Jay-Jay's POV
Exams are finally over! My brain feels like a dried-up sponge, but my spirit is soaring.
Originally, it was just supposed to be a sibling bonding trip with Aries, but Percy somehow materialized out of thin air the second he heard the word "mall."
Percy and I were practically vibrating with excitement as we skipped toward the car.
Percy: "Come on, baby sistah! Let's get moving! The world needs to see this face, and you need sugar to restart that tiny brain of yours!"
Aries: "Stop calling her that. She's my sister, not yours. Go find your own family to annoy."
Percy: "Don't be jealous, Aries baby! There's enough of me to go around!"
Aries: "Shoo! Get away from me with that 'baby' talk before I leave you on the curb."
The Mini Mart Chaos
We reached the Mini Mart, and it was total war. Aries grabbed a trolley, and Percy and I immediately treated it like a high-stakes scavenger hunt.
Percy: "Jay-Jay, look at me. Even in this terrible grocery store lighting, my skin is glowing.
I'm like a diamond in a pile of potatoes. I should be charging people just to look at me."
Jay-Jay: "The only thing glowing is your forehead because you're sweating from carrying that giant box of cereal, Percy!"
I tried to turn around quickly to grab some marshmallows, but my foot caught the edge of a display stand.
I did a weird, flapping-bird dance to stay upright, accidentally knocking a bag of cotton candy onto Percy's head.
Percy: "Hey! You're ruining the hair! This masterpiece takes time, baby sistah!"
Aries: "I'm surrounded by idiots. One more 'baby' out of you, Percy, and you're walking home."
Aries started pulling snacks out of the trolley with the speed of a ninja, putting them back on the shelves.
Aries: "No. Too much sugar. No. This looks like plastic. And absolutely no to this giant jar of pickles."
Percy: "But Aries baby, the pickles are for my hydration! My handsomeness requires electrolytes!"
Aries: "Shoo! And stop calling me that!"
While Aries was busy scolding Percy, I sneaked around the other side. Every time Aries took a bag of chips out, I dropped two more back in, hiding them under a pack of napkins. I was doing a little "victory wiggle" every time I succeeded.
Jay-Jay: "Hehe... I'm too fast for him. I am the snack ghost."
Aries: "Jay, I can hear your shoes squeaking every time you run back to the chip aisle. You're the loudest ghost in history."
Percy: "It's okay, Jay-Jay. Not everyone can have my cat-like grace and runway-ready movements."
Percy tried to strike a pose with a bottle of soda, but his hand slipped. The bottle didn't break, but it landed right on Aries' foot with a heavy thud.
Aries: "That's it. Both of you. To the counter. Now. If I hear 'baby' or 'handsomeness' one more time, I am buying zero snacks and a lot of broccoli."
Percy and I shared a look of pure horror and went quiet—for about five seconds—before we started whispering about which mall store had the best mirrors for Percy's "modeling."
I was happily skipping toward the chocolate section when the world suddenly turned upside down. My foot hit a stray soda can, and my arms started flailing like a windmill.
Aries & Percy: "JAY!"
I saw it—a giant, hard plastic robot toy sitting on the bottom shelf. It looked sharp. It looked deadly. I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the impact.
Internal Monologue: "Is this it? Is this how the 'Mutya' of Section E goes out? Death by a plastic toy?"
But the pain never came.
Instead, I felt a strong, firm grip wrap around my waist, pulling me back from the edge of disaster. The warmth was familiar.
It smelled like leather and expensive cologne. I opened my eyes and looked up into the piercing, worried gaze of Keifer.
Keifer: "Are you okay? Did you hit anything?"
I was too breathless to answer.
He helped me stand up straight, but his hands were shaking slightly. His worry quickly turned into pure, cold fury.
He spun around, and I've never seen him look this terrifying.
Keifer: "Aries! Are you blind? I almost lost her just now because of your carelessness!"
Jay-Jay: "Keifer, wait, it's not—"
Aries: "What the hell are you shouting at me for? She's my sister! I was right there!"
