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phanarchy-blog · 6 years

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Love, I Promise To

Genre: It’s not fluffy enough to be fluff but not angst enough to be angst

Rating: G

Words: 1.1k

Summary: Dan is about to become the first YouTuber to be sent into space. He has a gift for Phil before he leaves.

Author’s Notes: This is written in two hours before bed with no edits based on a vague space prompt (courtesy of @quiffedphil for that btw, it’s the backbone to the story!) and trying to work in dialogue prompts as well. It’s by no means my best work, but I hope you enjoy it anyway!

Read on AO3!

It was the last night before blast off, which was not the technical term and if he was being honest, Phil hadn’t bothered to learn the technical term at all. He had other things to worry about.

He laid awake in the twilit bedroom, feeling the chill cross his back as Dan made his final turn, pulling the duvet nearly all the way off as he completed the cocoon. They were face to face again, and Phil memorized the fine lines pressed into Dan’s cheek, the blushy red patch appearing at his chin even in his sleep.

Dan needed to be sleeping, and it was a miracle he managed to fall asleep at all. Phil reminded himself not to take it personally. He couldn’t help but let his mind drift over all of the events that led to this night.

Dan never set out to be the first YouTuber to go to space. Phil giggled under his breath just thinking about it, letting out a breathy huff that clouded the air around him. Dan really couldn’t get out of this one if he wanted to.

It started with Google, as all things do, wanting to connect their biggest social media platform with their newest endeavor of private space exploration, in order to get the word out. It was a sweet deal, really. A free trip to space in the first private launch ever to the International Space Station, then Dan would vlog about it, Google would promote them with commercials all around the world, and Dan would get his ad revenue. That was likely to skyrocket as high as he was going.

Problems came up when they told him that this trip, being the first ever, would have to include lots of actual astronauts and scientists, and he couldn’t just stay for two weeks and go home.

Dan would be living on the ISS for nine months.

Phil, after a rigorous health and safety check, was not invited. He would never get past his motion sickness enough to make it through anti-gravity. Google decided they only needed one anyway. If Phil was being honest with himself, he thought Google liked the drama too, of separating Dan and Phil. Despite everything, they decided that it was not an opportunity that could be turned down.

Besides, Dan and Phil could make it through anything. Right?

This, of course, is when Dan began to stir again. He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and blinked, bleary-eyed at Phil in the darkness.

“So are you gonna be a butterfly or a moth when you come out of that cocoon?” Phil asked.

The question was much too long, too complex for someone still half dreaming.

“Wha-?” Dan asked back, nuzzling closer to the pillow that his head drowned in.

“You’ve stolen all the blankets,” Phil mock-complained.

“I have not,” he said, spreading the four inches of loose fabric across Phil’s body, genuinely believing in the moment that it was enough. “Besides, you’re taking up too much of the bed. You’re banished.”

“You can’t banish me! This is my bed too!” Phil feigned offense, because he always does, and any level of familiarity was a comfort.

Dan pulled his brows together even closer, considering Phil’s argument as well as he could, before rolling back around to face the window. He pressed his back to Phil’s chest and looked out into the stars.

“Did you know the moon is falling?” he murmured.

“Hmm?” Phil answered, grounding himself with the scent of Dan’s shampoo. He’d be adopting the brand very shortly, he decided, given how closely scent is tied with memory.

“That’s what they told me in the class,” he continued. “The moon is falling towards the Earth, always. It’s just also moving so quickly the other way that it doesn’t get pulled in.”

Under other circumstances, Phil might prod him to explain this further, but their 3am minds wouldn’t be able to communicate well enough either way. Instead, he just nodded along, kissing Dan’s neck and wrapping his arms tighter around his body.

“That’s what I’m gonna be doing too.”

Phil understood enough. Even from space, Dan would be pulled to him by gravity. It was only natural, just like all the other laws of the universe.

Somehow, Phil drifted off to the steady rhythm of Dan’s breathing.

They were awoken much too soon by the blaring alarm clock, which to this day shouted, “Rise and shine motherfucker, it’s a brand new day!”

Dan startled at his own voice, as usual. He’d never quite gotten used to it. He woke up quickly in his realization. He had just an hour left until they were expected at the site, and they had yet to truly say their goodbyes.

Dan rolled out of bed and slipped on his trousers, the ones they designated for him to wear into his suit.

“Phil!” he poked. “I have something for you.”

Phil was tempted to huddle into the warmth Dan left behind on the bed, to shut out the world and pretend this morning never needed to happen. He was a bit more tempted to see what gift Dan could possibly have planned.

“What’s that?” he questioned, rolling slowly to the side and begrudgingly working his feet into the legs of his black skinny jeans. He rubbed the gunk out of his eyes.

Dan met him, fully dressed by the side of the bed. He kept his eyes low, adjusting to the level of light. The sky was not quite black anymore, but sun rise still only loomed in the distance.

Phil squinted at the figure Dan held in his hands, the form only just ringing a bell somewhere in the depths of his mind.

“Please, save this for me.” Dan’s voice was shaky. “You gave it to me a long time ago, and I need you to take it back for now.”

The recognition flooded him.

“It’s the god damn Tonberry,” Phil laughed. It was cheesy, and corny, and perfect. And very Dan. “I can’t believe you still have that,” he smiled.

“Of course I still have it, Phil. I have everything you’ve ever given me.”

“I doubt that very much!” Phil teased. “I can list about five gifts that mysteriously went missing during our move to the duplex.”

“We don’t really have time for this argument, Phil,” Dan said, and it brought them back to reality.

“You’re right, you’re right. Sorry.” Phil didn’t know what else to say. He’d done elaborate declarations before, and while they were nice, it wasn’t their style. It was so much easier to say how he felt when it wasn’t goodbye.

“I’ll come back for you, Love.” Dan guided his forehead to Phil’s in the dim moonlight. He pressed them together firmly, eyes shut tight against the morning.

“I know you will, Dan. I know.”

As always, commentary is much appreciated! I hope you enjoyed it! I based it around this song as well, so give it a listen! There is much potential to have a sequel based on another song by them later, so let me know if you’d like to read that too!

#phanfiction #phanfic

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