A dark hood over his head, earphones tucked safely in his ears with a small smile plastered on his face, walking about with a swing in his step and a lovesick mood tangling the locks of his hair to the laces of his shoes.

George walked on, away from his lovely home and the lively music that made it what it was, heading to a more quainter place. Where that was, George would never know.

London was quite the city and he was glad he lived in the quieter corners of it, not too far away from the noise and drama but just enough for them to call it quiet.

The deadline for their rent had to be paid soon. They were doing all they could to grasp at it, to grab the goal and so far it was going alright. Tommy had been gaining viewers ever since he posted his photo of meeting The Diamonds, and that was enough help.

It could only go so far.

But now, George chose to forget it, and as luck had its way of putting a spin on things, he found himself in the busier bits of London.

He had gotten word from Twitter that his book friend had met a fine model named Violet Starling, and they would begin shooting photos tomorrow. As George remembered the news, he found himself faced with a large hotel where only he fanciest of folks could enter.

George past it quickly and when he turned the corner he felt a small voice call to him.

"George?"

He looked up at the sound of the voice, and pulled an ear phone out of his ears. There, standing with a brave smile on his face, was none other than Clay.

George didn't know what came over him and he just hugged the other, laughing to himself. Clay laughed too, hugging him back, lifting him off of the ground. "Put me down!" George ordered with a grin and Clay shook his head.

"Never! You really should be thanking me Georgie, now you can finally feel tall." Despite the nickname, George found himself laughing.

"You- I'm average height!" He bit back and Clay finally put him down, placing a hand over his head. "Small."

George stuck his tongue out at him. "What're you doing out here?"

"Just going on a walk. I see your doing the same then?" George nodded at the words and felt his phone ding.

Will wants to film the video now, and

he wants you to be in it

Seen, 21:00

George stared at the message for a moment before pushing his phone into his pocket, apprehensive for the sake of his friend. "Yeah, but I should be heading back." He gave Clay a look of careful calculations hidden under his irises.

"Oh, that's fine. I'll be going on then, we'll talk later, ye-"

"Do you want to come with?" George blurted out before Clay had the chance to finish his sentence. The shorter looked up at the former, who stared back with intent and a shocked face. It was soon replaced with a grin, and a small nod, even when George was screaming at himself for asking such a question.

"I'd love too." He answered and he took a step forth, looking back at George's hooded figure. The brunette ran after him and began to lead the way with a small smile entangling the small butterflies rushing up and down his stomach in union, trying to sway him off of his feet.

"I've got to warn you though, they're really-" George tried to find the exact word, and chose a perfect few, moving his hand to emphasise it, "Reckless. And chaotic, nerdy, dorky. You know, the usual."

"You'd fit right in then." Clay grinned as George pushed at his side.

"Speak for yourself."

"I don't get why you can't just admit Percy Jackson is better, I mean, you've got adventure, great and compelling characters, greek mythology!" Clay argued all the way to their tiny apartment. The way was slow yet George was grinning the entire way, watching as he rambled on and on.

"Look who's the dork now." He grinned and Clay told him to shut up.

"You-"

"Oh my gosh, are you Dream?"

There it was. George couldn't feel more awkward as he stood next to Clay, masking his face as Dream with a smile. But the brunette could see the uncomfortable nature swarm behind his irises as the lady who had called out his name approached them. Before long, a crowd would emerge before his apartment, George knew.

He gripped Clay's hand and stepped forth. "It's very nice to meet you, but we're running late."

"C'mon, I've been a fan of yours for ages, could I get a photo?"

She had ignored him, stepped out of line and exposed her valiant obsession to George's frightful eyes. Clay moved their interlocked hands behind his back and squeezed his fingers tightly, in order to tell him something he knew without it even being said.

Then something seeped through him, controlled him, made him stand stupidly tall and nicely mad. "I'm sorry, but we really should be leaving. It's been a pleasure to meet you, I hope you have a nice day."

And with that, he pulled Clay along and ran to his apartment complex, rushing up the stairs, running out of sight from the eyes of the public. He pulled Clay up with him, up the six staircases his apartment had to it's name, and to his door, panting.

Clay huffed a breath too, and only then did George realise what he had done; "Oh my- I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have-"

"That was amazing." Clay's eyes glowed, their hands still interlocked with one another. "You- You were so nice. But not nice," He began to laugh. "I didn't know you had it in you."

George began to laugh with him, and the two just stood there for a bit, laughing at the idiocy of each-other. At last, George pressed a hand on his door and let go of Clay's hand to open the door, only to be met with a scream from a familiar voice, "'CAUSE SHE MOVES ON PRETTY BLOODY QUICK, OHHH, YOUR NEW BOYFRIEND'S AN ARSEHOLE."

Classic.

Then he heard a 'woo' coming from what sounded like Tubbo or Wilbur, or even a mix of both. "Toms, you're going to get us evicted!" George told him, and they all turned to face him, grinning wide smiles. "Gogy!"

