Loving Someone//Phan

daniel

(can we take a moment to appreciate that pic like damn daniel)

He didn't even know where he was running. His heart was racing and his mind was too clogged to think. But as Dan clutched onto Phil's arm, all he could think of was to keep going.

Then he remembered something.

"C'mon, we're going left," Dan said to Phil, and they turned into the forest that laid alongside of the path.

Phil hadn't said anything since the incident at school, making Dan feel a little guilty. He didn't feel bad for the bully, he definitely deserved it, but seeing Phil's face after it happened made his heart sink. All the action had upset him to the point of crying, which Dan never wanted to see. He was only trying to protect his friend. Did he make the wrong decision?

After a while of running, he began to recognize where they were. The trees curled around them like a form of protection, barely allowing sunlight to peak through.

"Welcome," Dan gestured to the secret hideout he had when he was little. It was pretty messy; young Daniel wasn't very good at constructing things. He always loved it though. When family situations were becoming rough, he always had a place to go. The fort was made up of sticks lying around and old blankets from home. It had a small sign that was superglued on and had "Danny" written on it in dripping paint. An old blanket covered the entrance. It was a tad small, but they would fit.

"This is adorable," Phil finally spoke. He giggled a little and pointed to the "Danny" sign.

"Oh hush," Dan huffed. "Climb inside. We'll fit, don't worry."

Phil crawled under the blanket and Daniel followed. It was mostly dark except for a few straying rays of sunlight that squirmed through the cracks. They landed against Phil's face gently, catching the softness of his face and the color of his eyes.

Definitely blue, Dan decided. With a bit of yellow and some green.

"This is where I would hide when I was younger," Dan told Phil. "Well, to be honest, I come here now sometimes, when things are... well you know."

Phil nodded, but didn't speak. He sat with his legs crossed and his hands resting on his ankles. His eyes stayed stuck on the ground. Dan's heart wanted to fall.

"I'm sorry," Dan blurted.

Phil still was silent. He bit his lip and continued to keep his glance on the ground. Then, he began to sniffle. He ducked his head down, but Dan caught it.

"P-Phil, please don't cry. I'm sorry i shouldn't have- I didn't mean to-" Dan's voice was beginning to shake. He took a breath. "I didn't mean to scare you, or m-make you upset."

Silence.

"Phil please!" Dan tried to grab his arm.

"Stop it!" Phil snapped and pulled away. It scared Dan; he had never seen Phil angry. The dark haired boy placed his face in his hands, his body shaking with sobs.

"I-I'm sorry," Phil's voice rose in frustration. "I'm just really upset and I don't know why I'm just really stressed out and-"

Before he could finish, Dan slid closer to the boy and gently wrapped his arms around him.

It was a little awkward at first. Phil's body, stiff with surprise, hanging inside of Dan's long arms. He wasn't even aware of why he hugged his friend. It was like an instinct, because he didn't want to see Phil cry. The silence made him nervous, thinking he had done the wrong thing and made himself look stupid. But then the blue eyed boy slowly leaned his head on Dan's chest and the shaking subsided.

Dan's heart erupted into fireworks.

"I didn't want to hurt him," Dan whispered. "I just hate seeing people make fun of you. You don't deserve that, Phil. You're so much better than them."

"I'm not," He replied. "I'm not like them. That's why they make fun of me. I'm different."

Dan rested the top of his head on his friend's. His hair smelled a little bit like vanilla, the ice cream that Dan always got when his mom took him out for a treat. It made him smile.

"You're not different, Phil. You're important. You are the center of your own universe. And if they can't see that, then fuck them."

Silence lingered in the air for a couple of minutes as Phil held onto Dan's words. The only sounds we're the rushing of trees and the birds that sang for them.

"Thank you," Phil whispered after a while. "But you're the center of my universe."

Dan looked down at Phil as his insides melted. Phil lifted his head and let his mouth form a smile. Dan's face felt magnetically pulled towards the boy.

Jesus, Dan thought as he leaned in closer. I'm going to regret this.