Jayjay's Pov:
Two days passed in a blur of teasing from Section E. Every time Keifer and I walked together, someone would whisper, "Wife!" or "Hubby!" and make us both turn pink.
But today was different. The atmosphere at the airport was heavy. Kuya Angelo was standing perfectly still, his face unreadable, but I could see his hands shaking slightly. Me, Keifer, Aries, and Ella were also with him, waiting for the moment the storm—or the peace—would finally arrive.
"She's here," Keifer muttered, pointing toward the gate.
A girl with long, flowing hair walked through. She stopped the moment she saw Angelo. The "Death" looked like he had seen a ghost.
"Angelo," she whispered while smiling.
He didn't say a word. He just walked up and pulled her into a hug so tight it looked like he'd never let go. The rest of us just stood there, smiling, watching the coldest man we know completely break down his walls.
"I missed you," Kuya said.
We all froze. This is the first time he has ever said "I missed you" to someone besides Tita Gemma.
"I missed you too," Ion said.
Ohh, I think now I should call her Ate, and she is also older than me.
"Hey, how'd you know her and where did you meet her if she left Kuya and never showed ever again?" I asked Keifer, who was smiling.
"Umm... but first promise that you will not get mad," he said, making me confused.
"Ok, I won't get mad," I said.
"Umm... when I was in London, I met her through Keigan," he said.
"Keigan?" I asked in full confusion.
"Can I finish first?" he asked in a mocking tone.
I hit his arm and said, "Go on."
"Keigan engaged me with... her," he said while rubbing the spot on his arm where I hit. "And he said that we have to get married."
"What the hell!" was the words that came from my mouth.
"Hoi, profanity... ahhhh!" he said because I hit his arm again on the same spot. "Jay, that hurts!"
"Tell me the whole story!" I demanded.
"But we cancelled it because I only and only love you, and she is older than me. But besides this, she also didn't want that marriage because she likes Angelo," he completed.
"Ohh," was the only word that came out of my mouth.
Then we both turned back to them and saw that they were still hugging like they have been separated for years. Well, that's true. We both started smiling again. Watching them, I realized that Keifer was right—this wasn't about secrets. This was about a love that survived being apart.
Suddenly, Ion pulled away from the hug and looked at us. Her eyes landed on Keifer first, and she gave him a playful wink.
"So, Keifer... I see you found your way back to the right girl," she said, her voice like music.
Keifer turned a deep shade of red. "Ate Ion, please... don't start."
"Oh? Is the one and only heir of Watsons shy now?" she teased, then turned her gaze to me. "And you must be Jayjay. Keifer cried on his birthday because of your that phone call."
"Did Mark Keifer Watson cry? This is insane!" Aries shouted. "Oh, sorry, by the way... I'm Aries, Kuya Angelo's younger brother and Jayjay's older brother."
He then pointed at Ella. "This is my girlfriend, Ella."
"Hi! I'm Ella, how are you?"
"I'm fine," Ion replied with a smile.
"Well, we must leave now because at home a grand party is waiting for us!" Ella said.
"Yeah!" Aries added. "The whole group is waiting at the hideout. Felix and Ci-N are probably already fighting over the food."
We started walking toward the exit, but I stayed close to Keifer. I was still thinking about that "engagement" thing. I leaned in and whispered:
"So... was the ring expensive?"
Keifer groaned and covered his face with his hand. "Jay, I told you it was cancelled! Don't start with the jealousy again."
"I'm not jealous! I just want to know if my husband-to-be has good taste in jewelry," I teased, making him stop in his tracks.
"Husband-to-be?" he repeated, a slow smirk spreading across his face. "So you're admitting it now?"
"Hoi! I didn't say that!" I shouted, but it was too late.
"Too late, Wife! Everyone heard it!" Ella yelled from the front, pointing her phone at us again.
"Wife! Wife! Wife!" Aries and even Angelo started chanting.
The airport was full of people staring at us, but for once, I didn't care. The "storm" was here, and her name was Ion—but instead of rain, she brought back the light that Kuya Angelo had lost a long time ago.
