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Dan awoke to the sound of thunder, cacophonous and loud, the kind that makes the walls shake and your heart pound with the rain. Dan could see the lightning send a flash through their window behind his closed eyes and he found himself tucking in closer to Phil. It wasn’t often a storm would frighten him, but noise of the crashes buried themselves into his throat and pounded at his chest. He felt as though he would break.
He and Phil had untangled from the positions in which they had fallen asleep, Phil had turned so his back was to Dan and their legs were merely pressed against the other’s rather than intertwined. Dan wrapped his arm around Phil’s middle, he pulled the man close and tucked his face in between his shoulder blades, pressing a gentle kiss to the skin there.
Another crash of thunder resounded through the apartment causing Dan to flinch. He took a shaky breath and tried to focus in on the way the rain hit against the roof, a kinder sound that he could steady his mind to.
He felt Phil take a deep sigh and shift, and Dan realized he’d gripped him after the last sound scared him.
“Sorry,” he whispered, relaxing his hold and reaching his hand up to rest on Phil’s chest, right above his heart.
Phil hummed and lightly danced his fingers over Dan’s hand, “it’s alright.”
His voice was groggy with sleep and Dan felt himself settle into its warmth. The slow pulsing of Phil’s heart under his palm contrasted with his high rate and his tried to steady his breathing to match it.
It wasn’t long before the next crash of thunder sounded and Dan released himself from Phil, sitting up in their bed to stare outside the window where the lightning sure enough followed.
“Dan,” Phil huffed out in almost a whine, “it’s okay.”
“Sorry, it’s just really loud,” Dan whispered, taking a shaky breath.
“Is it breaking the sound barrier?” Phil asked quietly.
Dan huffed out a laugh, a smile dancing across his face, “you’re a dork.”
Phil turned onto his back and blinked up at the man next to him.
“Are you going to correct me?”
“You already know what I’d say,” Dan replied, settling back down next to him and reaching to hug Phil’s arm. He cuddled up against him and placed his hand on his shoulder.
“I do,” Phil replied, placing a kiss to the top of Dan’s head, his curls tickling his cheeks, “try to block it out and get some rest.”
Dan nodded and closed his eyes, letting himself get lost in the sound of Phil’s breathing and the safety of his presence. Eventually, the thunder drifted into background noise, the storm outside unable to break through the space of comfort that had been placed around the two men.
And in the morning when the sun fled through the blinds and dappled itself along the bed, the thunder and rain of night before would just be a memory. This time, Dan would be awoken by the sound of a shuddered yawn and the gentle touch of a kiss to his forehead. And when he tucked himself closer to Phil it wouldn’t be out of fear, but out of appreciation and love for the best friend and soulmate he was lucky enough to always open his eyes to.