Ends of the Earth [DNF]

Chapter 34: Death of a dream

George sprinted back. They hadn't gotten far, but his physique had taken a toll from his time in the bunker.

When he reached his destination, his eyes darted straight towards the bleeding guy sitting against the tree. Relief washed over him as his mind picked up that the blonde wasn't completely lost. But he was weak.

George sprinted over to Dream. He became aware that his hands were covered with burns from the plant and made sure to wash them before daring to touch the other. The scene was brutal. Dream was pale and his green clothes were completely soaked in blood. George took a deep breath to calm his mind before finding the knife that Dream had stabbed his dad with.

He sat down in front of Dream and grabbed his face. "Dream, Dream, please stay with me. " No response.

His brain went into overdrive. He needed to stop the blood flow. To make sure that Dream didn't completely lose conscious, George pulled him down from his sitting position and laid the blonde down on the ground. He took the knife and cut Dream's shirt open. It would've flustered him in any other situation, but his brain was solely solution-focused. The cut wasn't that deep, but deep enough to kill him if not treated. Being in the middle of a forest with minimal luggage, made it so that George had to improvise. It wasn't like he had bandages or like thread and needle just laying around.

Think, for fuck sake!

Dream was drifting away. He needed to get the man something to drink and eat as well as something for his wound. Birch sav! It was drinkable and contained a small amount of sugar which would hopefully heighten Dream's energy-level, at least a bit.

A birch tree was spotted not too far away and that's when George hope sparked once again. Plantago Major! It was a common plant and didn't look like much to the world. However, it housed substances that were both antibacterial and somewhat pain-relieving. He reasoned that he could place the leaves closest against the wound and tie a piece of fabric around Dream's torso to hold them in place. So, that what he did. He shortly found another use for the plant as well. It was obvious that they'd been followed somehow and the how would soon reveal itself by pure accident. His hand was running over his neck and stopped by an unknown lump. Those fuckers. A tracking-implant. It wouldn't be pleasant, but he couldn't risk letting it be.

The leaves weren't difficult to find, he then tried his best to clean the cut with them. He finally cut off a long strand of fabric from his shirt and carefully tied it over the leaves.

Pleased with his improvised attempt at a bandage, George exceeded to the next part of his plan, removing the implant. He might have been able to do it in a less painful way if it would've been under other circumstances. But he would just have to cut it out. The implant was just underneath the skin, so it decreased the chances of puncturing any major blood vessels. He did his best at sterilizing the knife with the leaves and didn't waste any time before he started cutting it out. To say that it was painful was an understatement. Sweat dripped from his forehead once he got it out. He made a bandage for himself to make sure it'd heal without unnecessary exposure to bacteria.

George collapsed against a tree close to Dream and placed the blonde's head in his lap. The adrenaline that had kept him going this entire time started to fade, an extreme tiredness spread to every corner of his body. But he wouldn't allow himself to sleep. Dream seemed to drift between conscious and unconscious every other minute. The blonde was yet to open his eyes, but at least he wasn't dead, yet. His breathing was even but weak. George let his finger run through the blonde locks. He didn't know if he was doing it to try and signal to Dream that he wasn't alone or to calm himself, maybe both.

After the mental walls he'd built had fallen, was it like everything came flooding back. All the memories from the bunker and every emotion connected to it. It was overwhelming. He tilted his head backwards and involuntary tears peaked through the corner of his eyes.