Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It's not very fair, Dream thinks. 

It's not, at all. The fact that he has to sit here and take this bullshit over Twitter. 

And he knows he shouldn't be reacting this way- he knows. It's just a stupid joke that doesn't matter in the long run, and yet, he's still sitting here as the few lines had personally attacked him. Like the author of the tweet had dug into his personal life, picked the single cause that haunted him the most, and spread it to thousands of people on social media when they obviously didn't 

'Dream doesn't even have his license,' they had said. 'Dream doesn't even have his license? his mom literally does do everything for him at 22 /lh.' 'Dream doesn't even have his license? his mom literally does do everything for him at 22 /lh.' 

How dare they put a '/lh,' right? They mocked him, taunted him for something he might never have, and put a little 'light-hearted' the end to block any possible backlash. 

He knows it's supposed to be a joke when there are five thousand, four hundred and thirty-six likes of all his other fans who *also* thought it was a joke. And, to all of them, it was a joke. To Tommy, who joined Sapnap in mocking the oldest of the three on a stream after Sapnap had moved in because Dream couldn't drive. Apparently, it was really funny that Sapnap, who was younger than Dream, could drive from Texas to Florida while Dream couldn't even bring himself to the grocery store. 

They didn't know, though, and he hopes they never will. They won't know that he can never drive unless he's six months seizure-free, but he's never done it before, and he doubts he could start now. Even the smallest ones mean that the timer is restarted. No matter how close he gets, the six months can never fly by fast enough. They mock his 'healthy,' diet, the way his mother still cares for him in what seems like an overbearing way, the way he seems to be the only Youtuber who gets a good amount of sleep that won't leave him deprived. 

And it's stupid, right? It's plain fucking stupid that this is what he's ridiculed over. These simple things that don't even matter cause this endless taunting over the internet. It's not like he could even change these things if he wanted to, which he does. 

JME has been tearing him apart for years. Exactly a decade ago, what he thought would be a simple passing sickness became his tormentor for the rest of his life; he just wishes he could do something about it. 

It's a pretty warm day when it happens, which is why it's so shocking. 

It shouldn't be shocking, really, when he's been showing warning signs for months now. The absence seizures happen when he's in class; they're so small, so minuscule, so unnoticeable that every one of his teachers tells him to pay attention. Mrs. Briggs tells him he needs to get more sleep if he wants to stop getting in trouble, but he goes to bed at 9:30 and wakes up at 6; what is he doing wrong? Mr. Shal asks if there's anything going on at home that prevents him from sleeping well. Dream replies truthfully, nothing but the new baby in the house, his sister, but he doesn't seem to believe the boy. Mx. Apple offers to have him talk to someone, but he's confused. He's just zoning out, what's so wrong with that? 

The next sign is the clonic seizures, which are boiled down to be much less of a deal than they actually are. They mostly occur at home, not long after waking up. When he's brushing his teeth, eating his cereal, or scribbling the last-minute answers to the forgotten math homework on the table before the bus comes to retrieve him. They center in his fingers, sometimes his arms. Whatever it is, the area gets jerky uncontrollably; he can't stop the sudden movements, resulting in his pencil flying or a splash of milk that ruins his mother's shirt. His father calls him 'butterfingers' and blames inherited clumsiness, while his mom tries to get him into physical therapy with the school. They release him since he has no problems holding a pencil, and quickly find new blame for the movements. It's either passed as 'he's still a kid, he's energetic,' or 'it's his ADHD.' 

Dream thinks they're both bullshit, and he's proven right while at the dinner table. It's been a long, long day at the beach, where they've spent endless hours playing, swimming, and any other physical activity he can think of. After only 3 hours of sleep last night, though, he's exhausted and collapses in his bed seconds after taking a shower. It's two hours later when he's woken up for dinner. 

His mother's looking at him with worry in her eyes; Dream looks slow, sluggish, and he's not following their conversation. Maybe he's gotten heatstroke today? He mumbled when he arrived that he had a headache and his stomach felt a bit queasy, but that was only a few minutes ago. Her husband glances at her like he's having the same thoughts, but he quickly turns to shush the younger child next to him, who's just begun to cry. 

Stabbing her fork into another piece of steak, she looks at the teen boy. "Why don't you head back to bed, sweetheart?" She asks gently. "You look tired; I'll have your father come to bring you some water, alright?" 

His brows furrow together slightly as he tries to process the words, only to blink a few times and nod seconds later. "Y-yeah, ok." His voice is quiet and strained, but he slowly rises to his death and pushes his chair back from the table. His movements are slowed and delayed. His mother looks back down at her meal and sighs, shoving some more food into her mouth before looking at her son again. His expression has changed; he looks nothing short of terrified, and she wants to ask what's wrong, but he beats her to it. 

"Mom?" He asks, sounding panicked and stressed. She moves to rise up, to reach him before he gets sick in the dining room. But, suddenly, his eyes roll back in his head and he's falling to the floor, not responding to her desperate calls. 

"Clay- Clay!" She shouts, running around the table. 

The sight is horrifying. It's sick, the way his body just won't stay still, the way he's moving in jerked agitations, his back arching at random moments, falling and rising uncontrollably, not stopping no matter how long she screams. She doesn't dare touch him, no, but rushes to her phone to call someone who could save her son. 

It's terrifying, and she just wishes they had seen the warning signs sooner. 

He shakes his head and hits the power button of his phone. The screen turns pitch black, giving him a perfect reflection of his own face on the cracked surface, allowing him to finally observe just how bad he looks. His eyes are held down by heavy bags, proving his pure exhaustion and lack of self-care. There's stubble growing on his face since he hasn't bothered to shave, and his hair is tied back in a messy way that hasn't been undone, brushed, or washed in days. 

It's been a long time since Dream has felt himself at this point. The last time, it was more mental health issues; this time, it was just him feeling so physically drained that he could barely drag himself to Patches bowl, the kitchen, the bathroom, and his computer throughout the day, nevermind if he's lucky enough to end up in his bed rather than the couch or his chair. 

Sapnap's worried, of course, he is, but the younger just continues to feed Patches when Dream can't, to bring him food and water when he forgets, and to remind him that he's there if Dream needs to talk. But that's not the issue. 

He vaguely recalls promising Tommy that he'd get some sleep after MCC, but judging by the time beaming in glowing red letters on his digital alarm clock, that was yesterday. He barely registers the feeling of Patches nudging her head into his ankle which forces him to realize that 'holy shit, I am so tired.' So tired that he can't even focus on the feeling in his leg. And the pounding headache that's been heading in and out for the past few days makes him think that he should start taking those sinus pills again. 

Nevertheless, Dream pushes himself into bed and pulls the covers over his shoulders. A small smile rests on his face as Patches cuddles into the bend of his knees and he drifts off. 

Chapter Text

Dream woke up a mere five hours later, bright and early at 8 a.m. Patches was rubbing her head into his leg as she woke; even though he himself wasn't ready to wake, the cat was in her own world and wanted nothing but her small amount of cat food that seemed like a full course meal to her. 

Of course, Sapnap was all the way upstairs, and since Dream sealed the door closed last night, he was the only place that she could beg for her morning meal with. He wasn't mad at her, obviously; she didn't know any better, and he trapped her in this situation by making the exit to the room blocked off. Yet, he's still so tired. Having not got over 6 hours of sleep in the past few days, he can barely find himself pushing his body out of bed. 

Rubbing his eyes with his hands, Dream sighs and glances over at Patches. "You wanna eat, baby?" he asked quietly. When she meowed back, he chuckled gently and picked her up. She squirmed a bit, running around in small circles and finally settling into his arms as he opened the door and finding her food in the kitchen. Her bowl was filled with a small bit of canned food, letting it settle at the bottom as he grabbed a mini scoop of dry food to add on top. The new, soft filling on the bottom drowned out the sound of the hard pebbles crashing against the metal. 

"There you go, Patches," he said, carrying it over to the corner and placing it on the ground. "Eat up, girl." 

She quickly ran over and buried her face inside the dish and beginning to demolish the meal as fast as she could. He shook his head and huffed, smiling as he ran a hand through his hair and turned back around. It nearly gave him a heart attack, when Dream suddenly found himself accompanied in the kitchen by his roommate. The younger man looked much more well-rested than Dream presumed he did, especially since the Texan had actually been working on his sleep schedule recently. 

"Morning," Sapnap said cheerfully, walking over to the cabinet with the bowls. "Want some?" He gestured to the three various boxes of cereal lined up on the counter beside the fridge, each holding different amounts of food. His favorite had the most, of course, because Dream hasn't been able to convince himself to eat much as of late, and Sapnap absolutely hates that type of cereal. Something about it not feeling enough like breakfast. 

Dream shrugs. "'Dunno. 'M not that hungry." 

Sapnap wants to believe him, truly, but the sentence is followed by the low grumble of Dream's stomach. The taller wraps his arms around his middle quickly, but Sapnap just sighs and takes two bowls down instead of one. "You're gonna eat one way or another. I just won't give you as much," he debates, setting them on the cold marble countertop. 

Knowing that he can't get out of this, Dream simply takes a seat at the island. The barstool isn't high enough to sweep his feet off the ground; he supposes they should get new ones soon. These are the ones he picked up for a shockingly low price at a garage sale a few years back, but they don't seem to match the kitchen anymore. They don't look too good, either, and they're clearly a bit too small for him. 

A fairly reserved humming fills the room as Sapnap fills the bowls with cereal, his own holding around two times the amount that's in Dream's bowl. He kinda thinks it looks like the portion comparisons for a healthy adult and a young child, but anything more than what a nine-year-old should eat might make him sick. 

