Chapter Two
After staring at his name on her phone for a few minutes, Jade finally shot karkat a message.
— gardenGnostic [GG] began pestering carcinoGeneticist [CG] —
GG: hi karkat
She prepared to wait, but it turned out she didn’t have to.
CG: WHAT THE FUCK.
GG: hi!!
CG: WHAT??
GG: terezi gave me your handle!
CG: OKAY?
CG: WHO ARE YOU???
GG: jade!
GG: daves friend!
CG: OH.
GG: you remember me?
CG: YEAH.
CG: YOU’RE THE ONE WHO WOULDN’T SHUT UP ABOUT YOUR DOG RIGHT?
GG: hey :(
GG: but yeah thats me!
CG: OKAY.
GG: ...
CG: ...
GG: ...
CG: WELL??
GG: well what?
CG: WHAT DO YOU WANT?
CG: I’M ASSUMING TEREZI DIDN’T JUST GIVE YOU MY HANDLE BECAUSE SHE WANTED TO.
CG: WAS THERE A REASON?
GG: oh!
GG: yeah about that
GG: see the thing is..
CG: WELL, SPIT IT OUT.
GG: okay okay! jeez
GG: i kind of need advice with my sexuality?
CG: OH.
GG: yeah terezi said youre ‘STUP1D 1NTO ROM4NC3’
GG: then she just called you stupid
CG: WOW.
CG: FUCKING BITCH.
GG: woah
CG: ITS OKAY WE RIP ON EACH OTHER.
GG: so ive heard
GG: anyway i was hoping you could help me out?
CG: YEAH OKAY, I GUESS.
CG: SO WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU NEED?
GG: i need some advice :(
CG: ON???
GG: so my friend asked me out
CG: ROSE?
GG: you know?
CG: YEAH.
CG: DAVE TOLD ME.
GG: right of course
GG: so
GG: rose asked me out and i said no cause i dont like girls
GG: but what if i do like girls?
GG: ive already been through this with terezi but i dont like rose like that
GG: i think shes really pretty and cool and nice but i dont want to date her
GG: but im not opposed to the idea of dating girls?
GG: at least not as much as i thought i was?
CG: SO WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU NEED MY ADVICE ON?
GG: that!
GG: all of the above!
CG: IT KIND OF SOUNDS LIKE YOU ALREADY HAVE IT FIGURED OUT.
GG: but i dont!
GG: im so confused!
CG: WHAT EXACTLY ARE YOU CONFUSED ABOUT?
GG: liking girls!
CG: CAN YOU BE MORE SPECIFIC??
GG: agh!!
GG: i dont know!!!
GG: i just keep wondering whether or not i like them and how ill know!
CG: LISTEN, IF YOU LIKE GIRLS I THINK YOU’LL KNOW.
CG: TRUST ME, I KNOW HOW HARD IT IS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT YOU ARE AND TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO TELL PEOPLE WHAT YOU ARE,
CG: BUT ALL YOUR FRIENDS ARE GOING TO BE REALLY SUPPORTIVE.
CG: I MEAN COME THE FUCK ON, ROSE AND DAVE ARE YOUR FRIENDS.
CG: HAVE YOU SEEN HOW FUCKING GAY THEY ARE?
CG: AND WHILE JOHN IS EXTREMELY HETEROSEXUAL, HE’S STILL SUPER ACCEPTING AND WILL STICK UP FOR YOU.
CG: YOU HAVE NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT ON THAT FRONT.
GG: i know
GG: its just
GG: how do i know for sure that i like girls and im not just tricking myself into thinking i do??
CG: JADE IF YOU THINK YOU’RE INTO GIRLS, THEN I’M PRETTY FUCKING SURE YOU’RE INTO GIRLS.
GG: :/
CG: MAYBE YOU SHOULD GO OUT AND TRY TO MEET SOMEONE.
CG: IT MIGHT BE EASIER TO SORT OUT FEELINGS WITH SOMEONE YOU DON’T KNOW?
GG: i guess that makes sense?
GG: okay im gonna go now
GG: thanks karkat
CG: I MEAN I DIDN’T DO MUCH BUT,
CG: OKAY.
CG: YOU’RE WELCOME.
GG: :)
— gardenGnostic [GG] ceased pestering carcinoGeneticist [CG] —
Jade grabbed her coat and headed for the door.
She went back to message Terezi again.
— gardenGnostic [GG] began pestering gallowsCalibrator [GC] —
GG: terezi!
GG: im going down to that cafe down the street if you want to meet me!
GG: please come :D
GG: be my wingman ;)
— gardenGnostic [GG] ceased pestering gallowsCalibrator [GC] —
The air outside was cold but still bearable.
Jade wandered down the busy street to the cafe. She’d lived in an apartment building on this street for years now. All her friends were pretty close by, and her job was only the next street over.
