Chapter Text
Renjun is standing in front of an honest to god conspiracy board, complete with cut out photos and a string of red thread interconnecting them. Jeno would think he’s crazy if he didn’t look so cute pointing empathically at different areas of the board.
Jeno realizes belatedly that Renjun’s lips are moving, and that he should probably be paying attention to what is coming out of his mouth and not just how his mouth looks as he speaks. Cute lips pursed and pink and—
“Haechan! Are you even paying attention?” Renjun calls out. Jeno’s heart skips a beat, before registering that he’s not the one being called out.
He looks over to see Donghyuck scrolling disinterestedly on his phone, feet kicked up onto the table. He raises lazy eyes to Renjun, before looking back at his phone. “I was told there would be snacks.”
“And there will be,” Renjun says, “Whenever Jaemin gets here with the pizza.” Jeno perks up at that (though whether he’s happy about Jaemin or pizza, you’ll never know).
“Now, as I was saying, this alien sighting has been reported every 10 years in the same spot without fail, and what does this year happen to be? Yeah, you guess it, 10 years from the last sighting.” Renjun taps empathically at a picture of a stock photo flying saucer hovering over a field.
“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” Chenle asks, eyes wide and eyebrows raised curiously. Renjun nods contentedly, clearly happy someone else is taking interest.
To be fair, Jeno is completely interested in the meeting (though perhaps not for the same reasons that Renjun and Chenle are).
Meanwhile, Jisung’s gone a shade paler at their words. “Oh god no, please don’t tell me it’s what he thinks you are saying.” The maknae shakes his head. “I am not going to be a part of this.”
“What?! You have to come!” Chenle argues, latching onto his best friend.
“As a DREAM member, you have to co—”
“What exactly does DREAM stand for again?” Donghyuck butts in offhandedly.
Renjun stares at him, before pointing to the sign he tacked up above the board that reads, “Dedicated in Reaching Extraterrestrials Association M.”
“Why is there just a random ‘m’ there?” Hyuck asks.
“Well, it couldn’t be DREA! That just sounds stupid.” Renjun defends, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Maybe it can stand for ‘member,’ we can say we are a DREAM.” Jeno tries helpfully.
“Or it could stand for ‘man,’ ‘Dedicated in Reaching Extraterrestrials Association, Man.” Chenle suggests, earning a snigger from Donghyuck.
“As I was saying, as a DREAM, thank you, Jeno, you are contractually obligated to come along.” Renjun says with finality. Jeno tries not to feel too pleased at getting a shout out.
Donghyuck lets out a disappointed noise, “I knew I should have read that contract before I signed it. Curse my trusting nature.”
Meanwhile, Chenle is shaking Jisung with the force of a washing machine on high, and the youngest looks seconds away from fading out of existence altogether.
“Where are we contractually obligated to go?” A voice comes from behind them. Jaemin, and he’s brought the pizza.
“Fucking finally!” Donghyuck exclaims, throwing his phone in favor of snatching the box out of Jaemin’s hands. Jaemin has his infamous crooked smile plastered on his face, the one that honestly comes across looking slightly unnatural by size and sheen, but still entirely endearing. He slips into his usual seat next to Jeno, and Jeno gives him an eye scrunching smile.
“We’re going to see the aliens!” Chenle announces, finally having let go of his human ragdoll. Jisung is left to slump lifelessly against the back of his chair. Jeno would be more concerned for the younger’s wellbeing if this weren’t a daily occurrence between the two.
Jaemin’s eyebrows raise, “The aliens, you say?”
“Yes Jaem, that’s kinda the point of this club, after all.” Renjun says with a roll of his eyes, though Jeno knows the feistiness is just for show. It’s Renjun’s default, much like a cat.
“Oh, is it?” Jaemin teases, “I though the point of this club was to admire how cute you look going off on your rants.” Jaemin grins, leaning forward on the table with his chin cupped in his hands. Renjun sputters for a few seconds. Jeno thinks he sees his ears go red.
Well, Jaemin got that part right. The only sightings Jeno was looking for were cute Renjun sightings, and this club was filled with them.
“Guys, focus!” Renjun finally says, choosing to ignore Jaemin’s comment, “The 10-year cycle is in a few days, so we have to prepare!”
“And how exactly does one prepare for disappointment?” Donghyuck drawls, munching on a slice of pepperoni pizza. “’Cause nothing will be there. Aliens aren’t real.”
