there he was again.

that beautiful, strange boy.

tom reached his arm up in front of him, squinting his eyes to capture every minor detail of the other male.

weirdly, the boy sat atop a fluffy pink cloud, one leg dangling off and the other bent in half of a criss-cross position. his soft golden-brown hair sloped up into two devil horns. he wore a pastel purple sweater that hung off one shoulder and ripped sky blue jeans. a lollipop hung lazily from his lips, his silver eyes sparkling with mischief.

"heya, tommy." he spoke.

tom stared at him. right when he opened his mouth to speak, there was a sudden flash of bright light.

tom shot up in his bed, panting and sweating heavily. he held his head in his hands and released a long breath.

who was that boy?

why had tom dreamt about him 7 days in a row?

he shook his head and tried to get up. not remembering that his legs were tangled in the checkered blankets, tom fell forward with a thump on the blue shag carpet.

"fuck me.." the brit groaned, kicking away the blanket and standing up. he sighed tiredly and glanced over at his digital clock, the neon green numbers telling him it was 8:57 am.

tom decided to start getting ready for work. having taking a shower the night prior, he simply changed into his uniform; a black t-shirt and black jeans. along with that, he had to wear a golden name tag with his name on it and black shoes. tom worked at a coffee shop, the only job he could find in his small town.

he trudged out of his room and into the bathroom, washing his face and putting on deodorant. when he finished his daily routine, tom walked downstairs.

his two roommates, edd and matt, were already sitting at the table eating breakfast.

"mornin', tommo!" edd greeted cheerfully through a mouthful of bacon. "care for some bacon and eggs?"

"i'll pass." tom gave a small nod shake of his head.

"but i made them especially for you!" matt turned around in his seat, blue eyes wide.

"what!? no way, i totally did everything!" edd gasped as if offended.

"liar!"

"you don't even know how to cook!"

"yes i do!"

"no!"

while the two bickered, tom slipped his way out of the house. he stepped out of the way of edd's cat, ringo, as it scampered inside of the cozy home to escape the cold morning.

tom shoved his hands in his pockets as he walked down the street to his work. his mind wandered, his thoughts eventually settling on the boy in his dreams.

who is he?

why do i see him so much?

and.. why does he dress like a girl?

tom usually wasn't one for judging, but he was beginning to get confused. 'dream boy', as he called him, had a knack for wearing clothing that one would consider to be for a girl.

for example, once he wore a light pink crop top with black short-shorts. another time he wore a white t-shirt and faded grey jeans with rainbow suspenders and a choker.

however, tom had to admit that the boy was stunning. he might've even been in love with a fictional person created by his usually quite dull imagination.

tom shoved away his thoughts and pushed open the door to the corner cafe. a bell tinkled softly above him to signal his appearance.

a couple of his coworkers were already there. one of them was sweeping the floor while the other was restocking their scones and muffins.

the one sweeping stopped to wave. "hey."

"hm." tom grunted in acknowledgment, earning a roll of eyes. he walked behind the counter and waited for the customers to arrive.

it didn't take long for their usual customers to come in. tom quickly took their orders and it went on like that for about an hour.

people stopped coming in at around noon, leaving tom relieved since it wasn't that busy.

he was looking down at his phone from under the counter and furiously tapping at the screen when he heard the small bell ring.

mentally sighing, tom put his phone away and looked up.

his heart stopped.

his eyes widened.

it was him; dream boy.

the male walked cup to the counter, a small smile on his face.

"uh- um.." tom gulped down his shock. "h- how may i help you today?"

"i'd just like a small iced coffee, please." he had the same norwegian accent.

tom nodded slowly. his trembling hand picked up a small-sized cup while his other grabbed the marker next to him.

"your n-ame?" he cringed at how his voice cracked.

"well, i'm tord, but you can call me dream boy." there was now a smirk plastered on his face.

the cup dropped to the ground, bouncing once before rolling away under a counter. tom's mouth was agape. his heart pounded heavily.

tord rested his elbow on the counter; a giggle escaped his cherry lips. "see you tonight." he winked, turning and leaving with his shoes tapping on the floor.

"hey, tom? who are you talking to?" tom's coworker, ell, asked. she leaned on the counter and watched him worriedly.

tom looked at her, still shocked. "just.. someone."

"yourself?"

"what?"

"there was no one there yet you were talking and you grabbed a cup," ell raised an eyebrow.

"...oh my fuck, he's gonna drive me insane."