It was the middle of November. The leaves had all fallen and the empty trees stood like skeletons. A cold wind blew throughout the campus of Veil Institute of Technology and Art and I shivered. I looked out of my car window at the neon sign on the convenience store that lit up the night. Even though I had the heat on full blast, I was still freezing. The weather forecaster had said that there was a chance of snow. Snow! In November! It seemed like a cruel joke.

It's just a little cold, Karkat. It's not that big of a deal, I told myself. I turned the car off and sprinted into the store. The frigid air stung my face but disappeared quickly as I entered the heated store. I ran through my mental shopping list. I needed milk, eggs, flour, and raspberries.

"Damn Gamzee and his pie-making juggalo ass," I cursed, not caring if anyone heard me.

The stupid clown should come get his own baking ingredients. I made a face as I picked up a container of raspberries. Faygo and fruit. That is just disgusting. I collected the other items on my list and walked over to stand in line. I sighed when I realized that the checkout person was the old man. He always took forever!

"Fan-fucking-tastic," I muttered and glared at the glass door opens with a jingle and I turned to see which unfortunate soul had walked in. That was the first time I saw him.

The first thing I noticed was his height. He was freaking tall. He was definitely the same height as Gamzee, maybe even a little taller. The next thing I noticed was how skinny he was. He was the epitome of emaciation. His cheeks were gaunt and I was horrified that I could see every one of his ribs through his t-shirt. That was another thing; it was below 32 degrees fahrenheit and this guy wasn't wearing a jacket. He wasn't even shivering! His brown hair was dull and it stuck up in the back. He pulled a hand out of his pocket to push his weird glasses up his nose. One lens was blue and the other was red. But despite all of that, I thought he looked kinda...cute.

My heart thumped in my chest. He must have noticed me staring because he stuck up his thin middle finger at me. I flushed and turned back around quickly. The girl in front of me finally finished and she walked towards the door.

"That only took a few years," I said with a glare. She glared back at me but didn't say anything. The door jingled as she left. I stepped up to the counter and put my food down.

"Good evening," the old man said, his voice crackled with age.

"Not really," I huffed, annoyed.

"That will be eleven dollars and sixty-nine cents," the old man replied.

I dug money out of my pocket and froze when heard footsteps stop behind me. It had to be him. I swallowed and forced myself to keep moving. I handed the cashier twelve dollars and drummed my fingers against the counter. He handed me my change and I snatched the plastic bag, walking quickly away. Before I got to the door, I heard the old man say,

"Haven't seen you here in a while." There was a pause and I imagined the old man squinting. "Have you been eating well, son?"

The boy's voice was dripping with annoyance as he snapped, "Who the fuck asked you?" But, with his lisp it came out "Who the fuck athked you?"

I fought the urge to giggle as pushed the door open. I hunched my shoulders against the night air and jogged over to my crappy Toyota. I yanked the door open and launched myself into the vehicle. I jammed the keys into the ignition and turned the heat on. Hot air blasted into the car and I closed my eyes in relief. I thought of the boy that I had seen. I didn't think he was in any of my classes. Gamzee might know who he is, I realized. He practically knew everyone in the whole college.

I turned the radio on and the brain-numbing sound of Miley Cyrus singing "See you again" graced my ears.

"...My heart can't rest till then. Ooh woah woah, I, I can't wait to see you again."