Karkat had settled into his grandparents’ house pretty quickly. It took all of a week to feel completely comfortable living there. He didn’t have to switch schools or anything and he still lived relatively close to all of his friends, so it was all pretty good. His grandpa was apparently an artist that sold easily (who knew?) and his grandma used to be a model (after seeing some photos, Karkat was scarred for life), so they had a pretty good income. Karkat moving in with them wasn’t a problem in the slightest.
The last day of school came around, and Karkat woke up feeling much better than he had a few weeks ago, despite the fact that he had to suffer through a two hour exam in an hour. He threw the covers off and went into the bathroom to take a quick shower. He dried of quickly after and got dressed into somewhat nice clothes. Sure, he was only going to be out of the house for a few hours, but it was the last day of school and he was in a good mood.
After getting dressed into black cargo shorts and a maroon button down shirt that he had recently bought (with his own money since he finally got a job at McDonald’s), he looked into the mirror. He frowned at his hair, which was even messier than usual for some reason. It’s probably the humidity, he thought, trying to comb through the dark brown bird’s nest. It wasn’t as neat as he hoped when he decided he was done, but it was good enough.
Karkat sighed and checked his phone for the time. It was a little early to start walking (he had gotten up half an hour earlier than he planned), but being early was never a bad thing.
He headed downstairs and was surprised to see that his grandma was already busy making breakfast for herself. “Oh, good morning, sweetie,” she greeted Karkat with a kind smile.
“Morning,” he replied, digging through the cupboards for a granola bar.
“Would you like me to whip up an omelet for you real quick?”
“Nah, I’m good with this.” He held up the granola bar he had just grabbed.
“Oh, okay,” she said, smiling softly at him. “Good luck on your exam.”
Karkat smiled and said “Thanks” before heading out the door and into the mid-June heat. It took a little longer to walk to school now that he lived at the top of the hill. However, he walked with Strider every day now and that seemed to make the time go by faster.
Speaking of Strider, he wasn’t where he usually stood waiting at the end of his street. Karkat frowned and checked the time. He was ten minutes earlier than normal.
Not five minutes later, Karkat saw Strider walking towards him. When he saw that Karkat was waiting for him, he quickened his pace.
“Yo, am I late or something?” Strider asked when he reached Karkat.
“No,” Karkat said, shaking his head. He had noticed a little while ago that Strider had this thing about being late. “I’m just early.”
“Oh, okay,” Strider said, sounding a little relieved. “Well, let’s get walking. Don’t wanna be late for that trig exam, now do we?” He smirked at Karkat.
“Yay, trig,” Karkat said unenthusiastically. “Can’t wait.”
“Yeah, can’t wait for it to be over,” Strider retorted as they started to walk down the hill. The rising sun behind their backs bathed everything in red, but this time, Karkat didn’t mind it.
~*~
After the test, Strider suggested that they hand out at the crappy little Starbucks inside the Target that was just a block away from the school for a bit. Karkat texted his grandpa to let him know what he was up to and they were off.
“That test was bull,” Karkat complained during the short walk.
“All of those tests were bull if we’re being honest here,” Strider replied.
Karkat shrugged. “True.”
They made it to Target then and walked in to see Terezi and Gamzee waiting in one of the check-out aisles, a shit load of Faygo sitting on the conveyor belt. Karkat felt the familiar pang in his chest but shrugged it off. He was on a new path now—one that didn’t involve Terezi, Gamzee, and especially not his father.
Strider pulled him into the short line at the Starbucks. If he noticed that Tereiz and Gamzee were here, he didn’t show it.
A couple stood in front of them, talking over what they were going to order. When the boy said what he was ordering, the girl shoved him playfully and called him gross. Then they were to the front of the line, and the boy let the girl order first. The moment she finished telling the barista her order, the boy nudged her and mocked her previous statement about him. The barista chuckled at them and Karkat smiled. Without even looking, Karkat could tell that Strider was rolling his eyes.
Once they ordered and received their drinks, Karkat and Strider walked all the way to the back table by the glass walls, where it was practically empty.
“I can’t even express how glad I am that this year is finally over,” Strider said.
Karkat chuckled breathily, thinking about everything that happened over this school year. “Me either.”
They were silent for a bit, just sipping at their drinks. Karkat had ordered a caramel Frappuccino with extra caramel, and Strider ordered a red velvet Frappuccino off of Starbucks’ secret menu. Karkat had called him a dork.
“So, um,” Karkat said at the same time that Strider said, “Do you—?”
Karkat laughed awkwardly and Strider bit his bottom lip.
“You first,” Strider said, gesturing to him in an attempt to seem gentlemanly, but almost knocked over his drink in the process.
Karkat chuckled at him. “Uh, no, you go first. I forgot what I was going to say.”
“Okay.” Strider swallowed and didn’t say anything. Karkat waited patiently, already knowing what he was going to ask.
“Do-Do you want to—?” Strider began.
“Yes,” Karkat replied, cutting Strider off.
A small smile lit up Strider’s face. “Really?”
“Yes,” Karkat pressed, trying not to laugh at Strider’s disbelief. Why would he say no?
Strider leaned forward on the small round table, and Karkat began to, but Strider backed away unexpectedly. “Wait, can—should we—?”
“Just kiss me, you dumbass,” Karkat said quickly, leaning forward. Strider met him halfway, but their noses bumped before their lips touched, causing the both of them to start laughing. They stopped after a moment and finally kissed each other, not caring who saw them.
For the first time in a really long time, Karkat finally felt happy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AN:
Whoo, I finished!!! :D So happy. And it left on a happy note which makes me even more happy. Aghhh. Hehe. Yes, I have a headcanon where Dave is just a big fool and he can't get his questions out because he feels awkward with his feelings and Karkat is pushy.
I hope you liked the way this ended! Don't forget to give it a vote if you did, and comments/feedback are always appreciated!! :)
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The Meanings of Red
Fanfiction'He pursed his lips before speaking. “What the hell are you doing lying in a trash can?” “It’s for ironic purposes,” came a muffled response. Something clicked in Karkat’s mind, and he felt stupid for not putting it together earlier: this dick wa...
