Bad Words | phan

6-The Tattoo

A/N: I'm sorry that it's taken such a long time... I've been drowning in homework. Also, I used a very rude slur in this chapter. I apologize, and I hope you all realize that there is nothing wrong with being gay, straight, bi, pan, ace, or any other sexuality. It was a very difficult decision of whether or not to include this term, and I apologize for any discomfort or offense I've caused.

<3, Lily

Phil shivered in the cold October wind. The temperature had dropped early this year. He buried his hands in the pockets of his cotton candy pink jeans. He wore a white button up t-shirt with a large, pink heart on the breast pocket. In the cold air, Phil regretted not wearing something warmer. The pink, flowery bracelet on his wrist provided no extra warmth.

When he entered the library, Phil was met with an overwhelmingly strong warmth. He walked toward an empty table. Dan, like always, was late by thirteen minutes and four seconds. Phil was surprised that Dan was wearing only a gray tank top. Phil worried that Dan was actually, legitimately freezing. The tank top was loose and baggy, and Phil could see traces of ink on Dan's skin, but chose to ignore them.

Phil smiled his pure, angelic smile up at Dan, who dropped his backpack on the floor by the chair across from Phil. "Hey, Howell!" Phil greeted enthusiastically, ignoring the brunette's timing.

The greeting confused Dan, but Dan just raised his eyebrows and feigned amusement. "When did you start calling me by my last name?" Dan asked, smirking slightly.

Phil immediately grew uncomfortable, worrying that he had hurt Dan's feelings or crossed a fine line. "Oh, I'm sorry," Phil apologized, hoping he wasn't making Dan feel awkward. "It's just that you always call me Lester, so I thought that I would try Howell." He glanced nervously at Dan's amused expression.

Dan shook his head. "Don't call me Howell," he replied, shaking his head. "It doesn't fit you." Even Dan could tell that Phil was too sweet and naive to call someone by their last name.

There was a small silence. Phil was uncomfortable because of his mistake. He hoped Dan wouldn't've even noticed the nickname. After an awkwardly long amount of time, Phil cleared his throat. "Let's start the PowerPoint. Then we can work on anything you need help with," he decided, hoping to clear the strange air between them.

Dan nodded. He hadn't realized he was staring, but Phil's bright eyes were intoxicating. Luckily, Phil hadn't noticed Dan's gaze. When he noticed Phil hadn't seen him, Dan hoped Phil wouldn't care about the amount of work he had brought. Dan never understood math. Or science. Or history. He was an exceptional writer, however, with an extensive vocabulary.

When Phil stood, his foot caught on the leg on the table. Phil stuck out his arm, but still landed flat on his face. He was sent tumbling to the ground, and his pink flower crown fell from his head.

Dan stood smoothly, sighing, "Fuck," and taking a step towards Phil. Phil had heard him curse, but they weren't working directly on the project, so Dan was technically within his boundaries.

Dan noticed Phil's shoulders shaking, and hoped the black haired boy wasn't crying. Phil began to pick himself up, but could only prop himself onto one knee because of his intense laughter. Phil's lips were shut tight, as he tried to be quiet due to their environment. Small tears had formed at the corners of his eyes. Dan rolled his eyes, slightly amused, and proceeded to pick the boy off of he floor.

Dan hadn't realized what he had done, but Phil was surprised by the boy's actions. Usually, Dan would be the reason someone would trip and fall. He never helped people pick themselves back up. Phil didn't know that Dan needed someone to pick him back up and put him back together. Dan was very broken, Phil could tell, but he didn't know why or how he could help the brunette.