girlfriend // phan

3 | Swimming

Phil was nervous for the next day. He didn't get a lot of sleep the evening he met Dan, which he expected as it was a new place and bed, but something felt different and he couldn't quite understand what it was.

The day started out with him trying to haul Pj out of bed, the younger boy had forgotten to set his alarm meaning Phil was held responsible for getting him up to start the day on time. After they both had a quick shower they rushed off to the dining hall where they were both due to have breakfast. It was a large hall full of tables and chairs, and along one wall was a help yourself buffet which made Phil's stomach growl. They served a full English breakfast for the hungry leaders, or just simple cereal and coffee for the less appetised. Phil went with eggs, baked beans and toast with an americano on the side and Pj just had some cornflakes and a cup of tea. 

"Are you exciting for today?" Pj asked Phil, and quite frankly, Phil was nervous.

"I'm excited but a little bit scared. There's so many people who I don't know here" Phil replied, he was always the less confident of the two, but he was glad to have a friend like Pj to help him.
Pj looked at him sympathetically. "Come on Phil, you'll be fine, try to talk to as many people as possible and I'm sure you'll make friends!" Pj said enthusiastically.

"Did I tell you I'm meeting Dan later?" Phil remembered he'd agreed to see Dan later for a 'swimming lesson'.

"What? No!" Pj sounded surprised but also disappointed he wasn't told before.

"Yeah he's going to try and help me swim, apparently we're doing raft building Thursday and he told me he'd really like me to have a go."

Pj's face lit up. Phil loved it how he had a friend who found such joy in his own achievements in life, it really helped with his anxiety. "That's so great! I'm excited for you, Phil".

The day went slowly for Phil. They had an induction day when their groups got picked for the weeks they were going to be leaders at Camp White. Phil's group were a bunch of nice looking kids, ranging from the ages of around 12 to 18. They did group games & exercises to get to know one another, and Phil's favourite was a 16 year old girl called Ivy. She was unique, had silvery-grey dyed hair and wore glitter through the roots of it along with an unusual sense in clothes, however Phil liked her originality. They weren't supposed to have favourites but Phil could just tell they were going to get on well.

The main camp leader in the group was called Joey, he was tall with brown hair and a bubbly personality, he'd come over from America to be at camp this year. There was also supposed to be a third leader in the groups, although Phil didn't recall seeing one. He'd wondered why then came to the conclusion because it's a smaller group they didn't need as many.

That night at five o'clock Phil was more nervous than he intended to be. It was a mixture of nerves from being an hour away from possibly facing his fear of learning to swim, or the fact the person helping him was practically a complete stranger.

Dan seemed lovely and very welcoming to Phil, meaning he had nothing to worry about, although his nerves got the better of him. As he was packing his towel and shorts into his small backpack, his hands were shaking slightly and he questioned himself why he felt like this. He tried relaxing himself by breathing in and out slowly, like everyone says, but as usual that didn't help. Phil decided to best thing to do was just get on with it, he was used to his nerves now and knew they'd subside when he took his mind off them.

Walking to the pool felt like it took forever, giving Phil more time to think on purpose. Once he opened the doors and got blasted with the warm air it relaxed his body slightly, and then he saw Dan standing by the lockers. Dan was wearing black jeans, a grey oversized sweater (which was ridiculous but he managed to pull it off) and flip flops on his feet.

"Hi Phil, how are you?" Dan asked, and Phil took a breath.

"I'm good thanks,  i-it's been a long day so a bit tired" Phil said quietly, still feeling a bit nervous around Dan as he doesn't know him and he's quite an intimidating person with his bubbly personality and talkative nature. 

"Ah, well you better find some energy from somewhere because we're about to do some swimming!" Dan said, sounding rather excited. Phil just felt terrified.

As they walked down to the changing rooms, Phil had a look around. There wasn't a lot to see here, just tile walls and floors, in plain colours. Phil took this chance to have a look at Dan who was walking just in front of him. He found himself quite a good judge of character, but that obviously meant looking at people first, in a non creepy way. Dan was probably around 6"3', which wasn't much taller than Phil. It was unusual for Phil to meet someone quite as tall as him, as everyone else is usually on the shorter side. Dan's hair was straight, and swept to the side, much like his own although it was brown. Dan wasn't really slim but he wasn't big either, he was in the middle, a healthy weight. His posture wasn't brilliant, and Phil but that down to his height rather than insecurity, as he seemed like a confident person.

As Dan's walking came to a halt Phil realised they were at the changing rooms, and he stepped into one, making sure there was space between his and Dan's, as he felt awkward. He quickly changed into his blue shorts, before going to his locker and unlocking it with the key the person at reception gave to him. When his belongings were safely locked away, Dan made an appearance from the changing room causing Phil to look over, and possibly question his sexuality.

LOOOL ok sorry i haven't updated for like 20 years & i said i'd update within a week, i was at school & super busy with exams and shit so now I'VE LEFT SCHOOL hopefully i can update more as i've really missed writing.

P.S i completely made up the swimming pool bit i haven't got a clue where you get the key from or whatever i haven't been swimming in years lmao