Chapter 10
"Which flavour have you picked?" George asked, holding Lana up so she could look at all the flavours through the glass.
"The rainbow one." She pointed.
"Tell the lady please." George prompted, and Lana looked at the worker.
"Rainbow please." She said, and the worker smiled as she made the icecream.
"What about you, George." Dream said, standing next to him.
"Me?"
"It's been a big day, you need some icecream too." He said with a smile.
"I'm not that hungry to be honest. I don't think I'd even finish half a cup." George chuckled, placing Lana back on her feet.
"What if we share? You pick the flavour and we can get two spoons." Dream said.
"Oh." George looked between Dream and the icecream. "You sure?"
"Of course."
"You don't want a whole one for yourself?"
"I couldn't possibly." Dream said, still wearing the same smile.
"Ok, sure. Um." George looked at all the flavours. "I don't know which one."
"You like cookies and cream." Dream offered, pointing at the tub. George looked at Dream, waiting for him to meet his eyes. Dream's smile faltered slightly and he swallowed. "Or, uh... you did. Um." He started playing with a ring on his finger.
"I do." George said softly, with a nod. "One cup?" He asked, and Dream relaxed, smiling with ease again.
"One cup of cookies and cream as well please." Dream said to the lady, who nodded and scooped it up as well.
"That comes to $10.50." The lady said, tapping on the register. Dream scanned his card before George even grabbed his own wallet. George stared at Dream, eyes wide, hand still halfway to his pocket.
"I was going to pay." George said. Dream brushed past him to grab the two cups on the counter, grabbing an extra spoon.
"Too late." He said with a grin, walking over to Lana who was reaching up with eager hands. "Now, now. Let's find a seat before you spill it everywhere." Dream kept it out of reach. She whined but then ran outside to find a table. Dream chuckled and pushed the door open with his back, waiting for George to walk outside too.
"Dream." George was glaring slightly. He looked adorable.
"It's just icecream, George." Dream said in a soft tone. A tone rarely used for anyone else. George slowly walked past Dream as he held the door open, meeting his eyes.
"Thank you." He said softly, looking at the ground briefly before searching the area for Lana. She had found a table and was sitting eagerly, kicking her feet as she grew more impatient.
"Here you go, silly." Dream laughed, placing the cup of rainbow icecream on the table in front of her. She squealed in delight and immediately began eating. George sat down beside her, while Dream sat opposite George, also placing the cup with two spoons down.
"I haven't had icecream in a while." George said, cautiously grabbing the spoon after Dream grabbed his. "I don't usually get myself one when Lana does."
"That's sad." Dream took a bite. "Icecream is my go to sad meal."
"I know." George smiled sadly. "A tub of plain vanilla."
"It's delicious."
"Bland."
"Perfect."
"We've had this argument before." George said, laughing before swallowing and losing his smile.
"Well." Dream laughed. "I'm glad we are having it again."
George couldn't help but give a small smile back when he saw Dream's.
"Oh, Alana. It's on your nose!" Dream pointed out, shaking his head while chuckling as he pulled out some napkins. "How did you manage that, hm?"
"It's really yummy." Lana said, beaming. It took George a moment to realise Dream was holding out the napkins for him, since he was the one sitting right beside her.
"I've learnt to wait until she finishes." George laughed, watching the girl as she messily ate her icecream. "No point in cleaning her if she's going to make more mess." He did grab the napkins though, and placed them on the table.
"That's a good point." Dream laughed, watching Lana make even more of a mess. "Kids are messy. I get it."
"I never realised how messy until she came along." George rolled his eyes.
"What was her first word?" Dream asked, and George looked at him, eyes squinting slightly as he considered.
"You want to know?"
"That's why I asked."
"You don't have to, Dream-"
"I said I want to be in your life. In her life." Dream interrupted. "That means knowing things about you again." He added softer.
George swallowed, staring at the icecream so he could avoid Dream and his soft voice and that stupid fond look in his eye.
"Surely it was Daddy."
