“Jonghyun, Taemin! You're supposed to be helping me with these cupcakes instead of eating all of the frosting!” Minho exclaimed with a laugh; it was one of the most carefree laughs that had sounded from his lips for a few months now since senior year was just about over and Jinki and Kibum were out of his hair.

It had been about five months since they left, and as much as Minho wanted to convince himself that it was all real - his strong memory of the aggravation he had felt should have told him it was - he was slowly coming to the conclusion that it was all one long fever dream. Who would ever believe him if he told them he met aliens from Mars? They'd throw him into a mental institution right away!
Taemin and Jonghyun hadn't mentioned it either, the only other two people who were there with him. Maybe they too thought it was some extraordinary dream their imagination conjured up. Either way, everyone was happy, so Minho didn't stress about it, even though he wondered what happened to his alien friends whenever he happened to glance at the night sky.

“...and trying to each other's faces off. Can't you go at least ten minutes without doing...anything involving each other? You're like two , hormonal teenagers!” Minho grumbled as he mixed the chocolate mixture for the cupcakes in the bowl, wiping his forehead and staining it with flour in the process. He had called his friends over to help bake some cupcakes to celebrate his father's middle school soccer team (which he was coaching) win earlier, but he was starting to rethink the idea since Taemin and Jonghyun were more busy cuddling than doing anything else. They had never been this bad, and it sickened Minho just a little bit if he was honest, but he was still happy they had found happiness together.
“That's because they are. What else did you expect, Minho? And although I'm glad you're being safe, I also want to see you find someone,” Mrs. Choi appeared in the kitchen with her oven gloves, taking out the batch of cupcakes which were already made. These were vanilla flavored, and she agreed on helping the boys ice the tops of the dessert.
“Mom, we've had this discussion. I'll be more interested in finding someone when I've finished college and found a good job and place to stay. I just want to focus on my studies right now,” Her son chuckled, pouring the mixture into the awaiting molds. Jonghyun helped with this, even though it turned out messier with his help than it would've without. Taemin helped with the icing, chatting with Mrs. Choi all the way.
“It's good to have aspirations, but don't let that become your whole life,” She smiled at Minho.

Once everyone had finished up in the kitchen, Jonghyun came up with a suggestion.

“How about we take a walk? The sun is going down, so it should be a pretty sight,” He offered, and Minho glanced up as he wiped his hands, “where do you want to go? We can't just walk in a random direction,”
“We can grab a coffee or something somewhere,” Taemin shrugged, already halfway to the door. He was going whether Minho was coming with or not.
“Fine,” The tallest of the group sighed.
“Don't stay out too late!” Mrs. Choi called from the kitchen as she cleaned up; she didn't warn them about missing Mr. Choi, and they didn't think about that either. Everyone knew there was a high chance he wouldn't be home till late, but no one said anything. Sometimes pretending something would work out was better than facing the reality of it.

As the three friends walked along the sidewalk, they made their way to the warehouse they had once spent so much time in. It was just how they had left it, which wasn't surprising since no one showed interest in it except for them. Even five months later, no one cared to investigate its value or what it could be transformed into.

“It feels like it all happened a lifetime ago,” Taemin murmured, referring to the aliens they had met. None of them had planned on coming here - Taemin still planned to get his coffee - and they stood in front of the building with a nostalgic feeling bubbling in their chests. They were all drawn here tonight, but no one could explain why. They didn't ask one another about it either. It was as if they were all sharing the exact same feelings in that moment, and just one wrong word would shatter it all.
“Do you miss him?” Jonghyun directed this question at Minho; they didn't have to say the name for all three of them to know he meant Jinki.
Minho slid his hands into his pockets, rocking on his heels, and debated his answer. Truthfully? He did. But he tried not to.
“I'm not sure. We didn't know each other that well for me to really have a lasting impression of him,” He shrugged it off; half of it was the truth, at least.
“I wonder if we'll ever see them again...” Taemin wondered aloud, his attention snatched by something a little in the distance behind the warehouse. He couldn't see it well, but it looked like a flash of light had landed on the field behind the warehouse!

“Where are you going?” Minho asked as he saw his friend rush around the warehouse, and he soon followed; Taemin was known to do foolish things, even tripping over his own feet at times. He was a walking clumsy accident waiting to happen, and maybe that's why no one questioned why Minho took care of him so much.
“I thought I saw something! Come on!” The younger one yelled out, and as ordered, Minho and Jonghyun followed. Within two long strides, Minho had already caught up to Taemin, but with Jonghyun, it was a little more complicated than that. He had to jog to catch up, and while his two friends would've for being so short, they were too busy trying to dislodge the excited lumps in their throat when they saw a similar machine. It was dark, so they couldn't be entirely sure, but when they saw the lights on the machine flash before it turned off, they realized it was a spaceship they were seeing!

“What a trip! I thought we were going to come crash landing!” Kibum's voice was the first the three humans heard as they ran towards the spacecraft, and while Minho was surprisingly happy to see him, there was someone else he was waiting to see.
And that's when he emerged from the spacecraft, looking as dazed as ever; Jinki.
“You came back!” Minho yelled as he slammed into the alien to hug him - there was a sense of relief that Minho felt now, but he couldn't explain why. Maybe he had been waiting for this moment, but he just refused to acknowledge it in case the extraterrestrial never returned. Either way, he didn't want to investigate his feelings right now, not when Jinki was here.
Kibum smiled, deciding not to tease Minho right now, and turned to Jonghyun who looked like an excited puppy to see him.

