Pieces |A dreamwastaken x oc PLATONIC fan fiction|

Chapter 7

 Being suspended isn't as bad as I thought it would be. The only troubling thing is that I haven't heard from my parents in three weeks. One night, after Clay and I had eaten dinner, Clay says he needs to go somewhere and he'll be back very soon.

After about an hour, the lock clicks and I look down the hall to the door. Clay comes in and someone is following him. Something about his short brown hair and the stubble on his chin makes me think I know him. Suddenly, I realize who it is and stand up, smiling.

"Sapnap?" I say.

"So you're Clay's roommate!" he says. We shake hands awkwardly and he laughs, rolling his eyes. "You're weird." I scoff.

"Hey, be nice!" Clay pouts. "You guys need to be best friends or I'll be mad."

"So we're gonna go to the amusement park tomorrow at noon?" Nick asks.

"I have school," I say.

"I know," Nick says. Wow. He sure was something.

"Jesus, Nick, you really hate Maisy," Clay whistles.

"Nah, just had to make an impression," Nick says. "Now can I put down my stuff?" I look at him with wide eyes. Who was this guy?

Clay shows Nick to his room and Nick puts his stuff in there and then comes back down.

"It's eight. Isn't it your bedtime, Maisy?" Nick says. I sigh deeply, and shut my mouth so as to not say anything I would regret in the future.

"I have to go do homework," I say abruptly. Clay looks up at me with concern, and even Nick looks confused.

"That was a joke, okay?" Nick says.

"Yeah, I know. I just actually have homework because I am an actual procrastinator," I laugh, but it sounds forced. Because it is forced. I don't feel like I fit in here, at all. I know Nick is just making jokes, but to be honest, it hurts.

In seventh grade, I was in a "friend group". They made harsh jokes about me, and only me. By halfway through the year, one girl in the group started telling lies about me. She would pretend to be my friend, and then say something awful about me. And every time I would come back to her, as if begging for her to break my heart again. And every time, she broke my heart. It was an awful cycle. I finally broke free from it by the end of the year, but it scarred me. I never really trusted anyone ever again. (Definitely not a true story :/)

Suddenly, I hear a knock on the door. I realize that tears are rushing down my face and I wipe them off.

"It's just me," I hear Clay say in a soft voice. I try to make it look like I haven't been crying.

"Come in," I whisper, taking a deep breath as Clay comes into my room, frowning sadly.

"I know his jokes are insensitive and stupid, but -"

"No, no, it's not that," I say, dropping my forehead into my hands. "God, I don't know what it is..." I hear Clay sigh.

"I understand that. I really do. But there's something, I know it," Clay says, looking up at me sympathetically.

"I, it's just," I can't finish. I just can't seem to get the words out. Now I'm bawling. Clay looks really concerned, and kneels next to me, grabbing my hand. "My parents," I mutter.

"What about them?" he asks, brow furrowed.

I seem to choke on my words. Instead, I pull up my messages and open up the text with my mom.

me
Hey mom when are you coming home

mom
Sorry sweetie, we'll be home soon, we have some extra things to do <3

me
Love you too
(3 weeks ago)

me
Mom, are you coming home soon?
(2 weeks ago)

me
Mom, its been a while since you texted me, how are you doing?
(3 days ago)

(Missed call 2 days ago)

(Missed call 1 day ago)

Clay looks at it in shock. I wipe my eyes and sniff.

"How could she do that?" he murmurs. "I thought you guys at least kept in touch. I thought she just was doing things, not ignoring you!" He's becoming angry, I can tell. I don't want him to be, though. He shouldn't be getting angry because of my parents. But then again, it's nice that someone actually cares...

"Thank you," I whisper.

"For what?" he asks, looking into my eyes.

"For being there for me. Nobody ever really..." I can't finish the sentence.

"I know it doesn't feel like it, but your fans, viewers... they all care about you, Maisy," Clay says.

"I know, it's just different. You can't tell them everything," I say. "You can't tell them anything, frankly." Clay nods knowingly and sighs.

"I know. Especially if you're a faceless streamer. I know that once, someone thought that I wasn't real or something. Sure, there was no logic and it was pure stupidity, but it kinda hurt. I mean, we have lives!" Clay rants.

"Maybe you do," I chuckle.

"Do what?"

"Have a life."

"You have a life!" Clay frowns.

"No. I wake up, go to school, do homework, stream, sleep," I say, looking down at my hands. "That's not how I wanted to be, at the beginning of high school. I wanted to be a doctor. I had all these plans, but every failed assignment, every single thing that anyone would say about me, I realized that... I could never. Be a doctor. So I decided to put my effort into streaming, because it felt like the one thing I might be able to achieve," I whisper.

"Maisy," Clay says. "You're still in high school. You can be a doctor. Heck, you could be whatever you wanted! Aim for the moon. And if you miss, you may just land among the stars." I chuckle and look at him, wiping my eyes. His smile is so contagious. Of all the people I could meet, befriend, I think I won the lottery.

Word Count: 995