Chapter 94- "DIWALI VACATION!!!"
It was a peaceful morning.
Too peaceful.
Which should have been the first warning.
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Everyone was scattered around the mansion.
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Keifer and JJ were on the couch.
JJ stealing his hoodie again.
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Percy and Honey were arguing over breakfast.
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Aries reading news.
Ella sitting beside him.
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Mica and Calix sharing coffee.
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Freya complaining about her sleep schedule.
Edrix listening patiently.
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Rakhi and Cin discussing exam questions they could no longer change.
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Felix, David, Rory, and Eman were enjoying the rare silence.
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Upstairs—
Care had just finished checking hospital reports.
Lyra was answering emails.
Rhys was pretending not to nap.
Alex was on his laptop.
Cole was drinking coffee.
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Then—
every phone.
Every laptop.
Every tablet.
Pinged.
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At.
The.
Same.
Time.
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Silence.
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JJ blinked.
"That's suspicious."
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Percy opened his email first.
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Five seconds later—
a scream echoed through the mansion.
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"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"
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Everyone jumped.
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Aries nearly dropped his phone.
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"WHAT DIED?!"
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Percy ran into the middle of the room.
Pointing at his phone.
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"NOTHING!"
Pause.
"THAT'S THE POINT!"
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Honey grabbed the phone.
Read it.
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Then screamed too.
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And suddenly—
chaos.
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The Email
IIM Bangalore Official Notice
"Diwali Vacation begins from tomorrow."
"Classes suspended for two weeks."
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Two.
Whole.
Weeks.
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JJ stared.
Read it again.
Then again.
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"...is this legal?"
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Keifer checked his email.
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"...apparently."
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The Explosion
The mansion lost all remaining discipline.
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Percy jumped on the couch.
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"WE'RE FREEEEEEEEE"
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Aries immediately dragged him off.
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"GET DOWN."
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"No."
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"GET DOWN."
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"No."
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"GET DOWN."
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"NO."
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Ella was laughing too hard to help.
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Medical Student Reaction
Cin checked his AIIMS email.
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Silence.
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Everyone watched.
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Then—
his eyes widened.
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"No way."
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Rakhi leaned over.
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"...you got vacation too?"
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Cin nodded slowly.
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Then whispered:
"...the doctors can't teach me for two weeks."
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From upstairs—
Care yelled:
"I HEARD THAT."
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Cin immediately sat down.
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"...I love education."
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Rhys nearly choked laughing.
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Lyra looked personally offended.
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Freya's Priorities
Freya stood dramatically.
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Finally.
Her moment.
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"My beauty sleep shall return."
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Edrix nodded.
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"Your what?"
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"My beauty sleep."
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Felix looked at her dark circles.
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"...might need more than two weeks."
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The entire mansion exploded.
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Freya threw a pillow.
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Felix dodged.
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"YOU'RE RUDE."
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"AND CORRECT."
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Adult Side
Upstairs.
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Alex finally closed his laptop.
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"No lectures."
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Lyra smiled.
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"No hospital teaching sessions."
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Rhys:
"No exam supervision."
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Care:
"No revision schedules."
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Then everyone looked at Cole.
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Cole took a sip of coffee.
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"...peace."
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Alex nodded.
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"A beautiful concept."
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JJ's Idea
Downstairs.
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JJ suddenly sat up.
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"We should celebrate."
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Everyone immediately agreed.
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Without hearing the plan.
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Which was a mistake.
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Because JJ's plans historically caused problems.
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Keifer knew this.
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"...what kind of celebration?"
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JJ smiled.
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That smile.
The dangerous one.
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The one that once convinced people to do stupid things.
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"Oh, you'll see."
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Keifer sighed.
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Percy looked excited.
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Aries looked concerned.
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Honey looked concerned.
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Ella looked concerned.
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Everyone looked concerned.
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Except JJ.
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And that was exactly why they should have been worried.
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End Note
For the first time in months—
No exams.
No classes.
No deadlines.
No hospitals calling every second.
No memories to recover.
No mysteries left.
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Just family.
Friends.
Love.
And two weeks of freedom.
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Which, considering this group...
would probably become dangerous within 24 hours. 😌✨🎇🎆
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The celebration quickly became exactly what everyone expected.
A disaster.