It only takes one more minute for the dry food to be covered in a bath of milk, two spoons to be pulled from their rightful place in the middle drawer and into the bowls, and for the simple breakfast meals to take their places in front of both men. Dream spends more time staring into the swirling motions than actually putting the now soggy cereal into his mouth. Sapnap doesn't seem to notice or doesn't comment on it if he doesn't. Rather, he pulls out his phone and opens Discord, scrolling through the most recent and important messages. 

"Tommy said they're pretty much all good for the 16th," Sapnap says out of the blue. It's a good reminder, Dream thinks, that he has just a little over a week to get his act together before he's in the same place as his friends that he's never met before. Always separated by an ocean, he's never had to think about the impact of his appearance, his body language, his facial expressions in the past. This is a whole new territory that he's not accustomed to. 

Sapnap swallows another spoonful of cereal and continues. "Karl's booked the rental house, so there's no need to worry about that." Dream looks up, confused and frightened, but the younger answers an unasked question. "I know you wanted to use our house, but there isn't enough room for everyone, and it's better to keep everything separated and everyone together. Your parents already said they'd take Patches, for the time being, remember?" 

Dream simply nods and stirs his spoon into his bowl. He simply doesn't understand. Sapnap's still talking, he can tell, but his eyes are getting droopy and he can't focus anymore... 

"-okay? Dude!" Dream blinks a few times rapidly to find the Texan practically shouting at him from across the island. "Are you alright?" 

Dream furrows his brows before looking up at his friend. "...what?" 

Sapnap's forehead is crinkled in lines of worry, but he wets his lips and explains anyway. "Dream, you were just completely zoned out for, like, ten seconds. You weren't even responding to me- you, like, you were completely- just still." Dream bites his bottom lip and nods, but his brain is getting foggy again, and he's really regretting not getting enough sleep now- 

"Dream!" Sapnap shouts, shaking the man's shoulder. "Jesus Christ, c'mon- Dream!" When he finally comes to realize what's happening, Sapnap eyes are already forming tears, and Dream just wants to apologize; he barely knows what for, but he somehow knows that it's his fault. 

"S- sorry," he mutters, "I think- I don't-" 

Sapnap sighs in relief when Dream speaks, knowing that the man is actually responsive. "Jesus, dude. What the hell is happening to you?" he asks, terrified. He seems like he wants to laugh it off, to find a weary response to such a terrifying moment, but he can barely comprehend the fact that something's really wrong with Dream, with his best friend.           

Dream traces Sapnap's face with eyes briefly before processing the question and finding a response. "I didn't get much sleep las' night. Or the days 'fore that." 

The younger man sighs and nods, rubbing Dream's shoulder gently with his hand, hoping to keep the older attentative. "Yeah, I can tell." He says it with almost a disbelief and a surprising lack of sarcasm. "You sure it's nothing else, man? I could get you to a doctor..." 

Not wanting to be a nuisance, Dream shakes his head. "Nah, 's ok. I jus' need sum' sleep." 

"Hell yeah, you do," he says. "How about we get you to bed, alright? I'll deal with Patches 'n the Brits, you just rest up." There's not much room for argument as Sapnap's already guiding him out of the chair and towards his room, but Dream nods anyway. 

"Yeah," he whispers, "tha' sounds good." 

He doesn't remember much after that, aside from the permanent concern on his friend's face and the rather quick process it took to fall asleep. 

Dream wakes up an hour after Sapnap started his stream. He's playing a Valorant again, but hadn't started it without leaving Dream a lengthy text message on his phone. It sounds more like a really kind threat than anything, but he knows he won't uphold to it anyway. 

sap <3 

i just wanted to let you know that i'm starting a stream on my alt. if, at any moment, you feel bad or need me, please tell me in anyway possible. i don't plan on streaming for more than an hour or two, so i should be done before you wake up. don't be afraid to get me, alright? you won't bother me, i just wanna make sure you're ok. my ringer will be on the entire time. 

Of course, Dream appreciates the gesture. He knows that Sapnap is nothing but worried for him. Yet, there's a part of him that begs him not to interrupt a stream, especially after it being promised to their fans for over a week. Ignoring the message, he powers off his phone and places it face-down on the bedside table. The alarm clock informs him that it's now 2:17 p.m. It's enough sleep to make him get up and function correctly, especially since he has to hop on Discord and discuss further meetup plans with his friends. 

Deja vu hits him like a bus, nearly as fast as exhaustion has. Somehow, he's managed to feel even shittier as he drags himself out of bed and towards his door, hoping to just grab a glass of water and a small apple before getting to work at his desk. Even so minuscule, his two absence seizures must've taken way more out of him than he previously thought, and-

Fuck, his seizures. 

That's what they were, anyway. And it's just dawning on him now that oh fuck, he hasn't taken his medication in over two days, maybe nearing three at this point. The thought alone forces him to walk to the kitchen just a bit faster, past the more open area and into the bathroom close by. The medicine cabinet seems rather welcoming today, as he swings open the door of the cabinet and begins to dig through the various mix of over-the-counter prescriptions and less important pills that the two men have accumulated in the few months they were living together. 

In a sea of Advil, Ibuprofen, and Pepto Bismol, there's a more discrete bottle that Dream has managed to hide pretty well from Sapnap for a while now. It's just what he's looking for, hoping that even if he's ingesting the medicine quite late, it'll go into some effect and save him from enough embarrassment in the future. His hopes are crushed, though, when he opens the cap for a singular pill and is met with nothing but empty air. 

"Hey," a quiet voice comes from the doorway. Dream jumps rather high, swiftly hiding the bottle behind his back and turning to face his friend with wide eyes. "What'cha got there?" Sapnap asks. 

Dream swallows nervously. "Just- just some Advil," he lies. "I woke up with a headache; it probably has to do with the lack of sleep, y'know?" 

Sapnap doesn't believe him, obviously, but Dream knows he'll never believe him after what happened this morning. "I told you to get me if you needed anything," he reminded. "Do you want me to, uh," the younger gestures to the kitchen, "make you something? Some toast or something easy on your stomach?" 

Pressing his lips together briefly, there was barely any noise to fill the awkward void of their conversation aside from the buzzing of the air-conditioner. Dream shrugged and shook his head slightly. "No, I- uh, I'm good." He left the empty bottle in one of his hidden hands as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I think I'm just gonna shower now. I can, uh- I'll shower before I go do anything." 

"Alright," Sapnap muttered. "Just take it easy, ok? Don't go- go work on anything now. Just eat some food and get some sleep." He removed himself from the doorway just slightly before sighing and clapping his hand against the frame. "If you wanna watch a movie or anything, we could watch another episode of Demon Slayer." 

All that was received was a hum of affirmation and the younger man was off, clearly walking with disappointment in his step as he carried himself to the stairs. It left Dream the opportunity to shut the bathroom door as fast he possibly could. It's not that getting a refill on his pills was hard, cause it wasn't; all Dream had to do was call his doctor and she would figure it out from there. But it just takes time, multiple days that Dream just doesn't have.  

Nonetheless, he makes a quick phone call to ensure that it could happen as soon as possible. When he finishes, he ends up taking a shower anyway. Even if it was just an excuse a few minutes ago, he hasn't taken one in days and was definitely due for it. It doesn't take much longer for him to settle at his desk with Patches in his lap, a fresh sweatshirt and pants as he slides his headphones onto his ears. Tommy and Ranboo are occupying a Discord call, just like he expected. How long have they been waiting on him? Is he too late? Are they annoyed with him? 

When he joins, though, his worries are nearly discarded with a loud, excited call for "Dream!" Despite this, the rest of the call is far more chill discussions about the future meetup, and he can almost let go of his worries and simply relax.  

Chapter Text

Airports are horrible; that's it, airports are horrible. There are always way too many people in one place, all carrying large bags, pillows, blankets, and/or neck pillows that stick out from their arms and knock into everyone else while walking around. When everyone starts talking, the chatter fills the hot air in every way, small snippets of passing conversations would be picked up briefly, only for them to disappear just seconds later, and the stories would never finish. The stress was the worst part, of course. If you went to the wrong terminal, you were bound to be late to the right one. Crowds are impossible to push through when need be and don't even start on getting a flight delayed. And if you don't get to the baggage claim in time, you're screwed. 

So, Dream hates airports, which is why he's waiting at home for Sapnap to return with a few of their friends from the U.K. to bring back. Sapnap's car isn't nearly big enough for a meetup of this size, especially bringing people back and forth from airports, places for events, and such. They rented a larger car for a while, one that could fit seven people in total. Since Karl could drive, too, he was going to rent his own when he got down to Florida. 

Walking around a silent house, Dream's gut settled in an eerie feeling. Six of his friends are about to arrive from across the sea; six entire new people who are going to see his face, to see his struggles, to see his seizures. Dream had no clue how observant any of them were. They might be watching his every move and he'd have no clue. And it's not like Sapnap could help; he didn't even know about them. 

His phone read 8:20 a.m., serving as a reminder that Dream should be asleep right now. The airport is a full two hours away, two and a half if you get stuck behind major traffic. Their new guests won't even get off of their flight until around 8:50, and they probably won't be back at the house until 11:30. 

He could tell Sapnap was still mad at him, too. It was just over a week ago when the younger man had witnessed his absence seizures, and it had only gotten worse since then. The air between them was seemingly always tense; Sapnap could tell that Dream was not getting any more sleep, even when he practically begged for him to. He would stay in his room for hours, swear that he was getting a full eight hours- sometimes more- but his lies were foiled by the large bags under his eyes and his occasional slowed movements. Sapnap even offered to ask Tommy if they could delay the meetup, but Dream shot the idea down quickly. There's no way he would be an even bigger inconvenience. 

Dream sighed and turned around, walking back down the hall and into his and Sapnap's room. Even if the house was bigger, pretty much everyone was bunking with another person so they could have enough room. There was a singular dresser in the room, equipped with six drawers across. He would take the three on the left for his own clothes, and let Sapnap do whatever he wanted with the ones on the left. 

