Chapter Text
A sort of fog sits on the town as George Michael sits in his bed, part of him doesn’t know why he agreed to let Karl drag him out to a party at midnight. He stares up at the ceiling while trying to keep himself awake and decides to put on music.
The low-fi beats of the newest Taylor Swift albums ring out into his room as he sings along when in the perfect seeming time his phone rings.
“Hellllo there,” he says lowering his record player. Peeking out his window he can see his friend’s car in the driveway and the soft glow of the phone screen.
“Hey hey I have arrived,” his best friend rings melodically. “I’m surprised you answered so quickly, thank God I didn’t need to crawl up your window again!”
George leaves his room and heads down the stairs making sure he has his keys and ID with him, “That was one time in high school and it wasn’t my fault you decided to go on a joy-ride at 5AM! I’ll be right there dork,” he says as he disconnects the phone.
The brown fluff of hair seems to be styled in the way he likes it, looking quickly in the mirror Geroge checks his outfit quickly. He keeps it simple when it comes to his outfits, a sleek black button up with jeans instead of his usual sweatpants. He locks the front door behind him and glides into the passenger seat of his best friend’s car.
Karl Jacobs has always been one of the only people that Geroge can find himself hanging out with. After moving to Florida from the United Kingdom in the beginning of high school the two turned out to have most of their classes together and just seemed to attract each other’s friendship.
“What made you even want to go to this party?” George asks innocently as they pull away from his house, they are off to a spontaneous high school class get together at Nick Sapnap’s house; a jock neither of them really ever talked to or hung out with.
Rolling his eyes, the dirty blond boy laughs; “We always have to drive out an hour to go to the clubs or bars anyway. There is rarely a party in Watch and this one is filled with people our age and not high schoolers using fake IDs in town bars.”
George did not want to go to this party, that might be obvious already, but as a former nerd and anti-social student he did not think that an entire house filled with former varsity jocks and the popular kids was going to go well. “Besides, I highly doubt that either of us are going to find that wonderful Prince Charming. We all know that we are probably the only two gay guys that are gonna be there.”
“Well aside from Skeppy and Bad, that is,” Karl jokingly says, somehow the pair were the only two gay kids not to get bullied after coming out.
George laughs, “Oh man how could I forget.” He was going to continue to put up his fight for even attending but was met with the front yard of the house. Well you probably have to call it a mansion, three stories of windows lit with pulsing lights from the inside.
The pair walk into the house to be met with a lavender haze filling the first floor, what party would be complete without a smoke machine Geroge thinks to himself. A few familiar faces they have not seen since graduating last summer wave or say hello as they make their way deeper into the party.
The host of the party, Nick, is at the kitchen bar seeming to say hello and hand out drinks to whoever gets close enough. George braces himself for a snotty remark or something about how they haven’t changed a bit while Karl goes into his full dog-brain self of needing to be social.
“Hey Nick! Long time no see,” the blond says, hair falling in his face.
Nick turns around and you can see the thought process of trying to place a name to the duo who stands in front of him, “Oh my god! George Michael and Karl Jacobs… I would've never guessed that you two would be in my kitchen!”
Nick has not changed one bit from the last time George remembers seeing him, or paying attention enough to care, but seems to be kinder for now. Karl starts talking about the classes he’s been taking at the college in their town while Nick hands the two of them a drink each.
Apparently, after he left high school the former varsity player decided to take a step back from playing football and had found himself really interested in acting and doing script work. Karl studies video production and they seem to get lost in conversation. “Well you know, what classes are you going to take next semester? Maybe we have some in common and we can work on stuff if you would want!”
George laughs as his blond friend seems to be super interested and friendly, of the two of them Karl has always been the social butterfly while George just kind of stays aback. Deciding to let the two finish their conversation, he finishes his first drink and grabs another. Letting Karl know he is just going to go sit outside and hangout away from the big groups of people.
The slim British boy slides out of the sliding glass door, around the groups of couples either making out or dancing with little room for Jesus. He recognizes some of the faces but a majority of them have seemed to melt into the void of his memory, none too important to remember.
The backyard is not filled with a lot of people, a scattering of groups smoking or just talking. George makes his way to the corner of the deck and sits in a chair. He just starts to scroll and try not to make himself too obvious when he overhears someone approaching him.
“Did you find a new boyfriend or was I just reading into that,” he asks expecting Karl to slap his phone out of his hand.
“Well I didn’t think you followed me on Insta, you saw me coming out?” a voice answers back to him, George’s thumb freezes in place knowing exactly who is talking to him.
