Jay's Pov
The day after the basketball game, everything felt different.
Lighter. Brighter. Like the universe had finally stopped trying to destroy us.
I was walking to meet Mia for breakfast when my phone buzzed.
FELIX: Can you come to the gym? Alone. It's important.
ME: Everything okay?
FELIX: Percy's here. We need to talk. Both of us. And I think... I think you should be there.
I stared at the message.
Percy and Felix. Half-brothers who'd been separated for years. Who thought Percy was dead.
ME: On my way.
The gym was empty when I arrived.
Quiet. Echoey. The exact opposite of yesterday's chaos.
Felix was sitting on the bleachers, alone. He looked... nervous. Fidgeting. Not his usual loud self.
"Felix?"
He looked up. Tried to smile. Failed.
"Hey, Jay."
"You okay?"
"No. Yes. I don't know."
I sat next to him. "Talk to me."
He took a deep breath.
"Percy and I... we grew up together. Same mom, different dads. He was my big brother. My HERO. He taught me everything—how to be loud, how to be dramatic, how to not care what people think."
I nodded. That sounded like Percy.
"Then he moved to London. Said he had to go. Wouldn't explain why. We stayed in touch for a while, and then—" Felix's voice cracked. "Then the accident happened. And everyone said he died. They said the car went off the cliff. They said no one survived."
"But he did survive."
"Yeah. He survived. And he didn't tell me. For YEARS, he didn't tell me." Felix's eyes were wet. "I mourned him. I cried for him. I visited his empty grave. And he was ALIVE the whole time."
My heart broke for him.
"There has to be a reason," I said. "Percy's annoying and dramatic, but he's not cruel. He wouldn't hurt you like that without a reason."
"I want to believe that. But—"
The gym door opened.
Percy walked in.
No dramatic entrance. No posing. Just Percy. Looking... scared.
"Felix."
Felix stood up. Didn't move toward him.
"Explain," Felix said. Voice hard. "Explain why you let me think you were dead."
Percy swallowed. For once, he had no joke. No quip. No performance.
"Because I was ashamed."
Felix blinked. "What?"
Percy walked closer. Sat on the bleachers across from us.
"When the accident happened, I was in bad shape. Really bad. Broken bones. Internal bleeding. They said I might not walk again." He looked at his hands. "I was in the hospital for months. Rehab for a year. And all I could think about was how I'd failed everyone."
"Failed how?"
"I was supposed to be the big brother. The protector. And instead, I was the one who got hurt. The one who made everyone worry. The one who—" His voice broke. "The one who made YOU cry."
Felix's face crumpled.
"I saw videos. Your mom sent them to my mom. You at my funeral. You crying. You screaming." Percy wiped his eyes. "And I couldn't face you. Couldn't let you see me like that—broken, weak, useless. So I stayed away. Let you think I was dead. Told myself it was better that way."
"It WASN'T better!"
"I know that NOW!"
"Then WHY?!"
"Because I was SCARED, Felix!" Percy stood up. "I was scared you'd look at me and see a failure. Scared you'd be disappointed. Scared you'd realize your big brother wasn't a hero—just a guy who almost died and couldn't even save himself."
Felix was crying now. Full-on tears.
"You're an IDIOT," he sobbed.
"I know."
"A COMPLETE IDIOT."
"I know."
"I hated you. For years, I HATED you."
"I know."
"And now—" Felix grabbed Percy and pulled him into a hug. "And now I can't hate you anymore because you're HERE and you're ALIVE and you're still my BROTHER."
Percy held on. Tight.
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so sorry."
"Shut up."
"I—"
"SHUT UP AND HUG ME."
They stood there, holding each other. Brothers reunited after years of pain and lies and grief.
I sat quietly, watching. Feeling like I was witnessing something sacred.
After a long moment, they pulled apart.
Felix wiped his face. "You're still an idiot."
"Still your idiot."
