And I'm back. Been looking forward to posting this chapter for awhile now. Woo-hoo! :)
Valentines Day. The day people were supposed to give chocolate to their friends and girl/boyfriends. Karkat never really liked Valentine's Day much. He always got the same stuff from his friends and a scarf from Kanaya. Overall, he found it pretty boring.
"I got everyone some chocolate." Calliope said, holding up some little boxes. "I made them all myself!" She gave one to each of them. But Roxy's was larger and shaped like a heart. She grinned and gave Calliope a store-bought large chocolate heart.
"I was gonna make you one, but none of my attempts seemed edible." she said, laughing. Karkat opened his box to find a small chocolate in the shape of a crab inside. Tavros got a bull and Gamzee got a sea-goat.
"They're um, supposed to represent your zodiacs." Calliope explained.
"These are motherfucking miracles Calli." Gamzee said, patting her head. Calliope smiled and nodded.
"Thanks."
"Uh, I got you all chocolates too." Tavros said. He handed them all store-bought chocolates. Same as every year. Though Karkat noticed Tavros had subtly given Gamzee the largest. But Karkat wasn't sure if Gamzee noticed. He wished Tavros luck.
"I got you all honeycomb." Sollux said. "Becauthe chocolate ith overrated." He handed them all clumps of honeycomb.
"What the fuck am I supposed to do with this?" Karkat asked, holding it up.
"You eat it." Sollux said. He picked up his own and bit into it. "Thee?" Gamzee grinned and shoved the whole thing into his mouth. Honey dripped down his chin and he seemed to have a hard time chewing. But he grinned the whole time. Karkat sighed and took a bite out of the honeycomb. It was obviously sweet, but Karkat found that he didn't hate the taste. He ate his, as did Roxy, Calliope and Tavros. Then they all started eating the chocolates they'd gotten each other.
"Didn't you get us chocolates Karkat?" Roxy asked. Karkat shook his head.
"Nah. I never bother to." Roxy pouted.
"You're so boooring!" Karkat rolled his eyes and finished off his chocolate.
"I just don't find Valentines Day very interesting." he said.
"It's totally interesting!" Roxy argued. "Valentines Day gives people a chance to confess their feelings to the person they've been in love with for who-knows-how-long! It's all totally romantic and wonderful and you should have gotten us chocolates!"
"You just tried to guilt-trip me at the end, didn't you?" Karkat said. Roxy grinned and licked chocolate off her lips.
"Hi Sollux." Karkat looked over and saw the popular girl who'd asked Sollux out months ago standing next to him. She was wearing really revealing pink clothes and had pink heart stickers on her arms. She handed Sollux a large pink heart-shaped box with a hot-pink ribbon on it. "Happy Valentines Day." Sollux took the box and stood up. He walked over to the trash can and dropped it inside, then walked back and sat down. The girl looked stunned and ran off to her friends.
"That was harsh." Karkat said. "Good job." He high-fived Sollux who grinned and nodded.
"Thankth."
"U-um, Karkat?" Karkat turned around to find a girl he didn't recognise standing next to him.
"Yeah, what?" he asked. The girl hesitated for a few seconds. Then she handed him a red box and ran out of the classroom. Karkat stared in the direction she'd gone, trying to process what had happened. "What just happened?!"
"A girl jutht gave you chocolate." Sollux said.
"Oh no shit! I mean why the hell did she?"
"She clearly liketh you." Karkat looked down at the chocolates, then back at the classroom door.
"Well? Open the box already!" Roxy said. Karkat put the box on his desk and opened it. There was a note on top of a medium-sized chocolate heart. Karkat picked up the note and looked at it.
To Karkat. Happy Valentines Day.
"She wrote her phone number on the back of the note." Sollux said, pointing at the other side of the note. Karkat turned it over and saw that she had. He stared at it, trying to process what he was seeing. A girl just gave him chocolate on Valentines Day! And he didn't even know her!
"Awesome Karkat!" Roxy said, clapping his shoulder. "You've got a girlfriend!"
"She's not my girlfriend."
"Not yet."
Karkat walked home with Sollux again, like always. He kept fingering the note from the girl, which he was keeping in his pants pocket.
"What am I supposed to do?" he asked. "A girl just gave me chocolate!"
"Well…are you thtraight or gay?" Sollux asked.
"I have no fucking clue!" Karkat exclaimed.
"Chill KK."
"I don't even know who she is!" Sollux pulled out his phone and handed it to Karkat. On the screen was a photograph of the girl and her profile.
"I looked it up during lunch becauthe I knew you were gonna athk."
"Where did you get this?" Karkat asked. "It mentions how many times she's lost playing Mario Kart against her sister."
"…Thomewhere." Sollux said mischievously. Karkat rolled his eyes and decided not to bother questioning him. He glanced over the girl's profile as he walked. Eventually they got to his house. He waved to Sollux and walked inside. Kanaya was watching TV and smiled when he walked inside.
"Welcome home. Did you get any chocolates?" she asked. Karkat could see the heart-shaped chocolate box sitting next to her. He suspected it was from Rose.
"Uh, yeah." Karkat sat down and stared at the TV. Kanaya handed him a bright red scarf she'd knitted. Karkat put it next to him and focused on the TV. After a few seconds he realized he was rubbing the note again.
"What's bothering you?" Kanaya asked. Karkat glanced at her and wondered if he should just say he was fine. "And if you don't tell me I'll get dad and he'll make you." Karkat sighed.
"No need for drama Kanaya." he grumbled. Kanaya looked at him expectantly. "Okay, some girl I don't know just gave me Valentines Day chocolate and she wrote her phone number on the back of the note." Karkat held up the note to Kanaya. "And I have no clue what to do."
"Well…are you gay or straight?"
"I don't know! Jesus, is everyone gonna ask me that?!"
"Sorry. Why don't you try hanging out with her to get to know her? Phone her and ask to meet her somewhere tomorrow. It's conveniently Friday today."
"…Yeah okay. I'll do that." Karkat got up and walked into his room. He sat on his bed and pulled out his phone. He held up her phone number and dialled it carefully. He listened to the phone ring for a few seconds before it was answered.
"Um, hello?"
"Hi Abby? It's Karkat-"
"O-oh! Um, h-hi! Uh…um…"
"Hi. Listen, I was wondering if you wanted to hang out tomorrow."
"…Really?"
"Uh, yeah. Because I don't really know you so I might as well get to know you, right?"
"Y-yeah! Um, where do you want to meet?"
"How about the park?"
"Yeah. The um, park sounds good."
"Okay. Can I meet you at 9 o'clock?"
"S-sure! Um, in the morning right?"
"Yeah."
"Okay. Um, see you tomorrow?"
"Yeah, see you." Karkat hung up and sighed. Well, that had gone alright. Now he just had to worry about tomorrow.