Grabbing his unopened suitcase and bag from the floor, and gently tossed the bag onto the bed and laid the suitcase down so he could open it. There wasn't too much to unpack; Dream didn't bring a large variety of clothing, just similar t-shirts, sweatshirts, and a few different pairs of pants. He filled the top drawer with his boxers and socks, then managed to fit everything in the second drawer. 

The last thing he grabbed, though, was the medicine bottle he had hidden deep in the pocket of his bag. 

The prescription was filled just two days after he had called to get it done. He barely remembered to take it every morning; even while having it full, he still couldn't manage to do it on a proper schedule. It sucked, though. He constantly felt like shit now, tired and delayed all the time. He normally wouldn't even be ashamed about taking a daily medicine, but he didn't want anyone to ask questions, didn't want to have to explain to his friends that he was lying to them. 

Shaking his head, grabbed a pair of socks and took the wrapped apart, taking one and shoving the bottle inside. The second sock was wrapped around the first, leaving an awkward-looking misformed pair that was way too cylindric to not be hiding something inside. But, no one would be going through the drawer hopefully, so it would be fine staying at the back of the drawer underneath the rest of the grouped pairs. 

The light switch on the wall just a few feet away was almost taunting him, so he flicked it. The overhead light turned off, leaving a small amount of sunshine to stream through the slightly-opened curtains and illuminate the room. Dream threw the bag into the suitcase and dropped them onto the floor, messily shut the curtains, and collapsed on his stomach onto the bed dramatically. It took less than five minutes for him to be out. 

Sapnap loved this feeling. After he experienced the overwhelming joy he got from meeting Karl at the airport a few times now, he can't not be excited when he's about to meet six of his friends for the first time. His smile only grows as he sees them standing at the baggage claim, so he begins to walk faster than he has in a while. 

"George!" He called, hoping to gain the attention of the person he was closest to. He wanted to run, and nearly did, but there were too many people in the area to do so. Luckily, though, George's head snapped up and he looked around. When they locked eyes, George's face mimicked his own smile, and Sapnap barely even realized they were hugging so soon. When he pulled back, he looked up to the top of George's head and scoffed. 

"I'm taller than you!" George cackled, pointing at Sapnap's head. He was probably taller but just an inch or two, but the younger knew he was never living this down. "HA! I'm- I'm taller than Sapnap!" He yelled, poking Wilbur in the side. 

Wilbur simply smiled and shook his head, moving to give Sapnap a hug, too. A few more brief hugs and hello's were passed between him, Jack, Tubbo, and Ranboo before he turned to Tommy, whose face was red trying to hold in laughter. 

"You really are short," he said, voice strained. Tommy pressed his lips together as he reached his hand out and patted the top of Sapnap's head and let go, howling in laughter as he held his stomach. "

Sapnap rolled his eyes before looking back up at Tommy. "Just so you know, Dream is definitely taller than you." Tommy's excitement turned into that of fake anger as he desperately tried to defend himself while Ranboo and Jack searched for their luggage on the belt. 

Jack finished laughing before taking a deep breath and looking around. His eyebrows were furrowed in confusion, but Sapnap let him talk before saying anything. "Where is Dream, anyway?" 

"Yeah," George said, "I thought he would've been here, too? He told Tommy he would be." The teen in question wasn't paying attention when this was said, but soon turned back to Sapnap as he put his suitcase on the ground and pulled up the handle. 

"We'll- uh, we'll talk about it in the car," Sapnap said in a near whisper. "There's- I don't know. I don't know what to do- or, or say, I guess." George's face melted into an even deeper worry than before, and Sapnap felt guilt crawl at his stomach. Maybe he should've forced them to stay home, or at least warned them before bringing them across the ocean, not even knowing if they would want to stay with them. 

Wilbur nodded, even though he was barely composed himself. "Alright," he said. "Let's get going, then. We shouldn't leave him waiting too long. You said it's a long drive to the house?" 

It was pretty much small talk as they left the building. They briefly talked about the two-hour drive ahead of them, where they'd stop for food on the way, and how the weather was gonna be. When they reached the car, Sapnap was practically playing Tetris with the suitcases in the trunk, but Ranboo did enough in helping him that made the task a lot easier. Tubbo, George, and Jack all climbed into the way back, practically getting shoved back there due to their height. Ranboo sat in the front, and Tommy and Wilbur sat in the middle row. 

The radio came back on the second he started the car, but he lowered it as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the main road. He waited a few minutes until they had driven past the first stoplight in order to start talking about his current dilemma. 

"Dream's been... off for the past few days," he said suddenly. "It started, I don't know, a week ago? Dream and I- he had fed Patches while I got us breakfast. I- I tried to talk to him about- about the meetup, but he zoned out. Not in like- not in like, a normal way. But he, like, he wouldn't stop." Sapnap chewed on his bottom lip as he turned onto the next road, glancing at George's face through the mirror and quickly fixed his gaze back in front of him. "He blamed it on not getting enough sleep, but he hasn't gotten, like, any since then, and he was hiding something from me in the bathroom. Like- like a medicine bottle." 

His admission didn't seem to prompt any words from his friends, so Sapnap only sighed. "I don't wanna- I'm not trying to freak you guys out, I'm just... really worried. I think- he might be sick; I'm just hoping it isn't anything, like, mental health-related. 'Cause I know he won't do anything about that." 

The car was silent for a little longer before George cleared his throat. "Don't- Sap, don't worry about it too much. I'm sure he's alright; he probably just needs some more sleep, and now that we're here, we'll help him to the best of our abilities." 

"Yeah," Wilbur added. "And- and I'll talk to him if he's willing. It'll be fine." 

Sapnap hummed, quietly thanking them before pulling onto the highway. The reassurances were nice and he was glad he wasn't dealing with this alone anymore, but something in the back of his mind told him there was more going on than they realized. Nonetheless, he turned up the radio and waited for his friends to start singing along. 

Dream was surprised that the volume of the house was relatively quiet when he woke up. There was no way his friends weren't here now; the time was 12:54 p.m., over an hour and a half later than the time he predicted them to arrive. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. For once, waking up was pretty nice. He didn't feel the same extreme exhaustion that he had in the duration of the past few days, but instead, felt the slightest bit more energetic. 

Oddly enough, he was under blankets now, something that wasn't true when he had fallen asleep. It made him feel the slightest bit of embarrassment; someone had come in and seen him sleeping when he should've been a good friend and been awake for their arrival. 

But, he can't go back and change the past. So he throws the covers off his body, slides out of bed, and pulls them back over to fit the corner of the mattress. Dream runs a hand through his hair, glancing in the mirror on his closet door before sighing and heading to the door. It shut behind him, and the faint background chatter from the kitchen began to become more and more audible. 

"-right? Tell Tubbo about it when he wakes up- he likes space, so he'll probably be interested in it." Dream could barely tell who it was, but it was probably Ranboo. The teen's voice definitely sounded a bit different in real life, but it was still recognizable. Someone else hummed in the room, and he could finally observe the setting when he left the hallway. Tommy was sitting on the edge of the countertop, hands holding the edge as he added to the conversation every now and again. Ranboo was standing across from him, leaning up against the island with his elbows on the cold surface. Sapnap was the final point to their visual triangle, halfway through a bright red apple as he nodded. 

"Yeah!" Sapnap said, holding a hand in front of his mouth until he finished chewing. "I thought so, that's why I thought it was- oh, hey, Dream!" He said, waving to the older man as he entered the room. Tommy's head swung around and his face lit up the second he saw Dream standing in the room with them. He gasped and jumped off the counter. 

"Big D!" The teen yelled, running over to give Dream a hug. The taller smiled and opened his arms, wrapping him in a tight hug and holding him close. He could've sworn that Tommy would have made this more of a joking matter, but his hands were holding the green sweatshirt covering his torso tightly. A small smile spread on his face as he placed his face into blonde curls. 

"Hi, Toms," he whispered. Tommy returned a murmur of hi, but it was so muffled that Dream just chuckled and shook his head. They stayed like that for a little while longer before he looked to see if Ranboo wanted a hug, too. Briefly, the sign of an internal battle was written deep in the lines of his forehead, but they smoothed out when he relaxed his eyebrows and smiled, walking over to Dream. 

This time around, Dream was the shorter one in the hug, but he didn't really mind. It was shorter than Tommy's, but it was still nice, and they said a few words before parting. Ranboo walked farther into the kitchen than him, but Dream sat on the counter next to where Tommy was, and the blonde joined him not long after. 

"How'd you sleep, man?" Sapnap asked, his apple looking smaller than it did just a few minutes ago. "I went to grab you when we got home, but you were asleep, so I threw the covers on you." 

Dream hummed, grabbing a plastic water bottle on the counter and opening it. "Alright; 'was better than the past few nights." He took a large gulp of water and swallowed it before licking his lips and looking back at Sapnap. "'M still a bit tired, but I'll just go to bed early tonight." 

Sapnap huffed. "Damn right, you will. I'll drag you back there and cuddle you until you sleep." 

Dream laughed and shook his head, while Tommy and Ranboo sighed. He began to realize how few people were in the room- he was only the fourth person here, while there were eight people occupying the house. He furrowed his brows before clearing his throat and glancing at Ranboo. "Where's everyone else?" 

"I... don't know?" He said, laughing lightly. "I think they went to sleep; I don't blame them. It was a long flight." 

Tommy hummed. "Yeah, the jet lag was surprising, but it still hasn't even hit me fully. You-" He pointed at Dream for a second and paused. "You weren't there- oh, you haven't heard about the fucking person that sat next to Jack. You wouldn't believe it." 

"Well? Tell the story then." He said, taking another sip of water. 

