Work Text:
There was a troll boy standing on the edge of the bridge.
Cautiously walking forward, you made out some of his features: hair shaved in a daring undercut, what someone way less hip than you may describe as too many piercings, black eyeliner, and sunken bags beneath his eyes. Despite the saying the word 'boy,' he was definitely a young adult (admittedly it was a bit harder for you to tell with trolls despite being a teacher for both races for few years now).
You weren't expecting to see a ceruleanblood sign on the front of his hoodie. Not that you were trying to be racist, erm, caste-ist, blood-ist(?), but by utilizing your ever-present ROY G BIV knowledge you knew that he was near the higher end of the bloodcaste.
Not that you were saying that highblood trolls didn't have problems like anyone else, but lowbloods...
...you should probably just stop with that line of thought. No one deserved to feel like they should be standing where he was.
He seemed to have noticed your presence, but hadn't reacted much beyond an apathetic glance in your direction before returning his vigilant watch to the dark waters below.
There were a million things that you could say, but somehow you intelligently asked, "You okay?"
There was a snort. Devoid of humor and barely with enough energy for you to hear.
"that = a pretty stupid thing to ask;" he replied, voice low and tired. "especially to someone standing on a bridge in the middle of the night;"
"That's fair," you agreed, face flushing with embarrassment.
Fuck, you were such a moron. With such a low IQ, it was a miracle that you had passed your teaching certificate lessons.
And, even then, you had a feeling the only reason you'd gotten your job now was because Headmaster Egbert had pitied you and because you were friends with his son, John (the current biology teacher).
Yeah, sure, your students hadn't mutinied against you yet for more quality education, but you knew that they were just biding their time...
Another moment of silence passed between the two of you before the troll boy sighed, the sound a bit more irritated this time.
"why the fuck are you still here; if youre trying to mug me it = your unlucky day; if youre a serial killer tell me so i can jump quicker; if youre just someone passing by... keep walking;"
"I can't do that," you answered, for lack of anything better to say.
So far, you've only succeeding in annoying him, but that was definitely better than the alternative. Fortunately, you had great belief in your ability to aggravate others.
Finally, he looked at you, and you're struck with the brilliance of his cobalt-blue eyes.
He definitely was near to being an adult if not already there with that deep of a color. If it weren't for the circumstances, you might have been left awestruck at the way his eyes shined against the backdrop of stars.
"why;" he asked completely toneless.
You really had no clue what he was thinking (or why he was listening to you at all, for that matter).
Grasping for straws, you, probably mistakenly, tell him that you're a teacher.
Your reward is the sight of him rolling his eyes.
"so what; you cant bare to see the 'youth' throwing away their life and all the cliché bullshit that teachers say but dont mean;"
He turned back around, staring down at those watery depths one again. "just fuck off;"
He lifted his foot up over the edge--
"Why don't you think you have a future?" you yelled, frantic to make him stop.
Oh God, you wanted to tackle him, but that would be a bit counterproductive to keeping him on the bridge.
To your relief, he froze. His foot wavered in the air before settling back down on the rusted metal of the bridge beneath him.
His voice came out as a hoarse whisper. "how... how did you know;"
There were a lot of ways to unpack that sentence, but somehow you knew what he was asking.
"Well, you wouldn't be standing there if you thought you had one," you said logically. Fuck, you were dipping into your teacher voice. Even you didn't like your teacher voice. "Or, a good future at least."
"you could say that again;"
He snorted again, sighing and pressing one hand to the dark smudges beneath his eyes. Exhaustion leaked out of every pore of his being.
"look; i can tell youre human so you wouldnt really get it when i say it = different for trolls; sure; this != alternia or whatever; but there = still rigid bullshit rules on what a troll can or cannot be based on blood; the future for a ceruleanblood != one i want;"
"Why not find a job in the human market?" you asked, though you already know how difficult that was and unfair of you to even bring up.
Even with The Signless' preaching and fervent work towards equality for many years now, the fruition of his goals were still a long time in coming.
Though, with Karkat Vantas (the Descendant of the Signless, a friend of yours, and the fiancé of your coworker/the art teacher, Dave Strider) officially on the scene as another ambassador, there had been even faster progress.
"you know how fucking hard that = to do;" the troll boy asked, probably rhetorically, with a roll of his eyes. "yeah yeah; signless and younger vantas doing their thing; but for every one of them there = a human bulgewipe screaming how aliens are taking their jobs;"
You winced at the mention of the... less than friendly members of your race.
There had been protests since the day Signless and his Rebellion had first landed and later brokered a peace with the majority of Earth's governments. In the time since, things had gotten both better and worse between humans and trollkind.
