Phil took the short ten minute drive to his parent's house, sincerely hoping that they wouldn't attempt to have him stay later than usual.
His mother had cooked a roast and it was nearly ready when he arrived. The house smelt wonderful.
He chatted with them as they ate and his father asked, "Are you seeing anyone, Phil?"
Despite Phil being 27 years old he still reacted to the question as if he were seventeen and not a mature adult.
He laughed, blushed, and was grateful he didn't need to bring it up himself because while it was an awkward conversation, he wanted them to know that he had met someone.
"I sort of... I am." he conceded, and tried avoid discussing it much further by taking a large bite of his roast. Which was a mistake because he burnt his tongue.
"What's her name?" his mother asked, resting her elbows on the table and leaning forward.
"Well, actually I'm seeing a guy. His name is Dan," he spoke quickly.
"Dan?" she seemed confused for a moment, and Phil glanced at his father.
He looked away again just as quickly. He had never openly discussed it with his parents when he saw other guys.
"Yes," Phil confirmed insecurely as he reached for his glass of water.
"Is he handsome?"
Phil nearly choked on his water. "Huh?"
"Is he handsome?" his mother grinned as she repeated the question.
"Er… incredibly," he answered and a smile spread across his face.
"Will we get to meet him?"
"I hope so."
"I hope so too."
Phil saw his mother shooting a look at his father.
"Well, it seems like he makes you happy," his father decided to finally speak on the subject, but it surprised Phil that he would make such an observation.
"He does."
Phil's parents never did ask how he had met Dan, for which he was grateful. He didn't exactly know how to break it to them that Dan could shape shift.
"Oh yeah, when we make out he turns into a wolf. So yeah," Phil shook his head to himself, laughing as he drove home.
When he returned to the house he found Dan on the couch dozing through a movie. He smiled and Dan soon stirred, sensing someone nearby. He looked up at Phil
"How was dinner?" he asked, sitting up and running a hand over his face.
"It was good. I let them know I was seeing you." Phil sat on the edge of the couch.
"Oh?"
"Yeah. They took it well."
"That's good."
Phil hummed in agreement.
Dan yawned and he leaned over and let his head fall onto Phil's shoulder.
"You've been gone so much today," he said quietly.
"I know." Phil sighed. "Did you eat anything?"
"Leftovers."
Phil said, "good," but then he nudged Dan off of his shoulder.
He earned an angry scowl at that, but he had done that so he could lie across the couch.
"Come on," Phil said, inviting Dan to cuddle up with him, who acquiesced and lied down, letting his back press against Phil's chest.
Despite the couch not being quite long enough for either of their tall figures, they didn't want to move. Their legs tangled together as that familiar electric buzz filled them and surrounded them.
After they lie there like that. Phil shifted so that he could see the television and Dan could rest his head on his chest as they put a new movie on.
In Phil's pocket phone buzzed and as he expected, Chris had texted him
I'm gonna come harass you at work tomorrow is that cool
Phil chuckled and wrote back to him, no, but you're probably going to anyways
A few moments later Chris replied jokingly, I'm so touched you know me so well
In between texts he laid his phone on a bit of the space left next to him near the edge of the couch.
Yes well who else even knows you at all
I'm shocked Phil
I can have that affect sometimes
They texted back and forth for a bit but he soon returned all of his attention to the movie.
Later that night when the movie ended, Dan and Phil sleepily migrated to Phil's bed.
The next morning Phil's alarm went off and he quickly shut it off as opposed to hitting snooze. He sat up and looked around at Dan, who was looking over at him with bleary eyes.
"Go back to sleep," he whispered to him.
Dan shut his eyes and grunted in response, which earned a chuckle from Phil.
As he dressed, Phil remembered that Chris had said he'd be around to bug him at work today. Amongst a lot of the unfamiliar faces he saw as he worked throughout the day, it would be nice to see Chris'. Especially because he didn't see him that often.
It wasn't a significantly busy day, so time crawled by much slower than usual.