“That is FALSE!” Renjun snaps back, but he’s had to put up with Hyuck’s cynicism for so long now that it’s more a reflex than a counter argument.
“You never know, Haechannie, there could be aliens out there.” Jaemin says with a waggle of his eyebrows and a mischievous twinkle in his eye.
“If anyone’s an alien here, it’s you Nana.” Hyuck says, munching on his pizza.
Chenle starts cackling at that, which rouses Jisung from his comatose state.
“I expect to see you all here at sundown on Saturday.” Renjun says, arms crossed over his chest. “Be ready to go on a nighttime trek.”
“Wait, Saturday—that’s the day of the candlelight walk for Mark Lee.”
Oh, right, Jeno had forgotten about that. Every year their school held a candlelight walk for the missing student. Mark Lee hadn’t even gone missing that long ago, perhaps two years now.
None of them had really known the guy. Donghyuck was the only one whose family had been acquaintances with the Lee’s, and even then, they weren’t really friends.
Still, they went to the candlelight walk every year, so did everyone at their school. It was turning out to be more of a tradition than anything. Plus, the event was really pretty, though yes, it was rather sad that he’d gone missing, cut down before his life had even really started.
Well, that was assuming he was dead, but as horrible as it sounded—there didn’t seem like a much better explanation as to why an A+ student would suddenly disappear without a trace.
“Well, we can go to the first half, and then—nighttime trek!” Renjun remedies easily.
“Great, that’s probably what Mark Lee did when he disappeared.” Jisung says biting his fingernails. Chenle pulls Jisung’s hand away from the boy’s mouth.
“Now that you mention it, it is kind of weird though. Don’t they hold the memorial on the day Mark Lee went missing?” Renjun ponders, deep in thought. “And it’s the same day that the UFO sightings have been reported every year—”
Donghyuck lets out a barking laugh, “You think he was abducted?”
“An even better reason NOT to go.” Jisung quickly adds.
“Guys, don’t worry about it. It’s just a coincidence.” Jeno butts in, the conversation was quickly derailing.
“Nothing’s a coincidence,” Renjun says, but it’s barely audible over Donghyuck and Chenle’s commentary over the matter.
Jeno’s not gonna lie, he is kind of curious about all this.
He’s not an alien skeptic like Hyuck is, but he’s also not a firm believer like Renjun. Jeno is pretty sure Chenle is just in it for kick and giggles, and for the added bonus of seeing Jisung nearly shit his pants at the thought of seeing a UFO in the middle of nowhere at night.
Jeno would wager he’s most like Jaemin, just along for the ride (though whether the ride be about aliens or about Renjun, you’ll never know).
Speaking of, Jaemin hasn’t really said anything about the matter. Jeno turns to look at the boy to find him chomping on a slice of pizza, looking completely in his own world. Jeno wonders if he even knows what they’re talking about. He can’t help but find it rather endearing.
He reaches over to pat down Jaemin’s hair, and the boy turns to him with an eye scrunching grin. When Jaemin goes to take another bite, Jeno can’t help but notice just now sharp Jaemin’s teeth are.
“So, it’s settled, candlelight walk, before UFO hunting.” Renjun says with a resolute clap of his hands. Jisung and Donghyuck groan but they relent. What Renjun wants, Renjun usually gets.
The candlelight walk is just as somber as it usually is. There’s a blown-up photo of Mark Lee, the same one their school uses every year propped up on their field, and they each take a tall candle to light before walking their way around the track.
It’s a peaceful event, some people bring flowers to place under Mark’s photo like it’s a memorial service (well, Jeno supposes it is).
“You know, it’s a shame he went missing. He’s kinda cute in that dorky, book nerd sort of way.” Donghyuck side whispers as they reach the photo of Mark Lee during their lap. “I’d definitely try and tap that—”
“Hyuck! Don’t speak so vulgarly about the dead!” Renjun hisses back, eyeing the forlorn faces walking around them. They’re definitely not talking about how they’d like to get with local missing student Mark Lee.
“We don’t know that he’s dead, maybe he just went on an extended vacation.” Donghyuck shrugs, only the optimist when it benefits him. Jeno’s 99% sure Donghyuck believes the boy is dead, but in true Donghyuck fashion, he’s arguing just for argument’s sake.
They take a few more laps around the field before sticking their half-burned candles in the podium with the rest and sneaking off to grab their bags before heading out to the forest just off their school grounds.
