The hall had finally quieted down. Half the tables were still crooked, one shoe was mysteriously hanging from a ceiling fan, and Jay was sprawled across the couch — a blanket thrown over her like a defeated burrito.
Her Alpha aura? Gone.
Her chaos gremlin energy? Slowly rebooting.
Keifer leaned against the couch arm, arms folded, watching her pout at the ceiling
."Done sulking yet?" he asked, voice low, teasing.
Jay peeked out from under the blanket, glaring.
"I'm not sulking. I'm reflecting."
"Oh? Reflecting on what?"
"How to fake my death and move to Iceland."
Keifer chuckled. "That's oddly specific."Jay groaned, grabbing a throw pillow and covering her face. "Because I checked — no one there knows how to spell 'League.'"
He laughed quietly, shaking his head. "You haven't changed at all."
Jay peeked again. "You have. You got taller. Rude."
"Or maybe you got shorter."
"I will bite you."
The tension between them flickered — the old comfort, the familiar rhythm of banter that hadn't existed in years.
Then Jay sat up, leaning closer, squinting. "Wait. Hold up. How are YOU here?"
Keifer raised an eyebrow. "Recruited."
Jay blinked. "By who?!"
He smirked. "Guess." angelo
She frowned and snatched the recruit list from the table, scanning fast — then froze.Next to Keifer's name, in tiny print: No. 2905.
Jay blinked. "Wait—"Keifer leaned closer, lips quirking. "Check what that number means."Jay flipped the form, read it again.Then her eyes widened.
"KEIFER. THAT'S MY BIRTHDATE!"
"Exactly.""YOU USED MY BIRTHDATE AS YOUR ID NUMBER?!"
He shrugged, calm. "Easiest one to remember."
Jay threw the pillow at him. "THAT'S NOT SWEET, !"
Keifer caught it midair. "You love it."
Jay paused, cheeks puffing. "...Shut up."
Their laughter filled the quiet room — soft, nostalgic. The kind that made everyone nearby glance and smile a little.
Aries, Angelo, Percy, and the rest of Sec E were sitting a few feet away, watching silently.
"I'm tired," Jay mumbled. "Being alive is exhausting.""Yeah, well," he said softly, "you almost stopped being alive yesterday. Maybe take a nap before trying that again?"
She shot him a glare, but it was weak — more embarrassed than defensive.
"Don't start, Watson."
"Who said I was starting?" he said, a smile tugging at his lips.
"You did enough damage on your own."
"Excuse me?"
He leaned closer, voice lowering. "You scared me, Jay."
That stopped her. Not the words — the tone.Calm. Bare. Honest.
For a second, her chaotic mind went blank.
But before she could answer, Angelo slammed his hand on the table.
"Scared?" he repeated, his voice heavy.
"We were terrified, Keifer. She could've died, again! And for what?"
The air turned cold.Jay sat up straighter, eyes darting to her brother.
"Kuya—"
"No, Jay. You don't get to make a joke out of this. We thought you were safe in Greenwood. Instead, you were out there in the field risking everything again."
Angelo's words were cutting, each one sharper than the last. "Do you even realize what it did to everyone when you disappeared? When you didn't answer calls?!"
Jay's throat tightened. "I was handling it."
"By getting yourself killed?"
And then — that same voice from before
.Low. Controlled. But carrying the weight of steel.
"Enough."
Keifer didn't raise his tone, but the whole room went still anyway.
Even Angelo froze, mid-breath.
Keifer stood up — calm, steady, yet undeniably commanding. The type of presence that didn't need to shout to be heard.
"You think yelling at her helps?" he asked quietly. "You think she doesn't already replay it all in her head?"
Angelo's jaw clenched. "You don't understand—"
"Oh, I do," Keifer interrupted, his tone tightening. "I understand exactly what it's like to almost lose her."
Everyone went silent.
He looked straight at Angelo now, no hostility — just raw sincerity under that cool front.
