You can read it here!
(And if that doesn't work, here's it copy-pasteable
https://archiveofourown.org/works/63921304/chapters/229614906)
Thank you everyone for not throwing stones at me for taking so long, I am severely disabled and writing can only happen when I can make it happen, I wish it came out sooner too, but at least I'm funny and hot!
Once again, big big big thanks to @houseofcharobones and @bakewrite and @borbalort for betareading!
And now a taglist of people I think would be interested in the chapter! Let me know if you wanna be removed or added! No hard feelings for anyone who wants to be removed, I think AO3 emails you when my fic updates anyways lol
GFP <3
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@bakewrite @houseofcharobones @intermixforyou @acaciajules @elkstier-ryttlius @starrschaos @itendswithakiss @wintersshadows @turquoise-kitten @ahumoki0 @carrottheluvmachine @spooky0ats @alphabeticalcrabattical @jahakibe @akelafang @borbalort @maymo0 @cringeisdeadandsoami
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Alright, I'm back with another chapter of Promise Rings! Sorry for posting this a bit later than expected, but I really hope you enjoy this chapter!
(Note: I think this chapter does have spoilers regarding Kageyama's family? I'm pretty sure there are no spoilers regarding the actual plot, so hopefully that's okay.)
⭐⭐⭐
Age: 10
Tobio gave me the signal after his practice match, but I had a feeling that this post-game meeting would be a little different. I quickly notified our parents about our meeting, and they waved me off as I grabbed my jacket. I approached the entrance and waited by the door. From the other side of the door, I heard the voices from Tobio’s teammates.
“Really?” one of the boys exclaimed in shock.
“What do you mean she isn’t your girlfriend, Kageyama-san?” another boy asked between chews. I felt my cheeks heat up as I realized the topic of their conversation. My cheeks are just red from the cold. Yeah, just the cold. I heard Tobio stutter a little bit as he attempted to explain everything.
“W-We’ve been friends since preschool. She’s just my f-friend,” Tobio explained. That’s right; we have been friends ever since I talked to him back in preschool four years ago, but why do I feel like there is something else he is hiding? Before the team could continue the conversation, Tobio cut it off, “I need to go meet up with Karin. See you guys.” A broken chorus of farewells echoed for a second before Tobio emerged from the gym. “Hey, did I keep you waiting long?” he asked, worry laced into his voice.
“Nope, I just got here like a minute ago,” I replied happily. He gave me a small smile as I noticed his red cheeks. It’s probably just from all the running. The coach did decide that Tobio would play the entire time. “So what’s up?” I questioned.
“We both know that I could have been better,” he answered sadly with a sigh. Rolling my eyes, I huffed at him before I expressed myself.
“Oi,” I called him from his sadness. “You did amazing. It was just the endurance that caused you to have a sloppy game today. That improves over time,” I scolded him. “Now, stop sulking. We need to go refuel,” I quickly changed the topic, turning to walk out the door. Before I could even take a step, Tobio grabbed my wrist, catching my attention. I felt my heart beating fast against my ribcage. My heart must be pumping blood in order to circulate the nutrients of that energy bar I had halfway through the game.
“I have something to give you,” Tobio bluntly stated. Confused, I turned towards him again as his hand rummaged through his pocket. I watched his hand stop before he took a deep breath. From his pocket, he pulled out a small box that fit in his palm. Tilting my head to the side, I switch my vision between him and the box. “Do you remember those rings you wanted a few years ago?” he questioned, trying to spark my memory.
Nodding, I answered, “Yeah, I do. So what?” He hands me the box and tells me to open it. Inside, two rings sit in the velvet. One ring was a simple coil with nothing special on it while the other was an open-ended ring with a moon and star at the ends. With more confusion, I looked at him to see him nervously biting his lip. “What are these?” I asked him; I have never seen something like this before.
“I saved a lot of money from birthdays and stuff, and I was able to buy both of them,” he answered, not really answering my question. “They’re supposed to be promise rings,” he stated as I looked at him for the answer to my question.
“How come they look kind of different than normal rings?” I questioned as I stared at the rings.
