A/n: i COULD have named this "rawr means i love you in dinosaur" but i didn't, and for that, you should thank me

Genre: Fluff

Wordcount: 10,789

Summary: "We're staying in conjoining rooms at a hotel, which is fine, but it turns out the lock on my side is broken so your kid keeps coming in here to talk about dinosaurs. You keep apologizing but honestly I like dinosaurs so this might work out after all" 

Warnings: so much parent!phan, SO much... if that's not your thing just go, this rodeo ain't for u cowboy

"Yeah, I landed about an hour ago. Everything went well, no luggage mishaps or setbacks, hopefully your flight goes just as smoothly." Phil assured his mother, knowing by now that attempting to brush off her plane-related concerns was a lost cause. She still worried for him just the same as the first time he'd traveled alone as a young adult. He'd long ago stopped seeing it as something condescending, now choosing to appreciate it for the caring gesture that it was.

Still, there was only so much ranting he could handle before he grew tempted to bring the conversation to a close. Really, it wasn't benefiting either of them, she was meant to be packing and he'd spent so long pacing around his hotel room on the phone that the sun had already set. That was hardly the way to make the most of their annual family trip. "I'll see you soon, Mum, I'm already scouting out potential destinations for our trip."

Mother more or less calmed and room draped in a thin layer of darkness, Phil ended the call and paced over to the lamp. He switched it on and fell onto the mattress, sighing contently. He may have glossed over the in-flight mishaps that'd plagued him, from the screaming child that had sat in front of him to the determinedly quiet one that'd settled behind him and kicked the back of his seat. His back still ached and his head was still throbbing, sleep had never sounded so good.

He wasn't sure what he'd done to warrant being so painstakingly unlucky, but he hated it.

Phil reached as far as he could from the edge of the bed and managed to grab his suitcase, tugging it closer tiredly. He dug his familiar pillow out and sighed contently before hugging it to his chest, happy to have a little piece of his studio apartment there with him.

"Why did you bring your own pillow when the hotel supplies them?" Phil jerked upright in shock, whipping his head around to gape at the child settled on the floor a few feet away from his bed. He scrambled to make sure all of his limbs were safely perched on the mattress, memories of every horror movie he'd ever seen flickering through his mind. He knew better than to trust mysterious demon children that appeared out of nowhere.

"Wh-" He cut himself off before he could try to ask the kid a genuine question, deciding that the situation more than called for some hysterics. "Get out of my room! Who are you?!"

"I'm Joseph." The boy explained easily, falling backward to lay on Phil's floor and stare up at the ceiling with a wide grin. The expression faltered suddenly though, replaced by a frown. "Don't call me that though, I prefer Joey."

"Okay, can you, um, leave?" Phil asked experimentally, bracing himself for shrieking of some sort. It didn't matter whether this was a normal kid or a demonic one, shrieking was basically guaranteed when it came to dealing with children. Except, all he received in response this time around was a long sigh, clearly filled with disappointment.

"Why?" The boy, Joey, asked him. His tone was patronizing, unimpressed, like Phil had truly let him down with the off-handed request. It wasn't off-handed in the slightest to ask someone you didn't know to leave your room, but Phil wasn't sure if someone his age would understand that.

"This is my room." He deadpanned instead, hoping something about that comment would resonate. It didn't seem to.

"Our rooms are connected, we should be friends."

"Where are your parents?!" Phil hissed out, too exhausted to even bother trying to hide his obvious exasperated state. He stood up, shot a pointed glare in the direction of the kid still plastered to the floor, and stomped into the room next to his by the adjoining door between them. He peered around, surprised to find it empty. "Excuse me? Is anyone there?"

"My dad's in the shower, you can't tell on me yet." Joey announced smugly, shuffling past Phil into his own room. Tempted to leave it at that and ditch the kid, lean against his door to keep it shut so the little pest wouldn't come back, Phil almost managed to dart back into his own room before a tiny hand caught his sleeve.

Wide impressionable eyes stared up at him and Phil paled, realizing how irresponsible he was being. He wasn't all that great with kids, had never experienced them much firsthand, being the youngest in the family. Surely he could tolerate this one, just this once, if he had to. "Do you like dinosaurs?"

"What?" Phil blurted, uncertain what he'd been expecting to hear, but startled all the same.

"Come on, I wanna show you something." Joey insisted, tugging him across the room to the smaller of the two beds, proudly gesturing toward the collection of plastic and stuffed toys covering the comforter in a messy manner. He looked up at Phil proudly, flashing his crooked teeth in a wide smile. "These are my dinosaurs."

"Oh?" Phil prompted, smiling shakily back at the boy. He only meant it to be a kind gesture, hadn't really meant for it to be encouraging, but Joey definitely took it as such as words started to rush past his lips at an inhuman speed. Slightly slurred with an adorable lisp, Phil found himself feeling strangely fond of the kid considering the usual annoyance he harbored toward the younger generations.

"This is Spike, he's a stegosaurus. He's my favorite one because I just got him today. My dad took me shopping because I've never been to America before, tomorrow we're going to go on a rollercoaster and that'll be so fun!" Phil nodded along as he spoke, intrigued but nervous all the while. The moment he heard the water turn off in the other room, his fight or flight instincts kicked into overdrive. He could already imagine the ass-kicking he'd get handed to him for being caught in a room that wasn't his with someone a tenth of his age, God.

"That's really cool, but I have to get back to my room before-"

"Joey? Is someone in there with you?!" Phil jumped, the panicked screech coming from the other room hardly lining up with the booming voice he'd been expecting to hear from the faceless father figure. He gulped and shuffled backward, his eyes pinned to the bathroom door even as it flew open to reveal... someone quite far from the stereotypical muscular lumberjack-like dad figure Phil had been imagining was on the other side of the door.

The man was strangely adorable, even as obvious protective fury took over each of his features. It was hard to take the rage seriously when he was clutching a brightly colored hotel towel around his waist and nearly tripping over his lanky limbs as he walked.

Phil nearly forgot the gravity of the situation until he was faced with the fuming stranger standing directly in front of him, brown eyes blown wide with apprehension. It seemed that the man had only now realized they were approximately the same height, that they were on an even playing field when it came to a physical fight.