Tommy's face brightened as he began. "Well, he was like this old guy. But, like- he was, like- he looked like this rich, cocky mother-fucker. And he was rude. Jack- Jack literally asked to go to the bathroom once during the flight, and he went on this huge rant!" Tommy explained. 

Dream nodded as he listened, although he found it a bit harder to follow the conversation than normal. It felt like he couldn't process the words for at least a few seconds after they were said, and even then, he still found it hard to understand. 

"This guy..." Tommy continued, but Dream couldn't really remember what happened after that. He must've zoned out halfway through the sentence, cause when he began to focus again, the sentence had changed completely 

"-such an asshole. Doesn't that sound vile, Dream?!" He finished the last sentence and glanced over at his older friend, but the man slowly stopped. His eyebrows wrinkled together. "Dream? You- are you good,  man?" 

The blonde blinked once before he stopped blinking for a few seconds and stared off into space. Sapnap noticed this to be the same thing that happened a few days ago and jumped up from where he was. "Hey- hey, Dream. C'mon, man-" He couldn't get too close to Dream, though, before the open water bottle slipped from his hands and landed on the floor. "Shit!" Sapnap yelled, grabbing the bottle and shoving it into the sink before glancing back at his friend. 

He was rubbing his fingers on his right hand together but seemed to be pretty motionless aside from that. And, once again, he wasn't responding to Sapnap. 

"What- what is he doing?" Ranboo asked, fear laced in his voice. Sapnap couldn't really blame the kid; before the prior week, he had never really seen zone out the way Dream had, but it's even more terrifying when it's your first time meeting someone you care about. 

"Dream, hey," he said again, glancing at the clock. 15 seconds; that's longer than the last ones were. "Dream, come on. You with me?" The gentler approach seemed more fit with two teenagers in the room. If he freaks out, they'll freak out, and no one will be able to help Dream. 

Dream blinked a few times, slowly but surely gaining more and more aware of his surroundings. It had been almost 27 seconds before Dream looked Sapnap directly in the eyes. He was trying to form words, opening and closing his mouth a few times, before ultimately giving up and looking wordlessly for answers. 

"Sap..." he muttered, but the younger shook his head. 

"You alright, man? You dropped your water." Sapnap tried to downplay the situation a bit; this was different than the first time. Originally, Dream had snapped in and out of the trances in a more aggressive way. Yet, this time, he left the unresponsive state more gradually, slowly building back to understand the area. 

Dream nodded, though he was still confused; Tommy could tell in the way his eyes were wide and kept darting across the room. "Yeah," he whispered, "I'm gonna go to the bathroom." He didn't wait for them to protest before leaving, though. He was so lost; he couldn't really remember what they were talking about or if he had started a now unfinished thought, so it was best to leave the room and regroup elsewhere. He gently shoved Sapnap away, whispered a 'sorry,' before heading to the desired room as soon as he could. Once the bathroom door closed, Dream sighed in relief and sat on the lid of the toilet. 

Back in the kitchen, Ranboo swallowed nervously and looked at Sapnap from across the island. "Yeah," he said, "I can see it. That's- uh- wow." 

Tommy nodded and picked at the skin around his fingernails. "I didn't realize you meant it was that bad." He whispered. "I'm gonna- I'm gonna ask Wil about it. Or George." 

Sapnap shook his head. "I don't want you two worrying about this too much, alright? Don't work yourselves up, I'm sure we can handle this," he lied, but tried to sound confident nonetheless. "Just- here, let's agree on something. Don't tell anyone else about this, alright? I don't- once everyone gets here, we can't have the whole house up in worry. We'll keep this between us and Wilbur and George. We won't bring too much attention to it." 

Ranboo contemplated it before sighing. "Yeah, that- that works. Tommy, Tubbo, n' I 'll just try to lighten his mood. He can join our cooking stream in a few days, too. Those always up my mood, like- a lot." 

"Thank you, guys," Sapnap said, heart feeling lighter. He glanced at the door Dream escaped to before closing his eyes. "Thanks." 

Chapter Text

"Tommy- TOMMY! NO!" Tubbo shouted, running around the island and trying to duck under the counter before the handful of flour passed through the air. Despite having crouched down by the time the blonde threw the granulated powder, it still landed on the top of the older teen's head and his shoulders, along with a bit on his upper back. He blew air out of his mouth before standing up and glaring at Tommy, who was laughing louder than he had all day. 

Luckily, Ranboo was ready, and snuck up behind Tommy with his own handful of flour, throwing it on top of his head the same way Tommy had Tubbo, yet, there was a lot more this time. Tommy gasped and turned around, barely getting out a full shout of 'BITCH-' before Dream could cut in. 

"Ok- Ok! That's- fuck, that's enough. I'm gonna be the one who has to clean this up later, so how about we don't trash the kitchen, yeah?" Through his chuckles, Dream could barely hold in his wheezes as he debated with the teens. Reluctantly, the three dropped whatever flour in their hands into an extra bowl, and Dream put it on the counter behind them, separated from their food. Despite having watched the teens watch their hands in the sink before touching any of the food at the start of the stream, he still didn't trust any of the powder that was formerly in their grubby hands. 

He encouraged them to run to the sink and clean their hands off before they spread flour over anything else in the kitchen, though they could sweep up the rest later. Tommy mocked each word he said as he followed the instructions. 

Nonetheless, Dream shook his head slightly and grabbed the nearest measuring cup, gently tossing it to Tubbo and allowing him to put in the proper amount of sugar into the bowl holding the butter since he had been the first to rinse off his hands. Briefly, he stuck his tongue out at Ranboo, who gawked in mock offensive as the brunette dumped the sweetener into the container. 

"My mom taught me this part," Dream said, grabbing the electric hand mixer from the counter. "You jus' need to mix the butter and sugar together until they're completely incorporated.  Then, we can add the eggs." 

Tubbo hummed, taking the mixer and putting it on full speed before Dream could stop him. He shoved the metal prongs first into the bowl, allowing them to dive in and send chunks of softened butter all around the room. Little pieces stuck to the various counters, floors, and on the high points of Dream and Tubbo's faces. Tommy burst into laughter, while Tubbo moved to turn it off and put it flat on the countertop. He tried to stifle his own chuckles but immediately failed as he saw the big piece stuck onto the oldest man's cheek. Even Sapnap, who was sitting off-camera, wasn't even trying to stop laughing while he watched the interaction. 

Dream wheezed, wiping the butter off his cheek before taking the hand mixer and gently putting it inside the bowl. "Here, you have to use it gently. Slowly up the speed in intervals." 

As Dream continued, Tubbo furrowed his brows. "I thought you didn't know how to cook?" 

Passing the mixer to the teen as he hummed, Dream took a step back. "I don't. I just know the basic fundamentals of baking." He continued to advise Tubbo on when to pick up the speed and where to move it around the bowl to make sure he was doing the right thing. Tommy was fumbling around with his phone in the corner, whispering to Ranboo as he came up with his newest 'evil' plan that he was going to commit. 

Dream smiled as he picked his head up, oblivious to the blonde teen across the room. He grabbed the liquid measuring cup in one hand and the gallon of milk in the other as he allowed Tubbo to take over. "That's it!" he encouraged, "Good job, Tubbo!" He lifted his head up for one more moment before he began to pour the milk slowly when Tommy had shoved his phone into the taller's face, the flashlight on and right in his eyes. He tried to blink it away, but Tommy moved the phone in and out a second time and the combination of actions only created a more rapid flashing. 

Suddenly, in an uncontrollable action, Dream's right elbow and upper arm jerked away from his body, bringing the res of his arm with him and splashing milk across his feet and the floor. His fingers slipped a bit, too, and the carton fell out of his hands, spilling across the hardwood. Dream tried to grab it mid-air before it could fall completely, but he couldn't control the jolts in his limb, and could really only watch as the milk spilled out of the container. The movements stopped mere seconds later, and Dream quickly knelt down and tried to grab the milk despite so much of the liquid already on the ground. 

"Shit," Dream muttered, grabbing the nearest dish towel and trying to soak it up off the floor. He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked to his left, where Sapnap was knelt down beside him. "I- I'm sorry-" Dream sputtered, but Sapnap cut him off. 

"Shhh," Sapnap said. "'S alright; Tommy 'll clean it up for us. How about we run to the bathroom to clean you up, yeah?" Sapnap's tone was gentle, so Dream simply nodded and allowed the younger to guide him to the bathroom attached to their shared room. Feeling embarrassed, he allowed the brunette to wipe the leftover butter off his face and remove his old socks, since they were wet. "I'm just gonna grab you a new pair real' quick. I'll be right back." 

Dream nodded as Sapnap left the room, staring at the tile floor and wondering how he could've even let that happen. Shouldn't he have been more careful? Now, all his friends have seen his stupid responses; he didn't want them to start calling his names, he knew he couldn't control it- 

As promised, Sapnap returned to the doorway not even a minute later, crouching back down and helping put a new pair of socks on Dream's feet. He grabbed something else from his pocket, something that looked like another pair of socks, but once Dream saw him reach his hand inside, his eyes widened. The familiar, cylindrical shape, the color, the texture- none of it was that of a sock. 

"Do you-" Sapnap started before swallowing, "Do you mind telling me what these are, Dream?" Dream bit the skin on his lip, trying to come up with a good explanation for why he's been hiding from Sapnap. "If these- If they're, like, depression or shit again, you know I wouldn't care. Is that why you've been acting weird?" 

Dream shook his head. "It's not-" he whispered, shame creeping up his throat. "It's not depression, Sap." He lifted his head to make eye contact with his best friend, who seemed to be so nervous that he could burst out of his own skin at any moment. "Sap, I- you gotta promise not to tell anyone. I can't- you can't-" 

"Dream." Sapnap grabbed his hand from where it rested on his knee, wrapping his smaller one around it. "You can trust me. I'm not- 'm not gonna tell anyone." 

