Chapter Text
Jade Harley was notorious for her end of semester holiday parties. Almost everyone in John Egbert’s close friend group would attend, a sea of drunk college kids taking over the Harley estate within hours. The house was covered in Christmas decorations, lights and shrubbery. Pinecones stood at the ready on top of the fireplace, giving the living room a delightful pine aroma.
A playlist with a mix of Christmas music and regular songs suggested by the masses played throughout the entire house, originating from the living room. In the kitchen, there were a wide variety of drinks, varying in strength. People mostly crowded around their own cliche of friends, laughing and drinking drunkenly.
John sat on the couch with Terezi, beer in hand as she rambled on about whatever she's currently rambling on about. At this point in the night, he’s pretty tipsy already, half-listening to her as she speaks.
“And it was totally like,” Terezi slurred, “Totally fuckin’ stupid but like, kinda funny?” She dramatically tilts her head at John, waiting for a response.
“Oh yeah…” He nods like he understands, zoning out into the crowd as she continues her story.
John was still trying to relax after his strenuous finals week, checking his grades every day to see if his professors had updated assignments. For the most part, John was a pretty good student, but this semester had been awfully challenging. His final grades were riding on hopes and dreams, not confidently, because he wasn’t really one to hope that much.
John stood up abruptly, interrupting Terezi in the process, “I’m gonna go get another drink.” He stated, Terezi excitedly bounced up to join him. He choked back the rest of his current drink, crushing the can in his hands as they laughed their way to the kitchen.
Other than the living room, the kitchen was the second most populated area in the house. People stood around the counters, tables, and chairs. They drank and chatted, the smell of alcohol and pine taking over the air. After being in the house for a couple of hours already, the smell wasn’t overwhelming anymore.
John and Terezi scooted past people as they made their way from the kitchen into the garage, where the beer and wine was being kept in the fridge. There was a lot for people to drink, so Jade always divided it up. John tossed his empty can into the trash as Terezi started laughing about something, making their way into the cold concrete room. Unsurprisingly, they weren’t alone.
Fridge already open, there stood Roxy, chatting with a guy in pointy shades and a tacky jacket. John went from laughing with Terezi to mildly annoyed as the guy turned around. Now, John was not the type to dislike someone. He could really only see himself being mildly frustrated at someone, or just finding them annoying. No, this was different. In extreme cases, John could find himself “hating” another person. Specifically, if that person happens to be Dirk Strider, who was standing right in front of him, beer can held in his gloved hand.
For context, Dirk and John have never gotten along. Genuinely never. Not even when they first met, which you can often excuse as a bad first impression. John usually gives people the benefit of the doubt, multiple chances in order for him to get along with someone. Usually it works, even for the most fickle folks. Not Dirk, most definitely not Dirk.
To John, the guy was just a douche. Totally up his own ass, always glazing himself or getting people to fuel his ego. He was annoyingly stubborn, dry, and didn’t know how to take a joke. Oh but, he can joke at you and you have to be fine with it. Dirk Strider was the only guy who could effectively piss John off without even trying. Was there a possibility John could be overreacting? Maybe, but he wasn’t going to realize that now.
Terezi soon stopped talking to assess the situation, nudging John with a giggle. John frowned as Dirk turned from the fridge, glancing over in John’s direction. Dirk’s face was as stoic as ever, not even the slightest bit readable behind those goddamn glasses. From afar, John could make out the tiniest smirk on Dirk’s face as he tosses John the beer in his hand.
“Having a good night?” Dirk comments, earning a scowl from John. John catches the can a little clumsily, gripping it in his palm. He doesn’t give Dirk a reply as he walks back into the kitchen, Terezi snickering behind him.
“Are you ‘ure you guys aren’t kismesissssss?” Terezi drawls, shining John with a teethy grin.
“Why would I ever want something with that asshole?” John scoffs, popping open the can on the kitchen's central counter. Not to mention, the trolls he was close with were obsessed with their relationship. Not that they had one in the first place, obviously.
After the couple times John ranted about Dirk Strider, Karkat cornered him immediately. John had to share a programming class with Dirk that semester, and just his luck, paired with him for an in-class discussion. John and Dirk basically argued the entire lecture, and after meeting up with Karkat after class, the troll grilled him into oblivion.
“–and obviously you guys would need a genuine auspistice if you were to travel into that quadrant, not that it would be that difficult for you to find one. Maybe like…, hell Dave would be a good choice. Rose maybe? Or Roxy?” John had tuned out the conversation the second that it started, not wanting to be subject to one of Karkat’s lengthy quadrant rambles. He loved the guy, really, but he wasn’t in the mood.
John huffed as the yeast hit the back of his throat. He practically chugged the thing, only a quarter of the can remaining as he slammed it back onto the counter. He groaned to himself, shaking his head, “Having a good night?” John repeated under his breath, “Yeah right, not after having to see that jackass.”
Terezi just laughed, “You guys ‘re so funny.” She poked his arm, earning an eyeroll from John.
