Brief author's note here, I may update this at an irregular pace, but I'm gonna try to make it at least once a week. Also, if you are reading this, good. Chapter 3 will contain smut. If you don
't want to read it, you can skip it. It isn't important to the story so much that you can't skip it. I'll explain more about it in when I put it up. Anyway, Enjoy.
...
"This can't be happening…" John said for the twenty thousandth time.
"It is. Now shut up. They could still be looking and we don't want to alert them to our presence." Karkat peeked his head around the side of a house to check if the coast was clear. When he was sure it was, he slipped out and headed about three houses down. He knelt down and checked the front yard. Bingo. He had found where he had face planted.
"What will happen to them?" John asked.
Karkat sighed. "They'll be forced to work as slaves harvesting crops or mining minerals. At least, that's all I've seen humans used for." Karkat looked around for the fence he'd thrown his pack over.
"And what if they refuse?" John asked tentatively.
"Then they'll be killed… or worse…" Karkat jumped the fence and John followed him. Karkat looked around and then froze. His pack wasn't here. The dent in the ground where it had landed was there but the pack was gone. "We have to get home. NOW!"
Karkat leapt back over the fence and took off in the direction of his house. He ran block after block, as fast as he could while still sticking to back yards. With each block he ran, his heart sank deeper. When he finally stopped for breath, John caught up to him.
"What's wrong, man, er, troll?"
"My house… they'll find it…" No sooner had he said that than an explosion happened just a few blocks away. "FUCK! MY HOUSE!" Karkat started to run in the direction of the house but John grabbed his arm.
"No! We can't! if we go in that direction they'll find us."
Karkat cursed furiously. The stupid John-Human was right. He turned and ran in the other direction, careful not to hit anything on his way. After hours of alternating running and walking, John finally piped up. "Hey, I think we are far enough away now…"
Karkat merely grumbled in response. He headed up a driveway and into a house. John followed him. As soon as he got inside, Karkat started unplugging things. First the TV, then the fridge, soon he had the whole house unplugged.
"What's with the unplugging?" John asked.
"They monitor the electricity use. It's how they found you. I unplug shit to avoid accidentally turning something on." Karkat flopped onto the sofa and put his head in his hands.
"Oh… Wow… I… I didn't know… I…" John stuttered. He tried changing the subject "I'm sorry about your house… How did they find it?"
"They found my bag and traced a nice neat trail I left them back to my place. Lucky fucking me. Fall into complacency with my everyday routine and the universe just spits in my face and is all like 'Fuck you, you nookchafing, bulge licking, moron.' Then this fuckass has to go and make his ultimate douchemuffin hero attempt and try to save your sorry asses and I end up alerting the damn troll guards to my trail. Now I'm homeless… again… with a human refugee… not again."
John stifled a laugh.
"WHAT'S SO FUNNY, NOOKSTAIN? THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT, FUCKASS!" Karkat yelled, flipping his lid finally.
"I… Sorry… I just thought…"
"YOU JUST THOUGHT WHAT? THAT MY LITTLE RANT WAS FUNNY? THAT'S GREAT! LET'S ALL POINT AND LAUGH AT THIS FUCKASS'S PROBLEMS THAT WE CAUSED!"
"I… I'm sorry… I didn't mean that… I… oh jeez…" John backed away looking flustered 'and sorta cute' Karkat thought. Karkat shook his head. No. He was not gonna try that interspecies matespritship shit. He'd seen the movies. They ended terribly. He sighed. Great, now he didn't feel like yelling anymore.
"Look… I'll let you stay with me for a little while, but not too long. But if you wanna help your friends, you are on your own."
John looked at his feet. "R-right… okay…"
"For now, we need to sleep."
"I'll sleep on the sofa if you want." John offered.
"Like hell I'd let you have the bed." Karkat growled.
John smiled and sat down. Karkat could not stop thinking of that smile. Shit.
"Fine you can have the bed." Karkat stood up and stormed out to find a pillow and some sheets. When he came back he saw the bewildered look on John's face. They're eyes met for a second and John laughed, a hand sliding behind his head. His smile returned in full force.
"I wasn't trying to kick you out. I really don't mind sleeping on the sofa." John said light heartedly.
"Shut the fuck up and go get some sleep." Karkat flopped on the sofa and glared at the floor so as not to have to look at the human boy beside him.
As if sensing the awkwardness in the room, John left quietly. As soon as he had left, Karkat stretched out on the couch. He sighed. He couldn't get his head straight. Was he flushing for this human? That couldn't be. He'd just met him. This couldn't be possible. And besides, it was this human and his three friends' fault the troll patrol found his house. He should be feeling nothing but hate for this human. Innocent hate. Nothing caliginous. Yet, somewhere deep inside, Karkat knew he was being a little too hard on the kid. The human was also on the run, he had lost his home planet, and now he had lost his friends.
'And more importantly, it isn't his fault I miss Gamzee…' Karkat thought. "Dammit Gamzee… why does interaction with others have to be so confusing and difficult? And why couldn't they leave us alone? I want you back…" Karkat rolled over and buried his face into the pillow and cried himself to sleep.
