#Karol I | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

only-lonely-star · 1 month ago

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I loved Karol so much!!!! Could I request a fic where she does get to go with Keith to the Curtis house and she's so excited so she doesn't tell him she's not feeling well but as the night goes on she feels more and more sick until she's getting sick in the bathroom and Keith is panicking while the Curtis brothers help her out and try and take care of her?

⁠♡⁠ ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩ Unexpected Illness ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩ ♡

Warnings - Vomiting (I didn’t describe it IN DETAIL but it’s mentioned!)

Summary - Karol couldn’t risk missing out on movie night ☹️

Author’s Note - Karol is Two-Bit’s little sister! I’m not quite sure if I could classify as her being an OC. She’s mentioned in the novel, but she was never given any background information on. I sort of shifted her into this adorable little girl the gang all has a soft spot for <3. Thank you for the request lovely! Enjoy 😇

Word Count - 3.1k.

‧₊˚ ੈ✩ ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩ ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩ ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩ ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩ ੈ✩‧₊˚

Keith extended his hand out for Karol, her smile lopsided and unsure as she latched onto him. Her hand wrapped around his pinky as she held on tight. She was silent. It was unusual. Just last night she was jumping up and down with excitement when Keith allowed her to tag along with him to the Curtis’ place.

Keith walked with her at a slow pace as they headed for his car. The chilly breeze intensified as the sun began to set. Leaves crinkled underneath the heel of his boots. His feet came to a halt as he stood on the chipped pavement beside it. Keith unlocked the backseat door and glanced down at Karol. She looked completely off. “You okay, kid? Thought you were excited.”

Karol nodded and brushed his question off. Her face was pale, and her eyes looked drained from all the energy she typically had. Karol swayed from side to side. “I am, I still wanna go,” she assured in a lifeless voice - a stark contrast from her usual high-pitched squeak.

Keith’s gaze lingered on her for a moment, dismissing her seemingly tired energy as nothing but a need for a nap. He scooped Karol up from her underarms and hoisted her onto the torn leather behind the driver’s seat. “You seem out of it, you sure you wanna go?”

Karol nodded vigorously as she struggled to shove the seatbelt into the slit. “Yes! I wanna go!”

Keith sighed and closed the door before heading to sit behind the wheel. He started the engine and tilted the rearview mirror to look at Karol. Her head rested against the seatbelt as if she were lounging on some hammock. Her pigtails fell loose at the top of her head, her eyebrows furrowed as she clutched her stomach. He shook his head subtly and drove off towards the Curtis household. He let the windows down and cruised along the street with the wind rustling the dried, brown leaves that scattered everywhere atop the hood of his car. Karol was eerily silent the entire way there.

“I miss Darry,” she whined, her voice a low croak. Karol shifted around and nervously licked her lips.

“He misses you too. You’ll see him and you’ll be all happy and energetic again, I know you,” Keith replied knowingly, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Taking another quick glance at Karol, she was curled up in the backseat with an expression of worry. She looked almost like she was in pain. Keith cocked a brow. “Karol. What’s wrong?” he demanded as he pulled over onto the side of the street beside the wired fence of the Curtis residence.

She looked pale as ever. Karol lifted her head with annoyance, “Nothing! I just want Darry!”

It was a sweet thing to witness, but it was stressful for Keith to try and navigate what the root of her strange behavior was. “Kid, I don’t know what I’m going to do with you,” he teased as he opened the door to help Karol out of the car. He placed her back down on the pavement, his hands prying apart two strands of her pigtails to tighten them. “There. Now smile.” Keith demonstrated a cheesy grin for Karol, hoping she’d lighten up.

Karol grinned, mirroring Keith’s expression with genuine emotion. Her cheeks rose as color flushed her skin once again. She was back to her usual grinning self.

Keith slowly twisted open the doorknob, ushering Karol to keep quiet beside him. The hinges creaked ever so slightly. “Come on in!” a voice called out, sending a grin straight to Karol’s lips.

“Darry! Darry, it’s me!” she squealed, running straight for the voice. She sprinted past Ponyboy and Sodapop’s shared bedroom until she saw Darry standing with his hands on his hips. She clung to his leg, her face pressed against his dark-wash denim which somehow smelled familiar and comforting.

