right where you left me

chapter five

Present Day

George would give anything to crawl out of his skin and run away forever. He envisions the ground opening beneath him, or the sky suddenly falling and crushing him into a speck on the ground. Everything inside him is building up— all he wants is to be alone.

There's a shaking in his leg that just won't leave. Even now, as he's sat surrounded by faces that are too welcoming, and voices that are too polite, George can't seem to focus on anything. It's embarrassing, to say the least. He's sure it's noticeable by the quick and 'covert' glances away from eye contact, which always ensure another barrage of 'Is there anything else you need?' and 'We really are glad you're back, George,' from his friends.

He wants to be grateful. He's been granted— or has granted— another chance. Yet there are alarm bells chiming in his head at every second, and the stuffy feeling in his chest hasn't been experienced in three years. George feels trapped, and he's quickly begun to regret agreeing to stay.

Karl's dinner is slightly burnt, and by the anxious look on his face, George realizes it might've been because of his departure. The man hasn't stopped floating around the Brit ever since he returned. He appreciates the care, but it's starting to get on his nerves. Sapnap is the same, making a point to converse with George the most. He cracks jokes loudly, and laughs even harder when George retaliates— even if what he's saying isn't all that funny.

Dream, well... Dream is keeping to himself, George notices. He's brooding while he eats, eyes strictly down at the plate in front of him. He hasn't said a word to George the moment they passed the threshold. George doesn't know whether or not he appreciates it.

Even worse than all of them though, might be Quackity. His 'tending' is in a silent, observing way. It's done in raised eyebrows and nice smiles; in making sure George is served first, given what he wants, spoken to the smoothest. It's nice, don't get him wrong, but it seems like his debt is starting to stack higher as each hour passes.

They finally finish eating, a little too slow for George. Dream is the first to leave, and they all watch as he practically marches out of the room. He can't hold in the sigh that escapes his mouth. He turns back, meeting the cautious eyes of his friends. "You guys don't have another room, do you?"

"You can sleep with Alex, if you'd like," Karl offers. "Or he can take the couch— whatever works for the both of you."

George doesn't particularly want to sleep on the couch, and by the poorly-hidden grimace, neither does Quackity. "I'm fine with sharing."

And so, sleeping arrangements were made. Another thing done at George's command. He fears it does more damage to him than good.

Quackity's bedroom is on the second floor, much farther than the guest room that resided on the first story. There were more decorations in this one, proof of a regular inhabitant. Various photo frames were placed on any surface they could fit on— moments captured from childhood and adult age, friends and family gleaming in each picture. Despite the frames littered around, the room itself was kept neatly. It was organized in a cluttered way, momentos placed in each corner, yet each one was perfectly straight and clean.

"How much do you miss Mexico?" George finds himself asking. His voice is small and shy as if he were a kid being shown something new. His eyes flutter across every nook and cranny, unable to stop himself from inspecting a new area.

"I miss my family dearly," Quackity says. "And my friends, of course. But I still visit often. I think I miss the country only in its essence— people are more important than houses."

"Have you ever missed someone as you're talking to them?"

Quackity frowns. "What do you mean?" To be truthful, George doesn't know what he means. His mind dwells back to a mere few hours ago, to a car ride through the brittle winter, to appeasement of another's wishes. He thinks about the tremor in Dream's voice as he begged George to stay. The look in his green eyes as he raised the prospect of dependency to not just on Dream, but on the rest of the group. There was a part of George that didn't want to depend on all four of them.