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. . .
Karl felt a shiver run down his spine and he instinctively pulled his coat tighter to his body with his free hand. He pressed his dominant hand to his chest where a bouquet of flowers was being clutched tightly in its white wrapping paper. The wind was especially cold today, the claws of winter beginning to take hold in the transition from fall to the snowy months.
The cobblestone path under his feet clicked satisfyingly, it was only a little longer and at the top of the hill was his destination. His painted fingernails fiddling with the base of his turtle neck, he pulled it up over his mouth in an attempt to keep his lips from becoming ice cubes. The sound of the yellow leaves fluttering in the trees above signaled another gust of wind
'Almost there.' He thought to himself, looking around at the familiar surroundings of the tombstones lined up neatly in their perfect rows. His feet abruptly turned to the right, remembering this path like clockwork, and he strode down a specific row of stones only to stop in front of a rather old-looking one.
Karl's lips turned down into a frown at the sight of some of the leaves that had fallen onto the slate tombstone, leaning over to brush them off haphazardly. He glanced around at his surroundings and seeing not another soul, he decided to speak.
"Hey dad, sorry I'm a little late. I missed the first bus, Grayson insisted that I study a little more." He explained, kneeling down in front of the stone and carefully replacing the old, dying bouquet in the vase beside it with the fresh one. "It's coming up on the final exams and I'm very nervous about my calculus. It doesn't help that Mr. Burns marks harder than any other teacher there."
Karl chuckled at the thought of his teacher and sighed deeply at the upcoming end of the first semester.
"Mom's been doing well, still working hard as ever. I swear she never sleeps sometimes. Sean and Corry are doing just fine too, they are very busy though." Karl continued on, fiddling with his scarf and continuing to look around at his surroundings. "Everyone is...doing alright." There was a vibration in his jean pocket, causing him to straighten up to a standing position and he managed to shift out his phone.
He poked the black phone screen and it lit up, displaying a text message. Karl processed the information before shoving it back into his jeans before the cold nipped at his hands, the sun had already begun to set causing his breath to appear in a cloud in front of him.
"It's mom, dinner's in an hour," Karl said, his brown eyes staring down at the grave with a stony expression on his face. "I'll be back again next week, dad, I'll stay a little longer next time. I love you." He rested an ungloved hand onto the cold, hard stone and he took a deep breath before letting go, turning away to walk back the way he came.
It was then a large gust of wind, sending shivers down his back and spine. Karl's eyes squinted at the harsh wind and he held up a sleeved arm to shield his eyes from the onslaught, it was then something caught on his foot. He peeked down and saw a bright yellow scarf had managed to wrap itself around his right leg, Karl managing to grab it before it blew away.
He looked over the garment in his hand thoughtfully, it was bright greenish-yellow and quite long but the big difference was the white smiley face on one end of it. Karl's eyes narrowed at it curiously, looking around for anyone who could've lost such a thing until his eyes fell upon a nearby grave.
The tombstone was a few down from his father's and had a matching dull green hat being held down by a large rock. Karl's eyebrows narrowed and he carefully walked over to the gravestone, the scarf being held firmly in his right hand to make sure it didn't blow away. The grave looked a lot more polished and newer than the others around it, but there were no flowers or anything else on the tombstone other than the hat and presumably the scarf.
Karl scowered around the grave for something to pin the scarf down next to the hat, finding a decent-sized stone that did the trick. He pulled away from the stone once everything was fashioned, his eyes reading over the name carved into the marble. 'Clay...' He thought to himself, running the name of his tongue.
There was this odd sense of sadness that washed over Karl at the sight of the grave, there were no flowers or memory items of any kind. Other than the scarf and the hat of course, but compared to the other tombstones in the graveyard this one was just so bare in comparison.
Karl glanced over at his father's grave and made his way back to it slowly, the large bouquet of flowers he had staring back at him proudly. He carefully plucked a carnation from the wide arrange of flowers, finding that the missing one luckily didn't affect the arrangement in the slightest.
His fingertips were freezing at this point and he could feel the icy chill beginning to worm it's way through his warm clothing. Karl gently placed the carnation onto the base of the tombstone, making sure to trap the end of it under one of the rocks to make sure it didn't blow away.
He stood back and stared for a few moments before he turned and started back the way he came. If anyone asked Karl why he did what he did, he wouldn't have a concrete answer. It may be that he felt pity for the lonely person who the grave belonged too and he just wanted to show that at least someone would bring them flowers. It may be that he just wanted to feel good about doing something thoughtful, do something his father would be proud of.
Regardless of it all, Karl walked out of the graveyard toward the bus stop where he'd get on a bus and take it all the way home. He shoved his hands into his coat pockets and he leaned against the streetlight pole while he waited, he managed to resist the urge to pull out his phone else it would freeze his hands further.
The next bus came after fifteen minutes, just like Karl had done every Sunday for the past few years. He pulled out his bus pass from his opposite pocket and readied it as the public transit screeched to a halt in front of him, the doors opening after a moment. Before he managed to get on, a person stepped out of the bus and nearly bumped into Karl.
"Sorry." A male voice apologized, brushing past Karl and causing him to catch a glance at the stranger. He was taller than the man and noted the black baseball cap resting on his head that matched the black jacket around his shoulders. Karl merely muttered a small 'it's okay' in response and climbed onto the bus quickly to avoid the interaction entirely.
Karl showed his bus pass to the driver who simply nodded solemnly to him and he quickly found an empty seat. It was obvious that very few people came to the graveyard at this time and there were only three other passengers on the bus aside from himself. The bus lurched and jerked around as it started to move and the warmth inside was extremely welcomed.
The golden sun cast shadows on the interior, causing the outlines of the trees to dance on the farthest wall as they passed. Karl looked out the window behind him as the passing world was lost in a blur and his mind fell in on itself, thinking about whatever came to mind but never remaining on one thought for too long.
Karl fidgeted with the sleeves of his jacket, pulling them in different ways. Soon enough, he'd be home in the warmth and comfort of his house with the familiar presence of his family. But, for the past few years, he always felt like he was forgetting a key member of his family back in the graveyard. To him, home never did feel the same after that.
. . .
