JAY-JAY POV
****AFTER THE WAR*****
I was finally in neat clothes, hair half‑dry, skin no longer coated in flour‑paste, and I'd just sunk into the couch when the doorbell rang.
Of course.
Of course someone would interrupt the five minutes of peace I earned with my blood, sweat, and pool water.
Who the hell is it now?
I dragged myself to the door, opened it—
And froze.
"Mia?" I said, blinking like my brain needed a reboot.
She took off her sunglasses in slow motion, dramatic as always, and behind her stood her husband—
What was his name again?
…Caleb.
Right. Caleb. The man who somehow survived being married to Mia.
"JAY‑JAY!" she squealed, launching herself at me like a missile.
"Mia—OMG!" I said, hugging her back, still in shock because she was supposed to be in another city, another country, another continent for all I knew.
She pulled back, holding my shoulders, eyes wide.
"You look—wait, why do you smell like chlorine and bread dough?" Mia asked, nose wrinkling like I'd personally offended her senses.
I blinked.
One word escaped my mouth.
"Kids."
"Speaking of which, where are they?" she said, already stepping inside like she owned the place.
Caleb followed her in, calm as ever, hands in his pockets.
"Hi, Jay," he said with that polite, soft smile he always had.
"Hi, Caleb," I said, giving him a quick side hug — because unlike his wife, he didn't greet people by tackling them.
Mia spun around, eyes wide, scanning the living room like she expected children to fall from the ceiling.
"Jay‑Jay… why is your house so quiet? Where are the gremlins?"
I opened my mouth to answer—
And right on cue, a massive splash exploded from the backyard.
Mia's eyes widened.
"I'm going out," she declared, already speed‑walking toward the sliding door like she was about to raid a crime scene.
"MIA, STOP RUNNING!" Caleb yelled, chasing after her like a man who knew he had no real authority.
What is wrong with him.
I followed them out, bracing myself.
And there they were.
My four wet, chaotic disasters — Keifer and the kids — all in the pool, soaked, laughing, splashing like they hadn't nearly drowned me ten minutes ago.
But the second they saw Mia?
All three kids scrambled out of the pool like puppies spotting their favorite aunt.
"TITA MIA, I MISSED YOU!" they all yelled at the same time, launching themselves at her.
Mia dropped to her knees dramatically, arms wide open like she was greeting royalty.
"My cute little hurricanes! How did I survive without you guys for two years?" she cried, hugging all three of them like she'd been wandering the desert and finally found water.
I rolled my eyes.
Honestly, sometimes it felt like I gave birth to them, but she raised them.
Still… I couldn't help smiling.
Keira was clinging to her neck.
Kade was squeezing her waist.
Kevin had his arms around her shoulders like a tiny gentleman.
And Mia?
She was soaking it all in like she'd been starved of chaos.
Caleb stood beside me
Mia pulled back from the kids, cupping their cheeks dramatically.
"Look at you! You all grew! Why are you taller? Who allowed this?"
Keira giggled.
"Mama did."
Mia gasped.
"Jay‑Jay! How dare you let them grow without me!"
I snorted.
"They're children, Mia. Not houseplants."
She glared at me like I'd personally offended her soul.
Then she hugged the kids again.
Then Keifer got out of the pool, dripping wet, hair plastered to his forehead, looking like a confused golden retriever who suddenly remembered he had social skills.
He pointed at Mia.
"You're Mia?"
Mia nodded, flipping her hair like she was on a runway.
"You're Keifer."
Keifer nodded slowly, squinting at her like he was trying to place her face.
"I think I saw you somewhere…" Keifer said, squinting like his brain was buffering.
Mia raised an eyebrow, arms crossed, waiting for the stupidity to reveal itself.
Then Keifer snapped his fingers.
"Wait—I saw you in the grocery shop four years ago!"
He froze mid‑sentence.
"Son of a—"
He cut himself off, eyes widening as the math finally math'd.
He turned to me slowly.
"Jay… that woman in the mask was you?"
I froze.
Mia didn't.
She rolled her eyes so hard I swear she saw her own brain.
"Well duh, geniuses."
Keifer looked personally betrayed by the universe, like fate had played a prank on him.
"You were the woman who said—" he cleared his throat and dramatically reenacted it, "'Jasmin, I will take these men.'"
Mia snorted.
Keifer kept going, muttering under his breath, "If it wasn't for you, I would've found my wife a long time ago…"
"WIFE?!" Mia yelled, whipping her head toward me so fast her hair almost slapped Caleb.
I froze like a criminal caught mid‑escape.
"I didn't marry him," I said quickly, hands up like I needed the universe to witness my innocence.
"Yet," Keifer added.
