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for Redghosty08 :)
Sapnap's patience gets stretched a little further than he can take during the wait for movie night.
—
From his stool by the kitchen island, Sapnap watches Dream rinse crumbs off his plate in the sink and set it aside to dry. They had grilled cheeses for lunch, per little Sap's request.
"Alright," Dream says, stretching his arms above his head. And Sapnap knows what he's about to say — the thing he has been dreading all day.
"Meeting starts in a few minutes, and knowing him, George is probably waiting for me in my office already," he says with a chuckle, meeting Sapnap's gaze. "Are you gonna be good on your own, Pandas?" He tilts his head to the side when he says the last part.
Sapnap slides off his seat and shuffles toward the blond wordlessly, burying his face in his broad chest. Dream holds him close and kisses his head, rocking them slightly.
"What do you think, buddy?" He asks again, voice soft.
Obviously, Sapnap doesn't want Dream nor George to have that meeting, but he knows it's an important one. He also knows that he will get to spend lots of time with them afterward; they have promised him that.
"We doin' movie night later, right?" He mumbles, checking that Dream hasn't forgotten or anything.
"Of course we are, panda bear." Dream gives him a little squeeze.
Sapnap looks up at him with cloudy eyes. "When?"
Dream numbs their foreheads together lightly, making Sapnap giggle. "As soon as Georgie and I finish our meeting," he says, smiling.
"'Kay... but don' take too long p'ease."
Dream nods, leaning back a bit. "We'll be an hour tops," he promises. "Think you can be patient until then?"
Sapnap gives him a big nod. "I can, I p'omise." He can be so patient.
"Good boy, I know you can," Dream says, before patting his back and heading towards the stairs, leaving Sapnap in the kitchen to wait.
...
The next sixty minutes pass slowly for Sapnap.
It starts off okay, though. He fills a plastic cup with water from the fridge, very carefully of course, and makes his way to the living room with his drink. But the problem is that he can't find anything fun to do, something to pass the time until his friends come down for movie night.
He manages to turn on the TV, but none of the channels spark his interest, and to his frustration, he doesn't know how to switch to Disney.
Next, he goes to find Patches, who usually likes to hang out in the living room, but she is nowhere to be found.
Not on the sofa, not under it, not on a chair — nowhere. If he was frustrated before, this only makes it worse.
Now, little Sapnap is really not one to make a fuss. He's usually quiet and sweet, and happy to just exist and wonder at everyday things. And he always listens to what his caregivers say, so when Dream tells him to be patient, he tries his very, very best to be exactly that.
Just like Dream promised that the meeting would last no longer than an hour, Sapnap promised that he could be patient and wait for them to be done.
All of that being said, there is only so long that he can spend sitting on the floor by the couch, drinking his water and picking at the carpet fibers in silence.
Plus, he is pretty sure the meeting has lasted for longer than an hour by now, judging by the little digital clock underneath the TV that he's been watching, and he has absolutely no more patience left.
He wants his friends now so they can do movie night now.
...
With a frown set on his features, he beelines for Dream's office and twists the door open without knocking. Over at the desk, their heads whip towards him as soon as they hear the wooden click.
Sapnap stands in the doorway staring back at them, clutching his sweatshirt in his fists. "You takin' too long," he says crossly.
George's expression softens. "I know," he says apologetically. "We're really sorry, Sap. But we're nearly done now, though, I promise."
Despite his gentle words, Sapnap stomps his foot frustratedly. "But I already waited so long!" He knows he's not supposed to act out like this, and the look Dream gives him makes him regret it. Slightly.
"Pandas," Dream warns. "You nagging won't make the meeting go any faster, you know that."
Sapnap does know that but admitting it is the last thing he wants to do. Instead, he huffs and marches back to the stairs, making his footsteps heavy on purpose.
Back in the living room, he curls up in the middle of the couch, feeling annoyed and guilty all at once.
...
It is only around ten minutes later that his friends come walking in, George's arms carrying soda cans and lots of their favorite snacks.
