Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Pharm smiled as he finished tying up the snack box he had built for Dean. He was very proud of his work, having spent hours preparing, cooking, and decorating various snacks and desserts for the older boy.

It was Dean’s birthday, and Pharm was determined to surprise Dean with food and a note he had written. He smiled at the little yellow bow that crowned the snack box. Everything was perfect.

He gently lifted the tupperware, careful not to jostle anything, and walked joyfully out of the school’s kitchen and towards the cafeteria where he and Dean were meeting for lunch. So lost was he in his thoughts of how happy Dean would be, Pharm missed the person rounding the corner and ran headfirst into a wide chest.

The box Pharm had worked so hard to create fell to the ground and scattered on the ground, various sauces landing on his shirt as he fell to the ground.

“Oh my gosh, I am so sorry, are you ok?” The boy Pharm had run into leaned down to help Pharm up, brushing off leftover food that lay in chunks on him.

Pharm shook his head, “Don’t worry, I’m fine. It was my fault anyway,” He apologized, “I should have been looking where I was going.” He looked up to see who he had bumped into and recognized the face.

“Oh, James!” Pharm smiled and the boy looked surprised.

“You know who I am?” James asked, confused.

Pharm nodded, “Of course! You’re in my Macro Economic class!”

James blushed, “I’m surprised you remembered me, we haven’t spoken too often.”

Pharm laughed, “Yes, but you were very nice the few times we met, of course I’d remember a friend's name!”

James rubbed the back of his neck, bashfully, “Thank you,” He said, then he looked down at the food that lay across the ground, “I’m sorry about your box, was it important?”

Pharm sighed, “I’d made my boyfriend a snack box as a gift for his birthday, but I suppose I’ll have to just give him the card.” He frowned, upset at seeing all his hard work dirty and ruined.

“Oh, you have a boyfriend?” James asked, leaning down to help Pharm gather everything up to throw away.

Pharm nodded, his bright smile returning, “Yes, P’Dean, he’s the best thing to happen to me, since, well, ever!” Pharm blushed.

“Ah, well, thank you for helping me clean everything up!” Pharm said, waving goodbye to James, “See you in class!”

James smiled and waved his hand, “See you soon!”

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

Pharm pouted as he sat next to Dean, who chuckled and rubbed Pharm’s back. “It’s ok, nong,” Dean assured him, “I don't need any fancy gifts from you anyway.”

“But it’s the thought that counts!” Pharm complained, throwing his arms wide, “I just wanted to make you something and now it’s in the trash.”

“Pharm, you literally make P’Dean food all the time ,” Del commented, Alex nodding his head in agreement as he gave Del some of his own food.

“She’s right, Pharm,” Alex said, Del shooting him a smile and looking at Pharm triumphantly, crossing her arms proudly. “There hasn’t been a day since you two started dating that you haven’t made Dean food.”

“But this time it was special,” Pharm whined, “I’d made all of the snacks that brought us together, it was supposed to be a trip down memory lane!”

Dean shook his head, “Pharm, I promise you, the only thing I need to make me happy is you beside me. I don’t need food to make this day special, just you.”

Pharm blushed, “You’re such a tease.”

“Romantic,” Del corrected, “He’s a romantic. Alex, take some pointers.”

“Babe, I’m literally the living embodiment of hot, sexy, and romantic. If anything, Dean should be the one taking pointers.”

“Who’s the one who ended up dating Pharm again?”

“But that meant I ended up with you,” Alex countered with a wink, “A far better deal if you ask me.”

“Damn straight.”

“Damn Bi ,”

“Gosh you’re annoying,” Del rolled her eyes as Alex pecked her on the cheek. 

Dean glared at the two, “I still don’t know what to think about you two dating,” He grumbled.

“P’Dean, be nice.” Pharm scolded.

“If I’m nice, will you reward me?”

“P’DEAN!”

The group laughed together as they finished their lunches, unaware of the figure that stood a few feet away, watching them closely.

“I’d never be that mean to you Pharm.” The figure whispered, before walking away.

