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It’s the day of the culture festival. Hoshi, Andromedako, and Andromedao are going to be performing on stage as a band. The guys are nervous, but they know Medako will carry them to victory. She is, like, a music prodigy after all.
“And now, presenting our last performance, “Toppatsu Galaxies”!” says the announcer, and with that, the group begins, and oh boy, is it rough. Medao’s dragging, and Hoshi’s fingers literally won’t move. But somehow, as if by magic, Medako’s singing surges through them like a wave of newfound confidence and energy. Miraculously, the three join together in harmony, and the crowd starts to cheer.
・・・
“Thank you, Earth!” Medako shouts, and the band bows deeply while the audience booms with applause.
・・・
“Well… I guess this is goodbye…” Hoshi says, looking solemnly at Medako. He knows she has to go back home now. He pauses for a few seconds, and then continues. “WAIT!”
“Medako-san! I- I WANNA COME WITH YOU!” He confesses. “I know this is super sudden and all, but hear me out! My mom said it’s OK, and I can just go pack my things real quick! Oh, and I’ve been doing really well in school lately, so I can afford to skip a few days. Also…”
Medako looks at him strangely, and a bead of sweat drips down her forehead.
“I just felt this strange… aura about you. You’re super cool. I mean, so is Medao, but… you’re like no one I’ve ever met before. Ever since that first day at school, you’ve fascinated me. I always wanted to get to know you better. So… please.” Hoshi sighs, not expecting to give such a big monologue.
Medako’s eyes widen. No one has ever said something like that to her before. Usually, all she gets are basic compliments and praise, but something so personal like that? It’s unexpected.
She gives a slow nod, and Hoshi’s eyes widen. “R-really?! I-I’ll go get my things, meet me at my house!” Hoshi darts off, disappearing behind the school.
“So, what was HE yapping about?” nudges Medao. “... You said he’s coming WITH you? He’s a human. What if he explodes or somethin’? … You sure?” Medao decides to just let it be. Hoshi might be fine.
・・・
A few hours pass, and Medako awaits Hoshi outside his own house. He rushes down the stairs with a huge duffel bag on his shoulder, and Medako leads him to her home.
It’s a UFO.
“Wow, Medako-san, your house is so alien-like!” He STILL hasn’t caught on. Medako leads Hoshi through a door in the side, and in they go.
The UFO’s interior was very empty, only with a few boxes and bags, holding all of Medako’s things. It seems she was preparing to return home. The only things that caught Hoshi’s eyes were lots of devices - TVs, handheld radars and communication systems - a large control panel with switches and buttons galore, and, adjacent to it, what seemed to be a liquid chamber. Hoshi wondered what that was for. Actually, he wondered what ALL of this stuff was for.
“Medako-san, this is pretty cool! But, uh, what’s all-”
Medako points to a seat at the rear-end of the ship. “Get in.”
Hoshi shrugs, and hops in. He buckles the seat belt and waits. Suddenly, the ship starts to rattle and shake! Then, the sound of an engine starting can be heard. “WH-WHOA!” Hoshi yells, shocked. “What’s happening?!”
The ship is now ready to take off. With a blast, it shoots up into the sky at a fast pace. Hoshi, secure in his seat, starts to feel the effects of high Gs. He passes out. Now, at a stable speed, Medako takes Hoshi’s unconscious body from his seat, and, with some effort, pushes him into the cryofreeze chamber. She’d ideally use it herself after activating the warp drive, but it only fits one person. It’s fine, it doesn’t take an absurdly long time to get to her home planet; she has some of the most advanced technology her people have to offer.
Now, silently manning her ship, Medako sighs and rests her chin on her hand. She’s never brought another lifeform on the UFO before…
・・・
… Medako becomes increasingly bored. She misses the cryofreeze chamber. She thinks back to the first time she used it when she was young. It was cold, then it was nothing. Then, like no time had passed at all, she woke up in a whole new galaxy. She’s pretty sure the reason she used it was because her dad decided to take her along on one of his intergalactic alien meetings.
・・・
Enter: Space PS5.
Function: Plays space games with ultra-high performance.
Medako hooks up the console to one of her scattered TVs, wiping the dust off of it. Aaand booted up! Time to play, uh… “Uchuu Fighter III”. She remembers Medao talking about it once.
・・・
Medako digs through cabinets in the walls of the ship while humming a tune, then finds her food rations.
Enter: Space Granola Bar.
Function: Sustenance.
・・・
Medako un-rolls her bed. Hop, step, futon de, lonely night.
