Jay's POV
He moved closer.
Slowly. Carefully.
Like I might shatter if he stepped too fast.
And this time…
I didn't step back.
I was crying anyway.
What difference would distance make now?
He stopped right in front of me.
Close enough that I could see every change in his expression.
Close enough that I could hear his breathing.
His hands lifted hesitantly—
Then gently cupped my cheeks.
Warm. Careful.
Like I was something fragile.
I immediately tried to pull away.
"Don't," I muttered, trying to wriggle out of his grip.
But he didn't tighten his hold.
He didn't force.
He just stayed there, thumbs lightly resting near my temples.
"Jay," he said softly.
I hated that tone.
It made everything weaker inside me.
"I know you're hurt."
My chest tightened.
"I know," he repeated, his voice almost breaking. "And I deserve it."
I shut my eyes tightly.
"Then why—"
"But please don't ignore me," he whispered, his voice sounded like he was on the verge of crying.
That made me open my eyes.
There was no arrogance in them.
No teasing.
Just something honest.
"Ask me questions," he continued. "Be angry. Yell at me."
His thumbs brushed away a tear before it could fall further.
"You're mad? Hit me."
My brows furrowed.
"What?"
"Hit me," he said again, softer. "If that's what you need."
I stared at him.
He looked completely serious.
"You want to scream? Scream. You want to punch me? Do it."
His voice lowered even more.
"But don't give me this silence."
That cracked something in me.
"Please, Jay," he said, forehead almost touching mine now. "Don't shut me out like I don't exist."
His hands were still holding my face gently.
Not trapping.
Just steady.
"Come on," he murmured. "Hit me, okay? If that's what it takes for you to calm down. For you to feel something instead of keeping it all inside."
My tears fell faster.
i pulled back slightly to breathe...
Author's POV
He stood in front of her, close…There was no teasing smile, no playful tone. Just tired eyes and quiet patience.
"hit me jay, its better than your silence.. i wouldn't complain..."
She stepped forward suddenly and hit his chest. Not hard. Not to hurt him. Just… to let something out.
"You idiot!" she sobbed, hitting him again. "Do you know how much that hurt? Do you even know what you did to me?"
He didn't move. Didn't block her. Didn't grab her wrists.
She kept hitting him — small, shaky fists against his chest — each one weaker than the last. It wasn't anger anymore. It was heartbreak.
"I waited for you," she cried. "I kept thinking you'd come explain… that you'd fight for me… and then you just disappeared."
Her hands slowly lost strength, gripping his shirt instead.
"I don't need chocolates," she whispered brokenly. "I needed you."
That broke him.
He gently pulled her into his chest this time — not forceful, not trapping — just holding her as she trembled.
"I know," he murmured against her hair. "im here now, you are not alone ... ill make it up to you.."
She clutched his shirt tighter and cried properly now — the kind of crying that comes after holding it in for too long.
He didn't shush her.
Didn't rush her.
He just stayed there.
And for the first time in days… neither of them were pretending anymore.
Keifer's POV
The more she cried, the more desperate I felt.
Every tear made it harder for me to stay quiet.
I kept holding her, one hand at her back, the other still near her face, afraid that if I let go, she'd walk away again.
"Jay…" I whispered, my voice barely steady. "Please listen to me… I need to explain."
She was still crying against me, her fists clutching my shirt tightly.
And all I could think was—
I can't let her keep hurting like this without telling her the truth.
"Please," I said again, softer this time. "Just listen to me."
I didn't loosen my hold.
I didn't force her either.
I just held her there, hoping she wouldn't shut me out again.
She looked at me for a few long seconds.
Like she was searching my face for something — doubt, maybe. Or another reason to walk away.
Then… she slowly nodded.
I let out a breath I didn't even realize I was holding.
We walked toward the railing together. I guided her gently and made her sit down, careful, like she might break if I moved too fast. Then I knelt in front of her, holding both her hands in mine.
I tightened my grip slightly — not to trap her, just to make sure she knew I was serious.
"Now whatever I say," I told her quietly, looking straight into her eyes, "will be the truth. No lies. Okay?"
I swallowed.
"Jay… let's start from the beginning."
Do you remember when I suddenly went to London? Without telling you or anyone?"
I swallowed before continuing.
"That's when I found out that before my mom died… she transferred the entire inheritance into my name. And it's not just money, Jay. It's money that belongs to people who trust us. I have to protect it. Protect it from everyone… especially my family."
My jaw tightened.
"My father… he's a monster. He can go to any extent to get that inheritance. Even… even hurt the people I love.... you already know what he did to my mother and keigan."
I squeezed her hands unconsciously.
"When I met the elders of the Watson family, they already knew about you. They knew you were my weak spot. They told me to leave you. They said I'm a Watson after all… that I'm just like them. A beast. That it's in my blood."