"No." George laughed lightly. "I didn't really refer to myself in third person enough, and it's not like there was anyone else around to say it." He shrugged. "It was puppy, actually." George said, looking at Lana now. "Her first stuffed teddy. You know I'm bad at naming things, and it was a dog, so I just-"
"Called it Puppy." Dream supplied with a laugh. "Of course you did."
"Where's Puppy? Let's go get Puppy. Don't chew on Puppy. She picked up on that word quickly." George brushed Lana's hair. "Do you remember what your second word was, baby?" He asked her.
"No!" She shouted, and George laughed.
"Yeah. It was no."
"Well, she's very good at saying it." Dream tried to hold back his own laugh.
"Then it was Dada. Took a while, didn't it." George patted her hair. "Didn't stop talking after that."
Dream looked between the father and daughter, imagining what life was like just a few years ago. So drastically different than Dream's. George was out there raising a whole child while Dream barely got outside.
"Are you working at the moment?" Dream asked, and George nodded.
"Coding for a company that lets me work remotely. It's been ok, probably could be better but with the recent move and her still being young, it was easier to just have a flexible job so I can work from home. Not the best for money, and the company itself is not really great. But it works at the moment. I just..." George looked at Lana. "I want her to be proud of whatever job her Dad is doing."
"If you're doing something you enjoy, then she will always have something to be proud of."
"I'm not even sure I enjoy it, is the thing. I don't get treated very well there." George muttered.
"Well, now that you've settled, and with Alana in preschool, maybe you could find something more permanent?" Dream said.
"Mm." George just hummed, shifting in his seat. He put his spoon down.
George had clearly lost his appetite, and Dream didn't push, just quietly kept eating. He didn't mean to bring something up that was clearly stressing him out. He wanted to change the conversation, or talk about it a little more, but George seemed to be off in his own mind, and Dream didn't want to interrupt his thinking.
"You finished?" Dream asked, looking at the girl covered in icecream. She nodded with a grin. "Yummy?"
"Very yummy."
Dream chuckled and grabbed the napkin again, standing up and moving so he was crouching next to Lana, reaching up to clean her face. She squirmed a little and was pulling a face, but let him do it.
"You're a messy little thing aren't you, Alana?" Dream said fondly.
"I've told you so many times to call me Lana!" She huffed, glaring at him. Dream's smile faltered.
"But Alana is a pretty name." Dream swallowed, still gently cleaning her face.
"Do you not like Lana?" She asked with a frown.
"No, I do, I just..." Dream didn't know. He couldn't bring himself to say it. "How on Earth did it get in your hair!" He said with a forced laugh, changing the conversation as he started cleaning her hair.
"Daddy says I get too excited about food." She giggled.
"Seems like that." He said, as he began to wipe her sticky hands as well.
She didn't mention the name again, and Dream called that a successful diversion.
"Well, there you go. Beautiful as ever." He put the napkin back on the table and grinned at her. She smiled back, and then looked up at George, who had tuned back into the conversation, just watching with a small smile on his face.
"Dream called me beautiful." She said, kicking her feet which couldn't touch the ground.
"Did he?" George smiled, reaching down to press a kiss into her hair. "Aren't you lucky." She giggled and then pulled George down to whisper into his ear. George's smile grew and his eyes flickered to Dream, before leaning down to whisper something back to her.
"What?" Dream pressed, looking between the father and daughter.
"You can tell him yourself, Lana." George pulled away. Lana looked back at Dream.
"What is it?" Dream asked, not at all patient. Lana rocked side-to-side, then looked at George again, who just chuckled lightly.
"Lana wants to say you're also beautiful." George gave in. "She takes after me, not very good at words."
"Oh, well thank you. That's very nice." Dream said, heart filling with warmth. Lana tried to hide her face in her shoulder, slightly embarrassed. "Not as beautiful as you, of course."
"Daddy thinks you're beautiful too." Lana blurted out, and Dream looked at George with a huge grin and a glint in his eyes.
"I- Lana! What-" George spluttered, cheeks turning slightly pink.
