Passing Notes

Chapter 9: unexpected encounter

A/N I have an insta now! PencilAndPenz 

Dream had reached the door of the cottage. The lights were off in the treehouse, but it was very clear there was a lot of hustle and bustle in the cottage itself. He took a deep breath; he could do this. He had always wanted a neighbor, but he just hoped they were nice. Reaching up, he shakily pressed the doorbell in. Almost immediately the door was opened.

On the other side stood a skeleton girl, who appeared to be about his age. She was a bit taller than him, and wore punk outfits to the level he wasn't sure whether or not he should fear for his life. She had a short bob haircut, completely made of shifting water. Instead of being light and clear like the lake nearby, it was dark and foreboding like the waves in a violent storm. She scanned him up and down before speaking in a surprisingly low voice.

"Can I help you or something? Am I supposed to know you?"
Dream gulped. This was NOT turning out like he'd planned. He nervously began to introduce himself.

"Hi, my name's Dream. I'm the... I'm your neighbor!"
He smiled shakily. Before the moody girl could respond, another skeleton shoved her out of the way. She glared at her before turning to face dream. This girl was taller than the last, and had hair down to her shoulders in a perfectly straight cut. It appeared to be made out of shadows or some form of darkness. Her eyes were sharp, and pierced through Dream's soul. She wore a leather jacket, black jeans, and a band tee. She groaned.

"I am so sorry! Tsu here just has absolutely no manners. We don't even live here, we're just visiting some friends. I'll get the actual neighbors."

As she turned around and shouted something into the house, Dream couldn't help but feel overwhelmed at the sheer amount of chaos he had been met with at this house. He was pretty sure the actual neighbor might be weirder.

A human girl answered the door and smiled. She seemed like a perfectly normal and rational person, for which Dream was endlessly grateful.
"Hello there! I'm Blossom; I'll be one of your two neighbors. Sorry about my friends here, they just wanted to check in on the actual owner of the house. I'm kind of a caretaker and friend that fell into an unfortunate situation. Then again, I doubt any highschooler should live alone in a big treehouse."
Dream perked up at this. Not only was one of his actual neighbors pretty sweet, the other was apparently a teenager in high school, just like him! He couldn't help but wonder what grade they were in. He never got to meet new students since his class was based on monster race.

"Could I maybe meet them? I attend the local highschool, and it might be beneficial for them to have someone to walk to school with!"
Blossom smiled and nodded. It seemed she quite liked the idea. She gestured to the shadowy skeleton, who nodded and went off to get someone. Blossom turned back around and opened the door wider.

"Please, come in. It's rude of us to keep you on the porch for so long. I promise nobody will bother you here."
Dream nodded and nervously stepped in. He didn't want to refuse the hospitality of this kind woman, but he couldn't help but feel on edge. The house felt like the floor was bound to open up and swallow him alive any second. He really hoped that these people weren't just some killers on the run. Sitting down on a couch, he nervously awaited the arrival of his schoolmate.

The shadowy girl was almost dragging someone over.

Dream squinted; something about her was oddly familiar. A silky pink kimono sleeve with blue flowers trailing up the arms. It clicked in his head. He'd seen that exact same sleeve just about half an hour prior.

"Dawn? Is that you?"
He desperately hoped he was correct. If he was wrong, he might have to move in with Ink or Blue so he never had to face them again. The person being pulled along quickly jolted over to investigate. The girl dragging her nearly got toppled over from the change in momentum. There, standing in front of Dream was the new girl, Dawn. He had become loose friends with her, thanks to Ink practically kidnapping her from her spot on the bleachers.

She grinned upon seeing him. She hadn't expected to see her new friend again so soon, and she was internally bouncing off the walls. Dawn hadn't really made a lot of friends since her initial group of friends that she had been with since childhood. Needless to say, it was a pleasant surprise.

"Dream! What are you doing here? I mean, it's a pleasant surprise but I wasn't expecting to see you again today!"
Dream sighed in relief. His new neighbor was a friend from school, and he hadn't guessed their identity incorrectly. He definitely felt a lot more comfortable knowing that these people were friends with someone as sweet as Dawn.

"I just came to introduce myself to my new neighbor; I had no idea it was you! I live up in that annoyingly large house on the hill. We should totally walk to school together!"
Dream did not think to mention Nightmare. He had completely forgotten that Dawn was new and had no way of knowing they were siblings since they acted and looked so different. That would be a whole new surprise for both Nightmare and Dawn when they started their trek to school the next day; but all of that is in the future. Dawn smiled back, very excited about the prospect of having a friend to walk with to and from school. It made her feel a lot better about her mornings.

"Yes! Sorry, I'm a bit excited. I haven't really walked to school with anyone in forever. Not of my free will anyway."
Dream felt concerned about the second part, but he could tell she didn't really want to talk about it. He would just have to wait until he and Dawn became better friends. He had a feeling she would open up to him eventually, just as Cross had.

Dawn glanced back to her friends. She wanted to introduce them to Dream, but she had a feeling if she did it now the poor guy would get interrogated. She loved her friends but she wished they weren't so overprotective. They had very valid reasons, but that didn't make it any less frustrating.

Dream felt his phone buzz, realizing it was a text from his brother. Noticing the time, he remembered that he had promised to make dinner for them tonight a few days ago. He excused himself and bid farewell to Dawn. Waving until he was out of sight, she dejectedly headed back inside.

There, two of her friends stared at her silently. She knew that it was time to start explaining about her making friends and how they were good people before her friends chewed her imaginary ears off.

"Guys, it's different this time. Trust me."