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“Move, you idiots!” Sapnap called out in frustration before turning to his friend and continuing in a slightly quieter voice. “God, I forgot how slow these stupid freshman walk every year. They're clogging up the hallways.”
Dream shook his head. “Dude, I know. It’s like as soon as they make it to high school they forget how to move their legs. It’s ridiculous.”
The two boys were caught in the sea of students flooding the hallways, seemingly in no rush to get to class since everyone was moving at a snail’s pace.
The tall blond used his elbows and large frame to move through the crowd of smaller bodies around him, gesturing for Sapnap to follow. The raven-haired boy did so gladly, trailing in his wake. They marched through the hallway, not stopping to look around or talk to anyone, until they made their way into their assigned classroom. The overwhelming noise of the students was cut off when the heavy wooden door closed, giving the boys a moment of rest before another, even more annoying noise took its place.
"Oh please, tell me you guys are not in another one of my classes."
Dream let out a heavy sigh and rolled his eyes. "As much as I would love for that to be true, George, it looks like you're stuck with us. And we're stuck with you, so we’re not exactly winning in this situation."
"I can't believe this," the short brunet huffed, turning on his heel and returning to his seat at the front of the room.
"I'm dropping this class," Sapnap hissed quietly as he followed Dream to a table in the back corner of the classroom.
"Oh c'mon Sapnap."
"No, I'm serious. If I have to listen to his stupid, posh British accent every day for a whole year, I'm going to die. So really, taking this class is a safety risk."
The boys flopped into their seats and pulled out their notebooks. Dream pretended to glare at Sapnap out of the corner of his eye. He knew that the shorter boy was joking, but the sentiment was very real for both of them. Ever since George had transferred to their school from London his sophomore year, he somehow always ended up in the same classes as Dream and Sapnap. Really, Dream shouldn't have been surprised to find the boy waiting for them in their government class.
Dream wouldn’t say that he and Sapnap hated the Brit, to which Sapnap would disagree, but they definitely weren’t fond of him. Their dislike mainly stemmed from a stupid misunderstanding that had taken place during their junior year: Dream, Sapnap, and their group of friends had gotten into a fight with George’s friends over god knows what. It might have been a parking space or a grade on a project, no one could really remember. All they did remember was that the tensions between the groups got pretty brutal, ending after Sapnap had gotten suspended for a week for punching George’s friend in the face.
After George’s friend had transferred schools and everything had settled down, Dream had tried to reach out to the brunet and bridge the gap between the two groups. But what he found was that the boy was so incredibly stuck up that he would not listen to a word that Dream had to say. He continued to march around with his nose in the air, maintaining that Sapnap and Dream were the worst people to ever exist and anyone who was friends with them was too.
"Alright class," their teacher began as the last bell rang. "I am Mr. Philza and I will be your government teacher this year."
Dream heard George scoff quietly in the front of the room and felt irritation rise in his chest. It was the first day and apparently the Brit had already decided that he disliked this class. If he didn't like it, why did he sign up for it? The blond shook his head and tried to keep his attention focused on what the teacher was saying.
"This year, we're going to do something a little differently from previous years. You will be separated into partners and will be given free reign to organize a presentation that utilizes information from the course content. These will also be presented to the rest of the class. It will be a semester-long project and will require a lot of out-of-class work, so I have high expectations for what these projects will look like."
Sapnap gave Dream a gentle nudge with his elbow. "Partners?" he whispered.
"Of course, who else would I be partnered with?" the taller shot back, extending his hand for a fist bump.
Sapnap simply nodded and reciprocated the action.
"However, there's a fun little twist to this project," Mr. Philza added, a slight smile to his lips. "You will not be choosing your own partners."
"What? You're kidding," Sapnap groaned, a thought that was echoed by many of the other students.
"Settle down, settle down. Clearly you don't think that this twist is as fun as I do, but let me tell you why I think this is better. Working with different people is far more beneficial than working with your friends. With friends, it would be much easier to slack off, or pick a topic that one of you prefers more than the other. In addition, you don't have to articulate your thoughts as well as you would when speaking to someone that you don't really know. Working with someone else will give you an opportunity to see a different perspective and make a new friend, which I almost think is more important than the project."
Dream secretly rolled his eyes at that. Even though he was a friendly person, he hated when teachers would try to force students to "meet new people" and "make new friends." It was their senior year of high school and everyone had already decided what social circles that they ran in; who they were friends with and who they weren't. Putting two people together for a project was not suddenly going to make them the best of friends.
"So!" Mr. Philza clapped his hands and walked over to his desk, picking up a clipboard with a piece of paper on it. "I've split you into your partnerships already and I think that today would be a great day for you to introduce yourselves and begin to discuss what kind of topic you might want to do your projects on."
Sapnap and Dream caught each other's eye and shrugged.
"Niki, Niki, where are you?"
A small girl with pink hair raised her hand from a seat on the right side of the classroom.
"Okay, you're going to be paired with Jack. Jack, raise your hand so Niki knows where you are."
The boy sitting next to Niki smiled and raised his hand. They exchanged a look of amusement and Niki let out a quiet giggle.
"Oh well, I guess my method of separating friends didn't work out too well," Mr. Philza chuckled.
"So are you going to let them be partners or not?" George demanded from the front table.
"I guess they get to be lucky and stay together. I would have to rework all the pairs, and even then I could still end up accidentally putting friends together again."
The Brit scoffed and crossed his arms.
"The next pair is Karl and Sapnap. Where are you two?"
Sapnap raised his hand and looked around the room, his eyes falling on a raised hand from a boy with a mop of fluffy brown hair who was drowning in a soft purple sweater. Dream wondered why the boy was wearing a sweater in the middle of summer and turned to whisper something to Sapnap about it when he noticed a light pink blush had risen to his friend's cheeks. Before he could say anything, Mr. Philza continued.
"Okay good. Moving on, Wilbur and Tommy. Raise your hands please."
A tall boy with a brown beanie raised his hand and looked reluctantly toward his partner, an overenthusiastic blond boy who almost jumped out of his seat as he threw his hand into the air.
"Oh Will, we get to work together! Our project is gonna be the best!" Tommy practically shouted.
"Oh great, can’t wait," Wilbur grumbled, pulling his beanie further down over his head.
"Next pair, Dream and George."
Dream's heart skipped a beat and his stomach dropped. Of course. Of course he had to be paired with the most self-centered, annoying, stuck-up kid he'd ever met. He lifted his hand slowly, noticing that the boy in the front row wasn't moving to do the same.
"Um, George. You have to raise your hand, how am I supposed to know who you are?" Dream said, pretending to look around for his partner.
