#seriously surprised there’s only one cavetown song

[fanby-fckry]

Rules: shuffle your ON REPEAT playlist and list the first 10 songs and tag 10 (or just however many) people

I was tagged by @cyanjockstrap

I had to log back into my main Spotify account for this, lol. The one I use for my fandom playlists got a free trial of premium so I switched over to it, but I haven’t used it long enough to get proper results.

Also, wow I forgot how bad Spotify ads suck.

I’m tagging: @nimona-antifa @gremlinvoidfish @motts-erella @fan-of-all-doms @wellthatisbloodyfantastic

Listen, I have an explanation for all the Legend of Zelda covers, I swear…

[sarah-sandwich]

Top 5 Creative Works of 2021

rules: it’s time to love yourselves! choose your 5 (ish) favorite works you created in the past year (fics, art, edits, etc.) and link them below to reflect on the amazing things you brought into the world in 2021. tag as many writers/artists/etc. as you want (fan or original) so we can spread the love and link each other to awesome works!

Tagged by @playboyphilanthro-pissed

1) Peaches Ain't Pretty - Gen, Harley Keener-centric - 17k

Harley Keener and his sister Abbie have never had an easy life, but they've always had each other and that's enough. They'll make it be enough.

my beloved ❤ tbh I surprised the hell out of myself with this one. First of all, I was inspired to write it by Devil Town by Cavetown (specifically the version linked--the kid's got like 4 versions now lol). I actually had the idea for this when I first heard the song wwaaaaayyyyy back when I was posting Don't Freak Out in 2020 and working on the sequel, but at that time I was SO overwhelmed (with covid and posting fic for the first time in nearly 2 years, and writing that freaking sequel (haha see what i did?), and covid) so I just ignored the plot bunny and forgot about it. Fast forward to a year later, I started listening to the song again and the idea came back to me and I was like, okay okay I don't have anything better to do rn, I'll just jot down some ideas... Then like 3 days later I had a completed fic lol

BUT before I started, I knew I wanted it to have a certain tone (serious and at times heavy, but not depressing--i wanted those spots of light) and I wanted it to follow the Keeners from childhood to their coming of age into adulthood. Honestly I didn't know if I could pull that off. Writing from a child's perspective is hard. Writing an accent I don't have without making it obnoxious is hard. I'm so stinkin' happy with it though! It turned out as perfect as I could have asked for. It still blows me away when i reread it. Like woah I made that.

When I started writing it I was iffy about working towards a parkner ending bc I really wanted it to be only about the Keeners but I'm weak so that's where it ended up lol And now I'm posting the parkner sequel! Check out A Peach Like You (which technically I wrote in 2021 even though I'm only just now posting it, so it counts)

2) The Distance Between (You and Me) - parkner - 29k

When Pepper offered to begin training him to become CEO of Stark Industries, she warned Harley it would put a target on his back. He didn't take her seriously until after he'd been left chained and shivering in a dark hole for three days.

Rescued but with his kidnappers still at large, Tony recruits a bodyguard to shadow his every step and keep him safe until Tasha can hunt down his kidnappers. Harley isn't impressed. If he wasn't already at his wit's end muscling through nightmares, dissociative episodes, and pretending like he's handling everything like a champ then maybe he'd be able to figure out what exactly makes Peter Parker so special.

Ah the bodyguard AU. This one was so hard to write. Not bc of the fic, but bc of my head space. Real life took a nose dive and let's just say I had a pretty shitty time starting in May last year and it didn't really let up until, uh, November?? Writing felt impossible. I had all these big awful feelings and I couldn't set them aside in order to write. I've never been a vent writer and quite frankly idk how to be honest enough with myself to do that on purpose...

