ORPHANED

:: nineteen ::

nothing was said after that. dream didn't mind silence, he usually filled it when he was with george. it didn't feel appropriate for him to speak, even if he'd get no response from the other. so they sat across from eachother, dream terribly resisting the urge to look up at the older. george accidentally kicking dream in the legs. both of them frowning.

the train stopped, bright lights tearing through the gentle darkness that fell over the duo. dream squinted his eyes, george was first to leave the booth. he made quick work of exiting dream's presence. when dream stepped off the train, clutching his skateboard, he didn't expect to see george waiting for him.

they walked together still no words spoken between them, despite the millions of words that flew through their brains. none of the words made it far enough to be voiced, only lingering on the tips of their tongues. dream wished he wasn't so stubborn.

the pavement they were walking down at the moment was the very same pavement dream skated, the day bad informed him he got the job. the day his life completely flipped in just a matter of hours. if you would've told that dream, who had been on his way to visit sapnap, that he'd be walking down that same path late into the night with a boy who made him warm on the inside, to be honest he'd probably think you were crazy.

the breeze set in quicker than he expected. the train having protected them from the cold of the outside for so long. he felt a shiver tangle into his spine and turned to watch as george shuddered at the wind.

"sorry, i didn't bring a sweatshirt today." despite having spoken when it didn't feel right, george still turned to smile at him.

"it's okay. it's only a little cold." they turned back to the cement in front of them. "what if i get on your back?"

dream tried to hide the smile that materialized out of nowhere. he removed his bag.

"it wouldn't hurt to try." when george had disappeared behind him dream let the smile wonder. he would've asked himself, if he hadn't been worrying he wasn't on good terms with george. immediately the warmth of george's chest pressed into dream's spine. he held up georges thighs, gently gripping the muscle to direct heat.

"better?" dream couldn't help but ask.

"yeah."

so dream continued the walk. silence fell over them again. it made the younger antsy.

"do you want to listen to music?" he pulled his phone out of his pocket along with his headphones. a nod was felt pressed into his right shoulder blade. he handed the left bud to george and took the right one for himself. he'd be embarrassed about his playlist if he wasn't just using the music to fill the still.

dream felt george rest his head on his shoulder.

**

the walk to The Grind was much easier with the aid of george's body heat and a little music. before dream let george down he walked him a little farther home.

"that party isn't going to be nearly as fun without you."

he let george slide off his back. when george appeared in front of him, he pulled him in for a hug.

"i hope you feel better tomorrow." dream rested his head on top of george's feeling as his arms wrapped around the other. when george pulled away, dream pressed a kiss to the top of his head. george simply let dream's arms linger longer around his frame. both of them took a deep breath.

the older began walking off in the direction of his house, dream slid his bag back around his shoulders. he waited for george to get far enough away for him to skate home himself.

although he was panicked about the silence that felt unnatural between them, the day wasn't completely spoiled. he got on his board and began his journey home. putting his earbuds in and listening to the songs left unlisted to. he shot a text to sapnap letting him know he just dropped off george and he was on his way home now.

with the phone sitting in his hand dream couldn't help but open his photos. there, sitting among pictures of his cat and screenshots of dumb conversations himself and sapnap shared, was a picture of george.

the picture was beautiful. the pink on george's cheeks was visible. his neck open to the world around him, his collarbone peeking through the shirt. the shirt that was too big for him draped his shoulders in a way that made him look so relaxed. his arms rested beside him, both palms facing the sky, fingers lightly curled among each other.

the best part of the picture was the fact that he had caught it when george had turned to face him. the mans eyes reflecting the early orange of the sunrise that sat behind dream. his eyelashes long and dark, his lips full and pink. his cheekbones sat high on his face, completing the beauty of the man. george could be a model.

except dream didn't want george to be a model, he wanted to keep george his secret. if he were to be taken by a modeling agency, who knew when he'd next get to spend time with the man. dream pressed a finger to lips. george was comfort. dream didn't think he'd be able to deal with sapnap and karl without george to help calm them down.

he didn't know george for very long, no. but he felt himself pull towards george in a way he could describe himself. george was magical, in a way dream had never seen in anybody before, a way he'd never felt. the picture loitered in his brain long after he tucked his phone back into his pocket. george would not be able to get rid of him that easily. dream wouldn't allow it.

a smile returned to the blonde's face.

—

'to fill the still' band name called it