Clay walked into their house and looked around for a moment, just for everyone to grow silent, staring at the two. Wilbur cocked an eyebrow at George as he began to speak. "Don't worry about him, he's-"

"You're Dream! Damn, we've met like what, two times already? Jesus Christ." Tommy spoke and fell into silence beside Tubbo after a very, very painful laugh. Wilbur stood up when nobody else would and walked over to Dream, giving him a hand. "What's up, mate? I hope you don't mind our set up, we're kind of scuffed at the moment. Would you mind helping us a little?"

"Yeah, I don't mind." Clay shrugged, shaking his hand with a small smile.

George silently thanked Wilbur with a blink of his eyes; Wilbur always seemed to understand better than many, and treating Clay like a normal person just made everything better.

"Great, thank you." He went toward there lounge area and Clay sat down on the sofa.

"What's up with you guys, why're you so stiff?" Wilbur asked, and gave Tubbo and Tommy two hands for them to grasp. "We are gonna do it, aren't we?"

"Yeah, but-" Tommy glanced at Will and then to Dream while Tubbo just stood up. "I call dibs on Alexander Hamilton!"

"No way, I wanted to be him!"

And there it was. And there it was indeed, the moment George had known he had made the greatest friends a man of his nature could make.

"I'm Burr!" Wilbur called, raising his hand.

"I'm not Eliza or Angelica-" George replied, grinning, whilst walking from the door and to the kitchen island, grabbing a glass of water for him to drink.

Wilbur clapped. "Great, you can be Eliza, gogy! Nickels, do you mind being Washington? Tommy, you can be Phillip." Niki seemed a little dazed at the sight of Dream, but the attitude that Wilbur brought onto them made it a little more bearable, made them act like they were real, breathing people and not cardboard cutouts of emotion.

"Why am I always Eliza?" George called from the kitchen, placing his cup in the sink before going back to where Will stood, Tommy and Niki still slumped on the couch.

"Because you look a Phillipa Soo, now come on! Dream-" Will pointed a finger at the blond, who raised his head at him. "Can you be the camera man? We need someone to film."

"That's rude, Will." Niki spoke, giving Tubbo her arm.

Tubbo pulled her up. "I'm sorry, but if someone figures that we've been hanging around with him we won't ever hear the end of it. Look at what his presence made you lot act like." Wilbur opened his phone up to the camera option and handed it to Dream. "Thanks mate."

"No problem." He faced it towards Wilbur. "This good?"

"Perfect."

"IM THE DAMN FOOL THAT SHOT HIM- Oops, sorry Will, I gotta go grab something. Can I stay the night, by the way?" Tubbo asked him, running around the sofa and then left to go to his shared room with Toms.

"Sure! You don't need to ask Tubs!" Will replied.

Tubbo came back with his ukulele. "Thanks!" He began to strum it, to see if it was in tune, and as it turned out, it was. "Yo, is that the one from-" Tommy asked and Tubbo nodded furiously. Everyone knew what they were talking about. The haunted ukulele they had found at 3am one time in the seventh grade.

"I am not throwin' away my shot," Tommy and Tubbo began to sing together in tune. "I'm just like my country, I'm a young filthy American, and I'm not throwin away my shot!"

Wilbur laughed at the lyrics while Clay grinned. "How does a bastard, orphan, son of a whore and a scotsman-" Wilbur began as loud as he could, speak singing. "And a Scotsman, dropped in the middle of a forgotten spot, in the Caribbean by providence impoverished in squalor, grow up to be a hero and a scholar?"

Niki and George began to snap their fingers while Tommy booed as Will sang, then stopped when it was his turn. "The ten dollar, founding father without a father got a lot farther by working a lot harder, by being a lot dumber than most, by being a self-starter, by fourteen, they placed him in charge of a trading charter."

"Hey, you can't disrespect Tubbo like that!" Niki cut in, causing the rest to laugh as she continued. "And every day while slaves were being slaughtered and carted away- Across the waves, he struggled and kept his guard up. Inside, he was longing for something to be a part of. The brother was ready to beg, steal, borrow, or barter."

Niki and Tommy came together, while the others snapped their fingers. "Then a hurricane came, and devastation reigned, our tubbo saw his future drip, dripping down the drain (like an idiot). Put a pencil to his temple, connected it to his brain. And he wrote his first refrain, a testament to his pain!"

"Well, the word got around, they said, this kid is insane, man- Took up a collection just to send him to the mainland, get your education, don't forget from whence you came. And the world is gonna know your name- What's your name, man?" Will pointed at Tubbo and he stood up, abandoning his ukulele.

"Tubbo underscore." He looked up, bravely, as the others started to crack up. "My name is Tubbo underscore. And there's a million things I haven't done, just you wait, just you wait."

"When he was ten his father split, full of it, debt-ridden." George sang and Clay turned the camera to him, grinning. "Two years later, see Tubs and his bees bed-ridden, Half-dead sittin' in their own sick, the scent thick."

"And Tubbo got better but his bees went quick."