"Does he now?" Dream looked back at Lana, who nodded enthusiastically. Dream leaned in to whisper in her ear as well, and she eagerly leaned in. "Well I think Daddy is very beautiful too." He whispered, and she laughed. "But don't tell him I said that, it can be our secret." He added.
Lana pulled away, still giggling.
"What? What did he say?" George asked, blush still on his cheeks.
"It's a secret." Lana laughed, looking at Dream who nodded in approval.
"What! That's not fair. Tell me what he said." George said.
"I think you already know." Dream said, looking at George again, wide grin turning into a fond smile. George's blush deepened and he looked down at the table instead.
Dream stood up, and held out his hand to help Lana off the seat.
"Come on. It's been a big day. I'll drive you both home." He held out his other hand for George, who looked at it curiously, eyes flicking up to Dream, before hesitantly taking it and being helped to his feet.
"Up!" Lana demanded, tugging on Dream's hand. Dream looked at George, who smiled, and let go of Dream's hand. Dream mourned the loss of warmth for a moment, before reaching down to scoop Lana up into his arms.
"Come on, you monkey." He knew her hands were still slightly sticky as they wrapped around his neck. But Dream didn't mind. He would just shower later. Whatever mess he got into, it never really matters at the end of the day.
•
"You're going to have an even better day at preschool tomorrow. You'll tell me all about it when I see you next, ok?" Dream said, crouching down to give Lana a hug. When I see you next. Dream couldn't help but smile at the fact he could say that.
"You aren't coming tomorrow?" She asked.
"No, sweetheart. I only came for your first day because it was a little bit scary but now you're a pro, you don't need me! Daddy will be there, of course. And I'll see you another time." He said.
"Ok." Lana was frowning, so Dream poked her mouth until it stretched into a smile and giggle.
"There we go. I'll see you soon, ok? You be good for Daddy." He stood back up and she nodded, before running inside.
Dream turned to George, to see the man already looking at him, something sad in his eyes.
"You ok?" Dream asked, eyebrows furrowing.
"Yeah." George swallowed, and then smiled. "Yeah, I'm great."
"You sure?"
"Yes. I just... thank you. For today, coming for her first day of preschool. You're just... you're great with her. And with me. I think I needed you more than she did today and I'm really grateful. I know it's not easy, and we only just made up so I know you're still adjusting but you put it all aside for today and I can't express how much that means to me." George's eyes were slightly glossy.
"George..." Dream had to stop himself from pulling him into a hug. They weren't at casual hugs yet. "It was not a problem. I'm glad I got to be here, and I'm thankful you let me. It's a big moment and you're her Dad and I didn't expect you to let me be here for it. But I'm glad I was. And I'm glad I could help in some small way."
"It wasn't small. You helped a lot." George reiterated.
"Whatever I did. I'm glad I could." Dream said. George then stepped forward, arms hesitating.
"Can... can I hug you?" George asked nervously.
Dream didn't need to be told twice, he pulled George forward by his arms and hugged him tightly. Dream let his chin rest on the top of George's head, closing his eyes to breathe in the moment.
"You don't need to ask." Dream whispered. After a few moments, George pulled away and Dream let go.
"Thank you. I'll... I'll see you soon." George said, stepping into his apartment.
"I'll see you soon." Dream echoed back, as George closed the door.
Dream was still smiling when he got to his car.
•
"Why are you so smiley." Karl said the next morning, as Dream came downstairs with a skip in his step and a smile on his face.
"Oh no." Sapnap said, eyeing Dream.
"No reason." Dream shrugged, putting two pieces of toast into the toaster and watched impatiently.
"Dream spent the afternoon with George and Lana after her first day yesterday." Sapnap said, and Karl's face lit up.
"You did? How was it?"
"It was great. George is great. I forgot how much I missed just talking to him, you know? Like just... just being near him." Dream was beaming as he swayed on his feet, waiting for his toast to pop back up.
"Oh no." Sapnap said again, sitting down at the counter and watching Dream closely.
"What?" Dream said, still staring at his toast.
