Chapter 5: First Date



He parked his brother´s cars on the parking lot, hearing Terezi´s excited giggles as she tried to open the door quickly.

-Calm the fuck down.- His best friend was sure to scold her immediately, getting rid of the child´s lock for Terezi to open her door and get out of the car.

-Shut it Karkles, quit being such a grumps.- She said with a huge grin, standing already outside of the car, waiting for her friends to get out already. Gamzee chuckled at the way Karkat grunted, getting out of the car to join the excited girl as Aradia got out as well.

-Hurry up guys!- She started walking, Karkat trying to follow her close with his short legs. It was hot outside despite it being already night time, but Karkat was tucked inside his long sleeved, black jacket and his black jeans, contrasting with his girlfriend´s un-matching, colorful clothes.

-Alright, what do you motherfuckers want to all up and watch?- He said merrily, walking behind Aradia and holding on to her shoulders playfully. He hadn´t had a chance to spend time with Karkat and Terezi together in a while, and he was starting to enjoy himself.

-Can you fucking wait until we actually get inside the fucking movie theater?- Karkat barked at him, making some people that were coming out of the building look at him funny. Aradia didn´t particularly like Karkat for his foul temper, but she did find that Terezi was good company now and then. She also felt bad Nepeta wasn´t able to make it. They got inside the movie theater and went to buy their tickets, checking the titles displaying as well. –Oh my fucking God, I´ve been wanting to watch “Bad Teacher” for too long now, we are watching that one.- He declared, an excited light shinning in his eyes even through his mad face.

-Are you sur-

-Shut your fucking mouth, Cameron Diaz acts in this one, it´s pure fucking gold.- He barked, pointing at a cardboard, life-size Cameron Diaz standing next to the wall and near the spoils area. They all decided to not fight against what Karkat wanted to watch, thinking that a RomCom maybe was just the thing they all needed to relax after a rough school week. Gamzee counted the money in his hands before going off to buy the tickets, leaving the three of them to chat while they waited for him. Karkat watched as Terezi started to giggle stupidly again, rolling his eyes when he noticed she was staring right at the popcorn machine. His girlfriend loved candy and junk food, and he was prepared with a pocket full of money to buy her as many candies as she pleased. Aradia checked her phone briefly, seeing it was already nearing 11 PM. They would catch the last show, probably. Her eyes suddenly got caught at the sight of a blonde girl walking by a tan boy. She widened her eyes, realizing it was Vriska who was walking by Tavros´ side, absorbed in her text messaging while Tavros seemed to stare at her from the corners of his eyes, smiling stupidly. She thought they probably had just finished watching a movie and were heading near them, towards the exit. She pursed her lips, searching Gamzee with her eyes, hoping he was still in line and wouldn´t have to have such an unpleasant encounter. She frowned when she noticed he had just bought the tickets and was already walking towards them, trying to read the small letters imprinted on the thick tickets distractedly.

-Alright Bro, here´s your precious ticket.-  He teased his best friend, smiling happily when Karkat smiled gratefully at him. Damn, he loved to see him smile like that, and it was such a rare treat, that he felt fortunate each time the red head smiled only to him.

-Let´s get inside.- Aradia said hurriedly, a nervous smile planting on her red lips, pushing Gamzee´s and Terezi´s shoulders to make them walk.

-Woah, what´s the rush, sis?- He giggled, starting to walk slowly anyways towards the guard to hand him their tickets and go get treats. Aradia hoped with her life he wouldn´t notice them there. It would ruin his whole night. Karkat noticed Aradia´s strange look on her face and he searched with his eyes what was wrong, finding the problem.

-Fuck.- He muttered, looking at her, concerned. Vriska finished texting and sent her message, lifting up her eyes to see where they were going, finding some familiar faces as she looked for the exit distractedly.

-Well, if it isn´t clown boy!- She teased loudly as she got closer, putting her phone away as a smile took over her lips. Gamzee heard the name he hated hearing from the people who bullied him and turned around slowly, his smile dying away as he recognized Vriska´s voice and saw Tavros´ face. She wasn´t interested in him though. She turned her attention to the short girl with colorful clothes and caramel skin. –Pyrope.- She greeted her through her teeth, their eternal rivalry tensing the air around them despite the time that had gone by since the last time they had seen each other.

-Bitchka.- She grinned hugely as a response, putting her hands to her hips. They glared at each other for what seemed hours, Karkat getting a confused face as he wondered what type of relation the girl had with his girlfriend. Gamzee lowered his face, feeling Tavros´ eyes all over him. What the hell was he doing there? He tightened his fists as he pursed his lips, feeling Aradia´s hand grip his shoulder firmly in an attempt comfort him. She also decided to look somewhere else, knowing that Tavros was looking at her as well. She didn´t want to make eye contact and stimulate him into making small talk with her to see how things were going. She wished the spirits would have told her something about that uncomfortable encounter earlier that day. Gamzee dared to take a peek at his classmate from the corner of his eyes, finding the way her body language reeked of confidence. The way her silky, long, blonde hair fell over her shoulders and over her large breasts. The way her wide hips made that tiny skirt look so good, and the way her high heeled boots made her legs look long but firm. He wondered if things would have gone different if he had been born a girl. He knew Tavros had been interested in the Serket girl for a long time, but he had always held on to the hope that she wouldn´t be interested back. Now he felt a pang of jealousy for her beautiful, feminine body and felt as hopeless as he had ever felt, coming to the realization he didn´t stand a chance.

