The sun set behind the trees as the evening turned to night. As the time to leave before the last bus crept closer, Karkat conversed louder and louder, anxious to leave Kanaya's side. Eventually, they could not wait any longer, and he threw his arms around her. Kissing his forehead, she told him not to worry, for she would be in touch. She has Dave's number, after all. Sniffling with wet eyes, he nodded and clipped his collar on.
"It was nice to meet you, Karkat," Rose smiled, shaking his hand. Her skin was cold to the touch. Dave saluted them as they walked out the door, shivering slightly at the cool, night air. It was rather dark out.
The bumpy trail back to the bus station seemed even more uneven in the dark, the light from Dave's phone barely lighting the way.
"Um, rap is stupid."
"No way! Rapping is where it's at. So cool."
"Cool? Ha, that's a good joke! They're not even saying anything! It's just nonsense vulgar trash-talk!"
"Yeah? Well, that's because you haven't heard it done by the master."
"Oh, of course. That must be it. And where exactly is this fucking master?"
Dave stopped and posed. "You're lookin' at him."
Karkat scoffed. "Like you would master any sort of skill, no matter how awful."
"Yeah? Lemme show you how it's done."
Karkat wanted patiently for 2 seconds before shouting, "Well?!"
"Well, I'm gonna need a beat first."
"No you don't."
"Mm, yes I do. It's the law, and I'm layin' it down."
Groaning, he did his best to make some semblance of a pff-pff-chsh beat. As Dave waited for the right moment to begin his freestyle, he remained unaware that Karkat has ducked his head in embarrassment. The beat suddenly turned into a shriek as he fell. His ankle jerked sharply on the edge of the curb, and he tumbled down into a small ditch.
"Karkat! You ok?" Dave asked, kneeling beside him. He got a groan in response, followed by a sharp hiss as the short troll tried to stand up.
"Dave, I think I twisted my ankle."
He frantically checked his phone for the time. There was no way that they would make it with Karkat like this. He looked around for any clue, then at his ankle.
"Can you walk?"
"Absolutely not. I can try though-"
"It's fine. I mean, sorry you're hurt and all, but I think we can make the bus if you just hop on the Strider Express," he rambled.
"But-" he frowned. "Fine."
Dave turned his back and he climbed on, getting blood from his cut hands on Dave's mahogany sweater. As he struggled to stand, he realized that Karkat was a lot heavier than he was two weeks ago. Instead of the skinny runt that could easily be carried up the stairs, Dave struggled to keep the healthy troll from strangling him.
He wanted to check his watch. They were almost there, but surely the bus was too. the heavy troll getting heavier by the second, he broke into a light jog towards the bus. Almost there.
Then the doors shut.
The bus was gone.
"Dave," Karkat asked. "Was that..."
"The bus? Yeah." He sighed. Setting him carefully on the bench; he had no choice but to call Dirk. It was nearly eleven and he had a heavy troll who couldn't walk home. The phone rang and rang before it made it to Dirk's voicemail. He tried calling a few more times, but to no avail. Growling in frustration, he stuffed the phone back in his pocket.
"Useless," he muttered. Karkat let out a yawn, and he yawned in return.
"Now what?"
Dave shrugged, "I'm not sure, Karkles."
"You could start by putting the leash on my collar so we don't get arrested." Dave chuckled sadly as the black leash snapped onto the soft collar—one that wouldn't cut Karkat's neck.
"That's actually not a bad idea. We should head to the station, see if someone can drive us home," Dave said, surprisingly genuine. Karkat agreed that would be the best course of action. Hopping onto Dave's back again, he began the ten minute walk to the closest police station.
"Hey! Hey you!"
Dave spun around to see a tall, smoking man calling over to him from across the street. Rolling his eyes, Dave continued walking.
"Hey! That's rude! Hey! Hey, I'm talking to you!" The man jogged across the street, easily catching up to them. He reeked of alcohol and what Karkat easily recognized as heroin, along with sweat and lack of personal hygiene. Karkat's nose wrinkled in disgust.
"Where are you going?" He asked. Dave didn't answer, just kept walking. He hoped that being ignored would get boring, and they would be left alone. The man push him against a wall, but he held on tightly to Karkat.
"I'm talking to you. What's your name?" The stranger looked angry now.
"Gordon."
