Thank you to TailsDoll13, Kegro, Sophia Lena Duchannes Riddle, SeductiveStriders, CaciaCoon, Kariza Elquen, and Leorogue, even though you didn't log in to review. Now the more important matters, to all of you that don't read this part, SCREW YOU, because I have some important things to say. Today, of all days, is my moirail's birthday. It's very important to me that you understand that. The big one three. She got an account today, (I'm sooooo proud of her!) and her name is EyesTealer. I'm not giving out her real name because I have not gotten permission, and I wouldn't anyways. Also: I'm here to keep you waiting on your toes for the rest of the story. I will be nice and let you read it now.

"Kanaya?"

"Yes?"

"There is something on my mind…"

"What is it?"

After a brief pause I blurt out, "I like Karkat."

Kanaya looks at me for a bit, and I see a small smile creeping onto her face.

"What?" I ask, my voice quivering.

"Like I didn't already know that."

"W-What..?" My voice is shakier now.

"I don't think anyone else has noticed, but it's just this little thing in your voice that I hear. I've been suspecting you like someone, and you're always hanging around Karkat, so it's just basic process of elimination. Thing is, most people that go to this school are too dumb to realize 1+1=2, let alone any social standings," she concludes. "Your secret is safe, but you might want to suppress your feelings if you aren't ready to tell Karkat, because not everyone here is as dumb as doornails."

"Okay…" I trail off.

"Well, think you're ready to leave your stall yet? "

"No, I'd like to sit here for a couple more minutes, but you can go."

"I'm going to wait for you."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. -.-

"Hey, I'm getting a ride, right?"

I lock up, I'd been avoiding him all day. I sit up and act normal. "Yeah."

"Okay, you've just been acting strange all day," he states, which was true.

"Uh…" I curse at myself. "I've just had a stomach ache."

"Oh, why didn't you go home early?" he inquires.

"I don't like missing school."

Karkat sits next to me on the bench, and I tense up again. Karkat sets his hand on my forearm, causing me to jump slightly.

"Hey, calm down, you've been all jumpy since lunch," he says, his voice concerned and slightly agitated.

"S-sorry…"

"Yeah."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. -.-

"Hey Meulin?" I get her attention by patting her shoulder.

"What?" she whips around, not sure what's going on.

"How much money do we have left?" I ask. This is something I've been concerned about for a while.

"Well, mom's life insurance left about ten-thousand dollars, and we've spent about a third of it. We're going on food stamps next month."

"Oh, maybe you should get a job?" I ask.

"Maybe, but who would hire me? I might be able to get a job at the school for the deaf, but otherwise I can't think of anything. I'm thinking on signing up for disability. That would just as well cover you and me for expenses."

"Okay, good." I respond and walk upstairs. I'm still a bit worried about finances, but I guess that's a good enough plan for now. I sit in my chair as a pester chum alert pops up.

- centaursTesticle [CT] began pestering arsenicCatnip [AC] –

CT D- Nepeta

CT D- Are you there, Nepeta

CT D- I command you to answer me, Nepeta

AC :33 what do you want equius?

CT D- What, no absolutely ecstatic greeting

AC :33 no, i don't feel like it

CT D- Nepeta, is everything okay

CT D- You've been acting weird all day

AC :33 i'm fine, equius! just leave me alone!

CT D- Nepeta, I demand you tell me what's wrong, now

AC :33 no

- arsenicCatnip [AC] ceased pestering centaursTesticle [CT] –

- arsenicCatnip [AC] changed their mood to OFFLINE –

I am fed up with him.

Completely fed up.

I'm tired.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. -.-

I hadn't really talked with Karkat for the remainder of the week and he seemed to be getting worried, but I ju8st couldn't let him know, I couldn't. I sit in my room with my unrequited feelings and Terezi sitting at my computer, talking with Aradia. She's keeping me posted on what's going on.

AA well right now were playing the alphabet game!

AC :33 what's that?

AA its where we look for letters in order on street signs

AC :33 cool

AC :33 WH4T 4R3 YOU DO1NG?

