Daphne Pov .....
His lips were just about to meet when—"GUYS! JJ's making us finalize rooms! Let's go!"Mason's voice crashed into the room.
Startled, I shoved Leon away. He lost his balance and hit the floor with a loud thud.I stood there, frozen and breathless, as Mason appeared at the door.
He blinked at the scene — Leon on the floor, me awkwardly standing there — and smirked."Uh... should I leave you two alone? Or was this Leon's plan to claim the best room?"
Leon groaned from the ground, muttering something under his breath, while I quickly grabbed my bag and bolted past Mason.
"Smooth, Vaillaint," Mason teased, laughing as I practically ran down the hallway.
I didn't look back —because if I did, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to pretend like nothing happened.
We made it downstairs just in time to see Roman and JJ practically at each other's throats.
"I called dibs first, dumbass!" Roman snapped, shoving JJ hard.
JJ shoved him right back, scowling."And I picked the goddamn door! You snooze, you lose, asshole!"
"You think touching a doorknob makes you the king of the house, you little shit?" Roman growled, stepping up until they were nose-to-nose.
Cami, from her spot on the floor, groaned loudly."Oh my god. It's like watching toddlers fight over a toy."
Cass didn't even look up from where he was scrolling through his phone."Just give them the same room. Let them suffocate each other."
Mason, wide-eyed, whispered,"Should we... like, separate them before they kiss or kill each other?"
Liv ducked behind a chair, laughing."I'm not breaking it up. Let natural selection do its thing."
Roman grabbed JJ's shirt."You wanna go, dickhead? Let's go!"
JJ laughed — that wild, stupid laugh he got when he was two seconds from throwing punches."Bring it on, bitch."
Leon sighed next to me."Great. First day and we're already gonna need hospital bills."
I couldn't take it anymore.
"ENOUGH!" I shouted, loud enough to make everyone freeze. Roman still had JJ's shirt in his fists; JJ was half a second from swinging.
"I have better things to do than watch you two idiots fight over a goddamn room," I snapped. "Flip a fucking coin or something. Or keep your mouths shut and stay at your own damn homes. No one's forcing you to live here."
The silence was thick — like everyone had just remembered I had a temper when properly pissed.
Roman muttered under his breath and dropped JJ's shirt.JJ raised his hands like he was surrendering, muttering something about how he didn't even want the stupid room anymore.
Mason, breaking the tension, grinned and said,"Well, that escalated. Remind me never to piss off Daphne when there's no furniture to hide behind."
Everyone laughed awkwardly — except Roman and JJ, who glared at each other like it wasn't over yet.
I glared at Mason. "I think you already did piss me off, Mason," I shot back. "Anyways, what's it gonna be — both of you compromise, or no room at all?"
JJ muttered under his breath, clearly irritated, but loud enough for us to hear."I don't want that stupid room anyway."
Roman huffed, crossing his arms."Yeah, same. I was just about to lose it with this idiot."
I glanced at Leon, who finally spoke up."Good," he said, his voice calm but firm. "Now we're all on the same page."
With that, the tension in the room eased a little, but the weight of the argument still hung in the air. I could feel everyone exhale, like we'd just avoided an even bigger mess.
Mason, grinning like an idiot, whispered to me,"Mission accomplished, Princess. You did a good job breaking them up. But next time, I'm staying out of the crossfire."
I shook my head, barely holding back a laugh.
After much arguing and back-and-forth, the room assignments were finally settled. Cami, Cass, Mason, and Liv would take the rooms on the first floor. As for the ground floor, one room would be converted into a theater room, complete with a huge screen and comfy seating. The second room would become a game room — Roman was already planning out the pool table, gaming consoles, and vending machines like the ones in arcades. The larger room on the ground floor would be turned into a guest room, for when we had visitors.
As for me, I claimed the room on the top floor — the middle one with the balcony. I'd always loved that view. JJ would be staying right next to me, while Leon took the room next to him. Roman took the room next to me, so at least we were all kind of near each other, despite the floor separation.
I was kind of relieved that Leon didn't take the room Roman had — the one with the connected doors. That would've been awkward, especially given everything between us. But we were still on the same floor, so I guess I'd have to get used to it. It was weird, knowing Leon was so close, but not close enough to really have to deal with him every second. But in the end, it didn't matter. We'd all be living under the same roof, and whether I liked it or not, things were about to get... interesting.