Nodding, Dream looked anywhere but Sapnap's face while he tried to compose himself. "I know. God, I know. It's just..." Taking a final deep breath, the blonde squeezed Sapnap's hand while beginning to speak. "When I was younger, I was having a lot of... problems. And- and when they were diagnosed, it- it ruined my life, Sap. Anyone who knew, they- fuck, I just didn't want it to define me anymore. And I was able to hide it for- for so long." Dream sighed and shook his head. "But now, it's getting- it's getting worse and I don't know what to do. I need you- or someone- to know what to do in case I can't do it myself." 

Sapnap nodded eagerly. "Then tell me," he pleaded. "You tell me what to do, Dream, and I'll- I'll do it in a heartbeat. I'll be there, Dream. I promise." 

Guilty green eyes met impatient brown ones, and secrets left immediately. "I have JME. It's, uh- it stands for Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy." Dream breathed slowly before continuing. "I've been having seizures, Sap, and I need you to know what to do in case I have a bad one and don't wake up." 

The grip on his hand seemed to falter for a second as Sapnap’s eyes held open a bit too long with shock. He blinked a few times, squeezing Dream’s hand. "The- the zoning out, the water, the pills, the-" the brunette paused and looked up at his friend, "they’re seizures?"

Dream could feel his own tears building just by the sight of the ones in his lifelong friend’s. He knew there was no easy way to say this, but he had to, and it broke his heart  

"Yeah," Dream sighed, lowering his voice to try to hinder the impact of his next statement. "Yeah. And- and I think it’s only gonna get worse."

The second Sapnap’s first sob left his mouth, Dream closed his eyes as hard as he could. Because Sapnap was crying- his closest friend was crying over him, and he didn’t really have any words to comfort him with. 

So, the blonde slid off the lid of the toilet and met the cold tile floor, pulling the younger man into his arms. He barely even recognized that he was too was crying over the heart wrenching sound of Sapnap’s crying. He simply ran his hands through brunette hair and gently calmed his cries. They couldn’t talk like this; they probably wouldn’t be able to talk about how to treat his epilepsy until morning after he calmed, but that was ok. Sapnap needed him right now.

They needed each other right now. 

Later that night, when Dream and Sapnap had settled with the rest of their friends on the couches for a movie night, no one brought up what happened during the stream. 

Chapter Text

"So..." Sapnap trailed, clasping his hands together, rocking gently on his heels. "What do I- what am I supposed to do?" 

Dream raised an eyebrow, looking up from the current tweet he was reading and glancing at his friend. Ranboo had just posted a complaint on how Tubbo had stolen half of his meal when they were out, but Sapnap and Dream had stuck back at home. They were pretty silent, but Sapnap had broken it with the single vague question. 

Sapnap shrugged. "Y'know, if you- if you have- y'know..." The younger man cracked his knuckles. "Look, Quackity and Karl are both gonna be here soon, and I wanna talk while we can. While everyone is gone." 

Sighing, Dream powered off his phone placing it face down onto the side table next to him. He rubbed his knees with his hands, sitting up straighter on the couch and taking a deep breath. "Alright. Before they get here, what do you wanna know?" 

His eyes followed the other as he walked past, feeling the empty spot on the couch next to him dip down and settle. "I don't know," he admitted in an ashamed whisper. Sapnap threw his head back onto the couch and stared up at the ceiling. "I'm gonna be honest, man, I have no clue," he chuckled, "no fucking clue anything about this. I'm- I'm sorry." 

Dream frowned. "Don't be. Here, how about this? I'll tell you about some different types of seizures I can have, what happens, and then what happens if I get a really bad one, huh?" Sapnap looked over, processing the words before nodding and agreeing to the terms Dream provided. "Great. So, I have Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy, meaning I can have absence seizures, myoclonic seizures, and tonic-clonic seizures. 

Absence seizures are the ones you've seen me have before. They're pretty simple; they normally last around 10 seconds. Remember when you thought I was zoning out?" He asked, to which Sapnap hummed in acknowledgment. "Yeah, so I pretty much can either stare off for a little bit, or my eyes might flutter, I'll stop talking, and I'll be unaware of my surroundings. It's possible to have a few in a row, but after them, I can usually just jump back into the swing of things. These are pretty common though, I can have a bunch throughout a single day but I won't really be in much danger." 

Sapnaps eyes danced the room for a moment before speaking. "Ok. So, absence seizures are the ones I've seen you have before?" Dream nodded, and he followed. "Ok, so I don't really have to do anything after those? Just- just fill you in on the conversation?" 

"Yeah," Dream said. "The next ones are myoclonic seizures, the one I had last night." Dream shuddered briefly before looking down as he continued. "No first aid for this one, either. The myoclonic jerks are the most common type of seizure with JME, which can also happen multiple times in a short period. They usually happen pretty early after I wake up; they're like sharp movements, usually in my arms fingers, or shoulders. I'll probably drop things in the midst of it, but I'm awake and aware during these ones. 

Tonic-clonic seizures are usually where the injuries come in. The tonic refers to when the muscles stiffen, consciousness is lost, and I might bite my tongue. The clonic is when the jerks actually start, or what the stereotypical seizure is described as. They usually last just a few minutes, a normal one where I can get up and be ok would be around five minutes tops. I'll probably be confused and tired after it. When it happens, I just need you to help me lay on my back on the floor. Move anything sharp and get a pillow on under my head if you can, but try not to touch me or hold me down. When I stop seizing, you can roll me onto my side so I can breathe better." 

Taking a deep breath, Sapnap nodded and digested the large amount of information he was just given. "Alright," he sighed, nodding a second time and pressed his lips together. "Alright. Myoclonic: no medical attention, brief movements in the arms, and you're aware and conscious. Tonic-clonic: unconscious, full-body, and..." Sapnap furrowed his brows before biting his lip. "You said that normal ones are a few minutes, but what if they're longer than that?" 

Dream huffed extra air out of his nose. "This where I need you to listen, alright?" The younger man eagerly nods and perks up. "Good. When I start seizing, you need to check the time right away. If- god forbid, if I am seizing for more than five minutes, you need to call 911 immediately. No hesitation, no waiting, nothing. Got it?" 

"Got it," he whispers. "Dream, if that happens, I-"

"I'm not asking you to be perfect, Sap," he says quietly, taking his friend's hand into his own. "I'm not asking you to keep stoic emotions and be a medical professional. I just need to know that you can keep yourself together just enough to get an ambulance to me." He quickly wets his lips before looking into brown eyes. "Can you promise me that?" When Sapnap nods, Dream grips his hand again. "I'm serious. And- and I need you to promise one more thing." 

"Anything," the brunette says. "I'll do everything in my power to-" 

"I need you to promise that you won't let any of the kids see it." 

Sapnap tilts his head in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asks, sitting up a bit straighter. "Who? If you're talking about your siblings, they're not even here-" 

"Not my siblings," Dream shakes his head, "though this goes for them too. I'm- I'm really talking about Tommy, Tubbo, 'n Ranboo. If they're- if they're here when it happens-" Dream swallows. "My sister had nightmares for three weeks after she saw me has a tonic-clonic seizure for the first time. My dad came to sit in my room for two nights after because he couldn't sleep without knowing I was peaceful. My mom-" Dream cuts himself off with a sharp intake of air and closes his eyes. "I can't let them see it, Sap. I can't, I just-" 

"Shh," Sapnap says, trying to calm his friend down before he gets too worked up. "It's ok; I promise. I promise I'll keep them away." Dream nods in a quiet thank you, but by the time he's leaning in for a hug, his phone is ringing with a call from Karl. Outside, there was a distant slam of car doors and the front door opening. "Looks like I gotta go pick up Karl 'n Q; everyone else must've just gotten back." 

Dream hums. "Punz and Sam are coming tomorrow, right?" 

"Right. Do you wanna come with or stay here?" He asks, trying to keep the door closed as long as he could before chaos would break loose. 

Shrugging, Dream really doesn't have a steady answer. "I think I'll stay here, Wilbur wanted to talk to me about something yesterday but I fell asleep by the time he came out of his room." 

Sapnap nodded and clapped his hand on the taller's shoulder as they both stood up. "I'll send him in here, alright? An' I'll be back with Karl and Q before you know it, like an hour or so." 

"Perfect," Dream said. "Go get them an' Wil, alright? I'm just gonna run to the bathroom." With his best friend heading out, Dream left the living room and headed to the bathroom that was attached to their shared room. He closed the door the second he entered. Dream didn't actually have to use the toilet, but he knew that he should have a break before talking to Wilbur. It's not that he didn't want to talk to him, but the older seemed really concerned. He and George had a pretty serious topic to be discussed. 

Sighing, he brought his gently shaking hand to the faucet and turned on the cold water. It was pretty quiet; Dream tucked his hair behind his ears so it wouldn't get wet. He leaned down, cupping the water with his hands and washing it over his face. It was a good wake-up call, washing over tired eyes and causing enough shock to make them stay open a bit longer. He did get a bit more sleep last night as Sapnap dragged him into their room early, but seizures still took a lot out of him. Dream was tired. 

Nonetheless, he patted his face dry with the closest towel, soft cotton absorbing the water droplets on his skin easily. He hung it back up on the rack before opening the bathroom door to find Wilbur standing in front of their dresser, messing with the alarm clock on top. Dream couldn't help but notice that he was dangerously close to his pill bottle, so he cleared his throat to make himself known and went to shut the bedroom door. 

"Oh, hey Dream!" Wilbur said with a smile. He removed his hands from the alarm clock and walked over to the edge of the bed. Dream hummed and sat next to him. "I don't think we've got to talk much in person yet. It's still kind of weird being here." Wilbur rubbed his bare arms with his hands and made a quiet 'aha!' "Right! It's hot, too. Much hotter." 

