"Why would you do such a thing?" a voice thundered down the hallway, causing Sollux to shudder. "Did the vows not mean ANYTHING to you?"
Sollux noticed Karkat was huddled at the top of the stairs, knees drawn up to his chest as he listened. He gestured to Sollux, and the taller teen hurried up to join him.
"Dude, KK, what happened?" he asked his shivering friend, draping an arm around his shoulders.
"I think..." Karkat began slowly, "Your mum... s-she's been having an affair and your dad only just found out..."
Sollux couldn't believe it. He thought... his parents loved each other! Why would she do something like that? Sollux's eyes widened.
"Why... would she do something like thsat?" Sollux murmured softly. "W-Why?"
Karkat was silent. He was listening to the heated argument downstairs.
"Right, I've had enough of this!" a strong, masculine voice roared. "Get out of my sight!"
This was followed by inconsolable sobbing, and the harsh sound of the front door slamming shut. Sollux didn't dare move an inch from where he was sitting.
"Ith... over..." Sollux brought his hands up to shroud his face. "My thamily is thucking over..."
"Uh, it'll... be okay, Sollux..." Karkat tried to offer words of comfort and assurance.
"I think... I jusp wanth to be alone..." Sollux's reply was muffled from behind his hands. Karkat nodded; not that Sollux was looking at him, and gave his best friend one last understanding shoulder rub before getting up. "Text me if you want to talk or anything."
Sollux listened as Karkat quietly made his way down the stairs and out of the front door. As soon as he heard the door click, he broke into a sobbing fit of quiet broken gulps.
Sollux remembered he had Eridan's number. With tears still clouding up his vision, he shakily pulled his phone out and brought up the texting screen.
23:34, Saturday
"ed, ii thiink my family ii2 falliing to piiece2."
Send. Sollux cradled his phone to his chest, as if it was the most important thing right at that very moment. A minute later, it buzzed, and Sollux wasted no time in checking his messages.
23:35, Saturday
"oh cod sol wwhat happened"
23:35, Saturday
"my mum cheated on my dad. he told her to get out and now ii don't know where 2he'2 gone. ii don't know what to do."
23:36, Saturday
"do you wwant me to come ovver or somethin or i could come to yours"
23:36, Saturday
"no ii thiink ii'm goiing to 2tay put here, and ii thiink a vii2iitor would up2et my dad, but can you ju2t talk to me, ii'm really 2cared"
23:37, Saturday
"okay sol if it makes you feel any better i wwant you to knoww that i knoww howw youre feelin right now and you can tell me anythin"
Normally, Sollux wouldn't have put his trust into someone he had just met that day. But he didn't feel that he could turn to anyone else. So he poured his feelings out onto Eridan via text, and stayed up way past midnight sending messages to him, until he drifted off to sleep, curling himself up into a pathetic ball on the landing.