ORPHANED

:: sixty-nine::

'hi' was all the message read. he shouldn't have smiled as hard as he did.

'hello' he responded, setting his phone on his bed as he stood starting to pulling off his sweatshirt. when his head was freed from the fabric he glanced down at his screen noticing george had started calling him.

he picked up the phone, pressing it to his ear.

"i opened your present."

"did you like it?" dream smiled as he moved from his bed to his desk.

"it was interesting..."

he chuckled, knowing exactly what he meant. "what do you mean?"

"there was a second package inside the box."

"and you opened it?" he picked up a pen, doodling on an open page of the notebook that sat in the middle of his desk.

"i did."

dream felt his phone chime in his hand, pulling it down from his ear to see what george had sent him. he felt his mouth fall open, staring back at the picture.

when george had seen dream open the picture he spoke softly into his end of the call.

"i miss you."

dream knew it was his fault originally, why he was so far away from george at this moment, yet he was ready to risk it all as his eyes scanned every part of the picture. knowing it would be gone before he even got the chance to begin admiring it.

"it was supposed to be a joke." he whispered out into the air, staring at the picture of george.

"it was in my size." george whispered back.

the brunette's hands rested in his lap, obviously embarrassed to be taking the picture. dream inspected the skirt that lay so prettily over his flushed thighs.

george had not only put on, but additionally sent dream a photo presenting himself in the maid outfit included within his gift.

"dream?"

dream swallowed his breath, his eyes edging up the screen as he focused on the way the skirt cinched at his waist. george's face was angled away from the camera, his eyes diverted, with his bottom lip between his teeth. his neck staying open to the camera, activating an urge inside dream.

he appeared to be smiling, knowing all too well how the blonde was inevitably going to react to the photo.

"was i not supposed to do that?" the panic in george's voice snapped dream out of his trance.

"no, no, no, you did nothing wrong george."

dream stared a little longer, doing his best to memorize every curve of the others legs, the angle at which his waist angled inward, his shoulders standing apart, broad, yet held with little confidence.

dream knew the feeling that rushed to the tips of his fingers was the need to reach out an hold.

and just like he suspected, the picture was deleted.

"george."

"i'm sorry."

"please don't be."

"i'm sorry, i thought-"

"george."

the other went silent.

"can i come over?"

he waited for a response. waiting for what felt like forever, before the line cut out.

george hung up.

dream's breathing picked up. he pulled his sweatshirt back over his head. he squeezed at his knees, suddenly feeling to need to get up and run.

he dialed the number again, waiting with his phone pressed up to his ear, listening as the line never connected. all at one he stood from his mattress again.

fuck.

he made his way down the stairs, trying not to focus on how panicked george sounded. no matter how many times dream tried to comfort him, there was something that was on george's mind dream knew he couldn't fix.

"where are you going?" his sister asked from where she still sat on the couch, watching as he pulled his sneakers on.

"out." he dismissed her, pulling open the front door. he had to see george, he had to hug him and let him know that he wasn't mad. he didn't want george to think he was mad at him.

he began walking, taking far apart strides in his path to george's apartment. he felt helpless, knowing he was so far from george, there was nothing he could do until he arrived. he picked up his pace, eventually turning to a full-on sprint, trying to be with george as soon as he could be.

as he ran up george's street he tried to call again, it rang, the full three times before he was directed to the brunette's voicemail. almost crying at the sound of george's voice repeated back to him from the messaging box.

he let out a shaky breath as he knocked on the door. there was shuffling, a door closing.

"george?" he called out past the door.

"dream."

that wasn't george.

wilbur peeked past the door. "you should go home."

"wilbur, please."

the taller sighed, resting his head against the doorframe. "dream, i still love you like a brother. in the year that i've been here i've become closer with george than i ever was with you. don't you think it would be fucked if i let you in, against his wishes?"

dream stopped breathing then and there.

against his wishes.

george didn't want him there.

"tell him i said to call me?" dream's voice broke when he spoke.

"i don't think he's going to do that."

dream's gaze moved from wilbur's eyes to stare back at the door.

"goodnight dream." and just like that, the door was shut in front of him.

he stepped away from the apartment, eyes still locked on the door.

"what the fuck." he took in a few shaky breaths.

the only right thing to do, was to send george a text.

i'm not mad at you, i could never be. i hope you had a good birthday.

he stared at the screen, watching it send before he began his dreaded walk home. hating every step he took farther from george.

when his phone vibrated in his pocket he wasted no time to pull it out and read the message.

'don't worry i'll make sure he has a good birthday where you can't.'

—

jfc i completely changed the direction of this chapter three different times, still don't think it makes sense, whatever. take it if you will, i'll most likely update again (: