You know, a lot of you love the couple fluff and that will be the rest of this arc.

Ad-Jacin-t to You: Part Seven

The dance they've all been waiting for finally came and went in a flurry of songs and selfies. They showed up in their best outfits and danced repeatedly. Kai and Thorne stole the crowns so they conquered the dance as Star Kings.

The dance might be over for them but the night is still young. Nobody's sleeping right away.

-o-

Kai and Cinder planned, amongst many things, to hang out at his house after the dance. Not his home with Torin but his father's house, which is now his house. He doesn't visit there often unless he has to grab something or needs a quiet place to study since the twins were always making a ruckus unless they were asleep. And even then, they would be nagging to stay up past their bedtime (it's worse on the weekends). He still had to text Torin that he made it to his place with Cinder.

His old, or current depending on how he sees it, place has a quiet neighbourhood. All the residents would usually call it a night once it's dark and the only lights would be the street lamps or the dimmed lights in the houses behind the curtains.

And they have a bright moon in the sky with an assortment of stars. The real-life version of the dance's aesthetic. A romantic moonlight walk to let the magic happen.

"Are you cold?" Kai asks, about to take off his jacket to give to her.

"No," Cinder responds, smiling at him, "but I know you are."

"Spades, I'm freezing."

"Aw, do you need my jacket?"

"You're not wearing one."

"Your crown gives no warmth?"

Kai stands proudly, readjusting his crown that he kept on for the rest of the dance and the drive back to his place. "This is my greatest achievement. The people have spoken. And no, it doesn't keep me warm."

Cinder laughs, holding his hand tightly as she pulls him closer to her to keep him warm.

-o-

Scarlet and Wolf were tempted to attend some of the after-parties they overheard. A chance to dance with no boundaries and have some booze until dawn sounded so much fun, but their friends weren't planning to attend so they didn't see a point in having drunk selfies with classmates they barely knew. Besides, Wolf's mom still wasn't home so they went straight to his place.

Scarlet kicks off her heels at the door, setting them up nicely before walking over to the living room couch. She turns on the television, which is their only light source as Wolf throws his jacket over the couch.

"Did I ever ask where you got the tux from?" Scarlet asks as he takes a seat beside her, his cologne wisping over her as he wraps his arm around her.

"Rented it this morning," Wolf responds.

"Seriously?"

"It was dry-cleaned, relax."

Scarlet laughs a little as they turn to the TV where they watch the action movie she didn't know she picked. They tuned in the middle and have no idea about the plot or title, but there was a whir of intensive fight moves flooding the screen.

"Was the dance worth going to?" Scarlet says, glancing up at him.

"Shh," Wolf responds, "I'm watching this."

"Wow."

"But it was, honestly. When I joked and said we could be doing more fun things, I meant this."

Wolf nudges her closer and Scarlet gets it. She saw the dance as their moment to be intimate in each other's presence, dressing up their best and making those memories. Wolf, aside from racing cars with Cinder and Cress, wanted to be with her. It didn't matter where they were or what they wore, whether they were on a dance floor in their best outfits or snuggled up on his couch in sweats.

"Well…" Scarlet mutters as she looks back at the movie. The same scene is still playing. "Nothing is a bigger turn-on than a well-choreographed fight scene."

"Is that why you liked watching me wrestle that one time?" Wolf whispers in her ear. Scarlet can feel his smile as his soft laugh rumbles against her body.

"Maybe."

-o-

Winter and Jacin opted out of any and all after-parties for the simple reason that they were hungry. They haven't eaten all night and didn't want to down an insane amount of booze without anything to be a chaser. When they left the dance, Jacin got behind the wheel because, although knowing only a handful of places in Commonwealth, he knows where Winter wants to go first. Jacin drives through the streets, barely noticing the glint from Winter's phone as she scrolls through the photos from the night. Her brightness is down all the way but he can still make out her smile when he would glance over. When they would stop at a red light, she would show him some pics.

Winter put her phone down when they arrived at the Rampion. Despite it being late into the night, the neon sign was still bright and people were still inside. Not as many as normal meal times but enough to keep servers on their feet.

"You coming inside?" Jacin asks as he parks.

"Of course," Winter responds. "A floral gown and suit inside a retro space diner? It's gorgeous."

Jacin laughs a little as they step out. He knew Winter would be in it for the aesthetics. The contrast between formalities and retro, fried food and finery. Aside from the look, he knows that she wants more pictures together to last her for whenever they see each other again. Admittedly, it helps him too, way more than she'll ever know.

"I'm eating the fries before they become inedible," Jacin mutters as they walk up to the entrance door.

"Rampion fries are immortal," Winter responds. "They never go into some cardboard texture when they're cold or soggy if they've been left in the bag for too long. One time, I picked up some food after school to bring home, left it in my bag, and they were nearly fresh when I ate them at home."

Jacin pauses, unsure which part of that story to latch onto. "Trouble, that's terrifying."

Winter shrugs with a playful grin. "When I go to The Rampion, I'm here to live my life."

"Aces, I love you," he says as he opens the door to let her in first.

The moment they step inside together, the diner bell ringing above them, all eyes are on them.

-o-

As much as Thorne wanted to flaunt his gorgeous crown at the after-parties, he feared - respected - Cress's dad too much even to think about not obeying his curfew rules. He still had a lot of time to that he would've definitely lost track if he went to any after-parties. Also, he wouldn't want to drop Cress off drunk, especially since she would be the one driving which meant she had to drop him off first. Not a good look. Besides, his fellow Star King wouldn't be there so there would be no point in being a peacock alone. Instead, he and Cress drove back to his place but didn't go inside his house.

Instead, they circled to his backyard. Cress thought Thorne's garden was beautiful in daylight but it's almost ethereal. The moonlight reflecting off the water in the fountain, shining light on all the statues and flowers. It makes the place look more whimsical, especially compared to the party scene that was once here. The chaotic noise is now replaced with whispers of the night.

Cress feels out of her body as she walks over to the fountain, peering down at her reflection in the ripples. She barely looks at herself but at Thorne behind her, reminding her of when he gracefully glided her across the dance floor as if they were the only couple in the room. An enchanted evening, making the image more real since Thorne's still wearing his crown.

"Wanna try something?" Thorne asks.

"That's a loaded question," Cress responds, "but sure."

To her surprise, Thorne lifts her. She squeals a little but relaxes when she's standing on the fountain edge that, thankfully, wasn't slippery enough for her to fall into the fountain. The edge of her skirt was dampening from droplets splashing down into the bath but that doesn't matter to her. She's looking down at Thorne but it's not that far since she's tiny. Although they've been dating and he's looked at her many times, that grin still makes her giddy.

"You're paying attention to me," Cress states. "I'm getting nervous."

"Why?" Thorne teases, holding her waist.

"Can I try something?"

"Loaded question," he says to mirror her, "but sure."

Cress reaches for Thorne's crown and removes it. For a moment, he thinks she's about to try it on which he would've loved to have seen, but she did something even more unexpected yet better. She puts the crown back on his head, gently, keeping her hands cupped around his face once it's settled in his hair. Forget winning Star King and flaunting his crown, this crowning moment with Crescent Moon Darnel tops everything.

"Aces, now you're making me nervous," Thorne mutters, making Cress smile.

This says a lot about me but I had to google what people do after dances because I didn't go to prom. I went to a semi-formal in ninth grade but I went home right after.