Keifer: "You were right there doing nothing! I almost lost her because of you, just like we almost lost Percy last time! It's always your fault!"
Before I could process what he said, Keifer's fist flew. CRACK.
He punched Aries right in the jaw.
Percy: "HEY! Don't touch him!"
Percy didn't hesitate.
He lunged forward and landed a punch on Keifer's cheek. Then Keifer roared and shoved Percy back. It was total chaos.
The "King of Snakes" was losing his mind, and my brothers were fighting back with everything they had.
Jay-Jay: "STOP! Aries! Percy! Keifer! Please, listen to me!"
But they were in a zone of pure rage. Aries was winding up for a massive hit on Keifer when Yuri suddenly appeared out of nowhere, his fist connecting with Aries' face to stop him.
Percy: "Yuri?! Why the hell are you meddling? This is all your fault anyway! you are the biggest manipulator. You ruined our friendship ."
What does he even mean by that, before I could think anything...
Percy grabbed Yuri by the collar, shaking him. The Mini Mart was turning into a battlefield.
Cereal boxes were falling, people were staring, and I was screaming at the top of my lungs.
Keifer: "NO! It's all your fault!"
Keifer roared, throwing Percy away from Yuri with insane strength. "It's you and it's Aries! You can't even keep her safe for ten minutes!"
I ran toward Aries, who was wiping blood from his lip, my heart racing. This wasn't a "buddy" moment anymore. This was a war.
The world was spinning. The bright lights of the mini-mart became blinding, and the faces of the gathering crowd blurred into ghostly shapes.
The guards rushed in, their heavy boots thumping like a heartbeat against the floor.
I saw the blood trickling from Aries' lip, and my heart didn't just race—it fractured.
One of the guards was holding a long, black rod. The sight of it was like a key turning in a locked door I never wanted to open.
Memories rushed back like a tidal wave, cold and suffocating. My head felt light, my legs turned to jelly, and the air in the room vanished.
Voices—dark, cruel, and familiar—began to scream in my head, drowning out the cafeteria noise.
"You are useless."
"You should die."
"I'll kill you."
I felt myself falling, but this time, it wasn't onto the floor. I was falling into the dark.
Keifer's POV
Rage was blinding me.
I had my fist clenched, ready to settle things with Percy once and for all, when a terrified scream tore through the air.
Aries: "JAYYYYY!"
Everything stopped.
The anger evaporated, replaced by a cold, paralyzing fear.
We all scrambled toward her. Jay had collapsed on the floor, her small frame trembling violently.
She was clutching her hair, her eyes wide but seeing things that weren't there.
Jay-Jay: "I'll not let you hurt me!
Let go of my mom!
MAMA!
MAMA!"
She was screaming—raw, guttural sounds that made my blood run cold. She was fighting off invisible hands, her nails digging into her scalp.
Jay-Jay: "Let go of her! I'll not let you hurt—"
I didn't think. I couldn't. I lunged forward and pulled her into my arms, wrapping her in a tight hug to stop her from hurting herself.
Keifer: "Jay! Jay, look at me! It's okay, you're safe!"
She didn't hear me. She was still screaming, trapped in a nightmare from her past.
Percy was right there, his face pale, trying to touch her shoulder, but Aries pushed his way through.
Aries: "Give her space! Keifer, let her go, give her space!"
I didn't want to let go. I wanted to hold her until the voices stopped, but Aries' eyes were desperate. I stepped back, my hands shaking.
Aries knelt in front of her, his own voice breaking, on the verge of tears.
Aries: "Jay, listen to me. Focus on my voice, Jay. No one is hurting you. No one is going to touch you. Breathe, Jay. Just breathe with me. Come on, sis... in and out."
Slowly, the screaming died down into ragged, wet gasps. Her eyes began to focus on Aries' face. He pulled her into a protective hug, his chin resting on her head as he looked up at us, his expression grim.
Aries: "HOSPITAL! NOW!"