Dream Simulator {Discontinued}

CHAPTER 28 - Midnight Worries

"Shit. Shit, Sunto. I don't know what the hell to do."

"Just stay calm and go home. There's nothing else you can do. The tests are tomorrow."

A pair of hands roughly grabbed the collar of his muscle tee, harshly pulling him towards the nice smell of fresh rain. Warmth seeped through his shirt and spread to his clavicle, making goosebumps erupt on his arms. He wanted to kick himself, knowing how visible those bumps on his arms were, thanks to his shirt.

"I can't stay calm. I'm. Freaking. The. Hell. Out."

Good, Sunto thought to himself. They're too preoccupied to see.

He gripped the wrists of those strong hands, only to make sure that they wouldn't try anything dangerous like punching him in the face. He had a million things to worry about and do, and a bloody nose was at the bottom of the list.

"Take my advice, Clarke. You need a good night's rest. You're not supposed to be out at this hour, and god forbid, down here."

"I can't sleep. Why do you think I came here, Sunto? I need to get the hell out of that place. Out of Society. It's absolute torture."

Shaking his head he leaned back, feeling his cheeks starting to warm up. Being this close to somebody like them made him almost afraid. "Why would you come here though? There's nothing left here. Nothing left for you or me. This," he gestured around the crowded workshop where they stood so close in, "This place is garbage. Not the place to get away from Society."

A groan filled the stuffy air, and his clavicle felt cold as the hands fell limp. "What do you want me to do? Stay up th-?"

"Yes."

Grey eyes filled with annoyance met his. "Yes? So you'd rather I didn't come here at all?"

The thought of never seeing Micah and Arabelle pained him to the core, sending a dull ache throughout his heart. He needed the both more than they'd ever know. If they weren't still here, he'd have bought himself a one way ticket out of Eden.

"That's not..." he trailed off, "Not what I meant."

"Then what did you mean?"

He clenched his fists, immediately feeling angry. He hated it when people spoke to him that way; like he was some sort of child throwing a fit. He hated the way they had a low growl in their voice, or how they emphasised words in one sentence as if he were too stupid to understand it normally.

Without even thinking about it, his instincts came to life as he roughly grabbed his fellow vendor's arm, pulling them in so close that the tips of their noses almost touched.

"I'm going to say this for the last damn time," Sunto scowled. "Of course I want you coming here, just not at night. Not when they're watching you the most."

"They're always watching me, Sunto. Every move I make, every breath I take, they see it all."

"No, they don't. When you're up there, that's when they watch you. That's when you belong to them. But when you're down here, you're almost free. There's nobody ever watching you."

"Except for you."

The words caught in his throat as he agreed "Except for me."

"So I'm not exactly free."

"Not really, no," Sunto said, his brain registering their words.

A sad look drowned out all of the annoyance, turning those grey eyes dark as storm clouds. "You'll have to show us one day what freedom looks like. I know you've seen it."

It was his turn as sadness washed over his fury like a massive wave, submerging it completely. After all of the years that came and went, he could still taste freedom. He could still imagine it in an arm's reach, and at the moment, it was.

He wrapped an arm around the small waist of his fellow vendor and kissed their soft lips with every single last hope he still had inside.

"I can't show you," he murmured in between kisses, "Just yet. But I can tell you."

"I'd like that. I need to hear about it just once, before I die." Then those strong arms wrapped around his sweaty neck as those gentle lips kissed him right back.