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

“P’Dean!” Pharm called, “Dinner is ready!” Warm arms circled his waist as his boyfriend rested his head on his shoulder. He kissed Pharm’s neck, hot breaths tickling him.

“P’Dean,” Pharm giggled, tring to escape his boyfriend, “P’Dean, stop! We have to eat dinner before it grows cold!” He laughed, managing to spin himself around until he was face to face with Dean.

Dean leaned in and gave Pharm a quick kiss on the lips, “I can think of only one thing tastier than your cooking right now,” He teased.

“P’Dean!” Pharm slapped his boyfriends arm, “P’Dean I swear if you don’t sit down for dinner right now, you aren’t eating anything tonight.”

“But it’s my birthday,” Dean complained as Pharm pulled away to set the table.

“I thought you said you didn’t need anything?”

“Anything but you .”

Pharm rolled his eyes, “Alright, alright, but dinner first, got it?”

“Yes sir!” Dean laughed then leaned in again to kiss Pharm’s cheek, “But seriously, if you don’t want to have se-”

“I do!” Pharm interrupted, blushing, much to his boyfriend’s amusement, “I just want to eat first.”

“Anything you want, sweetheart.”

“Damn straight.”

“Damn Gay .”

“P’Dean!”

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

Pharm shifted through his bag, “I could have sworn I put my notebook in here…” He mumbled.

“What are you looking for?” Mannow asked, leaning over her friend’s shoulder.

“My Macro Econ notebook,” Pharm complained, “I could have sworn I put it in here after class.”

“Maybe you left it in the classroom?” Team suggested, “We can always go back and check?”

Pharm sighed, “I suppose it couldn’t hurt,” But just as he stood up to go and look, someone called his name. 

“Pharm!”

“Oh, James!” Pharm smiled at the boy. “What are you doing here?”

James returned the smile, raising a hand which held a familiar notebook, “You left this back in the classroom, so I thought I’d return it.” He hands Pharm the notebook, and Pharm takes it from him with a grateful smile, 

“Thank you so much, James! You saved me a long trip!”

“No problem at all,” He replied modestly, “How did things go with your boyfriend yesterday?”

Pharm pouted, “He wasn’t too upset about the box, though I’m still annoyed about it,” He glanced up at James waving his hands, “Not that I’m blaming you or anything, it was all my own clumsiness.”

James laughed, “It’s ok, too bad you didn’t give it to him. If my boyfriend ever put that much work into a gift, I’d be a little upset too.”

Pharm raised an eyebrow, “You have a boyfriend?”

James smiled, “Not yet.”

“Oh,” Pharm smirked, “You have someone you like then?”

“Yes, he’s absolutely amazing,” James’ eyes twinkled, “He finally noticed me the other day, so I’m hoping to ask him out soon.”

“Good for you!” Pharm congratulated him, “Good luck!”

“Thank you, Pharm, are you studying for the upcoming test?” James gestured towards the table where Mannow and Team sat, pouring over notes.

Pharm nodded, “Yes! Would you like to join?”

“Can I?”

“Of course!”

“Then I would love to.”

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

“Hey Pharm,” Team asked one day, “What’s up with you and James lately?”

Pharm raised an eyebrow, confused, “What do you mean?”

“He’s like, everywhere you go now. As far as I knew, you two weren’t that close before.”

“Oh,” Pharm explained, “I ran into him the other day and he helped me out, we’ve been hanging out more lately, why do you ask?”

“It’s just…” Team looked worried, “Don’t think I’m trying to stop you from making more friends or being rude, he just asks too many questions about your dating life. It’s weird. Even Mannow doesn’t ask you about Dean that often, and she’s literally your biggest fan.”

Pharm thought for a moment, “Does he? I never really noticed.”

Team nodded, “I thought so, listen to him the next time you two meet up, I’m telling you, it’s one of the first things he asks about whenever you two meet up.”

“Hm, I’ll pay closer attention.” A warm hand placed itself on his shoulder and Pharm looked up to see his boyfriend smiling down at him, “Oh, hey P’Dean!” Pharm greeted him with a smile.

Dean leaned down and kissed the tip of Pharm’s nose, “Hello, nong. What were you and Team just discussing? Is anyone bothering you?”