"Dream... you aren't going to... you know..."
"What?" Dream looked over at Sapnap curiously.
"It's just that the last time I saw you like this... it was over four years ago..." Sapnap looked to Karl.
"You think I'm going to propose to George?" Dream said in a monotone voice, turning his full attention to Sapnap.
"What? No! Obviously not, I just... I'm worried that maybe you could get a little too involved." Sapnap sounded nervous now.
"You think I'm going to try and get with George again." Dream scoffed and looked away, still waiting for his damn toast.
"Not that... not that you shouldn't, I just-"
"Do you think I have zero tact? Me and George only just started talking again."
"I know that, but you know how quickly you can-"
"What? Fall in love? Trust me, I'm never making that mistake again." Dream seethed.
"I just want you to be careful. And to be aware that there's more to George now. He has Lana-"
"Sapnap, maybe now isn't the time for this conversation." Karl said nervously.
"I'm fully aware he has a daughter, Sapnap." Dream gripped the kitchen counter tighter.
"Dream, I'm just trying to remind you-"
"I know!" Dream spun around. "I know George has a daughter. I know he's changed. I know how in over my head I can get. I know this isn't a "second chance" for me and George's relationship. But what I do know is this is a second chance for our friendship. And I know I care about him."
The room fell silent.
And then the toaster dinged, and Dream slowly turned around, pulling out his two slices and putting them on a plate.
"Just because I loved him once doesn't mean I'm going to ruin what I just got back." Dream's voice wavered slightly, as he grabbed the peanut butter. "Me and George already had our chance. I'm not risking losing him Again."
"Sapnap's not saying that you and George can't have a second chance." Karl gently interrupted. "He just doesn't want you to get hurt again. Or hurt George or Lana in the process. What Sapnap means, is that whatever you and George do, however your relationship progresses, even if it's purely friendship, maybe you should just take it slow." Karl swallowed, waiting for Dream to yell at him.
Dream just silently finished making his toast, and then turned around to face them, but still avoiding eye contact.
"I know." He whispered.
"I'm sorry for coming across like I was attacking you." Sapnap said.
"You need to believe that I'm not stupid enough to repeat last time." Dream said, meeting Sapnap's eyes. "You worry about me, that's fine. But I've learnt from last time. I'm not going to ruin this. I'm not going to lose him. And dating him?" Dream laughed slightly, wincing. "That's the number one way to lose what I just got back."
"Dream, that's not what we are saying. If you took things slow, there's a chance-"
"No, Karl. Don't try and play cupid or anything. I'm not risking anything. And besides." Dream stood up, taking his plate of toast with him. "I don't like George. Not like that. Not like last time."
"Are you sure?" Sapnap asked, and Dream looked at him, with a determined gaze.
"I am."
•
"George!" Dream grinned as the boy entered the house. Lana ran straight for Dream. "Alana, hi!" He leant down to hug her.
"Hi Dream!" She squeezed him.
"Uncle Sapnap is here too." Sapnap said with a scoff and Lana giggled, running to give him a hug as well.
"Where's Uncle Karl?"
"Right here." Karl entered the room, and she bounded over for a hug. "How has your first week at school been, honey?" He asked, picking her up so she was level with his face.
"It's been so awesome! I've made lots of friends and we got to make some crafts. Daddy! Did you bring my creations?" She looked back over at George, who nodded, holding out the bag he was holding. Lana wiggled until Karl let her down, and ran over to grab them.
"She made something for each of you." George said with a smile.
"Uncle Snanap!" Lana ran over to him again, holding up a piece of paper with lots of red, orange and yellow feathers stuck to the page. It was soaked in glue, nearly disintegrating in his hands but he beamed all the same.
"Wow, Lana. This is amazing. I'll put it in the kitchen to dry a little bit more and then we will hang it on our fridge." Sapnap said. She grinned.
"It's fire! See!"
"I do see! The feathers are very lovely." Sapnap said, despite said feathers being drenched in glue as well. He quickly left to put it down somewhere.