Darrel chuckled, his hand patting the top of her head, just between her pigtails. “Hey, Karol,” he smiled downwards. “Where’s your brother at?”

Karol used her free hand to point to the door, Keith stepping forward with a pleased smile. “Boy, I never seen her light up like that,” he pointed out with an affectionate laugh.

Karol reluctantly let go of Darrel, her hands now clutching her tiny body close once again. She forced a smile, her eyes fixated on the ceiling as she exhaled deeply. Darrel glanced down at her movement and frowned softly. “Hey, Karol… Soda should be comin’ back with Ponyboy any minute now. You hungry?”

She nodded. Keith took a step closer to Darrel and leaned close to his ear as he spoke through a whisper. “I dunno what the hell happened, she was actin’ funny in the car.”

Darrel chewed the inside of his cheek in deep thought of how he could attempt to help the little girl. “She’s probably hungry, Two-Bit.” Darrel sighed in mild frustration. He ran his hand over Karol’s back as she seemingly held herself tighter. “Grab somethin’ from the kitchen and offer it to her.”

Keith took a step back and watched as Karol stifled a groan. “Come on,” he guided her towards the tiled floors of the kitchen. He opened a cabinet hanging above the off-white-colored counter. It creaked wide open and out fell a half-eaten box of saltine crackers. “If you’re hungry enough you’ll eat these,” he handed her the box dismissively.

Karol stood with the crackers in hand and grimaced. “I ain’t hungry for crackers,” she groaned.

“Then you ain’t really hungry.”

“Am too.”

“Are not.”

“Hey, Two-Bit, I didn’t know you were stoppin’ by,” Ponyboy broke in, scaring the daylights out of both the Matthew siblings. He greeted them with a smile.

Keith turned around and smiled. He reached out a hair to ruffle Ponyboy’s greased back tufts, but Ponyboy swerved him in the nick of time. “Shoot, kid. I figured Karol missed you guys. I brought her over and now look - she’s bein’ picky.” He pointed to the crackers in her hands.

She quickly set the box down on the floor. Karol shot a glare at Keith before tip-toeing over to Ponyboy. “Hi, Pony!” she beamed. She tugged on the hem of his t-shirt relentlessly.

“Hey,” he greeted back, resting his hand on her shoulder. She was quite smaller than him, the top of her head only reaching his thigh.

Sodapop hauled a bag of snacks on the dining table nearby. “Two-Bit, how you been, man?” Soda raised his hand and curled his fingers around Keith’s once they made contact. He shook his hand affectionately. He placed his hands on his knees and bent down to say hello to Karol.

Karol, wide-eyed and smiling, practically tried to climb her way up Sodapop’s legs like a tree. “Sody!” she yelped excitedly. Her cheeks flushed a bright hue of pink.

“Say, Two-Bit brought you over for movie night?” he asked with a smug grin as he tilted his head to face Keith.

Keith nodded and stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. He clicked the heel of his boot against the floor. “Sure. She could use the quality time with y’all.”

“Pony, get some bowls for us,” Sodapop directed as he pointed to the overhead cabinets. He directed his attention to Karol once more. “Come on, you want a ride?”

Karol nodded excitedly. She waited for Sodapop to turn around until his hands were open by the side of his legs. “Up!” she hollered, jumping on his back and cradling his neck against her body. Sodapop’s wrists tucked under her knees and steadied her. She was beyond ecstatic to be on his back again. It had been a good minute since she had seen him, let alone receive a piggyback ride from him. Sodapop paced around the room, swerving and jumping just a few inches off the wooden floorboards. Karol shut her eyes as a swarm of despair took her over. “Stop! Put me down!” she pleaded as she squeezed his neck tighter.

Her discomfort alarmed Sodapop well enough to cause him to stop immediately. He set her down on the couch cushion gently. “I’m sorry, I thought you wanted a ride,” he spoke solemnly and apologetically.

Karol sat on the edge of the cushion with a displeased look. Her voice came out in a whiny moan, “I did…”

Sodapop tilted her chin up with his index finger, scanning her now pale face. He moved his hand to rest against her forehead, moving her wisps of baby hair aside. “You feel a bit hot, you sick or somethin’?” He flipped his hand over and pressed it against her forehead again.

