Phil had kept the watch.
Even a year later, Phil still kept the watch sat in a black box on his wardrobe. He had hoped that if Dan had ever needed him again that something would happen, that would glow or make noise or something. He knew that was a fool's dream and something that only happened in movies, but, so was time travel.
After that whole incident,Dan had been acting strange around him, like he recognized him from somewhere but just couldn't figure it out. Phil assumed he had written it off as the whole having watched him on YouTube for years thing because that ended only a couple days after it started. Good thing too. Phil had no idea how to explain the fact he had gone back in time and kept him from committing suicide before they had even met.
That night, June 10, 2015, Phil decided to turn in early. Not only was it Dan's birthday the next day and he had lots that he still hadn't done that he wanted, but he had been feeling a strange sense of unease all day. It reminded him far too much of the time he had gone back to help his friend the year before.
Changing into his night clothes and hopping into bed, Phil tried desperately to fall asleep. His eyes shut tightly, his duvet pulled up to his chest, and the room completely dark and quiet. Yet, he couldn't calm his nerves enough to go to sleep. Wonderful.
Jumping out of bed, Phil walked over to his wardrobe, a specific black box his target object. Once he reaches it, stumbling only slightly in the darkness of his room, he opens the box and pulls out the golden watch. Turning back toward his bed in his still half asleep stupor, he was shocked to see his bed was no longer anywhere insight. Instead, in it's place, was a crib.
Phil all but dropped the watch as he slowly walked toward the old, rickety looking crib, hardly making it within touching distance when it disappeared. However, with the departure of the crib, came the squealing of what sounded to be a baby.
Turning around sharply, Phil was shocked to see that he was no longer in his room. The twenty eight year old was now in what appeared to be a hospital room, and sat in the middle, was another crib.
"You've got to be kidding." Phil said as he looked down toward his wrist, spotting the golden watch on his wrist. Looks like I've got another hour. Just as he was about to turn around to leave, a shrill cry erupted from the crib. Phil stood at the door and looked around, expecting to see someone come to help the infant but no one seemed to hear, or possibly even care, that the child was fussing.
"You've seriously got to be kidding." Phil whined, making his way over to the child. Taking a quick peak at the name tag, the older was infinitely shocked to read Daniel James Howell. This was his friend when he was first born. Why was he alone? Where was his mum or dad? Why aren't the doctors helping him? Sighing, Phil lifted the small infant into his arms, cooing at him as he made his way over to the lone chair in the room.
"Oh Dan, it's alright." Phil said gently, rubbing at the little baby's belly. Tears rolled down the pale cheeks of his future best friend, his face quickly becoming red and the tears staining his cheeks. "Hey, are you hungry? Sleepy? Well, I don't think you're sleepy but you know what I mean. You're not smelly so I don't think you need your nappy changed...Oh I'm so not cut out for this." Through his ramblings, Phil failed to notice how Dan continued to calm as he trailed on with his pointless spiel. However, the second the older stopped, Dan began to fuss again. "Oh I see. You always were one for my endless rambles huh? How about I tell you a story?" The baby calmed again, a small smile spreading across Phil's features.
"Well, I want to tell you a story about you." Phil said, pocking Dan on the nose. "One day, I swear to you, you're going to be so happy. So, unbelievably happy. You're parents aren't the nicest bunch in the world as you've probably already learned, and your brother won't be much help; but if you just hold on, you're going to be on top of the world." Phil began, playing with Dan's tiny hand.
"It's going to be hard, and you're going to want to give up a few times, but don't ever. Don't ever let the world tell you that you're not worth it, or that you deserve to be miserable. Because you don't, Daniel Howell; you don't. Don't ever let yourself be dragged through life. Always take time to smell the flowers, to turn your light on when it gets dark, climb a tree, fall in love and out of it and back into it again. I want you to live like tomorrow's never going to happen. That tomorrow is just some rumor you've heard on the telly. Tomorrow? How crazy's that! That's what I want you to say to yourself." Sometime during his speech, Dan's tiny hand had found it's way around Phil's pointer finger, causing the older to smile one of his most pure, happy smiles in his life.
"And another thing, I want you to always know that no matter what happens it will always end. Even the bad things. Yes the good things end too, and I know sometimes it will seem like the bad is the only thing that stays, but I swear to you, it all goes. Wanna know what never does and never will go away though? How much I love you."
"Even if you can't say your mum and dad love you, or that your brother does, you'll always be able to say that Philip Lester loves you with everything he has. Without you, there truly is no me. No matter how cliche that sounds. Like you've said before, if one of us goes, might as well take the other. There is no part of me that could ever live without you, so you get through this, love. You wake up tomorrow and the next day and the next and you throw your head up and you say thank God I'm alive because one day it's going to be perfect. One day you'll find me again and you'll finally have someone you know would jump in front of a bullet for you without even a second thought."
"One day you're going to be done. You're not going to be able to handle it anymore, and you know what, that's okay. Because I'll be there just like I always am. I swear on everything I am, everything that I have, I will never leave you to hurt alone. If you need me, I'll be there. The second you call I'll be by right your side. Don't you ever forget that, Daniel." Phil paused as he watched the baby's eyes slowly closed, his brown eyes never leaving Phil's. The older smiled as he got up from the chair, walking slowly toward the crib and placing him gently back down. The black haired man was quick to wipe away his tears as he checked the watch to see five minutes left in his visit.
"Remember, there's no tomorrow, so live like today's your very last day." Phil whispered, rubbing his hand over the baby's head. "Goodnight, danisnotonfire."
"Hey, Phil, where's my cereal?"