My voice cracked slightly.
"But I knew I wasn't like them. I was already breaking inside."
"They threatened me, Jay. They hinted at harming you. I kept telling myself they wouldn't dare. That I was there to protect you. But the truth was… I didn't have any real power yet. I wasn't 18. I didn't even have legal authority over the inheritance."
I looked down for a second.
"And I had my brothers to protect too. I realized I couldn't fight everything at once. And I couldn't—" my voice shook, "—I couldn't bear the thought of seeing you hurt because of me."
"So I went to Angelo. I told him everything. And he told me… to push you away."
I let out a broken breath.
"I broke down that day. The thought of losing you terrified me. But I thought it was the only way to keep you safe."
"And I also saw what I was becoming. I was getting violent. My jealousy was getting out of control. I hated it. I hated seeing myself turn into something I despised. I kept thinking… maybe they're right. Maybe being a Watson means I'll always have that darkness in me."
"So I had to push you away. To protect you… from my family. From the danger around me. From myself."
I looked at her again, my vision blurring.
"I never wanted to hurt you, Jay. But I felt like I had no choice."
I hesitated, then forced myself to continue.
"Yes… at first, I did plan to make you fall for me. That was true. But that plan ended a long time ago. It backfired on me."
A weak, broken smile touched my lips.
"I fell for you instead. Hard."
"For your safety, I did all of this. And believe me when I say this… I love you. I love you a lot. The whole Section E knows it."
My voice dropped to almost a whisper.
"It was easier to let you hate me… than to risk seeing you hurt because of me. I chose this. Even if it was killing me inside."
Only then did I realize—
Tears were running down my face too.
Jay's POV
I didn't know when my hands stopped trembling.
Maybe it was when his voice cracked.
Maybe it was when his tears fell on our joined hands.
I just… stared at him.
The same Keifer who acted arrogant. The same Keifer who flirted shamelessly. The same Keifer who never let anyone see him weak.
He was kneeling in front of me.
Crying.
Because of me.
My chest hurt. Not the angry kind of hurt. The heavy kind. The kind that makes breathing feel difficult.
"You idiot…" I whispered, but it didn't come out harsh. It came out broken.
All this time… I thought i was someone easy to use... i was just his enemy's sister to him and nothing else.
And here he was… telling me he left because he was scared of losing me.
I pulled my hands out of his slowly.
Not to walk away.
But because I needed a second to think.
"So you decided for me?" I asked, my voice shaking. "You decided that I'd rather hate you than stand beside you?"
Tears rolled down again, but I didn't wipe them.
"You think I'm that weak?"
My heart was beating so loudly I could barely hear myself.
"You thought pushing me away would protect me?" I let out a shaky laugh. "Do you even know what that 1 month felt like?"
I looked at him — really looked at him.
He looked exhausted. Guilty. Scared.
"I don't care about your last name," I said softly. "I don't care about your inheritance. I don't care about your stupid violent tendencies."
My voice broke.
"I care about you."
Silence settled between us, thick and fragile.
"You don't get to protect me by hurting me," I whispered. "If there's danger… we face it together. You don't get to carry everything alone and then expect me to just understand."
I wiped my cheeks angrily.
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
The wind brushed past us on the rooftop — the same rooftop where we used to laugh like nothing in the world could touch us.
"I'm still angry," I admitted quietly. "I'm hurt. You don't get forgiven in one speech."
I stood up slowly.
"But…" I looked down at him. "Don't ever push me away like that again without telling me the truth."
My voice softened.
"If you love me… then trust me enough to stand beside you. Not away from you."
And for the first time since everything broke—
I wasn't walking away.
Keifer's POV
"I know, Jay," I said quietly, my voice breaking despite trying to stay steady. "But tell me something… if I had told you the truth back then, would you have let me go alone?"
I let out a bitter breath, already knowing the answer.
"You wouldn't have. You would've insisted on coming with me. You would've fought me until I gave in."
My jaw tightened as I looked at her. "And you don't understand how dangerous that would've been."
I swallowed hard.
"My family isn't what you think they are. They don't forgive. They don't hesitate. They don't show mercy."
I hesitated before saying the next part. "Especially my father. He doesn't care about who gets hurt as long as he wins."
I stepped closer, my voice dropping.
"Every single time I tried to fight back… every move I made… he would've made you the target. He would've used you against me."
My hands curled into fists.
"And I couldn't let that happen. I couldn't risk losing you… and my brothers… at the same time."
