Between Friends (dnf)

Mornings

George was far from a morning person. Like if being a morning person was the Atlantic Ocean, he was the Pacific.

It always took him hours to actually wake up, feeling more like he was sleeping walking for the first portion of his day. Sometimes he actually would just be sleep walking.

If there was one thing that did help George wake up in the morning, it was orange juice. Not coffee, not tea, not apple juice. Orange juice.

Maybe it was a sensitive palate situation, maybe it was just how easily George became bored with things, but he never wanted a full glass- always just a sip. It wasn't even just the mornings when he was like this, it wasn't even just with orange juice- it was with anything at any time.

This was never a problem when he lived alone back in London. If you don't have any roommates, then there's no one to throw a fit over taking a swig right from the carton.

Sapnap and Dream did, however, seem to have a problem with it. Apparently it was 'repulsive' and 'nasty' for him to do such a thing. George really didn't understand the big deal, but alas, he wanted to do his part in keeping the peace.

Despite Dream's stance in finding it so appalling that George would drink straight from the carton, he didn't seem to find it gross when George would drink from his glass. Again, didn't really make sense to George, but he was getting his two sips of orange juice every morning, so he had no reason to complain.

Well, that was until this morning.

George woke up, shuffling his way into the kitchen, still feeling half- no, three-quarters asleep. He made his way towards the spot where Dream stood every morning, scrolling his phone and drinking a glass of orange juice, leaning against the counter in front of the sink.

George reached out for the glass on the counter, only for Dream to grab it before he could. George stared up at Dream for a minute, waiting for him to take his sip and then hand over the cup like he had every other morning this week.

Dream squinted his eyes at George, holding the cup closer to his chest, as if he were protecting it like a small child.

"What are you doing?" George finally asked through a yawn, bringing up one hand to rub his eye.

"Guarding my orange juice." Dream glared, taking a small sip with theatrics George couldn't be bothered to entertain at nine in the morning.

"Can I have my usual sip of your orange juice?" George asked sarcastically, crossing his arms over his chest. Dream never cared before, what had gotten into him this morning?

"No." He answered simply, genuinely taking George by surprise. Dream caught a glimpse of George's expression, letting out a half-laugh half-scoff. "You're looking at me like I've done something illegal."

"Why can't I just-"

"You come out here every morning, shuffling like a zombie, and steal a few sips of my drink. What do I get out of this?" Dream finally set down his phone. He took another sip of the juice slowly, watching George's eyes track every movement of the glass.

"You get less dishes. Would you rather I dirty an extra cup every morning getting my own glass for such a small amount?" George asked, genuinely confused. Dream must've interpreted his question as much more snarky than George intended, earning another scoff from Dream.

"You could do your own dishes, then it wouldn't matter how many cups you dirtied." Dream shrugged, finishing all but a small amount of the drink, the exact amount George normally drank.

"Fine. What do you want in exchange for me taking a sip?" George asked, uncrossing his arms and putting his hands on his hips.

"A hug." Dream answered instantly, the smile growing on his face looking nothing less than smug. George stared at him blankly, waiting for a 'just kidding' or Dream to follow up with what he actually wanted.