AN: I don't know where this actually came from. All I know is that it popped into my mind while I was listening to My Demons by Starset.

Oh! Also, hi Phandom! Sorry it's been a while, I had a television series to finish and recover from, though.

Enjoy.

Color always seemed to be one of those things that people had associated with them, but it never meant anything at all until someone tried to change it.

It was always something associated with who you were as a person. Some people didn't seem to fit their color, and others fit it almost too well.

Dan had never had that sort of problem. He avoided being 'classed' as a color if at all possible. Most of what he wore was monochrome, and all of it was completely non-assuming in the entire scheme of things.

He stayed off to himself, never really opening up to people if he had to talk to them. He gave no one any sort of opportunity to destroy him, rob him of who he was as a person.

And so, as he sat in the back of his English class, he kept an eye out, flickering between everyone as the teacher spoke. He could easily see where the colors divided in the room. It was a subconscious thing, but people generally didn't mix well with those that were associated with a contrasting color to their own. No one even realized it was happening, and maybe that's what bothered Dan.

But with Dan being associated with the color black in the eyes of others, he had no room to talk because he avoided everyone, no matter their color association.

In fact, should anyone ask, they could point out only two people that he associated with - PJ, who's color representation was green, and Chris, who's color was a deep red.

Usually, it didn't bother anyone, but Dan could see some of them throwing strange looks towards him. He supposed he understood. He'd been a bit more antisocial recently, the loneliness he normally didn't feel enough to acknowledge feeling as if it were crushing him.

And when someone felt like they were drowning because of color association, people noticed.

The rest of the week was slow, and Dan flitted between being lost to everyone and actually talking with the few friends he had in the school.

And so, Friday, when the door opened halfway through English, everyone fell silent when they saw a new kid standing there.

The teacher smiled faintly and motioned the boy in. "You must be Phil," she said kindly.

Phil nodded quietly, but gave a beaming smile. "Yes, ma'am,"

Dan tilted his head as he watched the scene. White, his mind supplied though he didn't seem to realize that he was puzzled over the boy's color association.

It was quiet as Phil took a seat, directly beside Dan, and as soon as he was in his seat, the entire classroom erupted into whispered conversations.

Dan threw an unamused look around himself at this before he turned to Phil. "Hi," he offered. "Phil, right? I'm Dan,"

Phil grinned and shook the offered hand. "Nice to meet you,"

Dan gave a faint smile and glanced around before he spoke again. "I don't think I've met someone else who has a monochromatic color association," he offered.

"Someone else?" Phil questioned curiously. "You know someone who's monochrome?"

Dan shook his head, looking back at the paper on his desk that he had been absently doodling on.

Phil lapsed into silence as well, understanding catching up to him suddenly.

The weekend flew by and before Dan felt he was ready for it, Monday arrived, dragging him back into the abyss that was school.

"Hey, Dan," PJ greeted as the brunette joined him and Chris that morning at their lockers. "Have a good weekend?"

Dan shrugged. "Too short of one, if you really want to know my opinion," he offered, throwing a weak smile at the artist before returning his attention to opening his locker.

"I heard some interesting rumours Friday," Chris pointed out suddenly. "I know we have a new guy in school now, do you happen to know what his color association is?"

Silence fell over the group and Dan threw a look to Chris once he had got what he needed from his locker. "Why?"

Chris shrugged. "Curious,"

Just then, Phil wandered by and Dan spoke up. "Hey you,"

Phil jumped, seemingly startled, before looking over at Dan and grinning. "Oh good, I thought it was someone that I should avoid," he commented wryly, a joking tone in his voice as he moved to stand with them.

PJ raised an eyebrow at the sudden socialization Dan had just partook in willingly. It was strange to say the least. "Who's this, Dan?"

Phil spoke before Dan could, grinning at them. "I'm Phil. I just moved recently,"

"So you're the new kid the school's been buzzing about recently," Chris said with a nod. "I'm Chris,"

PJ rolled his eyes. "And I'm PJ. If you need anything, anything at all, let us know, alright?"

Phil nodded in agreement. "Thanks,"

Dan shook his head at the situation as he closed his locker.

The conversation didn't last much longer, as once he caught sight of the time, Phil darted off to find his locker.

"White?" PJ asked curiously. "I got that whole...monochrome vibe from him like we did with you, but it was...sweeter, somehow,"

Dan nodded in agreement. "It's strange,"

It didn't take long for Phil to slowly be pulled into their little group. And once he had, they all noticed that Dan slowly started being more social around Phil. They'd spend hours just chattering about Muse, or video games, anything but the pressing questions about what the hell had happened.

PJ and Chris both agreed it was nice to see, even if they were confused by the entire situation.

As time passed, they all noticed that Dan seemed happier. He didn't question himself as much, he smiled more, joked around with them openly. He was almost an entirely different person.

Phil was constant smiles and puns, easy to be around even on his own. Dan had always been the exact opposite.

And no one could explain it, but then again, no one really questioned it either.

When Chris finally asked PJ about it one day at lunch, curious as to his view on it, he got such a simple answer that it made him just stop and watch for a good while.

"It isn't that surprising, honestly. Unlike with the other colors, the monochromatic spectrum always compliment the other elements of it because they're representative of all colors. In a way, it means that while they get along with people who represent another color, they never feel complete or understood,"

All it really came down to, after all, was that Dan had found someone he could be himself with without holding back.