"George," Mr. Philza said. "Is there a problem?"
"Yes, Mr. Philza," George spat with surprising venom. "I can't work- no, I refuse to work with Dream."
Although Dream absolutely had similar thoughts running through his mind, he was taken aback that they were being voiced aloud, and to the teacher no less.
"I'm sorry George, but these are the pairs and I won't be changing them, so I suggest you figure out a way to work with your new partner."
Mr. Philza let his gaze linger for a second or two longer on the front row before lifting his eyes to scan the rest of the room. "And the last pair is Tubbo and Ranboo."
The two boys at the table next to Dream and Sapnap smiled and fist bumped each other.
"This is so unfair!" George exclaimed.
"George, like I said before, these are the partners and I will not be changing them. So please, put aside your differences and figure out how to work with Dream. Who knows, maybe you'll find out that you actually have a lot in common."
"As if." The brunet rolled his eyes.
"Okay everyone!" Mr. Philza dropped the clipboard back on his desk and turned to address the class once more. "Your task for today is simple. Introduce yourself to your partner if you don't already know each other, exchange phone numbers or snapchats or whatever you kids use these days to communicate, and begin brainstorming ideas for your projects. The rest of the time is yours."
Voices and the scrape of chairs being pulled out filled the silence.
"Tough luck, man. It sucks that you got stuck with that idiot. But someone had to and I'm just glad it wasn't me," Sapnap said with a lopsided grin as he gathered his notebook and pencil back into his backpack.
"You got lucky. Karl's so smart, you guys are basically locked in for 100% on this project."
"I know, score!" Sapnap gave him a big thumbs up before walking over to Karl's table.
Figuring that he could not put it off any longer, Dream took a deep breath and stood from his chair, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. He dragged his feet as he slowly made his way to the front of the room and sat down.
"I can't believe this," he heard George mumble.
"Look, I don't like you either, but I am not failing this project just because of that," Dream said flatly.
There was a beat of silence.
“Give me your phone,” the blond sighed.
“What?”
“Mr. Philza said that we’ll have to work on this project outside of class, which means that, unless you want to lose all the points for completion, we’ll have to coordinate working together. So I would like to put my number in your phone.”
George’s brown eyes narrowed as he stared down at the table in front of them, reaching slowly into his pocket to withdraw his phone.
“Fine, but if you text me annoying shit, I’m blocking you. I don’t care enough about the project to deal with you when I don’t have to.”
“Yeah, likewise.” Dream quickly typed his name and phone number into an empty contact before passing the phone back to its owner.
“Great, now that that’s all settled, I was thinking we could do the proje-”
“No no no, you listen to me.” The brunet tucked his phone away and turned to look at Dream for the first time since class started. “Since I have to put up with you for this whole semester, we’re doing what I say.”
Dream felt irritation rising into his chest and spreading across his skin. He took a deep breath, mentally reasoning that it would be better to go along with this stupid British know-it-all than to spend the entire time arguing.
“Fine,” he said through gritted teeth. He might reason that it would be better to concede, but that did not make it any easier.
George’s lips twisted into a sickening smile.
“Good, I’m glad that we finally agree on something.”
Just as Dream opened his mouth to retort, the bell rang, cutting across a statement that was sure to use some very colorful language.
“Finally,” George huffed, gathering his supplies back into his backpack and standing up. “Well, I would say this has been fun, but it definitely hasn’t. I’ll text you when I’ve decided that I’ve had enough of a break to be able to tolerate you again.”
And with that, the brunet strode out of the classroom without so much as a second glance toward his teacher or his year-long partner.
Dream remained in his seat, trembling with both shock and rage.
Breathe in, breathe out.
Once he regained control of his emotions and his shaking hands, he stood slowly and pulled his backpack over his shoulder. Making his way toward the only people remaining in the room, he saw Sapnap and Karl exchanging phone numbers, broad grins spread across both of their faces.
“Okay cool, I’ll see you later!” Karl said, reaching out to touch Sapnap’s arm before tucking his phone into his pocket and exiting the room.
Sapnap’s smile stretched even wider and, as Dream stepped nearer, he could see a faint pink hue remained on his friend’s cheeks.
“Let’s go,” Sapnap said, ignoring the pointed look that the blond was giving him and tossing his things haphazardly into his bag. “We’re gonna be late for lunch, and you know how upset everyone gets when we’re not on time.”
“Yeah, yeah,” the taller boy huffed, rolling his eyes and making his way out of the classroom, still silently fuming.
-----
The next day, after extensive pre-class meditation and relaxing breathing exercises, Dream found himself once again sitting next to George.
“We’re going to spend the next few days letting you and your partner settle in, get to know each other, all that. I want these projects to be really spectacular, so I think that getting the foundation right is really crucial. If anyone has questions about topics or anything, you know where to find me,” Mr. Philza had greeted the class before sinking down into his desk chair.
So Dream was unfortunately forced away from his best friend and into battle with his nemesis for a second day in a row.
“What topic do you want to do?” Dream asked.
George continued to doodle in the margins of his notebook, blatantly ignoring the question being asked of him.
“Hello? George?”
No response.
Dream reached out and snatched the notebook away, quickly closing it and dropping it onto the table with a loud thwack. The brunet jolted in his seat and looked up like he had just been slapped.
“What?” he exclaimed.
“Pay attention please,” Dream said, using an immense amount of effort to keep his voice low and even. “I asked you a question.”
“And I heard you, I just chose not to answer.”
“Well, I would appreciate it if you did.”
Their voices both dripped of false pleasantries and mock patience, like frustrated teachers instructing a kindergartener for the tenth time. They locked eyes and a fight for dominance ensued. Flames sparked inside umber irises, only to be met with bright lightning flashing through viridian ones. George was the first to blink, dropping his gaze to the table and crossing his arms.
“Fine, whatever,” George huffed and leaned back in his chair. “I was thinking we could do something about the Articles of Confederation, since it was technically the foundation of the American government.”
“Won’t other groups do the same topic?”
“I really don’t care, that’s not my problem.” The Brit reached across the table and slid his notebook from under Dream’s fingertips. “Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to spend the rest of class pretending that I don’t have to be your partner. Thanks.”
He offered a last artificial smile before ducking his head and returning to scribble nothingness into the corners of his paper.