Liv grinned. "Since everything's decided, let's go get stuff for the house — furniture, decorations, whatever."
Everyone nodded, already moving toward the door. I hung back."I'll leave that to you guys," I said, waving them off. "I gotta go anyway. I'm cool with whatever you pick. I'll get my stuff separately. And groceries... we can figure that out when we're actually moving in."
Leon spoke up just as I turned."Daph, stay. We can all go together. Wasn't this the plan? If we ever got a place, we'd do it together?"
I looked at him, trying not to feel anything."Yeah, well... news flash, Leon. We can't stay kids forever."
Before he could say anything else, I walked out.
In my car, I couldn't help but think about what Leon said.And just like that, it all came rushing back — the kind of memory you don't even realize you're still carrying until it sucker-punches you.
We were home alone again — Mason's birthday. His parents were, as usual, nowhere in sight.It was just us.Our messy little group.
"I don't wanna celebrate," Mason had grumbled, flopping on the couch like it was a protest.
"Bullshit," Cass had said, rolling his eyes. "You say that every year."
"You do want to celebrate," Liv added, grinning as she yanked a blindfold out of her bag. "And guess what? You don't get a say."
Mason groaned. "You're gonna lock me up and beat me, aren't you?"
"Tempting," Cami deadpanned as we all laughed, "but no."
Cass and JJ each grabbed one of Mason's arms, practically dragging him down the hall.Meanwhile, Liv and I snuck ahead to light the candles in the room we had decorated—cheap balloons taped to the walls, a lopsided banner that said Happy Birthday Loser, and a cake that looked like a five-year-old had made it.It was awful. It was perfect.
"Okay, ready?" I whispered, giggling.
Cass pulled off Mason's blindfold.The second he saw the room, he froze.We all yelled, "Surprise!" and started singing Happy Birthday like total idiots, way off-key and way too loud.
Mason just stood there, wide-eyed. He was trying to be cool about it, but the second he went to cut the cake, I saw his hands shaking a little.
When he closed his eyes to make a wish, he mumbled under his breath —"I wish... that next year... and every year after... I can celebrate with my real family."He opened his eyes and added, louder this time, "You guys. Always you guys."
Nobody knew what to say. So we didn't say anything.We just piled on him in a massive group hug, laughing and shoving until Mason was threatening to punch us all.
That night, sitting on the floor with too much cake and even more bad ideas, we made a pact.We promised that when we grew up, no matter where life took us, we would live together.Celebrate every birthday, every win, every disaster — together.
And from that day on, every stupid plan we made — every future dream we talked about — somehow always circled back to that one promise.
We were supposed to make it happen. We were supposed to be forever.
I blinked back into the present, staring out at the road. I tightened my grip on the steering wheel.
We swore we'd always stick together. We built our futures around it. But I left.And nothing's been the same since.
I didn't just walk away from them. I shattered the pact. I hurt the only people who ever felt like home.
And no matter how much time passes... some mistakes just don't stop bleeding.
Leon's POV
I watched her car disappear down the street, my hands stuffed uselessly into my pockets.The urge to chase after her was so strong it physically hurt.
I hated how easily she could still walk away.I hated that no matter how mad I was, no matter how much time had passed, part of me would always want to follow her.
She left.And I stayed behind, picking up the pieces she never even knew she broke.
I ran a hand through my hair, cursing under my breath.No matter what promises we made back then...Nothing was the same now.
But maybe...Maybe it wasn't too late to change that.
As I went back inside, the atmosphere hit me like a punch.Everyone looked... disappointed. Heavy.Mason sat slumped on the couch, trying — and failing — to hide the way his eyes shined.He looked like he was about to cry.
He was the youngest of us — always had been — and Daphne used to treat him like her own little brother.It made sense, I guess.That he was the one who took it the hardest.
The one who couldn't believe that the girl who used to wipe his tears away would be the one to make him cry.
Mason's head dropped, and a single tear slid down his cheek.
No one said much after that.We all just quietly decided to call it a day... and go home.
Another broken promise we didn't know how to fix.