jealous ➳ daniel howell

1

"Yes, Phil, I'm on my way now." I smile, exiting the airport.

"I'll text you the address. I can't wait to see you, Rachel!" I hear his cheery voice reply.

"I can't wait to see you either, Phil. Talk to you soon." I hang up before letting him say goodbye and anxiously wait for his message. As soon as my phone goes off, I call a taxi.

As I wait, I text Phil. I haven't seen him for four years and I can't wait to finally hug him again!

I moved to Los Angeles when I was 21 for an acting career. I star in a few low-budget movies, and I'm most definitely not famous. But, it pays well, and now after four years I'm finally able to breathe and take a break from everything.

I went to school with Phil for almost 12 years. After graduating, we kept in touch, but then he moved a few years later. Before I moved, I visited him once, for one day. That was four years ago.

Today, I finally get to reconnect with my best friend.

•••

I arrive to the apartment building and before I could even get out of the cab...

"Rachel Lynn Alice!" I hear someone scream.

I quickly pay the taxi driver and grab my two ginormous suitcases. I think I see Phil running towards the taxi, and I carelessly toss out my luggage and jump out, as well. "Philip Michael Lester!" I scream back.

I run towards him and we wrap our arms around each other, laughing.

"Oh my god, Rachel!" Phil leans back, smiling "Look at you! You're beautiful!"

"Look at you, Phil! You're handsomer than I remember! And have you gotten taller?"

"Maybe just a little."

We hug again, and he helps me grab my stuff. He leads me into the building and we soon arrive in his apartment. I look around the room, smiling. "You're still a child at heart."

He nods, leading me into a room with two computers and a couch. "Here's where you'll be staying. The couch is a bit uncomfortable, just a warning."

I turn to him and raise an eyebrow. "You expect me to sleep here for a month straight?"

He shrugs, "I suppose you can sleep with me, just like when we were younger."

"Aw, really? It won't be awkward for you?" I ask in a childish tone of voice. He shakes his head, smirking. "Well, okay, then. Lead me to your room."

When we get to Phil's room, I smile. "It looks just like it does in your YouTube videos, except slightly smaller."

"I know. Here, toss your shit in this corner."

I gasp, "Language, Philip, there is a child present."

"Is there?"

"Yeah, and I'm looking at him." I flick his arm and throw my suitcases in the corner as instructed.

That's the other thing. Phil seems so innocent in his videos, live shows, and in interviews. Off camera, he's the exact opposite. He swears a lot.

"Words cannot describe how much I missed you and your little attitude."

"Aw, I missed you, too." I hug him again, then lean back. "So, when do I get to meet this roommate of yours?"

"He's out right now, but he'll be back later on tonight."

"Alright, then, what shall we do until he gets back?"

"We can either watch Netflix, or..." He grabs my arm and pulls me into the kitchen, then opens the fridge and pulls out a bottle of champagne. "Do nothing except talk and drink."

I smile. "Catching up sounds nice...but I'm not going to drink that much."

He nods, closing the fridge door with his hip, then grabs two glasses.

•••

"Phil, I'm home!" I hear another British accent fill the room.

Phil turn in his seat, slightly wobbly from all the drinking he's done. I shake my head, steadying him. "Hey, Dan." He slurs.

"Um, hey, Phil. I thought you said your friend wasn't supposed to come until next week?" He asks, tossing the keys onto the table.

"Whoops, if I did I meant this week. Sorry." He lets out a fit of giggles.

I stand up and walk over to Dan with my hand extended, "Hello, Dan. I'm Rachel. Nice to meet you."

He just nods and fake smiles, rejecting my handshake. "I think we should go over some ground rules."

"Don't worry about it, Phil's already gone over the 'ground rules' with me." I say, plopping next to Phil again.

"Oh, yeah? Which Phil? Sober Phil? Or the Phil that looks like he's about to pass out?"

"Hey, I am sober!" Phil shouts, standing up. He almost loses his balance and I laugh, helping him stand upright.

Dan smiles, "Sure you are, Philly."

I look to Dan, making eye contact with him for a split second. He's cute, I'll admit, but he's kind of an asshole.

Oh well, I understand. If my roommate invited her best friend to stay with us for a month and I didn't know who they were I'd be pissed, too. Especially if she told me that they were coming on a certain day and they showed up a week earlier.

Dan looks away first, and I sigh. "Come on, Phil. Let's get you to bed."

"I'll do it." Dan says, walking towards us.

"No, that's okay, Dan. I'm getting a bit tired, I think I'll just take him to bed and fall asleep, too." I reply, putting my arm around Phil's waist.

"Are you...going to be sleeping in Phil's bed...with him?"

"Yeah, but there's nothing going on between us, okay? We've had sleepovers together ever since grade one."

He glares at me and walks off slowly, and I just laugh.

Jealous, much?

"Hey, are you sure there's nothing going on between us?" Phil asks.

"I'm sure."

"But I love you."

"I know you do."

"As more than just a best friend."

"You're just saying that because you're drunk, Phil," I say, pushing him down onto his bed and pulling his blanket over him.

I change into some pajamas and lay down next to Phil. "Goodnight, my precious lion."

"Goodnight, my beautiful lioness."

I smirk, turning onto my side. "Tomorrow you're gonna wake up with one hell of a hangover. You aren't gonna remember anything we talked about tonight, either."

"Probably not. Oh, well."

~~~