Aries' POV
(This is aries n percy pov last night)
| 12:30 a.m.
It was 12:30 a.m., the time when normal people sleep
and Percy COllins destroys lives.
I was in my bed, wrapped in my blanket, finally at peace, when suddenly someone screamed like the house was on fire.
"MIDNIGHT SNACK TIME."
I didn't even open my eyes.
I already knew who it was.
Before I could pretend to be dead, Percy yanked me up by my arm.
"Wake up, baby brother," he said, running a hand through his hair. "A face like mine needs fuel. Handsome people burn calories faster."
"I hope your calories burn you," I muttered.
He ignored me, obviously. Percy only listens to compliments-preferably his own.
"Wait here," he whispered dramatically, pushing me toward the wall. "I'll check if Jay-jay is awake. If she's up, we'll take her too. Midnight snacks taste better when shared with siblings."
"You're not sharing," I said. "You're stealing."
He gasped, offended. "Excuse me? I provide emotional support with my presence. That's sharing."
I sighed, already tired.
This man had never cared about sleep, silence, or my mental health.
He strutted off toward Jay's room, adjusting his shirt on the way like someone might be watching him at 12:30 in the night.
I leaned against the wall, counting seconds and questioning every life choice that led me here.
Percy's POV
I walked toward Jay-jay's room like a responsible elder brother.
Which I am.
Very responsible.
Also very handsome.
I fixed my hair once.
Then twice.
Because what if I accidentally catch my reflection in the mirror? Can't scare myself like that.
I slowly pushed her door open, just a little, like a ninja. A good-looking ninja.
And then-
No.
This cannot be real.
Jay-jay was sitting at her desk.
Studying.
I blinked.
I rubbed my eyes.
I blinked again.
Still there.
"Okay," I whispered to myself, "either I'm dreaming, or this girl is not my sister."
She turned a page.
A PAGE.
I sucked in a sharp breath.
"Impossible," I muttered. "She hates books. Books hate her. It's a mutual breakup."
I rubbed my eyes harder. Maybe if I erased my vision, the reality would fix itself.
Nope.
Same scene.
Same books.
Same terrifying responsibility.
My soul left my body.
I stepped back slowly, like I had just seen a ghost-no, worse-a motivated student.
I didn't even bother closing the door properly. I turned and ran.
Straight back to Aries.
Out of breath.
Hair ruined.
Dignity missing.
"Baby Aries," I gasped, holding my chest. "Jay... Jay-jay..."
He looked confused. "What Jay?"
"She... she's-"
I paused for dramatic effect.
"She's studying."
Silence.
Aries' POV
I stared at Percy.
For a long second.
Then another.
And then I sighed-the kind of sigh you take when you're tired of a person but legally stuck with him.
"She's studying?" I repeated slowly.
Percy nodded like his life depended on it. "With books. Real books. Open ones."
I crossed my arms.
"Percy."
"Yes?"
"You once told me the mirror winked at you."
"That was different," he said seriously. "I was looking good that day."
I pinched the bridge of my nose.
Jay studying?
At 12:30 a.m.?
Without crying, screaming, or throwing the book?
No.
This was either a prank... or Percy had finally lost his mind.
"Maybe," I said calmly, "you saw her organizing books. Or doodling. Or staring into space dramatically like she always does."
He shook his head violently. "No, no, no. She was writing. With focus."
That made my chest tighten-just a little.
I didn't like that feeling.
I grabbed Percy by the wrist. "Come."
"Wait-what if she vanishes again?" he panicked.
"Then we'll confirm you're hallucinating," I replied.
We reached her room.
I pushed the door open.
Empty.
No Jay.
No books.
No signs of the academic apocalypse Percy described.
I looked at him.
He looked back at me, offended.
"See?" I said flatly. "You imagined it."
"But-" He frowned, turning in a slow circle. "She was right here."
I glanced around once more.
The room felt... too quiet.
Then I noticed something.
The faint glow coming from downstairs.
The kitchen light.
I stopped.
Percy followed my gaze.
We didn't say anything.
We just looked at each other.
And somehow, I knew-
-----Next day-----
Jay's POV
Morning.
I know it's morning because the sun was trying to murder my eyes through the curtains, and my brain was still buffering from last night.
I shifted.
Something warm.
Something human.
Something... not my pillow.
I opened one eye.
Elara.
I was somehow curled into her like a koala that signed a lifelong contract. One arm around her waist, my leg thrown over hers like she might escape if I let go.
My first thought: Wow, I upgraded from hugging pillows to hugging people.
My second thought: She's going to throw me out of the window when she wakes up.
So obviously, I did the smartest thing possible.
I slept again.
