#i guess.. roman is bathroom. hallway and staircase

[roychewtoy]

"if we were to dissect a house as we might a human cadaver"

succession + anatomy

[skeletonsloverockcandy]

When will my Reflection show who I am in Sides

Summary: Thomas gets home late after a day of recording videos with his friends. While walking up the stairs to his bedroom, he sees something strange in the hall mirror. Was that? No it couldn't be, he must be imagining things. He goes to bed only to find himself looking back in the mirror, only it isn't the Him he's supposed to see. Because Thomas isn't wearing glasses. Or an AU where the Sides only appear as Thomas's reflection, at what seems to be the most inconvenient times ever.

Warnings: Thomas fears he’s losing his sanity and Virgil causes him to be anxious but I think that’s it, Oh wait no, there’s some arguing too, but it’s pretty mild, also Remus and Janus are in this but I don’t know if they count as warnings or not.

Fandom: Sanders Sides, Thomas Sanders

Characters: Thomas Sanders/Character!Thomas, Logan/Logic Sanders, Patton/Morality Sanders, Roman “Princey”/Creativity Sanders, Janus/Deceit Sanders, Virgil/Anxiety Sanders, Remus “the Duke”/Dark Creativity Sanders

Word Count: 6,540

Author’s Note: I don’t generally do one shots, but this is getting me back in my writing groove, so I guess there’s a first time for everything. Also I don’t have a general writing taglist yet, so I’m just going to tag the people who are on my Hitchhiker taglist if that’s okay.

Ao3 Link

***

Thomas closed the door to his apartment, sighing as he set his keys down on the counter in the kitchen. He’d just had a long day of making videos with his friends. Gosh he loved his friends, he thought as he reminisced on the videos they were making today, remakes of old vines. It filled him with a sense of fondness and nostalgia that his little ragtag group of pals was willing to entertain his silly ideas even way back in the vine age.

He sighed again, good times.

He rubbed his eyes as he let out a yawn, it was well after dark by now and he was looking forward to going to sleep…which is what he’s going to tell himself as he gets in bed, opens up his laptop and plays video games until 2 AM. But, well, he’s working on it.

He slips off his jacket while dragging his feet towards the stairs, trying to kick off his shoes at the same time.

Now no longer encumbered by his laced nemeses, Thomas can feel confident that he’ll tooooootally put his pajamas on before just flopping into bed. Totally. Yep. Definitely won’t sleep in his clothes.

Not a chance, is what he tells himself as he climbs his way up the staircase towards his room.

He passes the mirror in his hallway between his bathroom and his bedroom, mid yawn when he sees it, just for a moment.

Thomas does a double take, looking back in the mirror, and…yep, it’s just him. 

He could’ve sworn for a moment there he saw scales, and a caplet. But no, it’s just him, Steven Universe shirt in all its glory, and not a hat to be found.

He got quite a jump there, wow his heart was beating fast, was he breathing heavy? It was just because he’s tired...he didn’t actually see...did he? No, no, that wasn’t possible. He just needed to make his way to bed, actually go to sleep on time for once, maybe not play video games until 2 AM. Yeah, that sounded good, he’d do that.

He opened the door to his room, very pointedly not looking at the hall mirror again, and set to go to sleep. Feeling that as long as he was actually going to sleep, he might as well put on some pajamas.

He slipped on a sleep shirt and some pajama pants stretching his arms out a little before climbing under the covers.

He checked his alarm clock, 10:02 PM. Wow, he never usually goes to bed that early. It’d be fine though, he could actually be a functioning human being for once.

As he went to turn off his lamp, he caught sight of the full-length mirror on his now-closed door. And he saw him standing there, another him, one wearing a tie and glasses and looking approvingly back at Thomas instead of the Thomas in pajamas and about to turn out the light that was supposed to be there.

“Ah! What the heck!” Thomas shouted, completely calmly and reasonably, he told himself.

He, however, would not deny that he completely uncalmly and unreasonably fell off the bed and took all the blankets with him, as he now lay in a sprawl on the floor.

Consequences of getting spooked while half leaning out of his bed, he supposed.

He carefully peaked up over the edge of his bed and thankfully only saw a normal looking, if rattled him staring back at himself like he was supposed to.

Thomas gulped and took a deep breath to settle his nerves. He was either seeing things, or he was being haunted, and he wasn’t sure either of those two options made him feel any better. Well, at least if it was the first option, it might be remedied by getting some rest. Surely, if he was seeing delusions of different Hims in the mirror, it was a sign of sleep deprivation? Yeah, yeah, that sounded right. But just in case…

Thomas grabbed the thin sheet that went under the heavy blankets and draped it over the bedroom mirror, feeling himself relax a bit.

Now maybe he could finally get to sleep…

***

It had been a little over a week since Thomas’s little doppelgänger encounter of the third kind happened, and he had not had an incident since going to sleep that night. He kept the sheet on his bedroom mirror up for a couple of nights after, but eventually reasoned with himself that whatever had happened that made him hallucinate, or whatever that was, was clearly a fluke of his exhausted mind since it hadn’t happened again, so keeping the sheet up was unreasonable. He had woken up early the day after and had been now coping with a weirdly adjusted sleep schedule. It felt odd waking up early, but whatever he had done to trick his body into going to sleep early that one night had clearly had lasting impacts, because he had woken up early and gone to bed on time every day this week. Well, hard to complain that he was finally getting his body’s act together, and it was a good thing too. He had an audition coming up soon that he was really excited about, and though he knew it was cliché, and like, rookie theater kid mistake 101, he was looking forward to singing a Disney song.

He knew he could audition for pretty much any part, but Thomas had really debated on whether he wanted to audition for the hero or the villain, as that would determine which song he picked and the range of emotion he showed, though in the end it wouldn’t really matter because the director got final say in casting.

He had decided he would audition for the part of the love-struck hero, and was quietly singing the lyrics to “Won’t say I’m in love” as he grabbed a towel to dry off after taking a shower. He pulled back the shower curtain, toweling off his hair with a series of “No chance, no way”’s, before wrapping the towel around his waist and grabbing his hairbrush. He hummed while he fixed his still-wet hair with one hand and went to wipe the fog off the mirror with the other.

Then it happened again.

He had cleared off a big slice of fog from the mirror and went to run his brush through his hair more carefully, when Thomas realized he wasn’t looking at himself in the mirror.

They certainly looked like him, but he wasn’t wearing a prince outfit, nor was he jamming out and singing at full volume to “Won’t say I’m in love” because he had been humming. Humming.

But now he could hear his own voice with full bravado singing the lyrics back at him, head thrown back, eyes closed, and dramatically leaning on the wall opposite the mirror.

Thomas was also leaning against that wall, but more out of shock and fear than anything else.

