CHAPTER 8 - PAINT TROUBLES

Orlando, Florida, Sunday, 6:32 p.m.

The sun was now melting beneath the mountains afar, a soft pink aurora danced with the clouds. The six walked beneath the menacing sky.

"I live right around this corner, your welcome to stay at mine," Fundy offered. His tone made George's skin itchy.

"Why do you go to our high school? Must be a long drive." Dream commented. Fundy's ear twitched in acknowledgment. He shrugged. "Sounded like a decent high school,"

The sun was weakening as it was the next day from the boats. The group was followed by suitcases and luggage. They had returned their luggage from the hotel and walked through the emptying streets to Fundy's home.

The front door creaked with effort, introducing them into Fundy's house. The orange fox flicked his tail to follow, they curved around worn walls and were welcomed into a room. Love was shared in this room, only spiritually, for years to come.

"It's basic but it works" he smiled, George knew this mask he showed and what was beneath, it disgusted him.

"What should we do?" A question that slipped out of Quackity's mouth seemed to be spilled more often now.

"I mean got some board games.." Fundy opened a hall closet, stacked with board games and more. Quackity's wings gusted wind,

"we can paint? he had picked his eyes on the paint cans that held brutal colors.

"Paint twister!" Sapnap grinned. Fundy held his answer for longing few seconds but returned from his trip of thought.

"Alright, help me get it outside" George backed to the wall as everyone grabbed their helping share.

——

"you grabbed purple not blue idiot!" George burst, and an uninvited grin entered the brunette's mouth. Despite the roar of color Karl provided, the time traveler suffered from the same lack of colorful vision.

Karl only knocked off the playful battle George started by shrugging it off. Dream was spitting thick splats of paint from the waterfall of a can.

"go and grab blue George" Dream raised an ear, his eyes following with the same perk of interest.

"you send the colorblind one" Sapnap lifted his upper lip into a playful sneer. "I'll go," Karl stiffened, faltering his tail behind, for not any questions to be set. Disappearing into the shadows of the house

"Who's going this round" Fundy roused as longing silence swept everyone's vocals after Karl left.

"I'll go this round" Quackity heaved himself up, rocking off his shoes

"Sure" Sapnap followed

Fundy got up without answer, only now George noticed the time Karl's absence lingered

"Okay it's set up we just need the blue" Turning to see if the beta returned, Dream spoke. The alpha gave George a flickering look, The brunette could only return with the same confusion.

Time passed, no words just puzzled looks but soon the wolf returned as if he was putting on a show, everyone looked at him, drawing his face to a tangled expression "What?" He slaked at last

"What took you so long" Quackity piped, Karl seemed to react to this sentence, he only clenched his jaw in fright and maneuvered his way to dream, passing the alpha the paint.

Everyone shrugged as Dream finished the paints. He grabbed the pathetic plastic and stood.

"Ready?" Dream stood, spinner in hand, chaos was ahead of them, and the neatly aligned puddles of color would splatter everywhere, but strung with fun and laughter.

"Fundy," Dream flicked the plastic "Left foot red" Fundy cringed and reared up his jeans, meeting his knees and holding. He placed his raw foot in the red paint, it oozed out under the pressure spreading the paint further.

"It's so cold!" the fox's vision shooting to the sky, he held his foot, "Quackity, left hand green" Dream nosed, Quackity curled his lips in embarrassment, staying to the edges of the sheet he bent down and plummeted his hand down, ripples of paint flung on everyone

"Quackity!!" George flinched looking at the forest color raked on his shirt, he sighed and watched Sapnap,

"Right foot green" The alpha continued enjoying the splatter of fun staining on his clothing.

"Fundy, Left hand red" Watching the orange creature balance his way down, George felt an obnoxious shuffle beside him.

Karl had his eyes fastened to the ground, he seemed to staring his way to hell, something was painfully off, like he was sending silent messages to the demons below. He was far from realizing his breathing like he wasn't even aware George was looking at him.

Had something happened while he was retrieving the paint?

George could only question him later, "Left foot yellow Quackity" George giggled at the duck's struggle and regret shook Quackity's actions. He seemed to give some amusement slapping his foot on the dotted paint again. Retrieving yelps of laughter

"Sapnap left hand blue" Now all three weaved like bridges, though Sapnap rocked, his sturdiness swayed, straining him from balance. "GooOo!" Sapnap hurried

"Right-hand yellow Fund..-" George looked to Karl once more, he was now gazing into the damp sky as if he were stargazing, though no pretty stars flowed in the deepening sky.

"Karl.." his words seemed to be yelled in the time traveler's ears, Karl snapped his eyes to George, they were clouded with grief and confusion. Though George couldn't see why, the beta's eyes tried to guard the weather beneath these sudden emotions.

"...Are you good?" The omega said at last, Karl shook his head and smiled "I'm fine, just..thinking about.. my last travel." George frowned knowing the same trick, though he left it. When he returned to enjoy the game, Sapnap's balance gave in, tumbling into the paint, spreading the hue of colors over the white sheet. It was almost a murder scene, the panda tripled Fundy with him, stains of laughter wrecked his clothing, and George monitored the crimes with a beam mirroring his face.

"That didn't last long" interest, Karl examined with the same energy

"Our turn" Kicking off his shoes, George said.

——

"NnOoo!" George squealed, seeing the position he was to get to, his arm twisted around Dream's legs,

"Get your tail out my face!" Dream puffed, weakening stability from laughter. George flushed, his tan freckles were more vibrant against the growing pink. He scoffed ordering his tail to his side

All three boys mounted over, under, and around each other, all George didn't like. He was flexing himself over, climbing under Dream, distorting his spine.

