Chapter Text
Before He Knew.
George was blissfully sleeping in Dream’s bed but Dream was sitting on the fire escape. Truth be told, he couldn’t sleep with other people. His nightmares were too bad. Too violent. He was afraid of hurting someone this way.
Truth be told… when he was bit and first took on the job as a teenager, just 15… he faced a lot. And alone at that. His highschool friends were there- but they didn’t know. They couldn’t know who he really was. All but Sapnap. Dream jokes that he would be dead without Sapnap and whether it’s from the hand of a villain or something worse to imagine… they both knew it wasn’t a joke. After all, Sapnap had been bitten too. He just didn’t take on a costume till they graduated college.
He lived happily with his soulmate. Dream could laugh pathetically at that word. Karl and Sapnap had found each other in high school when one of them wrote test answers on his arm and the other saw them. They were already good friends and everyone saw it coming. But it seems Dream wasn’t meant to have one. Maybe it’s because of the loneliness that comes with the suit.
Sapnap only suits up for mediocre things and that’s once a month if even. Karl knows about him too. But Sapnap doesn’t face the daily dangers and the traumas and the loneliness.
Maybe being alone was hurting Dream again.. when it did, George wound up in his bed. But it’s been years since he stayed the night. Before, Dream could lay with him. Now… he can’t.
“Clay?”
Dream sighed. “Hey.” George went and sat next to him.
“What’s wrong?”
“Can’t sleep.” It was an excuse. Because he couldn’t tell the truth.
George hummed, “want to talk about it?”
Dream sighed. “It’s work related.”
“You’re a photographer.”
“Of SpiderMan.” Dream said. “Fighting crime n shit.”
George rubbed his back. He didn’t flinch, his senses knew his hand was coming. “Oh, Clay..” his voice was soft.
“I’ll lay back down with you till you sleep.” Dream said and simply scooped George up, bringing him to the bed and laying with him.
*
“SpiderMan, a word?” The very famous and well known reporter, 404, asked as Spider-Man was trying to leave the subway station after stopping someone who had fallen onto the tracks from getting hit by a train. SpiderMan huffed a bit, he hated this ruthless, horrible, idiotic reporter and his stupid(ly cute) white framed goggles that he also wore with blacked out frames.
“Do I have a choice?”
“Well you’re already here, so you might as well!” 404 smiled. “Anyway, is it true that you spy on the entire city in order to seek out anything going wrong but with this you get into as many people’s personal businesses as possible and that your super hearing allows you to enhance this way beyond just a police radio and sitting on a rooftop, trying to spot crime.” A tape recorder was shoved in Spider-Man’s face and SpiderMan just blinked at him a few times, glad that his whole face was covered and he could make no emotions.
SpiderMan looked at his hands, the black suit with green additions was nice to look at after being accused of stalking an entire city’s personal lives to a creepy extent.
“I am not some creepy stalker.” SpiderMan said in a calm voice. “Now if you’ll please duck.”
404 quickly ducked down and SpiderMan caught a dart with his fingers, staring at it. It would have struck the bottom of his throat if he didn’t catch it. But it would have struck the back of 404’s head if he didn’t duck.
The reporter looked up, “how’d you know?”
“Heightened senses.” It was short. Emotionless. Usually the two would have easy banter and laughs. But usually, someone didn’t try to kill the reporter.
“I told you to stop asking questions that threaten me.” SpiderMan said. “I wasn’t saying it because I felt threatened. I was saying it because you’re putting a target on your own back asking them.”
“You’re saying that you care?” 404 asked as he stood up, finally. He maybe had been a little sheepish of another dart coming.
“It’s been 3 years since we met. Of course I care.” SpiderMan said before he webbed away.
-
“Clay, you are 15 minutes late.” George pointed out to the blonde who was tying his tie as he approached his friends. “As usual.”
“Last time was 25.” Karl spoke up and Dream shot him a look while Sapnap gave Dream an apologetic one.