Ten minutes was more than enough time for Sapnap to think about how he had acted, and he feels terrible about it. He should never have gone up there and been a brat, it wasn't their fault that the meeting ran a bit later than planned.
A gentle touch to his hair breaks him out of his thoughts, and he peeks out from where he's burrowing his face in his arms to see who it was.
"Hey Pandas," Dream says softly. Behind him, George is setting everything down on the table.
The second Sapnap sees the soft look in Dream's eyes, he reaches his arms out for him, overwhelmed by his guilt and wanting to be on good terms again. He hates when they argue, not that this was even close to that, but it still feels just as bad in his little mind.
Dream smiles. "Aw c'mere," he says, and sits down right next to him, right in the corner, and opens his arms for him which Sapnap burrows straight into.
He holds the boy close, letting Sapnap curl up into his side and get comfy. Once they're nice and settled, Dream places a little kiss on the boy's temple.
"'M sorry for annoyin' you guys," Sapnap mumbles, fidgeting with his fingers.
Dream takes them into his own bigger hands. "No, no honey. You were never annoying," he says. "I'm sorry for snapping at you, that wasn't fair at all. I was just annoyed at long the meeting was taking, so I was a little on edge. I'm sorry, Sap."
Sapnap feels all warm and fuzzy, and he doesn't quite know what to say. So he just lets out an "mmm," and snuggles further into the blond. Dream squeezes their intertwined hands in another wordless response. They're all good, now.
"Which drink would you like, Sap?" George pipes up from beside them, holding out the three flavors he can choose from.
Sapnap looks over his options carefully, still pressed to Dream's side, before poking a finger out of his sweater paw at the orange and silver can.
"Alright, Fanta for the baby," George announces, setting it on the table for him with a low clink.
Sapnap's cheeks warm at the pet name, and he pushes his face into Dream's hoodie to hide. The blond runs a hand through his hair with a chuckle, "Aw, look at you getting shy."
George smiles at him, cocking his head slightly. "Have you thought of a film yet?"
Sapnap shakes his head and tucks his chin into his soft hoodie. "I jus' wanna watch what you guys wanna watch," he admits.
"Well in that case..." George trails off mischievously.
"No—George don't you dare," Dream threatens jokingly, knowing exactly what movie the brunet has in mind.
"I know the perfect one," George continues in the same teasing tone, clicking on the HBO icon with the remote still held an arm's length away from himself so Dream can't snatch it.
"George," Dream draws out, his whiny tone making Sapnap giggle. "Please spare us. We've watched Harry Potter an unhealthy amount of times at this point."
Ignoring the blond's complaining, George turns to Sapnap with a glint in his eyes. "What do you say, huh? Should we listen to grumpy Dream?"
Sapnap glances up at Dream briefly, before turning back to George with a smile, shaking his head cheekily.
George giggles along with him. "I couldn't agree more."
Dream lets out a sound of disbelief. "Wh—I can't believe you guys are teaming up on me like this! My own best friends..." He fakes a sniffle, which only spurs George and Sapnap into more laughter.
"Well, sucks to suck I guess," George shrugs.
He then makes a show of clicking on The Philosopher's Stone with the remote held right in front of Dream's face.
Despite how funny he finds it, Sapnap still snuggles into the blond's arms to comfort him — he doesn't want him to feel too bad.
"Is okay, Dream. Harry Potter is fun to watch many times, I promise," he tells him earnestly, his words soft and slightly slurred.
Dream chuckles and kisses his head, holding him close. "You're right, Pandas, as always. I suppose one more rewatch won't hurt."
Then the movie starts to play, and George wafts a hand in their direction to shush them.
"Shhh, the movie's starting, guys. That means no more talking Dream," he says in a hushed tone, poking the blond's cheek pointedly.
Sapnap giggles when Dream then proceeds to try to bite George's finger, and even more when their little poking fight continues. But they all settle down eventually, quickly getting drawn into the magical world on the screen.
And Sapnap ends his night safe and sound in the warmth of his friends' company, just where he belongs.
—
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🤷 i did not proofread this but i hope it still makes sense :]
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