Chapter Text
Whoever said that spending December in a ski town in Colorado would be a good idea clearly wasn't thinking of the fact that half of the squad can't actually ski.
It was probably Wilbur.
No, it was definitely Wilbur, and Dream is feeling rather annoyed about it all by the time they land in Boulder, surrounded by more snow than he's ever seen in his life, freezing cold on the first day of December and regretting every decision he's made to get to his point.
"It's really not that bad," Sapnap says, dragging both of their suitcases off the luggage conveyor. "I mean, we'll get to see George again, which'll be great, and a lot of the rest of the group, so-"
"And I'm going to be cold and miserable the entire time," Dream grumbles, hoisting his backpack higher on his shoulder. "'m gonna kick Wilbur's ass when I see him."
"Is that why you've started working out?"
And no, it technically isn't, but Dream's silence and Sapnap's laugh give enough of an answer.
They take a quiet Uber ride up to the Airbnb. Dream just watches out the window, amazed by the sheer levels of snow outside, and wonders how he'll survive being in a house full of streamers for a month. Unsurprisingly, most of them will be gone by Christmas so they can spend time with their separate families, but still, it's more than three weeks and Dream isn't quite sure he'll be alive by the end of it.
"I just hope there's good WiFi," Sapnap says, breaking Dream out of his stupor. They've transitioned into a neighborhood rather than the actual downtown, passing by houses with decorations more over-the-top than anything in Florida. "We're all fucked if there isn't. The full month with no content out? The world would be in shambles."
"You're not wrong," Dream muses, and the car stops in front of a large white house with gray roofing, standing in stark contrast with the blue sky hanging behind it.
"Dream!" Is the first thing Dream registers after the Uber makes its way back down the road. It's a horribly British voice calling to him, and then a tall and gangly bastard is strolling down the front walk of the house, looking at home in the icy hellscape they've landed in.
Sapnap and Wilbur shake hands first, exchanging pleasantries and such that Dream has no particular interest in. He's shivering already, ears aching from the cold air, and he just wants to get inside.
"Dream, m' boy, how are you?" Wilbur asks, turning to him with a warm smile. "You look freezing, mate, you alright?"
"Fine, yeah," Dream says, trying hard to come off as friendly and warm, but as he stuffs his hands into his jeans pockets and finds no comfort, it's difficult to keep up a persona. "You've already gone in the house?"
"'course! Got here this morning, actually, landed with George and Phil and Kristen. There's a crepe place down on the main street that you'll have to try- I thought Karl was coming over with you guys?"
"He's got stuff with the Beast Crew so he'll be here next week," Sapnap answers, and Dream can't understand how his best friend looks so comfortable when Dream himself feels so awful. "Come on, Dream, let's get your whiny ass inside."
Wilbur snorts at that, and if Dream hadn't become an icicle in the last two minutes of idling outside, he would be annoyed about it.
The house is a rush of warm air that has Dream nearly crying in appreciation. It's almost dizzying, too, the sudden change in temperature, but the armchairs in the living area off to the left look so inviting that Dream knows it's all worth it.
"-eight bedrooms in all," Wilbur is saying, and Dream pauses his love for the heat so he can listen. "Phil and Kristen already have one, as do me and George, and Techno's laid claim to his favorite. One is for when Toms, Toby, and Ranboo visit in two weeks, and there's a- well, if the door is still open, you can go grab it. There's one down here still, next to Phil and Kristen's, and then the two upstairs."
"Thanks, Wilbur," Sapnap says, and Dream nods in agreement before following Sapnap up towards the stairs.
"I'm going up there," Dream points, his suitcase feeling too heavy in his hand. He's desperate to lay down at this point, wanting nothing more than a soft mattress beneath his back.
"And I'm staying down here." Sapnap jerks his head off in a direction that could definitely be the bedrooms. "Good luck, man, but if you find George first, I may have to kick your ass."
"George is out on the town," Wilbur calls from somewhere else in the house. "He'll be back in a while, I've already texted him."
Dream trudges up the stairs, feeling more lethargic by the second, and finds himself in a well-lit hallway, picture frames on each wall between the doors. He looks at a few, seeing mountain ranges and trees and birds and things that they do not have in Florida.
Dream misses Florida.
He finds himself in a small room with a full bed, a dresser, and a chair in the corner. It's cute and green-themed (how appropriate), with sunlight filtering in through the curtains and washing the gray carpet in tones of almost white. He likes it immediately, dropping his suitcase and backpack and flopping onto the bed.
For a long moment, Dream thinks he might fall asleep in the comfort of the bed, thick quilt feeling like the softest thing in the world, but he's awoken by a gruff yet gentle voice.
"Didn't expect y'all until tomorrow," Techno comments, and Dream opens his eyes to see the man leaning against the door frame, arms crossed and glasses perched high on his nose. "Wilbur was lyin', apparently."
"Our flight got changed," Dream says. "Sap wanted to be here on the first, so... here we are."