During his down time he thought about his old, ordinary home.
It really was a shame he didn't have a fireplace like Dan grew up with. He hoped that it was a comfortable place for him.
Maybe he could make it seem a bit more like Dan's original home and as the day grew older he thought of a few ideas.
"Phil, you've got two in a booth," his coworker, Louise told him.
"Thanks," he said and he had forgotten until he went out to greet his guests that Chris had intended to visit him at work.
"Hey, Chris," Phil smiled at his friend and he noticed that a dark haired, slim bodied man took up the space across from Chris.
"And this is?"
"Call me PJ," he said, smiling at Phil, a significant look in his cool blue eyes.
"Alright, PJ. What can I get you two to drink today?" he smiled back at PJ.
As they stayed for lunch, Phil got a chance to learn just a bit more about PJ.
He didn't think Chris was aware just yet about the nature of his and Dan's relationship but he and PJ seemed to communicate on another level similar to the their own. Perhaps, Chris was fully aware of what PJ could do.
Whether or not he was, Phil could see the chemistry between them.
He noticed they way one would stretch their long legs between the other's. He noticed the way they held eye-contact, the way they laughed.
God damn, is that what he and Dan always looked like? He shook his head and laughed quietly to himself as he put their order into the computer system. He ignored the funny looks he earned from that.
He wondered if PJ could see it in himself that he had Dan. If Dan could have seen it in Chris, could PJ see it in him?
Probably.
As they paid at the register Phil saw them off, telling Chris to text or call him later.
When Phil had completed all of his work for the day, he walked out to his car and although he was dying to go straight home, he headed instead to the discount store.
Inside the large, cluttered store he looked down the isle of candles and decorative house figurines, hoping to find an oil lamp or two. Unfortunately, he couldn't, but settled on a set of small tea lights.
He'd perhaps go out and find some on another day.
As he went down the candy isle, he pondered over getting himself and Dan a sweet and picked out some chocolate.
He realized on his way out, that the things he picked out would be more likely to be bought by a woman on her period.
Meh.
When he arrived back at home, he rushed into the house, but then quieted down as he noticed Dan was napping on the couch. And he was out cold, snoring softly.
So while he was asleep, Phil put a couple of the tea light candles on the dining table and at the top of his entertainment center.
"Are you trying to be romantic?" Dan's voice suddenly sounded from down on the couch.
Phil whirled about. "What? No," he stammered a bit.
"Uh-huh."
"Honest! I just wanted to make it look a bit nice in here. I wanted to make it more comfortable for you. Make it more familiar, so you felt more at home."
"Phil, my home is with you."
Phil wasn't sure how to respond, but then he said, "Well, who's the romantic one now?"
"Phil," Dan said, shooting a no-nonsense look at Phil, but also tried to suppress a smile.
"I know. I just felt like this place is so ordinary. And where you lived was kind of… magical. You know?"
"It was just the energy that had been there for so long."
"Yes, but…."
"But, I imagine it will look very lovely when you go to light them," Dan assured him.
"I tried to find oil lamps, which would have been really nice, but thanks."
Dan hummed back at him.
Phil went into his room for a few minutes and when he returned to sit with Dan he had changed into some lounge pants.
"You'll never guess who I met today."
"Oh my god, who was it?" Dan's voice was dripping with sarcasm.
"Chris and what looks like his new his friend PJ, you jackass."
"Whoa, getting a little hostile, Phil."
"Shut up," he gently shoved Dan in the arm.
"This free spirit can't be contained," he quipped back, earning a chuckle from Phil.
"Cheesy," he remarked.
"For real, though, how'd it go?"
"Well. He's really handsome and sweet. They are definitely made for each other."
"That's good."
Phil hummed in agreement and he swung his legs around to settle behind Dan, who looked down at Phil and then lowered himself to be his little spoon.
"Hey, Phil?" Dan asked quietly.
"Hmm?"
"Have you ever been with anyone, you know, in that way?"
