I'm Not Tired (Please Let Me Sleep)

Chapter eight

Tommy sat the box down on the floor, groaning as he wiped the sweat off his forehead.

His new apartment was...something. On the top floor with a single bedroom and then some weird conjoined room which acted as both kitchen and living room. It was definitely smaller than his old apartment and he'd have to get used to the incredibly small bathroom over time but he was grateful.

When he'd left the base a week ago (read: when the Syndicate had dropped him off on some random road to make sure he doesn't remember the way to their base, as if he'd care about that), he made his way back to his old apartment. He didn't even get to go inside the lobby, police officers were already stationed everywhere, questioning whoever came and went. When he'd taken a peek down the hallway where his front door was, he saw multiple officers coming out of his flat, holding some of his old belongings in his hand and talking to each other. And then Dream, or rather Insomnia, stepped out of his flat and his brain had immediately short-circuited.

Safe to say he booked it the first chance he got.

It was by pure accident that he met the Blood God the day after that. Since his apartment got literally raided by police and Dream and he couldn't return to his job looking like this Wilbur sod who he'd kind of stolen the appearance of, Tommy simply roamed the streets, scouting for an alleyway he could stay in. It was dark already when he returned to the alley he'd decided to spend the night in when it was still bright. He'd found a jacket that someone had left on a chair in front of a coffee shop. Tommy didn't think about whether the person was just off to pay or actually forgot it, he simply took it and walked it off like the jacket belonged to him.

When he'd entered the alley, grumbling to himself how unfair everything was, he was greeted by pained groans and then something slammed into his body, throwing him to the ground. He heard the growling first and then blinked up at the glowing red eyes in confusion. Tommy recognised the creature immediately, it wasn't Steve since it didn't have the weird white spot on its nose but it was undeniably one of Blood God's shadow hounds.

The growling stopped soon after, the creature no longer fletching its teeth and instead rubbed its head against his cheek. If it wasn't for the fact that he'd kind of gotten used to that now, the sudden change in attitude would've given him whiplash.

Another pained groan had him worry briefly and then it suddenly cut off, the sound of something hitting the ground followed. Then the Blood God appeared over him, parts of his white skull mask had red bits on it. A blood splatter, Tommy realised. When he peeked past the creature, which had chosen to literally lay itself completely on Tommy's chest, therefore keeping the blonde-turned-brunette from getting up, he spotted the body of someone dressed in a costume.

He swallowed and then looked up at the villain who had noticed the look.

"They're not dead," he shrugged, whistling sharply and the creature got up from his chest, "just knocked out. A warning."

"Do I want to know what they did to deserve such a warning?" Tommy asked, hauling himself to his feet and dusting off the jacket, pointedly not looking in the direction of the apparently not-dead person.

"They came to us to ask for help in taking the Wastaken kid out. Had to make it clear that we take care of that matter."

The body likely belonged to a fellow villain then.

Tommy grimaced at the way the villain had phrased it. It was weird hearing them talk about him in the third person as if he didn't literally stood in front of him. He knew that their version of taking care of the Wastaken kid meant literally taking care of him in a way. Protecting him, their extended favour for the information he'd given them on Dream. Though, hearing them talk so nonchalantly about it made something uneasy settle in his gut. It was also incredibly weird how he wasn't addressed directly despite being the one talked about. Tommy knew why, he wasn't stupid. It was another way of their weird protection. If someone were to overhear their conversation and then link his new appearance to the fact that the Blood God had used you instead of the Wastaken kid his cover would be blown.