Little Sweet Dreamer - Wattys Edition

Chapter 41

I went to Grey's house weekly for the rest of the school year; we spent a lot of time with his father. Of course, he wasn't there every time I was over, but it was enough to get to know him more. Sometimes he'd watch movies with us; other times, he'd play silly video games like Gang Beasts or Human Fall Flat, and every time we were with him, it was a blast.

"Grey, did you just throw me, your flesh and blood, into the grinder?" his dad asked.

Grey chuckled. "Yeah, pops, and I'll do it again."

"He threw me into pink goo," I signed as Grey threw his avatar's hands up in victory. "Relationships are not; he spares no one for his wins."

"I see that," his father said. "Wanna team up to take him out?"

"Yes!" I signed. "We gotta humble him a bit."

"Oh, you guys are so on," Grey said excitedly.

We only killed Grey once or twice over the dozens of games we played with him.

Grey and his father made me feel at home. And since we liked each other and our parents liked our relationship, my mom and Jared came over to meet Grey's dad. We all had dinner together that Grey made for us. My mom, Jared, and Grey's dad hit it off very well. Grey's dad was a taciturn guy but lovable at the same time—I think I was biased since he could sign and often signed with me.

Watching Grey and his father interact was fun as well. I saw a side of Grey that he only tended to show in the dream world, not the real world. They always made me laugh when they were together.

"Dad, Hazel, Ready for Linner?" Grey called from the kitchen.

"Did he just say, Linner?" Grey's dad asked.

I laughed and signed, "I believe he did."

We walked to the dining room where Grey had prepared a traditional rice, beans, and chicken meal.

"Thank you, babe," I signed and kissed him on the cheek.

"Yeah, thanks, son," his dad said and made a fake kissing face.

"Get away from me," Grey joked.

We sat around the food and served ourselves. Grey's cooking was always super good. He heard it from me countless times. His dad praised him for it as well.

"So, how was your guys' day at school?" Grey's dad asked through a mouthful of food.

"It was good," Grey said. "Typical day at school as always."

"Good to hear," he said. "How about you, Hazel?"

"It was great. I finally finished a ceramics project I was working on."

"What was it?" he signed.

"Nothing special. I made a sculpture of my dog, Timmy."

"Can you take it home?"

"Yeah, after Senior Arts Night at the end of the year."

"Perfect, then. I'll be there to see it."

"Her ceramics is spot on," Grey signed. "She does such a good job."

I kicked his leg shyly.

"Don't be humble, Hazel; we're all family here," Grey's dad said. "You're allowed to admit you're awesome without judgment."

"I'm okay," I signed, slightly smiling, looking down at my hands.

"All right, we'll cut you some slack. We'll burn her ears off her body if we don't." I laughed. "Hazel, if you don't mind me asking, we're you born non-verbal?"

I shook my head.

"Oh, what happened that you're non-verbal now?" he asked.

There wasn't a reason that he would understand. Dream traveling, as unique as it had become with Grey, robbed me of my voice. But no medical professional could ever diagnose why. How could they when no one else knew that dream traveling was real?

"It just happened. No doctor could figure out why."

"I see," he said. "How does that make you feel? You've gotten used to it by now, I assume."

"Yes and no. I'm used to it, but my inability to speak constantly reminds me of a bad time in my life."

"Do you mind me asking what that bad time was?" Grey shot his dad a warning glance. Then, he picked up on it and added, "That is if you don't mind me asking. You can say no, honey, if it's super personal. I don't have to know."

I took a deep breath and shook my head. "It's okay. As you said, we're practically family at this point. I don't mind you knowing." I mentally prepared myself to tell the story. "One day, I went to the gas station with my dad. When we returned to the car to get my dad's wallet, this man snatched me up and held me at gunpoint until my dad gave him money. The shop owner tried to kill the man, the man shot the shop owner and then, I don't know, I guess my dad panicked and went to get me but then, the man shot him, too. Unfortunately, for him, it was fatal."

As I continued, his dad looked mortified and leaned his mouth into his hands. "The man ran away and left me alone with my dad dead in front of me." I was on the brink of tears but didn't let them spill. "And that was that." Grey's fingers locked with mine tightly.

I looked at his dad. His eyes filled with tears. "I'm so sorry something awful like that happened to someone as brilliant as you. I'm sure that man can't live with himself, can't even sleep at night due to the pain he caused you."

I nodded, and my bottom lip trembled.

"I'm sorry I asked, sweetheart," he said.

I shook my head and wiped my tears. "It's okay," I signed. "It's tough for me, but it's been like... 13 years? It still hurts but not as much as when it first happened."

"Of course," he said. "Did anything come of the case?"

"No. The man wore a mask and sunglasses, and from what the police said, he didn't leave a trace."

Grey's dad shook his head and sighed deeply.

The table went quiet for a bit, and I knew I had to break the tension. "I don't want this to be how I leave. Do you guys want to play some video games before I leave after we finish l-i-n-n-e-r?"

"Yeah," Grey said. "I'm down."

"Same," Grey's dad said. "We have to beat Grey up in Gang Beasts." I smiled and wiped away my remaining tears.

"You heard that, Grey? You're on."

Grey smiled, grabbed my hand, and kissed it softly.