「 The party was buried deep within the bones of a long-abandoned shopping mall — a ghost of consumerism with cracked tile floors, shattered skylights, and faded posters still clinging to the walls from forgotten sales. Fake palm trees leaned crookedly out of dusty planters, their plastic leaves coated in grime. The escalators had long since died, frozen mid-screech, their steps now used as seating for the glittered-up crowd. No one questioned the mystery stains on the food court ceiling or the occasional flicker of power. The building shouldn’t have been alive, but somehow… it was. 」

「 LED strips blinked from cracked tile floors. Plastic fog machines puffed out strawberry-scented clouds. Glowsticks clacked against neon braces. Someone was DJing nightcore remixes out of a shopping cart using a Hello Kitty laptop. And right in the middle of it all, Party Noob bounced like a pinball through the chaos. Their raccoon-patterned hair glowed pink and green under the blacklights. A star glittered on one cheek, and their striped socks were two different lengths, on purpose. 」

「 Their warm yellow skin shimmered with sweat and glitter, hair bouncing with every move — pink and green streaks trailing behind in a blur of motion. A small black star glittered on one cheek, and a bigger one was painted boldly over their left eye. Their outfit — a clash of stripes, tiger print, and star-studded arm warmers — was a masterpiece of scene chaos, and their mid-length socks didn’t match. On purpose. 」

「 NOOB 」: “WHERE’S JASOOOOOOOON?!” they screamed, voice soaring above the bass as they skidded past an overturned pretzel cart. “I FOUND A SLIME SLUSHIE!! IT’S BUBBLEGUM MINT!!”

「 The crowd didn’t stop for them — people kept dancing, moshing gently, screaming lyrics and crashing into each other like sugar-high satellites. But Noob didn’t care. Their eyes sparkled as they turned and dashed toward the edge of the chaos. There, just past the busted fountain now overflowing with glowstick juice, plastic ducks, and glittery bracelets, stood Scene Core Jason. She didn’t move. She rarely did unless she needed to. 」

「 Her hockey mask — half slime green, half bubblegum pink — glowed faintly in the strobes. Her skin, pitch black and glossy like ink, shimmered under the lights. Her outfit: a Hello Kitty tee with neon green text and floating cloud patterns, long black sleeves under green-and-pink striped arm warmers, a choker with a broken bell, and knee-high lace-up boots with little skulls on the toes. A glitter-covered chainsaw rested on her back like a purse, next to her machete. 」

「 But when she saw Noob charging through the fog with two slushies in hand — one already dripping glitter syrup down their arm — Jason stepped forward. Silent. Steady. Reliable. Noob skidded to a halt and practically shoved the drink at her, eyes wide.」

「 NOOB 」: “You gotta try this. It tastes like a sugar glitch. Like if a pop punk song turned into a slushie and also had unresolved trauma.”

「 Jason tilted her head slightly. Took the straw. Sipped once. Then handed it back. A quiet nod. Approval. Noob’s face lit up like a stage light. 」

「 NOOB 」: “RIGHT?! It’s like drinking a sparkle bomb dipped in chaos.”

「 Soon, the dance pit had shifted to an empty sunglasses kiosk, now surrounded by kids stomping in time with remixed Vocaloid. Somehow — through pure Noob persistence — Jason was convinced to join. She moved slowly, stiffly, like an animatronic goth doll brought to life by 100 bpm. But Noob didn’t care. Noob danced enough for them both, spinning, flailing, laughing. 」

「 At some point, Noob twirled so hard they tripped on their own legwarmers and fell backwards, launching their slushie high into the air. Jason caught it mid-flight. Didn’t even blink. Then gently handed it back down to Noob. 」

「 NOOB 」: “MY HERO…” Noob gasped, dramatically flopping into Jason’s arms as if fainting. “Take me away to Hot Topic Heaven.”

「 Jason blinked once. Then slowly pulled a glitter star sticker from her sleeve. She placed it softly on Noob’s forehead. 」