The man smirked, "Cool, cool. I see you've got yourself a fine piece of troll ass." Karkat bit his lip to stop himself from growling. No need to make him angrier.
"I'd tap that. Is he for sale?" The man blocked Dave from making his escape. His sword was in his sylladex, but he would have to put Karkat down first to get it. By then it would be obvious what he's doing. They were trapped.
"No," he gritted through his teeth.
"D'aww, that's too bad. I guess you're just gonna have to share. You don't mind, right?" Before Dave could react, the stranger pulled out a knife and pointed it at Dave's mouth.
"Woah man, I don't want any trouble. Just drop him and you can leave." he ordered.
Dave refused, so he punched him in the face, swiping wildly with the blade. The pain in his cheek had his sword in his hand before he knew what had happened. Instincts from his training had made him drop Karkat and step away. He felt like crying.
"Good boy. Now go stand over there while I take good care of your slut." Karkat's blood boiled. He belonged to Dave, and only to Dave. Shifting his weight, he cried out in pain: his ankle swelled in his shoe, so he kicked it off.
"You're not going anywhere near him, do you understand me?" Dave said. He ducked forward, but the stranger grabbed Karkat's foot and dragged him closer. He screamed, tears spilling down his cheeks as his ankle twisted even more.
"Karkat!" Distracted, he rushed to grab him, but slammed back into the wall with a kick to the ribs. Another punch to his head and the whole world spun like a globe. Dave was used to the pain, but froze once Karkat's life was in danger. He bit tears back, tightening his grip on his sword.
"No..." He panted, gasping for breath as his vision swirled. Dirty shoelaces slammed against his face in a brilliant flash of white, and he fell limp on the sidewalk.
"Dave!"
The man turned, watching Karkat's struggle to crawl away. "Right, where were we?" He towered above him, and knelt down. Karkat growled, ready for a fight, only to suddenly feel the cold tip of the blade pressed right against his crotch.
"Don't move."
"Get off me you sick fuck!" He squirmed as the blade slid across the his underwear, cutting his pants down the front. He grabbed the knife by the blade, but it cut his hand and he let go with a hiss.
"A red blood. I was hoping for blue," he shrugged. He held the cut tightly as hot tears burned his eyes. Suddenly, hands were on his hips and he fought to keep himself covered.
"Stop it, stop it!" He cried. He was foolish to think his precious Dave could keep him safe on this hell planet.
Suddenly, slimy lips were sucking on his. Karkat's screamed into the kiss, which was a mistake. The man slipped his tongue into his mouth, making him gag at not only the taste. Not caring if he got stabbed anymore, Karkat sunk his fangs into the pink tongue. The taste of human blood filled Karkat's mouth, but he failed to back away without hurting his ankle further.
The man screamed and held his mouth, outraged, but he was straddling Karkat's thighs, there was no escape. Karkat quickly grabbed the blade of the knife, wincing as it cut his other hand, and twisted it right out of his grip. He pointed the tip right at his chest.
"Get. Off." Karkat demanded. The man quickly did as he was told.
Dave landed a kick between the man's shoulders, knocking him to the ground, and pressed his sword to his neck to keep in from escaping.
"The cops should be here any second now," Dave whispered, phone in his hand. Karkat nodded before taking a deep breath and sinking down the brick wall, covering his face. The man shouted, terrified and hallucinating, but neither was listening.
As if on cue, a band of sirens got closer and closer, despite there being literally no one to block their way. The addict was cuffed and shove roughly in the back, while a blanket was put over both boys' shoulders. Karkat was far warmer than the cheap cloth.
"You two ok?" An officer asked. She had a high ponytail, a soft, round face and glasses, making her uniform look somewhat out of place. Officer Thompson, looked more fit to be a social worker than a cop.
Karkat stared at his feet, trying his best to cover his boxers with his hands. He had almost been raped. That could have gone far worse. He had been lucky. Not lucky enough.
"I'm alright, but I think Karkat's got a cut on his hand."
"I'm fine!" The troll snapped, startling the officer. She didn't expect his to react so violently, especially for a rust blood.
"There's a first aid kit in the car, if you need it," she offered. Karkat grumbled, but didn't say anything. Dave sighed.
"Anything else? A ride home," she kept offering. Dave perked up.
"A ride would be fantastic, thank you." The woman smiled, obvious glad she could help.
