Chapter 171 - Nice Meeting You

Jay-Jay's POV

"Shit!" one of them shouted after I landed a punch.

I tried to fight—wrong! I am trying to fight, even though my body is in no condition for it.

There are only five of them, but I'm struggling. I don't know why, but I no longer feel like the Jay-jay who could take on anyone at any time.

Facing Cyrus now feels different. He's just looking at me, yet it feels like his gaze alone is draining my strength.

What do they want?

"Nothing's changed... Still packs a punch," another guy muttered, wiping the blood from his lip.

Students were watching us. Worse, the teachers hated them, yet they just stood there, doing nothing.

They had dragged me onto the field. For what? To humiliate me? What do they want?

A damn package deal!

"Cyrus... Please... I don't want trouble." I tried to reason with him, but he kept staring at me.

"...What do you want?"

He crossed his arms and let out a short laugh. "What I want is simple, Jay. I want you to experience the suffering I went through."

I opened my mouth to respond—

But something suddenly struck the back of my thigh.

"Ugh!" I screamed as I collapsed onto the ground.

I clutched my leg, pain spreading like wildfire. One of Cyrus' gang members stood there, gripping a thick stick.

Damn it! This is worse than hazing!

"That hurts?" Cyrus smirked. "...That's not enough."

Another blow landed on my arm. I gasped in pain. Tears blurred my vision, but I refused to let them fall.

"What a pitiful sight!"

"Serves him right!"

"Cyrus is brutal!"

"Help Jay!"

Mixed reactions. But no one stepped forward. I knew that. Who would help someone like me?

Now I regretted not texting or calling Keifer. Not that it would've helped—they had no idea where I was.

I didn't want to drag my section into this mess.

Batman, I leave it to you.

I tried to stand, clutching my bruised arm. My entire body trembled.

"Pre! She's still standing!" one of them laughed.

"Stop, Jay-jay!" an older man called out from a distance.

Shit! Manong, stay out of this!

"If you step in, we'll beat you too!" they threatened.

Manong didn't move. I looked at him, silently pleading with my eyes. Don't interfere. I shook my head slightly.

I turned back to Cyrus, who was still smirking. Another hit landed—this time on my other thigh.

I collapsed onto my knees. The students screamed.

Damn it!

Why can't I fight back?

Why do I feel so weak... right now?!

I struggled to get up, but then I saw someone approach me. He stopped in front of me as I knelt, then—

He stepped on my hand, pressing it into the grass.

I held back a scream. I refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing me in pain.

I would not let him win.

"The endurance! You really don't want to give up, huh?" Cyrus laughed, and the others joined in.

Then, out of nowhere, a kick landed on my stomach. I fell backward, writhing in pain.

"C-Cy..." I gasped, staring up at him and his grinning friends.

Did I really hurt him so badly that he has to do this to me?

He was hospitalized, sure. But that's not the right question.

The real question is—

Is there no forgiveness for what I did to him?

Then again, Cyrus never did know how to forgive. No matter how many times I apologize, it won't make a difference.

"Argh!" I screamed as two more kicks struck my stomach.

I—I don't think I can take this anymore. My body was shaking. The pain was unbearable.

I could barely move.

Please... someone... help me.

"Cry all you want," Cyrus sneered. "No one will help you."

Please...

"Should we finish this?" one of them asked.

"Not yet... I'm still enjoying it," Cyrus replied before kicking my leg.

It wasn't a hard kick, but the pain still shot through me.

Keifer...

"Pick her up," Cyrus ordered his companions.

They grabbed my arm and forced me to stand. My body refused to cooperate, so they had to bear my weight. Tears streamed down my face from the sheer pain I was feeling.

Cyrus slapped me—hard. But my body was so sore that I barely even registered the sting.

"Really strong!" someone sneered at me.

What's your definition of strong?

I feel weak, like a wilted vegetable. Is that what you call durable?

I saw Cyrus clench his fist, preparing to punch me. I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for the impact.

