Chapter Text
“Hi.” Dan said, trying not to sound too breathless. It never worked.
“You look so cute in my hoodie.” Phil said back, skipping over the usual pleasantries.
Dan mentally cringed at himself when he giggled back in response. God, Phil turned him into such a loser. “You saw my Dailybooth?” It was a rhetorical question. After all, the post had been a bid for Phil’s attention in the first place, pouting cutely while wearing Phil’s sick hoodie and holding the plush Phil had won him on their holiday together. A lot of his posts were for Phil’s attention, frankly a pathetic amount, if he was being honest. He couldn’t believe it actually worked now, though.
“Why aren’t you in my bed right now?” Phil groaned. Dan could picture him on the other end of the call, dramatically star-fishing onto the bed in question. His cheeks already hurt from smiling, it had been about a year since he met Phil in person for the first time and things got more serious between them but he still wasn’t used to how happy he made him feel.
Dan coughed, partially because he was actually ill and partially for the dramatic effect, “I don’t want to get you sick…” He mumbled back with a heavy sigh. He had been sick last month too and Phil ended up catching it because he insisted on having Dan over to celebrate his move to Manchester.
“It makes me all sad thinking of you in that evil concrete room.” Phil complained, putting on a silly voice to accentuate the evilness. Dan pictured him wiggling his fingers too while he said it, all of Phil’s cute little mannerisms were ingrained into the deep recesses of his brain. “You should be at my apartment instead.”
Dan smiled, a bit fond and a bit sad, he honestly couldn’t agree more… Looking at the thick white paint that coated the cold cinderblocks of his dorm room wall was a recipe for depression. He needed to find something to cover them up before he started spiraling. He was pretty sure he had some nice art some fans had given him somewhere, but that would require actually making an effort to unpack all his things. Then he would actually be committing to moving into this cold, sad little room for the next year. He wasn’t ready to start accepting the future that he had signed up for.
“Dan?”
“Sorry.” Dan quickly apologized, so much for not spiraling. “I’m feeling really poorly.” He sighed, physically feeling how congested his voice must sound on the other line.
“Come ‘round and let me take care of you.” Phil insisted again, his voice perked up with unwarranted hopefulness. “I’ve been told I’m an excellent nurse!”
“Who told you you’re an excellent nurse?” Dan huffed out a fake laugh, his eyes narrowing. The thought of Phil nursing some other guy back to health might actually be what breaks Dan’s resolve.
“Okay, no one’s actually called me that.” Phil quickly acquiesced with a giggle. Dan felt his shoulders loosen with relief, then he shook his head at himself, he needed to get it together. “C’mon, I’ll make you soup and we can watch Buffy… and cuddle…”
“You don’t even like soup.” Dan shot back through flustered laughter, trying not to give away so easily just how much he wanted to watch Buffy and cuddle with Phil. “You don’t have soup at your apartment.”
“I’ll buy soup for you.” Phil continued without missing a beat, “That’s just how much I care.”
“Wow, you’re so altruistic.” Dan sarcastically quipped. He sniffled, trying to hold in the snot that threatened to drip out of his nose and onto Phil’s hoodie. Ugh, he really shouldn’t let Phil see him like this. “I have coursework to do.”
“Daaannn…” Phil dramatically protested, “If I don’t see you in my hoodie in person, I think I’ll die.” His tone was deadly serious. Dan chuckled in response. “Is that what you want, Dan? For me to die?”
“Yes.” Dan lied. He grinned as Phil started making fake “dying” sounds over the phone. He looked over at his notebooks scattered haphazardly across the small desk provided by the housing facility. Was he really going to get any work done anyway when he felt so poorly?
“Dan!” Phil desperately cried out, still “dying”, “It’s dire… The only cure is for you to come to my apartment. I need you to come save me.”
Dan had that wide, almost painful grin on his face again at Phil’s antics. He knew what he should do. He should get up and finally unpack his suitcase. He should figure out how to make a real meal for himself and not live off of ramen and microwave dinners. He should learn how to use the washing machine in the dorm. He should do his coursework before it started to pile up into a completely unmanageable heap.
But what he wanted to do was spend time with Phil. That’s all he ever wanted to do these days. Phil made him feel safe and warm, lowered his defenses to the point where Dan felt too vulnerable. He wondered if humans were even allowed to be this happy, because how would they ever get anything done? Furthermore, did he deserve to be this happy? That was certainly a question.
“Come over come over come over come over.” Phil resorted to chanting in his ear, a devil on his shoulder but disguised as an angel.
“Okay.”
“Come o— Wait, really?”
“Yes, Phil.” Dan did his best to sound annoyed, but he knew he sounded lovesick.
“Yay!” Phil exclaimed, cute. “I can’t wait to kiss you silly in my hoodie.”
“Philll,” Dan admonished, struggling to hide the sound of his smile. “That’s how I got you sick last time…” He mumbled, shaking his head and ducking down, hiding behind his hand despite being alone in his dorm room. “I’m all snotty, you don’t want to kiss me.” He whined.
“I don’t care.” Phil sounded almost offended at his attempts to protest, “Besides, my kisses have healing powers.”
“Oh do they?”
“Yeah,” Phil somehow audibly rolled his eyes like it was obvious, “I literally cured you last time.”
“Here I was thinking it was the antibiotics.” Dan replied dryly, giggling despite himself.
“Hold on,” Phil said abruptly, Dan could hear him fumbling around with something over the line. “I’m ordering you a cab. It’ll be there by the time you pack an overnight bag.”
“Oh, now I’m staying overnight?” Dan chuckled, a bit incredulously.
“Duh.” Phil replied, like it was just that easy.
So Dan stumbled out of the little blanket nest he had made for himself in his bed. He grabbed his backpack and threw a change of clothes and his toothbrush inside. He pointedly avoided looking at the thick, intimidating law textbook sitting ominously on his desk while he grabbed a few more things he might need.
He officially didn’t have to think about anything but Phil for the rest of the day. A notion that brought him both comfort and looming dread. The hedonistic part of him said he deserved a little happiness every once in a while, but the self-aware part of him knew this was just another procrastination tactic that he would end up regretting in the future.
Well, whatever, that was a problem for future Dan.