Chapter 2: Dearly Beloved

Phil Lester, by all means, was a moderately successful young man. The ebony haired thirty year old was the head English professor at the University of London where he was beloved by students and faculty members alike, he was involved with a gorgeous wealthy woman named Zoe who resided in Northern London, he lived in a beautiful home his mother had bought him a few months before her tragically untimely death, and he even ran his own blog on the popular social media website Tumblr. The sense of pride he felt when his account, amazingphil, obtained over 10,000 followers within the first year of activity was the only thing that kept him moving forward.

Despite all of these seemingly great things, Phil was still unhappy. He felt like he played the starring role in a pathetic unfulfilled life he couldn't believe was his own. If Phil was being honest with himself, he never wanted to pursue a career in the English linguistics department to begin with. Phil only continued his practice in the English language because he had no where else to go. Originally, he planned to obtain his degree in English and then focus on getting a master's degree in Arts in Video Postproduction with Specialisation in Visual Effects, but those dreams died years ago, along with his hope for a better life.

A few weeks before graduating university, Phil revealed to his mother that he would no longer be pursuing English. To the blue eyed man's shock and despair, his mother started to sob uncontrollably. She begged and pleaded with him to chose a more practical lifestyle so he could support himself when she was gone, and in the end, Phil listened to her. Now, at thirty years old, he was still paying for that tragic mistake in judgement.

Phil examined his gaunt and pale face in the mirror, reflecting on all of his poor life choices. He didn't want to be a professor. He didn't want to be in a useless long distance relationship with a woman he could never truly love. They never even saw each other, for god's sake! Besides, Phil finally accepted the fact that he was gay a long time ago. He just couldn't bring himself to admit it out loud.

I should have gone into film and digital media, Phil thought, painful tears streaming down his broken face. I should have followed my passion. Maybe if I had, I wouldn't be so damn miserable now.

He splashed his face with cold water for a couple moments, trying (and failing) to regain his charming compose. He couldn't afford to have an emotional breakdown right now, not with a class to teach in half an hour. Phil took in a deep breath and left his Victorian Era style home, heading straight for the tube.

It was a typically rainy January day in London. The massive downpour slowed traffic and forced more people to climb into taxicabs.

Phil should have been more careful. He should have done a lot of things differently that morning, like not looking back at all of his previous failures, or regretting his career choice and having an emotional crisis.

If he had done that, maybe Phil would have been more focused and noticed the speeding sports car that roared pass the red light and right into him. The last thing he heard was the sound of young children screaming and cars honking. Phil let out one last sigh before shutting his eyes for what he assumed would be the last time, a small smile inching onto his face. At least he could abandon this miserable existence he once called his life.

After what felt like a few seconds, Phil's pale blue eyes shot open. He was standing in an all white room with no doors or windows. It was completely silent. The only sound in the surprisingly calming room was the steady pace of Phil's breathing.

"Hey, Phil."

Phil looked to his side, the all white void now occupied by another person. The dark haired man gasped, his jaw practically falling to the ground.

"Y-You're... You're Matt Bellamy! I'm your biggest fan!"

Matt laughed and playfully crossed his arms. "I'm not the real Matt Bellamy, I just appeared to you in this form because I knew it would make you feel the most comfortable."

"What?" Phil asked, clearly confused. "Where am I?"

"Well," the Matt look alike asked, mindlessly pacing around the room. "What's the last thing you remember?"

Phil thought for a moment, straining to remember what happened to him. "I recall leaving my house. I was heading for the tube so I could get to work... It was raining heavily. And then there was an accident, and I heard kids screaming and cars honking. And then I closed my eyes and showed up here."

"That's right," the man confirmed. He was smiling now, his ocean blue eyes giving Phil a sympathetic look. Phil felt like crying. "You died in that accident."

"I died?" Phil whispered. This time, actual tears did fall, but not because of sadness or grief, but because of pure relief. He didn't have to teach anymore, or lead Zoe on, or live a life he couldn't believe was his own!

Matt walked over to Phil and placed a supportive hand on his shoulder. "What happens now?" Phil asked.

"I have something very special planned for you," the man remarked. "I promise in the next life you live, you'll be happy. If everything goes right, which I'm sure it will, your soul will finally have peace and move forward into the afterlife."

"The afterlife?" Phil repeated.

Matt nodded. "When a soul is completely fulfilled, and a person dies after having lived a meaningful life, they move forward into the next stage of eternity. For you, that's not exactly the case. You were unhappy in life, so now you're getting a second chance to make things right and pursue your true passions and love interests. Then, if done correctly, you can move forward to the next stage."

"Why am I getting a second chance?" Phil inquired.

"Everyone gets a second chance," Matt continued. "That's the important thing to remember. I love all of my creations equally, but sometimes they get dealt a shitty hand, and they can't learn to love themselves as much as I do. Think about it this way, it's never truly over. You will always get a chance to find true enlightenment, even if it takes you a thousand lifetimes."

