chapter 392

Camping trip 2.0

JayJay's pov

By the time I got home, my bag was still empty and my brain was already tired.

Camping.

Why does every disaster in my life come with a “bonding activity”?

I dumped my bag on the bed and stared at it like it had personally betrayed me.

Then my phone vibrated.

Once.Twice.Ten times.Then it stopped vibrating and started panicking.

Section E Group Chat: “CAMP OR DIE” 📩

Eman: WHO IS BRINGING FOOD BE HONEST

Felix: I WILL STARVE

Ci-N: Felix you starve every lunch

Rory: CAN WE BRING SPEAKERS

David: No.

Rory: TOO LATE I’M BRINGING TWO

Eman: I’M BRINGING FIREWORKS

Me: WHYEman: FOR SURVIVAL

Me: IN THE FOREST??

Ci-N: Jay Jay let him cook

Felix: I AM SCARED

Keifer: I’ll bring first aid. For Felix. And Jay.

Me: I DON’T NEED FIRST AID

Keifer: You fall a lot.

Me: YOU PUSH ME A LOT

Keifer: Teamwork.

Ci-N: GET A ROOM

Yuri: Focus. Tent, food, water. Don’t bring stupid stuff.

Eman: Too late. I exist

Ci-N: Yuri vs Eman Round 1

Keifer: what if I bring a pack of condoms?

What the fuck! Why would he need that?!

Rory: why?

Me: the fuck why???

It took me a second to realise what I had just typed!

Noooooo

Keifer: profanity.

Keifer: for our private moment!

David: ROOM GET A ROOM!

I dropped my phone on the bed and groaned.

This was going to end someone.

I finally started packing—clothes,

jacket, flashlight, power bank, snacks (hidden), more snacks (also hidden), and the emotional support hoodie I pretend I don’t need.

While I was shoving my shoes into the side pocket, my phone pinged again.

King of ulupong 📩

King of ulupong: Are you actually packing or just staring at your bag like earlier?

I froze.

Me: HOW DO YOU KNOW THATKing of ulupong: I know everything.Me: That’s creepy.King of ulupong: Come to your window.

I stopped breathing.

Slowly, very slowly, I walked to my window and pulled the curtain aside.

Keifer was standing outside.

On the street.

With a backpack slung over one shoulder.

Smiling like this was normal.

“What are you DOING here?” I whisper-shouted through the glass.

He grinned. “Delivery.”

“Delivery of WHAT?”

He lifted a small bag. “Extra socks. You always forget.”

My heart folded in half like cheap paper.

I opened the window just enough for him to pass the bag through.

“Thank you,” I said quietly.

“For the socks?”

“No… for remembering.”

For a second, he didn’t joke.

He just looked at me.

Soft.

Then he said, “You matter. Of course I remember.”

My chest tightened.

Then my neighbor’s dog barked and ruined the moment.

“GO INSIDE BEFORE YOU GET SHOT, BY AND ANGEL!” I hissed.

He laughed and stepped back. “See you tomorrow, camper.”

Before I could stop myself, I leaned out and kissed the air in his direction.

He froze.

Then his smile went feral.

That was mistake number one.

---

By midnight, the group chat had reached mental illness levels.

GROUP CHAT:📩

Felix: WHAT IF A BEAR COMESEman: I WILL FIGHT ITCi-N: With what? Your dreams?Drew: Bears don’t live here.Eman: THEY CAN COMMUTEJasper: I’M BRINGING GLOW STICKSKeifer: I’m bringing a blanket.Me: For camping?Keifer: No. For you.Ci-N: I WILL BLOCK BOTH OF YOUYuri: Lights out. We leave early.Eman: YOU’RE NOT MY FATHERYuri: I can be if you keep talking.

I laughed into my pillow.

For one brief moment…

I forgot about everything else.

---

Morning hit fast.

Too fast.

The bus was already loud when I arrived.

Section E had taken over the entire back.

Eman was blasting music until the driver yelled.Felix was double-checking snacks like his life depended on it.Ci-N had sunglasses and zero shame.Jasper was filming everything.Drew looked like he wanted to disappear.Keifer saved me a seat.

Yuri sat across the aisle.

Quiet.

Watching.

The bus moved.

Trees blurred past the window.

And for a while… it felt normal.

Too normal.

Until the bus jolted from a pothole and I fell straight into Keifer’s lap.

The universe hates me.

His hands automatically caught my waist.

“Comfortable?” he murmured.

I tried to stand.

He didn’t let go.

“Keifer.”

“Yes, my love?”

“LET ME UP.”

Ci-N screamed.Felix fainted.Edrix filmed it.

Yuri turned away.

Jaw tight.

I managed to escape, face burning.

But the warmth lingered.

---

By the time we reached the campsite, my nerves were buzzing.

Tents were unpacked.

Chaos resumed.

Felix got tangled in ropes.Eman lost the stakes.Ci-N found a bug and declared war.Jasper fell into a bush.

And somehow—

I ended up alone near the trees.

That’s when I felt it.

That shift.

That warning in the air.

“Jay.”

I turned.

Yuri.

Standing a few steps away.

Too calm.

Too still.

“You’ve been avoiding me,” he said.

“I’ve just been busy.”

“With him.”

Silence.

The forest suddenly felt very quiet.

“You changed,” he said.

My chest tightened. “So did you.”

His eyes flickered.

For a second, something cracked through the calm.

“I’m trying,” he said quietly.

“For you.”

That scared me more than anger ever could.

“I don’t want you to try for me,” I whispered. “I want you to be honest.”

He clenched his jaw.

Then—

Laughter.

Keifer’s laughter.

Getting closer.

Yuri’s eyes darkened.

“There he is,” he said softly. “Your gravity.”

Keifer stepped into the clearing.

And the air went lethal.

“Problem?” Keifer asked.

Yuri didn’t answer.

I stepped between them without thinking.

“Stop. Both of you.”

For one second, neither moved.

Then Yuri exhaled slowly.

“I won’t fight him,” he said quietly. “I promised.”

Keifer stared at him. “Good.”

“But don’t think I’m blind,” Yuri added. “And don’t think this ends here.”

Then he walked away.

And I realized—

For the first time—

Yuri wasn’t hiding anymore.

He was cracking.

And that terrified me.

Keifer reached for my hand behind me.

This time, I let him.

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