Forever

Chapter 5

"You're the ones responsible for killing Technoblade, correct? I've been waiting a long time to finally meet you."

Tense silence followed Philza's words, and Dream used the time to study him closely. But he remained impassive and unreadable, hands set in a steady fold against his desk as he assessed them right back. He was giving absolutely nothing away, and Dream was desperate to know how that statement was meant to be taken.

A quick glance over at Sapnap told Dream that he was equally unsure, narrowed eyes leveling Philza as he leaned back against the dark leather of his chair. When neither of them confirmed the statement, Philza motioned to the third chair that sat empty and said, "isn't there supposed to be three of you?"

"There is," Sapnap responded, and Philza hummed under his breath, eyes drifting over towards Dream as he asked, "why isn't George here?"

The sound of George's name so casually slipping past Philza's lips set Dream on edge. His hands instinctively tensed around the armrests of the chair.

Of course, there were a hundred reasons why Philza could have already known who George was, the most obvious being that it was prudent to know exactly who was going to be walking into your office. The more ominous reason would have been that Philza and George had some sort of history, and even worse than that would be that the history between them involved Technoblade in some way.

"He wasn't feeling well," Dream supplied the answer, because Philza's eyes were still watching him closely. Philza nodded slowly, and Dream saw something like disappointment settle on his face.

"Not the answer you were hoping for?" Dream couldn't help himself, and he could practically feel Sapnap tense from beside him.

Philza chuckled under his breath, leaning back in his chair with his eyes still on Dream as he said, "quite bold, aren't you?"

Dream didn't answer, and Philza leaned forward to rest his forearms against his desk as he added on, "I'd be willing to bet that you're the one who threatened to kill my guy at the bar the other night. Am I correct?"

Again, Dream stayed quiet. He was trying to get a read on Philza, but he was still giving nothing away. His words weren't rooted in anger or malice, he was simply stating facts about things that had indeed happened.

Sensing that he wasn't getting an answer, Philza simply smiled and leaned back in his chair again, this time turning his eyes towards Sapnap as he said, "well, I suppose it doesn't matter. We're here to talk business, correct?"

Sapnap nodded and answered, "that's correct. We're aware that you're one of the biggest arms dealers in the country, and we're interested in working out a contract with your group."

Philza nodded, attention drifting down towards a stack of papers on his desk. He moved them about idly, like he was only half paying attention as he responded, "right, of course. Well, you and half the mafia leaders of the world are interested in a contract with my group. It's not that simple. My contracts are exclusive, and I only deal with the very best. I can't afford to work with people who might be a liability."

He put emphasis on the word liability, and Dream knew that was because that's exactly what they were. Ever since he had pulled that trigger in Technoblade's mansion, their entire group had become a liability. It was the same exact reason why they were struggling to find a weapons supplier back home.

Sapnap looked over in his direction, already looking dejected even though they hadn't technically been turned down yet. And Dream felt for him, because he was dealing with the unimaginable within his first official year as leader. They had left a mess behind, and Dream hadn't even realized it until now.