A/N: This started as one thing and ended up as something completely different. It's platonic phan for some reason! IDK, it just came out this way! Of course they don't belong to me, they are real people, you sickos! xD Enjoy!
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"PHIL! Dinner's here! Get your butt out here before I eat it by myself!"
Dan frowned, putting the pizza on the table. He heard no response from his friend, oddly enough, because Phil usually perked up when he heard the word dinner, especially when they were having pizza. He crossed the lounge, making his way to the hallway.
"PHIL! PHIL?! Didn't you hear me? FOOD!" He called again, his voice getting an edge of nervousness. Was Phil asleep at such an unusual time? Did he go out without telling Dan about it?
"Go away! I'm not hungry!" He heard the grumbled response, immediately getting worried.
"Phil?" He gazed at the uncharacteristically closed door to his flatmate's room and didn't even bother knocking, hastily opening the door and peering inside "Are you feeling alright?" he asked, approaching the lump hidden under the duvet. His only answer was another grunt "Phil, come on! Have you got the plague or something? You seemed fine earlier!" Dan insisted.
"G'away" The boy mumbled, adorably hiding even more under the blanket.
"No, you spoon!" He said, pausing to wait for a reaction, but getting nothing "OK, that's it! Tell me what's wrong right now, Phil, or I swear to God, I'll…!"
"My stomach hurts!" Phil interrupted, poking his head out of the duvet "I'm fine, Dan, really! Just let me rest for a while?!" He managed to make it sound both as a request and a question, and Dan could never really deny anything to these beautiful deep blue eyes of his. Defeated, the youngest sighed, patting his best friend's shoulder.
"Fine! I'll go eat, then! Just yell if you are dying on me or something" He half-joked, but kept eye contact, making sure that the boy got the message. A small nod of Phil's head confirmed it and he smiled, leaving the room with the door ajar, you know, just in case.
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The familiar rumble in Phil's belly started to bother him again weeks later when he was in the radio station presenting their show. He kept the smile plastered on his face, trying to fool the fans watching that nothing out of the ordinary was happening, despite the fact that the discomfort was growing stronger. He knew the pain would soon follow.
Dan noticed, of course. He could always see right through him. Detecting the worried looks Dan was occasionally throwing his way, he smiled to the cameras, grabbing Dan's hand under the table, where the camera couldn't capture it. Dan made a questioning look to him and he just nodded, pressing a little tighter before letting go, reassuring him that it was okay. Dan didn't seem all that convinced, still analyzing his face when he wasn't looking. He could actually feel the boy's eyes following him, worriedly. He held back a sigh, imagining all the gifs he would have no way of explaining later.
When one of the music videos was playing Phil just took off his headphones and walked to the bathroom for a bit, trying to get his game face on before the next segment. He wasn't surprised when to find Dan at the door when he got out, waiting for him, looking still incredibly worried. He just smiled and shrugged it off.
"Must have been something that I ate... I'm fine, really! Let's do this!"
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The next time it happened he was home alone. Dan had gone out in one of his quests to buy something or other and Phil was just playing video games when his tummy started bothering him again. More annoyed than actually experiencing pain, he decided to lay down for a while and wait it out. All the while he kept questioning himself about the frequency of these stomachaches and wondering if he should actually see a doctor. Shrugging, the man convinced himself there was no need for that. Surely it wasn't anything serious? Trying to reassure himself, he sent a text to Dan asking for the medicine he usually took, and his friend's good-natured joking response itched his own concerns even more.
You've been going through these so quick! U ok? Don't die on me or smth!
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"HEY, PHIL, I'VE GOT YOUR STUFF!"
Dan's loud yell resonated as he excitedly entered the lounge to deliver the package that just arrived for his flatmate. Looking at the sofa, he found a PJ-clad figure laying face down, unmoving. Slapping him in the back of the neck, he jokingly teased:
"HEY captain lazy, I got your Amazon package, wakey-wakey!" His only answer was a groan and he stared at the other man, unsure about what to do "Are you ill or something?" Dan continued, grabbing his shoulder lightly, more comforting this time.
He could hear Phil mumbling an answer, but there was no way to understand it, since he didn't take his head out of the cushions.
