Never { Homestuck ||| Alpha!Dave & Alpha!John }

[crimsonxraptor]

Title: Never
Fandom: Homestuck
Ship: Alpha!Dave & Alpha!John
Word Count: 967
Rating: T
Prompt: Alphabet Meme, "Never"
Year Published: 2012
Tags List: POV Second Person, alphaverse, Friendship

Your name is Dave Strider, you are fifteen years old, and you've been staring at the old man across the restaurant for the past seventeen minutes and twenty-two seconds. You've been on your own for a while now, and it's hard being a kid and growing up in a world where you're literally living off your own shitty comics getting published in an obscure magazine every two weeks. It's hard and you'd be shocked if anyone understood. Hell, you wish you understood why this man you're watching--pot roast, side of mashed potatoes, cup of coffee, untouched glass of water--is suddenly the most interesting force on the planet.

The sun slams against a bright object somewhere in front of you and you hiss; fuck, you really need to invest in some shades, this light sensitivity shit is getting old. You rub your eyes, shake your head a bit and pick up your creepy staring again. He's usually just eating or something whenever you break your focus and come back, but this time he's looking right back at you. Oh fuck. Maybe if you stay perfectly still he won't notice you okay no he just waved at you and beckoned you over you're so fucked.

You hoist yourself out of your own booth, drag yourself to his, your face flaming from the embarrassment of being caught and you can't even hide it. Then you're standing at the end of his table and he just smiles and motions for you to sit across from him. So you do. Awkwardly.

The man drinks some of his coffee before holding out his hand to you. "I'm John," he says. You stare at him, confused, but shake his hand; it's obvious who the more confident one is here. "And what about you, dear boy?"

"Uh...Dave."

"I couldn't help but notice you were all by yourself over there! Thought you would like company," he explains, and you just nod. "So, do you have any family here? If you ask me, it's weird that a kid is just hanging out alone in a cheesy diner in the middle of LA."

You swallow.

"I have a brother," you say, albeit hesitantly. You don't really have one, not yet and not ever; your descendant will be just that, a descendant, not a brother. You've been confused about that for a while, too, and thinking about it again makes you fidget in the booth with anxiety.

John laughs, and you're watching how his big doofus smile unleashes all the wrinkles an old man's face has to offer; you forget about the descendant. "You don't say? Why, I've got a sister, myself!" He looks about as sad as he does happy, and it tears at your dearly perplexed heart. Your mouth feels dry.

But you feel as if asking is the right thing to do. "Cool. What's she like?"

As you expected, John's smile becomes forced; he's trying not to let you know. But his lips move, he takes a slow sip of water--his first sip of water since he's been here--and sighs.

"She was my best friend. I'm afraid I haven't seen her since we were children. It's been years...I miss her," John tells you, and he sounds like he might cry or something. You decide to shut the right fuck up about this mysterious missing, possibly deceased, sister. You nod.

"I'm sorry. Must be hard for you."

John smiles, and while it's sad as fuck, at least it's real. "Thank you."

You nod again, and you feel yourself smile back and you can't stop it. John can tell that you're fighting it, you just know it by that shit-eating grin, and he brightens right up, right in front of you, because of you. Your chest feels like it's imploded.

You suddenly you feel so inadequate. The way he shines like that warms you up, maybe it's the fabled feeling of love or adoration, but you don't deserve it. You've no idea why you feel like that--okay, you typically feel like that, but this guy's done nothing to trigger that--but it hardly gets in the way of this excited bubbling mess of awesome about to explode within you. It's like you're best friends with him, even if you haven't known him for more than an hour, but sitting across from him, smiling at him while he's smiling at you, makes you the happiest brat in the universe.

You two talk a while longer, and when John checks his watch he gets wide-eyed. "Oh, shoot--I'm sorry, Dave, but I've got a plane to catch. How the time flies, huh?" John looks so apologetic and you feel guilty. "It's fine, man, thanks for giving me some of that airborne time," you tell him, looking up at him as he stands and fixes his bright red bow tie.

John chuckles. "You're truly something, Dave. I'm glad to have met you."

You can't find the words to return the sentiment, so you just nod. He lingers, like he wants to say something else, which is great because you suddenly jolt in your seat and blurt out, "What's your favorite movie? Actor?"

You didn't think John could grin that much, or that his eyes could shine any bluer. "Con Air, definitely. It's awful, but it was a large part of my childhood. Same with Nic Cage, can't go wrong with a Nic Cage film," he answers, and seems fairly excited about it. Then he hums and strokes his comically sized mustache dramatically. "Let me guess...Ben Stiller fan?"

You're grinning before you can even catch yourself. "Fuck yeah."

John gives you a thumbs up, checks his watch, and waves.

"Goodbye, Dave."

You wave back.

"Bye, John. See you around."

You'll never see him again.