Unlike the candlelight walk, they start their forest trek with a lot of complaining, mostly from Donghyuck.
“Why are there so many damn bugs in the forest? I think one just flew into my mouth.”
“Well maybe if you shut up, that wouldn’t happen.” Renjun says. Donghyuck lets out a sound of offense, shouldering Renjun who laughs and shoulders him back.
“I hate this, I hate this, I hate this—” Jeno overhears Jisung muttering like a mantra under his breath.
“Relax, Sungie! No aliens are going to abduct you. I’ll throw them Junnie hyung first.” Chenle reassures.
“Hey!” Renjun retorts, but he’s not angry, quite the opposite. Jeno’s pretty sure he’s never seen the older quite so excited before. Renjun’s practically buzzing with energy.
“Don’t worry Injun, I’ll protect you.” Jaemin promises in that teasing manner he says most things. When Jeno turns to look at him, he’s vaguely certain that Jaemin’s teeth are actually glowing in the dark. However, the next time he smiles his teeth look normal again (though unfairly straight and pearly white. Perhaps the glowing was just from the moonlight bouncing off of them).
Jeno shakes his head, realizing he spends a rather concerning amount of time thinking about his best friends’ mouths.
“Thanks Nana, I feel so protected.” Renjun sticks out his tongue. He’s up front leading the group, his compass, and a little map he’s printed off earlier, in hand. He’d marked a red ‘X’ on the sighting spot like they were out searching for buried treasure.
“Are you sure we’re going the right way?” Donghyuck asks when their path starts to go more and more off trail. They’re having to climb over fallen tree trunks now and try not to eat dirt from tripping over snaggled roots.
In the dark, it isn’t the easiest task, their flashlights the only things lighting up the way. (That and possibly Jaemin’s glow-in-the-dark teeth, Jeno’s kind of scared to look).
Jeno’s been doing fairly okay, until he ultimately trips with a yelp, almost faceplanting into the ground if Jaemin hadn’t been there to grab him. Jeno thinks that maybe he’s starting to come over to Hyuck’s side.
“Ronjonie, how much longerrr?” Donghyuck whines, smacking at his arm, most likely killing a bug.
“We’re almost there—” Renjun looks determined as he shines his flashlight at the map before trudging on.
Jeno turns around again to see Jaemin, who’s taken it upon himself to bring up the rear of their group. It’s only then that Jeno realizes the younger isn’t even using a flashlight.
“Nana? How are you walking so easily? Without even a light?” Jeno gulps when Jaemin looks up at him and his eyes seem to glow in the dark too, but then he blinks and it’s gone, Jaemin’s crooked smile in place.
“I just go camping a lot, Jen, I’m used to this.”
Jeno hums, trying to slow his quickly beating heart. The alien hunt must be getting to him more than he thought, now his subconscious is trying to find things when nothing’s there.
The only comforting thing about their trek is the abundant sounds of nightlife all around them. With the crickets chirping, the cicadas screaming, and the distant hooting of an owl, it’s nice to feel like they’re not alone.
Then they suddenly find themselves in an open clearing, and all the sounds of nightlife abruptly stop.
Jeno curses in his head. He’d spoken too soon.
“What the hell…?” Chenle asks, spinning around with a confused look on his face.
“It’s so quiet—why is it so quiet?” Jisung sounds a little hysterical.
“We’re here.” Is all Renjun says, a triumphant smile on his face. He doesn’t seem all too fazed by the fact that they’d walked into a vortex that sucked out all sound.
“Great.” Donghyuck says, slipping off his backpack only to pull a blanket out of it.
“Umm, what are you doing?” Renjun asks when Donghyuck shakes the blanket out before clambering onto it, lying down like he’s sunbathing (moon bathing?).
“What? If we’re going to be waiting around for nothing, then I want to at least be comfortable.”
Renjun sighs, pinching his nose bridge.
Jeno’s not sure whether he believes in the supernatural, but there is definitely something off about this place. It feels somewhat like they’re out of place, out of time. It’s so quiet around them, not even a breeze to rustle the leaves on the trees. Everything is just… dead still.
“Oh god, ok, this is it. Any second now, the UFO will come, and we will have front row seats.” Renjun vibrates with unkempt energy. Jeno almost wants to reach out to prevent him from vibrating out of existence.
