Keifer's POV
The second the man rushed forward—
I moved automatically.
Instinct.
I stepped in front of Jay immediately.
But before I could even touch the attacker—
Jay grabbed the guy's wrist.
Twisted.
Then FLIPPED him straight onto the ground.
Hard.
The man slammed against the pavement with a painful groan.
I blinked.
…What?
Jay stood there calmly flexing her fingers slightly.
"First of all," she said casually, "rude."
The other two attackers froze.
Probably just as shocked as I was.
Then one of them shouted: "GET HER!"
Big mistake.
The second guy charged toward her holding the metal pipe.
I stepped forward to block him—
But Jay moved faster.
She ducked under the swing smoothly.
Then kicked the back of his knee.
The man collapsed instantly.
Jay grabbed the pipe from his hands mid-fall.
Like she'd done this before.
Too many times before.
The third attacker looked horrified now.
"…Why is she so strong?!"
Jay spun the pipe once lazily.
"Eat vegetables."
Even during near-death situations…
she was still ridiculous.
The guy suddenly lunged toward me instead.
I blocked his punch immediately and shoved him back hard.
Behind me Jay muttered, "Finally. I was starting to think I had to do everything."
"You're enjoying this too much."
"A little."
The man with the pipe got back up groaning angrily.
Then swung the metal pipe directly toward me.
Before I could react—
Jay grabbed the back of my jacket and yanked me backward.
The pipe barely missed my face.
Jay immediately kicked the attacker straight in the stomach.
The man crashed against the wall painfully.
I stared at her. "…Okay now I'm offended."
Jay looked at me innocently. "You're welcome."
The fight should've ended there.
But then—
the tallest attacker suddenly came from behind Jay.
And grabbed her arms tightly.
Everything changed instantly.
Jay froze.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
I saw it immediately.
Her body went stiff.
Breathing uneven suddenly.
Her eyes unfocused for one terrifying second.
Like she wasn't seeing this street anymore.
Like she was remembering something else.
Something bad.
The attacker smirked. "Got you."
But Jay didn't fight back immediately.
And that scared me more than the fight itself.
"Jay."
No response.
The attacker tightened his grip harder.
"Boss said you're trouble."
Jay's breathing became sharper.
Unstable.
Almost angry.
No.
Not angry.
Panicking.
Then suddenly the man hissed painfully.
Because Jay had stepped on his foot so hard I genuinely heard something crack.
He shouted in pain.
But instead of stopping—
Jay turned violently.
Fast.
Too fast.
And for one dangerous second…
the expression on her face genuinely terrified me.
Cold.
Empty.
Like she was about to seriously hurt someone.
The attacker noticed too.
Because he actually looked scared now.
Jay grabbed his collar harshly—
"Jay."
My voice came out sharper this time.
She paused.
Barely.
Still breathing hard.
I immediately grabbed her wrist gently.
"Look at me."
Her eyes shifted toward mine slowly.
The dangerous look still there slightly.
Then I said quieter:
"Breathe."
Silence.
The street felt frozen around us.
Then slowly…
very slowly…
Jay's shoulders relaxed slightly.
The anger faded little by little.
The attacker immediately pushed away from her in fear.
"What the hell is wrong with this girl?!"
Jay looked exhausted now more than angry.
Like she hated herself for losing control again.
The tallest guy suddenly spat to the side angrily.
"Forget this."
Then another attacker muttered:
"Boss was right about her."
My eyes narrowed instantly.
Boss?
This wasn't random.
Before I could question them—
the man pointed directly at Jay.
"This isn't over, MJ."
Then the three of them ran.
Fast.
Disappearing into the dark street.
Silence returned again.
Only our breathing remained.
Jay stood there staring at the ground quietly.
Still holding the metal pipe loosely.
I slowly took it from her hands.
Then looked at her properly.
"You okay?"
She forced a small shrug. "I've had worse Tuesdays."
I stared at her for a moment.
Then finally asked quietly:
"Who the hell wants to kidnap you?"
Jay didn't answer immediately.
And somehow…
that worried me even more.