All that to say, it took A LOT to get this one down. Major thank you to everyone--@michellejones-stacy I'm looking at you in particular ily ❤--who cheered me on and shared their enthusiasm with me. It literally wouldn't have happened if I didn't know you guys were looking forward to it. Some days the only reason I pushed myself to write was bc of you so 🙌🎉✨🥰😭 thank you

But then when I finished it, it felt hollow, like I'd gone through the steps of writing but there was no soul in it. I didn't believe the feedback I got telling me it was good. It took until like... last month? When I finally read it fresh that I realized actually yeah, everyone was right and it is good! So I'm super proud of myself that this fic exists at all, but also I'm proud of how it turned out despite my challenges while writing it.

3) The Human Kind - parkner - 3.7k

“Your game of tag made the news again,” Miles says with a frown. “I don’t get why you won’t talk to him.”

“It’s more like hide-and-seek,” he says, not bothering to address the second statement as he pulls off his mask. They’ve been through that song and dance enough times they both know it by heart and it’s lost its spark.

“That’s not how it looks on TV. Looks like a lot of chasing and not a lot of counting.”

“Yet it always ends with me hiding and him giving up on seeking so—,” He waves his hand in a ‘there you have it’ fashion then hits the spider symbol on his suit.

Or: Spider-Man has a stalker but it's not what you think

This one. This one I tried to write angst lol and I hurt myself! So mission accomplished? I re-read this one recently and I'm really happy with it. It starts out light and there are questions laid out that you don't get immediate answers too, but you don't really worry about it bc it's Peter and he's quipping and making jokes and it's fun, right? Then it gets serious and that's when my feelings get hurt.

4) No Need to Rush - parkner - 5.3k

5 times Peter almost says I Love You (but Harley does instead) + 1 time they both say it

(Yes, it's a needlessly complicated take on this trope but it's my needlessly complicated take on this trope)

There's a comment on this fic that essentially calls this the perfect spiderlad fic and that's what pops into my head every time I think of it lmao it makes me realize that this is p much the only fic where I wrote established Iron Lad rather than the beginnings of Harley becoming Iron Lad. I adore this fic in it's own right, but that comment + this fic makes me really really really want to go all out with a spiderlad fic. Harley and Peter fighting side-by-side, the quips and banter, the hurt/comfort, the intrinsic understanding between them that no one else can touch because only they know exactly what they're facing day-in and day-out, partners in every sense of the word--I just *wistful sigh* I'm gonna write one for real, a full-sized fic, and that's that on that.

5) Undercover? I thought you said undercovers... - parkner - 3.7k

Peter and Harley are undercover at a black-tie event and get into a sticky situation

Not that kind of sticky! Get your head out of the gutter you dirty bird

This one is pure fun. I had a blast writing it and I adored all of the squeeing comments I got for it and I get a good laugh out of it every time I re-read it. It's the embodiment of bickering as a love language.

Tagging (with no pressure/if you're busy you're busy): @theoceanismyinkwell @queenofmoons @michellejones-stacy (will it let me tag you twice?? we'll find out) @writingamongther0ses @joyful-soul-collector and anyone else who wants to share their most special babies of 2021! Tag me so I can see 😊

[hamarhemmo]

I'm continuing with my Pride Month posts. Anyways, in this post there's gonna be LGBTQ+ music. Some of them are in Finnish but you should be able to find translations to english in musixmatch.com

English

Glad To Be Gay by Tom Robinson Band: A very depressing song, it was made in the 70s only a while after Stonewall. A very beautiful song none the less.

I'll Make A Man Out Of You from Mulan: Not really about tra s guys but makes feel nice listening to it. As the song implies, dick is not necessary for being a man.

I Don't Dance from HSM 2: To understand this song's gayness fully, you have to know the movies, the director, the characters etc. but even without knowing any of that, the song is really gay (especially the music video.) If you want to understand the whole context, AreTheyGay has made a great video about it in YouTube.

Daughter by Ryan Cassata: Basically about a trans guy getting his dad to come terms with his sons gender. Made by a trans guy. Ryan refers to his past self as his dads daughter so if that is triggering to you, I don't recommend listening. Great song, great lyrics, love it a lot.