At this point, John was going to need several more beers in order to survive this party knowing Dirk was lurking around. Or probably something stronger, now that he thinks about it. He ignored Terezi’s teasing as he downs the rest, turning to toss the empty can into the trash. Effectively reuniting it with its lost tin-kin.
Suddenly Dave is beside him, placing a hand onto John’s shoulder. Turning to face him, John can see the drunk flush Dave’s face has taken. Dave’s shades are falling off the bridge of his nose, and he’s got a goofy smile plastered on him. Between him and Dirk, Dave was definitely John’s favorite.
“Johnny–” Dave huffs, seemingly having run over to catch John, “We’re gonna play games.”
“Games?” John repeated, Dave nodding.
“Yeah, like uum.. Um..” Dave stutters, “Truth or dare.”
John furrows his brows, “Truth or dare? Are we 13?”
Dave laughed, “Noo dude they’re so fun. Please come play, Terezi too.”
Terezi had already taken Dave’s side before John could say anything, reaching over to tug at John’s sleeve, “It’ll be fun!” She says.
John hums in consideration, caving obviously because what’s a fun game with your friends? Nothing could possibly not go your way, John thinks, especially if you only pick truth.
“Okay.” He says, earning a woop from Dave.
So John followed Dave through the house, moving from the kitchen to the living room, then from the living room to the study. The study wasn’t really a study, Jade’s grandfather kept most of his belongings upstairs. In light of this, Jade and Jake had turned the study into more of a lounge area separate from the living room. There was a TV set up, a couch, and a couple large bean bags. It was the perfect little nook, with space in the middle for people to sit around in a circle.
No one really did that though, opting to sit in the chairs or on the couch. John wasn’t early enough to catch his own spot, so he sat on the floor against the couch. Terezi sat crisscross right above him, curling into the corner of the couch. Then, next to her were Dave and Karkat, sitting suspiciously close to one another. Next to Dave was Jade, and across from Jade sat Rose on one of the beanbags. Rose and her girlfriend Kanaya shared the bag, sitting cutely next to one another. Roxy was there too, having a bean bag all to herself.
John chatted with his friends for a while. It had been too long since they’d been able to get together like this, considering the stress of the college semester. He guessed it was the reason why Jade had these parties, to make sure everyone stayed together. It was nice, having something to look forward to at the end of the year, something to work towards. It made John happy, being here like this, with his closest friends.
Until Dirk waltzed his way into the study, and John didn’t want to play anymore.
He sat down on the floor right next to Roxy’s beanbag, and he could feel Terezi nudging the back of his head with her knee. John didn’t say anything, he didn’t even meet Dirk’s gaze, which he could feel burning straight into him. It made his head buzz, which he was brushing off as pure anger or just the alcohol.
Terezi had leaned down to talk to John, focusing on her to distract him from his (basically) nemesis sitting across the way from him. They talked until Jade cleared her throat, basically starting their little game. Not a game to John though, this was going to turn into his own personal hell. He wasn’t really the superstitious type, but he just knew his buddies all too well. The anticipation made him gnaw on the inside of his cheek.
“Sooo…” Jade glanced around, picking her victim. Her eyes landed on Roxy mid sip of a glass of cranberry juice.
She pointed dramatically at her, gaze narrowing in suspense, “Roxy Lalonde.” Jade said super seriously, “Truth? Or Dare…”
Roxy swallowed, thinking for a moment with pursed lips, “Hmm… Truth!”
Jade thought for a moment, “What was your lowest final exam grade?”
John watched Roxy cringe thinking of the question. He watched Dirk look up at her with a raised brow, almost disappointedly. He swallowed, thinking about how he’d answer that. John didn’t score super bad on any of his exams, but he probably could’ve done better.
“Ummm…” Roxy hesitated, “Like… Can I plead the fifth?”
“No!!” Jade exclaims, “This is a game about truths and deeds! You can’t abscond, bro.”
“Er… Sorry, Dirk.” She apologized to her buddy before answering honestly, “Like a 70, and it was the class I studied the most for!! Like, it was totes a blowout for me. I was mad as hell.” She complained, frowning.
“Aww man…” Jade shared empathy, frowning with Roxy. She soon switched back to smiling, placing her hands in her lap, “Okay Roxy, it’s your turn!!”
“Okay awesome…” Roxy grins, scanning the couch. Her eyes land on Dave, who now looks a little nervous. No matter what he picks, it’s probably going to be embarrassing.
“Davey-boy…” Roxy giggles, “Truth or Dare?”
“Errrr…” Dave thinks, weighing his options. John knows that this game either entails one thing. Embarrass, or be embarrassed. No in between.
“Truth.” Dave decides on, earning a scoff from his brother across the room. John internally rolls his eyes, already guessing what kind of snide comment he was going to make.
“Truth? Really bro?” Dirk laughs, Dave waving his hands around in response.
“Dude, trust, the game just started,” Dave defended himself, “Lemme like– ease into it.”
Dirk just shrugged, “Alright.”
