Web Shows 1. Prologue

**A/N: **haha yeah i'm making a phan story because i get random ideas out of nowhere and i _can't _seem to get them out of my head? anyway i actually don't know where i'm going with this honestly but i'm in extremely happy mood atm because i fINALLY FINISHED MY WINTER BREAK HOMEWORK (for math though i have science left fml) HELLA

one thing before i begin: have any of you read _two roads meet_? HOLY CRAP I /HIGHLY/ RECOMMEND IT OKAY IT'S ONE OF THE BEST PHANFICS I'VE EVER READ. i cried when it ended but _really you guys should read it. _it made me exPLODE with feels — and it's really well written. it's amazing.

HAPPY NEW YEAR'S EVE!

**disclaimer:** i don't own dan &amp; phil and blah blah blah you get what i mean

**setting: **AU

**warning: **rated T for Dan(and Chris)'s language lmao

enjoy!

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**Prologue**

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The year was 2009, and a certain 18 year old was making his way through the streets of London.

He wasn't one for crowds, or for people in general. He ran a hand through his hair, trying to fix it — but failed, because someone had bumped into him as he was doing so. _Goodness gracious__._ Rolling his eyes, he shook his head and stalked off, weaving through humans and almost crashing into little children (he was 6'0" for goodness sakes, you couldn't blame him) but eventually — through the crowds and noises, he had successfully made it back to his house in one piece.

The brown-haired male stuffed his left hand in his pocket (his right was holding a shopping bag) and sighed. He didn't really have an interesting life, which was okay in his opinion. He strongly preferred browsing the internet daily than going out and interacting with people. Today was one of the days that he actually did decide to get his lazy ass up and moving, but he only did that because he was in need of new clothing.

... Not that his wardrobe was all that interesting, it usually consisted of black/gray shirts and pants alike, there was the occasional colored shirts that he did have/enjoy wearing but he liked wearing black and gray more. It kind of suited him the best.

He entered his house and closed the door behind him, making his way to the sofa in the lounge.

The male took his laptop and was about to turn it on — when his phone rang. It was laying facedown next to him, but he eyed it apprehensively. _Really. _Some people had bad timing. After listening to his ringtone for a few moments and debating whether or not to pick the phone up, he groaned and finally flipped it over, reading the contact name — which read Chris Kendall. Sighing, he picked his phone up reluctantly and answered the call.

"Hello?" He said, watching his computer load as he did so.

"DAN!" Chris yelled back, startling Dan which made him nearly drop his phone on the floor. Moments later, he managed _not _to drop it, but he blinked and returned to the call right after maintaining his sudden shock (and after recovering from Chris's loud shouts).

"Chris, what the _hell _do you want?" Dan mumbled, massaging his temple. "Calm yourself down, will you? I almost dropped my phone _when you freaking yelled into my ear_!"

Dan could hear Chris laughing, and he rolled his eyes even though he knew Chris couldn't see him. "Cheer up, Dan. I know you're a bit moody these days — "

"Excuse me?"

" — But hey, to lighten things up, I'm thinking of throwing a party." Chris said, cautiously. "You know, so you'd get used to people and such. That, and we haven't seen each other in person for quite a while, even if it was just a few weeks ago. I want you to meet a new friend I've found recently, he's really nice and stuff and I know you'll like him. A few other people are coming too, if that's okay."

"Um... When you say 'a few other people' I'm not too sure what you mean by that." Dan said, biting his lip. He wasn't great at making friends or introducing himself either. Instantly a wave of panic rushed over him, trying to make the message clear that Dan did _not_ want to go, even if Chris was one of his few friends. He prayed that Chris would realize inviting him would all just be a mistake and leave him be to his internet browsing.

"Oh, shut up." Chris snorted. "You're coming, alright?"

Dan groaned. "But, Chris — "

"Listen, I know that you don't like human interaction and social things — but I _really_ want you to meet this guy okay? He's just like you. Well, kinda. Maybe a little less like you in appearance but I promise you that you won't regret meeting him, okay? Promise! Now, party's gonna be tomorrow at my place. I'll be picking you up, alright?" Chris then said.

"Won't you tell me his name?" Dan asked, sighing, but Chris had hung up.

Great. Now Dan was forced to attend Chris's party (and it wasn't a special occasion!) and to meet some guy that _apparently _was just like him. Of course, Dan appreciated the thought of Chris trying to make him make new friends, but each time he did the people Dan met never just connected to him. They had different music tastes, likes, and basically everything. So Chris's plans always slid downhill and Dan always ended up by himself in the corner of the room on his phone.

Not that he cared.

He checked the date on his phone — October 18, 2009. Dan sighed and threw it on the space next to him.

Dan wasn't looking forward to tomorrow.

* * *

Soon enough, tomorrow came.

The date was October 19, 2009 — and Dan was in his room, in his bed. It was now nearing 6 o'clock, meaning that Chris would be coming to pick him up from his house soon, and that the party was going to start too. Throughout the whole day Dan had been moping around in his room, knowing that the party would be a complete disaster of his social skills. He thudded his head on the wall — softly, cause the last time he did that he had a bruise on his skull — and dreaded the hours.

Dan wasn't even dressed yet, though he knew that Chris was coming soon. Heck, he didn't even know what to _wear. _

Then, the doorbell rang, and Dan groaned. Chris was here. Crap.

"Dan? Open up!" Chris's voice called from the door, knocking.

It took Dan ten minutes to fully convince himself to get his butt moving and actually socialize with other people. He had totally forgotten that Chris was at the door until Chris pounded on it again, nearly making Dan fall out of his bed. "JUST A SEC!" The teen yelled as he leaped out of bed as he undressed and pulled on his black skinny jeans, cursing his deformed butt and nearly falling down in a rush.

"DAN, DON'T TELL ME THAT YOU'RE BARELY GETTING DRESSED NOW!"

Dan froze, holding a pair of mismatched socks in his hands as he looked at the direction of the door. He laughed nervously as he yanked them on and apologized to his friend. "SORRY, CHRIS!" Immediately Dan heard an exasperated sigh in response.

Moments later, Dan had frantically grabbed a black t-shirt and shoved it over his head. He pulled on a black jacket and stared at himself in the mirror. A scrawny boy with brown hair brushed neatly to one side and with dark brown eyes was staring back at him, looking miserable. Dan sighed as he pulled on his shoes and took his phone, shoving it into his front pocket as he finally met Chris at the door.

When he'd opened it, Chris was on his phone, clearly gotten tired of waiting for Dan. Then Dan cleared his throat after five minutes of Chris not noticing him right away, and Chris nearly jumped. Then he grinned, eyeing him from head to toe. He gave Dan a thumbs up. "About time! Let's get this party started."

Dan exhaled. He was so _not _ready for this.

* * *

They'd arrived at Chris's house thirty minutes later.

Dan's eyes scanned through the cars parked, surrounding Chris's house, and gulped. Did he really invite that many people? And he only said a few, too! Goodness gracious. He could hear the blasts of music from outside the house, and there were lights flashing everywhere. He swiveled around to look at Chris in the driver's seat who was grinning back at him. Chris must've saw the panicked look in his face, and he placed a reassuring hand on Dan's shoulder.

"Don't be scared, Dan, all of them aren't _too_ bad." Chris said, smiling at him. "I promise you that. Oh yeah, about that one guy I wanted you to meet! He should be inside, I saw him earlier. His name's — " He was cut off when he heard shouting and yelling coming from his house. "Uh oh. Well, I'll better see what that's about. Come on, Dan, I'll introduce you to some people."

Dan gulped as Chris got out of the car, Dan cautiously tailing him close behind.

The heavy noises of music got louder and louder as Dan and Chris got inside the house, and Dan's jaw nearly dropped open. There were loads of people everywhere, lots of them chatting and laughing together. Dan blinked — once, twice — to soak it all in. People were sitting on couches, joking around, getting snacks and drinks — and they all seemed to know each other. That made Dan feel worse.

Chris laughed. "Turns out there wasn't a problem at all." He turned to Dan, who was staring around him, the levels of panic rising in his stomach. When Dan turned around to look at Chris, he was too busy looking around the room, drumming his fingers on his chin. "I'm pretty sure I saw him around here earlier..."

"Um, Chris?" Dan asked timidly, unable to keep his eyes off the number of people in the room. "Is PJ here?"

PJ was also one of Dan's few friends, too. He'd met him and Chris at the same time, forming a bond. "Oh yeah, he's over there." He pointed over to a curly, brown haired smiling guy who appeared to be talking to several other people. PJ caught sight of Dan and Chris and waved a friendly hello over to him, Dan returning the wave with an awkward smile before turning back to Chris.

He took deep breaths before he told Chris the truth. "Chris, I can't do this."

"What? Of course you can." Chris said, frowning. "I know it might be hard to talk to people you don't know, but... try, okay? For me. I'll introduce you to Louise, Zoe, Alfie, and such. They're all very nice and kind people, okay? And... I swear I saw Phil around here... Where on earth can he be?"

_Phil? _Dan blinked. "Um, who's Phil?"

"He's the guy I was talking about earlier, y'know the one where I said you guys were both really alike?" Chris said, as he gripped Dan's wrist and edged him along. Dan nearly stumbled but luckily caught himself after breathing a loud sigh of relief. Chris then grinned and nodded, as he walked towards a small group of people that seemed to be around Dan's age.

A pretty girl with long brown hair noticed him, and Chris. "Hi Chris! Thanks for inviting me. Who's this?" She said, blinking at Dan who didn't say anything, too busy staring at her and the other two people with her, both boys. Chris then nudged Dan — hard — in the stomach, Dan winced from the pain and gave Chris a death glare, who stared back at him determinedly.

Then Dan coughed. "I'm, uh... Dan Howell. It's nice to meet you... ?"

"I'm Zoe Sugg," the girl said, smiling. "It's nice to meet you too, Dan." She nodded at Chris politely and returned back to talking with the other two boys beside her, Chris grabbing Dan's wrist once again — pulling him away from the three of them. Dan let out a sigh of relief that he had been holding and shook his head.

Chris sighed, but he grinned. "That wasn't so bad. That was Zoe, Alfie Deyes, and Joe. Zoe and Joe are brother and sister, and Alfie's just a friend of theirs. See? You just need to get past your awkwardness and just _interact_. It's no problem, I don't see why you worry too much. I'll be right back, I need to find Marcus. Make friends!" He added, as he walked off leaving Dan standing in the middle of the hallway, unable to say anything back to Chris.

Dan did _not _care what Chris said, that was an absolute nightmare. He had frozen like a deer in headlights once Zoe had said "Who's this?". It had broken the dam that he was holding all his anxiety and panic in, and had made him suffer of thinking what he was supposed to say next without seeming totally stupid. The good news was that Chris wasn't with him anymore, so he could go on his phone —

Once Dan had clicked it to show his screen, his eyes trailed over to the upper right hand corner where it read the battery, and — Oh, no.

_He'd forgotten to charge it!_

Even _more _panic erupted inside of his stomach. His battery percentage was at 8%! He was not going to last the whole night here until the party ended, and it was barely 6:15. Dan facepalmed and cried internally about him forgetting to charge his phone — how could he even _forget_? Goodness gracious! This was a whole _bucket of fun _for Dan. Great, just great. He should've never picked up Chris's call in the first place. Dan should've locked himself in the car and refused to come out. He should've _never _left the house.

And now he was stuck at Chris's party, having a miserable time while everyone else was being social and having fun.