She was right in the middle of everything.
Jade heard the familiar ding of the bell above the door as she entered the cafe.
She ordered and sat alone at a table, looking around the room.
She spotted a pretty girl in a dark headscarf and long red skirt sitting typing away at her laptop.
She appeared relaxed, not like a lot of the other people on laptops, presumably students, who were typing furiously and pounding coffee.
Jade thought about going over to her. It doesn’t seem like she’d be disturbing her from anything too important?
At that moment, Terezi came barging through the door, causing the little bell to go off loudly. She grinned and waved her cane at Jade.
Jade watched her make her way to the counter and order, before striding over to sit with her.
“So,” Terezi grinned, resting her chin on her hands. “Your wingman, huh?”
Jade smiled, “Mhm! I just want you to help me out a bit. Karkat told me that if I have to question whether or not I like girls, I probably do—“
“That’s what I said!”
“He also suggested I go out and meet someone so,” Jade shrugged. “Here I am.”
Terezi nodded, “Alright, so who are we thinking?”
She sniffed around the room and made a face, “No one smells appealing.”
Jade snorted, “Well, what about that girl? Over there?”
She directed Terezi to the girl she saw earlier.
“Oh! I know her!”
“What?” Jade frowned.
“Yeah,” Terezi said. “That’s Kanaya! She’s an old friend. I think she’s still in touch with Karkat.”
“Oh,” Jade paused.
“She’s also very into girls,” Terezi said, grinning again.
Jade flushed a little and raised her eyebrows, “Oh?”
“Yes, oh,” Terezi stood up. “I’ll invite her over.”
“Terezi, wait!”
It was too late, Terezi was already waddling over to this girl.
Jade watched her say something and point over at Jade. The girl, Kanaya, raised her eyebrows and then nodded. She said something else but Jade couldn’t hear from here.
Terezi came back over, grinning triumphantly, “You’re welcome.”
Kanaya sat down at the only remaining empty seat, “Hello.”
“Kanaya, this is Jade,” Terezi motioned towards you. “Jade, Kanaya.”
Kanaya nodded at her and held her hand out, “It’s very nice to meet you.”
Jade shook her hand, “Yes, you too!”
There was an awkward beat of silence.
“So!” Terezi began, Jade silently thanked her for breaking the silence. “What’s new in the world of Kanaya?”
“Not very much, I’m afraid.” Kanaya said. “I’m still working that apprenticeship, but I’m looking for jobs elsewhere.”
“Apprenticeship?” Jade asked.
Kanaya brightened, apparently happy to talk about this subject, “Yes. I am hoping to get my work out there in the fashion industry, but currently I’m only an apprentice.”
“Ah, I see,” Jade nodded.
“At least you don’t still have school bullshit to deal with,” Terezi said, rolling her eyes
“Oh that’s right, how is law school?”
Terezi grinned, yet again, “I’m the best, obviously.”
Kanaya smiled.
“What about you, Jade?” She asked. “Are you still in school?”
Jade nodded, “Yes, I’m training to be a teacher.”
Terezi clapped her on the back “Yeah she volunteers at this animal shelter near by.”
Jade smiled, “It reminds me of my dog, Bec. I miss him.”
Kanaya nodded, “I see.”
Terezi stood abruptly, “I have to go. Goodbye.”
She moved swiftly towards the door and stopped to grin and wave at Jade before leaving the cafe.
“I should probably get going soon too,” Kanaya said, picking up her bag, laptop and now empty cup. “It was very nice to meet you Jade.”
“Yeah, you too,” Jade smiled.
She thought for a moment. Should she ask for her chumhandle?
Kanaya was standing up, better make a decision fast.
“Um, Kanaya?”
“Hm?” She turned around.
“Do you want to exchange chumhandles? If you have one, that is. Maybe we could talk more?”
Kanaya smiled, “That would be lovely.”
She pulled a pen from her bag and took a clean napkin from the table.
Jade watcher her write in long, swirling letters, a deep green on the white of the napkin.
“Here,” Kanaya said, sliding it to her. “I have to go now, but you can add me here and talk to me that way.”
“Okay! Bye, Kanaya!” Jade smiled and picked up the napkin.
“Goodbye, Jade.”
And then she was gone.
Jade stared at the napkin for a moment, before taking out her phone and adding her.
— gardenGnostic [GG] began pestering grimAuxiliatrix [GA] —
GG: hello kanaya!
GG: its me jade
GG: from the cafe
GG: terezis friend!
GG: just thought id add you now so i dont forget later!
GA: Hello Jade It Was Very Nice To Meet You Today
GA: I Am Afraid I Do Not Have A Lot Of Time At The Moment
GA: But I Will Message You Properly Later When I Do
GG: okay!
GA: It Was Very Nice To Hear From You
GA: Goodbye Now
GG: yep bye!
— gardenGnostic [GG] ceased trolling grimAuxiliatrix [GA] —
Well that was sort of successful wasn’t it?
-
It was a few days later when Jade met with Terezi again. A friend of hers was in town and she’d invited Jade over to introduce them.
Terezi opened the door the second Jade knocked, her usual grin plastered on her face.
“Welcome to the Pyrope house, population one.”
“Hi, Terezi!”
Terezi walked away and left the door open so Jade stepped inside and closed it behind her.
A blonde girl was sprawled across the couch, her feet up with her boots still on.
Jade thinks the couch is meant to be white. There are a lot of sticky red stains on it, and other stains of the more confusing variety.
The girl glanced at her.
“Um, hi! I’m Jade,” She smiled.
“I know.”
“Oh.” Jade paused, waiting for the girl to introduce herself.
She didn’t.
“And you are..?” Jade asked.
“This is Vriska,” Terezi said, appearing out of nowhere. “She’s the friend I was telling you about.”
“I can introduce myself, ‘Rez,” Vriska said, frowning.
“Sure you can,” Terezi flopped down on the couch beside her.
She patted the space next to her for Jade to sit on.
She didn’t really want to sit on the couch with all of its assorted stains, but she didn’t want to come off as rude. Jade tucked her skirts underneath her and sat on the couch.
“So Vriska’s the friend who’s in town?” Jade asked, attempting to make conversation.
Terezi nodded, “Post college drop out.”
She grinned when Vriska elbowed her in the side.
“School was boring as shit,” Vriska said. “I didn’t even want to go to college but my mom made me.”
“Haha, you still listen to your mom!” Terezi barked.
“Oh shut up, so do you,” Vriska rolled her eyes. “Besides you know what my moms like.”
Terezi nodded and patted her shoulder. Jade felt like this wasn’t a conversation she was supposed to be listening in on.
“God, why does everything on TV suck so much,” Vriska complained, flicking between the channels.
Terezi shrugged.
Jade heard her phone go off and pulled it out to check, glad for the distraction. It was John.
Jade smiled, it’s always nice to hear from John. They don’t talk nearly as much as she’d like to anymore.
— ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering gardenGnostic [GG] —
EB: hey jade
EB: are you around?
GG: hi john!
GG: yeah whats up?
EB: nothing
EB: just wanted to see what youre up to
GG: im at terezis right now! :)
GG: she has a friend over
GG: vriska?
EB: oh vriskas here?
GG: you know her?
EB: uh :/B
EB: yea kinda
GG: thats cool!
EB: so um
EB: how is she?
GG: vriska?
EB: yeah
GG: i dont know :/
GG: she doesnt seem to want to talk very much
EB: huh
EB: thats weird
GG: it is?
EB: yeah the vriska i met liked the sound of her own voice a lot
EB: like
EB: A LOT
GG: hehe well she hasnt said much to me
GG: just complained a bit about school
GG: and TV
GG: and i think her mom?
GG: but that was more directed at terezi so
EB:
GG: john?
GG: are you still there??
EB: oh yeah sorry hi
EB: i have another chat open
GG: oh?
EB: yeah
GG: with?
EB: just dave
EB: also rose
GG: wow youre popular today
GG: three chats at once!
EB: erm
EB: yeah three
EB: three different chats
GG: ??
GG: john?
EB: hey anyway i actually did want to ask you something
GG: oh yeah?
EB: yeah!
EB: its been forever since ive seen you
EB: do you want to hang out next weekend?
GG: yeah!! :D
EB: yeah? :B
GG: yeah!
EB: ok cool
GG: mhm
EB:
GG: john?
EB: sorry im still here
GG: talking to dave and rose?
EB: yeah once they start talking to each other they dont know how to shut up :B
GG: oh youre all on one chat?
EB: oh
EB: yeah
GG: oh ok
EB: hey i should probably go
EB: ill message you about next weekend?
GG: yeah
EB: bye jade!
GG: bye john
— ectoBiologist [EB] ceased pestering gardenGnostic [GG] —
Something about the knowledge that her three best friends were in a chat without her kind of sucked.
Liked really sucked. A whole fuckin’ lot.
She told herself Rose just wanted some time to herself after her rejection, but a small part of her worried she’d done something.
Were they okay with her?
She shot Dave a quick message to ask if everything was okay.
He didn’t respond straight away but she just assumed he hadn’t seen it yet.
“Hey, Terezi, I think I’m gonna head out,” she said.
Terezi looked up from whatever she was engaged in with Vriska, “But you just got here?”
“Yeah, I,” Jade fought to come up with a good excuse. “Have some homework I forgot about until now.”
Terezi looked suspicious, but nodded, “Well, okay.”
“I’ll see you later,” Jade said and headed for the door. “Oh, bye Vriska.”
Vriska waved a hand at her without looking up from the TV.
Jade went home.