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He moved his hands through his hair in frustration, still blatantly refusing to reply or even turn to face the other. He silently prayed that, eventually, the other would get bored of trying to make small talk with the blond teen.
Of course, that was all wishful thinking.
If anything, Dream's attempts were getting more intense. More desperate.
"Come ooooooon, Tommy!" the masked man drawled, "You can't simply lay there silent for the rest of your stay here; you'll have to talk to me at some point."
Now, Tommy is not the best at reading people. In fact, he was quite bad at it. But that doesn't mean that he was clueless - he could definitely hear the desperation in Dream's voice. It almost made him feel bad for his fellow inmate.
Almost.
Dream's groan after a few more minutes of radio silence from Tommy further confirmed the fact that Dream was, in fact, desperate for a conversation with the teen. And, hell, Tommy hated even the sound of the other groaning, which said a lot about how he felt about the other's constant rambling. But if he were to reply to the other in any way, even out of anger, he had no doubt that the other would exploit it, somehow. Dream's proven multiple times that he is more than capable of doing something like that.
And so he kept his mouth shut, and simply stared into the wall of flowing lava - focusing on random patterns and thinking about what each of 'em looks like. He saw one shaped like a snout. It reminded Tommy of Henry. It made him smile lightly.
Another one looked like a flower. It reminded him of bees. Which in turn reminded him of Tubbo. He rolled his eyes at that, his smile turning into a small smirk.
And, then, he spotted a smiling face. It instantly made his face drop, like the smile never existed on his face in the first place. Dream was still mumbling in the background, but Tommy couldn't bring himself to care much.
Or, rather, that was before the inmate decided to move next to him, to pester him from much closer. The other was so close he could basically feel him, and it was too close, too close, too close-
Before his mind could process the information, Tommy had already basically launched himself to a distant corner of the cell, recreating the distance originally between them.
A long moment of silence passed. Tommy enjoyed the fact that he could no longer hear the other - but of course, the moment just had to be ruined.
“Not much has changed, I see,” Dream chuckled, and Tommy could practically hear his smirk behind his cracked mask, “You’re still a coward.”
“‘Ey, dickhead!” Tommy yelled in retaliation instantly, “The fact that I can think rationally and stay as fucking away from you as possible doesn’t make me a coward-”
“You? Thinking ‘rationally’,” amusement laced the other’s voice, and Tommy didn’t like it one bit, “Now, Tommy, you and I both know that this isn’t something that is, well… Possible, by any-”
“You’re literally the last person on this server who can lecture me on what rational thinking is, Dream,” the blonde teen growled at the other, “You have literally managed to get yourself locked up in a prison created by your orders for life.”
“Which, might I add, is quite the accomplishment,” Tommy added with a smirk.
For a few moments, Dream simply stared at him, Tommy staring right back at the emotionless mask. Finally, Dream huffed and crossed his arms, looking away. “Well, fuck you,” he grumbled. No one will blame Tommy for considering this a victory.
Until it wasn’t one.
“Come on, Tommy, you don’t have to be so meaaan,” the older man whined, fucking whined, and Tommy wanted to pummel his face, for fuck’s sake, “We’re friends, aren’t we?”
Tommy instantly froze at that. Memories he wanted to have stayed dead in the deepest chambers of his mind were awoken at those words - memories from his second exile. Normally, the only times he remembered said events was during nightmares, and all he could feel after was just blind panic. But this time, where he was completely, and utterly, awake, all he could feel was boiling anger steaming under his skin. There was a slight tremor evident on his hands now - and Dream noticed, and completely misunderstood what Tommy was actually feeling at that moment.
“I know you remember,” Dream said, taking a few steps closer to the teen, “Don’t you want us to be friends, T-?!”
He was not allowed the time to finish that sentence. His sight instantly blurred as white, hot pain exploded on his left cheek. He cried out in pain, before the front of his shirt was grabbed tightly and he received a shard tag forward. He cracked open his eyes, which he didn’t remember he closed in the first place, groans escaping through his gritted teeth. He quickly went silent, however, when green eyes locked gaze with blue ones.
