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Dave had to keep his mouth shut.
If his Bro heard him gasping for breath, his shaking hands pressed to his eyes as tears poured down his cheeks. His torso shivered as he struggled to breathe without making a sound, his binder squeezing his chest and making the whole fucking ordeal much harder than it should’ve ever been.
He froze as heavy foot falls passed his room, and exhaled as they passed him by and the door to Bro’s bedroom shut swiftly.
When silence spread through the apartment, Dave took a moment to compose himself a minute. He wiped his face on his jacket sleeves and sniffed snot and whatever else back into his nose. He pushed on his shoes, slid on his shades, and slipped out of his room.
Dave snuck from the apartment silently, avoiding the creaky boards on the floor and pressing his heel then toes to the floor. He moved down the hall and, with a destination in mind, made his way to said destination.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Dave knocked on the door inside the darkened garage he stood in, burying his other hand into his jacket pocket in order to try and warm himself. The South could’ve been warm, but the nights of December were going to kill him.
Dave knocked on the door once again when no answer came, and finally he heard stomping from within the house. He exhaled softly. Whoever it was, he could deal with it. No fuckin’ problemo.
Karkat opened the door grumpily, as he did most things, and peeked outside to which Dave smiled a little.
“Hey man.” he said quietly, and Karkat’s eyes widened a little.
“You slimy fuck, it’s almost midnight!” he said, and yanked Dave inside. Karkat shut the door, and Dave walked across the kitchen to open the fridge.
“Yeah, sorry about that. I tried to leave the argument a little earlier but you know how it is.” he said as he pulled a bottle of water from the bottom of the refrigerator. He twisted the top and drank the freezing water, grimacing as it hit his teeth.
Dave glanced over as he saw Karkat tense, then sigh heavily. He knew Karkat could never say no to him when Bro was involved.
“Yeah. I know you weiner. Go upstairs, and don’t, for the love of God, wake my dad.” he said, but his bite was nonexistent.
Dave smiled and nodded, moving up the stairs quietly, slipping off his shoes at the bottom. He walked up to Karkat’s bedroom, and once Karkat was inside he shifted the door shut.
“Spill. What happened this time?” Karkat asked as he sat on his bed, crossing his legs. His opened laptop was sat on the floor, his sheets not particularly tousled. He hadn’t been asleep. That made Dave feel better.
Dave shrugged and sat on the other side of the bed, leaning against the headboard beside Karkat. It was a twin bed, and their sides mushed together. Dave could deal with this kind of touch.
“Same old. The whole ‘you’re not a boy, I raised you to be tough, not fucked up.’ That whole schtick.” he said, and inhaled deeply.
Karkat frowned. Dave couldn’t blame him for not saying anything though. That just wasn’t how he was. Don’t get him wrong; Karkat could talk. Karkat could talk forever if you gave him the right topic. Or any topic. But he wasn’t the best at advice, or helping. He was always afraid he’d fuck someone up even more. He was anxious like that, and sometimes Dave hated it. But his presence was enough usually.
He glanced over. “Don’t worry about it though. He barely touched me this time. The yelling was the only bad part, yanno? He can get… Really loud.” Dave muttered. He felt pathetic, he truly did, but yelling scared him so bad. It’s like he was traumatized. Bro raising his voice, or even hinting he was going to sent him stiff.
“Fuck him. He’s shit, Dave, you know that right?” Karkat said, and looked up at his face. Dave exhaled through his nose and shrugged.
“I dunno. Sometimes he ain’t really… Awful? Just when he gets like that.” he said, and Karkat rolled his eyes.
“He’s shit, Dave. I’m telling you. Anyone that treats their kid like that is complete shit.” he said. “You know you’re not obligated to love him, right? Just because he raised you. That doesn’t mean he has the right to treat you like that.”
Dave shifted, and huffed. He felt his chest tighten a little, and he glanced over at the small body beside him. “I know.” he said, speaking softer than he had all night.