“Is it too late to go back?” Jisung asks, seeming a little woozy on his feet. Chenle drapes his arms around his shoulders in a back hug.
They stand in complete silence, waiting. Jeno’s pretty sure he can hear his internal organs it’s so quiet. They stand around for a while, at least it feels like it, and they’re all starting to get antsy.
Renjun has a cute little pout on his face when nothing has yet to happen. Jeno kind of wants to kiss it off his face (would now be a bad time for that?).
It suddenly occurs to Jeno that Jaemin is not with them. He spins in a circle, a frown on his face as he tries to locate their 6th member. He’s about to ask, when suddenly and all at once, the wind starts to pick up, so strong it’s whipping his hair all over his face.
Chenle’s back hug on Jisung starts to look like it has utility purpose now, to stop them both from blowing over.
Donghyuck’s blanket has been blown up over his face and he’s just a mess of limbs as the boy struggles to free himself from its clutches.
“WHAT IS HAPPENING??” Donghyuck’s voice gets carried away by the wind almost as soon as it leaves his mouth.
Jeno instinctively grabs onto Renjun, a firm hand wrapped around the smaller boy’s arm. Jeno’s squinting through all the debris that the wind has picked up, still searching for Jaemin, and then he sees it.
Though he’s not sure what ‘it’ is.
There’s a big, unnaturally formed… blob, standing not too far away from them. Shock and fear grip Jeno’s heart all at once and he lets out a yelp that’s quickly swallowed by the whistling wind.
The creature seems to have glowing eyes, and though Jeno can’t make out its face very well, he thinks he sees a mouth, grinning them. The grin is joltingly familiar for reasons Jeno can’t fathom and causes a shiver to race down his spine. Two curved horns seem to stick out of the blob’s head like the devil.
Jeno yelps, his grip on Renjun hardens. He tries to call out Renjun’s name, but it’s barely a whisper and nowhere near audible.
There’s a sudden bright flash of light that makes all of them scream, and then… nothing.
When Jeno opens his eyes again, he and Renjun are on the ground. He doesn’t even remember falling. Chenle and Jisung are sprawled out several feet from them, completely bizarre seeing as they were much closer just moments ago. Donghyuck is simply a moving lump under his blanket.
Now, the clearing has lost its eerie silence as well as its freak storm. Now it seems like any other normal clearing. The crickets are chirping once again, and the breeze is blowing softly through the tops of the trees.
It’s as if nothing had happened, and that unnerves Jeno even more.
“I can’t believe that actually happened.” Renjun says from beside him. He looks dazed, his hair standing up in every direction, further evidence of what they had just experienced.
“Did we just see aliens?” Chenle’s voice raises an octave, as the two youngest come closer.
“No, it was a microburst, or—something.” Donghyuck huffs, finally freeing himself from his blanket. He blows his messed-up hair out of his face. “We didn’t even see anything.”
“I don’t know if it was aliens, or what, but that was definitely something...” Jisung mutters.
There’s a rustling behind them, and they all whip around, screaming when a figure walks out into the clearing—but it’s only Jaemin.
The younger blinks at them. “Why are you screaming? What happened?”
“Where were you?” Jeno asks, picking himself off the forest floor. He reaches out a hand to help up Renjun as well.
“I lost you guys for a bit, and then I found you again.” Jaemin explains concernedly. He looks around the clearing, but Jeno’s got a gut feeling that he’s not yet sure how to interpret.
“We just saw aliens.” Chenle says.
“We didn’t see anything!” Donghyuck argues again. “Just a bunch of wind!”
“Wait, I actually did see something.” Jeno says, pointing in the general direction the blob had been. “Did any one you see that? There was a big—creature, right there! And it had glowing eyes, and horns, and it was smiling.”
Renjun’s hand on his shoulder startles him out of his reverie. Renjun looks inquisitively in the direction Jeno was pointing, but it’s pointless now, since whatever was there is clearly gone.
Donghyuck scoffs, “It was probably just your mind playing tricks on you. You probably saw a bush or something.”
Jisung lets out a burst of nervous laughter, “Well whatever it was, can we go home now, please?”
They all shuffle back in the direction that they’d come, looking worse for wear. Jeno’s about to follow when he realizes Jaemin’s still standing in the clearing looking up at the night sky.
Jeno opens his mouth to call the younger over, but the words die on his lips when Jaemin turns to look at him, and this time Jeno’s certain that eyes really are glowing.