To your surprise, instead of him (rightfully) complaining about it, a tinge of... guilt(?) appeared on his face.
"to be fair it = kind of true; there = enough people suffering without me adding on to it;"
Stunned, you said, "You're very kind."
To your surprise (and maybe even small delight?), he blushed a bright blue.
For the first time in this conversation, you could truly see him for how young he was. It filled you with fondness and sadness simultaneously.
"not really;" he said quickly, obviously embarrassed to be called such a thing. "more like a coward whod rather not play at all than risk fighting all the jerks id have to if i did;"
"Wouldn't there be someone to miss you?" you asked after another moment.
(But even as you said this... you knew very well that it was quite possibly he didn't have anyone who would.
After all... you hadn't once upon a time.)
"...not really;" he said after a moment. "yeah my lusus might miss me; but eventually he would go find another wriggler from the caverns; im not his first ward and i wont be his last;"
Your eyes met his, conveying as much seriousness as you possibly could into your next words. "I would miss you."
He stiffened, once again turning to face you with unreadable blue eyes. It was silent for a minute before he scoffed.
"yeah right; you dont even know me;"
"Doesn't mean I wouldn't," you replied.
And it was true.
For the first time since seeing him up there, you felt calm.
Or, rather, calm wasn't the word for it. Maybe, determined?
The feeling that, no matter what, you would prove to him that you meant what you said. That there was a future out there for him.
"My parents abandoned me the day I was born," you interjected before he could say anything else, somewhat rewarded when his eyes widened with obvious surprise. "I never found out who they were because they somehow lost my birth certificate. I don't even know my real birthday, only the day that they found me."
His mouth opened, but no sound came out. Yet, his eyes never left yours.
A bit more confidently, you took a step forward so that you were only a few feet away. "No one wanted me, so I was bounced around from foster home to foster home. I ran away a few times, but realized there was no point because no one was coming to look."
Your lip trembled, memories coming back up to the surface of those earlier years. It... it had been rough, yeah. Not a time you wanted to remember, but knew it was all the more important to remember because of that.
"So, yeah, I get what it's like not knowing what the future will hold. Of being afraid of what it could hold."
His eyes bored into you, expression intent as if he was searching for the truth of your words. He must have found something because a naked vulnerability enveloped his neutral facade.
"how... how did you get over it;" he whispered. "that uncertainty;"
You shrugged. To be honest, you don't think you ever did.
Even with your relatively successful (if mediocrely paid) career at the best ranked troll/human school in the country, those doubts never left you.
It was a part of you, but not one that had to define you.
"Find something you want, and go for it," you settled on finally.
He tilted his head, honestly curious. "what did you go for;"
"I've always wanted to help people," you answered truthfully. "Someone gave me the idea to be a teacher and volunteer so that I could help kids who were like me."
"really;" he asked, tone and expression incredulous. "after how much the world fucked you over you want to help it;"
"It isn't as altruistic as it sounds," you defended, though this was an odd viewpoint to defend. Oh well, you had definitely stood for weirder causes. "I like to feel like I'm helping others because it gives me purpose. Makes me feel good."
"sounds like a shitty answer;" he muttered, though his words weren't as scathing as you would have expected.
"That's why it's so important to find your own answer," you replied, feeling stronger and stronger about your answer. "No one else is going to know what's right for you, so why let them choose? But that also means you're the only one who can make sure that tomorrow is different."
You can see him wavering, and made the final push.
"At the very least, if I had chosen to jump off this bridge when I was here a decade ago--" His eyes widen in realization. "--I wouldn't be here talking to you. And I definitely would regret that."
Silence reigned between you once more, before that hesitant, unguarded expression came over his face again. There didn't appear to be tears in his eyes, but there was something about how he stared at you that made you think he wanted to cry.
Another moment passed. Then, he lifted his foot again, but in the direction to get down from the bridge.
Your heart soared with hope--
Right at that second, a powerful wind passed by; strong enough that the troll boy, whose grip must have not been tight enough on the railing, flailed backwards. His eyes widened and his arms reached out towards you--but you miss his hand by a few inches.
Filled with horror, you watched as he stumbled back off the bridge and towards the water below.
There was no hesitation as you leapt after him... but there probably should have been as you recalled last second that you didn't know how to swim.
The sudden belly flop onto the water was painful, your face and stomach would likely have bruises should you survive.
But that thought soon washes away as the sudden chill of the river enveloped you immediately, numbing you to the point that your limbs lock up from shock for the briefest second.
It's a second too long as the current grabbed you, whipping you around like a ragdoll in the hands of a toddler holding it out the window of a car going down the freeway.
