to Berlin with love.

[runningred]

 From here

Jay opens the door into a quiet back alley that could belong to any city - the lingering scent of garbage and the miss-matched colours where graffiti has been washed off or painted over. In the mid-afternoon chill of early spring, he takes Emcee's hand and leads him out into the street, pocketing the key. The sunlight is thin but warm and picks out the green swell of buds in the branches. The tree lined avenue is quiet this time of day. Not lacking in people but without rush, a lazy Saturday afternoon.

Comments

[runningred]

Alice heads over to the corner with Jay and the young man, clearly making the young man uncomfortable.

Most everyone else is watching Jared whose eyes are closed, not needing the screens to know the routine.

[i_am_your_host]

Emcee laughs and rolls his eyes.

"Oh, now he's just showing off," he tells Lara teasingly.

[runningred]

Lara giggles. "He's not, you know. He doesn't do it for attention, Jared's not like that. Alice is the flashy one. Jared's just... Jared." She says it with utter admiration.

[i_am_your_host]

"I can definitely see that," he agrees with a chuckle, before cheering him on.

At the forefront of his mind he wonders how Jared and Alice would work in a foursome.

[runningred]

Jared finishes his routine and takes a bow as the perfect score lights flash at the top of that machine.

He steps down, laughing as his team clap him on the back and offer him shots. He turns down the drinks and gets some water instead. He smiles to Emcee and Lara. "Would you like to have a go?"

Lara giggles and goes up on her tiptoes to kiss Jaden's cheek. "You know what I'm like. I'd fall over my own feet."

[i_am_your_host]

"Does it have a ridiculously easy level with baby steps?" Emcee asks, taking a sip of beer. "Because at this point I may fall over her feet. But I'll try."

[runningred]

"It does have a pretty easy beginners level." He offers Emcee his hand to come up onto the machine next to him. "I'll play it with you if you like?"

[i_am_your_host]

He turns to Lara with wide eyes. "He's such a gentleman," he says exaggeratedly.

Tossing back the rest of his beer and shedding his coat (you know it's on when the coat comes off), he takes Jared's hand and steps up onto the machine. The platform is like a little stage with tiles that act like buttons under his feet.

"All right, how do we start?"

[runningred]

Jared sets it to beginners mode and, with a grin, selects Bad Romance.

"Watch the screen. The instructions will scroll up the screen and light up as you hit them."

[i_am_your_host]

Emcee has never heard this song before, but he likes it.

At once the screen begins to scroll and the tiles light up in sync with the beat. With a flustered yelp, Emcee laughs as he misses the first few beats.

"I'm usually better with hand-eye coordination, but foot-eye coordination is something else!"

He hops from foot to foot, left to right, forward to backward. And in reverse. And in all sorts of sequences and combinations. But at least some patterns repeat, and he can get the hang of those. It also helps to let the song move him.

"Oh my god, it's like playing manic electronic hopscotch," he chuckles as he tries to keep up.

[runningred]

"You got it." Jared encourages with a warm smile. The sort of smile known to make people melt. "Watch the screen rather than your feet."

They have quite a crowd watching now, clapping along.

[i_am_your_host]

Jared would make Emcee lose his concentration with that smile but he remains as focused as possible, wanting to get through the song without messing up. He missteps a few times, each mistake punctuated with a hollered obscenity, but he gets back on track and finishes with a flourish, raising his arms in victory!

"I want one of these!" he laughs.

Well, it's a small victory. He makes the very bottom of the scoreboard, but he did the thing!

[runningred]

Jared laughs and shows him how to enter his name next to his score.

"Hey!" Simon calls, laughing with his arms round Lana. "He's part of the Stage team! His score counts with us!"

Someone at the back of the room calls back. "You need all the help you can get!"

Everyone laughs and another round of shots are passed around.

[i_am_your_host]

Stage Team? Team? He already belongs with them?

He doesn't quite know how to process that, but-- he'll go with it.

"Oh, really?" he retorts toward whoever called out. "Stage Team it is!" he proclaims with an easy grin.

"And Kitchen Team had better watch out, you ought to see me go when I only have half the drinks in me than I do now."

[runningred]

Alice clears her throat, hushing the whole group to silence as she struts toward the dance machine.

"Emcee." She nods to him. "Do you mind?" She gestures to the machine. "I do believe my brother needs to be schooled."

Jared flashes her a dangerously sweet smile. "You really want to do this, sis?"

[i_am_your_host]

"Uh oh," Emcee trills as he hops off the machine.

Someone almost instantly hands him another drink, and he turns to watch brother versus sister with intrigued delight.

[runningred]

Jay walks up behind him, an arm wrapped loosely around Emcee's waist. "This should be interesting."

The siblings grin at each other, seeming to be deciding something without speaking. Whatever it was, Alice won and set the song - a techno remix of Temptation by the Tea Party. A song Jay tends to use when he's DJing Bar parties.

The music is slow, sensual as it rises and Alice and Jared move in tandem. Unlike the beginners mode where there was one button per pad, the floor buttons now include eight directional sensors each. These allow for complex slides and shifts from heel to toe.

Jared's style is balanced and smooth whereas Alice moves with a decisive sensuality that's hard to look away from.

[i_am_your_host]

Emcee leans into Jay as he enjoys the dance-off. His gaze shifts from their bodies to their feet, marveling at their accuracy and finesse. But Alice really is truly exquisite to watch.

"They've obviously done this together before," Emcee murmurs into Jay's ear, implying that they've done other things together as well.

[runningred]

Jay chuckles and kisses Emcee's neck, his voice low. "They know each other very well." He leaves his own implications in the air. "Being twins and all."

[i_am_your_host]

Emcee's eyes widen at that.

"Mein Gott," he mutters, a laugh in his voice. "Really?"

Twins. Somehow that makes it even more erotic.

[runningred]

"You kinky bugger." Jay chuckles, sucking a soft mark to the side of Emcee's neck.

A moment later, the song finishes, both of them bowing deeply with a flourish. To volumous cheers and wolf whistles.

[i_am_your_host]

Emcee doesn't applaud or even cheer. He just catches Alice's eyes and subtly runs the tip of his tongue around the mouth of his beer bottle, as his gaze flicks over to Jared and then back again.

[runningred]

Alice watches his lips and answers with a predatory smile. She rests a hand on Jared's sleeve as he accepts high fives from his kitchen team.

He leans back to her, following her eyes. He blushes warmly but doesn't look away.

Alice struts over to Emcee and Jay, her hungry gaze raking them. "I think it might be time to take this party elsewhere, don't you?"

Jared already appears to be saying goodbye to his team.

[i_am_your_host]

"If you like," he says coyly, leaning against Jay, but looking up at Alice.

"You're the boss."

[runningred]

Alice's eyes flick to Jay, the corner of her lip curling in an evil little smile.

He turns on her heel without answering and starts working her way around the room, Jared doing the same without prompting.

They work their way around the groups of staff, thanking them for their hard work, giving quick notes on the evening's events and laying plans for the next day.

Alice stops at the counter to pay the Wonderland tab, making sure there's plenty for everyone.

They both meet back at Jay and Emcee, ready to go with them.