You Refuse to be In Love

Chapter 7

NOTE: I'm so sorry I haven't updated this in forever. You know how life is sometimes. Anyways, thank ya'll so much for reading!

It's been a while since Karkat was last seen at school. Three weeks, maybe. You tried calling him, but he never answers. You also sent about a billion texts, so you're guessing he now thinks you're a clingy creep. You're also guessing a lot of things; you've always been the kind to assume worst-case scenarios. Maybe he's dead, you think, but you quickly decide that thought is better off not in your head, so you ignore it.

A few days ago, you visited Karkat's house. You could hear voices from inside, but no one answered the door, so you eventually left. Now, you've decided to try and visit again.

Once you arrive, you knock at the door once. No answer. You knock again. No answer. You walk around the house and see that all of the curtains in the windows are closed. However, you are able to see through a small opening in one window. You jump at the sight. There, looking at you though the opening in the window, is Mrs. Vantas.

"Hey!" you shout, but she quickly pulls the curtains shut and runs away into the depths of her house. You walk back around to the door, and then you knock once more. This time, Mrs. Vantas opens the door just enough so that you can see her eyes.

"What do you want?" she asks in a hoarse voice.

"What happened to Karkat?" you ask, grabbing the door so that she can't shut it. Instead of answering you, Mrs. Vantas opens the door wider and beckons you inside. Just after you step onto the carpet, she shuts the door and locks it.

"You can't see him right now. He's… speaking with someone," she says, voice shaking with each word. You ignore her and walk straight into Karkat's room.

A woman is sitting on the floor of Karkat's room. Karkat is sitting across from her. The woman turns to you as you enter. Karkat does not.

"Who the hell are you?" You ask the woman. She does not stand.

"Rose Lalonde. Exorcist," she says, ignoring your tone of voice and handing you a business card. You don't take it.

"God damnit, why would you think this kid needs an exorcist?" you yell. You usually aren't this angry. You're usually calm and cool. Not now.

"Dave, it's… fine," Karkat says, looking at the floor. You want to yell at him, too. You want to say that it's not fine and he should have shown up at school or at least called you, but you say nothing. Lalonde takes the hint that she's not appreciated at the moment, so she stands and exits the room. Now you and Karkat are alone.

You sit on the floor where Ms. Lalonde was previously, and you lean in close to Karkat's face. He looks even worse than he does when you see him at night. His eyes are barely open, like he's too tired to even see. His hair is a disheveled mess and you can safely assume he hasn't eaten much since you saw him last. There's a lot you want to say. There are a lot of feelings built up inside you that you need to let out. You're angry and sad and confused, but mostly, you're just happy to see Karkat again. You haven't seen him in so long, and you missed him so much. All of your feelings overwhelm you, and you don't know what to do, so you just lean in closer and closer. Your lips meet his forehead, and you find yourself whispering apologies into his hair. You apologize for a lot of things. For not being there the past weeks. For getting mad at the situation. For being a douche sometimes. You find just about a thousand things to apologize for. Karkat says nothing. He just closes his eyes and listens to your soft voice.