Lana ran back over to George to pull out the next artwork. Dream caught of glimpse of it, bright pinks and purple.
"Uncle Karl!" She ran to Karl, who crouched down to take it carefully. "Do you like it?"
"I love it!" He definitely had no idea what it was. "You are so creative, Lana." He said, standing back up and looking at Sapnap, who gestured to the kitchen, where he placed his down to dry.
Lana ran back over to George, reaching in to grab the last thing.
"Dream!" She jogged over, hope in her wide brown eyes and a slightly nervous smile on her face. Dream went onto his knees to take the artwork and look at it with her.
"It's an icecream! Cause we ated them the other day! But this icecream is all the flavours in the world, see?" She pointed at the multiple patterned fabric she had stuck on the page.
"It's lovely, Alana." Dream felt his throat closing up slightly as he smiled at her. He cleared his throat. "I love it."
"You do?" She asked, grabbing his arm.
"Of course I do." He said softly, and she jumped on him. He hugged her with one arm, looking over her shoulder at George, who was also watching with a fond smile. He then looked at Sapnap and Karl, who had similar soft expressions on their faces.
"Alright. This is going right in the middle of the fridge." Dream said when she let go, standing back up.
"No, mine is." Sapnap said.
"Nuh-uh. Mine deserves to be in the middle." Karl said. Lana was laughing her head off at their argument.
Dream's was the most dry, so his got to be hung up with magnets first, despite the protests from the other two. Their fridge was pretty much bare. A shopping list but that was it. Dream stood back, looking at the icecream. It did not look like an icecream, but that didn't matter.
He looked at Sapnap and Karl's artworks, before looking back at his own, and Dream sighed, glancing down at Lana. Their names were all in the corners, clearly written by one of the preschool teachers for Lana.
Something Dream noticed, that made his heart sink a little in reminder, was that he was just Dream. Sapnap and Karl had Uncle next to theirs. Even Lana calls them both Uncle.
Dream was just Dream.
He shouldn't be too upset by that, it's not like he could force a child to call him something she didn't want to. Especially because he's barely been around until recently. But he did want to be close with Lana and George. He wanted to be apart of this family they've created. Sapnap and Karl were. Dream wanted to be apart of it too.
Dream looked at George, who was already looking at him, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.
"What?" Dream asked, as Sapnap and Karl chased Lana into the other room.
"Huh?" George questioned.
"You were doing your thinking face." Dream said, and George flushed slightly in embarrassment.
"Oh. It's... it's nothing." George said, shaking his head.
"Tell me. You were doing it while looking at me." Dream said.
"Seriously, it's nothing." He rubbed his eyes. He looked exhausted now Dream noticed.
"Are you ok? You look tired."
"Haven't been sleeping well. Doesn't help she started preschool this week, and had a meltdown most nights about it. The second day was mostly about you not being there."
"I'm sorry." Dream swallowed.
"Not your fault. But yeah, I'm just a bit out of it." There was a squeal from the other room, and George chucked lightly, before following the sound. Dream looked at the artwork for a little longer, before following George into the living room for the movie.
Lana was giggling, standing up right against the TV as Karl scrolled through a long list of movies to watch. Dream sat down on one of the couches, watching as George picked up his daughter and pulled her away.
"If you stand too close to the telly, you'll hurt your eyes." He said, holding her up. She pouted at him.
"But I wanna look at the movies." She said.
"Well why don't you find a seat on the couch to look. Do you want to sit next to Uncle Sapnap and Uncle Karl?" He turned her around, so she was looking at them. "Or, do you want to sit next to... Uncle Dream?" He added, and Lana looked at Dream as well. Dream's heart squeezed at the title, looking at George who had for some reason opted to avoid his eye contact.
"Dream!" She said, wiggling in George's grip, and she bounded over to sit next to Dream. "I haven't seened a movie with Dream yet." She told Sapnap and Karl who looked jokingly-offended at her choice. But they weren't upset, they were already cuddling on the other couch.
Dream only thought about how she didn't call him Uncle. Even though George was clearly trying to prompt it.
