I don't even really ship Johnkat, but this just kinda happened...

Head turned slightly downward and posture bend forward, Karkat briskly headed down the crowded sidewalk. Rain poured relentlessly upon all city-goers, soaking through the troll's favorite gray hoodie and chilling him to the bone.

One particularly harried pedestrian decided they would get where they were going faster if they shoved right past Karkat as though he weren't there. The sudden violent motion jerked him to the side, and he whipped his head back to glare at the offender.

Normally, Karkat would just keep on moving. The weather was too cold and bleak for even his hot temper, but something- bad luck, instinct- caused him to stop and allow the pushy guy a glance at his face.

As fate would have it, and rude man was old, bent, with stiff features and not a single smile line in sight. Upon catching a quick glimpse of Karkat's gray complexion and yellow eyes, his dark countenance grew darker still.

"Go back to your spaceship and wash yourself, you damn grayface!" He bellowed, his hoarse voice still incredibly carrying on a crowded sidewalk in the rain. Passersby turned briefly- Karkat thought he may have seen a few fellow trolls- but they all kept moving, apart from the occasional dirty glance his way.

Rage bubbled up in his gut, hot and familiar. It wasn't fair, why did he have to take this from a stupid speciesist prune. His hands, still in the large front pocket of his hoodie, curled up into tight fists. How easy it would be, just one swift motion, and this asshole would learn not to shove past anyone again. The stupid old man seemed to know it, too, knew that no matter how justified it was, they would always take his side. Every damn time.

Karkat turned back, striding as quickly as he could. He knew if he stopped, even for a second, he'd turn around and beat the everlovin' shit out of that decrepit human. He also knew he couldn't afford that. He lowered his head again, vacantly observing the trouser-clad legs that hurried past his vision.

Just a bit longer, and he was almost home.

He wasn't sure how long he had been walking (it could have been days, it was all the same to him), but finally he reached the bus stop. Mercifully, an awning was available, and with no other people milling around under it. He took his own seat beneath the small structure and waited for the bus to come. If it wasn't too much longer, maybe he could avoid anyone-

"Hi!"

Shit.

He looked up from his fixed cement gaze to find the most horrific eyesore he had ever seen.

A human, about his age, with buckteeth and square spectacles, was grinning at him. That in itself may have been unnerving, but his outfit was so atrocious even Karkat, a troll with no fashion inclination at all, wanted to gouge his eyes out looking at it.

The stranger wore a bright green poncho with little yellow rubber ducks on it, each duck proclaiming "QUACK' with a speech bubble. Adorning his ears were enormous fluffy pink earmuffs, his short black hair messily tangling with the material. On his hands were- oh Lord were those gardening gloves- yes, dark green gardening gloves with small amounts of dirt still on the knuckles. He wore bright blue baggy athletic pants (Karkat detachedly noticed they matched his eyes), with painfully yellow rubber rain boots to tie it all together. The umbrella he was holding was cherry red, with tiny little pink hearts splattered all over.

The odd stranger smiled, apparently unaware his clothes were anything out of the ordinary. Karkat looked around and yes, he was the only one at this bus stop who had to endure this colorful lunatic.

"My name's John, what's yours?" he asked, his voice all bubbly and goofy as if at around college age or so he still hadn't quite finished puberty.

Not wanting to be rude, Karkat replied, "My name's 'Fuck Off, Weirdo, I Don't Want To Be Your New Friend.' The fifth."

"John" rolled his eyes and grinned again. If the outfit wasn't blinding enough, Karkat was sure the teeth would finish anyone off nicely.

"Well fine then. Can I just call you 'Fuck Off', for short?"

"No."

He was hoping that would be a simple enough indicator of his disinterest in talking, but apparently not.

"So, Fuck Off, what brings you out here on a beautiful day such as this?" John asked snarkily, his right hand absentmindedly twirling his garish umbrella.

