"Dan, that's cheating! You can't pick two rides in a row, it's my turn." Phil scanned over the theme park map in his hands before finding a roller coaster that was colorfully marked and shaded in the corner.
"That one." Phil said confidently, pointing and looking back to his boyfriend.
Dan looked up from the map. It wasn't hard to find the attraction Phil pointed to in real life. The roller coaster was barely close by, but still towered over the trees and cast a long shadow that covered most of the ground around the sitting area where Dan and Phil were. The screams mixed with the sounds of other attractions and people, but there was no doubt how audible it would be closer to the roller coaster.
Dan's gaze fixated on the size of each loop, each drop, every step climb. This usually didn't bother him. Roller coasters and other 'thrill rides' were easy for Dan, and he was usually the one convincing everyone else to ride with him. But something about this specific coaster was unsettling. The wild combination of twists and turns made Dan's stomach flip, and the feeling of possible intimidation probably didn't help. He tore his eyes away from the ride, and found the familiarity of Phil's eyes waiting for his own. Dan tried to act uncertain of the ride, rather than give any possible hint that he was, okay, scared. If Phil knew that Dan was afraid of a roller coaster, especially after Dan claimed he was the "roller master", Dan would never hear the end of it.
"I don't know, Phil. I bet the line would be super long." Dan pressed for Phil to choose something else, and he hoped he could divert Phil's choice to something smaller, or at least something that was less unsettling.
Phil felt a bit hurt at Dan's instant negativity towards his choice, and rightfully so. He had agreed to go on every ride Dan chose, no matter how crazy it was, and the least Dan could do was return the favor. "Well, why don't we go look? If it is too long, at least then we can say we tried."
Dan bit down on his lip and shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other, then raised his head to look at Phil. He reluctantly nodded his head, then reached out to take his boyfriend's hand.
Phil noticed how hesitant Dan was, but he decided not to worry too much about it. They had been on a lot of rides that day, "maybe he's just tired." Phil thought to himself. Taking Dan's hand and interlacing their fingers, the two boys walked in the direction of Phil's pick, "The Black Knight".
"See, I told you the line wasn't very long!" Phil gleefully exclaimed upon arriving at the attraction. Dan's hypothesis was correct, the screams did get louder the closer you got to the roller coaster. The nervous feeling in his stomach grew, and Dan could feel his heart begging to race. It was a lost cause, trying to calm himself down, but he didn't want Phil to know he was, and he would never admit it, scared. The "roller master" had met his match.
"Hey, Dan? You okay?" Phil's voice pulled him out of his thinking, and Dan took notice of everything again. He had stopped walking, and his breath was shallow and quick. The hand not holding Phil's was shaking, and he noticed his legs felt weak, like they were just going to give out under him. Phil lightly gripped Dan's forearm, just to help him steady himself.
"How about we go sit down for a second?" He suggested, not waiting for an answer from the other. Phil guided Dan to a bench that was nearby, one that was facing away from the roller coaster. They sat down simultaneously, and Phil took both of Dan's hands into his own.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Phil tried to get Dan to look up, but the boy's eyes stayed downcast. He was still shaking. Phil was mostly confused from Dan's lack of communication, and he wasn't sure what had got Dan all worked up.
"Dan, babe, talk to me. What's wrong?" Dan felt his face grow hot, and he knew it had to be red by now. He figured Phil was either embarrassed or angry after all of this, and he hated the idea of disappointing his boyfriend. He tried to hold back the tears blurring his vision, but gave in when his eyes started to hurt. He let the tears fall without protest.