The rest of class passed without another word spoken between the two of them. Dream would occasionally look over in envy at his best friend and his partner tucked away in the corner of the room, deep in a conversation that was broken frequently by the sound of laughter. Other voices buzzed around the blond and brunet and enveloped them in their insistent dronining, leaving a bubble of silence hovering over their table. Finally, after what seemed like an agonizing eternity, the bubble was popped by the sudden, sharp ringing of the lunch bell. George practically leaped to his feet and sprinted out of the classroom, leaving his bewildered partner to slowly gather up his remaining notes.
Dream felt his jaw clenching and unclenching with frustration. His whole body seemed to react violently to the swirling of negative emotions within his chest and he knew that much more of this would cause him to simply fall apart. Acting on an impulse, he moved to pull his phone out of his pocket and scrolled through his contacts.
“Shit,” he whispered. He had forgotten that he had been the one to give George his phone number, not the other way around, so he had no way to reach his partner.
He pushed the device back into the pocket of his jeans and waited for Sapnap to finish talking with Karl.
“Hey Dream, is it okay if Karl eats lunch with us?”
“I don’t really think you need my permission, but sure, I don’t see why not.”
“Great! Let’s go!” Sapnap grabbed Karl by the arm and walked him over to be in-step with the tall blond as they left the classroom and made their way downstairs to the cafeteria.
“H-hey, uh, I’m Karl by the way,” the boy said, fluffy hair swept low over his eyes and hands tucked into an oversized brown sweater. “We’ve never really talked.”
“Really?” Dream said in surprise. “I could’ve sworn we’ve had classes together before.”
“We have,” Karl averted his eyes, pink rising gently onto his cheeks. “I just kinda mind my own business, I don’t talk to a lot of people.”
“Oh.”
“But now you have us! And everyone that we eat lunch with, so we can all be friends!” Sapnap slung an arm around Karl in what looked to be a slightly uncomfortable side-hug, but neither of them seemed to mind as matching smiles broke out across their faces.
“Speaking of ‘being friends’,” Dream said, using his fingers to put air quotes around the words. “I have someone to talk to really quickly, I’ll catch up with you guys later.”
Sapnap used the hand that wasn’t wrapped around Karl to give Dream a fist bump before steering his new friend toward their usual lunch table. Dream sighed heavily, rolled his eyes to himself, and made his way over to George’s table before he could lose his nerve.
“Hi, excuse me, George. Can I talk to you for a second?”
Six pairs of eyes swung to him abruptly, freezing him with their stare. He could feel red hot discomfort spread across his skin, creeping up his neck and crawling over the freckles on his face. Dream tried to swallow, but found his mouth dry.
“Is that-?” he heard one of the Brit’s friends whisper.
“Yeah, it is,” came the response.
“I’m sorry, I know you and your friends aren’t very smart, but I think you might be at the wrong table,” another one of George’s friends spoke up, speaking with a pointed tone.
“E-excuse me?” Dream spluttered, fingers curling slightly into fists against sweaty palms. “What did you just say?”
“I said-”
“Oh my god, shut up,” George interrupted, standing quickly and placing himself between Dream and the rest of the table. “Dream, I’m sorry your stupid ego got hurt because he called you an idiot, but there’s no need to cause a scene. If you really need to talk to me, then let’s go.”
Dream nodded, unsure of what other response he could make, and let George lead him to the empty courtyard outside the cafeteria.
“You actually are an idiot, you know that right? I mean, honestly,” the brunet let out a dry chuckle and turned around to face Dream. “You know my friends have never gotten over what Sapnap did, you can’t honestly expect to just walk over to our lunch table without some sort of conflict.”
“Have you gotten over it? Because you seem to hate me just as much as they do.”
“Of course I’ve gotten over it, it was stupid. I can’t even remember what everyone was fighting about, it was so insignificant.”
“Then what is your deal?” Dream exploded, throwing his hands in the air in frustration. “Why can’t you at least pretend to be a decent person so that we can work on this stupid project?”
“Oh, that’s what you wanted to talk about?”
“Of course, why else would I talk to you? I’m not exactly trying to be your friend.”
George rolled his eyes.
“I’m serious, George.” Dream crossed his arms and stared down at the small British boy before him.
“Yeah, yeah, I know.” He sighed. “Look, I’m not gonna pretend to like you, so don’t get your hopes up. Even though I’m totally over the whole fight thing from last year, I actually just don’t like you.”
Dream’s brow furrowed and he could feel the familiar irritation sweep through his veins as he opened his mouth to retort.
“But-” George held up a hand as he cut across the interruption. “I will do my best to tolerate you more than I have. And, as part of that offer, I will host any time that we work on the project outside of class. How’s that?”
He stared defiantly up at the blond, daring him to disagree.
“Sure, that sounds great,” Dream replied, still using the sarcastically friendly inflection in his voice that he and George had been adopting with each other.
“Okay, that needs to stop. You have to do things to be nice to me too, starting with getting rid of that dumbass tone of voice.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Bullshit. I know I do it too, but both of us need to drop it.”
“Fine,” Dream huffed. “And if I catch you using it, I’m gonna hit you.”
“See, I know you’re joking, but this is why my friends still don’t like you and Sapnap. Neither of you addressed the fact that Sapnap literally punched someone in the face.”
“I held him back from doing any worse! Plus, if you had heard what your friend was saying, you probably would have hit him too.”
“I doubt that, I’m not as barbaric as you are,” George said, rolling his eyes. Dream swore that one day he would roll his eyes one too many times and they would simply fall out of his head.
“Hey! I thought we were being nice to each other!” the blond exclaimed, reaching out to swat the other boy on the arm.
A small pale hand clamped around his wrist, keeping it from making contact.
“Don’t you dare touch me, Dream.” George’s voice was low with warning, but contained no trace of animosity and a slight smile touched the corners of his lips.
“What? You don’t want me to do this?” A wide grin spread across Dream’s face as he stepped closer, using his free hand to gently whack the Brit in various places; hitting lightly against his shoulder, his stomach, the top of his head. “If you were nice, I wouldn’t have to do this.”
“Dream, stop it! I’m serious!” George shrieked, wriggling around in an effort to escape Dream’s hands. A giggle slipped out of the smaller boy’s mouth, bubbling up from his chest and releasing into the space between them. It floated in the air, light and clear and musical.
Dream stopped his movements, his hand still gripping the pale skin of George’s arm. That was the first time Dream had ever heard the other boy laugh. This in and of itself was an interesting revelation, but the thing that intrigued Dream the most was the feeling that was stirring in the pit of his stomach. Butterflies long forgotten began to flutter their wings, coming to life at the sound of the tinkling wind chimes that had escaped from the shorter boy in his grasp.
“Um, Dream? You can let go of me now. I get the message, I’ll be nice.”
