NatePat One-Shots

Spiral

Think of the world as a Spiral Galaxy...

The galaxy has four to five tendrils composed of gas, dust, stars, and planets. We, as the smallest beings, live on only one of millions of different planets out there. Everything moved slowly in a circle, night and day, dusk and dawn, only we cannot quite perceive the spiral. Earth resides in one of the four to five tendrils of the Milky Way, the remaining few are home to many other stars and planets we have yet to discover. Dreams work the same way, moving in a circle but as a much faster pace than we're used to. Seconds in a dream could be hours in reality, plus there's little time for you to react quick enough. Nathan was first created in a dream, he was only a thought then, and he was in a sea of sparkling matter that twisted and changed around him. He knew nothing but his name and that seemed logical to him, for he was only a dream, yet he always wondered who he was on a much deeper level. Nathan spent his days and nights in someone else's mind, watching the many concepts learned, catching sight of crushes or human interactions, and soon his home changed from space to pink, fluffy clouds. Soothing music calmed Nathan's body and he found himself closing his eyes, planning on taking a small nap which eventually led to a full day's sleep.
Only, when he woke up, someone else had joined him.
He stood there and stared off into the distant sky, his body relaxed and his eyes clear. Nathan sized him up and found that he wasn't that much shorter than him, he also seemed to be smiling quite a bit. Within seconds the area around them shifted once again, the sun and the moon sinking into the horizon to form an eternal dusk day, the colors remaining dark orange and red. This person, this thought, finally made eye contact with Nathan and he was taken aback. His eyes were far from clear, they were glazed over with a cloudy whiteness, only faintly showing a hint of his real eye color. He looked Nathan in the eyes, took in a small breath, and opened his mouth to speak.

"You are Nathan, yes?"

The jingling of a bell could be heard in the distance, but Nathan could only nod in return.

"I thought so, my name is Matthew."

Without anything else to say, Nathan offered a nervous smile and stood up. The cotton candy clouds swirled around his feet as he walked, getting closer and closer to Matthew with each step until stopping a few paces in front of him.

"Why are you here?" Nathan asked.

"I am but a thought, why else would I be here?" Matthew answered.

For years, light-years, they would meet and talk about everything. Matthew would never let Nathan come any closer, claiming that he liked his personal space. The ebony had laughed at the unintentional pun but noticed how solemn Matthew looked, as if there was an underlying feeling of guilt behind his clouded eyes. Nathan wanted to ask why they looked like that but thought better of it, he didn't want to be rude, who was he to inquire about someone's problems? One day, Matthew mentioned morphing the world around them.

"But we are only thoughts," Nathan pointed out, "how can we change this place?"

"Thoughts can lead to smaller thoughts," Matthew explained. "Give it form and see the possibilities."

To demonstrate, Matthew grabbed a handful of pink clouds and sifted it through his fingers. Slowly, very slowly, the clouds solidified into a smooth sphere, soon parts of the sphere sprang to life with spiral arms. Nathan watched in fascination as the tiny galaxy gained more color and detail, making it seem like a real object in space. Matthew blew on it and it started to spin.

"Gas, dust, and stars are easy to think about." He smiled coyly.

"Could you make a person?" Nathan asked.

Matthew took a long time to answer as he eyes focused on the galaxy he held in his hand, fingers twitching a bit in thought as he sucked in a breath.

"No, it would put too much strain on your mind. The weaving wouldn't hold. Within a few minutes they'd turn back into clouds." Matthew glanced at Nathan and frowned.

Nathan never asked about it again, the subject was dropped and he was okay with it. He understood the amount of concentration needed to create a functioning being, if they were made out of real human tissue then the aftermath would be more gruesome. With a sigh he leaned into the clouds and watched the sky, still pondering why it was dusk day and not morning or night. Matthew's gaze lingered on him but he didn't turn his head, simply laying down beside him and watching the sky.

"One day, we will cease to exist." His voice was soft and disheartened.

"I am aware, are you concerned?" Nathan whispered.

"I am, more than I should be..." Matthew flipped onto his side and looked at Nathan.

"Why is that?" Nathan replied, turning to face Matthew.

Before he could answer, the sky erupted with blackness, stars shining brightly as the clouds turned from light pink to light purple. The moon, shining brightly and casting a beautiful glow, seemed almost younger than on Earth.

"Because I want to be with you for much longer." Matthew whispered.

"What?" Nathan asked, embarrassed.

"I told myself it couldn't be done, I had to let you go. There's a reason why I cannot allow myself to get close to you, Nathan." Matthew wiped his eyes, biting his lip to keep from sobbing.

"Matthew..." Nathan reached out to him.

His hand stopped as he felt an odd sensation in his fingertips, his hand wouldn't move any farther. A liquid substance pushed his hand back, the sheer force causing Nathan to flinch in alarm. Matthew didn't say anything and say up, fully facing Nathan on his knees.

"I am not part of your world, Nathan. My galaxy is far less than yours. I cannot..." Matthew placed his hands on the barrier and angled his head down.

"Matthew," Nathan placed his hands over his, "look at me."

He did, slowly.

"You are all that I need, I would rather give my life than lose you. Matthew, I want you to stay with me!" Nathan felt small tears trail down his face as Matthew sobbed.

The barrier rippled as they shared a kiss, even if their lips weren't physically touching it felt like a supernova had gone off.

"Is there nothing I can do? Could I bring you here?" Nathan panted, overcome with emotion.

"Not without injuring me or completely destroying my physical being, I cannot be done." Matthew got as close as he could.

So, in that moment, they were bound to each other by gravity. They could not be without each other and they could not comprehend what was to come, locked in their limited embrace.