A/N: WELCOME BACK TO THE FEELS TRAIN. I'M PRETTY EXCITED TO BE CONTINUING THIS UNIVERSE.
Anyway, I hope you like it & leave a review!
-Justin
Prologue: Dan
1-1-17
"Dan, hold still," Phil giggled, pressing a palm to my bare hip. His other hand scrubbed in my hair, attempting to remove the last of the glitter. We'd had a little too much fun at Louise and Zoe's New Year's party last night, and we were both still covered in the stuff. This was the second shower, and I was starting to think we'd just have to live with it forever.
"It's not me," I protested, keeping a tight grip on the safety bar we'd installed shortly after my release from the hospital last year, per doctor's orders. "It's gravity." The bar stretching across the backside of the shower stall was one of the things that allowed me to keep my independence. Long story short, I'd broken my ankle a year and a half ago, and then some kind of infection had gotten too bad and they'd had to amputate my right leg directly below the knee. And of course, the bar was useful for other things, too. It wasn't like I'd needed Phil's help with cleaning.
"Almost done," he promised, sliding his hand down to my cheek, where his thumb swiped at a spot under my eye and came away with a single speck of glitter. "You should've known better than to pop those party bombs at yourself." He gave a cheeky grin and leaned in quickly to kiss me before I could defend myself.
"In my defense," I said anyway once he'd pulled away, "I didn't realize they were aiming the wrong way until I'd already pulled the stopper." That had been a surprise- pulling the string on the party popper and getting a face-full of glitter and confetti. Phil laughed his ass off for about ten minutes straight, and Louise ended up coming to my rescue to help brush off the worst of it. "And it's not like you were much help," I added, slapping a hand down on his shoulder.
"Alright, I think that's got it," he mused, apparently deciding to ignore my statement. He kept one hand on my hip and reached back with the other to shut off the water before stepping out and grabbing a fluffy towel. He shuffled over until he stood directly in front of me and then wrapped an arm around my waist as I lifted my leg so he could pull me out. Living with someone you trusted to see you naked really helped when you only had one foot to stand on- literally. I could've managed on my own, but it was a lot more fun with him involved. He draped the towel over my shoulders and started rubbing at my backside.
"I still have both hands, you know," I informed him as he pressed himself to my chest to reach lower, effectively ruining any progress he might have made. "You're making it worse, oh god." I shoved him away- playfully, of course- and took the towel in my own hands. He just snickered and stood to the side, grabbing a fresh one and drying himself off. He got himself dressed in about thirty seconds and then had his arms around me again as I struggled with my own clothes, this time in an effort to actually help.
"I like this colour on you," he commented as he ran his fingers over the fabric of the dark plaid button-up. It was actually one of his before he outgrew it. "Matches your eyes." He smiled proudly and backed out of the bathroom before marching up the stairs.
"Blue and brown are two different colours," I called after him with a laugh. Secretly, I was glad he was past his over-protective phase- which had lasted up until about a month ago. As much as I loved him, having him right on my neck every moment of every day made me feel very self-conscious and inferior. At least now he gave me more space in some places. I knew he was probably waiting at the landing, but I liked that, and he knew it. I'd always need someone close to me- physically- in life, thanks to the lack of limbs but, even if we were still platonic, I wouldn't have wanted it to be anyone else.
A/N: Was that fluffy enough?