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"Holy shit", you say.
You are Karkat Vantas and before you stands an enormous cruise ship. Seriously, it's ENORMOUS. And you and Dave are on a bridge that leads right into it. You tremble just a little bit, the fear starting to get at you. You try to hide your little bit of fear, but of course, Dave sees right through it.
"Come on Karkat, it'll be fine," Dave squeezes your hand.
"But it's just so... big!" you say, and Dave smirks at you. "Don't you fucking say it, Strider."
He chuckles. "Seriously. People go on these things all the time. What, you think it's gonna sink or something?"
You sigh and he smiles at you. "Come on," he says, "we're gonna have fun."
You try to shrug off your worry. You don't even know why you're even the littlest bit afraid, but something about being on a thousand ton pile of metal sailing into the middle of the ocean just freaks you out a little. Not to mention being trapped with hundreds of people, some of which could be murderers, with absolutely no way to leave.
Finally you step on board.
You walk through a hallway and gasp at the sight of the gorgeous lobby.
Lights everywhere. The whole thing has to be 200 feet tall. There's a big glass ceiling and balconies lining the walls, each decorated with colorful glimmering lights and gold lining. Two huge pillars are near the side - elevator shafts. In front of them is a huge set of glamorous stairs. Elegant designs on gold railing, lights underneath each stair, beautiful green and blue carpet on top of each granite stair. There's a small stage with a grand piano and a few other instruments and speakers. The entire area is full of people bustling around. Music fills the air. The whole scene takes your breath away.
"This... is amazing" you look around the gorgeous room with wide, sparkling eyes. You glance at Dave and catch him staring at you with a similar expression, a smile on his face.
"You're so cute" he says. He kisses you on the cheek and you giggle. "Let's take these fuckin bags to our room so we can look around more," he says, "God these things are heavy."
"I told you you should've packed lighter," you say, carrying the one bag you brought with a smug look on your face.
"Shut up, you" he laughs, hauling a suitcase big enough to hold three donkeys. "This shit's important."
You finally make it to your room and throw everything onto the bed. You look around the cramped little room. There's a queen sized bed with about 2-3 feet of space on each side of it, and on the wall across from it there's a tv and a little dresser. There's another small door next to the entrance that you assume leads to the bathroom.
"Much less grand than that other room," you say as you sit on the bed next to Dave.
"We don't need a lot of space," he replies, "We'll probably be outside most of the time anyway. Hey speaking of which, we should go up to the dock so we can be out there when the boat leaves."
Your stomach sinks just a little. "How the fuck is this thing gonna move?!"
"Dunno. But it does" he shrugs. "Come on, let's go."
~•~
How is it even possible for a boat to have so much? There are two swimming pools, seven stages, five restaurants, eleven bars, eight water slides, a fucking golf course, and plenty of decks to lounge on. And best of all, one incredible boy with his arm around you as you stare over the railing at the people below.
"We should be leaving any minute" Dave says glancing at his phone. "You excited?"
You nod, and cuddle into him. The sun is starting to set and there's a cool breeze coming by. He squeezes you tight and plants a kiss on your forehead. You're just so happy to be here with him. You're with the boy you love and nothing in the world could be better. You look up at him with a small smile, your eyes wide, your gaze filled with so much love and adoration.
His gaze meets yours and it's obvious he feels the same. Even with his shades covering his eyes, there's something about his face that just makes your heart leap. You reach up and put his shades on top of his head, revealing his gorgeous red eyes.
If there was any doubt before that he didn't feel the same overwhelming love for you, there definitely wasn't now. His eyes are sparkling and gorgeous and full of love. He's smiling, just like you are. It's a loving, calming, beautiful smile. A smile that makes your breath catch and your heart flutter.
You pull his face down and press your lips to his. Your eyes flutter closed, wrapped in this moment. He wraps his other arm around you and you reach up around his neck. Your lips move slowly against his and he gently strokes your side. You wrap your arms around him tighter, standing on your toes to get closer to the taller boy. Your hands reach up into his blonde hair and you can feel his lips moving against yours, his breath on your face, his strong arms holding you close.
You pull apart and look up into his sparkling eyes once again. What gorgeous eyes. You wonder why he hides them all the time.