AC :33 sorry, that was terezi

AA thats okay

AA yay! i got z before tavros did

AC :33 cool!

AA arg! vriska's dad almost drove off the road

AA if only my mom would have given us a ride

AA i think he's drunk…

AC :33 what?!

AC :33 why did you get in then?!

AA vriska's yelling at him

AA 12wtfugvyibjmk,/.

- apocalypseArisen has disconnected –

What?!

I sit there speechless for a few seconds, then call 911.

"Hello, what's your emergency?"

I state in a clear calm voice, "Um, I was talking to my friend and she was saying she thought the driver of the car was drunk. She had previously said that they almost went off the highway, then I got a gurgled message and they disconnected. I think there was a wreck."

"Okay, do you know where the car is?"

"They were driving on I-5 north, they had just passed Wilsonville."

"Thank you for the information, can I get your name and age?"

By this point, I'm shaking, and my voice is reflecting it. "Nepeta Leijon, I'm thirteen."

"Thank you, we'll be sure to contact you once we have more information." Yeah right.

They hang up.

.

.

.

I burst out crying, and Terezi, just hugs me, and I hear a sniffle from her. I wriggle out of her embrace and find Meulin, pouncing on her and squeezing her as tight as I can. I hear Terezi coming downstairs. And I blank.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. -.-

I come to and Equius is sitting next to me on the couch, along with Karkat and I think Terezi and Sollux are somewhere behind me. The news is on and there's breaking news. A catastrophic one vehicle crash along I-5 between Wilsonville and Tigard. One casualty and two injuries. Four people in the car total, and they are all in the Oregon Health and Sciences University.

"We need to go see them!" I yell, then stand up, almost passing out in the process. Equius catches me, Karkat almost as quick. My head feels light, but I still insist that we go. Equius's dad volunteers to drive us all there, and Meulin says why not. Terezi, Karkat, and Sollux get permission to head up there, and Terezi's mom took a bit but we eventually got her to say yes. We all get into the car and get on our way up there. About when we get to Woodburn I fall asleep.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-. -.-

Karkat jolts me awake when we arrive, and I sit up. I blush a bit when I realize I was leaning on him while I was asleep, but I look out the window to hide it. We pile out of the car and head inside to the children's ward, where Vriska, Tavros, and Aradia should be. At this time we still don't know who's injured, and who's dead. We all run in, and Sollux asks for Aradia, the nurse points in the direction of her room and says all three of them are next to each other. Sollux bursts off and we follow him at a more appropriate pace. We make it to the Emergency ward just as Aradia is getting cleared. She walks out holding a ram plush she adores and is in a hospital gown. She makes her way to the waiting room to where we are muttering a song that I don't quite know.

"Take my love, take my land,

"Take me where I cannot stand.

"I don't care, I'm still free,

"You can't take the sky from me.

"Take me out to the black

"Tell them I ain't comin' back,

"Burn the land and boil the sea,

"You can't take the sky from me.

"There's no place I can be

"Since I found Serenity,

"But you can't take the sky from me."

Her voice cracks on the last note, her voice bleak and solemn all the way through. She shows no emotion, way different from how she used to be. I guess this shook her up. I look at her eyes, and they look dead, they just have a lack of emotion. She looks up at me with a blank expression.

"How are you doing, Aradia?" I question.

"Fine," she replies bluntly.

"You scared?"

"No, I find the concept of death rather pleasing." She responds, her voice monotone. She drops her plush on the ground, the one she's loved to death since she was a kid in Japan, and keeps walking. I pick it up and follow her into the waiting room where her mom and sister are. Her older sister, Damara, starts speaking fluent Japanese at her fairly fast. "Huh?" She repeats herself at a slower rate and Aradia nods. Damara has never bothered to learn English, since her and her mom and sister moved here from Japan when she was seventeen. They moved here because her mother wanted a new life besides whoring for greedy rich men, so they moved here with nothing but the clothes on their backs when Aradia was eleven. Aradia learned English pretty fast in sixth grade, but Damara refused to go to high school and only knows Japanese to this day.