He shook his head and closed his eyes. This wasn’t real. He was dreaming. Dreaming. This was just because he was spooked about what happened the other day, he was not seeing himself perform Disney songs in full prince regalia in the mirror because he wasn’t in prince regalia, and he is not singing at the top of his lungs in the mirror, so he couldn’t be seeing his reflection do that, because he wasn’t doing that.

He peaked open one of his squished shut eyelids, to confirm that he was definitely not seeing those things, only to discover prince him, definitely still doing those things and singing in place of where Thomas’s reflection should be.

The Other Thomas was mid-note, when he too opened his eyes, caught sight of Thomas and abruptly cut himself off with a small “eep”.

He looked awkward for a second before looking at Thomas and speaking, “Too much?”

Thomas stared back at the other Him who had just spoken to him. He felt lightheaded. His voice felt weak, but he managed to squeak out a small “...yeah, a bit”.

“Oh, well, I know you need to put a lot of passion into your performance in a few days, best to practice on the regular! Thanks for auditioning for the hero by the way, I don’t think Remus would have ever shut up about it if you had chosen to go for the villain, but brothers will be like that, am I right?”

Thomas was so very confused at the information being thrown at him right now, but, due to circumstances, he found himself feeling kind of out of it at that exact moment. So instead he just thought of his own brother and said “...yeah, brothers are like that.”

“Oh don’t I know it, he has no idea how hard it is being the hot, popular one, and all he talks about is gore and garbage and other gross stuff. You should’ve seen the time he filled our room with feral cats, I had to take care of them for weeks, and he knows we have a cat allergy, but he said the excess of snot and puffiness ‘added to our complexion’, said I could use a bit of mucus to ‘put us on an even playing field since he was the better looking one after all’, can you believe him! The indignity of it all! If he ever does that again I’ll...uh, Thomas, doing alright there, superstar?”

Thomas, who had been slowly sliding down the wall and clutching his head, was now sitting on the floor and very much not doing alright. “...yeah, great, never better, fantastic. Just…dandy. I just...need a moment.”

“Oh certainly, then by all means-” the reflection spoke before Thomas blinked and he was staring back at regular old him again. Thomas exhaled a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding. His head was pounding with his heartbeat in his ears. His brain began trying to process the things he just saw and the words he just heard. Because he had heard words. His reflection had spoken to him. He must have finally cracked. There went his sanity, whoosh, out the metaphorical window. This just...this just didn’t make any sense.

What was the other him even talking about? None of what he said had made any sense. How could his reflection have a brother? Who was Remus? Scratch that, more importantly, how was his reflection talking to him?!

Thomas thought in that moment how he very much needed to lie down, and just as he was thinking that, he blinked and his reflection changed again to that of him in a prince costume, now very close to the glass and looking down at him on the floor.

“So like, how long is a moment for you because that felt pretty long to me, aaaaand you’re still on the floor. You sure you’re doing okay Tommy-Salami?”

Thomas jolted back again and banged his head on the back wall.

“Gah! Quit doing that! Also...ow.” He said as he rubbed the back of his head.

“You good amigo? That looked like that caused a bump large enough to knock out the dragon witch.”

“The what? Nevermind, just, how are you doing that?”

His reflection looked around, looked behind himself, even patted himself down before turning to Thomas with a puzzled look.

“Uhh...doing what?”

“That! All of that! You’re my reflection, how are you...not reflecting me? I’m not wearing a prince outfit, I didn’t say what you just said, and I’m not doing what you’re doing, so how are you?”

His reflection laughed, laughed, at that. Even shook his head a bit as if this was trivial and there was some big misunderstanding. As if it were funny.

“Oh Thomas, I’m sorry, I believe there may have been a bit of a misread of the situation. Of what’s going on here. See, one as beautiful and talented as myself can not be limited to a mere reflection, be contained in something so simple as a mirror. No, there are too many adoring fans, too many stages to perform on, too many lovers to woo and hearts to break,” he paused for a dramatic faux sob, “No, what would I be if I were a mere reflection. A mere copy, nay! A clone. Why, I would not be nearly as complete, not nearly as rich and interesting a person! No Thomas, I am not a reflection of you, I am you. A part of you anyway, and I embody your passion and creativity. It is I, Prince Roman, at your service!” He finished with a dramatic pose.

There was silence for a bit after that, where Thomas just stared at him blankly.

Roman dropped his pose somewhat and cleared his throat, “Eh hem. Thoughts?”

“So you’re...my creativity?”

“Part of it, yes.”

“How does that even work? And that still doesn’t explain why my creativity, I guess, can physically manifest in my mirror, as me in a prince costume. And don’t even get me started on the why part of that question!”

��Woah woah woah woah, what made you think I was physically manifesting, I can’t physically impact the world at all, aside from my dashing good looks that is.”

“So what? This is all just in my head? None of what’s happening right now is real? I’ve finally cracked?!” Thomas said standing up and clutching his towel for dear life.

Roman went still for a second, getting a serious look on his face before responding, “Of course this is all in your head, but why on earth would that mean this isn’t real?” before cracking into a wide giddy grin, “I have always wanted to say that! But seriously yeah, this is in your head, but you’re not going crazy, I’m just as real as you or any of the others.”

“The others?”

“Oh yeah, you didn’t think I was the only one, did you? I’m part of your creativity, but you’ve got other sides to your personality: your morality, your logic, the...other ones, etc etc. I’m hardly the whole packaged deal. Though I totally could be if we were measuring in terms of charm. I mean, I am almost quite literally Prince Charming.”

“Right...sorry this is just, a lot to process. I’m still not sure I’m not going crazy, and...if we’re going to continue this conversation (which I seem to be having with the mental projection of a voice inside my head, wow), I would like to put some clothes on, please.”

“Oh shoot, right sorry, forgot about the whole ‘shower’ thing, go get dressed and I’ll meet you in the bedroom.”

Thomas gave him a strange look and blinked, expecting him to disappear like the last time that he ‘gave him a moment’. He didn’t.

“Uh...okaaaaay? I’ll just...go do that then.” Thomas said as he opened the bathroom door, checking behind him every couple of seconds to see if Roman was still there (he was) and sped into his bedroom, closing the door and throwing on a T-shirt and shorts as quickly as he could. Then he sat on his bed and waited. His full length mirror still had his normal reflection in it. Could Roman see him through it? Or was he still waiting at the other mirror? Was the fact that he could see himself in the mirror a sign that Roman had disappeared from the other mirror? Did...did he have to call out to him? Let him know he was dressed? It was worth a try.

“Um, is anyone there? Roman? One of the...others he mentioned? I’m-” well he wasn’t ready, but, “I’m dressed, if you still want to talk, and you know, explain to me what the heck is going on. I’m here.”

He expected it this time when he blinked and his reflection changed, but he didn’t expect someone that wasn’t Roman to show up.

“You! The guy in the tie! Teacher dude!”

