Jane's POV
The bell above the door had barely finished its cheerful chime when the air in Eman's curdled. I felt the shift instantly—that heavy, suffocating pressure that always seemed to follow the boys of Section E. But it wasn't just the atmosphere. It was the sound of a chair screeching against the floorboards, a sound so violent it made Keiren jump.
"Keiren?!"
The voice was a whip-crack. I froze, my hand still resting protectively on Keiren's small shoulder. I looked up, and my heart did a slow, painful roll in my chest. There, standing by a booth with his eyes wide and his face pale, was Keifer.
My breath hitched. I looked at Jay, whose expression had gone from relaxed and "sisterly" to a mask of pure, unadulterated shock. Her grip on Keiren's hand tightened, not out of aggression, but as if she were holding onto a lifeline.
Then I looked at the others. Yuri was staring at me, his jaw tight, his eyes dark with something I couldn't quite read—guilt? Calculation? And Keifer... Keifer wasn't looking at the boy anymore. His gaze had drifted to Jay, and the intensity of it was terrifying.
It wasn't the look of a boy planning a prank. It was the look of a man seeing something he wasn't supposed to see—a version of Jay that was soft, maternal, and undeniably human.
The silence was deafening. I could feel the eyes of the entire "war council" on us. Felix was grinning like a shark, and Cin... Cin looked like he wanted to crawl under the table.
"Jay," I whispered, my voice trembling. "What is happening?"
She didn't answer. She was too busy staring down Keifer, her eyes narrowed as a thousand questions flickered behind them.
Jay's POV
Keifer?
The name echoed in my head, a jarring dissonance against the quiet evening I'd just had. I looked from the pale, shaken boy beside me to the tall, imposing figure of the guy who had spent the last week trying to make my life a living hell.
How? Why?
Questions started rising in my mind like a flood. Was this a setup? Had they used a child—a scared child—just to draw us here? My blood began to simmer, that familiar fire licking at my veins. If Keifer had put this boy on that bench just to bait me, I would burn this restaurant to the ground with him inside it.
I looked down at Keiren. He was trembling now, his eyes darting between me and Keifer.
"Keiren," I said, my voice low but steady, "Do you know him?"
Keiren looked up at Keifer, then back at me. A small, tentative smile broke through his fear. "Yeah," he whispered, his voice cracking. "He's my kuya."
The word hit me like a physical blow. Kuya. Big brother.
The "lethal" Keifer, the leader of Section E, the boy who talked about pressure points and breaking bonds... had a little brother who cried on park benches because he felt like a misfit.
I looked up at Keifer, my expression hardening into something sharp and sarcastic. "Well, well. Small world, isn't it, Kuya Keifer?"
Keifer didn't respond to the sarcasm. He stepped forward, his eyes never leaving mine. "Where did you find him? Why is he with you?" His voice was tight, a mixture of genuine concern and a defensive edge that told me he was hating every second of this.
I let out a short, dry laugh. "I found him crying his eyes out on a bench because some bullies decided to pick on the 'gentle soul.' Unlike some people, I don't leave kids alone when they're hurting. We were just coming here to get him some food."
I felt Keiren cling to my side, his small arms wrapping around my waist as if he were trying to hide from his brother's intensity. I didn't mind. In fact, I instinctively moved my hand to rest on the back of his head, a gesture of protection that I knew was driving Keifer insane.
"He was scared, Keifer," I added, my voice dropping an octave. "Maybe if you spent less time planning your stupid pranks, you'd notice when your own blood is falling apart."
Jane's POV
The tension in Eman's was still thick, but right in the center of it, a tiny bubble of pure sweetness had formed.
"Hey, little man," Cin said, crouching down to Keiren's level. His voice was soft, lacking any of the bravado he usually carried around the Section E boys. "You okay? You gave us a scare."
Keiren peeked out from behind Jay's legs, his eyes lighting up. "Cin-cin!"
He let go of Jay for a split second to give Cin an enthusiastic high-five, but then he immediately scurried back to Jay, grabbing her hand and hugging her arm like a koala.
"I'm okay now," Keiren said firmly, sticking his chest out. "Jay-ate took care of me. She said no one messes with a friend of the sisters."
I couldn't help it. A genuine smile tugged at my lips. "That's right, Keiren. You're officially under our protection."
Cin laughed, a bright, nervous sound. "Well, I guess that makes me your assistant protector then, right? Since Jean is the boss?"
"No!" Keiren protested, sticking his tongue out at Cin. "Jay-ate is my friend. You can be Jane-ate's assistant."
"Hey!" I chimed in, feeling a sudden burst of playfulness despite the heavy glares coming from the booth. "I don't want an assistant! I want the seat next to Jay at dinner!"
"No, me!" Keiren shouted, giggling as he squeezed Jay's hand. "I found her first!"
It was a strange, beautiful moment of normalcy. We were bickering over who got to be closest to Jay, momentarily ignoring the "war council" watching us.
But as I laughed, I felt a heavy sensation on the side of my face. I turned my head slightly and caught Yuri's eyes.