I Kissed A Girl by Katy Perry: It's pretty good in my opinion but the fact that the singer wasn't really attracted to the girl and did it just out of curiosity, and is also cheating on her boyfriend, kinda bother me. It's great to experiment but cheating is not okay and I just don't like that part of the song. But I know that many people enjoy the song and I understand why.

Lemon Boy by Cavetown: Lemon Boy technically has nothing to do with being trans but it's made by a trans dude and a lot of trans guys love it.

Finnish (translations on Musixmatch)

Poika Nimeltä Päivi (A Boy Named Päivi) by Leevi And The Leavings: A very well written accurate song about being a trans guy. Surprising considering the fact that it was written by a cishet dude in the 80s Finland. It's a sad song if you interpret it in a way where Päivi killed himself as the album cover and first lines imply. Otherwise mostly pretty positive (he seems happy now where ever he is) and relatable song.

Sairas Ja Syntinen (Sick And Sinful) by Sir Elwoodin Hiljaiset Värit: The song talks a lot about Christianity and Gid's views on homosexuality. (He is fine with it, while many humans are not.) Some of the lines don't make that much sense in English but it's seriously a great song.

Yhdes Astellaan (We Walk Together) by Tundramatiks: Tells about minorities in general. It has many slurs in it (but like in a kind of positive way??) and tries some other not so good stuff but what can you really expect from a straight white dude? I really like it despite its flaws and I recommend at least giving it a go if you like foreign music (or are Finnish).

Oon Kuka Oon (I Am Who I Am) by Jari Sillanpää: I cannot support the singer for several reasons but his music just slaps. Oon Kuka Oon doesn't technically say it's about homosexuality but it is incredibly obvious. I really like the song but refuse to acknowledge the existance of the singer.

Literally every song by Antti Tuisku: Antti Tuisku is a very popular singer in Finland and has made music since 2003. His older songs are mostly love songs while newer ones are usually about partying. Many of his so gs mention LGBTQ+ and are inclusive. His song Kumipuku (Rubber Suit) includes non-binary people, in his song En Kommentoi (No Comment) he refuses to tell if he is gay or straight (which imo is a power move) and in Valittu Kansa's (Chosen People) music video, he is hanging out with people of more than one gender in hid mansion thingy (strongly giving the vibe that he fucks all of them). He also doesn't use any gendered words about the people he is singing about in general. Many of his songs are very sexual in nature so if you're uncomfortable with that, I don't recommned.

Sorry about talking so much about Finnish songs, I just love them a lot.

Comment or reblog if you have something to add.

[somerandomstrayemo]

This is my story off of wattpad that I had just decided to put here, do not repost, if I see this story anywhere else I will ask you to take it down, thank you :)

_____________________________________________

Prompt: Virgil lends their sweater to Remus. When Remus is home, he realizes he still has Virgil's sweater and finds Virgil's iPod. Out of curiosity, Remus looks through Virgil's music and finds a playlist titled with Remus's name..

Virgil sat comfortably on the couch, casually scrolling through Instagram (yes, FINALLY, something other than Tumblr-). He hadn't had much to do that day since Patton was out getting things for a movie night, Roman was writing the script for a new video, and Logan was out with Patton, probably just out and about to resupply on crofters since he was running low on them.

It was mid February, and due to the climate in Florida it was still quite cold to say the least. Though Virgil didn't mind the freezing temperature due to the fact he almost always wore his black and purple sweater, he seemed almost unfazed by the somewhat cold atmosphere.

Around the evening is when the anxious trait heard light shuffling behind him and he quickly spun around from his position on the couch, only to spot a  seemingly freezing Remus that previously planned on pouncing on him. "Remus? What are you doing here?" Virgil asked, as it wasn't very common for the dark sides to just come along particularly unannounced like that. "Oh the heater part thing in the air conditioner broke over on the dark side and Janus won't let me use his heat coil thingy, so I thought it'd be warmer here, and surprise surprise, it's FUCKING not~" Remus seemed to be speaking in an utterly annoyed an sarcastic tone. Virgil rolled his eyes and tucked away his ear buds, propping his arms up on the back of the couch. "Huh, that sucks now doesn't it" The emo said, still completely unfazed by the situation.

