Prompt by Jeedies (check out her art on the tumblrs)

"College student Rose is wealthy and doesnt worry about college debt. She goes out with her friends and goes to the bathroom to find the janitor asleep on the floor. john is a middle class college student/ janitor asleep on the bathroom floor."

"John" Work (John/Rose)

= Be Rose Lalonde

You are Rose Lalonde.

If there's one thing you hate, it's people around your age without the sense or sensibility to behave with the decorum that you hold herself to. Seriously, don't these kids have anything else to do besides get blasted on over -priced drinks, in an over-crowded club, with a bunch of over-hyped people?

When you bring up your concerns to her friend, she just laughs in your face.

"Really, Rose?" Jade pokes you in the chest. "You're out here too, aren't you?"

Sure enough, you, Rose Lalonde, are out among the masses, mingling with the hooligans and enjoying all this extra money afforded to you by your weighty scholarships. You always look forward to those days where all your other classmates line up outside the student's accounts office to turn in their checks. You always watch from a distance and feel the appropriate amount of sympathy without actually parting with a single cent of your own cash.

If there was one thing you like, it's getting paid to go to college.

"If you're really so against this, then we can leave." Jade continues. She gestures around the club, to all the gyrating hoodlums amongst the flashing strobes. "I mean. I don't want to bring you along if you're just going to complain the whole time."

"No, no. I'll hold my tongue and allow you to enjoy your evening," You fold your arms and examine the scene before you. "I just hope that you can cope with the idea that this will be the one and only time I'll ever accompany you to this dreadful place."

This club, aptly named: 'The Ruckus', is a relatively small joint close to campus. Growing up near a major city, you're no stranger to the incessant blaring of white noise. The Ruckus, however, brings sound pollution up to a whole new, unappreciated, level.

A large part of the floor space is occupied by the dance floor, a long bar is against the far wall, and a booth in the corner houses the current DJ, your brother Dave. Proper illumination is near non-existent, as are comfortable seating.

"Eh, after we get a few bev's in you, it won't be so bad." Jade throws her arm around your shoulders and steers you forward. "This will be good for you. It's about time you got out and did something fun."

"I do fun things. I read. I write. I spend times with friends."

"You've also never set a foot off campus for the past semester. Face it, Lalonde, you're a Grade 'A' introvert that's too good-looking to be such a recluse."

"Although I do appreciate the compliment," You and Jade weave through the crowd and eventually reach the bar. "I can't help but wonder what you stand to gain by bringing me out this evening. I doubt all of this is solely for my social benefit."

As Jade motions for the bartender, a light dusting of blush colors her cheeks.

"I like the scene," She shrugs. "What? A girl can't take out her friend for an evening on the town without an ulterior motive?"

You simply lift your eyebrow in response.

"Ugh, fine. I want you to set me up with Dave."

Ah, yes. The penny drops.

You look over towards her brother, who was spinning records in the DJ booth like a dough-bender at a pizza parlor. He's wearing sunglasses inside, at night, in the darkest corner of the club. If you already didn't have affirmation of how much of a dweeb he is, you'd probably reach that conclusion on your lonesome anyways, after only a few seconds of watching him.

"Jade, you do not want to date, Dave." You state plainly.

"Why not?! He's cute!"

"He's an egotistical, hot-head with an unhealthy interest in pickled corpses. If you came looking for companionship, there are literally dozens of other eligible bachelors here, I'm sure."

Jade crosses her arms and begins to pout horribly. Instantly you feel bad. Not only are you pissing on Jade's parade, you're also potentially spoiling the chance for two people to find love. In one fell swoop you are being both a poor sister and a shitty friend.

Before you can make amends, however, the bartender finally swaggers up.

"Ladies." He greets, wriggling his eyebrows and sending you a wink lecherous enough to make a little bile rise in your throat. "Wwhat can I do for you on this fine evvening?"

"Drinks. Now." Jade commands, fishing some cash from her purse. "Long Island Iced Teas, please."

As the bartender mixes your drinks, you try to imagine what it would be like if Jade dated Dave. How much would change amongst the dynamic of your group? It's always been you, John, Jade and Dave. Would Jade spend less time with you and John? Would Dave? Would you have to spend the rest of your time at university, checking for a tube sock tied around the doorknob to your dorm?

