Comfort (Dream X GeorgeNotFound)

Dinner "Date"

The two of them stood in the middle of the trashed living room. Clay couldn't help but feel angry at himself for waiting two whole months before taking matters into his own hands.

The state of the apartment seemed to be affecting George even more. Somehow he looked to be even worse off than in the hotel room.

Right. The night at the hotel room. It was definitely weird, teetering just between out of Clay's comfort zone and pleasant. However, he decided now wasn't an appropriate time to bring it up, given how stressed George already was.

Clay sneaked another glance at him. He had tossed himself onto the couch as soon as they entered the apartment, now laying face down on it.  Despite finally being at home after whatever he had experienced at the night club, he seemed stiff. Trying to get him to relax, Clay spoke up.

"Hey, George?" He moved his suitcases into a relatively empty corner. "When's the last time you ate something?"

The long pause and the grumble told him all he needed to know. He walked into the kitchen to find something to cook with in the fridge, but all he found was a half empty jar of pickles juice and beer cans.

Clay considered running to a nearby grocery store to get fresh food, but leaving his friend alone in his current state didn't seem like a good idea.
By now, George had gotten up and was standing in the doorway leading into the kitchen.

"What are you doing?" He asked as if cooking was some kind of ridiculous alien concept. It probably was to him, judging by how dusty and unused the kitchen counters looked.

"Uhh... Not much. Wanna go get something to eat?"

George took a moment too long to register what he had said. After a few seconds, he gave a small nod.

He looked so small and weak. A man that had fallen victim to his own self destructive behaviors. Gone was the face Clay was so used to seeing on FaceTime, constantly laughing and screaming and spreading joy.

He hoped that it was just hiding underneath the gruff surface. Like a bed of flowers covered by a blanket of snow, only to be rejuvenated once winter passed. He oh so desperately longed for the flowers to spring back up, returning his precious George back to him.

But he had to take things one step at a time. All wounds take time to heal, physical or emotional, and George had clearly experienced a lot.

So, if the first step they had to take was to get some food and talk a bit, then that's what they'd do.

Clay couldn't help but smile a little. Things were looking up. He retrieved the apartment keys and held the door open for George to pass through first, getting out himself afterwards and locking the door. Throwing the chain of keys up in the air and catching them with a jingle, he turned towards his companion.

"So... Whaddya wanna eat?"

"I dunno, you pick." George slid his hands along the railing absentmindedly as they descended the stairs.

Clay snorted. "Fine, I just figured you'd know a place or two. You've been here for a while now."

There was a quiet shuffling as the fabric of George's hoodie rubbed against the chipped paint of the handrail.

"Hmm, yeah. I've been... busy, Clay."

Just as Clay was contemplating whether to add something to fill the silence, they stepped outside.

It was quite a lovely place. He hadn't really had a chance to look around due to the whole ordeal. It was open and lively and bustling with activity. He noticed George glancing towards a small cafe with pancakes drawn on a board standing in front of it, but since he stayed silent he figured he was just looking around.