Karol shook her head vigorously. No way she would admit the nagging churning in her stomach and get sent home. She would watch this damned movie with Keith and his friends if it meant she had to withstand it the rest of the evening. “No, I feel fine,” she exaggerated in hopes he would take her word for it.

“You runnin’ a fever, Karol?” Sodapop asked, an underlying tone of concern in his voice.

“Mm mm,” Karol shook her head, “I’m fine.” She assured him again to hopefully alter his opinion.

Sodapop sighed, heading for the doorway to his bedroom with a few strides. “Well here, if you get the chills just wrap yourself in it,” he directed as he handed her a quilted throw with different designs sewn together.

Karol looked up at him guiltily. “Don’t tell Keith. Please? I wanted to come see you… and now he won’t let me stay if you go tattle,” she pouted.

“No, I won’t say nothin’. You just ain’t feeling too good. Besides, we’re only watchin’ a movie.”

Ponyboy walked to the couch, each footstep swift and noiseless. “Popcorn…salted, butter,” he listed off as he set two big bowls down on the coffee table.

The buttered popcorn had heightened Karol’s nausea to a new level. She looked at the salted popcorn. “Can I have that one?”

Keith merrily sipped on his bottle of beer, making himself present in the conversation. “You love buttered popcorn, what the hell is the matter with you today?” He narrowed his eyes at his little sister. He sensed it now. Something was fishy.

Darrel followed behind Keith hurriedly with an arm full of plastic cups filled to the brim with Pepsi. He stopped once he reached the coffee table and set the cups down. “What’s wrong?” he asked as soon as he saw the worried looks and frowns on everyone’s faces.

“Something’s the matter with Karol,” Keith placed her on the spot as he pointed to her on the couch.

Soda’s eyes couldn’t stay locked with theirs. He cleared his throat nervously. Darrel shifted his gaze to land upon each boy, sizing them up suspiciously. “Spit it out. You know something,” he accused Sodapop.

He was right, his big-brother instincts were no match for Sodapop. He couldn’t keep a secret to save his life. “She just doesn’t feel good. She’ll be alright, watchin’ a movie ain’t gonna make her feel worse. Just let her be.”

Keith groaned. He took his kid sister’s health seriously. She was his responsibility whenever he took her out of the house, and right now he couldn’t help but feel frustrated she hadn’t notified him of her illness beforehand. “Karol, you serious right now?”

She sank into the cushion and attempted to hide underneath the blanket. “Didn’t mean to cause trouble,” she whimpered from underneath the quilt.

Darrel rested his hands on his hips. “Soda’s right, let the kid be.”

Keith’s lips straightened as he set the beer on the coffee table beside the popcorn bowls. “Karol, this is the one time you’re gettin’ let off the hook.”

She uncovered her face from the quilt, her hair now wild and frizzed up. “I know,” she sighed.

———————————————————————————

Snuggled beneath the quilt that she and Ponyboy had shared, her stomach began to churn. She could feel the bubbly sensation linger in the pit of her stomach, an unpleasant feeling if anything. She clutched her body closely. Ponyboy glanced down at her, a weighing feeling of dread nagging at him. He could sense something was terribly off now that she had curled herself back up into a ball.

Laughter erupted as the comedic relief character on the static screen cracked a joke. The boys’ deep chuckles rattled in Karol’s brain. She wasn’t feeling great in the first place, but now she was overstimulated and nauseous. The combination was a recipe for disaster. The saliva ran down her cheeks, and her throat tightened. She felt a similar sensation to eating sour candy which disturbed her deeply since she hadn’t eaten anything but popcorn. She sprung off of the couch, the quilt trapping her foot down. Karol kicked it off and stumbled for the bathroom.

The boys all twisted their heads in her direction. A collective gasp could be heard as she retched from down the hallway. The door was wide open. Darrel was first to go after her, peeling the blankets off his legs the second she ran off. He stood in the doorway of the bathroom and winced.

Karol was bent over the toilet, her eyes filled with anguish. Just as the other boys had come to assess the situation, the fluid made its way into the toilet bowl. They all turned their heads away in disgust as their initial reactions. Somebody had to help her whether they wanted to or not - Karol was just a kid, after all.

