Imagines: Celebrity Encounters Starring You

A New Connection - Dan Howell

"So, what I'm trying to ask here—could I possibly crouch in the corner of your living room for half an hour? You won't even know I'm there. Well, you might hear a bit of pointless rambling, but I'll try to keep it down."

 It's not exactly an unreasonable request, and, well, let's face it—your inner YouTube fangirl would kill you for passing up the opportunity to spend more than a couple of seconds in the company of Dan Howell.

So you nod. "Sure"—you pull the door open a little wider—"come on in." 

As he steps inside, you take a cursory glance across the living room, hoping it's at least half-tidy. Dan takes a seat on the sofa,setting his laptop down on the coffee table and clicking through a couple of settings. 

He looks up. "Have you got the password?" The single question is enough to stop you in your tracks, and your cheeks begin to burn the moment your eyes meet. How did you forget? Ten seconds into your first proper conversation,and you're going to look like a complete stalker. . . . 

"Yeah, it's . . . uh . . ." You mumble it quietly, like this might tone down the embarrassment. 

"Sorry?" Dan frowns.

There's no avoiding it. One way or another, you're going to end up embarrassing yourself. "It's . . . danisnotonfire09." 

He raises an eyebrow, looking amused. You begin your defence before he can say a word. "I was a fifteen-year-old fangirl, okay?" you blurt out, hoping your face isn't completely red in the light of the living room. "And I haven't changed my password in a long time. Please let's forget about this." 

Dan just grins, returning his gaze to the laptop, like he's relieved not to be the first one to embarrass himself. "I'm not saying a word." 

His fingers tap across the keyboard at lightning speed, and you watch as he pulls up his webcam on-screen. "By the way, you might want to avoid the camera shot. My fans don't tend to . . .well, take kindly to female company, let's put it that way." 

"Right," you say. "Because they're convinced you're in a secret relationship with Phil?" 

"Yeah." He chuckles. "Something like that." 

He's starting to set up the shot, so you take this as your cue to head to the kitchen, figuring you can busy yourself there. As flattered as you are to be able to help Dan out, you're not quite prepared for any of the onslaught associated with his army of teenage fans. However, after cleaning up a bit, you find yourself at a loss for jobs to keep you busy. Your laptop is still sitting in the living room, and retrieving it would mean walking right into the camera frame of Dan's live broadcast—you're not quite that desperate yet. 

But that doesn't mean you're entirely immune to temptation,either. With the kitchen spotless, and the contents of your fridge shelves already rearranged twice over, you find yourself edging closer to the living-room door. You can hear Dan chatting away into his webcam, trying to convince the viewers that the different back ground is just another room of his and Phil's apartment.

Ha, you think to yourself. Like those fourteen-year-old superfans are going to fall for that. 

Eventually, though, you hear him taking his final few questions and getting ready to say good-bye. Once you're sure the camera is switched off, you work up the courage to head back into the living room, where you find Dan closing down his laptop. 

"How'd it go?" 

The sound of your voice makes him jolt in his seat, the laptop slipping sideways from his lap. "Christ, you scared me." He clutches his chest.