanted to follow them. But if I did, Yuri would confirm his suspicions about me.
I had to be careful!
I'm sorry, Jay.