Dream chuckled. "Wil, it's not even that bad. You came in the fall," he said, trying to hold in a chuckle. "Try August next time." 

"Oh, shut," he waved his hands at Dream. "You couldn't handle an English winter if you had a coat from everyone in this house," he said. Dream laughed and shook his head, though Wilbur's laugh was quieter as he tried to get back on track. "But, I didn't come to talk about the weather. I wanted- well, George and I both wanted to talk to you about something, but he's got a bit of a headache so he wanted to rest up before Q and Karl got here." 

Dream hummed and nodded, trying to search for the reason in Wilbur's eyes; he was lost. 

"Ever since we've gotten here, or since Sap started telling us about your... zoning out, we've all been a little concerned for you, man." Wilbur reached his hand out, letting it hover over Dream's shoulder as he gave the blonde a chance to back away. Dream gave a nod, allowing Wilbur to rest his hand there in comfort. "You know you can talk to any of us, Dream. If you need help, well- you know I've gotten therapy before. Tommy too. Maybe Ranboo? Anyway-" he rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly with a quiet laugh. "You get what I mean, right? We're all here for you, Dream." 

"Yeah," he whispered, smiling at the effort and care from his friends, "I know. I know, Wil. But, I promise you this, it's not... it's not my mental health." Wilbur's eyebrows furrowed, but Dream wasn't ready to tell him everything just yet. He just told his oldest friend for the first time last night, how could he possibly do that again? "I- I've talked to Sap about it- last night, actually- and I just-" Dream sighed. "Look: I'm not... I don't think I can manage telling anyone right now, but I just need to know that, if it comes to this, that you'll listen to Sap about anything and everything he says. Got it?" 

Though confused, Wilbur nodded. "As long as he knows what to do, I'll do it." Dream nodded, so the older tightened his grip on his shoulder and smiled. "I'm really glad to be here, Dream. This- this is gonna be great, I can feel it." 

Dream smiled brightly in agreement. "Of course, it is." He stood up, pulling Wilbur up with him and into a hug. "I'm glad you're here." Feeling Wilbur relaxing deeper into the hug, he was glad that they both found comfort in such a short, unclear conversation. 

The second Dream hears a car pull up in the driveway, he's out the door. It doesn't take long with the trunk to open, along with Karl to hop out of the front seat and for Sapnap to turn to the back to wake Quackity up. Though, no one seems to notice his presence outside of the front door. 

"Karl!" He calls, waiting for the older man's head to snap up from the concrete and to face him. 

A brown, fluffy mop of hair shifts up, bright excitement taking over a formerly tired face as voice recognization takes control. "Dream!" he shouts, meeting him halfway across the driveway to join a crushing hug. Dream grins and wraps his arms around the- surprisingly- much short man, basking in it for a few minutes before walking towards the trunk of the car with Karl in tow. 

Quackity looks up from the trunk with a puzzled expression on his face, simply asking "Who's this?" 

Sapnap snorts before turning to Quackity and realizing that the man isn't laughing the way he is. "What, you're serious?" he asks, only receiving a nod from his friend. 

"Quackity!" Dream says. "It's me, you... muffin." 

Realization fades over his face and the duo end in a hug, too, with Quackity both apologizing and complaining about Dream's height. He ends up giving them both an extra short hug and sending them towards the wide-open door in the front of the house, telling them that everyone is in the kitchen waiting for them. Once Karl and Quackity depart, he turns to Sap. 

"Hey," he says, grabbing suitcases from the trunks. "I talked to Wil; we cleared everything up and he knows I confided in you about something. I also-" 

Sapnap stops him with a hand to his wrist, pausing his movements on the suitcases. "...What are you doing?" he asked, staring at the suitcases. "You're not bringing- you're not carrying anything inside. These are heavy, you're tired-" 

“What?” he asks, pulling his wrist out of his friend’s grip. “What are you talking about?”

”Dream,” he grunts, trying and dialing to grab the suitcases from the older. “You had a fucking seizure less than 24 hours ago. Did you know stress can cause them?” Dream tilted his head. “I did research while waiting. You should be resting-“

"You can't control what I do, Sap!" He snapped. "I know you want to protect me an' all, but c'mon! I don't want to be treated like a baby because you suddenly-" 

"Is everything good out here?" Dream and Sapnap both turn around quickly to find Wilbur standing there, leaning against the car with a more nervous-looking Jack standing behind him. Using the distraction to his advantage, Dream grabs the two heavy suitcases from the trunk. The carry-ons are strapped on top, so he hits the automatic button on the top and gives the duo a smile. 

"We're good; I was just bringing these in," he says, distinctly avoiding eye contact with Sapnap. "I'm gonna bring these to the living room so they can choose who to bunk with, then 'm gonna hop in the shower. Make sure they get settled in, alright?" 

Jack gave a curt nod and a thumbs up. "'Will do." 

Dream smiled and turned inside, walking past the joyful smiles and excited laughter from the kitchen. The noises only muffled as he left the suitcases by the living room and he wandered into his bathroom. With the door shut, Dream sank back into the door and smiled; he barely realized when his butt met the ground. The happiness of his friends was enough to make him feel content. These people- they weren't his friends, they were his family. And though he was tired, though he knew the worst was coming, though he knew everything was far from over, the abundance of increasing laughter from the kitchen only fueled that feeling. 

Chapter Text

It was already 11:16 p.m. when Sapnap had woken up, slowly changing from lying on his side to flat on his back. The ceiling looked pretty blank, but when he realized the fan was on, he turned once again to find Dream sitting up in the bed, scrolling through whatever was on his phone. He gave Sapnap a hum to show his acknowledgment, but Sapnap groaned, rubbing his eyes. "How long 've you been up?" he grumbled. 

Dream shrugged. He didn't even take his eyes off of his phone to answer, not even sparing a quick glance. "'Dunno. Maybe thirty minutes?" he said, truly unsure of the amount of time he'd been awake. The younger thought it couldn't have been long if Dream's voice sounded this sluggish. "I couldn't really sleep last night, so I gave up on trying to go back to bed." 

Sapnap frowned, throwing the covers off of his legs and sliding his feet into the slippers he left on the floor. "So you decided to get dressed and sit in bed?" He looked back over his shoulder to see Dream shrug, so he just chuckled and threw the covers back into place as he stood up. The bathroom door was slightly ajar as he went in, and since he wasn't using the toilet, he decided to keep it open so that he can hear Dream. Yet, the first thing he heard was Dream let out a semi-painful groan. "You alright in there?" 

Shrugging, Dream wet his lip. "I guess. 'M just..." he ran a hand through his hair and over his face. "I've been lightheaded since I woke up, and 'm feeling a bit nauseous now." 

Cold water shot straight from the faucet as Sapnap hummed. He couldn't help but think Dream might be coming down with something; not only has he been extremely exhausted and having trouble sleeping, but with these new symptoms, it's not impossible that he might have a common cold or something similar. "And you said you've been sitting there for how long?"  

"Long enough for my feet to fall asleep," Dream said, waving his right foot in the air. "They're all... tingly, y'know? I should get up soon." 

Sapnap leaned down and cupped the water in his hands. "How 'bout we go get something to eat after I finish up in here, hmm?" After asking the question, he ran the water over his eyes and face to wake himself up, but never heard a response. "Dream?" He asked, patting his face with a towel. With his eyes still closed, there was a sudden bang in the other room, so he didn't worry about turning off the light before he rounded the doorway and looked into the bedroom. 

Dream was still there, sure, but he was on the floor now, eyes rolled back as his body began to move in jerked movements. 

"Shit," Sapnap muttered, running to untangle Dream's legs from the blankets hanging off the bed. The alarm clock just a few feet away read 11:19, so he kept that in mind as he moved the discarded phone on the floor away from his friend's head. There was nothing else that he could knock into, nothing sharp that he could hurt himself on. He grabbed a pillow off of the bed and knelt to the side, using the opportunity of Dream's head off the ground so that he could slide it under. With his head cushioned, Sapnap moved back with a sigh that was quickly cut off by a horrified gasp. 

"What the fuck?!" Quackity shouted as he swung open the door to the bedroom. "Dream! Sapnap- you- I- What the fuck?!" Quackity moved further into the room and Sapnap jogged over, shutting the door.

"Don't touch him!" he warned, turning around before Quackity could grab the seizing man's arm or anything that would interfere with his seizure. 

Quackity's eyes were wide in horror. "Are you crazy?!" He pointed to Dream in shock and walked closer to the brunette. "He's- Sapnap, he's fucking seizing?! Don't you think we should call a goddamn ambulance?!" 

Sapnap reached out and grabbed his shoulder. "Q-" 

"Don't fucking-" Quackity's eyes darted across the room as he tried to figure out something to do, shrugging Sapnap's hand off of him. "This isn't- Sapnap, where's your goddamn phone-" 

"We don't need my phone!" Sapnap yelled, not mentioning Dream's that he had recently shoved under the nightstand. "Quackity, it's ok! It's not been long, you gotta-" 

There was a soft tapping on the door, cutting Sapnap off before he could continue once again. "Everything ok in here?" a British voice asked. "I heard shouting, I'm gonna-" Wilbur opened the door and gazed inside, though the worried smile on his face disintegrated almost immediately. "Oh god-" 

Grabbing the taller's arm, Sapnap yanked him into the room and shut the door behind him, clicking the lock and preventing anyone else from coming inside. "Jesus christ," he muttered, amazed at how fast everyone had gathered into the room. "No one else comes in, got it?" He glanced over at their terrified friends, but Dream was still on the ground seizing. 

Wilbur was stuck staring at Dream's body as he went back over to Dream, checking to make sure that the red-tinted saliva coming out of his mouth was nothing but him biting his tongue and not a separate injury from an item left on the floor. "Check the time," Sapnap insisted.