“Because they’re meant to be adjustable,” Tobio stated again. Shifting my attention to him again, I noticed him scratching the back of his head. Understanding, I stared at the rings again. They seemed pretty basic: just some silver shaped to look nice. “Yours is the moon one by the way,” Tobio quickly added right before I was going to ask, “I know how much you like astrology.” We have known each other long enough to the point where he could practically read my thoughts. For a moment, we sat there in silence before Tobio broke it, “Do you like them?”
“Do I like them?” I questioned. “I love them!” I emphasized each syllable as I threw my arms around Tobio’s neck, giving him a big hug. He stumbled for a second before he caught his balance and hugged me back. His arm wrapped tightly against my body as he squeezed me. We hugged for a few moments longer before I released the hug.
Taking my ring out of the box, I handed the box back to Tobio before declaring, “If they’re promise rings, we should use them for a promise!” Tobio took out the other ring before closing the box and tucking it into his pocket. We both thought for a moment before I had an idea. “Let’s promise to be best friends forever!” I proposed. “We can always change it later if we want,” I added in case he was hesitant to take me up on the promise. Tobio slowly nods before looking at me. With a smile on my face, we slide the rings onto our right ring finger. For the first time, I saw Tobio genuinely smile with his teeth, and I smiled back.
“Okay, but we need to eat now,” Tobio stated, killing the moment. “My stomach is going to kill me, and I could honestly eat a horse,” he exaggerated. Scoffing, we begin walking towards the door.
“Where did you even get the idea to get rings?” I suddenly wondered as we were walking towards the car.
“Miwa,” Tobio simply answered. “She told me that you would like it,” he elaborated as we continued our way through the parking lot. Of course he couldn’t think of this idea by himself. Clueless.
Age: 11
I was sitting by the window when the girl’s volleyball team approached me during break. I could hear them giggling and talking from a mile away, and when I turned around towards them, I noticed that they were pretty happy.
“So Care Bear,” Megumi started, “Who gave you the ring?” After all this time, I never bothered to tell them who gave me the ring since they would always bother me about my relationship with Tobio.
Sighing, I answered my typical answer, “I’m not going to tell you.” I watched all of their faces fall from smiles into a flat line. Every day for the past year, they have been asking the same question, but they have received no answers from me.
“Try all you want, Karin,” Rei started in her serious voice, “but we know that Kageyama-san gave you the ring.” Looking at them shocked, I scanned their faces as they stared back at me. “So it really was him,” Rei muttered as her face turned shocked.
“W-What?” the tone of my voice suddenly raised up. “What are you walking about?”
Megumi glared at me before answering, “We know that Kageyama-san gave you the ring. We confirmed it with him a couple days ago.” With the heat rising in my face, my cheeks reddened as I contemplated how to respond. How did Tobio say anything before I did? “Oh my god I was right,” Megumi gasped as she watched my expression and reaction. “You owe me Pocky, Rei-chan.” I heard Rei sigh before slapping an unopened box into Megumi’s palm.
“W-Wait, you guys DIDN’T know before?” I panicked, my cheeks probably red from smiling too much earlier. The ace and other wing spikers snickered a little bit before bursting out into laughter. I looked at each of them, feeling panic rising in my chest.
“We kind of knew ever since you got it, and we would’ve knew even if you didn’t tell us, Karin-san,” Usagi-chan, one of our younger wing spikers, giggled out. I covered my face away to look out the window. From the window, I spotted Tobio buying some milk from the vending machine, and the voices of the girls slowly faded away until Megumi slapped my back.
“Ow! What was that for?” I snapped at them, rubbing my back from where Megumi slapped my back. I always forgot that Megumi was so strong.
“You have to stop daydreaming, Karin,” Megumi stated, annoyed. I could tell she was serious; she never called anyone by their real names unless she needed to get her point across. “You might as well confess to him,” Megumi continued as she rested her chin on the palm of her hand.
“Seriously,” Rei added, “I don’t know how much longer I can deal with you two acting like a couple and then denying it.” Usagi-chan nodded in agreement. “By the way, we’re doing this for the sake of our captain,” Rei stated, winking at me.