Keith stood with his eyes shut in utter shock. It was his fault she’d come along whilst still suffering from a stomach bug, even if he didn’t quite know that until now. He took the initiative and helped her over the toilet to ensure no mess was made. “Alright, let it out…it’s alright,” he reassured her softly. His hand soothingly caressed her back as she emptied herself entirely.

Ponyboy exhaled deeply to relax his nerves. He grabbed a spare washcloth from underneath the sink and dampened the corner. “Here, Karol let me…” he began gently, gesturing the towel for her lips as she came to a stopping point.

The poor girl was crying. Not only was she embarrassed, but she felt gross and belittled by the fluid the boys could all see. She allowed Ponyboy to wipe the skin around her mouth in gentle strokes.

Darrel had come back to see his kid brother tending to Karol in a way that settled his nerves. He had gone to the kitchen to fetch her some water. Panting from the quick trip to and from the kitchen sink, Darrel eased the cup into her hands. “Two hands… there you go…” he smiled softly as her grasp tightened around the cup.

Sodapop stood awkwardly, unsure of how to help. Keith shot him a glare as if he should be doing something to help out. He forced a cheesy grin as he then slowly walked to sit on the edge of the tub, just beside the toilet. “Karol…it’s okay. Everybody gets sick once in a while, you know. Me, Pony, Darry, your brother…everyone,” he tried to comfort her with a soft tone.

Keith pressed the handle on the toilet down to rinse away the mess remaining on the edges of the bowl. Karol had stopped her crying. She looked at the cup expectantly.

“Go on, rinse,” Darrel tried to instruct her, his tone coming off a bit harsher than expected.

Karol tilted the cup upwards and slipped some into her mouth. Her cheeks became full of it. She spit it back out into the clean water of the toilet. “It still feels gross,” she whined.

Soda changed glances with the others as he stood up authoritatively. “Look here,” he gestured for her, gently tapping her shoulder. Sodapop turned the sink on and scooped some into his hands. He sucked it into his mouth and demonstrated how to properly rinse her cheeks out. His eyes could be seen displaying the amusement his smile usually did. He transported the water from one cheek to the other before spewing it out in the sink. “Try it,” he nodded, pointing to the cup.

The other boys stepped back to allow her space to rinse. Karol let a giggle slip from her lips, sucking the water from the plastic cup. She kept eye contact with Sodapop as she remembered each movement his cheeks made. She swished it around, relief clear as day on her face as the gross feeling began to disappear. She spit it out into the sink and giggled with pleasure. “Like that?”

Sodapop nodded, extending both hands out for a hug. “Exactly! Feel better now? Or are you gonna get sick on me again?”

Karol shook her head, graciously accepting the hug. “Yes! I feel better now, my tummy don’t hurt anymore,” she grinned.

Keith sighed in relief. “I swear, Karol, you scared the life right out of me. Why didn’t you say you were feelin’ sick?”

“I just didn’t want to…to…” she paused as she felt all eyes on her. She nervously fidgeted with her fingers. “To stay home and not see anybody.”

A small ‘aw’ fell from Darrel’s lips as he squatted down to Karol’s level. “We could’ve rescheduled or somethin’, movie night could be any night.”

Ponyboy set the towel into the sink and filled it up with warm water. “Well, who’s to say you gotta go home? The worst already happened. You got sick, but it’s over now.”

Sodapop smiled at Ponyboy’s epiphany. “Yeah. Karol, you are more than welcome to stay, ain’t that right, Two-Bit?”

Keith couldn’t resist the pleading look in Karol’s eyes. He empathized with her and the traumatic events neither one of them had anticipated. Saying no would make her all the more upset. He sighed, “‘Course you can stay, Karol.”

Darrel grinned, reaching over to tickle her sides. “You should sit next to me in case you feel sick again, sound like a plan?”

Karol nodded, pushing his hands away as she uncontrollably giggled. Darrel tickled harder, teasing her affectionately. “Say it, come on,” he dragged on purposefully to catch a glimpse of the happy little girl he’d grown so fond of.

“Okay! I’ll sit with you!” Karol laughed as she squirmed around from the relentless tickling.

The boys helped her back to the sofa, resuming their attention back to the screen of the little black box. Huddled up against one another, the night became a memorable experience for both the Matthews siblings and Curtis brothers.

THANK YOU ALL FOR READING! 🤍

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