Juno lay on the floor of Dorian's room, breathing as if she had just run a marathon. Dorian, meanwhile, was at his producer's desk, a pair of headphones on, a huge, triumphant grin on his face as he listened to the playback.
"Oooh," he said to himself, his eyes distant and sparkling with creative energy. "It would be so good if it was a live orchestra playing the instruments."
Juno, who had been catching her breath, immediately sat up. "Oh, let me call my father."
Dorian's head snapped around. "Wait, wait, Juno! I was just thinking out loud!"
But it was too late. Juno's wristband was already chiming, a holographic call projecting into the air. Alexei Park's smiling face appeared. "Hello, my duckling, what are-"
His voice cut off abruptly. His warm, fatherly smile vanished, replaced by a look of pure, cold shock. He was looking at his daughter. Her hair was a mess, she was sweating, the top buttons of her shirt were undone from the heat of the performance, and she was clearly in a state of exertion. And behind her, in the low light of the room, he could see the unmistakable silhouette of a young man.
Juno, completely oblivious to his train of thought, spoke rapidly. "Father, do you know that maestro you always invite to our house parties? Do you still have his number?"
"What?" Alexei's voice was a low, dangerous growl. "Yes, I have. But why are you asking me that right now? More importantly, where are you? And who is that behind you?"
Dorian, equally oblivious, slid closer into the frame to be polite. "Hello, Mister Park."
Alexei's face went from shock to a thunderous, apoplectic fury. He was about to shout something that would likely shake the foundations of his guild headquarters when Juno cut him off again.
"Good! Send me his number. Oh, wait, never mind. I will just go to the base after this and get it."
"YOU BETTER COME TO THE BASE NOW, YOUNG LADY!" Alexei roared. "IF NOT-"
Juno ended the call.
Dorian looked at the blank space where Alexei's furious face had been. "Hey, you stopped the call. I did not even get to say my goodbye."
Juno waved a dismissive hand. "Meh. He seemed agitated. It seems one of our guild members is making him mad again."
…
High in the penthouse office of the Apex guild's gleaming skyscraper, Alexei Park stood, his entire body trembling with rage. He walked to the vast, floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the city below, took a deep breath that seemed to draw in all the air in the room, and let out a seismic roar of pure, paternal fury that rattled the entire building.
"DOOORRIIIAAAAAANNNN! HOW DARE YOU!"
Down on the lower floors, in the intern bullpen, a new recruit jumped, spilling a cup of hot Brewka all over his desk. "Should... should we evacuate?" he stammered, looking at the vibrating ceiling panels.
His team leader, a grizzled veteran with a cybernetic eye, did not even look up from his datapad. "Get used to it."
…
"Alright," Juno said with a satisfied smile. "The orchestra will be ready whenever I tell you."
"Thank you," Dorian said, still a little bewildered by the speed of it all.
"Oh?" she said, a teasing glint in her eyes. "Not refusing my help this time?"
Dorian let out a small, resigned laugh. "I have learned to accept your help at this point. It is pointless to refuse when you put your mind to it."
"Damn right," she said, crossing her arms proudly. They both laughed. "By the way," she added, "what are you going to name my song?"
"It is 'Skyfall'," he said simply.
"Whoa," she breathed, her eyes wide with appreciation. "You thought of everything. You even took the name of the legendary Battle of Skyfall."
Dorian was taken aback. "A... what?"
"You know," she said. "The legendary battle that destroyed an entire planet? Skyfall?"
They both went silent as the implications of the name sank in. Juno's face scrunched up in a sudden panic. "Oh no. Change the name, Dorian. The Accord will definitely 'endorse' your song if you release it with that title."
"Why is it bad to be endorsed by them?" he asked, completely lost.
Juno let out a long, weary sigh, as if about to explain a painful, unavoidable truth of the universe. "Because," she said, "they will take about fifty percent of the song's profit."
"WHAT?! FIFTY PERCENT?!" Dorian shouted, shooting up from his chair.
The door to his room burst open, and Lyra and Marcus ran in, their faces a mask of alarm. "What? What happened?" Lyra demanded.
They stopped dead, taking in the scene. Dorian was standing, looking shocked and angry. Juno was still sitting on the floor, looking equally flustered from their long recording session. There was a long, awkward pause.
Lyra's eyes darted between the two of them. She then calmly walked over to her oblivious younger brother, placed a hand over his eyes, and said with the world-weary sigh of a seasoned melodrama actress, "Let them do it, Marcus. Let's eat energy blocks for dinner today." She then began to gently drag the very confused Marcus out of the room.
The misunderstanding, so profound and so ridiculous, was the last thing Dorian's overloaded brain could handle. He stood there, his face turning a brilliant shade of red, and looked back and forth between the closing door and Juno, completely unsure of what to do. He finally chose to ignore the immediate mortification and focus on the bigger problem. He turned back to Juno.
