Dave Strider was just your average, everyday normal teenager. Okay, that was a total lie. In fact, there wasn't a single normal thing about him, other than his appearance. Dave wasn't extra buff, but he did have a nice build and plenty of muscles. He had blond hair with a not-too-pale-but-not-too-tan complexion with more freckles than could ever be counted. The only strange thing about his looks were his crimson red eyes.

Dave used to be bullied for his abnormality, but it soon made him quite popular with the ladies. However, he had only ever been interested in one girl who tore his heart to shreds and left him in the cold. After that, he had only had similar feelings towards one person. A person who shared the same abnormality. Karkat Vantas.

The kid was in the same grade and class as Dave since his seventh grade year. When Karkat moved into town and transferred to their school he was given constant ridicule, all because of bright red eyes.

Karkat was much shorter and tinier than everyone, but he was also much louder and more willing to cuss somebody out than any other middle schooler. Dave had been intrigued and one day decided to try and befriend him. It took a lot of patience and persistence, but he eventually got the guy to cave.

Karkat was always angry and pushed everyone away, but somehow Dave had pushed past his barrier and became good friends. Dave quickly figured out Karkat was almost constantly snarky and rude, but he knew half of the shit that came out of his mouth was just big talk for a short kid.

Dave and Karkat were now in highschool, both having made new friends and widened their horizons. Karkat hadn't grown much, only standing at 5'1'', whereas Dave was now a very decent heighted young man at 5'8''.

Karkat had messy white hair that liked to often not co-operate. His red eyes still shone and were brought out by his pale skin and the dark bags under his eyes from lack of sleep. He had insomnia and rarely told anyone if and when he slept. He also preferred wearing dull and dark colors as often as practically possible.

Dave was the exact opposite of the ill-tempered boy. He was very calm and sarcastic. He loved wearing red and ocassionally some orange. He wore shades all the time to keep his eyes concealed from everyone. Only people who knew him when he was very young knew what the shades hid.

However, there was one secret that only his older brother knew. Dave had strange powers. He could stop time, travel through it, dream about the future or even past events, and change things. These powers were dangerous and Dirk had to train him since he was young. He knew how to use them now and he only used them to stop crimes. The only times they went wonky was when he got over emotional, hence why he got a strong grasp of his emotions and hid them.

Dave had trouble controlling them around Karkat and no matter what he did they would show a little. He always made sure to fix it, though. That was how he knew he had feelings for the albino known as Karkat.

Maybe it was the way his eyes shone or the cute freckles dotted all over his pale cheeks. Maybe the way he got so passionate about things or how flustered he got when he was caught letting a smile slip. Or maybe, just maybe it was just him in general and everything about him.

Dave was in his junior year, 17 years old, and staring at the door that was slightly tinted due to the mirror shades he always wore to hide his eyes. He was just waiting for his 'best bro' to walk into class.

Summer was close, just like the end of school and Dave was determined to finally ask out Karkat Vantas on a date. He had pussied out way too many times, but not this time.

As Dave was thinking of the smoothest way to pop the question, Karkat startled him out of his thoughts. "Earth to Strider, do you fucking copy?" Karkat had leaned in close to Dave's face, causing the blond's eyes to go wide behind the shades and his face to tint pink.

"Uh, yeah. Hey Karks. Sorry. I was just thinking about shit." Dave offered one of his signature douchebag half-smirks which earned him an eye roll. Karkat had quirked a brow as if asking what was on his friend's mind. Dave had to do this now. He wasn't going to just wimp out. It was the perfect opportunity.

"It's sort of important...And it's something I need to talk about with you..." Dave began, watching Karkat sit down. He let his eyes wander along the shorter male's body, glad his eyes were hidden and he was good at pulling a poker face.

Karkat was wearing Dave's favorite hoodie today and a pair of gray skinny jeans. The hoodie was a red with a darker red gear on it. It was something of his hero's insignia. Yes, Dave Strider was a super hero. He could stop crimes before they happened by reporting them the moment they were happening.

"Alright, spill." Karkat shrugged, starting to pull out his favorite romance novel. Dave always teased him about being a sap, but now that would be a key into totally making him swoon over the cool kid. "First, I want to tell you all about the show I watched last night. Well, it's a movie based on a show which is based on a book series which is based on some shitty story." Karkat began to go on one of his rambling rants that would probably take all the free time they had before class for him to finish. Fuck could this guy talk.

Dave tried several times to 'politely' interrupt, but eventually he had to raise his voice. There went the time freezing shit. Ugh. He got up and walked around through the frozen time. He'd just have to go back and catch Karkat in the hall and talk to him about it before they entered the classroom. That was the only way Dave could think of attempting to fix this. Now, what time exactly would Karkat be walking into school?

Dave walked through the frozen hallway and out the front entrance to wait. He closed his eyes. It would probably only be a few minutes, right? Sighing, he let the gears turn in his mind as he felt the rush of wind and everything around him. He opened his eyes and he was outside a few minutes back, backpack still on. He waited and scanned the area until he spotted the familiar fluffy white hair and the red hoodie.

"You didn't have to wait for me, you know? Since when do you wait outside for me when we're just sitting by each other in the same fucking class. If anything, it's completely counterproductive. Now we could both be late or just look like we were going to skip together." Karkat snorted, squinting in the light. Summer was probably the worst time of year for Karkat. Dave wished he could offer him his shades without revealing his own eyes to him. He should buy him a pair on their potential date. That was going on the to-do list in his mind.

"Yeah, I know. I just felt like it. Gives us more time to walk together." Dave shrugged. He was definitely going to have to be as cheesy as fucking possible. Karkat liked that shit. Fuck, speaking of cheesy as possible, Dave should have gotten him flowers. He could always just...No. No he wasn't going to abuse his powers again just to make every detail perfect. Karkat would want it to be the very unscripted kind of mushy gushy romantic shit. Dave had to be absolutely original.

"Dave, is there something on your mind? You're totally spacing out on me here." The albino crossed his arms, eying Dave curiously. Was that concern? Fuck. Dave made him worry. Think, Strider, think. How are you gonna save this?

"Well, yeah. It's nothing bad. In fact, it kind of concerns you in the exact opposite of a bad way." Dave began, biting his bottom lip out of nervous habit. Him and Karkat both did that, but he always thought it was way cuter when Karkat did it. "I wanted to ask you something." Dave shifted his weight a bit, stopping midstep in hopes of getting Karkat to stop with him in the slowly emptying hallway.

"Alright. Fine. Fucking spit it out already." Karkat hated the stalling and Dave knew it. "We don't have all day. We'll be late and last I checked our 'perfect attendance' can't take another blow." Karkat's sarcasm leaked into his voice, eyes rolling and hip popping.

"Okay, fuck. Hang on a sec. I'm nervous." Dave ran a nervous hand through his blond hair, causing it to fall in a mess over his forehead. Shit. Words, Dave. "Right, um...I was going to do this in a rap, but I totally forgot to write it down, so I'll just say it." He took a shaky breath, watching as Karkat grew ever more impatient. "Karkat, will you go out with me?"