A second passed, then another, but nothing came. Am I too numb to feel it now? I slowly opened my eyes—only to see the real reason why the punch never landed.

Someone had stopped him! I blinked a few times, making sure I wasn't imagining things.

First

I saw a hand gripping Cy's fist— and it was the hand of—Keifer? Then I noticed another hand clutching his collar—Yuri?

I blinked again. They're really here!

And they weren't alone. The Vipers surrounded us.

The guys holding me suddenly let go. My legs were still weak, and I nearly collapsed—

But before I could hit the ground, David caught me, steadying me.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

I simply nodded, still trying to process everything.

I turned back to Cyrus.

"Let me go!" he shouted, struggling, but Yuri and Keifer didn't budge.

"Cyrus Velasco?" Yuri asked, his tone unreadable.

"What do you want?!" Cyrus snapped, his frustration evident.

Yuri smiled. Did he just smile? But why? It wasn't a taunting smirk—just his usual, friendly smile. The same smile he always gave to everyone.

"We've finally met," Yuri said.

I turned to David, confused.

"W-what's going on? How did you guys get here?" I asked.

David smiled. "Ask your little friend here," he said, stepping aside to reveal Ci-N.

"Hi, Jay! Sorry we took so long!" Ci-N greeted with a grin.

I don't know why, but he seemed unusually hyper. He was practically bouncing in place, his energy radiating excitement.

"Ci... H-how did you k—how did you find me?"

"Oh, we just asked Sir. Then we talked to the staff at Camp Rock to figure out how to get here."

I nodded, finally understanding.

"Let me go! What the fuck do you want from me?! And who the hell are you?!" Cyrus roared, still struggling against Keifer and Yuri.

"I'm Yuri Hanamitchi," Yuri said, still smiling.

"Mark Keifer Watson," Keifer added, his tone deadly serious.

"...And we're the ones who'll make you pay for what you did to Jay-jay!"

Cyrus barely had time to react before Keifer landed a solid punch to his stomach. The force of the hit made Cyrus' eyes widen in shock.

Before he could collapse, Yuri grabbed him, forcing him to stand.

"Nice to fucking meet you," Yuri said before delivering another brutal punch.

This time, they let him fall to the ground, writhing in pain.

The crowd erupted with mixed reactions:

"Who are they?!"

"Shit, they're hot!"

"I think Jay knows them!"

"They're all so handsome!"

"The one with red hair is really good-looking!"

"The little one is so cute!"

"Wait, who's holding Jay?"

"Aaaayyy... I wish I were Jay!"

"You also want to get beaten up by Cyrus?"

"Idiot! I just want to be surrounded by hot guys!"

Only then did I remember—we still had an audience.

I immediately searched for the four guys who were with Cyrus earlier.

Felix, Kit, Edrix, and Denzel.

They were all here.

Wait a second!

If everyone was here... then who was back at our campsite?!

Oh, no.

If the camp organizers realize we're gone...

I turned to David in panic. "W-we have to g-get back!"

I looked down at the field.

I had nothing with me.

It seemed like I had left my things somewhere.

"...That's my....!" I muttered.

Ci-N and David glanced around, but they wouldn't find anything—because when I came to the field, I hadn't been holding anything.

"We'll find it," David assured me.

Meanwhile, Calix and Eren were acting like celebrities, waving at the girls in the crowd.

Can I report them to Mica?

"Ci-N! Do me a favor," David said suddenly. "Slap those two."

Ci-N wasted no time. He walked straight up to them and carried out the order, delivering a firm slap to both.

Calix and Eren immediately turned to glare at him, but Ci-N simply pointed at David.

David, in turn, casually raised his index finger and pointed at me.

Nice... Taking the blame like a pro.

"What the hell was that for?!" Eren demanded, scowling at me.

"It's My Stuff... Please Find It."

"No time to explain. It's up to me if they get mad at me," I said. Even though I didn't actually do anything to Ci-N.

"It's my stuff... Please find it," I ordered.

"That's all?" Calix replied. "...Alright, let's go!"

