Needless to say, the journey back to Dan's house was silent and very uncomfortable. Dan was driving, but that didn't stop him from constantly glancing at the boy next to him. Phil looked out the window the entire time, his chin resting in his hand and his gaze turned to the sky. Dan wondered what he was thinking about, but decided not to ask since Phil was most likely still angry at him.

Dan had no idea what the hell he was going to say, he didn't exactly plan this. It was a stupid idea, really, because if he did tell Phil the entire truth, there was no doubt that both of them would be in trouble. And not just stupid, first world, 'oh my god, my parents hate me' trouble. They were talking life or death, planet earth in danger trouble, and it would all be Dan's fault, for falling in fucking love.

They finally pulled up in front of the Dan's house, but instead of getting out, they just sat there in silence. They didn't even look at each other, their gazes trained on some object in the distance. It was Phil that broke the tense silence.

"Dan, I'm really confused." He said quietly. He was looking at his lap now, twisting his fingers together nervously and biting his lip. Even in this tense situation, Dan had to admit that the boy was sexy.

Get your head out of the gutter, Daniel! He thought.

"I know, Phil, hell, I'm confused myself. About everything. And I don't even know how to explain this to you without you thinking I'm crazy." He laughed bitterly and shook his head. "This is a mess."

"Let's just.... go inside, okay? And we'll go from there." Phil said, and Dan nodded. They stepped out of the car and headed up to the house, and Dan unlocked the door, letting them inside. The lights were off, so Dan flipped them on as they walked through.

"So you, uh...... want something to drink or anything?" Dan asked.

"What I want is an explanation." Phil replied, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at Dan. His blue eyes flashed angrily, and Dan was surprised at this change in mood. He was usually pretty quiet and laid back, but this version of Phil was the exact opposite. It made Dan wonder what this dominant side of Phil would be like in the bedroom.... and that, of course, led to thoughts of Phil in bed period, and Dan had to pinch himself to get them out of his head. This was not the time or the place.

He was starting to second guess this; he really didn't think that Phil would understand, let alone believe him. But he'd promised, and he really didn't want to break Phil anymore than he already had.

"You have to promise me something." Dan said.

"You've got to be kidding me." Phil snorted.

"Please, just hear me out." Dan pleaded, and Phil sighed, motioning for him to continue. "Okay, promise you won't laugh or call me crazy." Phil looked at him, confused. "Just promise."

"Okay, okay, I promise. Now tell me what's been going on all day."

This was going to be hard, Dan already knew, but he had to at least try. Or this would all have been for nothing.

"Okay. I have no idea how to start..... I'm, have you ever heard of Reapers?"

Phil stared at him, his expression blank. "You mean those things that wear the black cloaks and carry the scythes? That go around killing people." He laughed and shook his head. "What the hell kind of bull crap are you trying to pull on me, Dan?"

"Just listen. Okay, first of all, we don't wear cloaks and carry scythes, and-"

"Are you seriously trying to tell me that you're a fucking Reaper, Dan? Do you actually think I'm supposed to believe this?"

"Would you please just shut up and listen?!" Dan yelled, he was seriously agitated right now. Phil stared at him in shock, but he kept quiet and nodded. Dan sighed and continued. "Yes, Phil, I'm a Reaper, and you don't have to believe me if you don't want to, but it's the truth. And we don't go around just killing people left and right. We have a process, a system. We judge people, not just murder them. If they've done more good things in their life than bad, then we give them a few more years. If more bad than good, well...."

"But what's that got to do with me?" Phil asked.

And here's where the truth all came out.

"I was sent to judge you."

It was completely silent after he said that, and Dan waited anxiously for Phil to respond. It seemed like hours before he finally said anything, but it was probably only a few minutes.

"That doesn't explain why you've been acting like a dick all day." He said, and Dan was surprised that that's what he was worried about. He'd just explained that a whole other supernatural world existed, and that he was apart of it, and Phil was still confused about why he hadn't talked to him? Jesus, this boy was special.

"Because you're.... different from the usual subjects we judge, Phil. You're what we call an In Between."

"What's an In Between?"

"It's a person who's done an equal amount of good and bad things in their life. They're almost impossible to judge."

