youth ❀ karlnap

i'm not happy like this

cw: arguing, more religious standpoints, transphobia

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Karl, obviously, got in trouble. Not when he was picked up, because him and Quackity actually showed up to the church a bit later with full bellies and more positive attitudes; therefore when his mom arrived he simply walked out of the building as usual. The problem was later, when she had a conversation with one of the pastors and he mentioned how Karl was missing for more than half of the time he was supposed to be there. It wasn't much of a surprise that the leaders in the church watched the kids like hawks, since they seemed so desperate to feed them the information that they preached every night they were here. They were creating another generation with the same thought patterns as them, which Karl definitely found questionable. He didn't see why caring about "homosexuality" was so important in this day and age. It wasn't like straight couples were dying out. The world was literally becoming vastly overpopulated. If anything, Karl would be doing everyone a favor if he had another boy as his lover.

Unfortunately though, he just had to sit there and shudder as he listened to the scathing words of the people who had a surprising amount of control over him. Despite the fact that he had fallen into the pit of desiring their validation for a while, and was still trying to act like he was still in that phase, he found himself clenching his fists whenever something was said that could be linked to his feelings in any way, and it took all his self-control not to storm out of the room or just burst out crying. Knowing that only one person in the room outwardly supported his identity without question made him so uncontrollably angry and upset. How many years was he going to suffer before people would finally start to take him seriously? And will the church ever realize that he wasn't on this planet to convert them or hurt them, but to seek acceptance and respect?

Church days started to blend into one another, but at least Karl had a friend now. A true friend. Whether they were sneaking out of the building to hang out with each other or staying to seriously take in the lessons, Karl had a genuinely good time with Quackity no matter what. The other boy was kind and thoughtful, but also ridiculously hilarious. He made Karl burst into giggles endlessly in a way that only one other person in his life had achieved. He fell back in his chair multiple times to literally cackle his lungs out, and even a few times during sermons. It was kind of embarrassing, but he couldn't control it when Quackity was just that funny.

Those outbursts were when people started to catch on. They sat and watched as the quiet and awkward unpopular girl was suddenly talking at a high volume, acting out, and laughing without a care in the world. So as their friendship grew stronger, so did the flames of tension between him and his mom.

Karl knew that she was going to be mad when she found out, but he wasn't prepared for being lectured to so harshly. It was Sunday morning, just after church. He hopped into the front seat and buckled in as always, a slight smile still on his face from when he and Quackity were making faces at each other from across the room. They could say nothing to each other and still laugh. They were already quite inseparable.

His mom got in as well, adjusting herself and starting to drive. She side-eyed Karl though, who barely noticed. His eyes were trained to his phone, tapping mindlessly through social medias of kids he barely talked to.

"So I've heard that you've been sneaking out of church for boys," She brought up out of the blue. Karl looked up from his phone, tensing up and turning off the screen immediately. His skin crawled with anxiety, especially so at the way that she phrased it. If he was born male, this would just be plain delinquency and rebellion. But since his mother only saw him as a girl, it was no doubt that she thought he liked Quackity as... more than a friend.