Weird [Dan Howell AU]

PT. 16

Dan's POV

"I dare you to get this." Phil told me, holding up a one direction notebook. I stared at the cover, it was from an old 2012 photoshoot or something. It looked like something a nine year old would carry in attempts to look cool.

"No thanks, I'd rather not be seen as the guy with a black eye and One Direction notebook, Phil." I said with an eye roll, the image only made me cringe. Phil only laughed as if he had seen the image as well, setting the notebook down.

Phil and I were supply shopping, waiting for Anna to return from Victoria's Secret. She had shooed us to this target store to look for binders, pens and what not. I sighed, quickly grabbing a simple black notebook, binders weren't made for left handed people like me.

"Look how cool this is." Phil said, hiding up a binder with a black and white galaxy design printed on. "Look it says when you turn off the lights, the stars glow." Phil said looking at the binder in awe.

"That sounds pretty cool." I said, snatching the binder from him and inspecting it. I opened it up and there was a built in pencil case.

"I'm getting this." Phil said snatching the binder back from me and settling it in his cart. We had decided we would all have our own individual carts, which seemed absolutely pointless. I grabbed some loose leaf that was on sale, and put one in Phil's cart as well.

"So, are you into Anna?" Phil asked, still looking at his binder as if it were priceless.

"What?" I asked in confusion. Had I been too obvious?

I mean, there was an obvious attraction to her but was I developing feelings for her? Can attraction count as a feeling? Obviously, but what good would it do me if I told Phil, Anna's best friend, that I possibly...liked her.

It was a recipe for disaster.

"Do you like her? As in like her." He clarified with curiosity evident on his face.

"Why are you asking?" I countered.

"Curiosity." He said with a smirk, the answer was obvious of course.

I felt like he knew, obviously he did. His eyes looked at me, like he expected me to tell him everything but it seemed like he didn't need me to. Did he talk to Anna and found something out? Was I being obvious? I scratched my skin, in hopes of getting some of my anxious feelings out through my pores.

"No, Phil. I got out of a relationship a few months ago and I don't think I need one now." I told him, even though my ex-girlfriend and I ended our relationship a month ago, exaggerating the truth would help me.

"Oh really? Why did you guys end it?" Phil asked me, tearing his attention away from his binder and on to the new subject of my love life.

How did I end my last relationship?

In honesty, it was because of how I never paid much attention to her or even shown her much love. I didn't do it on purpose, I got too side tracked and felt lonely. The kind of lonely no one can fix. It was caused by the fact that I blamed myself for the terror and hell my sister went through. I shivered at the thought, re-visiting the details that led to her death. Those terrible two days she was suffering while I had snowball fights with my little brother. I tried to compose myself and not having a breakdown in front of Phil.

I brought my thoughts back to ex-girlfriend. I broke up with her, reassuring her it was because of the move but we both knew that wasn't the real reason. I am a wreck that no one wants to deal with.

"It was because I was moving." I answered, leaving out all the other details.

"How was she like?" Phil asked, regaining her curiosity but he had completely forgotten his question about Anna.

"She was great. She was kind of preppy, and lovely. I wish I had spent more time with her." I told him. thinking back to her. I shook my head and turned to Phil. "When was the last time you had a girlfriend?"

"Well, it was a year ago. She was beautiful and so kind but she wasn't really my type, just like I wasn't hers. Ever since then I've been paying far more attention on Anna instead. Anna really didn't like my old girlfriend anyways." He informed me.

"Why not?" I asked and Phil looked a bit guilty.

"Well she kind of threw her lunch on top of Anna one day, and then she blamed Anna for everything which resulted in Anna getting detention for a week." Phil shook his head, and I furrowed my eyebrows.

"Did she hate Anna?" I asked him and Phil shrugged.

"It always seemed like she did. She always told me Anna looked horrible and that Anna was talking about me behind her back. We had another friend, Alex. He left both of us to be with my ex-girlfriend, Lily, because he believed everything she said about Anna. It seems like Alex's life goal is to harass Anna." Phil said, I looked towards Phil with wide eyes.

"Alex...what does he look like?" I asked.

"Kind of like a fuckboy." Phil said with a giggle. I widened my eyes, and stared at him in shock. He laughed innocently as he looked at me. "Why does everyone look shocked when I curse?" He asked, I was about to answer but I was interrupted.

"Hey guys, I've been looking everywhere for you." Anna said from behind Phil with a Victoria's Secret bag hanging on her arm.

"I thought it would take longer for you to find underwear." Phil answered and I saw him smile to himself as Anna looked at her phone.

"It didn't, we need to hurry to buy clothes." Anna said, looking at the different binders and folders. She looked at me with a smile as Phil helped her, she quickly dropped her eye in a wink.

Are we still playing this game?

____
Sorry for the lateness!

UNEDITED