Dear Phil [Phan]

Well, That Was Awkward

"So, Dan, how have things been?" Tom asked, after they had ordered.

Dan shot a glare at Tom, "How do you think it's been?" He didn't mean to be rude, but at the moment, he was starting to get really crabby without Phil at his side.

"Right, sorry." He held his hands up in defense and tried a weak smile, "Er, what was Phil like? Was he nice?"

"Phil was the most kind hearted person I've ever known." He looked up, "Why do you care?"

Tom shrugged, "Just making conversation." He shifted in his seat, "I'm, ah, going to go to the toilets."

Dan nodded and Tom walked off. He stepped in one of the cubicles and leaned back against the door. Pulling out his phone, he quickly dialed the number and held it to his ear.

"Come on, come on." He urged, the more the phone rang.

Just as he was about to hang up he heard a, 'Hello?'

"Tyler! I don't want to do this. You have to think of something better." He hissed.

"I don't have to do anything. You're lucky I thought of this. I'm saving your ass, not mine. Now deal with it or figure something out on your own!" And with that he hung up.

"Damn you, Tyler." Tom muttered under his breath, staring at the blank screen of his phone.

He walked out and sat in the booth where Dan was practically chugging down his water.

He laughed quietly and scratched the back of his neck, "Thirsty?"

He put down the glass, chuckling nervously, "Somewhat."

They sat in an awkward silence after that until the food came.

"Thank you." Tom said to her before she walked away.

"So uh, Tom, what's your life like?"

"Well I share a flat with my, er, friend Tyler."

"Friend?" Dan interrupted, quirking an eyebrow.

"Yes, friend. Trust me."

"I don't give my trust to just anybody. But I'll believe you, for now." He smiled, enjoying himself for the first time in over a week.

Tom rolled his eyes, but still gave a small laugh. "Okay, well both our parents died when we were only 22, so we moved in together. That's when I decided to get my license for therapy. So I could help others who are going through bad situations in their lives."

"Wait, all of your parents died at the same time?" Dan asked, his face disbelieving.

"Oh, uh, yeah. The er, four of them were going out together. Car accident."

"That's horrible. I'm so sorry." Dan frowned.

Tom shrugged, "It's alright. It happened, like, 5 years ago. Anyway, we became really close after that, best friends. He works in one those boring old box offices and he likes to go to the pub a lot to forget about it. But he's still cool, and he's loads of fun when he's drunk." Tom laughed.

Dan nodded. He was about to say something when the waitress came back over.

"Anything else?"

"No thanks, just the bill." Tom smiled up at her and she placed it on the table.

"Have a nice night." She walked off.

Tom picked up the bill and began to retrieve his wallet. Dan reached for the bill, but Tom pulled it away from him.