The second Karkat got back to his dorm, he pulled his laptop out and flung himself onto his bed. He needed to cauterize some veins- veins full of information and secrets, veins who were totally okay with cheerfully doling out those secrets to whoever they so chose. Signing onto Pesterchum, he quickly scanned his chumroll.
"Fuck," he whispered. Of course you wouldn't be on, you punk.
He needed to talk to John- stop him from telling Sollux (or Terezi, or Kanaya for that matter) anything else about the situation with Gamzee. Karkat leaned back in his chair, bringing a thumb up to his mouth to chew on the nail. He had mostly broken out of the habit, but it still popped up every once in a while, especially when his temper tried to twist his tongue. His mind kept landing on Tavros Nitram. Why had Vriska even paralyzed him to begin with? Vriska had provoked the generally calm Aradia into revenge. If Tavros and Aradia were close enough friends to prompt that kind of action, why would he take part in hurting her? Even if the attack on Aradia wasn't his idea…the dog had been his. Was it because they were dating, Nitram holding a twisted notion of fondness for the girl that had ruined him? That didn't seem like Nitram's game. Then there was Kanaya, who had mentioned Tavros looking 'apologetic'…right before she punched him. He couldn't count Eridan out either, who was now on the list of possible triggers for the attack on Aradia. Something was still missing, not fitting into the lopsided puzzle. It all seemed so…pointless. So Aradia told Karkat some unsavory kibbles about Vriska's past- why would Eridan care, and why would Vriska? The addition of Gamzee brought the stakes higher. It was starting to make unsettling amount of sense- pointing to the one answer that had been lurking since the beginning.
Either Gamzee or Vriska are dealing Sopor Slime.
A pinging sound snapped Karkat from the mobius loop of thinking. He glanced at his chumroll and leaned forward immediately. Fuck yes.
carcinoBiologist: STRIDER.
turntechGodhead: who gave you this number
carcinoBiologist: OKAY BEFORE YOU START YOUR STUPID HUMOROUSLY IRONIC THING
carcinoBiologist: JUST TELL ME WHERE EGBERT IS, IS HE HOME?
turntechGodhead: listen just because i run the partycube doesnt mean i know of its residents whereabouts all the time
turntechGodhead: i have some side hustles to distract me from being a single mom
carcinoBiologist: WHAT THE FUCK IS A PARTYCUBE
Karkat tried not to talk to Dave Strider too often, because it was nearly fucking carcinogenic. He never answered your questions, like some sort of terrible sarcastic piñata that never stayed still long enough to blindly smash the everliving fuckcandy out of. He had been a major stick in Karkat's mud patch ever since John had first introduced them to each other in a terrible, terrible pesterchat.
carcinoBiologist: ACTUALLY NEVERMIND. DON'T START. DON'T START DOING THE THING YOU'RE DOING, I DON'T GIVE A SHIT ABOUT YOUR AND JOHN'S 'HILARIOUS' FAKE FAMILY ROOMMATE DYNAMIC.
turntechGodhead: youre unusually infuriated for this early in a convo, did you get into an argument with your boyfriend
carcinoBiologist: WHAT
carcinoBiologist: WHO TOLD YOU
turntechGodhead: ...wow that was just shitting around didnt know it was actually a thing
carcinoBiologist:
turntechGodhead: jk john told me
carcinoBiologist: …FUCK YOU SO HARD.
turntechGodhead: yeah not everyones into that carry on tho
carcinoBiologist: LISTEN CAN YOU JUST TELL JOHN TO STOP TELLING SOLLUX THINGS HE DOESN'T NEED TO KNOW? HE'S GETTING STUPIDLY INVOLVED AND IT'S NONE OF HIS BUSINESS, AND JOHN'S JUST MAKING IT WORSE BY TELLING HIM AND EVERYBODY THINGS.
turntechGodhead: you make it sound like someones gonna die or something
carcinoBiologist: REALLY? GOOD FUCKING GUESS.
turntechGodhead: no i already know about that thing too
carcinoBiologist: …WHAT THE FUCK.
