ORPHANED

:: one hundred thirty-one ::

"carry me instead, then."

the attention she called to herself was unnecessary and dismissed for no real reason

"i have to carry him, otherwise, he changed for nothing."

a huff came from behind them and shortly after, her presence was accompanied by her form hidden away in the bulk of her coat.

"you're coming with us?" george queried from where he still hung on the blonde.

she nodded her head with faux enthusiasm, knowing the only reason for accompanying them was to fulfill an obligation her brother wouldn't. "i have to make sure he doesn't try to stay at your house."

pursed lips by the blonde and a guilty smile from the brunette came to show that the suspicion she most likely shared with his mom was more than just likely because it was definitely going to happen.

"no fair."

"you are so predictable it's unbelievable." the dissatisfaction in her voice could have sounded halfhearted to the untrained ear, but dream knew his sister better than the untrained ear.

she skipped ahead of them pointing just out of sight, insisting they turned to see what it was that had caught her attention. the focus turned to their snowman which they left in a once foot deep field of snow, and now sat in the same spot, only knee deep this time around

"when we get back he is going to be completely submerged."

"don't say that" dream finally gave into the fight and set george down. he gave him a minute to bask in the feeling of his win before he made an effort to pick him up again. "hop on."

the brunette spared a moment of hesitance before he climbed the blonde, his chest falling flush against dream's back like it had many times before.

he brought up the previous conversation to have something to talk about, despite the enjoyment they shared for the silence.

"you are only going to jinx yourself. you won't be able to walk in snow of that magnitude."

she ushered them to her side but as soon as they caught up she would be on her way again.

"i guess you'll have to carry me then." with her arms outstretched to her side she gave a spin for embellishment and sped off again down the pavement.

when they were finally left alone george spoke up. "my nose is so cold."

"cover your nose so it's not cold."

he paused, playing out the action mentally before tucking his head into the nook of dream's neck.

the heat of his breath that splayed against dream's exposed skin began to warm him beyond the necessity of the coat he had put on. and when soft warm lips briefly grazed ivory skin dream had to will his legs not to stop dead in his tracks and give out then and there.

he was glad he had the excuse of the cold to hide the blush on his cheeks.

**

although george and his sister had little to talk about, she somehow managed to include him in her rambles, mainly consulting in him as another sympathetic advocate for her side of the unfairly presented situation.

she evidently had more energy than him, practically bouncing up and down in her seat as opposed to the brunette who rested his head against the window, still with a smile but a tired one at that.

"what are you on?" dream tapped her leg with the side of his foot, unsure whether or not to be concerned as she went on about supposed sketchy stores that are probably headquarters for human trafficking.

"i had a lot of whipped cream," she added into her speech before continuing to her topic. "but man you should've seen those birds, they were not normal birds."

"yeah okay, you need to take a nap or something."

"not tired."

"obviously you're not tired, but some people are." he tilted his head to the brunette who was fighting with himself to keep his eyes open.

"fine, but if i shut up now you have to listen to me talk about this when we get back home." her voice was lower, and she talked slowly as if it would help both him and george understand her.

"fine, now just chill out?"

she nodded with a satisfied smile and turned to look out the window to busy her racing mind. the rest of the ride played out quite similarly, with her turning to them with eyes full of wonder only to be shut down by the protective glare her brother would present her with.

she'd insist she wasn't going to say anything, but then she'd furiously type away the thought into her phone to remember for later. dream knew the more he quieted her the more he'd have to sit through later be he figured staying up a few hours later himself was a good exchange to make sure george slept uninterrupted.

and as if on cue he stirred, mumbling illegibly and positioning himself closer to the blonde. when nothing but silence answered him his eyelids blinked open and he searched his surroundings, scanning for one thing and one thing only.

"we're almost there." dream had whispered, meaning nothing in actuality but reassurance for the brunette that it wouldn't be much longer.

"okay," his head nodded with the train, and he spared a sleepy smile before he eventually gave in to his exhaustion and rested his head on the blonde's shoulder.

green eyes observed dark lashes that batted with knowledge of the eyes trained on him, and lips twitched up into a smile reserved for only the other to see.

"get a room." his sister masked her words with a forced cough. but it only earned her a forceful jab to the shin.

**

"oh, look over there i'm not paying attention at all. anything could be going on behind me and i'd have no idea." she peeked behind her shoulder at the men who stood in the doorway to ensure they heard her completely. she turned back around, "like a kiss."

the insinuation came out of nowhere and although dream hadn't originally planned it he took it as an excuse to pretend he had.

the brunette shone a shy smile, knowing dream would take any opportunity he got to feel his lips again. when the blonde's hand came to cradle the man's face it took less than a minute for them to melt into the touch.

slowly they inched closer into a chaste kiss that had lasted longer than anyone before.

—

i am so awkward irl...i held the door open for someone and said thank you instead of you're welcome when they walked through it ),,,: