Chapter One

Heavy beats vibrated through Dave's body and across the warehouse like building, echoing off of the walls and the bodies that attempted to move to its rhythm. The feeling was bliss. There was a reason Dave fought so hard for this job. This was his dream. To stand above the crowd, playing and mixing music that could get people moving. To be surrounded by the heavy atmosphere that was near suffocating, a mix of sweat, flirts, alcohol and a rhythm that was both catchy melody and deep bass that shook your bones. When Dave was up at the soundboard, the whole world fell away and he was in his own little heaven. He had control. This was something he was good at, something he had earned. This was his and his alone. Something his brother could be proud of.

Unfortunately, on this night, it wasn't to last. Like, every third Friday of the month, Dave's shift at the soundboard was cut short at seven o'clock to give way to live performances on the stage at the other side of the room.

As the last note faded on the current track, Dave felt the usual twinge of disappointment as he stopped the next track from playing. With a small sigh, he moved his headphones down so they hung around his neck and switched the soundboard to control the mics and sound system on stage. He sat back in his chair for a moment until the next sound guy, an older man named Harvey that he had never talked to enough to get anything beyond his name, came in. Unplugging the head-set from the board, he shoved the end in his jean pocket with his hand.

Leaving the booth he headed down to the bar and took a seat on the stool. It was his normal position with the best view of the stage, just after the sound booth of course. Turning to face the stage, Dave was surprised by what he saw.

While they had gotten trolls in to perform before, especially in the last year or two with the second wave of refugees hit, an all troll band was something Dave had only seen a couple times before. It was more common to have bands as mostly human with one or two trolls. It was generally more successful as it played on the idea of unity between humans and trolls that society was slowly trying to achieve.

Interest piqued, Dave sat up a little straighter, wondering what their sound was like. Based on the way they were dressed, he could only assume that it was some sort of punk or heavier style. Not exactly Dave's thing, but if that troll mic with short horns and a grim expression was part of it, Dave might just be a little more into it.

Dave watched with interest as the trolls set up the stage. A tall girl with long hair and glasses set up at the bass, a shorter girl with angled red shades set up on lead guitar, tuning it before adjusting the microphone stand to her own height. On drums was a male troll with a pair of horns on each side of his head, and a rather cute troll with short horns that vaguely resembled cat ears and stuck out of a mess of short hair plugged in her keyboard. And just as Dave had expected, or rather, hoped, the short troll with the grim face set up at the lead mic, snapping something at the troll with the red glasses as he lowered the stand.

Within a matter of minutes, and after a brief sound test, the lead singer stepped up to the microphone and took it into his hand. "Hello humans and fellow trolls. We are Earthbound and we hope you like our shit."

Dave couldn't help but snort slightly at that. "Great opening dude," he muttered to himself, trying to decide whether he was amused or embarrassed.

When the music started, it was with a blast, a strong chord on the electric guitar and followed by some steady bass and and accent of piano. This intro alone was enough to get the crowd energized, something Dave could relate to and appreciate. After several seconds of this, the drums finally entered and with a crash of the cymbals, the sour faced troll began to sing.

Despite his speaking voice being a little high and rough, the troll's singing voice was surprisingly clear with just enough of that roughness to add character and make his voice distinct. He also proved to have a nice range and with some training he might even be able to get rid of that nervous warble that showed itself whenever he went to high or held a note too long.

As the first song died out, they left a space for applause before starting their next song in a much more gentle manner with a steady beat on the bass drum, a gentle rhythm on the bass guitar by the troll girl with long hair, both easily accompanying the melody played by the small female troll on the piano.

This went on for long enough that Dave was beginning to wonder if there was going to be any singing in this song at all. Much to his surprise, when the vocals finally did come in, it was the girl in red sunglasses that started to sing.

She had a very distinct voice, just like her bandmate, one that was definitely feminine but could easily pass for male if she so desired. There was a little more passion in the way she sang, in contrast to the almost angry way the male sang. Also in contrast to her bandmate was the way she smiled. Dave didn't think he had seen the other even do so once. It was to the point that Dave was wondering if he was enjoying himself at all.

After a couple verses, the male joined in and together they created a beautifully rough harmony that balanced the his anger and her passion.

The song soon ended and moments later their final song started with a slow build into a long note from the lead singer into a fast rhythm and the two females on guitars as back up vocals.

When they finally finished, Dave found himself applauding just as hard as the rest of the building. He wasn't really into the style but he had to admit that they were good. Of course that was to say they were still very amateur. Some rhythms were a bit off, some notes too long and some harmonies out of tune, but all in all, they weren't too bad for a band that was clearly just starting out. They obviously had potential.