Karl stretched his arms over his head and yawned tiredly, the horrible chair digging into his lower back uncomfortably. The bell was about to ring and another day of school was about to be out. He rested his chin in the palm of his sleeved hand, his eyes looking toward the blackboard where next week's work was written neatly in cursive—he hated English.
His friend Alex sat beside him, scrolling through his phone waiting for the bell to sound the same as him.
"We hanging out after school tomorrow?" He asked suddenly, pulling Karl out of his thoughts instantly.
"Huh? Sure, I'll ask my mom if you can stay for dinner if you want." Karl responded, shifting in his desk and mentally sighing as the discomfort only increasing. "It's Wednesday though, casserole day." Alex's nose scrunched up at the thought and he considered the notion of sitting through another dinner of a mediocre pile of meat and vegetables.
"Yeah, I'll bring a pizza over though. She doesn't mind if we eat it in the basement right?"
"She lets Sean, so I don't see why not. Just come through the basement door just in case." Karl said the image of his angry mother flittering through his mind and Alex chuckled, thinking the same thing clearly. "I don't want to make her mad."
"Cool."
At that exact moment, the bell rang loudly in the English classroom and everyone stood up abruptly from their seats—bags being slung over shoulders and textbooks being placed into arms. Miss Garfield sat at her desk in the corner of her room, wishing students a good day and she managed to get a few in response.
Karl and Alex followed the stream of people out into the hallways, conversing between themselves about whether they wanted to play Jackbox with the rest of their friends that night. Alex decided against it, apparently, his mother was getting upset with him at his previous grades and was making him finish the new Math assignment early.
Karl decided that pushing the assignment until tomorrow night was better than missing hanging out with his friends.
The two of them made it to their lockers, the two only separated by a few lockers down, and quickly started loading their items into packsacks. Alex finishing up before Karl so he stood leaning against the nearest locker to him while he finished putting his binder into his bag and the two just talking about the day.
"I heard that there's a new kid moving in," Alex said, piquing Karl's interest and he looked toward him curiously. "Tommy was talking about how one of his mother's friends are moving in from another town." Karl hummed at the mention, the high school he attended was small and everyone knew pretty much everything about the goings-on.
"The new kid isn't going to Hadsfield in the city?" Karl asked, their rival school coming into mind.
"Nope, apparently they are moving here to get away from that," Alex answered, Karl finding it hard to believe that anyone would want to move and send their kid here—sure there were good people and some cool teachers, but this school was sort of falling apart. He zipped up his bag and slung it over his shoulder, the two making their way down the hallway.
The two continued to walk through the ocean of people toward the bus patio, finding and chatting with a few friends they found along the way. Alex becoming engrossed in a quite loud conversation between him and Tommy, leaving Karl and Tubbo to chat with each other about random things.
Soon enough, Tommy and Tubbo split from them and walked toward the main entrance—they were lucky enough to get picked up. But, it wasn't long until they stumbled upon some more of their friends, Wilbur, Techno, and a few others. The group worked their way down the stairs and out onto the patio where a cue of busses was waiting.
Karl quickly hopped on the bus, saying goodbye to his friends, and taking a seat near the back of the yellow bus. The smell of the leather seats and exhaust making Karl's nostrils burn ever so slightly, his sleeve rubbing his tickling nose. He placed his backpack between his feet and placed his headphones in, thumbing through his phone.
The bus lurched forward a few minutes later, Karl staring out the window and waving to a few of his friends still waiting on their buses.
At this point in the day, Karl just wanted to be home. He couldn't understand why someone would want to move here, nothing happened and soon enough—just like Jimmy who had left for University—he would leave eventually. He just needed another few months, then he could get out of here.
. . .
Karl had sent a quick message to his mom, he was just going to stop by to see dad before he came home—it was Sunday she knew the routine at this point. She responded after a few minutes with a simple, 'alright, dinner will be on the counter for you.' He clutched the bouquet of flowers in his non-dominant hand.
The bus came to a screeching halt, picking up a few more people from the stop and a few more got off. Karl's body was jerked about and he would've fallen off his chair if he wasn't used to the buses, but luckily for him, he'd grown accustomed to it. He reached up and pulled the wire hanging above his head, signaling to the drive he would get off at the next stop.
It was then Karl pulled his coat tighter around him in preparation of getting off, the wind was chilly today more so than last week when he was here so he decided to bust out his winter jacket from the basement closet. He watched the passing houses, stores, and parks pass by until they all dwindled out and all that was left were dark evergreen trees.
The bus slowed to a halt in front of the bench and the rock wall entrance to the graveyard. Karl being the only person to stand up from his seat and the bus driver opened the doors for him, the cold wind greeting him with an icy kiss. Instinctively, he pulled his face down into the collar of his jacket.
He stepped off the bus and checked the time, the next bus would be here in the next hour so to pick him back up. Karl shoved his phone and hand back into the safety and warmth of his pocket, his other hand would have to suffer in the cold until he saw his dad.
His feet promptly started him on the same path he usually took, up the hill around the corner, and then he was there. His feet clicked satisfying against the cobblestone path, the rocks were rather slippery today from the thin layer of frost covering them. But there was a determination about him, he was going to keep his word to his father.
Karl turned down the path and the rows of gravestones looked rather sad this time of year, all the flowers loved ones left behind were brown or dying. The paper of the bouquet crinkled slightly and he hadn't noticed how hard he was squeezing it, his feet stopped in front of one gravestone.
His eyes glanced down at the same tombstone he had passed on his way out last time, the neatly written name of Clay was written on it's face. Karl frowned lightly at the sight of the flower he had placed before was gone, but the same hat and scarf still sat proudly under the same rock as before.
Without much thought, he took a flower out from his father's bouquet and placed it down onto the grave—remembering to place a rock on it so it wouldn't blow away. At this, a ghost of a smile dotted his face and he nodded down to the gravestone. 'Whoever you were, you still deserve a flower.'
He walked forward, passing by a few more headstones until he found the familiar grave with the dying flowers still resting in a vase. Karl carefully picked up the dying flowers, figuring he'd dispose of them on the way out of the graveyard, and placed the new ones into the weighed vase.