“Yes, hello to you too Thomas. I overheard Roman giving you the ‘lowdown’, I believe is the correct terminology, and thought I should give my assistance in the explanation since this matter requires objective facts and knowledge, and I do encompass your logic.”

“Woah, slowdown, you’re my logical side? What were you doing last week with the whole ‘peering at me before I try to go to sleep’ gambit? And (I can’t believe I’m saying this because he’s probably just a figment of my imagination) where is Roman?”

The him with a tie and glasses, who Thomas was beginning to think of as the ‘Teacher Him’ in his head, sighed and adjusted his glasses.

“I...apologize for startling you last week, Thomas. I was just checking in because you finally, finally, had been planning on correcting your sleep schedule. Which is something that has been quite a lofty goal of mine for quite some time. I was proud to see you finally start to follow through, especially after a...discussion I had had with Janus regarding the situation. So I ‘slipped up’, if you will, and may have been an iota too excited to see you succeed, which, unfortunately resulted in your mental distress, but did conclude with the desired results. Though I apologize again Thomas. I did not intend to frighten you, that is not my primary function.”

“So...What is your ‘primary function’ then?”

“As I stated previously, I am your logical side. I am your common sense as well as everything you’ve ever learned. My main goal is for you to become a more functional, healthy, and productive human being. I have had...mixed success trying to complete these goals.”

Thomas let out a bitter laugh.

“You don’t say? ‘Healthy’ and ‘functional’ while I am seeing personified portions of my personality whenever I look in a mirror?! What part of any of this seems normal? Or okay!? Or remotely like sane human behavior?” He finished with a half shout, growing increasingly more distressed. The teacher him let out a slightly exasperated sigh before softening.

“Thomas, you need to breathe. You are going to be okay. I know it may not seem it right now, but you are perfectly sane. If a bit...eccentric at times. But I can tell you are-” he pulled out some notecards from his back pocket, “‘going through it’ right now, but I promise things will be-” he shuffled through the cards again, “‘5 by 5’ in the future.”

Thomas looked at him like he’d grown a second head.

“Do...do you have flashcards that have slang words on them?”

“Yes, I find it best to be informed on all modern advancements in the English language, and having a list of all new vocabulary helps me keep track of such advancements.”

Thomas blew a slow breath, “Wow, this is uh, this is a lot. That is ah, certainly something I didn’t know about myself. (Glad to know I’m a huge nerd in every iteration of me). But wait, can um...can, uh, other people...see you? In the mirror I mean. Or does this just look like I’m talking to myself?”

“As far as I am aware, I do not think other people can see us. I don’t know that for sure though, because you don’t know that for sure, and I’m your knowledge, Thomas. I only know what you know.”

“Right, great, so there’s no way to confirm I’m not crazy, great. Look, sorry, I keep calling you ‘Teacher Dude’ in my head, but like, the other guy had a name. Roman? He said he was in charge of my creativity. Do you also have a name? Just...What do I call you?”

“Oh, I’m sorry Thomas, it completely slipped my mind. Yes, I have a name. You may call me Logan.”

“Logan...right. Thanks, I guess.”

“It’s no problem Thomas I simply-”

“Ah- Tah- Logan! I was going to explain things to Thomas!” Roman could be heard exclaiming before stepping into view behind Logan in the mirror. Logan let out a long, exasperated sigh before stepping back so there was room to view both of them within the frame of the mirror.

“If he wanted to hear from the Microsoft Nerd he would have asked for you.”

“I find that unlikely since until very recently he didn’t know our names or of our existence. Besides, Thomas only asked if anyone was there, including, and I quote, ‘One of the others mentioned’, and since I am in that category, as someone who is not you, I had full reason and responsibility to show up and explain things to Thomas. And! He clearly needed my assistance, because someone wasn’t doing a good job of explaining things.

“You. The someone is you.” Logan finished.

Roman gave an offended scoff, “Well I-! If anyone would be bad at explaining this to Thomas, it would be the person who scared him so bad in the first place! Guh huh yeah! Don’t think the rest of us have forgotten that little stunt you pulled the other day.” Roman said with a sneer.

“First of all, I already apologized for that, and Thomas understands now, don’t you Thomas?”

“I uh-”

“Great, see? And second of all, you’re one to talk, seeing as you just scared him in the shower just now. Or could your sonorous serenade of Disney lyrics not wait, hm?”

“Guys-”

“Oh I’m sorry, are my rehearsals not important to you? You know Thomas has a big audition coming up. His vocal cords need to be practiced and ready for when he’s on stage! Or did you forget to mark it down in your little calendar?”

“Uh guys-”

“Of course I didn’t forget to write it down in my calendar. I’m insulted you would even suggest such a thing. I just don’t know why we have to waste so much time preparing to prance around and play make believe on a stage when, historically, Thomas has done well on average for other auditions, but that is still no guarantee on whether or not we get the part. That is not up to us, it’s up to the director.”

“Guys!”

“Tch- guh- Prance around? No guarantee? Excuse you but Thomas has done well on those past auditions because he practiced! And while the final say may be in the hands of the director, that say is influenced by how well we perform! We cannot simply settle for letting ourselves be second best, Nay! We must strive to go beyond what we have before and reach new heights!’

“Well you’re just-”

“GUYS!”

“What?!” They both shouted back in unison.

“I get that you two are having what I’m sure is really important and serious discussion, but to me it just sounds like you’re arguing over something kinda dumb. And also I have, like, no idea what’s going here, so if you guys could stop for a moment that would be great, because along with everything that’s been going on, you two fighting is just making me more anxious.”

Roman looked up in alarm at that. “Wait, anxious? Then that means-”

“Sup guys.”

   “Gah! Virgil! You’re here! Heeeeeeey...”

   As soon as Thomas had blinked while Roman had been talking, another him, (apparently named Virgil) who was brooding, wearing dark eyeshadow, and donning a patched purple and black hoodie, had shown up. Thomas would be fooling himself if he thought he still had dignity left after falling off the bed for the second time, but at least he had only knocked loose a few pillows and didn’t bring the whole blanket with him this time. Logan was more composed, only flinching a small bit when the new mirror man appeared.

   “Ah, hello Virgil. What brings you here?”

   “Seriously? All this unease and unrest, you couldn’t not expect me to show up.”

   “Wellllll, I think you’ve made your point, Thomas is more than spooked about the situation, Sweeny Toddler, so I think you can be going now.” Roman interjected. Virgil gave him an unamused eyebrow raise before turning to address Thomas.

   “Are you sure you’re not going crazy Thomas? I mean Prince Stink Face and Teach here have already made it pretty clear this is all going on inside your head. How do you know this isn’t you just talking to yourself in the mirror right now, confirming your worst fears?” he said with a slight drawl of the lips.

   “Okay, Virgil, that’s enough, he already has enough anxiety as it is.” Logan cut him off before he could go further, “You know as well as any of us that Thomas is not going crazy.”