You shiver at the thought. Having Jade as a roommate is hard enough as it is, with her assorted knick knacks and blatant refusal to do laundry. You don't want to live in constant fear of interrupting some fierce make-out session, one of the sloppiest variety.

But then again… who are you to stand in the way of love? If that's even what this is.

"Listen, Jade." You come out of your internal debate to find Jade already halfway through her drink. "If you want to instigate a relationship with Dave, then I suppose it's not up to me as to whether or not that actually becomes a thing. If you truly want my help, then consider me your matchmaker."

"Really?" Jade takes a long slurp from her glass and swallows thoughtfully. "I mean, what about all that stuff you said about corpses and hotness?"

"I may have been a little crude in analysis of Dave, not to mention biased. As his sister, it's sort of my job to see the worst in him." You take a sip of your drink, wrinkle your nose, and nudge it away slightly. "Why did you buy this for me, Jade? I never told you I was going to drink."

"That's the whole reason we came!" Jade throws her hands in the air. "Ugh. If you aren't going to get drunk, then will you at least dance with me?"

You look towards the mass of people jiving in the center of the floor. It's hard to tell where one person begins and another ends, let alone what kind of 'dance' is supposed to be happening. The music Dave is currently spinning doesn't seem very appealing either. Somehow he's managed to mix Kanye West and Foreigner into the one of the most spectacular messes you've ever had the pleasure of listening to.

"I don't know." You admit. "I'm afraid that if I go out there I'll catch some sort of disease."

You glance back at Jade just in time to see her smile flip back to a frown once more. You sigh.

"Listen," You begin, taking her by the hand. "I've already promised to do whatever I can to endear you to Dave. What else do you want?"

"Rooose, you aren't going to meet anyone if you just sit on the sidelines all the time." She protests.

"I sit on the sidelines so that I can be better aware of my surroundings. Observation is the first step towards comprehension. Also, whoever said that I wanted to meet anyone? I'm perfectly happy with my unaccompanied existence, thank you very much."

"For a psyche major, you sure don't know a lot about people." Jade finishes her drink and turns on her stool to face you more fully, as if she's about to 'school' you. "It's basic human nature to crave companionship. Sure, you can be happy as an elegant bachelorette, but don't you get lonely?"

"I don't need…"

"No, no, no. It isn't about need." She cuts you off with a wave of her hand. "You don't need someone, it's just…" She trails off. Apparently keeping your thoughts straight is more difficult after a highball glass full of twenty-two percent alcohol. "Just, don't you ever want to have fun?"

You regard Jade for a moment, thinking of your earlier response to this exact same question. What do you do for fun?

More like: what do you do for fun that isn't similar to an elderly widow with a dozen flea-ridden cats?"

Answer: Nothing. Nothing at all.

"I'm… I'm gonna ask Dave to dance." Jade grins at you. "I'm gonna do it right now."

"He's DJ-ing. I wouldn't recommend ruining his groove." You take another sip of your drink. "Go dance by yourself for a bit. I'll wait here."

Jade pats you on the shoulder and then skips from her stool to disappear into the blob of hormones grinding on the floor. You stare after her, only catching glimpses of her bushy hair every once and a while through the waves of wobbly limbs.

You'll put in a good word for her next time you talk to Dave. Now that you think about it, those two would make a good couple.

"Soooo, howw are you liking your drink?" The bartender has returned. Doesn't he have other patrons to bother? He continues: "It's a special blend of my owwn invvention, only served here at the…"

"It's a little sour, if you really want to know." You push the glass towards him. "Excuse me, please."

Getting up from the bar, you make a bee-line for the restroom. You don't really have to go, but taking a second to escape from the ruckus seems like a good idea at the moment. You'll be back before Jade gets off the dance floor and hopefully be in possession of a much better disposition.

The second you push open the bathroom door though, this seems like an unlikely occurrence. The place is crowded with a giggling gaggle of gallivanting girls.

"Should we wake him up?" One girl asks.

"Hell no, this is classic!" Another answers.

You ignore them and step up to the sink, depositing your purse on the facet so that you can splash some cool water on your face.

"Let's take his pants."

"What are you going to do with his pants?"

"Fuck. I dunno. They're pants, dude!"

"Let's draw a mustache on his face. Oh, no! A penis!"

Looking up from the porcelain basin, you look in the mirror to see an odd sight behind you. The girls are crowded around the prone form of an unconscious boy, a very familiar, unconscious boy.

