Don't Cost A Thing (Phan AU)

Don't Cost A Thing - Chapter 1

Dan would say he was okay for who he is. He's not really out there when it comes to socializing whether it's with the number of friendships he's gotten over the years or the number of relationships he's had in the last decade of his life. He has a few friends who don't really care about him and seem to be into him because he happens to be there but he doesn't necessarily care because at least he has someone. Sure, his romance game sucks but when he gathers the courage to go to a bar at night, everyone is staring at him and there's at least one guy with a fetish for cross-dressing so that helps whenever he wants to get off by something that's not his left hand.

He lives the average life really. He just happens to like wearing flower crowns and pretty so-claimed feminine clothes. Sure, maybe a skirt or two with some pretty ruffles on his numerous blouses was out of the ordinary for most boys but he had a decent upbringing.

Maybe his father liked to drink more than he liked to spend time with him and his brother. Maybe his mother preferred working with her clients more than she cared about making sure her sons felt loved and safe within their own home. Maybe his grandmother was the only person he had to raise and love him but she was so religious that he felt like he suffocating whenever he woke up in the morning but that's average. A lot of people have problems with their families and people have their flaws, some worse than others.

He's twenty-two years old, trying to manage through university fees with a shitty mandatory paycheck at the end of the month from the stupid overpopulated shop that he works at down the block from his school. He knows how to stay on his two feet even when times get tough. He's got no romantic partner whatsoever, his classes and work hours barely give him enough time to sleep for a few hours before his alarms ring off to kick him out of sweet dreamland and send him off to suffer for another shift or another hour-long class.

He's tired constantly but who isn't at University? Especially with a major in something like Psychology and Law. Yes, you heard that correctly! He's doing a double-major! He thought it would be more beneficial for him but he was being naive. It didn't help his Law professor looked at him in disgust. He assumed perhaps it was because his clothing style didn't scream 'lawyer' or 'prosecutor'.

But now, he just really wants some sleep. For the first time in two years since entering University and grabbing himself a spot at his job, he's taken a day off just for himself. Somehow with the grace of God, he got his birthday off and he couldn't wait to sleep in.

"Dan, where are you going?" Charlie, one of his peers who doesn't particularly like him, stared at him with narrowed eyes. He didn't just particularly like him, he seemed to hate Dan for whatever reason. He wasn't really sure why but he didn't have the courage to ask. He was far too shy and withdrawn for that.

"To go marry my bed," Dan joked, trying to find the right goddamn key. Why did he have so many keys? He should really get rid of some of them.

"Like you don't slack around enough," Charlie spat, making Dan roll his eyes silently. Charlie caught him bringing one of the tech students back to his dorm room since the jerk lives right across the hall from Dan's. He had tried to avoid this situation by getting a dorm room alone but apparently, that didn't matter to whatever forsaken force that seems to want him to suffer.

"Ah, isn't that what University is about? Drinking booze, throwing your insides out, and praying to the Lord overhead that you, by some miracle, pass that final on Monday you have a hangover?" Dan joked again, trying to the lighten up the mood a little. He wasn't a witty or talkative person, not at all, but people like Charlie light a fire underneath his bum. It wasn't fair how Charlie berated and degraded him but he could live with it, he supposed.

"Maybe for you. Some people here actually have some dignity. You're probably fucking your professors to get your As." Charlie spat behind him, his eyes burning Dan's body with the intense hatred he knew was directed his way. He really hated Dan and the curly-haired male couldn't figure out for the life of him as to why.