   “Do I know that Logan?” Virgil said in a low voice, still looking at Thomas, a slight smirk on his lips, “all I know is that we seem to be figments of some guy’s imagination, and those figments seem to be really stressing him out,” he said, finally breaking eye contact with Thomas (who had been backed up against his bed on the floor in fear) to look at the other two.

   “So I think I, as well as Thomas, would appreciate it if you two would cut it the heck out.”

   “Ugh, fiiiiiiiine. Sorry Thomas, and I guess sorry Logan. I got a little toooo...passionate? Back there, and I uh, didn’t mean to upset you Thomas, really.” Roman said while tugging on his sleeve. Virgil then turned to look at Logan, clearing his throat slightly and giving him a pointed look.

   “I...suppose I should apologize as well,” Logan said with some disdain in his voice, “Thomas. Roman. I am sorry.”

   “Anything else you wanna say Teach?” Virgil said under his breath.

   “No, I believe that covers it.”

   “Well, I tried, sorry Princey. Okay, well, I think my job here is done. Maybe next time don’t argue like babies and I won’t have to work so hard next time, okay? I’m gonna head out so one of you can explain to Thomas what’s going on, because honestly, being the productive one around here sounds exhausting. Oh and Thomas?” Virgil said, making eye contact with him again.

   Thomas looked up and gulped, he didn’t know what to think anymore, “Uh- Uh huh?”

   “See you in your nightmares.” and with a final wink, he was gone.

   “Ugh he’s so dramatic.” Roman declared with an eyeroll.

   “You’re one to talk, but yes, that last bit was rather unnecessary. I don’t think you have anything to worry about Thomas. Virgil is just like that sometimes.” Logan said with an adjustment of his glasses.

   “If by ‘like that’ you mean ‘completely terrifying’ then yeah, I can see that.” Thomas said with a shudder.

   “Well that does make sense seeing as he embodies your anxiety.” Logan supplied.

   “Oh,” Thomas said in a weak voice, “good. Nice to know I’m such a rich and complicated individual that even my anxiety becomes personified. That’s just...peachy.”

   “I’m not sure how the flavor of peaches has anything to do with-”

   “It’s an expression, Professor Literal,” Roman said exasperatedly.

   “Ah, I see.”

   Thomas took a moment to run a hand down his face and compose himself, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

   “So let’s review so I can get this straight,” Roman snorted at that but Thomas pressed on anyway, “You all embody facets of my personality? And for some reason that means looking like a bunch of different Me’s in costumes, and only appearing in my mirrors when I least expect it.”

   Logan cut in here, “Hmm, well yes and no. We do embody different sides of your personality, yes, but we hardly appear when least expected. Mirrors have somewhat intrinsic qualities to them that make it easier for us to appear in them, but whether that is due to unprecedented scientific phenomenon or simply to a mind’s long winded metaphor for ‘self reflection’ I can’t say. But I can say as to why we show up when we do.”

   “Okay then, why’s that?”

   “We are tied to certain parts of your personality, are we not? And what is a personality but a collection of feelings, thought processes, motivations, etc. So what happens when you feel particularly strongly about something or when your mind leads down a particular train of thought is that those things are linked to each of us. What I’m saying is, your mental state influences how we show up sometimes, and when we appear to you. Sort of like how you did with Virgil a minute ago. You were feeling very anxious, so then the embodiment of anxiety shows up. As straightforward as 1+1=2.” Logan finished.

   “So...when I am in a certain mentality I, what, summon one of you?”

   “Not quite. We are facets of your personality Thomas, we are always with you, so we cannot truly be summoned. However, when you enter these specific mental states, it makes it...I would say, ‘easier’ to show ourselves in a more visual manner. Sometimes even...unintentionally,” he cleared his throat awkwardly, “but that’s neither here nor there.”

   Roman coughed a little in what sounded like “nerd” but Logan simply rolled his eyes. Thomas continued to ask questions about the other Sides to himself in the mirror (they had apparently taken to calling themselves that) while Logan and Roman tried their best to explain things.

   He still wasn’t entirely sure he hadn’t lost his mind, but the more they talked and he was around them, the less freaked out he was by their presence there in the first place. He learned the names of the other Sides he had yet to properly meet as well as their functions. He learned that he had a Side named Patton who apparently encompassed his Morality and his Heart, so to speak, though Logan seemed to have some trepidation about him and Thomas meeting because of what Roman referred to as a ‘long suffering battle against an assault of Dad Jokes and puns’. He learned who Remus was, apparently being somewhat symbolically Roman’s ‘brother’, as he encompassed what Logan called the ‘dark side of his creativity’, and Thomas’s intrusive thoughts, (which he was not thrilled about) but Logan insisted it would be fine as there were easy ways to deal with him should he become a problem in the future. There was also Janus, which Thomas remembered having an encounter with before after Logan explained what he looked like, what with the snake aesthetic and all. He supposedly embodied Thomas’s self-preservation, deceitfulness, and denial, which...made sense given he had shown up before when Thomas had been lying to himself about when he was going to go to bed. Thomas still wasn’t sure if he could make heads or tails of what was happening to him, but he felt he now had a better understanding about what he was seeing, even if he still couldn’t grasp the why.

***

   It was a few days after his audition and Thomas thought he had done well. He saw Roman on the lobby mirror give him a thumbs up and mouthing the words ‘Let’s do this!’ before he went on stage, which weirdly enough helped in its own way, and now he felt pretty good about his performance. To make things better, he had gotten a call earlier today that confirmed he would be in the play, so he was just waiting to see if he got the roll he auditioned for. Feeling pretty happy and confident, Thomas decided to make himself some celebratory pancakes for dinner with lots of chocolate chips and a mountain of syrup.

   He was mixing the batter and looking at the recipe on his phone when the screen faded and turned to black before he could tap it to wake it up. He sighed as he sat down the bowl to pick up his phone and pull up the recipe again, when he saw his reflection wearing glasses.

   “Oh, uh, hi, Logan. What’re you doing here?”

   “Oh sorry Kiddo, not Logan! Though I get the mix up with the glasses,” he chucked, “I’m your happy pappy Pop, Patton! And yes, the title is...Patton Pending,” he said with a wink.

   “Oh right! You’re Patton, my morality right? I was warned about your dad jokes,” Thomas said with a laugh.

   “Yeeeah, Roman told me you all did introductions a while ago, but I was just checking in on my favorite Kiddo to see what you were cooking up! I’m so proud you’re learning how to cook Thomas, you batter believe it,” Patton said, grinning from ear to ear.

   Thomas snorted through his nose and shook his head at that.

   “Well, it was nice to meet you Patton. But speaking of batter, I really should get back to these pancakes.”

   “Of course Kiddo! I’ll be right here if you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask,” he said with a smile.

   “Uh, sure. But uh, if you don’t mind me asking, how um, how could you help? You’re in my phone right now.”

