The morning at Hamdeok Beach felt unreal.
The air was cooler here—salty, soft, like it hadn't fully decided to wake up yet.
We were all still in pajamas.
Yes. Pajamas.
At a beach house.
Nena, and Emma were already sitting around the table eating breakfast like it was normal life.
I walked in slowly and blinked at them.
"Who cooked?" I asked, still half asleep.
Nena pointed casually. "Your mom and dad."
Then she paused.
"…Well. Technically our mom and dad."
I nodded slowly like that made perfect sense. "Right. Family logic."
Before I could sit properly—
The sliding door creaked.
Luca appeared.
Hair messy. Eyes barely open. Walking like a sleepy ghost who forgot how legs work.
He stopped when he saw me.
Then blinked.
Slowly.
"…Ayana," he said, voice flat. "I am a very clingy person in the morning."
I laughed immediately. "That's not a warning you just declare—"
He ignored me and looked around.
"Where is Jake?"
As if summoned by his name—
Jake walked out, rubbing his neck.
Luca instantly turned to him with full seriousness.
"Can I hug you?"
Jake didn't even hesitate.
"No."
Luca sighed dramatically like his soul left his body. "Rude."
He turned away and just walked to sit down next to me instead.
I laughed. "Rejected in real time."
Jake glared at him. "You're terrifying in the morning."
Luca shrugged. "You're emotionally unavailable."
Emma snorted. "That's a new way to start the day."
We were still laughing when footsteps came back outside.
Dad.
He was carrying food trays carefully, like he'd done this a thousand times before.
"Breakfast is ready," he said simply.
And then—
Luca saw him.
His entire personality changed instantly.
He stood up so fast the chair almost scraped back.
"Oh—good morning, Dad—!"
Mr. Ronson Dad, opened his arms slightly, expecting a hug.
But Luca didn't even go to him.
He walked straight past him—
and hugged Mom instead.
She immediately patted his back. "You were awake again late, weren't you?"
Luca mumbled into her shoulder, "I was fine…"
Jake leaned toward me. "That's his emotional hierarchy."
Emma whispered, "He chooses comfort over authority every time."
Mom sighed softly, still holding Luca lightly. "Yesterday he wouldn't even let me go take water. He just followed me around like a shadow."
Luca lifted his head a little. "You were moving too far."
"You were literally sitting on my lap," she replied flatly.
Luca nodded. "It was comfortable."
The table erupted into laughter.
Even Jake shook his head. "This guy is not normal."
Mr. Ronson just watched all of us for a moment.
Then he smiled—small, quiet, but real.
"I'm glad," he said gently, "that I have my family back now."
The laughter softened.
Even Luca paused for a second.
Even the ocean outside felt quieter.
And somehow, in that messy, sleepy morning—
it felt true.
By the time Liam, Ethan, and Mark finally showed up, the breakfast table had already turned into chaos.
Liam walked in first, hair still messy.
Ethan followed right behind him, calm as always.
Mark came last, looking like he had already decided he was above everyone's nonsense.
They all sat down like nothing had been happening.
Like Luca didn't just declare emotional dependency on half the house.
Like Jake wasn't still recovering from yesterday's confession embarrassment.
Just… calm eating.
Normal.
As if.
Then Mrs. May turned slightly toward Mr. Ronson.
"Can I ask something?" she said softly.
Mr. Ronson looked up. "Of course."
Her eyes shifted toward Luca for a second.
"I know Luca's mother… passed away," she said carefully. "But… why did you take him in?"
The room went a little quieter.
Even Luca slowed down.
Mr. Ronson exhaled slowly, like the question wasn't new—but still heavy.
"I married her," he said calmly.
Nena blinked. Jake paused mid-bite.
"She was sick," he continued. "Her family wanted her to have stability… someone to take care of her and her child."
He glanced briefly at Luca.
"So I agreed."
The room stayed silent.
"After we married, she passed away not long after," he said quietly. "Luca was three."
Luca didn't look up.
"And I… kept him," Mr. Ronson added simply. "I raised him as my own."
Something tightened in my chest.
Not sad exactly.
Just… soft.
Mrs. May's expression changed immediately—gentle, understanding.
She stood up slowly and walked over to Luca.
She tilted his face lightly with her fingers.
"Even so," she said softly, "you're still my son too."
For a second—
Luca froze.
Then his eyes filled.
And before anyone could even react—
he hugged her.
Hard.
Like he had been holding that feeling for years and didn't know where to put it.
Mrs. May just patted his back gently.
"It's okay," she whispered.
I smiled without even realizing it.
"This is actually going perfectly," I murmured to myself.
Mark, sitting nearby, leaned back. "This is about to turn into a family photoshoot arc, isn't it."
Right on cue—
He stood up.
"My dad called," he said lazily. "He wants the photos. We should take them soon."
That snapped everything into motion.
Suddenly—
people were everywhere.
Somehow everyone got dressed.
Somehow makeup, hair fixes, outfit changes happened in record time.
Somehow Luca was still clinging to someone every five minutes.
We all ended up outside near the beach house area.
The wind was softer now.
The sky brighter.
Chaos energy fully activated.
Jake was still trying to act normal while Nena kept leaning in and kissing his cheek just to mess with him.
"Stop it," he hissed.
"I like you," she said sweetly again.
"Stop saying it like that in public—"
Liam was laughing at them while Emma kept fixing her hair in between shots.
Ethan stood a little closer to me than usual.
Not saying much.
Just there.
Mark looked at all of us and sighed dramatically.
"I hate this group."
Then he walked straight to Luca anyway.
"Come here," he said.
Luca blinked. "Why?"
"Because someone has to stand next to me so I don't look like I belong to a completely different universe."
Luca nodded seriously. "Fair."
And just like that—
we lined up.
Mr. Ronson. Mrs. May. Luca.
Nena and Jake still arguing softly.
Emma and Liam laughing quietly.
Mark pretending he didn't care but standing perfectly still.
Ethan beside me. Close enough that I could feel him.
And me.
For once—
no fighting.
no shouting.
no drama.
Just people.
A weird, loud, chaotic family that somehow fit together.
Click.
Click.
Click.
The camera kept going.
And I remember thinking—
this… this is my life now.
And I didn't hate it at all.