“Shit happened.” Dream said. He seemed on edge, something was clearly wrong. Sapnap stepped forward, he was worried something was going on that his senses weren’t picking up for whatever reason. But then Sapnap looked at George and back at Dream.
“George, didn’t you say work was rough? Why not fill us in?” Sapnap asked and Dream looked around them tense as NewYork City buzzed with light life. They had dinner reservations with their friends, Will and Alex, who own a large corporation called L’Manberg Technological Industries and Advanced Manufacturing Services. They just call it L’Manberg Tech.
Dream was fidgeting with his suit as they walked towards the entrance of the restaurant, it was fancier than any of them really cared for. The 4 of them shared an apartment building and didn’t really need anything fancy. Karl made a lot of money working at a corporation and Sapnap worked on and sold sports cars.
As they sat at a table in the back in a private room, Dream was looking around the place. He was paranoid beyond anything.
Sapnap put a hand on Dream’s arm and Dream flinched, eyes instantly looking at George with worry. Will raised a brow, he was the only one who seemed to notice this besides Sapnap. “Clay, what is going on with you?” Sapnap whispered but a waiter came into the room, holding the white framed goggles belonging to the reporter.
“Did one of you lose these sunglasses?” He asked and George’s eyes went wide. Dream stood up and took them instantly. “Thank you.” Dream mumbled.
Dream sat back down and handed them to George once the door shut. George thanked him and before the waiter could come back and take their orders, there was a sound of breaking glass from the front of the restaurant. It sounded like the front windows.
“I’m going to go make sure everyone is okay, we can’t have Will and Alex being caught here.” Dream said and left the room, quickly changing to his SpiderMan suit.
And the car that hit the restaurant was suddenly not the worries any longer, not when his senses went off that George was in danger. The room was exposed and the glasses were exposed and now George was in danger. 404 was in danger. Dream’s heart was pounding, the hair on the back of his neck and down his arms was standing up and he was suddenly on edge.
Dream ran and shoved George to the ground, feeling something hit his back. Shortly after, the world grew dark.
-
“You’re stupid.” Dream heard when he woke up. He was in Sapnap’s bed. Dream groaned and went to take his mask off but sensed George there.
“Wow, thank you, Sapnap.” Dream used Sapnap’s hero name. George knew that Sapnap was a SpiderMan but not who Dream really was. To tell the two apart when they fight together they go by Dream and Sapnap. “You’re really telling me things I didn’t know.”
Sapnap chuckled, “you took a bullet for George - or I guess - 404. That makes you an idiot at best.”
“Hey, it’s not my fault the world is out to get him for his harassment.” Dream said, then paused and put a hand on his face, “You cleaned me up?”
“I did.” Sapnap said. “Don’t worry, I kicked him out.” Dream looked over and saw George sleeping with his head on the mattress, sitting in a gaming chair.
“How long has he been here?”
“All night. I slept with Karl last night, not like we haven’t been sharing a bed for a while.” A pause, “and Clay has been with Will.”
Dream let out a breath, “Where did the bullet hit.”
“Almost got your heart.” Sapnap said, “you really scared him.”
“And that’s why he can’t know the truth…” Dream took his glove off and ran a hand through George’s hair, “no matter how much I love him.”
When he found out.
Dream had written a note. He knew the chances of this fight were bad, they were disastrous and just that morning he had asked George out by writing on his arm. They were soulmates. And Dream may have picked a bad day, considering his chances were low.
But Dream wrote a note anyway. Because he always he loved George.
“If you see this, that means I am dead.
George, I had to do this fight. I needed to save New York and I needed to save you. Maybe I died, but that’s okay. I died a man in such a deep love for his soulmate that I was smiling.
I don’t want you to be sad, but I know you will. As the seasons change and summer dies away to let the flowers wilt. I had to go, and you have to suffer. It’s unfair.
Whether it’s snowing or summer, I will cherish each time you visit me. Because it’s you, George. And I’ll always be there, in that one spot and in your heart.
I drew a heart on the inside of your left wrist. Do what you will with it.
Because I am as dead as dead can be.
