Technically Undignified

Chapter 6

Phil sat up sharply in his bed, panting and sweating furiously. He hated having nightmares. Not only did they make him feel like a weak person that wasn't worth anything but they were always, in a sense, possible. In tonight's, for example, everyone he loved turned their backs on him. His dad hated the son he raised and his brother refused to believe that he was related to such an insignificant creature. Worst of all, Dan didn't want to rule with him. When you compared the time that he hated his planned-out future to the time in which he had known Dan, it was silly to think that Phil's mind could be changed so quickly. His love was just that powerful. Phil brought his knees up to his chin and buried his head into his pyjamas. Why couldn't he just be the strong ruler everyone expected him to be? Everything would be better then. Phil began to cry, his self-hatred growing with every tear.

*****

Phil raised his head to the feeling of someone sitting down on the mattress. It was Dan. "Sorry to startle you. I heard you crying and wanted to see if you were ok." Phil lowered his head again, unable to respond because DAN WAS SHIRTLESS OH MY GOD! "PJ told me about the nightmares.", Dan said, mistaking Phil's embarrassment for discomfort, "Is that why you're upset?" Phil nodded. "Do you want to talk about it?" Phil firmly shook his head. "Ok. That's totally fine. Would you like me to do anything?" Phil flushed fiercely and hid his head even further into the cozy fabric of his pyjamas. Then he spoke so quietly that dan could barely hear it.

"Stay with me. You make me feel more comfortable." They both blushed passionately.

"Lying down with you?"

"Yes please."

"Under the covers?"

"That would be nice."

"Cuddling?" Phil's face turned bright red.

"Only if you're comfortable with that!" Dan smiled.

"Definitely." He picked Phil up, bridal style, and lay him down on the bed. "Are you a big spoon or a little spoon?" Phil's blush reached his ears.

"Little. Can we face each other?"

"Of course."Dan got in bed and put his arms around Phil, who immediately tensed up and inhaled sharply. "Hey, hey, hey. It's ok. I'm here. Just shut your eyes and I promise nothing will happen to you." Phil smiled.

"Ok. Thank you." He shut his eyes. Then opened them like two seconds later. "Just out of interest, what's your family name?"

"Howell. Pretty boring."

"I like it."

"Thanks. What about you?"

"Lester."

"Like the town in that old fairy story?"

"Spelt differently, but yeah."

"Cute." Phil blushed again and nestled his head against the pillow.

"Lets go to sleep now." Phil snuggled into Dan's chest, too tired to worry about his embarrassment.

"Ok." Dan replied, closing his eyes and falling asleep happily next to Phil.

*****

Dan couldn't sleep. Two things circling around in his mind were preventing deep slumber from enveloping him, the first being the intimate information Phil had shared with him moments ago. Well it was actually hours ago but for Dan it felt like mere seconds. Their last names mixed together perfectly: Howell-Lester. It rolled right off the tongue. It got better though: Dan Howell-Lester and Phil Howell-Lester. It worked perfectly. It was like they were made for each other, like the last two pieces of a puzzle that you thought were lost down the back of the sofa. When he tried saying it out loud, Dan fell in love with Phil even more. There were some thoughts telling him that it would never happen; his dad would never accept him, the kingdom would laugh at them, Phil would be taken away from him before the chance for confession came, but with Phil curled up in his arms like this, it was difficult to believe them. Dan wanted to be him for the rest of his life, not only to prove a point, but for his own happiness. True happiness that he had searched for in what his father permitted but real love cannot be shackled by rules. Phil was his happiness. Which only caused him to think about the second thing more. How can he convince Phil that he is worthy of love?

*****

Dan woke to a soft knock at the door. "Yes who is it?", he replied, briefly forgetting that he wasn't in his own bedroom

"It's PJ." Dan beckoned him in and received a suspicious look from his adviser. "Do I need to know anything about last night?", he said, raising an eyebrow. Dan remembered the man wrapped in his arms and glowed a bright garnet colour.

"There's nothing to say! He had a nightmare, that's all!", he exclaimed, defending himself against the embarrassment. Then Dan heard a soft mumble coming from the pillow.

"Dan? What's going on?"

"Nothing important. Good morning."

"Morning.", Phil muttered, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. Then he noticed PJ standing there and turned an even more radiant red than Dan had a moment ago. He looked mortified, poor guy.

"Don't worry. You can trust me to not tell your father, your majesty. I know of your situation. A word of warning: if you ever require this again, please go back to your original rooms before the rest of the castle wakes up because it may not always be me waking both of you up."

"Got it. Thanks PJ.", Dan said, while Phil simply nodded. He was still really embarrassed.

"I leave you two to it. Breakfast will be served in fifteen minutes." Dan thanked him again and PJ left the room. A few minutes later, Dan stood up to leave.

"I've got to go and get dressed. I'll give you a tour of the castle after breakfast, if you want."

"That would be useful. I'm probably gonna spend a lot of time in this castle." Dan walked to the doorway between their rooms before Phil stopped him. "Dan wait!" He turned to answer him.

"Yes?" Phil shot out of bed and ran to him. He kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you for tonight. It really helped." Dan, still stunned by the sudden gesture, finally stuttered,

"You're welcome. I'd be happy to do it again." Dan's eyes widened. Why did he say that that was so forward oh my goddddd???? Phil giggled at his reaction.

"Go on. you better go and get dressed."

"Erm yes. See you at breakfast."

"See you."