Flames {phan au}

*epilogue*

1 year later
Phil:

"Happy Anniversary Dan!" I shouted to him. It's early in the morning and he usually doesn't wake up till mid-day , so me shouting in his face at half past eight in the morning, isn't his favourite thing in the world.

"H..hi. Thanks Phil." He whispered. For the past few months Dan has been working on getting his voice back. Little by little. He could only speak a little before his throat started to hurt, but I can tell he's working hard. Today marks our one year anniversary. This year has been a year of struggle, readjustment, and promises. It started with the day he told me and my mum about his father and home life. It shattered my heart. Then the incident in my bedroom right afterward, I promised him that I will be there for him no matter what, which I have stuck too. I have been here, never leaving his side. Through everything he's been through this year, he needed me. Especially with everything that happened with his dad. I agree with his decision, my mum and I totally support his decision. After his father beat him that night, I never wanted him to go back. I wanted him to stay safe and in my arms forever. A week after our chat with my mum, she thought it would be a good idea ito confront Dan's father. If I can call him that. Later that week my mum came with Dan and I to talk to his father. When we pulled up into the driveway I realized how bad he had it just from looking at the state of his house.

*Flashback*

Dan's house looks like something out of a horror movie. The windows are boarded up from the inside and the garden looks like it hasn't been taken care of in what looks like years. The mail is overflowing in the mailbox, along with newspapers trailing up to the porch. I can finally see why Dan's never told me anything about his house.

"You ready boys?" my mum asked with a sympathetic smile. I turn back towards Dan and I can see his anxiety level rise instantly. He doesn't want to do this, but he knows he has to.

"Yes." I reply flatly. I step out of the car and open the back seat door. Dan was still sitting there. Our eyes met again and I signaled him to get out. He listened. He got out of the car and started fidgeting with his hands while the three of us were walking up to the porch. I took his hand firmly and started rubbing his knuckles to calm him down. Which seemed to work nicely, his breathing slowed and became steady once again. My mum then knocked on the front door three times. No answer. She knocked three more times then heard a muffled shout.

"I..i'm com..coming." He sounds blazed. I look over to Dan and see a tear fall from his eyes and land on the cement in front of his feet. I turn his face towards me and wipe the leftover tear from his cheek. The ends of his mouth turned upward slightly, then retracted into their sad, gloomy frown. I then pecked his lips lovingly. His lips repeated their previous act. The front door then opened. Then there he is. The man who's beating my bear. I cant stand the sight of him, even if he wasn't beating Dan I probably still couldn't stand to look at him. His hair is messy and greasy. Seems as though he hasn't showered in a year due to his smell and gross hair. His clothes were dirty, stained, and smelled strongly of alcohol. But I see a glimmer of Dan in him. He had brown eyes. A tall and thin frame. Had tan skin and thick eyelashes. But their traits may look similar from the outside they are all different from within, especially their eyes. Dan's eyes are beautiful, full of love (even though he doesn't see it). Dan's eyes have some type of sparkle that make them look light and fluffy. But his father's on the other hand is opposite. His eyes make you scared, terrified. They make you want to crawl into a ball on the floor and go into your own world just to get away from his glare. There is no light or sparkle in his eyes. They look dark, angry, distressed, and reckless. I can feel the tense anxiety of the situation radiating off of Dan. At this point we were no longer holding hands, he's the one who let go. But if I had a father like that, I would've let go too.