David's POV
Forty-five minutes left for the exam to start.
And instead of calm revision, the entire section was scattered all over the ground—some pretending to review notes, some actually reviewing, and some just roaming like souls who had already accepted their fate.
The reason?
Jay and Keifer.
Both of them were inside the class.
Jay was angry.
Keifer was… Keifer. Flirty, relaxed, clearly enjoying her anger a little too much.
Outside, chaos was normal again.
I leaned against the railing and let my eyes wander.
Kiko was standing near the gate with a few from Section A, pretending not to care but glancing toward the classroom every few seconds. Then there was Yuri, sitting on the bench, fully buried in his notes like exams were the only thing left in the world.
Both of them fell for Jay.
Maybe I did too.
But somehow, it never felt like regret.
Some people come into your life not to be owned, not to be chased, but simply to be admired from wherever you stand. Jay was like that. Loud, chaotic, broken, kind, brave—everything at once.
She wasn't just someone we liked.
She is our Mutya.
And no matter what happened—inside the class or outside on this ground—I knew one thing for sure:
Liking her was never a mistake.
"Alright, listen up, losers!"
A loud clap echoed across the grass. We all turned to see CN standing there, looking way too energetic for someone about to take a Biology exam.
"Since we're all out here acting like we don't have a classroom, let's make it official," CN announced, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Let's play Truth or Dare!"
A collective groan went up.
"CN, are you serious? We have 45 minutes," Eren complained, clutching his notebook.
"Exactly! 45 minutes of boredom or 45 minutes of fun," CN countered, completely ignoring our irritation. He didn't have any intention of backing down. He started dragging people into a circle, and because it was CN.
"Get lost."
"Not now, idiot."
"Go study."
"Go die."
"Wrong time, wrong life choice."
Everyone shooed him away like he was a stray cat that refused to understand rejection.
Did he move?
No.
CN never moves.
He grinned wider, dragged a bench to the center like a stage, and announced, "Section E is emotionally stressed. This is therapy."
"WHO MADE YOU A DOCTOR?" someone yelled.
He ignored it.
One by one—by force, blackmail, emotional manipulation, and pure annoyance—he gathered Section E into a rough circle.
We played.
Reluctantly.
First round—boring.
Second round—still boring.
Third round—mayo lied in truth, got caught, and everyone screamed.
That's when CN stood up.
Too suddenly.
Too suspiciously.
Before anyone could stop him, he turned and ran.
Straight toward the gate.
"What the— CN COME BACK—" someone shouted.
Too late.
He reached the gate, grabbed someone by the wrist, and dragged her in like he'd just won a lottery.
Elara.
She blinked once.
Twice.
"CN," she said calmly, dangerously calm, "unhand me."
"Nope," he replied proudly. "You are now emotionally kidnapped."
The entire ground went silent.
Everyone stared.
Elara.
In the game.
She looked at the circle.
Then at CN.
Then sighed.
The kind of sigh that says I don't get paid enough for this, even though she wasn't getting paid at all.
"Five minutes," she said flatly. "If this is stupid, I'm leaving."
CN beamed. "WELCOME TO TRUTH AND DARE."
I don't know why—but the air changed.
Somewhere inside the classroom, Jay was still angry.
Keifer was still flirting.
But outside?
Section E had just invited chaos itself into a game.
And Elara was sitting down.
This was about to be unforgettable.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Jay-Jay's POV
I was still pretending to be busy with my pen, and Keifer was still leaning back like he owned the place, radiating that annoying "I know your secrets" energy. The air was so thick you could have cut it with a ruler. I was just waiting for the bell to ring so I could hide my face in an exam paper.
But then, the door flew open.
Elara came skidding in. She stopped right in front of my desk, hands on her knees, breathing heavily as if she'd just run a marathon through a jungle.
"Jay..." she gasped out, her voice soft and strained.
Keifer and I both stood up at the same time. My "angry bird" act vanished instantly. "Elara? What happened? Are you okay?"
I moved toward her, worried that someone—maybe Yuri's associates or some other "problem"—was after her.
Outside, I could hear the thundering sound of footsteps. The rest of Section E came charging toward the room like a pack of hungry wolves chasing prey.
I reached out to grab her arm, but in the blink of an eye, the world flipped.
"Whoa!" I screamed.
Before I could even process what was happening, Elara—who I thought was exhausted—straightened up with a terrifyingly strong grip. She scooped me up effortlessly, carrying me like a boy carries a girl in those cheesy romance movies.
"What—Elara! Let me go! What are you doing?!" I thrashed around, my face turning a shade of red that probably matched a fire engine.
The boys of Section E burst into the room, but they weren't attacking. They were cheering, whistling, and laughing like they'd just won the lottery. Chaos erupted instantly.