"Hey dad, it's been a long week. I'm happy it's a PD tomorrow or else I don't know if I would show up." Karl said, chuckling softly as he knelt down to stare eye to eye with the headstone. "Everything's been going okay, I'm really stressed about exams in the next two weeks."
He paused for a moment before looking up at the sky, his eyes watering against the cold air.
"I wish you were here, I just want to hear what you would say to me. Probably just give me a pat on the back, but mom doesn't do them the way you used to." Karl said through a horribly cracking voice, his eyes turning back down to the stone and only silence answered him.
"I miss you dad. Mom says it gets better with time. It's been five years and I still can't seem to figure it out. I just- It's so-" Karl couldn't seem to find his words, they seemed to get stuck in his throat and choked him into silence. He looked upward into the heavens, his eyes watered but the tears refused to fall.
"I'm sorry, told myself I wouldn't cry," Karl said, wiping his eye away with his sleeve and wincing at the numbing feeling creeping into his cheeks. "It seems like everyone else's moved on. They all seem fine. They all seem better off than me." There was nothing he gained in response, no words, no comforting talk, and all that he got in response was the rustling of the leaves trees.
He looked down at his feet and wiped his nose on his sleeve, all of the cold was getting to him.
Karl stayed at the grave for another hour or so, he didn't speak. He didn't feel the need to. He just stood, or crouched, or adjusted the flowers in the vase. The wind was getting progressively louder and soon enough was howling in the trees above, it was then Karl considered it was time to leave.
"I'll see you later dad, I'll see you next week," Karl said, picking up the old, dead bouquet in his free hand and he forced a fake smile. "I miss you. Goodbye." He quickly turned on his heel and walked down the rows of the gravestones at a quickened pace, his head refusing to look over his shoulder one last time.
He braced himself as another gust of wind blasted the side of his face, Karl using his other hand to tighten his jacket around his slim form. Karl's brown hair was blown into his eyes and he blinked repeatedly trying to get the strands out of his face, it tickled his nose. His eyes looked down at the ground under his feet, squinting against the current of air.
He wasn't looking where he was going until his body collided with a solid mass, Karl's feet getting slipped up on the frosted cobblestone. The dead flowers scattered all around on the path, his backside colliding with the ground and he placed his wrist down to break his fall. The explosion of pain from his hand caused him to grunt.
Karl clutched his injured wrist to chest, his eyes looking up at whatever he bumping into to find a man standing over him.
"Hello? Are you alright?" The male voice asked him, Karl looking up to see the face of a young man looking down at him. "I'm sorry. Are you okay?" Karl nodded his head meekly and he used his non-injured hand to push himself off the ground, his eyes staring a bit at the scattered dead flowers around them.
"I'm alright, I wasn't looking where I was going," Karl said, his signature laugh escaping his lips and he tried to brighten the throbbing pain in his wrist. "I should be the one apologizing." The man looked down at the wrist he was clutching to his chest, guilt swirled in the stranger's brown eyes.
"You hurt your wrist," The stranger observed, Karl wincing as he attempted to wiggle his wrist.
"Yeah, it's probably only sprained. I landed on it when I tripped." Karl said, holding his injured arm and tried moving it around warily. "It's fine, I'll wrap it. It'll be fine." The stranger looked around at the flowers scattering at their feet, his brown eyes narrowing slightly at the sight of them being dead.
"Sorry about your flowers, dude."
"Don't worry about it, they're dead anyway. I'm Karl by the way."
"Names Nick, nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you Nick, sorry for bumping into you."
Karl eyes studied the new acquaintance, he looked younger than him but not by much and had rough stubble around his chin. He wore a black baseball cap and matching black jacket, Karl wondering if he'd seen him before and vaguely remembering an image of a similar looking man who he saw sometimes around the graveyard.
"I have a bus to catch, you heading the same way?" Karl asked, pointing over Nick's shoulder down the path and the man shook his head.
"No, I still have to...visit someone. But, you have a good one man."
"You too, see you around."
"Sorry about your wrist, I hope it feels better."
"Thank you," Karl responded, waving goodbye to this new stranger and walking down toward the bus stop. He could feel eyes on his back for a few paces until he looked over his shoulder to find Nick looking at him before he averted his gaze and continued walking up the path. Karl looked back in front of him, still clutching his sore and throbbing wrist close to his chest and found that the cold helped ease the pain.
He was curious about this stranger, but the screeching wheels of the stopping bus in front of him lurched him out of his thoughts. Karl would have to think about it later, right now, he needed to find out whether or not his wrist was broken or not.
. . .
To Karl, his room was his sanctuary. It was the place where he could be by himself, to enjoy the things he liked, without the interference of any of his friends or family. Of course, he loved said family and friends but it could all be overwhelming at times and he honestly just needed a break from it all sometimes.
The fingers of his left hand-typed away at his PC keyboard, his fingers tapping rhythmically on the keys, and his eyes scanning over the screen. He took a deep inhale of air and leaned back in his swivel chair, using his leg to spin himself around absentmindedly. Karl had been trying to get a grasp on his English essay due on Friday and it already was Thursday, but he was having trouble with just one hand.
His eyes looked down at the black splint around his right hand, keeping it firmly in place. He needed to keep it on for another two weeks, the doctor had told him in the ER yesterday, and he would have to get through exam season with only one hand much to his dismay.
There was a ping from his phone facedown on his desk, causing him to stop twirling around and pick it up. Karl's eyes focused on a text message, the familiar name of Alex popping up on his screen. It was the same old thing, Alex had sent him a meme or something and it was just how their friendship was.
Karl unlocked his phone and opened the message in the app, his eyes reading over the message. It in fact, wasn't a cringey meme his friend had found but rather Alex was telling him about his new neighbors across the street. Apparently, Alex's mom forced him to help them move their stuff into the garage.
He glanced toward his closed blinds before responding by sending a meme and texting back a quick 'that sucks.'
Alex texted back within a few seconds, a crying emoji and a simple question of 'are we hanging out tomorrow' was all he said. Karl paused for a moment and thought about tomorrow, there was a brief moment where he considered telling his friend that he wasn't able too. But, after some more thought, Karl relented and texted back 'yeah, I'll get on your bus with you afterschool.'
Alex texted back quickly a simple 'awesome dude.'