Roxy cleared her throat, “Kiss, Marry, or Kill everyone in this room.”
“Jeez…” Dave rolled his eyes dramatically, “Umm.. maybe…” John watched Dave and Karkat make eye-contact, Karkat’s face going red as he looked away. Terezi snickers, mumbling something to him that John doesn’t exactly catch.
“Kiss… Kiss Terezi, Marry Karkat, Kill… Dirk?” Dave shrugs, earning a fat laugh from Roxy.
“Marry Karkat, huh?” Dave’s brother teases, watching Dave flop back into the couch.
“Anyways…” Dave nips that awkward conversation in the bud, leaning over to look at Terezi.
“Yo, Rezi.” Dave grins, “Truth or Dare?”
Terezi scoffs, crossing her arms, “Dare, obvi.”
“Umm…” Dave thinks for a moment, probably thinking of the stupidest dare he could possibly give Terezi. He laughs to himself when he finally thinks of something.
“End the game totally plastered.” Dave laughs as Terezi huffs.
“Are you so drunk already that is the only thing you could come up with?” Terezi teases, climbing off the couch to go get her haul. They don’t continue the game until Terezi comes back, chatting amongst themselves. John can hear Karkat loudly whispering to Dave about his turn. Something something, Marry? Really? Something, something… John suddenly decides that Terezi is taking too long. His gaze drifted to the Strider in front of him, chatting idly with Roxy. It’s like Dirk knows he was staring, looking away frantically as Dirk looks over to meet John’s eyes.
Terezi soon comes back with several different cups, and one beer. She places it by John, and he takes it confused.
“Wuh?” He asks, popping it open anyways.
“You might need it, bud.” Terezi’s voice is ominous as she gulps down a potion.
She clears her throat before grinning evilly, and suddenly, John feels extremely uneasy. He takes several sips of his beer, biting his lip nervously.
“Dirk.” Terezi calls, and John is already dreading the next turn of events, “Truth or dare.”
“Dare.” Dirk answered without hesitation, and it’s almost like Terezi predicted he would.
Terezi leaned forward, and John suddenly felt her hand on his shoulder. He absolutely did not like where this was going. John slowly pulled his gaze up to look at Dirk, who was leaning against the wall behind him. He had one leg propped up, making his arm comfortable against it as he sipped on his own beverage. John could hear Terezi’s evil giggling in his ear as she spoke her next sentence.
“Kiss John.”
John’s whole body stiffened, and he swore he saw a genuine look of shock across Dirk’s face. It was only for a second before his expression became stoic once more.
“That’s it?” Dirk’s dismissal made John’s blood boil. That’s it? That’s it? Who does this guy think he is? The can in John’s hand crushed a little bit from a grip he didn’t even realize he had on it.
John whipped his head up to look at Terezi, begging her with his eyes, “Terezi, don’t do this to me.”
“John,” Terezi started, “This is the art of Truth or Dare.”
“I’m not kissing him.” John protests, scooting back into the couch as much as he could. He wasn’t really going anywhere, considering the couch didn’t move an inch.
“If you do this John,” Terezi starts, wiping her mouth after taking a massive gulp of her drink, “I won’t ever talk to you about it evber again.” She slurred, patting the top of his head. She probably won’t even remember saying that in the first place.
John watched as Dirk sighed, standing up from his spot on the floor. The silence in the room was scary, everyone watching as Dirk leaned down in front of John. He was so close now, and John could smell his cologne. Orange and woody, like a bonfire.
Dirk, in stature, was a bit smaller than John. A little more fit, but definitely shorter. Whenever they stood beside each other, he could tell that the height difference pissed him off. It made John laugh, whenever he’d catch the scowl on Dirk’s face. But right now, Dirk seemed 20 times bigger than John.
From here, John could see Dirk’s eyes behind his shades. They pierced through his own, and he’s brought back to reality by Dirk steadying himself. His hands are placed on John’s thighs, Dirk wobbling from the alcohol. It was at this moment that John had to accept that this was happening, and for how much he didn’t want to be kissed by Dirk Strider, the mood had shifted in a way that made John want to lean closer.
John swallowed hard, feeling dizzy from how close the other was to him now. He could smell the beer on Dirk’s breath, and the warmth radiating off his skin. John felt unsteady now, taking his free hand to grab at Dirk’s nape. His hands met soft, blonde hair, and he resisted the urge to run his fingers through it.
God, John was way too drunk for this.
But Dirk leaned in anyways, placing a sloppy kiss on John’s lips. It was awkward, for sure, considering that it was a little forced. John could feel Dirk pressing into him, and it pissed him off. Typical Dirk Strider, taking the ledge in their endless competition. John wanted to take that delicate blonde hair and yank, almost as if to tell Dirk that he was in control. The thought made John’s body flare with heat.
Before whatever they had going on could continue, Dirk pulled away. Triumphant in his turn, he swiftly returns to his spot next to Roxy. The room is eerily silent, almost as if everyone is processing what they just witnessed.
Yeah, John is way too drunk for this.