Dan leaned against a wall and stuffed his hands in his pockets, thinking about how his life was completely miserable. He cursed his awkwardness and bent his head down in shame as he desperately wished for someone to take him home, far _far_ away from this place. He did not care if Chris was disappointed in him leaving straight away. He did _not give two fucks _—

Dan was thinking all of this while walking to the snacks table and munching on a few chips — honestly the only things he liked about parties was the food, and Chris ordered a lot of food. He'd came back to the same spot on the wall a few moments later, if he would be stuck here for hours and hours then might as well eat. Dan checked his phone once more and mourned that he hadn't even thought of bringing a charger with him just in case. Life sucked right now.

He had finished his food and was browsing on his phone a few minutes at a time, in order to conserve the little battery he had left. And then, when he chuckled quietly at a picture he had found on the Internet — BAM.

His phone slipped out of his hands.

And fell, towards the ground.

Now, of course this all happened in slow motion through Dan's eyes. HIM AND HIS STUPID BUTTERFINGERS! Did he really just _drop _his phone? Now, this was even more great! Dan would've imagined everyone turning around and snickering while Dan tried to disappear through the wall, _completely and utterly mortified _—

But the crash never came. Dan opened his eyes and nearly banged his head on the wall.

Someone was standing in front of him, holding Dan's phone in their hands. Dan gulped and examined the person who had just saved his phone's life. He was a few inches taller than Dan, and almost had the exact same hair as him except it was parted on the other side, and a tad longer. And, _wow_. He had the most beautiful pair of blue eyes — was that a hint of green and yellow in them? He had pale skin and was wearing a yellow plaid collared t-shirt that suited him well, along with black skinny jeans and converse.

"I — Er," Dan said, stupidly. He punched himself mentally and nodded at the other male, who stared curiously back at him. _Come on, Dan you fucking idiot thank him already! _"Uh... Thank you. For saving my — my phone." Dan finished, awkwardly. _Idiot! _Dan cursed at himself.

The other male smiled at him. "Ah, no problem." He gave it back to Dan, who gingerly took it. "I'd freak out personally if I nearly dropped my phone too, don't worry." In awe, Dan saw as he pulled out his own phone. "I can't live without this, you?" His eyes flickered, and Dan could see them — even if the lights in the house were flashing brightly.

Dan chuckled, forcing himself to look into the other's eyes. "Er, yeah."

A couple of minutes of awkward silence dragged by.

"So, are you a friend of Chris? What's your name?" He said, apparently trying to start a conversation. Dan was a bit taken aback. No one had ever been this curious to learn about him before. And... well, this guy seemed like a nice person. Dan shrugged, deciding to let him talk.

"Yeah, I am. I'm Dan. Dan Howell." Dan looked over to the male who was now besides him, his eyebrows raised in recognition.

"Oh, so _you're _Dan!" He exclaimed brightly at him, when Dan stared at him quizzically. "Chris told me all about you, you know."

Dan fixed his fringe before saying anything back. "What do you mean 'so you're Dan?' I'm pretty sure I haven't met you before... ? I'm sorry I don't quite recognize you, though," he added quickly, worrying that he might offend him. Personally he would've recognized those beautiful blue eyes anywhere, but Dan didn't say that part out loud. Instead, he bit his lip nervously.

"Oops, sorry. I haven't introduced myself." He said apologetically. "I'm Phil. Phil Lester."

_Phil? _That name sounded oddly familiar. Then it clicked. "Oh! Yeah. Chris mentioned you. He said that you and I had similar interests and stuff like that." Dan remembered. "I think he was looking for you earlier, to introduce you to me." Dan looked back at Phil, who smiled brightly.

"Well, Dan, it's nice to meet you at last," Phil said politely. "So, what do you like?"

"Like? As in... ?" Dan trailed off.

"Anything," Phil had answered.

"Um..." Dan said. "Have you ever heard of the band... Muse?" He trailed off, seeing the look in Phil's face and deflated. Just as he thought he would be able to make a new friend... but suddenly, Phil's eyes brightened and Dan blinked in surprise.

"Yes! They're one of my favorites, what's your favorite song?" Phil said. And he wasn't even saying that to just be nice and fake a conversation. He really liked the band Muse. Immediately a bright smile fixed itself on Dan's face. Maybe they did have things in common after all.

He was about to respond when Chris walked over, seeing him leaned against the wall and Phil standing right next to him. He grinned has he approached Dan and Phil, and raised an eyebrow. "So, Dan! I guess you've met Phil. And Phil, I guess you've met Dan! All on your own too, I'm very proud. Well, anyway I seem to be interrupting a _very deep conversation _— " he said those last few words slowly and grinned mischievously, " — so I'll leave you two be!"

And with that, he left — leaving the two of them to burst out laughing. Thus, they then discussed their favorite songs, animals, likes, dislikes, and just about _everything. _Throughout the whole conversation Dan had to admit that Chris_ was _right._ Phil was exactly like him. _He laughed when Phil had told him that he really liked lions, and in return Dan told him about his liking of llamas. Dan was actually having a _blast _— and pretty soon the party was over.

Surprisingly, he didn't want to leave, not after he'd finally met someone who was just like him. He sighed and smiled at Phil, who smiled back. And wow... He looked really attractive when he smiled. It made Dan's heart stop. At this, Dan slapped himself mentally again. Nope, this guy probably didn't think of him like that. After all, they did just meet two hours ago.

Dan and Phil both had a small talk as they left the house, and then Dan stopped in front of Chris's car. Chris had honked it once to alert Dan that he was waiting for him... But he wanted to say his goodbyes to Phil before he left. He might not even see him again, who knows.

It was cold and windy when they had stepped outside.

"Well..." Dan said, stuffing his hands into his pockets. "I guess... This is goodbye."

They didn't live anywhere quite near each other, which was a pity. And plus, Dan was still in uni so there was no way he would just drop out and not pursue what he was going to do in life. He was studying law which was extremely stressful, but hey. It was what he found interesting, so he did it, even though previously he was into drama and acting. Hard to believe, eh?

Phil looked equally sad. "Yeah... Well, maybe we'll see each other again."

"It's a small world," Dan agreed.

They stood there, smiling and gazing at each other.

Did Dan mention that Phil had really beautiful blue eyes? He could stare into them all day —

HONK!

Dan and Phil jumped, Dan's cheeks burning. Chris had rolled down the window. "Dan, hurry up and get your ass in here!" Both Dan and Phil burst out laughing, and then Dan snuck a glance at Phil, to see that the other male was staring back at him too, a pink tinge on his cheeks. He stared shyly at the ground, and only turned around to say his last goodbye to Phil.

"Bye, Phil."

"Later, Dan."

Phil turned and walked away, and Dan climbed into the car. He had put on his seatbelt and checked his phone (which surprisingly was still at 8%, it had survived!) when he faced Chris with a smile and saw that Chris was staring at Dan, a dreamy look in his eyes. Dan blinked. "Uh... Chris?"

Chris gave a little sigh and raised his eyebrows. "Didn't you have fun, Dan? With Phil?"

"When you put it that way, Chris, that sounds really weird," Dan noted as the memory of Phil's smile appeared in his thoughts. What Dan didn't realize was that he was smiling creepily to himself, his face feeling warm — until Chris pointed it out. Dan had sunken lower in his seat as Chris smirked.

"Aren't you in love with him, now? Did you get his number?" Chris said, laughing.

Dan shook his head. "No, I didn't get his number... I kinda forgot to ask him... And I'm not in love with him, Chris!"

"Yeah, yeah. Tell me that after I saw you two _gazing _into each other's eyes." Chris tutted. "Maybe next time you'll see each other again, after all, you two _are _friends with me." he had said, grinning at Dan who had sighed and shook his head once more in disbelief.

They'd arrived at Dan's house afterwards, and once Dan stepped out of the car, he turned back and tapped the window. Chris rolled it down, smiling knowingly at Dan. "Thanks, Chris, for inviting me to the party," he said, and waved a goodbye as Chris left.

He entered his house and immediately charged his phone, and smiled to himself.

Wow. Today was probably one of his best days. He checked the calendar.

October 19, 2009.

The fateful day when Dan Howell met Phil Lester.

Little did they know it would be years till they saw each other again.

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**A/N: **oh golly gee 4,000+ words — aAH. anyway, hope you guys enjoyed. I can relate to Dan in his awkwardness around meeting new people, in all honesty. aah i still don't have a stable plot line what oh i meaN yes i do know what i'm doing LOL

if you could leave a review, that'd be _very very very very _nice of you to do ;w; thank you :]

oh i really do hope you enjoyed uwu i'm so sorry if it was a bit boring, or even rushed aha blame my writing skills — and plus, youtubers are basically a whole new world for me to write, usually i write fairy tail stories (NALU) and along the anime world oho

happy new year's (eve) guys! idk about my new year's resolution tbh haha. i'll see you in 2015,

... and one last thing,

thank you for reading! :D

-choco


	2. Five Years Later

**A/N: **much thanks for all the reviews some of you have left for me ;w; they're all very nice eee thank youu

let's get on w/ chap 1! :D

i'M AN AMERICAN PSYCHO

someone hold me i'm feeling extremely excited oh

enjoy!

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**i.**

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(five years later...)

It's nearing 10:30 AM in January 2014, and a certain brown haired man is fast asleep.

Which was something, for he usually stayed up till 4:00 AM browsing on the internet and ended up on waking earlier than usual. His sleep schedule was a bit weird, you could say. But he didn't really care, he was an adult now and living on his own — although the house did feel quite lonely and empty at times. He feared the night, for when he reached to shut the lights off he got _so _scared at the fact of being attacked that he always ran off and never really felt comfortable.

He'd always had trouble going to bed, but this time he'd managed to have a good night's sleep.

It would've been completely peaceful, but then his phone started ringing loudly.

Immediately his brown eyes shot open as he ungracefully fell off his bed, crashing onto the floor — but not before successfully grabbing his cellphone off the nightstand besides him, taking it down with him. He coughed and gasped for air as his bedsheets nearly drowned him, and once managing to sit upright, he took several deep breaths and rubbed his eyes before answering.

"Hello... ?" He said groggily. He hadn't bothered and checked the caller ID.

"Dan!" A voice said merrily, from the other line. It was Chris. He wasn't shocked. Chris had usually called around this time, but did he really need to when he was having an actual good sleep? Dan ran a hand through his hair as he sighed, remembering the last time he'd called and invited him to a party. It was one Dan didn't want to go to, but he ended up on attending anyway — and, meeting someone named Phil Lester.

"What're you up to?" Chris said, and Dan sighed.

"Not much. You woke me up." He replied.

"Oh. Oops! Sorry, didn't know mate. Well... Just gonna tell you now. Phil just called. Said he's gonna go out, and was wondering if I wanted to come." Chris said, and Dan's curiosity peaked once he heard Phil's name. He could hear Chris's grin through the phone. "How 'bout accidentally bumping into him when just casually shopping? I declined though, I already have a dentist appointment later."

Dan smiled. "I appreciate the thought — but, Chris... He lives in Manchester, remember? You've told me, and I think it's quite far from London. I don't think that I'll able to find him through so many people. Thanks, though..."

Chris tutted. "Aw, pity that you haven't got his number. It's been five years since you guys have seen each other."

The 23 year old sighed as he recalled that. _Five years... _Five years really was a long time. He'd met Phil at the party, and they both chatted throughout the whole thing. Dan had unfortunately forgotten to ask the other male his number, and the two have gone their separate ways. And regardless of Chris's attempts to get the two of them back, the two were both busy with their own things. Soon enough, five years passed and Dan was still living the same life he'd been living five years ago.

His social awkwardness had ever-so-slightly improved, but that was because he befriended some of the people he'd met at Chris's party, including Zoe, Joe, and Alfie. He'd met a few other people and had became friends with them as well. But Dan couldn't help but feeling as if... Something was missing. And he knew what it was.

