Not On Fire (Phan AU)

18 | a new perspective

Dan hasn't been late to school in a while, so he decides to sleep in today for a few extra minutes--which naturally turns into him waking up with ten minutes to get up, get dressed, and get to school. Something that isn't going to happen anytime soon. He's almost surprised that his mom didn't barge in earlier, demanding that his ass get up in much nicer terms, but that must be one of the perks of having her trust back because she doesn't come in until he's been in bed for five minutes, completely awake and just struggling to find the motivation to get up.

There's a knock on the door that shakes him out of his thoughts before his mom comes in, without waiting for a reply in a typical mom fashion.

"If you don't get up in five seconds, I'm coming up here with a bucket of cold water," she threatens, staring at him with a face that says she's serious. Of course, this is a threat she's used multiple times before and never once has he actually had her follow through. Then again, he's always gotten up before the time was over.

"Like you could carry a bucket filled with water," he says while climbing out of bed and stretching. "Why didn't you come in to wake me up earlier?"

"Because you're going to be eighteen before you know it and I thought it was time I started treating you like an adult. Or do you want to have to tell all of your friends that you can't go to college in the fall because your mom still has to wake you up?"

"By friends do you mean Louise and Phil because I honestly don't think they'd really care either way."

"Just get dressed," she says, leaving and closing the door behind her. He swears he hears her say, "He's hopeless," as she walks further and further away.

Normally, he wouldn't be in such a rush, but he's not the only one who has somewhere to be. His mom probably doesn't want to waste her whole morning trying to get him to go to school when she has a job of her own to get to among other stuff she has to do around the house. And he is trying to be more thoughtful after all. Which has him getting ready as quick as he can--allowing himself only five minutes before he's out the door. He'll still be late, but not as late as he would have originally been.

He slips on his shoes and practically runs out the door, relieved to find his mom in her car with the engine already started.

He gets in and shuts the door, putting on his seatbelt.

"So now that you're trusting me and everything, does that mean you'll get me a car so I can take myself to school?" he asks hopefully, locking eyes with her in the rearview mirror.

"Stop trying to spoil your graduation present and shut up," his mom says, sounding somewhat joking, but--wishful thinking and such--he hopes that it's in a playful oops-I've-just-revealed-a-big-secret kind of way. If that's even a thing.

The ride to school is quiet, but not in a bad way. There's no tension in the air, and it doesn't seem like his mom's really all that mad at him for waking up so late. She did tease him, which is a good sign. Everything seems to be going right--perfect, even. Too perfect.

It's at this point that he starts to wonder when the storms going to come. But he really needs to stop thinking like that if he wants to still be sane by the time he graduates high school. Well, that's assuming he's sane right now which is highly debatable, but he digresses.

He tells his mom that he loves her before getting out of the car and hears her respond as he shuts the door.

Carol looks at him with wide eyes when he walks into the office, ten minutes late for school and smiling like it's anything but what it is.