Krishna used to love quiet.
Lazy afternoons, blackout curtains drawn halfway, her playlist humming low, phone on Do Not Disturb. Evenings where she sprawled alone on her sofa, legs tangled in a throw blanket, sipping her drink in total peace.
Silence used to be her luxury.
Now?
Her apartment sounded like a daycare for territorial Alphas with attachment issues.
"Aaron, get your elbow off my stomach!"
"Not until you move your fat head off her lap, Alliyah!"
"Who are you calling fat?!"
"Oh for crying out loud, both of you, shut up!" Allysa snapped, practically climbing over her sister just to wedge herself closer to Krishna's waist.
Krishna opened one tired eye.
From her view on the couch, she could see Aaron sprawled across the floor, one leg hooked tightly around her ankle like an overgrown barnacle. Alliyah was draped across her lap like a territorial cat refusing to budge. And Allysa? Allysa had fully made herself at home, half curled into Krishna's side, glaring at both of them like she was prepared to start swinging.
Again.
Krishna sighed long and slow, staring at the ceiling.
This was… what now? The fourth argument today?
It wasn't even noon.
"I swear," she muttered under her breath, grabbing the nearest throw pillow and smacking it over her own face to drown them all out. "I used to like living here."
Her self-imposed suffocation barely lasted five seconds before Aaron was suddenly at her side again.
"Ma'am… can I get in your lap next?"
"No!" Both twins yelled in unison.
Aaron bared his teeth like he was ready to fight both of them over it.
"Why not? I was her first lap dog!"
"Oh please," Alliyah hissed, curling even tighter against Krishna's thighs like a shield wall. "You're barely even lap-worthy. You're like floor decor."
Krishna cracked the pillow off her face and shot them all a warning glare. "If I hear one more word about my lap, all three of you are getting kicked out."
Silence.
For exactly two heartbeats.
Then Aaron raised a hand like an eager schoolboy. "But if I behave… can I still get head pats later?"
Alliyah and Allysa groaned in disgust while Krishna just laughed, sharp and tired.
"Gods, you're all exhausting."
The doorbell rang.
Again.
For the second time that day.
Aaron bolted upright like someone shot adrenaline through him. "I'll get it!"
Krishna didn't even ask who it was.
She'd learned to stop caring after the third week of random people showing up unannounced. By now, the building security had stopped questioning her guest list altogether.
Two minutes later, Aaron came skidding back into the living room, out of breath.
"It's Lucius," he hissed.
Krishna smirked. Oh… perfect.
Sure enough, Lucius appeared in the doorway moments later—immaculate suit, freshly pressed, and absolutely frozen like a man staring at a live car crash.
Krishna stretched her arms overhead lazily.
"Welcome back to hell."
Lucius's eye twitched.
"I see you've… multiplied," he said dryly, gaze sweeping over Aaron still clinging to her leg, and the twins practically forming a protective fence across her lap.
Aaron flashed him a smug grin. "Still the favorite."
"Dream on, floor boy," Alliyah snorted.
Krishna massaged her temples, already feeling a headache bloom. "Can we not turn my living room into a testosterone-and-hormone battlefield for five minutes?"
"Technically, we're all female here," Allysa deadpanned.
"Debatable," Lucius muttered, adjusting his glasses with visible strain.
Aaron stuck out his tongue like a toddler.
Lucius pinched the bridge of his nose like he was suppressing the urge to scream.
Krishna watched all of them with barely restrained laughter bubbling in her throat.
She used to hate noise.
Used to hate people.
Used to hate being needed.
Now?
Her sofa had permanent dents from where they all piled over her every day. Her fridge emptied twice as fast because Aaron and the twins kept raiding it like hungry wolves. Her hallway smelled like a mix of expensive cologne and disaster.
And yet…
Sitting here in the middle of the chaos…
Something warm lingered in her chest.
She could almost pretend this wasn't just survival anymore.
It was… comfort.
In the weirdest, most dysfunctional form imaginable.
The twins started arguing again, this time about who got the last bottle of her imported sparkling water.
Aaron pouted, loudly declaring himself "parched and underappreciated."
Lucius muttered something under his breath about "losing brain cells" and turned to leave.
The second Lucius left, slamming the door behind him like a final act of dignity, chaos erupted again.
Aaron lunged at Alliyah with a dramatic growl, grabbing a handful of her hair.
"Let go, you floor rat!"
"Not until you apologize for stealing my spot!"
They rolled across the carpet like toddlers in a playground brawl, hair pulling, elbows flying, insults screeching at full volume.
Krishna blinked once… twice… then--
Laughter.
Real. Loud. Unfiltered.
It burst out of her like sunlight cracking through clouds.
The room froze.
All three turned to stare at her… stunned… then absolutely lovestruck.
Krishna just wiped a tear from her eye, still laughing.
She grinned to herself.
Her kingdom was a mess.
Her dogs were loud.
Her living room was a war zone.
And for once?
She didn't mind it at all.