"Great. Where do you two live?"
"Houston, Crawford street," Dave replied.
The woman flinched. "That's a 45 minute drive."
Dave nodded. A drop of rain splashed onto his shades. Water was coming down hard, turning the cold night even colder. The rain water seeped through the blanket and their clothes with ease.
"Well, I can't let you walk in this rain. C'mon, lets go." She wave them to her police car where her partner seated in the passengers seat.
"Danny, we gotta take these kids home," officer Thompson said as she opened the door for the shivering kids. Poor things. Out for a walk and almost assaulted if they hadn't showed up on time.
"Where too, boss?" He teased. They were equals but Diane always seemed to be more of a leader than he ever was.
"Crawford street, Houston."
He looked surprised, but shrugged. "Fine by me. As long as you're driving."
Diane smiled and shut the door quickly swiping the rain off the steering wheel.
The drive was boring, considering Dave and Karkat couldn't talk. Not that they wanted to discuss that happened. When the car finally stopped in front of the tall apartment building, Karkat threw the door open, practically shouted a thanks and stomped to the front desk. He held the leash tightly in his quivering hand, eyes burning in rage.
"Thank you for the ride," Dave said without changing his expression.
Diane smiled again. "No problem."
He waved back at their silhouettes and followed Karkat inside. He was waiting by the elevator. The ride up was tense with anger and worry.
The apartment was dimly lit by the TV where Dirk sat video calling probably Jake—Jade's older brother. Lil Cal sat facing them on the couch, but his dead eyes didn't hold any stare. Karkat bolted across the room and up the stairs, limping heavily and making a scene.
"Dave, control your pet."
He didn't answer, walking to the freezer to grab an ice pack.
"Also, stay upstairs. I'm in the middle of something."
Dave frowned. He didn't care that they got home at midnight. Why would he?
Skipping every other step, Dave hopped up the stairs, taking off his shades as he opened his slightly ajar door. He almost laughed when he saw limbs sprawled out on the bed, unlike his usual fetal position.
"You ok, Karkles?" His weight making the mattress dip under him. Karkat shot up with a growl, startling Dave.
"Do I look fucking ok to you!"
Dave flinched.
"I was almost raped, Dave! A few weeks ago I would have been ready! But I wasn't, and it's all your fault!"
Dave blinked in surprise. "My fault?" Karkat was right; it was his fault for not protecting him.
"Yeah, fuck face! Your fault. You own me! I'm yours and only yours! That...that guy had no right to touch me now that I have you! I was the idiot who thought I was safe! Fuck me for every believing I could be happy!"
Eyes watering, Dave threw his arms around his shoulders and pulled him into his lap, ignoring his protest. Before he knew what he was doing, Dave lightly kissed his forehead. Karkat tensed, going quiet. His heart throbbed at the pale gesture.
Hot tears ran down his face as Dave pulled his head on his shoulder. He hummed at the warm hand running up and down his back. His eyes closed and breath puffed down Dave's back.
"I'm sorry," he sniffed.
"Shhh, it's ok."
"You know it's not your fault, right?"
Dave hummed lowly, not wanting to argue about it. Wiping his tears on his shirt, Karkat let himself be pulled down to rest on his chest. The rise and fall quickly lulled him to a peaceful sleep.
"Good golly. That sounded like quite the argument."
Dirk ran a tired hand through his hair. "Not arguing. I only heard Karkat yelling."
"You're upset Dave's troll yelled at him?"
"If it were mine...well, it wouldn't have escalated in the first place."
"Oh Dirk, don't be so hard on him. They seem to be friends from what you tell me."
"They're not supposed to be! I understand if he lets it sit at the table, but they sleep together for fucks sake!"
"That's just silly. They haven't done anything."
"You can't possibly be sure of that."
Jake shut his mouth. It was true; he didn't know Dave well enough to defend him.
"They were supposed to be back at 11 because that's the last bus. It's midnight-"
"12:34."
"Whatever! What have they been doing for the past hour? They got home, so they obviously caught the bus, the ride is almost an hour, so where the hell were they?"
"You're overreacting. I think you should ask what happened before leaping to conclusions."
"Jumping."
"Hypocrisy," Jake sang.
He growled. Maybe he was overreacting. "I think I'm gonna call it a night."
"It is quite late. Right, see you later, mate!"
"Later."