206 Days, 9:09 Hours
With every few days that passed, John got increasingly more useless. Karkat didn't know what it was about humans that made them grow so haphazardly. He, of course, grew an average amount for his entire life until he was tall enough.
John had gotten four inches taller since they arrived.
And, of course, the kid was not gogdamn used to it.
Karkat was at a loss. How had humans as a race survived if they became ridiculously awkward the moment they got a few inches taller? Their limbs were stupid too. John looked more like an idiot than he had before.
Whatever. It was time to get back to work. They had been taking a break, sitting near the photo Earth. John was halfway through some retelling of a series of Earth movies. It was something to fill the silence.
"And so then, Jar Jar gets his tongue caught in the numbing beam, and he can't talk properly, right? Cause Ani said that'd happen!"
"This movie is significantly dumber than the others you described," Karkat retorted. "Now get off your ass and on your feet and find me the rest of that... uh, giant wall."
He glanced at Egbert, who looked depressed. "The movie does kind of suck."
"Giant wall?"
"It's called the Great Wall of China, Karkat. I keep telling you!"
"Whatever the fuck you idiots named it doesn't matter. Go find me it."
John got up, and looked towards the troll. In response, Karkat spun on his heel. He was beginning to get paranoid about his eyes. They were probably fucking going to show his blood colour soon. It was around the right time.
But of course, there was no way of fucking checking and he wasn't about to ask. Instead he just avoided letting John look at his face. It was fucking hard, especially when they had to work together, but he didn't have a choice. Karkat hated it.
Assembling Earth was at least better than sorting had been. There was a lot of shit on it Karkat hadn't seen before, like the wall they were working on. The two boys had made a fair bit of progress, but weren't really near done. At least humans had built some impressive crap.
John finally began to wander his way over to the pile. In general, Karkat didn't let the idiot go up the ladder by himself anymore, but this rule was more relevant the more awkward he got. Whenever he crouched, John became a mass of weird limbs and joints. Like a gogdamn wriggler.
The human continued to ramble about the horrible movie, which sounded a million times worse than even the shittiest troll film. Karkat himself began climbing the stairs, making his way back to the spot he had been working at before their break. A small pile of figures waited for him there, and he carefully took a seat.
He was working on filling in some mountains and fields, where as John had to get the rest of the pieces of the wall. He was quick to fall back into his rhythm, focusing on the shapes and edges of the picture to place every miniature in the right place. It was a bit difficult at times, but anything was better than sorting.
Time itself, though, was completely irrelevant now. It didn't matter how long things took, because there was nothing to look forward to exactly, or a time to stop. Karkat in general tried to avoid looking at the clock. It made him feel watched. And rushed. The game was a douche like that.
"Karkat?"
A break from the movie's idiocy. "What?"
"I've been wonder-ing-"
There was some strangled noise from John's throat in the middle of the word. It sounded completely and horrifically strange, and Karkat couldn't help but laugh.
"The fuck was that, John?"
John didn't reply for a moment, and Karkat continued placing the miniatures. Who knew what the fuck John was doing.
"It was just a voice crack!" John sounded defensive. He was also climbing the ladder. "It just happens to humans around now, okay?"
"You all randomly have voices that change from super high to hilarious? Your species is stupid."
Being a human must suck if you had to go through a period where you were unable to use your limbs and you sounded like you gargled bulges.
"It just means my voice is getting deeper! Geez, Karkat, it doesn't last forever."
The boy was up the stairs, and he crouched down slowly beside the troll. Karkat made a point of not looking towards him.
"But, what I was trying to say," John continued, his voice a bit quieter than usual, "is how is it we're aging?"
"Time is passing. I didn't think that was hard to fucking grasp."
John made some violent movement, probably shaking his head. "No, I mean. We aren't eating or sleeping. I know I shouldn't have the energy to grow. And our clothes still fit, but we've both gotten taller."
