It wasn't long until John found himself sitting in the car with Dave starting up the engine beside him. His curiosity hadn't been quelled. On the contrary, it has only increased as time went by with Dave refusing to give up information in his weird, backwards way like the ass he was. It was frustrating, and after many persuasion attempts had failed on the blond, John had resorted to flinging insults, hoping to somehow goad him.
Even as they pull out of the driveway, Dave keeps quiet; opting to turn up the radio so loud that John doesn't have a chance of creating conversation. It's starting to grate somewhat on John's nerves that Dave refuses to even tell him where they're going.
The two of them drive in silence for the majority of the ride; only broken by the times John tried to turn down the radio and tell Dave how fucking stupid he was being. These times usually ended with Dave threatening to kick John out, and John threatening to cut off Dave's dick if he didn't tell him what the fuck was going on.
Other than that, it isn't a bad car ride. It takes about fifteen minutes for Dave to pull over and announce that they were at their first destination. John, who had sunk down in the seat in an attempt at pouting, shoots up and looks out the window to finally find out where the hell they are.
"…An elementary school?" He asks Dave incredulously. It's a small school, and John can see kids running around in the back. It isn't big and it isn't special, and John can't come up with a single reason as to why they would be here of all places until Dave speaks up.
"You don't remember?"
This causes John's forehead to crease in concentration as he reaches into the deepest depths of his mind to try and remember something, anything, about the old school.
Suddenly John gasps, his head filled with all sorts of memories. His head flicks to Dave, surprised and confused. "This is our old school."
"This is where I met you." Dave says simply and stares out the window at the tiny school. The children look so happy and you can easily see yourself among them, running around with Dave.
The date is September first, and John Egbert is standing outside of the school doors, holding his Dad's hand. He is practically jumping up and down in excitement and can hardly control himself.
It is John's first day of kindergarten, and to him it is a pretty big deal!
John squeezes his fathers hand, and he squeezes back, looking down to give him a look that clearly says 'I'm so proud of you son.' And John is proud too! He's proud and excited and happy and scared and nervous and anxious and way more feelings that are filling him up and lifting him into the sky.
The two of them walk in together, and they meet John's teacher. He and John's dad have a chat, but John isn't listening. He is way too busy looking at all the other kids. Some are playing together, some are running, laughing, and screaming, some are reading, dressing up, and they all look really happy and friendly and great!
Before he knows it, John is being picked up by his dad and hugged. He returns the gesture with great enthusiasm, and even whispers an "I'll miss you daddy!" into his dads ear.
Soon, John is left alone to do whatever he wants! He talks to some of the kids and finds that he makes friends pretty easily with most people, they're all so great! They invite him to play tag and he does and even though he's always first to get caught and has to be it all the time, he has lots and lots of fun!
John notices one kid sitting all by himself in the corner. He's wearing a pair of weird pointy shades that John had seen on the TV once, and is playing a video game, not interacting with anyone or making any friends. John immediately feels a surge of sympathy and runs over to the boy to talk to him and try and make friends. He doesn't look too scary to John, he just looks kinda lonely!
John walks over to him and clears his throat so that the kid looks up at him (or John assumes he's looking at him, because his head tilted up, but John can't see his eyes), and extends a hand in greeting, coupled with a shining smile.
"I'm John. John Egbert!" He exclaims rather loudly. The boy just stares at him, but this doesn't deter John. He simply awaits an answer from the boy, his hand still outstretched. "Who are you?"
"I'm Batman." His voice is flat, and he has a southern accent that John wants to talk about ("Are you from Texas? Do you ride horses? Are you a cowboy? Do you know someone named Cameron Poe because he has an accent just like yours!) but he still really wants to find out this kids name and he can't get distracted!
"No you're not, that's dumb. What's your name?" This earns him some emotion on the other boys face. His eyebrows go up and his mouth goes into a slight frown, like he's thinking about something.
"…Dave." He finally relinquishes, and John practically shines with success.
"So how come you're over here all alone?"
Dave thinks about this for a couple of seconds before answering. " I'm way too cool for everyone, I scared them all off."
"Scared them?" This confuses John. "But you're not scary at all!"
Dave shakes his head, putting his game aside. "No, I'm super scary because I'm actually a ninja. They're all scared I'm gunna kill them so they stay away."
"Woah! I've heard of ninjas, they're in some of my movies! Do you go on special missions to kill important people and save the world?" John is pretty sure that's what the ninjas from his movies do.
"Of course. I'm actually a ninja in training, my bro is teaching me to kill people and soon I'm even going to kill the president." John gasps at this part, putting both of his hands on his cheeks to convey how amazed he is.
"Can you teach me to be a ninja too?" John is excited, he can't believe he's actually meeting a real life ninja! It's all way too great.
"It's a pretty big secret, I can't just go around telling everyone. You've gotta be my really good friend so I know I can trust you."
"Well okay then, lets be friends! And then you can teach me everything you know and we'll be like ninja partners and we'll eventually be better than your bro!"
Dave takes another few seconds to process this proposal before his face splits into a grin and he extends his hand that John takes without hesitation. They high-five and Dave stands up, taking John by the shoulder and leading him to his 'secret lair' (under the book shelves) where he could show John all of his cool moves, and maybe even teach him some things.
That afternoon when John's father picks him up, he is overwhelmed by all the stories John is telling him. He spent the entire day with Dave, fighting with imaginary monsters and ghosts and pulling pranks on their teacher.
John's dad can only laugh and pick his son up, telling him that he's proud that John has such amazing friends, and John answers by saying "Dave and I are going to be best friends forever."
ohn Egbert is completely astonished that Dave remembered this place, let alone drove all the way out here. He turns to Dave with an dumbfounded and confused look on his face, trying to find the motive to their small road trip. When he comes up with nothing, he questions.
"Alright, that's super great and all, I mean it's quite the trip down memory path or whatever but why are we here?"
"First, it's memory lane, John, you idiot." He pauses, looking out at the children once more. In the time it took John to flashback, the bell had rung and all of the kids are migrating indoors, surging toward the building like a sea of fish.
"And second I… just wanted you to remember, that's all." He shrugs and John can tell that he's trying to play it off as no big deal, but he sees right through it. He's not about to take that bullshit laying down.
"That's crap, Dave! Why are we here?" He demands, putting a hand on the steering wheel and leaning closer, (In an attempt) to be intimidating. Since Dave isn't driving he can use any other special moves of persuasion he's got hidden under his sleeve.
"I know you're probably really fed up with me right now, but this is sort of a surprise so I can't tell you. You'll just have to deal."
"What if I don't deal? What if I just sit on you until you tell me what you're doing?"
Dave pauses for a second before answering, a smirk on his face. "Well then, one of three things will happen. One, you squish me and I die underneath the incredible weight of your plush posterior." This earns him a slap on the shoulder, but he continues. "Two, we have sex in the car, which isn't a bad idea but we're in front of a school and if someone sees us we'll probably get arrested. Or three, you don't get your surprise."
John narrows his eyes and shoots Dave the 'Patented Egbert Glare of Doom" while removing his hand from the steering wheel.
"You know what? Never mind." John settles back into his chair and shrugs. "Take me wherever you want, just buy me some coffee first alright? I think I deserve it for going along with your dumb plan this far.
"whatever, man."