Once Upon A Dream (A DreamNotFound Fanfiction)

Chapter 16: Mask

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Morning came too quickly. As the boys woke up, the events that happened last night were still fresh for them. It was as if they closed their eyes for only five minutes. They woke up quite early. They wanted to go back to sleep but they all had skipped dinner last night. Their stomachs were complaining so they headed downstairs to find food.

Dream arrived in the kitchen first and he began to cook pancakes. George and Nick followed soon after a couple of minutes. But as the two settled on their seats, their sleepy eyes were awoken as it landed on Dream. The two stared at the blond man in confusion. Dream didn't say a word as he served the other two their plate of pancakes. Then he proceeded to join them on the table.

"Good morning. Let's eat." Dream casually said as he slightly lifted his mask to reveal only his mouth. Then he began to eat his pancakes.

Dream was wearing a mask.

"Okay. What is going on?" Nick finally addressed the elephant in the room.

"Hm? What do you mean?" Dream questioned while chewing his food.

"Dream, you know what I'm talking about."

"Oh, my mask." Then Dream pointed at his mask. It was just a plain round mask with a smiley face on it. It was like the blob on his Minecraft skin. "I was thinking about my face reveal. I mean I don't want to show my face just yet. I just thought maybe I would tease my fans a bit."

Lies.

"Really? That's it?" George asked. He knew there was more to it.

"Yeah." Dream just returned to eating his pancakes.

Lies!

"Dude, are you really sure about that?" Nick pushed further. He must admit, he was getting worried. He also knew that Dream was doing this for something else.

But the blond guy just laughed. "Yes, I am sure, Sapnap. I just wanted to get used to it before I actually do it on stream."

LIES!

The other two looked at each other, unconvinced at what Dream said. But they both decided to say nothing for now and began to eat their pancakes. This morning was weird. The entire day, Dream wore his mask everywhere. He was in the house all day but he still wore the mask. He never took it off. Nick and George questioned him again to make sure everything was okay. Again, Dream just made excuses. The other two questioned Dream again a couple more times, but they were always given the same excuse. They decided to let it go for a while. They thought that maybe Dream would stop his shenanigans the next day.

The next day came but Dream still wore the mask. And then the next, and the next, and the next. Okay, now Nick and George knew something was wrong.

"Dream, please. Just honestly tell me why do you have to wear that mask all the time?" Nick questioned. There he was talking to Dream who still wore his mask. The two were alone in Dream's room.

Dream sighed. "You know why, Nick"

The dark-haired boy sighed at Dream. "Dream, that is just stupid. George doesn't hate your face."

"Well, you were there too, Nick. You heard him." The blond said. "And we both know it did mean something when he said it."

"That was just at the heat of the moment, Dream. You have to understand." Nick explained. "He misses the old Clay, yes. And you have his face, yes. But that doesn't mean he hates to see your face. In fact, it just means that he loves your face. He loved the old Clay, and even when you lost your memories, he still loves you anyway."

The tall man sighed again. "But the more he sees my face, the more he misses the old me. And the more he is hurt. And I can't help but feel guilty about it."

Nick's eyes showed sympathy as he placed a hand on the other man's shoulder. "It's not your fault, Dream."

"I'm sorry, Nick. I know you just want the best for both of us. But this is what I want, okay?" Dream turned his head away from Nick.

Nick just frowned and decided to let Dream have his way. "It would be better if you show your face though. George wouldn't want this."

Then Nick went out of Dream's room. As he closed the door, Nick got lost in his thoughts that he failed to notice the older boy in front of him. He flinched once he realized that George was standing right outside the door. Their eyes met.

"George..." Nick began. "Umm... How much did you hear?"

George lowered his head and sighed. "Everything, Nick."

The dark-haired boy put on a weak smile and hugged George. George hugged back. After a few seconds, they broke away.

"Dream is okay, buddy." Nick smiled as he tried to comfort George. "I think he just needs more time to think this through."

"You may be right. But I know it's my fault, Nick." George said as he looked away. "I regretted those words, but I said it. I said it and it can't be taken back."

Nick frowned. "George..."

"No, it's okay Nick. Well, not okay. But I want to fix this." George finally lifted his eyes to look at Nick properly. A small smile formed on his lips. "I'll try to talk to him. And don't worry! This time, I'll make sure not to let my emotions get the better of me. I promise. You don't have to go through all of that shit again."

Nick weakly chuckled. Then he held his pink finger up. "Pinky promise?"

George smiled warmly at him as he took hold of Nick's pinky finger with his own. "Pinky promise."

Nick chuckled once more as the atmosphere lifted into something warm. The stormy clouds are still there, but the shade isn't so bad.

"But before that. I'll have to go out and get something." George said. "Do you have any plans?"

"Actually... Karl just invited me to go play at the arcade." Nick confessed. Then a big bright smile crept on his face. This warmed George's heart.

"I can drive you there." George offered.

"Sounds good! Let me prepare real quick." Then Nick turned around and headed to his room.

George sighed once more and turned to face Dream's door. He knocked. But before he could receive an answer, he spoke, "Hey, Dream! I'm going out for a bit and Sapnap has a date. I think he would be out late today. If you have anything you want, just text me."

Then George proceeded to prepare to go out. Soon, George and Nick said their goodbyes to Dream and went out. Little did they know what was going on inside Dream's head. Dream sat there on his bed in silence. His emerald eyes stared at the mask in his hands. His blond hair was a mess. He hasn't been taking care of himself lately. His lips were chapped and he looked pale. There were bags under his eyes and his eyebrows seemed to be stuck furrowing.

He may never say it out loud, but the past few weeks have got to him. He tried to adjust to his new memory-less life, but couldn't. All he has been experiencing were just downhills. He just kept tumbling down. He was so tired. He was so, so, so tired. A heavy sigh escaped from his lips.

Vague memories ran through his head. All he could remember was the three of them were best friends. He remembers how Nick was usually outgoing and dramatic. He remembers how George was timid and easy to be teased. He remembers how the three of them would spend all day playing Minecraft, just laughing and fooling around. He remembers how they would make stupid jokes, prank each other, doing all sorts of crazy things, talking 'till 3 A.M, and just having fun. Dream missed those days. He missed those days were all his worries were just his career and bills to pay.

Then suddenly, a teardrop hit the mask. Dream's hand trembled as he couldn't stop the tears from coming out. He felt left out. It was as if he traveled back to the past only to find out his friends were so ahead in the future. He felt so alone. Then he just let the tears fall.

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1400+ Words