The fire in front of us crackled loudly as sparks jumped into the dark night sky. The whole retreat camp smelled like smoke, roasted marshmallows, and chaos.
And of course… Section E.
If chaos had a physical form, it would definitely be my classmates.
I was sitting cross-legged on the ground near the campfire while everyone surrounded it in a messy circle. Some were laughing, some were arguing, and some were already acting like drunk idiots even though they barely drank anything yet.
Typical.
Ci-N was leaning against a rock while Rakki sat beside him.
Calix and Mica were whispering like they were planning a crime.
Felix was arguing with Mayo about who ate the last marshmallow.
Blaster and Rory were literally trying to throw pinecones at each other.
Kit, Emman, and Eren were laughing so loudly that even the teachers in the cabins probably heard them.
And then there was Keifer.
Sitting right beside me.
Too close.
Way too close.
His arm was resting behind me on the log like he owned the entire forest.
I glanced at him sideways.
He noticed immediately.
And smirked.
I rolled my eyes.
"Stop staring at me like a creep," I muttered.
"I'm not staring," he replied calmly.
"Yes you are."
"I'm admiring."
"Oh my god," I groaned, throwing my head back. "Someone throw this man into the fire."
"JEALOUS JAY IS BACK!" Rory shouted dramatically.
Everyone laughed.
I grabbed a stick and threw it at Rory.
"Shut up before I roast you instead."
"See?" Keifer whispered near my ear. "Violent wife."
"I am not your wife."
"Yet."
I elbowed him hard in the ribs.
He winced but laughed.
Meanwhile, Aries had just joined us from somewhere and sat down beside Ella.
Jay smirk mode activated.
"Oh look," I said loudly. "The Romeo finally decided to appear."
Aries glared at me.
"Shut up."
Ella giggled.
"Ohhhh," Mayo teased. "Aries got a girlfriend and suddenly he's shy."
"SHY?" I laughed loudly. "This idiot once screamed because he saw a cockroach."
"That cockroach flew!" Aries defended himself.
The whole group burst into laughter.
Even Keifer leaned forward, laughing into his hands.
I pointed at Aries.
"And this man wants to act cool in front of Ella."
"Jay," Aries warned.
"Yes, brother?" I said sweetly.
"If you say one more word I will tell Kuya Angelo about you and Keifer kissing at the campfire earlier."
The whole group instantly turned toward us.
My eyes widened.
Keifer coughed.
Ci-N gasped dramatically.
"WAIT WHAT?"
Rakki covered her mouth. "YOU TWO KISSED AGAIN?"
Felix leaned forward. "HOW MANY TIMES TODAY?"
Blaster started clapping like an idiot.
"CONFESSION TIME!"
I threw a marshmallow at Aries.
"You traitor!"
Keifer just laughed beside me.
"Relax," he said. "They already know we kiss."
"SHAMELESS!" Josh yelled.
"DISGUSTING!" Drew added.
"ROMANTIC!" Rakki sighed dreamily.
Ci-N suddenly stood up.
"Okay listen everyone."
He grabbed the bottle from the ground.
"Since tonight is our campfire chaos night… we are officially drinking."
Everyone cheered.
Except me.
Because I already knew this would become a disaster.
Ci-N took a sip first.
Then passed it to Rory.
Rory took a dramatic sip like he was in a movie.
"Ah yes," he said dramatically. "Tastes like bad decisions."
"Your entire life tastes like bad decisions," Kit replied.
The bottle kept moving.
Kit.
Blaster.
Erdix.
Emman.
Eren.
Josh.
Drew.
Felix.
Calix.
Mayo.
David.
Even Rakki and Mica took tiny sips while laughing.
Ella hesitated but Aries convinced her.
Finally…
The bottle reached me.
Everyone looked at me.
I raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
Ci-N grinned.
"Your turn, ate Jay."
I grabbed the bottle confidently.
"Move."
Keifer watched me carefully.
"You sure about that?"
"Relax, father Keifer."
I lifted the bottle.
"Let the queen demonstrate how it's done."
Everyone cheered dramatically.