The blond stepped away and quickly dropped his hand back to his side. He lifted his eyes to find George’s gaze already resting on his face, a tinge of gentle pink across cheeks dusted faintly with freckles.
Had those always been there?
“Uhm.” Dream coughed, feeling a similarly rosy hue sprinkle itself down from the roots of his hair to the base of his neck. “Well, I’m glad that we came to an agreement. I mean, that you’re not going to be a complete asshole to me anymore, that’ll be nice.”
His hands twisted themselves together anxiously as he averted his eyes, looking down to the pavement.
“And you have to do the same. If you want me to hold up my end of the bargain, I expect the same from you.”
“Deal.”
“Shake on it. That means the deal goes into effect.”
A tan hand was extended toward a much smaller pale one, meeting in the middle, palm on palm, in a firm handshake. Dream hoped that George couldn’t tell how much he had suddenly begun sweating, especially when he felt gentle sparks pop and tingle along the points of contact between the two.
“Good.” The smaller boy said, pulling his hand away. “Well, I should get back to lunch, they probably think you’re beating the shit out of me or something.”
“Yeah, ha ha,” Dream let out a sarcastic chuckle. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
George let his lips curve upward in the slightest hint of a smile before making his way back to the cafeteria door and slipping inside. Dream stood rooted to the spot, his thoughts going a mile a minute. He stumbled over to a nearby concrete step and sat down heavily, resting his head in his hands.
There’s no way that he could possibly have feelings for the stuck-up Brit. That would be impossible. Even just the thought of it made him feel nauseous. He had spent years hating the other boy with every fiber of his being. And now, after just two days of being forced together, Dream was getting butterflies over a stupid giggle.
No, absolutely not. The tightening in his chest and flush on his cheeks was just because he was glad that he wouldn’t have to deal with George’s ridicule anymore. It had nothing to do with a small pale hand pressing into his own or warm brown eyes ignited in the afternoon sun or pink lips that looked soft enough to-
He shook his head to clear his thoughts and pushed himself to his feet. Whatever was going on in his brain had to stop now before it even fully started. Dream would not allow himself to fall for his enemy. He took one last breath of warm summer air before forcing himself through the cafeteria doors.
-----
The next few days of class were strange to say the least. When they weren’t constantly at each other’s throats, Dream found that he and George got along surprisingly well. Or as well as two boys could when they had spent the past two years hating each other.
It was like they had met each other for the first time all over again. Dream learned that George was left-handed, something that he had never noticed despite being acutely aware of (and previously annoyed at) the boy’s habit of doodling on the corners of his pages, and that the Brit was interested in coding, a fascination that the two of them shared. The blond had never thought that the two of them would have anything in common, yet he found himself excited to be talking to someone besides Sapnap about the various plug-ins that he was working on.
In addition to their newfound friendship, if it could even be called that, he realized it was harder and harder to force down the feelings that were developing. Dream often found himself zoning out as George was talking, his unfocused eyes drifting down to count the freckles across his cheeks or trace the soft curve of his jaw. Whenever this would happen, the brunet would wave a hand in front of his face and bring him back to the topic at hand, never getting upset or irritated even when this would happen multiple times a day. This action was just one of many that the blond had suddenly found so endearing about his former enemy. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, Dream was falling hard and fast for George.
He was almost relieved when the weekend finally rolled around. It would give him some much needed time away from his growing predicament. And it would give him an opportunity to hang out with his best friend, something that he had been unable to do for an entire week since Sapnap and Karl had become inseparable.
Now, Dream had no problem with Karl; he actually very much enjoyed his company and was glad that their group had adopted him so quickly. Dream’s problem was that he needed to talk to Sapnap about his unfortunate situation regarding a certain brunet in their government class, but he could hardly do that when the two boys were practically glued to each other’s side. And as much as he liked Karl, they were definitely not at that point in their friendship yet.
So when school ended on Friday and Dream’s group of friends had mostly parted ways, he found himself standing with Sapnap and Karl at the front of the school.
“I mean, it was a good movie, but I wouldn’t say it was my favorite. I don’t even think it broke my top ten,” Sapnap said.
“Come on! High School Musical is one of the best movies of all time!” Karl exclaimed.
“Mmmm I’m not sure about that.”
“Well, I think you just have bad taste in movies.”
“Bullshit, my taste in movies is great! You liked John Wick when we watched it and that’s easily in my top ten.”
“It was okay…”
“Karl Jacobs, did you lie when you said you liked it?”
“No! It was good, just not really my kind of movie.”
“I can’t believe this!” Sapnap’s voice rose in mock offense as he playfully glared at Karl. “I thought we agreed to be honest with each other. And now I find out that you’re lying to me?”
“Oh shut up, you’re so overdramatic,” Karl giggled, lifting a sweater-covered hand over his mouth.
Dream stood next to the two quietly, allowing their bickering and laughter to go in one ear and out the other.
“Okay, well I have to go,” Karl said as their conversation trailed off. “But I’ll see you tomorrow?”
“Absolutely.” Sapnap nodded once.
“Dream, obviously you’re invited too. Sap and I were gonna go to the skatepark tomorrow around one ish.”
“Huh?” Dream snapped out of a daze. “Um, I can’t. Thanks for the invite, but I already told my parents that I’d babysit my sister tomorrow.”
“Oh, okay. See you guys later!” Karl said with a smile, giving Sapnap a nudge with his elbow before disappearing into the crowd of cars leaving the parking lot.
“So what are we doing?” Sapnap turned to Dream.
“What?” Dream’s attention had drifted again, this time over to the other side of the school’s front doors where George was standing with his friends.
“Dude, you’ve been spacey all day, are you okay?”
“I just… have a lot on my mind.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“Um,” the taller boy hesitated, glancing in George’s direction once more. “Yeah, but not right now.”
“Okay?” Sapnap looked to follow Dream’s gaze before turning back around. “So anyway, back to my original question, what’s our plan?”
“I’m not sure. I just figured we could head back to my house and go from there.”
“Sounds good to me.” The raven-haired boy shrugged and fell into step beside his friend as they made their way to Dream’s car.
The drive went by quickly as the two boys returned to their usual banter. Sapnap’s phone automatically connected to the bluetooth in the car and he insisted on blasting country music the entire time, much to Dream’s displeasure. When they pulled into the driveway of Dream’s house, he was more than happy to shut the car off to prevent Sapnap from playing another song.
“I get that you want to honor your Texas roots, but do you really have to do it in my car?” Dream groaned as he pulled his backpack out of the backseat, swung it over his shoulder, and stepped up onto the porch.
“It’s good music, Dream! I will not stand for this slander!” Sapnap called, closing the car door.
