𝕎𝕚𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕎𝕚𝕥𝕙 𝕄𝕖 - Ⓓ Ⓝ Ⓕ

~25~

George carefully sipped on his ginger tea as Sapnap, Karl and Dream conversed, one hand resting on his abdomen over the area he had his cyst removed. He was careful to not put too much pressure on it, knowing that it would probably hurt, but since he couldn't really move his hips from the tough fabric they strapped around his stomach, it wasn't like he could press down hard enough to hurt himself, anyway.

Karl was sitting beside George on the bed, happily chatting away with Sapnap, who was sitting on the chair between the beds, and Dream, who was still resting on his respective bed, nursing his cup of hot chocolate with his hand. George was silently leaning on Karl's shoulder, the younger brunette drinking a strong cup of coffee, and the bitter smell of it was making George's stomach churn. He wasn't really someone who drank coffee often, and preferred English Breakfast Tea over every other warn beverage, but he would drink coffee only when he really needed a boost to make it through the day, like if he needed to stay awake to be on someone's stream. Unless they're doing lore, though. George had a tendency to sleep through those, and he wasn't going to change his reputation anytime soon.

George held his tea between his hands, the heat coming from the cup warming his cold palms and fingers. He would close his eyes while taking sips from his drink and would open them again straight after, but as he reached the end of his tea, he continued to keep his eyes closed, bathing in the warmth the hot beverage bloomed in his chest.

When he finished his tea, he opened his eyes and pouted, feeling let down that he drank the beverage so quickly instead of savouring it. He lowered his empty cup and looked up at Karl, but the taller brunette was looking away towards Sapnap, distracted from George. Seeing this, George leaned forward, hoping to enter the conversation they were having, but a sharp stab of pain in his side forced him to lean back. He slowly pressed himself against the pillows of the bed, propped up, and placed his cup on a table beside his bed. He placed both his hands over his abdomen, silently wishing that the pain would go away, but when it didn't, he turned his face into Karl's shoulder, his eyes closed. Karl wrapped an arm around George's shoulder, probably thinking that he was in a snuggly mood, but George shifted uncomfortably, trying to get the restrictive arm to leave.

"No." he mumbled, leaning away from Karl quickly.

The other brunette looked towards George, obviously confused, but when he realised what George wanted, he instantly removed his arm and muttered a quiet apology. "Sorry."

A moment of awkward silence passed between the two before George looked away towards the window, and Karl turned back to the conversation, his shoulders a little bit more tense than they were moments ago. George kept his hands over his stomach and closed his eyes. The pain was still lingering on George's skin, and he wondered for a moment if the quick motion of leaning forward had caused his stitches to tear.

The fear of George's wound opening up caused him to snap his eyes open, and he figured that he should take responsibility and call for Lacy, since she was still his nurse because he had only moved rooms a few hallways away from his old hospital room. He also realised that it was probably time for a small checkup for both he and Dream, and he wanted to talk to her about being discharged early, and how long Dream was required to stay in the hospital.

Hesitantly, he reached to his right side and pressed a button on a panel, calling for Lacy. Once he pressed it, a familiar beep echoed throughout the room, and the conversation from the other three people in the room instantly died out at the sound. In an instant, all the attention was on George, and they all looked at him with worried expressions, wondering what was wrong.

"Are you okay, George?" Dream asked, his voice laced with concern for his best friend. He knew that something was wrong, especially if George was independently calling for help without consoling in his friends first.