My voice cracked despite myself. "I couldn't protect all of you together, Jay. I barely knew how to protect myself."
i paused for a fraction of seconds then i continued "also... jay? i wanted to save you from myself... i was scared... scared that i might end up like my father.. my anger issues? they were not good for you and me aswell... i was so consumed by the jealousy that day remeber? i couldnt think of anything... i did not care about you.. i did not care about our friends... i felt like a monster that day.. i felt like..." my voice cracked
"so... i wanted to repent.... i wanted to hurt myself so that i dont feel the guilt of what i did with you... i went to angelo... i let him beat me up...." i held her hands again.. "and jay.. see.. look at me now.. i can assure you.. im not the same person anymore... i spent the 1 month i london not just fighting, but i worked on myself aswell.. for you... for me... for us... i took therapy."
Jay's POV
When he mentioned Angelo, my chest tightened.
"You let my brother hit you?" I whispered.
He didn't defend himself. Didn't justify it. He just nodded slightly, like he deserved it.
And maybe a small part of me understood why he did it.
Not because violence fixes anything — it doesn't. But because guilt does strange things to people. It makes them think pain equals redemption.
But what caught me more was what he said after.
Therapy.
He didn't just sit in his anger. He didn't drown in it. He didn't blame the world. He actually worked on himself.
I looked at him properly then — not at the boy who broke my heart, but at the one sitting in front of me now.
"You were scared of becoming your father, and that automatically makes you different than him.. you are not him .. you never were." I said quietly.
And that fear… it wasn't weakness. It was awareness.
"You were jealous that day. You lost control. You hurt me." My voice trembled, but I didn't look away. "And that's something I can't just forget."
I took a slow breath.
"But you choosing therapy? You choosing to fix yourself instead of running away from it?" I shook my head softly. "That matters more than you think."
He wasn't perfect.
He was trying.
And trying is different.
I pulled my hands out of his grip — gently this time — only to place them on his face instead.
"I'm still hurt," I admitted. "And trust… it's going to take time."
My thumbs brushed away the tears under his eyes.
"But if you're really not that person anymore… then show me. Not with big words. Not with grand sacrifices."
My voice softened.
"Show me with consistency."
A small pause.
I looked straight into his eyes.
"If we try again… we do it as two people who choose each other. Not as punishment. Not as revenge. Not out of fear."
My throat tightened.
"But because we want to."
Keifer's POV
The moment her hands cupped my face, I closed my eyes.
I hadn't even realized I was holding my breath until her warmth settled against my skin. God… I had missed this. Not just her touch — but the way everything inside me went quiet because of it.
I leaned into her palms before I could stop myself.
"Yes… Jay," I whispered, my voice uneven. "I promise I'll earn your trust back. I know I don't deserve it right now. And I don't expect you to just… be okay overnight."
When I opened my eyes, she was still standing over me.
And I was still on my knees.
For once, my pride didn't fight it... it just felt right this way.
"But I have one request," I said softly. "Please?"
My fingers tightened around her hands, not enough to hurt — just enough to hold on.
"Please don't ignore me anymore," I breathed. "Just… keep it simple. Talk to me. Even if it's small things. Even if it's awkward."
My throat felt tight.
"I can't bear you treating me like I'm a stranger." My voice cracked despite trying to steady it. "I'm not asking you to forgive me right now. I'm not asking you to trust me immediately."
I swallowed.
"Just don't erase me. Don't pretend I don't exist."
Looking up at her like that — vulnerable, stripped of ego — I realized this wasn't about pride anymore.
It was about survival.
Because losing her slowly… would hurt far more than any punishment.
I kept looking into her eyes, searching for something — anything. Hope. Anger. A sign that I hadn't completely lost her.
Her eyes were glassy too.
For a second, neither of us spoke.
And then… she nodded.
Slowly.
There was the faintest smile tugging at her lips — small, fragile, but real.
The moment she nodded, something inside me cracked.
I closed my eyes and lowered my forehead onto our joined hands, a broken sob escaping my chest before I could stop it. My shoulders shook, but this wasn't the kind of crying that came from pain.
It was relief.
Pure, overwhelming relief.
Like I had been drowning for weeks and someone had finally pulled me to the surface.
I felt her move — felt her bend down to my level. That made me lift my head, my vision blurred with tears.
And then she did something I never expected her to do.
She pulled me into a hug.
Not hesitant. Not distant.
She wrapped her arms around me fully, like she wasn't afraid of me anymore.
For a second, I just froze.
Then I held her back.
Tightly.
Carefully.
Like she was something precious I almost lost forever.
I buried my face against her shoulder, breathing her in, my hands trembling slightly against her back.
"Thank you," I whispered hoarsely. Not just for the nod. Not just for the hug.
But for not giving up on me.
And in that moment, still on our knees, holding onto each other — I knew this wasn't forgiveness.
It was something stronger.
It was a second chance.
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okay! this is it...
i hope you all liked the story... i actually planned on to end this story right here but it depends on you all.. do let me know what you think and if you all want me to end it here or continue... (suggest some plots if you want me to continue)
thank you so much for 25k reads... do tell me how was the chapter :)