Jay-jay's POV
For days now, I've been eating alone in the Dining Room. Morning and night—it's just me and my plate. Not once have I seen even a shadow of Tita Gema or Kuya Angelo at home. Even Mama, who had just arrived, I hadn't seen either.
Only her suitcase faced me.
Even when I got sick, none of them heard about it. Good thing I didn't end up getting confined that day. Thanks to Yuri, who took care of everything.
I had just finished showering and was fixing myself up when I heard my phone beep. Only two people come to mind whenever I get a text.
It's either Yuri or that GagonBaliw.
I picked up my phone. It was the second person I was expecting who texted me.
To: GagongBaliw
Message: Good morning! Take care of yourself.
Reading his texts had practically become part of my daily routine. I no longer stopped him from texting me. It was like he had become a part of my phone.
Just like always, I didn't reply. I continued getting ready and quickly stepped out of my room. Tita's maids were cleaning the house.
"I'm heading out." I told them.
"Take care," they replied.
When I stepped out the gate, I wasn't even surprised to see Yuri waiting for me. He was leaning on his car, holding his phone.
I walked up to him and he immediately noticed me. He smiled and opened the passenger door for me.
"Good morning," he greeted.
"There's nothing good about this morning," I replied with playful sass.
He just laughed before closing the door. I couldn't really say that everything was fine between me and this idiot, but I had decided to give him a chance, just like I did with C-in.
The two of them had really been persistent in trying to win me over.
He had explained everything properly—that he realized his mistake. Sure, he could save me from Keifer's plan through marriage, but then he'd be tying me to a whole new set of problems.
He also said that he'd been wanting to cancel the engagement for a while because of what he saw in me, but couldn't do it right away. I tried asking him what his family said when he called off the engagement, but he didn't answer.
I had a feeling things didn't go well for him after that.
"Do you have plans later?" he asked.
"Depends," I answered quickly.
He looked at me, puzzled. "Depends on what?"
"Depends if you're inviting me to eat, then I don't have anything to do. But if it's for going out somewhere random, I do. I've got a lot of things lined up."
I heard his quiet chuckle. Maybe he thought I was joking. I wasn't. I was serious—I'd clear out my schedule for food, but if it's not about food, then I've got plenty of other things to do.
"I'll take you to a Japanese restaurant," he said.
"Perfect! I'm free, completely available," I replied immediately.
He laughed again. We arrived at school, and I waited for him to park before getting out of the car. It felt just like any regular day at school.
Talks about Aries and Mykel quickly died down. Even the incident with Kuya and his threats to our Guidance Counselor—no one was talking about it anymore.
Maybe they got scared of Kuya.
The Demolition Notice thingy was still there beside our building. There was no date indicated for when it would begin. I just continued walking to the room. Yuri was following behind me, and when we entered the room—something felt off.
Something was wrong!
A few sets of tables and chairs were missing. There used to be more than enough before—you could easily move around and switch seats—but now, it was just enough for everyone.
There were sixteen of them, and including me, that made seventeen. The only vacant seats were the King's spot at the back and my old spot in the middle, where I used to sit beside David and C-in.
"Why... is it like this?" I whispered to myself.
"Good morning, Jay!" came C-in's cheerful greeting as he ran up to me.
"What happened? Why are there so few desks now?" I asked, pointing at the tables.
"It's not too few. It's just right." he clarified, and I raised an eyebrow. "...Because before there were too many, now it's just enough."
Wew...
Because of the way the seats were arranged, I had no choice but to return to my old seat in the middle. C-in eagerly pulled me along and even helped me sit down.
I almost smiled when I saw the chair. A piece of fabric from my skirt was still stuck to it. This was the same seat where my skirt once got caught.
I chose to ignore it. I started arranging my things.
I glanced at David when I noticed he was looking at me. That idiot was smiling like a dog.
"Why are you smiling like that?" I asked irritably.
"I miss having you as my seatmate," he said.
I raised an eyebrow at him. Miss? He was always asleep when we sat together. He'd only wake up when he smelled food.
Should I whack him?
When I turned to the other side, it was C-in in my face. The Little Rascal was smiling like he'd won the lottery.
"I missed this," he said, raising his brows playfully.
Someone clearly forgot to take their meds.
I grimaced. When I looked around, everyone else was smiling at me too. I frowned at them.
What—do they think everything's fine just because of the stunt they pulled? Sure, I gave Yuri and C-in a chance, but that didn't mean the rest of them.
The nerve of these people!
Sir Alvin arrived, forcing everyone to face forward. Even Sir was surprised at the new desk arrangement but chose not to comment.
