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[parodeity]

DAVE STRIDER

consider this your warning about stairs. itll just keep happening bro. im telling you man

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[windeity]

[He's driving and he's sorely tempted to abandon ship, why did he think this line of conversation was better?!]

"Oh sure, I'm sure it's GREAT for you. You get to spend your days smooching and breaking up with Davesprite and what not, and you can shrink down to any old planet you feel like, any time. Whereas I have to make this whole big deal of ASKING you to shrink or unshrink me, and…I know, but you think I want to bug you about that at the drop of a hat? When you're busy and on dates and stuff? I just happen to have respect for something called PERSONAL BOUNDARIES, Jade. And it's not like there's really anyone else to talk to, except the inscrutable chess people and a bunch of brainless consorts and an idiot cat princess. Oh and also Nanna, but I mean, she's my grandmother, and she's great, but a guy can only spend so much quality time with his grandmother before he starts to feel like kind of a loser whose friends are too busy to spend time with him! "

[This is probably in exact perfect pitch as he would sound as a fifteen year old, so like the 16 year old Dave has memories of. That's fun.]

[parodeity]

[ he just. laughs. let me know when they park ig ]

Oh my god your you impression is spot on. Holy shit. You also sound weirdly jealous and also your Nanna was pretty fuckin’ cool, I’d hang out with her for three years straight??

[windeity]

At the time I think I was just mad but looking at it now I am pretty sure I was weirdly jealous? I don't know, also I love my nanna but come on! [A huff.] Jade also definitely pointed out my lack of a girlfriend and I countered that with asking about her future with sprite-you when he had a ghost butt.

[It's easier to talk about the dumb parts to try and make him laugh, at least.]

[parodeity]

I kinda assume the half animal thing helped? I distinctly remember her bein’ a furry.

[ thanks dave. ]

[windeity]

She only had the ears! And bird-you had a tail and feathers. [At least they parked, finally.]

[parodeity]

Babe, I mean I feel like she was like, a furry. Into furry stuff? I made a fursona to talk to her once. [ and nepeta apparently?

ok guess we’re just waiting for John to lean over to open the door since dave will undo his seatbelt ]

[windeity]

...okay, well, that explains a few things but I am not sure I want to ask further. [He leans over to open the door.] But she got kind of mad that I was asking.

[parodeity]

Understandably. I’d have probably laughed in your face. [ dave stops john when he leans over mostly because he’s wanted to for a while. it’s?? frustrating to have someone you like in your space like that and not being allowed to touch but he’s (not really) kind of sure it’s okay to reach out to turn john’s face towards him so dave can kiss him instead of the usual door opening?

yeah it’s more hesitant and less smooth but whatever ]

- because it wouldn’t have been your business and also why.

[windeity]

[Oh.

…oh. There's a very slow smile because it's kind of sweet and it's also weirdly relaxing to know Dave's a little hesitant, too. He uses a hand to brace himself on Dave's seat and he returns the gesture for a moment before he settles for staring where he thinks he's pinpointed Dave's eyes are behind his shades.]

Given some of the other things I remember saying about you, I kind of have to wonder if I was just mad I didn't have my version of you around.

[parodeity]

[ how long until john bothers to ask dave to take off the shades. dave makes zero moves to let john open he door though he isn’t stopping it; the hand that had turned john’s face towards him slides to rest at the side of john’s neck and yeah, he’s nervous. still terrified.

but john’s right here so it’s maybe okay. ]

I didn’t get mad mostly. I just missed you. Rose unfairly got to see you first.

[windeity]

[Soon...but he's letting Dave's hand rest on his neck and he's practically nose to nose with him. They can do this, at least.]

You mean when she showed up during my fight with Jack? I do remember that. It's how I won. [But.] I definitely missed you, too. I bitched a lot at Jade about making the ship go faster and it never happened.

[parodeity]

[ cool he just kind of wants to kiss john again but instead he leans forward to rest his forehead against John’s which still isn’t normal and lets his eyes drift shut. ]

Pretty sure we both needed the two of you. [ he and rose and jade and John. ] Things were...all unbalanced.

[windeity]

[That's fine. He's comfortable, kind of, (the way he's leaning in his seat isn't that comfy) but he's not going to move either.]

I think part of it was that I was upset it was bird-you and not you-you, and if I had to guess maybe I was mad at Jade for treating him like you. I don't know. It is hard to say what fifteen year old me was thinking beyond being apparently really lonely and probably in the middle of puberty. [Shrug.] "You are the most piss poor substitute for a best friend a guy ever had. I can't wait to meet up with the real Dave again. That way we can all go back to the awesome status quo of pretending you never existed in the first place." It was probably a douche-y thing for me to say to him but I apparently didn't care since I was hallucinating or something. And then I fell asleep in the driveway.

The point is that I think I was also pretty miserable without you guys. Three years was way too long and I know it's not Jade's fault it took so long but...if fifteen year old me then was like fifteen year old me now then logic was dumb anyway.

[parodeity]

If it helps, you’re the only version of you I want. In any capacity I mean. The guy who remembers the same things as me and didn’t the same things and...it’d be impossible not to care about other iterations of you but it wouldn’t be the same. So.

[windeity]

Sounds like what I said to Davesprite back then. [But that's good. He'll lean in to kiss him again even though he keeps it brief.] I still think it's cool that we found each other again though.

[parodeity]

[ that's cool. this is a cool conversation. dave cares a lot about this conversation except not and he laughs. at himself, mostly. ]

So, I've kinda wanted to do that for a while?

[windeity]

What, kiss me in my car? [He raises an eyebrow. Do tell, Strider.]

[parodeity]

[ WHAT IF HE STRANGLES JOHN. there's a noise somewhere between a laugh and an annoyed groan like "oh my god you're impossible". ]

Kinda? You always lean all the way over me to get the door. I regret telling you this already. Remind me never to tell you anything about wanting to kiss you ever again.

[windeity]

[What if he shuts Dave up by kissing him again?]

[parodeity]

[ well. like. this is an excellent way to shut dave up? congratulations john found something that works. kind of works. is working currently, anyway, although there's a surprised noise before he leans into it.

the angle is probably way better for dave than john who is in awkward leaning limbo but dave doesn't care about that immediately so. ]

[windeity]

[Doing his best: a John Egbert story. Still he's not pulling away for once and he's settled for kissing him, leaning into his space and carefully figuring out how to work his mouth over Dave's.

Granted this works for a few minutes before John's hand on the seat slips and he topples, mouth ripping away from Dave's and hands scrambling not to fall directly into his lap which means grabbing at the seat and sitting upright instead.]

...[What if he just kind of starts laughing instead because please kill him.]

[parodeity]

[ ...snorts. ]

Smooth. [ i mean that was sort of dave's fault for choosing to start this at the most Awkward angle known to mankind but he's like. leaning back in his seat now and just kind of amused. ] This was maybe not the best idea.

[windeity]

Apple pancakes. [That's all he says with a silly sort of grin, sitting up a little further instead.]

[parodeity]

Is that a safe word, or are you offering to make them, or what? They're less effective if you don't, like, have apple flavor.

[ you lost him, john. ]

[windeity]

No. [Shaking his head is a go.] That's how long I've wanted to kiss you. Or at least that is about when I started really considering it.