Chapter 3 - by panfs
(Happy Birthday PhanFictionz!)
Phil wove through the crowds of people, smiling aimicably when an uncle raised a hand in greeting, or some socialite wrapped her manicured nails around his forearm and congratulation him on growing up to be- "Such a fine young man!", staying only as long as etiquette dictated. But the cool act was merely a pathetic disguise for his sudden and swift descent into a fluster as he tried to move efficiently away from the young man who was the cause of his excitement. Beneath the layers of his fine clothes, his heart was hammering its confusion and excitement; who was this Daniel? For once, Phil couldn't object to the necessity his parent's expansive and unfamiliar guest list, if only half the infuriating personalities they invited to these gatherings were as good looking as-
Pulling himself to a sudden halt, Phil almost ran headfirst into his own mother, glittering like an obnoxious solar system amongst the swathes of black suits. With a high-pitched exclamation of greeting, she immediately began flicking her ignorant fingers through his hair, attempting to rectify his apparent failure to keep it neat. Well aware that protesting against his mother's attempts to groom him would only lead to misery, Phil stood still, smiled and attempted fruitlessly to clear the image of Daniel's casually disarming smile from his mind, his uncomfortable stance, surrounded by excessive wealth, the way his fear seemed to melt away after we'd laughed, those mesmerizing eyes…
"Phillip? Phillip are you even listening to me?" Her voice stringing through his ear drums, his mother unwillingly dragged Phil back to the reality of his birthday party and away from his daydreams.
"Of course Mother, always. I must remember that only children run about and such quick movements would only be acceptable at a sporting event, and only if I were participating. It's ungainly and will only ward off potential wives."
Luckily for Phil, he'd heard this particular lecture often enough to reel of her exact wording, trying not to sound to patronising or disinterested, not that she'd notice. Satisfied for now, Mrs Lester began to walk away and he was free once more to feign happiness to strangers, but after a moments thought, he took several swift steps and piqued his mother's attention with a light tap on the shoulder.
"Now Phil dear, you know that-"
"Yes Mother, I'm not following you around, I promise! I just wanted to ask you- inquire, I mean, might you be able to tell me who's son that dark haired boy is over there? No, not Frederique, he's the one next to the French windows, yes he has no tie-"
"How barbaric! Although, wait let me see- ah yes! Well you could expect nothing less from him I suppose, his mother coming from where she did."
Were her nose any higher in the air, Phil was certain his mother's small tiara would have slipped right off her shiny hair.
Phil tried to keep his tone light and slightly disinterested. "His mother?"
She nodded, sipping from her flute before replying, "Commoner. I wouldn't have believed that he would associate himself with her, let alone take on her son into his family, but I guess I just am unable to understand such mad people!"
She turned to leave once more, calling over her shoulder as she went, "Don't get to close dear, we don't associate with the Howell's, not ever."
Phil glanced back to the windows, confused as to why he should stay away from them, if they were so badly off, surely his mother would see it as a perfect opportunity to brag the families riches as usual? To his dismay, Daniel was nowhere to be seen, not where he'd been moments ago, not anywhere. Suddenly struck by waves of nausea, Phil pushed through the crowd to the door and swung them open, his lungs heaving with vast gulps of the crisp night's air. The wind was cooling and calming, and he sat down amongst the ferns, the soft rustle of their fronds more comforting than any embrace his parents had ever given him.
He'd barely had time to consider the possibility of Daniel being a recurring element of his life, let alone something more than that, a friend? And somehow, what had seemed like a small victory through the thick mist encircling his life, was now crushed and forbidden.
"What are you doing out here, isn't it your birthday they're celebrating?" Had he not been thinking of Daniel at this very moment, perhaps he wouldn't have been so startled to hear his voice twisting through the greenery, shrouded in shadow. Startled, Phil looked up sharply, tipping himself backwards of the bench with the sudden movement and falling right off the bench.
Dan broke into peals of laugher at the sight of Phil, legs and arms flailing out of the shrubbery and took a moment to recover his own breath before reaching over and hauling Phil out with a sturdy hand. He was still wiping away small tears, chuckling at Phil's embarrassed blush and attempts to glare at Daniel.
"Honestly Daniel, you think this is funny? I could have died!" This just prompted Daniel to laugh harder, resting his hand on Phil's shoulder.
"You'll live to see another chandelier I think! And it's Dan, only Daniel if you're my mum when I've left the TV on all night or if-" Despite the lightheartedness of his voice, Phil watched Daniel- Dan's face fall despite his smile, the soft light glowing in through the large windows illuminating his brown eyes and betraying the sadness hiding behind his words.
"Maybe, but that hurt!" Phil's pout made Dan giggle, but there was something clearly weighing him down, and Phil was about to try and ask about it, when a male voice suddenly called out from nearby.
"Phillip? Are you out here? We're about to make speeches and you need to be here to shake their hands!"
His father. Dammit. With a sigh, Phil brushed down his pants and called back, "Coming Father, one moment!" He turned to Dan, struggling to find words, the syllables of gratitude and hope tangling around his tonsils and refusing to make themselves heard.
"It's okay, go! I'll be here when you're done." The smile was sweet but sadder than before. Phil seemed torn for a moment and then, with a strangled murmur of, "If I must!", gave Dan a stilted nod and followed his father's voice back inside.
Yay more story! I hope you're enjoying reading this as much as I am writing with PhanFictionz! All the virtual chocolate chip cookies for Moonfruit Infusion, vogonsoup, stellapurple219 and NeverlandNat for reviewing! It seems that with the two of us writing, this is updated far more frequently than any of my other stories *coughnotthathardsorryguyscough* so there should be more soon! And once again Happy Birthday to the lovely PhanFictionz :D
xxx panfs