Karl placed his phone back down on his desk and leaned back in his chair, spinning around by using his foot to push off the floor. His tranquility was interrupted by the sound of a knock at his door and he halted his swiveling immediately, looking toward the door over his shoulder.
"Karl, mom wants to see you." The voice of Corry was slightly muffled by the door between them, but he could still hear her clear as day.
"Alright, be right down." He responded back, standing up from his seat and pocketing his phone into his jeans. Form the floor creaking, Karl assumed Corry had walked away and he opened the door hastily, his grey eyes peeked out into the hallway. The floorboards under his feet were cold and he instinctively shivered when his bare feet touched the wood.
He trotted his way down the stairs and into the kitchen where his mom was waiting for him. She was cleaning up the kitchen after dinner and wiping down the stove as he approached. Karl shifted his weight onto one foot and leaned against the door frame, watching the tensed shoulders of his mom.
"You wanted to see me mom?" Karl asked allowed, his mom turning around swiftly and throwing the rag she had been using into the sink.
"Yes, how's your wrist feeling? Do you need more Tylenol?" She asked, taking a minute to pause in her cleaning.
"It's okay, it's a bit sore." Karl said, bringing up his wrist and turning it over—his eyes moving over his splint.
"Alright, there's some in the cabinet in the bathroom if you need. I already told Corry and Sean this, but we are going for dinner at my friend's house tomorrow, they just moved in." His mom explained, wetting the cloth again and wiping down the counter. Karl's lips pursed at the news before he nodded his head along with the next words that left his mouth.
"Alex mentioned someone moving in across the street from his house, that them?" He asked curiously, pulling out his phone and bringing up his and Alex's text message thread. Karl quickly typing a message to him explaining that he could only hang out for a bit tomorrow.
"Yes, it's on Younge Street," His mom chuckled and dunked the rag into the water again before she walked over to the dining room table. "As far as I know they are the only family moving in, it's a small town." Karl hummed with his mother's words in agreement, the people who lived here hardly ever left this part of town.
"Yeah, I know. What time we heading over?"
"Around five." She answered simply, wiping the wooden table down with the rag.
"Alright, is it okay if I head over to Alex's after school? I'll be there for dinner." Karl's mom gave him a look that made him raise his hands in defense. "It's right across the street." She sighed before nodding her head reluctantly and she shooed her son away from the kitchen, Karl taking his leave back to his room.
Tomorrow would be interesting to say the least and he was interested in finding out what it would hold.
. . .
"You're heading over to the new kid's house?" Alex asked, he was sprawled out on the basement couch with his legs propped up on the cushioned arm. Karl was sitting in one of the bean bag chairs leaning against the wall, his finger scrolling through Twitter absentmindedly.
"My mom knows his mom." Karl replied, resting his head against the cool wall. "Invited us to dinner and stuff. You know his name?" A gaming controller rested in Alex's hand and he pressed the buttons feverishly on whatever game he was playing, but he managed to nod his head as an answer.
"Yeah, his name is Nick. He's younger than us, I think." Alex explained, nearly throwing his controller down on the ground when he died in-game and groaned dramatically. "Damn it."
"Wait, his name is Nick?" Karl asked, the image of the man he bumped into in the graveyard on Sunday. Alex nodded his head in confirmation, his hands clicking and hitting buttons on his controller as he tried again in his game.
"Yeah, why? You know him?"
"I bumped into a guy with the same name," Karl explained, looking down at his splint again and contemplating if it was the same one.
"You think it's the same guy as the one on Sunday?" Alex asked, his eyes remaining trained on the TV screen in front of him.
"Maybe, I don't know anyone else named Nick around here."
Karl looked up at his friend and checked his phone for the time, it was nearing five at this point. A notification sound expressing he got a message from his mom saying they had just gotten to her friend's house and he took that as his cue to head over. It was either show up now or endure the wrath of his mother.
"I'm going to head over then to his house, just across the street right?" Karl asked, standing up from his seat and brushing his hoodie free of pringle crumbs. Alex took a few chips from a bag sitting on the floor beside the couch and shoved them into his mouth.
"Yeah, it's the white house. I'll see you tomorrow. Text me after if you want to play something." Alex asked bluntly, his voice was muffled from the chip crumbs and Karl paused for a moment before responding. "Schlatt wants to play Jackbox again."
"Yeah, I'll text you when I get home. I'll see you later." Karl said, slinging his backpack over his shoulder and making his way over to the basement door. Alex muttered his goodbyes and waved to his friend from the couch, scrolling through his Xbox looking for another game to play and probably die at.
Karl stepped out from the basement door and climbed the steps up until he was on the lawn, he took a deep inhale of breath. The air was cold and stung his lungs when he breathed in, but he welcomed the fresh air rather than the damp musty smell of Alex's basement. He mentally cursed himself for forgetting his scarf at home and crossed his arms close to his body in an attempt to keep any amount of body heat.
He searched around for the white house Alex mentioned and found it difficult as the sun had lowered over the horizon, the only light now coming from the street lamps lining up and down the street. But, when he reached the end of the driveway and the sidewalk, he found a rather small white house with his mom's car sitting in the driveway.
Karl walked towards the house, texting his siblings if he was approaching the right house because he was unsure.
Corry texted back with a simple 'it's the one with the large black truck outside of it.' With that simple observation, Karl assumed and prayed that it was the correct house because the one little ways down the street looked very similar. But, as he passed by what he assumed to be his mother's car he saw the picture of him and his siblings hanging from the mirror—his anxiety was placed to rest.
He walked up the front steps of the porch and quietly walked up to the door, knocking on the door with his non-injured hand.
There was a pause where nothing happened, but soon enough the door was opened and Karl's back straightened to greet the person on the other side. Instead, he was greeted with the familiar face of Nick who seemed just as surprised to see Karl as he was to see Nick. In an instant, all the words left his mouth and they stared at each other in slight shock.
So Alex was right in their suspicion, it was the same person as on Sunday.
"Nick, whose at the door?" The sound of a woman's voice called out, soon a middle-aged woman was standing behind Nick and peeking over his shoulder. "Oh, you must be Karl! Please come in, come in! Your mother said you'd be here." She ushered him inside, past Nick who closed the door behind him—Karl assumed this woman was Nick's mother.