The two left immediately. How are they supposed to find it when they didn't even ask me where I lost it? Oh well, it's up to them.

"FUCKING ASSHOLE!" Keifer suddenly shouted.

We all turned to look at him. He was gripping Cyrus by the collar. Yuri, on the other hand, was sitting on the grass, wiping his lips.

"W-what happened?" I asked worriedly.

"That idiot fought back!" Drew explained. "Yuri was the closest to him, so he took the hit!"

"That's a stretch!" Ci-N shouted excitedly.

"Ci-N!" I scolded, though I couldn't help but smile a little.

"What are you doing with Jay-jay?! What do you care what I do to her?!" Cyrus snapped as he struggled to free himself from Keifer's grip.

"She's our classmate," Mayo answered quickly.

"She's our friend," Kit added.

"She's part of our family," Ci-N said, flashing me a smile.

Hearing those warmed words I smiled. It was good to hear those words. At first, I thought I was the only one who felt that way—but they did too.

"She belongs to Section E," Yuri added as he stood up.

"And she's mine," Keifer declared. ❤️

I slapped my forehead. Why does he always have to add something like that?

Seriously! Annoying!

"Jay's boyfriend!" someone in the crowd suddenly shouted.

He is NOT my boyfriend! What?

"Jay-jay replaced you with me?!" Cyrus laughed mockingly at Keifer.

Keifer's expression darkened.

Oh no…

I wanted to tell Cyrus to shut up before things got worse.

"...You fooled around with that girl too?!" Cyrus sneered, only making Keifer's scowl deepen.

Before I could react, Keifer's fist slammed into Cyrus' face, sending him stumbling backward. Blood immediately dripped from Cy's nose and mouth.

I thought that was it—but Keifer didn't stop. He closed the distance in an instant and punched him again.

Sht! He just got out of the hospital!

"Yuri!" I shouted, turning to him. "...G-get Keifer away from him! He might seriously hurt Cyrus!"

"Sorry, Jay! But I can't stop Keifer!" Yuri replied.

"Keifer's fed up," David said.

"He's gone. There's no stopping him now," Ci-N added, almost sounding disappointed.

It was clear that no one intended to interfere. The crowd backed away, terrified.

"Keifer!" I called out desperately. "...Keifer! Please! That's enough!"

Even though he was obviously still furious, Keifer halted and turned to face me. He was breathing heavily as he slowly approached.

"Why?" he asked.

"He just got out of the hospital. He might be seriously hurt," I explained.

Keifer huffed. "Then let's take him back to the hospital where he came from and tell them they didn't do a good job treating him," Ci-N joked, making the others chuckle. 😂

But I wasn't amused.

I was grateful that they came to help me, but looking at Cyrus now, I wasn't sure if I should be thankful.

"What do we do with these guys?" Felix asked, tightening his grip on Cyrus' friends.

"Up to you," Keifer replied indifferently.

Ci-N suddenly clapped, grinning. "Let me hit them first!" he cheered.

So that's why he's been so hyper this whole time—he just wanted to join the fight.

Thank you! Really a big shit!

Keifer suddenly picked me up like a bridal style. I was a bit shocked. I lost my mind that there were many people with us and many people were watching us. ❤️

Yuri completely disappeared from my mind. I turned to look for him, but he was already caught up with Ci-N.

"Jay..." Keifer called softly. "...I forgot something." He said, leaned forward and suddenly kissed me on the lips. ❤️

The crowd erupted into excited screams.

My mind went blank.

"W-what was that for?!" I stammered.

"You owe me a kiss. You cursed earlier while eating chocolate," he said with a smirk.

He still remembers that?! That's great. I am not safe from this man.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted Calix and Eren approaching, carrying my belongings.

"Keifer... Let's get out of here," I whispered.

He nodded. "Let's go."

Ci-N was still sniffling while walking, probably still thinking about everything that had happened.

We left the school.

I don't want to come back.

I don't want to relive this moment ever again.

I turned for one last look at Cyrus, now surrounded by his classmates.

I hope... this is the last time.