planets→phan

tea//moon

1:59.

2:00.

the bell rang, chattering students walked through the hallways, dan among them. yet, he wasn't chattering. seemed like a foreign word and action to someone as left out as him. he hasn't seen phil since free period. where was he?

"dan!"

dan turned, seeing phil in his bright yellow sweater and smiling face. dan smiled, too. the sun's rays approached from out of some clouds and shone on the school. dan put his hand up to shield himself from the brightness, but phil rushed right up to him.

"i have a surprise for you," phil grabbed dan's hand, covered in his dark jumper, and pulled him to the nearest bus station,"and we shall take the bus there."

"bus?" dan had never liked public transports. one for bad childhood history, another because of his dislike for humans as a whole. that's when the flashback came.

dan, age five. he and his mother were sitting next to a man, a man who had all black, reading a book about something that present dan couldn't remember. his mother was distracted by a crossword puzzle, so dan proceeded to watch the man. the man looked over at him, and smiled.

"hey kid, do you like outer space?"

dan's face lit up,"do i?!"

"ha, i can tell. you know the moon?"

"yeah, the big cheese ball in the sky!"

the man continued to smile at the naive child's humor.

"the moon watches over everything. it will protect you if you really listen to what it has to say. sure, it only comes out when it's dark, but thats the real beauty. put it this way, darkness is beauty. there is always something good in everyone. find someone, someday, who brings out the beauty in you. it's destiny."

then, the bus stopped, and the man got off.

dan didn't understand what this meant, so it began to haunt him, but he over time became seemingly fond of the moon and its beauty. the sun and moon were the two most wonderful things in the sky. there are always those wonderful times where the sun and the moon are in the sky together, and they look so different, yet seem so perfect in the sky together. now, dan's only memory from that day was wheat the man told him. darkness is beauty.

"let's go dan!" phil waved him over as his eyes hazed back to reality.

dan slightly smiled and followed his new friend into the bus. okay, he can do this. the man told him these things over ten years ago. his flashbacks and memories mean nothing right now.

phil sat in a vacant seat, and patted the seat next to him. dan took a seat, and smiled over at phil. phil's face brightened up with a smile, and his eyes seemed to glow with happiness at the presence of his friend.

dan looked out the window, watching the cars and trucks and other vehicles passing by. he smiled, remembering the times he had with his mother on the bus.
"we are almost there, we are stopping at this next street coming up."
phil pressed the button beside a door and it beeped. the bus came to a half at the stop and he and dan got off. a few others got off as well, some holding children's hands and others with their boyfriend or girlfriend, possibly married.
"over here!" phil smiled, and pointed to a small corner-building. the side read 'tea and coffee', but the building itself was called 'garden tea.' inside, it was garden themed. flowers, green pastel walls, and rock flooring.
"wow, tea.! thanks, phil," dan smiled. he looked over at his friend, who was already walking towards the crosswalk. he walked across the crosswalk and went to open the door.
"after you," phil held the door open for dan as he walked in.
"thank you."
the scent inside the place was humid but sweet, probably because of the flowers. they sat themselves and opened a menu. there was herbal tea and different types of regular teas, coffees, toppings and snacks.
"phil, this is so nice, but why bring me here?"
"it's all about the mind. relaxation is key to unwinding when things can get stressful," phil pointed to his head and smiled.
dan's heart raced as it was almost three in the afternoon already,"this is nice phil, but i would like to hurry, i have to be somewhere soon."
"oh okay, that's totally understandable. we all have our schedules we must tend to," phil shrugged and looked back at the menu.
after looking over the menu, the two boys settled on herbal tea with crumpets on a small plate. when their order came, the plate was glossy with little roses painted on the edges. there were two doves settled in the middle. the sun was on the top of the plate, the moon on the bottom. ten crumpets were scattered on the plate and crumbs were sprinkled across the unused space.
"so dan, i have already noticed that your wardrobe must be filled with darker colors," phil examined dan's jumper and the darker look in his eyes.
"yeah, i like to pretend im a star, not much different from the other billions before me. i am really nothing special."
phil smiled, realizing dan's wonderful analogy to space,"you seem to have interest in space and the darkness. maybe that's why you're so sad. why not step into the light a little? there's plenty more to see when there's some sort of brightness."
dan shook his head,"not my lifestyle."
phil lost his smile and then sipped his tea.
6:59.
7:00.
dan had been talking to phil for so long about himself and his life, he forgot about the moon. the moon was to come out into a clear night in an hour and a half.
"so what's the big deal with-"
"i have to go."
"what?" phil stopped.
they were the only two left in the cafe. everyone else except for a few workers were left.
"sorry, i really need to be somewhere. goodbye, phil."
phil sat there, looking discouraged,"oh, bye."
dan left the cafe without another word. he stuck his hands into his pockets and strolled down the street, leaving phil to pay for a surprise that wasn't even meant to come out of his pocket. dan sighed, looking up as the sun set slowly. the sky was a watercolor canvas, and an ombré look let the light fade to darkness, which is how he liked it.
8:29.
8:30.
dan sat alone in his shabby room, his grandma already asleep. the moon's light beat down on the earth, and dan's face was lit up with the pale color. the room was silent. he closed his eyes, thinking about his day with phil. the man, what he said. it all came to him. his flashback came back.
dan sitting next to his mother. the man reading the book. a book about soulmates. a book about the sun and the moon.