Pharm shook his head, “Not really, just a classmate who keeps asking me about you.”

“About your relationship with P’,” Team corrected, “Honestly it’s a little concerning. You should keep an eye out.”

Dean frowned, looking down at Pharm, “Do you need my help?”

“Hm, not yet I don’t think,” Pharm said, thinking about it, “If he keep it up I’ll talk to him about it, I’ll let you know if things get worse, don’t worry,” He smiled, “I haven’t forgotten our promise to take care of ourselves.”

Dean nodded, “Good,” He turned to Team, “Let me know if you notice anything else as well.”

Team saluted him, “Will do, captain.” Dean rolled his eyes.

“So what brings you over here anyway, P’Dean?” Pharm asks, and Dean smiles down at him.

“A group of old highschool friends and I are meeting up for drinks tonight, I wanted to invite you as my plus one, if you’re free.”

“Oooh, that sounds like fun!” Pharm exclaimed, “What time?”

“I can pick you up from your apartment at about 5:45, is that ok?”

“Sounds wonderful!”

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

The bar was loud and crowded, patrons drunk dancing in the dim light to a muffled western song Pharm didn’t recognize.

“Dean!” A hand shot up at another table, beckoning the couple over, “Right here!”

Dean smiled, taking hold of Pharm’s hand and guiding him over to the table, “Fighter, it’s been a while.”

The tall engineer smiled, a look that just made him look mischievous and up to no good. “No kidding, Dean.” He had his arm swung around another boy, who just cast Pharm a smile. “That the boy you kept raving about in the group chat? Mr. Soulmate?”

“Mr. Soulmate goes by the name Pharm, thank you P’.” Pharm said, earning a smiled from Dean.

“You heard him, this is my boyfriend, Pharm.”

The boy next to Fighter laughed, and Fighter nudged him, “This is my boyfriend, Tutor. Tin and Pete will be arriving soon with their own boyfriends. Seems like the gay was contagious.”

Pharm chuckled as Dean pulled out a seat for him to sit down in. While Dean and Fighter started talking, Pharm ended up in a very nice discussion with Tutor. Eventually, the rest of the friends arrived, and conversation continued as all the high school buddies caught up, their boyfriends having their own separate chat.

Pharm patted Dean on his shoulder, “I’ll be right back, I just have to use the restroom.”

“Want me to come with you?” Dean offered, and Pharm shook his head with a smile.

“I’ll be right back, you just catch up with your friends, ok?” Dean smiled and nodded.

Pharm finished his business and washed his hands off, as he was walking out of the bathroom, he bumped into someone. “Oops, sorry about that!”

“We tend to bump into each other a lot, don’t we Pharm?”

Pharm looked up and smiled, “Oh, James! What are you doing here?”

“The boy I like is here, so I came to get a drink with him.” James explained.

“Oh, that’s nice! I’m here with Dean and his buddies, they’re over at that table.” Pharm pointed it out with a smile.

“Dean didn’t come with you to the bathroom?”

Pharm shook his head, “No, I didn’t want to interrupt his time with his friends.”

“I’d never let my boyfriend wander around by himself in a place like this.”

Pharm frowned, remembering what Team had said. Perhaps he was right, “Er, James?”

“Yes, Pharm?”

“Um, I hate to sound rude, but...I’d like it if you could stop making comments about Dean and my relationship.”

“Why?” James smirked, leaning closer, “Trouble in paradise?”

“Um, no, it’s just-”

“When are you guys gonna break up?”

Pharm startled, “I’m...I’m sorry?”

James’s face was now uncomfortably close to Pharms', and he took a step back, “When are you guys gonna break up? You’re obviously not in a good relationship.”

“James, are you drunk? When have I ever insinuated that Dean and I aren’t getting along?”

“You’re alone right now, for one. You’re way too cute to be left alone like this. You need a real man in your life, like me. I wouldn’t leave you alone.”

Pharm pushed James away, “Listen, James, I’m really happy with my relationship right now and I’d like to ask that you please leave me alone. You’re making me very uncomfortable right now.”