Still, the fatherly instincts seemed stronger than his sensible ones, and he harshly shoved Phil backward a step. Phil didn't even try to defend himself, colliding with the wall and never once looking away from the curly ringlet of hair falling into the other man's eyes, droplets of water falling from it onto his forehead. "What the hell are you doing in our room, you fucking-"

"No, Dad! It's okay, I invited him over to see my dinosaur collection!" Joey cried, falling to his knees and clinging to his father's leg, a valiant effort to save his newfound companion. Despite the circumstances, Phil couldn't help but smile softly, amused by the gesture.

Realization seemed to flash across the other man's features, his frustration suddenly directed toward the person on the floor rather than the one in front of him. He narrowed his eyes accusatively at his son, eyebrows furrowed together.

"Were you in his room?"

"I thought it was a closet! I thought someone was in our closet and I had to make sure it wasn't a monster!" Joey explained rapidly, the words tumbling past his lips as he accepted his father's outstretched hand and scrambled to his feet. He moved to stand between the two of them, but was promptly shifted to the side.

"Next time, you should leave it to me to deal with the monsters." The man chastised, though he'd calmed considerably now that the situation was starting to make sense and he didn't feel threatened by Phil's presence quite so much.

"I'm seven, I don't need your help." Joey insisted petulantly, turning on his heel and stomping back over to his bed of dinosaurs. His father sighed dramatically and turned back to Phil, flashing an apologetic smile that could have killed any lingering bitterness in an instant, had Phil been strong enough to actually hold onto any when faced with someone so attractive.

"I am so sorry for jumping to conclusions like that. I should have known that he was to blame, he's going through his rebellious stage and doing everything I tell him not to. The last thing I said before getting into the shower was to leave our neighbors alone."

"It's okay, I get it." Phil assured him hurriedly, around the lump forming in his throat. He was desperate to rid the stranger's face of that frustrated frown, one that looked oddly self-deprecating, like his child's misbehaving was a direct testament to his parenting skills. "I don't think the lock on my side of things works, I'll call the front desk to make sure they're aware of it."

"Sounds good." The man paused and looked down, seemingly taking notice of his underdressed state for the first time since the dust had settled. He blushed deeply, looking impossibly more apologetic as he hiked his towel higher to cover his stomach. "Can we test to make sure our side of the lock works?"

"Y-Yeah, sure." Phil stuttered out, the tips of his ears feeling impossibly hotter as he turned away and ducked his head. He silently cursed himself, hoping that his flustered state wasn't all that noticeable to someone that didn't know him well. He stepped back into his own room and closed the door, the sound of the lock clicking following nearly immediately. He tested it. "Yep, I'm not getting through."

To his surprise, they didn't leave it at that. He even started to turn away before the door creaked open and he looked back with wide eyes, his gaze finding that of the handsome stranger's as it peered into his room through the crack in the door.

"I'll try to make sure he doesn't bust in on you again." The man assured him, looking bashful as he looked anywhere but Phil's eyes. His next words were a mere mutter, laced in the oddly posh accent that Phil was already growing so attached to. "Thanks for being so understanding and not being a creep."

"Thanks, I try my best." Phil blurted dumbly, without bothering to think about what he was saying. In hindsight, it wasn't exactly an average response, but he couldn't bring himself to regret it when a beautiful laugh filtered past the other man's lips in response. He giggled wildly, shaking his head at Phil's antics, and then the door was pushed closed.

It left Phil standing there, awestruck, wondering what he'd done that warranted him being so very lucky.

It also left him feeling indescribably lonely, though. It wasn't something he spent much time thinking about, the fact that his romance life was practically nonexistent, but when he dwelled on it, there was no ignoring how barren it made the rest of his life seem. He wanted a special someone to share his time with, both the highs and the lows. He was getting older now, had broken into the dreadful territory of his thirties, and the only thing he had waiting at home for him was his dog.

Phil turned to leave, probably to fall into his bed and try to chase away thoughts of his dreamy temporary neighbor, but a shred of conversation on the other side of the door caught his attention. He didn't go so far as to press his ear against it and listen in, but the hotel walls were incredibly thin and he didn't go out of his way to not listen.

"You are in so much trouble, young man, just wait until-"

"I can't believe you talked to him while you were butt-naked, he's going to think you're a mega weirdo now!" Joey cackled wildly, the telltale sound of thudding footsteps making it clear that he was running around the room, possibly to evade his father.

"You're the mega weirdo for inviting him into our room!" The man screeched, though there was an obvious underlying layer of amusement that didn't go unnoticed. He sounded so much softer than he had while addressing Phil, open rather than closed off, comfortable. Loving.

"Am not!"

"Are so!"

"Am not!"

"Are so!" The following indignant squeal let Phil know that Joey had finally been caught, their impromptu game of catch drawing to a close. When the man spoke again, his voice was hushed like he didn't want anyone to overhear, which only made Phil feel guiltier for listening in. It wasn't his moment to be a part of, he had no right to hear what was happening in the room over. "Listen, don't touch that door again until we manage to sort out the lock problem. You hear me?"

"I have ears, I couldn't not hear you even if I wanted to."

"Joey."

"Yes, Dad, I hear you."

"Good." He concluded, raising his voice even as Phil finally found the will to go collapse on his bed, his voice still detectable through the walls. Phil frowned, burying his face in his pillow, trying to ignore the constant racing of his stupid heart. He had no right to be interested in that man, that man who was both a father and probably a husband to someone, but only a stranger to him. "I'm going to go get dressed and then we'll head out for ice cream like I promised, not that you deserve it."

"I totally do!" Joey argued, presumably running after him to continue their earlier fight where it'd left off before. "Can I bring Spike?"

"Don't lose him."

Despite being on the brink of passing out just minutes before, now Phil found himself wide awake as he laid in bed. Even after the sound in the room over ceased entirely and they'd left for the evening, he couldn't turn off his thoughts. He was lonely, so very lonely.

--

"Martyn, come on, we're not kids anymore!" Phil whined, trying to shove away his brother and the godawful mockery of a hat that was in his hands. He scrambled just out of reach, swinging his arms wildly despite the sweat sticking to his skin. It was way too hot, he was beginning to consider the hat just to shade his eyes from the harsh sun. Even the layers of sunscreen on his skin wouldn't be enough to fight off a sunburn.

"You practically have to wear a dumb themed hat or it defeats the purpose of being at a theme park." Martyn insisted, pouncing on him and nearly sending them both toppling backward into the fountain. Phil cried out and Cornelia laughed on in the background, all too amused by their nonsense. "Come on, you know you want to!"