   “Oh um,” Patton looked puzzled for a second, “I guess if you need help with the instructions or if you just need a friend to talk to, I’ll be right there to help with that,” he said, picking back up that same enthusiasm.

   “Okay Patton, thank you,” Thomas smiled in return, “I’ll keep that in mind.”

***

   Over the next several months Thomas continued to see the Sides of himself occasionally, usually in mirrors or other reflective surfaces. At first he was freaked out and would get a little jump every time he saw one, but eventually he grew used to them just popping in whenever he was doing or thinking about something that ‘summoned’ them, even though Logan didn’t like him referring to it as that. Thomas got used to seeing them while brushing his teeth, or making breakfast, or in his dressing room before going out on stage, and he wasn’t bothered by it anymore, not as much at least.

He would pass idle conversation with them on occasion, sometimes arguing with Logan about his health habits, brainstorming ideas with Roman, having a small debate with Patton in his computer screen about what was the best ‘nice dialogue’ option in a video game.

Virgil would show up pretty regularly when Thomas was feeling anxious, and it was kind of a mixed bag on how he would react to Thomas when he showed up. Sometimes he showed up and just made Thomas more anxious, but on a couple of times when Thomas had it really bad, Virgil actually helped him calm down a bit with a breathing technique Thomas remembered Talyn teaching him once. So he actually wasn’t so bad, though it was a bit annoying when he was trying to sleep and he would look in his bedroom mirror to see either Virgil or Remus.

The first time Remus showed up in person was not pleasant and Thomas had had some pretty vivid nightmares after, but thankfully the next morning, Logan had helped diffuse the situation and put Thomas more at ease.

Janus liked to show up in the reflection of his phone screen whenever his friends texted him wanting him to do something for them when he already had a prior commitment, or if he was particularly stressed out about a dilemma. He would tell Thomas that he would be busy that day, to which Thomas would often reply something along the lines of ‘busy with what? I’m not doing anything that day,’ to which Janus would say something sarcastic but which always led back to the central theme of self-care. Thomas was pretty wary to listen to Janus at first, given Logan had said that he encompassed Thomas’s deceitfulness, but after Janus had gotten him out of a couple of jams that had almost led to near mental health crises, he had given him a shot and started to listen to his advice on occasion. Not too much, because who knew where that would lead, but sometimes, on instances when Janus’s warnings and advice were too pertinent to ignore.

All in all, Thomas began to like his Sides, not minding talking to them and spending time with them. They helped him out in a lot of areas of his life, and hindered him in some others, but that only seemed to happen when he was either ignoring one of them or listening to another too much. Patton had started referring to all of them as a family, emphasis on the ILY, and it was he who suggested Thomas take a family portrait in front of the hall mirror with all his Sides. Thomas wasn’t sure how much that would work, given it would probably just look like a selfie in front of his mirror, but seeing how excited Patton was, he decided to humor him.

Patton had called everyone to meet in the hall mirror while Thomas sat up the tripod for the camera. He ended up standing in the middle while his Sides stood to the left and the right of him. Roman was posing dramatically with a dashing smile while Logan muttered about how unnecessary it was, what with the logistics of showing up on camera. Virgil pulled his hood up and got teased by Remus for being ‘camera shy’. Janus wore a mischievous smirk and was flourishing a cane he had gotten from somewhere, rivaling Roman in who could be the most dramatic. Remus was somehow hanging from the top of the mirror frame upside down and was making a crude gesture with his hands while sticking out his tongue, and Patton was nearest Thomas, debating whether to make a heart with his hands or give Thomas bunny ears, and ended up going with the heart after Logan had made an unintentional pun about it. Finally Thomas finished setting up the camera while all his Sides got ready behind him, and he set the timer. He moved to take his place in the middle and told everyone to say ‘Cheese’.

“Romano-” “Cheddar!” “Nooo-” “Fermented milk solids-” “Rat Bait!” “The worst salad topping, I’m sure-”

And with a Click and a bit of laughter from Thomas at everyone’s replacement for ‘Cheese’, it was done.

Thomas was checking on the film to make sure everything had worked okay, and Logan was already preemptively warning him that it was likely Thomas had done nothing more than take a nice photo of himself in front of the mirror without the others being visible. Thomas turned and nodded at Logan saying he knew and he wouldn’t be too disappointed since that was what he thought was most likely.

Thomas continued to check the camera while the others chatted in the background. Then he scrolled through the photos to look at the most recent one taken. He reeled back in shock before breaking into the widest grin.

“Guys, I have the best news.”

“Ooo what is it Thomas?” Patton asked.

Thomas tried to bite back his excitement and his Sides turned to look at him with various levels of anticipation and curiosity.

“You all can show up on camera.”

***

Author’s Note: I'm not going to continue this, but after that ending imagine Thomas sets up a bunch of glass panes in his Livingroom with a great idea about what his new YouTube series will be. I guess could also be considered a "the sides are real but also actors for the Sander Sides series" AU if you want. Tag me if you write anything with this idea in the future because I'm interested in reading it.

Taglist: (sorry it’s the same one for A Hitchhiker’s Guide For Androids)

@enby-phoenix

@farflypants

@callboxkat

@skruffy901

@lefaystrent

@ianasha

@delimeful

@scared-ghosthunter

@equations-of-logan

@hiddendreamer67

@alexa-is-fangirl-trash

@momolinia

@thecipherfox

@sweet-razz-tea

@noah-shite

@mothdaemon

[milomeepit]

Diamond In The Rough: Chapter Six

Roman has always wanted better. Has always believed that there’s a better life, a better world, just out of reach. Just beyond the veil of shitty teachers who don’t care, angry classmates that scream insults and slurs at each other all day, and drug-hazed parents who are more concerned with their next hit than looking after their ten year old son.

When he runs away after a particularly bad night at home and finds a quiet little cafe/bookstore tucked away in a back alley of the city, the sweet couple who run the joint (an odd pair; a quiet, gloomy man with a wry sense of humour and a cynical gleam in his eye, and a bouncy man who smiles like sunshine and laughs like a storybook king) help show him that maybe- just maybe- he really can have the life he always dreamed of.

Masterpost (to be added soon!)

Word Count: 2786

Chapter Warnings: probably terribly translated Spanish and I’m Incredibly Sorry, insanely sappy couple, anxious child continues to be anxious, hygiene issues, food mention

It didn’t take long to finish closing up the cafe, and they were soon on their way home. Virgil was glad he’d already cleared out the backseat of Patton’s old blue sedan for the next lot of groceries, as it gave Roman space to sit without being crowded by bags and boxes of books. Roman, meanwhile, peered out the window curiously as they drove along, watching the trees and buildings lit up by the headlights of the car before they slipped past and disappeared into the darkness of the night.

Patton pulled into their apartment block’s parking lot, and was around to Roman’s door before Virgil could even unbuckle his seatbelt. He chuckled as his husband scooped up the small boy into another quick hug before setting him down and grabbing the box of leftover baked goods from the other seat.

