Work Text:
Three months have passed
Three months since George moved in with his best friends.
Three months since something he'd been dreaming of for years became reality.
Three months since they all hugged each other for the first time.
Two months have passed.
Two months since George started skipping breakfast again.
Two months since he started going out for daily jogs in the morning.
Two months since he relapsed.
One month has passed. One month since the incident.
It had been a week.
All he had consumed was a few hard candies and a bit too much coke zero. No real food.
Dream and Sapnap used to think he just had a small appetite, but they had started to get worried.
He passed out. It was his 7th day without any real food, and on his daily jog, he passed out.
Dream found him when he went out for groceries. He ran faster than he thought his legs could carry him. It was hot, yet George was cold to the touch.
They took him to the hospital. George denied the accusations, he went home a few days later.
They forced him to eat dinner with them. Most times, Sapnap would end up yelling, George would end up crying, and Dream would try to calm them both. It wasn't working out.
George denied any issues.
A week has passed.
They confronted him. They sat him down and forced him to listen.
Dream started, "You have an eating disorder."
"No I don't."
"When did you last eat?"
"This morning."
"What did you have?"
"A sandwich."
Sapnap and Dream weren't stupid. They didn't even have bread at home.
Sapnap couldn't take it, "Dude George just let us help you, you're killing yourself!"
"Leave..."
Their protests were met with screaming. George was angry, not at them, but at himself. How could he let them notice! Why was he so stupid? He could feel his heart beating, perhaps a bit too fast.
They all went to sleep, Dream and Sapnap determined to get him to talk in the morning. They didn't have to.
He woke up in the middle of the night, knocked on their respective doors and asked them to come to his room.
They ran.
He sat down.
They followed.
Silence...
All it took was for Dream to ask what was wrong, and George just started crying. Sapnap and Dream ran to his side. They hugged him.
"I need your help.." George finally said. They knew what he meant. They fell asleep in each other's arms.
The following few days he tried so hard. He hadn't eaten that much in months. His body was rejecting most of the food, but he still tried.
Reluctantly he went to the hospital and ended up tube fed. Doctors weren't hopeful. They told Sapnap and Dream that George was in a very severe state of malnourishment. They hadn't seen him without multiple layers on since their first month together. They were horrified at the sight of George, the lack of him.
Two days have passed.
They told George that what he was going through is called refeeding syndrome. He already knew, he's not stupid.
His heart was failing, he could feel it, the others could see it.
His body was shutting down.
Friends visited, they tried to cheer him up. They gave him hope. They were met with a lifeless smile from George. He had no hope.
12 hours have passed.
George was right.
12 hours have passed.
The line went flat.
12 hours have passed.
Dream held one of his hands as George took his final breath. Sapnap held the other.
The beep was long this time.
Doctors rushed in. Dream was pushed back, Sapnap ran out the door, crying. Dream followed. They hugged each other in silence. Sapnap cried into Dream's chest, Dream just held him, he didn't cry.
It's nighttime now. Dream and Sapnap are at the park. They couldn't stay in the house, the memories were too much.
Sapnap broke the silence, "Look Dream, shooting stars."
"They're pretty." Dream responded. "Do you think it's a sign from George? You know, to let us know he's better now.."
Sapnap hugged him from the side, and Dream finally cried. Sapnap held him, and Dream cried on his shoulder.
Shooting starts fall behind them. A beautiful site for such a sorrowful night.
Such a pity a star must die for this beauty to be seen.
Just like the stars in the sky, George too was falling and burning.
Just like the stars in the sky, his body was slowly disintegrating
George was a shooting star, yet his death yielded no beauty.
George was a shooting star, Dream and Sapnap weren't enough to stop him from falling.
George was a shooting star, but there was never a glimmer of hope for him.
Dream and Sapnap watch the shooting stars, reality has settled in.
George is gone.