"Hey!" You wheel around. "Get away from him!"

The girls turn to you now. The leader of the pack you recognize instantly to be Vriska Serket, biggest bitch with the most wicked-looking glass eye, which you would totally compliment her on if she wasn't so rude and insensitive.

"Oh, looky here," Vriska grins at you, flashing sharp canines. "It's Loopy Lalonde. How's it going, Loopy? I never pegged you as the type to hang around this place."

You ignore her and step forward, brushing through the girls to kneel on the floor next to John Egbert.

"John?" You shake his arm gently.

"N- No." He mumbles. "No. Not the bees…"

"John, wake up."

Slowly, like a computer powering on, John opens his eyes.

"Rose?" He asks quizzically. "What are you doing in my room?"

All of the girls, huddled around the scene still, guffaw loudly. You grit your teeth.

"This isn't your room, John. This is the ladies' restroom at The Ruckus."

He blinks at you, and then twists his head to look at his surroundings. You can practically see the gears turning in his head as he comes to terms with his current situation.

"What in the actual fuck?" He eventually proclaims, looking back at you with a frown. "Dammit! I must have fallen asleep on the job."

"The job?" You echo and for the first time, you see what John is dressed in. He's wearing a pair of rubber gloves and a smock over one of the club's employee t-shirts. "You're working as a janitor at The Ruckus of all places? Why?"

"Uh… Money?" His answer sounds more like a question.

"Because he likes rolling around with dirt! Isn't that right, Lalonde?" Vriska's voice is like metaphorical nails on your mental chalkboard. All the other girls laugh.

"Come on, John. Get up." You grab his hand and pull him to his feet. "Let's get out of here."

However, instead of following you towards the door. John is glaring at the girls, Vriska in particular.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" He demands.

"Oh, I dunno." Vriska checks her nails. "Just that you have a knack for spending time with some… how can I put this? Lower-quality girls."

John clenches his fists and you grab him by the sleeve.

"Just leave it, John. She's not worth…"

"Rose is ten times- a billion times the girl you'll ever be!" John tugs his arm from your grip to jab his finger at Vriska. "And I can hang out with whoever I want to."

"Aw come on, John. You could do so much better than Rose." Vriska's eye gleams. "Just imagine if we hooked up. Power couple alert!"

The other girls nod in agreement.

John opens his mouth to speak, but you grab him by the arm again, this time being sure to dig your nails into his skin.

"Leave it, John." You say firmly. "Let's go."

He looks ready to argue, but another squeeze on his bicep gets him to look at you. A third squeeze and he takes a step, then another. Soon enough, you've gotten him to the door.

"Oh, Rose!"

You turn back to Vriska.

"You forgot your purse!" She snatches your bag off the counter and proceeds to dump its contents on the floor. "Whoops! Silly me. Haha."

John snaps.

"Ooooh my golden riiiings! Why are you so mean?!" He descends and begins snatching up all of your crap. "Like seriously, is this how you make friends? God damn, you suck so much."

"It was an accident." She shrugs. "My bad. I'll see you around, Egderp, Loopy."

Vriska nods at you and with a final grin, leads her pack of super-sluts from the restroom and back into The Ruckus. John chases a bottle of nail polish into a stall while you collect a few scattered pens and pencils. If anything, Vriska sort of did you a favor. Half of the stuff you have in this stupid bag you don't even use.

Like seriously, here's that packet of peanut butter crackers that you've always planned to eat one day.

You won't.

"Man, I'm sorry, Rose." John returns and gives you back all the stuff he's cradling in his arms. "That was really rude!"

"It's alright. It's my fault for leaving my belongings within arms-reach of that creten." You sling your bag back over your arm. "Thanks for your help."

"I- uh, it was nothing." He rubs the back of his neck. "Do you wanna get out of here?"

"The women's restroom? Yeah, that sounds like a good idea." You take him by the arm and this time lead him successfully from the room and back into the club. You don't stop there. You take him all the way through the crowd and finally out, into the night air.

"Wow." John says once you're free. "Was Dave playing Liza Minnelli and Dio?"

"I believe so." You pull away from John and lean against the wall. Through the plaster and brick, you can feel the vibrations of the bass. "So, Mr. Egbert. When were you going to tell me that you've been moonlighting as a janitor?"

John shoves his gloved hands into his pockets and kicks at the curb.

