(ALL CHARACTERS BELONG TO THEIR RESPECTIVE CREATORS)

Cross walked down a quiet street, staring at the ground, lost in thought. He had stayed at work later then he had intended. The sun was setting to his right, splashing the sky with wonderful, warm hues. Crickets were beginning to emerge and sing their songs. Birds returned to their hollows and nests to sleep. As Cross passed by, a street lamp flickered to life.

Cross took out his phone. Dream had left many messages asking when he would be back, or how long it would take. Cross started drowsily typing a reply. The refreshing wind on his face and sound of insects calmed the skeleton. Combined with his exhaustion, he became numb to his surroundings. He didn't realise that as he entered the park he passed every day, another pair of footsteps followed him.

The crunch of the gravel under both pairs of feet were synchronised, the second unnoticeable. Shadowy hands reached towards the unaware skeleton. A hand was slapped over his mouth, the other held a knife to his neck. He froze, his surprised yelp muffled by the hand.

"Don't you dare move," growled the voice. "There's a bad in the bush to your left. Step slowly and put everything valuable you have in it."

Cross fought the urge to defend himself. He could so easily cut down his attacker. But there was a promise that held him back, a promise that both he and Dream made; They would never injure another again.

Cautiously, Cross walked to the bush where a large black bag sat. He dumped his own bag inside and tossed in his phone. He emptied his pockets of the spare change he had.

"Your clothes. Put them in, too," ordered the attacker.

Don't attack, Cross told himself. Don't fight back. Cross carefully removed his jacket, exposing the golden heart-shaped locket around his neck.

"How much is that worth," demanded his attacker, who removed their hand from his mouth.

"It would be barely a dollar to you," Cross muttered. "To me, however, it's priceless."

"Put it in."

"Please, it's the only memory I have left of-"

"I don't care! But it in the bag!"

Cross couldn't bare it- the thought of losing something so precious. His hand shook as he slowly reached for the locket. It clicked open, revealing a picture of his family before. Seeing it, seeing himself young and smiling with those he cared for, it caused him to snap.

Cross reached behind him and grabbed his attacked before tossing them over himself and slamming them into the ground. Cross bolted as fast as he could in a random direction, hearing his attacker chase after him.

Panic washed over Cross. He lost his sense of direction and every part of him ached, urging him to turn around a fight back. But he kept running, leaping over the gardens.

The plantation suddenly disappeared. The ground below him became firm and rough. Before he could process where he was, there an ear-piercing screech, then everything went black.

Cross woke up just a few minutes later. His entire body felt as if it had shattered into a million pieces. His vision was blurry, his non-existent ears ringing. A warm, thick liquid dripped off his chin and he could taste something metallic on his tongue.

As his senses cleared, terror rose within him. Blood oozed from his body, agony pulsing through his bones. The sound of sirens rung in distance. The road was rough underneath him. Around him, several cars had come to a stop, with one beside him having a large dent in its front.

"Holy shit, are you alright mate?" A human ran up to Cross, kneeling beside him.

The skeleton coughed harshly, the crimson substance spilling out of his mouth. He tried to crawl towards a car, but the pain was unbearable.

"Woah, hold on, mate. You just got hit by a car, you shouldn't be moving!"

"I... need to... get home..." Cross choked on his words. He managed to reach the car and pull himself to his feet. His legs shook like an earthquake and a particularly bad spike of pain shot through his spine.

"Calm down. I'm going to call an ambulance." The human sprinted to their car to find their phone. His thoughts focused on just one thing- getting back to Dream- Cross dragged himself onward. He was gone before the ambulance could arrive.

Dream paced back and forth in the living room, worry in his golden eyes. What's keeping him so long? Dream wondered. Where could he be? He glanced at his phone. The last message he had received from Cross was half-finished, stating something about the park. He wanted to go out and find him, but it was almost pitch-black outside. The stress and worry were building. Dream could feel tears threatening to flow.

A loud thud at the front door startled Dream. A raspy, choking voice called out, begging for the door to be opened. The smaller skeleton was terrified.

"Dream," cried the voice. "Please, open the door!.."

Dream could feel the pain radiating off the person outside. The desperateness, the fear. Swallowing his tears, Dream crept towards the door.

"W-Who's here?" Dream asked.

"It's Cross." They sounded as if they were sobbing. "I'm dying, Dream! Please let me in..."

Dream opened the door a crack. The weight of a body against the door forced it to swing open, almost smacking Dream to the floor. Dream caught Cross as he collapsed, shocked as he saw the blood staining his lover's clothes.

"Oh stars!" Dream took immediate action. He picked Cross up, placing him on the couch before rushing away to find the med kit. He also took his phone and called an ambulance.

"Hold on, C-Cross," Dream soothed. "Help will be here s-soon!"

Cross firmly wrapped his arms around Dream, holding him in a tight and terrified embrace. He sobbed into the smaller skeleton's shoulder, repeating over and over that he was going to die. Dream did everything he could think of, said every reassuring word he knew.

But Cross' consciousness became weaker andweaker, until he stopped responding.