Dream shook his head firmly in response and pressed a button on his keys, waiting for the beep to confirm that the car was locked, before pushing through the front door into the entrance hall of his house. The shorter boy followed him in, still griping about his friend’s taste in music. They kicked their shoes off in the hall and darted up the stairs to Dream’s room where Sapnap immediately collapsed on the bed.
“I was thinking we just play video games for a little bit?” Dream suggested, holding up two controllers.
Sapnap’s eyes remained closed as lifted his arm in the air and made grabbing motions with his hand. The blond rolled his eyes and placed the controller into the palm of his friend’s flailing hand. He sat on the bed, the mattress dipping under his weight, and scooted back toward the headboard, pulling a pillow to rest behind his back. As he pressed a series of buttons and loaded up a game, Sapnap found the strength to sit up enough to see the screen, maneuvering another pillow under his head. The boys started a game and fell back into their never-ending stream of banter, playfully insulting and hitting the other when they would lose or gloating loudly when they would win. Dream realized how much he had missed Sapnap’s presence over the past week. Nothing felt like home as much as his best friend smacking him in the head and calling him a “dumbass bitch” as he beat him over and over again.
“So, um, Sapnap,” Dream piped up as a loading circle spun on the tv in front of them. “About that thing from earlier…”
“Oh yeah, do tell.”
“I um… I think I have a crush on someone…” Dream peeked to his right, seeing a smirk spreading slowly over his friend’s face. “But before you get all annoying about it, can we have some real talk? Cuz there’s kind of a problem that I need someone to help me with.”
“Mmhmm.” A response came from lips still curved into a tight smile despite the effort Sapnap was clearly putting in to smother the expression. “Please continue.”
The blond sighed heavily and ran a nervous hand through his hair before dropping it to let his fingers fiddle with the controller’s joystick. “I- uhm- I like George.”
Sapnap pressed a button on his controller and a pause menu interrupted the game. His eyes remained forward, staring ahead at the screen.
“Wait, wait,” he let out a chuckle that reverberated with uncertainty. “Say that again.”
Breathe in, breathe out.
“I like George.”
His friend’s head turned slowly to look at him, eyes searching every inch of his face for some sign of sarcasm or insincerity. Dream’s features remained open and honest, letting his heart’s truth shine through the green of his eyes and the freckles on his cheeks.
“You’re serious? Like, you’re really sure about this?” Sapnap breathed.
Dream nodded.
“Oh…”
Silence fell heavily into the air between them. The bed seemed weighed down with it, mattress dipping under their bodies even further, and when Sapnap moved to sit up fully, it took a greater amount of effort than it should have.
“Well… um…” he seemed at a loss for words, the gears in his brain moving rapidly to try and make sense of the bombshell his friend had just dropped.
Dream glanced between Sapnap and the tv several times before setting his controller down and turning to face him head on.
“Look, I know you aren’t George’s biggest fan, and I’m still getting over that too, but I promise you he isn’t as bad as you think.”
Blinking eyelids were the only reaction that let him know that his friend was even still alive.
“Sapnap, please. Just say something. I get that this is a lot to drop on you at once and that we’ve spent the last two years hating George so that’s sort of a thing I guess, but I actually do need your help with something. So if you could just get over the shock of the whole thing, that would be great.”
The raven-haired boy blinked once more and took a deep shuddering breath, as if he had been plunged underwater and was holding his breath for the last thirty seconds.
“I just don’t get it,” he said simply, breaking the silence that had resumed. “We hated George. In every class, every year. We complained about him constantly, nitpicked every little annoying thing that he did. I’m pretty sure you said you wished he never existed at some point. And now you need my help because you have a crush on him?”
His voice was flat and emotionless, preventing Dream from getting a read on how his friend was feeling.
“I know, I know, it’s weird and confusing. I don’t really understand the whole thing myself. All I know is that I like him and I don’t know if he likes me back and I don’t know what to do about it.”
Sapnap set his controller onto the sheets between them and closed his eyes as he rubbed a hand across his face, brushing his bangs off of his forehead.
“Okay, um,” his response was still unsure, but he seemed to be getting over his initial surprise. “Do you want something to happen between the two of you?”
Dream opened his mouth to respond, but caught himself. Did he? He had spent most of his time pretending like he didn’t have feelings for the other boy and had never really considered what he actually wanted. He thought about how easily it had suddenly become to talk to the other boy, how much his chest tightened every time the Brit would catch his eye in class or when their hands would brush as they would scribble down an idea. He thought about the butterflies that had come to life in his stomach that first time he had heard George laugh, how he had never felt something as electric as when their skin had made contact.
“Yes,” he breathed, surprising himself with the answer. “I do want something to happen between us.”
Sapnap’s eyebrows lifted slightly as he was also taken aback by the words that had slipped from between Dream’s lips.
“Well, are you going to do something about it?”
“Do you think I should?” Dream asked apprehensively. “I’m not sure if he likes me back, so if I make a move and he rejects it, then it’s all over. He would tell everyone and they’d all hate me. It would be even worse than before.”
“I think that’s a little bit dramatic. If you and George are sort of friends now, I’m sure you could keep the whole thing between you two. Especially if you asked him to.”
“Mmm I just don’t know.” Dream scooted forward away from the headboard and let his upper half fall heavily back onto the bed, picking up a pillow and pressing it over his face to muffle his words. “Feelings are so stupid.”
“Amen to that.”
The blond felt his friend moving around on the bed next to him and recoiled as the pillow was pulled from his grasp.
“Look.” Sapnap took a deep breath in and exhaled forcefully before he continued. “I still don’t like George and I really don’t get what you see in him, but it’s also my job as your best friend to support you in everything you do. So if there’s anything you need my help with, I’ll be there.”
Tension that Dream didn’t even know he had been holding dropped from his shoulders and the anxious knot that had formed in the pit of his stomach began to unravel.
“Thanks Sapnap.” Dream peeked open one of his eyes tentatively to see his friend looking down at him, raven locks falling out of his white headband and resting in front of his face where he sported a broad grin. “And I know you’ve been waiting, so you have my permission now to be annoying.”
The bed frame rattled as Sapnap rocketed to his feet, shaking the mattress and dancing around Dream as he remained prone, eyes tightly closed.
“Dreamy has a crush, Dreamy has a crush!” he chanted in a sing-song voice, waving his hands through the air.
Dream couldn’t help but allow a smile to slide over his lips. As much as he pretended to hate Sapnap’s teasing, it never failed to make him laugh.
