Jay's POV
Next morning
Breakfast was almost over when Eces spoke.
Not loudly. Not dramatically. Just—steady.
"Mom," she said, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
I looked up immediately. Every time she called my mother that, something inside my chest softened.
Mom paused mid-movement, spoon hovering. "Yes, anak?"
Eces folded her hands on the table. "Can Dad come to the wedding?"
The room went quiet.
Tita Gema stopped chewing. Aries leaned back in his chair, arms crossed but eyes alert. Kuya Angelo didn't say anything—he just watched Eces closely.
Mom sighed, slow and careful. "Eces… it's complicated."
"I know," Eces said gently. "But it's important to Ate Jay."
I swallowed.
She continued, calm but firm. "It's her wedding. Not a battlefield. Just one day where she doesn't have to choose sides."
Aries frowned. "You know how things are between them."
"I do," Eces replied. "But this isn't about fixing the past. It's about showing up for the present."
Kuya Angelo finally spoke. "Your father hasn't exactly made things easy."
Eces nodded. "Neither has life. But he's still her dad."
I stared at my plate, heart pounding.
"She won't forgive anyone overnight," Eces added, voice softer now. "She just wants to see him there. Sitting quietly. No arguments. No scenes."
Mom looked at her for a long moment. "And if it hurts her?"
Eces turned slightly—just enough to meet my eyes.
"She'll regret it more if he's not there," she said. "I would."
That did it.
Mom's eyes shimmered. She reached out and squeezed Eces's hand. "You really think this is what she wants?"
"Yes," Eces said without hesitation. "I know her."
Aries exhaled through his nose. "You're good at this, you know that?"
Eces gave a small smile. "I just listen."
Kuya Angelo nodded slowly. "We'll talk to him."
I looked up so fast my chair scraped.
"Really?" My voice cracked.
Mom smiled at me—soft, tired, loving. "We'll try."
I stood up and hugged Eces before I even realized I was moving.
"Thank you," I whispered.
She hugged me back, steady as always. "Of course, Ate."
And for the first time since the wedding plans began, my chest felt lighter.
Because maybe—just maybe—my family would all be there.
Third Person POV
Jay's mother said it casually, as if she were talking about the weather.
"We're going to the province for two days," she announced while adjusting her bag. "So Jay and Eces will stay at Keifer's place."
Jay froze. "Both of us?"
"Yes," Tita Gema replied without hesitation. "It's more convenient."
Eces simply nodded, her expression calm. "Okay, Mom."
Jay glanced at her sister, half-surprised by how easily she accepted it.
Before Jay could say anything else, the sound of a car pulling up reached them. Keifer's voice followed soon after.
He stepped out of the car first, already dressed for school, with Keigan right behind him. Keigan adjusted his bag and looked toward the house.
"Ready?" Keifer asked.
"Yes," Eces answered politely.
"Morning," Keigan said to Eces with a small grin.
They got into the car together. The ride was quiet but comfortable.
When they reached Keigan and Eces's school, Keifer slowed near the gate. Students in uniform crowded the entrance. Eces picked up her bag.
"See you later," she said softly.
"Be careful," Keifer replied.
Keigan waved, and the two of them disappeared into the flow of students.
The car felt noticeably quieter afterward.
Keifer drove on toward their school. Sunlight streamed through the windshield, filling the space between them.
After a moment, Jay spoke. "Mom and the others are leaving for the province."
Keifer glanced at her. "Yeah?"
"So Eces and I are staying at your place," Jay added.
Keifer raised an eyebrow. "Both of you?"
Jay smiled faintly. "Both."
He let out a short breath, half amused. "That's a lot of trust."
Jay leaned back in her seat. "Don't ruin it."
A hint of a smile crossed his face as the school came into view. Two days under the same roof, wedding plans already hanging in the air, and everything quietly shifting forward—whether they were ready for it or not.
Keifer's POV
After school, I drove straight to Keigan and Eces's campus with Jay beside me. The afternoon sun was already low when they reached the gate—and stopped short.
I knew something was wrong the moment I saw the crowd.
Too many students. Too much noise. And at the center of it—
Emilia.
Her voice sliced through the air. "She acts innocent, but girls like her always do this. No proper parents, no upbringing—"
That was when I saw it.
Eces's jaw clenched.
It was barely noticeable. Just a tightening. A flicker. But my chest tightened with it.
That was the first time.
The first time I'd seen anything close to anger on her face.
Not shouting. Not crying. Just… something dark pressing behind her eyes.
Keigan stepped in front of her. "Don't talk about her parents," he snapped.
Emilia rolled her eyes. "If her parents raised her right, she wouldn't be throwing herself at—"
Jay's voice cut in. "What's going on here?"
