Chapter 66 - Competition

Arie's POV

"What are you planning for Section E?" Ella asked Freya.

It's crazy. The E.T. school has been on the market for a long time.

"They can create..." she paused, looking at herself in the mirror.

Kiko came and sat down near the mirror. He didn't look good. He had been drinking a lot, and now he was drinking again. I wasn't sure if this was because of Jay-Jay.

Freya approached Kiko, seemingly planning something bad. She leaned over to him. We weren't surprised—she had been Kiko's longtime lover. Others were just watching. Freya rolled something between her fingers, and it seemed like they were talking in secret. We didn't react to Kiko.

"What do you think Freya intends to do?" Ella whispered to me.

"I don't know, but I swear I have a bad feeling about it."

We kept watching them.

As a woman, she didn't care what others thought—she just did what she wanted. And I had a feeling that Jay-Jay was her target in her plan to join Section E.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Jay-Jay's POV

"How much do you bet? Freya is really crazy," Ci-N said to Eren.

Don, on the other hand, was right. We fell silent when we suddenly realized we were caught up in it. I wish it was just a competition—Mr. Ganda and Ms. Pogi. After the battle of the bands, there's also a singing contest and a dance competition.

What?!

"Hello there! Who's going to be in Don's team?"

"What's Keifer plotting?" someone asked the King of Vipers.

"Tss," he answered.

Wow! That was helpful. His tongue might as well be cut off. The answer was so vague, it didn't help at all.

"Jay! Let's go!" Eman called out to me.

It was lunch break, and Eman was cooking. Of course, the food was so good that we had to put some on the table before eating. Sounds fair, right?

"Don't you dare!"

"Ci-N! I'm getting ahead of you!"

"I can! You're right! Jay-Jay, oh!"

"You starving idiot… we can eat the same food."

"What's that?"

They were a mess! My head hurt. Freya had been a pain in the ass ever since she was born.

"The line is too long! Did you even charge them?!" I asked.

After the first meal, Eman was already in charge. Some people thought all of our services were free. One of them just shook his head. Of course, there were those who proudly paid and those who shamelessly took advantage.

Thick-skinned!

"We'll charge them later—double pay!" I ordered.

They couldn't refuse and just laughed. Someone was trying to scoop rice from the large rice cooker, acting as if they were making it themselves. The pork chops were the real prize, though. I could've easily slipped something in for the Vipers, but I was too kind to do that. I looked at them one by one while eating.

Keifer and Denzel were the only ones without food. I grabbed the plate Eman had prepared and set it down for the King of Beasts. It had to be special—he still owed me. There was a glass of wine, a slice of cake I had bought earlier, and a meal worthy of a five-star hotel.

"Here you go… Your Majesty!" I said, placing the food down.

Keifer gave me a nasty look before I turned away. I had bought another meal for Denzel, but he didn't seem interested in eating. He had been deep in thought for days. I wasn't one to pry, but I was dying to ask if the pregnancy test was his concern.

Oh my! My husband and I haven't even talked since the night before. I had been too excited about the show and felt a little down because of it. I placed the food in front of Denzel, but he just stared at it.

"Denzel…" I called his attention.

"... Eat that."

"T-thanks, Jay, but I don't feel like eating," he said, pushing the food slightly away.

I saw my chance to ask.

"Got a problem? Feeling nervous?"

Denzel nodded, but I wasn't going to let it slide.

"It's okay to tell me. You know that."

"W-nothing, really… I just don't want to eat."

"Denzel… you obviously have a problem. Spill it. Is it about a girl? Are you heartbroken? Rejected? Or… pregnancy scare?"

Denzel flinched slightly and avoided eye contact.

Bingo!

"What? Why aren't you responding?" I asked excitedly.

Denzel took a deep breath and motioned for me to come closer. I leaned in, waiting for him to speak.

"Jay..." he started.

"... I'll admit it early, bu—" He took another deep breath.

"... I'm pregnant." He whispered.

I wanted to laugh, but he was dead serious.

"Are you messing with me?" I whispered back.

"I'm serious…" he replied.

I listened carefully. Since when do men get pregnant? Unless… was I missing something?

"How is that even possible?"

"Because, Jay… I'm actually a woman. I just disguised myself as a man because I was afraid of them."

My eyes widened. My brain short-circuited. Is that even possible?!

Just then, Dean burst out laughing. I was relieved to see him laugh, but I had to make sure he was okay.

"What the hell?! Hahahaha… Damn, you actually believed that?! Hahahaha!" He kept laughing.

Bug!

The others were staring at us. I pulled him into a tight hug to shut him up.

"That hurts!" he complained, nodding his head.

"I'm serious about this!"

"Well, there you go… You're too gullible!"

"Tsk! You idiot! You really believed that?!"

"The guy was thinking!"

"Then what else would you expect—"

"SHUT UP!!" Keifer suddenly yelled, cutting us off.

"... You guys are annoying! If you want to fight, do it outside!"

We looked at each other like scolded kids but still didn't stop. We kept blaming each other.

"Are you really not going to stop?!" Keifer asked angrily.

"Fine…" Denzel and I answered.

I placed the food in front of Denzel, but I ended up eating instead.

"Was that for me?" he asked.

"When did I ever say I didn't want you to eat?" I shot back.

He hesitated for a moment before finally reaching for the food.

No one seemed interested in eating anymore. Weird!

I was about to dig in when I noticed Felix eating alone in the kitchen. I hadn't spoken to him yet. I grabbed a bench and sat across from him.

"You want some chocolate?" I offered.

He looked away, deep in thought.

"I don't want any," he answered quickly.

"Felix… do you hate me? Did I do something earlier?" I asked.

No response. I pressed on.

"... Did I say something wrong? Did I take your food? What did I do?"

Still no answer. He kept staring in the other direction.

Then suddenly—

"... What did Aries do earlier?"

He looked at me. I couldn't tell if he was angry or what, but I had a bad feeling. He leaned in and whispered,

"A lot…"

"What do you mean—"

"Aries is a murderer," he added before walking away.

I froze. His words sent a chill down my spine. I looked at Keifer, and our eyes met. It was as if we both knew something was off. I stood up and walked back to where Eman was. Something felt… wrong.

"You alright, Jay?" Eman asked.

I forced a smile and nodded. But in reality, I wasn't okay. I stepped outside for some fresh air. The breeze was cool, and the trees in the distance made it peaceful. I walked around the house and saw Denzel. It looked like he was arguing with someone. I moved a little closer.

Canvas-2!

That was Freya's ally. She was crying and fighting with Denzel.

"Get out of here!" Denzel shouted.

"That's how it is, huh?!" Canvas-2 shot back.

"Don't touch me! I swear, you'll regret it!" Denzel yelled.

Canvas-2 looked pitiful, but I couldn't get involved. I had no idea what was going on.

"Denzel! I'm begging you!" Canvas-2 pleaded.

"Go away!"

"Think about your child, Denzel! Have mercy!"

What the hell?!

My brain nearly short-circuited.

I ran back to the room. Denzel must have seen me, but I didn't care.

I was right! It was about a pregnancy test.

And the way things were going… it seemed like there was more to this than I realized.