/So, yay. I actually had the motivation to finish one of my many fanfictions. I don't own homestuck, humanstuck, Dave, or Karkles. Dark Lord Hussie owns them. I hope you guys enjoy this short ball of feely fluff. #twselfharm #twbullying #twdepression/

(KARKAT'S POV)

Karkat looked at his blade and sighed. He felt pathetic for having to stoop down this low to feel relief. He shook his red hair and stood in front of the bathroom sink, closing his eyes and letting out a soft noise as the blade touched his skin, making a cut. Beads of blood formed at the cut, and he bit his bottom lip to keep himself from crying. He had been bullied that day- again. No one even cared. He made another cut mark on his arm, then another, then another. "No one even fucking cares about you. You're a freak," a bitter voice in the back of his head hissed out. It was so true. He was an asshole most of the time, and he barely had any friends. And his eyes. They were fucking red. Why would anyone even like him? Karkat couldn't hold back his tears any longer, and he made a sobbing sound as tears streamed down his face. He looked at his arm and let out a strangled cry; bloody lines were everywhere on his arm. But it didn't matter. It gave him relief, even if it was a horrible and nasty thing to do.

Karkat didn't even notice when Dave walked into the bathroom.

(DAVE'S POV)

Dave had decided to check up on Karkat after school. He had seen the redhead getting bullied in the hallway, when school had just let out and everyone was too busy trying to get home to notice. Of course, being the cool gentleman he was, he immediately stepped in and told them to fuck off. They reluctantly backed off, and when Dave was going to ask the poor kid if he was okay, Karkat had already ran off. He sighed, and pulled out his phone to text him.

To: Karkat

yo karkles you alright

Dave waited for what felt like a long time, but never got a reply. Feeling worried for him, he decided to check up on the Vantas; make sure he was okay. He walked out of the building, and headed towards his car. Once he was on the road, he began thinking about Karkat's face when he was being bullied. It was a total poker face, but you could see the pain in his eyes. It hurt the Strider to even think about it. Sighing, he shook the thought off and drove on to Karkat's house.

Dave parked his car in the driveway of the Vantas residence, where he saw Karkat's car parked. He unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the car door, and walked up to the front door. He knocked on the door a few times, but got no reply. This confused him; wasn't Karkat home? His car was parked in the driveway, after all. Feeling a small wave of panic wash over him, he tried opening the door, which was, thankfully, unlocked. He pushed it open and looked around the small house. He didn't see Karkat anywhere, but heard noises coming from the bathroom. "Oh, he's in the bathroom," he thought, relief flooding through him. Karkat wasn't dead, which made Dave very happy. He walked over to the bathroom and pushed the door open.

That wave of panic he felt earlier? It came back twice as big when he saw Karkat crying and cutting.

(KARKAT'S POV)

When Karkat saw Dave standing in the frame of the bathroom door, he immediately dropped the blade and covered his arm. "I-it's not what it looks like! I-I'm not… I wasn't…" He backed away from the Strider, wiping the tears from his eyes. He closed his ruby-red eyes as Dave walked toward him, preparing for the worst, but was surprised when he felt the Strider's arms pull him into an embrace. "It's okay, Karkat. I'm here now. The bullies can't hurt you anymore." It took a minute for Karkat to actually register the fact that he had just been pulled into a loving embrace by Dave Strider. When he realized this, he flung his arms around Dave. He didn't try holding back his tears anymore, so he just cried onto the Strider's shirt, not caring if he was tossing his pride out the window. Dave leaned in and kissed his forehead, which made the Vantas gasp a little, but he relaxed into the touch easily. But his relief turned to fear as Dave let go of him and gently grasped his arm to inspect the cuts. He watched as the Strider looked them over, then raised his eyebrow as he leaned his face towards the cuts and scars from his previous cuttings. Karkat felt blood go to his cheeks as Dave began to kiss the wounds. "It'll be okay," Dave said softly to him. "You'll be okay, Karkat."

"He cares," he thought, shocked. This realization brought a fresh wave of tears to his eyes. "Dave… W-why do you care about me so much?" He bit his lip as Dave chuckled. "Because I like you, Karkles. I always have." A small smile appeared on the Cancer's face as he hugged Dave again, burying his face in the crook of the Strider's neck. "Thanks," he whispered. "I like you too… A lot." Dave smiled as well, and the two stayed in silence for a while. "Thanks for… You know. Actually giving a fuck about me." Dave nodded, and kissed the top of Karkat's head. "Don't mention it. Oh, and Karkat?" He looked up at Dave. "Yeah?" "I wasn't kidding when I said I like you. I really fucking like you. Like, romantically, not just as a frie-" Karkat cut off Dave's rambling and kissed him softly, closing his red eyes as he leaned closer to him. Dave kissed back almost immediately. It wasn't an intimate kiss; it was sweet, and confirmed how they felt about each other.

It made Karkat feel wanted. And this was a feeling he never wanted to lose.

/Eh? Eh? What did you think? This is my first officially official fanfiction on here, so reviews on what I should fix with my writing would be most appreciated! Well, that's all for now. Tootles!/

~Cuteywiththeglasses