・・・
Finally… after weeks of boredom and no interaction with another living being… Medako’s home planet is nearing closer. Woohoo!!! She can take Hoshi out of the chamber now!!!
“Wh… whuh?” Hoshi slowly opens his eyes like he just had the longest nap of his life. “Where am I…?” He stumbles out of the cryofreeze chamber and instantly collapses, but Medako catches him, breaking his airy fall. “M-Medako-san…?”
Medako chuckles lightly, her face becoming pink. She’d never seen him so… tired.
Hoshi gets up on his feet. “Oh, right… I was in your house. Wait, what was I doing…? Oh, right! I was coming with you to your home! What country DO you live in, anyway? Korea?” Hoshi jogs to the window.
A preview of the neon city shines below him. Just a few moments away from landing.
“WHOA! Medako-san, are we flying right now?! That’s so awesome!” Hoshi, still, has not realized Medako is an alien. This is actually turning out really well, but she’s GONNA have to tell him eventually.
With a loud bang, the ship lands on a special landing pad, next to another, bigger UFO and other, smaller ones near it.
The ship’s door opens with a hiss, the pressure dropping immediately. Hoshi’s ears start to ring. “Ack-!” He covers his ears.
Medako leads Hoshi to the main city. It was… dull. There were so many tall buildings, but it seemed like they were worn out. Lots of broken billboards, dead neon signs, and cracked walls. The townsfolk were drowsy too, like they were all sick or exhausted for some reason.
“Medako-san… what happened here?” Hoshi looks around the city, worried. Why was Medako’s home so depressing and gloomy, when she herself was actually a cheerful person?
“HOSHI! I see you have arrived in one piece!” Medao butts in. “I assumed you would have died by now, but congrats.”
“As you can see, this place is in quite a dire situation. I’m sure our lovely princess here will clear that up pretty soon.” Medao winks at Medako, and she responds with a huff.
“Huh?” Hoshi blinks, confused.
“Anyway, I know a pretty good ramen place, wanna check it out?”
“Yeah, sure,” Hoshi replies.
・・・
The three sit inside the ramen shop, Medako is wearing some sunglasses, and Hoshi is looking at a menu which he can’t read at all. It’s in some sort of language he doesn’t know. Maybe it’s Korean, Hoshi thinks.
“Medako-san, what are you ordering?”
She points to a specific item on the menu. Hoshi nods, and decides he’ll get that. Then, Medako and Medao give their order to the unenthusiastic cook on the other side of the counter. He can’t understand what they’re saying, but it sounds kinda weird. Maybe it’s not Korean, Hoshi doesn’t know.
“Behold, Hoshi. You’d never even begin to imagine eating noodles at such a level.” Medao starts to eat from a bowl three times the size of Hoshi and Medako’s, also sipping from a bottle of juice.
“Wow, Medako-san, this is really good! But it tastes different from the stuff I get in Japan. N-not that it’s bad or anything!” Hoshi slurps up a bite. It’s got strange blue bits in it, but they actually add an interesting flavor to the dish.
Medako notices she’s getting stared at a lot. The other two notice it too. She winces, looks around, and suddenly dashes out of the restaurant.
“Chill, Hoshi, she just has some stuff to take care of.” Medao pats his shoulder reassuringly. “Anyway! Wanna sight-see? I’ve got some cool places to show you, I think you’ll like ‘em.”
・・・
Medao takes Hoshi to a pet adoption center. It’s got bustling cats and dogs. Wait, ARE they cats and dogs? They look kinda weird. They’re white, fluffy, and blobby. But hey, they’re cute. Hoshi goes up to pet one, and it bites him. “OWWW!!!” Hoshi flails his hand around and goes to suck on the injury.
Medao takes Hoshi to an an active volcano literally spewing out lava as they speak. “WHOA!”
Medao takes Hoshi to a concert venue. It’s got cityfolk packed inside. It seems like everyone has been waiting for this for a long time. “Whoa… what’s this?”
“You’re about to see, Hoshi! Just you wait, she does this all the time.”
A band of people appear on the stage. Three people Hoshi couldn’t recognise, but… “MEDAKO-SAN?!” Hoshi shouts.
The music starts. Hoshi already knew she plays and sings good, but THIS… a whole other level. It’s like everyone in the crowd was suddenly energised by this performance of a lifetime. It’s like… they were saved? They’re cheering and singing along incessantly with a spark of joy.
