HAPPY FRIENDSHIP ANNIVERSARY

Wake-Up Call, Kai Style

"The next morning was usually quiet.

Too quiet.

Nora peeked out of her room and found Lena already standing by the hallway, whispering, "Do you smell anything burning yet?"

The sun was already warming the walls of their safe house, and the scent of yesterday's laughter still lingered in the air.

But one thing was noticeably missing.

"Kai is still asleep?" Amelia frowned, checking the time on her phone. "It's almost nine!"

"We're going to starve," Eli groaned dramatically, clutching his stomach like he hadn't eaten in days.

"I vote we go bang on his door until he wakes up," Lena said, already marching toward Kai's room.

They all followed with wicked grins, Eli, Amelia, Nora, and Lena forming a hungry, mildly chaotic team.

They arrived at the door.

"Kai!" Nora called sweetly. "Your turn, chef!"

No answer.

Lena banged on the door. "WAKE UP, YOU'RE LATE! We're dying!"

Amelia added, "Do you want us to eat the furniture? Because we will!"

Eli leaned in and shouted, "This is a food emergency, soldier.

Open up or suffer the wrath of four hangry humans!"

Still no response.

Then Nora grinned. "Plan B."

The four of them leaned against the door together, pressing in with all their weight.

Just then, CLICK.

The door creaked open.

And all four of them, boom!, tumbled right into Kai's room in a heap, groaning and laughing on top of each other.

Kai stood above them in his rumpled pajamas, eyes puffy from sleep, completely unfazed.

He blinked. "You people are insane."

Then he stepped over the pile of chaos, yawned dramatically, and muttered, "Fine.

I'll cook. Let me at least brush my—oh never mind."

And with that, he sprinted barefoot down the hallway straight into the kitchen like a man going to war.

Back in his room, the four lay there in a pile for a second before Lena muttered, "I can't feel my leg."

"Was that a sock in my mouth?" Eli asked, coughing.

"I think we broke into a comedy show," Amelia said between giggles.

Nora grinned, dusting herself off. "Mission accomplished."

From the kitchen, a loud bang echoed, followed by Kai's voice:

"WHY IS THE PAN HOT ALREADY? WHO LEFT THIS ON?!"

The four of them exchanged wide-eyed glances, then ran.

"Breakfast might be fire," Eli said breathlessly. "Literally."

From the kitchen came a loud clatter, followed by a very loud:

"THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE SAUCE!"

They both ran.

"Inside the kitchen stood Kai, in an apron three sizes too big, sleeves rolled, hair messily fluffed, and flour streaked across his forehead like war paint.

"Morning, chefs," he said with fake confidence, clearly panicking inside.

"Today's menu: Kai's Surprise. Heavy on the surprise."

Eli walked in, sniffed the air dramatically, and winced. "Oh no. Is that… garlic in the pancakes?"

Kai looked defensive. "It's a fusion idea! Sweet and savory!"

"That's not fusion, bro. That's confusion," Eli said.

Amelia walked in next, took one look at the kitchen, and burst out laughing. "Did the blender fight back?"

Kai, hands on hips, pointed to a splatter on the ceiling.

"That was a moment of weakness. Let's not talk about it."

Nora stepped forward, kindly. "Do you… need help?"

"No. I got this," he declared, flipping something suspiciously burnt onto a plate.

They all watched.

Silently.

Finally, the food was ready, or close enough to it. He ushered them to the dining table with dramatic flair.

"Behold," he said. "Breakfast, à la Kai."

Everyone stared at the plates.

There were pancakes. Slightly charred.

Eggs. A bit too runny.

And something unidentifiable in a bowl that smelled like courage and regret.

They took cautious bites.

Eli coughed. "Is this… supposed to be spicy?"

Kai grinned. "Not at all."

Everyone paused.

Then Lena burst out laughing, followed by Nora and Amelia. Even Eli couldn't hold it back anymore.

Kai shook his head. "I can't believe I'm being mocked for offering you culinary innovation."

"You get an A for effort," Nora said through a giggle. "And an F for flavor."

Kai slumped. "So I failed."

"No, no," Amelia said kindly, patting his arm. "You gave us a core memory. That's worth gold."

"Yeah," Eli added, smirking.

"Plus, you've officially cooked worse than I. I've been waiting years for this."

They all raised their cups in a toast.

"To survive Kai's Kitchen," Nora declared.

"To bravery," Eli said.

"To taste buds that never gave up," Lena added.

Kai grinned sheepishly. "Next time, we're ordering in.

 Laughter, Smoke… and a Surprise

"Kai! That's not how you flip pancakes!" Amelia shouted, ducking as a burnt one slapped the wall and slid down with dramatic flair.

"It was a practice flip!" Kai defended, brandishing a spatula like a sword. "This one will be"

WHOOSH.

The fire alarm beeped once, loudly.

Nora grabbed a dishcloth to fan the smoke.

Eli cackled from the floor, halfway under the table. "We're all going to die of hunger… or laughter."

Lena opened a window, coughing. "Kai, seriously, have mercy."

"Okay, okay! No more flips. I'll scramble something safe."

They were all breathless with laughter, cheeks red, eyes watery from smoke and silliness.

The moment felt loud and light, like they were kids again, back in the old school dorm.

Then

Knock. Knock.

The noise was subtle compared to the ruckus, but it sliced clean through it all.

Everyone paused.

Another knock, firm this time.

"I'll get it," Eli said, brushing off flour from his shirt as he headed to the front door.

He opened it and froze.

There, standing with a duffel bag in one hand and a stunned smile on his face, was Harrison.

Older now. Taller. But unmistakably him, with the same kind of brown eyes and lopsided grin.

"Hey…" Harrison said. "Did someone order a missing friend?"

"OH MY GOD!" Eli yelled.

In seconds, the others rushed to the door.

"HARRISON!" Amelia screamed, throwing her arms around him.

Nora gasped. "You're here?"

"Is this a dream?" Lena asked, nearly tripping over a kitchen stool.

Kai stuck his head around the corner, still holding a smoking pan.

"Did a ghost just arrive or, HARRI?!"

The next few minutes were a whirlwind of hugs, slaps on the back, disbelief, and overlapping words:

"You look older."

"You didn't tell us you were this close to coming."

"Why now?"

"I missed you guys."

Amelia stepped back, tears sparkling in her eyes. "You're here. After all these years."

Harrison nodded softly.

"I couldn't miss this year.

Not after everything.

You said you were back at the safe house… and well, I needed to come home too."

There was a long, beautiful pause, hearts full and quiet in the warmth of reunion.

Then Kai, ever the chaos agent, raised his spatula.

"Right.

Now that the dramatic reunion is out of the way… Harrison, grab a plate. I made 'breakfast.'"

Eli snorted. "Define breakfast."

Lena whispered, "Do we warn him or just let him suffer?"

Amelia giggled, "Let him. It's tradition."

And just like that, the noise resumed, louder, fuller, now that their circle was complete again.