James frowned, “How on earth could I make you uncomfortable? I thought you liked me too Pharm, after all, we’ve been spending all this time together-”

“As friends!”

“You were so nice to me-”

“I was being polite. James, please, stop this right now.” Pharm’s heart was beating harder in his chest, and he gazed around for help. Someone, anyone, to step in. But this wasn’t the movies. Dean was all the way across the bar talking to a group of friends, and everyone else was too focused on their own problems to intervene.

“Phaaaarm,” James sang, “I know you like me back,” He grabbed hold of Pharm’s arm.

“Let me go, James!” Pharm shouted, trying to pull his arm away, but the taller boy was stronger than him, “Let me go, right now!”

Jame’s rancid breath, sour with alcohol, brushed against Pharm’s face, making the boy cringe, eyes wide with fear. “Pharm, it’s ok,” James whispered with a smile, “Just relax,” He then leaned forward and forced his lips on Pharm.

Pharm was crying now as he pushed and pushed. He wanted this to end, now. His body was shaking and he couldn’t scream, voice stolen by panic. Unwelcome hands ran themselves up and down his body, making their way under his shirt. Finally, Pharm forced himself out of his fearful daze and kneed James in the groin.

James hunched over groaning, “I told you to leave me alone!” Pharm shouted, sobbing, before running as fast as he could towards Dean’s table.

As soon as Dean saw him, his face fell, “Pharm? What happened?” He shot up, throwing his arms around Pharm, “Shh, you’re ok, I’m right here.”

The group of friends at the table gave each other concerned looks and stood up, surrounding Pharm, Tutor and Pete both rubbed Pharm’s arms in an effort to comfort him.

“Did something happen?” Fighter asked.

“Is it a panic attack? Do you need some water?” Ae quickly ran to get Pharm a glass of water as the boy continued shaking in Dean’s arms.

Can frowned, “Did someone bother you or something?” He asked suddenly, Tin’s look darkening.

Dean pulled away and looked at Pharm, worried. Pharm, however, kept his eyes trained on the ground as tears continued to roll down his cheeks.

“Pharm, did someone bother you? Is Can right?”

Pharm just shook harder and Tin growled, “Fucking knew it, we have a friend who reacted the same way after someone touched him without permission. Just give us the name.”

“Dean,” Pharm whispered, “Can we...can we go home? I’m sorry to cut things short.”

Dean nodded as Ae arrived with the glass, handing it to Pharm, “Take a few sips of water, I’ll grab our things and we can go. Don't worry about it Pharm, I don’t mind cutting things short to make sure you’re ok.”

Pharm took the glass and took a few sips, Pete and Tutor continuing to murmur comforting words and make sure Pharm didn’t collapse then and there.

The rest of the night was a blur as Dean carefully led him to the car and buckled him in the seat. Eventually, they arrived back at Pharm’s home, and Dean half carried him upstairs and into the bed.

“Pharm, can you hear me?”

Pharm nodded, numb.

“Pharm, did...did Can guess right? Did someone touch you?”

Pharm shivered and nodded, the look in Dean’s eyes immediately turned dark. “Who.”

“J-James…” Pharm whispered, and Dean’s eyes narrowed.

“What did he do? Are you able to tell me?”

“He...He touched me...and...kissed me.” Dean slammed a fist on the bed, making Pharm wince. Dean quickly relaxed and ran a comforting hand across Pharm’s cheek.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you, I’m just...I’m angry I let you get hurt.”

Pharm shook his head, “It was all my fault, I should have noticed he-”

“Pharm, none of his is your fault, did you tell James to kiss you?”

Pharm shook his head, horrified, “Of course not! I would never-”

“Then it’s not your fault. He did all of that without your consent, that’s not your fault.”

Pharm sobbed, “P’Dean, what do I do?” He wailed, “I have-I have class with him t-tomorrow.”

“I’ll walk you to class, and Team and Mannow will certainly help you if you ask them. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure this all gets resolved. I promise.”

“P’Dean…” Pharm whispered weakly, “Can we...can we cuddle?”

Dean’s eyes softened, “Of course, Pharm.”