Wilbur continued the song with the help of Tommy, Tubbo, and the rest of their gang. Wilbur had fallen down at one point, Tommy almost bashed Tubbo's ukulele on Clay's head while Tubbo kept laughing with George as they listening to Niki telling Tommy off for what he did.

Yep. It was home for George.

But it seemed even more fascinating for Clay. This group of friends seemed like they had years of unwritten history between them, and the way they worked around each-other was all the more funnier. After Hamilton was over and done with, they began to sing Billy Joel, and here, even though Clay was filming, he couldn't help himself.

"HE SAYS SON CAN YOU PLAY ME A MEMORY, IM NOT REALLY SURE HOW IT GOES, BUT ITS SAD AND ITS SWEET AND I KNEW IT COMPLETE, WHEN I WORE A YOUNGER MAN'S CLOTHES."

"Now John at the bar, is a friend of mine. He gets me my drinks for free." Clay couldn't help himself. The look Wilbur gave him was one of complete excitement and satisfaction. "And he's quick with a joke, or a light up your smoke, but there's someplace that he'd rather be-"

"HOLD ON-" Tommy told them and ran to his room, coming back with a harmonica, beginning to play it. George laughed at the way he played it, making Toms laugh to, but he caught himself and began to play once more. "He says Bill, I believe this is killing me, as a smile ran away from his face," Clay and Will sang in union. "Well, I'm sure I could be a movie star, if I could get out of this place!"

"Now Paul is a real estate novelist who never had time for a wife. And he's talkin' with Davy, who's still in the navy, and probably will be for life!"

"Go for it Toms!"

"And the waitress is practicing politics! As the businessmen slowly get stoned. Yes, they're sharing a drink they call loneliness, but it's better than drinkin' alone!" Will laughed harder than the time Tommy nearly bashed Clay's head open and Clay was right beside him, wheezing.

He turned the camera off and fell to the couch. "Look at these pathetic gremlins." Tommy pointed and shook his head, making the others laugh.

"Oi, shithead!"

"Stop talking shit, dickhead!"

"Dorks." George spoke and both Tubbo and Niki laughed.

When they were all situated on the sofa once more, everything became quiet. Tubbo leaned on Tommy while keeping his knees up. Niki rested her arm upon them, and George sat with her, while Wilbur and Dream both sat next to each-other, smiling.

Suddenly, Will clapped. "Movie night?"

"I'll get the snacks! Do we have left over cookies, Nickel?" Tommy stood up, closely followed by Wilbur. "Nuh uh, I'm not letting you blow up our kitchen."

"There's some in the fridge!" Niki called.

"What're we going to watch?" Tubbo asked. "High school musical?"

"Oh my gosh, yes. All three of them?" Tubbo and Niki tangled their hands together as they laughed. "Remember when-"

"Hey, we are not watching high school musical, that's cringe! Can we watch Totoro?" Tommy called from the kitchen.

"We'll watch high school musical, then that." George placed both of his hands on his hips. He felt a hand slither on his shoulder and soon enough, he felt Clay's presence next to him.

"Hi." He greeted with a grin.

"Hello," George hummed back. "Billy Joel stan."

Clay laughed into his shoulder. "I'll go grab the blankets!" Tubbo stood up and Niki followed her, saying something about tea.

"Do you want tea, Dream?" Niki asked him after everyone agreed to it.

"Call me Clay please, and yeah, that sounds wonderful." Clay nodded to her, and she nodded back, a small smile creeping on the edges of her lips. He turned back to George. "Your friends are amazing."

George laughed. "They are. Except Racoon boy, stay away from him."

"Hey!" Tommy called from the kitchen and the two sniggered to themselves.

"Your apartment's cozy." He smiled and George smiled, comfortable.

"It's really torn, we've lived here for years." He chuckled and Clay's eyes shone, loving him even more. Was that possible?

He listened on as George rambled about their apartment. "See that splotch there? One time Tubbo spilled a cup of watercolour there. We tried to wash it out for hours but nothing worked, and oh, those scribbles over there, by the TV? Tommy drew those three years ago."

Clay looked around as George pointed out all the little imperfections of their home but it made him love it even more, just like George did. "SWEETS ARE HERE!" Tommy called, placing a plate of biscuits at Clay's feet, and then plopping himself on the floor next to George.

Niki came too, and brung them all tea. Tommy took his and grinned at her, only for her to ruffle his hair. He stood up and ruffled hers, before he sat down again. Wilbur, Clay and, George sat on the sofa while Tommy, Niki, and Tubbo sat on the ground.

"We watching high school musical then, yeah?" They all nodded, smuggled in warm blankets, tea, and sweets. Wilbur laughed, flicking through the DVD's before he found it, and pushed it in.

A musty scent trickled Clay's atmosphere as the movie began, and even more so as characters were introduced and songs were played. Niki, Tubbo, Tommy and George sang their hearts out when 'breaking free' came on and only then did Clay realise what it was.

He was home.