The concert ends, and the crowd cheers. “Medako! Medako! Medako!” They chant. She, from the stage, wipes the sweat off her forehead. She then shouts a cheerful message to the audience. That definitely wasn’t Korean.
・・・
The three meet up about an hour later, and Hoshi runs up to Medako. “Medako-san, that was AWESOME! You rocked!” He then notices all the city’s lights have come back on.
Wow… it’s so much more bright now that he can see it in its full glory. The townsfolk have gone back to their normal selves, and there were neon billboards and signs everywhere, most of them displaying… Medako’s face.
“Whoa, Medako-san, you’re FAMOUS?!” Hoshi looks at the signs, then at Medako, then back at the signs, exasperated.
Medako shyly laughs a bit.
・・・
The two walk around the city. Hoshi wants to ask Medako something, but he’s kinda scared. He wonders why she would keep this whole thing a secret from him.
“C’mon, Hoshi-kun.” Medako gestures for him to follow. He catches up to her, though terribly out of breath. Soon, the two reach a huge palace of some sort. Like, really fancy and stuff. He thinks this is where they first landed, actually, his memory’s kinda foggy.
She takes him through huge hallways with lots of doors, leading to a room with a cute paper drawing taped on the door. This must be Medako’s room.
“Wow, this is your room? Cool! It’s really alien-like and… you-like!” Hoshi glances around the room. It’s got all sorts of weird plushies and decorations, but it ultimately looks like a normal teenage girl’s bedroom.
Medako scrambles through her desk drawers until she finds some paper, some colored pens, and scissors. She lays them out on the hard tiled floor and sits down. “Wanna do crafts?” She smiles.
Medako cuts out a paper replica of Hoshi. Hoshi cuts out a paper-Medako. Hoshi pushes the two figures together. “Look, now they’re holding hands!” Medako blushes deeply in response. She looks away so Hoshi wouldn’t see. (Shuki!)
After a while, Hoshi speaks up. “Medako-san?” He sighs, scratching his arm nervously. “What… is this whole thing? Why didn’t you tell me about this sooner? Where even are we…?”
Medako looks at Hoshi. Sweat starts to bead on her forehead and she gets a bit pale. Is it time she finally tells him about… EVERYTHING? Yeah, she can trust him. He deserves to know.
“Well…” Medako stammers. She doesn’t really know how to say this in a way he’d understand. “Um… You see, I’m a princess where I live. And… uh… my singing gives the people energy. And, well, um… I’m an alien.” There, she said it.
“Wait, Medako-san… that can’t possibly be true, aliens aren’t real.”
Medako sits nervously in silence. She doesn’t know what to say.
“Y-you’re serious? Wait… if you’re actually an- … Then where are we?!” Hoshi rushed to look out Medako’s window. The sky looked oddly… spacey. He slowly puts together every bit of the puzzle piece. It all makes sense now. The strange greeting, the weird gadgets, the blue hair, the UFOs, the unidentifiable language! His head starts to spin. He sits back down on the floor next to Medako. “We’re not on Earth, are we?”
Medako shakes her head.
Hoshi’s eyes start to widen. “Is this real? Am I dreaming or something?” Hoshi pinches his arm. “Wait, you’re actually an alien?!”
Medako nods her head.
“That’s… AWESOME! I’ve always WANTED to meet an alien! I didn’t think I’d actually get to…! Does this mean we’re like a billion light-years away from Earth or something? That’s… really scary. My mom must be PSYCHED right now wondering where I am. How long did it even take to get here?!” Hoshi goes on and on, apparently really stoked about this. Medako thought he’d just be terrified and never like her again. But… she still has a chance.
Medako sighs, smiling. She decides to embrace Hoshi in a warm hug. His rambling comes to an abrupt stop.
“Medako-san?”
“Hoshi-kun… I’m happy I found you.” She pulls away, staring into his eyes. Hoshi stares back. She takes a deep breath, mentally preparing, and she gives him a kiss on the cheek. Hoshi’s jaw drops and his face turns pink. Medako gives a genuine smile, and Hoshi starts to laugh.
“Me too, Medako-san! I-” Hoshi inhales deeply as well. “I hope we can stay together like this.” He hugs Medako tightly, and she hugs back.
・・・
“Medako-san?”
“Hm?”
“If you’re so cool and well-respected here… why come to Earth in the first place?”
“I… I wanted to get away from everything. The, uh, popularity, the expectations. My dad wants so much from me. I thought… if I could go somewhere far away, things would be better.”
“Well… did ya find what you were lookin’ for?”
Medako looks at Hoshi and grins. “Yes, I did.”