turntechGodhead: yeah still dating your ex chick
turntechGodhead: and shes all over this episode of true crime
carcinoBiologist: SHUT UP, STRIDER, I KNOW. I KNOW TEREZI'S DATING YOU AND SIMULATANEOUSLY INCAPABLE OF A) MINDING HER OWN GODDAMN BUSINESS AND B) NOT SHARING MY BUSINESS WITH EVERYBODY WITHIN A 10 FOOT PESTER RADIUS.
carcinoBiologist: YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO TALK ABOUT IT TO ANYONE ANYMORE. NOT ROSE, NOT JADE, ESPECIALLY NOT JADE, JUST TELL EVERYONE TO STOP TELLING EVERYONE ELSE STUFF.
turntechGodhead: okay the conversation gestapo stuff is not gonna work just sayin
turntechGodhead: people are gonna talk thats how life works
turntechGodhead: also pretty sure rose knows everything already
turntechGodhead: shes got some romantics going on tho so i dont think she cares
carcinoBiologist: ROMANTICS
turntechGodhead: gf came over a few days ago
turntechGodhead: she hasnt been online since
carcinoBiologist: WHO'S HER GIRLFRIEND?
turntechGodhead: wow you need to listen to all your mind yo business talk
turntechGodhead: and also your friends apparently
turntechGodhead: its kanaya
carcinoBiologist: …HOLY SHIT THEY'RE DATING?
turntechGodhead: ya
carcinoBiologist: I MEAN I KNEW KANAYA LIKED HER BUT I DIDN'T KNOW THEY STARTED DATING…WHEN THE FUCK DID THAT HAPPEN?
turntechGodhead: when kan got suspended for decking the paralyzed kid
turntechGodhead: thats what you miss when youre way too self involved
turntechGodhead: it's not all you
turntechGodhead: in the story here
For the next two nights, Karkat displayed an impressive case of insomnia. Sleep eluded him, and he spent the nights and early hours of the morning in a haze of typing and homework, letters streaming into each other on his laptop screen. The second night, Sollux smothered him from behind, manhandling him down onto the bed and forcing him to lie there, trapped in the other's wiry limbs. He spent that few hours zoning out hardcore, focusing on the pattern marching across his blanket and toying with Sollux's fingers. When a gray light began to filter into the room, he felt Sollux stir behind him. Karkat rolled over with some effort to glare at his face, attempting to remove the arms still loosely wrapped around him.
"Hey. Fuckface."
"Mmrg…yes, dipshit?" Sollux mumbled, eyes still closed and make no effort to open them.
"Wake the fuck up," Karkat said, narrowing his eyes. His head hurt.
"I'm great, KK, thanks for asking." Sollux withdrew his arms to rub his eyes, groaning. "What time is it?"
"Some hour that shouldn't exist right now." Karkat found himself reaching for Sollux's hand.
"Holding hands in the morning? That's uncharacteristically affectionate for you," Sollux said with a grin. Karkat's lips curled back in a snarl as he felt tiredness creep up behind his eyes.
"I'm not trying to hold your hand, I'm trying to break your fingers," he muttered, rolling away from Sollux. He sat up, stretching. Behind him, Sollux sighed and got out of bed. He headed straight to the computer.
"How'd you sleep?" he asked Karkat after the computer booted up.
"Like a kid whose ADD medication wore off." Class at noon. Time to get my mediocre on. Sollux squinted at the screen.
"Jegus, it's seven. Good thing you woke me up with your ridiculous mouthiness, KK. Gotta go to class," As he pulled his shirt over his head, his voice was muffled.
Karkat leaned against the wall, feeling fucked up as usual. Once Sollux had his shirt on, he turned to eye Karkat.
"You look like shit," he supplied helpfully.
"Thanks, you too," Karkat muttered. He looked up nervously when Sollux gave him a long, considering look. "W-What."
"Wanna go to the beach tonight?" Sollux asked. Karkat stared at him for a few seconds before speaking.
"…Sollux. I am not one of your numerous girlfriends. Is that supposed to be you asking me out on a date? It'd probably work better without the 'you look like shit' part."