Phil still looked absolutely confused. "Okay, let's say that, for right now I actually believe all this fantasy crap you're telling me. What's this all got to do with how you were treating me? That's all I want to know."

Dan groaned in frustration. This was not going as he'd planned, it was only making things more confusing. Phil probably thought he was crazy, he thought so himself. But he wanted to make things right, and if that meant that Phil never talked to him again, it didn't matter. Because he knew it was the truth.

"Okay, Phil, I..... I like you. A lot. More than I should, really, and that's not a good thing where I'm from. You're not supposed to have feelings for someone who you might end up killing anyway, it has consequences, and not just emotional ones. It could throw the whole world off kilter, because if I let my feelings for you get in the way of my judgement.....let's just say it won't be pretty. I was ignoring you today because I thought that maybe if I didn't talk to you, I would stop feeling the way I did. It didn't work, and goddammit, I think I might love you." Dan paused, breathing hard as the words tumbled past his lips.

Phil was absolutely shocked at Dan's confession. His blue eyes were wide and his mouth hung open slightly.

"You... love me?" he asked quietly, his face turning red. Dan nodded, and moved closer to him. "But, what about all of that 'major consequences' and paranormal Reaper stuff?"

Dan laughed. "Honestly, all of that doesn't really matter to me right now." He moved even closer, until they were practically chest to chest, and Dan reached out, softly touching Phil's pale cheek. "Can I try something?" He breathed. Phil nodded, and he leaned forward, until finally, after all this time, their lips touched.

And oh man, it was a glorious feeling, kissing Phil. His lips were all soft, like Dan had imagined, and Jesus he tasted delicious.

Phil kissed him harder, making him moan softly, and Dan ran his fingers up Phil's sides, over his shoulders, across his neck until he reached his hair, and he curled his fingers into the dark strands. Phil wrapped his arms around Dan's waist, pulling him closer and running his hands across Dan's back and shoulder.

It was getting really heated, and they would have continued on, but just then, the closet next to them opened. Dan broke away from the amazing boy in front of him, and was surprised to see PJ standing there, a look of worry and slight fear on his face.

"Peej? What are you doing here?" Dan asked, out of breath, and he was still holding Phil close.

"Well, certainly not having as much fun as you. Who's this lovely young man?" PJ said, smirking and leaning against the door frame.

Dan blushed and slowly disentangled himself from Phil's arms. "This is, uh.....Phil." He said, and PJs eyes widened, the smile dropping from his face.

"You mean-"

"Yeah."

"Am I missing something?" Phil asked. He was staring at PJ like.... well, like some strange guy who'd just walked out of Dan's closet.

"Phil, this is PJ, my best friend. He's a Reaper also."

PJ spluttered. "You told him?!"

Dan looked back over at him. "Obviously."

"But where did he just come from?" Phil asked. "Was he in there the whole time?"

"No he used a Portal Key." Dan replied.

"A what?"

"I'll explain later." He turned his attention back to his friend. "Why are you really here?" he asked.

"The Highers want to see you. And they're pissed off, man." PJ said, his green eyes filled with worry.

"What about?" Dan asked, but he had an idea already had an idea why.

"Apparently, the fact that your shoving tongue with a subject. That might be a good guess." PJ replied, and Dan rolled his eyes at the sarcasm. He turned back to Phil and looked him in the eye.

"I have to go, but I'll be back, I swear. It might be a while, but just wait for me, okay?" he said. Phil looked confused, but he nodded. Dan kissed him on the cheek. He turned around then, and followed Peej into the closet, or portal, really.

"So.... have you got it in yet?" PJ asked, and Dan shoved him.

"Shut up." he growled, playfully. "And don't talk about my love life. What about you and Kendall? Have you guys done the dirty?" He was joking, of course, but PJ blushed and looked at the ground. Dan's eyes widened. "You did, didn't you?"

"We didn't, we only kissed. A lot." He was smiling, and Dan laughed at him.

"You're so whipped, Peej."

"Hey, shut it. We have more serious things to worry about right now."

He was right. Dan shouldn't be joking around right now, he was about to see the Highers, who might get really mad and strip him of his title.... or worse, take Phil away from him. Or maybe both. God, he hoped not both.....