hope i never get that crazy.

It made sense, his desire to be upfront about something like this, but it still would've been appreciated had he mentioned his plan first. Wendy had already known John would be difficult to convince that she could like someone other than Peter, her brother having seen the many trials and tribulations she'd faced trying to get their friend to see her that way in the past. It seemed one of the similarities the two boys shared was their inability to be discreet, though Wendy would agree that perhaps it was better for John to know about her boyfriend's past career sooner instead of later. If she herself could get over it, so could he.

If the squeeze of his hand and small smile hadn’t been enough to reassure Phil that things really were okay, the declaration that he was stuck with her certainly would have been enough. “It’s not stuck when I’m exactly where I want to be,” he corrects with a grin of his own, returning the hand squeeze and bending over ever so slightly to place a kiss on her head before wrapping his arm around her shoulder and pulling her close into his side. It still amazed him sometimes, the fact that a girl as smart and stunning and all around just fucking fantastic could really want to be with a guy like him - but he knows better than to question it. Both because he doesn’t want Wendy feeling sorry for him in any way while also because he knows she’d likely just tell him he’s being silly. Still though, it feels at times like he lucked out far beyond what he ever would have thought he could. “He was very… proper,” he comments, hoping the word isn’t some kind of offense to the boy if he ever finds out he’d used it to describe him.

For all she'd prepared her boyfriend for the first conversation with her middle brother, Wendy was just now realizing she might have forgotten the request to specifically not mention the questionable career he'd kept before they'd gotten together. She simply tried not to think about it too much: what girl would want to constantly have her boyfriend's previous sexual relations on her mind so often? Of course it wasn't something John was comfortable with, as it had taken Wendy herself quite a long time to get over, but this certainly wasn't the way she'd wanted her brother to find out about it.

For all she was promising him that it was alright and even going so far as willingly taking the blame for this mess herself, Phil couldn’t help but feel even more guilty as he hears the deep sigh that she emits at his confession. She was trying so hard not to act disappointed, but he knew that’s exactly what she likely felt. Or frustrated at least, that much was for certain, even if she put on a good face about it like she always does when pushed into difficult situations like this. It was partially nice to see that she was willing to do the same thing for his mistakes as she would any of her friends, but mostly he just felt bad for having made the error that put her in this position in the first place.

For a second he considered explaining exactly why he was switching venues but John wasn't keen on giving away personal details to someone he'd just met. He nodded his head, "Yes, I would like to get out before it becomes too crowded. I hope you don't take any offense to me leaving, I'm sure the rest of the night will go on just fine without me." A similar apology had been given towards his siblings earlier in the night, but he thought it was necessary to give one out to the host as well. The fellow seemed to be as nice as everyone said he would be "I could only pray the pictures and stories do me justice, but if not, my apologies in advance. You—I'm afraid—are up against high expectations. Both literally and figuratively. I could only hear how tall you were before I had to see it for myself, and I must say I was not disappointed. However, I also hear you would've made a good Lost Boy, and that claim is not made lightly." It was too early for him to tell but if Nibs was the one saying such things then perhaps that wasn't a bad judgement. But John didn't feel so much like a Lost Boy anymore as to critique opinions so it wasn't his place to agree or disagree. "I have to thank you for that, if it weren't for you and your sister hosting, my friends would have thrown a party instead and their apartment is under no condition to host this many people."

It was very polite of him to be extending an apology for leaving the party so early in the evening, but also completely unnecessary, really. An event like this wasn’t super fancy or important - people would be coming and going all night, there was no need for anyone to explain themselves on that, certainly not his girlfriend’s brother. But Phil also doesn’t want to seem rude by not showing appreciation for his effort in showing up in the first place. “No offense taken, don’t worry about it. There’ll be plenty of other times for us to hang out,” he promised, hoping that would indeed be true. At the mention of his height and the seemingly good things that had been said about him, his grin only grew and he nodded his head a couple of times in agreement. “That’s fair. Being tall is basically the number one thing people ever actually remember about me. And that my sister and I used to eat bugs when we were kids, but we’ve phased out of that by now.” Or at least, Lil certainly had - Phil on the other hand was known to still occasionally down a beetle or worm if dared or offered enough cash to do so. “Oh man, that would have been so cool. You guys are all awesome - you remind me a lot of my own friend group. People used to call us the Rugrats. Or at least, our parents and Angelica did. And yeah, no apartment can really handle a full Halloween bash. We just lucked out that our parents and their friends chose this week to sail out on their old folks cruise.”

