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“Junnie, I don’t care if this is the biggest rave club in the galaxy. I don’t wanna go without you!” Jaemin pouted as he crossed his arms and propped his legs up on the dashboard of his spaceship, staring outside at the expanse of stars laid out ahead of him. The holographic navigation panel on the dashboard indicated that there was still an hour left of travel time until he arrived at his destination, and the rhythmic pinging sounds coming from the navigator did absolutely nothing to soothe Jaemin’s nerves.
“I wish I could come, I really do, but I’m busy working on a new project, and the flight from Xiuruta to Jirix takes six hours at the very least, even if you jump to hyperspace along the way.” Renjun’s hologram was crouched next to a hunk of metal, his welding mask held up as he spoke to Jaemin and rummaged around for tools off screen. “Besides, this isn’t about me. You need to get out. You can’t spend the rest of the purple season sulking over that woman—”
“Her name is Jiiru, thank you very much. And I was with her for three years, mind you,” Jaemin huffed, sighing as he stared at the now empty spot in the middle of the pictures taped up on his dash, unable to look directly at the holographic Renjun. “But whatever, you’re right. I guess I should be getting out more.”
“You better set your ship’s course to autopilot if you drink. No manual while drinking.” Renjun gave Jaemin a chiding look, only looking away when Jaemin acknowledged him with a shrug and a wave of his hand.
“What do you take me for?” Jaemin laughed as he sat up in his pilot’s seat, flipping a few switches and buckling himself in, resting a hand on one of the levers to the right of him. “I’m about to jump the thrusters, so I’ll probably have to let you go for now, till I’m off of Jirix again or something.”
“Mkay,” Renjun hummed in acknowledgement, flipping down his welding mask and walking over to where his communication device was. “Ping me if you need help. Go have fun and get laid—or at least one of the two.” He looked at Jaemin, and even as a holograph Jaemin could notice the imperative look in his eyes.
“Fine,” Jaemin replied, looking ahead at the distant planets that were beginning to appear in his ship’s field of vision, small little colorful spheres accompanying the sea of stars dotted across the void of space. “I’ll text you when I’m out of the club!” The holographic screen of Renjun dissolved with a wave of his hand, and he was off with the push of a button, blasting off in the direction of Jirix.
Entering the atmosphere of Jirix had been simple enough, the shift in gravity causing a few bumps in Jaemin’s trajectory, but nothing too alarming as he adjusted his ship and guided it in the direction of where he knew the rave of the night would be held—the Electric Hearts club, epicenter of Jirix and party central for anyone within the solar system—or perhaps the galaxy, if word had spread around enough.
The Electric Hearts club was talked about all over the galaxy, and Jaemin knew this for a fact, having heard it in passing multiple times when he’d taken a trip to the other end of the galaxy, as well as from Renjun, who had talked for hours on end about his experience at the club. The sparkle in Renjun’s eyes had been undeniable, and though Jaemin was uncertain about going alone, he didn’t see much harm in letting himself go for a night, especially when there was so much that he simply wanted to get his mind off of.
Finding parking had been a less simple feat, considering all spacecraft parking warehouses from the club itself to six miles down the road had been filled. He had opted to pay extra for closer and nicer parking, because he wasn’t about to go stumbling down a crowded lane of spaceships shitfaced drunk a few hours later. He exited the warehouse after making sure his ship had been properly secured, then glanced for a moment at his phone before pocketing it and heading over to the large building shrouded in multi-colored lights.
Even from a distance, the distant vibration of music echoed out from inside the building, and Jaemin could hear a chorus of cheering and whooping from outside the club as he approached, species of all sorts gathered in smaller groups and talking excitedly amongst themselves. The entrance seemed to glow invitingly as Jaemin stood in front of it, little spotlights moving across the wall like mini stars in orbit.
“Renjun better not have been overhyping this place,” Jaemin mumbled to himself as he pushed open the doors to the club, ready to enter a world of booming music and flashing lights.
+
Yangyang rushed past crowds of people, the multi-colored lights of the Electric Hearts club blurring the countless faces of the people inside, allowing him to easily blend in with the other club-goers as he gently shoved his way past bodies upon bodies. He audibly exhaled when he had ventured deep enough into the crowd, looking up at the ceiling, where chandelier-like structures had been hung, sparkling and reflecting fragments of light to the floor below, the illusion of little stars evident when he looked down at the hundreds of shoes around him.
Even the floor seemed to come to life, with colorful wisps of light dancing around the thundering footsteps, and at the very front of it all, above the crowds and sitting just below the chandeliers on the ceiling, was the DJ of the Electric Hearts club—the orchestrator of countless raves that people traveled light years to attend, in anticipation for an almost otherworldly night.
Yangyang knew that as night fell, the music would start, and he would truly be safe among the crowd. For now, though, he simply looked around the crowd, glancing up at the balconies, his gaze darting around nervously for any danger. They won't look here, he reassured himself as he made his way to the bar to order one of the club's famous glowing cocktails. The bartender whipped his drink up, and in no time he was downing a glowing green substance, placing the empty shot glass and some money atop the counter as the bitter liquid slid down his throat.
"Okay, now I can handle this noise," Yangyang quietly said to himself before weaseling his way through the crowd once again.
+
After a couple of scattered shots here and there, Jaemin had begun to feel the buzz of alcohol in his head, the crowd and the lights beginning to blur together as the songs grew more and more energetic the later it became. Right as he was beginning to think that the so-called ‘party of the universe’ would never start, the lights suddenly dimmed, and silence washed over the large crowd. In the darkness above all, a steady green glow emitted from the stage.
“Are you ready for this, everyone?” The DJ asked, holding the microphone in his hand out, as though it would amplify the voices of the thousands in the club. The club answered with a thundering roar, claps and cheers making the excitement and anticipation within everyone evident. Jaemin nearly keeled over at how the ground trembled and shook with the cheering as the DJ laughed, the music starting with a loud boom.
Suddenly, the world around Jaemin seemed to bloom with life as the walls, the ceiling, even the floor exploded in colors, the music accompanying the patterns that blossomed forth, the crowd moving along to the music. It was almost magical, in a sense, though Jaemin knew that a majority of it had been accomplished with the help of technical effects—he recalled having installed the same technology in the ship he had designed for a dear friend of his, wanting to test out how light responded to music.
Jaemin exhaled, closing his eyes amidst the noise, anticipating the build-up to the beat drop. Enjoy the night, he thought to himself. The bass thrummed through his head, vibrating as he bobbed his head to the beat, slowly feeling himself grow more and more carefree as he joined the people around him in moving to the beat, feeling the energy of those around him despite having come alone. On the dance floor, he understood then exactly why people came here to throw their cares away for a night. The lights danced around him rhythmically, and it was then that he collided with another body.
When he recovered from his daze and looked at the person who had bumped into him, his lips parted from shock when he saw the figure in front of him, eyes wide as his gaze tilted downwards. The nameless person was gorgeous, to say in the least, his hair shimmering between shades of purple and silver, and he donned a white leather jacket that seemed to sparkle under the flashing lights with every move he made. The person looked back at him with wide eyes, seemingly star struck by Jaemin's outward appearance as well, looking him up and down before grinning widely and nodding his head to the beat.
Jaemin stood frozen for a few moments, unsure on how to react to the other. Renjun's reminder remained echoing in his head as he began to move in time with this mysterious person, deciding that having fun with someone else was better than dancing in a crowd alone. Jaemin shifted left and right, his hands soon joining his feet in moving on the dance floor, followed by his head, until he was completely immersed in the music and in that glittering leather jacket.
It didn't seem like enough to be standing a close distance from this handsome stranger, Yangyang thought to himself as the music blared on, the lights dancing in a frantic pattern around and above the two. He drew closer and closer, his intent gaze locked on the stranger's as he stopped just inches, nearly chest to chest now as they looked intensely into each other's eyes. Yangyang admired the way the light on the walls and the ceiling bounced around in the stranger's dark eyes, the way his lips curled upward into a smile that shone blindingly in a room of bright lights, the way he hesitantly held out a hand to hover above Yangyang's waist.
It was like they were connected within that moment, and as the beat dropped, they seemed to ride the same wavelength and bounce to the same rhythm as Yangyang kept a steady hold on Jaemin's waist, their free hands raised in the air as they joined the roaring of the crowd. The room seemed to heat up the more they threw themselves into the music, and like everyone within that building, they too knew that the Electric Hearts club was the star at the center of the galaxy, a sun that the entire universe seemed to orbit.