“Had I not said I would be back? Kibum has been asking repeatedly, so how could I refuse? I have missed being in your presence and communicating with the earthlings,” He grinned happily as he embraced the human, “and I have spoken to Kibum about having multiple partners, he has assured me it is acceptable by him,”
This wasn't what Minho was expecting to hear when he saw the aliens come into town again, so he stood there like a blubbering fish as he thought about how he could respond to this.
“That's...hey, that's great!” It was the only thing he could come up with in the moment, and he wanted to facepalm as soon as he did. But it was Jinki he was talking to, and Jinki had never made him feel embarrassed about anything, so he felt soothed as soon as he heard that familiar, deep laugh.
“Let's put this in the warehouse so no one comes to steal it to sell to the science facility,” Minho nodded at the spacecraft, happy to see the wheels on the bottom, “I'm guessing you added these yourself?”
With a nod, Jinki smiled, “I have seen it on the large metal birds before they fly away and thought it would be crucial for me to obtain some as well!”
“Airplanes, Jinki. They're called airplanes,” Kibum interjected now, then smiled at Minho; behind the extraterrestrial, Minho could see Taemin scolding Jonghyun for something. The younger one must've caught onto how Jonghyun's tongue was hanging out like a dog when he spotted Kibum.
“My mother will be really happy to see you. And we made cupcakes, so let's get back to the house and eat them!” Minho smiled back at Kibum, and he was the first one to start walking back to the house while Jinki and Minho pushed the spaceship to the empty warehouse only a few metres away. The field was like their landing pad, and it worked well considering what a large space it was and how quickly people left when it got dark.

“So Kibum said it would be okay for us to date, huh? Did you have to twist his arm for him to come to that conclusion?” Minho mentioned the topic from before. Now that they were alone, he felt more confident to talk about it without any invasions by the rest.
“Twist his arm! Kibum has educated me on the various idioms the earthlings use, and now I am excited to use them with you too!” Jinki said with such a wide smile, Minho had to smile too.
“However, I did not have to “twist his arm”. He was the one who brought it up, and he has assured me he only wishes to see me in the happiest form possible,” Minho was surprised to hear this considering the bitter first impression he had of Kibum, but he kept quiet as Jinki continued, “and he is satisfied if that happiest form will be with you and him,”
“As much as I like that idea, it's difficult. You live on Mars, remember? A whole other planet! And I'm not sure if I want a relationship with someone so far away all the time,” Minho explained. This was the first time he was admitting it, and it gave him a certain thrill to be doing so.
“We have discussed the possibilities of staying here more often! Kibum has expressed that he wants to experience Earth for a longer time, so he has been considering purchasing a property here for us to stay at a few weeks a year. However, I am not sure the earthlings will accept moonstones as a currency...” Once they had pushed the spacecraft into the safety of the warehouse, Jinki tapped his chin thoughtfully.
“You mean...you really want to stay here? Like, vacation? With me?” Minho's voice sounded so small, it doesn't feel like he was the one talking.
“Oh, yes! I believe that would bring about immense enjoyment!” Jinki said. The human gulped, his throat bone dry, then spoke again.
“I want to go to college and get a good job, though. That could take a few years,” He said this, and he waited for the bomb to drop on Jinki, but the alien simply continued to smile in a “so what?” way.
“You're willing to wait?” Minho asked after he got no response, and Jinki bobbled his head in a nodding motion.
“If that is what would keep you most comfortable, then I will do it!” If anyone else had said this, Minho would've been sure that they were lying to get into his pants or something, but this was Jinki was speaking to. He had never given the human a reason to not trust him or believe he was lying, so why would Minho start now?
“Then that's what we'll do,” He nodded, smiling, as they both made a silent promise to one another in the dusty warehouse where their friendship had truly began.

Minho remained true to his word and studied in college, then found a good job in engineering. Jinki was patient the entire time, and him and Kibum came to visit their human friends twice a year. Jonghyun eventually settled down with Taemin, and once that happened, it was hard to get their attention away from one another.
Once Minho was settled in by his new job, he found a nice house that both Kibum and Jinki agreed would be nice for their house on Earth. Thus, he moved in, paying a certain amount every month to eventually pay the house off in the future. It had three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a spacious kitchen, a living room, a pool, and a pretty garden out front. There was no way he'd be able to afford such a lavish home if he had taken some other kind of job, so he was glad he had chosen the engineering path.

About five years after Jinki and Minho had made that promise to wait until things were more stable, they finally started dating. By then, Minho was also more welcoming to the idea of being in a poly relationship, so he was more than happy when he began dating Jinki. Kibum was also surprisingly elated when he heard the news, and even though it was a bit tense between him and Minho at times, there was no doubt in anyone's mind that they were still good friends due to Jinki.
The pair of extraterrestrials couldn't stay on Earth forever, but they did spend about a month or two whenever they did come from Mars. Sometimes, Jinki would stay as long as four months at a time while Kibum went back home, and Minho was satisfied with this outcome. He had to give his all when working on projects, so not having the aliens around for a few months helped him focus, especially when he had to work late. He didn't have to worry about neglecting them that way.

Overall, it was a good arrangement they had, and everyone was exceptionally happy. Jinki promised to take Minho to Mars one day, and he eventually did, but that's a story for another time.

And so, they lived happily ever after on both Earth and Mars, just as they planned all those years ago.