The voice belongs to the one and only Dream Scott, the idolized quarterback of Watch High School, known to all of their classmates as the person who would always be interested in you like a kid picking out chocolate in a candy store. George knows first hand, he remembers his friend Puffy being harassed and hounded by the football player to go on a date with him.
“Hi Dream,” he says, not looking up from his phone. “I probably saw it but did not care enough to pay any attention to it. Talking the talk to go viral, are we?”
He hears the boy sit down in the chair next to him and huffs as he puts his phone down, to be met with a pair of what he thinks are green eyes staring into his soul. Always a taller one, Dream seems to still be over a foot taller even when sitting, “Oh man really? Come on I know I was a dick to Puffy but I have changed since we graduated I swear.”
“I can and will highly doubt that one, what did you even come over here for?” George says, taking a sip of his drink feeling the warm buzz of alcohol mix with the buzz of him being annoyed. “You can talk your shit, Dream. Get it off your chest and get it off my desk.”
“I guess I just wanted to say hi,” Dream says, dropping the eye contact. “I know I was sort of a dick but didn’t see the harm in sort of putting out an olive branch you could say.”
George knows that Puffy had settled everything with him before she moved across the country for school. He wants to tell Dream to leave him alone so he can just keep scrolling while waiting for Karl, but knows he can at least try to be nice. Hearing Puffy’s maternal voice singing out it’s better to try and forgive someone then hate them forever.
“Okay,” hearing the shyness in his voice. “Hi Dream, how are you?”
“Hi George, I am doing well. You know, we were in most of our coding classes together at college this term.”
Dream was very obvious in their classes, always having to make a comment or correct another student while they were speaking. “Yes, I remember our Intro professor got very tired of you correcting her mistakes.”
Laughing while he takes a drink, Dream tells the story of the time they had to make a simple code for a website but when she could not get her website to work he quickly told her the steps to correct it.
“That was the time she also decided to tell me I wasn’t allowed to talk in group projects until someone asked me a question wasn’t it?”
Finding himself laughing as well, George agrees and thinks about how he never really paid attention to his classmate.
~~~
The two get to talking about the classes they are in next semester, and just like with Karl and Nick they seemed to have the majority of classes together. After an hour passes, George gets a text from Karl asking where he ran off to.
Quickly George gets up, “Oh my god. I totally forgot Karl was inside talking to Nick. I have to go find him, he wants me to take the purple shots with him or whatever.”
Dream takes the empty drink from the hands of the Brit, “Wait you seem cold. I don’t want you to run around and be frozen.”
He tries to give his sweatshirt to George who is shivering, “No no I think I’ll be fine. I dunno how long we’ll end up staying.”
Dream stands in front of his path to the backdoor separating Geroge and his waiting friend, “Just take my hoodie, Gogy I really don’t care. But if the two of you don’t stay for the fireworks that Nick bought, I think he’ll be upset. He wants everyone to have a lotta fun.”
Knowing it will probably make it way easier if he just takes it, George slips the sweatshirt on and is instantly blanketed in a warm-beach smelling cologne that covers the oversized fabric, “Ugh fine whatever. When do you want it back?”
Dream looks at him, with what seems to be a glitter in his eye, “If you’re still here, meet me at midnight.”
“You’re ridiculous,” George says, rolling his eyes as he pushes by the taller boy. “I guess I will see you later.”
He does not really know what to think about being in a full fledged conversation with Dream, yeah he is super attractive but he used to be such an asshole. George makes his way through the deck and when he enters the house once again the familiar lavender fog greets him. As he walks through the kitchen and living room, Karl is nowhere to be found.
Strange, he thinks to himself, he decides to head upstairs and maybe he can find another common area. He goes to send a text asking where his friend is, but reads that he is hanging out on the top floor in Nick’s room.
Not knowing what he is going to walk by, or even into, he stays glued to the side of the stairs and near the wall to slide by anyone lingering around. Seeing three unopened beers left at the bottom of the final set he needs to climb, George grabs them, if Karl has made his way into the beast’s nest the least he can do is bring something with him.
Climbing the third staircase he is greeted by an entire loft, littered with various trophies with footballs and Nick’s old jersey. It is a pretty big space, but not really what George would have guessed he would find.
Karl and Nick are sitting outside on a balcony, lost in conversation and deciding not to let anything be overseen, the two of them are holding hands. George smiles to himself before clearing his throat as he quickly opens Instagram to make sure his friend doesn’t notice the grin.
“Oh, yay,” Karl says as George hands him two beers for Nick and himself. “You made it up here.”
