Karkat walked down the dark main hallway of the trolls' and kids' new home, lost in thought. He tried to think of other things, but as usual his mind wandered back to his typical thoughts of the typical person. He'd try and focus on the weather, or some odd thing Gamzee had said, but no, it was always back to the girl with the red eyes. She was his infinity, no matter which way Karkat looked at it.
"Fuck." he muttered, listening to his quiet curse echo down the almost-tunnel.
"I concur with that assessment." said a mildly sarcastic tone. He turned to see a pretentious asshole dressed in red pajamas.
"What. The. Fuck. Do. You. Want. Dave." Karkat asked coldly. Dave raised his hands defensively.
"Chill out. Last time I checked, this was the main hallway, not your bedroom. I'm headed to the next room over." He said. Karkat sighed and sat down on a bench, resting his head in his hands.
"Let me guess." Dave said, looming over him. "Terezi?"
Karkat looked up quickly. "How the fuck would you know?" Dave glanced around, and said to him, adjusting his glasses, "Because I know how it feels." Dave tried to walk away quickly after that, but Karkat grabbed his arm.
"You don't feel it, you live it." he snarled at Dave. "We all know you and Terezi are the homecoming couple of Can Town." Dave frowned at that.
"Well you've got your facts messed up. I loved her, never dated her, wish I had had the balls to ask her out. But hey, I can't complain." He smirked. "I've got Egbert now." With that, Dave walked into the next room. Karkat could practically hear John squealing with glee.
Alone again, Karkat continued his trek. I wonder what's at the end of this hallway, he thought in a melancholy mindset. Might as well find out. His footsteps echoed hollowly off of the paintings of the ancestors, hung in perfect rows on the high walls. Calliope was there too, and the kids' guardians, and Dave and Dirk had insisted on a painting of the creepy puppet thing. Even with all of the faces, friendly or not, staring down at him, Karkat still felt a sense that he was utterly alone. A burst of laughter from about ten people confirmed this.
But directly following the chuckles, Karkat heard someone inhale sharply, gasping for breath between tears, it seemed.
"Hello?" He inquired. No answer, except for stifled tears. He started walking down the hall with more purpose, casting his gaze about in hopes to find the source of the distressed cries. After walking about 50 more steps, he caught a glance of red fleece, poking out from behind a column. Karkat approached cautiously, knowing this could be some trick of the glasses-wearing douche.
"Terezi?"
"Y-y-y-yes?" A shaky yet familiar voice responded. Even when it wasn't strong, that voice made his heart leap. He walked around the black pillar. There was Terezi, wedged between the column, a dark wall, and some dusty curtains. Tears had traced pathways down her cheeks, and although she was trying to shield her face with her hood, he could see her eyes were puffy from crying. Her right hand was pressing some of the material from her cape into her wrist.
"What do you want?" She spat. Karkat was a bit taken aback by her snippy response.
"I heard you crying, and I just though-"
"Go back and play with the others." She cut him off with a sneer. "You seem to be having an exceptionally good time without me."
Karkat knelt down next to Terezi, pulling her hood away from her face a bit.
"I have been walking this hallway for the past half hour, listening to how happy they all sound without me." he told her. She gave him a bittersweet smile.
"At least they accept you. You've got a moirail. I've got a kismesis. Guess which one I'd rather have. It's just proof that everyone hates me."
"Terezi, I'm seriously resisting the urge to slap you in the face." Karkat responded. She let out a hollow, humorless laugh.
"That's okay. I've got the self-discipline thing down." She told him.
"What do you mean-" he cut himself off as realization dawned on him. The cape wrapped around her wrist... upon further inspection, he saw a razor tossed aside, drenched in teal blood.
"Terezi..." He gently pulled the cape from her arm, revealing seven deep cuts. She sighed shakily, pressing herself farther into the corner as if she were willing herself to go away.
"Why are you doing this?" Karkat asked hollowly, staring at the incisions.
"It's a form of punishment. To make sure I never forget I'm never going to be good enough." She kept avoiding his gaze, afraid she would encounter something judgemental. Instead, she just heard him sigh.
"Terezi, this is probably a really fucking stupid idea, but here you go. Ever since day one, I've been flushed for you. You walked up to me, all red shades and pointy horns, and I just instantly fell for you. That hasn't changed at all. I love you for who you are." He took her hand and kissed her scars delicately, moving slowly up her arm. "I love this part of you... and this part of you..." He pulled her into a tight embrace. "I know you don't return how I feel, but for Gog's sake, please stop hurting yourself. You're the most amazing person I've ever met." Karkat released her slowly and stood up, brushing off his pants. "Well, I guess I'll just go-"
"Please don't." Terezi whispered. He looked down at her, and cautiously sat. They were engulfed in a mildly uncomfortable silence for a while, both staring at the floor covered in teal speckles.
Karkat opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted by a hand on his chest, immediately followed by another on his cheek. He looked up to see Terezi's face only inches away from his, her breath stirring the hair falling in his eyes.
"Did you mean it?" she whispered.
"No, of course not, I just lied to make you feel better." He retorted sarcastically. "Of course I fucking meant it!" He would've continued, but he was cut off by a pair of soft lips meeting his. Shocked at first, he didn't react, but he slowly came to his senses and pulled her closer, working his lips against hers, one hand against the small of her back, the other tangled in her hair. She slipped her hands around from his chest to his shoulderblades and back. They fell into a rhythm, lips interlocking, tongues intertwining, and releasing to stare into each others eyes. Yes, Terezi was Karkat's infinity, and he was hers. They could see that clearly now
"C'mon." Karkat whispered into her ear after awhile. "We should probably get your arm fixed up." He rose, helping her stand. Silently, she slipped her hand into his as they made their way to the hospital ward. Outside they stopped, and he pulled her into a warm embrace.
"Matesprits?" He whispered into her hair.
"You have no idea how long I've been waiting for you to ask that." She responded.