"Hey, bro!" Elara called out, her voice loud and clear over the noise. She wasn't looking at me; she was looking straight at Keifer with a devilish smirk. "If you want me to hand her over to you in this position, say 'I love you' to her right now!"
The class went absolutely wild. "SAY IT! SAY IT! SAY IT!" they chanted.
"Elara, stop this! This is kidnapping! I'll report you!" I screamed, but I couldn't stop my heart from thudding against my ribs.
I expected Keifer to hesitate, to make a joke, or to give me that smug "acting" look. But he didn't. He stepped forward, his eyes locking onto mine with a sudden seriousness that made my breath hitch.
"I love you, Jay," he said.
No hesitation. No smirk. Just... the truth.
The classroom exploded into a level of noise I didn't think was humanly possible. CN was practically vibrating, and calix looked like he was about to faint from the drama.
Elara turned her gaze back to me, shaking me slightly as if to wake me up. "Hear that? My 'brother' is confessing his feelings, Jay. If you don't want me to just hand you over to him like a trophy, you better answer him back properly."
"I... I hate you, Keifer!" I yelled, trying to save the last bit of my pride.
"Answer him properly, Jay," Elara said, her voice like silk but her grip like iron.
I looked at Keifer. He was standing there, looking way too handsome and way too smug for someone who had just put me in this position. The boys were screaming, the desks were rattling, and my brain was short-circuiting.
"I... I..." I stuttered, then my frustration boiled over. "I love you, you arrogant, annoying, snake-faced jerk! Are you happy now? Let me down, bwisit!"
"No," Elara interrupted, shaking me again. "Without the curses, Jay. My brother is being sincere, and you're giving him profanity? Say it properly."
"ELARA!" I barked. "I already said it! Why do I have to be the one to suffer?"
"Because you're the one holding up the class," Elara replied with a "Devil" smirk that made me realize I had been completely played. "Say it. One more time. No insults."
I looked into Keifer's eyes. He wasn't laughing anymore. He was waiting.
"I love you, Keifer," I whispered, my voice barely audible over the noise.
I thought the torture was over. I thought she'd finally put my feet on the solid, safe ground. But instead, Elara stepped forward and—with a strength that didn't match her frame—literally handed me over to Keifer.
My heart did a backflip as I felt his arms lock around me, his warmth radiating through his uniform. He caught me perfectly, holding me in that same bridal position.
"YOU TRAITORRRRR!" I screamed at Elara, my face hot enough to cook an egg. "Why?! Why would you do this to me?"
Elara just stood there, dusting off her hands as if she'd just finished a light chore. She looked at me with a sharp, knowing smirk.
"Profanity, Jay"
Before I could process another thought, Keifer leaned down. His face was suddenly inches from mine, and before I could even draw a breath to complain, he pressed his lips against mine.
The classroom didn't just explode—it went into total meltdown. I heard CN screaming, David howling, and someone—probably Josh—dropping their snacks in shock.
For a second, the world went quiet. The only thing I could feel was the thudding of Keifer's heart against my arm and the softness of the kiss that silenced my entire rant.
When he pulled back, he didn't let me go. He just looked down at me, his eyes dark and full of that teasing light I secretly loved.
"Rules are rules, Jay," he whispered, his smirk finally returning. "And in this classroom, the King always gets his prize."
I wanted to hit him. I wanted to scream. But all I could do was bury my face in his chest while Section E celebrated the most chaotic start to an exam day in history.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Flashback....
David's pov
We played a few rounds.
Two… maybe three.
Truths were half-lies.
Dares were boring.
CN was getting increasingly dramatic for no reason.
Then the bottle spun again.
It slowed.
Tick.
Tick.
And stopped.
Pointing straight at Elara.
The ground went oddly quiet.
She looked down at the bottle, then up at us, completely unfazed.
"Truth or dare?" CN asked, already shaking with excitement.
She leaned back slightly. "Dare."
Big mistake.
Felix's grin spread slowly.
The kind of grin that meant someone else is about to suffer.
"I'll give the dare," he said, standing up.
Elara raised a brow. "Go on."
Felix clasped his hands like a villain in a movie.
"I dare you to make Jay and Keifer say 'I love you' to each other."
He tilted his head. "Oh. And bonus points if you can make them stop fighting."
Dead silence.
Elara blinked.
Once.
"…Why?" she asked simply.
That one word carried more weight than the dare itself.
Calix jumped in immediately. "Okay so listen—"
And then everything spilled.
Calix explained how Jay had been angry.
How Keifer was pretending to be normal but was clearly not.
How both of them were inside the classroom pretending to study while emotionally combusting.