"Phil, I have literally no clue what you just said! Maybe you should try, I don't know, speaking like a normal human being?" He insisted, laughing softly to himself about how childish the 27 year old actually was
"Nooo, go awaayy!" That one he could understand despite the cushions, frowning.
"Come on now, don't be like that! You okay?" The brown-eyed boy insisted, concern starting to drift into his voice.
"If I say I am, will it make you leave?" Phil said raising his head from the cushions, no real heat behind the words at all. He gave Dan a small reassuring smile "I'm okay. Just another tummy ache, I guess. It'll pass soon, it's nothing to worry about."
"I don't know, man, don't you think you should get this sorted out? You've been getting a lot of stomach bugs recently." Dan asked, warily observing the other's reaction.
"I'm sure it's fine, Dan! Maybe I should just eat healthier?" He mused aloud, making Dan laugh loudly.
"You? Eat healthy? I don't think your midnight cereal thieving act would be a thing anymore, Phil! Or eating all that candy when you think no one is looking!"
"Hey! I can eat healthy!" Dan kept chuckling, disbelievingly, making his annoyance grow "I CAN!"
"Sure, Phil! While we're at it, maybe you can also close all the cupboards you keep leaving open all the time?" He joked, having fun at Phil's pout. It was impossible not to find his actions cute, despite their usual banter "Wait! Is this all because you're going to be an elderly citizen soon?"
"HEY! Actually shut up!" Phil complained, punching him in the arm more aggressively than Dan was expecting, making him complain loudly in the midst of his laughter.
"Ouch, touchy subject!" He stopped, seeing Phil wince a little because of the pain, placing his hand back on his stomach, warily. Dan sobered up quickly, staring into Phil's eyes, sternly "Look, Phil, I know you don't really like to go to the doctor, but if you keep feeling stomachaches like that all the time, I think you really should go"
"OK, mom!" He moaned, laying dramatically back down "Now will you leave me here to die?"
"Whatever, grandpa!" Dan yelled, already a safe distance away from Phil. He heard something soft hitting the wall where he used to be and went to edit his video, chuckling to himself about his dorky flatmate.
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"Come on now, Phil, this is getting ridiculous!"
It was months later and the 28-year-old man was laying down in their sofa again, much in the same position as last time. Dan walked into the lounge, all dressed up to go to the big party that their friends had invited them to, only to find his best friend still in his PJs again, arms circling his stomach.
"Why are you not dressed? Is your tummy bothering you again?" He asked, approaching him.
"I'm sorry, Dan! I don't think I can make it to the party tonight!" He answered, sitting up in the couch "But you can still go and have fun, I'll be better soon!" He half smiled, seeming a bit sad to be missing out on something they looked forward to for so long.
"Are you actually kidding me? Phil, we promised to go like a month ago, we never go anywhere, did you really have to get sick in this exact date?" Dan complained, crossing his arms.
"I'm not sick, my stomach just doesn't agree with something I ate!" He protested, looking at the ground. "You should go, Dan! There's no reason for both of us to stay here."
"Phil…" He sighed, sitting down next to his best friend and touching his knee, comfortingly "You know it would be no fun without you! Of course I'm staying here with you! I don't know where you got the idea that I'd do anything else." He patted his shoulder, smiling when the boy met his eyes, gratitude clear as water in the blue depths "Come on, let's watch some ridiculous movies to take your mind off of it, yeah?" He got up, looking through their options.
Hours later, Dan and Phil found themselves melting into the sofa, Phil's head resting on Dan's shoulder, fast asleep. Smiling to himself, the younger boy kept eating his popcorn and watching the ridiculous movie, completely sure that this was much more fun than any stupid party he could ever attend.
He was still worried about Phil, though. These stomach issues have been happening a lot and he really thought that paying a visit to the doctors was better than ending up in an A&E one of these days. Frowning, he watched his friends unconsciously hold his stomach in his sleep. Maybe he should convince Phil to stop being stubborn and get that checked out after all.
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"Phil? You got a minute?" Dan asked, sitting down next to his flatmate, who was eating his cereal in front of the TV.
"Yeah, what's up?" Phil asked, casually, looking up at his friend.