Tommy was pissed. And that was a severe understatement.
“Listen here, fucker,” Tommy spat at him, “Here’s how my, quite unfortunate, stay in this cell will go.”
“You will leave me the fuck alone, and we’ll both patiently wait for these five, six, or as many fucking days it takes for me to get out of here in silence. Got it?”
“... And why the fuck should I do that?” Dream replied through gritted teeth.
“How has your stay in prison been, Dream?” Tommy asked, seemingly completely ignoring his question - which only made Dream angrier, “Considering how you’re still acting like the bitch-boy you’ve always been, I’d say it’s been very much... bearable.”
“And I know that, even though you oh-so-vehemently deny it, the fact that you get occasional visits from the others has helped you keep it together for the most part - along with the fact that you get to chat with Sam on occasion.” Tommy said, voice uncharacteristically quiet, and yet dripping with venom.
“See, Dream; be it in seven days or be it in fifteen - I know I will get out of here, eventually. And once I am out, I’ll make sure no one on this server visits you again.”
The inmate’s eyes widened slightly behind his half-broken mask, “Y-you can’t fucking do this-”
“Watch me.” Tommy said, before pushing the other back, who struggled to regain his balance before falling.
Once Dream had regained his balance, he stared daggers into the teen, but remained silent. Like before, the other reciprocated the stare. Internally, Tommy smirked. Oh, how the tables have finally fucking turned. He knew what he threatened the other was cruel - he knew how isolation could affect a person. But… He had no reason to feel bad for Dream. No reason to not want to see the other suffer like he- no, worse than how he suffered. After all, the things the green bastard did to Tommy during the exile were just a portion of the things he’s done - not only to him, but everyone else in the server as well.
Hours passed, and Tommy felt himself grow bored. It was to be expected, of course - he had nothing to do other than stare at the lava, which was the equivalent of watching paint dry. Dream had not bothered him at all - he sat by his chest, book in hand, writing… Something. Every so often he could hear the other mumble soft ‘no’s and ‘maybe’s, but other than that, the masked man’s focus was locked onto the book.
Speaking of mask, why the fuck is he still wearing that thing? The left half of the porcelain had completely shattered when Tommy punched him. Tommy’s fist hurt like hell afterwards, but he made sure not to let the other know that. Dream’s face - or, at least, the left side that he could see - didn’t look like anything the teen imagined. Then again, he didn’t even remember what he imagined he looked like in the first place. Except from the green eyes. He was sure that the bastard’s eye color would be green. But the guy in front of him looked… So much less threatening than he is. He has freckles, for fuck’s sake - freckles, and he didn’t even look like he was that older than Tommy himself.
If Tommy didn’t completely and utterly hate the man in question, he’d even go as far as to say that he looked… Cute.
He snorted involuntarily at that thought. The sound was loud enough that it startled the other, who was completely lost in his book. Dream looked up, his gaze meeting Tommy’s, who was still studying his face.
“Wh-what?” Dream asked as he quickly raised to cover the left side of his face as he looked away, cheeks slightly red from embarrassment.
“Nothing, I just realized why you hide your face behind that mask all the time,” Tommy said, before mentally facepalming - he could have certainly worded that better.
Nearly instantly, Dream sharply turned his face towards Tommy, blush deepening. “Wh- The fuck is that supposed to mean?!”
Tommy grinned slightly upon noticing the other’s embarrassment at the mention of his face. Oh, he could use this.
“No offence, Dream, but I don’t think me, or anyone really, would take any of your threats seriously if you weren’t wearing that mask when making them,” Tommy paused for a second, before his grin turned into a smirk, “You just look to cute to be threatening, man.”
Dream didn’t even reply to that. He quickly turned his back at Tommy, as he shoved his hands on his face. Tommy tried and failed to choke the chuckles that escaped him. He has never before seen Dream flustered, and he enjoyed every second of it. Well, it certainly was far better than how he usually acts.
