Like Normal Kids Do (Sapnotfound)

Chapter Five

George awoke to a sharp finger prodding into his side. "Wake up and get dressed."

He groaned and tried to roll over, but another poke dug into his hip. "Okay, okay, I'm getting up," He grumbled.

After rubbing his eyes, he rolled out of bed and sleepily stumbled around to clean himself up for the day. Out of habit, he checked his phone and was surprised to see that it wasn't 8:30 am, but 3:30 pm.

He found Ari helping a maid downstairs and approached them.

"Why did you let me sleep in so late?" He crossed his arms.

"Ms. Terra wasn't available until your evening session, so I figured you would enjoy some extra sleep," They responded without turning around.

"They always turn to look at me when they talk. Are they still upset about how I acted last night?" He wasn't sure, so he quietly thanked them and headed to the bathroom.

While brushing his teeth, he sensed a presence behind him. His eyes flickered to the mirror, which revealed Ari leaning against the bathroom door.

"Hello?" He swiped at the remaining toothpaste in the corner of his mouth.

"I'm sorry for being pushy. No one should try to force you to be friends with him or anyone else, that's your choice. I can only encourage it."

George hesitated. "Thanks, and I'm sorry for yelling at you last night."

"No worries. I figured I pushed you too far, that's why I left you alone."

He gave a halfhearted smile and continued brushing his teeth. After a quick hug from Ari, he waited on the steps until Ms. Terra arrived.

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The time came much sooner than he wanted it to. He soon found himself in Sapnap's kitchen again. During their session, he noticed Sapnap refused to make eye contact with him and left him out of conversations. It pissed George off, but he reminded himself that he was the one who needed to apologize, and this was Sapnap's way of getting back at him.

Judging by the fact that Sapnap ignored him the entire time, he figured it might be better to wait until the end of the session to talk to him. Or at least, that's what he told himself. In reality, he kept putting it off because he knew he sucked at apologies.

While they ate lunch, he noticed Sapnap didn't talk as much as he did before. Every time George tried to start a conversation and include him, the topic got shut down or set aside. Frustration built up within him, but he kept it under control. Eventually, he gave up to focus on finishing the project.

"Is this how he felt with me? Damn, I really should apologize."

If Ms. Terra realized anything was off between them, she didn't acknowledge it. She was actually the one who carried the conversation. Once George gave up trying to talk, she picked up another subject that included them both in it.

Eventually, they finished the project, and he could leave. Ignoring the feeling in his gut yelling at him to stay and apologize, he jumped from the table and made a break for the door. At the same time he reached for the knob, the door flew open. Dream barged in and walked right past him, only stopping when he noticed George. His eyes narrowed into slits, and George could feel the hatred that radiated off of him.

"Stay out of my way, loser, or you'll regret it. I don't need any competition."

This confused George, but he nodded and continued his departure. He regretted not getting to the apology, but it didn't seem like the right time.

Upon entering the house, he cast his bag aside in favor of searching for Ari. Shortly after, he found them in their room, holding Catt in the air as they lay sprawled across their bed.

The strange sight uplifted his mood. "What are you doing?" He asked, a giggle slipping between his words.

They rolled onto their side and placed Catt on the ground, who let out a soft "meow" and wandered off.

"Catt and I were exercising," They joked.

George sat in the rolling chair next to their desk and started swiveling back and forth. "Well, I wanted to apologize today, but he wouldn't talk to me or even look at me! So I didn't."

"If you said those things to me, I wouldn't want to talk to you for a while either."

He let out a long sigh. "Do you think there's any way I can make it up to him? I can't apologize if he ignores my existence."

Ari hummed, then reached for their mini-fridge and grabbed two sodas. Tossing him one, they cracked open their own and took a long sip. "I assume you talked to him yesterday before the whole thing happened. Did you notice him get excited about anything he talked about?"

"No, but he had some video game-related things. We played a game called Minecraft, and I noticed a plushie of a pig on his shelf."

"Okay, so how about you get him something similar then? You can give it to him when you apologize and show that you mean it because if someone didn't know you that well, it would be hard to tell if you're being genuine or not."

He shrugged but understood what they meant. Strengthening his empathy was another thing he needed to work on.

"Can I go uptown then? It's not dark yet."

They nodded. "Goggles and have your phone on."

On the walk there, George made a mental list of things he could potentially get. "I've heard Gamestop has video game things, maybe I'll stop there."

Once he found the store, unfamiliar games and merchandise surrounded him. Two of the five walls were covered with shelves of games; some of which, George was pretty sure, went with Sapnap's console. He didn't know which games Sapnap had, so he continued past them.

A couple of racks were scattered across the store, but nothing stood out to him. After a few more minutes of looking around, a small, green and black speckled plushie caught his eye, He jumped to reach a higher shelf and snatched it down.

It was a "creeper," or at least, that's what Sapnap called it. He glanced around once more and after finding nothing, he went up to the checkout.

The cashier grinned as he slid the item across the counter. "A creeper, huh? These fuckers suck. My house has been destroyed more times than I can count by one of these," He commented, adjusting his maroon beanie.

"I've only killed one, and it was a pain," George grinned. "My friend had to help me out."

His mouth snapped shut once he realized he called Sapnap a friend. The cashier didn't seem to notice his change in attitude and handed him the bag. "Well, you'll come across more for sure. Have a nice day!" He smiled and nudged his round glasses back into place.

"Yeah, you too." George stepped outside, his mind racing. "Why did I call Sapnap my friend? With the way I've treated him, I don't deserve to call him that."

Setting it aside, he ventured elsewhere in search of another store.

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Several stops later, the only other thing he got was something he needed to pick up another day. After walking into one last store, he headed straight for the familiar aisle near the back, where a row of markers awaited him. He shyly asked a nearby worker to unlock the case, then grabbed what he needed and thanked them.

By the time he started to head home, the sky had darkened and his gaze fixated on one of his favorite things: the sunset.

As he passed the park, he found himself settling underneath one of the trees to watch the sky. He shot Ari a quick text, telling them that he would be back soon, then relaxed against the tree trunk.

Once the stunning burst of colors calmed to a faded purple, he pulled out a receipt from his bag and scanned over it again. With a sigh, he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

"This better be worth it."