"Hello, I hope I wasn't too late to the party," Karl said, managing to find his words again and Nick's mother just laughed softly.
"No, no. You're just in time." She said, placing a hand on Nick's shoulder once he turned around. "Karl, I don't believe you've met my son Nick." He looked at Nick and the two shared a knowing glance with each other, they both knew that was a complete lie and that they had met only a few days before.
"Um, it's nice to meet you, Nick," Karl said, holding out his hand for him to shake and nervously hiding his injured, splinted arm behind him as best he could. Nick stared at him for a moment before taking his hand and shaking it firmly.
"It's nice to meet you too, dude."
"Now, right this way you two. Dinner is about to be served!"
The dinner went according to plan, for the most part, Nick's parents welcomed him to the table with happy smiles along with Nick's siblings. His own mother breathed a sigh of relief of seeing that he was on time and his siblings were already bickering with each other about something or the other.
Karl seated himself at one of the free chairs at the table and much to his worsening anxiety, Nick sat down in the empty seat beside him.
The dinner was uneventful, Karl answered questions when they were directed at him and joined in the conversations with his siblings. But, he left most of the talking with Nick's family to his mom. After the main course was served and mentions of possible dessert, Nick's parents turned to him and Nick.
"Karl are you able to go with Nick and get dessert from the basement freezer?" Nick's mom asked sweetly, Karl glancing toward Nick who had been mostly silent throughout the entire dinner and nodding his head with a smile. He was going to be alone with Nick and he already felt the anxiety creeping into his chest.
"Sure! I don't mind." He said, only standing up after Nick stood up from his seat quietly and he walked toward a set of stairs leading down to an unseen basement. Karl followed behind quickly and he could hear his siblings snickering behind him, causing him to glare at them over his shoulder.
He followed Nick down the stairs and Karl was unsure of where to start the conversation.
"Is your wrist doing okay?" Nick said suddenly, catching Karl off guard and he fiddled with the hem of his sweater sleeve. He watched him turn on the basement lights and walked toward a large white freezer in the corner, Karl getting a chance to glance around the basement. It was a large one, with couches, a TV, shelves filled with trinkets, and reminded him of Alex's basement.
"Y-Yeah, it's fine. It's only a sprain, not broken or anything." He said, mentally cursing himself for how quickly he said all of it. Nick opened the freezer lid and reached inside, Karl approaching him unsurely from behind and still fiddling with his sleeve. "You're coming to Evergarden right?"
"Yeah, I've been in online school for the past semester. I'm transferring after this semester's exams are done." Nick explained, turning around with a pie in his hands and holding it out for Karl to take. He held the cold pie in his hands awkwardly, looking down curiously at it and wondering what type it was.
"I think you'll like it there, it's small and the teachers are nice," Karl observed, he watched Nick reach into the freezer and pulled out an ice cream cake and closed the freezer lid. "I'm surprised though you didn't go to Hadsfield." Nick turned around, ice cream cake in hand, he was an enigma for Karl to read.
"That's where I used to go, but Evergarden is closer," Nick said, brushing past Karl and already heading up the stairs back up to where the sounds of their families laughing could be heard. "Come on, we'd better bring these to the kitchen." Karl followed after Nick after looking around the basement, his hands slowly numbing from the ice cream pie in his hands.
He contemplated asking him about the air of awkwardness surrounding them, but he assumed there was an unspoken agreement about it. Their first actual meeting was tonight and not in the graveyard that past Sunday, Karl agreeing that was the best course of action and he shoved the incident to the back of his mind.
But, for an odd reason, the skin protected by his splint itched irritatingly as he climbed the stairs after Nick.
. . .
Karl was sitting in his room texting back and forth with Alex, his right hand holding his phone and his left pressing send to the last message. He sighed and plopped his phone down beside him on his bed, he moved his right hand in a few circles—it was still slightly stiff from the splint he had taken off a few days ago.
The ping of a notification caused him to pick his phone up, the screen lighting up and showing a message from Nick. Karl smiled to himself and quickly opened the message, finding a simple 'i'm almost there' from his friend. The two had grown into pretty good friends in the past few weeks.
Karl had survived exams with no help from Alex and plenty of studying with Grayson, the new semester starting in a few days after the weekend. He'd passed his classes with a normal seventy-five percent, which his mother was quite happy with, and he would honestly take it.
He texted back 'cool, see you soon.'
Karl placed his phone into his hoodie pocket and pushed himself off his bed, he would be lying if he said he wasn't excited. Nick was coming over to hang out and he was very excited since he had agreed to let Karl pain his nails for the first time. Karl had wiped off his signature black nails and repainted them with bright colors for the very occasion.
He opened the door to his room and made his way downstairs to the living room to wait for Nick. He flopped onto the couch downstairs and his mother passed by, pausing for a moment at the sight of him actually sitting in the living room. She was carrying a load of laundry in her arms and she placed the basket down.
"Hey bud, is Nick going to be here soon?" She asked and Karl looked up from his phone with a smile.
"Yeah, he's almost here. We're probably going to hang out in my room." Karl said, looking back down at his phone and scrolling through Twitter—waiting for a text saying that he had arrived. "Is he good to stay for dinner?" His mom's expression softened and she smiled happily, picking up her basket.
"Of course, Sean's sleeping over at one of his friend's house. Corry's out until five so dinner will be around then." His mother said, Karl responding with a simple alright and she disappeared around the corner and out of sight. Karl kept looking down at his phone and soon enough, a notification appeared.
He didn't get the chance to read it at all, and he jumped up from his spot on the couch, speeding toward the door.
Karl opened the door within seconds and smiled brightly at the sight of Nick walking up the driveway, a car that supposedly dropped him off driving down the street. He waved to his friend and had to stop his cat, Gray, from speeding out of the house, instead, picking him up and using his paw to wave to his friend.
Nick looked up at the door opening and smiled shyly at the level of enthusiasm Karl was expressing.
He placed Gray down onto the ground and shooed him away from the entrance to allow Nick inside, shutting the door behind him afterward. Karl's mother coming up from the basement and greeting Nick with a smile, a freshly dried pile of laundry in her arms.