They were back to complete silence after that. Sighing, Tommy lied on his back, staring at the ceiling of the inescapable cell, as he let his mind wander. He thought about various things - including his current situation, what was Tubbo doing now, what was going on with his hotel and Sam Nook… He wasn’t exactly happy he didn’t have answers to those questions, but he couldn’t really do anything about it here.
He looked around the room again, before spotting Dream, eventually. He was still on the same spot he was before, but now he looked like he had curled to himself - knees pulled against his chest, and he was staring at the floor. He was uncharacteristically still and silent for a usually hyperactive individual, and this time, he wasn’t even writing in his book, which laid discarded next to him. Did the comment about him looking cute bother him so much? Tommy shook his head and was about to look away, before the older blonde broke the silence.
“Is…” he started quietly, pausing for a moment, “Is my mask really the only thing that makes the others take me seriously…?”
Oh.
Tommy bit his lip, contemplating apologizing to the other, before deciding against it - he’s said worst before at Tommy, so he should just suck it up- That’s when he hears a sniffle, and it completely derails any and all trains of thought that had formed in his mind. Instantly he shot up, gaze still trained on the other. For a moment he thought he was hearing things - there’s no way Dream would-
Another sniffle. Logically, one could easily assume that, coming from Dream, this was just an act to guild trip Tommy. Of course, Tommy’s thoughts and logic intersecting is quite the rare occurrence, so if this was indeed an act, Dream had already won.
Tommy got up, before walking hesitantly walking over to the curled up individual. He took a second, and then he was kneeling in front of the other, who just now acknowledged that Tommy had moved so close to him and startled as he looked at him. A carefully picked poker face void of emotion met Tommy’s gaze - but his eyes were watery, making the teen wince slightly.
“I- No. No it isn’t.” Tommy blurted out suddenly.
Dream blinked at him for a second, “What-”
“W-We’d always take you seriously big man,” Tommy continued, rubbing his neck sheepishly, before reaching and placing a hand on the other’s shoulder, “Mask or not mask.”
Dream flinched when the other reached to his shoulder, presumably moving to swat the hand away, but hesitated when his mind processed what Tommy said. Tommy, emotion driven as always, acted before thinking and wrapped his arms around the other suddenly, hugging him. Dream instantly froze at that, mind going blank.
“Sorry…” Tommy mumbled lightly.
Dream started shaking slightly within the embrace. It had been so long since he'd received a hug - long before he was even put in prison. Physical contact with another human being was something he’d nearly forgotten how it felt - and he cursed his nature for craving it so fucking bad. His arms quickly shot forward, wrapping around the teen hugging him, grabbing tightly at his back, almost as if he’d disappear if he let go.
He didn’t want that.
He didn’t want to be left all alone in this dark and cold cell again.
They stayed like that for a long while. Neither of them was actually aware of how much time it had been - but neither really wanted to let go anyways. They both needed this, each for different reasons even they themselves weren’t even aware of prior to it happening.
They didn’t speak about it after they broke the embrace.
They stopped glaring daggers at each other all day, however. They started talking a bit more - about random stuff, although mostly stuff currently happening outside. Dream was curious about what the Egg is - he heard about it from Sam once, but he hasn’t had the chance to ask the warden about it. Tommy isn’t particularly happy at the choice of subject, but he shares what he knows about it nonetheless. Dream tried being a bit more open about what certain conversations made him feel, instead of sticking to his usual poker face about everything.
They no longer minded each other’s presence either. Of course, Tommy was still a bit jumpy about it, but that’s not exactly something he can change overnight. They also found that hugging was something that helped them both, so, even though neither would admit it out loud, they would both jump at any opportunity to cuddle with the other.
During their second night (or, they just assumed it was night because it... felt right?) Tommy discovered that, much like himself, Dream is also plagued with nightmares. It wasn’t difficult to deduce really. Tommy was looking in the book chest for an empty book to scribble on to pass the time because he couldn’t sleep, when suddenly Dream shot up from his spot where he was supposed to be sleeping, his breathing rapid and shallow. Tommy quickly moved towards the other to see if he was alright, and when he was in the older’s line of sight, arms had already tightened around him, and Dream’s forehead was pressed against his shoulder.