Jaemin and Yangyang danced, despite never having seen each other in their life before this. They danced because Jaemin wanted to forget about his worries. They danced because Yangyang wanted to escape his mistakes. They met in the middle here, in what the galaxy deemed the center of the universe, in a place where the lights danced and rivaled the stars in the sky. They danced despite the fact that they'd likely be on two different ends of the galaxy when the night ended, and they danced so close together that Jaemin could feel Yangyang's heartbeat as he kept him close.
It started with Jaemin's body pressed up against Yangyang's on the dance floor, and it ended with the two wordlessly pulling each other off of the dance floor, with Yangyang pressing Jaemin into the wall with a mischievous grin and leaning in close. Jaemin, too dazed from the sudden quietness, simply leaned forward and clumsily knocked their lips together, his ears still ringing as his eyes fluttered closed.
"I don't even know your name," Jaemin gasped out when Yangyang pulled back, their breath hot on each other's lips as they glanced around the somewhat empty hallway of the club, the booming bass now reduced to quiet thuds that vibrated in the back of Jaemin's head. A few drunk club-goers were scattered about here and there under the dimly lit hallway, leaning against the wall as they lazily sipped at their drinks. "I'm Jaemin, by the way."
"Hmmm..." Yangyang placed a finger on his chin, as though he needed to put a great amount of thinking into saying what his name is. "Everyone calls me Yangyang, but you can call me cutie." He grinned even wider as he spoke, a cheeky expression on his face as his hair sparkled under the colored LED lights of the hallway. Jaemin laughed and looked down at the other, pushing off of the wall as his hands remained hovering over Yangyang's waist.
"Well then, cutie, wanna get out of here?" Jaemin asked with the quirk of an eyebrow.
Yangyang answered only with a wink and a chaste kiss that lingered on the tip of Jaemin's lips.
The walk back to Jaemin's ship was surprisingly short and filled with filler conversations (Yangyang seemed to avoid every question directed at his field of work, strangely enough) that were enough to keep the trek silence-free. An odd feeling of anticipation welled up in Jaemin's chest as he placed a hand on the scanning pad, the door to the ship unlocking with a click and a hiss. They both stepped in with ease, Yangyang running a hand along the sleek walls of the small ship, a wondrous expression set on your face.
"Holy shit dude, this is yours?"
Jaemin nodded. "Newest model of the Neo Blu line, designed by me," he said as he ushered Yangyang into the cockpit. "Now then, do you want to finish what we started?" A smile had begun to curl up his lips as he seated himself in the pilot's seat, beckoning Yangyang over with a motion of his hand accompanied with a wink.
"Oh yes, definitely," Yangyang said as he eagerly clambered atop Jaemin's lap, grin plastered on his face as he held Jaemin's face with two hands. "Ah, there's one thing I need to tell you, though."
"Hmmm?"
"I'm kind of wanted by, like, fifty different space fed organizations. Can we get off this planet so there's no way they can find me?"
"Wait," Jaemin pulled back, eyebrows furrowing as he tried to process what Yangyang had said, "what?"
Yangyang sighed, "I'm on the run from the galaxy feds, but I'd really rather just sit in here and make out with you instead of spending my time running away, because quite frankly? I am so tired of looking over my shoulder every two seconds."
"I..." Jaemin sighed. "You know what, it's been months since I've gotten laid, so I'm just going to pretend I didn't hear that. Let's go." He flicked a few switches, watching as the spacecraft hummed to life, a flurry of lights flickering across the dashboard as Jaemin prepared the ship for flight, flying it smoothly out of the warehouse and up into the sky. Yangyang had shifted in Jaemin's lap when the ship had begun to move, moving so his legs were dangling off the arms of the seat and Jaemin could easily see where he was going.
"You won't report me, right?" Yangyang asked when they were finally up in the sea of stars, his gaze wary as he looked at Jaemin, who looked back at him with a questioning look once he set the craft to drift and took his hand off of the controls.
"No?"
"Perfect."
With that, Yangyang sat up in his lap and leaned in, connecting their lips and closing the gap between them, both ready to engage in an electrifying party in their own little universe. And perhaps they’d still be together in Jaemin’s ship when the night ended, up in the stars that thoughtfully twinkled all around them, listening to the exact same heartbeat they’d heard back on the dance floor.