A few minutes later and sure enough, Phil was shrugging the hat onto his head and scowling all the while. Martyn, on the other hand, was ecstatic. He clapped his hands together like a seal, laughing so hard that he sounded like one as well.

"I look like an idiot." Phil muttered, staring at his reflection in the fountain water.

"Your reflection finally matches who you are inside!" Martyn exclaimed, gasping loudly like the joke was something to be marveled over. Phil shook his head and shoved his brother, casting Cornelia a warning glance as he shuffled past to ensure she didn't face the same fate.

"Piss off." He grumbled, looking around at the swarm of people that only seemed to be growing. It was way too overcrowded for how hot it was today. Every time he brushed up against someone else he could literally feel the slick trail of exchange sweat, it was disgusting. "Where are we headed next?"

"Hmm... we have to meet up with Mum and Dad at noon, but we still have half an hour to explore the more intense rides. I'm thinking we could-" That was about the time that Phil started to tune out what his brother was saying, losing interest in hearing his plans rather early on. It wasn't that they weren't exciting, but it didn't really matter what he said because Phil would surely be dragged along whether he gave the approval or not, being the younger brother and all. Besides, something else had caught his attention.

He stared across the fountain, to where a familiar face was frowning down at the water. Phil watched with wide eyes as Joey leaned forward, looking as if he were seriously debating grabbing some money out of the wishing well. "Phil?"

"I know that kid." He blurted dumbly in answer, shoving his way through the crowd and leaving his sibling somewhere in the dust behind him. He charged out of the wave of people a moment later, panting as he clamped a hand on the kid's shoulder. The boy jumped so hard that he nearly knocked the both of them into the water, but luckily Phil was there to hold him steady. Spike wasn't so lucky, one of his feet dipping into the water.

"Hey Joey, are you lost?" Dark brown eyes looked up at him from beneath the frame of short lashes, confusion swirling through them before it was promptly replaced with recognition. He jumped up and threw his arms around Phil, nodding his head desperately.

"Have you seen my dad around?!" Joey asked, his voice showing just how panicked he was. Phil kneeled beside him and shook his head, holding eye contact in hopes of sending some calming vibes his way.

"No, but I can help you find him. I'm sure he's worried sick about you." Phil assured him, surprised when his words seemed to invoke an even bleaker atmosphere than what was there before. He was trying to comfort the kid, not make him look so blatantly guilty and filled with self-loathing. It almost looked like he was going to start crying, which would have been a nightmare in itself, but luckily he reeled himself in at the last possible moment.

"Yeah, he is." Joey sniffled guiltily, shuffling his feet against the path beneath them. "He told me not to run off and I did it as a joke to mess with him, but now it doesn't seem very funny."

"It's okay, I'm sure he'll be so happy to see you again, he'll probably forget to be mad." Phil laughed, debating it for a moment before tentatively hugging the boy. Apparently that had been the right move, considering he refused to let go afterward. Phil tried to pry him loose, only to notice the quiet sniffling against his shoulder, and decided that maybe it was for the best that he couldn't see his face. Phil might start crying too.

Instead, he rose to his feet and decided to carry the kid through the crowd, skeptical that he'd be able to hold onto him anyway. The last thing he needed was to lose someone that was already lost.

He turned, surprised to find Martyn and Cornelia were standing directly behind him. He cleared his throat and gestured vaguely to the boy in his arms. "This kid is staying at my hotel, he's lost."

"Ah." At the sound of another voice, Joey perked up and stared over at the two new presences, looking hopeful that one might be his father. When he didn't recognize either of them, he slumped back down against Phil's shoulder.

"This is my brother, Martyn. That's his wife, Cornelia."

"What's your name?" Joey muttered, the question catching all of them off-guard.

"Oh, right, I never told you." He muttered, shaking his head at his past self. He hoisted Joey further up on his hip, ignoring the teasing glances Martyn was casting in his direction, and answered the question in the same warm tone he'd been using all along. He'd never been one for baby voices, had never changed his voice to talk to children before now, but he could tell that Joey needed extra comfort wherever he could find it. "I'm Phil."

"Do you see him?" Joey asked, looking up at Phil like he was infinitely taller and could somehow see through the swarm of people in front of him. Phil's smile fell slightly, but he persisted as he started into the crowd with Martyn at his heels.

"No. Where did you last see him?"

"He was buying us some burgers, but we were going to go on the dinosaur ride next." Joey explained, his tone factual like he was trying to offer as much information as he could. He paused then though, a flash of hurt tracing his features. "You don't think he went without me, do you?"

"No, he wouldn't do that. I'm sure he's looking for you." Phil laughed, shaking his head at the mere idea of this kid's father running off without him. He could still remember the blind rage he'd gone into thinking that his son was in danger and that Phil was the threat. He was dedicated, there was no way he'd let something like this happen if he had his way.

Another thought occurred to Phil, once he'd finally managed to chase images of his cute neighbor out of his mind yet again. He looked down at Joey in concern. "Did you get your burger? Are you hungry?"

"I'm starved! All I had today was cotton candy!" Joey wailed dramatically, thrashing in his arms. "And waffles, I guess, but that was hours ago!"

"Alright, let's stop and get you something to eat, then we'll find him." Phil snickered, shaking his head fondly as he shuffled through the crowd and toward the restaurant he was scheduled to meet with his parents at. Joey yawned tiredly and nodded his head, looking around dazedly as Martyn jogged forward to keep step with them.

"Aw, look at you, so great with kids."

"Screw off." He snapped under his breath, hoping Joey was too focused on their surroundings to listen to what he was saying. "Worst case scenario, we can call the hotel and try to get his dad's number."

"Yeah." Cornelia agreed, bounding ahead of them and announcing a detour she planned to take into one of the shops lining the walkway. Phil ignored her and determinedly pressed on, feeling himself grow drowsy under the intense heat and physical exertion of carrying another person. He couldn't wait to feel the cool chill of air conditioning.

When he finally reached the restaurant, he practically fell into one of the free seats at the table his parents were sitting at. He heaved, watching as his mother started to look up from the menu in her hands.

"There you are, boys! We were starting to worry that you got lost in-" She paused, watching with wide eyes as Joey clambered out of Phil's grip and settled comfortably into the chair next to him. Martyn came to stand behind their chairs, offering the one remaining one to Cornelia.

