Setting Sun

4 | Bona Fide | 4

{Bona Fide: Latin for "All in good faith"}

***

George caught the two staring once more, but he just chose to ignore it. They kept talking, the waiter seemingly explaining what happened at the table to Dream. They only pulled their heads away as they saw a woman with chestnut hair come from the back. She was wearing a red turtleneck with a leather jacket, leggings, knee high black boots, and red aviator sunglasses that were pushed up on her head. She only had a little bit of makeup on her face: red lipstick. Puffy.

"What's up, boys?" she said to Dream and his friend. "Don't tell me we're lounging about when we need to be working."

"Of course not, ma'am," Dream answered, smiling.

"Good," she said, returning his smile. She turned to George, then. "Hey, George, what's up?"

Dream looked up as he noticed her talking to him, looking a bit shocked as he answered her, addressing her by her nickname.

"Nothing, Puffy. You?"

"Eh, not much. Business's been pretty much the same. Nothing exciting." Though she kept the talk casual, George could tell she knew he wasn't at one hundred percent. "Wanna go sit?" she asked in a whisper, gesturing to an empty booth in the corner. Their booth, the one they always sat in when they talked. He nodded once, and that was all it took. She grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the booth. George couldn't help but take note of the look on Dream's face as she dragged him away.

George went through every detail of the day, starting from when Luke invited him to go with them tonight, then vaguely explaining his almost-panic attack in the bathroom, settling on the conversation he overheard between Dream and the waiter, who Puffy told him was called Sapnap. Just a nickname, of course, just the same as the rest of the people working there.

She sat and listened, never interrupting. Despite her silence, George knew she was listening. She always did. He couldn't help but notice that she would've made a good therapist.

"I'm sorry, George," she said, taking his hand in hers. "Do you know how he knew about them?" She knew better than to address them by their name. She remembered what had happened the last time she had.

"No idea, I got out of there as fast as I could," he answered, wondering if he should take his hand away. He could only imagine what it must look like to everyone else in the bar. He didn't, appreciating the warmth too much to care what everyone else thought.

She nodded, looking around impatiently, like she needed to be somewhere.

"You, have to go, don't you?" George asked, sort of disappointed. He understood though, she was a busy woman. She looked hesitant to answer, but eventually nodded. "Okay, I'll see you some other time then," George sighed. She stood up, but said something else before leaving.

"If you weren't planning on going yet, I might have some people to keep you company." She took his hand, taking him back over to the bar. She signaled for Dream and Sapnap to come over. "Dream, Sap, this is George. He's a dear friend to me, and he needs someone to keep him company for a bit. Think you can do that?" Both boys nod immediately, and it was clear that they feared their boss. George's heart warmed that Puffy considered him a dear friend.

Before leaving, she went behind the bar, whispering something into Dream's ear that George didn't hear. Dream gave her a questioning look, her only response was a firm nod, and then she left.

"So, George, why aren't you over there with your little friends?" Sapnap asked in a teasing voice. Though he didn't mean anything by it, it stung George's heart a bit.