And you’ll come to where I am lying and tell me how much you love me. And my grave will be warmer and sweeter with you there. And I will rest in peace until you come to me.
I love you, George.
-Clay.”
It wasn’t his best work, but he was on a tight schedule.. and what does a dying man even say?
Dream was flinging himself between buildings as quickly as he could, blood dripping off his body. He could feel his body trying to give out but he was determined. When he glanced down at the sidewalk below, he noticed news reporters.
Dream shot a web down and snatched a camera that was broadcasting a live feed and held it in his left hand as he flung around with his right, looking directly into the lens. “404.” He said. His mask had holes in it but not enough to show who he really was to the world, but enough to stir worry. Especially when they were all bleeding more than anyone would like to see on their hero. “Fuck..” he muttered as he almost couldn’t catch himself. “404, I’m going to meet you at your apartment. Yes, I know who you are. Please just.. don’t be mad at me. I really just need…” He was growing weak. “I really just need your help.” Dream safely secured the camera on the ground and shot himself into George’s apartment through an open window. George had climbed out that window to wait for the man to arrive after seeing him on the news.
George ran inside and knelt down on the ground with the hero. “SpiderMan, are you alright?”
Dream coughed a bit and took his mask off. George hid his eyes quickly. “George!” Dream yelled, “I need you to look at me so I don’t bleed out on your floor and you can help me so I can stop this maniac!”
George nodded slowly and lowered his hand, he gasped when he saw Dream. “Clay!?”
Dream sighed and nodded, “listen, I have speed healing. I just need you to superglue my major gashes.”
George looked mortified, “superglue?”
“Yes, it works wonders- now please do it. I lost a lot of blood while slinging around.”
George nodded and ran out to grab the glue then did as asked. Dream sat up a bit and took George’s face gently in his hands and gave him a soft kiss. “I’ll be back- also I left flowers outside as a celebration of you saying yes to being my boyfriend this morning!”
George nodded, “be safe..”
Dream webbed away.
And he came back.
And he died on George’s living room floor while Sapnap had tried to bring him back but not before a few words could escape his lips; “I think I’ll love you forever.”
After
Dream shot his webs to the nearest building, swinging away from some crazy fan girl with a marker. A lot of people liked to draw on him to see if they are his soulmate or to have his soulmate show up on television or something. It was annoying and downright rude.
Dream tucked into a window and took his costume off, webbing himself sweatpants but no shirt as he kicked his suit into the corner of the room. Dream left the bedroom and made his way to the kitchen, rubbing at the sharpie that was on his hand.
George chuckled and walked over to Dream with a cloth, rubbing the sharpie off of Dream’s hand, the black line vanishing from George’s own hand. “Idiot.” George said with a smile. Dream rolled his eyes.
“Like you're not the one who wrote ‘he’s mine’ across our cheeks when I had to do that food challenge thing and had my mask folded up to my nose.” Dream said and kissed George on the head. “Dinner smells good. Are the boys here?”
George shook his head, “date night for Karlnap.”
“So that means I get you all to myself?” Dream asked with a smirk, hands finding George’s waist. George hummed.
“After you eat your dinner and I get your wounds patched up.” George went into his tippy toes and kissed Dream on the nose, walking away to get them plates. Dream groaned but accepted his fate.
After dinner, they went to their room and George plopped onto the bed. Dream followed suit and cuddled the boy to his chest until he heard soft snores. Dream’s senses wouldn’t calm down. They had him on edge.
Dream slipped away from George and sat on the fire escape. He wasn’t alone in this world anymore. He was just scared of himself.
“Clay?”
Dream let out a breath, “Hi..” he sensed George move closer before his muscles even began firing. George went and sat next to him.
“Clay…”
“Can’t sleep.” He tried.
“You won’t hurt me.” George said. “Please just come to bed.”
“George, it’s been bad lately.” Dream said.
“Want to talk about it?” George rubbed his back after Dream flinched for a moment.
Dream frowned. “N-no.” Dream let out a breath. “Go back to bed.”
“Not without you.”
Dream picked George up and brought him to bed laying with him. “I’ll lay with you till you fall asleep.”
But it turns out, Dream was waking up to George pushing the larger man off of him - or at least trying - while Dream was nearly strangling him and having a massive nightmare. Dream looked down and pulled his hands away quickly.
“Clay..” George looked at his boyfriend and reached his hands up to cup his face, Dream looked petrified but George didn’t seem scared. Dream looked at the window that was still open from when he climbed onto the fire escape. “Clay don’t leave-“ Dream webbed away swiftly. George huffed and grabbed his phone.
“Nick.” George said once Sapnap answered the phone. “He fell asleep after having a rough few nights and I woke him up while he was trying to strangle me. I’m fine.. but. He left. And I don’t know where he goes.”
Sapnap let out a breath, “Karl, baby, go down the hall please to lay with George. And make sure his neck is okay.”
“Where are you going?” George heard Karl say.
“To make sure Clay is okay.”
The nightmare had been horrible. It really truly had. Dream was crying into Sapnap’s shoulder as he rethought about it;
Dream was standing with his arms outstretched, Sapnap was to his right behind him and George was on his left. A villain, Eret, was in front of them. Dream was weak. Eret had shot him with something that started to weaken his powers while it stunned Sapnap’s entirely.
“I’m going to give you a choice, Dream.” Eret said, Dream huffed.
“What’s that?”
“One of them is going to die.” Eret explained, “One of them will die, and you will choose which one.”
Dream’s heart sank. Sapnap stepped forward but Dream shot a web into his foot to keep him planted, pain shot through his arm as he did so.
“I choose myself.” Dream said and Eret hummed a bit before he nodded.
“Even better.”
“Clay no!” Sapnap yelled. George’s jaw dropped.
“Clay!?” A pause, “Clay please don’t do this!” George begged. Dream stepped forward.
“As long as they can’t remember this.” Dream said and Eret nodded, sending waves of energy to George and Sapnap. They would both forget this moment.
Eret teleported themself and Dream away. Eret waved their fingers as a goodbye to Dream and electricity shot out and hit him, making him collapse.
Dream didn’t even realize he had been on a train.
When Dream came to, people were standing around him. He didn’t process it and took his mask off, earning gasps. “He’s just a kid.” A few people pointed out. One man bent down to get closer to him. “You’re safe with us kid, but how old are you?”
Dream sighed, “16.”
Sapnap just comforted Dream as he suffered whatever memories were haunting him.
*
Dream and George sat on the roof of their building with Karl and Sapnap. George had his head in Dream’s lap as Dream played with his hair. Sapnap and Karl were leaning into each other with interlocked fingers.
“Clay?” George asked, opening his eyes and looking up at the man he loved with his soul.
“Yes, Georgie?”
“I love you.” George whispered.
Dream chuckled, “My love for you has something in common with my credit card.”
George raised a brow, “How so?”
“They’re both limitless.” Dream smirked as George covered his face with his hands and Karl gasped while Sapnap laughed.
“Why can’t you be that smooth?” Karl asked and Sapnap shrugged.
“Baby, I got you a year's supply of white monsters and let you take a swing around the city with me last night.” Sapnap said and Karl shrugged.
“You owe me another swing, SpiderMan.” Karl smirked when Dream chuckled.
“Why don’t Karl and I have a civilian, normal people, day together. And you Spidermen can go gossip about messing with a radioactive spider at a lab like idiots!” George said with a smile and Dream rolled his eyes.
*
“404!” Someone said and George turned to look at them, Karl tilted his head at the person. “Hi I uhm- I’m Cassie.”
“Hello.” George smiled. He forgot he grabbed his 404 goggles and not his regular sunglasses on accident.
“So, we all know that you and SpiderMan are a thing,” She said. Karl held back a laugh. “And I’m a reporter with LTIAMS. I.e. L’Manberg Tech. And we here were wondering if.. when SpiderMan says Jump, do you ask how high?”
“I don’t have to.” George said. “I know him too well to have to ask.”
