The phone rang a total of four times before he heard Terezi's voice on the other line.
"Cherryboy, do you have any idea what time it is?" Her voice was cracking with the sleep she was probably still coming out of.
"Oh... No clue..."
"It is... almost 4:30. Too cool for a watch, Dave?"
"Shit. I'll let you go back to sleep."
"Nuh-uh, coolkid. I'm awake and you're gonna talk."
"It was stupid."
"You're always stupid."
"Gee, TZ, tell me how you really feel."
"You're dumb."
"Seriously, just go back to sleep, I'll talk to you tomorrow."
"Today. We have school in less than four hours."
"Uh... Oops. I'll leave you alone."
"You quit remindin' me of how this conversation started before I actually get mad at you. Just talk."
"I just woke up and called the first number I saw. It's not important."
"You just... Woke up?"
"Yeah."
"..."
"What."
"I just didn't know you still had problems sleeping. Thought that was a thing of the past."
"Nah. Never went away. Gotten worse in the past few days though."
"Mmhmm."
"Go to sleep, TZ."
"Shut up, you're dumb. Did you have a nightmare?"
"What?"
"Don't make me repeat things at half-past-four in the morning Dave Strider."
"Just go to sleep."
"Don't make me repeat things at half-past-four in the morning Dave Strider."
"Dude."
"Just tell me; with any luck I won't remember when I wake up anyway."
"Okay, yeah."
"What about?"
"I'd rather not say."
"Stupid."
"I don't care."
"How bad could it be."
"Bad."
"Oh? How many people died?"
"Just one."
"Gory? Tragic?"
"Define Tragic."
"I dunno. How'd they die?"
"Plague of some description I guess."
"Loved one?"
For so many years he had been callous to the word love, but at this point he knew better than to keep that feeling locked up. "Yeah."
"I'd call that tragic," she said through a yawn.
"I'm sorry I woke you. You can go back to sleep."
"Shut up and talk."
"I- what?"
"The nightmare, talk about the nightmare you dunderfuck, god."
"There's nothing to say."
"You dense nubrocket, just talk about your damn subconscious messages."
"Nubrocket?"
"Took a leaf from Karkat's insult book. What's it to you."
"Nothing."
"Talk, nubrocket. Where were you?"
"The hospital I guess. But it was darker."
"Are you afraid of hospitals?"
"What? No, I'm not afraid of jack."
"You have fears, coolkid. You're human. Deal with it."
"Okay, I have fears, but hospitals ain't one of 'em."
"Fine. Keep going."
"Uh... You know that scene in Inception when that hallway starts spinning and the people start floating?"
"I guess."
"It was like that, but in the hospital here. And the lights were really dim and flickery."
"Weren't the lights dim and flickery in Inception, too?"
"Hell if I remember. That movie was all kinds of fucked up."
Terezi released a manic-sounding giggle, but ceased abruptly, prodding him, "go on."
"I'm already forgetting."
"I call bullshit."
No, seriously, I... Somehow ended up in a room with Bro. And the bed was on the ceiling I think. But I was still floating or something. He wasn't. Uh... Then he died. I really don't remember."
"Was there no dramatic cutscene in which you declared your undying brotherly love for one another," she asked, "spoken with his very last breath?"
Dave gave a completely empty laugh. "Naw, man, he just died."
"Hm. I think you'da been better off calling Rose."
"The girl sleeps like a log."
"Does she?"
"She's even worse than I am in the morning. Even if the phone had woken her she would have spoken in tongues."
"Huh. She always seems so neat and everything. Organised people are morning people."
"Organised. Have you fucking seen her bedroom."
"Uh, no."
"Oh, yeah."
"So, do you wanna talk about the subconscious messages or something, or…?"
"I didn't really want to talk about anything at all."
"Maybe you should shower."
"I don't wanna risk waking Bro. He's… been busy. Needs his rest, y'know."
"Okay. Can you go back to sleep?"
"I think so, but I'm wondering if it's worth it."
"It's worth it."
"…Okay."
"Good night, Mr. Strider."
"Night Terezi."