"Fifty percent?" he repeated, his voice a strained whisper.
"It is the standard 'Endorsement Mandate'," Juno explained, her voice low and serious. "If a song has a direct or even indirect connection to Accord history, like a famous battle, the Accord will 'promote' it. But with that promotion comes another caveat. You have to give them a minimum of fifty percent of the profit. For new, unknown artists, they usually take more. Up to eighty."
"EIGHTY?!" Dorian shouted, his voice cracking. "That is outrageous!"
Juno nodded grimly. "Right? So go on, change the title."
Dorian shook his head, a look of dawning horror on his face. "No can do. I already submitted the copyright application."
"What? When?" Juno asked, scrambling to her feet. "Let me call my dad. If it is still early in the process, we might be able to pull it."
"Five days ago," Dorian said, his voice barely audible.
Juno froze. Her hopeful expression was replaced by a tight, forced smile. "Hey," she said, her voice a little too cheerful. "Cheer up. You submitted the common copyright, right? The workers in that office are usually lazy, anyway. They will probably just hand it off to a Compadre to process, and the standard algorithms are not smart enough to flag a title for its historical significance."
"Let's hope so," Dorian said, though he did not sound very hopeful.
"Come on, let's cheer up," Juno said, gently nudging his arm. "We just finished recording my song! My 'Juniverse' will be sad if they see their producer all worried."
Dorian let out a small, weak chuckle. He then glanced at the time. "Stay for dinner, yeah?"
"No can do," Juno said quickly, already backing towards the door. "I need to–"
Dorian insisted, a new, playful desperation in his voice. "No, no. I am not taking no for an answer."
"Dorian, I cannot impose too much–"
He covered his ears with his hands and began to chant, his eyes squeezed shut. "Lalalalalala, I cannot hear you! So you are staying until dinner is ready!"
He then turned and walked resol-utely towards the kitchen, completely ignoring her protests, a final, childish tactic that left Juno standing in his doorway, a slow, exasperated, and deeply fond smile spreading across her face.
…
The meal Dorian cooked was laid out on the small dinner table. Juno, who had been expecting more fried noodles or perhaps a fancy version of nutrient paste, was rendered speechless. Her jaw was literally agape.
In front of her was a full, proper meal, the kind her father would have catered for special occasions. There were pieces of golden, crispy fried chicken, a scoop of creamy mashed potatoes, and tender-crisp green spears of asparagus. It was real food.
Juno knew the unspoken truth of Nexus Prime: real food was the ultimate luxury, a symbol of status reserved for the absolute elite of the upper levels. Even on her own high-class home world of Rodia IV, it was still difficult for the average citizen to afford a meal like this. And here was Dorian, a resident of the sunless lower levels, serving it like it was an everyday occurrence.
Dorian laughed at her shocked expression. "Hehehe, come on. It is good food."
Juno watched as Lyra and Marcus dug in without a second thought, their faces lighting up with pure, simple enjoyment. They were not even shocked by the sight of real food. This was becoming normal for them.
"Dorian," Juno said, her voice a hushed, serious whisper. "Where did you get this?"
He laughed again, a smooth, practiced lie already on his lips. "I found a market in the middle level. They secretly sell fresh food for the Nexus Prime citizens. Most of their customers are from the middle and high levels, but I got a bit lucky with the bargaining, that is all."
Juno took a bite of the chicken. The crunch of the crispy skin, the juicy, flavorful meat inside... it was heavenly. "Oh god, Dorian," she breathed, her eyes closing in bliss. "This is so good."
Dorian was already eating his own piece. "Yeah? Good. Eat more. Come on, come on."
…
After dinner. Leo was at the sink, diligently washing the dishes. Juno and Dorian stood at the door, their goodbye hug warm and comfortable.
"Goodbye, sister Juno!" Marcus called out from the living room.
Juno waved over Dorian's shoulder. "Bye bye, little Marcus!" She then bent down to Lyra's level and held out her hand. They shook, a formal, serious gesture. They did not say anything, but their eyes darted around, narrowing and widening in a silent, rapid-fire conversation.
"Why do you guys keep doing this?" Dorian asked, completely baffled.
Lyra and Juno broke into identical, mischievous giggles and said in a low, conspiratorial whisper, "Men..." Then they both laughed.
Dorian's eyes narrowed. "Hey. Okay, Lyra, go back to your room. You need to sleep. Marcus, you also need to sleep." He then called out, "Leo, escort them to bed, please." He then gently grabbed Juno's hand. "Let's go."
Juno was surprised. "Wait, you are coming?"
"It is late," Dorian said simply, his tone leaving no room for argument. "I will escort you to the station. Come on."
