A/N: Shorter chapter, but I hope you'll still enjoy

June 4th

Phil sighed, combing a hand gently through his lover's hair. "My dad gave me an ultimatum."

"What for?" Dan's voice was slurred from exhaustion, his eyes opening a sliver to look up at Phil. The two had spent most of the morning packing up the last of the books. They had gotten a considerable amount done since yesterday but were yet to move any of the boxes to a storage unit.

"To decide if I want to officially work for him full-time."

Dan buried his face into Phil's shirt, his voice coming out muffled. "Wha' 're you gonna do?"

"I think I might say yes. Yeah, it's a hard job, but I don't despise it… Besides, it pays well."

"You'd still have time to paint, wouldn't you?"

"Yes… that was another thing I was thinking about…"

"And I guess you could always quit if you didn't like it."

"Yes…" Phil paused for a while. Dan's head was resting on his lap and the artist could feel his body shift with each breath he took. "So, you think I should?"

"I mean," Dan pushed himself into a sitting position, rubbing his eyes. "If you think it's a good career that won't make you want to die, I don't see why not."

The older man laughed softly. "I suppose you're right, it couldn't hurt."

Dan smiled weakly, reaching out to cup Phil's face. Phil frowned slightly, looking at the dark circles under his boyfriend's eyes. "Did you sleep last night?"

Dan leaned into Phil's touch, his eyes fluttering closed. "I'm fine."

"That's not what I asked."

Dan sighed, sitting back up. "Not really. I felt like I should be doing something productive to moving instead of sleeping so I stayed up until I felt like I was going to pass out. When I got in bed I was too tired and stressed to sleep, if that makes any sense…"

"Honey…" Phil pressed a kiss to Dan's hair. "Why don't you go take a nap? I can pack some while I'm here.

"No, no. I can't make you work while I'm relaxing."

"It's not relaxing, it's fundamental self-care."

"Phil, I can't…"

"Dan."

"I need to pack."

"Dan." Phil cupped Dan's cheeks, staring intently at him. "I will literally carry you upstairs if I have to. Go to sleep."

Dan looked reluctant but finally gave in, "Fine."

"Good." Phil pressed a quick kiss to Dan's lips, stroking his hair back. "Call me if you need anything."

Dan mumbled something incoherent, got up, and trudged up the stairs.

…

Phil stacked the final box of cooking books, standing up to stretch. He winced, rubbing his shoulder tenderly. His bad arm could only take so much, and it was starting to get sore. He had been working for nearly three hours—a break seemed well-deserved.

Phil's steps seemed louder in the quietness. The old boards groaned as he tip-toed into Dan's room, pausing in the doorframe.

His boyfriend was lying in the center of his bed, cocooned in his wine-red duvet. Somehow, he looked tired even in his sleep. His mouth was tugged into a slight frown and every few seconds he would stir or make a soft noise.

Phil tutted softly, walking over to the side of Dan's bed and slipping off his shoes. Moving as gently as possible, Phil slipped under the covers next to Dan, wrapping an arm around his waist. Dan hummed, scooting back until he was pressed against his lover.

"I wish you'd let me help you…" Phil murmured into Dan's neck. "A couple thousand pounds is nothing to me, yet it's what you need to keep your home."

Dan sighed deeply, placing his hand over Phil's. "Not that simple." He mumbled. "There'd be more payments I couldn't make."

"Why did you work in this bookstore for so long? I mean, no offense but surely you knew the pay wasn't very good."

Dan was silent for a few seconds. He gently traced over Phil's fingers as he replied: "I wanted to make it work. For my grandad. This place used to be his."

Phil didn't know what to say to that. He eventually settled on pulling Dan closer and pressing a soft kiss to the back of his neck.

Dan smiled in his sleepy haze. "Thank you."

"For the kiss?"

"For everything…packing…not judging…being so kind…" Dan turned to face Phil, cupping his face. "It means a lot to me."

Phil grabbed Dan's free hand, intertwining their fingers. "I'm just doing what any good person would do."

"Yeah, but you're the one doing it. That makes it special." Phil let out a breath of laughter, shaking his head. "When should we get back to packing?" Dan muttered, the stress returning to his voice.

Phil hummed. "We've got time. Let's just…" Phil paused, pulling his boyfriend closer, "Relax a bit longer."

A/N: enjoy the fluff while it lasts xoxoxo