𝐐𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦?! | 𝐃𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

𝟐𝟔. 𝐈𝐧 𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐊𝐢𝐬𝐬 𝐇𝐢𝐦

Your mother picked up on the second ring. "Ready to go home?"

"I have something to tell you."

She must've heard it in your voice. "[Name], dear, is this about the boy? You two come from completely different worlds. You should never have met."

"But we did. And it's the best thing that ever happened to me." You could sense her disagreement before it struck. But you would weather it, this time. You might've flown to the wrong state, but Clay definitely deserved someone who could stand up to their parents.

"The best thing? Didn't you just waste 3 months of your life? But teens like to rebel against their parents, right? I get it. I hope you've gotten it out of your system now. Are you ready to act like an adult?"

Emotions wouldn't become words; words wouldn't leave your mouth. You felt a familiar pressure, as if literally being crushed under your mother's thumb. Usually, the pressure came out in tears. But this time, it needed to be beautifully irrefutable. You'd gotten this far, right? But before you could speak, your mother went on.

"I looked him up. He's famous. It's every girl's dream to live with and date someone famous, isn't it? It's the perfect love story set-up, but real life is quite different. Would he still matter if he was a nobody? Because someday, he'll be one. The world will move onto the next thing."

"You think I only care about him for the fame? I don't!"

"You don't think you do. Nobody says so. But it's on everyone's mind. If he was a nobody instead, not rich or successful or adored, would you see him the same way? Do you really think you would've fallen for him?"

You paused.

She took advantage of your silence. "Clay doesn't make sense as part of your life. I bet he's not even educated. You should let him go. I raised you. I know you. You'll stay in contact for a few months–a year, maybe, but you're too bright and hardworking. You'll realize you can do more with your life than lay yourself at the feet of a Minecraft YouTuber, and he'll realize that too, and you'll drift. Don't pretend anything else will happen."

There was that old feeling–the walls as they closed in. That part of you, agreeing to everything she said. It makes sense. She's right. I should let go and stop resisting. She's so much wiser. She knows me. She knows the world. If I let her take over, she'll do things the right way.

Bitter frustration coursed through you. This was supposed to be triumphant, as you declared that you were freeing yourself once and for all. You'd thought about this–you were supposed to know what to say. But here she was, talking you down like she always did.

You didn't know how the words would come out. But they had to.

"So this is what you think–"

You could hear your heart hammering like footsteps.

"He's a trashy Minecraft YouTuber." You summarized. Your voice was surprisingly still, and cold. "Entertaining millions of strangers online is an illegitimate career. I only like him for his fame, but he's actually beneath me, less intelligent and cultured, because he doesn't have a college degree. And this makes him unworthy of my time, attention, and love." Even then, your heart wrenched at the unfairness.

The hammering persisted, before it faded again.

"More or less," she agreed, oblivious to what was about to happen. "He won't make you happy. He's too different from us. He–"

"That's completely wrong." Fury ballooned inside your chest, but you forced it down. You had to be rational. There could be no way for her to talk her way around it.