"We didn't, but Phil's pint-sized friend did." He explained, patting Joey on the head. That earned him a harsh scowl and a much smaller hand swatting at his own.

"Huh?" Their mother managed, very clearly lost herself. Phil leaned back in his chair, trying to catch his breath before he was forced to launch into some form of explanation for her benefit. Carrying kids around was hard, actively participating in their rambly conversations was also hard, the parenting thing as a whole was a lot more difficult than he'd imagined and it'd hardly been half an hour now. He suddenly had even more respect for his cute neighbor that had to do all of this full-time.

"This little boy is staying in the hotel room next to mine, we ran into each other here and turns out he's lost." Phil explained, eagerly accepting the offer when his mother pushed a glass of water in his general direction. He chugged it back, feeling refreshed and ready to continue the introductions. "These are my parents, Joey."

"That chicken looks great!" Joey blurted as a plate was placed in front of Phil's father, not even hesitating before reading over and grabbing one of the chicken tenders off his plate. He chomped down on it with an exaggerated groan, a cheeky smile on his face even as his eyes fell shut and he started to chew.

"He has some excellent manners." Phil's mother muttered, shaking her head. Though there was no real bite to her words, Phil felt the strange desire to stand up for the kid. He was all too aware of how the boy's father had reacted the last time his son's bad manners had been brought up, Phil was willing to bet there was more to it than parenting alone.

"Mom, cut him some slack." They made eye contact as he said it, meaning Phil was forced to watch his own mistake in real-time as his mother quirked a curious eyebrow. So maybe he had no right to sound as protective as he did, but the troublesome kid had definitely grown on him, all thoughts of his father aside.

"Do you guys like dinosaurs?!" Joey blurted suddenly, holding up the stuffed toy he'd been toting around all day. His eyes were wide and expectant, very clearly invested in the answer he was about to receive. A chorus of 'yes' filtered around the table, in varying tones of amusement.

"He reminds me of you when you were younger, Phil." His mother sighed fondly a moment later, any earlier traces of judgment toward their guest effectively banished. Phil grinned, watching the way Joey's face lit up in answer to the comment. His mother leaned across the table, closer to the boy. "Phil used to love dinosaurs, he tried to tell every person he met all about them."

"Yeah?" Joey questioned, bracing his elbows on the table as his feet swung beneath the table. "My dad never liked dinosaurs, he always says that he was an 'outer space kid'... whatever that means. Aliens are not as cool as dinosaurs! He's not as cool as me though, so maybe that's why."

"I don't know, your dad seemed pretty cool to me." Phil laughed, unable to keep from giggling at the insight into the man he'd originally been so intimidated by the idea of. Now he was certain that Joey's dad was a total nerd, though that knowledge didn't make Phil any less smitten with him.

"Really? You didn't think he was a mega weirdo for being naked?" A series of shocked noises from his family members, including his mother nearly choking on the food she was chewing. Phil shot a glare in Joey's direction despite knowing that he had no idea what he was unintentionally implying.

"He was wearing a towel!" Phil rushed to explain, gesturing uselessly. "He was wearing a towel, it's not what it sounds like."

"What does it sound like?" Joey huffed, glaring right back at Phil, like he was annoyed at being left out of the narrative. Phil shook his head hurriedly and shoved a menu in front of the boy's line of view.

"Do you want to order something for yourself?" He asked kindly, determinedly not meeting the gazes of his family members. He could deal with that embarrassing exchange later, preferably much later.

It came as no surprise when Joey flipped to the desserts section without hesitation, slamming his hand down against the blown-up image of the house specialty.

"Banana split!"

"No." Phil deadpanned, already shaking his head.

"Aw, come on, you're just as uncool as my dad!" Joey whined, slumping down in his seat until only his eyes were visible over the edge of the table. Then, even that was obstructed from view by the familiar face of a stegosaurus. "I'll let you hold Spike if you buy me the banana split."

"I'll only buy it for you if you promise to eat something else first." Phil bargained, leaning over the table to hold a hand out to the boy. The offering was accepted and they shook on it.

"Deal." Joey announced proudly, turning to the menu and pointing to something else with disinterest. "I want that."

"Okay." Phil beamed, proud that he was already managing to pick up on such important parenting things, like tricking them into eating a healthy meal. Sure, now he had to give him ice cream afterward, which was hardly healthy... but a little bit of give and take was inevitable.

Their food arrived a few minutes later and plates were settled in front of all of them. Phil grinned, eagerly offering to help Joey with the salt or pepper if he wanted any added, even going so far as to offer to grab him extra napkins. Rather than thankfulness, all he received in response was an evil cackle.

"I'm actually allergic to that, I just remembered. Looks like I'll have to eat the banana split first, after all, what a shame." Joey announced loudly, grabbing the bowl full of ice cream and bolting away from the table. Phil yelped like he'd been struck, dropping the pepper shaker into his meal and darting after the escapee.

"Hey! Get back here!" He yelled, darting around chairs and tables in an effort to keep up with the retreating form of the kid. They were headed toward the door, which would only mean bad things if Joey managed to get lost in the crowd again. "Joey!"

"Joey?!" At the sound of a second desperate voice, Joey whipped around to gape at the source. Phil followed his gaze, finding the boy's father holding up a picture of them both to a waiter. His hair was a damp, curly mess atop his head and the red rims beneath his eyes were tangible evidence to his stress, but the sheer amount of relief in his expression made it all seem small.

"Dad!" Joey shouted, scrambling toward him with a widespread grin. His father fell to his knees and threw his arms out, barely managing to keep them both upright as Joey barreled into the embrace and collided with his chest. The sound of glass clattering against the ground followed shortly after, but the other man seemed too distracted to even register it. Joey did, however. "Oops."

"I was so worried about you! Never ever do that again, I almost had a heart attack while dying from heat stroke. Do you have any idea how awful that is?! Really really not fun. I had to talk to so many park officials, there are so many people looking for you right now!" The words tumbled past the man's lips at rapid-fire speed, his arms shaking where they held his son. He ducked his head, burying his face into his son's messy hair. His voice was muffled then, but Phil could just barely make out what he was saying over the chatter in the restaurant. "I was so scared I'd never see you again."

"Sorry, Dad." Joey explained, clearly growing bored of the reunion as he started to squirm. He looked down between them as soon as he'd managed to put space between their chests, a loud distressed cry leaving his lips. "Aw, man! Your shirt ruined my banana split that Phil bought for me!"