It was the red shaded girl that spoke this time. "Again, we are Earthbound. Please look us up and download our music! Thank you and have a good night!"

Dave was impressed by the lack of cussing this time, but from the look of things, he was starting to guess that that might just be the lead singer's thing.

They quickly filed off the stage and allowed the next band to set up, a mostly human band with a troll as their drummer.

Dave tried to listen as intently as he had to Earthbound, but they just didn't catch his interest as much and he found his eyes watching the area where the band would come out from the back stage area. That's if they decided to stick around and not just leave out the back door. He wanted to know if they were coming back to perform again.

Forcing himself to turn away from the stage, a little annoyed with himself for being suddenly so obsessed and infatuated. And Dave knew it wasn't the band. No, it was that damn lead singer. Dave refused to believe that he had already developed a crush this deep for the boy and decided to finally order a drink to help him do so.

"Yo, D-man, finally up for a little rad party time?" the bartender asked.

"Nah, just a rum and coke will do, nothing too strong tonight Latula."

"Bo-ring. What's the occasion?" the troll asked.

"I gotta back to work in an hour Tuls."

"So?" she asked raising an eyebrow.

Dave rolled his eyes behind his shades. "Just get me the drink Tuls."

"I'm gonna have to see some ID," she replied with a smirk.

"Fuck off," he said, waving her away. She turned to mix his drink, laughing as she did so.

She turned back around a minute later and slid him the drink on a coaster.

"So what are you thinking tonight?"

"'Bout the bands?" Dave asked.

"Mmmhm," she replied with a smirk.

Dave knew what she was clearly hinting at but he refused to play into it. "Thought the first one was pretty good, this one that's up now could be better, they're too much in the shadow of all the popular artists to be pulling off what they were trying to do."

Latula raised an eyebrow but Dave pretended he didn't notice, turning back to face the stage, drink in hand as he leaned against the bar.

But as was the Latula way, she refused to go unnoticed.

"Just good huh?" she asked, implication heavy in her voice as she leaned over the counter next to Dave, folding her arms under her chest. "Don't lie to me Strider. I know how much you like punk to be that enraptured in Earthbound. I'm not blind, I saw you oggling that lead singer."

Dave snorted into his drink and turned to set it on the coaster. He turned back to face his friend, giving her a pointed look. "Striders. Do not. Oggle," he hissed, punctuating each word.

"Whoa dude. Alright then." Latula stood up straight again, raising her arms in surrender. "But you were so totally checking that dude out! And from the looks of it as he was leaving the stage, he has a real nice ass."

"Shut up Tuls. So I appreciated their music and their aesthetic. So what?"

"Soooo, you should go back and talk to them before they sneak out the back and you never get to see them again!"

Dave snorted again. "What is with you? I don't even know the guy's name. I'm not gonna go chasing after him like some lost princess. He has no fucking clue who I am and this is nowhere near 'love at first sight', not that that exists anyways. If I happen to see him again, cool enough, but I'm not going to chase after him as if I believed we were some sort of soulmates in another life."

"Well you might get the chance to talk to him now," Latula replied.

Dave turned around a little more quickly than he cared to admit and watched as the five trolls filed out from behind the stage, the lead singer bringing up the rear.

"I gotta get back up to the sound booth," he said quickly as the troll headed towards the bar with his red-shaded friend.

"But D-Strides," Latula whined, huffing as Dave swiftly left the bar and headed back for the sound booth without even finishing his drink. "Way to play it cool, Cool Kid," she muttered, taking his drink and dumping it down the sink before washing the glass.

Dave closed the door to the sound booth behind him and let out a breath. Harvey gave him a quick and questioning glance but Dave chose to ignore it. He let out a small groan that earned another glance from Harvey. Why the fuck did he do that? He had never met the troll. He was supposed to be the Cool Kid. He was supposed to play it cool. He ALWAYS played it cool, so why was he running away and hiding in the sound booth like some 12 year old with a middle school crush?

He debated going out there, but surely the troll saw him and if he left and went back to the bar now, he would just look like a fool. His whole goal in life was to look the opposite of that so there was no way he was going back out there now.

He was just so stupid! Yeah, the singer was cute, but that was it, nothing more. Who cared if Dave wanted to know why he didn't smile on stage, what had him always looking so grim, that he had a voice that sent an electricity through his body. None of that mattered, it was completely irrelevant and it-

Knock. Knock.

Dave looked up, thoughts interrupted as the door swung open and a girl about Dave's age, with short blonde hair cut in an a-line and a purple headband that he didn't think he had ever seen her without, stepped into the room and shut the door politely behind her.

