Repeat Until You Love Me - DreamNotFound

~10~

"Come and get me, Dream!" George teased, expertly skating out of Clay's reach.

"How are you so fast?" Clay asked.

George continued laughing. "It's not my fault you're so bad!"

Clay frowned playfully. "All right, that's it." He skated over to the wall of his house and pushed off as hard as possible, crashing directly into the older boy.

"Ow! Dream!" George exclaimed as he fell backward, his continuous laughter proving that he wasn't actually hurt or upset.

"That's what you get for calling me bad!" Clay teased, grinning down at the boy beneath him.

George smiled up at Clay, taking note of their positions. It wasn't the first time they'd fallen like this; in fact, the first time had been the day George realized his feelings for the other boy. But despite the repetition, the moments were still special, as if they were fresh and new.

He couldn't help but wonder: if he told Clay about his feelings, how would he respond? Would he push him away, rejecting his friendship along with his love? Would he take it as a joke, the same as any time they flirted on stream?

Or would he say he felt the same?

As Clay took his hand to help him off the ground, he decided that he might as well try. If Clay didn't feel the same, he wouldn't remember it anyway, and George could spend as long as he needed to recover from the heartbreak. If he did, they wouldn't be able to be in a proper relationship, unfortunately, but it might at least open up some new and interesting interactions between them.

"Hey, Dream? There's, um... there's something I need to tell you," George said hesitantly.

"Yeah? What's up?"

"Well..." George looked away. He didn't think he could meet Clay's eyes while saying this. "We've been friends for a long time, and I've loved every second of it."

Clay smiled. "George.."

"And today especially has been amazing," George continued. Whatever Clay had to say could wait, this was important. "I really like spending time with you, no cameras anywhere, just the two of us."

"George."

"And recently, I realized that I- I..!"

"George!" Clay put his finger on George's lips. "Shh..." he whispered before moving his hand to cup George's cheek and leaning in.

George's eyes widened when he realized what was happening, then fluttered shut as their lips met. He brought his arms up over Clay's shoulders, allowing his fingers to tangle in the taller boy's hair.

They pulled apart after a minute, both in need of air. The two stared at each other until Clay spoke.

"Sorry about that, I just had to do that. What were you saying?"

George laughed and pulled Clay downward into another kiss. He could kiss him all night, not even breaking apart to breathe. Nothing mattered as long as they were together.

The moment was cut short as a raindrop fell, hitting George directly on the head. The two boys stopped kissing to look up at the sky, where plenty of clouds were present under the night sky.

"Typical Florida," Clay joked as more rain began to fall. "We'd better head inside, water isn't very good for skates. Besides, I don't particularly want to get soaked right now."

George nodded, taking Clay's hand as they skated back into the garage together. He was frowning slightly, lost in thought. He didn't remember it raining before, though it was possible they just went inside earlier. All the same, it was strange.

——

George sat in front of the window, staring out at the sky. The rain had stopped hours ago, and now the sunrise was just visible on the horizon.

"George?" Clay called softly. "Why are you still up? It's almost 5:30, and you're jetlagged. We need to go to sleep." He sat next to George, putting his arm around his shoulders.

"No," George protested, nuzzling into Clay. Florida was four hours behind England, meaning it was 9:30 there. The loop caused him to wake at about 15:00 every day. "Still have 5 hours till I wake up. Wanna stay up with you."

Clay gave a confused smile, dismissing George's mumbles as sleep-deprived nonsense. "All right, I guess we can stay out here a little longer."

The two watched the sunset together, both filled with joy from that day's development, but George's happiness was also mixed with sadness. "I'm gonna miss you," he said.

"What? George, I'm not going anywhere."

George sighed. "Yeah."

There was silence for a minute, followed by soft snores from George, who had fallen asleep. Clay smiled and kissed George's forehead before carrying him over to the bed, where they snuggled into each other. Given how much Clay tended to shift in his sleep, it was unlikely that they'd still be in that position the next morning, but it was nice while it lasted.