“But I don’t like him?” I questioned them confused, denying their assumptions. The instant I finished my statement, our ace, Sakura, hit her head against the table. “Sakura!” I yelled out of concern. Her head rested on the desk for a moment before she suddenly looked up to glare at me.
“I swear to God,” Sakura growled, “if you two don’t end up together, I will lose it.” All the other members shared small glances with each other, afraid of the threat that she just presented. “We have seen the way that you and him interact, look at each other, and talk, captain,” Sakura muttered as she laid her head back against the desk. “There’s already so much tension. Just date already.”
“And while you’re at it, get married and have kids,” Rei quickly added as she started cleaning her nails a bit. I felt my heart suddenly skip a beat as I processed her words. I controlled my facial expressions and my heart before I responded.
Scoffing, I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms, stating, “We’re just friends with a deeper connection. There’s no way that he likes me or that I like him. I think I know how I feel after being close to him for like seven years now.” I watched all of their reactions shift from annoyed to the edge of insanity as they tried to comprehend my words.
“I give up, you guys,” Usagi-chan stated sadly, her hand pinching her nose bridge. The other members shared glances with each other before we heard the warning bell ring. “We should get going now though. See you at practice, captain,” she stated, giving me a slight bow. The rest of the group trudged to the door before walking back to their classes. Chuckling at them, I began grabbing my materials for next period: math. Placing my workbook into the table, I looked up to see one of my classmates placing a carton of milk onto my desk.
Before I could ask anything, she stated, “It’s from Kageyama-san, and he told you to meet up with him at your usual spot to eat.” Nodding, I thanked her before opening the carton of milk and taking a sip. He couldn’t even be bothered to come by the classroom and hand it to me himself? I found myself smiling as I took the sip. Maybe the team was right. Maybe I did like him more than a best friend. Idiot.
~~~
My eyes widened when I heard the news from my mom. I could only stare and blink for a few seconds before I returned back to reality.
“Tobio-kun’s grandpa?” I questioned in shock as I tilted my head. My mom could only sigh and nod as she made me understand the situation.
“Yesterday night, he passed away,” she repeated herself for what seemed like the hundredth time today. I looked down at the floor, feeling the tug of sadness in my heart from the news. While he was never my grandpa, he always took care of me like one, and he was the one that taught me, Miwa-san, and Tobio to play volleyball. Without noticing, I felt the tears about to drip down my cheeks.
“Can I go stop by Tobio-kun’s house?” I asked quietly, fully knowing the answer without her response. She nodded as her hand patted my head. I immediately dashed to my room to go grab my jacket. As soon as I got my shoes onto my feet, I was already sprinting to his house, not letting myself catch a breath. When I arrived a couple minutes later, I knocked on the door. On the other side of the door, I heard small footsteps behind the door before the door carefully opened.
“Karin-chan? What are you doing here?” Tobio questioned as one eye peeked at me from behind the door. I noticed the redness in his eyes from crying. He opened the door as he rubbed his swollen eyes. When I noticed how upset he was, I could feel myself starting to sympathize with him.
“I heard,” I simply answered as he let me into the house. He closed the door with a sniffle before he turned towards me, clearly wanting to cry again. “Tobio-kun, do you want a hug?” I questioned when I watched the tears well up in his eyes.
“No, I’m fine,” he answered with a shaky breath as he wiped away his tears. I stared at him, knowing well enough that he just needed some comfort. I held out my arms, and he took a step before wrapping his arms around me. We sat on the floor as we started crying together.
“Everything will be fine,” I whispered as I tried to calm the both of us down, knowing that we would not get over it for a long time.
“He didn’t deserve to die, Karin-chan,” he sniffled, refusing the truth. He choked back another sob as his tone of voice raised, “He doesn’t deserve to die because of a stupid cold.” I nodded on his shoulder, agreeing with him. I sniffled as I began controlling my emotions.
“I know, but we can’t do anything now,” I muttered as I tightened my hug. I bit the inside of my lip as I started to feel myself wanting to cry again. I didn’t notice, but Mrs. Kageyama scooped the two of us into her arms and sat on the couch, cradling the two of us.
“It’s going to be okay, you two,” she muttered as she stroked our backs, comforting us. “You know that he is never going to leave your hearts, right?” I nodded slowly as I sniffled again. For the rest of the afternoon, Mrs. Kageyama comforted Tobio and I until we fell asleep. At some point, my mom came by to pick me up, but I had apparently clung onto Tobio tightly which made it difficult to separate us, ending up with me spending the night at the house with a heavy heart.
⭐⭐⭐
Let's stop here for this chapter. I really hope that you really liked this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it! I'll see you in the next one!
[Eng/Esp] The fourth chapter is now officially available / El cuarto episodio está oficialmente disponible
It looks like there’s some connection between you and the kidnappings happening in the city of Raziel. Will you find out who’s after all of this? Will you be caught in the process? You might be closer to the truth than you think.
New episode updates:
Some improved/new visual elements.
3 CGs.
3 BGs.
3 sprites.
2 new background songs.
Some other implementations and corrections:
Corrections on the english translation of the third and fourth chapter, and part of the first one also; thanks to our new beta reader ^^
Correction of the Base map, matching the new backgrounds.
Two new backgrounds added to the third episode.
Change on the rest of the old backgrounds.
➡️➡️➡️ Go to Itch to download
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Parece que hay un vínculo entre tú y los secuestros que asolan la ciudad de Raziel. ¿Averiguarás quién está detrás de todo esto? ¿Te atraparán? Puede que estés más cerca de lo que crees de encontrar una respuesta.
Actualización del nuevo episodio:
Varios elementos visuales nuevos/mejorados.
3 CGs.
3 BGs.
3 sprites.
2 hilos musicales nuevos.
Otras implementaciones y correcciones:
Corrección del inglés del capítulo 3 y 4 y parte del 1, gracias a nuestra nueva beta reader.
Corrección del mapa de la Base, acorde a los nuevos fondos.
The fluffiest raspberry and coconut pancakes for my sixth vegan anniversary today! With vanilla meringue, raspberries, strawberries, maple syrup and coconut ice cream 🥞🍓🥥
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“I want him to see the flowers in my eyes and hear the songs in my hands.”
― Francesca Lia Block, Dangerous Angels
a phan flower shop/video editor au
(read on ao3) - start from the beginning!
previous chapter | next chapter
~~~
“Don’t be weird,” Dan told himself. He sucked in a lungful of air and raised his hand to knock. He rapped a few times and winced at the echoing sounds that ricocheted in the narrow hallway. His stomach was tight with anticipation, and he was nervous enough that sweat beaded on his forehead. He didn’t know what to expect - what did mostly-friends do on a video game and pizza night? Or...date? He still wasn’t sure about that. Phil’s brief text yesterday that had contained his address hadn’t been very informative.
There was a thud somewhere in the flat and frantic running, then the door was hauled open. “Hi!” said Phil. “Um.” He looked like he wanted to slam the door back in Dan’s face. “Er, sorry. I’ll...gimme a second. Wait, no, come in.”
Dan’s mouth had gone dry. He stepped inside, sweeping his tongue across his parched lips subconsciously. Phil was wearing nothing but a pair of low-cut jeans and colourful socks, his naked chest gleaming in the light from the hallway.
“Sorry!” said Phil again, closing the door and locking it. He looked adorably flustered. “I was - I forgot what time it was. I was trying to do laundry. Sorry. Hold on.” He scurried toward an open door near the back of the flat. Dan stared unapologetically at the ripples of his bare back. “Make yourself at home!” Phil called back as he vanished into the room.
Dan blinked rapidly to try to clear his thoughts. He’d wanted to bite. He wondered if Phil regularly wandered about his flat in nothing but trousers and socks when he was doing laundry.
“What do you like on your pizza?” Phil called. There was a crash from the room. “I’m fine!”
“Uh…” said Dan. “Anything, I guess.” He glanced around the living room, taking in the slumped sofa and matching ottoman that stood in front of Phil’s wide television set. There were a dining table and chairs between the sofa and the kitchen counter, which was open and visible from the front door. Houseplants, stuffed plushies, video game and movie posters, and candles were everywhere. It all seemed undeniably...Phil.
Phil came out of the bedroom, fighting his shirt as he tried to fit both of his arms through it at once. “Goddamnit,” he said. His head finally poked through and his hair looked wild. “Sorry, again,” he repeated for probably the fifth time. “I thought it was like an hour earlier than it is. I was trying to wash my bedsheets.”
“Why’s that?” Dan said. He winked and immediately regretted it.
A red tint was climbing Phil’s cheeks. He nudged a floor plant that was reaching for his legs with long leaves. “Uh, actually...I spilt milk on them. Like half of a cupful.”
“How?” Dan asked, disbelieving. It would have been a preposterous lie. He desperately wanted to make a joke about ‘cream,’ but resisted.
Phil waved a hand. “It involved a carbonating machine. Don’t ask.”
That just made Dan want to know even more, but he changed the subject and said instead, “So, pizza? Was there something that you don’t like on it?”
“Not too much cheese,” Phil said. “But I like all pizzas. Ooh, especially the Sizzler.”
“That was discontinued,” Dan pointed out.
Phil looked grumpy. “Yeah, I know. I’ve emailed them like fifty times. It’s my favourite.”
“Well,” said Dan, barely resisting a smile, “we could create a pizza.”
Nodding very seriously, Phil agreed, “We could. We will. But how hungry are you right now? We could play some Mario first before ordering. Since it’s only six.”
“Not very hungry,” Dan admitted. He couldn’t tear his gaze away from the shirt that clung tantalizingly to Phil’s chest. It looked like it was much too tight, but Dan certainly wasn’t going to complain. “What about you?”
“Not very,” Phil echoed. He headed for the kitchen, yanking open various drawers and looking hilariously confused at the contents of each. “Do you like Ribena?” he asked.
Dan had followed him and he leaned against the bar between the dining area and the kitchen. “Yeah, of course.”
“Good!” said Phil. “Because I don’t have anything else except water.”
Dan snorted a laugh. He watched Phil as he moved around the kitchen and prepared two glasses of Ribena. “So,” Dan said, for once feeling like a conversation might come relatively easily to him, “how did the meeting with your supervisor go? Also, how was your trip to visit your parents this last weekend? I forgot to ask while you were in the shop on Thursday.” It helped that he genuinely wanted to know and wasn’t just trying to make small-talk.
Phil took a careful sip out of one of the glasses and apparently deemed it worthy, as he offered the other glass to Dan. Taking it, Dan followed him back over to the living and sat down on one end of the sofa, avoiding the tiny cactus on the side table.
Phil hadn’t answered him the entire time, but he did now as he set down his drink on the side table that was on the other end of the sofa. “The meeting was...a meeting,” he said reluctantly. “I hadn’t finished my project in time so I had to ask for an extension. But that’s only because the client had requested more work and I didn’t have nearly enough time to do it.”
Dan nodded understandingly, taking a sip of his Ribena. “Yeah, that makes sense.”
“Anyway, totally exciting,” Phil said, rolling his eyes. He moved to the TV and began setting up the game. Dan watched him unashamedly, enjoying the sliver of skin that appeared between Phil’s shirt and pants as he bent over.
“But!” said Phil. “Visiting my parents was loads of fun. My brother and his girlfriend were there, as I think I mentioned, so we all spent time together and it was great. We played Monopoly and I won.” He looked pleased with that declaration. “I don’t win very often. My parents usually control the entire board and crush all of us, but this time my dad was trying to cook something in the kitchen so Martyn and I kept my mom in jail most of the time.”
Dan couldn’t fight the grin that had inhabited his face. “That does sound like fun.” He wished his family visits were like that. They weren’t bad, just quiet and familiar, with nothing exciting like board games or friendly competition, or just hanging out for the sake of being together.
“It was.” Phil nodded. He stood, stretched, and then yawned before settling onto the sofa beside Dan. “But what did you do while I was gone? Anything super exciting?”
Dan had to regather his thoughts. They’d scattered when Phil’s knee had pressed against his own. He absent-mindedly accepted the controller that Phil handed him. “Er...I mean, not really. Just work. And on the weekends I usually just sit around at my flat to play games and be lazy all day.” He mused internally, considering if that made him seem pathetic and lonely, and decided that it might, so he added, “And I went out with Louise.” He felt an urge to tell Phil about his attempts at writing an actual piece of music, but couldn’t make himself bring it up.
“Fun!” said Phil, when Dan said nothing else. He’d powered on the game and the familiar sounds of Mario Kart were chirping at them. Shifting in his seat, his leg fell away from Dan’s. Dan missed it immediately. He wondered if Phil had done it on purpose. “Okay!” Phil said. “Best of three?”
Dan narrowed his eyes at him, the thrill of competition surging in him. “You’re on, mate.”
~~~
They played for a solid hour, banter and threats flying, before Phil let out a loud whine of defeat, biting his controller as he threw himself sideways across the couch. “Why?” he moaned.
Dan let out a cackle of triumph, his arms high above his head. He stretched casually, smirking down at Phil’s posture of despair. “I am the Mario Kart champion!” he declared.
Phil was still angrily chewing on the corner of his controller. At least Dan knew where the teeth prints had come from that were on his own. “You didn’t tell me you were an expert,” he accused.
“I give my prey very little warning before I completely obliterate them,” Dan told him. “But that was pretty pathetic. Best out of twenty, and you still only won three.”
Phil sulked at him, a frankly adorable frown tugging at his mouth. He’d thrown his feet up onto the couch when he fell sideways and his toes were digging into Dan’s thighs. Even rumpled in casual clothes and teeth clenched tight on the plastic of his controller, he still looked unbearably attractive. Dan wondered if he could convince Phil to bite him instead of the controller.
“I hate you,” Phil confidently told Dan.
Dan just laughed and poked his toes. Phil screeched and yanked them away, and Dan filed that reaction away into the rapidly-filling ‘Phil’ box in his mind. “Sure you do. Best out of thirty?”
“No.” Phil looked disgruntled. “I’m ordering pizza. Then we can play something I’m good at. Like Mortal Kombat.”
Dan decided not to tell Phil the hundreds of hours he’d spent playing that game in his room as a teenager. There was no need to spoil the surprise of Phil’s imminent destruction. He stood, collecting the long-empty glasses on the side tables. “Fine. I’ll get more Ribena. Order the pizza. I like barbecue or the chicken bacon ranch pizza. Get it half-and-half with whatever you want.”
Phil had fallen back fully against the couch armrest, sprawling his legs across the still-warm seat Dan had vacated and pulling out his phone to tap at it. Dan pulled his gaze away from Phil’s impossibly long legs and headed to the kitchen. He found the Ribena, but almost collided with the still-open cabinet doors. He cursed colourfully when his shin banged into a drawer that was hanging out. He hadn’t even seen Phil open this one earlier. He considered reprimanding Phil for it but decided they weren’t yet at that point in their...relationship. Friendship. Whatever this was.
Dan was filled with a sudden resolve to figure out just what it was, so he hurriedly filled the glasses with a Ribena-water mixture and went back into the lounge. Phil was still stretched across the sofa, his legs taking up an intolerable amount of space. Dan reluctantly shoved at them instead of giving in to the temptation of just sitting on Phil.
Phil pulled his knees up against his chest in place of letting them fall off the couch. He squinted as his phone. “Okay,” he said. “It’s half barbecue and half Hawaiian. Do you like jalepeños?”
“Yep. In moderation.” Dan settled himself into his seat. He put one of the Ribena glasses down onto the side table and took a sip from the other, musing over how to actually bring up the subject of...this. Did he just come right out and ask if it was a date? Phil hadn’t exactly made it clear. And he hadn’t made any moves unless bumping into him and then quickly shuffling away counted as a move.
“It should be here in about thirty minutes!” Phil announced.
Dan considered that, maybe, he should just wait and see how the night went. Surely Phil would give him a signal soon.
Phil snatched the controller from where it’d fallen beside him and he shook it threateningly at Dan. “Time for battle, mate.”
“Oh, you’re on,” Dan assured him. He abandoned his Ribena and they were right back at it again.
~~~
It was a good two hours later. Dan was slumped across the side of the sofa, still feeling unbelievably stuffed full of pizza. His legs were tucked under him and he watched Phil half-heartedly direct his character through Skyrim. Dan didn’t understand the comfort level he had after so little time spent with Phil. Was it weird to feel so utterly relaxed after barely three hours spent in his company? They’d sort of gotten to know each other for the past three months, sure, but this was the first time Dan had felt like he was spending real time with him. He wanted to know everything about Phil. Maybe that’s what was weird.
“Ugh,” said Phil. He had just died on-screen. “Stupid wolves.” He paused the game and dropped the controller, falling sideways across his own side of the sofa and clutching his stomach with a groan. “I never want to move again.”
“We ate far too much,” Dan agreed. He couldn’t look away from the length of Phil’s neck as he stared aimlessly up at the ceiling.
“Hey, Dan,” said Phil, not looking over at him.
“Hmm?”
Dan could see the corners of Phil’s lips tugging up. “What does a flower therapist ask her patients?”
“Please don’t,” said Dan.
“Are you feeling bouquet?” Phil laughed before Dan could even react, his mouth breaking in a wide grin. “Get it?”
“You’re the worst kind of person,” Dan told him.
Uncaring, Phil hauled his legs up on the sofa and stretched them out across the distance between them. He stopped just before his toes hit Dan’s thighs, gaze still affixed to the ceiling above them. Dan wanted to poke his feet again to see how he would react but was ultimately too lazy to actually reach over and do it. Once more, he wondered if this was a date. He’d never been so at ease before with someone he might be on a date with. Then again, he’d never been confused if he was on a date or not.
The dip of Phil’s collarbone taunted him.
Fuck it, Dan thought. There was no way to know unless he asked.
The moment he had decided this, his phone, abandoned on the ottoman, shrilled loudly at him. Phil’s head fell over to look at it. Dan glared at the buzzing device, willing it to shut up and give back his silent moment. It rang once, twice, three times.
“Are you going to answer that?” Phil asked. His voice sounded rough and tired. God, Dan wanted to know if this was a date.
“I guess.” Reluctantly, he leaned forward far enough to snag the phone. He scowled at the caller ID with bemusement. “What the fuck.” Louise knew perfectly well where he was tonight. There was no reason for her to be calling him. “Hello,” he answered it, no inflection in his tone whatsoever.
“Dan!” Her voice was high with nerves. “I’m so sorry!”
He sat up instantly. “What’s wrong?” Phil was watching him keenly.
“I’d never do this, you know me,” she insisted. She sounded fantastically apologetic and stressed at the same time. Something banged on her side and Dan flinched the phone away from his ear. When he brought it back, she sounded out-of-breath. “I just got a rush order for a wedding tomorrow morning! I have to make eighty different bouquets. Please, I swear I’ll make it up to you, but I need your help. They’re due at four o’clock.”
Dan glanced at the clock on his phone. It was just past nine. If he got there in the next thirty minutes, they might be able to get it done in time. There was no way she could do it by herself. “Christ, Louise.”
“I know!” she said. “I would never accept an order like this, but they’re paying like triple the normal amount since it’s an emergency and a big wedding. Their other florist dumped them because the bride’s dad tried to hook up with her or something. I dunno. Just. I’m really sorry, I know this is like your date with Phil but I really, really need help.”
Dan sighed. It was a very weighty, disgruntled sigh. “Goddamnit. Fine. You’re making this up to me.” And he would never get her flowers like Phil had gotten for his boss.
“I will!” she promised. “I promise I will. And tell Phil I’m sorry too.”
“Yeah, whatever,” he said. He hung up and let the phone dangle from limp fingers.
Phil had sat up, his legs drawn to him. “Louise?” He had a resigned look on his face that Dan hated.
“Yeah,” Dan said. “Some flower emergency. She needs my help. She’s really sorry.”
“It’s fine. I mean, we were kind of in a food coma and barely doing anything, anyway.” Phil waved a hand as if it didn’t mean anything, but his expression seemed like it did, just a little.
Dan managed to get to his feet and Phil stood with him, nudging the empty pizza box to the side. Dan made his way to the door and let Phil get ahead of him to open it, but he didn’t leave right away. He hesitated in the doorframe. A plant by the door, the first thing he’d seen besides Phil’s naked chest when he’d arrived, reached its long leaves to swipe against his face.
Phil, too close, reached up and brushed it away from Dan’s cheek. He looked fond, and Dan hoped.
“Phil,” he said. He wondered if the tone of his voice had sounded strange, but it was hard to concentrate when Phil was this near to him, undoubtedly staring at Dan’s lips.
Phil’s gaze flickered up and met Dan’s. His eyes were warm in the light from the hallway.
“Is this. Are you…” Dan didn’t know how to say it. “Are we - what.” He stopped, frustrated with himself. “What is this?” That wasn’t how he’d meant to say it. He tried to regroup his thoughts.
But Phil had glanced down at the phone still in Dan’s hand and he took a hasty step backwards. He swallowed visibly. “This was fun!” he said. “We should hang out more often. I can - I’ll text you.” He smiled, and it looked sad, but it was a real smile. “We’ll be great friends, I can tell.”
“No,” said Dan. Or at least, he thought he’d said it. Maybe he’d only thought it. There was no way Phil only wanted to be friends, Dan was sure. There was a reason for all of this waiting Dan had done, wasn’t there? There was a reason Phil had come every week to the little flower shop where Dan worked, watching him when he thought Dan wasn’t looking. There had to be a reason Phil stared at him for too long, stared at his lips.
Dan took a step forward, closing the distance Phil had made between them. “Phil,” he said, and this time he’d actually said it aloud. His voice sounded too firm, even to his own ears. “You watch me. It means something, doesn’t it?”
Phil skittered backwards. His blue, blue eyes were wide and panicked. “No!” he said. “Of course not. I’m sorry. It wasn’t supposed to mean anything. I mean, it doesn’t mean anything. Look, I wasn’t trying to…” His arms flailed. “You didn’t notice. I thought.”
Dan couldn’t make sense of anything Phil was saying. The words were scrambled together and made no sense in Dan’s head. Maybe they weren’t actually English.
“Look,” said Phil. He was still flustered. “I’ll stop.”
“Don’t!” Dan burst out. He couldn’t bear the thought of whatever Phil meant by stop. Stop coming to the flower shop? Stop talking to Dan? Stop giving him those wanting looks that Dan had evidently been misreading this entire time? “Please,” said Dan. He searched desperately for meaning in what Phil had said before. He felt unmoored, flummoxed. Nothing was going the way he’d thought it would. “You can come to the shop. Anytime. We can be friends if you want.” That must be what Phil wanted.
Phil’s face was collapsing with relief. “Okay,” he said. “Friends. Yes.”
Dan’s phone buzzed again. Louise was impatient with her urgency.
Phil shifted from foot to foot, hand on the door. “I’ll text you,” he said, casting another inscrutable glance to Dan’s phone.
“Okay,” said Dan.
The door was shut in his face, Phil’s movements hasty with his desire to get away from Dan.
Dan waited for a few very long moments. Something felt tight and wrong in his chest. This wasn’t what he’d expected. He didn’t know what he’d expected. Anything but this.
“God,” Dan said then, a curse, maybe, or a plea to some higher power to give meaning to what just occurred. Either way, no answer revealed itself. That was fine. Phil wanted to be friends. Dan could do just friends. He could do anything if it meant Phil would still be near him. So, yeah. It definitely hadn’t been a date.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapters: 4/?
Fandom: Baahubali (Movies)
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Relationships: Amarendra Baahubali/Devasena, Bhalladeva/Original Female Character
Characters: Amarendra Baahubali, Bhalladeva, Sivagami Devi, Bijalla Deva, Original Female Character(s), Kattapa, Sanga, Pindaris, Kalakeyas, Original Male Character(s), Kumara Varma, Devasena
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Mystery, Kooli temple, Udhayagiri, Waterfall, Kunthala, The Islands of Malawa, Nishada, Adventure, Politics, Comments are appreciated by the author even if the fic is old, Give it a try, Please start from the beginning for intricacies
Summary:
Politics is almost as exciting as war and quite as dangerous. In a war, you can be killed once, but in politics many times - Winston Churchill.
What if the political atmosphere of Mahishmati was not that simple? What if it was spanning for generations together? How would the current generation cope?