Sollux and Eridan, Eridan and Sollux.
A week proved to be prosperous for the sixteen. On Karkat's order they all applied for weekday jobs and began making extra money. A chart was drawn and hung on the refrigerator, labeling the jobs-of-the-week, which were randomized at the beginning of the week. Gamzee had drawn the job of making dinner and buying groceries, which, in hindsight, was a horrible idea. However, Makara himself was thrilled with the responsibility. He had never made food before. Yes, he thought, I will prepare the most miraculous of feasts, fit for the high subjuggulator himself. The grocery stores of the Peach State's Capital were like jungles to him. The grocery list in his hand was a treasure map. Each trip to that store was an extravagant quest.
His dinners were, in reality, not as bad as everyone would have thought. They were, however, incredibly weird and alienish, and very sugary. Not once was water poured into a glass. No, Gamzee said, tonight, and the next, and the night beyond that, we will drink only the wickedest of elixirs. This magical drink he spoke of so dreamily was no more than a 3-liter-bottle of Faygo Redpop. But his comrades knew better than to desecrate his holy ideals. One by one they shakily thanked him for his work. Gamzee had never been prouder.
Through his drunken eyes he could see smiles on the faces of his friends, and being the modest clown he was he assumed it due to his magnificent meals. And yet, he saw a frown on the face of another. Behind large framed glasses he saw tears soaking into a blue-and-darker-blue striped scarf. This wouldn't do. No, sir. So he followed Ampora around with his camcorder like had so many times before, sneakily videotaping his every teardrop. And one day he decided that enough was enough. He needed to put a stop to this black romance for he could see it go on no longer. He needed to patch things up himself, for the two he saw were not brave enough to do it themselves. And he couldn't seek help of the girl, the one who caused it., but she would later play a major role in the reconciling of a past pale-red-romance.
He retreated to his den, as he called it, and with an old computer he purchased and a VCR data converter he pieces together a magnificent video compilation, a summary of the best moirails this world had ever seen. He stitched together a beautiful patchwork masterpiece, full of the ups and downs of their lives. The innocence of their love had even brought tears to his dry eyes. And finally, he stitched in the rockiness and the burning of the mightiest bridge. The destruction of their love, brought upon them by an innocent little girl who only needed a friend. And finally, it was finished. A smile crossed his face as he burned the CD, for he knew that the miracles would be able to help him. A truly amazing night was bound to follow the setting of the sun.
In what he called an emergency he hurried everyone into the TV room, locking all doors behind him. There was no escape now, he thought, hiding the key. "Friends," he opened his arms, "I am afraid I have lied to you all. There was no emergency. But now, now I need you all here. And no one will be leaving, for all the motherfuckin exits have been sealed. There is no escape."
"Gamzee?" Kanaya questioned, her eyes burning.
"Why did you lock us in here?" Karkat groaned. "When can we leave?"
"We can leave in a minimum of seven minutes and thirty mother Fucking seconds." Gamzee said exactly. Kanaya blinked.
"What are you talking about?"
"A few of us need...a bit of helping, you see." Gamzee grinned. "So I put together a mother fuckin feast for the eyes that will help us all along, and you will all watch it."
"That's it? You want us to watch a short film you made?" Dave asked. "That's fine by me."
"Just as long as you keep your promise." Vriska said. "Dibs on the couch!"
The sixteen followed her lead, snagging seats on the couches and seats around them, on the floor and the backboards. Gamzee, proud of their cooperation, retrieved his disc carefully from his pocket and skid it into a DVD player. Hitting a few buttons here and there and standing back, the sixteen watched from the eyes of a shaky camera bouncing about in a room so familiar to them. It was in their tiny gym, where they held their birthday celebrations. Around them, kiddy versions of the Ecto-Mistakes ran rampant, dashing around and laughing wildly. A little Kanaya flew by the screen, a Christmas bow stuck to her forehead.
"Vriska!" She cried. "You get back here right this inistant!" She mispronounced. The older Kanaya laughed at herself softly, Vriska nudging her with a snicker. The camera ran foreword, coming right up to a particularly grumpy birthday boy- a little nubby Karkat. He blushed angrily and folded his arms.
"What do YOU want?" He groaned.
"Best friend!" The camera boy cheered.
"Yes, Gamzee." His hands moved from his chest to his hips.
