Jay's Pov
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
I slapped my phone so hard it flew off the nightstand and landed somewhere in the dark abyss of my room.
Five more minutes. Or ten. Or until summer.
"JASPER JEAN MARIANO! IF YOU DON'T GET YOUR BUTT DOWN HERE IN FIVE MINUTES, I'M COMING UP WITH THE SPRAY BOTTLE!"
Mama's voice. Loud enough to wake up the neighbors. Probably the whole street, actually.
"I'M UP!" I screamed back, even though my face was still buried in my pillow.
Okay, fine. I dragged myself out of bed. The London morning was doing its usual thing—gray sky, light rain, basically the weather being as moody as I felt.
I stumbled to the bathroom, did my business, and stared at my reflection. Not bad for someone who got four hours of sleep. I fixed my hair, brushed my teeth, and threw on a cute oversized sweater with some jeans.
No uniforms here, baby. Best part of living in London.
When I got downstairs, the smell of bacon was fighting for dominance with something else...
"Is that... perfume?" I asked, walking into the kitchen.
Papa was already at the table, coffee in hand, giving me his usual warm smile. "Morning, Princess."
Mama Reycee was at the stove, flipping eggs like a pro. But sitting at the table, posed like he was filming a commercial, was the biggest disaster of my life.
Percy.
My older brother. Twenty years old. Brain of a five-year-old trapped in the body of someone who spends three hours in front of the mirror daily.
"Ah, Jay-Jay. My darling sister," Percy said, not even looking at me because he was too busy checking his reflection in a spoon. "Tell me something. Do you think the lighting in here does justice to my cheekbones? I feel like the kitchen bulbs are washing me out."
I stared at him.
Then at Papa.
Papa just shrugged like this is normal, just eat your food.
"Percy, it's 7 AM," I said, sitting down. "Can you please be pretty in silence? Some of us haven't had coffee yet."
"Jealousy is a disease, Jay-Jay." He flipped his hair. "I hope you recover soon."
Jare walked in then, looking like he'd rather be anywhere else. My twin brother. Same face, slightly less chaos. He's the "serious" one, which isn't saying much because our family standard is basically a circus.
"Why does he live here?" Jare muttered, grabbing a plate.
"Because I'm your favorite brother," Percy answered, still staring at himself.
"We have no other brothers."
"Exactly. I win by default."
Breakfast was chaos, as usual.
Percy spent the whole time explaining why his skin looked "dewy" instead of "oily" and how it was a "curse to be this beautiful." Jare ignored him and scrolled through his phone. I just tried to eat without losing my appetite.
Then Papa cleared his throat.
"Jare. Jay-Jay. The principal called this morning."
I froze, a piece of bacon halfway to my mouth. "What did we do?"
Jare looked up, genuinely confused too. "Seriously, we've been angels lately. I haven't even looked at a soccer ball in weeks."
"He wants to see you and your friends," Papa continued. "Right when you get to school."
Mama Reycee turned from the stove, her face doing that thing where she's worried but trying not to show it. "Just... go find out what it's about. And try not to look guilty even if you are."
"I'm not guilty!" I protested.
"You broke a window last month."
"That was an accident! The ball slipped!"
Jare snorted. "Balls don't slip, Jay-Jay. You kicked it through the gym glass."
I threw a napkin at him.
We met up with the squad near the school entrance.
Sarah was already there, looking flawless in full glam makeup. How she does it before 8 AM, I'll never know. Witchcraft, probably.
Dave was holding a bag of chips, because of course he was. That boy eats like he's storing for winter.
Ben had his camera out, taking photos of literally everything. The sky, the sidewalk, a pigeon. Bro needs help.
Bella was the newest addition to our group. She's cool, quiet, but has the best is the best in observing.
"Guys," Sarah said immediately, crossing her arms. "If this is about the fountain incident, I had nothing to do with it."
"What fountain incident?" Jare asked.
"Exactly. Nothing to do with it."
Dave crunched on a chip. "Maybe we're getting an award. For being awesome."
Ben lowered his camera. "Dave, we set off the fire alarm last week trying to make popcorn in the chemistry lab."
"The popcorn was good though."
"We don't even have a chemistry lab."
"Details."
I sighed. This was my group. Chaotic, messy, and probably the reason I'd go gray before thirty.
"Let's just go," I said. "The sooner we know, the sooner we can start panicking or celebrating."
Principal Ms. Smith's office smelled like old books and anxiety.
We all squeezed into the chairs, trying to look like innocent angels. Six sets of eyes staring at her with our best "we did nothing wrong" faces.
Ms. Smith looked at us over her glasses. "Relax. You're not in trouble."
Dave actually clapped. "YES! I knew it!"
"For now," she added, and Dave shut up.
She slid a stack of papers across the desk. "I have an opportunity for you six. A Student Exchange Program. You'll be studying abroad for the rest of the school year."
Silence.
Then chaos.
"WHERE?!" Sarah screamed.
"When?!" Ben asked, already reaching for his camera.
"What's the food like?!" Dave, obviously.
Ms. Smith held up a hand. "The host school is HVIS. In the Philippines."
My heart literally stopped.
The Philippines.
