Ang Mutya Ng Section E (Book - 2) English

Jay-Jay's POV

It was already afternoon when we decided to go home. I couldn't stay the night because Tita knew we were only supposed to be out for half the day.

Ci-N was happily hugging his stuffed toy—a dog with an oversized head.

"You're so cute! I'll name you…" He paused, looking up and tapping his chin. "…Jay-jay!"

I was horrified!

Without thinking, I slapped him hard. I mean, seriously?! Does my name sound like a dog's name?!

"Ow! That hurt!" Ci-N whined, holding the stuffed toy. "Jay-jay… Jay-jay hit me!" He pretended to complain.

I heard faint laughter from Felix and Percy, who were sitting in front of us. Annoyed, I kicked their chairs, making them turn around for a moment.

They just laughed even more.

"Ci-N's the first one we're dropping off. His condo is closer," Felix suggested.

"You should just walk there," Percy teased.

"If I report you to Kei-Kingkong—!"

I knew he wouldn't be able to finish that sentence. He hesitated because I was already staring at him with a knowing look. That irritating feeling—like he was trying to hide something.

And now, I finally knew what it was.

He accidentally slipped up earlier when he had a video call with Keifer. When I tried to ask about it, he brushed me off and pretended to be busy playing games.

"How long were you planning to keep it a secret that you talked to him?" I asked, narrowing my eyes at Felix. "…Don't tell me you've been talking to him too?"

Felix quickly looked away. Bingo! I knew it. There's no way these snakes wouldn't be in contact with him. I wasn't mad or sulking—we did talk about giving each other space, after all. But I don't know… A part of me still longs for him, and it's frustrating.

She misses the King.

"She won't last," Percy commented, making us all look at him. "She acts tough, but she doesn't know the meaning of 'endurance.'"

I suddenly remembered when Yuri and I went out to eat. I was sure I had seen him.

"…It's possible," I murmured to myself.

Something doesn't add up. Actually, none of this makes sense. Why all the secrecy? Why the trouble?!

"Felix," I called out, making sure I had his full attention. "There's something I don't understand about what you said."

"Which part?"

"You mentioned that Keifer voluntarily stopped the plan, so you all backed off. But in the end… it seems like he continued anyway."

Ci-N and Felix exchanged glances, as if silently asking each other what to say.

"Jay…" Ci-N finally spoke. "…We don't really know the reason. But before everything happened, we noticed that he was acting anxious."

"He and Keigan kept fighting too," Felix added.

I frowned. "Keigan?"

Felix nodded. "I visited them once, and they were yelling at each other—almost fighting."

Why?!

I have this gut feeling that something happened—something we're not aware of. This whole situation is frustrating. There's no clear explanation at all.

Keifer, you have a lot to explain to me. When you come back, you better be ready.

"Here we go. Poor child," Percy teased.

Ci-N giggled. "Yep!" Then he turned to me. "Bye, Jay-jay! See you tomorrow."

He got out of the car and ran into the entrance of the building. As soon as he was out of sight, the car drove away again.

"Hey, Felix," Percy called his brother. "...Pay back everything I spent."

"Again?!"

Suddenly, the two started arguing about the cost of the date. I didn't understand them because something else was on my mind.

Food?!

I always think about food. But this time, it was something else. Everything felt like a mess just because it was a mess. Why does everything have to be so complicated?

The two were still arguing even when we reached the opposite side of our house.

"Thank you" I said and got down.

I was about to enter the gate when Felix called me.

"Thank you," he said, smiling. "...I won't waste the opportunity you gave me."

I smiled at him and nodded before heading inside. At least I felt better about Felix. I guess this is what it feels like to forgive someone.

But what about the others?

Should I forgive them too? How can I do that when they're still proud of what they did? Vipers. Rattlesnakes. That's why they're in Section E—because they're snakes.

I stopped walking as I stepped into the house. Kuya was standing in front of me, arms crossed, eyebrows furrowed.

"You only had half a day, right? Why are you coming home just now?" he asked authoritatively.

Dead… I forgot to tell Aunt Gema.

"It's okay to eat out," I explained. "...I-I tried not to stay out too late."

"You just got out of the hospital, Jay."

I lowered my head. I knew what he meant. He was worried about me because of everything that had happened.

"S-sorry. I should've texted first."

He let out a heavy sigh, like he was already dealing with a lot, and I was just adding more to it. I knew he had been facing problems at the company, but this felt different.