When I woke up the second time, the betrayal had already happened.
The bed was empty.
Cold.
My arm hugged nothing but air and disappointment.
I sat up instantly.
"Elara?"
No response.
Rude.
I was about to start dramatic mourning when the washroom door opened and she walked out, fresh, calm, hair slightly damp, looking like those people who wake up productive and ruin the self-esteem of others.
She looked at me once.
And smirked.
"Oh," she said sweetly, "the human octopus is awake."
Excuse me?
"You were clinging to me like I was your life-support system," she continued. "I moved once and you followed."
"That's called emotional attachment," I muttered, rubbing my eyes.
She raised a brow. "It's called lack of boundaries."
I tried to sit properly, failed, and flopped back like a dying fish.
She shook her head. "Get up. If you sleep more, your brain will permanently shift to airplane mode."
I groaned. "My brain already resigned."
Still, I dragged myself up and went to freshen up. When I came back, she was already wearing her shoes, fixing her bag, clearly preparing to abandon me like everyone else does when responsibility calls.
"No," I said, immediately walking to her. "You're not leaving like this."
She looked at me suspiciously. "Like what?"
"Without paying the price."
"What price?"
I didn't answer.
I simply stepped behind her... and jumped.
She staggered a little but didn't fall.
See? I knew she could carry me.
"Jay," she warned, hands instinctively grabbing my legs. "Get down."
"One ride," I pleaded, cheek pressed against her shoulder. "Just one. Please. For emotional closure."
She sighed. "You're heavy."
I gasped. "That hurt more than any breakup."
"You ate pakode at midnight."
"That was emotional eating."
She started walking anyway, mumbling, "I'm not a free taxi."
We came out of the room like that-me on her back, her pretending to be annoyed, both of us laughing.
Halfway down the stairs, she said, "If we fall, I'm blaming you."
"If we fall," I said confidently, "we fall together."
Famous last words.
At the very last step, my foot slipped.
Her balance went.
Gravity did the rest.
We didn't fall dramatically.
We collapsed.
Onto the floor.
In a heap of limbs, hair, and dignity left upstairs.
For one second, we stared at each other.
Then we burst out laughing.
The kind of laughter that makes your stomach hurt and your eyes water and your problems feel smaller for exactly five minutes.
I wiped my tears. "Best ride ever."
She groaned. "Never again."
So there we were.
Still on the floor.
Still half-dead from laughing.
And then-
twist.
My ear.
"Ow-OW-KUYA!"
At the exact same time-
twist.
Elara's ear.
She hissed, "Sir-!"
I was about to start my emotional speech, the kind where I explain how gravity attacked us first, when something caught my eye.
Movement.
In the hallway.
My laughter died.
Because standing there-
Like a badly timed horror reveal-
Was the entire Section E.
Keifer.
Percy.
Aries.
Edrix.
Rory.
Even Yuri leaning lazily on the wall.
All of them.
Watching.
Me and Elara.
On the floor.
With our ears twisted.
By Kuya Angelo.
There was a full two seconds of silence.
Then-
Percy burst out laughing first. Like actually bending forward, holding his stomach.
"Oh my God," he wheezed. "Is this a morning exercise? Ear yoga?"
Aries covered his mouth, shoulders shaking. "I told you. She can't survive one morning without chaos."
Keifer blinked once. Then twice. Then turned his face away-but not before I saw the smile he failed to hide.
Edrix whispered loudly, "Should we help?"
Rory replied, "No. This is history being made."
My face went hot. Then hotter. Then probably the same color as chili powder.
My laugh completely evaporated and transformed into pure embarrassment.
I tried to free my ear. "Kuya-please-people are watching!"
He glanced at the hallway.
Did he stop?
No.
He twisted just a little more.
"Good," he said calmly. "Let them learn what happens when you forget you live in a civilized house."
Elara's confidence cracked for the first time. She whispered urgently, "Jay... they're all staring."
"I KNOW," I whispered back. "THIS IS HOW I DIE."
Percy clapped. "Encore! Encore!"
I shot him a death glare. "YOU'RE NEXT."
Kuya finally let go.
We both immediately grabbed our ears like wounded soldiers.
Kuya straightened and looked at the audience in the hallway. "Morning entertainment is over. Go do something useful."
Nobody moved.
He gave the look.
Everyone scattered instantly-but not before Percy called out, "Smile, Jay! You just gave us our best memory!"
I wanted the floor to open and swallow me whole.
Kuya walked away like nothing happened.
I sat there, mortified.
Elara leaned closer and whispered, deadpan, "So... unforgettable morning?"
I groaned. "I hate this family."
From the hallway, Keifer's voice floated back, amused and soft-
"Liar."