"Hello, Nick." She said with a gentle smile, her eyes flashing toward Karl's smiling face before she left the two alone.
"Come on, I have all the nail polish ready. You get to pick which colors of course." Karl said with brewing excitement, herding his friend upstairs to his room and Nick followed after with a laugh. "Mom said you can also stay for dinner if you want. I don't know what we're having though."
"All good dude, I'm not that picky." Nick shrugged his shoulders.
Karl led Nick into his room, he had taken the time to tidy and dust things off for the first time in a long time. He directed Nick to sit down while Karl grabbed the nail polish remover from his shelf and sat down, the two just talked—about school and how Nick would be starting the semester on Moday.
"You nervous?" Karl asked, looking at Nick's expression as he shoved some of the nail polish towards him.
"Yeah." He couldn't help but laugh and he patted Nick's hand affectionately. "Well if I don't like it, the nail polish remover is right here."
"Yeah, if you really don't like it you can just take it off." Karl said, patting his friends hand on the desk like pair of bongos and gestured to the nail polish bottles. "Well, go ahead and pick which ones." Nick looked at the bottles and pointed toward the black inky bottle of nail polish, Karl picking it up within seconds.
"You're gonna look great, it's gonna be a good look." Karl encouraged judging from the nervous facial expression on his friend's face. "It's okay, it's gonna be great." His hands undid the lid of the bottle and wiped the excess polish on the side of the bottle's lip, the smooth liquid staring back at him.
"Holy cow, it's a wet one." Karl said giggling to himself and readying the brush to begin painting Nick's index finger. "Alright, you ready?"
"Mhm." Was Nick's only response, the nerves in his voice making Karl laugh as he leaned over his friend's hand—he needed to make sure it looked good enough and clean.
"Alright, we going in." Karl announced, leaning over Nick's hand beginning to dab globs of polish onto his fingernails. "See it's not that bad, it's all fine." Nick remained silent until he chuckled under his breath, the two of them laughing in unison as Karl tried to keep his hand steady.
It wasn't long until the first nail was done and he began moving onto the next ones until his hand slipped, getting black polish on the sides of his finger. 'It was going so well,' He thought to himself with a sigh, pausing for a moment and allowing Nick to get a glance at his mistake.
"You messed it up," Nick said, Karl looking at him with large eyes before he continued and shrugged it off.
"It's fine, I'll fix it. That's what the remover is for, silly." Karl said, nudging him with his shoulder and continuing where he left off. "You want the same colors on the other hand? You should pick new ones out." Nick eyes scanned over the other brighter colors of nail polish as Karl finished his left hand with a few swift dabs onto his pinky finger.
"There. Holy cow, first hand is done! Look at that!" Karl announced with glee, pulling away and letting Nick look at his nails thoughtfully.
"Hm." Nick hummed, looking at his left hand with an interested gaze. "I think I'll stick to the black."
"All good, I'll have the colors then." He said with a smile, his hands carefully placing his right hand onto the desk so he could begin. "Spread out your fingers, gimmie." Nick watched quietly, as he usually did, but he did as Karl requested and spread his fingers out so none of the nail polish would smear.
The next few minutes consisted of talking about Nick's future spent at Evergarden and whether or not he was looking forward to it. Karl had already introduced him to Alex and a few other of his friends like Ranboo when they hung out after exams. He was so happy to find that Nick was settling in and that he wouldn't be totally alone on his first day—after all, he had Karl to help him.
He finished the next hand and pulled away with a large grin, placing the nail polish brush back into it's jar.
"There we go! It looks good, it looks great!" Karl announced happily, waiting for Nick's reaction as he studied his painted black nails. "First impressions, what are ya thinking looking at your nails?" He clasped his hands together in front of him, waiting for Nick to break the silence and he nearly laughed at the small smile on Nick's face.
"I like them, I don't know if they suit me though," Nick said, Karl pointing toward the mirror hanging on the wall. He stood up from his seat and flashed his hands in front of his reflection in the mirror, Karl watching him the desk with his hand resting on his sleeved hand.
"I think they look great. You should keep them." Karl observed, pulling out his phone at the sound of a notification going off, and saw a message from Alex wondering what he was doing that day. He texted back that he was hanging out with Nick and he paused for a moment to consider he should invite him over.
"I was thinking about inviting Alex over, that good with you?" Karl asked, Nick looking at him through the reflection of the mirror and he noted something flashed in his eyes before he nodded his head—responding with a simple 'sure, that'd be cool.'
Karl nodded his head and texted Alex the question before standing up from his seat and shoving his phone back into his pocket.
"You want some chips? I'm sure we have something in the pantry," He said brushing past Nick who stiffened slightly as his shoulder touched his own, Karl noting that he was taller than Nick by a substantial amount. "Come on." His friend followed him after flashing his nails in the mirror.
Karl received another text from Alex and checked it while the two thumped down the stairs toward the kitchen. He had responded with a happy emoji and said 'hell yeah, i'll be over soon. my mom can give me a ride.' Nick took a seat at the island in the middle of the kitchen while He went into the pantry and grabbed a random bag of chips from one of the shelves, returning to his friend.
"The nail polish should be dried by now." Karl sat down at the island beside Nick, noting how he was carefully dabbing the black polish.
He opened the bag and took a few chips from inside before he offered the chip bag to him.
"You never answered my question before, are you excited?" He asked again, Nick had avoided the question beforehand and Karl was actually curious about his answer—but, judging from the look that covered Nick's face he felt as though he shouldn't have asked.
"Yeah, I guess. I mean, I have some good friends that go there. But, my step-mom said it'd be a fresh start for me." Nick said, the last statement made Karl's curiosity peek slightly and he wondered what the whole 'fresh start' was about. He considered it for a moment before deciding if Nick didn't want to talk about it, then he didn't have to.
"But, you could've stayed at Hadsfield. There's a bus that goes from here to there." Karl mentioned, popping a chip into his mouth and enjoying the salty taste that spread across her mouth. Nick's hand paused when it reached into the bag before he pulled out a handful of chips and ate some of them.
"I could've, but my step-mom thought it was a new town and I needed friends around here." Karl's eyebrow raised slightly, that didn't seem like the whole story but he didn't want to pry and just nodded his head along with his words.