Rose Lalonde, as well as her older sister Roxy, had been close friends of Dave and his brother since before Dave was even born. Rose was, in all senses of the term, aside from blood and legality, Dave's sister.

"There you are," she said with a small huff. She seemed slightly baffled for a moment that Dave was sitting on the floor with his knees pulled to his chest like some shy school girl, but the look quickly passed as Dave stood. "Latula said this is where you would be, thank god she was right. Dirk is looking for you."

"Yeah? What for?" he asked.

Rose shrugged. "He didn't really say, just said to find you and send you up to his office."

"Yeah, alright, I'll head up there now," he answered, giving Harvey a wave before stepping out of the booth behind Rose and clicking the door shut behind himself.

"So what did you think of that first band? Earthbound," Dave asked as casually as possible as they walked down the stairs.

"I didn't think they were too bad, obviously new, but great potential." Rose glanced at Dave from the corner of her eye. "Why?"

He gave her an odd look in an attempt to be surprised. "Who says there has to be a reason? I was just asking your opinion on the band is all."

Rose gave a rather exasperated sigh. "There is always a reason with you Dave Strider so don't give me that nonsense, just spill."

Dave shrugged and shoved his hands deep into his front pockets. "I don't know, I just thought they were pretty good and I was wondering what you thought."

Rose stared at him for a minute as they paused at the bottom of the stairs before gasping. "Oh my god, you have a crush on the lead singer!"

He shot her a look and this time the shock was genuine. "I never said that!"

"You don't have to Mr. Strider, I can read you like an open children's book. I know you and I know your type and you always take after those that are just as psychologically tortured as you are. And from what I can that troll boy is right up your alley."

"God Rose, we're 21, you think you would quit with all that psychological shit by now." Dave rolled his eyes, his tone light to indicate that the words weren't as harsh as they may have seemed to anyone else.

"It's my major, Dave. It's never going to stop."

Dave let out a groan. "Fine, so what if I have a crush on the cute troll with the oddly sexy voice, not like it's gonna go anywhere."

"Not if you don't talk to him. Key to any good relationship Dave, communication."

"But I'll never see him after tonight."

"Who says that? You don't know that. You don't know who he is, where he's from, and there's nothing wrong with a long distance relationship. Skype was invented for a reason."

Dave groaned and leaned against the stair railing, taking off his shades momentarily to rub at his eyes before slipping them back on. "You and Latula both. What is with you guys?"

"Dave. This is the first person you've shown even the barest amount of interest in since John and that was almost four years ago. Honestly, it's a bit pathetic."

"Yeah, well, what about you? Haven't seen you dating lately either," he snapped back. He didn't mean to get so defensive but his relationship issues wasn't exactly the best subject to pick with him.

Rose seemed unfazed. "It's only been a year since I broke up with Aradia, and that lasted almost 2 years. Your relationship with John barely lasted 3 months and while I have at least been looking for potential suitors, you've been locking yourself away in that booth and pretending that romance doesn't exist."

Dave glared at her through his darkened glasses, his mouth set in a firm line. God he fucking hated it when she was right. The worst part was that she almost always was.

"I have to go see Dirk," he stated, shrugging off the railing and heading over the the stairs that led up to his brother's office.

"Avoidance is not a suitable method of coping Dave!" Rose called over the crowd as the band started up their next song.

Dave pretended not to hear but once again, she was right. He was avoiding, and what they both knew was that he was going to continue to do it until something changed that prompted him to do otherwise.

Pushing through the crowd, Dave headed to a separate set of stairs that led up to a plain wooden door with a plaque that read 'Dirk Strider' in gold embossed letters. Dave thought it was rather pretentious, especially for a guy like Dirk, but the older Strider had explained that it maintained a level of professionalism, that it made people take him more seriously or something like that. Dave honestly didn't care what he said, he still liked better the half torn notebook paper with Dirk's name written in orange highlighter with quick and sloppy scrawl, a small 'owner/manager' penciled in underneath as an after-thought that used to be duct taped to the door.

Dave knocked on the door and waited for his brother's call before entering.

The office was small and slightly cluttered, with a desk that faced the window that looked out over the club. You could see almost everything from that window. The sound booth to the right where Harvey was still working the board, the stage where the second band was just finishing up it's final song, and even the bar to the left where Latula was happily chatting up the people she was serving. The whole building was aglow with dancing bodies and neon lights a scene so familiar to Dave he barely spared it a second glance.

"What's up, Rose said you needed me?" he asked, frowning at his older brother who was currently sifting through a desk drawer in a rather frustrated manner.