The shift was instant. Fake tears. Soft voice. Emilia turned toward us like a victim.
"Oh, Kuya Keifer, Ate Jay " she said. "I didn't want this. But she keeps causing problems."
A teacher nodded eagerly. "She's a scholarship student. We thought discipline was necessary."
Jay's eyes locked onto Eces.
The bandage.
The stillness.
That clenched jaw that hadn't relaxed once.
Jay slapped Emilia.
The sound echoed through my bones.
Gasps followed.
For a second, everything froze.
I stepped forward, heart pounding—not with rage alone, but something sharper. Protective. Alarmed.
"Is this how you treat students here?" I asked, my voice steady despite the storm in my chest. "By humiliating them for where they come from?"
"Mr. Watson, we didn't mean—" a teacher stammered.
I saw Eces then—really saw her.
She didn't flinch. Didn't react. But her hands were curled into fists at her sides.
I'd never seen that before.
" I invest in this school, " I reminded them calmly. "And I can stop. Immediately."
Fear bloomed on their faces.
"And don't you ever speak about my sister-in-law like she's less than human."
That word—sister-in-law—rippled through the crowd.
Jay stood beside Eces, fierce. "She's mysister. Apologize."
Emilia turned to Eces, voice shaking. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have talked about your parents."
Eces looked at her.
Her jaw was still clenched.
"It's fine," she said.
But it wasn't.
I could feel it.
She accepted the apology without softness. Without forgiveness. Just… control.
There was anger in her—not wild, not loud—but heavy. Controlled. The kind that had been learned, not born.
And that scared me more than yelling ever could.
Her eyes—dark, steady—never left Emilia's face.
Because anger like that doesn't disappear.
It waits.
As we walked away, Jay's hand on her sister's arm, I stayed a step behind, watching Eces carefully.
This was the first crack in her calm.
The first glimpse of something dangerous.
And as much as I wanted to protect her—
A part of me knew.
Whatever she'd survived…
It was bigger than all of us.
Third Person POV
The car rolled into Keifer's driveway just as the sun dipped lower, painting the sky in dull orange streaks.
No one spoke when the engine stopped.
The doors opened one by one.
Eces stepped out first.
She didn't look back. Didn't wait. She walked straight into the house, her steps light but purposeful, heading directly toward the guest room upstairs. The door closed softly behind her—not slammed, not rushed.
Just final.
Jay watched her go, a tight knot forming in her chest.
Keigan lingered near the car, shoulders tense. Keifer locked the door and turned, already reading the unease written all over Jay's face.
"Keigan," Keifer said quietly, "tell us everything."
They moved into the living room. The house felt unusually still, like it was holding its breath.
Keigan sat down heavily, rubbing a hand over his face. "It started after lunch," he said.
Flashback started
The corridor had been crowded when Emilia stopped them.
At first, it was just sharp words—accusations thrown like stones. Claims that Eces was "too close," that she was "trying to steal what wasn't hers."
Keigan had stepped in immediately, telling Emilia to stop.
She didn't.
The words got uglier.
Then she brought up Eces's parents.
That was when Eces changed.
Not outwardly—not in any way the teachers noticed. But Keigan had seen it. The way her jaw tightened. The way her hands curled at her sides. Still silent. Still calm.
Teachers arrived—but instead of stopping it, they sided with Emilia.
"She's just a scholarship student," one of them said.
Eces said nothing.
She never raised her voice. Never defended herself.
She just stood there and took it.
Until Jay and Keifer arrived.
Flashback ended
Keigan's voice broke the silence of the living room. "She didn't say a single bad word back," he finished. "Not even when they insulted her parents."
Jay's hands trembled.
"She shouldn't have had to," Jay whispered.
Her eyes burned—not with tears yet, but with something sharper. Guilt. Anger. Pain all tangled together.
"I promised her she was safe," Jay said, voice cracking. "I told her she didn't have to be strong all the time."
Keifer stood still, jaw tight, his thoughts dark.
Jay pressed her palms to her eyes, breathing unevenly. "She smiled at me," she said. "After all that. Like it was nothing."
She lowered her hands, eyes shining. "What kind of life teaches a kid that staying silent is the safest choice?"
No one answered.
Upstairs, behind a closed door, Eces sat alone—quiet as ever.
And downstairs, the truth settled heavily between them all:
Whatever Eces had been through before she arrived here—
It had taught her how to endure far more than she ever should have had to.
++++++++++++++
Next chapter Target : 5 comments ( one comment per person )
Sorry for late update, actually there is my Maths exam on Monday, so I was busy in studying.