I wander off to find Tavros before they take him to the ICU. After about three minutes I get admittance. He's sitting on his hospital bed and is only half awake, to my amazement. I would have thought he'd be conked out! He sees me and smiles slightly.

"Uhh… Hi, Nepeta," Tavros stutters as I walk in.

"Hi, if you don't mind me asking, what happened?" I query.

"I-I, uhhm, I got para-paralyzed from the waist down," he informs.

"Oh, how horrible!" I walk over and hug him, startling him badly.

"Um, you sure you don't have someone else to comfort?" he questions, then sneezes loudly.

"Well," I explain, breaking the hug, "Aradia has enough people around her for the comforting, and he really doesn't want anyone around her. Vriska… I really don't like her, at all. She's a bitch to me."

"Yeah, she's like that with everyone, and everything…"

"Everything?"

"Yeah.. Well, could you g-go check on her? Um.. I'm, sort of, worried about her?"

Oh no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no! I'm not going in the vicinity of HER! All she's ever been to me is mean, ruthless, and a savage! I am absolutely not checking up on that bitch. Even if Tavros is pleading, I don't care, even if he's been in a wreck, and even if he's para… paralyzed? Damn it! If he can't do it for himself I have to help him, even if it means enduring that stuck up prick. Well, I guess I have to. "Okay, I'll do it!" I assure in fake joy. If I outwardly loathe it then Tavros will insist I don't, and it'll make me feel even worse. Oh, he's so nice, almost too nice. I turn to leave, and Tavros throws in one last thing.

"Uh… Y-you really don't have to do this if you don't want to," he calls.

"No, it's fine! In fact, it's my pleasure!" I exclaim, lying through my teeth. I prance out and ask the nurse where Vriska is. She snickers and points to the room, adding that I'm her first visitor. I walk in and see Vriska crossing her arms. No, let me rephrase, arm. She's missing one. I jump for joy in my head, but out of fake respect I stay on both feet. "What happened?"

"What the fuck do you think happened?! My arm got sliced off in a car wreck! Are you just that ignorant?" she yells, almost screaming. I am glad the doors are sound-proof, otherwise Tavros would be scared. "Who sent you to comfort me? Was it my fuckbag wimpy excuse of a boyfriend? I hate his ass."

Not wanting to lie, I reply, "Yeah, Tavros sent me, I'm not going to lie."

She scoffs, rolling her eyes. "So what did he want you to say?"

"He asked me to check on you."

"Well, you're done checking, so shove off," she threw at me in a frozen retort.

"No."

"No?" she questions, taken aback.

"I'm not done visiting."

"I'll call the nurse to force you out, say you're harassing me."

"Why would I do that?" I question.

"You have all rights to…"

We sit in silence for a bit, mainly unmoving. She finally breaks the silence.

"So why did you do what Tavros asked? You could have said no and walked off," she questions, her voice much more calm now, facing the other direction.

"Well, I wasn't about to let him sit in unknowing while you're rushed into surgery to get that arm patched up."

"It isn't an arm, it's a stub," she corrects, disgusted with it herself.

"Well, you getting a prosthetic?"

"Of course, why the hell wouldn't I?"

"Just asking, sorry."

She let out a long, exasperated, sigh. "Don't be."

"Where are you going after this?" I hesitantly ask.

"Well, with my dad happily dead I get to go back to my mom, you know, the one that lives across from Equius?"

"Yeah, I know."

A doctor walks into wheel Vriska into surgery and kicks me out and into the hallway.

Well, I say that's a good place to leave it off, eh? The song Aradia sang is by Joss Whedon, but I want all of you to figure out the new fandom I joined! Whoever recognizes it first will get a spoiler, but a small one so don't be disappointed! Don't forget to review, or I will send my pack of wolves to descend on you in your sleep! Not really, but I do like reviews! By the way, I do not own a pack of wolves, or any wolves for that matter. I hope you enjoyed!