Dave did not love Bro; he almost hated him. He felt awful for it, but it was the truth. He made Dave hate everything he did. The loud noises, the hurt, the ignoring him for weeks only to yell at him. It broke his heart to know that the man Dave once relied on completely, that Dave wasn’t even sure he loved him at all.
“It’s not that bad. People have it worse than me.” Dave said, and smiled a bit. Karkat groaned.
“That doesn’t make your feelings any less valid, dumbfuck.” he said, and Dave turned his eyes towards the ceiling. Karkat was probably right.
“... Yeah.” he said in final agreement, and Karkat smiled.
“You forget I have a shitty parent too.” he said, and Dave loved this side of him. Dave loved every side of him. The soft smiles, the tired eyes, the resting bitch face. The slight overbite, his seemingly perfect eyebrows, the beauty marks that littered his soft face. His rage, his bitterness, his quiet, gentle love that seemed so soft sometimes and was so whimsically beautiful sometimes Dave felt like crying because Karkat was a piece of fucking artwork and he didn’t know it.
Dave supposed he was staring, because Karkat made a face. “What?” he said, eyebrows furrowing and Dave’s chest was overflowing.
“Nothin’ man.”
“What the fuck.”
Dave’s composure broke and he smiled, snorting at Karkat’s ridiculousness. He was so funny sometimes. Dave’s heart felt like it was beating out of his chest.
“I’m just, like, I don’t know…” Dave shrugged, and blushed. Karkat prodded his side.
“What? Tell me.” Karkat said, frowning. He thought the worst, probably.
Dave wasn’t the greatest guy at speaking, or any of that. “Just like, nervous?” he said. He shifted and the sun felt like it was Karkat’s skin. Everything warm was right there.
Karkat seemed confused, and wrinkled his nose. “Why? I’m fine, you’re fine. Relax okay?” he said. Dave looked over at his face, and furrowed his eyebrows.
“I just. I think I want to. Uh. Nevermind.”
“Oh hell no. Tell me right now.” Karkat said. Dave shifted. His heart was beating so fast, heat spread against his body. He couldn’t do this.
“Karkat.” he said quietly, and looked down at him, and for a second their tired eyes met and he felt tears against his eyelids. His heart was going too fast, he felt like he was going to die right now. That’d be real elegant. Dying.
Karkat look at him, his face relaxed, and he looked exhausted. Dave felt bad for a second. But then he leaned down, and their lips fit together so softly Dave wasn’t sure they touched at all. He reached up a hand and put it upon Karkat’s cheek, and he felt Karkat’s arms melt around his neck. And then they were kissing.
Dave’s lips moved against Karkat’s, sucking his bottom lip gently because he was sweating and his heart was beating and he really didn’t know what the fuck to do, but whatever. He pulled Karkat’s lip a little, and shifted his tongue out a little bit.
Karkat seemed to be responding, but after a second of shaking, Dave moved away and stared at him. Karkat looked back, and exhaled.
“Dave.” he said, and Dave swallowed thickly. Calm down.
“Huh.” he said, and licked his lips, feeling Karkat’s saliva and oh god, Karkat’s saliva.
“It feels like I’m in a movie.” Karkat said, and a grin broke out against his fucked up teeth. Dave smiled back, and laughed breathlessly and nervously as Karkat pulled him close to his soft body.
“Man that’s lame as shit. My life is not a romantic comedy.” Dave said, and Karkat scoffed.
“Uh huh, you’re the definition of the fucking cool-guy type the girl always falls for you shit.” Karkat grinned.
Dave smiled and moved his hand down from Karkat’s cheek, and leaned down to press their foreheads together. “Yeah well, you’re the one that looks like shit. It cool if I sleep over?” he said, and shifted to remove his pants and his binder.
Karkat rolled his eyes and did the same. “No dumbass, you gotta leave. Yes you can stay.” he said, and pulled the sheets back. Dave smiled, and the two settled into bed.
“Awesome.” he said, and laid beside Karkat looking at him. “Night, Sarah Jessica Parker.”
“Failure to Launch is a fucking good movie.”
“Uh huh.”
Dave fell asleep to his soft breathing.