Remus looked Virgil up and down in complete shock. He wasn't shivering, and was acting as though everything was fine. The intrusive side then scoffed and crossed his arms, developing a somewhat snarky attitude towards the smaller side. "How the hell are you so okay with this, it's fucking freezing here! Are you immune or something?!" Remus wasn't very pleased. Virgil made it look so simple and easy to just ignore the cold, it was almost like the emo was taunting him. "Relax Remus, I just have a really thick sweater on. Here, if it makes you feel any better, would you like to borrow it?" Virgil tried to be kind to Remus, as he hated conflict between sides and wasn't one to want to get involved. In fact, Virgil did this willingly, he'd do anything just to see Remus smile just once. It was just a little temperature, how bad could it possibly be?

Remus stared at the emo like he was being taunted once more, but then eased up a bit, seeing there was no signs of mockery in his soft expression. Remus simply gave in, un-crossing his arms and giving a small nod, watching as Virgil then took off his sweater and handed it over.

Remus seemed so happy as he quickly grabbed the sweater and put it on. Though Remus was enjoying himself, this was a decision that Virgil very quickly regret as a cold draft of air hit him like a bus. God it was freezing, yet he plastered a smile on his face as not to let Remus worry. "Thanks emo, this thing really is warm!" Remus said in an almost happy tone. It was rare that Virgil ever saw Remus happy like this since he was mostly intrusive, so like any other side would, he took it all in while he still could. "You're welcome dude, I didn't want you dying from hypothermia, you looked like an angry ice cube." The emo smirked, using his little remark to distract himself from the cold atmosphere. Remus laughed, something Virgil just loved to see, thank god his pale foundation was covering his slightly red face. Though Remus could clearly see how satisfied Virgil was by the decision, and leaned forward, placing and gentle kiss on the freezing emo's face, causing the anxious trait to tense up. "I have to go now Virge, and seriously, thanks for the sweater, I promise I'll give it back" Remus stated happily as he then quickly sunk out. Who's to say he probably snuck out while Janus was distracted, he didn't even give Virgil a chance to speak before he left.

After about a week had past, Virgil had ended up borrowing one of Patton's sweaters, as morality had plenty, so yeah it wasn't his usual style, but at least he was fairly warm. After all, only a few hours after Remus left the week before was when the light sides soon discovered that their air conditioning had broke as well. Back with the dark sides however, Janus had been trying to get Remus to confess on where he had gotten that sweater all week, but as time went on, he had eventually given up. Around this time, Remus was in his room playing around with his mace, he honestly had no intention on giving Virgil his sweater back, as he loved it like his own, but he knew the sad truth was that he had to give it up sooner or later.

As the intrusive side swung hos mace one last time, A small object fell out of the pocket of Virgil's sweater. Remus stopped all he was doing and set his mace aside, picking up the object only to discover it was a dark purple iPod with Virgil's name on it. Being curious, Remus conjured some headphones and plugged them into it, starting to look through his playlists he had saved:

"P!ATD? Of course he would"

"Huh, I..guess.. Billie Eilish makes sense..?"

"ugh, and I think Lofi music would be for his panic attacks, I still wouldn't listen to that"

"AVIVA, again, of course he would."

"MCR, yep, That's Virgil alright, it's sad he only has like 2 songs in this playlist"

Remus went on and on over the playlists, until he came across one that caught his eye, 'reminds me of Remus'. No way the anxious trait really had a playlist dedicated to him, right? Remus clicked the playlist and immediately saw a song that captured his main personality, the one that he used around Virgil:

'Green' by cavetown

Remus had closed the iPod immediately and sighed, he realized the only reason Virgil gave up his sweater was because he cared for Remus, and you know what, that wasn't what Remus had thought at all, he simply thought the emo pitied him, nothing more. Turns out the emo really did like him back after all.

