Chapter 38: The Distance Between Us 💔✨
The applause from the banquet still echoed faintly in Jay's ears, but all she could hear… was silence.
Her heart was screaming, but her face? Calm. Cold. Untouched.
She walked down the corridor — heels clicking, crown of composure perfectly in place 👠.
Behind her mask of power, the storm brewed quietly.
> "You did good, Jasper Jean," she whispered to herself, eyes glimmering beneath the soft light.
"You showed them who you are. Now… breathe."
But breathing hurt.
Because when her eyes accidentally met his across the room — everything she'd buried came crashing back.
---
Keifer's POV 💔🔥
He stood there, frozen.
The crowd still buzzing, the cameras flashing, but all he could see was her.
Jasper Jean Mariano.
The woman he pushed away, the woman who had risen higher than anyone dared dream.
He wanted to be proud. He wanted to clap, to run to her, to whisper her name like it was sacred —
but all he did was stand there.
> "You idiot," he muttered under his breath.
"You let her go… and she became untouchable."
Jay's eyes passed over him once — just once — but it felt like eternity.
That same gaze he used to love now felt distant. Cold.
And yet… the softness behind it betrayed her.
He knew that look.
That was Jay — fighting her own tears.
---
Jay's POV 🌪️
Her body screamed for rest, but she wouldn't give it the satisfaction.
She wouldn't crumble. Not now.
Not when they were all watching.
Angelo, Percy, Aries, Section E — every face that mattered to her — was there.
And they looked at her like she was unreal.
Like she had become something beyond their reach.
But deep inside?
She was just Jay.
The same girl who laughed too loud, fought too hard, and loved too much.
She wanted to go to them, hug them, be with them again — but the CEO mask had fused to her skin.
She couldn't tear it off now.
> "Congratulations, Ms. Mariano," someone said.
"You've changed the game."
She smiled.
A perfect, practiced, empty smile.
"Thank you," she replied, voice steady.
But inside, a voice screamed —
> "Why can't I just go back? Why does it hurt so much to succeed?"
---
Keifer's POV 😔
He couldn't take it anymore.
The distance. The silence. The way she pretended he didn't exist.
He stepped closer.
One step. Two.
The air thick with everything left unsaid.
> "Jay—" he started softly.
But she turned before he could finish.
Eyes sharp, chin high, like a queen addressing her fallen knight.
> "Mr. Keifer," she said coldly, cutting through him like glass.
"If you'll excuse me, I have another meeting."
Her voice didn't tremble.
But her hands… did.
He noticed. Of course he did.
> "You can lie to the world, Jay," he whispered under his breath, watching her walk away.
"But you can't lie to me."
---
Section E POV 💫
From the corner of the room, Section E watched the whole scene unfold — their proud smiles mixed with heartbreak.
> "She really did it," Denzel murmured.
"Our Jay… the CEO of Crownveil."
> "She's shining," Yuri said, eyes soft.
"But why does it feel so lonely?"
Felix crossed his arms.
> "Because power comes with a price," he said quietly.
They all knew it.
Jay wasn't just their friend anymore — she was the woman who defied the world.
But they also knew… she was still their Jay beneath all that steel and gold.
And maybe, just maybe —
she was still waiting for someone brave enough to break through her walls.
---
Jay's POV —
When she finally got to her office, the silence wrapped around her like a ghost.
Her phone buzzed once —
📩 From: Percy
> "Proud of you, lil sis. You did it. ❤️"
Jay smiled through tears she didn't let fall.
Then another message — this time from an unknown number.
No name. Just one line.
> "I'm still here. —K"
Her breath hitched.
Her fingers hovered over the screen.
But she didn't reply.
Instead, she whispered to herself,
> "Then prove it."
And just like that, the CEO mask slid back on — perfect, poised, unbreakable.
But deep inside…
Jay was still waiting.
For someone who'd dare to love the girl behind the crown. 👑💔
---
Bye bye 👋
Love you all ❤️