Tommy could relate, honestly. With wanting to cuddle with someone after experiencing a nightmare, that is.
“Hey, uh,” Tommy started, arms wrapped around the other, “do you… want to talk about it?”
Dream shook his head gently, remaining silent - although he slightly relaxed his grip around the other. Tommy mumbled an ok, and he started playing with the others hair, passing his hand through it. Doing that helped Tommy relax most of the time, so he thought it’d be worth trying it. Note; it was.
The next morning (again, speculation - god, why did Dream have to burn his clock) they woke up like that, neither of them even remembering falling asleep in the first place. Not that they minded, of course. They felt more well-rested than normally.
From that point on, the following days and nights passed like a breeze.
“You suck at naming shit,” Dream said nonchalantly.
“OI, DICKHEAD!” Tommy yelled, “BigInnit is a perfectly fine name, thank you very much.”
“You literally named a building - a fucking building, Tommy - after yourself,” Dream said, chuckling lightly.
“So says the guy who named his server after him,” Tommy replied swiftly.
“... Touche,” Dream mumbled after a few moments of silence, making Tommy laugh aloud.
“Anyways, as I was saying before you oh-so-rudely interrupted me,” Tommy continued, ignoring Dream’s huff of frustration, “I was actually about to open the hotel befo-”
Once again, his narrative was cut off, not by Dream this time, however, but from the sound of the lava retraction mechanism triggering. Both blondes instantly turned to look at the lava curtain in front of their shared cell, which after a few moments, lowered. On the other side, a certain creeper hybrid was waiting.
“Hey, Tommy!” he yells cheerfully, “Time to finally get you out of that hole, man!”
To say that Tommy was happy would be quite the understatement. After the initial shock wore off, a wide grin crept its way on his face, as his eyes lit up in joy. He’s finally getting out of here! He can go see Tubbo! And Puffy! A-And Jack! And Niki!!
“Oh.” the older blonde mumbled from next to him.
He sounded sad.
His grin faltered at that, as he turned to his cellmate. Said person was kicking at the obsidian floor, eyes trained on it. Yeah, that’s right. Tommy is getting out today - Dream isn’t getting out any time soon, however. He’ll stay here. Alone. In this dark and cold cell that Tommy was oh-so-happy to leave behind him forever, after barely being here a week.
He placed a hand on the other's shoulder, which made him look up. Their eyes locked for a while, and Dream could see the worry in the teen’s eyes as much as Tommy could see the sadness in the older’s. However, Dream smiled at him, before saying, “Don’t worry about me; I’ll be fine,”
They both knew it was a lie.
Neither confronted it, though.
The voice of the warden startled them both.
“Get on the platform already, Tommy! I can’t keep the cell open for too long,” Sam yelled to get the teen’s attention.
“R-right, just one moment…” Tommy yelled back.
He turned back to Dream, before quickly pulling him into a tight hug. He heard the other’s breath hitch slightly, as trembling arms wrapped around Tommy.
“Take care, big man,” Tommy mumbled at Dream as he let go. Dream simply nodded as he also let go of the other.
With a deep breath, he turned around, and took confident steps towards the platform on the front of the cell. He barely registered Sam’s voice as it told him to brace himself before the bridge started moving away from the cell. He hesitantly turned around, and saw Dream holding a book and writing in it. He vaguely registered that it was the same book he was writing in during the first day he was trapped in there. The thought made him smile slightly, and he turned to face the exit again.
Tommy can never forget what Dream did to him. It will always be a part of him, whether he wants to or not, the way scars stay even after a wound is healed. That doesn’t mean he can’t forgive Dream, however. Since he can’t simply get rid of all those awful memories, he’ll equally simply create good memories to cover the bad ones.
He wouldn’t quite call Dream his friend. Not yet, anyways. But he does hope one day he’ll be able to do so, while also meaning it.
“Well, you look… Better, than I expected, honestly,” he hears Sam say as he walks off the platform, smile still tagging at his lips, before he hurries to add, “wh-which is great, of course!”