She nodded along in listening to the worst of what this guy had done, one of which she could almost relate to; Not knowing when or if she, herself, would've had the balls to officially ask out Lil had it not been for her asking first. But that was a non-issue now so she tried to not let that thought afflict her. Kelsi tried following along but it was hard to even really believe what she'd been hearing in the first place. It was a plan so absurd that it didn't even sound real at first but the aggravation in Phil's voice sounded too genuine to be something to joke about. "I'm sorry you were lied to. He sounds like an asshole." That much she was sure of, which only made her reassess if she was okay with him being here at all. The obvious was telling her that it was fine, since it was fine with Lil, but a greater part wondered how she could forgive and/or forget what happened so easily that she was inviting him around to parties already. It certainly hadn't been what Phil wanted to actually happen. Her nerves had probably been obvious, as they'd always been, but this time around she decided to do the smart thing and ask for reassurance. "I shouldn't be worried, right? Like, if she's okay with being around him then I should be too, right?"

“He’s the king of fucking assholes,” he corrects, shaking his head slightly as he forces himself to stay where he is. To stand next to Kelsi and continue the conversation instead of taking off and searching for Dash himself to kick the fucker out. Lil had warned him that an invitation had been extended to her ex-situationship and he was expected to be on his best behavior if they ran into each other, but Phil hadn’t actually thought that the other boy would have the guts to really show. He probably saw nothing wrong with attending a party at the home of the girl whose heart he so easily smashed like it was nothing. Fuck, he really hated the guy - but at least he was certain in the fact that he knew his sister felt the exact same way. Something that it seemed Kelsi didn’t realize. “Oh no. Don’t worry at all. Lil would be a fucking idiot to want that fucker again and you know she’s way smarter than both of us. Or, at least me. And even I can see how ridiculous that would be.” Placing a hand that he hopes is comforting on the girl’s shoulder he finally offers a smile and pushes his own anger at Dash and his mere existence away. “You’re good. She likes you, like a lot. The fact that she actually let me meet you proves that. She probably just invited him to show how done and over it all she is. Girls can be petty like that, you know. But yeah, nothing’s gonna happen there. You’re all good.”

~time skippy to halloween~

The moment he watched as John’s entire face twisted in what could only be described as disgust or anger or just a general judgment, he knew he’d messed up. That maybe bringing up his past career on the first meeting hadn’t been the smartest thing to do - but it had gone over well enough with the other Darling boy that Phil hadn’t actually considered that the older of the two brothers might not be as chill about it all. In his defense though, it was a major thing to know - something that had almost prevented Wendy from dating him all together, and he didn’t want to repeat that by any means. It was better to just get it out in the open, he had thought, than let John find out about it some other way. Obviously that might not have been the case, though.

closed starter for @bugsnackdeville location: deville halloween party

Hearing his name called, Phil instinctively turned around to see who it was, only to be startled at the sight of his sister’s girlfriend. Not that it was a bad thing, Kelsi coming up to him, it simply was just a surprise. He hadn’t expected her to be the one to make the first move on their next interaction. “Yeah, ‘course,” he agrees with a nod, though he has not a clue what this conversation could potentially be about. But once she mentions his sister’s ex, his eyes shoot up to go looking around the room in search of the boy as he listens to the rest of Kelsi’s worries. “First off, they aren’t really true exes. The asshole never had the balls to officially ask her out or make the big move,” he starts, frowning as he doesn’t catch sight of the blond head of hair that belongs to Dash. For all he had promised to be on his best behavior if he ran into the boy, Phil couldn’t help but tense up and be ready for a second confrontation. “I can’t believe he actually showed. The fucking audacity.” A word he normally would never use, but since meeting and then dating Wendy Darling, his vocabulary had widened vastly. “He was never actually into her. He was just trying to like mess with her mind so his fucking middle schooler soccer team would beat hers. It was fucking pathetic and ridiculous and Lil was crushed about it. I was fucking crushed about it. The dude pretended to be my friend and it was all just bullshit.” There was more to the story than just that necessarily, but it pretty much summed it up as far as Phil was concerned.

By the looks of his tall stature, John could already assume who it was. He held out his hand, thinking the other offered the same but instead he found a gift he couldn't take. He raised his hands in surrender, "Thank you, but no. I have to drive soon." His plans. for the night didn't end in the Deville house, perhaps if he had the time he could stop by the end of the night but he didn't want to make any promises he couldn't keep. "It is nice to meet you, Phil, I get to finally put a face to the name I hear Wendy talking so highly about." The new presence in his sister's life was something to get used to. The only thing that bothered John about it was that he didn't know of who to go to for a sincere evaluation of the man. He didn't feel like there was anywhere he could go to find an answer that wasn't in service of Phil or saying all the right things to let John feel like he could let his guard down. He was sure his father already examined Phil personally to see if the guy really was good for Wendy, so there wasn't much need to worry but he still did anyway. He just couldn't help but think there wouldn't be a need for so much worry had Wendy dated someone they all already knew about. "Yeah, it seems like everyone is having a good time. Do you always throw parties like this one?"

