SUPER RICH KIDS | PHAN

forty two.

phil.

"where are you going?"

phil turned back from the door to see dan, sitting up on his knees and watching him with warm chocolate eyes. phil flinched and bit his lip.

"um... home. to my apartment."

disappointment was etched on dan's features like a heavy handed charcoal sketch in the dark of the shelter. "you aren't staying?"

"no," phil breathed, watching dan's face. "i don't have any work to do."

"oh." phil could tell that wasn't the answer he had wanted, not at all. "you aren't staying... for me?"

phil's breath caught against his best conscience and he took a step away from the door. "for you?"

phil could tell he was blushing, even in the dark. "yeah."

phil smiled. "okay... i can stay for you, i guess."

the storage room was just as dimly lit as ever, but now the lack of light made phil shiver a bit. it felt like such different implications to be in a dark room with dan, alone.

dan sat carefully on a pillow that was still on the dusty floor, and motioned for phil to join him. phil sat next to him, crossing his legs and leaning back with his palms on the ground.

"hi," dan said after a long moment of silence. his voice was soft and just a tiny bit scratchy. phil took a slow breath.

"hi."

now that dan had him trapped here, what would he do? would he question him about the kiss, or, even worse, would he ignore what had happened altogether? phil actually felt almost nervous about how casual dan had acted after it, it made him feel like he planned to just pretend it didn't happen. usually phil would've agreed wholeheartedly with forgetting it, but this was different. these feelings were different.

dan sighed and ran his fingers through his hair, pushing it back. phil bit his lip so he wouldn't smile at the way his hair now stuck up in various angles.

"are you okay?" dan asked finally, searching phil's face for something, his voice laced with concern. "you know... after the whole thing. i know it was stressful for you."

phil stared at him. god, this boy was about to kill him.

"i'm okay," he replied finally, a smile tugging at his lips. "but i'm the one who should be asking. are you?"

dan shrugged and looked down, playing with his sleeve. "i miss my guitar."

"yeah..." phil tried to imagine how he was feeling but it was difficult. he had never really had anything he cared about personally, he was always replacing the things in his life with new versions. "i'm really sorry, dan."

dan shrugged again, avoiding his eyes. "it's okay. i'll just get used to the new one, i guess." he looked up. "i'll pay you back for that, by the way."

phil laughed. "no, you won't."

dan looked a little offended. "i will, i can get the money... i mean it."

phil's eyes widened and he held out his hands. "no, no, i didn't mean it that way, i just..." he laughed. "i meant it's a gift, dan."

dan looked him over slowly, as if searching for the joke or the lie. he clearly came up empty. "okay. thank you," he whispered. phil smiled.

"no problem."

dan paused. "why did you kiss me?" he blurted breathlessly after a second, and phil instantly flushed. there it was.

phil kept quiet for a moment, licking his lips, thinking about how to approach this. should he lie? tell him it was a fluke, or a moment of weakness, or tell him he hadn't meant it that way?

or should he just be honest?

after a minute he decided on the latter, and sighed.

"i wanted to," he mumbled, glancing away from dan's face. "um... you... you looked really beautiful up there, y'know? i had... a lot of feelings."

"feelings?" dan whispered, and phil still couldn't look at him.

"yeah." phil took a shaky breath. "feelings."

"for me?"

phil nodded, his gaze flickering up to his face. dan's expression was unreadable. phil's hands were shaking.

"you know," dan said finally, his voice soft. the air felt thick and warm, wrapping around phil like a blanket, and dan's voice was like a breath of relief. "i know kat talked to you about me. about how i'm fragile, and how i fall really easily."

phil nodded silently, letting him speak.

"and she's right," dan whispered. phil met his eyes. "but... not about everything." he smiled weakly. "in all my years of developing crushes on unsuspecting boys, no one has ever had feelings for me back."

phil frowned. that seemed completely impossible. "but... you've kissed someone before me, right?"

dan nodded, smiling a bit sadly at some memory in his head and laughing softly. "yeah, i have. but trust me, phil, no one has ever liked me. they saw someone who liked them, and figured why not, or maybe i flattered them. but i've never flattered you," he finished, giggling. phil laughed, watching him.

"yeah, and i don't think you even like me."

dan grinned. "and yet... you kissed me."

"i did."

dan searched his face, a faint smile still present on his lips. "would you do it again? if i gave you the chance?"

phil paused, and nodded. "yeah, i... i think i would."

after a pause dan shifted so he was on his knees, leaning toward him in a way that made phil wonder if he had ever been able to breathe, because he couldn't remember what it felt like to get enough oxygen. phil got to really look at him. dan's face was soft and heavy in a way phil couldn't explain, as if his brows and nose and the shape of his lips had been drawn by pencil, thick with definition and details, and the rest of his face had been done out in watercolor. filled in with peach and rosy colors and shaded with the violet you only get to see in sunsets. phil reached out and touched his face before his mind could even process it.

"i'm giving you the chance," dan whispered after a second, so close he was nearly in phil's lap, his words strung together with thin and delicate string.

phil's heart was racing incredibly fast, which was odd when everything else felt so slow. an overwhelming feeling of adrenaline and want washed over him and he realized that, yeah, he had feelings for him. crazy feelings for him.

phil carefully brushed a strand of hair out of dan's eyes before leaning in, his lips finally meeting his again, his eyes fluttering shut. he could feel him breathing slowly and he cupped his face, his thumb brushing over his flower petal cheek. he leaned in more to kiss him harder, gentle but with every movement drenched in meaning.

dan's fingers traced up phil's arm, which felt like sparklers going off against his skin to phil.

phil didn't know what this boy was doing to him, or what he had already done, but he did know one thing.

he had finally found something he was willing to work for.