Unspoken Attraction (Dave/Karkat)

Dave pat John on the shoulder. "Just let me know when you'd like me to return the favor," he grinned as he headed towards the door, giving him a salute from the door frame before descending the stairs.

John watched him go with a little smile.

Bro was waiting for him at the bottom of the stairs.

Dave's grin faded as soon as he saw his brother waiting for him, his eyes lowering to the floor once he reached him.

Robert came out as well, pulling on a jacket. "Thank you very much for bringing his truck back in one piece and you're more than welcome to borrow it again" he offered, picking up his keys and leading them out.

"Thanks, Mr. E," Dave muttered, following him back outside.

The drive back to the strider house was quick, filled mostly with conversation from Mr. Egbert and a few words here and there from Bro.

Dave was the first one out the truck door when they arrived, waving John's dad off with another mumbled word of thanks accompanied by an uneasy smile.

Bro followed him, giving Robert a nod.

Robert nodded back before leaving.

Dave stopped at the front door, his eyes stuck on the ground as he waited for Bro to unlock it.

Bro unlocked the door without a word for Dave.

Dave stepped inside, looking over his shoulder as he did. He knew better than to let Bro out of his line of sight when the air was this tense.

Bro stepped in and shut the door behind him. He brushed past Dave on his way to the sofa.

The ominous silence had to be worse than an earful of Bro's yelling. "Bro?" Dave asked, his voice cracking at the end.

"I'm still waiting for an explanation." Bro stated coldly, sitting down heavily on the couch.

"Karkat knows that I've had sexual relations with John and we're all okay with it. We're not hiding anything from each other," Dave stated bluntly, looking away from his brother as his voice grew softer. "I love them, Bro. I love them both in different ways, and just knowing that they're both willing to be with me at the same time... it's... it's fucking amazing. I don't know what else you want to hear from me," Dave muttered softly.

He wasn't sure if he was ready to mention Jake, especially considering how Jake was around Bro's age. Sure, Dave hadn't done anything with him yet, but John certainly had, if his deep-throating skills were any indication of that.

"Karkat knows then?" Bro asked "And John is aware of your relationship with him too?"

"I told you. The first time I was with John, Karkat was with me. Literally, he was right between us," Dave explained, blood rushing to his face in embarrassment. "They both seem happy, Bro. That's all I ever want them to be."

"Does Karkat know what goes on when he isn't around?" Bro asked sternly

Dave slowly shook his head. "I wouldn't hide it from Karkat, but it's not like I'm texting him photos of it WHILE I'm doing it either."

He ran a shaky hand through his hair, swallowing nervously. "Jesus, this is the first time I've gone that far with John while Karkat wasn't around. I mean, we- we kissed and messed around for a bit once, but we didn't go any further, I swear," Dave insisted. "Karkat didn't seem phased one bit when John came into the mix and if this upsets him when I tell him about it, I'll stop."

"You'd better. I know I raised you better than that" Bro replied.

"Bro, could you please hop off your pompous pony for one second? Just because I'm with more than one person doesn't mean I have no values. I'm not cheating on anyone, I'm not a whore, and I'm definitely not sweeping this under the rug like some dirty little secret." Dave started rubbing at the back of his neck. "I love them both and I'm not any lower of a person because of that."

"That's all fine and dandy if it works for all of you, but it would have been nice to know before I walked in on John choking down your tic-tac." Bro replied "Its not a great thing"

Dave snorted at Bro. "Hey, I'm getting my freak on with John and Karkat, how's everything going?"

"Thank you. Was that really so hard?" Bro asked, crossing his arms

"Not so much as this part might be," Dave started, deciding that if Bro wanted to know what was going on before he found out on his own, he may as well mention everyone up front. "You know that guy, Jake, the one who dropped by with the soup and sandwich for you and Tav?"