Remus acted quickly, playing a recording of him messing around in his room and locked the door so he could sneak out unnoticed. Once he'd done that he quickly sunk out, hoping Virgil was in his room, and to his relief, he was. Virgil was laying peacefully in his bed, curled up under his blankets, and the room completely silent apart from his very light snoring which Remus had found adorable. Virgil slept in often as he barely got any sleep once the sun set. The intrusive aspect guessed that he fell asleep around 4am today, and he only needed an hour of sleep, but it seemed as though he decided to sleep in the one day Remus decided to confront him.

Instead of waking the emo, Remus had decided to be very quiet and get in bed next to him. If Virgil truly loved Remus, then surely he wouldn't mind.

It had only been a few hours before Virgil woke up, a strong and warm embrace wrapped around his small figure. It had only took him a moment to realize he wasn't alone, quickly turning to look up at who had broken into his room; "Remus.." The younger gently whispered, causing Remus to flutter his eyes open and smile to the small anxious trait in his arms.

Virgil had to admit, he was loving every second of this, he simply looked up at Remus, frozen in silence. He had so many questions; why was he here? How long had he been there? And most importantly, did he even want to be this close to someone like himself. As Virgil's mind trailed off, he felt a pair of lips capture his as he felt his waist was being strattled. The emo didn't resist nor comply, he simply screwed his eyes shut, a few small tears falling from them. Oh how he dreamed of this, how he wanted nothing but to be loved like this.. He'd been longing for someone to love him back...

The kiss lingered for a moment before being broken, Remus placing a hand against the emo's cheek. It was firm, yet so gentle and loving. The intrusive side then used his thumb to wipe away any tears Virgil had, and gave a comforting smile "why didn't you tell me sooner Virgil" he asked kindly, a tone that Virgil rarely ever got to hear. "I was scared.. You'd reject me.." He spoke with pure honesty, and slight guilt for not telling sooner, after all he was the embodiment of fear and anxiety. Though nevertheless, who could stay upset at a face like Virgil's?

Remus chuckled as he sat up, scooping up the smaller trait and placing him in his lap and peppering his face with kisses. "it's okay now love, you don't need to hide it from me anymore, I've got you" Remus sighed out, reassuring Virgil that he had absolutely nothing to be afraid of. A beautiful moment of silence quickly followed those words, and Virgil almost immediately fell asleep in Remus's arms after that. He hadn't felt this loved and relaxed in god knows how long since he was always careful and on edge. It was a wonderful feeling, so great that it put him to sleep. Remus simply chuckled once more, laying his new lover back down as he took his place beside the younger trait, wrapping his arms around Virgil as he then too, drifted off to sleep.

Words: 1694

Sanity: 100%, this was beautiful

My sleep schedule: it's 1am and I have school, so idk, you tell me- :/

[under-the-blue-sun]

i know myself

summary: Dan huffed. "Look, Lester, I know what you're doing. You're taking pity on me and you're trying to help. It's nice. I get it. But I know myself, and I don't need your advice."

word count: 1571

rating: teen & up 

warnings: slurs (p*nce), blood, bullying, fight

note: i just needed some cliche fluff to write to kill the time. i apologise for the mess you're about to read. slightly inspired by cavetown's song, advice. give it a listen if you haven't already! enjoy :)

read on ao3

"Hey, ponce!"

Blurry faces surrounded the boy before Phil even had time to think. A small, pale face peeked out behind their muscular thighs, his curly hair stained with blood and sweat. An orange football boot shoved it down, covering his face in even more dirt and blood. The biggest one slammed a bright red lunch tray hit him even harder.

"See you after school." the scrawny one sniggered, before they stalked away.