While class was going on, I felt something small hitting my head. I looked, but nothing was there. It kept happening, even into the next subject.
When I checked again, I found a small piece of crumpled paper.
I glanced around, but the traitors were all playing innocent. Why did this feel familiar?
Déjà vu?
As class went on, more and more tiny paper balls started hitting me. I was starting to lose my patience with whatever game they were playing.
What the hell are they up to now?
Lunch time finally came. The bell outside sounded like it was about to fall apart. Before I could even stand, C-in grabbed my hand.
"You're eating here," he said cheerfully.
Before I could protest, he was already pulling me toward Eman, who was setting up lunch.
"I-I can't." I said, and they all turned to look at me. "...Someone's waiting for me."
"He's not coming," Felix said with a smile. "...I texted Kuya and told him you'd be eating with us."
I rolled my eyes at what he said. I'm not eating here. If I do, it's like I'm admitting defeat and they've won. I still haven't forgiven them.
I stormed out of the line and slammed myself down on my seat in frustration. Ugh!
My stomach was growling, but I'd bear it—for the sake of pride.
Pride, Surf, and Tide. Sometimes Bonux and Ariel.
"Let's go, Jay. Let's eat," Drew said, inviting me.
I rolled my eyes at him. "Don't talk to me. We're not close."
He just scratched the back of his head as he walked away from me. Ugh! You haven't even paid your debt to me yet. This guy's a menace! We're already in Part Two and everything!
Not long after, someone placed food in front of me. Boiled—whatever animal can be boiled—was our viand today, so automatically, there was corn.
Like the Author's jokes. Corny! 🌽🌽
I looked to see which traitor put it down in front of me. Yuri was smiling as he looked at me.
"Let's eat," he said, but I immediately shook my head.
"...Why?"
"If I eat this, I lose," I said quickly, and he sighed deeply.
I glanced at the door and saw Josh coming in with a plate full of food. I knew it wasn't for him. It was for his pet cat, the one C-in named Edy, short for EvereaDY, apparently.
An idea popped into my head. I stood up quickly and grabbed the plate. I walked out without looking back at the Serpents, even as they called my name.
I found Josh by the side of our building where it was shaded by trees. He was sitting on a large root, feeding a black cat.
"Do you need something?" Josh asked without even turning to me.
This guy's sense is too sharp. Creepy boyyy!
"Give this to Edy," I said, handing him the plate.
He stood up, still not facing me. "It's a nice spot here since not many people can see." Then he turned to me with a smile. "...If you want to feed her, do it yourself."
He started walking back to the room, but before he could pass me, he said something:
"Enjoy feeding Edy." He said it in a way that seemed to mean something else.
He left me there alone. I didn't get what he was on about. It felt like some evil spirit had possessed him again.
Possessed much?!
I faced Edy, who was currently eating. I was about to place the plate in front of her when my stomach growled—loud and ugly, like it was screaming, "Food! Food! Food!"
I looked more closely at the food I was holding. If I ate this, I'd lose. I'd be giving up in the pride showdown. But if I didn't eat, my stomach would hurt and my breath would stink.
That Little Rascal might complain.
I looked around. Josh was right—no one could see me here. I glanced again before walking over to a nearby bench. I sat down and took a bite of rice and viand.
One bite—no taste. Another bite—bland. One more—starting to taste something. Chewed a bit more and... another bite.
I looked down and saw Edy staring at me. She even meowed like she was asking for some.
"I'd give you some, but I'm starving. I might eat you instead if you're not careful," I told her.
She just licked her paw and wiped it across her face. I went back to my food. Josh was totally right. No one could see me eating here.
That way, I wouldn't lose in their eyes. I'd just say I gave the food to Edy. So that's what he meant before he left.
Enjoy feeding Edy. Maybe he meant enjoy feeding myself.
I was just about to finish eating when someone suddenly grabbed my shoulder. I jumped up in shock, still munching on corn, almost flinging the plate I was holding.
Equally startled, Mica looked at me—so it was her who touched my shoulder.
"S-sorry," she said.
I bit off the corn before pulling it away from my mouth. "I-it's fine. But... why are you here?"
She forced a smile. "Just visiting you."
I'm not even sick. What's her deal, suddenly deciding to visit me? It's only been a few days since we last saw each other. She should be visiting Calix, not me.
I noticed her eyes looked sad. She seemed like she was carrying something heavy and was looking for someone to talk to.
"Sit down. You surprised me—I'm eating, you know," I said.
She sat on the bench, and I followed. I finished my food before we really started talking.