"Daddy, you sit here." She patted on her other side and George listened, walking over and sitting beside her so him and Dream were boxing her in on the couch. She was grinning very wide, and eyes back on the TV as Karl scrolled.
Dream risked looking over Lana's head at George, who was already looking back at him, eyes soft. Like he was sorry.
"Which movie, Lana." Karl said, holding out the remote and pulling up Netflix.
"Tangled!" She cheered, and George let out a laugh, attention back on his daughter.
"Should have known. She was quoting it this morning." He said, hand coming up to stroke her hair as Karl searched for it on the TV, and Sapnap ordered everyone's pizzas.
They started the movie as they waited for the pizza, and when the evil lady stole the flower and the baby, Lana frowned and buried her head into Dream's arm.
"Is it a bit scary?" Dream asked, looking down at the girl, who was peering out behind him arm at the TV with the same wide eyes as the baby on the screen. Lana nodded.
"You've seen this movie a hundred times, baby." George said gently, looking down at her clinging to Dream's arm.
"She's mean." Lana mumbled, eyes still intently on the screen. After the scene was over, Lana relaxed, but she continued to hug Dream's arm, resting her head against him.
Dream didn't quite know what to do. She was holding his arm hostage, but it was very sweet. He was just confused about why she chose to rest against him, and find comfort in him when her father was right there.
Lana made a few comments as the time passed, along with Sapnap who got very into the movie, just before the pizza arrived.
Dream offered the get the food, gently pulling away from the girl before collecting the pizza from the front door, and grabbing a few plates from the kitchen. He came back into the living room, seeing the movie had been paused, and he placed all the options on the coffee table.
"Help yourselves." Dream said, also placing down the plates. George made a plate of a few slices of cheese pizza for Lana, while everyone mostly claimed an entire pizza for themselves, swapping a few slices here and there.
George made Lana sit on the floor while she ate, with the intention of not spilling on the couch. Karl made Sapnap do the same. It was a new couch.
"I can't believe we've been banished to the floor!" Sapnap said to Lana, who was giggling and calmly eating her own pizza, not that fussed for sitting on the ground. "I'm a grown man!"
"You're a baby." She teased him, and Sapnap gasped.
"I am not a baby."
"You are! You are!" She laughed. "Uncle Saknap is a baby!"
"He's the biggest baby ever." Karl said, making her laugh more.
"And here I was, thinking we were getting married." He narrowed his eyes at his fiancé, who just smiled and bent down to kiss him on the top of the head.
"I'm done! Can we keep watching?" Lana asked, putting her plate back on the table and standing up, bouncing on her feet.
"Let's wait for everyone to finish eating, first." George said, probably his attempt to teach her patience.
"Dream's done! Can we watch now?" She ran in front of Dream as he also put his plate down and grabbed his knees. "Please Dream."
"Like your Dad said, we should wait for everyone." He said gently. She groaned, and then proceeded to crawl into his lap. Dream blinked a few times as she got comfortable, definitely not expecting it.
"Did you ask Uncle Dream first?" George said, raising an eyebrow at his daughter. Lana sat up, looking around at Dream.
"It's alright. You can." He said softly, an arm coming up to hug her, and she relaxed, grabbing his arm before he could pull it away and hugging it to her chest again.
"Dream is the best." Lana said happily, and Dream couldn't hide his smile.
When they started the movie again, George took his seat a little closer to Dream this time with the absence of Lana between them. She seemed perfectly happy in his lap, reaching over to poke George every so often to point something out in the movie like he wasn't watching. It was sweet how much she adored him.
As the movie went on, Dream realised Lana was drifting off, body growing heavier and head falling back onto his chest. His arm was still wrapped around her, keeping her steady, and his other arm was along the back of the couch.
Sapnap and Karl looked over a few times, cooing slightly. Even though Dream couldn't see Lana's face unless he moved to look, he knew she was asleep. He was scared to move and wake her up.
It wasn't until Dream felt a light pressure on his arm, that he looked to his left, and realised George was leaning into him, Dream's arm behind him on the couch. It took Dream an extra few seconds to realise George was also falling asleep.