He wasn't looking at the kid or the scene. He was looking at me. His jaw was tight, and his gaze was dark, swirling with something that felt like a mix of guilt and a strange, newfound curiosity. It wasn't the look of a rival anymore; it was the look of someone seeing a person they'd completely misjudged.
I felt a flush creep up my neck and quickly looked back at Keiren, my heart fluttering for all the wrong reasons.
Jay's POV
I watched the three of them—Jane, Cin, and Keiren—bickering over who got to be my "favorite." It was cute, honestly.
Seeing Keiren's face transform from tear-streaked and terrified to bright and bossy warmed a part of me I usually kept under lock and key.
But even as I smiled down at the "little warrior," my internal alarm was screaming.
I'm not just a fighter; I'm a hunter. And right now, I could smell the prey—or rather, the predators. My eyes flickered toward the Section E booth.
They thought they were being subtle, but I could feel the shift in the air. The "war plan" on the table was forgotten, but their brains were working overtime.
They weren't just shocked; they were recalculating. I sensed a change in their behavior—a predatory stillness. They were planning something new. This wasn't a schoolyard prank anymore. This was a move on a much bigger chessboard.
And then there was Keifer.
He was staring at me with an intensity that felt like a physical weight. It wasn't the "I want to break you" look from the hallways. It was... something else.
His eyes were tracing the way I held Keiren's hand, the way I stood protectively. He looked mesmerized and frustrated all at once, like a man staring at a puzzle he couldn't solve but desperately wanted to own.
Something is cooking, I thought, my blood simmering. I can smell it. They're using this connection. They're cooking up a scheme .
"We're leaving," I said, my voice cool and final, cutting through the cuteness. I looked down at Keiren, my expression melting back into that softness. "Are you going to be okay with your brother now, little warrior?"
Keiren nodded, though he held the hem of my shirt for one last second. "Wait! Day after tomorrow is my mom's birthday. We're having a party at the house. Please come? Please?"
The air froze. I looked at Keifer. I saw the flash of calculation in his eyes before he gave that single, curt nod.
He wanted me there. He wanted us on his turf.
I leaned down and gave Keiren's forehead a small kiss. "We'll be there, Keiren. I wouldn't miss it for the world."
I straightened up, catching Keifer's gaze one last time. If he thought he was baiting a trap, he was right. But he forgot one thing: I'm the kind of bait that bites back.
Keifer's POV
I felt like I was watching a play I hadn't auditioned for.
My brother—the kid who usually hid in his room with his books—was clinging to Jay as if she were the center of his universe. And Cin? Cin was laughing with them, joining in on their "cute" little fight like he'd forgotten which side he was on.
But it was Jay who held my gaze.
She looked so different. The "wild cat" I'd seen in the hallways was gone, replaced by this... this goddess of comfort. The way she didn't flinch when Keiren grabbed her, the way her eyes softened when she looked at him—it was doing something to my head.
And my heart.
I felt a sharp, ugly green monster rear its head in my chest. I was jealous. I was jealous of my own brother for the way he could touch her without a second thought. I was jealous of Cin for the way he could joke with her.
"Keiren," I said, my voice harsher than I intended. "Come here. Now."
Keiren shrunk back, his grip on Jay tightening. He shook his head. "No. I want to stay with Jay-ate. She's nice. You're always mean lately."
The words stung more than any insult Jay could have thrown at me. I looked at Jay, expecting to see a smug look of victory. Instead, I saw... pity.
She looked at me, then at the rest of the boys who were still sitting in the booth, watching us like it was a reality TV show.
Yuri's eyes were fixed on Jane, his expression unreadable, but I could tell he was just as thrown as I was.
"We're leaving," Jay said, her voice cool and final. She looked down at Keiren, her expression melting back into that devastating softness. "Are you going to be okay with your brother now, little warrior?"
Keiren nodded slowly, though he still looked reluctant. He let go of her hand, but before she could turn away, he grabbed the hem of her shirt.
"Wait!" he chirped, his eyes wide with a sudden thought. "Day after tomorrow is my mom's birthday. We're having a party at the house." He looked up at me, then back at Jay and Jane. "You both please come? Please?"
The air in the room seemed to freeze again. My mother's birthday. The most exclusive event of the season.
I looked at Jay, my jaw set. I wanted to tell her no. I wanted to tell her she wasn't welcome. But then I saw the way Keiren was looking at her—with so much hope it made my chest ache.
Jay's eyes flickered to mine. For a second, the sarcasm and the fire were gone. It was just a silent question.
I gave a single, curt nod.
Jay looked back at Keiren and smiled. "We'll be there, Keiren. I wouldn't miss it for the world."
She gave his forehead one last kiss, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and motioned for Jane to follow. They walked out of the restaurant without another word, the roar of the sports car fading into the distance as they drove home.
I sat back down in the booth, the "war plan" lying on the desk between us like a piece of trash.
"Well," Blaster muttered, breaking the silence. "I guess the bait just became the guest of honor."
I didn't answer. I just stared at the empty space where she had been standing, the scent of her perfume—something like vanilla and rain—still lingering in the air.
The war had just become a lot more personal.
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A/n
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