"11:20," Wilbur said, out of breath. "How long has it been?" 

"Just a minute," Sapnap said.

Quackity huffed. "You knew this was gonna happen? No one told me about this!" he complained. "What the hell?" 

"Look," Sapnap said. "I can explain another time. Dream can explain another time. But- but you gotta wait." He looked at Dream's face and frowned. "We just... we gotta look out of him first. Put Dream first." 

Wilbur's exhale was sort of shaky, but he nodded, and it was a sort of awkward silence in the air as Sapnap watched Dream's seizure slowly come to an end. He placed his hand just above Dream's mouth and nose to ensure he was still breathing, feeling the gentle puffs of air leaving his body. When his other hand felt the older man's pulse beneath his fingers, he sighed in relief and watched as green eyes slowly fluttered open. 

"S'p?" he slurred, reaching out for his friend's leg. Sapnap replaced it with his own hand, squeezing tightly. 

"Hey, man," he whispered. "You alright?" 

Dream grunted, closing his eyes from a moment. "'Sore. Tongue hurt. You... ok?" he asked, though he still seemed super groggy and quite confused. 

Sapnap chuckled and shook his head at the fact that his friend was still concerned for him. "Yeah," he said, "I'm good. You know what happened, right? You had a tonic-clonic seizure." Dream lazily nodded and Sapnap squeezed his shoulder. "Good. Hey, I have Wilbur and Quackity here; do you mind if they help me get you back on the bed?" 

"'m not?" 

Shaking his head, Sapnap bit his lip. "No, no. You fell onto the floor. Can they help me out? You can go to bed right after, no worries." 

Dream nodded. "'Sounds nice." Sapnap hummed and waved the two men over, who jumped a little in surprise but quickly shuffled over to their friend's side. They helped lift him into the bed, and Sapnap put a pillow under his head and pulled the cover over. He whispered a hushed goodnight, in which Dream quietly murmured a thank you. They stayed quiet for a few minutes so that the exhausted man could fall asleep, and once his breathing evened out, Sapnap turned to the two others. 

"I found out yesterday," he said. "Dream- he kept it a secret since childhood apparently. I just- I just need your help." 

Wilbur nodded. "Dream told me you knew what to do." He looked over at Dream's sleeping form and rubbed his eyes. "I trusted him, of course, but... but I never expected... this." 

"I know," Sapnap sighed. "I know. I can- I can probably explain more about it later, or we can wait for him to wake up later, but we just need to watch him for now and make sure he doesn't have another." Sapnap ran a hand through his hair. "God- ok, listen. Did anyone else hear us yelling?" 

Wilbur nodded. "I was with Tommy and Ranboo. We were waiting for Punz and Sam to get here, but on my way over here, everyone else was on their way into the room. You guys- well, everyone in the house heard you." 

Quackity looked down. "I- shit, I'm sorry, Sap." 

"Don't," Sapnap said. "Don't apologize. You had every right to react like that, alright?" He glanced at the clock that read 11:26 and sighed. "Ok. I'm gonna run to the bathroom and get some stuff to clean up his face, then grab some water from the kitchen for when Dream wakes up. Q, can you wait here and just watch to make sure Dream doesn't have another seizure? You just need to call for me if he does." Quackity nodded, muttering 'of course,' and Sapnap continued. "Wilbur, I need you to go back to the living room and just make sure no one is talking about it. Just distract them, alright? Dream doesn't want anyone knowing about it yet." 

Wilbur nodded. "I can do that. Don't worry about it." He got up and walked to the door, but turned around at the last second. "Can you- we will talk about this again, right?" 

"Of course," he said. "I can promise we will. Q, you'll be there too, alright?" 

Quackity nodded. "Thank you. I just... you said he's been able to hide this since he was young, right?" Sapnap nodded, and Quackity looked down at Dream with a confused look. "Then... look, if none of this happened while you guys were living together, then why is it getting worse? Why is this happening right now?" 

Though no one really knew what to say, there was a quiet knock at the door that broke up the silence after more of a shocking question. An accented voice called out "Heyo!" and all three of the men inside turned to the locked door. 

"Tubbo?" Sapnap calls back, still feeling out of breath though his breathing was completely level. 

"Yeah, 's me!" the teen responded through the door. "Jus' wanted to let 'cha know that Sam and Punz are here! We're downstairs waiting for you and Dream." Once he was done delivering the message, they heard his footsteps disappear down the hallway and into whatever room he had gone to. 

Sapnap put his up to his face, pressing his flat fingers to each side of his nose, squeezing his eyes, and sighing. "Fuck."

Chapter Text

hello everyone :) 

i feel bad updating like there's a new chapter and leading to this note but i wanted anyone who followed this story to definitely see it. 

STARTING OFF by saying that i am NOT discontinuing this fic. i will pick it up again due time, probably following a short hiatus. 

that being said, it will probably be a little while until it is continued. in all honesty, i had another chapter written out, but it was just so bad. i could come on here and just write, but the story would become even messier, and the writing wouldn't be up to good standards. i don't have a set plan for this right now, so i think i need to get one before i can continue to write this. i really don't want to put out bad chapters. 

duly, i have a lot of irl stuff going on right now, including some kinda-bad mental health issues that i'm trying to push through. i'm alright though!

i just wanted to update this for readers and thank you all :) your support means nothing less than the world to me. i promise i will come back to this fic as soon as i can! i gen miss writing this and i can't wait to continue it. i hope you all have an amazing morning/day/night, and continue to until i can finally return here. 

so, this is not a goodbye! this fic is not over, and i will be back here in just a bit. 

see you all again in a few weeks. 

- seeds :] 

Chapter Text

As Wilbur entered the hallway, quietly shutting the bedroom door behind him, he knew that he had all but one job: to distract everyone. 

Despite how confused he may be- well, maybe more terrified than confused- he knows that he was not supposed to find out Dream's secret. And if he wasn't supposed to know, that means no one else in the house was, either. Knowing it made Wilbur one of the main protectors of it. 

Wilbur sighed, closing his eyes as he carelessly threw his head back. He shook out his hands, squeezing them into fists a few times as a method to release the tension and anxiety flooding his body. His walk to the kitchen was fairly slow; he wondered if the dread of the next conversation was shown in the way he dragged his feet across the floor, rather than picking up his feet. 

Turning the corner to the kitchen, he found Punz moving forward to hug Sapnap, while Sam was talking to Tommy and George. 

"Oh, there you are," Tubbo said from where he was sitting on the counter. His comment did nothing but bring all the attention in the room to his sole body in the entrance. Tubbo, seeing that he was alone, tilted his head to the side in confusion. "Where's everyone else?" 

Wilbur pressed his lips together. "They, uh-" he stuttered. Wilbur cleared his throat and nervously picked at the sleeve covering his left wrist. "Dream isn't feeling too well. He, uh- he got sick. In the bathroom." The more he talked, the easier a lie came to his head, so Wilbur continued to stumble through his butchered explanation. "The other two are just helping him out." 

"Oh," Sam said, disappointed. He wrapped one of his arms around his chest and rubbed the other with his hand. "That sucks, then. I hope he feels better soon." 

A collective agreement of hums and small comments flutters through the room until everyone is on the same page. In order to clear up the awkward silence, George clears his throat. "Why don't we watch a movie, then?" he offers. "We can watch one of those two-hour ones, so that when we're done, he'll probably be feeling better, and we can hang out together." 

Though Wilbur knows that won't quite be the case, he nods anyway. Karl moves to show Punz and Sam their room, and Tommy insists on picking out the movie on Netflix. In turn, Jack claims that Tommy has an absolutely rancid taste in movies, which leads to Ranboo and Tubbo scurrying out after them to try and find a good seat in the living room, and the room soon only consists of Wilbur and George. The former moves to the fridge, grabbing a cup off the counter and putting it under the little spout that let out water, but he couldn't get anything into the cup before the other spoke. 

"He's not ok, is he?" George asks hesitantly from the other side of the kitchen. 

Wilbur looks up from the cup, turning around to look at George. He gently set the glass down. "Why would you say that?" he asks. "I told you guys he was ok." 

George chuckles. "No, you didn't," he argues. "You- you said the exact opposite. That he wasn't ok." He shakes his head and crossing his arms in front of his chest. "What's going on then? What's wrong with-" 

"Nothing," Wilbur interrupts, looking down. "Nothing. Is wrong. With him." 

George stays quiet for more than a moment. It's so long that Wilbur isn't quite sure that he'll ever hear someone talk again. But then again, he realizes that he's probably being far too dramatic. "Why were Sapnap and Quackity fighting, then?" he questions. "And you- you can't deny that one, because everyone heard it. I'm- I'm pretty sure Punz and Sam could hear it from outside." 

He pauses, wetting his lips. In all honesty, it probably would've been smart to come up with an excuse for that one. Instead, Wilbur tries to do the exact same thing he did with his first explanation. "I can't tell you," he mutters, "but I promise that it's all ok now. That- that they've got it figured out." Wilbur sighs a breath of relief once the words leave his mouth.  

"Was it about Dream?" George adds. 

Wilbur doesn't respond. 

"Hey," Tommy says, popping his head around the wall and smiling. "The movie is ready when you guys are," he explains. Neither of the older men move, however, and he ends up catching wind of the tension in the room from George's stare and Wilbur's adverted eyes. "Is everything- are you guys ok in here?" 

Nodding, Wilbur looks up and walks across the room to Tommy. "Yeah," he smiles, wrapping his arm around Tommy's shoulders, "all good. Let's get to that movie, yeah?" He leads them into the hallway, but Tommy stops them by tugging on his sleeve. 

"Do you think we could run out later?" he asks. "I think we should get Dream some medicine before he gets anymore sick. 'Cause- 'cause I really wanna hang out with him more," the teen smiles.  

