Stay Inside (by my Side) : Gream/DreamNotFound

2. Just A Work Trip

"Yessssssss!" Clay yelled as the Ender Dragon burst into purple rays. He made his character run around Sapnap's as they celebrated their win and gathered XP.

"That was way too difficult!" came Sapnap's laughter through Clay's headset.

"Dude," replied Clay, "this was so hard to code." He pressed the stop record button and relaxed in his chair, letting his head lean on the headrest.

"You usually get help from George to speed it up a bit, don't you?"

"Yeah, it was just me this time."

Clay picked up his phone, remembering to call George. "Speaking of, he just landed an hour ago so I'm probably gonna call him."

"Oh, sick!" Sapnap said, "tell him I said hi."

"Alright, I'll talk to you later, man."

"See you," Sapnap called before a beep sounded, indicating he ended the call.

Clay took off his headset and exited the game, before checking his recording and saving it. Shutting off his computer, he rose from his chair and stretched. As he ran a hand through his blond locks, he dialed up George's number. After a few rings, a sleepy voice spoke hello.

"Hey G, you good?" Clay spoke.

"Yeah, sorry," George yawned, "I took a quick nap."

"Oh, you checked in already?"

In his small room, George drew open the curtains, revealing a nice view of a low city skyline. He made his way over to a coffee machine on a dresser stand and prepared a cup.

"I did, but honestly I feel like they're gonna kick me out soon."

Clay raised a brow, "Why's that?"

"I've stayed here tons of times over the past few years, so the staff gives me special treatment," George sipped his coffee, "and today the lady at the front desk let it slip that most hotels in the area are getting closure notices due to the virus."

"Well they can't just make you pack up and leave!" Clay reasoned, "Can they?"

"I'll just have to wait and see."

"Anyway, you can come over on Thursday around 6 if you're free."

"Sounds good," George smiled, "I'll grab some takeout on the way."

"Great, can't wait!" Clay wrote the date down on a piece of paper. "Oh yeah, Nick says hi," he added.

After a quick goodbye, George hung up and got out his laptop to chat with a few Florida coworkers. They discussed a few coding assignments and arranged some meetings, and before he knew it, George was sitting in complete darkness, illuminated only by the sharp, blue glow of his screen. The outside city had long grown dark, quieting down little by little as traffic slowed. The only other source of light in the room was made by streaks of passing headlights.

The calming atmosphere made George feel sleepy again, and he logged off of his laptop. Despite the serenity of his surroundings, though, he felt uneasy. Something about the way people kept their distance from each other outside and the hushed nervous whispers of hotel staff made him keep his suitcase closed and unopened, just in case.

He set an alarm for the next morning, washed his coffee cup, and prepared to climb into the tall bed. Within minutes, he felt the affect of jetlag, and proceeded to drift slowly into peaceful sleep, lulled by the soft hum of the air conditioner.

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[a/n: ok ok, there's just a LITTLE bit of setup left before we launch into what everyone is here for! Please leave a vote and a comment if you like this so far, it would mean so much :D]