"Right foot yellow Karl" Sapnap urged, Karl eased his way to the imitating sun shade. The Omega's footing screeched across the slipping paint, stretching his patients and gymnastics training.

When he shifted once more he was caught with Fundy's eyes, they were thinned, staring at him with spite and a warning

Get off now. The fox tensely mouthed, George shared a hesitant look at him. But saw the strings of veins tighten in Fundy's neck, knowing his options, he tumbled.

Crashing into the paint and roaring at his clothes he could only seep into spine-crawling questions. Why did Fundy want me to get off? And what's up with Karl?

"No George!" Playful voices shared his defeat though George knew this defeat was caused by something dug much deeper.

"Can I talk to George for a sec?" Fundy reasoned "tips for not slipping so much." He added

George swallowed thickly, he was pulled, with no choice into Fundy's dreadful grasp once more

Shit.

——

"What did Fundy pull you in for?" A voice croaked from darkness, it belonged to Dream, cold gusts blew through the midnight air, and only the moon lit the Alpha's features up, his blonde locks looked pale in such lighting.

The moon was accompanied by millions of stars all bowing to the circle of silver, like it was their god. George was admired by the stars each holding a prayer to their leader. Such small delicate dots held much power when combined, they decorated the darkened sky, pity patterns, and more.

The duo were kicking off in a park, at 2 AM. The swings they both sat on, rocked them with soft mews of effort, shifting with the wind. Neither could fall asleep, the omegas mind flashed with the yaps Fundy caught in the brunette's ears. It burned him with his emotions, his wrist only showed the physical side of the damage.

"George?" Dreams voice echoed once more, George looked down from the Milky Way visiting his eyes to something just as beautiful. He sighed, caving his eyes and telling the true story.

——

"What do you want Fundy?" George looked at his paled wrist the fox had such a harsh grip on.

"What did I fucking say between you and Dream?" He rasped "Not to fuck with his mind!" He yowled.

George's body sang with guilt, he never knew what he'd done "What did I do?!" He frets, anger overfilling confusion.

"You know!" Fundy riled, the two looked between each other, such different emotions, but both on the painful side.

"And you damn know what I have" he spoke, nailing words in George's mouth, the Omega was so drained he could only nod

"One more thing to his mind and I send it" Blackmail hit George like a backstabbing cry, he knew it was wrong, and fetch help, but he would only get hauled away from bonds with his friends in return. Then remembering when he tripped to the future, seeing what was to happen in the laboratory if he did crawl out of this state with Fundy.

"Watch it Omega." The fox pushed, making sure he hammered his power to the back of the brunette's head.

——

The Omega shrugged seeking vision in the ground below, he could only stare at his shadowed shoes. The world's troubles should have been explored somewhere else than George's mind, but they only piled more. Thinking if he'd retch his problems to Dream, things would release but it now only felt as if every breath he took from this earth felt like a crime. Only the predators hadn't caught him, Fundy, the police, and Dream.

Maybe Dream's the problem.

"What's he blackmailing you for?" Sketchily, Dream nerved, looking to meet his Alpha he could now see the dark that lurked behind,

Dress to impress. He named this new seedling of trouble, soiling itself to the brunette's mind. It would shoot off healthy and lime at this state that George was caught in, it would nurture it to growth.

"Why do you care?" The omega snapped, and the seedling's roots shot through his mind clogging his brain of clear thoughts.

"I'm worried for you George, you aren't.." Dream seemed to search the sky above for lost words

"Like everyone else? Normal?" The brunette was glad the shadows lurked on his face hiding the tears that glistened to spill. He could see the blonde look in this lost darkness trying to meet his own eyes.

"No..! I mean.. you skipped school for two days? Karl was weird today and.." the softness in his eyes caved giving up on meeting the comfort of George's eyes. The heterochromia eyes hid, fleeing from the true side of the world.

The brunette knew he was running out of time, the clock was nearing his end, but he was blind to it. Dream was taking the hook of curiosity, coiling to answers that were dangerously close to the truth.

"It's life Dream, you're born, into this.. this disgusting of a world.." George clenched his teeth hard, so hard he wanted to break this curse that hugged him and clung "And you grow up, work and die" but the omega knew the meanings behind these words

"You make memories with it," the duo both noticed the moon was failing to keep its posture high in the sky, it crawled towards the mountains bringing time with it.

George took a longing breath, rocking himself on the swing to enjoy the frost-biting breeze screaming in his face. "Well, the world doesn't always give people the shit you have" Jealousy bit him, cold as the wind ripping at his face

"You think my life is easy don't you?" Dream attempted his words to lace with a more calming tone.

"Not easy as it seems" He continued, "Don't you remember the discord call we had?" Itching George's temper "I have to choose a mate in less than a week!" he yowled to the sky, as if he were speaking to the gods above alone.

George rasped with a font of jealousy "At least you can get a good mate" Jerking his tail beneath him.

Bewildered, Dream stared at the silhouette George provided "That's the thing!" He seemed troubled with his words, "I can't...-"

A ding sputtered his words to silence. A small light lit up Dream's face, it looked like his phone was a street lamp lighting a path for others. Trying to look at what his phone provided, Dream shut it off with a flicker.

"I've got to go." Nerve raked his words "I'm..getting tired" his footsteps crunched on the bark fading to the distance. George sat slowing to a stop, only the brisk winds comforted him. The breeze whistled in disappointment,

Is that what Dream wanted? For me to tell him and to storm off to tell everyone else?

"Something's off" he murmured to the shadows around him

He kicked up bark as he stood, "First Fundy, then Karl, now Dream?" He continued,

"What do these stars have to offer me?" George was so tired, though he knew no sleep would catch him. He sighed and slowly retraced Dream's footsteps, to retrieve to Fundy's house.