"Never mind. Go change and eat. Mama made a snack," he ordered before walking away.

I stood there, dumbfounded, watching him leave. He looked so exhausted, probably drained by everything going on in his life. He even forgot to comb his hair.

Good thing he's handsome.

I went straight to my room to change, just as Kuya had ordered. While pulling on a new shirt, I heard my phone ring. I grabbed it from my bag and saw Yuri's name on the screen.

📩

From: Pres. Yuri

Message: Hey, did you get home already?

I immediately replied.

To: Pres. Yuri

Message: Yes, panes!

📩

From: Pres. Yuri

Message: Hahahahaha...

Is he stupid?!

I laughed. He seemed like he was having fun. I was kind of jealous of his happiness, but I'd let him enjoy it.

I tossed my phone aside and continued changing. Once I was done, I reached for my phone again, but something in my bag caught my attention. Since it was slightly open, a few things were visible.

The letter...

I picked it up and looked at it again. I hadn't finished reading it earlier. There was no name on it, but I had a feeling it was from a woman. It was a woman's letter!

I opened the envelope again and started reading.

💌

Dear Jay-Jay,

This is not a love letter. It would be more accurate to call it a friendship letter because, first of all, we are not lovers, and honestly, this kind of thing is pretty corny.

Please bear with me—I'm not good at writing letters. All I know is that I need to explain my side and ask for your forgiveness. So please, please, and more please—read this letter until the end.

First of all, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for having the audacity to get involved in the plan despite the help you gave me. That plan was formed before I really knew you. I agreed to it because all my anger at the world and the pain of losing the person I loved the most were directed at you. I don't know why… Maybe because you're a girl too.

I raised an eyebrow. The wording… was this written by a woman? Was it a homosexual who wrote this and hated his fellow women? I was confused. I didn't have a female classmate who could have written this. Still, I continued reading.

But believe me, when things got better because of you, I wanted to back off. I didn't want to be involved, but I was forced to stay silent out of fear of Keifer. None of us could stand up to him. Even Yuri, his best friend, admitted he couldn't do it either. So, I kept my mouth shut while Keifer took action.

I was also furious when I saw him succeed. I felt sorry for you because you had fallen into his trap. I didn't say anything because I thought I was the only one against what he was doing. I couldn't even tell Mica, knowing she would feel bad for me.

I stayed quiet for a long time. Not because I was still afraid, but because I felt that even Keifer had fallen into the same trap as you. I don't know what happened that made him say such hurtful words to you. Almost all of us were shocked and confused.

I won't drag this out any longer. I know you're too lazy to read—even you! So, I'll end it here and leave the decision up to you. I'm happy to be your friend, and I hope you'll give me another chance.

Loving you as a friend,

~Handsome Calix

💌

Son of a—! Why does it sound like Calix was written as a girl? I knew Mica didn't write it because I had seen her handwriting before. That's it! I really thought a woman wrote this.

I went back to the part where he explained himself. He said even Keifer fell victim to his own plan. That's the same thing Felix told me. And even he doesn't know why Keifer said those things to me.

My mind was in chaos. I didn't know what to believe anymore. Calix, Felix, Ci-N, and David all claimed Keifer really loved me, yet they couldn't explain why he still hurt me.

What are you hiding, King of Serpents?!

I dropped the letter onto my study table. Thinking about all this was making me hungry. I left my room and headed to the kitchen for a snack.

As I passed by Kuya Angelo's room, a piece of paper flew to my feet. I picked it up and saw that it looked like a printed report. Too lazy to read!

I glanced at Kuya's room—it seemed to have come from there. As I stepped closer, I noticed the door was slightly open. More papers were scattered on the floor, blown around by the wind.

I crouched down, picking up the papers, then looked for the source of the wind. My eyes landed on the window beside Kuya's study table—it wasn't closed properly. That must be it.

"Seriously, Kuya! Can't you close the window properly?" I muttered.

I shut the window and neatly stacked the papers. As I was arranging them, my gaze landed on a photograph next to a brown envelope.

It was a picture of me—on my way to school.

I frowned, wondering why Kuya had it. I turned the photo over, hoping to find something—and I wasn't disappointed.

There was writing on the back.

"You should never walk alone. You're giving me a chance to kill you.