“And Mr Jacobs, it’s rumored that you and the new ceo of LTIAMS, Alex Quackity were engaged before the start of the company 3 and a half years ago?” Cassie asked.
“Ok, that’s enough.” George said. “You’re done asking questions.”
“Ah ah ah, I’m not.” Her eyes lit up orange. “I have been artificially mutated to be able to stop you. So answer my questions.”
George laughed. He laughed incredibly hard and Karl just giggled. Cassie raised a brow and went to raise her hand out to do god knows what with her mutant powers before she was suddenly pinned down on the sidewalk by spider webs. George crossed his arms and looked down at her. “Tell your boss that once Alex and Will get word of this, he’s not going to have a job. And they will get word of this. So, when the webs dissolve in an hour, I suggest you look for a new job.” George grabbed Karl’s arm and took him off where they were originally heading, shooting a smile to Dream on a rooftop, before he webbed away.
Karl chuckled when he saw George staring intently as they walked into the cafe they were going to eat at. “George, why are you stalking him?”
“I need to see that he makes it home okay.” George said. Karl didn’t realize just how much it bothered George to not know until now. It’s been almost a year since George found out who Dream was and only he and Sapnap know what happened that day. And they don’t speak of it.
Karl had been told about Dream a week or so after George. He was told that Dream was hit with a memory erasing power and that the villain was taken care of by Doc MC from the HermitCraft region. Something about his ‘swirly magic’ because Dream had passed out when he was hit and Sapnap had been with George, setting up some surprise for Dream to celebrate their new relationship.
It’s the story Dream also goes with. But when Dream talks about how glad he is that Doc MC saved the day, George looks like he’s either going to scream or cry. Like something in him is itching to correct something. Like Karl didn’t see the news as all of New York had. It was playing at work. Karl knew that George wanted to scream how Dream saved the world that day but for some reason Karl really didn’t know why. Why did Sapnap and George lie and why Dream really didn’t remember?
“I know that you think it’s a bit much- he is the superhero after all. But..” George stopped and redirected his words, like he had been ready to break the barrier on that day, “but Nick isn’t out all the time. Hell, he’s never out. Clay always is. Nick goes out on lame arse patrols once a month just to swing around and have fun . That’s the only time he goes out. And you usually go with him. Clay is out everyday. And if something happens to him and I don’t know about it, I would never be able to forgive myself. Because he might be the superhero of all time to the city but he is my fiancé and I can’t lose him.”
“Tell him to stop.” Karl said. “You know he would if you asked.”
“I know.” George said, “That's why I won’t ask. He loves saving people too much and I can’t take that away from him. Whether I want to or not.” George thanked the waitress who brought their drinks and pastries over. They dropped the conversation.
At least until they were almost at the apartment. “We have plans, Karl.” A pause, “Clay and I have plans.”
“I know. But so do Nick and I, and I don’t fear the plans being in jeopardy and neither should you. Clay is very capable.”
George hummed, “I guess you’re right.” George chuckled, “maybe I’m being a bit much. Nothing has happened since that night anyway. Nothing anything close.”
George opened the door and held it for Karl, the boys split up to their own rooms and George curled up with Dream, who was sleeping peacefully.
*
Dream laid before them. George knelt down and grabbed his hand, a little pinprick of electricity shocked George’s hand. “I think I’ll miss you forever..” George whispered. Sapnap took his gloves and mask off and knelt down as well, George let go of Dreams hand and stood up.
“George…” Karl said, grabbing his arm. They were looking down at Sapnap who was doing chest compressions on Dream. He was hit with a lot of electricity, enough to get past all his heightened.. everything.
George slipped his golden ring off and held it out to Karl, stepping away from him. “You convinced me not to worry! You told me our plans would be fine!? Now what Karl? Now what about the plans we made!? He’s fucking dead!” George grabbed Karl’s hand and slammed the gold ring into his palm. George muttered something and suddenly Doc MC was walking through a portal and picking Dream up and away from Sapnap who was crying and screaming for him to be put back so Sapnap could save him. “Take him.” George said.
