just a school project || a hs phan au

Chapter 8

Dan ends up tired early. He's used to falling asleep early, and he doesn't want to stay awake for very long for the fear he'll say something wrong.

Of course, suggesting going to bed has complications of its own. Just like everything else does with Phil.

"Sleep with me," Phil shrugs. "Not like- You know, just innocently. You can sleep in my bed, I don't want you to be uncomfortable on the sofa or floor or something."

"I don't- Fine," Dan sighs. He's given up on arguing and just started praying nothing will go wrong. "I'll just go change into-"

"I'm just staying in my boxers, you can do the same if you want. I don't mind it," Phil suggests. He doesn't sound like he's implying something, but Dan is fairly certain that he has intentions as to what's going to happen.

Dan doesn't bother answering. He tries not to stare when Phil pulls off his shirt, puling off his jeans as well. Dan notices how many tattoos he's got scattered all over his chest, trying not to look creepy. Phil lays down, motioning for Dan to do the same.

Dan feels himself a little self-conscious when he pulls off his own shirt, trying to avoid looking at Phil to make it less awkward. He pulls off his jeans, folding them and putting them up. He turns around and notices Phil staring, but it isn't unexpected.

"No need to be self-conscious. You're beautiful, trust me," Phil smiles, but he doesn't sound like he's flirting. He sounds genuine, and Dan has to stop himself from replying. He bites his tongue, laying down on the bed as far from Phil as he can.

Phil eyes him once, watching his chest rise and fall as he breathes, before looking away. Dan's staring no where but the ceiling.

"Nice tattoos," Dan says quietly, not turning his head.

Phil laughs. "Goodnight, Dan."

"Yeah. Goodnight, Phil."

-

The next morning, Dan wakes up first. He finds himself a lot closer to Phil than he remembers falling asleep like, their legs tangled together. At first, he doesn't want to move, because it's comfortable and the warmth of Phil's skin against his own is warm and comforting.

Phil's still fast asleep. Dan looks over his tattoos once again, but he doesn't understand half of them. There's a lion, and Dan swears he recognizes one of them as a Gengar. Maybe Phil isn't all as hardcore as he tends to act.

It takes a few minutes more for Phil to wake up. He opens his eyes slowly, turning his head to Dan. "Morning."

Dan sits up, moving out of Phil's grip. "Yeah. Morning."

"Your hair is curlier than usual," Phil points out. "Is it always like that?"

"Shit, I need to straighten that. It looks horrible."

"It looks cute," Phil says, but there's no smirk with it.

Dan ignores him, standing up to pull on a shirt. He doesn't get why Phil is acting so strange at different times. Sometimes, he's smirking, flirting and making inappropriate comments. The next moment he's being nice and acting like he's genuinely interested in Dan. It's confusing Dan, and he hates that. He hates not understanding everything, and hates how complicated this is. He can't solve it with some formula like a math equation. Instead, he's stuck, confused about how he feels, and confused about how Phil feels as well.

It makes more sense for Phil to want him just for the bet, but Dan can't help but wonder if there's anything otherwise. Because Phil seems to be more than just flirting with him recently, sometimes acting like he may actually want Dan for himself, not just for a stupid bet.