~R. Sato"

R. Sato?

Was this the Ryosuke Sato they had warned me about? The one who wanted to kill me? The one Yuri had fought? I thought they had stopped targeting me, but… why?

I put the photo down and opened the brown envelope. More pictures. All of me. I quickly flipped them over to check the backs.

"Just wait… for me to kill you, bitch!"

"Blame Yuri and Keifer… blame them when you see them in hell."

"Keep laughing… because that will be your last laugh."

"I can't wait to kill you and see Yuri cry in pain."

Each one was signed R. Sato.

My hands trembled with every letter and every photo I looked at. Death had been watching me—without me even knowing. Maybe one day, I'd just end up lying lifeless on the road.

"Hey! What are you doing there?!"

Aries' voice startled me from the doorway. I turned to look at him, tears rolling down my face—dripping with fear.

"I'm asking you!" he demanded, rushing toward me. His eyes fell on the photos in my hands, and he took them, flipping through them one by one. His eyes widened. His brows furrowed.

"Why do you have a death threat?" he asked worriedly, still looking at the pictures. "...Who is R. Sato?"

I couldn't answer. I leaned on the table, feeling weak from what I had just discovered. My death was within reach.

Aries dropped the pictures. "Fuck! I told you to stay away from Yuri and Keifer! This is what you get for disobeying me!"

I don't need a lecture right now! Please!

He took out his cellphone and dialed a number. I had no idea who he was calling. As he waited for the call to connect, he kept his eyes on me.

"When is it?" he asked.

I shook my head. "I-I don't know."

"You don't know?!"

"I just saw it today… in Kuya's room."

He looked at the pictures on the table, then momentarily pulled his phone away from his ear, pressing something before bringing it back. It was obvious he was annoyed that the person on the other end wasn't answering.

"Do you know where Kuya went?" he asked irritably.

I shook my head again. "I-I saw him leave the house, but I-I don't know where he went."

He cursed under his breath and almost threw his phone in frustration. It seemed like he was calling Kuya Angelo.

"Do they already know, Keifer?!"

"I—I thought—"

"How were they so careless?! He even managed to leave the country!"

"We thought they had stopped… when we took Jason down."

Aries looked at me strangely. "You met Jason?"

Not the one from Friday the 13th!

I nodded. "I-I talked to him at first, b-but it ended in a fight."

"What the fuck, Jay?! Are you looking for trouble?! Why did you get involved in Keifer's mess?!" he snapped.

He paced back and forth in front of me, running his fingers through his hair, pulling at it in frustration. I couldn't tell if he was worried about me or just mad. Whatever it was, I couldn't feel anything. Fear and anxiety had taken over.

"Call Yuri. I need to talk to him," he ordered.

I looked at him, still in a daze. This would be the first time he and Yuri would talk since the retreat incident.

"Do what I told you!" he shouted, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I ran to my room, grabbed my phone, and dialed Yuri's number, my hands shaking as I typed.

Relax, Jay!

How can I relax?! I could die without even knowing when!

The call started ringing. Every second that passed without an answer felt like my death was creeping closer.

["Hello… Jay."] His voice was calm.

"Y-Yuri… c-can you come here?"

["Are you okay? What's wrong?"]

"S-something happened."

["Shit! I'm on my way!"] he said in a panic before hanging up.

Even after the call ended, my hands kept trembling. I couldn't calm down. It felt like all the courage I had with Kuya Angelo was gone.

Aries suddenly appeared at the door. "Did you call—?"

"Yes ----!" I screamed in shock.

"Did you just curse at me?!" he snapped.

"Why did you come in so suddenly?!"

"And that's my fault?!"

"Don't scare me like that!"

"Why are you so stupid?!"

"I'm thinking about something, okay?!"

"Did you call him?!"

"Yes!"

"Why are you yelling?!"

"Because you're yelling!"

Aunt Gema suddenly appeared and stared at us. "Why are you two shouting?"

Aries and I shook our heads together. "Nothing." We answered in unison.

Her eyes narrowed at us. "You two... I might find one of you dead here later."

Aries' face immediately crumpled. "Mom! Don't be so dramatic! Can I kill you?!"

Jay-jay… Yes! Especially when hungry.

"I'm just saying," Tita replied before turning her back on us and walking away.

Aries immediately shot me a glare. "Don't leave your room."

"Why?! Yuri is coming."

"We need to talk. Not you!" he said before shutting the bedroom door and leaving.

Son of a... What is he even talking about?!