Bad Boys Don't Smile - Alternate Ending

chapter twenty one

"...Christmas things, clothes, other stuff. You don't have to get it, but if you do, that's nice."

"Check it out, link below."

"And we'll see you next time."

"Bye!" Phil says as he reaches to turn the camera off.

"Another year, another Phil is Not on Fire," Dan says, "Let's go wipe these whiskers off."

"I say we've earned some anime," Phil says. He and Dan walk to the bathroom. They quickly wipe the other's whiskers off.

"Now the real question is..." Dan leans in close to Phil, "which anime should we watch?"

"A new Yuri On Ice just went up," Phil says, slightly excited.

"Phil, why? Yuri On Ice takes anime to new levels of cringe and..." Dan stops when he sees Phil's now downcast expression. "okay."

"Yes! I'm gonna go makes us some popcorn!" Phil races off to the kitchen. Dan watches him go and shakes his head. God, he loves to see Phil happy. Phil could make the worst pain better with just his smile, and he should know. It took a lot to get where they are now, but it was all worth it.

Dan turns and faces himself in the mirror. Looking at him now, you would never know what his life used to be like. He wears coloured clothes now. His hair's shorter and his earrings are gone, though he still wears them occasionally. He's been clean for years – only relapsed once after a certain video was made public.

The most noticeable change, however, is his eyes. They used to be cold, full of sadness and anger towards the world. Now his brown eyes are warm and happy, something Dan had never thought could be possible.

"Dan!" Phil calls from the living room.

"Coming!" he turns away from the mirror.

Dan stands in the doorway of the living room. He can't help but smile at Phil, who is sat on the couch, trying to toss bits of popcorn into his mouth and failing miserably. He thinks about how this adorable funny literal ray of sunshine perfect person is all that stood between him and death. How he stayed with him through Dan's entire recovery process. He thinks about how he was the first person to ever really care about him.

"Thank you." Dan says quietly. Phil looks up at him, confused. "For what?"

Dan sits down on the sofa and wraps his arms around Phil. "For saving my life."