Chapter Text
Sapnap takes off running, desperately protecting the tail attached to his rear end. The velcro rips easily, he notes, as he watches them snatched from one person to another.
He’s concerned about all his friends right now, especially Karl. His boyfriend had been separated from him in the beginning. Torrents of people had beelined to where the tails lay, and Sapnap could only hope that his lover was one of the lucky ones who managed to get one and escape.
If he hadn’t, Sapnap would gladly sacrifice his own and look for another. But right now, it was too risky to go find Karl. Sapnap was trying to stick by George and Dream so they could look together, but they soon lost each other as well.
That meant he was on his own to search for Karl. It was unfair how Dream and George somehow found each other no matter the circumstance. Unlike Sapnap and Karl, they didn’t use the titles of boyfriend or partner.
The relationship between the brunette and the blond ran much deeper than labels, and Sapnap was fine not understanding. He couldn’t, however, help but be a little jealous of their internal GPSes for each other.
“Hola amigo!” Sapnap called hoarsely to the nearest person. “Uhm… dónde… Karl Jacobs?” His broken Spanish made the person cringe slightly but they seemed to get the message.
“No sé.” The person named Elrich murmured.
The response made Sapnap’s shoulders sink. He was certain Karl could take care of himself but that didn’t stop him from worrying.
Suddenly, a man standing next to Elrich spoke up. “Karl? Sí, he’s there.”
Sapnap stared at where he was pointing, and, sure enough, his beautiful boyfriend was perched on top of a castle with a few other people. Thankfully, a tail was clearly seen attached to his back.
He nearly cried in relief, turning towards the stranger. “Gracias, thank you so much!.... What is your name? Yo soy Sapnap.”
The man gave him a slight nod. “Farfadox. You should hurry, amigo.”
Taking his advice, Sapnap climbed off the building he was on and raced towards the castle. He had to dodge a few people, side-stepping one who got too close. Some of these people he had spoken to, even joked around and laughed with them.
But now, their eyes were filled with a hunger for the tails and they were fighting brutally, caring for no one but themselves.
“Sapnap!” A familiar voice suddenly screamed.
He whipped his head around, quickly spotting Tina fighting a much larger opponent. Sapnap glanced up towards the castle, double-checking to make sure his boyfriend was safe before helping, but there was no sign of him.
“Fuck it.” Sapnap growled and ran to help his friend. He backed the guy into a corner while Tina scrambled to her feet.
Tina’s attacker, realizing the fight was a lost cause, ran away to find another victim.
“You okay?” Sapnap said, turning to face her.
She panted, trying to catch her breath. “Yeah, I-”
As she was speaking, Sapnap noticed someone sneaking up behind her. “Tina!” He yelled, reaching to grab her and pull her out of the way.
It was too late. The person behind her ripped off her tail. And then the buzzer that signaled the end of the game sounded.
Tina stared at the person in utter shock before gaping at Sapnap.
“Tina.” He whispered.
Her shocked face melted into something more serene as she accepted her unchangeable fate. “I-It’s okay, Sapnap." She mumbled.
“Watch out!” Someone screamed at the top of their lungs.
All heads in the arena turned towards the castle where the person had shouted from.
It took Sapnap a moment to realize someone was falling off of it. And then time seemed to slow down.
A familiar mop of brown hair. Goggles, securely attached to the head. A purple hoodie, the collar peeking out from underneath the jumpsuit.
The body hit the ground with a sickening crunch.
Sapnap felt a wave of nausea. His head began to spin as he stumbled towards the castle.
“Oh my god! Was that…?” Tina covered her hands with her mouth, her ugly demise forgotten.
Sapnap broke into a run, making it to the castle before anyone else could. He froze, staring at the limp body lying near the ball pit.
Staggering forward, he fell to his knees and whispered, “Karl?”
Yellow eyes blinked open wearily. “Hi, nimrod.” His boyfriend croaked.
“Oh my fuck, Karl.” Sapnap sobbed, pressing Karl’s hand to his chest. He couldn’t believe this was happening right now. It all felt so surreal.
Something was pushed into Sapnap’s hand. A keychain. “Take.” Karl murmured raspily.
“No, no, no. I’m not losing you, Karl. Stay with me.” Sapnap cried, dropping the keychain in order to clutch his lover.
“Win.” Karl uttered as the light in his eyes slowly started to fade out.
“Karl! Answer me!” Sapnap yelled, shaking him.
There was no response.
“KAAAAARL!” Sapnap screamed, weeping.
A mushroom keychain lay on the ground nearby.