“Okay okay,” he chuckled, reaching up and tugging his friend back onto the bed. “Now that the entire planet knows I’ve got a crush, can we get back to our game?”
Sapnap reluctantly picked his controller back up, his face lit up with delight as he continued quietly singing “Dream and George sittin’ in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g.”
The boys resumed their game and played for a few minutes in comfortable silence, letting the familiar sounds of button pressing and video game effects fill their ears.
“Oh, there is one more thing I wanted to talk to you about,” Dream spoke suddenly, as if the thought had just sprung into his mind instead of being a question he had been wondering for the past week. “What’s up with you and Karl?”
The boy next to him almost dropped his controller and let out a small noise in surprise.
“Uhm, what do you mean?”
“I mean,” Dream said, glancing at his friend with a knowing look. “That you refused to watch High School Musical when I wanted to like ten years ago, and now suddenly you’re okay with watching it because Karl wanted to.”
“Maybe I decided that it was time I finally watched it,” Sapnap huffed, clearly trying to play off his reaction.
“Mmhmm. Somehow, I don’t buy that.”
It was Dream’s turn to pause the game and turn to the shorter boy next to him.
“Oh, also I remember that first day that we were assigned partners and you were very excited to get Karl. I know that wasn’t just because he’s smart.”
Sapnap exhaled a defeated sigh and let his shoulders sag.
“Yeah yeah, okay fine. I have a crush on Karl.”
Dream cheered in victory and punched him on the arm. A bashful smile ghosted Sapnap’s lips and a pink hue tinted his cheeks as he looked anywhere but his friend’s face.
“That’s good, because I think he likes you too.”
“Really?” Sapnap’s olive irises finally lifted to meet Dream’s face. “You think so?”
“Um, yeah,” the other boy scoffed. “You guys hang out all the time, you’re constantly touching each other, and you bicker like an old married couple. I’m pretty sure he likes you, dude.”
He watched as the shorter boy tried and failed to stifle a smile from reaching his features.
“Cool, cool.”
Dream rolled his eyes at his friend’s feigned nonchalance and pressed a button on his controller, resuming the game.
The evening passed without further discussion of the two boys’ feelings and was instead filled with never ending snacks and a lot of staring at a screen before they could no longer keep their eyelids propped open and succumbed to sleep in the early hours of the following morning.
-----
When Dream awoke the next morning, or rather the next afternoon since he and Sapnap had stayed up so late, he rolled over to check his phone and was met with a notification that nearly stopped his heart.
Unknown Number: hey, it’s George, are you free later?
Tanned fingers fumbled across the screen, rapidly tapping out message after message before deleting each one, finally landing on a short, indifferent response.
Dream: mmm not sure, why?
He pressed send and immediately flipped his phone over, as if George would respond faster if he thought that Dream wasn’t paying attention.
The vibration of his phone only served to speed up his rapidly increasing pulse.
George: to work on the project idiot, duh
Breathe in, breathe out.
Dream: oh yeah, haha. i’d be free later tonight i think, i have something going on this afternoon
George: ok cool. i’ll send my address, just let me know when you’re on your way, i’m free any time
Dream blinked rapidly and responded quickly with a thumbs up emoji before putting his phone down and staring blankly at the ceiling above him. His thoughts began to spiral uncontrollably. This was their first time doing anything outside of class. Was it going to be awkward? What would they talk about? If there was a pause in the conversation, who would fill it? Would Dream have to meet George’s parents? Had George complained to his parents about him? Did Dream need to bring anything? An anxious knot began to tighten in his stomach.
“Sapnap,” Dream hissed into the dimly lit room. “Sapnap, wake up.”
A muffled groan sounded from the foot of the bed where it appeared that Sapnap had fallen asleep, followed by a series of shuffling sounds. Raven curls appeared in the corner of Dream’s vision as his friend sat up, nothing more than a blurry figure lit by rays of sun that were able to escape from behind window blinds.
“What do you want?” the figure said groggily, hands coming up to rub slowly at unseen eyes and run through unkempt hair.
“I have a question. Do you think George’s parents know who I am? And do you think that they hate me?”
“What? Where the fuck are these questions coming from?” Sapnap blurted incredulously before saying quietly to himself, “It is seriously too early for this shit.”
Dream filled his friend in on the short text exchange between him and George, ending off with the waves of questions that were still crashing against his brain.
“So, do you think I’ll have to meet George’s parents? And, if so, do you think they know that their son used to hate me?”
Sapnap flopped forward on the bed and buried his face in a pillow, already exhausted from the day’s events.
“Sapnap, I’m being serious,” Dream whined, pulling the pillow from under his friend’s head and hitting him with it. “Help me. Please.”
“Look dude, it’s really not that big of a deal. Just show up to the guy’s house, work on the stupid project, and go home. I’m sure his parents don’t even know who you are, so you’re worrying over nothing.”
Dream sat back, letting his head fall back and thud softly against the headboard behind him.
“You’re probably right,” he said quietly.
“I’m obviously right,” Sapnap interjected. “Because I’m always right.”
Dream rolled his eyes and whacked his friend with the pillow again, receiving a surprised grunt in response followed by a mass of flailing limbs that flew at him as Sapnap threw himself at his assailant. They fell backward into a pile of blankets and pillows that had gathered in front of the headboard and Dream let out a startled noise as Sapnap’s full weight landed on him, knocking the air from his lungs.
“Get- off-,” he grunted out, helplessly trying to move his friend off of him. “I- have to- go.”
Sapnap rolled off the unfortunate figure below him and gently patted his head as if that would make up for almost crushing him to death.
“Yeah, yeah, I know. You’ve got a date.” Sapnap smirked, sitting up at the edge of the bed and checking his phone. “Oh shit.” His eyebrows shot up in surprise and he immediately leapt off the mattress, rushing around the room to gather his things.
Dream chuckled as he watched the other boy scramble to shove his phone charger into a pocket of his backpack. “Well I actually have to babysit my sister, but you forgot that you had a date too, huh?”
“Why did you let us sleep until 12:45 when you know I have somewhere to be at 1:00?” Sapnap whined, throwing an accusing glance at the blond boy still sitting at the head of the bed.
“Oh yeah,” Dream jokingly retorted. “I definitely sabotaged your date on purpose, it’s not like I just woke up too.”
Despite the low lighting in the room, Dream could clearly see Sapnap roll his eyes and flip a middle finger in his direction. He finished putting all of his belongings into his backpack and stumbled over to the door.
“If I left anything, you know where to find me. See you on Monday!”