It was a bit of a surprise, the rejection of his drink considering he was pretty sure the Darling boy had just recently arrived at the party, but he rolled with it easily. “Oh, no problem. You’re heading out soon?” he can’t help but ask, considering the night was still so young and they were pretty much the only party that he knew was happening tonight. But who knows, maybe John had friends outside of the lost boys that he didn’t know about or maybe parties just weren’t really his scene - either way, he was going to make the most of the bit of time he did have with the other boy. Beaming at the mention of his girlfriend speaking highly of him, Phil nodded to indicate he felt similarly. “Same, man. I mean, I’ve seen pictures and stuff, but it’s not the same as finally being here in person with you, you know.” Taking a sip from the cup he’d earlier mentally declared his own, he sets the other one down on the table beside them just to free up his second hand. Not that he was really going to be doing anything with it, but he had felt a bit silly standing there double fisting the drinks while John had nothing in his own hands. “Well I hope so, it’s too early in the night for anyone to be getting messy or for any fights to have broken out yet. We’re still in the clear of all that drama, and hopefully we’ll stay that way all night.” Though with this many people here in one spot, drinking and smoking as much as they likely will be, it was highly doubtful there wouldn’t be at least a bit of drama found somewhere. “Us? Oh, no. Lil and I are usually more of a board game night type of party hosts. But our parents were out of town and someone had to throw something for the holiday - so we figured why not us?”

When she'd shared the sentiment, she hadn't expected to hear it returned so quickly. Wendy had said it because she knew it was what she felt, wholeheartedly, and also because she thought it might give Phil some confidence in where they were, as a couple, but she hadn't thought she might hear the statement reciprocated so effortlessly. It came like a wave of relief over her, like she could now tell him anything that aws on her mind simply because they were in love: nothing would be as daunting to say as those words she'd just gotten off her chest. A wide smile grew on her face, the sudden eagerness simply to be near him coming over Wendy that brought her to her feet briefly, only to be seated again on Phil's side of the booth as she grasped for him in a tight embrace.

Despite the fact that he’s known he was likely in love with Wendy for quite some time, he’d yet to let himself really think about just when and how he was going to tell her. This was his first time being in an actual relationship, he was learning everything as they went along, but he did know that saying the big l-word too early could be fatal to certain relationships. He had hoped theirs would be strong enough to withstand that potential mistake, but hadn’t quite been ready to risk it. Wendy had already had to work through so much to come to terms with her feelings for him, the last thing Phil wanted to do was add another potential stressor on top of that. But it turns out he had been worried for nothing - because the way she rushed over to sit on his side of the booth and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug showed just how much she really meant those words.

Phil's reaction to her speech brought immediate relief, a release of deep breath she'd been holding in anticipation. She wouldn't have blamed him if he'd been upset with her for how she'd felt about Peter before making the decision to be with Phil. All of it had been complicated, but it was only because she'd thought so long and profoundly over who she wanted to be with. Of course, in the beginning, there had been a few moments of doubt when Peter had admitted he'd now felt the same way she had for years. But, now, sitting across from the boy she'd come to know so well over nearly a year, Wendy knew she was where she was meant to be. She didn't like to dwell too much on the future, or whether things would change that would have her think differently, but, for now, her heart was in exactly the right place.

Maybe another guy would be upset that all of this had been kept from him for the past few months, that he had been led to believe the only hesitation Wendy had held over dating him had been his side career and he was never told anything about her feelings for another guy. Perhaps he should be annoyed, maybe that was the normal response to a situation like this. But Phil simply can’t find it in him to begrudge her never bringing it up. Maybe it was something she thought everyone knew about, or that Nibs or one of the other lost boys he had started befriending at the time would have already told him. Or maybe she simply just didn’t want to make an already complicated situation even more confusing for them both. Either way, it didn’t matter. She had chosen him. And she was declaring her confidence in that decision, which was all that Phil really needed to hear.

