Page 24 of Hyperspeed
“And you thinkthatscreams chic?” I eyed the shirt as he draped it over a hanger.
“I don’t even know what ‘chic’means,” he snarked. “Maybe everyone will be in florals, and you’ll stand out like a sore thumb in one of your thousand and one identical black T-shirts.”
“I’m not wearing a black T-shirt.”
His brow quirked. “Oh?”
“Nah,” I smirked. “It’s blue.”
“Fuck off, you bellend,” Jax chuckled. “You changed your tune.”
“It’s either buck up and go, or run some fucking marathons. And if Sam’s vision is accurate, I’d rather be stuck with celebrities, porn stars, and an open bar.”
“Not sure where he got the porn stars from.” Jax entered the bathroom and placed his watch on the vanity, reaching to the left and turning on the shower. Steam billowed through the room, distorting his image.
“Is everyone going?” I asked, aiming for casual.
The smirk tugging at Jax’s mouth told me I’d missed the mark. “I’d assume so. Attendance is mandatory, isn’t it?”
“Oh, so Dray will be there.”
His expression soured, and I burst out laughing as he grumbled goodbye and told me to get ready.
There were forty-five minutes before I needed to leave. I leaned back, my head hitting the couch, and let out a groan that sounded too loud in the stillness of my apartment. Witheverydriver in attendance, I suppose it was only polite to make sure I looked good.
I gave my comfortable couch cushions one last mournful look before dragging my sorry ass to the bathroom.
Time to fucking primp.
The theme “galactic chic” became obvious when I arrived. Guests’ sparkling outfits rivalled the stars twinkling beyond the windows of Nebula, a cocktail bar built into an abandoned space station floating just beyond the planet Tyrus.
The outside looked like a rusted hunk of metal, but the interior was the kind of place that made you stop and stare the moment you stepped inside. It’d been transformed into a blend of industrial grit and celestial beauty. The walls bore remnants of the original metallic framework, but unlike the outside, they gleamed under soft ambient lighting accentuated by shifting panels of iridescent glass that mimicked the swirl of distant galaxies.
A circular bar sat at the heart of the space, the counter sculpted from polished obsidian, with veins of luminescent blue that pulsed in time with the low, sultry music playing in the background. They reminded me of the fine lines on Rev’s skin.
I looked past the suspended tubes that held vibrant, shimmering liquors, definitely not hoping to spothissignature scowl in the crowd. I met the eyes of Jax instead, who was chatting with Zylo at a high table in the corner.
“Is this chic enough for you?” I asked on my approach, adding a twirl to show off my outfit.
I’d chosen a form-fitting leather jacket embedded with LED piping that flickered between red and gold, the colours of my vehicle. Underneath I wore a textured undershirt and slim, tailored trousers that shimmered under the low lighting. A pair of black fingerless gloves and iridescent loafers that shifted between black and indigo tied the outfit together.
In contrast, Jax had paired his garish floral shirt with a pair of ripped grey skinny jeans and white high-tops. “Alright, alright.” He waved me off, sipping his drink.
“Bit underdressed, mate.” I ruffled his hair, ignoring his complaints, and grimaced when my fingers came away sticky. “How much hair gel have you got on?”
“Oh, fuck off. Do you know how hard it is to style these ringlets into something manageable?” He stared at the shiny mirrored wall, attempting to fix his mop, but there wasn’t much he could do to tame his wild curls.
I’d perfected the “I just woke up like this” style in my teens. I’d been a lazy shit who always wanted ten more minutes in bed before my early morning karting sessions, so now, with a touch of wax and a run of my fingers, my hair looked perfect.
“I’d still fuck you,” Zylo announced, just as his partner, Saelix, arrived in a lilac shift dress that hung prettily over his lean frame.
“Who are you fucking?” he asked, smiling at the three of us.
“Jax,” Zylo deadpanned, revelling in the way Jax choked on his luminous pink drink.
“N-no,” he spluttered. “We’re not, I swear. I—”
I cut him off with a solid whack to the back, while Zylo and Saelix snickered across the table. “They’re taking the piss.”
