Being A Royal Is Hard. ||DNF||

Part 11 ~ Fault

Sapnap swam over to Dream, and slowly, he lifted him out of the water.

Dream was still breathing and his eyes were open, but he was completely unconscious.

"Please wake up," Sapnap whispered, hoping against hope that Dream would hear him.

He took off his own shirt and wrapped it around Dream to keep him warm, wanting to protect him from the cold.

He could feel his own body starting to shake, but he forced himself to stay awake, to keep Dream alive.

After what felt like an eternity, Dream coughed once, and slowly, he opened his eyes.

"Sapnap..?" Dream muttered, his voice weak and full of surprise. He took a deep breath, and after a few seconds, he sat up, looking at Sapnap with wide eyes.

"Dream, thank gods.. thank god you're awake.." Sapnap muttered, his voice filled with relief.

"Sapnap.." Dream whispered, looking at him.

"You gave me a heart attack, you know that?" Sapnap said gently.

"Sapnap.. I'm sorry.." Dream continued, looking at Sapnap sadly. "I just... I just-"

pause.

"...I just couldn't do it." Dream said softly.

Sapnap nodded. "I know."

Dream looked at him for a moment before sighing. "Sapnap, please don't be mad at me.. I.. I just don't think I'm fit to rule this Kingdom.."

"I understand, Dream." Sapnap said, and he put a hand on Dream's shoulder. "But we'll work it out. You don't need to make any decisions today."

For a moment, Dream looked like he might argue, but then he nodded. "Okay, yeah, okay.."

Soon, Dream was back home, and everyone was relieved to see him. Everyone, that is, except for his father.

His dad was furious to hear that Dream had tried to kill himself, and while he was glad that Dream was safe, he was still angry with him.

"How dare you try to run away after your sister's death!?" he said sharply. "Don't you care about the Kingdom? Don't you care about Drista's legacy?"

"I do..." Dream said quietly, not meeting his father's eyes. "But I don't want to be King."

"But you don't have a choice!" his dad said, getting up and walking toward Dream.

"Don't you understand? You're the only one left! If you don't take the throne then... then the Kingdom will fall into chaos, and all of her sacrifice will have been in vain."

Dream took a deep breath, and he shook his head. "No.. no, that's not true. The Kingdom doesn't need me. It'll be fine.. it has to be fine."

"No, it won't!" his dad said, his voice rising as he continued to approach Dream.

"Do you have any idea what's going to happen!? Drista had a plan.. she was going to be this close from ruling the Kingdom! She was prepared, she had a vision.. and you don't! How is anyone supposed to trust you as a ruler? What can you do to help them?!"

"I don't know!" Dream shouted, tears starting to fill his eyes. "But this isn't my fault! I never asked for this!"

"But it is your fault, Dream! If you had just tried harder, maybe Drista would still be alive.."

For a moment, Dream was speechless, and all he could do was stare at his dad with wide eyes.

"D-d-dad, please.." Dream finally managed to say, his voice trembling. "I loved her, I.. I still love her, okay? I did everything I could to try and help her."

"No, you didn't," his dad snapped. "If you had cared about her, maybe you could've kept her safe!"

"But I tried, dad, I-"

But before Dream could finish, his dad cut him off.

"Of course you'd defend yourself! You know what, Dream, I'm done. I'm done with you. I've heard enough."

Dream didn't have a chance to respond, as his dad turned around and walked away from him.

"Dad, wait!" Dream called out, but his father didn't even look at him.

"For fuck sake.." Dream mumbled to himself as tears ran down his cheeks.

*

A few hours have passed since the argument. Dream was back in his room in the palace, sobbing uncontrollably.

Suddenly, the door to Dream's room opened, and Sapnap stepped inside.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his voice filled with concern. "I heard your dad.."

"Yeah.." Dream said softly. "He's done with me."

"What..?" Sapnap said, looking at Dream with wide eyes. "What do you mean, he's done with you?"

"He said I didn't try hard enough, that I didn't try to keep Drista safe. He told me.."

Dream paused for a moment, and then he sighed. "He told me it's my fault she's gone.."

"I.. I failed her.." Dream said, his voice quivering. "I let her down, and I lost her."

Sapnap stepped closer, his voice soft as he put a hand on Dream's shoulder.

"Dream, listen to me.."

"She's dead, Sapnap.. she's dead.."

"I know.. I know.. but, Dream, even if you think you failed her, please believe me when I say that your sister loved you. She would never blame you for this.. she would never want you to blame yourself."

"Yeah.." Dream whispered. "I know that.. I know. But still.. it's hard.."

Sapnap nodded, and he put his arm around Dream's shoulder. "I know, I understand. But it's not your fault."

"It's not my fault.. it's not my fault.." Dream muttered to himself, and Sapnap squeezed his shoulders in an embrace.

"It's not your fault.." Sapnap said quietly, "But we'll get through this, okay? Together."

"Alright.. alright.." Dream sighed.

"You want me to stay with you tonight?" Sapnap asked, his voice gentle.

"Could you..?" Dream said, turning to look at Sapnap. "I just.. I don't want to be alone right now."

Sapnap nodded, and he moved a chair over to Dream's bed.

"Okay.. but don't try and talk to me, alright? If I talk to you, I'll just start crying again... please, let me just try and sleep."

"Okay, alright.." Sapnap said softly.

He sat down quietly in the chair, and after a moment, he heard Dream's breathing become soft and even.

Sapnap's heart felt heavy in his chest, as he looked at his best friend and imagined how many times he'd watched him sleep over the years.

He'd always been there, watching over Dream and making sure he was okay even when Dream didn't know it.

And now, at one of his lowest points, he'd be there too.

Sapnap leaned back in his chair, and he closed his eyes.

*