Work Text:
You are Bro Strider and you are carrying two baskets full of clothes and a pocket full of change down to the laundromat. You were lucky that you had found an apartment complex with one that accepted the forged papers you had. You hum a song softly to yourself and start dumping clothes into a machine, filling it with the proper amount of soap. You start up the machine and lean against it.
Someone next to you is moving their laundry around too and they go sit down once it’s all taken care of. You recognize him as Karkat’s older brother, Kankri. He was the cutie with the red sweater at the Christmas party thing. You awkwardly wave at him. He looks up at you and smiles slightly.
“Ah, hello… Bro.” It sounds more like a question, so you smile and nod politely.
“Hey.” You say. He moves his basket of clothes off the other side of the bench, making room for you to sit. You go ahead and sit down next to him.
“Kankri, right?” You say. Not like you could forget a name to a face like that. He nods.
“Yes. That would be correct,” He smiles softly. “How have you been? I haven’t seen you since Christmas Eve, we didn’t scare you off did we?” You chuckle.
“Nah. Jus’ been busy. Been fine though.”
“As long as you are keeping yourself out of trouble.” Kankri hums.
“Well that depends on yer definition of ‘trouble’.”
“As in, you haven’t gotten anyone in trouble with their significant other again.” He says in a teasing tone. You can practically feel how red you turn from that. You had been flirting with him pretty bad at the party; unaware he had been with someone. You laugh softly.
“Yeahhh… Sorry ‘bout that.” You apologize. Again.
“It’s alright.”
“Still.” You shrug a shoulder. He gives you a gentle look, god he’s so cute, telling you it’s all right.
“How’ve uh…how’ve you an’ yer bro been doin’?” You ask.
“We’re both doing great. Karkat has been stuck at home, sick, but Dave has been helping him keep up with homework. He’s feeling much better now though. He should be able to go back to school next week, but I hope Dave doesn’t catch what he has because he’s been spending so much time with him.” He tells you.
“Tha’s good. He’s a good kid.” You say. A very good kid, watching out for Dave like he is.
“So is Dave. He’s very caring and nice. A bit problematic at first, but I already had a talk with him about certain slurs and offensive language. But that’s the only complaint I have had.” Oh geez.
“What was he sayin’?” You ask.
“He was just using a word out of context that I don’t appreciate being used as something negative in my home. Don’t worry, he hasn’t had a slip since then.” Kankri says. What the fuck did Dave say?
“Well sorry ‘bout that.” You apologize for Dave, because you get the feeling he probably didn’t.
“I don’t expect you to apologize for his actions, but thank you.” He smiles. You nod and hum softly.
“He’s grown quite a lot since we first met, or so it seems.” Kankri says.
“Has he?” You wouldn’t know. He looks over at you.
“I think he was just nervous when he first came home. I’m not sure, but he seems more relaxed. At least with me around.”
“Yeah, he’s a shy kid.” You remember when he was little; how you were the only person he would talk to. It was a problem when he got into school, but at least now he can talk to other people instead of just shutting down and hiding from them.
“Yes. It’s possible he’s completely different around Karkat.” Kankri muses.
“It wouldn’t surprise me.” You get the feeling that Dave has a crush on him. It sure sounded like it when we were talking the other day. Besides, someone kissed him on New Year’s after all. You only know about that from the way he kept mumbling about it for about a week after New Year’s.
“They seem to be getting quite close. It’s nice to see Karkat have a friend he is so comfortable with that is his age.” Kankri says.
“Does he have frien’s who ain’t his age?” You ask.
“A lot of his friends are in his grade, so I believe they are all about the same age. But, one of his closest friends is about my age.” Makara.
“Tha’s a bit odd innit? How’d they even meet?”
“I don’t think it is? Well, maybe I would find it odd if I did not know how much time Karkat spent with him. I suppose he’s as close to them as he is to me. They had met while they were out one night. From what I was told, Karkat happened to have bumped into him.” Kankri tells you. You nod, Dave said something like that.
