Dan wasn't sure he was going to make it a month without Phil by his side. Yet, here he was, living.

Tyler had "adopted" him after the Blip, making sure that his friend didn't end up hurting himself. The duo lived in harmony, making sure that they continued living. Of course, people knew something was off with the two of them. That something was missing.

How could Dan tell them? "He's gone. Oh, by the way, he was my boyfriend too." No! That would freak so many people out!

So here he was, three years later, looking at dogs to adopt because Tyler had convinced him to get one. That it would help him move on from him. Dan noticed a dog that looked almost like Lassie but had black hair instead of the golden blonde. He clicked on the picture, seeing that it was named Freddie. There was a video attached, and as he watched he felt a little happier.

He smiled, watching as Freddie played with the dogs in the shelter with her. They brought in another dog while recording, and it was terrified. Freddie heard it's crying, and to Dan's surprise, she went over and started licking the pup, circling around it and leading it to the other dogs. Freddie was helping the dog calm down.

Dan continued to watch the video, deciding after a few minutes that he wanted to go meet Freddie. So, he grabbed his wallet and keys, getting ready to drive over.

After driving for a few minutes, Dan sighed and picked up his phone. He punched in a number he'd memorized five years prior and listened to it ring... And ring... And ring.

"Hello! Sorry I missed your call. I'll get back to you soon, but if I don't feel free to give me a ring again! Make sure to leave the best of messages after the beep!"

"I miss you so much, Phil..." Dan's heart felt like it was crushed into a million pieces as he listened to the voicemail he had been paying to maintain. Phil's phone always rested on his nightstand these days. He hadn't charged it in a while though, so he was surprised that it even rang through.

Dan pulled up in front of the shelter, hanging up on the voicemail. He looked in the mirror to make sure that he hadn't cried, and with that Dan walked in.

The shelter was loud with the barks of the dogs. There was a ton of people, and signs everywhere that said "Clear the Shelter Day! All dogs over 3 years old are £20!"

Dan slowly made his way to the front desk, feeling his heart rate increase. This was a bad idea.

"How can I help you today?" The man said, smiling at Dan.

"I was looking at your website, and I saw this dog named Freddie. I was hoping I could adopt her," Dan explained, thankful his voice wasn't shaking.

"Of course! Would you like to meet her first? Just to make sure," The man offered, standing.

Dan nodded, and the man brought him back to the kennels. Of course, the dogs were freaking out, but he heard one bark that sounded familiar. It was from Freddie.

The man brought him to a separate area that was just empty and asked Dan to wait a moment while he went and grabbed Freddie.

Dan's mind slowly floated back to Phil's voice as he sat down. How much he missed Phil. Missed holding him, and drinking tea with him. He missed watching Anime and decorating the apartment with him. He missed his boyfriend.

He was startled out of his thoughts by licking on his face. He blinked a couple of times, coming back to reality as he reached forward and dug his hands into the fur of Freddie. Upon seeing Dan recover from his thoughts, Freddie barked happily. She circled around him as he stood, and jumped happily as he went to grab a rope from the little basket provided. Freddie followed it in a circle as Dan held it above her, then chased after it as soon as he threw it.

For the first time in a while, Dan found himself laughing. All thoughts left his mind other than playing with Freddie, who was yipping happily as he played with her.

After about thirty minutes, he looked at the helper who had come back with Freddie, "I'd like to adopt Freddie."

"Alright, let me get a lead on her and we can head up to the front to do paperwork," The girl said, smiling. She came forward with the pink rope, clipping it onto Freddie's collar. The worker let Dan hold the lead, then led him up to the front as people kept coming to the back area to look at dogs.

Dan spent about half an hour filling out papers, watching as Freddie interacted with everyone she could get her nose to sniff. Once he finished, he led Freddie to his car, making sure she was secure before getting in himself.

The drive to the pet shop was relaxing, with Freddie leaning out the window as Dan played music from the old radio that was in the car. Freddie was panting as Dan drove, barking happily at other dogs and at people who were driving by.

Dan sighed, looking at his phone. He hadn't told Tyler yet, but he had started paying rent on the old apartment again. Dan fully planned on moving back in there, since Tyler had gotten married and was about to have a kid. Dan didn't want to be in the way, and luckily for him, his old landlord was understanding about the situation, having lost his wife himself. As soon as Dan had asked, the landlord had given him his keys back. The landlord had even waived the deposit fee since he had paid it all those years ago.

Once the duo arrived at the pet shop, Dan snapped out of his thoughts. He got out and then let Freddie out, letting her lead him into the shop and pick out whatever she wanted.