Wilbur can feel the lump in his throat growing even more because, somehow, Tommy had managed to make him even sadder about this whole situation. That Tommy has such his hopes that this can all go away- that he can fix this- and Dream will be good as new in no time. 

"Maybe," Wilbur smiles, patting his shoulder. "I have no doubts that he'd be very happy that you were thinking of him." 

Tommy's smile grows even wider. Wilbur fights a frown. 

I have a form of epilepsy, Dream had told them. And my medicine hasn't been working very well, and I think that it's gonna get worse. 

Quackity did nothing but stare at the ceiling in his room, blankets just hanging onto his feet. He didn't bother grabbing them while Karl rolled over with them wound in his tight fist; he couldn't sleep anyway. Not while knowing that one of his close friends was suffering and there was practically nothing he could do about it but sit and watch it happen over, and over, and over and-

"Alex?" Karl questioned, sitting up and seeing the other's wide eyes pointed straight above him. He rubbed his eyes, glancing over at the alarm clocked that spelled out 12:37 a.m. "What are you doing up?" 

He shrugged, wiggling his fingers that were laced underneath the back of his head. "'Can't sleep." 

Karl furrowed his eyebrows before shifting himself closer to Quackity. He looked down at his friend. "Why not?" he asked. "You said you were super tired just after the movie, and that was hours ago." 

"I'm scared," Quackity whispered, his quiet voice sounding near groundbreaking in the silence that was their room. "I'm really fucking scared," he chuckled, feeling his eyes sting, which he didn't quite think was normal. For a moment, neither of them moved; all that could be heard was the chirpping of crickets from outside the closed window. 

And then, Karl pushed himself off of the mattress and laid down, wrapping his arms around Quackity's torso and squeezing. "Nightmare?" he asks. "I get them sometimes too. But- but it'll be ok. I promise. Nightmares aren't actually real," he adds, trying to lighten the mood of such a tense conversation. 

He has no choice but to disagree with Karl's statement. Because- because this all feels like a nightmare, and yet, it's all completely real-

"I can lay with you," Karl says suddenly. "Until you fall asleep. If it- if it helps you know what’s real." 

And, out of all things, that’s what it takes for him to discover that he was talking out loud, rambling about everything that is happening- everything that Karl doesn’t know about.

"Yeah," he gives in, finally closing his eyes. "Yeah." 

"Ok," Karl nods. He leans his head down, and is out before Quackity can even tell him ‘thank you.’

Quackity's not too sure when he falls asleep, but he wakes up to Sapnap knocking on the door and requesting his help, and not only does he feel far more tired than he did the night before, but a feeling of fear swarms his stomach. 

Chapter Text

Dream's eyes hurt. 

Despite being closed, they're sore, and he can't quite place his finger on it, whether it's from the fact that he's presumably sleeping for a long time, the bright line shining from the center of the ceiling in an attempt to break through his closed eyelids, or something else that he can't imagine. Nonetheless, he groans in frustration, rubbing over his closer eyes as he sits up. 

It takes a second for his vision to fully adapt to the sudden picture that is his temporary bedroom, but when he can finally process his surroundings, Dream is soon to discover that he's not alone in the room, as he finds one of his friends sat on top of a pillow, leaning against the wall. 

"Q?" he asked, his voice hoarse. Quackity looked up from his hands which were laced together in his lap. "What're you doing here?" 

Quackity stood up, tossing the pillow onto the bed and sitting on the end of the bed. "Just wanted to- y'know..." he trailed off. Dream simply sat and stared at him, waiting for the end of the sentence that wasn't coming. Quackity shrugged and looked away from him, avoiding continuing the thought. 

Dream pressed his lips together and paused. "Alright," he responded, before swinging his legs towards the side of the bed. He pushed himself up, his feet dragging on the floor as he tried to walk across the room. The tension in between his eyes grew as he stood up, his headache intensifying almost instantly. Dream brought his fingers up to squeeze the bridge of his nose, and he stumbled towards the wall a bit as he tried to catch his balance. 

He hadn't even realized that Quackity was standing up until he felt a hand on his shoulder, grounding him from falling over. "Woah," he said, pulling at Dream's arm. "Hey, man. Take it easy." Dream opened his eyes, waiting for the scattered black dots painting his vision to fade away. He blinked a few times, looking over at Quackity with a blank stare. "You good?" the younger asked. 

Pausing for a moment, Dream stood there, looking over his face, before nodding. "Yeah," he breathed. "Yeah, all-" Dream swallowed. "All good." He could tell that his words weren't that believable when Quackity's eyebrows had furrowed, and his face grew with more concern. "Seriously. I should- no, let's go eat breakfast, yeah?" 

"Breakfast?" Quackity scoffed with a smile. Dream tilted his head in confusion. "Dude, it's 8 o'clock. At night." 

Shocked, Dream glances over at the alarm clock, finally noticing the glowing 'p.m.' that was tucked in the corner of the frame, much smaller than the numbers itself. "Well," he said, laughing, "I'm still hungry as shit, so I'm gonna' grab something to eat." 

As Dream headed towards the door, Quackity turned around to face him. "Dream?" 

The older man answered with a hum. 

"Could I- could I just hang out with you for a little?" he asked. Dream looked at him, confused. "I, uh- I have a stream planned in- like- and hour, but I just-" Quackity cut himself off with a huff. 

Dream glanced over; his eyes were much sadder than before. He took a deep breath and bit his lip. "You're scared I might have another seizure," he guessed. To show that he was right, Quackity nodded. Dream looked away from the man and sighed. "Look," he started, placing his hands on his hips. "I appreciate it, and I won't turn down your company- of course- but I promise," he looks at Quackity with a closed smile, "you don't need to watch over like a hawk. I'll- I'll be ok." 

Quackity nods. "I trust you, but-" he inhaled deeply, holding it for a slight second before letting it out. "I keep seeing you there. On the floor. And I just- I don't want it to happen again." 

It's a long moment before Dream leans forward and pulls his friend into a hug. He doesn't know what to say, so he doesn't say anything. 

By the time Dream and Quackity manage to make it to the kitchen, it's nearly 8:20; by the time that they finish any food, it's nearly time for Quackity to start his stream, so he reluctantly leaves Dream's side and heads to talk it over with Punz, Karl, Jack, and George, whom he was streaming with. Dream avoids using his phone in order to simply think, which leads him to zone out as he washes his and Quackity's dishes in the sink. 

Suddenly, there's a hand on his shoulder and Dream jumps. He whips around, banging his hand and the bowl on the side of the sink, and comes face to face with Tommy. 

"Jeez, man," Tommy says, retracting his hand. "Lighten up, huh? 'S just me 'n Sam," the teen explains, gesturing to Sam standing a few feet behind him. Sam waves- since it's the first time that he's meeting Dream- and Tommy tries to hide his worry under a laugh. "Didn't mean to get you so bad." 

Dream smiles, placing the bowl down and wiping the water on his hands onto his sweatshirt. "No worries, Tommy," he says. He claps his hand over Tommy's shoulder and slips by him in order to reach their other friend. "Hey, Sam," he greets. 

Sam grins widely and holds a hand out for him to shake but Dream simply scoffs and opens his arms. Gladly, Sam moves forward to return the embrace. "Nice to finally see you, Dream." 

It's intended to be an innocent comment- Dream knows that- but he can't help the sly guilt that creeps up from his gut. "Yeah," he breathes, his arms faltering on Sam's back for a mere moment. "'M real' sorry about that, by the way. I just, you know- I just wasn't feeling all that well, and I didn't want to get anyone sick, and-" 

"Woah," Sam interrupts, pulling himself out of the hug. His eyebrows knit together in concern. "I'm not upset!" he laughs. "I'm just glad you feel better now." Dream takes a deep breath and nods, but the worry doesn't leave his face. Sam bites his lip. "You... do feel better, right?" 

"Oh, yeah," Dream breathes, forces a smile. "I've got it all taken care of, now." 

"Good!" Tommy shouts from behind them. Sam shakes his head with a grin, but taps Dream's shoulder and moves to lean against the counter. Dream turns and looks to Tommy, tilting his head in confusion. The teen blushes in embarrassment. "Well- It's not like I missed you or anything stupid like that," he stutters. "I just wanted to push you over on stream so I can see it clipped all over Twitter for the next five months." 

Dream gently whacks Tommy in the head, who yells 'hey!' and reaches up to swat at Dream. The older ducks, catching Tommy's hand, so the teen storms over to sit on the counter next to Sam in rebellion. Dream pauses, thinking for a moment, and then clears his throat. "That's actually not too bad of an idea," he admits, looking to his friends. 

Tommy's face lights up; Sam's looks confused. "You want Tommy to push you onto the ground on stream?" 

"No," he starts, and Tommy's celebratory hands fall into his lap. "But an 'IRL' stream would be?" 

Sam looks over at him. "We've done 'IRL' streams before." 

Throwing his hands up, Dream sighs with false annoyance. "Ok, just listen. What if we did a 'Manhunt'-esk stream?" Silence takes over the kitchen as he finishes his sentence, his friends looking rather skeptical, so Dream quickly wracks his brain for a better explanation. "We advertise it like an addition to the Manhunt series- that way it'll get more traction- but we can change the rules so that it isn't just all of you running me down for all of Twitch to see." 

Sam looks at him and slowly nods. "So we hunt more than just you?" 

Dream shrugs. "Or we can do a hunting group and a running group. We can have a certain place or goal that we wan' to reach, or something like that so that winning isn't subjective." 

"That's actually not too bad of an idea," Sam agrees. 

Tommy nods, swinging his legs off of the counter. "Only if I get to kick Dream's ass," he offers. 

Dream groans and rolls his eyes, which causes and echo of laughter through the room, and he's fully prepared to get better as soon as he can if it means that everyone keeps laughing like this.