He led her out into the corridor, and the door hissed shut behind them.
As they walked along the wide, grimy walkway toward the starliner station, Dorian pulled something from his pocket. It was a pair of simple, wireless earphones connected to his wrist band. He gently placed one earbud in Juno's left ear, and the other in his own right.
"What are you doing?" she asked, a little confused.
"Shhhh..." Dorian said, a mysterious smile on his face as he pressed play on his band. A soft, jazzy piano melody, one they had used for her vocal warm-ups, began to play in their shared, secret world of sound. He looked out at the vast, artificial canyon of the lower levels, its depths glittering with a million distant lights. He began to sing, his voice a low, playful murmur.
[A Lovely Night - La La Land]
"The sun is nearly gone..."
"Oh no," Juno groaned, but she was smiling. She looked around. There were a few people walking along the bumpy road, but the walkway was mostly empty.
Dorian continued, his voice gaining a theatrical quality. "The lights are turning on..."
"Are we really going to act out your warm-up song?" she whispered, but she did not pull the earphone out.
He kept singing, starting to walk a little ahead of her, his steps falling into a gentle rhythm with the music. "A silver shine that stretches to the sea..."
Juno laughed, a bright, clear sound. "There is no sea in sight, Dorian!"
He ignored her, his performance unbroken. "We've stumbled on a view... that's tailor-made for two... what a shame those two are you and me." He stopped, grabbing Juno's hand and pulling her to the railing. He gestured out at the deep canyon of lower level lights, a view that was usually a symbol of their poverty, but which, right now, with him, felt somehow beautiful. He then pointed to a distant Kalamoran couple walking hand-in-hand.
"Some other girl and guy... would love this swirling sky... but there's only you and I... and we've got no shot."
Juno crossed her arms, a challenge in her eyes, as if to say, 'Are you going to keep doing this, out here in public?'
Dorian gestured back, a shrug that said, 'There is hardly anyone here.' He continued, his voice full of mock disappointment. "This could never be... you're not the type for me."
Juno let out a mock gasp. "Is that what your part of the lyrics says?"
He ignored her, his face a perfect picture of theatrical regret. "And there's not a spark in sight... what a waste of a lovely night." His performance finished, he looked at her, his expression challenging her to respond.
The music in her ear kept playing. She smiled, accepting the challenge. She cleared her throat and began to sing, her voice clear and strong.
"You say there's nothing here? Well, let's make something clear. I think I'll be the one to make that call."
"But you'll call?" Dorian interjected, playing his part.
"And though you looked so cute," she continued, and Dorian instinctively touched his own face. "In your polyester suit..."
"It's wool," he acted out, looking down at his own synthetic coat.
"You're right, I'd never fall for you at all," she sang, and a passing couple, overhearing the line out of context, gave them a wide berth and hurried away, assuming they were in the middle of a nasty argument. Dorian chuckled.
Juno walked closer to him, then past him, taking the lead. "And maybe this appeals... to someone not in heels." She turned, and as Dorian looked down, he saw her tiptoeing, mimicking wearing high heels. "Or to any girl who feels, there's some chance for romance... but, I'm frankly feeling nothing."
Dorian jogged to catch up, his expression challenging. "Is that so?"
She held her ground, her face inches from his. "Or it could be less than nothing."
"Good to know," he said, his breath ghosting across her face. "So you agree?"
"That's right," she replied.
And then, their voices joined together, a perfect, playful harmony. "What a waste of a lovely night."
The instrumental bridge began, a beautiful, swelling piano and orchestra. In that moment, as they stood close, caught up in their own private musical, the world around them seemed to melt away.
The grimy metal walkways blurred into a starlit promenade. The distant hum of the city faded, replaced by a lush, cinematic score. In Juno's eyes, Dorian's simple coat transformed into a sharp, tailored suit. In his, her practical academy clothes softened into a simple, elegant dress.
He held out a hand. She took it. And they began to dance.
It was not a graceful waltz. It was a hesitant, clumsy shuffle, a charming, unpracticed mess. Their steps were slightly out of sync. He almost stepped on her foot. She almost tripped over her own.
But they were both smiling, their eyes locked, lost in the music and the moment. It was an awkward, beautiful, and perfectly imperfect dance, a reflection of where they were right now, in the early, clumsy, hopeful days of whatever this was.
As the final notes of the song faded, they came to a stumbling halt, and broke out into a shared, unrestrained laugh at their own delightful incompetence.
⋘ 𝒍𝒐𝒂𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒂.. .⋙
🎮: Stardwey Valley: Completed.
🎬: -
♬:
- Your Name – Elton John (ch.9)
- A Lovely Night – La La Land (ch.20)
**A/N**
~Read Advance Chapter and Support me on [email protected]/SmilinKujo~
~🧣KujoW
**A/N**