John at least worked as he talked, placing pieces of the wall in their proper spots. Karkat worked as he listened, guarding his face as he replied.
"The game does whatever the fuck it feels like, John. We are just wrigglers trapped in a gog damn room. Just don't fucking dwell on it and help me rebuild this ass of a planet."
At that statement, the boy laughed, shifting in his spot. "Whatever you say, Red Leader. I'll go get-"
"What the fuck did you just call me?"
Karkat wanted to turn and strangle the human, to punch John across the face. Instead he closed his eyes and clenched his hands into fists. What if John knew? Why the fuck hadn't he been more careful?
"Red Leader? Well, cause there's a scene in Star Wars and one guy's called that. And like, you're the leader right? And I was just explaining the movies."
Okay, maybe John didn't know. Maybe it was just a fucking coincidence that the movie used that colour. Karkat was going alright. John didn't know.
"And because your eyes are red."
Fucking shit.
How the fucking shit did John know. When had he slipped? Why the fuck did his eyes have to show that stupid gogdamn mess of a blood colour? He felt himself slipping. No. He could not fucking break down over this.
He grit his teeth together painfully. "And, how long have they been red, John?"
A pause. The most agonizing second yet.
"About twenty days?"
It had been a while since Karkat's entire fucking world collapsed. Of course it fucking had to again. He numbly noted John dragging him to his feet, but dwelled more on that fact. Twenty days. Fucking twenty days of his eyes blaring his blood colour to the world and he hadn't known. He had only tried to hide them for about one fucking day.
And now it was on full display and everyone would fucking hate him for it. Much like how he hated that stupid, fucking colour.
When the fuck had he climbed down the stairs?
Why the fuck was John so close?
"Karkat, it's okay."
"It is not fucking okay!" Karkat shoved the boy back, squeezing his eyes shut. "I have been fucking dreading this moment my entire life, and when it fucking comes up I didn't know for twenty days? I am a complete fucking freak of my race John, what part of that is 'okay'?"
There was a hand on his shoulder. He shrugged it off angrily, but John placed it back all the same. After a few moments, Karkat worked up the courage to glare at the idiot. He was too fucking tall and too fucking happy. The troll's world was collapsing and the fucking wriggler John was probably didn't give a rats ass.
Twenty fucking days.
"What the fuck are you staring at me for?" Karkat snapped.
"Well, there's no one here but me, Karkat."
"That isn't a fucking answer!"
John ran a hand through his hair. "I guess what I meant is, that's your blood colour, right? In your eyes? But that's my blood colour too, so I don't think you have to worry."
"John, today marks a horrid day in my life in a gogdamn line of horrid days and your shit is not making anything better."
"Karkat, no one is left who gives a shit about your blood colour."
Something about that phrase jarred him. Of course someone was left. He cared. Karkat cared that his blood was fucking neon red and glaring, and completely outside any norm of his race.
But the words nagged at him. No one else was left but them, after all.
"I know you're probably thinking about how much you care, Karkat, but I really don't think it matters anymore. I didn't bring it up because I knew you'd be uncomfortable with it or flip your shit, and look, I was right."
Karkat scowled. "You fucking asshole, don't-"
"You aren't any different because of your blood, Karkat. You've thought so your whole life, I'm sure, but we're stuck here so you might as well try and change your mind. You've been a great leader so far and nothing's changed. Get your shit together, Kar-kat."
The voice crack at the end of his speech was, of course, unintentional, but caused the troll to smirk. John was too busy clearing his throat, and trying to regain composure.
"Fuck off, Egbert."
"You don't hate me, right?"
"I hate you more than anything in this damn room."
John gave him a small hug, then wandered over to the pile. Karkat rubbed his eyes, thinking back on what John has said. Blood was everything on Alternia. Being a mutant meant being outcast or killed if it was ever found out.
But they weren't on Alternia.
Karkat began to climb the stairs again, wondering why the fuck John could change his mind so easily.
