They did not intend to stay all night.
It just… happened.
One song turned into two.
Two turned into "what if we try this."
And somehow it was four in the morning.
Theo never left.
He claims it was "logistical oversight."
No one believes him.
By six, the studio lights are dimmed but still on.
Zane is asleep on the couch.
One arm hanging off.
Absolutely unbothered.
Laura is sitting upright in a chair.
Book open.
Not reading.
Axel is slouched slightly in the corner.
Half-awake.
Half-existing.
Sunny wakes up first.
She doesn't stretch.
She doesn't yawn.
She inhales.
And then—
"GOOD MORNING, SUNSHINE—"
Laura drops her bookmark.
Axel closes his eyes tighter.
Zane groans into the couch cushion.
Theo doesn't look up from his laptop.
"It is 6:08 AM," he says flatly.
Sunny twirls in the studio kitchen.
"There is light! We survived!"
"You are the light," Zane mutters from the couch. "Please dim."
Sunny ignores him.
She begins making coffee loudly.
Clanking.
Humming.
Improvised runs.
Axel stands eventually.
He doesn't speak.
Just reaches past her to correct the coffee measurement.
"You're using too much," he says calmly.
"It's performance fuel."
"It's liquid anxiety."
Laura closes her book.
"I cannot process text at this volume."
Sunny gasps.
"I am inspiring you."
"You are destabilizing the air," Laura replies.
Theo closes his laptop.
"It is 7:02 AM."
"No it's not," Zane says without checking.
Theo turns the screen toward him.
7:02.
Zane sits up slowly.
"Who authorized morning?"
Sunny is already toasting bread.
She flips a piece dramatically.
Zane appears behind her moments later.
Shirtless.
Hair ruined.
Eyes barely open.
He steals a piece of toast mid-air.
Sunny shrieks.
"That was mine!"
"You're singing," he says. "You don't need carbs."
Axel quietly hands Sunny his own toast.
She beams instantly.
"See? He loves me."
Laura watches this exchange like it's a nature documentary.
"Is this… routine?" she asks.
"Yes," Axel and Zane answer at the same time.
Theo checks his watch.
"It is 8:12 AM."
Everyone pauses.
Sunny freezes mid-note.
"Why are you still here?" she asks him.
"I manage you," Theo replies. "You did not dismiss me."
"You could've gone home," Zane says.
Theo stares at him.
"You were rewriting a bridge for forty-three minutes."
"That's dedication," Sunny says proudly.
"That is inefficiency," Theo replies.
Laura stands slowly.
Walks toward the kitchen.
Takes a slice of toast.
Examines it.
Bites.
Chews thoughtfully.
"It is acceptable."
Sunny throws her arms in the air.
"WE WIN."
Axel leans against the counter.
Coffee in hand.
Watching.
Zane drapes himself over the back of a chair.
Theo sighs heavily.
The studio is messy.
Sleep-deprived.
Loud.
But it doesn't feel fragile.
It feels… lived in.
Laura doesn't sit perfectly upright anymore.
Sunny doesn't apologize for being loud.
Zane steals toast without consequences.
Theo complains but doesn't leave.
And Axel—
Axel just watches them all.
Steady.
But smiling.
Because chaos, apparently,
sounds a lot like home.