Phil was the person missing from his life.

After all, he and Phil shared a lot of common attributes together. They were basically the perfect two, the dynamic duo. Or, they would've been. But they haven't seen each other in five years — which was definitely more than a long time. Dan always worried about what had happened to the older adult. He wondered how different Phil could've looked like, and what had happened across the years.

He'd totally forgotten that Chris was still on the phone until he cleared his throat, nearly making Dan drop his phone in shock. "Dan? You still there?" Chris called, and Dan stared at the floor sadly, fixing his fringe. He stayed quiet for a few moments before responding.

"Ah, um... Yeah. Sorry. Just thinking..."

Dan couldn't see him, but he imagined Chris frowning. "Hmm. Well... Maybe you'll see him again. It's weird. Both of you guys are always busy when I propose a meeting for you two." He sighed sadly, and Dan stayed quiet. "Oh well. Are you sure you don't want me to give you his number?"

"No... It's okay. I don't want to be a creep or anything." Dan said. In truth, he worried the most about Phil possibly forgetting about Dan. Heck, Dan didn't even remember people from his classes that he took back in University, which was kind of sad. Dan couldn't imagine what it would be like if Phil had completely forgot about Dan — and it honestly broke his heart.

The thing is... He may have developed small feelings for Phil, ever since they've met.

But Dan always tried to reject his feelings. Phil wouldn't be interested in him, he was most likely straight. Phil sure wouldn't like someone like Dan, who was socially awkward and didn't like interacting with other humans. It always made Dan sad, knowing that Phil would probably grow old with somebody... That wasn't Dan. Dan sighed once more and stared sadly at the floor, and his bedsheets which were still covering the lower half of his body.

"All right then, Dan." Chris then said, sounding a bit crestfallen. "I'll see you later."

And with that, he hung up.

Dan placed his phone back on the nightstand and stood up, placing the bedsheets back on his bed. He usually slept with nothing but boxers on, but that was irrelevant. He hummed as he pulled on a black t-shirt with a white circle on it and black jeans. Before he left the room, Dan glanced in the body mirror he owned and sulkily stared at himself.

Even to himself, he kind of figured that he changed through the years. For one, Dan had been eyed countlessly by females through the years — hence awkward glances and conversations, which usually ended in Dan nervously sputtering that he had to catch a train. Did that mean that he was _actually_ attractive? Dan laughed at the thought. As if he was. He always thought of himself as a potato with a bad haircut. He'd gotten taller as well, reaching the height of 6'3" — also meaning that he was taller than most of the people he knew, but he didn't quite mind this a bit. His previously tanned skin had faded, and he had gotten back to his pale skin as usual.

He gave his reflection a small smile before leaving the room.

Dan spent a few minutes straightening his hair (it had gone back to its hobbit-y self) and had finished his breakfast when he decided he wanted to go out for a bit. Maybe today would be quite interesting... Unlike the days Dan spent on the Internet countlessly. He smiled as he remembered that Phil had told him that he had done the same, and had said that his life wasn't that exciting either.

He secretly thought that living with Phil would actually make his life 10x better, but Phil didn't know that.

Dan almost laughed. Of course he didn't, he hadn't seen the other in five years. What were the odds?

Maybe Dan was being stubborn in refusing for Phil's cellphone number because Chris had it, but Dan didn't really want to ask Chris for it. Something in his brain keeps telling him that he should be the one to ask Phil himself. The thought sunk lower in his stomach as he sat down on the couch, thinking some more. He realized that he really _did _miss Phil, a lot.

He grabbed a jacket that he thought would be thick enough and pulled on his furry hat as he walked out the door, leaving the flat.

* * *

It was ridiculous, but Dan _had _to try.

He decided (after countless moments of debating with himself) that he'd go to Manchester, in hopes of seeing Phil. Once he had decided that, he nearly slapped himself. With the day being a weekend, there were people everywhere, trying to find their right train. Dan stuffed his hands inside of his pockets as he waited for the train going to Manchester. He smiled stupidly at the thought once more, probably earning a few weird looks from passersby.

Could he even call Phil an actual friend if he haven't even seen him in _years_?

His train then arrived soon after, departing to Manchester. Dan entered the sliding doors and luckily got a seat, placing himself in the corner so only one person would sit next to him. He realized that he didn't tell Chris about what he was planning on doing, and was glad he didn't. Chris would be too overexcited and would probably _faint_. That wouldn't be good if PJ or someone arrived at his house and saw he was passed out.

Speaking of Chris... Dan had knew Chris had a feeling about his feelings towards Phil, if that made sense. Chris was that kind of person that was able to read people's emotions somehow. It seemed as if Chris always knew Dan's real thoughts, whether or not he said them out loud. But Dan appreciated his friend being there for him.

Meanwhile, he chewed the inside of his cheek, tapping his foot quietly as he waited for his stop.

The ride was a few hours long, and was filled with noises of people chatting or clicking sounds of people pressing buttons on their cellphones or computers. Meanwhile, Dan's heart pounded as he glanced outside the windows, seeing that snow had begun to fall. He couldn't help but smile at the sight. Through the many things he and Phil had talked about, Phil had also informed Dan that he liked snow a lot.

At long last, the train stopped — and everyone left and went onto the platform, including Dan who had slipped his phone back into his pocket. He brushed the hair out of his eyes as he made his way outside of the station, and cold air whipped around his face. Through the gray sky, Dan could see his breath as he exhaled.

The snow crunched underneath the soles of his shoes as he walked around, looking for some shops to stop by along the way. He didn't even know where to start to actually find Phil — there were so many people, so many faces Dan didn't recognize. Nevertheless, he told himself to keep walking. Honestly, the things he did to find him.

Fortunately, Dan had been to Manchester a few times before — so he kind of knew where he was going.

...Kind of.

* * *

After _hours_ and _hours_ of walking and getting lost a few times, he gave up.

Dan planted himself on a seat on a wooden bench — teeth chattering and body freezing. His fingers were turning red from the cold.

He cursed himself for deciding that finding Phil would be easy as heck, and to go out in this kind of weather. But boy, was he wrong. It wasn't his fault that he didn't know it would be snowing today. Dan wished he brought gloves as he blew on his hands, rubbing them together to try and keep them warm.

Dan was pretty sure he was just going to lay on the wooden bench and lay there as snow covered him because of his failure, but he managed to pick himself up — Chris would be proud. He kept his hands in his pockets (and wished he brought a much thicker jacket) as he trudged around in the snow, silently cursing as people carelessly bumped into him. His miserable thoughts of not finding Phil returned, and Dan bit back the disappointment. How could he have expected that finding Phil would be easy?

Sadly, Dan made his way back to the train station.

He sighed in relief as he began to feel his fingers again. It was slightly warmer in the train station, and he placed his jacket sleeves over his hands to help the heating process. As he looked around for the train to London, Dan couldn't help but be incredibly disappointed that he wasn't able to find Phil. But then again, what were the odds. Dan quietly stood on the platform as he watched people around him talk amongst one another, while he just stood there feeling incredibly alone.

Dan wished he could replay that day — October 19, 2009 — once more, to feel the joy of having someone that had the same likes as him. He remembered how happy he had felt that day, and Dan hoped that he could still feel that happy in the future... Even if it didn't seem that possible. He'd remembered what Chris had remarked one day as the two of them were talking on the phone.

_"Dan, are you okay?" Chris had asked._

_Dan had stopped what he was doing momentarily in confusion. "What d'you mean? Of course I am."_

_Chris had paused shortly before answering. Dan had heard him give a long sigh before he responded. "Dan... I haven't seen you smile in forever. Not ever since that day when you met Phil. __I had been pleased when you started to smile so brightly once again. I__'m worried about you, Dan. You could tell me. I'm your friend, remember? I'll get you and Phil together again."_

_Slightly taken aback, Dan replied. "Chris... I think you're a bit mistaken. I'm fine, okay? You don't have to worry. Nothing's wrong, I promise. And... Thank you. But you honestly don't need to, I'll try to find him myself as well..."_

_A few moments passed until Chris had returned. "If you say so..."_

Looking back at that conversation, Dan had never really thought much about it. He didn't quite understand what Chris meant about it (he was already plenty happy with tumblr), but now that he replayed it over in his mind, Dan frowned. He wasn't exactly _hurt _in any way, it was more likely that he was just disappointed that he didn't agree to Chris arranging a meeting for he and Phil to meet. He didn't really want to put Chris through the hassle, so he resumed back to the real world and continued on waiting for his train.

Slightly bored, Dan pulled out his phone and began to play games on it to pass the time —

— which was until it had _completely slipped through his fingers._

_Oh. No._

_No._

Dan's world slowed down as he witnessed his phone once again _fall straight through his fingers_. He bit back a bitter laugh. It was exactly like that one day, wasn't it? When he'd first met Phil — all because he had nearly dropped the cellphone. But there was no one here to save his phone anymore. Dan squeezed his eyes shut as he waited for the sickening crash and the whispers of _all _the people looking at him. Dan could already feel his cheeks growing uncomfortably hot in embarrassment.

But the crash never came.

He heard a soft thud instead, and Dan slowly opened his eyes.

To his surprise, he glance was met with another male's. His eyes were a bright blue (with bits of green and yellow), and he had short black hair with his fringe swept neatly to one side. Dan frowned. Those eyes... They looked like a pair that he had seen before. As Dan looked the other man up and down, he observed that he was slightly taller than him (he looked around 6'2"), that he had pale skin and was wearing a dark cloak along with a pair of black skinny jeans. He also was wearing glasses that suited him quite nicely.

Dan blinked. Those blue eyes looked _extremely _familiar. But he only knew one person with them, and that was... _Phil_? But this man couldn't be him. His hair looked shorter, and he was also wearing glasses. Dan frowned. He remembered Phil mentioning before that he did wear glasses, but the last time they had met he was wearing his contacts.

They stood there for a while, glancing at each other quietly. Then, the black haired male spoke.

"Oh, um..." He said, looking down at his palm. "I, uh, — your phone."

Dan jolted back to reality. His voice sounded like _Phil's_. It sounded _so much _like Phil's. "Oh! Thank you..."

The mysterious adult handed Dan's phone back to him, and once Dan had grabbed hold of it, he felt the other's hand — like a spark of electricity. Dan's hand lingered on the other's for a while, both of the two staring wide-eyed at each other before drawing back. Dan pocketed his phone, but continued to stare back at him in absolute wonder. The other male shifted quite uncomfortably as they continued to glance at each other.

Then the other man averted his eyes, bit his lip, and slowly walked away.

Dan turned back around, facing the train. It was only about fifteen minutes later when he had a jolt of realization. He needed to ask that person if he really was Phil Lester, that same person from five years ago. He _needed _to know. That's what he came for anyways. And he even _looked _and _sounded _like _Phil_.

Immediately Dan followed his instincts, not caring how insane they were and bolted away from the platform, shoes thudding against the cement, one hand in his pocket and the other holding his furry hat in place. He didn't care whoever saw him, and he even didn't care if he really ended up missing his train back to London. His main priority now was to find him, _and ask him_.

He pushed through others — ignoring yells and shouts of protest — and continued running and running as he searched for him.

Dan ran as fast as he could throughout his entire life. His breaths came ragged and uneven, but he didn't care if he collapsed as he did so. Surprisingly, Dan pushed through and made it outside of the underground. He looked both directions — left, right — and then straight ahead. And then, he saw him. He was walking with his hands outside of his pockets even though he wasn't wearing gloves in this cold.

Instead — he had stopped and held out a hand to feel the snow fall.

And Dan chose that moment to run for it.

