Monday morning.
Back to college.
Jay and Keifer walked onto campus hand in hand.
Big mistake.
The moment they stepped through the gates—
Chaos.
Students everywhere. Phones out. Pointing. Whispering.
"THAT'S THEM!"
"JAYFER IS HERE!"
"THE ENGAGED COUPLE!"
Jay: "Keifer."
Keifer: "Yeah?"
Jay: "Everyone's staring."
Keifer: "Everyone's always staring."
Jay: "Not like THIS."
A group of girls ran up.
Girl 1: "OH MY GOD! YOU'RE JAY MARIANO!"
Girl 2: "AND KEIFER WATSON!"
Girl 3: "WE SAW THE PHOTOS! THE ENGAGEMENT WAS PERFECT!"
Girl 1: "CAN WE GET A SELFIE?"
Jay: "I—"
Girl 2: "PLEASE? WE'RE YOUR BIGGEST FANS!"
Keifer: "Fans?"
Girl 3: "WE HAVE A JAYFER FAN CLUB! SEVENTY MEMBERS!"
Jay: "Seventy?"
Girl 1: "EIGHTY AFTER TODAY!"
They took selfies.
Then more students came.
Then more.
Soon, a crowd formed.
Keifer: "This is out of control."
Jay: "This is our life now."
Keifer: "Tss."
Jay: "Stop."
Keifer: "No."
He kissed her forehead.
The crowd SCREAMED.
Girl 1: "HE KISSED HER FOREHEAD!"
Girl 2: "THAT'S SO ROMANTIC!"
Girl 3: "I'M CRYING!"
Section E arrived.
Ci-n: "SISTER JAY! BROTHER KEIFER! YOU'RE FAMOUS!"
Rakki: "They've always been famous."
Ci-n: "NOW THEY'RE MORE FAMOUS!"
Percy was on video call. "I SEE THE CROWD! DOCUMENTING REMOTELY!"
Mica: "This is insane."
Calix: "Really insane."
Freya: "Annoyingly insane."
Edrix: "Entertainingly insane."
Freya: "Shut up."
Edrix: "Never."
Rory: "I've counted 47 students. 32 with phones out."
Drew: "I'm taking bets on how many selfies they take."
David: "Infinite. 500."
Drew: "Safe bet."
Eren: "Wait, they're famous now?"
Josh nodded. Handed him a sign that said "JAYFER FAN CLUB."
Eren: "Oh. Cool."
Baster hummed a "famous people" melody.
The crowd eventually dispersed.
But the attention didn't stop.
In every class. Every hallway. Every corner of campus.
Whispers. Stares. Questions.
In business class, the professor paused.
Professor: "Before we begin—congratulations to Jay and Keifer. The whole campus is talking."
Class cheered.
Jay's face reddened.
Keifer: "You're blushing."
Jay: "I'm NOT."
Keifer: "Liar."
Jay: "Maybe."
Keifer: "Tss."
Jay: "Stop."
Keifer: "No."
At lunch, Section E gathered.
The cafeteria was packed. More stares. More whispers.
Ci-n: "EVERYONE'S WATCHING YOU!"
Rakki: "Ci-n, inside voice."
Ci-n: "THIS IS MY INSIDE VOICE!"
Mica: "How are you handling it?"
Jay: "Barely."
Calix: "Same."
Freya: "At least they're not bothering us."
Edrix: "Yet."
Freya: "Shut up."
Edrix: "Never."
A group of students approached.
Student 1: "Hi! Sorry to bother you. We just wanted to say—we love Jayfer."
Student 2: "The engagement photos were beautiful."
Student 3: "When's the wedding?"
Jay: "We haven't planned yet."
Student 1: "Can we come?"
Keifer: "To our wedding?"
Student 2: "We'll bring gifts!"
Student 3: "And emotional support!"
Jay: "I—"
Ci-n: "I'LL HANDLE THIS!" He stood. "EVERYONE FORM AN ORDERLY LINE! JAYFER QUESTIONS WILL BE ANSWERED IN ROTATION!"
Rakki: "Ci-n, sit down."
Ci-n: "I'M MANAGING!"
Rakki pulled him down.
Ci-n: "MY MOMENT!"
The rest of the day continued.
Professors mentioned it. Classmates congratulated them. The Jayfer fan club grew.
By afternoon, someone had made a banner.
JAYFER 4EVER — CONGRATS ON THE ENGAGEMENT!
It hung in the student lounge.
Percy: "I'M SO PROUD! THEY HAVE MERCHANDISE!"
Ci-n: "WE NEED MERCHANDISE!"
Rakki: "You really don't."
Ci-n: "WE REALLY DO!"
After class.
Jay and Keifer walked home. Exhausted.
Jay: "I can't do this every day."
Keifer: "You can."
Jay: "How do you know?"
Keifer: "Because you're you."
Jay: "Smooth."
Keifer: "Honest."
Jay: "Tss."
Keifer: "Stop."
Jay: "No."
He kissed her.
They kept walking.
Hand in hand.
Engaged.
Famous.
Themselves.