You're dragged under as you stupidly try to gasp for air only to receive a lungful of water for your efforts. Your head was spinning in circles. You can't see anything but darkness. You don't know which way was up or how to get there even if you did.
You... were going to die, weren't you?
In the back of your mind, you can't help but hope that the troll boy was seeing your agonizing death and decided to swim back to shore just to avoid it altogether. Then again, it was horrible to want a kid (even though you were admittedly only in your mid-twenties) to see anyone die, wasn't it?
Damn it, you're still failing at this teaching thing. Headmaster Egbert would be so disappointed...
As you wondered who would be called in to replace you for class tomorrow--fuck, you hoped it wouldn't be Aradia; even though she agreed with teaching world history with video games instead of books, she always traumatized the students--there's a sudden jerk and you're pulled in some direction.
It apparently was towards the sky because, a second later, your head breaks the surface and you gasped for sweet, sweet oxygen.
It was then that you recognized the troll boy, soaked and hair tousled in a way that was unfairly attractive wet too.
However, unlike you, he wasn't flailing for life. Instead, he stared at you incredulously, one arm holding you up.
"what the fuck are you doing;"
"I... can't... swim..." you coughed out, your beautiful, shapely legs being of no help in this situation.
C'mon, legs, flap like you've never flapped before!!! Your life literally depended on it!
He stared at you with disbelief and, for a moment, you thought that he was just going to leave you to drown and try again himself another time. To your surprise, he pulled you closer to his chest before using his other arm to make long, steady strokes towards the shore.
You tried to help him, but your efforts were more pathetic and detrimental than anything--a fact confirmed when he grunted, "stop squirming;"
Going limp, you're left with no choice but to cling to him.
Despite him undoubtedly being younger, he was already bigger than you. It wasn't even that he was big for a troll, you were just reminded, yet again, that you were a puny little human. More than half the students in your senior high class were bigger than you too.
Though... this felt different as you clutched to him like a limpet, rightfully humiliated as you tried to avoid looking at his face; the way the moonlight reflected off him as he resolutely towed the two of you back to safety.
For some reason, you felt strangely shy. Maybe it was because he was saving your life, but it wouldn't be the first time you had been in a life and death situation (not even close, in fact).
It could just be your innate friendship-sense tingling (after all, you were friends with plenty of your students; in a professional sense, of course) but that... didn't feel like the right answer either.
Thankfully, you're distracted from dissecting your feelings further as the water became shallow enough for you both to stand upright in. However, your legs were really failing you in every way as your weight collapsed your knees beneath you.
Thinking that you were about to face plant for the second time that day (and probably with even less favorable results), you're surprised and yet not as his arm tightened around you again, keeping you from eating a mouthful of sand.
"whoa; steady there; ive got you;"
You tried to say thank you, but you're too busy hacking up your lungs (and every other organ it seemed like). He apparently was trying to help by hitting your back, but the only thing that would happen was a matching set of bruises to the ones that would undoubtedly appear on your face and ribs.
He seemed to realize he wasn't helping much as he began to just rub your back instead. You appreciated that even more.
"why the fuck did you jump in if you cant swim;" the troll boy suddenly asked out of nowhere.
Or, well, not out of 'nowhere' because it was an admittedly reasonable question. Damn, you were so bad with those.
"I... didn't want you... to drown--" you wheezed out, the sensation of his hand rubbing your back becoming all the more prominent as the moments passed.
It wasn't warm, even with your sudden dip in temperature, but it was comforting.
Soothing.
"so you thought it = a good idea to drown instead;" he asked skeptically, his eyes even more impossibly blue as he looked at you.
"So... rry..." you gasped out, taking smaller breaths in an attempt to make it easier to get your breathing under control.
Stupid near drowning experience.
He went quiet, lips pursed. You glanced at him, confused at the sudden change in atmosphere.
Or you could just be delirious--that seemed like the likeliest candidate.
The troll boy glanced away. You're about to ask him what's wrong when he spoke up.
"no; im the one who needs to say sorry; if it wasnt for me you wouldnt have jumped in; it = my fault;"
"It's fine," you said, waving him off as your breath finally regulated. Finally, you would think that your body would be a pro at suffering with all the havoc you wreaked on it on a regular basis, but apparently not. "Like I said, meeting you was worth it."
His expression was a cross between someone wanting to protest and so desperately confused that he didn't have the words to say.
Just as he opened his mouth, you shivered, the chill of the wind and cold water catching up quick to your feeble human body.
