Not So Bad After All
The next week after everything was said and done was one of the most awkward moments in Sandy's life.
While Jack was no longer trying to 'escape' from the Island, there were still a bit uneasiness between them.
Sandy would walk in to a room and Jack would quickly make some excuses about having something he needed to do and leave.
Sandy would try to talk to Jack, and Jack would act stiff and polite the entire time.
The Sandman knew it was just around him too. Jack got along fine with The Sand and the sea shells, and he knew the boy adored the mermaids.
The mermaids adored to boy too, if their gushing about how cute the Spirit of Winter, and prideful remarks about how the boy always praised them had anything to say.
Sandy sighed.
To be honest, he just wasn't sure what to do.
True, he helped kids all the time, but he didn't really…directly interact with them much.
Putting children to sleep and protecting them with dreams throughout the night doesn't really leave much room for one-on-one interaction.
So, when it came to Jack who was basically an immortal teenage with a lot of insecurities well- what does one say to a Spirit child who as been on his own for so long?
It's not like he could do what he did with the few children he did interacted with. While Jack like his dream-sand creations, he doubted simply putting Jack to sleep after a few words- or pictures as it was- of comfort would work.
On the bright side, the fact that Jack kept coming back when he went out to spread winter and that he got along with the rest of the Islands inhabits was a good thing. It meant that while things weren't exactly solid between them, he still trusted Sandy enough try, or at least be comfortable with the Sandman's domain for it to be- maybe not something Jack would call home, but at the least something he saw as a place of refuge for him.
Or at least, that's what The Wind had told Sandy.
Jack had kept the room Sandy had put him in when he first brought Jack to the Island and he would often spend a lot of time in there when he was on the Island.
Sandy had only seen inside the room once since Jack decided to stay, and the sculptures of ice Jack had throughout the room where beautiful.
He thought he had even seen a sculpture of himself among them, but Jack had closed the door in embarrassment before he could get a good look.
Now the Sandman sat on a cloud of sand, high above his castle, as he thought about what to do.
Sighing, the Sandman decided he think on it more later. It was almost time for him to head out again for the night, and he didn't want to be late. Nightmares tended to take that as a sign of 'it's time to scare'.
Rising his arms into the air, he willed the dream sand to come to life.
All around him beautiful creations of sand began to form, creating once more an orchestra of sand images like the night that Jack fell of the side of the castle.
The Sand whirled among the images, letting out a pleased hum as it swirled among the dream sand.
The Sandman was about to create a plane to take off in, when The Sand tugged at the back of his mind.
Look, It whispered.
The Sand gestured down below, towards the castle.
Turing towards where The Sand pointed, Sandy found himself surprised to see Jack standing at the same balcony as the one the boy had fallen off only a week ago. Jack was looking up at the sky with awe, and for some reason it made Sandy feel a surge of pride as Jack looked at his creations with such amazement.
Smiling, the Sandman willed his dream sand down towards Jack.
With wide eyes, Jack reached out and touched the sand, letting out a delighted laugh as the dolphins burst out of it and circled around him.
Jack flew up into the air, created a sort of dance with the dolphins as they all flew together in the sky, weaving in and out among the dream sand creations. The Wind, which had been settled next to Jack, flew towards where The Sand was focused and the two began their own dance.
With a laugh, the Sandman clapped his hands and beamed up at Jack, who seemed to just now notice him.
Looking surprised, Jack's cheeks flushed with embarrassment as he rubbed the back of his head.
"Sorry Sandman, I was just-"
With another laugh, the Sandman shook his head, and patted the space on the sand cloud next to him.
Looking confused, Jack did as he was told after The Wind nudged him along. He flew down to sit next to Sandy, with the dolphins of dream sand following close behind.
With a smile, Sandy recreated a mini image of the dream sand creations that were all around them. In the middle of the mini-creations was Jack and Sandy, flying on the dream sand cloud sending dreams towards the children.
Blink, Jack looked shocked for a moment.
"You want me to go with you on your rounds?"
Beaming at the fact that caught on so quickly (unlike the Guardians, who never seemed to quite understand everything he said, even after so many years) he nodded.
Jack hesitated, but finally nodded. The boy grinned.
"Sure, if you want me too. Just don't expect me to stay still the entire time or go with you to the warm areas, okay?"
Laughing once more, the Sandman raised his arms and the cloud of sand flew in the sky, speeding towards the place where it was time to spread the dreams.
Behind them, The Wind and The Sand giggled as they weaved in and out of the dream sand creations, which where following right behind the cloud like a marching parade of sand.
Letting out a laugh of his own, Jack threw his hands up in the air as they speeded through the night sky.
Sandy smiled, amused, and threw his own hands up, willing the sand to go even faster as he did, silently laughing with Jack.
Maybe, just maybe, things wouldn't be so bad between them after all.
Beside him, Jack turned to looked at him and grinned.
Yes, the Sandman thought.
Not so bad after.
Sorry for the delay! I know I usually update on Friday's, but oh well. What did you all think? You know, I realize I use passive tense (the website likes to point that out a lot) but I just feel it fits, you know? It also often thinks I'm trying to say 'world' when I write 'whirled'. Silly website, The Sand doesn't 'world' around, it whirls. XD
Next week's chapter: New spirits, realizations, and a flashback at Sandy's first meeting with the Keeper.
Let me know if you see any mistakes! :)