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Percy somehow connected music to speakers loud enough to wake neighboring cities.
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Aries immediately started arguing with him.
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"Turn it down."
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"No."
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"Turn it down."
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"No."
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"Turn it—"
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"NO."
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Honey looked tired.
Ella looked tired.
The entire mansion looked tired.
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JJ was laughing so hard she nearly fell off the couch.
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Keifer caught her automatically.
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"Careful, wifey."
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JJ narrowed her eyes.
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"Keep talking and I'll push you into the pool."
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Keifer smiled.
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"Worth it."
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Across the room—
Freya was showing everyone her eye masks.
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"My recovery journey starts today."
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Felix looked at her.
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"You sound like a hospital patient."
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"Beauty is serious business."
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"Apparently."
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Nearby—
Mica and Calix were peacefully sharing snacks.
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Edrix and Freya were still debating sleep schedules.
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Rakhi was bullying Cin into eating properly.
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David, Eman, and Rory were watching the chaos unfold like nature documentary narrators.
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And for the first time in forever—
everyone was happy.
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Then—
JJ's phone rang.
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One ring.
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Two rings.
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Three.
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She glanced at the screen.
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And froze.
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Completely.
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The smile disappeared.
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The room slowly noticed.
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Keifer noticed first.
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"Jay?"
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No answer.
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Her hands trembled slightly.
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Everyone grew quieter.
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Then JJ whispered:
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"...Kuya."
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Silence.
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Complete silence.
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Because everyone knew exactly who that meant.
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Angelo.
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The man who raised her.
The man she called Death because of how strict he was.
The man she left behind one year ago.
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The call kept ringing.
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JJ stared at it.
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Like she wasn't sure if it was real.
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Then—
with shaking fingers—
she answered.
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"Hello?"
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Nothing.
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Just breathing.
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For several seconds.
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Then a voice.
Deep.
Steady.
Familiar.
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"...Jay."
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JJ immediately felt tears burning her eyes.
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Because no one called her that the way he did.
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No one.
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The entire room went silent.
Nobody dared interrupt.
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Angelo spoke again.
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"...you remember now?"
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JJ laughed weakly through tears.
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"...yeah."
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Another silence.
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Then—
for the first time ever—
his voice cracked.
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Just a little.
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"...good."
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That single word nearly destroyed her.
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Because Angelo wasn't someone who showed emotions easily.
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He wasn't the hugging type.
The crying type.
The emotional speeches type.
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But JJ knew him.
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And she heard it.
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The relief.
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The fear.
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The guilt he'd carried for a year.
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JJ wiped her eyes.
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"...I'm sorry."
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Immediately—
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"No."
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The answer came so fast everyone looked up.
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Angelo rarely interrupted people.
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But this time he did.
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"No."
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His voice softened.
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"...don't apologize for surviving."
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The room became even quieter.
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JJ closed her eyes.
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A tear escaped.
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"Kuya..."
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A small laugh came from the other end.
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"...you still cry too easily."
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JJ laughed through tears.
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"You're still mean."
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"Good."
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That earned an actual laugh from her.
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The first genuine one since answering.
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Then Angelo asked quietly:
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"Are you safe?"
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JJ looked around the room.
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At Keifer.
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Percy.
Aries.
Yuri.
Felix.
Calix.
David.
Edrix.
Rory.
Eman.
Honey.
Ella.
Mica.
Freya.
Rakhi.
Cin.
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Then at—
Care.
Lyra.
Rhys.
Alex.
Cole.
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Her second family.
And the family she'd found after losing herself.
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JJ smiled.
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"...yeah."
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Pause.
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"I'm home."
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Silence.
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Then Angelo exhaled.
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A long breath.
One he probably had been holding for an entire year.
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"...good."
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This time—
everyone heard the emotion.
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Even if he tried to hide it.
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JJ smiled softly.
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"Missed me, Death?"
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The entire room immediately started laughing.
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From the phone came an exhausted sigh.
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"...only a little."
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"LIAR."
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"A little."
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"Big liar."
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"Jay."
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"Kuya."
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The familiar bickering continued.
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And for the first time in one whole year—
Angelo wasn't talking to a memory.
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And JJ wasn't talking to the past.
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They were talking to each other again.
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Alive.
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Finally. ❤️🩹