Midnight Eyes ✵ Phan

*4*

Phil was stressed. Nothing more and nothing less. Work had been dull, repetitive and he was unable to keep his eyes open as he did the easy task over and over again. Working in an office really wasn't what he imagined but it got him the money, enough to pay the guy and get at least some food on the side whilst his mother paid for the apartment with the money from her second job.

Despite Phil's protests, his mother would always do what was best for him and not for her so for now, he was stuck in a dank apartment, which he was grateful for, with flickering lightbulb and the scary house plant in the corner that seems to the only thing alive that doesn't look dead.

Phil stood outside the door of the apartment, fumbling around for his keys. That's when he heard a growl, not aggressive but tired, weak, maybe even sad. That was when a small Neko appeared from the alleyway running beside his house, Dan.

'Food.' He murmured, clutching his stomach. Dan couldn't do it anymore, the pain was unbearable and it was clear that he wasn't far from death. His skin was white and his fur was turning grey, his eyes had lost their light and his whole body was encased in mud.

Phil smiled, though, at the simple thought of helping this boy out. He hated suffering, whether it himself or someone else. 'Come inside.' He gestured inside as soon as he put the key in the lock, twisting the handle to reveal an undecorated, dirty corridor.

Dan hesitantly made his way in, Phil following behind him. 'I'm on the third floor.' Phil stated, pressing the button for the elevator. Dan looked at it, confused. 'Have you never seen an elevator before?' Phil laughed but Dan nodded causing Phil's mouth to hang open. 'Wow.' He murmured.

Dan had been through a lot and Phil hadn't expected that he hadn't even seen simply things such as an elevator.

'Come on.' Phil said as Dan didn't move and the elevator doors opened. Dan looked in nervously and timidly took steps into it.

It was just a metal box, why were they in a metal box?

Then, Phil pressed a button and they were moving upwards. Despite the grimy look and the shaking the elevator seemed to be doing, Dan was amazed.

The box was moving, boxes can't just move. 'We're here.' Phil stated, grabbing onto Dan's arm, to which he flinched away, and brought him to his front door.

The lock was wonky and the key was jammed inside. Phil didn't care much for his privacy anymore. Inside it looked clean though unkempt as Dan found himself inside. The corridor was small and only had three doors inside. One led to the kitchen that was attached to the living room, the other a bedroom- one bedroom- and the other, the bathroom.

The whole apartment had a serene feel to it. All was still, all was quiet. 'You need something to eat.' Phil stated, his voice still monotone and quiet but still caring, Dan was unsure of how he did it.

He led Dan to the door on the left, the living room and kitchen, and got to work on making some pasta with tuna on top, one of Dan's old favourites when his parents had cooked for him.

Dan smiled, a sorrow smile but nonetheless the first time his lips had even turned a little in so long. Dan, waiting patiently, gazed out the window. It seemed that from this side of the apartment you could see the whole forest.

It was a view not many would enjoy seeing- a spooky and gloomy forest ran for miles, no light hitting the dull tree. For Dan, it was pure beauty. He loved nature, despite his tendency to stay inside, and just the thought of being in the forest again made his lips quirk up just a tad more.

'Foods ready.' Phil called out and sighed but set the plate in front of Dan who immediately grabbed a fork, not wanting to look too disgusting despite his appearance, and ate it all in record time. He looked over at Phil with a delighted look on his face. He was in a stranger's house but just the thought of food distracted him from all of that- the man's smile too: it was genuine.

Phil, on the other hand, did not look anywhere near as happy. 'Are you okay?' Dan murmured, afraid to speak to this new found human. Phil nodded and sighed again.

'Just a stressful work day.' Dan nodded, not really seeing how work could make someone so drained. It had taken almost starving to death to get this point, did the man not appreciate that he could work?

Dan shook the thought off, knowing that Phil's problems were his and didn't need to be compared to someone else's, not matter the contrast. 'I should get going then, you need to sleep. Don't let the stress get to you.' Dan smiled as a way of thanking him and rushed out of his seat, ignoring his minds pleas to ask for more.

'Leaving! You can't. I can't let you go back onto the streets.' Phil looked shocked at the Neko. Even after feeding it, it didn't accept his offers of a roof to stay under with three meals a day.

'It's OK. I'm used to it.' Before Phil could say a word, Dan had rushed down out of the door and before Phil even made his way to the door, Dan was at the bottom of the stairs, searching the street outside for a place to stay.

With a full stomach and a sorrowful smile on his face, Dan found an abandoned alley and sat in it, wondering why he couldn't just accept this man's help. Actually, he did know why. It was fear, fear of the past repeating itself. He had no reason to be afraid, he could see in this man's eyes that he was kind and Dan had been known to be a good judge of character.

Dan leant his head against the brick wall and wrapped his tail around himself for warmth, as if that even helped, and closed his eyes, willing sleep to take over him.

word count: 1040

published: 02.02.17