"I can see that and it's like you said. A fresh start with new friends and a new town." He said with a smile, clasping Nick's shoulder affectionately and shoving him slightly. "Lemme tell you though, there's not much that goes on around here." Nick looked at him with swirling brown eyes before he mirrored Karl's smile.
"I think I could get used to that, the city's fine, but it's just so busy." Karl's hand fell away from his shoulder and through another chip into his mouth, he hadn't really met someone who wanted to come here—especially Karl who wanted nothing more than to head away to university and get out of here.
"Really? I never thought about that. I've always lived here and always kind of wanted to move away after school." Karl admitted honestly, his signature laugh escaping his lips and filling the air around them. Nick looked at him for a few moments before nodding his head slowly, eating a few more of his chips.
"Where were you thinking of going?"
"Probably to college, I heard there was a decent one in Addison. Most young people move away from here after graduation." Karl said, getting up from his seat to grab himself a glass of juice from the fridge. "This town's mostly filled with retired old people or families settling down for the rest of their lives."
"I think that's just fine for me." Nick admitted with a chuckle, his eyes looking toward one of the walls in the kitchen. Karl looked toward him after pouring himself a glass, his eyes following his friends where they rested on an image of Karl and the rest of his family's smiling faces. His smile fell from his face for a moment, the face of his father in the middle was clear as day.
He placed the juice carton back into the fridge and noted the contemplation on Nick's face, he was wondering what a lot of people often observed if they went anywhere in his house. The reminders of his father was everywhere, his smiling face was in all of the photos of his family and many people often wondered where he was.
"Do you want a drink?" Karl asked Nick, suddenly losing the thirsty feeling in his throat and his friend nodded his head. "We can go play something on the Switch until Alex gets here, he probably wants to go out and do something." Nick's eyes looked toward him and nodded his head at the sight of the Iced Tea sitting in Karl's dominant hand.
He passed the glass to his friend and the two made their way to the living room to wait on Alex to show up.
. . .
It had been almost been four months since Nick had started school and Karl was having a bit of a dilemma, thanks to an observation pointed out by his friend Alex. Karl and Nick has been spending more and more time with each other, nearly seeing each other every day and basically did everything together.
To Karl, he didn't know how to process it all.
He was always very clear since he first started high school, that he was on the asexual spectrum but always liked the idea of a romantic relationship. But, he had never grown to really have a crush on anyone like that in the years spent at Evergarden since he'd known most of the people there since he was little. Then there was Nick coming along and ruining that streak.
Karl climbed the hill toward his father's resting place, a bouquet resting firmly in his hands. He would have to make this quick as he had walked here and the Nick and his mom would be getting here in the next few minutes to pick him up. His mind was whirling with Alex's statement as they were standing outside his house.
"You've been spending a lot of time with Nick recently."
"Yeah, what about it dude?"
"You haven't noticed?"
"Noticed what?"
"I think Nick likes you man."
Karl shook his head to clear the memory from his mind and he squeezed the bouquet tighter in his hands, the cold nipping at his fingers. The snow had begun to melt since the winter months had passed, but snowbanks and remnants still remained of one of the coldest winters Karl had experienced in a long while.
He walked down the same rows of gravestones and down the same twist and turns, but this time he felt better about heading to the graveyard than before. Karl recently opened up to Nick about his father and that's why he often couldn't hang out on Sundays, it had been a question he'd been avoiding to that point.
It just felt good to have someone else know about it. To Karl, most of his friends knew and didn't ask him about it since they didn't want to make him upset or sad—but with Nick, he just listened and nodded his head while Karl talked about his dad. He felt safe talking about it with him, even if all he did was listen.
Karl stopped in his tracks and looked down at the same gravestone he passed by every time he came to visit his father. The same polished stone had grown a nice patch of moss on one side and he knelt down in front of it, the name playing over and over in his mind—Clay. He didn't know who Clay was and he never did really find out, but he always felt the compulsion to leave a flower on his grave.
His just looked so bare compared to the others, aside from the hat and scarf that had disappeared in Winter then reappeared in the Spring. Karl just felt he was doing a good thing, leaving this unknown person flowers just to say that someone cared enough to do so.
So, just like he had been doing for the past few months every Sunday of the month, Karl reached into the bouquet we got for his father and pulled out a singular flower—placing it down in front of the grave with the same rock holding it in place. He glanced around at his surroundings, making sure no one was listening before he spoke.
He needed to hurry it up as Nick would be here soon.
Karl stood up from his spot and walked over to where his father's gravestone rested among the dead leaves and snow. He did the usual routine, emptied the vase of dead flowers, and placed the new ones in as he always did. When he was finished, he straightened up from his spot and looked down at the stone.
"Hey, dad. Things have been going well! I've been doing good in my classes recently, mom's really happy with me. And..." Karl paused, thinking back on the last week or so and his smile fell from his lips. "...I really wish you were here. I need your advice so badly right now dad." He looked toward the horizon where the setting spring sun could be seen in the distance.
"I like someone and I don't- I just- I don't know what to do about it," Karl said, crouching down in front of the grave and staring at the polished stone expecting an answer from the beyond. "You'd probably just pat me on the back and just tell me I'm being silly. To just be myself but I don't even know if that's what you'd say!"
Karl looked down at the dead flowers in his hands.
"I just, don't know what to do. I want to tell him I like him, but I'm worried about running our friendship. I don't want to do that!" Karl rambled, placing the dead bouquet onto the ground and fiddling with the sleeves of his jacket nervously. "I don't know what to do about it, dad." Karl took a deep shaky breath in and out, his breath appearing in the air in front of him.
"I just want my dad. I want you back dad. You'd know what to do." He admitted weakly, Karl's eyes burning with the watery salty tears threatening to fall onto his cheeks. "I tried to approach mom with it, but she's so busy. I can't." He looked down at the dead flowers laying on the brown grass underfoot.
"I'm sorry, I just-" Karl couldn't seem to continue speaking, the thoughts whirling around his head was too much to put it into words. "I don't know...I just don't know." He quietly stood up from his spot, carrying the dead flowers in his hands and he stared down at the gravestone in front of him.