Memories of their past were flying through his mind, instances just like this, George falling asleep against him while they watched a movie.
Dream adjusted himself slightly, as George leaned more into him, and he eventually lowered his arm, wrapping it around George's shoulders, holding him against himself.
Dream smiled, looking between George and Lana, an arm holding both, and he nearly wanted to cry. He pretended like he didn't know why.
"Dream." His name was whispered, and he looked up at Sapnap and Karl, his eyes slight blurry, and he blinked to get rid of the tears, which fell onto his cheeks despite his smile. Karl paused the movie and stood up, walking to the side of the couch and gently wiping Dream's cheek.
"Hey." Karl whispered, and Dream shook his head.
"I'm fine."
"You don't have to be."
"I swear I am." Dream smiled, looking down at them both. It felt like he was dreaming. Maybe he was the one asleep.
"George is too tired to drive them home, they can sleep in our guest room." Sapnap whispered, coming over and standing in front of them.
"I don't want to wake them up." Dream whispered back.
"You need to sleep too, and you can't do that sitting upright."
"George hasn't been sleeping." Dream didn't even know what he was arguing for.
"Alright. I'm going to take Lana and put her down. You decide what you want to do with George." Sapnap said. Dream nodded, gently pulling his arm away from the girl. She let out a very soft whine, and Sapnap carefully scooped her up and out of Dream's lap. She let out a whimper, and hugged him around his neck. He rubbed her back and shushed her as he took her out of the room.
George stirred at her whine, shifting slightly and raising a hand to wipe his face.
"Lana." He mumbled, and Dream rubbed his shoulder.
"Hey, George." He said softly, feeling bad he woke him up. But he always loved sleepy George.
"Hm?" George still had his eyes closed, and Dream looked at Karl who just shrugged.
"Do you want to sleep on a bed with Lana. Or here on the couch?" Dream said, a hand coming up to brush the hair out of George's face.
"With you." George mumbled, burying closer to Dream. Dream just blinked and swallowed, hugging him tighter. He rested his chin on the top of George's head and closed his eyes.
"I can stay." Dream whispered.
"Please, Clay." George mumbled, and Dream wanted to cry. He looked back up at Karl, holding George almost protectively, with tears in his eyes.
Karl looked almost as heartbroken as Dream felt.
"I can't-" Dream choked out.
"I know." Karl said with a sad smile. "I'll grab you a blanket."
Karl left and Dream slowly eased George so they were both lying down, George fisting Dream's shirt like a koala.
"Comfy?" Dream whispered, hand coming up to brush George's hair. George just hummed and clutched Dream tighter.
Karl came back with a blanket and pillow and Sapnap followed, watching the scene carefully. Karl placed the pillow under Dream's head and draped the blanket over them both.
"It's not what you think." Dream croaked out, looking at Sapnap. Sapnap sent a small smile back.
"Okay."
"It's not because- don't think-"
"Dream, it's alright. You care for him." Karl rejoined Sapnap and grabbed his hand. "There's nothing wrong with that."
Dream's hand was absentmindedly rubbing circles on George's back.
"Ok." Dream hated how warm he felt, how peaceful. He hated how normal this felt, how perfect they pieced together. He hated the memories that were pulling at his head. He hated how close he wanted George, how sweet he looked.
He hated how he would have to let go.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N
I have made a change in the story!! Previously: they were all streamers/youtubers and dream hadn't face revealed and george disappeared off internet. NOW: not any of that, just normal people who once had a dream to be youtubers maybe. the whole "getting recognised thing" was ruining the vibe of the story.
Also!! Am currently doing several weeks of prac which is full-time so updates may slow until October. Hopefully won't, but follow my twitter for any changes: @/LottiaraT
Dream wants to be "Uncle" because he wants to be part of the family :((( and a few chapters ago said everyone has a family but him :(((
Uncle is just not your title broski just you wait
Dream: "i don't like george like that"
also Dream: "george!!" :D