the air smells like the promise of tomorrow and nothing has ever smelled more terrifying

(COMPLETED) since birth, everyone will have a red string tied to their ring finger. the red string leads to their soulmate. however, when dan howell was born, something was missing. he didn't have a red string. * highest rankings (updated 18 oct '18) #1 in amazingphil 20 oct '18 #2 in phanfic ••• A CHAPTER OF THIS STORY CONTAINS TRIGGER WARNINGS. A WARNING HAS BEEN PLACED IN FRONT OF THE CHAPTER.

In which Dan's an arsonist and Louise thinks he needs more friends.

A nickname that goes bitter in your mouth. Cries for help that no one listens to. Gentle hands that make you quake on the ground you're standing on. When Phil first met Nico, he thought he was a gift from the heavens. But behind the mask lies something daunting, something unnerving, that Phil never foresaw. Through his journey, he finds solace in Dan, the regular at his workplace, who seems to be the only one who sees through Nico's mask to the darkness underneath.

Phil starts getting cute, little messages from a secret admirer and gradually feels himself falling more and more in love with the boy. But can you really like someone you've never seen before? And what will happen when Phil finds out the real identity of his admirer?

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN THIS STORY IN ANYWAY POSSIBLE. ALL CREDITS GO TO LVCKYPHAN ON ARCHIVEOFOUROWN.

Dan is different. He's learned to accept that. Well, as best he can anyway, considering he's never really had much of a choice. It's been this way for as long as he can remember, the constant runaround process of trying to feel normal. His life is built around it, trying to trick both himself and everyone he interacts with into seeing him as your average person. The isolation as he desperately tries to keep others from finding out, the bitterness that wells up inside of him each and every time he's reminded that he'll never be like everyone else, the fear that nothing will ever change. He's fated to be this way forever; a misfit from society. Isolation can only go so far though, so when he's struggling to make ends meet and he's faced with the option of looking into a serious job or taking on a roommate, he opts for what seems like the easier option at the time. It doesn't seem so easy ten failed roommates into the process, or when he sits down at a table to meet with prospect number eleven and ends up with a coffee spilled all over his lap. Potential roommate number eleven, Phil, turns out to be an insufferable optimistic ball of sunshine that Dan wants nothing to do with. His options are running out though, as are the savings he's been using to pay his rent, so he finds himself begrudgingly agreeing to let the other man move in. Neither of them have any way of knowing just what they've gotten themselves into as they shake on the matter, but time will tell.

Dan is a dancer, but it's his best kept secret. Moving to a new college results in new friends, new hobbies and a new outlook in life; but what does it really mean to be human? A series of strange and seemingly unconnected events unfold that all seem to link back to Dan's mysterious new boyfriend. etcetc phan with kickthestickz This story carries some warnings, however they're p much all spoilers except non-graphic violence and injury on one occasion, and non-described minor character death. No major character death and no self harm. Please message me if you think you'll need to know the TWs! To avoid spoilers, you can give me a list of things you don't want to read for whatever reason and I'll let you know if they're in the fic or not :)