That's where my family is from. Where my lola and lolo live. Where... where everything is different.
I looked at Jare. His face was unreadable, but I saw his jaw tighten.
"The Philippines?" Bella repeated slowly. "Like... beaches? And mangoes?"
"And jeepneys," Ben added, suddenly excited. "The lighting there is INCREDIBLE. The golden hour must be—"
"There are five sections," Ms. Smith interrupted his photography spiral. "A, B, C, D, and E. Two of you will be placed in each section. It's completely random. You won't know where you're going until you arrive."
"Section E," Dave whispered. "That sounds... scary."
"It's the all-boys section," Ms. Smith said flatly.
We all turned to look at Dave.
"I'M A BOY! I'll be fine!"
"Your social skills say otherwise."
The rest of the day was a blur.
I couldn't focus in class. Couldn't eat lunch. Couldn't even laugh when Dave tried to do a magic trick and accidentally set his backpack on fire (small fire, don't worry).
All I could think about was: The Philippines.
When we got home, Jare and I found Papa and Mama in the living room. Percy was there too, doing some kind of face mask that made him look like a green monster.
"We need to talk," Jare said.
Papa turned off the TV. Mama sat up straighter. Even Percy stopped admiring himself for two seconds.
"The exchange program," I said, sitting on the arm of the couch. "The principal picked us. We'd go to the Philippines for the rest of the year."
Silence.
The kind of silence that's louder than screaming.
Mama and Papa looked at each other. That look. The one they do when they're having a whole conversation without words. The one that means they're hiding something.
"The Philippines?" Percy's voice cracked. For once, he wasn't posing. He just looked... scared. "You're going to the Philippines?"
"Uh... yeah?" Jare frowned. "Why do you look like you just saw a ghost?"
Percy stood up so fast his face mask cracked. "I need to... I have to... my skin needs air." And he literally ran out of the room.
We stared at the door he disappeared through.
"What's his problem?" I asked.
Mama forced a smile. Too forced. "He's just... surprised. It's a big change."
Papa cleared his throat. "Are you sure about this? The Philippines is very different from London. The schools, the culture, the—"
"The heat?" I interrupted. "Yeah, I packed shorts."
"It's not just the heat, Jay-Jay." Papa's voice was serious now. "There are things... things you don't know."
"Like what?" Jare pressed.
Another look between them.
"Nothing," Mama said quickly. "Just... be careful. Promise us you'll be careful."
I wanted to ask more. A thousand questions were burning in my brain. But the look on their faces told me I wouldn't get answers tonight.
"We promise," I said instead.
Later that night, I was in my room, staring at my closet and wondering how I was going to fit my entire life into two suitcases.
My phone buzzed.
SAME BRAIN CELLS GROUP CHAT
DAVE: Guys I'm already packing. Should I bring snacks or do they have snacks there? What if their snacks are different? What if I don't LIKE their snacks?
SARAH: Dave it's the Philippines. They have food. You'll survive.
BEN: I've already researched the best photography spots. The rice terraces. The beaches. The sunsets. My camera is READY.
BELLA: We're going to study, Ben. Not shoot a nature documentary.
BEN: Same thing.
I grinned at my phone. Then I had an idea. A chaotic, funny, slightly evil idea.
I scrolled to one specific contact.
MIA ❤️
Mia Watson. My best friend that I've never actually met in real life.
Okay, so here's the thing. Our moms—Tita Serina (Mia's mom) and Mama Reycee—were best friends when we were babies. Like, tiny, drooling, can't-even-talk babies. We lived in the Philippines until I was two, then my family moved to London.
But our moms stayed close. So close that they made us "friends" before we could even form memories. Mia and I have been texting and video calling for YEARS. We know everything about each other.
Me? I've seen her face on social media. She's seen mine. We're basically sisters... just separated by an ocean and thirteen hours of flight.
And she has NO IDEA I'm coming.
Perfect.
I started typing.
ME: OMG guys can you believe we're going to the Philippines for the exchange program?! So excited! 😱✈️
Three dots appeared immediately.
MIA: Wait WHAT?! YOU'RE COMING HERE?! TO THE PHILIPPINES?! Why didn't anyone tell me?! 😱😱😱
I could literally hear her screaming through the phone.
ME: LOL jk Mia! We're not coming. Just dreaming! Wouldn't that be crazy though? 😂
MIA: JASPER JEAN MARIANO I WILL END YOU.
MIA: You almost gave me a HEART ATTACK. I was about to run downstairs and tell my mom and the whole neighborhood!!
MIA: I hate you. I hate you so much. 💀
ME: Love you too bestie 😘
I laughed so hard I cried. And Mia? She was sending angry emojis one after another, each one funnier than the last.
But as I put my phone down, my smile faded.
I looked at the door. Somewhere in this house, Percy was probably panicking. And downstairs, my parents were definitely talking about something they didn't want us to hear.
Why did Percy look so scared?
Why do Mama and Papa keep exchanging those weird looks?
And what exactly is waiting for us in the Philippines besides beaches and mangoes?
I didn't have answers.
But one thing I knew for sure: Mark Mia Watson was about to get the surprise of her life.
And I couldn't wait to see her face.