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

The next day was terrifying, what had once been a safe zone filled with wonderful memories had suddenly become a terrifying battlefield, with Pharm going out of his way to avoid Jame’s. Dean stuck closer than ever before to Pharm’s side, sharp eyes scanning the surroundings.

Eventually, Dean was able to drop Pharm off at the classroom without incidence, “I told Team to keep James away from you,” Dean whispered, running his fingers through Pharm’s hair, “If he bothers you again though, call me immediately, I’ll be over to help as soon as I can.”

“You won’t...you won’t beat him up...will you?” Pharm asked, worried.

Dean shook his head, “As much as I wish I could, violence won’t solve anything. I’ll settle this with words. Very scary words.”

Pharm chuckled, he wouldn’t admit it, but the idea of Dean fighting scared him, he didn’t want to watch anyone get hurt. Not after...not after the memories that still haunted his sleep.

“Thank you, P’Dean.” He whispered, smiling.

“There’s my good boy,” Dean praised him, hands tightening their grip around Pharm’s, “I love you.”

“Love you too.” Pharm waved goodbye to Dean as Team came up behind him.

“Heard James was being a creep,” He said, “Don’t worry, Mannow and I will keep him off your back.”

Pharm smiled softly at his friend, “Thank you, Team.”

But James didn’t show up to class that day. Or the next. Or any day after.

“What happened to him?” Pharm wondered, and, despite the boy's absence, he still felt the prickling fear that the boy may appear at any given moment.

That moment was a few weeks later. Pharm’s guard’s had finally relaxed, believing James was gone for good. Pharm was studying in the library by himself when a tall body sat beside him.

“Hey there, Pharm, how are you?” Pharm stiffened, looking up with fear into the face of James.

The memory of that night was suddenly fresh in Pharm’s mind, and he felt sick all over again.

“J-JJames,” Pharm stuttered, “W-What-”

“Shhhhh….” James placed a finger on Pharm’s lips to quiet him, and tears begin to prickle in Pharm’s eyes.

“Don’t be so loud,” He whispered with a disgusting smile, “We’re in a library after all.” He wriggled his brows.

Pharm finally found it in him to leap back, “L-leave me alone.”

James frowned, “Why? I thought we were friends?” Then, he smirked, “Is this about that one night where you hurt me? Don’t worry, I’ve already forgiven you.”

“You, forgive me?” Pharm scoffed, suddenly feeling brave, he stood up, “If anyone should be asking for forgiveness, it’s you.” He scolded, and James looked properly disconcerted with Pharm’s change in attitude.

“You touched me, and kissed me without my permission. You made rude remarks about P’Dean and my relationship to him. I want an apology, and for you to leave me alone. If you don’t I swear, I will tell everyone what a solid dick you are and have your entire reputation and remaining years at this college ruined in just a few minutes!” Pharm was shouting now, gathering attention and scrutinizing looks which James withered underneath.

Without another word, James gathered his things and scurried away. “Good riddance,” Pharm huffed. He sat down angrily. Hopefully James would leave him alone now.

A few minutes later, the library door slammed open and Dean rushed in, hair wild and out of breath. “Pharm,” He gasped, running his hands over Pharm’s body, “Are you ok? Someone texted me and said you were fighting with someone!”

Pharm smiled and shook his head, “I’m fine P’Dean,” He said, “I just...said a few scary words to James.”

Dean sat, frozen for a moment, before laughing, he pulled Pharm into a tight hug, “That’s my good boy!”

“Young men!” An older woman scolded them, “This is a library!”

Both boys chuckled and looked at each other, “Understood ma’am,” Dean apologized, “Sorry to disturb you, we’ll be on our way.” And together, they gathered Pharm’s things, and walked out of the library, all wide smiles and twinkling eyes as their hands intertwined.

Chapter Text

Pharm was angry. This in and of itself was something not very common. It was very rare that the happy-go-lucky boy with a heart of gold and the patience of a saint was angry. But he was. And no one would take him seriously.

“Oh come on Pharm,” Team whined, “You’re being over dramatic.”

“I am not!” Pharm stamped his foot, hands placed firmly on his waist, “P’Dean hasn’t kissed me or...or... done anything with me in over a month!”