"Here," she said, handing me a small pouch with alcohol, tissues, and sanitizer.
I accepted it and started cleaning myself up.
"So, why exactly are you visiting me?" I asked while wiping my face with a tissue.
She didn't answer, so I looked at her—and froze. My eyes widened a bit when I saw tears falling from her eyes. She wiped them away and looked off to the side, but it was too late—I already saw.
"Did something happen?" I asked, concerned.
"Calix and I are breaking up." Her words came all at once as the tears she tried to hold back finally flowed freely.
I panicked and quickly took the tissue from the pouch she gave me and handed it to her. She accepted it.
"W-why? W-what happened?"
She didn't answer again. She just kept sobbing. It was like her chest was carrying so much pain, and this was her only chance to let it out. I was even more rattled.
Did that idiot do something again?
"D-did Calix cheat again? Huh? Back to being a playboy? What did he do? Did he say something? W-what's the reason?"
I fired off question after question. She tried to calm down and wiped the tears from her cheeks. She took a few deep breaths.
"I already know what they did to you..." I froze. "...I got mad at him, and we fought. He said I didn't understand and that I shouldn't get involved. I chose to stay quiet..." She bit her lower lip. "...but I can't just sit back and watch while you're hurting."
"Is that the reason why you two haven't been talking?"
I had noticed during C-in's birthday that they weren't speaking. Rakki even confirmed it.
She nodded. "I don't understand why he had to get involved. He wasn't even ashamed—you helped us get back together, and then he did this."
I looked down. Mica was right, honestly. I was mad at them for what they did to me, but I never wished for them to suffer the same pain I felt.
Like I said, Revenge is for the weak.
I didn't want to drag Mica into it. I didn't want her getting hurt too. I let out a sigh.
"But didn't you think that if you break up, you'll just throw away all the effort I made to get you back together? Everything will go to waste, and you'll just end up hurting each other again," I explained, looking at her.
I knew she understood what I meant. I also knew she was only worried about me. But everything that happened, all the pain I felt—that's mine alone.
I'm selfish, the pain is only mine.
"B-but Jay—"
I cut her off immediately. "Calix is right. You shouldn't get involved. That problem is between them and me. If anyone should act on it, it should be them, not you."
She bowed her head and rested her hands on her knees. Her fists slowly clenched.
"Don't throw away your relationship just because of a small fight." I said, tapping her on the shoulder.
I stood up and handed the pouch back to her. She took it and stood up as well.
"Thanks for worrying about me." I added with a smile.
She smiled slightly and put the pouch back in her bag. We started walking back to the classroom. Just as we reached the door, I stopped her. She was confused at first, but did as I asked.
I went inside the room and looked for Calix. He was sitting down, listening to Eren and Denzel talking.
"Calix!" I called out, and almost everyone turned to look at me.
What, Is everyone named Calix now?
He stood up, clearly waiting for me to say something. I gestured toward the window, telling him to look outside. He did as I said. Faster than lightning, he ran toward Mica.
I didn't bother to watch their scene outside. I went to my seat but stopped in my tracks.
There were snacks on top of my table—Nova, Chippy, and Piattos.
I glanced at the Ulupong gang, but they all avoided my eyes. Acting innocent like they knew nothing. I looked at Ci-N, who was busy playing on his phone.
"Ci, are these yours?" I asked, and he quickly shook his head.
"...Then whose are they?"
He pointed with his lips. "Yours."
I raised an eyebrow. He's so hard to talk to when he's in front of his phone. Too busy with whatever game he's playing. I turned to David next, but the idiot was asleep.
Is this guy permanently sleep-deprived?!
I gave his forehead a hard flick. He opened his eyes and looked at me in confusion.
"Why are you flicking me?" he asked irritably.
"Oh, that wasn't me..." I leaned closer and whispered. "...it was Ci-N."
He stood up and quickly went over to Ci-N. He flicked him hard on the forehead. The brat dropped his phone and looked tearfully at David with a glare.
"Oww! What did I do to you?!" he whined.
"You're a nuisance. I was sleeping." David said in his usual bored tone and went back to his seat.
Before he could lay his head down again, I asked, "Did you put these here?"
He stared at them for a moment before answering. "No. And I don't know who did either."
The people next to me are so well-spoken. I'm humbled...
The fool went back to sleep. I scratched my head as I sat down. I just stuffed the snacks into my bag. Whoever among these Ulupong gave those—he's just wasting his money.
But honestly, this whole thing feels weirdly familiar. Like it already happened before… just in a different situation.
Weird.