It made Phil sick. Sick at them for doing that to him, sick at himself for watching them do that and not doing anything, sick at the world for allowing people to do that to other people.

"Hey." Phil said, before he could stop himself. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." the boy huffed, brushing the sandwich crumbs off his pants and the blood off his face.

"Are you new? Haven't seen you around." Phil said.

The boy picked up his tray and bottle.

"And you won't anymore." he said, and walked away before Phil could say anything else.

Phil stole a glance at the label on his drink bottle. Dan Howell.

It was at that moment when Phil decided he had found himself a new friend.

---

He saw Dan Howell again in the same spot outside the library with his lunch all over the floor.

"Did they shove you to the floor again?" Phil asked.

"No." Dan said. "I dropped my tray."

Phil nodded, even though he knew Dan was lying. "Okay."

Phil helped him clean it all up, and grabbed his drink bottle.

"How did you get all that blood on your face? From walking into a pole?" Phil said, as he handed the bottle to Dan.

Dan grabbed it quickly. "Yeah. Something like that."

Phil watched as Dan walked away, empty tray and bottle in hand.

"Hey, Howell!" Phil called out. "Got anyone to sit with?"

Dan didn't turn back.

---

Phil waited for a week before he talked to Dan again.

Phil smiled as he slammed his pile of books next to Dan. "Fancy seeing you here again."

Dan rolled his eyes and turned to look at Phil. "You again."

"I have a name, you know." Phil said, sticking out his hand. "Phil Lester."

Dan glanced at the hand before turning to his studying. Phil sighed and put his hand down.

"What are you studying?" Phil asked.

Dan huffed. "English. Look, Lester, I know what you're doing. You're taking pity on me and you're trying to help. It's nice. I get it. But I know myself, and I don't need your advice."

Phil nodded. "Alright."

Phil watched as Dan turned to study.

"Go away, Lester." Dan said, not turning.

"I actually need to study, though." Phil said, gesturing to his pile of textbooks.

Dan looked at him.

"What?" Phil said, grabbing his nearest textbook. "I also really need to study English."

Dan raised his eyebrow. "That's an Japanese textbook."

"Thank you for telling me." Phil said solemnly. "I have a lot of catching up to do."

---

"Got any new friends, Phil?"

Phil sighed. "I guess so. I don't think he really wants to be my friend, though."

"It's good you're trying." Mum said. "I know how sad you were after PJ and Martyn left. What's his name?"

"Dan. Dan Howell." Phil replied.

"That's a nice name." Mum beamed.

Phil shrugged. "Yeah, I guess."

Mum collapsed on the chair. "I give up on cooking. What pizza are we ordering this time?"

---

"Why do you wanna be my friend so bad?" Dan suddenly asked.

Phil bit his pencil. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Before you found out I cam here, you didn't step a foot in the library. Then, for two weeks in a row, you sit right here, right next to me, and you try to feed me food."

Phil shrugged. "I'm just trying to study here. Mint?"

Dan huffed. "Drop the act, Lester. What do you want from me?"

"Nothing!" Phil protested.

"I've been to three high schools. I know human teenagers don't try to get close to someone unless they have something to gain from it." Dan spat. "What do you want?"

Phil sighed. "I see those jerks bully you every day and it bugs me. What I want is for no one to go through that. No one deserves to be treated like a piece of meat, Howell. Even you."

"Lay off of me." Dan seethed. "You are not my mum."

"I don't need to be your mum to care about other people's wellbeing, Howell." Phil said.

"You're not my friend, either, Lester." Dan said, picking his textbook up. "So go the hell away."

"How about have a question from me, Howell? Why do you wanna not be my friend so bad? Am I doing something wrong? Or do you just not like me?"

Dan slammed the book on the desk. "You don't know shit about me. Shut the hell up and leave before I make you."

"Okay." Phil said. "See you around."

"No, you won't." Dan said.

Phil sighed and nodded, grabbing his books and heading home to his mum's terrible cooking.

