The Boy Upstairs (DanXReader)

Chapter 16: Editing Tips

Preemptive A/N: Who needs a pun when there's references like that available ;)

I looked at the editing software on Phil's laptop. All the footage we'd gotten was in the lower left corner of it while a time line for the audio and video took up the rest of the lower half of the screen. The upper part of the screen was reserved for reviewing the footage. It looked straight forward enough but there were also so many tools to work with that I had no idea where to start. It didn't help that we had a ton of footage to work with because of how awkward and nervous I'd been every time the camera had started. But as Phil had told me, it was better for us to have too much footage than not enough.

"And then you use this blade looking icon to cut the clips apart so you can remove the bits and pieced that you don't want to keep. It's really pretty easy once you get the hang of it! Give it a try!" Phil said, holding the laptop out for me.

"O-okay..." I said, nervously taking the laptop from Phil and setting it on my lap.

I began carefully messing around with a clip, cringing slightly at the makeshift superhero suit Phil and I had made. Between using a blanket for a cape and sunglasses for a mask, I looked like a dork. But I also seemed a bit more confident than usual. Perhaps it was because I was pretending to be someone else.

"Oh god..." I whispered in horror, having accidentally deleted the clip I'd wanted to keep. "H-how do I undo?"

"Oh, you can't. Everything's completely permanent," Phil said, a deadly serious expression.

I looked at Phil with a bit of fear on my face, unsure of if he was joking or not. My fear quickly turned into mock annoyance as I noticed the grin slowly breaking out over his face. I glared and crossed my arms. "Asshole," I said. "You had me freaked out that I embarrassed myself in that costume for nothing!"

"It wouldn't have been for nothing either way," Phil winked. "It was the hardest I've laughed in a while!"

"Sh-shut up..." I muttered with a blush. "Just show me how to fix this, please."

Phil laughed and grabbed the laptop back from and quickly undid my mistake. The two of us spent the next couple of hours working together on editing the clips, occasionally throwing a bit of banter back and forth as we added stupid effects into the video. "Finally!" I cried happily, quickly saving after making my final edit.

"Now all that's left is to export, watch the final product and upload it!" Phil grinned, stretching.

"Wait... I have to watch it?" I asked, cringing slightly.

I'd just spent hours on end watching bits and pieces of me acting like a total dork and that had felt weird enough. I didn't think I could handle watching the entire thing. "Well, we can take a break first if you want to. But yea, you should probably watch it before you upload it," Phil smiled as he began exporting the video. "You're going to end up watching it when you show it to Dan anyway. ...Aren't you?"

"I... I hadn't thought that far ahead..." I admitted, suddenly fearing the inevitability of Christmas morning.

Phil offered a reassuring smile, seeming to sense my newfound dread. "It won't be bad _____, I promise. The video is actually pretty good from what I can tell. Believe me, I wouldn't lie to you about the quality of a video."

I shifted uncomfortably, appreciating Phil's vote of confidence but still unsure to the overall quality of the video. It was true what they said, we truly are our own critique. I had learned that concept very well over the 24 awkward years of my life. But maybe Phil was right... maybe the video would be okay.

"Okay..." I said, noticing the video had finished exporting. "Let's just get it over with..."

Phil grinned and set up the finished video to be played. "Greetings Internet!" the recording of me said, staring at the camera with a grin. "You may be asking yourself who I am! More likely though, you're asking yourself why you're watching an idiot wearing a blanket as a cape! Well the answer to that question... I don't know! But the answer to who I am is simple. I am the newest and slightly okayest hero to grace the internet! I am... Anxie-she!"

I grinned at my pun, still in love with the concept of Anxie-she. The rest of the video was filled with me explaining how my superpower, which was making villains, as well as everyone around me, feel uncomfortable due to my social-inept nature, and doing various activities as a superhero. Phil had even gotten a few of his friends to do reaction shots and interview-esque footage. I'd have to thank PJ, Louise, Caspar, and Joe if I ever met them.

All in all, the video was actually decently likeable. Phil had done a really good job filming and helping with everything in general. And the music one of his friends had thrown together was actually really good. I'd have to give PJ an extra thank you for that part. It was a little cringy at times with my performance, but it kind of added to the character of Anxie-she in a way. For a first video it could've been a lot worse.

Phil grinned as he looked at me. "You like it then?"

"I love it, really," I said. "It's so much better than I could've ever hoped! Do you think Dan will like it?"

"I think he'll love it," Phil said confidently. "You put a lot of work into this, _____. It really shows and Dan will appreciate all the more because he'll know how hard it would be for you to decided to work on this."

I smiled and gave Phil a hug. "Thank you so much," I said appreciatively. "I couldn't have done any of this without your and your friends help."

"I'm sure you could've," Phil smiled as we pulled apart. "But you're welcome, nevertheless! What's the plan on uploading it?"

"I figured I'd wait until Christmas Eve just to be safe and start uploading it that night. I can link you to it when it's up so you can link all of your friends who helped as well," I explained, Phil nodding with a smile. "I plan on thanking them all if I ever end up meeting them but please make sure to tell them how much I appreciate all of their help. They aren't YouTubers as well, are they?"

"They are," Phil nodded. "That's actually how we all met."

"That's so cool," I smiled. "Seems like YouTube has really done a lot for you guys. It makes me wish I'd payed more attention to it for things other cute animal videos."

"Believe me," Phil laughed. "That's still what I use it for a lot of the time!"

"Oh good, I'm not the only one then!" I laughed as my phone started going off.

I looked down and noticed that Dan had texted me, asking me if I wanted to go grab dinner soon. I smiled and looked up at Phil. "Dan's wanting to go out for dinner, you want join? I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"Nah, you two have fun though," Phil said before winking.

"If you're sure," I said as I rolled my eyes and texted Dan that I'd be up in a couple minutes. "Thank you again, Phil. I really do appreciate all the help!"

"It was really no problem," Phil said. "It was super fun to work on!"

"Definitely," I grinned, standing up and stretching.

Phil stood up, telling me he'd get the video to me when Dan and I got back from dinner. I nodded with a smile and the two of us made our way out of my apartment, seeing Dan walk down the stairs as I closed my door.

A/N: Cliff hangers, yay~ Here's a picture of me as Anxie-she for anyone interested.

I'm so cool...