"Listen, 'John', I don't know what weird game you're playing, but I'm not really in the mood to make small talk with a colorful peachface guy right now. I just want to get on my bus and go home, that's it."

With that, Karkat adjusted the hood on his gray sweatshirt, and determinedly ignored the weirdo just next to him.

"So you're going home?"

Seriously, could this bus take any longer to get here?

"Have family there? Or, uh, a lusus, I guess," John awkwardly fumbled, and Karkat smiled just a little. Regardless of his mood, it was always amusing to watch the liberal humans display how open-minded and multicultural they could be. As if knowing trolls were raised by lusii were any consolation to the eons of culling.

"No, I live with a few friends in an apartment. Dunno why it's any of your goddamn business, though."

"Oh, really, no way, I'm doing the same thing!" John said, as though the idea of multiple companions sharing a living space was novelty shared by them alone.

"Whoop-de-fucking-doo. Remind me again why you're talking to me?"

John laughed, his pink earmuffs threatening to fall off as his head bounced.

"Because you seem interesting. Plus you're really funny, and it's rainy and awful so there's not much else to do right now but talk."

"We could wait for the bus in silence, like most people deign to do."

The human pouted, an overly dramatic expression that bugged Karkat incredibly.

"That's boring. Oh! I know! We could play the car game!"

Karkat sighed. Apparently there was no getting rid of this freak.

"All right. What the hell is the car game."

"You pick a color, and when a car with that color passes, you get a point! I play this with my step-sister all the time! It's usually more fun when you're in a car, but..."

"Fine. I pick the exact perfect hue of the fucks I give. Aw, I don't see any. I guess I lose. Too sad. Now will you leave me alone?"

John sighed and turned back to the road, apparently taking a hint. Or maybe he was playing the car game by himself. Karkat sincerely hoped it was the former. There was a difference between being weird and just sad, after all.

Either way, he was shutting up, so the redblood turned his gaze to the busy street as well. The vein of the city was full of people desperate to escape this rain, complete with horn-honking and deafening engines. Without even noticing, Karkat began to document all of the red cars that passed.

"Seven," he murmured, and John looked up. How the hell he heard through all the commotion, Karkat had no fucking clue, but now there was no turning back.

"Seven?" He asked, bemused.

The troll glared at the street, avoiding eye contact at all costs. His pointed ears felt unnaturally hot, and he was thankful for the hood because he was fairly sure they were flushed.

"Seven red cars," he elaborated. "So seven points."

A moment passed.

"Eight."

John burst out laughing.

"What's so funny!?" Karkat demanded. He wasn't a big fan of being mocked.

"I'm sorry, it's just- your FACE-" John started, then covered his mouth as a fit of the goofiest giggles ever heard by anyone escaped. "You just looked so serious, like you were thinking 'What does it all mean?' or 'Where am I going in life', but you were just COUNTING CARS-"

"It was YOUR stupid game!"

"I know, I didn't mean to laugh. Sorry, Fuck Off."

"What?" Oh yeah. That stupid rebuttal. He cringed at the immaturity of Past Karkat.

"Karkat. My name's Karkat Vantas."

"Huh! Weird name. Makes me think of like a car shaped like a cat." John giggled once more. "Beep beep! Meow!"

"I wouldn't make fun, your name is slang for shitbasket."

"That is true. Shitbasket is my middle name."

"Excellent. We're Fuck Off and John Shitbasket, two jackasses waiting for the bus."

"It's like a bad reality sh-" Suddenly, a car (a red one, as it happened) swerved just slightly too close to the curb. Muddy rainwater splashed up, directly where the two were sitting. Out of reflex, probably, John lifted his umbrella and deflected the splash. Karkat was not so lucky.

Freezing, disgusting sludge rained down on him, completely soaking past any semblance of dryness he thought he had. He sputtered and whipped his head from side to side like a dog, his soggy hood falling away to reveal his nubby orange horns.