Virgil led Roman across to the front door and upstairs, making sure to keep an eye on him in case he stumbled on the slightly uneven steps. Roman bounded up them effortlessly, though, his backpack bouncing against his shoulders as he scaled the staircase. Patton followed close behind them, carefully balancing the wide, thin box of pastries and biscuits, humming cheerfully.

Virgil... really wished he’d had a camera right then. When he unlocked and opened the front door, stepping back to let Roman enter first, he’d frozen at first. He took a couple of small steps over the threshold, eyes as wide as dinner plates as he looked around the living room.

Aesthetically speaking, it was very much a reflection of everything that they’d put into the cafe. Fairy lights were hung carefully around the edges of the room, and as Virgil reached across to the power point near the door, they flickered on; a warm, soft glow around the cozy space. The couches here did match, but the patches covering old repairs were a variety of colours and patterns- floral and rainbow and zigzag and galaxies peeking between the pale blue.

Roman looked over his shoulder. “This is your house?” He whispered, voice laced with excited disbelief.

“Sure is. Go on,” Virgil urged, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Have a look around, explore the apartment.”

“Mi casa es su casa!” Patton beamed, setting the box on a table near the door. “Come on, Ro, I’ll show you ar-”

“¿Tu hablas español?” Roman interrupted, snapping to look at Patton, mouth hanging open in surprise.

“¡Por supuesto! Mi mamá es cubana,” Patton clapped his hands together, clearly delighted.

Virgil couldn’t follow most of the rapid stream of Spanish that Roman babbled out, but between the adoring expression on his face as he gushed to Patton, and Patton’s sparkling eyes, he could tell that the two were bonding over their shared language. He knew bits and pieces; growing up with Patton, he’d picked up words and phrases- mostly curse words and sappy declarations of love- but it warmed his heart to see Patton so excited as they spoke.

“Patton, hon, should we finish showing Roman around?” Virgil smiled, reaching over to prod him gently in the arm.

“Oh! Oh, of course. Sorry, I guess we got a little distracted,” Patton giggled. “How about you show Ro around, and I’ll sort out some clean clothes for him? I think we still have some spare stuff from when your cousin and her kids stayed over.”

Virgil nodded. “Sure thing. Hey, kid, how’s it sound if I run you a bath and we get you some clean PJs?” He suggested, turning to face Roman again.

Roman paused for a moment, clinging to his worn red jacket, before nodding. “Um... yes, please,” He said softly as he slipped off his backpack and set it down by the front door, toeing off his shoes as he did so.

Virgil tousled his hair again before making his way into the bathroom, Roman trotting along behind him. He sat on the closed lid of the toilet as Virgil started running the bath, his legs swinging back and forth, his small socked feet drumming against the porcelain base.

“You can drop your dirty clothes over there when you hop in,” Virgil gestured towards the half-full launder hamper that hung from a hook on the wall. “Patton or I will wash ‘em and have ‘em back for you in the morning, alright?”

“Thank you,” Roman nodded, his eyes fixed on the basket.

Virgil watched him for a few seconds, as he added a dash of bubble bath liquid, a little thrown off by how still he was. This was the same kid who spent an hour and a half squealing with Patton about princes, right? The same kid who’d snapped right to teasing Virgil back when he’d poked playfully at how much he sang? “Hey, are you okay?” He asked. “You look like a helium balloon someone poked a hole in.”

Roman blinked, turning his head to meet his gaze. “Wh... why helium?”

“Because you’re squeaky, bouncy, and I’ve never seen anything bring you down,” Virgil reached over, tipping up his chin lightly. “What’s on your mind, short stack?”

“Oh. Nothing, I’m okay,” Roman shook his head.

Virgil raised an eyebrow wordlessly.

“No, for real this time!” He insisted, crossing his arms and sticking out his chin. “I just don’t wanna make a mess or anything. Especially since you have a nice house and stuff, I don’t want to ruin it... I guess.” He sagged a little as he spoke, the proud indignance melting into uncertainty.

“Kiddo, trust me, you don’t have to worry about that. We’re hardly super neat freaks, so you can chill. Even if anyone makes a mess- you, me, or Patton- we’ll just work together and tidy up. That’s what me and Pat’ve always done.”

Roman’s face twitched with an emotion Virgil didn’t quite recognize before he nodded again. “... Okay.” He hopped off the toilet, peering at the bathtub. “It’s kinda full, isn’t it gonna spill?”

Virgil gave a start, snapping around to lunge for the tap handles before it overflowed. “Gah-!” He twisted them around quickly to shut off the flow of water. “My bad. Nice save, kid,” He wheezed. “Patton would’ve kicked my butt if I flooded the bathroom again.”

“Again?” Roman’s eyes widened.

“No time for questions, you got a tub of steamy goodness to tend to.” Virgil clapped him lightly on the shoulder. “We’ll be just out in the living room, give a yell if you need anything, okay?”

Roman nodded once more. “Alright. Thanks.”

Virgil left the bathroom, shut the door behind him, then walked over to flop onto the couch. “Goblin prince is in the tub,” He announced as Patton appeared out of their bedroom, a bundle of clothing in his arms.

Patton swatted his shoulder. “Oh, knock it off!” He chided. “You adore him, I know you do.”

“I love nothing and nobody,” Virgil droned, slouching further into the couch cushions. “My heart is as cold as ice, hard as granite, untouched by anything on this mortal plane.”

Patton giggled, then leaned down to kiss his cheek. “Mm-hm. My big, strong, tough, badass man,” He teased.

“I said mortal plane. Angels like you don’t count, babe,” Virgil retorted, pulling Patton into his lap and dotting kisses across his face. He was rewarded with more peals of laughter, and couldn’t help the wide grin that appeared on his own face at the delightful sound.

“Hey, hey, easy!” Patton squeaked, his face flushed red as he giggled, squirming slightly in Virgil’s grip. “I’m gonna get hiccups if I laugh too hard!”

Virgil pulled him close, burying his face in Patton’s soft messy curls. “You’re adorable,” He hummed happily.

“And you’re a cutie pie,” Patton murmured, nuzzling close to his neck. “I love you, so much.”

“Really? How much?” Virgil’s voice took on a teasing lilt as he spoke.

“More than all the stars shine in the sky,” Patton answered immediately.

“Well, I love you more than the soft glow of an almost-full moon,” Virgil responded.

“I love you more than tiny hermit crabs in big, big shells.”

Virgil smiled at the mental image. “I love you more than copper windchimes.”

“I love you more than antique stores full of old tea sets.”

“I love you more than just-bloomed heather swaying in a summer breeze.”

Patton shivered a little, and Virgil laughed. “That’s practically cheating,” He mumbled.

“Does that mean you give up?”