The world seemed to slow down as Dan finally reached him, panting tremendously. "W-Wait — Stop, please — " he pleaded through large breaths. Dan coughed and sputtered as he felt the cold air seem to bite his face. He saw the other man turn around, and when Dan looked back up — the other seemed to be waiting for him to speak.

Silence.

Then, Dan stood up straight. He was still trying to catch his breath, but nevertheless — he managed a full on smile as he faced the other. He stared into those bright blue eyes, and let out a laugh that he'd been holding in ever since he left the train station. At long last, he realized. Dan knew who this person was. He knew his name and identity for five long years.

"Phil — Phil. Phil — Lester. It's me — " He managed to say, although he cut himself off — being unable to break his large grin. He watched as Phil's eyes widen in shock, and nearly let out a loud sigh of relief. He could see his breaths in the form of mist in front of him, and although Dan's face was freezing — he waited.

"Dan?" Phil then gasped, his mouth forming into a big smile. "Is that really you?"

"Yes — " Dan exclaimed, feeling joy erupt inside of his stomach. "Yes, Phil, yes — it's me. I'm Dan. Dan Howell."

The two of them continued to stare into each other's eyes — and Dan was so happy he could practically start jumping in the middle of Manchester, and have all people stare at him for all he cared. He'd finally found Phil, all on his own. And he was _not _letting him go this easily now that he did. Dan was smiling so much he thought that his face would split in two. He couldn't even hide in his excitement any longer.

Dan then threw his arms around Phil, and hugged him tightly.

"Phil," Dan murmured in his hair. "I've found you. I've found you. I've _finally _found you." Then, Dan laughed. He laughed so hard that everyone seemed to turn around and stare at him weirdly. But none of that mattered. Nothing mattered now that Dan had finally found Phil. Even the numbing cold didn't seem to affect him anymore. Dan couldn't even explain the hot tears of pure _joy_ that burned in his eyes. After years and years of loneliness... He'd finally found Phil again.

He could hear Phil's soft remark as the shorter but older man embraced him back.

"And I've found _you, _Dan."

They were finally reunited.

* * *

**A/N: **AH

okay this is probably my favorite chapter so far. wow. again, much thanks for the reviews!

this isn't the end yet people! it's a multichap after all haha

i also live in america, so i'm not exactly 100% sure on what things are like in Manchester &amp; London. forgive me DX

alright, i got to go sleep now — so goodnight. hope you all enjoyed!

reviews would be much appreciated :') thank you _so much_ if you do~

-choco x


	3. Reunited

**A/N: **hi okay it's a wednesday and i'm usually very free on wednesdays so YES i'm actually continuing this story (the last time i updated was like.. in JANUARY AND IT'S ALMOST JULY wHOOPS BUT HEY) also i wasn't sure whether or not if i should have continued the fanfic because ? i kind of lost inspiration and motivation but ble h i'm updating it now so :)

also don't forget author's block! and procrastination. ugh. but well, i'm phan trash so i decided to update it; thanks to a reviewer on my other story who reminded me about it! thank you,, **insomniacbookworm** :D

enjoy!

* * *

**ii.**

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"You _WHAT_?!"

Dan winced as Chris's loud voice yelled at him through his phone. He turned to Phil (he still couldn't believe he met him again!), who was smiling with confusion, and then went back to the phone call. He'd just informed Chris that he had just in fact, _reunited with Phil. _The same Phil who was at his party _five years ago. _The same Phil that Dan talked to all night, until he left and never saw him again. It was one of the only times Dan didn't regret dropping his phone. What are the chances of this happening? Nevertheless, Dan couldn't help but smile as Chris yelled at him through the device.

"_Yes, _Chris. For the millionth time, _yes, _I found Phil. He's actually with me right now." Dan sighed through the phone.

... But after saying those words, he had to hold his phone at least five inches away from his face, because Chris was screaming at him again. Not to mention that he was also using tons of profanity and 'I told you so's', earning lots of odd looks from passersby. When Dan glanced at Phil, he was smiling at him, and Dan continued listening to what Chris was saying."DAN YOU FUCKING IDIOT I TOLD YOU TO DRAG YOUR ASS OUTSIDE AND LOOK WHERE YOU ENDED UP RUNNING INTO PHIL I TOLD YOU TO LISTEN TO ME _ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING _— "

"CHRIS!" Dan then interrupted, a mother just glared at him as she covered her child's ears. "Shut up, will you? I don't think the United States heard you from all the way over here." He sighed and facepalmed in embarrassment, as he drummed his right hand on his jeans impatiently. Besides Dan, Phil lightly chuckled, and Dan wanted to die on the inside even more.

Chris didn't seem to be offended, it was a couple moments of silence before he began talking again. "Just. Just. Hold on." With that, Dan heard the sound of Chris's phone being placed against a surface, and some rummaging. He frowned. Was Chris going to try and attempt to murder him through his cellphone? "Um, Chris?"

"What?" More rummaging, and a loud thud. His voice sounded far away.

"Uh, what are you doing?"

He ignored the question, and his voice was clear once again. "Are you guys at the station?" Dan looked over to Phil, who blinked at him and nodded. Afterwards, Dan mouthed a 'thank you' and turned back to the call, where Chris was waiting. "Yeah, why?"

"_Dan,_" Chris then said, simply. "Do me a favor and stop asking me questions. I'm not pissed at you or anything, but I'm just WHAT THE FUCK right now because _you _never told _me _you were going to Manchester, and I haven't seen you in a while, not in person, anyway. Also, I'm going to force Peej to come with me, cause I'm betting that you haven't seen _him _in forever, either. Okay?" Dan frowned, not believing it when Chris said he 'wasn't pissed or anything'. "Okay," Chris said, answering his own question. Then he returned to his cheery tone. "I'll be there in twenty!"

Dan blinked. "Don't you have to pick up PJ, though?"

"Nah, he stayed over." Chris said, in monotone.

"Uh, alright. Okay. Bye, then." replied Dan, slightly surprised.

"Later! And when I come, you two better be making out! I can hear your smile through the phone."

Dan flushed and prayed Phil didn't hear that. "I'll see you _later_, Chris." And with that, Dan hung up, and slipped his phone back into his pocket in one smooth move. He sighed, and turned to Phil, who was looking at him curiously in return. "So, um, Chris said that he's going to come over here with PJ soon, so I think we should get back into the station since it's a bit chilly outside?" He asked Phil, who nodded.

"Yeah, sure." Phil just said, and as the two of them made their way back inside, Dan breathed a sigh of relief that he felt like he was holding in the past five years. He still couldn't believe it. The last time Dan saw Phil, Phil was taller than him. Now this time, _Dan _was the one that was taller. But a lot could happen in five years, and five years is a heck of a long time.

Phil changed quite a lot, in Dan's opinion. He looked more confident, and mature. Also, he was wearing glasses — and his black hair was shorter, too, but it still resembled Dan's same haircut, but his fringe on the other side. Phil was still the same in some things, and different in others. But it still was shocking. Dan knew he was _looking _for Phil, but he didn't know that he'd find him just like that.

Both of them took a seat on a bench inside of the station, in an awkward but yet comfortable silence. Dan swiveled around to glance at Phil, and when he did, Phil was already blinking back at him, with those blue eyes of his. They're the same pair that Dan has remembered, even back then. _You could go swimming in those eyes. _Dan looked back at Phil, who was now smiling, and then he started giggling.

Dan frowned. "What's so funny?"

"It's just," Phil said, smiling wider. "I think it's unexpected and wonderful that we ran into each other again."

Dan didn't say anything in response, he just looked away and smiled. "Yeah, me too. A lot can happen in five years, and... _look at you_, Phil." Dan said, chuckling. "You look way different now. Well, different, but you're still the same person, aren't you?" He looked back at Phil, and raised his eyebrows.

He smiled back. "I can say the same to you, Dan. You're taller than me now. It used to be the other way around."

In return, Dan let out a laugh, and he shook his head. "I can't believe that the first time we met was five years ago, and now we ran into each other again, _five years later_." He grinned. "It's weird how these things happen, isn't it?" Phil made a noise of agreement, and Dan couldn't seem to stop smiling. _Was this how happiness felt like? The feel as if you could do anything?_

"Anything important happen the last five years?" Phil then asked.

"Well... no, not really." Dan said, honestly. "I, um, I've been a bit miserable for the last five years, except, well, maybe today. Nothing much happened, I didn't get into a relationship or whatever, if that's what you mean." He murmured, folding his hands together. "I guess I was a little depressed, it's been a while since I've felt this overjoyed and relieved." He glanced at Phil again, who's smile was growing wider.

The black haired man looked softly back at him. "At least you're happy now, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I guess so," Dan muttered, feeling slightly embarrassed. "How about you, Phil? Anything eventful?"

"No, not really. I guess it was the same thing as you, probably. I didn't really do much, kind of stayed home a lot, studied, blah blah blah. I had a girlfriend, actually, but it didn't quite last long. Turns out she was cheating on me." Phil said, waving it off. "But I think I'm happier today, too. I found you again, didn't I? That's a marvelous thing, isn't it?"

_He had a girlfriend? _Dan's eyes widened. "Oh, I'm sorry that happened to you... But yeah."

"It's fine, really." Phil shrugged. "I wasn't even hurt about it or anything."

The two of them stared at each other for a bit (as Dan's heart thudded in his chest), until Dan heard a loud voice calling — a loud, _very _familiar voice, mind you. Dan winced, and groaned outwardly when Chris came over and slung an arm around him, bending down. On Chris's other side, PJ was grinning, a bandana wrapped around his curly hair, and his bright green eyes glinting with amusement. "Oh, _sorry, _did I interrupt something?" Chris drawled out, removing his arm from it's previous place around Dan.

"You're just imagining things." Dan said, flicking his arm. "It's nice to see you again, I guess."

"You _guess_? What kind of friend are you?" Chris frowned, crossing his arms. He still looked the same, kind of, his green eyes narrowed and his hair just a little bit shorter. Dan couldn't help but smile at his appearance though, and then back to Phil, who was gaping at both Chris and PJ in awe. "Hey, Phil!" Chris then grinned, and ruffled Phil's hair, as Phil grinned back up at him. "At least you're nicer than _Dan_, over here."

"I haven't seen any of you guys for the longest time... well, maybe except from Chris, but in person." Phil said, back to smiling again. "Wow, it's been a while, huh? And you guys were here pretty fast, Chris told Dan that you guys would be here in, um, twenty minutes?" He asked, curiously. "It's really great to have all of us together again."

"Especially since you and Dan haven't seen each other in five years, right?" Chris then piped up, and Dan glared at him.

"I guess the Fantastic Foursome is back, for good." PJ then said, grinning, glancing at the other three males. Dan grinned, Phil nodded, and Chris let out a victory _whoop _that attracted everybody in the station's attention. As PJ, Dan, and Phil cringed in embarrassment, Chris demanded to know why they were feeling so embarrassed if no one knew who they were, _at all_?

PJ shivered. "Aren't you guys kind of cold? Want to go get some hot drinks?"

"Yeah, sounds good!" Chris piped up. "Dan's paying."

Incredulous, Dan started, but Chris stuck his tongue out at him and ran up to PJ, who was laughing and already walking away. Dan turned to Phil, and together they burst out in bouts of laughter. The taller of the two shook his head, and sighed. "Honestly, if they're going to come all the way here just to see us..." he swiped a hand through his hair and shrugged. On the other hand, Phil giggles.

It's probably the cutest thing Dan's ever heard (and seen), so he can't help but feel his cheeks turning warmer as the two of them run up to catch to both PJ and Chris, who are decidedly waiting for them, in front of the exit. As Phil goes up to talk to PJ about something in the escalator, Dan doesn't realize he's still kind of red until Chris jabs him in the side. Chris smirked. "Why the red face?"