Mannow frowned, “That doesn't sound like Dean, normally he’s all over you like a love sick puppy.”

“Exactly!” Pharm pointed at Mannow, “Last night I even called him Daddy and he still wouldn’t touch other than to cuddle!”

Team held up a hand, “First of all, angry you sure is open about your sex life, which, one, nice, and two, I didn’t need to know that.”

Pharm blushed, “I’m serious guys, it’s really weird. We’ve always been touchy feely, but now he’s barely touching me at all!” Angry tears welled up in Pharm’s eyes, “Did I do something wrong? Is he angry at me or something?”

Mannow shook her head, “Pharm, P’Dean is literally head over heels in love with you. He thinks you can do no wrong, you guys are literally soulmates!” She threw her hands up in the air, “Honestly, I’d talk to him about it. There’s gotta be a real reason for P’Dean avoiding...doing things.”

Pharm sighed, “I’ve been trying to talk to him about it, but...I don’t know...he’s been really weird lately. He keeps leaving to hang out with his friends several times a week, not that I’d ever stop him, but with that, plus school and him preparing for his internship, we haven’t had the time to have a real talk together.”

“Maybe that’s it,” Team suggested, “Maybe he’s just really busy and stressed and is too tired to realize you guys aren’t as intimate as before!”

“I mean, I suppose that could be true..” Pharm frowned.

“Give him some time to relax and get things sorted, maybe after exams, he’ll be back to normal.”

Pharm sighed again, giving into his friend, “Fine, I’ll wait till after exams to confront him.”

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

Exams were over, and Dean still wouldn’t touch Pharm. Pharm was thoroughly upset, and when Dean dropped one of his nicer bowls, a present from his mom, and shattered it, Pharm was not proud of how he’d reacted.

“Just leave!” Pharm screamed, pushing Dean out of the apartment, “If all you’re gonna do here is break my things, then just go home!” He slammed the door in a sad and confused Dean’s face.

“Pharm?” Dean spoke through the door, “Pharm, I’m sorry, na?” 

Pharm ignored the urge to let Dean back in. He was pissed. He was just as stressed as Dean with exams, not to mention the whole deal with James, and his breakdown a few months ago that had left him with double therapy sessions and a new medication. And yet, Pharm was the only one still physically invested in this relationship. If Dean couldn’t see that, then maybe he should take some time to himself to figure things out.

Pharm stormed away from the door and turned on his radio, turning the volume up to the highest it would go to block out Dean’s pleas. He then threw himself on to his bed and shoved his tear filled face into his pillow.

“Stupid P’Dean…”

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

“Pharm?” Dean banged on the door, but once he heard the music, he knew Pharm wouldn’t be able to hear him anymore. He sighed, confused and sad, why had Pharm kicked him out? Dean had never seen Pharm react this way before, and it wasn’t fun.

“Ouch bro,” Sorn, who had just arrived to visit his boyfriend, frowned as he looked at Pharms shut door and Dean, who stood pitifully outside, “You guys have a fight?”

“I...I don’t know?” Dean questioned, he and Pharm had never fought before, not like this.

Sorn sighed, then nodded towards P’Sin’s apartment, “Why don’t you come in and join us?”

“Thank you,” Dean murmured, throwing Pharm’s door one last glance before following Sorn inside the next apartment.

P’Sin took one look at Dean, then towards the shared wall through which the music could still be heard, then cast Dean a pitying look, shaking his head, “What the fuck did you do?”

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

Pharm had been avoiding Dean for two days now, and the effects were starting to show. His hair was tangled, and he had deep bags underneath his eyes. His skin was now so pale, Team had started cracking jokes about him being able to blend in with snow.

“Seriously man, just talk to him.”

“I don’t want to.”

Team sighed, “Listen, I know you’re angry about Dean not touching you, but this is a little much, don’t you think?”

Pharm broke down in tears, “I just….with everything that’s happened to us in the past year….everything is just so much.” He sobbed, “With In, Korn, James, and my stupid breakdowns...I-I just can’t take this much longer!” He wailed. “What if Dean doesn't like me anymore because of this, I kicked him out and ignored him over a stupid plate !”