“Yeah,” Tommy mumbled, Sam pausing to look at him due to the uncharacteristic softness in his voice, “... Let’s go home, Sam.”
When the lava curtain fell, the quill in Dream’s hands stopped moving against the page. Taking a trembling breath, the no longer masked man allowed his lips to form into an equally trembling smile. Liquid stains suddenly wet the page, and Dream instantly looked up in surprise, not knowing he was sitting under crying obsid-
Oh. It wasn’t the obsidian that was crying, this time. Turns out, it was him. He wiped his eyes, but the more he wiped tears, the more tears escaped his eyes. Eventually, he shoved his face into his hands, as a loud sob escaped his throat. More- Many more followed, and the tears wouldn’t stop. He didn’t know why he was crying. He was sad. He was happy. It doesn’t make sense. He doesn’t make sense. He wishes Tommy was here to hold him again. He knows that’s not happening. That only fuels his tears more. But still, he feels himself smile, although he does not want to smile-
He’s happy. He’s sad. It does make sense. He’s sad, because he knows he’ll never get out of this cell. He’s sad, because most of his friends abandoned him. He’s happy, because Tommy no longer hates him. He’s happy, because he has a friend who cares for him. A friend he most certainly does not deserve.
“Tommy?” Sam asked, surprise evident in his voice, “What are you doing here?”
“Well, I…” Tommy mumbled, fiddling with his hands nervously, “... I came to visit Dream.”
That answer made Sam pause whatever he was doing and look at the shorter teen. It took him a while to process the words that were said to him, and all they did was surprise him more. “A-Are you sure, Tommy? Like, you were trapped in that cell for eight days-”
“Yes I’m sure!” Tommy snapped at him quickly, which made Sam stop rambling.
“... Alright, then?” Sam mumbled lightly, “Well, you’ve been here before, you know the procedure.”
“Uh, can you hold onto this for me?” Tommy said, before showing a red and white hoodie, “And, like, give it to me before I enter Dream’s cell?”
“A… Hoodie?”
“W-Well! The cell in which Dream is being held is quite cold, despite the lava surrounding it - I know from experience there - so I thought I’d give it to Dream-” Tommy mumbled, looking sheepishly anywhere where Sam’s eyes aren’t.
“Okay. Sure.”
Dream shook his head as he crossed out an entire page of the book he was writing. He didn’t like how it turned out, so he decided to try something else. Not that he had much luck at doing so anyways, because his mind kept drifting away, unable to focus on the book. Before he could resume writing, however, he was startled by the lava draining mechanism being triggered.
His head shot up in surprise and curiosity for who’s come to visit him. He silently hoped for a certain golden halo to appear behind the curtain of lava, however, even though he didn’t exactly count on it.
So, when it is, in fact, Tommy, on the other side, waiting to come across, he’s not sure if he should consider himself blessed or completely and utterly cursed. Although the answer probably lies somewhere in between, anyways. The other was holding something - though Dream couldn’t make out what it was from the place he was sitting against the back wall of the cell - but he couldn’t get himself to stand up anyways. He’ll find out soon enough.
After a few moments, Tommy set foot onto the cell as the platform started retracting and the lava started falling. For a few moments, the two just stared at each other, neither moving nor speaking. And it kept going like that until Tommy threw what he was holding at Dream, who easily caught the squishy fabric.
He looked at it for a second before unfolding the piece of clothing.
“A hoodie.” he said nonchalantly.
“Way to be a dick.” he heard Tommy mumble and he failed to choke a laugh.
Tommy soon started laughing too, and the two simply stood there laughing like idiots for a good while. Despite the monotone tone he used, Dream could instantly tell that this was one of Tommy’s hoodies. I mean, it is colored red and white. Way to be obvious, Tommy. A few moments later, when the initial laughing crisis calmed down, he put it on over his orange prison shirt without a word. It was soft and warm. He liked it. He smiled. Tommy smiled back, before moving to sit next to the other, probably ready to talk his ear off. Not that Dream minded in the least.
Yeah.
They’ll be fine.