drop dead ; phan

xii

"come on, just follow me, dan!" phil laughed as he dragged along a confused and tired dan behind him. dan had woken up that morning to phil excitedly telling him that he had a surprise. dan didn't like surprises.

"why can't you just tell me where we're going?" he whined, stumbling around on the pavement.

"if i told you, it wouldn't be a surprise. now hurry up!" phil skipped along, glancing back and smiling at dan. dan groaned but started walking steadier to keep up with his fast-paced friend. dan's free hand reached into his pocket and phil stopped abruptly, making dan knock into him. he didn't even have to look at dan to know what he was doing, and shook his head.

"no smoking," he said, frowning at his friend who had an unlit cigarette between his lips. dan looked at him for a few seconds before muttering, "damnit," under his breath and tossing the cigarette behind him.

"ok, close your eyes, and hold my hand," phil squealed, wrapping his fingers around dan's without hesitation. dan momentarily stopped, staring at their intertwined hands in bewilderment. yet, for some reason that he didn't quite know himself, he didn't pull away.

phil led him a short while before stopping, telling dan that he could open his eyes now. there was a small beige shop in front of him and once dan recognized it he chuckled, shaking his head.

"i'm getting a tattoo!" phil announced proudly, raising his arms up and grinning like an idiot.

"wow, phil. what a pleasant surprise," dan laughed, absentmindedly keeping his hand intertwined with the boy beside him.

"what are you getting?" dan asked, walking inside the tattoo parlor.

"um, well, i actually don't know yet. this was kind of an impulse thing, but i'm not leaving this shop until i have a tattoo," phil answered him triumphantly.

"well, do you have any ideas?"

phil blushed and he looked down at his feet, "i, maybe a, uh, you know. possibly a star? like yours?"

dan's face dropped as he quickly met phil's gaze, looking at him in slight shock. "oh, uh, right. okay?" dan stuttered, a confused blush creeping onto his face.

"what can i do for you boys?" a short, brunette girl asked, her voice paced with a northern accent. dan stepped back to where a few stools were placed as phil told the girl what he wanted.

"oh, that won't take long at all, come on back," she gestured for them to follow her, but dan mumbled something and sat down in the empty seating area. dan was contemplating whether he should get another one while he was here or not. he didn't know what he would get, or where he would get one, or w-

"aye, buddy. you just waitin' for 'em or are ya gettin' somethin' too?" a tattooed man walked out from a back room as up the counter, his voice thick with a heavy accent.

"uh, i, um..." dan trailed off, keeping his gaze on the dirty grey floor to avoid eye contact.

"speak up, boy!" the man shouted, startling dan.

"uh, i don't kno-" dan stopped suddenly, eyeing the man's wrist carefully, "what's that on your wrist?" the man glanced down at his wrist and laughed, elongating his arm out towards dan.

"you want one of these?" he asked, and dan nodded, keeping his gaze on the small tattoo.

"well, come on back!" he nodded, waving dan to follow him, who tentatively trailed behind him.

dan sat in the chair and rolled up his sweater sleeve, placing it palms up on the station. after a short while of preparation, the artist sat down, opposite from dan.

"ready kid?" dan nodded, biting down on his bottom lip. he never thought that tattoos hurt that bad. he enjoyed watching the tattoo take form, seeing the ink come to life on his skin. soon, he heard phil's voice call out from the waiting room, and he glanced up towards it.

"uh, in a second phil, i'm almost done!" dan glanced at the artist who nodded, reassuring dan's assumption of him being nearly finished. once the tattoo was done, dan softly smiled, and muttered a small thanks. he walked back into the waiting room, which he noticed was even colder now. phil giggled, holding out his forearm and proudly showing dan his new outline of a star.

"what did you get?" phil asked, looking around dan for any sign of new ink.

"it's an music bar, like sheet music, but with no notes. it's like, having a moment of silence, but picking up with the music after this silent bar. like having an event make you suffer to get past it," he paused, before going on. "but then you can get through it all and get back into life. like in actual music, you're anxiously waiting for the music to pick back up when it goes into silence, but it almost always goes back to the symphony, somehow," dan rambled, blushing once he finished. dan looked up to see the artist softly smile at him.

"i just thought it looked cool when i got it," the man laughed, making dan blush harder. he awkwardly chuckled, handing the artist some cash. but as the man reached out for the money, dan saw a long, white scar contrasting against his tan skin. dan's face dropped before he realized he was staring, and nervously met the man's gaze.

"oh, oh s-sorry, i just-" dan stammered. the artist just smiled and shook his head, patting dan's shoulder.

"shit, it's raining," phil groaned, bringing dan out of his thoughts. he swung around, "huh?"

"we're gonna have to get a taxi or something," phil mumbled to himself, before being interrupted by dan.

"no!" he blurted out, his face turning pink when he realized what he'd done. "i-i mean, i just love the rain. unless it gets too heavy, then we'll get a cab," he stammered, making phil smile.

"i got it," the artist assured them as phil went to hold the door. dan trailed awkwardly behind him as phil walked out inti the rain, before being stopped by a hand on his shoulder. dan fearfully glanced behind him to see that it was just the tattoo artist, who smirked before saying, "kid, it's more romantic to kiss someone in the rain, ya know?" dan's face went red, keeping hold of the thought as he ran to catch up with phil.

the two stopped outside under some cafe balcony, blocking the rain from soaking them. dan wasn't sure if phil had seen the man's scar, until-

"did you see his.." phil trailed off, kicking at his own feet. dan gulped, nodding.

"is that why you.. never mind," phil quickly shook his head and started walking ahead without dan. the brunette boy frowned, finding himself in a sprint towards phil again.

"hey, are you okay?" dan asked, icy rain dripping off of his eyelashes and trailing down his face. phil didn't reply at first, shaking his thoughts away before turning back to dan with a lightened expression.

"of course, i'm fine," he giggled, starting to twirl around in the rain. dan's small smile faltered for a second, knowing that phil was trying to pretend he was fine for his sake.

but he did the same for phil's sake, laughing and sticking out his tongue for the cold rain to land on. his eyes shut as he looked up, water splashing on his face. slightly shivering, he wiped his eyes and watched phil as he mindlessly spun around, before tripping into him. dan had a small feeling that phil had "fell" on purpose, but he didn't care much at this point. it was like at the club, but with more clothes and less alcohol. phil met dan's thoughtless gaze, leaning in slightly.

"kiss me in the rain," he whispered, staring at the little water droplets that flattened dan's hair and rolled down his slightly pink cheeks.

"how cliche," dan mumbled, not waiting for a response and placing his lips on phil's. his arms wrapped around dan's body, dan's shivering hands making their way to phil's typically-fluffy wet hair.

his lips were so pliant and firm around dan's, and the tugs on his hair made it even more enjoyable. it was cold and soaking around them, but it wasn't even faintly on their minds from the euphoric heat of the kiss. it didn't last very long, but that didn't affect the smile tugging on dan's lips as the two rested their foreheads against each other.

"cliché isn't that bad, is it?"

lmao i hate this chapter so much