"Nothing." Dan muttered.

The other adult frowned. "Don't 'nothing' me, Dan." He looked up to where PJ and Phil were still talking, and actually lowered his voice for once. "Hey, did Phil tell you anything about being in a past relationship before? He's not in a current one right now, right?" Chris asked, his green eyes looking at Dan in curiosity. Dan narrowed his eyes, and shook his head.

"He _did _have a girlfriend, but he told me that they broke up a while back?" Dan said. "Um, how come?"

At this, Chris broke into a cunning smile, and he nodded slowly. "_Yes._" He clapped his two hands together at once, and then crossed his arms, while still nodding. "Nice. Okay, well, I know how smitten you are with him." When Dan opened his mouth to argue, Chris blinked. "Dan. You haven't seen this man in five years. The last time you guys met I was sure there were sparks flying at that party. The sparks died down, but today — " he snapped his fingers. " — they lit up again."

"But I don't like Phil?" He said, but he wasn't sure if that was a suitable answer. Dan frowned.

Chris gave him a _really _look. "Are you questioning yourself?"

Dan didn't know what to say to that, but Chris sighed and smiled. "It's fine. There doesn't need to be a direct answer _now, _but I'll let you know that even if the two of you don't end up liking each other, it's not going to stop me from seeing the two of you as a couple, all right?" He stopped talking, and waited for Dan to say something. At this point, the four of them walked off the escalator, but Dan stayed behind to continue talking to him.

His eyebrows furrowed in deep thought, his hands stuffed in his jacket pockets. Dan looked at Phil, who was still chatting with PJ about whatever it was they were talking about. He glanced back at Chris, who was looking at him intently, waiting. It was weird; he'd never seen Chris so serious about something before. "This is the first time I've ever seen you so intent on pairing two people together."

Chris grinned. "Isn't that something?"

"But I still don't know _why_." Dan replied.

The other male let out a long sigh. "Dan, you haven't stopped smiling ever since I saw you today."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." He responded, but he found himself wondering if that was true. It was silent a bit more, but then Dan turned to Chris, his curiosity getting to the best of him. He opened his mouth to speak, and just blurted out, "Really?" He blinked at him, and fixed his hair before looking back at Chris again.

The knowing smile Chris gave him in return made Dan look away in embarrassment.

* * *

All four of them ended up buying drinks at Starbucks.

They were able to sit in a table and tell some stories of what happened during the span of five years.

Dan didn't really have much to say, for he didn't really do anything much over the five years. He just listened, and smiled whenever something funny or exciting had happened, and pretty soon — it was just like those empty five years weren't there at all. It was a nice feeling, honestly. The atmosphere in the building was very cozy, and as Dan sipped his caramel macchiato, he couldn't help but think it was probably meant to happen. Everything.

And he was happy that he'd actually gotten to find _Phil _again. He's never met someone like Phil before; someone who's just like Dan in a lot of ways. They even look kind of similar, just alter a few things and they'd probably be the same person. Dan's grateful for Chris (although he'd never admit it) in forcing him into going to that party, and meeting Phil and, yeah.

He didn't realize how much he missed Phil when Dan realized it was him earlier.

The moment when Dan just embraced Phil made him want to break down in tears of joy almost immediately. He wasn't aware of his feelings, but he remembered them. Dan remembered the intense relief and just plain shock — and him feeling completely overjoyed. It was _amazing. _Dan was just so happy in that moment; it was as if he was seeing things in full color for the first time.

"Dan?" PJ then asked.

Said male looked up from his drink, blinking — all three of them were looking at him, all having a small smile on each of their faces. Dan looked from PJ, Phil, to Chris, and found himself smiling in confusion. "Er, yeah?" He said. "What?" When they didn't say anything, Dan frowned. "_What_?"

"Look at you," Chris snickered. "you happy little idiot."

Phil laughed, and Dan felt his cheeks coloring again. "Wait, what? _Happy little__ idiot_?"

"You're certainly happier." PJ smiled. "I haven't seen your genuine smile in years."

Dan felt his face burning in embarrassment, and he chose to look at his hands rather than at his friends. "I don't know what you're talking about. I've smiled before, you know, I'm not completely heartless." But then again, he couldn't help but smile at his own remark, earning a loud "_HA!_" from Chris, and another laugh from Phil — making Dan want to sink down and disappear through the floor.

Chris snorted. "But it's a good thing, now, Dan, that you're happy again."

"Thanks?" Dan said, still confused.

PJ then remarked something, and at once Chris shot into the conversation, leaving Dan and Phil to sit in silence for a bit. Dan played around with his caramel macchiato a bit, swirling it around and mixing it more, until he heard Phil address him. "Hey, um, Dan?" Once again he lifted his head, eyebrows raised as well. "Yeah?" Dan asked, quietly, but loud enough for Phil to be able to hear.

"I don't know if I've said it before, but," Phil said softly. "I'm really glad I met you."

At once, Dan's heart started pounding in his chest. He found himself beaming at Phil, his face warm with happiness. "So am I, actually."

Phil then broke into a smile, and his blue eyes looked like they were smiling too. It was nice to see Phil smile, Dan decided. It was adorable, and it suited him. And for some reason, Dan couldn't stop smiling. It was like his face was stuck permanently in that position, but it would be worth it if it meant seeing Phil grin as well. "Also, it's funny." Phil then noted.

"What is?"

"I didn't realize I'd still remember who you were after five years."

Dan was the opposite. He _couldn't _forget about Phil. But he didn't say anything, he was just relieved Phil had remembered him.

"Is it weird that I still want to see you again?" Phil then said, and Dan's heart almost stopped. _Is it weird that I still want to see you again? _Dan couldn't believe it. He himself wanted to see Phil again, all the time — this time they would see each other more often, and that would be completely wonderful. Dan shook his head, and laughed. "No, it's not weird at all; I want to see you again, too."

Phil then grinned. "That sounds great."

Dan could only give Phil a small smile, because all of them seemed like it was too good to be true. _He was going to see Phil again, _and they would become best friends again. It made him grin as he put his phone away, and pretty soon he and Phil just talked about things they liked, just like what they had done five years ago. It made him nostalgic, and he shook his head at himself for thinking like this.

Later, Phil had to leave, for he said he was going to visit his parents for dinner.

"It was nice seeing all of you again," The black haired adult said, as the four of them stood outside in the snow. He swiped a hand through his fringe before giving one armed hugs to Chris and PJ. Then, he stopped in front of Dan, and gave him an actual embrace. As Dan hugged him back, he noticed that Phil smelled really good — like caramel, or something. But it was a nice scent, and after Phil let go, he still gripped Dan's jacket sleeve as Chris and PJ started to walk away.

His blue eyes were startling, as startling they were five years ago. "Hey, we'll keep in touch, yeah? We're not done seeing each other."

"Er, yeah." Dan said, his brown eyes widened. He smiled. "Yeah, I will."

Phil grinned at that, and he pushed a napkin into Dan's hand, closing Dan's fist over the paper. "All right then, see you later." He said, waving a goodbye. As Phil left, running away, Dan saw him look back and smile before continuing to leave. Dan wasn't sure what to feel — but he felt great about what just had happened. He glanced at his fist, opening it, and getting the napkin from his hand.

A line of numbers were written there, along with a message reading '_I hope run into each other again, definitely sooner than later :) -Phil_'

A hand clasped his left shoulder, and Chris's head poked out from behind Dan's right shoulder. Immediately, Chris laughed out loud, and shook his head. "What did I tell you? That's _amazing, _that's _great_, that's WONDERFUL!" He said. When Dan looked at him, Chris was grinning, and his green eyes were bright. On the other hand, PJ was snickering as well.

"Wow, I didn't know you had the hots for Phil, Dan." said PJ, laughing.

"Are you kidding, Peej? He's been in love with Phil ever since five years ago — "

"You two, shut up! Jeez." Dan said, exasperated. He shook his head. "You both are ridiculous, and I don't like Phil like that. So what? You two have his number too, right? And we're all going to hang out again." Dan let out a laugh in disbelief. "I don't understand why you guys want me and him to be together, it's not like that, honestly."

Chris raised an eyebrow, and PJ crossed his arms.

PJ shrugged, while adjusting his bandana. "I mean, he _actually _embraced you."

"That's cause I haven't seen him in _five years_!" Dan protested, feeling his face heat up again.

"First stage: denial!" Chris just teased, as he flicked Dan's forehead.

Dan averted his eyes from the two of them, the napkin with Phil's number neatly folded in his hand. He stuffed it into his jacket pocket as his eyes darted over to Chris and PJ, who were looking at him, both smiling. At this, Dan couldn't help but burst out laughing. "You guys are _ridiculous_," he sighed, as he walked back to the station with them, Chris on his right and PJ on his left. The snow lightly fell around them.

"We weren't joking by the way." Chris sang, as PJ nodded.

"_WHAT_?!"

* * *

**A/N: **SEE LOOK I UPDATED IT WOOHOO :D

it took me mostly all day omg wow i hope you like it it kinda seems a bit cheesy bu cheesy stories are not my forte oop

HAHA DAN'S IN _DAN_IAL GET IT AHHAHAH i'm not funny

HOPE YOU ENJOYED YEA

-choco xx


	4. Peace

**A/N: **i'm so SORRY OMG HUWOFH i haven't updated this in 10 years oh man

ok but i am here now so that's good (i guess idk)

enjoY

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**iii.**

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.

Dan sighs as he stuffs his hands into his jacket pockets.

Although winter could be long, cold, and bitter, he likes it. It's peaceful, and it's great weather for wearing the jumpers and jackets you've been wanting to wear ever since summertime hit wherever you lived. It's also perfect for warm drinks, and resting besides a fireplace each night. And of course, the holidays. Christmas and New Year's. Even though Christmas was a month ago, and New Year's a few days ago, Dan didn't mind. He still had fun with the holidays, he'd gotten gifts from family and counted down to the New Year.

He'd also been in contact with Phil, fortunately, now that he's gotten his number. Just the thought of him made Dan smile and feel _super _nostalgic. He hasn't seen him in person as much as he'd like to, however. The two of them do constantly text each other, and Dan is overjoyed that he could actually _talk _to him now. He doesn't want the next time for them to meet five years from now, because that would be horrible.

PJ and Chris have been badgering him of 'asking Phil out', but Dan hopes they're joking. He's only probably seen Phil in person twice in his lifetime, once five years ago and twice two weeks back. And that's ridiculous. He doesn't like Phil like that. Yeah, they must be joking. The two of them have been in touch with Dan as well, Dan's been added to a group chat with just the three of them, but he had to turn his notifications off because of Chris, who texts about every 0.5 seconds about stuff the brown haired man does _not _give a shit about. Sorry, Chris. Eventually he turned his notifs back on because the things Chris was texting about were quite silly at times, and he liked talking to them.

He is out at the moment, though, just walking around and looking for things that he could get. He had entered a store and was looking at a box of chocolates ("buy two boxes &amp; get one free!") when he felt his phone buzz five times. Quickly, Dan shoved his hand in his pocket and pulled it out, reading the text messages that had popped up on the lockscreen. Three of them were from Chris, and two from PJ, which was a surprise.

Dan slid his finger across the screen, entering his password and unlocking his phone. Soon, the messages popped up on the screen.

Chris: DAN DAN DAAN DANIEL DANIEL JAMES HOWELL

Chris: DAN WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU DOING

PJ: maybe he turned his notifs off again

Chris: YOU BETTER NOT BE SEXTING YOUR BOYFRIEND

PJ: omg

Dan inwardly groaned, and typed in a reply, ignoring the lady that was staring at him, probably wondering why the hell his phone kept on going off. He looks up briefly before returning to his phone screen, trying to hide the smile that was growing gradually on his face.