And then he was gone, leaving Dream alone in an empty room. Alone, except for the swirling storm of thoughts and worries that weighed heavily on his mind. He rubbed a hand over his face and flopped back onto the bed, picking up his phone to scroll endlessly through his Instagram feed, as if pretending that he wasn’t nervous would help.
-----
Update: It didn’t.
As he sat in his parked car in front of George’s house, he genuinely thought that he might throw up from nerves. His insides were twisting and turning around a lead ball that seemed to have situated itself into the pit of his stomach, and his hands were clammy with sweat despite the anxious chills that wracked his body every now and then.
This should not be this hard, he thought, wrapping and unwrapping his fingers around the steering wheel, gripping the black leather until tanned knuckles turned white.
He sat for a minute more, doing his best to still the turmoil that was coursing through his veins and pulsating in his brain. The sun had set long ago and Dream flicked the car’s headlights off, looking through his windshield at the stars sparkling above.
It must be so nice to be a star,he thought. To be so far away from everything, so disconnected from any worries or thoughts.
Suddenly realizing that it might look slightly weird if he continued to sit in front of George’s house unmoving, he swallowed hard. He glanced down at where his phone rested in the cup holder between the two front seats and reached out with a shaky hand.
Breathe in, breathe out.
Quaking fingers tripped and stumbled over the dimly lit screen as they typed a brief message to George saying that he was there and rapidly pressed send. The blond remained in the front seat, staring down at his phone and picking unconsciously at a loose thread on the hem of his t-shirt. A soft buzz alerted him that he had received a response. Taking a deep breath and slowly opening the car door, he consciously forced his body to go through each and every action of exiting the vehicle so that he wouldn’t just back out and drive away. He walked around to the back door of the car and pulled out his backpack, lingering for a second or two longer than necessary until he heard a voice drift across the cool night air.
“Hey!” George stood in the front doorway of the house, holding it slightly ajar and letting the light shine through to illuminate his silhouette.
“Hey,” Dream called back, feigning casualty as he swung his backpack over his shoulders.
He closed the door and locked his car before beginning the seemingly endless trek up to the front door. Each shaky step toward the boy in front of him felt like quicksand, like he was being dragged backward. When he made it up the concrete path and onto the front porch, he finally lifted his eyes. George still remained where he had been, standing in the light of the doorway, but now that Dream was closer, he could make out little details that he hadn’t seen before. The Brit was wearing grey sweatpants and a soft beige sweater that was at least one size too big; it draped loosely over his frame, sleeves hanging low to cover his hands. The light behind him cradled his head softly and reflected off his dark curls, giving him a halo effect that Dream found particularly fitting.
“So, ready to work on this stupid project?” George interrupted the other’s staring, yanking viridian eyes to meet umber ones.
“N-not really, but I’m here anyway,” the taller boy replied with a weak smile. He felt his stomach turn over as the action was returned.
George stepped forward to hold the door open wider, letting Dream brush past him into the living room. He held his breath at the close proximity to the other boy and almost tripped over the door jam, stumbling over himself much to the enjoyment of the brunet behind him who let out a soft snort of laughter.
“Shut up,” Dream mumbled.
George closed the door and gestured for the other boy to take his shoes off.
“We can go up to my room, I’ve got my laptop and stuff up there.”
Dream nodded and followed George up the stairs, looking at the pictures that covered the walls.
“Is that you?” he asked, pointing at a framed picture of a toddler with dark hair wearing a party hat and smearing cake all over his face.
George glanced in the direction of Dream’s finger and smiled in gentle embarrassment. “Yeah, that was at my third birthday party.”
The blond chuckled. “Very cute,” he said before his cheeks flushed red with realization at what had just slipped out.
A similar hue appeared on the back of George’s neck as they continued to climb the stairs. “Thanks,” he said softly, running a sweater-covered hand through his hair.
They reached the top of the stairs and George waved his hand in the direction of a slightly closed door down the hall.
“So, uh, that’s my room. I’ll be right there, I just realized that I left my laptop charger downstairs. But go ahead and make yourself at home or whatever, sorry if it’s a bit of a mess,” he said and pushed past Dream to return to the stairs.
Dream walked quietly down the hall, heart beating loudly in his ears, and slowly pushed the door open, wincing as it creaked in that annoying way that doors do. Dim light spilled across the carpet, reaching out to touch his socks where he stood in the hallway. He lifted his gaze and allowed his eyes to roam over the room before him. The room was relatively small, but immediately felt cozy. Baby blue walls were covered with pictures, posters, and various other wall hangings. Grey sheets covered a perfectly made bed and a string of christmas lights illuminated the wall behind the headboard, coloring the room with a soft, warm tint. A small succulent sat on the windowsill next to a watering can that was equally as small. The only area of the room that could be considered a “bit of a mess” was the desk directly across from the foot of the bed. It was cluttered with papers and books and random trinkets like rocks and a small elephant statue that looked like it was made out of some sort of quartz. A laptop sat open to an empty document, but a closer look told Dream that Minecraft was still running in an alternate tab.
He took a few tentative steps into the room and sat gingerly on the edge of the bed, hoping that he wouldn’t mess up the sheets and comforter that had been so carefully spread over the mattress.
“Sorry about that,” George said breathlessly as he entered the room having just sprinted up the stairs.
“No problem. Your room’s cool by the way, I like your christmas lights.”
“Oh, thanks.” The brunet let out a chuckle. “I didn’t want to get those dumb tiktok LEDs, so I thought the christmas lights were a good alternative.”
Dream recoiled in false hurt. “As someone who has those ‘dumb tiktok LEDs’, I’m very offended.”
“Oh please,” George scoffed. “Why does that not surprise me at all?”
“Woah woah, calm down. There’s no need to be rude.”
The awkward tension from the stairs melted away as the two fell back into a routine of bickering and joking. After a little while, Dream pulled out his computer and they started brainstorming for their presentation, going over what research would need to be done and what sections of the project each of them would take. They worked for what felt like forever, but when Dream checked his phone, it had only been two hours.
He collapsed back onto the bed and threw an arm over his face.
“George, if I look at another academic source, I’m going to gouge my eyes out. Can we please take a break?”
The brunet let out a giggle and closed his laptop. “I was hoping you’d say that. I think my brain has slowly been deteriorating over the past two hours.”
“What should we do for our break?”
“Hmm,” George hummed before a mischievous smile slid over his features. “Oh, I have a great idea.”
Dream pulled his arm off his eyes and looked at the boy standing in front of him. “I’m nervous, I don’t like that look on your face.”
“C’mon, Dream, it’ll be fun!” George walked over and reached out with a small pale hand to grip at tanned fingers, pulling the blond off of the bed and down the stairs.
