I'm literally so excited to post this right now its been forever since i've written and posted anything for this story

The next week passed without much incident until Friday rolled around. It was Halloween weekend.

"So are you coming?" Chris said to Dan that afternoon as they settled in to the couch to watch Netflix together.

"To?" Dan asked.

"The party," Chris said as if Dan should've known.

"Oh," Dan said. He hadn't thought about it. "I don't know."

"Well, when you decide let me know," Chris said. "I'll be leaving at like nine."

Chris tuned into their show, while Dan contemplated the party.

"Is there going to be alcohol?" Dan asked.

"Yeah," Chris said.

Dan hadn't had a good drink a long time. Nor had he done much else besides reading while not at work or in class. He could use a bit of variety, he decided.

"Okay, I'll go," he said to Chris.

"Yay," Chris said. "I'll let PJ know."

Dan tuned into their show after that and enjoyed his Friday afternoon. He had worked earlier that day and tomorrow would be his day off from work. So it worked out that the party would be that night.

Later that day, after Dan and Chris had eaten dinner, Dan began to prepare for the party.

First he showered and then went into his room to change into a navy blue sweater and jeans. Once he was dressed, he returned to the restroom. From under the sink he got out his hair straightener and a blow dryer. He dried his hair, and then straightened his hair into a fringe. He looked nice, he thought. If nice meant extremely plain and boring. He shrugged at his appearance.

He went out into the hall to knock on Chris' door.

"Yeah," Chris hollered out to him.

"I'm ready to go," Dan said.

"Okay, I'll be out soon."

Dan settled into the couch and scrolled through his tumblr dashboard as he waited for Chris, who walked out of his room only a few minutes later.

"Ready?" Chris asked him.

"Yup," Dan said.

"Okay, let's head out, then."

The two men left the apartment, grabbing their coats on the way out the door. Chris locked the door after them and they took the lift at the end of the hall to the lobby where they exited the building.

"Are you excited?" Chris asked them as they walked in the correct direction of the party's location.

It was only a five minute walk, Chris had said earlier, so they agreed to walk.

"Kind of."

Truth be told, Dan was nervous. He wasn't accustom to party settings. He had no idea what to expect.

Just be cool, he thought to himself.

It became apparent that they were approaching the right building, because loud music could be heard from a second story window.

"This is it," Chris said.

They entered the building's lobby and took the lift to the second floor. When they reached the second floor landing, they walked down the hall to the right apartment. They knocked and a few moments later they were greeted by a familiar blonde. Hazel, a friend of Chris'.

"Hey guys," she greeted them in her light voice. "Come on in!"

Dan had met Hazel on campus before, so he was slightly relieved that he was familiar with the party's host.

Chris entered and Dan followed.

"Drinks are in the kitchen. You can mix something or have a beer. And there's candy everywhere!"

It was clear that Hazel was already tipsy.

Dan followed Chris and Hazel into the kitchen where Dan mixed a drink for himself. He liked his drinks strong, but became slightly sheepish when Hazel said, "Damn, Dan! That's a lot of Vodka."

"I like my drinks strong," he said.

"I'm only teasing," she laughed and in a friendly manner, patted his arm. She took a swig from her own drink.

To Dan's surprise he fell into an easy conversation with Hazel and they were soon joined, by Jack, her boyfriend who Dan had also met once before on campus.

As the night progressed, he met a few new people, who were all surprisingly very friendly. Eventually though, Dan's night turned sour when PJ and Chris began to tease him about his "crush" on their professor. Dan wouldn't have cared in another situation where only himself, PJ, and Chris were together. But now it was as if, to Dan, everyone in the school knew about his problem.

"Hey, I don't blame you," Hazel said. "He's handsome."

Jack made a face at that comment.

Dan's desire to leave the party was at its peak.

He moved to get up from the couch he was sat on, but was met with Chris putting a drink in his hand and pushing him back down to sit.

"You know what, I ship it," Louise said then.

Dan frowned. He took a swig of the drink Chris had brought him. He almost gagged because of how strong it was. But he took a second swig.

To Dan's relief, the conversation shifted from their professor.

He finished the drink Chris had made him. When he stood he felt almost wobbly, and had a passing thought that maybe he ought to stop drinking. But he made another drink. And another.

He faded into the background of everyone's conversations. He slipped out of the apartment on wobbly legs.

It was Friday night and Halloween weekend. Phil had no papers to grade and no lessons to plan. And he would be damned if he wouldn't at least try to enjoy it.

And no movie night was complete without popcorn. So he made a late trip to the grocery store for popcorn. From the grocery store, he drove through the busy inner city streets. Carefully, Phil scanned the road and then noticed a familiar, tall brunet walking down the sidewalk.

Could that be Dan?

He saw the figure wobble slightly and Phil's eyebrows knitted. He drove passed the individual and glanced back. It was definitely Dan. He didn't have a coat.