Oh why couldn't you have some sort of portable space heater that you definitely couldn't afford right now? Though, maybe Jade would lend you one of her impossible inventions that could do that...
The look on the cerulean's face changed and, suddenly, he took his hoodie off. He wasn't wearing a shirt beneath and wow you didn't know that trolls got piercings there--
Flushing, you're about to stammer that you didn't need thanks--whatever form that thanks may be conveyed in--when he thrust the hoodie towards you.
Evidently, the bewilderment on your face must show because he flushed as well.
"it = water resistant so it != as wet; wear it;"
"Don't you need it?" you asked, teeth chattering now in a way that would've disproved any bullshit about you 'not being cold' or something.
Seriously, you're clacking enough to be a tap dancer.
Fuck, you really are more delusional than normal right now.
He shook his head, a semblance of a smile on his face as he pushed the hoodie towards you a bit more eagerly.
"im used to being colder; you are super hot too;" His face lit up even bluer. "i-i mean humans run super hot;"
It made sense, but still... When you continued to hesitate, he scowled. Or, well, it was more of a pout.
Whatever expression it was, it was entirely too cute.
"cmon; dont make it weird;" he insisted, literally placing the fabric over your head when you still don't reply.
It was a good thing that you're probably running a fever because, if you weren't, you knew that there would be no excuse for how red your face was (curse your freakishly pale skin!).
Still, sensing that this was important to him for some reason, you didn't struggle and put your arms up obediently to reach through the proper areas.
Even though you knew that the hoodie would be larger given his size, a part of you felt a bit mortified as your arms barely reached the ends of the sleeves as the bottom of the fabric reached down to your thighs.
Once again, you cursed these genes of tininess from parents you never knew!
"Thanks," you said a bit more confidently as a tentative warmth began to return to your soaked limbs.
You smiled as widely as possible, hoping to convey your gratitude through sheer will alone.
For some reason, the flush on his face only grew.
You were really concerned that he was running a fever too no matter what he said, so, once you could feel your legs a bit better, you ushered him towards your car parked on the bridge.
You had literally stopped in the middle of the road when you had seen him, but it looked like no one had driven by so you guessed it was fine.
Your car wasn't anything fancy (teacher's salary and all... plus all the hospital bills you ended up needing after your various adventures) but heated up right away as you turned it on.
Dave's little brother and your former student, Dirk, had made sure that everything in it ran properly and still did personal checks for you every now and then.
You were more grateful than ever that they had (somewhat) blackmailed you into letting Dirk do work on it. Despite the fact that the troll boy appeared unbothered by the cold, his face was still a deep blue so you didn't want to take any chances.
The ride to his home was quiet after he told you his address. For once, your skills of rambling about anything had abandoned you, but it didn't appear to bother him as he stared out the window.
He seemed deep in thought about something, so you were reluctant to bother him in case he was has having some sort of epiphany or life-changing internal discussion.
Though, it was quite possible that he was thinking about things that would lead him back to that bridge the moment you left him...
Admittedly a bit panicked by the idea, you blurted out, "Do you need a place to stay?"
Obviously startled out of whatever he had been thinking, the cerulean looked at you with a titled head as you rushed to explain yourself.
"If you need or want to somewhere to hang out for a while, I won't ask any personal questions if that's what you're worried about. I swear I'm not a pedophilic creep. Oh, fuck, that's exactly what a pedophilic creep would say wouldn't they and fuck I'm not supposed to swear around kids--"
A burst of laughter interrupted your downhill spiral, your astonishment growing as you watched his smile grow wide and a completely new level of brightness filled his eyes. He gazed at you with an expression you couldn't (wouldn't) read.
"youre really weird arent you;"
It definitely wasn't the first time you had been called that, but it was the first time you've been left speechless. For lack of anything to do beyond shrugging, you returned your gaze to the road with your cheeks warmer than ever.
Again, he doesn't seem bothered, grin growing wider at the corner of your eye.
You dutifully ignored him.
Arriving in front of a housing (hiving?) complex, the two of you were quiet once again. Since he didn't appear to be getting out of the car, you're about to offer for him to stay over at your apartment again when he looked at you again, genuine smile back in full force.
"hey; thanks;"
Another burst of warmth filled you as you grinned. "Anytime!"
As he snorted, you glanced down at your--his hoodie with his sign on it. "Oh, let me take this off--"
"keep it;" he interrupted before you could finish, his grin suddenly sly in a way that you try not to read into; unreasonably flirtatious was probably the phrase for it. "it suits you;"
Before you can reply, a snake lusus slithered out of the complex and towards where your car is parked. You assumed it was the troll boy's lusus because of the way his face simultaneously winced and lit up imperceptibly.
