The sky cracked open, rain pouring down in sheets over the quiet street outside the mansion. Jay stood under the shelter of a large oak tree, drenched despite the overhang, her hair plastered to her face, her clothes soaked through.
And then she saw him—Keifer—running toward her, his coat useless against the downpour. Water dripped from his hair onto his sharp features, but his eyes were fixed entirely on her.
"Jay!" he shouted over the storm, voice rough, urgent. "Wait!"
She spun around, startled, her heart hammering in her chest. "Keifer… what are you—"
He stopped just a few feet away, breathing hard, rain plastering his clothes to his body. For a long moment, neither of them spoke. The only sound was the rain hammering down around them, drenching everything in a gray, chaotic blur.
Finally, Keifer broke the silence. His voice was low, strained, raw. "Why… why didn't you ever tell me?"
Jay blinked, confused. "Tell you what?"
"You know," he said, stepping closer, his wet coat clinging to him. "About how you feel… about us. About everything."
Her chest tightened. She shook her head, water dripping from her lashes. "I… I didn't want to. It was too messy. Too complicated."
Keifer's jaw clenched. "Messy? Complicated? Jay, do you know how much I've suffered seeing you hurt, watching you hold back, pretending you didn't care?"
Jay swallowed hard. "Keifer… I—"
He cut her off, stepping so close that the rain plastered them together. "Stop hiding it! Stop hiding us! I've been a fool… a damn fool, and I can't anymore."
Jay's lips trembled. "Keifer…"
He reached up, brushing wet strands of hair from her face, his thumb lingering against her cheek. "I don't care about anyone else. I don't care about expectations, or family, or who's standing around. I care about you. Only you."
Tears mixed with the rain on Jay's cheeks. Her voice was barely audible over the storm. "Keifer… I—"
"I love you," he said, cutting through the hesitation, the fear, the uncertainty. "I've always loved you. Even when I pretended not to care, even when it felt impossible. I love you. Only you, Jay."
Jay's chest tightened, relief and longing and a little disbelief mixing together. "I… I love you too," she whispered, finally letting herself admit it aloud.
The rain soaked them completely, but they didn't care. Keifer leaned in, capturing her lips in a desperate, wet, trembling kiss that carried every apology, every confession, every emotion they'd buried for too long.
When they pulled back, faces inches apart, Jay laughed softly—a sound full of relief and disbelief.
"I was so scared," she admitted, voice shaking.
"So was I," Keifer said, resting his forehead against hers. "But we're here. Together. That's what matters."
The rain continued to pour, but around them, everything felt quiet, intimate, safe. For the first time in years, the world felt exactly as it should.
And in that storm-soaked moment, Jay and Keifer finally belonged to each other, completely and entirely.