Child Soldier

Chapter 9; Home

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"Hey kid, wake up," A far away voice was speaking to Tommy but he didn't stir. Hoping it was just from his dreams and it'd fade out so he could return to his sleep peacefully. Lying in soft grass, his body was still growing sore from the hard dirt. An ache was setting into his back in particular but it didn't matter to him. Rest was all he really wanted. Just a good sleep, safe from everything and everyone.

"Wake up," He heard a chuckle next to the words this time, coming in clearer. A finger then rudely jabbed into his ribs. Of course it had to be his bad side and Tommy woke with a start, hand protectively covering the weaker part of his body instinctively.

Tommy had jerked nearly completely upright, his head spinning for a moment. He hadn't even noticed the sudden cry of pain that left his mouth as he threw himself up. Though the man that'd been crouched over him- Sapnap- was caught off guard by it. Tommy's abrupt response had caused him to fall back onto his rear.

"Jesus you scared the shit out of me," Sapnap laughed, getting up from the ground and dusting off his backside. "Speaking of shit, you look pretty messed up."

There was something about Sapnap's voice that made him always sound like he was amused by his own words. Some people might find it charming, Tommy however found it downright annoying.

He'd never really liked the man though.

"Oh fuck off," Tommy rolled his eyes. His voice strained as he still held himself as though if he released the boy would fall apart at the seams. He did feel sewn together sometimes.

"Why are you here?" Tommy asked with true curiosity. It was strange to see the man in his semi-prison. Tommy hadn't expected anyone but Dream to visit him here.

"Oh you know, I missed you buddy!" Sapnap said sarcastically and Tommy deadpanned at him clearly unamused.

"Yeah, alright. So fuck off," Tommy told him again, pushing himself up to his feet so the man was no longer hovering over him. Tommy was actually taller than Sapnap himself, which gave him a little ego boost whenever they would chat shit at one another.

"Dream asked me to come check things out," Sapnap told him, giving the previous question a proper answer. He followed it with what Tommy suspected was Sapnap's attempt at a friendly smile. "His exact words were to 'babysit' you, actually."

"Babys- I don't need a goddamn babysitter! I'm not a baby!" Tommy shouted indignantly- despite the pain it caused in his ribs- and began walking away from Sapnap. He was headed toward the trees but for no particular reason aside from distancing himself from the nuisance at his side.

"I don't know man. You kinda sound like one when you're having those tantrums," Sapnap teased. Tommy responded with an annoyed groan, vehemently ignoring the pain from yelling, hell breathing was still painful but he pushed it back from his mind.

"You're not gonna be here all night, are you?" Tommy asked with a hopeful tone. There's no way he could put up with Sapnap that long.

"Nah, just for a bit I guess," Sapnap shrugged following after the boy casually with his hands tucked into his pockets. He looked around the open space for a brief second. He'd built the walls here for Dream. The man hadn't hidden what his intentions for the place were either. He'd been told by his masked friend that Tommy needed somewhere safer to stay. Somewhere more protected. Dream explained how he didn't trust Tommy to not try and head back to L'manberg, or worse; the Greater SMP area. The kid was an absolute menace and Dream lacked patience with him. Sapnap understood that, but he couldn't bring himself to the kind of cruelness that Dream could.