"Are you God?" Phil asked, unable to stop himself. He felt silly for even asking the question.

The man laughed and threw his arm around Phil's shoulder. "Don't worry about it, okay? I prefer not to label myself."

"Okay," Phil said, his extensive language skills abandoning him.

"Now, I can't give you your new life right away. You have to wait for your soulmate to die first."

"My soulmate?" Phil questioned.

"Yes, your soulmate. Everyone has one."

Phil scrunched up his nose and felt his shoulders tense. "It's not a girl named Zoe, is it?'

Matt let out a loud laugh and roughly patted Phil's back. "Of course not!"

The dark haired boy stared at Matt. He opened his mouth to speak, wanting to ask a million questions, but no words came out. He was dumbfounded.

"In case you're curious, which I'm sure you are, his name is Dan Howell."

"Dan Howell," Phil mouthed, the name rolling perfectly off his tongue. "He sounds quite lovely."

"He's amazing. Would you like to see him?"

Phil eagerly nodded his head. When he was alive, he was convinced he would eventually marry Zoe and be one half of a totally loveless marriage. Just hearing that he had a soulmate, a man, gave his heart hope. He hadn't been this excited in years.

Matt pulled a book out of thin air and handed it to Phil. It's cover read The Amazing Book is Not on Fire, and displayed two young men. Phil was obviously one of them, so the other man must have been Dan Howell.

Phil felt his breath hitch in his throat and his heart skip a few beats. Dan was absolutely stunning. His lightly tanned skin was clear and smooth, his chocolate colored eyes were warm and welcoming, and his smile was the most adorable thing Phil had ever seen.

"He's so beautiful," Phil choked, his heart swelling with immense joy. He couldn't believe the graceful boy on the front cover was made for him.

Phil flipped through the book, his heart pounding each time he turned the page. According to the book, he and Dan were a famous YouTube duo who traveled across England and America to perform a stage tour. They also lived together in a central London apartment, vacationed together in Japan and Jamaica, and ran a successful online business.

"Is this really going to be my life?" Phil whispered, afraid this might be one big cruel joke.

"Yes," Matt promised. "After Dan passes, you two will be reincarnated into your next life cycles. You won't meet him until he's eighteen, but after that point, you're lives will be everything you've ever wanted and more. Do you understand?'

"Yes," Phil answered, his voice breaking. He was too happy for words.

"Good," Matt said. He pulled a backpack out of thin air and handed it to Phil. "You're going to need this. You'll get the chance to meet Dan in a few months, but until then, this should hold you over. Good luck, Phil."

Phil took the backpack from Matt's grasp.

"Thank you," the blue eyed man said in the most sincere tone he could muster.

The white room slowly faded away. Matt disappeared into a bright ray of light. Phil found himself roaming the streets of London, completely invisible to the rest of the world. He was a spirit now.

~Page Break~

Dan and Phil bolted into the airport, nearly knocking down a poor unsuspecting woman in the process.

"I'm terribly sorry!" Phil shouted over his shoulder, continuing to sprint down the corridor.

When the two boys finally arrived at their airplane terminal, Dan quickly handed the flight attendant their tickets. After checking their passports they boarded their plane ten minutes before its departure time.

"Oh thank sweet Jesus," Dan huffed, still fighting to regain his breath.

"We almost missed our flight to Australia because of you!" Phil accused.

Dan wrapped his arm around Phil's thin waist and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. Phil couldn't fight the deep crimson blush that ignited across his porcelain cheeks.

"I'm sorry," Dan apologized. "I really am." He pecked Phil on the lips and snuggled into the older boy's chest. "Can you forgive me?"

"Wellll," Phil drawled out dramatically. "As long as you promise to play eye spy with me for the next twenty three hours, I think I can forgive you."

Dan snorted and cuddled closer to Phil. "I think that can be arranged."

Phil giggled and leaned down, capturing Dan's lips with his own.

How the hell did I get so lucky? Phil thought to himself.

"I love you, bear," Phil smiled.

Dan blushed and took Phil's hand in his own. "I love you too, Philly."

The end!

First of all, I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed the first chapter and gave me their support. It means everything to me :) If you guys could drop a review, favorite this story, follow, etc. that would be super amazing.

The moral of this story is to follow your dreams and do what makes you feel happy. Please don't let other people's words or opinions hold you back from greatness. Never turn away from what you love to please others. If I had done that, I wouldn't be writing today. Please never give up on yourselves and settle for something lower than what you really are.

I wasn't really planning for this chapter to talk about religion, but I guess it just happened haha. I really hoped you guys liked the happy ending, and I might extend this phanfiction in the future. Until then, thank you to everyone who supported me along the way. I have several other Phan stories on this account, so if you're interested you can check those out too.

This chapter was written while I listened to "Dearly Beloved," from the Kingdom Hearts soundtrack, thus the name. It's a beautiful song and I definitely recommend listening to it while reading this story or any of my others.

~Naya