Dream a Little Dream // Daniel Howell x Reader

Chapter 39*

"I'm so tired..."

Dan's heart faltered immediately. "I-I know (Y/N), but just keep talking to me and we—"

"I have to hang up. H-he's getting closer..."

"(Y/N)! Don't! Please, I—" The line went dead.

Frozen in place, Dan didn't know what he was feeling. It was like he was feeling everything and nothing at the same time, the unbearable amounts of emotions flowing through him attacking his senses, causing him to go numb. It wasn't until Phil started frantically shaking him that he snapped out of his momentary coma. "Dan! Get up! We have to go, now!"

Due to the confusing emotions rushing through his veins, Dan pushed Phil away with great force, his friend tumbling to the ground with a sudden gasp. "Where the fuck are we going to go?! You heard her! She doesn't know where she is! How the fuck do you expect us to find her and get her home safe before some freak does God knows what to her!?"

"Dan—"

"Phil I'm serious; what the fuck are we going to do?! She could be dying in one of the million alleys across this town and I can't do shit about it! And the police! How do we know they'll find her alive?! They might find some mutilated corpse by the end of the night and I can't do anything about it—"

"Dan! Shut the Hell up!" Phil rose to his feet and rushed towards Dan, tightly gripping his arms and giving them a good shake. Dan looked up at Phil for the first time since the call, noticing how swamped his eyes were from the dingy panic and anxiety that muddied his once cerulean gaze. "I know where she is! I swear to God that we aren't letting anything happen to her if you would simply get off your ass and come with me!"

"You... what? Phil, how do you—"

"Dan, you may think I'm dense at times but I have one sharp memory when it comes to useless facts." Phil continued dragging Dan, this time towards the door. He kicked a pair of shoes towards his friend, encouraging him to put them on quickly. "When she mentioned a yellow bike rack near the bar, it immediately clicked. You and I have been to that part of town before. I was the one who ran into the rack when we were filming one of our videos, remember? You laughed at me for missing it, commenting on how it was stupid that I missed something so bright. Well, I bet you feel silly for laughing at me when it's my clumsiness that's going to save our friend!"

It was unbelievable that Phil was able to remember that memory so clearly, an event that Dan would otherwise think nothing of. Utterly speechless, Dan hastily put on his shoes and sped past Phil, motioning for him to lead the way. As Phil ran past, Dan was able to muster up a few disjointed words that mirrored his astonishment. "That's— how can you be sure, Phil?"

He and Phil stormed out of their apartment door, running as fast as they could down the dimly lit street. "Honestly, I can't be completely sure. But that doesn't mean I'm going to sit around and waste precious time mulling over if I was right or not." Through puffed pauses and ragged breathing, Phil looked back at Dan, attempting a reassuring smile. "Sometimes you have to go by your gut instinct. And right now, my stomach is about to make me sick with how sure I feel about this."

The two boys continued running down the path, rushing past the occasional passerby and ignoring their curious stares. It was almost supernatural with the amount of energy that flowed through Dan's body, the unpleasant adrenaline rush doing something positive for once. Once and awhile, Dan would accidentally run ahead of Phil only to force himself backwards when he remembered that Phil was his guide. Within a short amount of time, the two boys made it to the bar that fit (Y/N)'s description in terms of distance; a walk that would have taken ten minutes from her apartment only took four minutes of panic-induced jogging. Another determining factor that this was the place was the amount of police officers patrolling the area. Dan felt a shard of anxiety chip away, the progress of the police lockdown a telling sign that someone had called the authorities before they had— (Y/N) was smart enough to call the police before she called them.