I turned to him so slowly it should've been illegal.
"Keifer."
He blinked, all fake innocence.
"What? I'm manifesting."
Mia gasped dramatically, grabbing my arm.
"JAY‑JAY. YOU DIDN'T TELL ME YOU GOT A HUSBAND."
"I DON'T HAVE A HUSBAND."
Keifer raised a finger.
"Not legally."
"KEIFER."
The kids, of course, were eating this up like popcorn.
Keira whispered loudly, "Mama, Papa is delusional again."
Kade nodded. "He needs help."
Kevin added, "He said he's your husband every day."
Mia's jaw dropped.
"EVERY DAY?!"
Keifer shrugged.
"Consistency is key."
"JAY, YOU LIVE WITH THIS MAN?" Mia demanded, eyes wide like she'd just discovered I was harboring a criminal.
I nodded, already regretting every life choice that led me here.
Caleb stepped forward, calm and polite as always, and offered Keifer his hand.
"Caleb. Mia's husband."
Keifer shook his hand with way too much confidence for someone who had just dragged me into a pool.
"Keifer. Jay's soon‑to‑be husband."
He smirked.
I swear I almost threw a chair at him.
Mia's jaw dropped so hard it nearly hit the floor.
"SOON‑TO‑BE WHAT?!"
Keifer shrugged like this was a normal introduction.
"What? I'm just being honest."
I glared at him.
"Keifer."
He winked at me.
Mia turned to me, then slowly shifted her glare to Keifer like she was about to interrogate him under a spotlight.
Before she could open her mouth, Caleb clapped Keifer on the shoulder.
"Thanks, man. You finally came," Caleb said with the relief of someone who had been suffering in silence. "Because of those two, I thought I was the third wheel every time they met."
I blinked.
Mia blinked.
Keifer blinked.
Then Keifer grinned like this was the best compliment he'd ever received.
"Well," he said proudly, "I am her soon‑to‑be husband."
I groaned.
Mia slapped Caleb's arm.
"BABE! Why are you encouraging him?!"
Caleb held up his hands, still defending himself like he was on trial.
"I'm just saying the truth. Every time you and Jay hang out, I think it's you two who got married together."
Mia's head snapped toward Caleb so fast I swear I heard her neck crack.
"OKAY, ENOUGH," I cut in before she could murder her husband. "Mia, I think there are cookies in the kitchen."
She didn't even blink.
"Skip the cookies. I want something sour and spicy."
I stared at her.
…What?
This woman used to inhale cupcakes like oxygen.
She once cried because a bakery ran out of cheesecake.
She used to say spicy food was "for people who hate their tongue."
And now she wants sour and spicy?
I blinked again, slower this time.
"Okay, I think there are some," I said, and Mia practically sprinted to the kitchen.
Caleb followed her like a tired bodyguard.
Keifer and the kids wandered in behind me from the backyard, dripping water everywhere like they were marking territory.
I sighed, grabbed a towel, and without thinking twice, reached up to rub Keifer's hair dry.
"Idiot, look at you. You might catch a fever or a cold," I scolded, rubbing harder because the man had the audacity to grin at me.
He leaned down slightly, enjoying it way too much.
Behind him, the kids stood in a line, dripping like three soggy puppies.
"Kids, clean yourselves with the towels over there," I said, pointing.
They didn't move.
They just… stared at me.
All three of them.
Keira with her big eyes.
Kade with his confused face.
Kevin with his tiny serious expression.
I frowned.
"What?"
Keira tilted her head.
"Mama… why are you drying Papa first?"
Kade nodded slowly.
"Yeah. You always dry us first."
Kevin added, "You didn't even look at us."
I froze.
Keifer smirked.
The kids stared at me like I'd just been caught cheating on a test I didn't study for.
Think fast, Jay. SAY SOMETHING.
"Clean yourselves. You're old enough to know how to do it," I said, trying to sound firm and mature They did not buy it.
Kevin, the tiny judge of the household, looked me dead in the eyes and said:
"Ma… Papa is older than us."
I blinked.
The other two kids stared at Kevin like he had just delivered the final blow in a courtroom drama.
And honestly?
He wasn't wrong.
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out.
Keira crossed her arms.
"Yeah, Mama. Papa is the OLDEST. Why are you drying him first?"
Kade nodded, backing her up.
"Yeah. He's like… super old."
I opened my mouth, ready to defend myself—
But Keifer, of course, stepped closer, towel still in my hand, leaning into my touch like a smug cat.
He smirked.
"Kids, your mama just loves me more."
I whipped my head toward him.
"KEIFER."
The kids gasped like he'd just revealed a family secret.
Keifer folded his arms, smirk growing like he'd been waiting his whole life for this moment.