“So, he’s like a big bro to Karkat?” You ask. He nods. Well fuck, Makara is just getting all the little brothers.
“Wha’s his name?” You ask, making sure it’s the same guy.
“Who? His friend’s?”
“Yeah.”
“Gamzee. I know, I know. Strange name but, from what I know he’s a good guy.” Kankri says.
“S’not that strange. Makes it easy t’know who it is, y’know?”
“I suppose you’re right.” He hums. You lean your head back against the wall.
“I know ‘im.”
“Do you?” Kankri gives you an interested look.
“Yeah.”
“Is he Dave’s friend as well?” He asks.
“Somethin’ like that.” At least now he is. Kankri nods.
“Do you know him?”
“…I do.” You sigh softly to yourself.
“That’s good. I personally like to get to know Karkat’s friends.”
“Tha’s not why I know ‘im.” You close your eyes, memories bubbling up.
“Oh?”
“…I used t’work fer ‘im there fer awhile.” You say. You remember being thirteen, in desperate need of a job to pay for the old house’s bills. No one would hire you, and you found yourself at the Makara house for the second time. All that Gamzee had asked you was how fast you could run.
“From what I have heard, he’s been trying to get out of that business.” Kankri says. It brings you back to the here and now.
“Oh?”
“He has a smoke shop, but people still ask him for the ‘special stuff’.” Kankri says, air quotes and all. You nod. Good for him.
“We didn’t get off on the right foot. I had just gotten custody over Karkat and we were walking down the street together, when Gamzee tackled me.”
“Why?” You look over at him. He takes a deep breath.
“He mistook me for my father. He thought I was him picking up Karkat.” His voice is tense. You recall Dave saying things had been bad before Karkat moved in with Kankri.
“…Take it he ain’t a good fella.” You say. He shakes his head.
“I have Karkat’s custody for a reason.”
“…I see.” You lean forward, resting your arms on your legs. You chew at the inside of your lip.
“It’s kinda like why I’ve got custody over Dave.” You say quietly. Kankri gives you a small smile.
“Then I’m glad Dave is with you. Our boys deserve to be safe.” He says.
“They deserve t’be happy…” You nod.
“So do we.”
“An’ we can’t hold ourselves responsible fer our parents.”
“Yeah…” He agrees softly. You play with your hands, staring at the floor. You two fall silent.
“So, how long have you had Dave for?” Kankri asks after a while.
“I’ve been takin’ care of ‘im since he was born… Ma an’ Dad weren’t all there.” You think back to it. How you were still a kid, and had no clue what to do when your baby brother was screaming and crying. The learning curve was steep thank god.
“They were too busy getting’ high off their rockers, than to take care o’ two kids.” You grit out. They barely bothered with you before Dave had been born. They practically ignored him.
“…I used to live with both of my parents.” Kankri says.
“Yeah?” You look back over at him.
“Dad went to work and although he had his bad habits, Mom took care of us in his absence…but that all changed when she left.”
“…I’m sorry.” You know what that was like. Both of your parents had a habit of disappearing, but they used to always come back. Until they just didn’t one day.
“It’s all right,” Kankri offers a smile. “Karkat and I are together and we’re out of that hell. There’s no need to deal with my father anymore. And as long as Karkat is healthy, comfortable, and happy, I’m happy.” You nod.
“Yeah.” You agree. He hums softly and you think about how it used to be for you and Dave as kids. You’re glad that Dave doesn’t remember much about them, but they have left the mark on him.
You know it from the nightmares they’ve left behind, his old fear of the Bogeyman and the dark. You know it from the way they had screamed at him when he tried to speak to them once, how they yelled at you for ‘teaching’ him how to do practically anything. You know it from his first fucking words, “Let’s hide together” because Dad was going through withdrawals and was practically hunting the two of you down. Your hands curl up into tight fists and you shake your head, trying to cast it back into the past.
“I personally feel that I am where I should be and that I am who I am because of how life has been.” Kankri says, providing you with the distraction you needed.
“Oh really?”