"Look, I know I shouldn't be meddling into your life or anything, I mean you're an adult… I know that I'm just being too nosy and…"
"DAN!" Phil interrupted, chuckling "Just get to the topic! You know you can tell me anything, right?"
"Yeah, sorry!" He made a pause, taking a nervous breath "I just noticed that you've been getting these stomach aches a lot lately and I really think you should see a doctor." Phil looked a little too wide-eyed and Dan backtracked "I'm not saying that I think it's serious or something like that, I'm just saying that it's clearly affecting you!"
"Are you worried?" Phil said, a big smile on his face, affectionately bumping him in the shoulder with his own "I'm okay, Dan, really! I'm used to it by now, it's been almost an year since the first time, I think."
"But you shouldn't be used to it, Phil! That's what doctors are for!" He answered, exasperated "Please promise me you'll consider this?"
"Sure, if it's bothering you so much" Phil answered, shrugging. Deep down he knew Dan was right and he should know why this was happening to him, but he was afraid that knowing would make it more real. What if it was actually serious?
"OK, right, that's good!" Dan answered, seeming a bit self-conscious now "Yeah, I'm gonna get my breakfast, then!"
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Later in the day when he found Phil face down on the couch again, he didn't even have to say anything. He just stood there and stared at his best friend, feeling worry deep inside his gut. The man looked up at him and said, tiredly:
"I'm going to the doctor after Playlist. I've already made an appointment and everything." He sounded a bit defeated.
"Good! Scoot over!" The other man replied, sitting down and putting Phil's legs on top of his own, as he stroked his back comfortingly "It's gonna be okay, Phil, I'm sure it's nothing".
The blue-eyed boy wasn't so sure anymore, but he nodded, feeling warmed up by Dan's proximity and the undertone of worry in his voice.
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"You're what?" Dan asked, not believing his ears
"Lactose intolerant." Phil answered, patiently through the phone "It means my body rejects milk, so I shouldn't have it on my diet anymore"
"But how is that even possible? You're a freaking 28 year-old!" He answered, indignantly.
"I don't know! It probably developed over time!"
"So all these times you were eating cereal you were actually poisoning yourself, is that what you're saying?"
"Well… Yeah."
"That explains A LOT, actually!" Dan chuckled "You're finally being punished by stealing innocent people's cereal… I see!"
"Dan, this is not the time!" Phil moaned, annoyed by his friend's antics "Look, I'm going home. Now I need to think about all the food I need to replace! Do you have any idea how many things have milk on them?" He made a dramatic pause "ALL of the things, Dan! How am I ever going to have milkshakes again?" He sounded like a sad little child and Dan could picture him pouting over the phone.
"Oh, no! What a sad existence with no milkshakes! Wow, that's SO brutal, Phil!" He chuckled "On the bright side, it's not serious or anything!" A bit of silence later he knew he had said too much and cringed, already regretting it.
"Awww, you were worried!" He mocked, tenderly, and Dan could picture the smile in his lips even over the phone.
"NO, I WASN'T!" Dan replied, flustered "Just shut up, you spoon! Get yourself back to the flat!"
"Yeah, of course! Love ya, mom!" Phil's laughter resonated before the call was ended and Dan was left with warm cheeks and a disconcerted expression on his face.
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Phil came back to an empty flat. Frowning, he sat down in front of his laptop, researching milk substitutes. He was a little bummed out by the news that he needed to change his dietary habits, but the truth is that he was glad it wasn't anything serious. He worried for a while and that's mostly why he decided to indulge Dan's concern. Also because he hated to see his best friend worry about him in the first place!
That's also why he said nothing when said best friend came back home, carrying cartons of milk substitutes with a huge grin on his face, seemingly all proud of himself for doing this for Phil. That and the fact that it just gave him the best idea for a new video that he knew his fans would enjoy.
Yeah, it had nothing to do with the fact that Dan seemed so relieved to know he was okay that he was on board with this new crazy video idea of his.
Nothing at all!
A/N: Sorry the title is shit LOL! Hope you liked it! :D Please let me know what you think (ADD LINK PRA MINHA ASK), criticism is highly appreciated! Hope this makes you smile! I'm a sucker for illness fics of any kind 3