“Never.” Patton shook his head, his curls brushing against Virgil’s face. “I love you more than smooth, pretty calligraphy done with real ink.”

“I love you more than fresh coffee with creamy milk and sugar.”

Patton was quiet for a moment as he thought. “I love you more than...” His eyes lit up. “I love you more than the yellowed pages of an old family recipe book!”

Virgil hissed through his teeth. “Alright, alright, you win this round, jelly bean,” He conceded.

Patton beamed, and his bright-as-sunshine smile sent a happy thrill through Virgil. "Yes!" He squealed happily.

“Um, excuse me?” Virgil twisted around to see Roman peeking out from the hallway, a towel clumsily wrapped around himself. “Um... sorry, but... um... can I have some help washing my hair?” He asked shyly, half-hiding behind the corner of the wall.

“Of course you can, sweetheart!” Patton cooed, bouncing to his feet. He pecked Virgil on the cheek before trotting over and offering a hand to Roman. “Let’s get those lovely locks soft and shiny, hm?”

Roman took his hand and giggled. “Thank you,” He said sweetly as he swung their joined hands.

“¡Eres muy bienvenido!” Patton tousled his slightly damp hair as he led Roman back into the bathroom. “Oooh, bubbles!”

Virgil grinned to himself. Patton sounded almost more excited about the bubbles than Roman seemed to be. It was little things like that that made Patton such a bright person to be around. His warm smile. His adorable, bubbly laugh. His kindness. The way he loved fiercely with all his heart. The way he loved people and pets and clouds and flowers and foods and smells and blankets and life.

While Virgil hated to sound like some cheesy romance movie cliche, Patton took his breath away, and he fell a little more in love with him every day.

“Hooooooon?” Patton called from the bathroom, breaking Virgil from his thoughts.

“Yeeeeaaaah?” Virgil pushed himself to his feet, already heading towards them as he responded. “What’s up?”

“Um... the shampoo bottle’s empty, and the new bottle is up on the top shelf, and...” Patton waved helplessly, stretched up on his tiptoes. His fingers just grazed the bottom of the shelf, a good couple of inches short of reaching the green bottle.

Virgil shook his head fondly. “Yeah, don’t worry, I got it,” He replied. He walked over to where Patton stood, easily grabbed the bottle, and handed it to the shorter man. “That all you guys need?”

Roman popped up from a pile of bubbles, his hair wet and his face flushed from the warmth of the water. “Virgil! Look!” He exclaimed as he scooped up a handful of bubbles, then blew on them, making the foam float around the room like snowflakes.

“Anybody would think you haven’t had a bubble bath before, kiddo,” Virgil leaned over to scoop up a palm full of bubbles and deposit them on top of Roman’s head.

“I haven’t!” Roman responded, practically vibrating as he scooped more bubbles up, squishing them between his hands. “This is so fun! And they’re so light and fluffy and soft! And they smell nice!”

Virgil felt Patton melt, without even looking in his direction. “Well, it’s an honour to be part of your first ever bubble bath experience, then, bud,” He nodded as he leaned back against the counter.

Roman giggled again. “Virgil es muy agradable, ¿verdad?” He asked Patton.

“El realmente es. Por eso me casé con él, después de todo.” Patton replied as he bobbed down next to the bathtub and started to lather up Roman’s hair.

“Hey, I may not know Spanish, but I know my name when I hear it,” Virgil complained, poking Patton gently with his toe. “What are you slandering my name with now?”

“All good things, all good things!” Patton assured him, then sent Roman a very obvious conspiratorial wink.

Virgil rolled his eyes. “Sure, sure. That’s what you said when you ripped Chloe Casiano to shreds in sophomore year.”

“She started it,” Patton shook his head as he scrubbed shampoo into Roman’s hair. He wrinkled his nose as his hands came away grey. “Gosh, Ro, hon, has it been a while since your hair’s been washed?”

“Um... I haven’t been able to have a proper shower in a while,” Roman answered, shrinking in on himself a little. “And Mom and Dad don’t really help me wash my hair, and I don’t like doing it because I always get soap in my eyes, and it stings a lot, and, um... yeah.”

“Aw, that’s okay, sweetheart, it’s not your fault!” Patton hummed. “Me and Virge will help you, and we can help you learn how to do it and not get it in your eyes. Sound good?”

“Mm-hm!”

“Perfect! Now, just tip your head back for me, sweetpea, and I’ll rinse your hair a bit and we’ll see how it looks, hm?”

Roman leaned his head back, and Patton scooped up water in the plastic cup that sat by the tap, then gently tipped it over his hair to rinse away some of the soap and grit and dirt. It looked so much lighter after that, and Virgil smiled.

“What, is your hair blonde under all that muck?” He joked, easing himself down to sit on the floor next to Patton.

“Uh-huh!” Roman chirped.

“Wait,” Virgil blinked, taken off guard. “Really?”

Sure enough, as Patton washed, rinsed, and then dried his hair, a poofy mess of curly blonde hair was revealed. Patton squealed as he ran his fingers through it, rambling excitedly. “Dios mío, eres tan lindo! ¡Nunca me hubiera imaginado que tu cabello fuera tan rizado!”

Roman blushed and shook his head stubbornly. “¡No soy lindo!” He argued.

“Muy lindo,” Virgil drawled. “Very, very cute and tiny. The smallest. A total shorty.”

“Pattoooon!” Roman whined, clinging to Patton’s sleeve. “I’m not that short, am I?”

“Well... I’m sure you’ll grow! You’re probably gonna end up taller than me, so!” Patton ruffled his hair lightly.

Roman groaned, sagging against him. “I'm nooooot!" He whined.

Patton giggled and wrapped his arms around him, pressing a kiss into his hair. "Aw, it's not so bad! Being small can be great! You can fit into small spaces, and you don't hit your head on low ceilings, and you can get piggybacks, and... there's a lot of really neat stuff!"

"Yeah, yeah," Roman grumbled half-heartedly, turning in Patton's arms and burying his face against his shirt.

Virgil grinned as he got to his feet and stretched. "Mm... you guys hungry? I think we have some pasta bake in the fridge still," He suggested.

"Sounds perfect, mi alma!" Patton beamed. "I'll go set the table while Ro gets dressed, then we can have some dinner!"

Roman nodded enthusiastically, pulling the towel tighter around himself. "Yes, please!"

Virgil gave them a thumbs up, then slipped out of the room. He made his way into the kitchen, humming to himself as he went. Patton popped in behind him as he slid the dish into the microwave.

“So...” Patton hummed as he fished cutlery out of the drawer under the coffeemaker. “We should probably start looking at where the poor lost little bird came from, huh?”

“Yeah,” Virgil agreed. “From what he said earlier, his parents aren’t exactly the most attentive, but I’m sure they’ve noticed he’s missing.” He twisted a dishcloth in his hands for a few seconds as he thought. Patton waited for him to continue, the soft hum of the microwave bridging the silence between them. “... I’ll start looking on Facebook and stuff in the morning. Maybe there’s one of those search party pages or whatever.”

