The streets of London aren't safe for young people || Dan and Phil

The girl on the side of the road

(Dans POV)

Me and Phil were running down the road, bubble teas in hand, catching our Uber. As we run, a girl lifts her head and our eyes catch each other for a moment. She is about 13 and has long, matted, Brown hair that swayed in the winter breeze. She was wearing a cream coloured t-shirt, covered in stains and some black leggings that were slightly too short. In her feet were dirty purple trainers and there was just a black coat keeping her warm.
She was homeless.

I looked over at Phil who was taking a long sip of his tea and hinted to him to look. He did but was confused.
"What?" He asked in a jokey tone.
"She's homeless' I told him accompanied with a death stare. "She's only young" Phil looked at me but eventually nodded.
"I'll wait for you in the car" he said and disappeared into the black ford.
I cautiously walked over to her and crouched down.
"Hi..um..do you...err..need somewhere to sleep?"
She looked up at me and I could see the fear in her eyes.
"I'm not going to hurt you. Please...you shouldn't be out here, your too young"
She nodded slowly and followed me to the car. I sat in the middle, squashed with Phil and she sat gazing out of the slightly frosty window.
After 2 minutes of awkward silence I got a text from Phil.

PHIL: did you ask her name

DAN: no? Should I?

PHIL: yes!

DAN: not now, we will wait until we're home

PHIL: why?

DAN: look at her, she looks petrified in this car

PHIL: fine.

DAN: when I asked her to come with us she looked so scared

PHIL: well she would, who knows what could've happened to her when she was alone?!

He was right. We spent the rest of the journey sat in an awkward silence.
Once we arrived we took her up the stairs and into our apartment. The three of us stood there awkwardly not knowing what to do or say.
"So..." Phil said
At this point I know he is going to scare her off...
"Do you want a biscuit?"
Phil..no
"What's your favourite colour?"
Stop it Phil
"Why were you in the stree-"
I step in and cover his mouth until he gets the idea. He walks away to his room in a sulk.

"I'm sorry about Phil." I tell her. The expression on this girls face is understandable I have to say.
"By the way...I'm Dan and that was Phil" her eye line is locked to her feet.
"What's your name?" Her head suddenly bolts up and she takes a breath as if about to say something and then stops and looks at her feet again.
I walk to the kitchen and grab a notebook and pen. She follows slowly.
"Write it down?"
She takes the pen from my hand and writes in scraggly handwriting: Taylor.

I tell her to sit on the sofa as I go and get some spare sheets from the cupboard and enter back into the lounge. Taylor looks up from where she was sat and I gesture her to follow me. I take her to the gaming room and I sort out some pillows and a duvet on the small sofa inside. "Is it ok for you to sleep her" she nods slowly and see the fear again in her eyes.
"Okay..I'm going to go and speak to Phil...err..make yourself at home"
She must be so weirded out by me.
No wonder why she's not speaking.