We finally made it to the parking lot. Angelo was walking ahead, holding Ion's hand like he was afraid she'd vanish if he let go. It was weird seeing "Death" acting like a lovestruck teenager.
"Okay, who's riding with who?" Aries asked, jingling his car keys.
"I'm with Ion," Angelo said immediately. His voice left no room for argument.
"Duh, obviously," Ella rolled her eyes. "Jayjay and Keifer, you're with us. I need to finish this 'Jayfer' edit anyway."
We piled into Aries' car. I sat in the back with Keifer, who was still looking out the window trying to avoid my gaze.
"So..." I poked his side. "About that birthday phone call... did you really cry?"
"Jay, please. I'm the King. Kings don't cry," he muttered, but his neck was turning pink.
"Ion said you did! And she's basically my Ate now, so I believe her," I teased.
"She's a troublemaker," Keifer sighed, finally looking at me. "Just like you."
"Hoi! I am not a troublemaker!"
"You literally just started a war at the airport by calling me your husband-to-be," he reminded me with a smirk.
"I was joking!"
"Was it a joke? Because I've already started looking at rings," he whispered, leaning closer. My heart did a little flip-flop. "Hoi! Stop it!"
"We're here!" Aries shouted, drifting into the driveway of the hideout.
The hideout was a total disaster zone. Felix had somehow managed to hang a banner that said "WELCOME HOME I-ON" but the "N" was falling off, so it just looked like it said "I-O."
"Felix, you idiot! You spelled her name wrong!" Ci-N shouted, throwing a piece of popcorn at him.
"Hoi! I was in a rush! Do you know how hard it is to find glitter glue in Section E?" Felix shot back.
"So you brought glitter glue from section E? R u broke" ci-n asked him
"Yeah I'm broke bcz kuya didn't gave me money" Felix said with a wink
"Hoi I gave you your pocket money it's your fault that you used it on... something" Percy chimed in and we all just laugh there standing
But wait a minute...what does that something mean, I was going to ask Percy when ate ion said something.
"Just leave it! It looks... artistic," Ion laughed, stepping into the living room.
The whole room went quiet for a second as everyone stared at her. Then, Mica broke the ice. "She's way prettier than Angelo's descriptions," she whispered loudly, making Angelo glare at her.
"I heard that, Mica!" Angelo snapped, but he didn't look truly angry. He actually looked... relaxed.
"It's true though! Kuya, you have great taste!" I added, nudging my brother.
"Okay, okay! Enough with the staring! Let's eat before Aries finishes the lechon!" Ella yelled, pointing toward the kitchen where Aries was already hovering over the food.
All of us crowded around the big wooden table except me and Ate Ion because Kuya Angelo was bringing her food and Keifer was bringing me food.
"Ate Ion, you have to try this! My mom made it!" Ci-N said, shoving a plate of pancit toward her.
"Thank you, Ci-N. You're much cuter in person than in the photos Angelo showed me," Ion said, patting his head.
"Photos? Kuya Angelo has photos of us?" I asked, completely shocked.
"He has a whole folder on his phone labeled 'The Brats,'" Ion teased. "Most of them are of you and Keifer arguing."
"KUYA!" I screamed, turning to look at Angelo.
"I don't know what she's talking about," Angelo lied, though his ears were red.
"Don't worry, Jay. He also has the one where Keifer is carrying your school bag," Ion added with a wink. Keifer choked on his pizza. "Ate! I thought we were friends!"
The noise in the room was deafening. I looked around the table. My family was growing.
"A penny for your thoughts, Wife?" Keifer whispered, leaning his shoulder against mine.
"I'm just thinking... I'm glad she's back. Kuya looks like he can finally breathe again," I whispered back.
"Yeah. And I'm glad I don't have to marry her anymore," Keifer joked. "Wait! Jay! I was kidding! Don't hit the arm again!"
"Too late!" I laughed, winding up for a smack. "TRUCE! TRUCE!" he yelled, ducking behind Ion for protection.
"Hey! Don't use my guest as a shield, you coward!" I shouted, chasing him around the sofa. The house was filled with laughter.
I wish we all stay happy like this.