"She's reckless sometimes, yeah. Stubborn. Infuriating. But she's also the reason half of us are still alive. She fights because she thinks she has to. Because she can't stand watching others bleed when she can do something about it."
Jay blinked, stunned.
Even Angelo's expression faltered.
The room stayed silent.
Jay didn't move — she couldn't. Her heart felt heavy and warm at the same time.
Angelo looked at Keifer, conflicted. "You care about her that much?"
Keifer's answer came without hesitation.
"I'd rather fight beside her than lock her away. But if she gets hurt again…"He paused, eyes flicking toward Jay — voice softer, but deeper, almost breaking."…I don't know if I can survive watching it."
That line hit harder than any shout could.
Jay's breath caught.
Her voice was barely a whisper. "Keif…"
He looked down at her then — the fierce tone gone, replaced by quiet affection.
"You're strong, Jay. You don't need anyone to protect you. I get that. But let someone worry sometimes, yeah?"
She blinked at him — the same Jay who would normally deflect with sarcasm — and just nodded.
"Yeah," she said softly. "Okay."
Angelo sighed, running a hand through his hair. The anger had faded into guilt."…Fine. I'll back off. But if she pulls something like that again—"
"She won't," Keifer cut in, half-smiling. "Because I'll be there to stop her before she does something stupid."
Jay rolled her eyes. "Wow, thanks for the vote of confidence.
"He smirked. "You're welcome, trouble."
That earned a laugh from the group — the tension slowly dissolving
Percy leaned forward. "Jay, why did you even give the February recruits to Alex and Mason? You never hand that over."
alex crossed his arms. "Yeah. Last time you did that, the League almost burned down."
Jay scratched her head, smiling awkwardly. "Uhh… delegation?"
Mason sighed heavily, stepping forward. "No, tell them the truth, Jay."
Jay glared. "Mason."
He ignored her warning tone. "You weren't fine. After New Year, you… weren't yourself."
The room went silent again.
Mason continued, quieter now.
"She stopped eating properly. Stopped sleeping. Started drinking more. Picking fights with random racers."
Alex added softly, "In seven years, it was the first time I'd ever seen her… fall apart like that."
Jay looked away, fiddling with the hem of her sleeve. "I was just—tired, okay? It was nothing."
But Sec E knew better.
Aries's eyes softened.
Percy's jaw clenched.
Angelo looked down, guilt written all over his face.
Because they knew why.
That forced engagement.
That one night Jay stopped smiling.
The night Keifer walked away — to "protect" her.
Keifer didn't say anything. He just sat still, eyes shadowed, guilt heavy on his face.
Jay, still trying to play it off, muttered, "You guys are being dramatic. It's fine now. Look—"
she forced a grin, "I'm thriving! I only punched two people this week!"
Percy snorted through his nose, trying not to smile. "Yeah, totally healthy behavior."
Angelo leaned back, rubbing his temples. "You really haven't changed."
Jay stuck her tongue out. "And you're still old."
"EXCUSE ME—"
Keifer interrupted, smiling faintly. "There she is. The chaos queen herself."
Jay rolled her eyes but smiled back. "Shut up, Keifer, or I'll promote you just to fire you."
The silence stretched — not heavy, just… real.
Then Jay abruptly clapped her hands, breaking the tension. "Anyway! Enough emo time. Who wants food? I'm ordering noodles and emotional stability!"
Percy laughed. "Make it three portions."
Angelo sighed but smiled. "You're impossible."Jay grinned. "I'm adorable."
Keifer chuckled. "You're dangerous."
Jay leaned in, smirking. "Same thing."
The group laughed, the earlier tension melting into something warmer — something that finally felt like them.
As everyone relaxed, Jay leaned back on the couch, closing her eyes.For the first time in weeks, she looked peaceful — messy, chaotic, alive… but peaceful.
Keifer quietly took the blanket from her lap, placed it back gently, and murmured
,"Next time you break down, Jay… don't hide. Just call me, okay?"
Jay smiled faintly without opening her eyes."
Then don't change your number again, idiot."