---

"Good news, Phil." PJ said, over FaceTime. "I'm heading home for a bit."

"Really?" Phil said, grinning.

"Yeah." PJ smiled. "I can only chill on Sunday night, though. I already promised my parents for Saturday lunch and dinner. You know how they are."

"It's fine. There's the pop-up fair this weekend. Let's go to that." Phil suggested.

"Cool. Maybe I can meet your friend Dan?" PJ said.

Phil's smile immediately dropped. "No, he's busy."

PJ, sensing Phil's discomfort, nodded and changed topic immediately, and they talked for half an hour about narwhals before PJ had to hang up and Phil felt empty again.

---

"PJ!" Phil exclaimed.

PJ wrapped Phil in a tight hug. "Long time no see, Philly."

"So, how's university for you, Peej?" Phil asked, smirking. "Or should I say Doctor Peej?"

PJ rolled his eyes. "Oh, shut up. Haven't got my degree yet."

"Yet." Phil emphasized. "After you get it, I'm so calling you Doctor Peej."

The fair wasn't the classic American fair from high school teen movies, but it was good enough for England. As PJ said, England manages to make everything slightly drab, but their effort is cute.

"How are you so shit at literally the easiest game here?" PJ asked, shouting to be hard over the roar of the crowd.

"Shh, I'm trying my best." Phil shouted out, as he hit the exact middle between the two clowns which bounced off and hit him in the nose. "Ow!"

PJ sniggered. "This game's a bit too dangerous for you, Phil. Come on, let's go do something else."

Phil chuckled as stepped out of queue to let the 6-year-old behind him take the gun. PJ looked to the side and shook his head.

"And it wouldn't be a fair without the nerd being bullied by the jocks." PJ said, clicking his tongue.

Phil turned to see where PJ was looking at and froze. "That's Dan."

PJ's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

"Definitely." Phil replied.

"Are you sure?" PJ asked.

Phil nodded. "I'm certain."

After the tallest one took his last punch, the biggest one held him up by the neck and strangled him against the wall.

"Jesus Christ." PJ said.

"Come on, we have to help him." Phil said, running over to the site of the broken ferris wheel.

"Let him go, assholes." PJ yelled.

"Oh look, your boyfriends are here." the biggest one mocked.

"Oh, get a life, Smithson. Do you really have nothing better to do on a Sunday night?" Phil said, helping Dan up. "Bit sad, really. You'd almost think you guys are his boyfriends, with you wasting your nights over an obsession with a boy. Come on, Dan."

Phil lent a hand to help Dan up, but was pushed to the ground before Dan could get up. He brought his hand to his face, and realised that his nose was bleeding all over his shirt and denim jacket. He stumbled backwards, surprised, into the path of a police officer.

"Excuse me?" the officer said. "What do you think-"

She looked at the blood on his face, then at Smithson and the rest, who was already laughing and sprinting into the distance. She glanced at Dan and Phil, both covered in blood and bleeding all over the floor.

"Sorry, boys." she said, before she continued patrolling the area.

PJ sighed as he helped Dan and Phil up. "Are you two okay?"

"I'm okay, just bleeding a lot." Phil said, wiping the blood from his mouth. "Dan?"

Dan sighed as he felt around his neck. "I thought I told you to stop talking to me."

Phil looked down. "Sorry."

Dan shook his head. "I'm not mad."

"You're not?"

"No." He gave a small smile to Phil. "Thanks for helping me. Sorry for being such an asshole."

"It's okay." Phil said. "How about we spend the rest of the time here going on every ride and seeing which one makes us the sickest."

Dan grinned. "Sounds like a deal."

PJ smirked as he watched Dan flush as he held Phil's hand for a second longer than he should have.

"Maybe they were right about the boyfriend thing." PJ said aside to Phil.

Phil went red. "What?"

"I'm just saying." PJ said.

He had a feeling he was going to be hearing a lot more of this Dan Howell.