Dan: no you idiots i'm in town i was looking at chocolates until my phone repeatedly vibrated against my leg also i don't have a boyfriend

Chris: o ok having fun i see &amp; ha yeah right

PJ: chocolates r gr8

Dan: ik that's why i was looking at them

He looked up from his screen, glancing momentarily outside the window, and raised his eyebrows. Somebody had just walked in the store, someone who looked very familiar — _wait. _Dan watched as the person walked closer to him — wait, no, he was heading straight for him. And _that's _when Dan realized that the person was _Phil. _His eyes widened as he returned to his phone, text messages were still continuing to pop up on his screen.

Chris: dan you can't be staring at chocolates for that long wyd

PJ: maybe he has a chocolate fetish

Chris: that explains a lot

Dan: guys i gotta go like now toodles

"Dan!" Phil said, smiling. Dan drew in a sharp breath and exhaled, grinning back at him. He ignored the continuous vibration that his phone was making, and looked at Phil in awe. "I didn't realize I'd see you here. I thought you looked familiar through the windows outside." The black haired male said. Phil was wearing a galaxy-like sweater, along with black jeans and sneakers. His black hair was slightly tousled from the wind outside, and his eyes were as blue as Dan remembered them.

"I didn't expect to see you today either." Dan said truthfully, unable to stop smiling. "Don't you live in Manchester? What are you doing here in London?"

Phil stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Ah, just looking around. There's nothing much to do in Manchester, so I figured London would be more interesting." He smiled at Dan before saying anything more. "So, what about you Dan? Something you need to do out in town?" He asked, curiosity in his tone.

"Actually, no, not really." The brown haired male replied. He drummed his fingers against his jeans. "I just felt like going out. I was, ah, looking at chocolates earlier though." He said awkwardly, placing a hand on the back of his neck. He was surprised to see Phil's eyes light up, and at once he felt his face get warmer.

Phil's eyes were literally sparkling. "You mean, those right there?" He asked, pointing to the same exact boxes of chocolate that Dan himself was looking at in the past. Once Dan had nodded, Phil's mouth grew into a large smile. "Ooh, wow. Hey, do you want a box? It says 'buy one, get one free.'" He said, raising his eyebrows. Dan blinked, and managed a small laugh. "Sure."

"Nice. I'll pay, don't worry about it." Phil reassured him, as Dan reached for his wallet. As Phil took the two boxes of chocolate out of the stand and walked to the cashier where a short line was forming, Dan returned to his cellphone. _39 unread messages. _Holy crap. Dan was almost afraid to open them up. As he got to the messages app, Chris and PJ were still entering text messages one after the other. Dan read the first few that popped up, slightly amused.

Chris: FUCK PJ I THINK DAN DIED

PJ: SHIT SHOULD WE CALL AN AMBULANCE OR

Chris: I MEAN HE COULD'VE GOTTEN ARRESTED

PJ: FOR WHAT

Chris: FOR LOOKING AT THE CHOCOLATES TOO LONG

Chris: IT'S POSSIBLE

PJ: WTF

Dan grinned at the screen, and looked up. Phil was holding the boxes of chocolates in his arms, and was looking around in the store. He smiled at Phil's back before looking back at his phone. It was not until a minute later where he decided to type in a reply, mainly to stop the flow of messages that had kept coming in. He sighed as he thought about what to say, and smiled once he did.

Dan: hello friends

Chris: dAN WHAT THE HELL

PJ: WE THOUGHT YOU DIED

Dan: i'm not dead yet but phil's here buying chocolates for us

He stared at his phone for a while, wondering if his phone was broken because Chris and PJ didn't exactly say anything after that. _Wow. _He didn't know that just saying that sentence would shut them up. But it _was _quite funny. Then he had an idea. He pressed the button to send a picture, and took a picture of Phil in line. Dan sent it through the group chat, captioned it, and waited for the shitstorm to occur.

Dan: _picture message_

Dan: see

Chris: DNA WHAT THE HFUCK WHAT

Dan: i am not biological information but alright

PJ: oh my

PJ: add phil to the group chat

Chris: YOU LIL SHIT THIS WHOLE TIME HE WAS WITH YOU also oh yeah brb

Dan: he literally just got here five mins ago i was here like twenty mins ago

Chris: he's such a sweetheart, buying you chocolates DAN KEEP HIM

"Here you go." Phil's voice then said, causing Dan to raise his head from his phone. He handed one box of chocolates to Dan, and tilted his head to the side. "I've noticed that your phone keeps vibrating. Whoever it is you're texting, they're replying very fast. I'm amazed." Dan snorted as he took the box of chocolates from Phil, and tucked it beneath his arm.

"It's Chris and PJ, actually. And yeah, they type very fast. PJ says hello by the way. I think they've added you —" He was cut off when he heard Phil's phone start buzzing as well as his. Dan looked down at his phone before raising his head to look up at Phil, who was grinning along with him. "Well, I guess they have." He said, amusement clear in his voice.

Their chat was interrupted when Phil's phone started ringing, and he said, "Oh, sorry, I need to take this call. Give me five minutes?" He asked, and Dan nodded, smiling at him as the black-haired male beamed back. He raised the phone to his ear and spoke into it, saying "Hello?" in a greeting. In the meantime, Dan whipped out his phone and read through the recent messages, scoffing at some of them.

Chris: dan where's phil

Dan: he's on the phone he can't talk to you

PJ: how saddening

Chris: aw shucks but lol dan i made a new group chat for the four of us so this one is still the three of us alone ;)

Dan: uh alright

PJ: phil's a sweetheart

Chris: i agree... pls... keep him

Dan smirked to himself, typing in _i'm not planning on letting go of him anytime soon_, and paused. Should he? Or would that prove to Chris and PJ that he actually likes him? The brown haired male's finger hovered over the send button, until thinking _fuck it _and pressing it. The message popped up on the screen, and Chris and PJ didn't really say anything for a while. _Then _the messages started flooding in, but Dan figured that he could leave them hanging for a while. Right after that, Phil's voice alerted him.

"Hey, sorry about that." He apologized, stuffing his phone inside his jeans pocket. "It was just my mum. She usually calls and asks what I'm doing from time to time." Phil said, sounding slightly embarrassed. His pale cheeks were tinted with a lightish pink color, and Dan found that incredibly adorable. He smiled. "Don't worry about it," he reassured the other. "I've got nothing to do, anyway."

"Neither have I." Phil shrugged.

Dan thought for a bit; he didn't necessarily want this chat to be over soon, or for Phil to leave just yet. He blurted out, "Do you want to come over? To my place?" before he could regret it, and to avoid hesitating. Once he had finished saying it though, he regretted it instantly. He felt his face burning, and looked down to avoid eye contact while cursing at himself repeatedly. _Idiot._

Phil giggled, causing Dan to look up again. He had a wide smile on his face, and his eyes were lit up. "Sure thing."

Dan blinked twice, before smiling possibly even wider than Phil was.

"Alright. Let's go then." He said, as he felt his heart pounding violently in his chest.

* * *

They'd arrived back in Dan's flat a good fifteen minutes later.

It being his first arrival here, Phil looked awkwardly and curiously around the room once he had walked in after Dan. His blue eyes darted to almost every corner, before looking back at Dan, who was grinning at him in amusement. "You don't have to feel so awkward," he reassured him, a smile tugging at his lips. "Make yourself at home."

"Thanks," Phil smiled, as he slipped off his shoes and placed his box of chocolates on a coffee table. Dan hummed a tune to himself as he placed his own box of chocolates next to Phil's, and sighed as he sat down on the couch. "Sit down, Phil. You look like a lost puppy." He joked, as Phil scrunched up his nose. _Shit. That was cute. _Dan found himself thinking, as the black haired man took a seat next to him.

Dan took the remote and pressed the power button, turning the TV on. He glanced at Phil, who was nervously fiddling with his jacket sleeves, and smiled. It _did _feel a bit awkward, but it was a good awkward. They haven't really been alone like this ever since, well, five years ago. And now they were sitting together in Dan's house, on Dan's couch.

Dan still couldn't believe how much Phil changed. It didn't seem like a lot, but his hair had gotten considerably shorter. He wore glasses now, and was shorter than him, which was a first. His eyes were still _blue as ever_, it was like an endless sea. He was also less flirty, now that Dan was thinking about it. _Wow. _A lot could happen in five years. But Dan could still sense the familiar bond that the two of them had, on that day.

"You have a nice place," Phil said politely, his blue eyes darting over to Dan's brown ones.

Dan made a face, and next to him, Phil raised his eyebrows. "Not really. You should see it when it's messy. It's a disaster."

"Really?" He asked, curious. "But it looks nice. It's a nice place to live in, I can tell. Is your room upstairs?"

Dan nodded in response. "Yeah. I live here by myself, it can be a bit lonely sometimes but I find it comforting. Chris and PJ pay visits every so often, so I'm glad for their company. Sometimes they even leave their crap here, and have to come back and get it. They're good people, you know." He sighed, remembering the endless flow of text messages he'd receive from them every day.

Phil was smiling when he looked back at him. "That's nice. I can see why they come here so often, it really is a nice place. You should see mine," the black haired male chuckled. "it's always a mess. When my mum visits, she ends up cleaning the entire thing. I used to live with, ah, my ex." He said, a bit cautiously. "But they left about a month back. I never really liked them anyway, they always got into my personal business."

_That's right. _Phil has been in a relationship quite recently, he remembered him telling that last time. The first time that they've met, after five years. Dan bit his lip. "I'm sorry that they were such a dick to you. I would've never done that to you." Dan said, looking at his hands. It was silent for a bit, and _that _was when he realized what he said. Immediately, his cheeks started burning violently, as he stuttered to cover that up.

"U-Uh, I m-mean —" Dan coughed, his face turning redder by the second. "I'd never do that. To anyone in particular. Er..." he turned his head to see Phil blushing lightly as well, but it seemed like he was hiding his smile. He ended up laughing lightly, shaking his head. "That's okay, Dan. I know what you mean." He said softly, as Dan continued to feel his face heating up. "Thank you."

It was silent for a few moments, and then Dan's phone started going off, signaling someone was calling him. Once he flipped his phone back up, he glanced at the caller ID. _Chris Kendall. _Uh-oh. He looked at it sheepishly, and then back at Phil, who was politely looking at the other direction. "Um, I have to take this call. It's Chris. I'll be right back, okay?" He said, and Phil nodded.

Dan stood up and ran upstairs to his room, where he flung off his coat and crashed onto his bed. He was breathing heavily when he answered Chris, and braced himself for the loud yelling that had came through once he answered. "Dan!" Chris's voice shouted into his ear. Dan scrunched his nose before answering. "Hola, Chris. How are you?"

"I'm great." Chris answered. "Actually, no. What do you mean when you said —" there was a slight pause, "— and I quote, _I'm not letting go of him anytime soon_? You left PJ and I hanging, dammit! I thought you actually died, but PJ suggested that maybe you and Phil were having some quality time together, if you get what I mean. Where are you two anyway? Are you at home?"

"Yes, I am home at the moment. In fact, he is here with me. And before you ask, _no_, we are not doing whatever you're thinking." Dan said slowly, running a hand through his hair. He turned over on his bed, frowning. "Also, I'm not sure what I even meant when I said that. I'm being honest here."

Dan heard Chris make a very weird noise on the other side of the line before replying. "Why would you say something if you didn't know what you said? My hope for you is decreasing by the minute. Anyway, remember what I got you for your birthday last year? I think you should use it tonight. You know. For protection. You never know what's gonna —"

"— _Chris._" Dan grumbled. "Shut up. I'm not going to use that."