"Oh, man! You okay?" John asked, which was by far the most idiotic question phrased by any sentient being this side of the galaxy.

"I'm fucking freezing and muddy, you literal assfactory. No, I am not." He hugged his arms in a weak attempt to garner warmth. Yes, this bus would take it's SWEET GODDAMN TIME getting here, wouldn't it.

"Here!" a piece of water-resistant cloth was suddenly thrust at him. It was that stupid duck poncho John was wearing. "It's not a lot," John said, rubbing his own arms now, despite still having a hoodie of his own.

"Like hell I'm adorning this distasteful quackbeast chestblanket." Karkat grumbled, almost instinctively, though he put it on anyway.

John grinned. "It suits you," he teased, and Karkat's already general reddened face darkened still.

"Why the fuck do you even own a monstrosity such as this anyway." He said, silently thankful for the warmth.

"Oh, I was just grabbing the warmest things I could find today, and this fit the bill. It's not mine, it's my bro's. He bought ironically, I think. Dave's weird," he said, grinning again.

"Well it's stupid, and 'Dave' is stupid." He spat out, trying to summon the proper disdain. The stupid hopbeast-tooth smile was starting to become endearing.

"Yeah, sometimes. But I think he's secretly a genius and just doesn't like to show off." John looked over, meeting the disapproving gaze of a passerby. It seemed to be the first time he noticed all the glares being sent the troll's way.

"Stop looking at them, it just makes them mad," Karkat said, far too used to this.

"I wish they would stop glaring, though. It's really weird." John said, disconcerted. Karkat guessed he grew up loved by all, pampered and accepted everywhere he went. Or maybe he just grew up a human. Same difference.

"Too bad. As long as you're anywhere near someone like me, that's something you deal with."

"I shouldn't have to. Neither should you."

"Boo-fucking-hoo. That's just the way it is. Humans are up here, trolls down here." He indicated the two groups with his hands, raising one above his head and the other down to his lap. "You were here first, after all."

"I just don't like it. But maybe one day things will change. If not, I'll do it myself." John decided, making a determined face. As if he were the savior for all trollkind.

"Yeah, good luck with that." Karkat scoffed.

"No, really! I'll, like, set up rallies and stuff!" he was getting excited now, gesturing wildly. "Hey, you should help! We can be like, symbols for the union of humans and trolls!"

"No. No way in hell is my name going anywhere on this ridiculous abortion." But inwardly he was thinking bond? Since when? I just met this lunatic!

John made a sad little sound and looked down at his hideously bright shoes.

They sat in silence. Karkat counted the red cars again, then stopped. He felt kind of bad again, and he wasn't entirely sure why.

The bus finally arrived, stopping in front of the bench. Karkat stood up.

"Hey, it's here," he said uncomfortably. John stood too, though he barely gave the bus a glance.

"Thanks for talking to me," he said, the grin this time a little wistful.

Karkat frowned. This was unacceptable. He walked a little closer to the messy-haired stranger and gave him a quick hug, pretending as though it aggrieved him to no end.

And yes, the smile was back in full force.

"Here!" he said, handing the troll a slip of paper with several digits on it. "Call this number and we'll set up a time for you to give me my poncho back."

"Oh! Right! Uh, here, you can-" Karkat started to remove it, but John interjected.

"Nope. You keep it. Then I'll be sure you will call me."

Then he started to walk away.

"Hey!" the bemused mutantblood yelled. "What about the bus?"

"I wasn't waiting for one, I live just over there!" John said, pointing to an apartment building directly ahead. "I just wanted to say hi!"

Karkat gave a tiny laugh of disbelief, then stepped onto the bus, ignoring the pointed looks of the passengers. He grabbed on to the railing, still dripping wet, and looked out the smudged window at that ridiculous peachface with the bright red umbrella and the dazzling smile. As he gripped tight on that tiny piece of paper, he thought, Yes, I will see him again. And maybe we can count more cars next time.