"Yeah, I guess it's kind of a date… it's nice at night. You seem to like going with Eridan." Sollux sounded a little nervous under the veneer of nonchalance.
"Okay firstly, don't bring up that useless nubtard unless I say it's okay. Secondly…I fucking guess so. My class ends at three thirty, where will you be?"
"Ehehe, I'll be right here."
Two days until the end of your life, Vantas.
Around eleven, Karkat finally snapped out of his torpor and grabbed his cellphone. He balanced a pillow on his lap and waited as it rang. Right as he was prepared to leave an abrasive voice message, a click signaled the other end picking up.
"Hello?" A gruff voice demanded over a static connection.
"…hey," Karkat said hesitantly. I never have any idea what to say to this guy.
"Who the hell is this?"
"It's your son."
"Oh, shit. Hi. What's wrong, you need money? "
"No, I'm good for now."
"How's uh…school going?"
"Stunning. All of my classes are like magic." Karkat paused, trying to figure out how to say the next thing. "Listen, I need to tell you something."
"…wait, let me get out of here, your mom is hovering – goddamnit, woman, give me some space! Fer Chrissakes," his dad said, grumbling as he moved into a different room. Karkat heard his mom quietly screeching about speakerphone. Note to future self – talk to Mom before you hang up.
"Yeah okay, shoot, kid."
Karkat swallowed. How do I tell him I'm up to my ears in a fucking drug war?
"I'm up to my ears in a fucking drug war." …Good job, idiot.
"Language, kid, you know your mom hates profanity." His dad's voice got muffled, like he was shielding the receiver. "HE JUST HAD A FIGHT, IS THAT GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU? Jegus, from the way she worries about you, you'd think you were dead or something."
"Dad, I might be…close to dead in the near future. This isn't a schoolyard scuffle, there's some people who for some reason, are extremely interested in seeing my unmoving-"
"Kid, shut up and listen for a second. The one thing I'm gonna tell you here is something you should probably remember for the rest of your life, however long it is. Get over yourself, and slip out the back. No one cares enough about anyone else that they're going to notice when someone just isn't there anymore. Until it's too late, anyways. If this thing gets too big, you shut your mouth, you wait for a back door, and you get the fuck out of there. Got it?"
Karkat bit a thumbnail absently. "Yeah. Got it."
"Good. I need to go buy some crap at the store so- WHAT?" His dad covered the receiver again. "WHAT DID YOU- …NO I'M NOT GOING TO TELL HIM THAT, I'M NOT RAISING A GODDAMN FAIRY, WOMAN." There were some shuffling and clicking noises and his dad finally sighing before he was on the phone again. "Your mom…your mom says she believes in you."
"…uh. Tell her…tell her thanks, and I miss her," Karkat said, trying hard to avoid his voice cracking. Thanks for making me fucking tear up in front of Dad, Mom. Jegus.
"So we done here?" his dad asked after an awkward silence.
"Yeah. Yeah, I'll see you later."
"See you, kid." Click.
"…bye."
In his noon class, Karkat spent fifteen minutes staring at a text message. He was debating the benefit of sending it versus the benefits of saving the ten cents on his crappy nonexistent texting plan and deleting it. The teacher eventually made the decision for him, plucking the cellphone from his hands. Karkat glared at her.
"Honestly, Karkat, I wouldn't have to take this from you if you hadn't been fooling around with it for so incredibly long," she said, raising her eyebrows and giving him a stupid little smirk. He fought the urge to mimic her expression, instead leaning his chin on his hands.
Kanaya wasn't going to receive his awkward attempt at a comforting text message, but maybe she wouldn't care. Maybe she was having fun with her new girlfriend, enjoying the break from the hyperdrama surrounding her friend…Karkat buried his head in his arms.
Two days.
Wow, hi guys. I'm still in the land of the living...sorry for the long wait.
This chaappptterrr...
I have a feeling this and however many chapters that remain are going to be a struggle, though a valiant one, haha.
I love all of you still hanging on there!