Chapter 207: Replaying the Madness

The morning after the most chaotic wedding Apex had ever seen was a mess.

Not in the traditional sense—there were no regrets, no cold feet, no awkward silences.

But there were severe hangovers, questionable decisions, and the undeniable proof that this group had no idea how to celebrate in moderation.

And as the sun poured through the Hale estate, illuminating the aftermath of the previous night’s madness, one thing was clear—

Last night had been legendary.

Seraphina Hale stood at the kitchen counter, stirring her coffee slowly, watching the disaster unfold.

Damon was beside her, sipping his own coffee, smirking.

"Remind me again why we thought letting them drink was a good idea?" she muttered.

Damon chuckled. "Because watching them suffer now is worth it."

And suffer they did.

Dominic Hale, the ever-composed ex-mercenary, was sitting at the table, head in his hands, muttering something about killing James.

Zayn Rivera was passed out on the couch, his tie still missing (Tessa had used it as a headband last night).

Liam Carter, arguably the worst off, had his head against the table, groaning as if he was experiencing the end of days.

James?

Still asleep on the floor, using his own jacket as a pillow.

Orion Calloway, the only one who seemed somewhat fine, was reading a newspaper like he hadn’t watched the chaos unfold firsthand.

And the brides?

Elena Steel, Alexandra Moore, and Tessa Quinn were the only ones who actually looked like they had their lives together.

Mostly because they had outdrank their husbands and still managed to wake up without looking half-dead.

Tessa stretched, glancing at Zayn’s unconscious form.

"Wow," she muttered. "I really married that."

Alexandra smirked, sipping her coffee. "I had the same thought about Liam."

Elena raised a brow. "I never had that thought about Dominic."

Tessa smirked. "Because you knew what you were signing up for."

Elena shrugged. "Obviously."

"So," Seraphina mused, looking around at the wreckage. "Who wants to explain what the hell happened last night?"

Damon smirked. "From what I remember—"

Liam groaned. "Don’t."

Damon ignored him.

"James was the first to pass out," he continued. "Zayn and Liam started a drinking contest—"

Zayn, despite being half-conscious, grumbled. "I won."

Liam lifted his head weakly.

"Like hell you did," he muttered. "I destroyed you."

Zayn made an incoherent noise and rolled onto his side.

Damon chuckled.

"Dominic got into an argument about steak with one of the catering staff—"

Dominic grumbled. "They were wrong."

"—Tessa stole Zayn’s tie—"

Tessa smirked. "And I stand by that decision."

"—and James tried to give a speech but passed out halfway through."

James, still facedown on the floor, lifted a hand weakly. "It was a great speech."

Seraphina smirked. "You made it exactly three sentences before you collapsed."

James let his hand drop. "Still counts."

"Okay, but who decided it was a good idea to let Zayn be in charge of music?" Alexandra asked.

Damon grinned. "That was Liam’s fault."

Liam, still half-dead, groaned.

"I take no responsibility for anything that happened after midnight."

Tessa crossed her arms. "Zayn played 'Eye of the Tiger' for our first dance."

Seraphina snorted.

"I stand by my choices," Zayn muttered from the couch.

Elena rubbed her temples. "We should have expected this."

Damon, still too entertained, nodded. "Absolutely."

James finally sat up, groaning.

"Why does my back feel like I got run over?" he muttered.

Orion, not even looking up from his newspaper, answered—

"Because you fell off the table when you tried to do a toast."

James blinked. "Ah. That explains it."

Dominic exhaled. "You’re a goddamn mess."

James grinned, despite the obvious pain.

"And yet, I still had a great time."

Liam muttered something unintelligible into his arms.

After what felt like an eternity, Seraphina finally decided to take mercy on them.

She slid a bottle of painkillers onto the table and poured some coffee into an extra cup, placing it in front of Liam.

Liam grunted in appreciation.

Tessa nudged Zayn with her foot. "You dying?"

Zayn barely opened one eye. "Already dead."

Tessa rolled her eyes and tossed a pillow at him.

Elena, watching the chaos unfold, shook her head.

"How the hell did we end up here?" she muttered.

Dominic, finally lifting his head from his hands, smirked slightly.

"We married idiots," he said simply.

Elena sighed. "Yeah. We did."

At some point, when the suffering had eased slightly, the reality of the situation finally started to hit.

They were married.

Like, actually married.

Three couples.

Three completely different dynamics.

One absolute disaster of a family.

Tessa, sitting next to Zayn, glanced at him.

"You realize this means we have to tolerate each other forever now, right?" she teased.

Zayn smirked, his voice still rough from exhaustion.

"Like I’d ever let you escape me, Quinn."

Tessa rolled her eyes.

Elena, sitting with Dominic, leaned into him slightly.

"This doesn’t change anything, you know," she murmured.

Dominic, sipping his coffee, smirked.

"It changes everything."

Elena huffed.

Alexandra glanced at Liam, who still looked half-dead.

"You gonna survive?" she asked, amused.

Liam exhaled. "If you keep bringing me coffee, maybe."

Alexandra smirked. "Good to know where I stand."

Seraphina, watching all of them, shook her head.

"This might have been the worst idea ever," she muttered to Damon.

Damon smirked. "Or the best one."

Seraphina sighed.

"Guess we’ll find out."

And honestly?

That was the truth.

They had no idea what the future held.

But whatever it was—

They were in it together.

For better or worse.

And considering who they were?

Probably both.