Doc MC nodded and stepped through the portal, George stepped behind himself into a separate portal that was made. Sapnap stood up and hugged Karl who was just staring at the ring.
4 months later, in the clock tower
“George!” Dream shouted and looked at Eret who smirked as George was in his grip. “Let him go!”
Eret chuckled and stomped his foot on the floor, the tower cracking and threatening to fall. Eret hummed and looked down the hollow tower full of clock gears. “Ok.” Eret pushed George down off the ledge and Dream jumped after him instantly, shooting webbing to try and catch him.
His web attached to George’s chest and Dream tied the end near him to the nearest clock gear as the building was starting to give way. Dream perfected his dive to ensure he could dive faster, and landed on the floor, just in time to catch George as the gear holding his body started falling.
Dream held George in his arms, bridal style. George’s breathing was shallow as Dream quickly covered them in a cocoon of webs, while the tower crumbled.
Once the rubble seemed to settle, Dream pushed all the webbing away and looked at George finally as the sky was now exposed and the moon could shine on George.
His collarbone was shattered from the webbing catching him before he hit the concrete. Blood was dripping from his nose and mouth and it sounded like his bones were crushed in his chest, taking away his ability to breathe right. Dream guessed that all his chest bones were fractured or broken or just fucked up.
George was dying.
“I think I’ll love you forever.” George said, leaning into Dream’s chest. Dream had tears streaming down his unmasked face. He was too late. He saved George way too late. George just smiled up at Dream, a bright and innocent smile. A smile that said nothing was wrong.
“I think I’ll miss you forever.” Dream said, in return. He couldn’t smile. He could hardly breathe.
Dream sat down on the concrete floor of the clock tower and held George tightly. Dream believed that George accepted his death. But George was always one to hide his feelings in tough times. As soon as Dream heard George’s breath hitch he didn’t know what to expect from George as a reaction.
He didn’t think it would be sobbing. “I don’t want to die.” George cried out. “Clay, please. I don’t want to… we never.. we never got married. We never loved our lives. We are still so young, please.”
Dream immediately started trying to get out of the rubble of the clock tower and once he did, he swung them to the hospital.
George was laid on a bed and hooked to machines, Dream was told to wait in the waiting room. George had slipped his mask on him outside. Apparently one of them still had logical thinking skills.
But in the waiting room, he could still hear where George was. He could hear his heartbeat. He didn’t need the heart monitor. It was faint in the background, Dream just wanted his actual heart.
Till the heart monitor overpowered his hearing and he suddenly fell to his knees in the room. Heavy sobs shook his body as his fingers dug into the fabric of his pants. George’s heart had stopped beating. Dream stopped listening.
Someone had run over and took him into a hug. Comforting him as he sobbed and begged for it not to be true. His begging turned into a scream that didn’t stop till he passed out.
-
Sapnap was allowed entrance into the hospital and into a room where George was laying in a bed. He had expected to see Dream. But he wasn’t there? Odd. “Did he go get you something to drink?”
George shook his head, “they said he was in the waiting room and then had a sudden breakdown and he literally passed out. Will came and made the doctors sign NDA’s before they were allowed to work on him. I guess they got him sewed up and managed to calm him down. He had a major panic attack.”
“Ok…” George whispered. “They said I’ll be here for a few weeks till my bones heal. They normally would send me home for them to heal but since I’m Spider-Man’s fiancé, they are taking extra measures.” He explained.
“Well that’s good. I’ll go get him.” Sapnap said and left the room.
2 weeks later.
“I need to ask you something.” Dream said, brows furrowed, as he entered the hospital room.
“Sure.” George said.
“Honest truth…”
George nodded.
“Did I save New York the night we got together?” Dream asked and George’s heart sank. The room grew silent as a ringing started in George’s ears. The world was starting to spin ever so slightly. George was sure he paled at the words, his knuckles were turning white as they gripped his bedsheets as tightly as he possibly could. Tears were starting to form in his eyes. Dream really just asked him that. Which means Dream knows. And now he knows that George has been a liar for a year.