"I love you, dad. There's too much I want to talk about." Karl admitted and he took a shaky breath before continuing. "But I don't know how too." He quietly nodded down to the gravestone in a silent goodbye and turned to leave, a sudden gust of wind making him pause and brace himself.
Karl looked down at the grave he passing and found the flower he had placed on Clay's gravestone had come loose. He quickly leaned down and began fixing the flower—making sure this time that it wouldn't blow away as easily this time around. he found himself muttering to the grave and apologizing quietly.
"I'm sorry. I don't know who you are exactly, but I hope you don't mind me leaving these here," Karl said in a low hushed tone, he smiled at the headstone and laughed to himself softly—he really was talking to a grave, but it made him feel better nonetheless. But, what he didn't expect was getting a response albeit not from the grave but from a confused voice.
"Karl?" The dead bouquet of flowers was let go from his grasp and landed on the ground beside his feet.
He had never straightened so fast in his life and he froze in his place, his head snapping to the left of him to find Nick standing there. The last person he'd expect in a graveyard, much less being here at the same time as he was. Karl's eyes widened to the size of dinner plates and he nearly crushed the stems of the bouquet in his hands.
"Nick?" Karl asked exasperatedly, his eyes staring into the confused expression of his friend as he glanced down at the grave then back to him. "You're already here? I-I thought you said you'd be here in like fifteen minutes." Nick's eyebrows narrowed on his forehead as his brown eyes lit up with realization.
"You've been the one placing flowers on his grave?" Nick asked, the question was simple but it took Karl by complete and utter surprise. Karl looked down at the grass in front of the grave and stared at the flower he had left there moments before, his eyes slowly turning back to look at his friend.
He had never expected Nick to know the person he was leaving flowers for.
"I- Yes. It's been me. Wait. You know this person?" Karl asked incredulously, of all of the coincidences in the world he didn't expect this to be one of them. "I didn't know him, I just- His seemed bare from the others here. I just wanted to do something nice." Nick's eyes narrowed in his direction and he took a few steps to close the distance between them.
"Clay was...my best friend," Nick said honestly, his shoulders were stiff and he seemed beyond uncomfortable talking about the subject. "He didn't like flowers so I never left any, but um, it's nice of you to do that." The last statement made it seem like Karl had made him feel bad for telling him his best friend's grave seemed bare.
"Oh," Karl said, it as though the wind was knocked out of him. "I-I'm sorry for your loss. I didn't know or else I would've never done it."
"It's fine, you didn't know." Nick rubbed the back of his neck and adjusted the black baseball cap on his head. "I came to visit while we waited on you to be finished. I didn't expect to see you." Karl's eyes flashed down to his feet, he didn't know to process it all much less find the words to say next.
"What...What happened to him?" Karl asked finally, his pause seemed like an eternity but in reality was probably only a few seconds.
"He passed away in a car accident two years ago." Nick explained, turning toward the grave and stared down a the polished stone in front of them. "I was only a freshman then." Karl nodded his head meekly and mirrored Nick's position, looking down at the grave thoughtfully.
"I transferred to Evergarden to get away from it all, the person responsible for the crash was sentenced. The media was all over it." Nick said honestly, pausing for a moment as his voice cracked horribly and Karl didn't know what to do. He wanted to hug him, hold him close, and just be there like Nick had been for him.
He hated seeing him like this.
"I'm sorry, Nick. That sounds, awful." Karl said, he raised his hand to place it on his shoulder but it hovered uncertainly over his jacket. He had lost his dad whe he was thirteen; he could remember the sound of the abluance alarms, the clean smell of the hospital, and the noises of his families sobs at the funeral.
"I know where your coming from." Was the only thing he could muster enough to say.
"I used to have another best friend, the three of us did everything together. After the accident, we drifted apart." Nick continued on, Karl sitting there listening intently and keeping his mouth shut. "I haven't talked to him, I don't know if-" He stopped himself, Karl glancing at him to see the tears threating to spill over.
"I should've stopped him from going home that night, I should've told him to stay over. I should've- I didn't get-"
Karl did the only thing he could and hugged him as tightly, Nick melting into the embrace.
"I know, I'm sorry Nick. I'm so sorry." Karl muttered softly as his friend was pressed against his chest. "It's okay."
"How did you do it? How did you get over it?" Nick asked him quietly, it was so quiet Karl nearly missed it.
"I didn't, I don't think I ever will." Karl admitted, his own voice has grown tender and raw with the lump digigng into his throat. "I blamed myself, I thought I did something wrong." Nick pulled away from the hug and looked up at him with red brown eyes, Karl looking down at him with a pained smile on his face.
"But, it's apart of me. I love him and I will always remember it. I went to therapy for years after and even then, I'm still grieving." Karl said, looking back toward where his father rested peacefully. "I still struggle, I miss him." The two looked into each others eyes for what seemed like ages, there were no words, just understanding.
Nick had made Karl feel seen and now, it was Karl's turn to do the same.
Karl placed two hands on Nick's shoulders, smiling down at him with tears shining in his eyes.
"I'm here, if you ever need anything. I'm here."
"Thank you, Karl."
"Thank you, Nick. For everything."
The sound of a car honking down the hill they stood upon and the two were alerted of the passage of time. They both chuckled to themselves and they both decided to pay their respects to their lost loved ones. Karl and Nick stood beside each other at each grave, without speaking but just standing there.
"You should talk to your friend again, even if it's just a text to ask how he is doing." Karl mentioned on their way toward Nick's step-mom's car.
"George? I haven't spoken to him in years." Nick responded nervously, adjusting his baseball cap on his head.
"You should still, even if it's short." Karl encouraged with a smile, grabbing Nick's hand and squeezing it tightly in his grasp. "I'm sure he'll be happy to hear from you." Nick nodded his head firmly and when Karl tried pulling his hand away, he found it surprisingly stuck in place—Nick's fingers refused to let go.
Karl glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, but Nick was looking ahead of them. He couldn't help the smile that spread across his face and he squeezed Nick's hand tightly, he resisted the urge to look over his shoulder and they both continued forward walking down the path. In the distance, they could see the headlights of Nick's step-mom's car.
. . .
The end.