youth ❀ karlnap

we did all that we could

cw: details of a non-violent but probably upsetting protest

i'm spoiling y'all with chapters now eat up

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It wasn't long before George was near the downtown area closest to their houses, and he kept slowing down randomly through the roads as he looked for a place to park. Karl tried to peek between the trees to get a look at the taller buildings, wondering if he could spot the protestors that lined the streets. He didn't see much before the car slowed to a stop against a curb and everyone promptly got out, not even saying a word.

Eret naturally moved ahead of the group, his feet practically stomping on the sidewalk as she lead the way. George and Dream only exchanged a nervous glance before they started to follow in their direction, and Karl didn't waste any time either, quickly trailing behind them all soon after.

It was almost instantaneous that when they reached the clusters of buildings, he started to pick out people holding signs and rushing more towards the center of downtown. He lit up, but it was bittersweet, because he couldn't believe one of his first gatherings with other queer people was caused by suffering. He moved faster to be more at level with Eret, staring at his face almost like he was seeking her approval. Their expression was awfully grim, though, and he just looked to Karl with the purest form of sadness reflecting in her eyes.

"It shouldn't be violent, but if it does, we need to get out of here, you know?"

Karl hadn't even considered it could get violent, because why would it? No one was here to hurt anyone; they just wanted justice for the pain the lawmakers were causing them right now. Surely they would understand, right? If they shouted at the top of their lungs, if they showed them just how detrimental this was going to be to a whole generation of trans youth—

"You hear me, Karl? We're here to speak our mind but we can't afford to risk our lives."

Karl nodded nervously, breaking eye contact with Eret and moving forward quicker. His eyes rounded slightly when he could see a large crowd coming into view. They were all grouped together in front of the town hall, yelling things that were frequently erratic but occasionally in unison due to a person standing on one of the highest ledges holding a megaphone. They guided their words, often repeating phrases like "Protect trans kids" and "Trans rights are human rights."

Karl couldn't help but soften. He felt like he was home, but the circumstances of him being here were so distressingly bleak. As they blended in with the crowd, it felt no more different than being in the pit of a concert, or at least, this was what he assumed it would feel like. Sometimes he would be back-to-back with people he had never seen before in his life, and it easily knocked the breath out of his lungs. It was already exhausting, and he had barely shouted his first words yet.

Dream and George kept looking at him protectively while Eret seemed to be losing themself, pushing through the crowd to get closer to the front. The last Karl had seen of him before they disappeared, her face was red and they seemed to be on the verge of tears all over again. She was in a fit of rage while Karl just felt like he couldn't breathe. He had to keep leaning on Dream every once in a while, who would look down at him with concern swimming in his eyes.

This wasn't normal. It shouldn't feel normal to have to fight the state to keep rights that shouldn't have been taken away in the first place. But here they were, shouting and screaming, and Karl could turn his head at any second and see someone new bawling their eyes out with each word they belted into the air. This was chaos. This was heartbreak. With every rapid beat of his heart he could feel the synergy traveling throughout the crowd like an electric current, sizzling in his ears until he felt like he might just go deaf. He yelled among the others until his voice felt hoarse, and then he just had to fall back against Dream, pressing his lips together and letting his eyes finally water. Usually he was such a crybaby about everything, but this whole situation had left him numb and dumbfounded. He couldn't believe that he and Sapnap had made all this progress together for it to be flushed down the drain.