Dan awoke from his sleep feeling much better than he previously had, and noticed there was now a blanket on him. He smiled to himself, knowing Phil had put it there. In his sleep, he'd had a dream of what it would be like to date Phil. And whilst he was still wary, he knew now he wanted to try it. He thought for a second of if he should try to surprise Phil, as he would probably currently be sleeping. So Dan walked into the kitchen, unaware of the note that lay on the counter.

He decided he'd make Phil breakfast, as a thank you. He hadn't really properly thanked him for leaving the radio show with him, or for putting up with him, and he felt like he should. So he started to get breakfast ready, when he noticed a piece of paper that hadn't been there the night before. He read it once. And then he read it again. He read it over and over again until the tears in his eyes made the ink on the note smear. He slumped down and sobbed. He didn't want to be without Phil, he couldn't. He walked back into the living room and grabbed his phone, his hands shaking. He found Phil's number and hit call.

'Please pick up.' He begged into the phone. He just wanted to talk to him, get him to come home, maybe. He could tell him he'd decided that he wanted to try a relationship, that he was sorry he'd shut him out.

'Hey.' Phil said, and Dan almost dropped the phone in shock. He'd expected to get his answer phone.

'Phil, I-I' Dan's mouth became dry, the words he wanted to form not coming out.

'Listen to me, Dan. This is temporary, I'll be here for two weeks at most. And in that time we can both think things through. It'll be best for both of us.' Phil tried to remain serious, but him and Dan's conversations had never been serious. This all felt so wrong, like they hadn't know each other for years, like they weren't best friends.

'But Phil-'

'Just trust me.' Phil pleaded, and Dan became silent for a moment. He just wanted Phil to come home, was that so bad? But still, in a corner of his mind, he knew Phil was right. But god, it hurt. It hurt because all Dan wanted to do was have Phil here with him, it hurt because they both had feelings for each other so why the hell were they not with each other?

'Please come home.' Dan begged, a shyness in his voice. It reminded Phil of when they'd first met, of how shy and insecure he had been compared to the outspoken, sarcastic guy he was now. Phil knew he couldn't come home yet, that staying away would make everything better.

'I can't.' Phil choked back tears as he hit the end call button. Why did everything have to be so difficult? He chucked the phone down, and instantly it was lost in a sea of dirty clothes. There were a lot cleaner apartments he could have stayed at, but Matt was the only person he knew who never asked any questions, and would be awake at midnight and open to sharing his place. So really, he couldn't complain.

'Hey Matt.' Phil smiled as he walked into the kitchen. He'd known Matt for around three years, through a friend who, coincidentally, he was no longer friends with.

'Hey. Want some?' Matt asked, handing Phil a piece of toast with jam on it. Phil took it, and made himself a drink. It felt odd without Dan being there, and Phil wondered if he'd get used to it. He knew he couldn't stay away for long, and he'd have to face Dan on Sunday, unless he made an excuse. But then he'd be letting everyone down, and he hated to think that way. So he decided to suck it up. This 'time away' was supposed to be for figuring out their feelings for each other, right? So that's what he would do.

'Think of the problems a relationship with Dan would cause. It could ruin your friendship forever!' Phil said out loud, thinking to himself. Matt had left to go to work, so Phil was on his own. He liked it better that way, if he was honest. It allowed him to sort out his thoughts without any distractions. Even though with some of the thoughts that were entering his mind, a distraction would have been welcome. He thought of his first meeting with Dan, of how as soon as they met it was like they had been friends for years. Of how they could talk for hours and hours about nonsense. Nobody understand Phil like Dan did, and nobody understand Dan like Phil did. Their friendship was too beautiful to ruin, wasn't it?

Phil lay back down on his bed and let out a deep sigh. He was so conflicted, there were so many pros and cons to being with Dan. He remembered how his lips had felt when they touched his. And he remembered how in that moment he could have kissed Dan forever, if he hadn't pulled away.

Why had he pulled away? Phil asked himself. Was it because he was scared? Scared of the same things he was? Phil knew only Dan could answer these questions, but he didn't want to influence his decision. Phil grabbed his phone from under the mess of clothes, and went onto twitter.

Sorry about the fact that there will be no more radio show :(

He sent the tweet and immediately got many reassuring replies. He smiled, until he saw Dan's name.

It's my fault, you shouldn't have to apologise. I'm sorry.

Phil could almost feel the emptiness in Dan's tweet. He decided to call him up, to check that he was doing ok.

'Hey.' Phil said softly, and Dan was silent on the other side for a moment. Phil heard him sniff and knew he'd been crying.

'I miss you.' Dan finally said, and Phil felt his heart sink. They needed the time apart, didn't they? If they rushed into a relationship, and it didn't work out, they'd probably never be able to look at each other the same way again. No, thinking things through was best. Phil knew he'd rather have not tried the relationship and maybe slightly regret it than try the relationship and have their friendship ruined.

'You know this is for the best.' Phil tried to be comforting. Usually whenever he and Dan talked, one would be cracking a joke immediately. The seriousness of the conversation made Phil uncomfortable.

'Well, at least without you here I can walk around the house naked.' Dan laughed, almost reading Phil's mind. They'd always had that almost telepathic connection.

'You could've done that anyway.' Phil said, and then immediately regretted it. He and Dan would often joke around on subjects like that, but he didn't think now was the time.

But Dan seemed unaffected by his comment, brushing it off by saying 'You've seen me naked already'. Phil could sense the nervous tone in his voice, but he also seemed slightly excited. Excited that the friendship he had with Phil hadn't been ruined completely, like he thought it had. Although, Dan couldn't decide if this was joking around or flirting. Either way, Dan couldn't deny he enjoyed it.

'True. But one more time couldn't hurt.' The words escaped Phil's mouth before he realised it. He hadn't even thought of what he was saying, he didn't mean it, did he? He heard Dan's nervous laugh on the other side of the phone, and knew he needed to cover up his fatal mistake.

'I mean-'

'It's okay.' Dan reassured Phil. He knew what he meant. At least he thought he did. They were then in silence on the phone for a while, neither knowing what to say. They both had many thoughts of what they wanted to say, but still remained in silence.

'Well, I should go.' Phil said, finally breaking the silence. He didn't kind silence with Dan usually, but this time he knew there were a lot of things unsaid. And Phil didn't know if he wanted to hear them.

'Bye.' Dan said, feeling slightly happier. They both knew what they wanted now, yet they didn't know if the other felt the same.

A/N: This chapter seems so long, wow. Sorry if it drags on a bit, I left it for like a week and then went back to it with many different ideas. Okay, so next chapter I was thinking of making them discuss the idea of a relationship. I can't decide if the pace is too slow, too quick, or just right. And also I hope the flirting wasn't too cringey. And something else, I'm trying to write a Jalex (Jack and Alex, All Time Low) and Phan fanfiction, although I'm not getting very far with it. It's basically where Dan and Phil get asked to interview ATL. If you have any ideas for that that'd be fab and yeah review and I'm sorry if this chapter was kinda sucky or anything. I'm hoping to make the next chapter kinda fluffy or angsty, let me know what one you'd prefer!