"Don't use Keifer's lines."
"THEY'RE MY LINES NOW."
"THEY'RE NOT."
"Facts don't care about feelings."
Felix actually laughed. A wet, broken laugh. But real.
"You're the worst."
"I'm the BEST."
"You're ANNOYING."
"I'm CHARMING."
They stared at each other.
Then both laughed.
Real laughs. The kind that come after crying. The kind that mean healing.
Percy looked at me. "Thanks for coming, Jay-Jay."
"Thanks for finally telling the truth."
"It took me too long."
"Yeah. It did."
He nodded. Accepted it.
"Can you... can you give us a minute? Just us?"
"Yeah. Of course."
I stood up. Walked toward the door.
Before I left, I looked back.
Percy and Felix, sitting together. Talking quietly. Hands on each other's shoulders.
Brothers.
Finally.
I found Keifer outside. Waiting.
"How'd it go?"
"Good, I think. They're talking."
"That's good."
"Yeah."
He took my hand. "You okay?"
"Tired. But good tired."
"Same."
We stood there, holding hands, listening to the muffled voices from inside the gym.
"You know," Keifer said quietly, "I never thought I'd say this, but... I'm glad Percy's here."
"He's annoying."
"Very annoying."
"He's dramatic."
"Extremely."
"He's narcissistic."
"The worst."
I smiled. "But he's our annoying, dramatic, narcissistic brother."
Keifer squeezed my hand. "Yeah. He is."
Later, at the Residence
The whole squad gathered.
Percy and Felix walked in together. Different energy. Lighter. Freer.
"EVERYONE!" Percy announced. "I have an announcement!"
"Oh no," Sarah muttered.
"I am OFFICIALLY adopting Felix as my favorite brother."
"You have TWO brothers," I pointed out.
"Jare is my SECOND favorite. Felix is my FIRST."
Jare shrugged. "I'm okay with this."
Felix grinned. "I'm the favorite!"
"For NOW," Percy added. "It's conditional on continued entertainment value."
"WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?!"
"It means keep being funny or you're demoted."
"This is EXTORTION!"
"This is FAMILY."
Ci-n raised his hand. "Can I be adopted too?!"
"No," everyone said.
"UNFAIR!"
Dinner was chaos. As usual.
Percy told stories about his hospital recovery. Felix told stories about the funeral. They cried. They laughed. They cried again.
At one point, Percy looked at me.
"Jay-Jay?"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you."
"For what?"
"For bringing me back here. For making me face him." He looked at Felix. "For giving me my brother again."
I didn't know what to say.
Keifer squeezed my hand under the table.
"Family," I said finally. "That's what we do."
Percy smiled. A real smile. Not a performance.
"Yeah. Family."
That Night
My phone buzzed.
FELIX: Jay. Thank you. For everything.
ME: You don't have to thank me.
FELIX: I do. You helped me get my brother back.
ME: He was always your brother. You just needed to remember.
FELIX: You're wise.
ME: I'm TIRED.
FELIX: Same thing.
ME: STOP USING MY LINES.
FELIX: THEY'RE MY LINES NOW.
ME: I'M TELLING PERCY.
FELIX: PERCY WILL BE ON MY SIDE.
ME: PERCY IS ON NO ONE'S SIDE.
FELIX: ...Fair point.
Another buzz.
PERCY: Jay-Jay. I love you. You know that?
ME: I love you too, idiot.
PERCY: I'm the BEST idiot.
ME: You're A idiot.
PERCY: Same thing.
ME: Goodnight, Percy.
PERCY: ❤️ (but don't tell anyone I used a heart)
ME: YOUR SECRET IS SAFE.
PERCY: ❤️❤️❤️
I put my phone down.
Looked at Keifer, who was lying next to me on the couch.
"Your family is insane," he said.
"OUR family."
"Our family is insane."
"Best kind of insane."
He kissed my forehead. "Yeah. It is."