-Well, this was unpleasant enough.- She snorted, looking away from Terezi´s daring glare and wide out-of-place grin, looking to her side to find that Tavros was still there and focused on the other party. She forced her hand towards his and grabbed it firmly, placing it a bit in front of them for the others to see. Tavros blushed at the sudden contact of her small hand into his, gasping a bit from surprise. She smiled smugly as she saw the clown boy´s face get even grimmer than a second before, and she even chuckled a bit from his obvious infatuation with the oblivious teenager that stood by her side. –Bye!- She waved with a faked, sweet smile, dragging Tavros behind her as she began to walk hurriedly, hoping Eric´s car was outside the theater as she had told him over text. Karkat searched in Terezi´s face the past she hadn´t revealed to him and was hidden until now, to then force himself to take his mind away from that to focus on his best friend.

-…Gamzee?- He spoke with a low voice, getting closer to make sure he was alright. Aradia was still gripping his shoulder, her thumb rubbing along the bony area to soothe him. Terezi seemed to be the only one not understanding what was going on and suddenly felt a bit out of place, placing some threads of brown, straightened hair behind her ear.

-Are you alright, darling?- She asked in a motherly voice, getting even closer to his face to make sure he wasn´t about to cry. He pushed her away roughly and made Karkat get away, trying to put a new smile on his face.

-I´m okay motherfuckers, why wouldn´t I be okay?- He asked as casually as if nothing had happened, but failing on hiding the pain on his eyes. –I´m all tits!- He even laughed a bit, pretending to be amused at his “over-reacting” friends, frowning as if he thought they were a little crazy for thinking otherwise. He started walking away without them, expecting them to follow, handing the tickets to the guard so they could get inside and buy something to eat before the movie started. He seemed to check the candy displayed on the glass, but he really wasn´t able to see them among the chaos inside his head. –Yo Aradia, you want anything?- He asked merrily, surrounding her shoulders with one of his long arms as he waited for her to reply. She felt seriously concerned for what was truly going on in his mind.

-Um… Maybe some red licorice…- She replied, not wanting to say no to his kind offer as she was brought even closer against his chest.

-How about you Karbro? Terezi?- His best friend shook his head no, taking out his money.

-I got it Gamzee, thank you.-





He got dropped off by Eric at his house, and waved a goodbye at his new girlfriend and his ride. He got inside the house, finding his brother playing poker with a couple of his friends in the kitchen. He ignored them as he went straight to his room, not even grabbing food on his way up despite the fact that all he ate since lunch was some buttery popcorn. He threw himself on the bed, a huge grin spreading across his face since God knows when, and hugged his pillow to his face to let out a powerful sigh filled with the excitement and the joy he had felt being so close to his new girlfriend. “New girlfriend.” He absolutely loved the way those words sounded on his lips. She was his, and he was hers, and the world was finally at peace. The world was just how it always was meant to be. He giggled a bit, trying to figure out in his mind where he would take her the next time. There was going to be a next time for sure, since he had asked her and she had agreed. For ice cream? Bowling? Dinner out? Ice skating? He did not care as long as she was with him.

He suddenly remembered Aradia and her new close friend. His smile died out almost entirely, the painful memory of his best friend abandoning him still burning like an iron over his chest. The painful memory of her choosing that weirdo over him hitting him in the face. That made him hate him even more. As the weeks had gone by since the first time they spoke, his hatred towards the clownish boy had grown like a disease and spread through his being. Part of him thought he had no reason, or even right to hate the guy. But then the other side of him argued that it was easier to still pick on him if he felt like he deserved it. He needed to feel as if he was punishing a disgraced bastard, not harming an innocent fool. And it had gotten easier to deal with the original guilt and forget all about it. Now it was more like an exciting routine to make his life impossible, something that earned him some more respect among the men in his class that used to think of him as a quiet, innocent nerd. He wasn´t that person anymore, and didn´t wish to go back to being that man either. He could quit harassing the boy whenever he wanted now, seeing that he had already gotten what he wanted. But now it seemed like a legitimate rivalry that didn´t make any sense at all, but that still felt like something real. He frowned deeply, feeling his head starting to hurt, starting to feel confused and overwhelmed all of the sudden. It was tiring to have to deal with those different personalities inside of him. It was hard to reject who he truly was inside to show something else more acceptable to others. He was denying the sweet boy he always was to hide behind a mask that was slowly consuming him and making him feel as if he were disappearing. But it was worth it… She was worth it. Maybe he never was a sweet boy after all, and he was just this person all along, who was too scared to come out and show himself. No. He now had no idea who he was originally anymore and that thought scared him.