Jay‑jay
The sound of the airplane engines used to excite me. Now it just makes my hands shake.
I'd told Drake I was fine — just nervous about connecting flights. He'd believed me, like he always did.
Mia, Eli, and Clara were too busy joking with the other delegates to notice that every time the pilot said Manila, my pulse hit a new record.
"You sure you're ready for this, Jay?" Mia whispered.
"It's just a trip," I lied.
Outside the window, clouds stretched forever. Somewhere beneath them was everything I wanted to forget: Section E, the blue‑and‑white HVIS buildings, the smell of rain after detention, and the boy whose lies had reshaped my life.
Keifer Watson.
I closed my eyes and forced his name back into memory where it belonged — buried.
When we landed, Manila's heat wrapped around me like an old argument.
The airport looked the same, too bright and too noisy. Drake was waiting at arrivals, holding out a small bouquet.
"Welcome home," he teased, kissing my cheek.
"It's not home," I corrected softly.
Keifer
Sir Alvin had called an emergency meeting that morning.
I walked in late — on purpose — and everything felt too familiar: the same desks, the same echo of laughter that wasn't there anymore.
Aries glanced up. "So you heard?"
"Heard what?"
Ci‑N slid a printed email across the desk.
Subject:HVIS International Partnership – London Delegates Arriving Next Week.
Below that, a list of visiting names.
There it was.
Jasper Jean Mariano .
My mrs watson
The room went quiet after I saw it. Even Eman stopped tapping his pen.
"You think she'll really come back?" Kit murmured.
No one answered.
Ci‑N's voice was rough. "She doesn't know what we know yet, Keif. She still thinks you hated her."
"Good," I said before I could stop myself. "Let it stay that way."
But my stomach twisted. Ten months of silence hadn't made it easier. I'd built walls for a reason, and now she was about to walk straight through them.
Sir Alvin cleared his throat. "The London guests will be here for a two‑week exchange program. Our class will host some of the sessions. Represent HVIS well."
He looked straight at me. "No drama. Understood?"
Too late for that.
Jay‑jay
The HVIS courtyard hadn't changed. The same cracked benches, the same smell of chalk dust and humidity.
Eli was busy taking photos. "Jay, this place is your origin story, huh?"
My throat felt tight. "Something like that."
Students waved, unaware that ten months ago, this place had nearly eaten me alive.
Principal Evans and the local faculty gathered us for introductions. While names blurred around me, I barely heard the last one — until the teacher said it too clearly:
"And representing Section E… Keifer Watson."
I froze.
From across the courtyard, he appeared just like I remembered — tall, serious, too calm.
For a second, the world narrowed to the sound of my heartbeat.
"Jay?" Drake's voice pulled me back. "You alright, love?"
I forced a smile sharp enough to cut the air. "Yeah. Perfect."
But inside, my hands were trembling. Not from love. Not anymore.
From sheer, boiling hatred I'd kept caged too long.
Keifer
She looked colder than I remembered — London had wrapped her in steel.
Even from a distance, I could tell this was not the girl who once found comfort in chaos. This woman stood straighter, spoke less, and met my eyes like she'd already decided who the villain was.
Fair enough.
I gave her that reason.
Sir Alvin,
My old teacher,
"Mr Watson," Sir Alvin said lightly, "you'll assist Miss Mariano's group with orientation."
Her eyes snapped to mine.
"Not necessary," she said flatly.
"Protocol," he replied.
She smiled — tight, controlled — then turned her back on me like I'd never existed.
And maybe that was the point.
I wanted to let her go again.
But as she walked away through the old school courtyard, something inside me whispered what I'd already known since the first lie:
I never stopped loving her.
And that's exactly why she could never forgive me.