"JAY! JAY! JAY!"
I smirked.
Honestly?
I didn't even care.
It was just one sip.
One tiny sip.
What could possibly go wrong?
So I lifted the bottle toward my lips.
But before it touched my mouth—
A hand grabbed my wrist.
"Jay."
Keifer's voice.
Firm.
Serious.
I blinked.
"What?"
He gently lowered the bottle.
"You're not drinking."
The entire group went silent.
I stared at him.
"Excuse me?"
Ci-N raised his hand slowly.
"Yeah actually… I agree with Keifer."
I turned toward him.
"You too?"
Rakki nodded nervously.
"Maybe not tonight…"
"What?" I laughed. "Did I miss a meeting where everyone decided to control my life?"
Calix cleared his throat.
"It's just…"
Mica finished his sentence.
"You're kind of unpredictable."
"UNPREDICTABLE???"
Felix raised both hands.
"You once tried to fight a vending machine because it ate your coin."
"That machine deserved it!"
Rory nodded.
"She also tried to throw a chair at Yuri last week."
"That was self defense!"
Blaster laughed.
"You also punched Honey Bee in the nose."
"That witch deserved it too!"
Everyone laughed nervously.
But Keifer didn't laugh.
He just looked at me.
Softly.
Concerned.
"Jay," he said quietly. "Just skip tonight."
My pride immediately flared.
"Oh really?"
I stood up.
"So everyone here can drink except me?"
Ci-N rubbed his neck.
"That's not what we meant…"
"Oh I know exactly what you meant."
I lifted the bottle again.
Keifer stood up too.
"Jay."
"What?"
"Give me the bottle."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
Everyone watched like it was a tennis match.
Back and forth.
Back and forth.
Finally I glared at him.
"What are you going to do? Fight me?"
He sighed.
"You're already dangerous when sober."
The group laughed again.
I gasped dramatically.
"WOW."
I pointed at everyone.
"Fake friends. All of you."
Felix whispered to Ci-N.
"She's about to start roasting."
Ci-N nodded.
"Brace yourselves."
I turned toward Mayo.
"And you. Stop laughing. Your haircut looks like a coconut fell on your head."
"HEY!"
I pointed at Rory.
"And you look like a tired giraffe."
"WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN??"
I turned to Blaster.
"You laugh like a dying motorcycle."
The group exploded in laughter.
Blaster choked.
"RUDE."
Then I turned to Keifer.
"And YOU."
He raised his eyebrows.
"Oh here we go."
I poked his chest.
"Stop acting like my dad."
"I'm not acting like your dad."
"You literally stopped me from drinking."
"Because I know you."
"Oh yeah?"
"Yes."
"And what do you know?"
He leaned closer.
"That you'll drink one sip… then challenge the entire forest to a fight."
The group nodded instantly.
"He's right," Erdix said.
"Absolutely," Kit added.
I crossed my arms.
"You're all cowards."
Keifer gently took the bottle from my hand.
"And you're dramatic."
I tried to grab it back.
But he held it higher.
"You're tall," I said angrily.
"I know."
"You're annoying."
"I know."
"You're handsome."
He smirked.
"I know."
I froze.
The group started screaming.
"OHHHHHHHH!"
I threw a pinecone at Keifer's head.
"SHUT UP!"
He caught it easily.
Still smiling.
Then he leaned closer and whispered near my ear.
"If you want to drink… drink water."
I glared at him.
"Control freak."
"Violent girlfriend."
I pushed him away slightly.
But secretly…
I felt warm.
Because even though everyone was teasing…
Even though everyone was chaotic…
Every single one of them was looking out for me.
Ci-N leaned back and sighed.
"Okay new rule."
Everyone looked at him.
"No alcohol for Jay."
"AGREED," the entire group shouted.
I stared at them.
"You all are dead to me."
Keifer wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me back down beside him.
"Relax," he said softly.
"Don't tell me to relax."
"You're relaxing."
"I'm plotting revenge."
He laughed quietly.
And the campfire crackled louder as Section E returned to their chaotic night of teasing, laughing, and roasting each other under the stars.