Blue Christmas

Chapter 9

"I'm absolutely stuffed!" Dream sighed as he reclined in the armchair. They had demolished just about as much roast as they possibly could and then had eaten dessert on top of it.

"I'm so full I think I might die." George groaned with a laugh, slumping down on the sofa.

"You can't die yet, I've only got to see you in real life for 3 days!" Dream exclaimed over-dramatically and George only laughed in response. "Should we do presents now?" 

"Okay- wait let me go and grab something," George pushed himself up and stretched, his bones letting out satisfying cracks as they moved back into place, before rushing up the stairs without another world. Dream shot him a questioning look (which, of course, George did not catch), shrugged to himself, then decided to text Sapnap to let him know that George was about to open what he sent him.

"Nick wants me to tell you that he was gonna call but they're just about to have lunch and his mom isn't letting him get away!" Dream yelled up the stairs, equal parts too lazy and too full to move; he was coming down soon anyway. He waited for a response, only to be met with the increasingly loud footsteps of George practically running down the stairs.

"I'm back. What was that?" He was slightly out of breath from running, (he plays video games for a living; what can you expect? Dream thought to himself, smiling at his own internal humour, which earned him a rather quizzical look from George).

"Oh, Nick just texted to say he wished he could call but his mom is forcing him to have lunch now." Dream repeated, moving from the middle of the sofa to the left and patting the space next to him, beckoning George to come sit. He threw himself onto the comfy pillows, shuffling as close to Dream as he physically could and then wrapping his arm around the taller's shoulders in a physically awkward side-hug of sorts.

"Well he shouldn't miss Christmas dinner to talk to us - we can do that any day of the year!" George laughed softly. As he trailed off, his expression was replaced with something closer to nervousness than the previous glee. "I'm sorry, I didn't have much time to get you anything, but I saw this at the supermarket... sorry it's not much." George mumbled, pressing the small, rectangular parcel into Dream's strong hands, which were resting in his lap. He carefully ran his pointer finger along the paper to undo the cellotape without ripping it too much, and something about how much care he was taking tugged the edges of George's mouth into a smile.

"George! I love it." Dream was grinning ear to ear. In his hands was a bracelet, lime green, white and black strings woven into an intricate pattern. It was perfect; the best gift he could ask for, in a way. Most other things he, to be quite frank, could just buy himself but this was something personal, something that truly meant the world to him, and he didn't hesitate in tying it around his wrist, secured with a tight knot.

"You do?"

"Of course I do - I'm never gonna take it off now! It's your turn now though." Dream laughed as he hopped up, gathering as many presents as he could possibly carry at once and placing them all on the sofa between them, enjoying the nostalgia that the satisfying crinkle of the wrapping paper would always bring him. "Open my one first!" He exclaimed excitedly, pushing a cube-shaped parcel wrapped in rather distinct paper into George's hands.

"Okay, okay! It's not very Christmassy, is it?" George teased him, turning the present in his hands, running his fingertips along the sharp edges. Unlike the rest of the gifts which donned paper depicting jade-green Christmas trees, strawberry-red Santa hats, robin red breasts, burgundy baubles, the present in his hands was sporting bright blue paper dotted with constellations and crescent moons.

"Yeah, I know it's not exactly Christmassy but it was the only blue paper I could find-"

George's eyes widened in realisation. "Because I can-"