Jay-jay's POV
Whoa! Lola's questions were so surprising. A boyfriend, really?!
"He's not her boyfriend," Kuya Angelo answered on my behalf.
"A suitor?" Lola asked again.
"N-no, Grandma. He's my classmate," I replied.
"Oh… Is he the one you're working on the report with? Your aunt told me you'd be doing a report," she continued.
Yuri looked at me as if asking, What does that mean? I wanted to deny it, but they'd wonder why we were together in the first place. So, I just gave a small nod. I noticed that Aunt Jenny was looking at me strangely, as if she had something to say.
Yuri stood up and tidied up the first aid kit.
"All done," he said as he handed it back to Aunt Gema. "…Thanks."
Suddenly, Aries barged in with the twins and immediately shot Yuri a sharp glare.
"What are you doing here?!" Aries asked angrily.
"None of your business," Yuri replied, sounding completely bored. Then, he turned to me. "…I'll go ahead. I'll take care of printing our report."
Our report?
Impressive! He played along with my lie, even though he didn't even know what it was about. Life saver, Yuri!
"Young man, don't leave yet!" Grandma suddenly stopped him.
Grandma, come on! Just let him go!
"Grandma! Just let him go. He's not welcome here," Aries snapped.
A loud smack from Grandma silenced him instantly. Even the rest of us were shocked. The twins instinctively stepped back.
"Don't be rude! He's Jay's guest!" Grandma scolded him before turning back to Yuri. "…Stay and have dinner with us."
"S-sure," he agreed.
It looked like he had no choice. Or maybe he got scared by how hard Grandma smacked Aries.
I went to my room to change. My clothes were already dirty. After changing, I started organizing my things when Aunt Jenny suddenly came in.
She closed the door behind her and glared at me. "Are you pregnant? Or are you planning to get pregnant?"
I frowned. "Huh?"
"I know you're going to end up getting married early! So just admit it—are you pregnant, or are you planning to get pregnant by that guy?!"
"Are you on drugs?"
"Don't change the subject!"
"I'm not! And I'm not planning to get pregnant!" I answered irritably.
Aunt Jenny must have lost her mind. Or maybe she was just completely brainwashed. Just because I've never done anything right, does she really think I'd get pregnant so easily?
"You better make sure of that! Have some shame for Gema! They're feeding you and sending you to school, and you're just going to get pregnant?!" she scolded before storming out of my room.
Crazy!
I left my room and found Yuri sitting on the sofa, being interrogated by the twins, while Aries watched over them like a guard.
"Are you really not Jay's boyfriend?" Allan asked.
"Geez, twin… Are you on unlimited mode? You keep repeating yourself!" Allen butted in.
The two instantly started bickering. Yuri just watched them, completely unfazed. He really just let them argue.
As soon as he saw me, he immediately approached me. "Are they always like that?"
I just nodded.
"Your uncle doesn't seem to like me," he added.
So, he had already met Uncle Julz? I wonder what they talked about.
"What did he say to you?" I asked.
He chuckled. "He told me you're not allowed to have a boyfriend yet."
I suddenly burst out laughing. Looks like getting a ride home from Yuri made things worse. Now, everyone was thinking he was my boyfriend.
Unbelievable!
"Dinner's ready. Come to the dining room," Kuya said, pointing toward the dining area.
Aries and the twins went ahead while Yuri and I walked together. Grandma and Aunt Gema were busy setting everything up.
We took our seats. Yuri was on my left, and Aries was on my right. If Aries' eyes had laser beams, I would've been the first to get hit before Yuri.
Wow, what a glare!
"Yuri… Who are your parents?" Uncle Julz asked.
"My parents are Yumori and Yakito Hanamitchi," Yuri answered casually.
It was like he was being interrogated. Or maybe it felt like a job interview.
"He's the grandson of Yuori Hanamitchi, the owner of the company we're trying to get a deal with," Kuya Angelo added.
"Really? How's your grandfather doing?" Uncle Julz asked again.
"He's in Japan right now," Yuri replied.
As Uncle Julz and Yuri continued talking, I put some food on Yuri's plate. He was so busy answering all the questions that he probably forgot he was supposed to be eating.
"After dinner, make sure your guest leaves," Aries whispered to me.
I just rolled my eyes at him. He was so restless just because they were not on good terms. Yuri finally started eating. Uncle Julz seemed to have gotten tired of questioning him.
