Forever

Chapter 33

George followed Dream out of the apartment and into the car. He had no idea where they were headed, and he was quiet for the whole drive. His heart felt heavy, and he could only seem to focus on the fact that Dream seemed determined to hold his hand the entire time, running his thumb along the back of George's hand in a soothingly familiar way that made his chest ache.

It wasn't until the car came to a stop along a street that George had never been on before that he finally glanced up to take in his surroundings. He looked out the window, but all he saw were stretches of open area. If he had to guess, he would say they were just outside of London, in one of the neighborhoods with large houses that were spread a fair distance from each other.

"What are we doing here?" George asked.

Dream didn't answer right away, but instead climbed out of the car and rounded over to George's side. He pulled open the door, offered George a hand, and answered, "I wanted to show you something."

George reached for his hand as he climbed out of the car, and Dream immediately pulled him closer to his side. He led George a little ways down the sidewalk as he began explaining, "I'm not going to try and change your mind about leaving London. That wouldn't be fair to you, and I want you to be able to have time with Philza. After everything you've been through, you both deserve to get to know each other again. I know what it's like to lose family, and I wouldn't ever try to take that away from you."

George's stomach dropped, and he braced himself for whatever was coming next. He couldn't shake the feeling that Dream was about to say something he wouldn't like, he just didn't understand why he had to bring him to some random neighborhood to do it.

"I know you pretty well, George," Dream continued, and when George looked over at him, he saw that he had a faint smile on his face, "I didn't know that Philza was going to ask you to stay, but I thought that if you started remembering, you might choose to stay anyway."

George stilled, confusion furrowing his brow as he looked over at Dream again. Dream tugged him forward gently, stopping after just a few more steps and turning George to face the stretch of grass in front of them. In the middle of it sat a large house, complete with a huge, fenced in backyard.

"I don't understand," George muttered, and Dream motioned towards the house as he explained, "it's for sale. I'm not saying we have to buy this one specifically, but if we're staying, I can't keep living in that tiny apartment."

Hope sprang up in George's chest at the words, and he turned to face Dream as he slowly asked, "if we're staying?"

Dream nodded, giving George a soft smile as he answered, "I love you, George. It's kind of ridiculous just how much. I'm not about to just walk away and leave you here."

George's heart rate picked up, and he felt like his thoughts were tripping over themselves in an attempt to fully register what Dream was saying.

"But what about Sapnap and the rest of the team?"

"Sapnap will understand," Dream answered, "as long as he has Karl, he'll be happy. And as long as he's happy, then I'm happy. And I know that he'd want the same for both of us."

George nodded, opening his mouth to ask more questions. Before he could, Dream leaned in to kiss him. He smiled as he pulled away, and then quietly said, "I'd be happy living anywhere in the world, George, but only if you're by my side."

George smiled, but he couldn't help and ask, "are you sure, Dream? You'd be giving up a lot, and I don't want you to do this just because you think it's what I want."

"I'm very sure," Dream murmured back, "like I said, I can't do a long distance relationship. If I go back to America, this won't work, and I want this to work. You made your choice, and now this is my choice to make. And I'm choosing to stay here with you."