"Fish face and my bee-bro are gonna do themselves a mighty fine game of-"
"English, please."
"Eridan and Sollux are gonna play some taggity-tag." Gamzee said. "You wanna play?"
"No, I don't want to-"
"Yes you do, come on." The little Gamzee dragged Karkat by the wrist. The camera cut ahead to a depiction of Eridan chasing after Sollux, Sollux laughing. Eridan sprung forward, a cry of victory leaving his lips. "You're it!" He laughed. Sollux turned on his heels.
"I'm it!" He shouted.
Vriska and Rose scattered away from him, Kanaya right after them. Gamzee began running away, honking with glee, but he didn't get far before there was a this behind him.
"Uaagh!" Sollux cried. Gamzee turned, looking at the little boy who fell flat on his face. Dave laughed. "Waaaaaah!!" He wailed, catching sight of the blood spilling from his nose. "Eridan!"
Eridan came running. "Ewww!!" He shrieked. Sollux scrambled away from himself, hysterical at the sight of his own blood. He started screaming. "Help me!! Help!!" A tall-ish, slender woman hurried over, handkerchief out and ready. Jane Crocker caught him, holding him from behind, shushing him and covering his face with the cloth.
"You're alright, you're alright." She cooed. Eridan ran over.
"Professor Jane, is he gonna bite the bucket?" He cried.
"It's either kick the bucket or bite the dust." Jane laughed, "and no, he'll be okay. It's just a nosebleed." Sollux sniffled. Feferi smiled at the older Sollux, squeezing his hand.
"You sure were a crybaby." She giggled.
"Thut up, I wath five." Sollux smiled.
The camera cut again. This time they were in science class with professor Jake. Eridan and Sollux smiled brightly at the class, only eight years old. Sollux nervously pulled out a crinkled sheet of paper. "Hello." He stammered. "Me and Eridan-"
"Eridan and I." Kanaya corrected from her desk.
"Shut up!" Eridan defended his friend.
"We did our chemistry product on making explosions!" Sollux said.
"Boom!" Eridan added.
"We're gonna burn some hydrogen!"
"Wait, what?" Jake cried, but the match was already lit and hovering near the solid hydrogen.
"Ohmygod." Rose covered her mouth as an explosion threw back the camera and lost connection. Another clip followed, one of Sollux and Eridan being rushed to the infirmary. Eridan weakly clasped Sollux's hand.
"Gamzee." Eridan breathed. "What is this?" Gamzee only smiled. Following that clip were other shorter clips of Sollux and Eridan, best friends. Sollux and Eridan leaping into the lake from a dock, hand in hand. Sollux and Eridan playing a girly hand-game. Sollux and Eridan leaping up and down in front of the class, screaming out their multiples of five. Sollux unconscious, Eridan at his side with tears in his eyes. Eridan unconscious, with Sollux screaming at Gamzee to go away. They got progressively older. Closer. Their smiles seemed to grow bigger in each clip. The entire sixteen was dead silent, watching Gamzee's clips.
"I forgot you guys were this close." John murmured.
"We weren't." Sollux denied the obvious.
"Sure you weren't." Jade teased. "And Karkat isn't grumpy." Karkat flushed.
On the screen, Sollux and Eridan posed for the camera. They were seven years old, and they had dressed up as each other on Halloween. They held two big signs. Eridan's read, "Sollux and Eridan". Sollux's read, "Eridan and Sollux". They laughed and smiled at the camera.
"Sollux and Eridan, Eridan and Sollux." Tavros read.
"Shut. Up." Eridan glared.
The next clip was quieter. Sollux pressed a black book into Eridan's hands with a smile. "No." Eridan said loudly, "Gamzee, turn it off." Little Eridan was flipping through the pages as Sollux talked.
"Gamthee, turn it off!" Sollux shouted.
"Shut up, both of you!" Kanaya scolded.
"No, I'm not watching this!" Eridan cried, burying his face in his knees. "I'm not watching this!"
Little Eridan turned and ran, Sollux calling after him. "Eridan!" He cried. "What did I do?! Whatth wrong?!"
Sollux stared at the screen furiously as another clip cut foreword. Eridan hurried past Sollux, Feferi at his side. Gamzee watched from the bushes.
