The Boy in the Garden (Phan)

Chapter 1- Plant Boy

Phil pouted and looked down. "They were the only ones I could find. I mean, it doesn't matter as long as it gets the job done, right?"

"I guess you're right." Dan tugged the gloves onto his hands before grabbing a trowel and kneeling down in a patch of crabgrass, frowning. "The dirt's gonna get all over my jeans..."

"It's fine. It'll wash out anyways." Phil knelt down next to him, already starting to dig up a weed by the roots. "Once you get it out, just chuck it in that bucket over there." For about thirty minutes or so, neither of them spoke as they worked, the silence only being broken by the twitter of birds and the faint yells of the football players practicing on the field atop the nearby hill. Eventually, Dan decided to speak up- the silence was driving him nuts. "So, um... I bet you're not appreciating having to look after me... gardening all afternoon must be pretty boring."

Phil shook his head. "I actually love working here! I spend most of the school day here, which is why most people don't see me in any of their classes..."

"Why?" Dan grabbed a weed by the roots and attempted to pull it out, but it was firmly stuck. Phil seemed oblivious to Dan's struggle, crossing his legs and looking up at the sky as he continued to talk, more to himself than Dan. "I actually agreed to help the school with the garden to pay for my scholarship... my parents don't have a lot of money, so they talked with the school and said that this could be a way to help pay for it..." He let out a small sigh that could have been from contentment or sadness, looking around the garden at the half-grown plants.

Dan finally managed to yank the weed out of the ground, the force of his tug causing dirt to fall down from the roots of the plant and land on his clothes. "Shit..." He chucked the weed into the bucket before attempting to brush the dirt off; however, his filthy gloves just ended up making the situation worse. "For God's sake..." 

Phil giggled quietly, tugging off his gloves. "Let me help you with that..." He gently began picking the bits of dirt off of Dan's thin grey t-shirt. Dan flinched slightly as Phil's hands brushed against his torso through his shirt, his heart pounding quickly. He didn't move a muscle until Phil had finished, lifting his hands away. He quickly picked up his trowel and kept his eyes on the ground, his face feeling slightly warm.

Phil frowned. "Are you okay?"

"Hm? Yeah, I'm fine..." Dan pretended to be extremely interested in a patch of dandelions. All of them were a bright yellow except for one, which was now a fluffy white sphere. He poked the stem of the white dandelion with one finger, causing a couple of the fuzzy white seeds to drift off and float up into the sky. Phil noticed the dandelion too and smiled, reaching over and picking it. He stood up with the stem of the flower pinched between his thumb and forefinger, gazing at the hairy white bulb as though it was a precious diamond. Dan stood up as well, smiling as he watched Phil. "You really like that dandelion, huh?"

"It's just so tiny and fluffy..." Phil grinned and raised it up in front of his face. He closed his eyes and blew on it, sending the fuzzy seeds scattering into the air. He opened his eyes, a content smile still on his face as he watched some of the seeds scatter around on the grass outside the garden, the rest of them drifting up into the air and eventually becoming too tiny to watch.

"Did you wish for something?" Dan asked.

"Yep." Phil tied the bare stem in a knot and stuffed it in his pocket. "But I can't tell you, otherwise it won't come true."

Dan chuckled softly. "You're funny..."

"Oh... thank you!" Phil chirped.

"You're welcome..." For a few seconds, the two stood in semi-awkward silence, looking into each other's eyes. Suddenly, the silence was broken by the buzzing of Phil's phone in his back pocket. Phil pulled out his phone and looked at the screen. "It's been an hour already?"

"Wait, really?" Dan asked.

"Yeah..." Dan noticed that Phil sounded slightly disappointed for some reason. "Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow... actually, I probably won't. Sorry."

"It's fine." Dan said, shrugging. "I'll try to find you and talk to you if I get a chance."

"Thanks." Phil smiled as the two walked out of the garden. Even though it was only four in the afternoon, the sun was already beginning to set. Dan admired the sunset for a few seconds before picking up his backpack and opening the back door to the school. He turned around to see that Phil was walking up the hill. "What are you doing?" he called after him.

"My house is just over the hill," Phil replied. "I always just walk to and from school..."

"Oh, okay!" Dan shrugged. "Well, see ya!"

"Bye, Dan!" WIth that, Phil practically skipped up the hill and disappeared over the top of it. Dan smiled to himself. That kid's actually pretty nice... I hope we get to see each other again soon.