"Go on, Jay," he said, voice dripping with smugness. "Tell them."
I glared at him so hard he should've burst into flames.
"Keifer, shut up."
I shoved the towel into his chest so hard he actually stumbled a little.
"Dry yourself from now on," I snapped, turning away from him before he could say something else
I marched straight to the kids and grabbed another towel, pulling Keira toward me first.
"Come here," I muttered, rubbing her hair gently.
She leaned into me immediately, smug as ever.
"Mama chose me first," she whispered loudly enough for the whole neighborhood to hear.
Kade gasped.
"HEY!"
Kevin crossed his arms.
"This is favoritism."
I rolled my eyes and pulled Kade next, ruffling his hair until it stuck up like a baby porcupine.
"There. Happy?"
He grinned.
"Yes."
Kevin stepped forward like a tiny CEO.
"My turn."
I dried his hair too, smoothing it down the way he liked.
And for a moment, everything was peaceful.
Until I felt eyes burning into the back of my head.
I turned.
Keifer was standing there with the towel in his hands…
Not drying himself.
Just staring at me.
Smiling.
Smug.
Smiling like he'd just won a war I didn't know we were fighting.
I glared.
"What?"
He shrugged, still grinning.
"Nothing. Just watching my wife take care of our kids."
I threw the nearest towel at his face.
"There is something seriously wrong with you," I snapped. "Go to the mental hospital, you gago."
Keifer only smirked and stepped closer, towel still in his hand like he forgot what it was for.
"You, Jay… you've been cussing too much," he said, voice annoyingly calm.
"And?" I shot back.
"I think you forgot our deal."
I frowned.
"What deal?"
He leaned in, eyes glinting.
"Pro—"
Oh no.
"Fa—"
Oh no.
"Nity."
Kevin blinked.
"Profanity?"
Keifer nodded proudly.
"Kids, from now on, if your mom ever cusses, you tell me."
He stepped forward like he was about to give a TED Talk.
Keira tilted her head.
"Why, Pa?"
He smirked, eyes locked on me.
"I'll show you."
And before I could even process what was happening—
This idiot kissed me.
Right there.
I pushed him back, face burning.
"YOU—!"
Keifer tilted his head, stepping closer like he wanted to get hit.
"Me what, Jay?" he asked, voice low and annoyingly smug. "Cuss, please, baby."
I froze.
"Ma, Papa is being cheesy again," Keira announced like she was reporting a crime.
"EWWWWW," Kade groaned, scrunching his whole face like he'd just tasted spoiled milk.
Kevin didn't even hesitate—he was already halfway inside the house.
"I'm getting out of here."
"Change into something dry!" I yelled after them.
Kevin didn't stop walking.
"Yeah, yeah—just try not to do anything gross in front of us again!"
I blinked.
Keifer choked on air.
Keira gasped.
"K‑KEVIN!"
Kade nodded seriously.
"He's right though."
I turned slowly toward Keifer, who was trying—and failing—not to laugh.
"Don't," I warned.
He held up his hands, still grinning.
"I didn't say anything."
"You didn't have to," I muttered.
He stepped closer, lowering his voice.
"See? Even the kids know we look good together."
I shoved him lightly.
"Go dry yourself before I drown you."
He smirked.
"You'd save me."
"Not today."
He laughed, and for a moment, the house felt warm and stupid and chaotic in the best way.
**********************************************************************************
💙🔥 AUTHOR'S NOTE — QUICK UPDATE 🔥💙
Hey everyone! I know I didn't post yesterday — I had a really bad headache 😭💀 But I'm feeling better now
NOW LISTEN. Who watched Ep 7 of Section E and cried AND blushed because SAME 😭🤭🔥
OMG JAYFER DID THE FRENCH KISS And I was sitting there blushing like an idiot 😭💙🔥
And PLEASE… Who else wanted to fight the rooster guys 😭💀✨ Like hello??? My poor Jayfer finally had an passionate kissed and then YURI RUINED IT
Did anyone else notice how NOBODY is rooting for Jayri anymore or am I just losing my mind 😭🔥
Also… hot take but I stand by it: David is the REAL second lead, not that rooster (no hate to Rabin 😭💀) I just hate Yuri at this point 😭🔥
And ONE more thing… Who else felt BAD for Aries 😭🔥 Like OMG, Ella confessed to Yuri and I was just sitting there CRYING for Aries. My poor boy did NOT deserve that emotional damage 😭💔
And honestly? I don't think Keifer should've punched Aries… BUT at the same time, Keifer is actually taking a stand for Yuri — unlike that rooster 😭💀✨
Those who knows what Yuri has in book 3 💀☠️