"That's what happened to you two? Eridan just freaked out one day?" Dave asked. No one answered. Another clip was playing. Sollux was screaming, pounding his fists on the wall of his bedroom, hurling little knickknacks and toys Eridan had given him at the wall. Gamzee watched from the doorway.
"You fucking thtalked me?!" Sollux yelled. No one spoke. The camera cut ahead. Eridan and Feferi sat alone, Eridan reading a book to her. Sollux ran up to them and began questioning Eridan. Eridan rose to his feet and jabbed Sollux in the chest with his finger. Though no one could hear what they were saying, they felt every word. The camera cut again. Feferi and Eridan were shouting at each other. Feferi, in tears, ran away. Gamzee chased after her.
"Gamzee?" She hissed. "YOU chased me?! I thought that was Eridan!"
"Why the fuck would I chase you?!" Eridan snapped. The camera cut. Sollux was comforting Feferi in the hallway. "He'th an idiot." Sollux said.
"Are you kidding me?!" Eridan cried. "Fef, are you serious? You LISTENED to him?! That's why you wouldn't talk to me? Because of HIM?!"
The camera cut again. Now it was Eridan's turn to have a temper tantrum. Eridan and Sollux shouted in each other's faces in front of everyone, Feferi in tears. No one said a word. They were dangerously close to the age they were now. Another cut. Sollux and Feferi held together a cut piece of paper. "Sollux and Feferi, Feferi and Sollux." It read.
"Bastard." Eridan muttered, staring at it. "You bastard."
"What do you care?" Sollux snapped.
"That was our thing!"
"We never had a thing!"
"Yes, we did! You KNOW we did! Everyone knows we did!" Eridan cried. They were both standing up now.
"It's not our thing anymore!"
"You don't just do that!"
"And you don't just do THAT!" Feferi cut in, pointing at the screen. Eridan had just snapped Sollux's glasses. "So you want to call him that again or what?"
"Thith ithn't your fucking fight, Feferi, tho back the fuck off!" Sollux hissed at Feferi.
"I'm on your side, you land-lover!" Feferi shouted.
"Thtop calling me that! You've never even THEEN the othean!" Sollux snapped back.
"Jerk face!"
"Brat!"
"Shut up!" Jade shrieked. "Shut up shut up shut up! Goddamn it! Look at the fucking screen, Sollux!" She pointed to the video, showing Gamzee watching Eridan crying in his bed. It was at the house they are in now. Everyone stopped. There was Eridan, his body shaking, curled up in his tattered bed. The camera cut one final time. There on the screen was Eridan's diary, wide open on that date's page.
"I'm sorry, Sol." It read. "I'm really glubbin sorry. This entire thing is my fault. I'm sorry." That was all that was written. Everyone stared, literally reading Eridan's diary.
"Eridan?" Sollux asked quietly, looking over at Eridan, who practically shook with rage, glaring at Gamzee.
"You fucking CLOWN!" Eridan roared, leaping over the couch and slamming Gamzee against a wall. He choked him. Every leapt up.
"Eridan, stop it!" Karkat cried. I doubt Eridan heard him.
"That's it!" Kanaya cried. "I'm going fishing!" She ran forward.
"No!" Sollux held her back. "Thtop it, Eridan, let him go!"
"He went too far!" Eridan yelled. Sollux ran forward, grabbing him behind the harms and pulling him back with every ounce of his strength.
"Eridan!" He shouted. "Cool it!"
"Get off me!"
"I forgive you!" Sollux said. Everyone froze. He let go of Eridan, who turned and looked at him. The world around them stood still. "I'm thorry, too, alright? Jutht...I didn't even know what happened! You jutht...thtopped talking to me. And then I made it into thith huge meth with Feferi and- I don't know. I'm thorry."
It was quieter than quiet. No one dared to breathe.
"I got you a dead rat." Eridan muttered. "I got you a dead rat and you got me this nice thing and I panicked, okay? That's why I did that."
"You really are an idiot." Sollux laughed, ensnaring him in a hug. "This all happened over a dead rat?"
"Well, now we know the answer to question number three." Karkat said. "A Fucking rat."
"Is this why you locked us in here?" Vriska asked. "To fix them?"
"Correct." Gamzee nodded.
"I hate you." Eridan muttered to Gamzee.
"You're welcome."