Chapter: Chaos Lives Here – Jay's POV
If someone had told me three days ago that our house would turn into a battlefield of emotions, runaway brothers, broken engagements, and dramatic entrances…
I would've believed it.
But I would not have believed this level of chaos.
Because no one warned me that Ci N plus Aries in one house equals national disaster.
It started peacefully.
That's how every disaster starts.
I woke up in Aries' room, squished between two human heaters.
Aries was on one side, dead asleep, snoring lightly.
Ci N was on the other side, clutching the blanket like someone was going to steal it from him.
I blinked at the ceiling.
Why am I in the middle?
Oh right.
"Jay shouldn't feel alone."
I slowly tried to sit up without waking them.
Big mistake.
The moment I moved, Ci N tightened his grip and mumbled, "Don't leave…"
My heart softened immediately.
But then Aries suddenly kicked his leg in his sleep—
Right into my back.
"OW!"
Both of them woke up at the same time.
"What?!" Aries shot up.
"Is someone attacking?!" Ci N panicked.
"Yes," I said flatly. "You two."
Aries blinked. "Why are you yelling at me first?"
"You kicked me!"
"That's self-defense," he argued.
"You were asleep!"
"Exactly. Instinct."
Ci N burst out laughing.
"Jay looks like a sandwich," he said between giggles.
"Excuse me?"
"You're in the middle like cheese."
Aries nodded seriously. "Yeah. Emotional cheese."
I threw a pillow at both of them.
"This is why I should've slept in my own room."
"No," both of them said at the same time.
We froze.
Then Aries narrowed his eyes at Ci N. "You copied me."
Ci N gasped dramatically. "You copied me!"
"Don't start," I warned.
Too late.
Aries grabbed the second pillow and smacked Ci N.
Ci N screamed like he had been stabbed.
"ATTACK!"
Within seconds, the room turned into a battlefield.
Pillows flying.
Blanket being pulled.
Aries tripping over nothing.
Ci N jumping onto the bed like an overexcited child.
"STOP!" I shouted, but I was laughing too hard to sound serious.
Aries suddenly grabbed my arm and pulled me to his side.
"Choose your team!"
"I am not choosing!"
"Betrayal!" Ci N yelled dramatically.
He grabbed a stuffed toy from the corner and threw it at Aries.
It hit Aries directly in the face.
Silence.
Then—
Aries slowly turned his head.
"You chose violence."
Ci N screamed and ran.
Aries chased him around the room.
I stood there laughing so hard my stomach hurt.
This house was at war yesterday.
Today, it was a circus.
They ran downstairs next.
Bad idea.
Kuya Angelo was sitting calmly in the dining area drinking coffee when Ci N sprinted past him.
"HELP!" Ci N yelled.
Aries followed right behind.
"I will end you!"
Kuya Angelo didn't even blink.
"What happened now?" he asked calmly.
"He started it!" Aries pointed.
"He looks like cheese!" Ci N defended himself.
Kuya Angelo closed his eyes slowly.
"I don't want details."
Ci N ran behind me and hid.
"Jay, protect me!"
Aries crossed his arms. "He insulted your honor."
"What honor?" I asked.
"You're emotional cheese!"
I couldn't even stay mad.
Kuya Angelo finally stood up.
"If you two break one thing in this house—"
CRASH.
Everyone froze.
We all turned slowly.
Ci N had knocked over a small decorative stand while trying to hide.
Silence.
Aries pointed at him immediately. "He did it."
Ci N gasped. "You scared me!"
Kuya Angelo stared at the broken decoration.
Long pause.
Then he looked at me.
"Why do I feel like you adopted two sons?"
"I did not sign up for this," I said.
Ci N grabbed my arm dramatically. "You're my mother!"
"I am not your mother!"
"My cool older sister!"
"That's better."
Aries snorted. "You both are delusional."
"Jealous," Ci N shot back.
"Of what?"
"Of our bond."
Aries rolled his eyes so hard I thought they'd get stuck.
Later that afternoon, it got worse.
Because Ci N discovered Aries' old embarrassing photos.
I should've stopped him.
But I didn't.
Because I wanted entertainment.
"Jay," Ci N whispered loudly. "Come here."
He was sitting on the floor with a dusty photo album.
Aries was in the shower.
Dangerous timing.
"What did you find?" I asked carefully.
Ci N turned the page.
And there it was.
Seven-year-old Aries.
Bowl haircut.
Dressed as a sunflower.
For a school play.
I froze.
Then I exploded laughing.
"He was a plant?!" I wheezed.
Ci N was crying laughing. "A sunflower! Look at his face!"
We didn't hear the bathroom door open.
Until—
"Why are you both laughing like villains?"
We slowly turned.
Aries stood there with wet hair and narrowed eyes.
Ci N tried to hide the album behind his back.
Too obvious.
"What. Are. You. Holding."
"Nothing," Ci N said immediately.
Aries lunged forward.
Ci N screamed and ran again.
I was on the floor laughing.
"This is betrayal!" Aries yelled at me.
"You were adorable!" I defended myself.
"I was not adorable! I was photosynthesizing!"
That made it worse.
Ci N collapsed onto the couch laughing.
"Sunflower kuya!" he choked out.
Aries threw a cushion at him.
Kuya Angelo walked into the room again at the worst timing.
He looked at the chaos.
At Ci N rolling on the couch.
At Aries chasing him with a pillow.
At me gasping for air from laughing.
He sighed.
"I leave the house for two hours."
"You raised animals," I told him.
"I did not raise him," he pointed at Ci N.
"Adopted," Aries muttered.
Even Kuya Angelo's lips twitched slightly.
By evening, things got even more ridiculous.
Ci N insisted on cooking.
"Absolutely not," Aries said immediately.
"I can cook!"
"You almost burned water yesterday!"
"That was one time!"
I made the mistake of saying, "Fine, let him try."
Big mistake.
Ten minutes later—
Smoke.
Aries coughing dramatically.
Ci N yelling, "It's supposed to look like that!"
Kuya Angelo walking in with the fire extinguisher.
"OUT OF THE KITCHEN."
Ci N pouted. "No one supports my dreams."
"Your dreams are flammable," Aries replied.
By night, we were all exhausted.
Not emotionally.
Physically.
From laughing too much.
We ended up back in Aries' room again.
Ci N lay on the floor this time, staring at the ceiling.
"Today was fun," he said softly.
Aries nodded quietly.
"Yeah."
I looked at them both.
For the first time in days…
The house didn't feel heavy.
It felt loud.
Messy.
Ridiculous.
But alive.
Ci N suddenly looked at me.
"Jay?"
"Yes?"
"If I stay here forever, will you still call me chaotic?"
"Absolutely."
He smiled widely.
"Good."
Aries groaned. "I need earplugs."
I lay back on the pillow, smiling softly.
Three days ago, I was drowning in pressure.
Now?
I was in the middle of two idiots fighting over pillows.
And somehow…
This was healing.
Not dramatic.
Not romantic.
Just chaotic.
But sometimes laughter is louder than fear.
And tonight—
This house wasn't a battlefield.
It was a circus.
And I wouldn't trade it for anything.