"Jay…" Yuri suddenly spoke. "…Can I have that?" he asked, pointing to the pile of green peas I had pushed to the side of my plate.
I didn't like green peas. I just didn't, so I always set them aside. "Sure, take them," I said, moving my plate closer to him.
Yuri smiled as he took the green peas. I glanced at his plate and noticed he wasn't touching his potatoes.
"I'll take the potatoes."
Yuri moved his plate closer to me. "Go ahead."
I took all the potatoes from his plate. Wow, we actually complemented each other well—he didn't like potatoes, but I did. I didn't like green peas, but he did.
"Yuri! Are you related to Sakuragi?" Allan asked.
As usual, Allen answered for him. "Sakuragi isn't a real person. Don't be an idiot, twin."
And, of course, they started fighting again. We just ignored them. That's just how they were. When they got tired of fighting each other, they'd start bothering me instead.
After dinner, we began clearing the table. Yuri wanted to help, but Grandma wouldn't let him. She told him to just wait in the living room.
Once I finished helping Grandma, I followed Yuri to the living room. I saw him talking with Kuya Angelo, and they both looked really serious.
What are you talking about?" I asked them.
Kuya forced a smile at me. "Nothing."
Yuri turned to me and smiled. "I have to go."
"Aren't you going to say goodbye to Grandma?"
"Maybe not. Just let her know for me," he replied with a smile.
He started walking out, so I followed him. Even if it was just up to the gate, I wanted to see him off. We both stopped when we stepped outside the gate.
"Please send my apologies to your grandma. I wasn't able to say a proper goodbye," he said.
"Sure. Take care, and thank you for this." I gestured to my knee, which he had treated.
"Thank you too, for the dinner."
He smiled at me, so I returned the smile. Then I went back inside and let him leave.
Yuri is actually a kind person. Maybe I was really wrong to think that he and Keifer had the same personality. Maybe he's just being influenced by that snake of a king.
It wouldn't be impossible, considering they're always together. If I were Yuri, I'd stay away from that jerk Keifer.
When I got back inside, everyone was in the living room.
"Has Yuri left?" Grandma asked me.
"Yes. He said thank you for the dinner and sorry for not saying a proper goodbye."
"Is that so? What a shame."
"Are you sure that Yuri isn't courting you?" Uncle Julz suddenly asked.
What?!
"N-no, Uncle! He's really just my classmate."
"Are you sure?" Kuya asked.
Ugh, so persistent! "Yes! Stop asking!"
Kuya gave me a sharp look. They were seriously so persistent. I already said no, yet they still wouldn't believe me.
"Stop teasing Jay..." Aunt Gema interrupted and turned to me. "...Get some rest. We'll talk tomorrow."
I just gave a small nod and walked toward my room. As soon as I entered, before I could even close the door, the twins barged in.
"What the heck?!" I scolded them. Allen lay down on my bed while Allan headed straight for my closet. "Don't mess with my stuff!"
"Mom said you're getting married soon," Allen said, making me frown.
"Yeah, because she said you're useless, so you'll just end up getting married," Allan added.
"If you have nothing sensible to say, get out!"
"Wait! Don't you want to hear some news about your ex?" Allen teased.
"The ex who almost died because of you," Allan added with a smirk.
"Get out!" I shouted angrily.
"He's awake! And guess what? He's looking for you!"
Their voices felt like a nagging conscience inside my head, repeating over and over in a taunting way. I felt like I was going to lose my mind if they stayed any longer.
"Twins!" Aries' voice called from the doorway as he looked at us.
"We just had some news for Jay-jay," Allan said to him.
"Are you done?" Aries asked.
"Not yet, actually..." Allen taunted.
"Leave," I ordered, glaring at them.
"Fine, we'll leave." Allen got up from my bed and started walking out, followed by Allan.
Before leaving, Allan turned to me and spoke again.
"Your ex had a message for you... He's coming back. Not to get back together, but to get revenge."
I immediately shoved him out and slammed the door shut. My teeth clenched, and my fists tightened.
I didn't mean for it to happen. I don't even remember exactly what went down. All I know is that we fought. He hit me, and blood came out of my mouth.
Just like what happened before, in front of Aries. And it almost happened again during P.E.
That same feeling...
What the hell is really going on?