"Serves you right for running off again and refusing to eat your meal!" Phil blurted abruptly, realizing what he'd done only after the boy's father looked up at him in shock. Their eyes locked and Phil blushed, realizing that he'd been caught treading on their private moment.

"Ugh, I really thought you were cool, but you're just like having a second Dad all over again." Joey whined, shoving his father's arms away and stomping back toward their table. The words circled in Phil's mind, registering what they meant but still hesitating to believe it. A second dad... again? Did that mean his father was gay? Bisexual, maybe? What happened to the last second dad?

"Joey." His father's tone was strict now, serious in a way Phil had never heard it to be, but the thick layer of worry beneath the name didn't go unnoticed. He was only scared of Joey running off again.

"I'm just going to go get Spike!" Joey insisted, gesturing toward Phil's table where the dinosaur sat. He hesitated, but eventually the boy's father nodded and got to his feet. He brushed himself off, muttered a quick apology to a waiter about the mess on the floor, then turned to Phil.

Despite all of the time he'd had to prepare, Phil hadn't had one logical thought since the realization that his unrealistic developing crush might be slightly more realistic than previously figured. The cutest guy he'd met in months was interested in guys, seemingly single, and walking determinedly toward him with a dimpled smile on his face. Odds definitely could have been worse.

"I don't know what to say." The man sighed as he reached him, shaking his head. There were tears gathering in his eyes again and Phil had the strangest urge to brush them away from his cheeks before they even fell. He didn't get the chance to act on it though, thankfully, before arms were thrown around his midsection and he was being pulled into a bone-crushing bear hug. "Thank-you, so much. I don't know what would've happened to him if you hadn't came along, he's way too trusting of strangers."

"It's fine, really. I was happy to help, he's a fun kid." Phil exclaimed hurriedly, making eye contact with Martyn behind the man's head and not missing the knowing eyebrow wiggle he was being given. The back of his neck heated him along with his face, a full-body flush quickly developing the longer the other man clung to him.

"He definitely keeps me on my toes, that's for sure." The words were muttered into his shoulder and Phil shivered at the feeling, feeling impossibly hotter given how toasty it was outside. A hand was held out to him and Phil dazedly took it into his own, stupidly holding onto it rather than shaking it like he'd clearly been meant to. Luckily, this earned him another one of those bubbly laughs he loved so much, the ones that seemed to be reserved strictly for when Phil made an idiot out of himself.

They made eye contact and now Phil had the honor of realizing that the other man was blushing nearly as hard as he was, though it without a doubt looked better on his round cheeks. Brown eyes seemed to sparkle with the realization that they were both in a similarly flustered state. "I'm Dan."

"Phil." He didn't even hesitate, nearly choked on his own tongue in his desperate effort to get his name out there, like he might miss the opportunity otherwise. Dan just smiled back at him though, not at all off-put by his crippling awkwardness.

Then he frowned, dejected in a sense, and Phil had no idea what he'd done so wrong that it'd put such an expression on that pretty face. Dan wrung his hands together, shrugging his shoulders.

"Is there anything I can do to repay you? I know he's hard to manage, if you want a couple dollars for playing babysitter, I don't mind."

"No, don't worry about it. Please, it was my pleasure, I'm happy I could help." Phil assured him hurriedly, unable to keep the words from tumbling past his lips as he continued. "You look exhausted, why don't you have dinner with us?"

He hadn't meant to say it, but there was certainly no taking it back once the offer was already out in the open. Dan stared at him for a long moment, his expression unreadable in a way that left Phil deeply nervous, but then they both seemed to relax in unison. Dan still looked uncomfortable, but more in the embarrassed sense, like he was flattered by the invitation.

"Yeah?" Dan mused, his lips pursed in a thoughtful pout. He glanced over at where Joey was animatedly leaning into Martyn's side, no doubt listening to mortifying stories about younger Phil, and seemed to make his decision in an instant. "I mean, he already looks pretty settled, I wouldn't want to tear him away from food when he's finally willing to eat something that isn't covered in sugar."

"I'll grab you an extra chair and a menu." Phil offered, trying not to let his excitement show through in the words. He failed, but Dan didn't seem to mind.

--

After dinner, they'd spent the entire day together exploring the park. At one point, Martyn and Cornelia had grown tired of ride after ride and gone home, but still Phil remained being tugged around the attractions by Joey's grip on his hand. More than once, workers at the park had referred to them as a family and Phil had been left to stutter through a rejection of the idea, but near the end of it Dan has just shushed him and told him to go along with it. There were discounts for families, after all.

That was yesterday, they'd yet to see each other yet today. Twice now, Phil had formally gone to knock on Dan's door, not even the adjoined one separating their rooms, and he hadn't gotten an answer. So either he was being ignored, or they weren't in their room.

It was getting late now, late enough that Phil knew he should sleep if he wanted to be up early to go mini golfing with his family tomorrow. Yet he couldn't help feeling tempted to invite Dan along again, see how he'd look with a competitive focus on his features that only faltered whenever Joey asked him for help.

Perhaps he was coming on too strong, maybe he cared too much already all things considered. He hardly knew Dan and Joey, hadn't known them for nearly as long as anyone else in their lives, and already Phil was starting to feel entitled to spending time with them as a family. They just seemed to click so well, so much better than Phil had ever imagined himself to fit into a family environment. He wasn't even sure he wanted kids until this week and now he was left wondering why he'd yet to adopt one himself and take on the whole single parent world.

Still, if Dan wanted him to back off and respect their boundaries, Phil would do so without question. It didn't matter if it hurt now to be aware of how alone he was, it wasn't his life to lead. He wanted it to be though.

"Room service!" Phil was half asleep a moment before, given it was approaching midnight already, but he startled awake at the bold announcement Joey made as he traipsed into his room. Phil lifted his head, watching as the boy bounced eagerly toward him. When he reached his bedside, however, he just stood there with a smug look on his face.

"What?"

"Dad took me to a clay cafe today and he said we could make anything I wanted, so he helped me make you this alien dinosaur!" Joey screeched excitedly, shoving a horrific-looking creature onto the pillow beside Phil's face. Phil perked up at that, lips twitching at the corners in his effort to ward off a smile as he picked up the gift and looked it over. Maybe it hadn't been to the same extent, but he couldn't help feeling incredibly flattered that they'd been thinking about him while he was sat there thinking about them all day.