"I dunno. It really didn't seem like something that needed sharing, you know?"

"If you're having money troubles…"

"It's not trouble." He answers quickly, a little too quickly. "It's just something to do. I get bored just going to school and chatting with you and Dave."

"Does Jade know?"

"No, and what is this? Twenty questions." He shrugs. "I could just use a few bucks here and there. We aren't all smart enough to get super scholarships like you."

You chuckle and John smiles.

"Still," You fold your arms. "The Ruckus? Really? There are much higher paying jobs elsewhere, not to mention more tolerable ones. You could probably find someplace with better hours too. If you're going to school all day and working all night, no wonder you're taking naps on the bathroom floor."

"I'm managing." John defends, a little defensively. "What are you doing here anyways? I thought you hated crowds, and people, and drinking, and dancing now that I think about it."

"Jade brought me."

"Ah, yes. That explains it. I guess she's still inside?"

"Of course." You smile, remembering your conversation with her. "I promised to set her up with Dave."

"Seriously?" John's eyes widen. "That's such bullshit! I could have hooked the two of them up and she knows that!"

"What can I say? Jade just thinks I'm a little more apt to handle a situation like this."

"Pfft. Whatever." He joins you on the wall. "I'm totally apt."

"Sure." You haven't stopped smiling since you got outside. "So I suppose that you'd prefer for me to keep this little job a secret from Jade then?"

"Please." John exhales deeply. "If she found out, she'd call Dad and then it'd be a whole debacle that I'd rather avoid if at all possible."

"That's understandable."

The pair of you drift into silence then. It's quiet in the parking lot, with no one else milling around either by the front of the club or in the parking lot. It's cold too and a winter chill raises goosebumps on your exposed legs. John must see you shiver.

"Do you want to go back inside?" He asks.

"Oh, god no." You shake your head. "I wouldn't go back in there if my life depended on it. I'll text Dave later and have him make sure Jade gets home. Who knows? That might be all I need to do to set their hormonal gears turning."

"Hmmm." John hums in agreement. Suddenly, he blurts: "I don't think you're dirt."

You stare at him for a moment, taken aback by his outburst.

"I beg your pardon?"

"Vriska said that I like rolling around with dirt, but I don't think that you're dirt. I haven't 'rolled around' with you either. That's just a nasty rumor someone started, not me. Haha." He laughs nervously. "Th- that was rude of her to say. Also that whole 'Loopy Lalonde' thing is really offensive! And it doesn't even make any sense. I think you're the most non-loopy person I've ever met, like you're so smart that…"

You silence him by pressing your index finger to his flapping lips.

"John. I think I get what you're trying to say." You retract your finger. "It's appreciated, really it is, but it is also entirely unnecessary. I wouldn't have made it this far in my academic carrier without some toughened skin."

"Well still… you don't deserve that."

"No one deserves…"

"Rose." He suddenly lunges and grabs you by the shoulders. "Stop that, okay? I'm trying to say that you deserve better than crap like that. No one should ever be mean to you because… well, because you're awesome and smart and pretty and a million other things that I can't even begin to list because it would take too fucking long." His face grows red before your very eyes. "I mean, I think you should just know that."

Suddenly, as he finishes his second tyraid, it clicks in your mind. You, Rose Lalonde, have been acting like an idiot for the past five minutes, possibly longer.

"John." You wink at him. "You wouldn't happen to have a crush on me, would you?"

His face goes from red to purple and for a moment, you fear that he's stopped breathing entirely.

"I- I… what?" He splutters. "Rose…

"Hey," You slide your hands up his arms and eventually cup his face in your small hands. "It's alright. I understand."

As you kiss him, outside of The Ruckus and with his soiled, gloved hands around your waist. You wonder how much time you and John wasted by being friends. You wonder if maybe Jade knew what she was doing when she brought you here tonight. Could she and Dave have set this up themselves? Surely, Dave, who DJ'd almost every weekend, would notice if his best friend was cleaning the urinals in the bathroom.

Then you remember what Jade said about companionship and fun. Then, for once in your life, you make a conscious effort to not dissect this situation. You simply close your eyes and kiss.

This is my first prompted ficlet, so I probably made a whole mess of it XD Looking back, I took a shit-load of artistic licenses. IE: John and Rose probably weren't supposed to know each other. Regardless, this was a blast to write :3

Thanks for reading. More to come. Feel free to send prompts!

- Mike