"Erm," Phil hesitated, "Yeah, I have"
"Oh."
"Why do you ask?"
"I just sort of had a feeling that you're experienced."
Phil chuckled a bit then and Dan could feel the clench of his diaphragm, "I'm not experienced."
He turned to look at Phil, settling on his back and pushing his hair out of his face as his eyebrows creased.
"I have experiences… but I doubt I'd say that I'm experienced." Phil let his arm rest across Dan's belly.
"You and your girlfriend lived together, though, right?"
"Well, yeah, and we did the thing sometimes, but…"
"The thing?" Dan shot a look at Phil's eloquent word choice.
"I'm just so sophisticated in the way I talk, I know," he replied with quick sarcasm but continued. "But… after a while, we kind of became more distanced. Maybe she was bored, and maybe I was too, but… it didn't mean much when we did the thing. It wasn't much of a meaningful experience. Just, I dunno… It doesn't really matter though, you know? It was… in the past, and this is entirely new. I've never experienced what we've got, so I'd say that I'm as experienced as you are."
"Fair enough," Dan said decidedly and he let out a bit of a grin which was mirrored by Phil.
Phil reached across him and onto the floor where the Xbox remote lay abandoned.
"What should we watch?"
"I dunno. I think I missed an episode of Doctor Who earlier when I dozed off. But… oh well," a small laughed escaped him.
Phil decided in the end to put on an anime that he thought they'd enjoy watching together.
The two men settled and focused their attention on the television, but Phil soon nudged Dan to make him move and he stood up.
He brought out some steak to thaw for dinner that night and decided on some canned vegetables that he would get out later.
When he returned to the couch, he settled back into the cushions and against the arm of the couch and Dan, desperate to be close to Phil, leaned over and cuddled up to him.
"You're seriously way too adorable to handle."
Dan looked up and chuckled at Phil.
That night after they had eaten dinner and Phil was putting a movie on to watch, he decided to light the candles he had bought.
He went and collected the matches and returned to the living room.
"Are you going to light the candles?" Dan asked him, looking up from his spot on the couch.
"Yeah, why not," Phil tried to remain nonchalant, sliding the box open and grabbed a match.
He struck the match carefully along the side of the box and lit the two little tea lights on the entertainment center.
He looked at the two little trembling flames with a satisfied smile and then went to shut the lights out.
When he returned to the couch, he sat down for a few moments and then jumped up again.
"Have you ever had maltesers?" Phil asked Dan as he went into the kitchen.
"No," Dan looked over the back of couch, to where Phil collected the bag from the discount store that he had left in the kitchen.
"You've got to try them, oh my god." Phil grinned widely as he brought the plastic bag back to the living room and returned to sit down.
He brought out a bag that read Maltesers on one side and he tore the bag open.
Instantly Dan could smell sweet milk chocolate wafting over to him. He glanced up at Phil, a twinkle in his eye. Phil offered the bag to him after he had taken a few bits of chocolate for himself.
"These are fantastic," he said after he had tried one and throughout the first ten minutes of the movie they finished the bag off.
"These were meant to last, at least, an hour," Phil had remarked sarcastically, earning a laugh from Dan.
As his laughter died he leaned over and rested his head on Phil's thigh. He smiled up at Phil, who grinned back at him and ran his fingers through Dan's hair.
Their movie ended and the credits began to roll.
"Phil." Dan sat up groggily.
"Hm?"
"I know your intention wasn't to be romantic, but the candles feel really romantic right now."
Phil let out a little chuckle. "Yeah," he cringed slightly. "Are you ready for bed?"
"Sure."
Phil stood and shut off the Xbox and television then went into his bedroom with Dan following. They both changed and for a moment Phil considered lighting the candles he had placed in here, but decided against it and crawled into the bed next to Dan.
so i set up a dan and phil themed tumblr - yesiwritefanfics . tumblr .com if anyone wants to check that out i have no followers there yet so itd be rlly awesome if anyone reading would check it out