Even though Dream went willingly, he noticed that the other boy made no motion to disconnect their hands, allowing their fingers to remain intertwined until they were forced to separate in order to put their shoes on.
“We’re going out, back in a little!” George called as he closed the front door behind them and practically skipped down the path to the sidewalk.
Dream quickly caught up with him since his long legs meant that one step for him was at least two for the Brit.
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see,” George said, flashing another mysterious grin.
The two walked through the neighborhood, making left and right turns at random it seemed. Dream quickly realized that he was lost, but it appeared that George knew where he was going. Their conversation was quiet since it was late at night, soft voices carrying through the dark as they talked back and forth. They were comfortable like this, just the two of them talking about nothing and everything all at once.
Suddenly, George broke into a run.
“We’re here!” he called out.
Dream’s eyes snapped up to where George was running to and his lips turned up into a smile. The moonlight that night was bright, illuminating the metal foundation of a playground nestled between the trees. He started racing toward the clearing, determined to beat George, and let out a whoop of laughter. When he reached the swings, his fingers wrapped around the chains and he pushed himself off the ground, feeling a cool breeze whip across his skin and through his hair. As he looked up at the stars that glittered through the darkness, the smile never left his face.
“Dream!” he heard George’s voice float over to him. “Come here!”
Dream hopped off the swing at the top of its arc, sailing through the air and landing on the ground with a soft thud. He walked slowly toward the metal structure of the main playground.
“Geoooorge,” he called, voice low. “Where are you?”
“I’m up here, idiot,” he heard in response.
Lifting his head, he saw a shadowy figure perched on top of the monkey bars that bridged the larger playground with a smaller one off to the side. He shook his head in amusement and started forward, scaling the metal bars until he reached the top, then crawled across so that he was sitting in front of George, close enough that their knees were touching.
“You made it,” the other boy said.
“Yeah, and I don’t really like heights, so just be glad that I’m making this sacrifice.”
“Then don’t look down, look at me instead.”
Dream did as he was told, moving his eyes up from the ground beneath him to look instead at the figure in front of him. What he saw took his breath away.
Pale skin seemed to glow under the soft light of the moon. Each delicate freckle twinkled like the infinite stars above, connecting into constellations that were dusted high upon flushed cheeks. Luminescence danced along every strand of chocolate hair as the night’s gentle breeze ran its thin fingers through the dark curls. Pink lips parted in a bright smile, umber eyes sparkled with wild, unrestrained joy.
“See? That’s better, isn’t it?” the ethereal figure across from Dream spoke, its voice just as soft and stunning as the rest of its appearance.
The blond boy made no response, still far too overwhelmed at being in the presence of such beauty. He blinked slowly and breathed deeply, but could not bring himself to tear his eyes away from the sight before him.
“Hey,” George reached a hand over and gently rested it on top of Dream’s own where it gripped the metal bar underneath him. “Are you okay?”
Viridian eyes flicked down to the pale fingers that were curled over his knuckles before flicking back up to meet the other boy’s gaze again.
“I- I’m fine,” he choked out, choosing to ignore the sparks that danced along the places where their hands touched.
“No you’re not, you’re shaking,” the brunet’s voice was suddenly filled with concern. “We can get down if you want.”
“I’m r-really fine, it’s not the height that’s freaking me out.”
“Oh.” A pause. “Then what is it?”
Dream looked down at their still-touching hands and pulled them away from the metal bar, intertwining their fingers and resting them between the two boys’s knees. When George made no move to pull away, he looked up once more.
He decided that he’d had enough of walking along the edge of the ravine and it was time to jump.
Breathe in, breathe out.
“I like you, George.”
The silence that followed felt like Dream was plunging further into the gaping mouth of the ravine, falling deeper and deeper into darkness, with no one to soften his fall. He was closing his eyes, bracing for agony that he was sure to feel when he impacted with the rocky bottom of the cavern.
“Oh.”
A single syllable, a dagger to the heart, a broken body laying in darkness.
Dream blinked back the burning feeling of tears and tried to speak around the lump forming in his throat.
“I’m- um- I’m sorry,” he croaked, moving to crawl off the monkey bars. “I didn’t mean to-”
“Wait!” The pale fingers that were threaded through his own tightened their grip. “Don’t go.”
Dream stopped moving. He knew he couldn’t meet the other boy’s eyes, so he continued to stare at the ground, hoping that the glow from the moon wouldn’t reveal the tears threatening to spill down his cheeks.
“I- I like you too.”
His head shot up, searching George’s face for any hint that he was joking.
“But-”
“I was just surprised. I didn’t think that you actually liked me back.”
The boys sat for a minute, hands holding each other tightly, waiting with bated breath to see who would make the first move.
“I just-” Dream began.
“Can I kiss you?” George interrupted breathlessly.
“Yes,” Dream answered with no hesitation.
Pale hands came up to cup tanned cheeks, thumbs rubbing slow circles into the skin. George’s eyes roamed Dream’s face, flicking down to his lips then back up as he moved closer. Dream brought a hand up to rest against the side of George’s neck, fingers sifting through the soft hair that curled around his ears. The distance between them was decreasing rapidly and Dream let his eyelids fall shut. Their noses bumped into each other, causing the brunet to giggle softly. He tilted his head slightly and pressed forward, closing the last remaining space between them. Dream could taste George’s smile as their lips finally met, slotting against each other as if this was how it was always meant to be.
When the air started to run out of their lungs, the two broke apart. They rested their foreheads together, breathing heavily, and exchanged quiet smiles.
“Y’know,” George breathed out. “I never actually hated you.”
“Shut up,” Dream shoved the other boy jokingly, smiling even wider as George’s laughter grew.
“I really didn’t! I mean, sure I wasn’t exactly your biggest fan, but I never hated you.”
“That’s really funny, since I actually did hate you,” Dream replied.
“Seriously?”
Dream burst out laughing at the crestfallen look on George’s face. “Nah, I’m just messing with you.”
“Fuck you,” George said letting a broad smile replace his previous look of hurt.
He pulled Dream’s hand as he crawled toward the edge of the monkey bars and dangled his legs over.
“Just for that, I’m making you jump off with me.”
“Oh hell no, you couldn’t make me do that for one million dollars.”
“What about for one date?” George cocked his head as he looked over at the blond, eyebrow raised in question.
Dream smirked. “Well that’s worth more than a million dollars.”
George giggled and tightened his grip on Dream’s hand before pushing them off the metal bar. Their fingers remained intertwined as they plummeted toward the ground, and this time Dream knew that George would be there to soften his fall.