༝༝ 🦊 ༝༝

There was plenty that he could say in Troy’s honor, if he really wanted to defend the boy. They’d had enough double dates for Phil to feel confident he wasn’t really as big of a poser as his new friend seems to think he is - but that doesn’t really matter. Hearing how great the guy that won Sharpay’s heart might be wasn’t what Slightly needed to hear right now. He needed to be supported, rather than have his unrequited crush rubbed in his face even more than it already was. “I think there’ll be a lot of us ready to fight if he does fuck it up again,” he agrees instead, nodding his head at the sentiment. At the mention of his girlfriend, Phil couldn’t help the way his entire body perked up and a giant, dopey grin grew on his face. Whether Wendy had already told her friends about their recent developments in their relationship, he wasn’t sure, so he knew better than to share absolutely everything that had happened - but there was one big milestone that he just couldn’t help but want to tell every person in his life. He wanted to scream it from a rooftop or announce it over a football game loudspeaker or something. “They’re going good. Really good. She actually told me that she loves me the other day. And I obviously said it back, because I do, you know, love her. Like a lot. More than I thought it was possible to potentially love someone.”

"Regardless who it is, I'm happy for her. But, of course, it's more fun to have mutual friends to hang out with, too," she agreed. Though Wendy hadn't overlapped with dating Phil as Lil was with her ex-boyfriend, she of course had heard all about how tumultuous that experience had been for his sister. It was nice to see her happy after having such a devastating previous relationship. "It'll be a fun night, I think." If it was anything like the time when they'd gone out with Sharpay and Troy before, she was certain it would be enjoyable, albeit probably vastly different from the kind of nights spent in at the boys' apartment.

“I’m just glad she’s bouncing back and doing so well after the whole Flash thing,” he admits, something that he would never dare to say aloud to his sister but feels confident it’s safe being told to Wendy. Not that he didn’t think Lil was capable of getting over a shitty situation and a bit of heartbreak, but the whole Dash situation had just been far worse than anything she’s had to deal with before. And it was Phil’s duty as a brother to be worried about her during times like this.

From what she'd gathered, most of why this game night was happening to begin with was for his sister to introduce him to the girl she was seeing. Which, Wendy supposed, was as good of a reason as any to get people together. Though she didn't particularly love the idea of hanging out around someone her boyfriend had slept with, she knew making a good impression on Sharpay was important, too, as she was certain all would be reported back to Tink. "She's a friend of Sharpay's, isn't she? I thought that's what Lil had said. What a small town we live in," she remarked at the coincidence of their mutual connection.

“Yeah,” he confirms with a grin, both excited to meet the girl he’s heard so much about and also happy that Wendy had remembered that fact about her. “They went to the same high school together and now they work together on Sharpay’s music. I don’t really know how Lil even met her, honestly, but it’s cool.” It also made Phil happy that his sister had indeed found another person he’d never hooked up with before in any way, knowing she constantly liked to complain about how seemingly impossible it felt to do just that.

Now that she had finally found an agent, Wendy had began editing her novel, which was a strange stage for her to be: she'd edited her essays and things in the past for school, but every annotation she made now felt like the end of the world, as she knew people were going to be reading it sometime soon. The Lucky Cat remained her favorite place to work on her book, knowing that her now boyfriend wasn't too far away for free tea and encouragement whenever he had a break. Though she was now in her new place with John, it was still nice to get out of the house. Wendy was mid-sentence when Phil had sat down, prompting the quick bite of her bottom lip as she finished typing what she was thinking before her eyes darted up from her laptop, then back to the table. "Oh, you're the best," she gushed as Wendy reached for the food placed before her. "Going well, I think, actually. I'm a chapter ahead of where I'm supposed to be right now, so I can make game night this weekend," Wendy reported with a proud smile, knowing how important it was to him that she was there. After taking a bite of her half of the sandwich, she tapped her lips with a napkin politely as her eyes caught the time on her computer. "You're off now, right? I think I can head out, whenever we're finished." She'd gotten enough done for the day, and she was eager to simply spend time with Phil after a long session in front of her laptop.

It was still a bit strange, being complimented so openly and freely, but every time it happened Phil couldn’t help the big, cheesy grin that grew on his face. “That’s good. Cause I think Lil wants to put as many extra people in the room as she can to act as some kind of buffer between me and her mystery girl,” he half-joked, despite knowing it probably was indeed at least somewhat true. And his sister seemed to really like Wendy as well, and the way that he always seemed to at least be on a bit of better behavior whenever she was around, so she’d be glad to hear that the brunette was going to be able to make it after all. Nodding his head, he took a bite of his own half of the sandwich, thinking over how to best bring up the topic he knows they need to discuss as he chews.