Rory added, "They're both stubborn. Together, it's worse."
Edrix nodded. "If this continues, one of them will explode. Or both."
Kit scratched his head. "And we kinda… miss Jay outside."
I glanced at Yuri—he stayed quiet, eyes lowered to his notes, but even he listened.
Elara didn't interrupt.
She listened to every word.
When they finished, she hummed softly, thinking.
Then she stood up.
Everyone leaned forward.
Elara stood up with a slow, deliberate grace that made the rest of us go quiet instantly. She dusted off her hands and smoothed out her clothes, looking less like a student and more like an executioner preparing for a task.
"Do you really want me to do this?" she asked, her voice calm but carrying a sharp edge.
"YEAHHHHHHHH!" we all roared in unison. At this point, we'd do anything to get our classroom back before the exam timer started ticking down.
"Alright," she said, her eyes flashing with a spark of mischief. "Follow me, boys."
We scrambled to our feet like a pack of obedient puppies. Elara took the lead, and as we walked toward the building, I noticed something strange. The students from Section A—the ones who usually looked down on us with their noses in the air—were actually stepping aside. They were giving her space, their eyes wide as they watched her pass.
She had her hands shoved deep in her pockets, her head held high. I couldn't wrap my head around it. Based on what I knew about her home, she wasn't some wealthy heiress or a "big name" in the city, but her aura was absolutely killing it. It was a heavy, commanding presence that didn't need a bank account to back it up.
She stopped a few steps away from the Section E door, the wooden barrier that separated us from the chaos of the "King" and "Queen."
She turned back to us, her face unreadable. "I'm going in first," she whispered. "Wait exactly ten seconds. Then, I want you to burst in with full chaos—like you're chasing me. Make it loud. Make it look like a riot."
I blinked, exchange a confused look with CN and Eman. "Wait, what? Why are we chasing you?"
But Elara didn't answer. She just gave us one last "Devil" smirk and stepped into the room.
I checked my watch, my heart hammering against my ribs. Nine... eight... seven... I didn't understand her plan, but in Section E, you didn't ask questions when the "Angel" decided to start a fire. You just brought the gasoline.
"Get ready, guys," cn hissed, bracing himself to cause the biggest scene of the semester. "Whatever she's doing, we're about to be the main act."
End of flashback....
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Jay's pov
My face was still radiating heat from that kiss, and if I could have shrunk down and disappeared into the floorboards, I would have. I was mortified, but strangely, the heavy, sleep-deprived mood I'd been carrying all morning started to lift. The boys were hooting and hollering, and seeing everyone—including the usually composed Elara—so full of energy actually managed to brighten my mood.
Elara stood there, looking completely satisfied with her handiwork. She reached out and clapped her hand against Keifer's in a quick, triumphant high-five, then winked at me.
Traitor, I thought, though I couldn't stop the small smile tugging at my lips.
Keifer, however, didn't seem to have any intention of letting go. He was still holding me firmly, looking like he'd just conquered a kingdom. I was about to tell him to put me down when—
SMACK!
My eyes widened. Elara had just reached out and delivered a sharp smack to the back of Keifer's head.
"Okay, that's enough. Put her on her feet now," Elara said, her voice returning to that calm, authoritative tone.
I felt Keifer flinch. The great Mark Keifer Watson actually flinched! I watched in awe as he obediently—albeit slowly—lowered me until my shoes finally hit the linoleum. Wow. Elara is really something else. To make the "King of Snakes" follow orders with just a look and a smack... she might be the real boss of this school.
Section E was still in a state of total riot, with CN and David trying to reenact the kiss in the background, until Elara spoke up again. She didn't shout, but her voice cut through the noise like a knife.
She tilted her head slightly, her gaze sliding toward the corner of the room. "Felix?"
Felix, who had been laughing a second ago, froze mid-cheer.
"Do you remember our deal?" Elara asked, her eyes narrowing playfully.
It was like watching a light bulb go out. Felix's expression crumbled instantly. His face went pale, then twisted into a look of pure despair.
"Yes, Ate..." he replied, his voice cracking. He looked like he was about to burst into tears right there.
The rest of the class let out a collective "Ooooooh!" and started screaming again. "Felix is doomed!" "Rest in peace, Felix!" "Nice knowing you, bro!"
I blinked, looking from the crying Felix to the smirking Elara. I was completely lost. Deal? What deal? I looked at Keifer for an explanation, but he just shook his head with a small, knowing grin.
"What is happening?" I whispered to no one in particular.
Between the kiss, the "I love you," and now Felix's impending doom, I realized that even after months with these boys, I still didn't understand half of what went on in this classroom. But as the bell finally rang for the exam, I realized one thing: I wasn't sleepy anymore.