“Perhaps I would have found a different vocation, if I had not lived through what I have… If I had to go through all of that to be where I am now, with Karkat, Cronus, my career, and my friends…I don’t think I’d change it. Even if I could.” He says.
“I don’ think I would either but there are a few things that coulda made things easier…” You hum.
“Is that so?” He presses gently.
“Personally, I’m fine, but things coulda been better for Dave.”
“You think so?”
“I know so.” You sigh and lean back, rolling you shoulders and trying to ease the tension out of them. Kankri listens to you quietly.
“I coulda talked to ‘im ‘stead of tryin’ t’hide everythin’ from ‘im. Maybe it woulda kept ‘im from…” You trail off. You don’t want to tell Kankri about that really. It’s not his business and it’s personal.
“Well, now that you know, you can start putting that into practice.” He tells you.
“…Yeah.” You mumble.
“It’s never too late to reach out to someone and help. Dave is still young; he has a lot to learn. And I bet there is a lot you have to teach him.” You scoff and shake your head.
“I dunno ‘bout that.”
“You’d be surprised how much others can learn from us simply by sharing our own experiences.” Kankri says. You rub a hand over your tired face.
“I dunno if I should though…” You may have told Dave a bit about some of the stuff you did, but there’s so much you don’t want to talk about in general let alone share with anyone.
“You only have to share what you are comfortable with,” He hums. “When Karkat moved in with me I told him about everything. And he was kind enough to share his story with me.” He looks around the laundromat. You tap your fingers against you knee in a quick beat.
“I felt so bad for leaving him when I did, and I honestly thought that he would never forgive me fore leaving him and for the things that I did…but he did. And now we are where we stand, and I am very happy.” He says with a sad smile.
“Tha’s good.” You tell him. He nods. You tap your head against the wall and stare at the machines across from you.
“Dave’s told me a bit.” You sigh. There were still a lot of gaps in his story he hasn’t talked about, but it’s an improvement you suppose.
“That’s good, very good for a boy his age.” Kankri says.
“I jus’ wished he told me sooner y’know?”
“But in some cases, it truly is better late than never.” He nods. Your stomach knots up.
“I…wouldn’ know wha t’do if he told me ‘too late’…” You heave a shaky sigh. You can still see his letters burned into your mind. You are scared that he’ll go through with it, even though he says he’s fine now. You are terrified to think that one day he might not be there when you get home, that you’ll have to find his corpse somewhere.
Kankri offers you his hand and you stare blankly at it for a few moments. You reach out and hold his hand tightly. You don’t want to think about it, you don’t want to go through that again. He places his other hand on top of yours.
“Then I guess you have no excuse to not try be better now and make sure he never shares anything too late.” He says softly.
“Yeah…” You bite your lip. “He’s okay right now.” You say mostly to yourself. Dave is alive and he’s okay. He promised to tell you next time.
“That’s great. And, I can assure you, that he is also safe at home with Karkat right now. They were having dinner when I left.” Kankri chuckles. You laugh softly.
“Yeah.” You squeeze his hand in thanks. One of the machines buzz loudly and Kankri looks up at it. You let his hand go.
“Excuse me.” He says, getting up and going to take care of it. You nod and get up when yours buzzes a short while later. You move your clothes into the dryer while Kankri folds his next to you. He leans against his machine and looks over at you.
“If you’d like, you can join me and the boys for coffee. Karkat likes to take his with me around this time, and I’m sure Dave won’t mind us fixing him a smoothie instead.”
“Huh? O-oh. Uh…I wouldn’ wanna impose or nothin’.” You say.
“It’s not imposing if I’m inviting you,” He smiles, tossing in another load into the washing machine. “What do you say?”
“Well…I’d like that.” You smile back, closing the dryer and starting it up.
“Good. I hope you don’t mind Cronus joining us either. I promise you he’ll be good.” He laughs, closing his own machine again.
“I’ll behave too then.” You snicker, dumping in another load of dirty clothes into the washer.
“Good.” Kankri smiles, putting folded clothes back into a basket.