You can't help but to be surprised by his embrace. You aren't even quite sure what to do. But it only takes you a moment to realize that you should at least hug him back. That that's what he needs. So you just stay there, holding him and rubbing his back. You aren't sure if he knew who you were, but you'd been hoping that he was Signless.
After a few moments you can swear that you can hear soft sobs from him and you can't help but to just hold him a little tighter as both of you slump to the ground. It's been a hard couple of days for him and you can tell that he needs someone there for him. With your voice, your real voice, soft and low, you finally speak. "I'm here for you."
He whimpers and rests his head on your chest. "Why isn't anyone else, though?"
That hurts. You've been where he is. You know how lonely it can be. "I'm sure that there are other people there for you. You got any siblings?"
He swallows and he looks up at you, which makes your heart race. He's so close to you. He's so close and at this distance you can see gold flecks in his blood-shot green eyes. "Just one... My younger brother, Karkat." His lip is trembling and you just want to kiss him and tell him that everything will be okay.
But instead of his lips, you kiss his forehead. "I'm sure that he loves you and that he cares about you."
"He isn't here." His voice is broken and soft as he speaks.
"That doesn't matter. He loves you, I'm sure."
"You've never met him." The bitterness in his voice comes as a surprise to you.
"And does that really make a difference, love?" You keep your head on his shoulder as you speak, not wanting to see his face. Or rather not wanting him to know that you'd be looking.
He pauses, though and you feel him pulling closer. "I... I suppose not."
"Then you know that he's your brother and, no matter how much you two might hate each other or bother each other, he'll care about you." You rub his back, feeling the supple leather of your own jacket beneath your fingers.
"If you say so..." He moves and you can feel his head resting against yours. The weight is somehow reassuring, but you know that the two of you shouldn't say like this.
"Hey, uh, you want anything to drink?" Smooth. You lean back a little, smiling at him reassuringly.
"A glass of water would be nice." He pulls away from you, breaking the hug. You suppose that it's only natural. He was the one to start it after all.
So you stand up and lead him to the kitchen, talking the whole way through the short trip. "Just water? C'mon it's the weekend. Have a drink and let loose!" You smile as you pull two beers out of your fridge.
"I'm nineteen."
"And I won't tell anyone." You wink as you open them on the edge of the counter and slide one to him. "It's just a PBR. Try it."
He sighs and wipes the mouth of the bottle off. "I'm not sure that this is entirely appropriate."
You shrug as you take a drink of yours. "Might not be. But it might help you relax a little. I think you need a little less stress right now. I get that."
He gives a little half smile and snorts. "I suppose you have a point..." He lifts the bottle to his lips and takes a long drink, making a face as he does. "This is absolutely repugnant."
You laugh and then take another drink. "Yeah if you ain't used to drinking it can be." You sit on a stool and motion for him to sit down next to you. "But sometimes drinking can help with your problems. Sometimes it can make them worse. But if you got a friend with you, at least you're not alone."
He furrows his brow and thumbs the bottle before taking another drink. "You're... Not entirely what I was expecting." His cheeks are already a little flushed. It's obvious to you that he's never had anything to drink before now.
"Oh? How so?" You take another long drink, finishing the first bottle, before getting up to get another as you listen.
"You're... Younger than I'd expected."
You turn around and raise your eyebrows. "Really?" You open your second bottle and look down at yourself. "My voice not fit my body or what?"
He shrugs, sipping slowly at his bottle. "It just seems like... As Dualscar your voice should belong to an older man? But hearing your real voice it seems more like you're my age."
You laugh as you sit back next to him. "You think this Brooklyn thing is real? That mighta just made my night, babe."
You watch as a flush spreads across his cheeks and you're unsure if it's from the beer or at being called babe. "It... It isn't?" His jaw drops a little and you can't help but to notice how full his lips actually are.
With a shake of your head, you try to force the thought from your head. You'd already thought that he was cute when you'd seen him yesterday, but he doesn't need flirting or fucking right now. He needs a friend. "Uh, nah, not at all." You shrug a shoulder. "Was kinda a copin' mechanism when I got here for my A-levels." You look at him. "That's like my junior and senior year, you know? My dad got transferred here so me and my bro came to the states. It was tough, though. Obviously it was tough. I told you what happened." You take another drink. "But yeah. I started to cover my accent more and more the longer I was here." Another shrug. "And now I'm everyone's favorite greaser."
"But... Your radio voice...?"
"Is my real voice I guess. Little lower than how I'd normally talk, though. Guess that's why you thought I was maybe older." You chuckle and watch him as he finishes his beer.
"I... I fell in love with that voice of yours." His words are soft and you know that you can't hide the surprise on your face.
"With... My voice?"
He nods, playing with the bottle, sliding it slowly between his hands. "I heard you one night on the radio. You were cool and kind to everyone that called in..." He smiles and sighs softly. "That's why I had to call yesterday. I wanted to speak to you... Just once."
You swallow roughly. "And was I everything you'd hoped for and more?"
He smiles, nodding. "It was so much more than I could have hoped for. I think I knew that if I called you... that if I called you I wouldn't do it. But speaking to you was one of my last wishes." He swallows. "I wasn't sure you would be so kind..."
You scoff. "I ain't always been this nice. I used to be a real fuckin' jerk." You run your fingers through your hair. "But that's all in the past, you know? I'm me now. Still an asshole but not always on purpose." You smile at him, showing off pearly white teeth.
"I... I suppose we all have those traits. But you certainly aren't unkind." He leans in a little closer. "I still love your voice, though. Could you use it? Your real voice?" He smiles at you and you can feel a flush spread over your cheeks.
"Uh..." So fucking smooth. You clear your throat and nod before dropping your act. "Anything for you, babe." You smile at him and you can hear him make a soft little noise in the back of his throat. Is he already drunk?
"Your voice is magnificent." He moves closer to you, knee brushing against yours. "I wish that I had a voice like yours." His hand rests on your thigh and you wonder if he knows what he's doing.
"Yeah? Well when I came here I always wanted a voice more like yours." You lean in a little, tilting your head.
He bites at his lip with a grin. "I bet there's a way we could trade voices." He giggles, leaning in a little more.
"Oh yeah?" You move in, keeping your lips inches from his. "I think I know how."
He looks confused for a moment but then you close the gap, feeling his soft lips against yours and his hands on your neck. You move slowly, letting your lips meld in a slow burn as your arms wrap around him. He's so light. You can't believe how fucking light he is as you pull him into your lap and just bask in this warmth and contact.
But soon he pulls back and a worried look spreads over his face, like he thinks he's done something that he shouldn't have. "I..."
You put a finger to his lips. "Shh. Don't worry about it babe." You smile, moving your hand to cup his face. "That was real fucking nice."
He shudders in your lap and rests his forehead against yours. "Can I stay the night here?"
You chuckle. "I thought that's why you were here?"
"I mean... Can I sleep... Can I sleep in your room. In your bed." He pauses again. "...with you."
You swallow roughly and kiss him again. "If that's what you really want."
He doesn't answer you with words at first. Instead, his lips are on yours again, soft and sweet, and his hands are in your hair.
You hope that he isn't rushing this for some reason, even though you know that he might be. But you realize that this is what you've wanted these part two days. To hold him and to touch him and to have him.
His lips on yours keep your mind from anything else though. You think that both of you probably need this more than you would either let on.