"I lost my phone," he said.

"Dude again? That's the fourth time this month and the second time this week. How do you keep losing it like this?"

"Shut up, I didn't ask for your opinion kid, just call it would you?" Dirk huffed.

"Yeah, yeah, fine, fine," Dave grumbled, pulling his phone out of his pocket and quickly dialing Dirk's number from his contacts.

"Why didn't you just have Rose call it instead of having her relay the message to me? It would have been a hell of a lot easier."

"She was busy," Dirk stated.

"But not too busy to come find me. It would have taken less time for her too-" He was cut off by a muffled yet easily recognizable 'Barbie Girl' playing from the jacket hanging on the back of Dirk's chair.

"Fuck. I checked there too!"

"Seriously Bro, change the fucking song," Dave said, hanging up as Dirk pulled the phone from his pocket.

"No way, not gonna happen."

"I'm not kidding. That shit is so fucking dated, both the song and the joke. Change it."

"Nah man, it's a fucking classic and it's ironic. It's staying," Dirk responded with a smile.

"I'll change it for you then."

"Like you could ever get ahold of my phone, I always beat you when we were younger and I could do it even now."

"Sure you could old man," Dave answered. "All I have to do is wait until you lose it again though, so I'll probably have it by tomorrow."

"Low blow dude."

"You bring this on yourself."

"Get out of here."

"Gladly."

Dave was grinning as he closed the door behind him, sliding his phone back into his pocket after checking the time.

He still had just over half an hour before going back on shift. With one last band to perform and nothing better to do, he slid his hands back into his pockets and headed back up to the sound booth. It had the best view anyways, nevermind that he spent more time watching the troll with stubby horns at the bar than he did the band on stage.

Dave loved his job, but even with the hour and a half break for the live performances, the lunch/dinner break and the occasional bathroom run, playing from five in the afternoon to about two or three in the morning, depending on the day and the crowd, it got exhausting.

Today was a 2am closing time as most of the crowd had left about 1. There were still a few stragglers, mostly hanging around the bar as Dave pulled up a stool and ordered a screwdriver. Only when Latula gave him knowing smirk did his tired mind catch up and he realize that he was sitting on the very seat directly next to the very troll he had been spending most of his time not-watching all night.

"Shit," Dave cursed quietly under his breath, causing Latula to chuckle, but the troll next to him to not even flinch, apparently not hearing. God, Dave was way too tired for this.

Things only got better as the troll turned towards Dave.

"Are you the DJ?" he asked.

"Who's asking."

"I was just wondering if you really actually called that music that you play up there."

Dave snorted, the little fucker. "I could say the same for you," he said easily.

Latula leaned against against the bar, a grin on her face that clearly showed how much entertainment she was getting out of the situation. Only then did Dave realize that she had been talking to the troll for the past several hours and knew that something like this was bound to happen. She was waiting for it.

"Karkat, meet Dave. Dave, meet Karkat," she said giddily.

Karkat looked him over, a small disgusted look on his face. "Dave? What a boringly lame ass generic human name," he stated.

Dave huffed, taken aback. Two in the morning was definitely not the time to be dealing with this shit.

"Excuse me? What crawled into your pants, twisted them into a bunch and then died? Dave is an awesome name. I'm afraid I can't say the same for you. Karkat? What are you, a fucking candy bar?"

"That's a kitkat as far as you're concerned, you ignorant douchnozzle."

"Whoa, look at us, getting all fancy with the insults."

"Latula, another please, I'm gonna need at least five more if I'm stuck talking to this piece of numbnuts over here."

Latula laughed. "Sorry there Karkles, gonna have to cut you off here," she said, placing another glass of dark liquid in front of him. "Music stops the bar closes, that's the rules."

Karkat huffed. "Fine, here's money for my tab. I won't be seeing you around Dave." He pushed up from the bar and door had just swung shut behind him when Dirk came up and ruffled Dave's hair.

"Ready to go kid?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Night, Latula." Dave stood and gave his friend a wave.

"Night D-Strides, see you tomorrow."

Dirk tossed her the keys and she caught them easily. "Don't lose them."

She grinned. "Never do."

Dave left the club with his brother, stepping out into the crisp, cold night, dark, but glowing orange with the neon sign above their head and the nearby lamp lights. The chill around them was a welcomed relief from the stifling atmosphere of the club.

As they walked to his brother's car, Dave Strider was acutely aware of two things. One, Karkat, the lead singer of ameteur punk-rock band, Earthbound, was an asshole. Two, this very same troll was still painfully and frustratingly the most attractive guy Dave Strider had seen in years.