The two of you got out of the car as Snakedad came up to the troll, seeming to scold him if the disgruntled hisses were any sign.
Fortunately, instead of looking more upset, the troll boy only smiled sheepishly and nodded along.
Feeling like an unnecessary third wheel, you backed away towards your car to give them privacy. Evidently, it was the wrong thing to do as a flash of panic filled the troll boy's face and he reached out towards you.
"wait; i... about...;"
Making a split-second decision, you told him to wait there and rushed back to your car. Within seconds, you've grabbed a notepad and pen, scribbled down your private number, and jogged back towards him with the paper slip in hand.
It was a sequence of events you were quite familiar with; after all, once must always be prepared to make friends!
"This is my number," you said, feeling a bit foolish because that was probably obvious.
Who else were you going to give him a number for?
Well, you supposed you could have hooked him up with Rose's favorite teen psychiatrist that you pointed many of your troubled students towards...
Or Karkat's number to see if he could help with finding the troll boy a future that would fit him best...
Maybe even a number to call Jade to get free tickets to the next Skaianet exhibit since you had a feeling he'd like robotics for some reason...
Fuck, with all those better options, your number seemed so inferior.
"If you need anything," you continued, pushing down your ever-increasing regrets. "Call me. Even if it's just to talk or get away or text me funny memes, I'll be there."
He gaped at you, jaw slightly open even as he tentatively took the paper slip, so slow as if he thought you were going to pull it back like some sort of weird variation of whack-a-mole--but where you were the mole trying to avoid getting hit. It was a bad metaphor, admittedly, but so was your reasoning. You also blamed it on the oncoming sickness sure to happen after your little dip in the river.
"Seriously," you said, even though you think you got the point across. "I'll be like a robot, answering so much that you won't know what to think."
Slowly, that flirty smile from before formed on his face and he leaned in closer. "So... guess that means you're my personal robobuddy now?"
Abort.
ABORT.
Without further ado (and your face hot enough that you felt like it could fry an egg), you stammered an affirmative and rushed into your car.
He didn't call you back over again, so you felt safe (and a bit... forlorn?) to drive away.
Once you were home, you peeled off the soaking wet clothes and threw them to places unknown (except the hoodie... that you carefully placed on the couch with a mental note to clean it as soon as possible).
Exhausted and ravenously hungry, you made your way to your kitchen and resigned yourself to warming up leftover pizza.
Again.
Even after all your years of living alone, your culinary skills had yet to properly develop (you partially blamed the Crocker/Egbert Family since they kept giving you food every week). It was a shame because you'd really been banking on the ability to do your taxes and being responsible would magically appear the moment you reached legal adulthood.
Television and social media had lied to you yet again!
It was only while sitting down on your couch, watching another rerun of Troll Shark Tank (except, when they failed to convince the investors to buy, they were thrown into literal shark tanks...), that you realized that you had failed to learn the troll boy's name.
o0o0o0o
Unsurprisingly, you developed a cold from your little "swim". You spent the next few days stuck in bed delirious one moment and then back to one hundred percent the next.
Nothing could keep you down for long!
During said time, you had gotten dozens of messages from your various friends and students (both current and former) that filled you with happiness, but there was nothing from any unknown numbers.
You were... a bit disappointed, and maybe even a little worried, but there was nothing you could do but hope that your mysterious troll boy was doing alright.
That said, you're a bit frazzled when you arrived at Skaia Academy for your first day back after the impromptu sick leave. You're almost late to your own class as Headmaster Egbert stopped you in the hallway, confirming for the tenth time that you were feeling better, reminding you that he'd be bringing you even MORE homemade chicken soup with Jane later, while informing you that you had a last-minute transfer student.
As you rushed through the halls, you contemplated how odd it was to get a transfer student this late in senior year. You supposed that it happened (especially with military families), but with only a semester left, it may be more difficult for him or her or them to make new friends and figure out their after-school options.
You resolved to spend even more time to them find their way!
Bursting into your homeroom like you were the Kool-Aid Man (though, with a significant lack of architectural damage), you froze as you came nearly face-to-face with a familiar face standing in front of your class.
It was the "new student" spot (unless Headmaster Egbert honesty hadn't expected you back today and your substitute was even younger than you) so you instantly knew that he had to be the transfer student.
"hey teach;" the troll boy said, not even looking at the class.
At that moment, you knew you were doomed.
How you were doomed, you weren't sure and should probably consult Sollux about it, but you definitely doomed.
"i = mallek adalov;" he continued, smile cheeky and cobalt-blue eyes still intent on you. "i look forward to being here;"