“Buddy, I’m gonna need you to take a few deep breaths, ok? You with me? Alright, listen,” Team leaned forward with a frown, “Win and I have argued over bigger things before, arguing is a normal part of every relationship. If someone tells you they don’t fight with their loved ones? They’re lying. You’re two different people who have chosen to share a life, neither of you are gonna be 100% the same, soulmates or not. But when you fight, you need to make sure you talk to each other, and don’t pretend you don’t know how to. You and Dean are literally the most open couple ever. I don’t see why this time has to be the exception.”

Pharm took a deep breath, “You’re right...I-I’ll talk to him.”

Team leaned back in his chair, arms thrown behind his head, “Good, dumbass.”

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

Pharm entered a nearby cafe, thinking deeply on how to approach Dean and apologize. It was then that he noticed a very familiar face inside. A hauntingly familiar face.

“I-Intouch?” He stammered, the boy looked up at him.

“Hello there, you must be Pharm, P’Dean called me the same exact thing when he first met me!” The boy laughed, he held out his hand, “I’m Tar, a friend of P’Dean’s. He’s told me a bit about you.”

Pharm shook the outstretched hand, numb. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Standing before him was someone the spitting image of In.

Tar chuckled, “I heard I look like an old friend of you guys, I guess the resemblance must be canny if you’re also this shocked.

Pharm nodded his head, “Er...yeah…”

A honk outside had Tar glancing at his watch, “That would be Tum, I must have been in here for too long. But hey,” He placed a hand on Pharm’s shoulder, “P’Dean told me what happened with that James guy, I had something similar happen to me. I’ve been getting a lot of help from friends and family, if you ever need anyone to talk to, give me a call, P’Dean should have it. It was nice to meet you!” He waved goodbye as he walked out the door, Pharm raced after him.

“Wait! In-I mean, Tar!” Tar turned back to look at him, “Wh-what do you mean, P’Dean talked to you about what happened?” 

Tar smiled softly at him, “P’Dean was worried about you, so he came to me for advice. He’s been trying to help you feel better, I hope I was able to give some good advice, anyway, I have to go, it was nice talking with you!”

Pharm watched as the Intouch look-alike got into the car and drove away. He then pulled out his phone.

Ph@m: P’...would you like to come over tonight? I think...we need to have a talk…..

Dean: Of course nong, I’ll be over around 6 if that’s ok

━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━◦○◦━

Pharm sat on the couch beside Dean, “P’...” He whispered, “I’m sorry I yelled at you the other night….I...I didn’t mean to be so cruel to you, I just…” A few tears ran down his cheeks, “I was mad, not about the plate, I've been so stressed out with all that's happened to us and...P’....you haven’t...you haven't kissed me or-or touched me in over a month. Did I do something wrong? Or-”

Dean shook his head fervently, “Of course not, Pharm,” He grabbed Pharm’s hands and held them close to his chest, “I just didn’t want to make you uncomfortable. After the whole thing with James, I was worried about stressing you out. I...I heard from a friend that experiences like that can leave you scared of being touched in those ways, I didn’t want to do that to you.”

“Is that why you were talking to Tar?’

Dean raised an eyebrow in surprise, “You met Tar?”

Pharm nodded, “He said you were going to him for help,” He sighed, “P’, you could have just asked me. I’d never be scared of you, you’re my soulmate for heavens sake! And besides,” He stared sternly into Dean’s eyes, “You aren’t like James, you would never hurt me.”

Dean released a heavy breath and leaned in towards Pharm, “I’m sorry, I didn't mean to make you upset like this.”

Pharm shook his head, “It’s ok, I know now that you were only worried about me,” He took Dean’s head in his hands, “But don’t ever do something like this again. I may be shy, but I still enjoy the physical aspects of our relationship. I miss you P’,” Pharm whispered, “Please don’t leave me guessing like this again please.”

Dean smiled, “Never again.” And he leaned in to kiss Pharm, who moaned at the heavy, long awaited touch.

Dean pulled away with a smirk, “I think it’s about time we did something a little more than just kiss, don’t you think?”

“Oh gosh, yes.”