“Hahaha, like it was hard to find?” The alcohol has seemed to make an appearance, the Brit’s face getting warm and lips beginning to tingle. “Nick your house is so cute, I totally didn’t think a jock turned actor would’ve had such an organized room.”
Nick giggles while taking a sip of his beer, seeming to also be feeling the liquor. “Well just because I had to learn to take showers directly after morning practice doesn’t mean that I can’t have some stuff put together.”
George laughs, remembering the time that their Health teacher once had a very pointed lesson in class on how to maintain proper hygiene especially after working out too. He sits behind Nick and Karl, tucking into the corner of the balcony.
From the top floor of the house he can see the bustling party start to move outside, noticing that it is inching closer to midnight. “So, George,” Karl asks, leaning his head in the older boy’s lap.
“What’s up buttercup?” He asks, poking his nose.
“Apparently Nick got fireworks for tonight and I really really really wanna stay and watch them. I know you didn’t wanna… wait a second?” The blond moves back to sitting up straight and pulls on George’s, well Dream’s, sweatshirt.
Fuck, fuck. George thinks to himself, “Oh um this is Dream’s sweatshirt. While you two were chatting we kind of ended up talking like the entire time.”
Karl opens his mouth, but knowing what his friend will say George quickly covers his mouth with his hand. “Yes, I don’t mind staying for the fireworks.”
George moves his hand quickly away from Karl’s mouth, feeling a tongue lick the back of his hand. He shushes him, giving an eye glance that says “we’ll talk about this later.”
Nick is too drunk to notice and looks back at the pair behind him, “Omg yaaaaaay, he was so afraid that you didn’t wanna stay. I’m glad, but if you keep drinking I’m gonna steal your keys Karl.”
George huffs to himself, Karl’s bed is very comfortable and even with the distance between them he always seems to end up smushed into the wall of pillows he doesn’t care about. He was planning to stay the night anyway, but if it is better to stay here and not have to walk so be it.
“Ya know,” Nick says. “I never would have guessed that you would be talking to Dream, George. He always felt bad for you when people were being assholes when you came out. It was, like, his first speech after becoming quarterback about how we all need to cut the shit out and act like humans.”
Too drunk at this point to think about the comments the both of them said in the past, George feels a smile pull his lips upward. “Oh well god damn, now I feel like a dick for snapping at him in school. But I guess all we needed was a party like this to ”
“Don’t worry about it, I think it was all him trying to figure out his sexuality.” Nick stops himself quickly, “... but don’t think I meant that in regards to you two, oh God. I’m not a Cupid or anything.”
Karl bursts out in a laugh, “Oh you can be a little bride, George! Kidding!”
Giggling along to the loud now not-so obnoxious laugh, “Oh blah! Speaking of, he said he was gonna meet me at midnight so I can give this back,” pulling at the sweatshirt he stands up. “I’ll be right back.”
“Don’t be late, these were expensive!!” he hears Nick call out as he heads downstairs.
He stops into the kitchen quickly, finding a nearly untouched handle of tequila he tucks it under his arm. If he and Karl are going to be staying over, why not bring some drinks back upstairs to watch with.
Not a lot of people are still inside, everyone is waiting for the fireworks, so he doesn’t think finding Dream should be that hard. He turns the corner into the living room and sees Dream sitting on the couch, knocked out already.
George finds himself staring at the taller boy in front of him, his half-sorta curly brown hair has fallen over his eyes. He looks peaceful, he thinks to himself. He takes the bottle of tequila and opens the lid, the strong aroma meeting his nose makes him recoil.
“Dreaaaaaaam, wakey wakey.” He says, bringing the bottle under his nose.
The green eyes snap open and look right into George, piercing into his soul. Expecting something to be thrown, he leans down but George is surprised to feel Dream grab the bottle from his hand and take a big sip.
“Well good morning to you too,” Dream says, letting out a burp. “Though I would’ve requested orange juice if I knew I was getting a wake up call.
“Yeah that’ll only be in your dreams,” laughing George tosses him the top of the bottle. “But come on, it’s almost midnight and Nick and Karl have made friends upstairs. I doubt your best friend would care if you crashed our trio watch spot.”
Dream stands up quickly and grabs George’s arm, “Come on, he’ll be so mad if I miss these.”
Right as they make their way to the balcony with Nick and Karl the fireworks begin to light up the sky in a range of purples. George leans against Karl, “Yeah we should probably just stay on the couch shouldn’t we?”
Karl laughs and throws an arm over George’s shoulder and agrees with him, they sit side by side and stare into the sky in front of them. Knowing that this isn’t the night he expected, George is happy and content as he grabs the bottle.