"Indeed." Techno leans up, releasing his arms and shifting his posture into a tense, straight-back stance. "Interesting face you have there."
"Ditto," Dream says dumbly.
A hum comes from the back of Techno's throat, likely a sound that manifests itself often, and with that, Techno is gone, swishing away down the hall and, presumably, back to the ground floor.
At least he's cute, Dream thinks before closing his eyes and falling asleep.
When he wakes up, it's dark outside his windows and the temperature has dropped a bit. Dream takes a long moment to rifle through his suitcase, eventually ending up with his favorite Taylor Swift hoodie to warm him up.
"Sleeping Beauty arises," Sapnap says from the kitchen, and Dream finds himself in a warm space, a fire burning in the dining room. Sapnap and George are leaning against opposite counters, their previous conversation interrupted by Dream's presence. "You missed George getting back, man."
"Hey, Dream," George says with a grin, and Dream engulfs him in a hug. It's tight, probably tighter than it should be, but Dream's missed him. After George's decision to stay in Britain, it feels like they've drifted apart a bit, but holding onto him feels fan-fucking-tastic.
"Hey, George," Dream says into sweet-smelling brown hair. "You're still short."
"And you're still tall."
Dream catches sight of Techno in the living room, and they make eye contact for a moment before Techno walks out of the room, looking a bit disgruntled. For a moment, Dream wonders what happened, but he's too wrapped up in his best friends to really care.
"I hope Wilbur wasn't too awful to you," George says into Dream's chest. His face is smashed against Dream but that's how they've hugged every time (a marvelous three times). "The bastard has been talking about 'ending DNF' for the past two weeks and there's only so much I can do to stop him from doing something stupid."
"And is that 'so much you can do' mean fucking him, George?" Sapnap teases, and a well-aimed punch lands on Sapnap's bicep to effectively shut him up. Dream and George's hug is finally broken, meaning they go back to leaning against opposite counters.
"My point is, if he's a dick to you in any way other than joking, please tell me so I can kick his ass." The circles under George's eyes are darker than they have been recently and Dream wonders what's keeping him up so much.
"My love, I would never be mean to the creator of my largest money source," Wilbur says, coming into the kitchen and snuggling up to George's side. "I've made a fire outside if you want to head out."
"If you guys are making out out there, I'll be mad," Sapnap grumbles, but Wilbur just laughs.
"'Course not. That's for later in our private bedroom."
George lets out a squeak at that, flinching, and Dream doesn't even want to think about what that all implies.
Sapnap makes a gagging sound and George blushes hard. "Fuck off, guys, just go outside and stand by the fire."
The backyard of the house is nice. Comfortable, Dream supposes, and drenched in snow.
And Techno is already standing by the fire, a glass bottle in his hand. He's got a thick winter coat on and his glasses reflect the flames.
"Howdy," Sapnap says from behind Dream, and Techno glances up, face falling into a respectful smile.
"Hey. The Teletubby is awake once again," Techno jokes and Dream can barely hold a frown with the smile fighting itself to the front.
"Oh, pardon me for being on a plane for five hours and feeling exhausted," Dream counters.
Techno raises his hands in resignation. The bottle in his hand is craft beer of some sort. Dream didn't know Techno drank. "Fine, man, but it's not my fault you can't survive a simple flight."
"I'd rather fly than live in California."
"Yeah? How are the gators, Florida man?"
"There's one in our pool two weeks ago since Sapnap left the cover off." Dream wishes he had a beer or at least something to keep his hands occupied. Any time he has talks with Techno, his hands itch to do something and he's not sure what. He decides to change the subject, thinking that teasing makes his hands itch worse. "What are you drinking?"
"An IPA from my favorite brewery," Techno replies, taking a long sip. Dream watches his Adam's apple bob as he swallows, then turns his gaze to the fire. Wood smoke fills the air. "Would you like one?"
"I don't usually drink, but- maybe later?"
Based on Techno's pause, Dream thinks he might've done something wrong except he's not sure what it is. No matter, Techno just continues. "Suit yourself. We have a few weeks here and I have a reasonable stash."
"Nice," Dream says, regretting that he doesn't know what else to say. "I- nice to see you in person, I guess."
"Indeed." Their eyes meet for a long second and Dream has to pause.
"Hey," Dream says, unsure of what to do, and Techno breaks the look.
"I should head to bed," Techno says. "Good night, Dream."
"Night."
And with that, Techno slides back into the house, leaving Dream, Sapnap, George, and Wilbur around the fire.
"You're more whipped than I thought you were," Sapnap says, and Dream glares at him.
"Fuck off," Dream says, and he wishes he had a beer. "I'm not whipped for Techno."
"You keep telling yourself that, man."
Never mind the fact that when Dream is in his bed that night, he strains to listen to Techno's breathing from next door, then imagines for half a second that they're asleep in the same bed.
So maybe he's a little whipped.
What can go wrong, right?