"So you're going in dry then?"

"NO! I meant that I'm not planning to do whatever it is that you're thinking!" Dan whisper-shouted. He groaned, and shook his head. "I don't like him in that way, Chris. Just cause he bought me chocolates and now we're chilling at my house, it doesn't mean that we share an actual romantic relationship. Please understand that."

It was silent for a bit. Then Chris said, "Dan. Be honest here. Do you find Phil beautiful?"

"Uh." Dan said. He thought about it for a while. The way that Phil's eyes sparkled when Dan said something kind of hilarious always had struck him as cute. Whenever Phil blushed or his cheeks turned a light shade of pink, Dan found himself thinking that _wow, that was adorable. _His voice was incredibly soothing as well, and the way he walked or found something interesting made Dan's head spin. _Shit. _He was beautiful. Scratch that, he still is. From what he remembered five years ago, Phil was probably even more beautiful now.

"Dan? It's a yes or no question."

"I — uh." The brown haired male muttered. He lay on his side, before smiling and whispering, "_Yeah. _I do."

Chris didn't say anything for a while. Then he chuckled. "Alright. I'll hang up now. Go back to your man."

"Shut up. He's not my man."

"Later!" Chris laughed, as he then hung up a few seconds after.

Dan sighed, and slipped his phone back into his jeans pocket. He ran a hand through his hair before walking down the steps, and realizing that it smelled like something was cooking. Slightly confused, he looked down where Phil used to be sitting — he wasn't there, and the TV was still on. Phil's box of chocolates was open though, and two were missing from it. Dan carefully crept down the steps before poking his head into the kitchen. "Phil?"

"Oh, Dan!" Phil said, turning around. He was smiling nervously. "Sorry, I was hungry so I decided to make something with what you had. I tried eating two chocolates, but they only made me hungrier." He giggled, as Dan shook his head, grinning. Dan walked up to him and peeked over his shoulder to see what he was making, which was orange chicken. "It's almost finished now, though."

"Phil, did you seriously just cook something of mine's without permission?" Dan laughed, as he walked over to the dinner table, sitting on one of the chairs. As Phil laughed (sticking out his tongue as he did so), Dan rolled his eyes. "Wow, what a rebel. But thanks, really. I didn't even know that I had orange chicken in my refrigerator."

"Don't worry about it. Cooking's fun!" Phil smiled, as he continued to look over the orange chicken. Dan found himself smiling at his friend's back. This was nice. Having a little company over was nice, after all. He enjoyed having Phil cook for him. If this was a daily thing, his life would be perfect. He found himself liking Phil's company, the two of them teased and joked with each other a lot as Phil finished up the orange chicken.

Dan was chatting with Chris and PJ via text message when Phil came over, holding a bowl filled with orange chicken in his hands. He took another bowl and filled it with rice, before providing two plates and a pair of chopsticks for the both of them. Dan looked at him in awe, as Phil pulled up a chair and sat down opposite him, a huge smile on his face.

"How did you even _find _half of these things?" Dan said, pleasantly surprised. "You're serving me in my own home."

Phil did the thing where he smiled, and his tongue poked out in between a gap in his teeth. "It was easy to find the things I needed. Your utensils and stuff for cooking are so organized, I found them in seconds." He smiled, as he took a bite of the orange chicken. "Mm. I'm not one to judge my own cooking, but this is pretty good. Try it."

He smirked as he too took a bite out of an orange chicken. Phil was right — it _was _really good. It tasted amazing. Dan chewed it thoughtfully before placing rice in his mouth and gulping that down too. "Oh man, Phil. You should cook for me more often. This is really great." He said, as he took another bite of orange chicken. Opposite him, Phil smiled bashfully.

"Aw, thanks Dan." He said, a smile forming across his face. "Visiting you is fun, you know. You have a nice place, and I like it. Cooking for you is also an experience, I enjoy it. Thanks for having me over." Phil said softly, gazing into Dan's eyes. Dan found himself blushing once more, as he avoided eye contact and fixed his hair absentmindedly.

He smiled at the ground. "No problem. Do you want to stay over? I mean, you don't have to, but... Manchester is still a while away, and it's getting late. It's also cold out, and I have clothes for you if you need some." He looked back at Phil, who smiled and laughed lightly once more. Dan liked his laugh. It was soothing, and it was really cute on how the corner of Phil's eyes crinkled each time he grinned.

"I'd love to stay." Phil smiled. "Seriously, Dan, you're too welcoming."

Dan made a '_pfft_' noise. "I'm not sure if I'm supposed to take that as a compliment, but thanks."

They continued eating and chatting with each other, after that.

* * *

Pretty soon, both of them were getting quite tired.

After finishing their dinner, they went on a TV marathon, watching their favorite shows. They each had a few snacks, and ate some of their chocolates. Once Dan had shut off the TV, it was almost twelve midnight. He looked over to Phil, who looked equally as tired as him. Phil looked back at him, and the two of them started chuckling lightly. It was like a lazy afternoon, even though it was much later in the day.

"Well, that was fun." Phil said, as Dan straightened up, putting his head in between his hands.

The two of them then went upstairs after a while, and walked into Dan's room together. Phil's eyes lit up once he saw that Dan had merchandise from the things that both of them liked, and he looked around the room as Dan rummaged through his closet, trying to find pajamas for Phil to wear, since he was staying the night.

He finally settled upon giving Phil a black t-shirt and a pair of gray sweatpants, and frowned as Phil laughed. "Seriously, do you own any color besides black?" Phil snorted, as Dan rolled his eyes and tossed the clothes at his friend's face. As Phil went into the restroom to change, Dan pulled off his sweater and threw his jeans back into the drawer before pulling on a pair of gray and black pajama pants and a plain white shirt with a pocket on it.

Dan was scrolling through tumblr on his phone when a text message popped up, from Chris. Once he opened the notification, it lead to the group chat, where Chris and PJ were still in fact very wide awake, extremely chatty, and questioning. He couldn't help but smile as he read through their text messages, though. They were genuinely funny people.

Chris: are you two going to sleep in the same bed

PJ: mm something saucy might happen

Chris: control yourself dan, both of you

Chris: use protection if needed

Dan: i advise you to shut up

Dan: also yeah probably, the other room has stuff filled with your guys' stuff in it

PJ: ooh yes i've been waiting for this moment

Dan: alright you noobs goodnight i'll let you know what happens tomorrow

With that, he turned his notifs off and placed his phone facedown on the bedside table, the same moment when Phil walked in. Dan felt a wave of satisfaction wash over him as he looked at Phil, who was dressed in Dan's clothing. He looked so tiny in Dan's black t-shirt, and his pair of sweatpants. But somehow, it made Dan feel happy that Phil was wearing his stuff.

"It's big on me, but it's warm so I'm not complaining." Phil said simply, as he sat down on the other side of Dan's bed. The brown haired male smiled as he lifted his bedspread over, the two of them crawling into it and the same time. He heard Phil whisper, "I didn't know that you owned a white t-shirt. That's quite surprising to me." and scoffed.

Silence passed over them, as they both tried to fall asleep.

But he couldn't fall asleep. The thought of he and Phil sleeping in the same bed was something big to him, like something of an accomplishment. Dan _liked _this. He liked sleeping with him, even though this was completely in an unsexual way. It was comforting to Dan, and he wanted more of this. Phil made him feel safe, and comfortable. He liked this a _lot. _

Dan turned on his side, facing Phil — and was surprised to see that Phil was looking at him already. He smiled at him in the dark, he was still able to see the outline of Phil's face. His blue eyes still were quite bright in the dark, and they looked at Dan very fondly. "Hey, Dan?" Phil said, his voice a soft whisper.

"Yeah?" Dan replied, smiling back at him.

"Thank you for this." Phil mumbled softly. "This feels really great, you know."

He was lucky that it was dark, so that Phil couldn't see that he was blushing violently. "No problem. I agree with you."

Phil smiled even wider, and sighed lightly. "I missed you, you know."

"What?"

"When we didn't see each other for five years." Phil said. "I missed you a lot. I couldn't forget about you."

"Same here," Dan responded, his voice quiet. "I missed you a lot, too."

"I'm glad to hear that." Phil chuckled and closed his eyes. "Goodnight, Dan."

"Goodnight, Phil." Dan whispered, as he witnessed his friend fall asleep peacefully.

_He really is beautiful._

* * *

**A/N: **wOW A NEW CHAPTER CHOCO !? yeah i didn't forget abt this story OKAY it's one of my faves to right B)

ok i hope you enjoyed, i'm so sorry if this took so long (it did though) but i uploaded! yay!

stay tuned! love u guys

-choco xx


	5. Don't Go

**A/N: **looK see i'm finally updating r u proud !11!

in all seriousness i really need to make an update schedule for each of my fics... when i have the time to

so here's an overdue new chapter.. i'm so sorry that it's kinda short i didn't really plan this

enjoy

* * *

**v.**

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Dan's a little more than surprised to see Phil's face the first thing next morning.

His brown eyes grew wide as he looked at the other man's sleeping features, a hint of a smile on the other's lips. He looked so at ease, his breathing slow and even. He looked _breathtaking__._ At the thought, Dan immediately felt heat rise to his cheeks as he witnessed the black haired male mumble a bit in his sleep and roll over clumsily to face the wall. Dan stared at Phil's back before mentally slapping himself back into reality.

With a jolt, the brown haired male suddenly remembered last night events—the delicious orange chicken, inviting Phil into his house, the chocolates, Chris asking Dan if he found Phil beautiful. The staring, the laughing, the smiling. _Ah. _So he wasn't dreaming... all of those things did actually happen. _Wow. _A smile works a way to Dan's lips before he cautiously got off the bed, looking back to glance at the black haired male's sleeping figure. It was funny to think that he woke up before Phil did, Dan was usually a very heavy sleeper.

He didn't want to disturb Phil, so he exited his room and made his way into the kitchen.

Dan never really cooked for anyone (mainly because he was bad at it, and he always had cereal for breakfast) but today he strangely felt like he wanted to make something. He wasn't sure what made him want to do it, but he waved the thought off and grabbed the pancake mix in the cabinet instead. He was reading the instructions on the side of the box when he heard footsteps come into the room.

"Morning." Phil said, yawning. He was still in the pajamas that Dan had lent him yesterday, and for some reason it made Dan's heart rate move faster than it has been a few seconds ago. He glanced at Dan, who tore his eyes away from Phil and continued on squinting at the instructions. "Cooking something?"

"Er." Dan replied, looking up from the box and smiling. "Well, I'm trying to."

"I don't think you even started."

"Hey, shut up." Dan said, raising his eyebrows and pointing at the other man who was now laughing lightly. "Don't blame me for my horrible cooking skills." With that, he pulled the batter out of the box and frowned at it, realizing that he really did not know how to make pancakes. That was... quite disappointing, and a little embarrassing. He heard Phil burst out laughing behind him, which made Dan's face turn a shade of red at the noise.

Phil took the mix out of Dan's hands and placed it on the counter with a wide grin. "I can't believe that you don't know how to make pancakes."

"I usually eat cereal every morning." Dan said, placing his hands up in defense.

"That's no excuse. Pancakes are one of the easiest things to bake." Phil giggled. "Even _I _know how to make pancakes, and that's saying something." He walked over to Dan's fridge before the latter could retort and took out two eggs and a carton of milk, placing it on the counter besides the pancake mix. "Here, I'll show you. I'll mix all the stuff together and make a pancake but you can try after me."