Joey perched on the foot of his bed, leaning eagerly forward despite the obvious effort he was putting into controlling himself. Phil had witnessed more than one Dan-lecture about respecting personal space during their day together, he was impressed by even that amount of self-control. "What are you going to name him?"

"Her." Phil challenged decidedly, settling it proudly on the bedside table. "Susan."

"Lame." Joey sighed, rolling off the bed and onto the floor, taking one of Phil's many blankets with him. A short huff left his lips and Phil decided to humor him.

"Flame Susan." He clarified, smirking at the way Joey bolted out of the blankets with a triumphant shout of sorts.

"Ooh! That's way cooler!" The boy exclaimed, scrambling toward the door. He looked over his shoulder before leaving though, grinning widely. "I'm gonna go get Spike so they can be friends, so don't go anywhere."

"I wasn't planning on it, this is my room." Phil laughed, yawning loudly as he sunk back against the pillows. Even as he did so, he couldn't tear his eyes away from the door. Sure enough, seconds later Dan stepped cautiously into his room with that same sheepish smile from the first time Joey had bypassed all personal boundaries.

"Sorry, I would have knocked like a normal person, but you know how he is." Dan explained, running a hand through his hair.

"Yeah." Phil agreed, hoping it didn't show just how much he actually liked the way he was. He liked everything about their family, it was quickly becoming a problem. He looked down at the familiar pattern of his pillowcase, thoughts of going home to an empty apartment clouding his mind. "So, where are you guys from? He mentioned you'd never taken him to America before, and the accents are a dead giveaway that you're from England somewhere, but-"

"London." Dan answered, as if he'd been waiting to be asked. Phil didn't even try to hide the way this made him smile. It was a big city, but knowing that he and Dan both lived there was still progress in the right direction.

Now that he was sharing stuff, Dan didn't seem keen on stopping. He stepped across the room and settled at the foot of Phil's bed, in a similar fashion to how Joey had just moments before. "I'm a lawyer, this has been my first vacation since adopting him."

"Oh." Phil nodded, processing the new information. For whatever reason, Dan seemed nervous about admitting that he'd adopted, and Phil felt inclined to share more about himself to try and lighten the mood again. "I'm a meteorologist, a weather man. Once I wore a shirt with green buttons in front of the green screen and it looked like I had holes through my body where my nipples were supposed to be."

"Impressive." Dan snorted, trying to stifle his laughter so hard that he had to brace himself by settling a hand on the bed. More accurately, settling a hand on Phil's knee beneath the blankets, but neither of them commented on that.

"Dad! I can't find Spike!"

"Check under the bed!" Dan called, turning back to Phil with another apologetic smile. Then, something seemed to distract him, and he pointed toward the creature on Phil's bedside table. "I'm really sorry about that, too. I tried to make it look less horrifying and disfigured, but he was insistent that that was part of the charm and that you'd like it. You can hide it under the bed and leave it for the hotel workers to find, I won't judge."

"Nah, he's right, I do like it." Phil confirmed, reaching over to pick it up and examine the effort that went into creating it. He could even see individual scales carved into the body. It'd been a long time since anyone had cared enough to make him a gift, he was used to getting money in cards twice a year and leaving it at that.

Phil looked up, reaching down to settle his hand over Dan's on his knee. "That might just be because I like you so much, though."

"Spike attack!" Joey screeched suddenly, doing his best dinosaur impression as he charged into the room with his favorite toy held high above his head. He tossed it at Phil's chest as he approached, throwing himself onto the bed over their joined hands without a care in the world. He looked up at Dan then, narrowing his eyes. "Can we watch an alien movie?"

"You had nightmares the last time we tried."

"Only because aliens are dumb."

"You only say that because you're scared of them." Dan answered easily, sticking his tongue out at his son when he started to pout in answer. Phil pried his hand out from beneath Joey and patted him on the back, smirking over at the boy's father.

"Come on, Dan, don't be such a party-pooper, let the kid watch an alien movie." He wasn't sure what was more endearing, the open-mouthed gasped of betrayal that Dan gave in response, or the high-pitched giddy shriek that Joey let out knowing that he had Phil backing him up.

"You're not the one that has to deal with him crawling into your bed at night to vent out his deepest, darkest nightmare fuels." Dan grumbled, though already his resolve was clearly cracking. Phil mulled over the words though, feeling an odd pang of longing in his chest at the indifferent comment. He wanted that. He wanted a family to come home to, but he wanted to be home to a family as well, even if he'd been oblivious to the fact until now.

He wanted to chase away nightmares and tuck smiling little faces into bed. He wanted to go on family vacations and make family traditions like he'd had has a child. He wanted to buy dinosaur toys that became favorites and make monstrosities at the clay cafe as a team.

"Please?" Joey whined suddenly, bringing him out of his reverie. Phil shifted, watching as Joey scrambled to his feet and turned to face his father for approval. Dan bit his lip, looking hesitant, but eventually his shoulders sagged and he nodded.

"Fine, I'll go set it up." He started to get to his feet as well, though he was stopped by a stuffed dinosaur colliding with the back of his head.

"No! I wanna watch it here!"

"Joey, you don't wanna impose on Phil's hospitality. It's getting really late, he probably has plans for tomorrow." Dan laughed, clearly trying to brush it off as something small. Phil studied his features closely, noticing how tense he seemed, wondering if it was because he really didn't want to be here or really did want to.

"Then he can cancel them." Joey huffed, turning to stare expectantly over at Phil. "Right? Can't you?"

"I don't-"

"But you said you liked aliens!" Joey hissed, clearly frustrated with him and the obvious roundabout game they were playing. "Were you lying because you wanted my dad to like you? Do you secretly only like dinosaurs?"

"No! I like aliens!" Phil insisted, feeling oddly insulted that he'd been accused of being a liar by a seven year old.

"Then prove it." Joey pleaded, pointing toward the television screen across the room. "What's the best alien movie you know?"

"Joey!" Dan hissed under his breath, tugging on Joey's ear to try and get him to listen. "Come on, we can watch whatever you want, let's leave the nice man alone now."

"But you said you wanted to spend more time with Phil!" Joey whimpered, scratching at Dan's wrist and letting out a gleeful exclamation when he actually managed to make his father let go. Unbeknownst to him, it was his words that had given him the progress, not his lethal clawing skills.

