Chapter 7: The Interrogation and the Royal Escort.
The morning sun was barely peeking over the horizon when I started my ritual.
Ponytails? Check.
Little lipgloss to tease keifer? Check.
An extra-large bag of "hush-money" chocolates for Ci-N? Double check.
I couldn't stop thinking about yesterday. The "Boss" thing was looping in my head like a broken record.
How deep did the connection between the Fernandez, mariano and Watson families go? And more importantly, how much had they been keeping from me?
I was halfway through a piece of Lechon—leftovers from last night's "Welcome to being official" dinner—when a familiar, low rumble echoed outside the gate. It wasn't Aries' car.
"He's early," Kuya Angelo grumbled from the head of the table, not even looking up from his coffee.
"11:00 PM curfew, Jay-Jay. Don't make me remind him with my brass knuckles."
"Yes, Kuya," I chirped, waving goodbye before sprinting to the door.
Standing by the gate, leaning against his car with that same insufferable, heart-stopping smirk, was Keifer.
He was dressed in his uniform, but he'd ditched the tie, looking every bit like the King he was.
"Good morning, wifey," he said, opening the door for me before I could even reach for the handle.
"Don't 'wifey' me, keifer!" I said, sliding into the leather seat.
"We have things to discuss. Specifically, why you're calling my brother 'Boss' like you're in some kind of teen mafia movie."
Keifer laughed, a deep, rich sound that made the butterflies in my stomach do gymnastics.
He started the engine and pulled away from the curb.
"It's not a mafia movie, Jay. Our families have done business for years. And specially Your Kuya... He was the one who taught me too fight, He helped me to fight against my father. As i told you he was the most powerful president of Section e.
I blinked. "So you knew kuya angelo before? Does Aries know?"
"Aries is the one who introduced us," Keifer revealed, glancing at me with a soft expression.
"The Fernandez brothers have been looking out for me long before I started looking out for you."
I crossed my arms, pouting. "So everyone knew but me? Gago!"
Keifer's hand immediately left the steering wheel and found mine,
squeezing gently. "Profanity, Jay-Jay. You know the price."
"We are in a moving vehicle, Keifer! Focus on the road!"
"I can multitask," he teased, but he kept his eyes ahead. "Besides, I like it when you're feisty. It means you're not scared of me anymore."
"I was never scared of you," I lied, looking out the window to hide my blush.
As we pulled into the school parking lot, the atmosphere was already electric.
Students were lined up near the Section E building, whispering as the black car slowed to a halt.
Keifer didn't just let me out; he walked around, opened my door, and laced his fingers firmly with mine as we walked toward the entrance.
"Look at them," I whispered, feeling the weight of a hundred stares. "They look like they've seen a ghost."
"Let them look," Keifer said, his voice dropping into that possessive, commanding tone.
"Let the whole school know that the King has his Queen. And anyone who has a problem with it has to go through me—and your Kuya."
We reached the classroom door, and I could already hear Ci-N's dramatic wailing from inside.
"The chocolates better be the expensive kind, Jay-Jay!" he yelled before we even crossed the threshold.
Keifer pulled me closer, his arm draped around my shoulder. "Ready for round two of the chaos?"
I looked up at him, the boy who was a king to the school but just "Keifer" to me. "With you? Always."