Dan watched silently as Phil pre-heated the pan, afterwards cracking the two eggs and pouring a cup of milk into a bowl. After the ingredients were all inside, the black haired male poured the pancake mix in and stirred everything together. Dan's eyes travelled from the bowl Phil was mixing from to up to his friend's face, who's expression was surprisingly focused—his eyebrows arched and blue eyes narrowed. _Wow. He sure was beautiful._

He hadn't realized that he was staring until Phil finally looked up from the bowl and into Dan's eyes—causing the brown haired male to jump a bit. He tore his gaze away from his friend and turned to the pan, hiding his growing blush. If Phil didn't notice, he didn't say anything about it. "Okay, now I'm just going to pour in a little bit of the batter inside the pan and then we'll leave it there until both sides turn golden." Phil said, as Dan looked back to see him smiling gently.

"Y-Yeah." Dan stammered.

Phil then handed the bowl to him, where there still was a lot of batter. "You want to see something cool?"

"Go ahead." He said as he raised his eyebrows.

Phil gave him a cheeky grin before taking the pan off the stove. "I'm going to show something that's going to blow your mind."

"Alright, let's see it then."

"1... 2..." Phil counted down slowly, and once he yelled "3!" He grabbed the pan's handle with his hands and with one swift motion, flipped the pancake on its other side. Dan was beyond surprised when the pancake managed to land back onto the pan, golden brown side up. Phil shouted a gleeful _yes _and pumped a fist into the air as Dan continued gaping at him, mouth open and eyes widened. Phil smirked. "Wasn't that awesome?"

"You were right, that blew my mind." Dan agreed. "I don't think I'd ever be able to do that at all."

Phil beamed (adorably, Dan notes) as he put the pan back on the stove. "Thank you, thank you!"

"Did that take lots of practice?"

"Nah," Phil shook his head as he checked on the pancake. "I decided to try it out right now for the first time actually, and it worked. That was quite surprising, even for me. You know, my mom wouldn't let me try out stuff like this back when I was a kid. She was too afraid that I'd get something stuck to the ceiling." He laughed a little at the memory, and Dan found himself smiling.

It was silent for a few more moments until Phil started talking again.

"Oh, pancake's ready." He said, rushing past Dan to grab a plate from the cabinet. He opened the drawer below and took a spatula out, using it to take the pancake off the pan and onto the plate. "Wow, won't you look at that." Phil said, admiring his work. "Now _that's_ what I call a good pancake."

"Conceited much?" Dan joked, as he took the bowl and poured some more batter into the pan.

Phil rolled his eyes, but he was grinning as he pushed the plate towards Dan. "Here, this one's for you."

"What?" Dan said, shocked. "No, you made that one yourself. You go eat that."

"Aw, don't be like that. I made this one for you. _You _eat that and I'll make another one for myself."

"Phil."

"Dan."

"You know what, how about I make this one for you then?" Dan said with a sigh, gesturing to the pancake that was currently being baked on the stove. He didn't want to argue with Phil anymore, because the older man was starting to give him puppy dog eyes and he always gave in to those. He flipped it on its other side using the spatula, not even daring to toss it in the air like Phil did. He didn't want to risk either of them getting burned, and didn't want to risk embarrassing the hell out of himself in front of Phil. "You make one for me, I make one for you. We both get a pancake. Sound good?"

Phil gave him a thumbs-up. "Sounds perfect. But you know, we would've still got a pancake either way."

"I'm being nice."

Another silent falls on the two of them, but it's a comfortable silence. Dan watched the pancake on the stove while Phil looked around in the kitchen. A few minutes passed until the pancake was finally done. Dan turned off the stove and placed the pancake on another plate, before holding it out for Phil to take. "Here you go, it's all done now." He said, as Phil took it with another wide smile. _Seriously, he smiled a lot._ But Dan wasn't complaining about that at all.

"Thanks, Dan." Phil smiled gently.

Dan nervously avoided his gaze. "Yeah. And... thanks, too."

"Not a problem."

Dan took the whipped cream and chocolate syrup out of the fridge and placed it on the table where the two of them would be eating together. They took the spots that they sat in yesterday evening, sitting across from each other and matching grins on both of their faces. Dan couldn't really believe that it felt like that the two of them have been living together their whole life—it sure seemed like it. The thought of Phil living together with him seemed like a _very _good idea. Living with Phil... that would mean seeing each other every single day.

Phil would be the first person that Dan would see every morning. That thought made Dan's head spin.

Dan poured whipped cream on his pancake as Phil took a bite out of the one Dan made for him. "Ouch!" Phil gasped, as he put his fork down. Dan raised an eyebrow and stared. Was his pancake really that bad? He didn't expect for Phil to make such a horrible reaction. Dan's happiness went down slightly as Phil grinned apologetically. "Sorry, I accidentally ate it when it was too hot. It was like your pancake was _on fire_, but it's still good!"

Dan started to breathe easily again. He took this moment to bite out of his pancake, and his eyes widened at the taste. Phil was right, it really was delicious. "I could say the same about yours... kinda. I mean, it wasn't 'on fire' but it was pretty amazing." He commented, his spirits lifting once he saw the overjoyed look on the other's face. _I did that. _He thought, as Phil's grin seemed to grow wider and wider.

"Maybe I should go by 'AmazingPhil' from now on. It can describe me pretty well." Phil mused. "AmazingPhil's amazing pancakes."

Dan scoffed. "And mine, on fire."

"Maybe yours could be danisnotonfire." The black haired male suggested. "The pancakes—they're not 'on fire' literally—but they're still hot."

_Did Phil just indirectly call him hot?_ Dan bit his lip nervously before smiling back at him. Phil looked oblivious to whatever he just said, and Dan just took that as some kind of compliment about the pancakes he just made—feeling a little bit disappointed that it wasn't anything more than that. "What about Chris and PJ then?" He said, as he used his fork to stab multiple holes in his food.

"Um... I don't know. I've never tasted their pancakes."

Dan burst out laughing at that, clutching his sides tightly. "You don't need to taste their pancakes to make up a name for them."

"Well, in that case, then crabstickz for Chris and KickThePJ for PJ."

The brown haired male raised his eyebrows at Phil's statement. "Is there a particular reason about why?"

"Haha, not really. I kind of just made it up right now, but I guess there might be now that I think about it." Phil thought, as he took another bite of his breakfast. "Oh, yeah, now I remember. A few years ago—sometime after I saw you at the party actually—I went with Chris for dinner one time. We had seafood, and he kept calling crab legs 'crab stickz' with a z because he forgot what it was called. I should probably mention that he was a little drunk beforehand but it was pretty funny, he was really serious about it."

Dan snorted. "Typical."

"For PJ's story... he was half-asleep one time. He kept yelling 'KICK THE PJ! KICK THE PJ!' for some odd reason. It scared the heck out of me, and to this day I still don't know why he was saying that. He must've had a really strange dream, when he actually woke up an hour later I asked him about it but he had _no_ idea what I was talking about." Phil laughed, shaking his head. "Those memories have been stuck in my mind for a while."

"It's pretty interesting, actually." Dan grinned. "I have to thank you for that blackmail material."

Phil laughed, and Dan felt pride swell in his chest.

* * *

Afterwards, the two continued to talk for a bit and catch up some more (while subconsciously flirting and also making more pancakes).

Pretty soon Phil decided that he should return home (after changing back into his own clothes), which made Dan's heart sink a little. He'd forgotten the fact that Phil lived a few hours away in Manchester. He reassured Dan though, saying that the two of them could skype each other (they both made new accounts, Phil naming his AmazingPhil and Dan naming his danisnotonfire) but Dan felt like it wouldn't really be the same. Seeing people in person was better than over a screen in his opinion.

"Well, I guess this goodbye then." Phil said, sounding a bit sad. His lips were secured in a small frown.

Dan nodded as he stuffed his hands inside his pockets. "Yeah... I guess. But only temporarily, right? I'm sure that we'll be able to see each other again soon. I don't want it to be five more years until we see each other again." Phil smiled at Dan's last statement, sighing and shaking his head.

"Same here. It would suck if that actually happened."

It was quiet as the two looked at each other.

"Well—"

"Anyway—"

They both said at once, both also surprised after realizing that they had talked at the same time. Dan grinned bashfully as Phil laughed, his tongue poking out through a gap in his teeth. "Were you going to say something?" Dan said, amused, as he glanced at the man standing in front of him. He was seriously considering asking him to move in with him, but he couldn't bring it upon himself to say it just yet. Not when Phil was looking at him expectantly with those big, blue eyes of his. It was terribly distracting.

"I was going to say, 'well, I'll see you later.'" Phil smiled. "What about you?"

Dan froze. "Uh... I..."

Phil waited.

"Um... nothing." Dan breathed, and mentally slapped himself. _No, you fucking idiot_—

The black haired male looked surprised, as well as a little bit confused. "Uh, okay. Well... I'll get going now then." He said, giving Dan another cheery smile before starting to turn away. Dan opened his mouth but as soon as he did—Phil stopped in his tracks and grinned sheepishly back at him, pointing at his shoes where one was untied. "Sorry, I can't get away from you just yet. Shoe's untied, it's going to be really bad if I tripped over myself."

_I don't want you to ever get away. _Dan thought furiously, cursing himself at once because why the hell could he not say this out loud—

A few seconds later, Phil rose again. He lifted a hand in a short farewell. "Alright, I'm done. I even tied the second shoe again just to make sure." He noticed that Dan wasn't laughing (which was odd, he thought, because Dan usually laughed at most of the things Phil said) and his eyes widened when he saw his friend with his fists clenched and his mouth tight-lipped. _What the heck?_

"Um... Dan?" Phil asked slowly. "Are you alright?"

_Come on, Dan. _

"Phil—" Dan stopped himself abruptly, and then he shook his head. It was too late to take that back, Phil had raised his head at the sound of his name and was now looking at him expectantly. It was now or never. "—I was thinking. What if there doesn't really have to be a next time where we actually see each other again?"

"What?" Phil was bewildered. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"I mean," the brown haired man said slowly, waving his arms in an attempt to communicate. "There won't have to be a next time, if we decided to... live together? Probably?" An embarrassed blush started growing on Dan's face, and he started stuttering. "Uh... there wouldn't be a 'next time' because we'd end up seeing each other every day and—? Does that even make any sense? That probably makes no sense at all, oh my gosh I'm so sorry—"

"—Dan." Phil interrupted in the middle of the younger man's ramble, and when Dan looked up again he was met with the _happiest _expression that he's ever seen on Phil's face in his entire life. He was smiling so much, even his eyes were smiling. Dan immediately stopped talking at once, and he just stared. He felt like it was the right thing to do in the current situation that he was in.

"I'm sorry." Dan mumbled at last. "I know that we've just literally met a few times after five years, but... it was just a thought."

"Dan, you idiot."

He raised his eyebrows. _What?_

"You _idiot._" Phil repeated with a grin on his face, rushing over to him at once and flinging his arms around him. Dan was too surprised to do anything. He felt Phil wrap his arms securely around his neck and his body press closer to his own. Dan could feel the blush coming back, 10 times fiercer than it had ever been before. It was even better than when he found him at the train station for over five years, better than when Phil caught his phone both times, better than cooking breakfast with him—_it was the best feeling in the whole world._

He wrapped his arms around Phil's back, and smiled softly. "_Idiot, _huh?"

"I would be more than happy to be able to live with you." Phil whispered.

Dan had _never_ been happier.

* * *

**A/N: **wow much fluff such phan

hhaha i don't know what this was but hey. new update amirite ++ chris n peej will come back next chapter dw

but yeah. finally, they are moving in with each other

i'm sorry tht this is kinda short (i've been losing motivation lately... rip?) but at least i updated after almost a whole year holy shit i didn't realize how long it's been since then... omg... i'm so sorry argh i feel so bad :((( but i hope u liked this chapter!

-choco xx


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