You let your head fall on his shoulder and your eyes fall closed, your arms move down to wrap around his waist. You can hear his slow, soft breathing, his steady heartbeat. You feel the gentle caress of his hands on your back, and his chin resting on your head. You stay like that, wrapped in that moment, your eyes closed, for who knows how long. Who cares how long.
At least, until the sound of the booming ship horn jolts you out of your stupor.
You lean away from him and look down over the railing. "Oh god is it moving?"
Dave stands next to you and wraps his arm around you again. "Yup. This thing's taking off."
The horn blows again. You look down and watch as the ship gets further and further from the dock, white waves splashing around in between. The floor rumbles beneath you, just a little bit. The ship starts turning faster and faster, creating more space between it and the dock. More white waves. Some of the people below are waving at the departing ship. Maybe you'd wave back and give them some snarky remark, but your hands are currently glued to the railing.
Dave laughs. "Karkat, you okay?"
You realize that your arms and shoulders are tense, and your knuckles are turning white. You let out a sigh and your shoulders relax. This isn't as bad as you thought. You really don't know what you were so afraid of. "Yes, I'm fine," you say indignantly.
"Still scared?" he asks softly.
"No, I was being ridiculous! It's not bad."
"Told you" he smirks. You'd punch him in the arm if he didn't have his wrapped around you.
By now the ship is a good ways away from the dock. In fact, it's turned so much that you can barely see the dock anymore. You look towards the front of the boat and all you can see is water. Little bits of white dot the ocean, coming and going, moving, ebbing and flowing. Above it is a pinkish sky with bright orange clouds. The sun is glowing a vibrant orange-red.
Wow. That's a hell of a sunset.
Dave grabs your hand. "Come on," he says, tugging you away, "lets go be king of the world."
"What?! Strider what the fuck are you talking about?"
"It's just something from one of our shitty earth human movies," he says, still tugging you towards the front of the boat. "Actually you'd probably like it. It's got romance and shit."
That perks your interest. "Can we watch it tonight?"
Dave is barely able to hide his laughter. You scowl at him. "What?!"
"Nothing, nothing man. Yeah, lets watch it tonight. I mean, assuming it doesn't cost a fucking million dollars to rent it."
He pulls you along until you reach the very front of the boat. "Dave, what the hell are you on to?" you ask.
"Just trust me, it'll be great," he promises.
You have to push past some people as Dave leads you to the very front of the ship. There's a tiny narrow walkway that extends just beyond the rest of the ship.
Oh god that's where he's taking you.
He pulls you up in front of him and nudges you forward, but you grab the rails and push back. "Dave I am not going up there" you firmly say.
"It's okay," he coaxes, "I'll be right here behind you."
You look over the railing and oh god you feel dizzy. You're hundreds of feet in the air, a sea of crashing white waves beneath you, lapping up against the edge of the boat. Your stomach drops and you're not sure if you can do this. But then you feel Dave's hands around your waist, and that eases you a bit, knowing he's right there with you. You close your eyes and take a breath in, and slowly release it out.
You move your hands forward on the railing and take a steady step. You take another with your other foot. Just a couple steps more and before you know it you're on the very edge of the boat, your stomach pressed against the bit of railing.
Holy shit.
All you can see is ocean. Ocean, and beautiful sky. For miles and miles it's only ocean. Small white waves crash about in the wind. The orange and pink colors of the sunset reflect off the water, leaving it a huge sea of pink and orange. The wind blows against your face and through your hair, pressing your clothes against your body. It's brisk, but god it feels good.
Dave squeezes your waist tighter and says into your ear, "Try putting your arms out."
Oh god you do not want to let go of the railing. But then you feel Dave's arms holding you tight, his chest pressed against your back. "I've got you," he says.
You take another deep breath, and slowly loosen your tight grip on the rail. Gently, you open your hands and lift your arms up.
It feels like you're fucking flying. The wind envelops your whole body, and you shut your eyes and just feel it. It whips through your hair, tangling your curls, caressing your cheek, wrapping your whole body.
Then you feel Dave's lips kissing your neck, slow and rhythmic, warm and soft. You smile and let out a small sigh, leaning into him, wrapped in his warmth.
Your heart is pounding as you realize; you're standing on the very front of a huge fucking cruise ship, standing hundreds of feet in the air moving pretty fucking fast (or at least it feels fast). But Dave Strider is here with you with his arms around you and his lips on your neck. And that makes you feel a lot better.