Phil pulled off to the side of the road. He put the car in park, left the engine running and got out of the car. He walked around the car and up onto the pavement.

"Dan," Phil said to him. "Are you okay? Why don't you have a coat?"

Dan stopped in his tracks and looked at Phil blankly. He blinked and then said, "I must've left it at Hazel's," in a slight slur.

Phil looked at Dan carefully. He was swaying slightly, slurring his words…

"Dan, are you drunk?"

"Only a little," Dan mumbled.

"Let me give you a ride home."

Dan raised a hand defiantly and said, "I don't need a ride home, professor."

"Excuse me?" Phil said.

"I don't need anyone to baby me. I'm not some stupid baby who can't take care of himself," Dan said. He wobbled again as he began to walk passed Phil. He stumbled over his toes, and nearly fell. But Phil caught him.

"I think you need some help," Phil said again, quieter this time.

"Okay," Dan said with a sigh.

Phil helped Dan into his car. He drove up to the right building and helped Dan back out of the car. With an arm wound in Dan's he walked him into the building, into the lift, up to the right floor and up to the right apartment.

Phil tried the door, but it was locked.

"Do you have a key, Dan?"

Dan mumbled something.

"What?" Phil asked him.

"In my jacket," he said. "At Hazel's."

Dan slid away from Phil to sit against the wall.

Phil sighed and asked, "Do you have a roommate?"

"Chris," Dan answered.

"Does he have a key?"

"Yeah."

"Where is he?"

"Hazel's."

Phil considered leaving Dan here to rest until his roommate return to their apartment. But he couldn't do that. Dan needed food and water.

"Okay, c'mon. Up," Phil said to Dan.

Dan stood and took the hand Phil was offering to help him up.

"I'm breaking so many rules," Phil mumbled to himself as he led Dan back out of his apartment building.

Once outside, Phil helped him back into the car and he walked around to the driver side. He restarted the car and then reached over and buckled Dan's seatbelt for him.

"Hey," Dan said in a slightly flirtatious voice. He didn't continue his sentence.

Phil took a deep breath and pulled away from the curb. He drove out of the main city streets and to the outskirts of town where his one bedroom home was located.

Phil chewed on his bottom lip as he drove. He prayed that the other professors from the school, and his boss, would never find out about this. Taking Dan to his own home for the night was breaking so many boundaries that should never be crossed between a teacher and a student.

But Phil couldn't bear to think of how it would've felt for Dan to be left outside his apartment door when he really needed food and water. He couldn't just leave him there.

During the drive to Phil's Dan asked, "Where are we going?"

"My house," Phil answered.

"You don't have to," Dan said.

"I really do. I couldn't just leave you sitting outside your apartment."

"You're so nice," Dan said. "And handsome. And perfect."

Phil bit his lip to keep from smiling.

At least he had the comfort of knowing that his feelings for his student were mutual.

Phil pulled up to his house a few minutes later. He helped Dan from the car and into the house. Once inside he guided Dan into a chair at the kitchen dining table. From the cupboard, he got out a cup and filled it with water from the fridge. He put the cup in front of Dan.

He said, "You need water. Drink."

From the pantry he got out crackers and put those in front of Dan as well. He waited until Dan began to eat and drink before turning and putting the popcorn he bought into the microwave.

Phil sat across from Dan. He occasionally passed the popcorn towards Dan, who would take a handful here and there. Phil was constantly worried about losing his job, but he supposed that because he was probably doing the right thing, he could deal with the consequences if anybody found out about this.

Dan eventually pushed everything away from him and rested his head in his arms.

"Okay, you should probably lay down," Phil said. Dan lifted his head and groaned.

"C'mon," Phil said as he stood. He put his hand out for Dan to take and when he did, Phil guided him to his bedroom.

While Dan was lying there, mumbling something about how comfortable Phil's bed was, Phil put another cup of water and a bottle of painkillers on the end table for Dan to find in the morning.

Phil sat on the edge of the bed and Dan turned over to look at him. His eyes still drooped slightly as he looked up at Phil.

"Get some rest," Phil said to him. "Okay?"

"Okay," Dan said.

Phil paused, just to look at Dan, and then got up from the bed. He left Dan to sleep.

When Dan awoke he shifted amongst his blankets and pillows. He realized he was still wearing his shoes.

That was odd. He hated sleeping with socks, so he wondered why on earth he never took his shoes off. He opened his eyes to see a bedside table that was not his own. He blinked.

There was a tall cup of water and painkillers on the bedside table. He sat up, noting that he was fully dressed. His head began to pound.

He reached for the painkillers and the water. He emptied two pills into his hand and took a swig of water. As he sat with his head in his hands, he remembered being teased at Hazel's by Chris and PJ's friends. He remembered drinking. A lot. And he remembered leaving.

He also remembered running into Phil, sitting outside his apartment, and eating crackers at Phil's kitchen table.

Oh god, horror struck Dan.

Am I at Phil's house?

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