Coniferous | dreamnotnap

15. Memory Mishap

Sapnap woke up the next morning with a migraine.

The light from the window charred his pupils when he attempted to open his eyes. He groaned, pulling the blankets over his head as a shield.

"You're awake?"

The voice was so loud, it made Sapnaps head pound. He whined in response.

"You are. What do you remember?" The mattress shifted below him, weighted down on the left side of it.

"Shut the fuck up, George." Sapnap seethed.

George huffed. He mumbled something under his breath that Sapnap was too out of it to comprehend.

"What's wrong? Headache?" George asked quietly.

"Yeah." Sapnap hissed. "Hush."

"I can fix that." The bed creaked, weight evening out again with the sound of footsteps following George toward the door. "Try to sit up- oh, wait..."

A quiet rattling and the sound of fabric brushing together penetrated Sapnaps sensitive ears. He scowled.

"I closed the curtains. Try to sit up, please. I'll be back." The door creaked, but never latched.

Sapnap sighed, pulling the blanket away from his face. The black curtains really did darken the room a lot, but there was still a sliver of gold shining through, leaving its mark on the lilac bedsheets and reflecting outwards, preventing total darkness. He couldn't look directly at it without feeling a sharp pain behind his eyes.

With his eyes firmly shut, he sat up in bed and slid back against the wooden headboard.

As his brain began to really wake up, he realized he didn't remember ever getting into George's bed. He remembered wasting time trying to sleep on the couch, followed by a flash of Dreams monstrous face that recalling felt odd, as if he'd dreamed it. But he'd experienced that feeling before, and he knew better. He knew Dream was there last night. The events leading up to his arrival were blurry, and so were the events after. He faintly remembered lying on the floor.

Quiet footfalls pried Sapnaps eyes open.

George had a mug in his hands that he handed to Sapnap. The liquid inside was steaming, and had a sweet scent. Tea. Sapnap was hesitant to bring it to his lips.

"Is it spelled?" He asked, eyes narrowed down at it.

George nodded, quietly answering, "it'll help your headache, make you feel better."

Maybe Sapnap was still loopy from sleep, or maybe his trust for George was wavering. Something felt off. He set the full cup on the nightstand.

A slight panic flashed behind George's eyes.

"Why aren't you drinking it?"

"The pains fading, I don't need it anymore."

"But," George picked up the cup, holding it close to Sapnaps face, "it'll make you feel good, not just better."

Sapnap lightly pushed it away as to not spill, and threw the covers off himself. He stood up, forcing George to back away and look slightly up at him. The panic behind those dark eyes almost slipped into fear. Sapnap stepped around him and made for the door.

"Sapnap, wait-"

He stopped in the doorway, turning his head.

George sighed, not meeting his eyes as he spoke. "I'm sorry, I-... I just don't want you to... remember... something."

"What?!" Sapnap freaked. "You erased my memory?!"

"Yes, I'm sorry, it's only temporary though, at the moment. I'm sorry. The drink was supposed to make it permanent." George's chin was tucked into his chest, mug cuddled close to his body.