Dan was staring at Phil now, his eyes wide and his face darkened with the most prominent blush yet. He was really digging his own grave, considering he could have just brushed off Joey's words as nonsense, but now it was clear just how true they were. He'd definitely said that and now he was utterly invested in knowing how Phil would react to the knowledge.

He shifted to the side, patting the stretch of mattress next to him. Joey settled onto it nearly immediately afterward and Phil winked up at Dan. He crooked his finger, gesturing the man closer until he settled on his other side.

"I know of a few alien movies, but they might be too scary for you."

"Nothing's too scary for me!"

--

From: Dan. Sent: 1:34am

"I'm going to kill you. He JUST fell asleep and I had to listen to him cry about ET's scary fingers for an hour straight."

Phil giggled despite himself, had to lift a fist to his teeth to keep the noise from shuffling past and waking up the whole floor. He knew that Dan had probably heard him though, considering there was only one wall separating the two of them.

To: Dan. Sent: 1:35am

"I know. I heard. It was hilarious, more entertaining than the movie itself."

Phil smiled to himself, jumping at the corresponding thud of something being thrown at the walls separating their rooms.

From: Dan. Sent: 1:35am

"Definitely going to kill you."

A quick glance toward the door confirmed that Dan wasn't breaking into his room, however the longer he dwelled on that fact the more disappointing it seemed.

To: Dan. Sent: 1:36am

"It'd be easy too, considering the lock on my door doesn't work. You could smother me in my sleep without any difficulty."

He prompted, propping himself up. Any trace of sleep had been forgotten, replaced by the giddiness to spend time talking to Dan. Now that he was aware that they had a chance of being together, he wasn't about to let it slip through his fingers.

From: Dan. Sent: 1:36am

"How grim."

Phil smiled to himself, debating his response carefully. It was late, but he really wanted to see Dan again, especially if he didn't end up being able to attend the family golf extravaganza. His trip was drawing to its close and despite the reassurance that the feelings were mutual, he couldn't help but fear the trip back across the ocean would cost them their closeness in more ways than one. He didn't want them to stop talking once they were back home.

To: Dan. Sent: 1:39am

"Wanna come over?"

Phil sent it on a whim, typed it out fast and hit 'send' before he could talk himself out of it. Of course, the moment it actually did send, he regretted it like hell. He melted back against the mattress and suffered, waiting impatiently for any sign of life from his texting partner. He'd definitely scared him off, talk about coming on too strong. Surely no one would assume his intentions were innocent when he was inviting them into his room at this hour, the only pieces of furniture in here was a bed and a tv!

Dan wasn't replying and he was growing steadily more uncertain, to the point that he even started to type out an apology before a gentle knock sounded at his door. It took him a minute to realize it wasn't coming from the front door but rather the one between their rooms. He padded over to it curiously, wrenching it open to find Dan standing on the opposite side.

He'd changed since they'd last seen each other. Now he was wearing a loose-fitting sleep shirt that left his collarbones exposed and sweatpants that hung low on his hips. Phil paled, blushing as his eyes darted back to Dan's, realizing he'd been blatantly checking the other man out a moment too late.

"If he wakes up to an empty bed and starts screaming bloody murder, you're the one explaining it to our neighbors." Dan grunted, though his eyes were crinkling at the corners with an unspoken amusement at Phil's blatant awkwardness. They both walked into the room together and left the door open a crack, just in case.

"Deal." Phil confirmed, falling back onto his bed and grinning up at Dan. "So, you wanna spend more time with me, do you?"

"I wouldn't be opposed to it." Dan countered playfully, falling onto the bed next to Phil. They turned to grin childishly at each other before ducking forward in unison, clumsily bringing their mouths together in a chaste kiss. They pulled back nearly as quickly as they'd leaned in, studying each other's faces for any signs of discomfort. When they only found tentative encouragement, they picked up where they'd left off.

Phil decided pretty early on that he liked kissing Dan, equally as much as he liked talking to him and laughing with him, even as much as he liked watching him beg his son not to drag them onto another rollercoaster with a stomach full of food.

They fit together well, the perfect height to wind their legs together in a tangled mess of limbs as they pressed close to each other, exploring the kiss with the same nervous excitement that had been filling Phil to the brim since first laying eyes on Dan. They were dualy awkward, but both equally as eager, so somewhere along the way it ended up working out well.

Phil propped himself up a little while later and grinned down at Dan, poking at one of the many light bruises now scattered across his neck. When he leaned back in to continue, however, he was pushed gently away. Dan didn't seem reprimanding in the way he stared up at him, only cautious. "You should know, before this goes any further,"

"Hm?" Phil prompted, unintentionally shifting and jerking his knee forward where it rested between Dan's widespread legs. The younger man looked beautifully disheveled beneath him, doubly so when he did that. His skin covered in a crimson flush and his eyes blown dark with lust, the baggy clothing splayed haphazardly over his body was only an added benefit. Phil's hand circled comfortingly on his hip, rubbing his thumbs against the exposed skin beneath the base of his shirt.

Dan squinted his eyes shut.

"I'm a divorced twenty-six year old, I plan on quitting my job the moment I have the funds to support myself until I find something I actually enjoy, and Joey will always be my top priority in life. Like, I don't care if you dedicate the rest of your life to me or some shit, I'm always going to put him first."

"I can deal with that." Phil answered easily, the words rolling off his tongue in an effort to set the mood back to where it'd been before. Dan just gaped at him though, eyes fluttering open and jaw going slack like the answer caught him entirely by surprise.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Phil confirmed, fondly booping him on the nose with the tip of his pointer finger. "He's a good kid, you're a good parent, I wouldn't have expected anything different."

"No comment on the past husband? What about the lack of career planning?" Dan pried, squirming beneath Phil nervously. Realizing that this wasn't a conversation they could gloss over, Phil reluctantly rolled off of the other man and laid beside him instead, intertwining their fingers between them.

"I think you're brave to give things up to find something better for yourself, you deserve to be happy in all aspects of life."

"I'm trying really hard not to get my hopes up for this thing, you realize. I'm gonna have to ask you to stop saying things that make me wanna fall for you on the spot."

"I politely refuse." He muttered, tugging Dan closer and leading his head to rest against his chest. Dan obliged, leaning into him and sighing contently. Phil stroked a hand through his hair, twirling one of the particularly noticeable loose curls around his finger. "I'll catch you."

"Dad?!" They both jumped at the shriek that came from the other room, though Dan was much quicker to compose himself and scramble away from Phil. He sat up, tugging his shirt back into place, and huffed as he rushed to his feet.

"I'm in here, buddy!" He called, stumbling toward the door as he tugged his socks back on. He looked over his shoulder at Phil and smiled. "I'll be right in, just wait one min-"

"E.T is definitely under our bed, I can hear him!" Joey yelled, bolting through the door and pouncing on Dan, who caught him without hesitation. He held the boy to his chest, scoffing at the words flying past his lips.

"I'm sure you're just imagining things."

"No, we'll have to sleep in here." Joey insisted, scrambling free of Dan's grip and launching onto the bed by Phil's feet. He curled up, like making himself smaller would make his presence more acceptable.

"W-What?! We can't-"

"Why not? You were already doing it!" Joey huffed, blowing his hair out of his eyes and scowling up at his father. Dan glanced between the door and the bed, before sighing and settling next to Phil again. In a matter of seconds, Joey was clambering up to lay on his chest with a pleased grin on his face.

"I warned you." Dan mouthed at Phil over the top of Joey's head, lifting his eyebrows in a knowing manner. Rather than responding, Phil simply grinned and shuffled closer, locating Dan's hand in the tangled mess of blankets and giving it a reassuring squeeze. He wanted this. If Dan thought he was about to back out because of this, he'd surely misjudged his level of dedication.

They stayed like that until Dan was certain that Joey had fallen asleep again, then he slowly started to shift them both into an upright position. He hesitated before standing though, looking down at Phil with a soft glint in his eyes. "I'll talk to you in the morning, yeah?"

"Alright." Phil agreed, craning his neck forward so their lips could just barely brush. They pulled back before they could get carried away again, ever-aware of the quiet snoring into Dan's collarbone.

When they separated then, there was no doubt in either of their minds that they were both content with the path things had taken. Phil fell back against the mattress with a satisfied sigh and a giddy little grin working its way across his features, his heart thudding insistently against his chest.

The momentary reflection was abruptly cut short, however, by a yelp from the room over. He sat up and threw his legs over the edge of the bed, ready to go investigate, but didn't get any further before Dan came barreling back into his room and jostling the sleeping boy in his arms awake as he ran.

"Phil! Help!" He cried, falling back onto the bed and cradling Joey's head as he did so. Phil tilted his head to the side, staring down at him in frightened confusion.

"What?!"

"There's actually something under the bed, oh my god, what the f-"

"Dad! Don't swear!" Joey yelled, suddenly very awake. He sat up and ambled onto his father's lap, shaking his head rapidly as he pointed toward the door between their rooms. "He's going to hear you."

"Stay here, I'll go check it out." Phil sighed, grabbing a shoe off the floor when he failed to notice anything else that was even vaguely weapon-like. He paced into the next room over with a pensive expression, undoubtedly hearing the sound of scuffling beneath one of the beds. Swallowing his fear for the greater good, he leaned over to peer beneath it.

A twitching nose, beady little eyes staring back at him, and then a squeak.

"Phil?" Dan called, clearly worrying for him. Phil decided to deal with the actual problem later and walked back into his own room, finding Joey hugged tightly to Dan's chest in fear. He stifled a laugh at how ridiculous the reaction was considering how tame the problem had actually been.

"It was a rat." He announced, dropping his shoe unceremoniously onto the floor.

"Ew!" Dan whined, like that was somehow even more off-putting than an actual alien hiding under his son's bed. Joey, on the other hand, seemed to light up with the new information. He tried to squirm free of Dan's grasp, a wicked grin on his face.

"Cool! I wanna see!" He started running the moment he was free, managing to reach the door before Phil's hand shot out to keep him from going any further.

"Get back here! It might have diseases!" Dan cried, looking incredibly thankful when Phil turned Joey around by his shoulders and steered him back toward the bed. Dan gathered him back into his arms the moment he could, eyes still warily staring in the direction of the door, like he was uneasy with the fact Phil had left it open. Wordlessly, Phil moved to close it. "There's no way I'm going back in there."

"Why not?!" Joey pouted, his face falling even further when the door clicked closed. "Dad, you don't wanna impose on this nice man's hospitality, let me go see the rat!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

"Y-"

"What do you wanna watch?" Phil laughed, cutting off their argument and crawling back under the covers. He held the remote in his hand and yawned, realizing that the chances of any of them getting sleep now were slim.

"Rat movies." Joey announced pointedly, sticking his tongue out at Dan.

"No!" Dan huffed, his grip faltering. Joey fell forward the moment he was free to do so, settling at the foot of the bed and propping his chin against the footboard, eyes settled on the screen as Phil flicked through the different movie options. He swung his feet high in the air between them, making it difficult for either of them to see the screen.

"How about a dinosaur documentary?" Phil asked, hoping he could exploit the boy's interests to get him to leave the rat topic alone. Dan was still visibly uncomfortable and as funny as it was to watch him freak out, Phil wasn't so cruel to do it on purpose. He was trying to win him over, after all.

"Fine." Joey sighed, slumping against the blankets. He reached down onto the floor and retrieved Spike, though Phil wasn't even entirely sure when the stuffed animal had arrived in his room this time around, but at least he wouldn't have to go back for it later. He watched as Dan sat up and tugged the blankets over Joey's shoulders, raking his hand through his static-filled hair in an effort to calm it.

Giving up, he fell back against the pillows next to Phil. They both turned to face each other, wearing matching giddy expressions again, alternating between wiggling their eyebrows and winking like the idiotic teenagers with crushes that they both were at heart. Finally, when their resolve grew weak and Phil could hardly stand to look at the smirk on Dan's lips without wanting to kiss it off, they closed the space between them. "Why is Pterodactyl spelled with a P?"

"Um, I don't-" Dan managed, blushing wildly as he shoved Phil back and looked down to the foot of the bed where wide eyes were staring back at them.

Joey had clearly seen them kissing and Phil was almost preparing for that same shriek attack he'd managed to evade the first time he'd met the boy, but that wasn't the reaction at all. Joey surprised him once again and instead he was greeted with the sharp sting of pain, as Joey kicked both of them in the stomach at once and dug his toes into the skin.

"Gross. It's exactly like having two dads again."