Patton crossed the kitchen, wrapping his arms around Virgil in a hug. “And what do we do if we can’t find anything?” He asked softly, leaning his head against Virgil’s shoulder.

“I dunno,” Virgil admitted. “But I’m sure we’ll figure something out-”

“Virgiiiiil? I got my hair stuck in a button!” Roman whined from the other room.

“- And everything’ll be fine,” He finished, then pecked Patton on the forehead before heading towards the distressed boy. “Coming, bud! Try not to pull on it unless you want a bald patch!” He chuckled at the alarmed squawk he got in response as he ducked out the kitchen door.

[your-anxious-nightmare]

Adventures In Dad-ing (14)

Summary: The aftermath of Patton leaving. (This one's a little jumpy, so the beginning is obvi a little later than the bulk of the chapter sorry, I didn’t like the way it looked around the other way and wanted to preface where Virge is at first.) (Darwin is my Deceit btw) Word Count: 3365 Relationships: All platonic stuff, kinda parental analogical.  Previous Chapters: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen,  (because I know this has problems, look up the tag ‘adventures in dading’ or ‘dad Virgil’ on my blog archive and you’ll find all of them) Tags:  @katatles-the-fish   @karma-the-tax-collector    @analogical-mess   @rebeyerfdog  @msu82       (ask to be tagged xoxoxo) Warnings: Kinda neglectful parenting, lemme know if there's other stuff Ao3

Three days.

There was no patter of feet in the hallway. No giggles from the kitchen as cookies were stolen. There were no cartoons or musicals or singing. The house was quiet, and so was Virgil’s heart. 

On the first day, Virgil spent the vast majority of time curled up on the couch cradling a teary-eyed Logan as he himself was held against Roman’s chest. 

On the second day, Roman had gone back to work, dropping Virgil off on his way in. Remy was nice enough to put him on cleaning, keeping him away from the harsh gazes of customers. Emile had even come in to bring him a cooked lunch, offering a hug and a shoulder when he began to cry. 

On the third day, Virgil was silent. His workday was slow, only spent clearing up old plates and wiping down tables. He ignored Roman’s texts asking if he wanted him over for dinner. By the time he got home, he was too tired to kick off his shoes before falling face-first onto the couch. 

That was where Logan found him hours later. 

The young boy had tried to stay home, knowing that his being around might not help Virgil cope with the temporary loss of his son. But unfortunately, his step-father had noticed his presence was more apparent and kicked him out. With nowhere else to go, he shuffles down to the Casey residence and knocks lightly before letting himself in with the spare key under the mat. 

It was after 7 pm, Logan had expected to walk into Virgil eating alone at the table or watching something on the tv, not sobbing loudly into the couch holding a cushion as though his life depended on it. 

“Mr Pa-um, Mr Virgil?” Perhaps calling him Mr Patton’s Dad isn’t the best of ideas right about now, Logan thinks, stepping closer to the couch where Virgil lay. 

“Logan?” The man sits up, wiping away his tears to look at the boy. “Are you alright?” His blue eyes scan the boy’s face, taking note of the scratch on his jaw and the small drops of blood still falling from his nose onto his shirt.

“Are you?” Virgil snorts, standing to usher the boy into the bathroom and pulling out the first aid kit. He quickly cleans up the cut, instructing Logan to hold a tissue to his nose until the bleeding stops. 

“Have you had dinner yet?” Logan shakes his head, blinking up at the man through his still broken glasses. “Okay, how do sausages and chips sound?” He nods slightly, tilting his head so Virgil can put a bandaid over the mark and removes the tissue from his face, wiping any mess and disposing of it quickly. 

“Come on, you can help me cook. I’ll teach you.” 

**

It was safe to say Patton was scared from the moment he climbed into the back seat of the car. He watched his dad fade from sight, hands and face pressed against the window and tears pooling in his cool blue eyes. 

“Um, it’s nice to meet you. What’s-”

“Shut it, this is my favourite song.” Meghann’s hand raises to hush the boy before turning up the stereo far above what a sane person could withstand. 

“Ow. Can it be quieter, please? It’s hurting my ears.” Whether she hears or not is a mystery as she sings along to the pop ballad, turning just slightly dangerously through the streets. 

The drive to her house isn’t too long, but with all the red lights and close calls, it feels like a lifetime to the young boy in the back. 

Meghann pulls into an underground carpark, slamming on the brakes and stopping before Patton's eyes can adjust to the new lighting. She’s out of the car quickly, slamming her door shut and wandering off to the elevator, turning to look expectantly at the boy who was pulling his backpack off the seat next to him. 

“Come on then, we don’t have all day.” Patton jumps out of the vehicle, closing the door nicely and running to catch up, ducking into the elevator seconds before the doors closed and watching as she swipes a card and presses the button labelled 9. 

“What’s your name?” He tries again, adjusting the straps of his bag and holding out his hand like he’d seen the adults do. 

“Ew, no contact. It’s Meghann.” She grimaces at his hand, stepping away slightly and staring at the door. 

“Would you like me to call you Meghann? Or maybe Mum or Mama or-”

“Stop. Talking. Just call me Meghann, no Mum or Mother or whatever bullshit like that.” The door slides open and she saunters out into the hall, Patton running to keep up and meeting her at a door at the end of the hall. 

She opens the door to a modern living room, all the furniture in matching blue and white, all neatly situated in nice squares and perfect lines. The room opens out into the kitchen where a solid white bar separates the space and a set of blue stools sit in front. The only thing that makes the room pop are the clothes littering the floor and the various takeaway boxes piled on the counter, dishes sit in the sink, undone. It looks like a very lived-in room.

“This is a very nice home.” Patton pipes up, following her down the hall and awing at a cute picture of a cat on the wall. She doesn’t answer, just huffs and pushes open the last door in the hall. 

Inside is a small, beaten bed that looks a little older than Patton, pressed up against the back wall and a desk about the same size as the ones he uses at school. The room is barely big enough for both objects, with maybe half a metre between the end of the bed and the wall and a metre between it and the door. 

“This is your room, make yourself at home, I guess.” She turns on her heel and walks back down the hall, opening another door and vanishing inside. Patton sighs and puts his bag on the bed, coughing at the dust it kicks up before remembering he hadn’t grabbed the boxes from the boot of the car. Leaving the room and pulling the door over, he wanders down towards where Meghann vanished, finding her in a large bedroom full of books and knick-knacks. 

“Meghann? My toys and clothes are still in your car.” He knocks lightly on the door, choosing to look at his feet instead of her as she spins to face him

“Go get them then? It’s unlocked.” 

Patton looks up, eyes wide with confusion. “By myself?” Virgil never let him go out alone, mainly because the last time he did he got lost and ended up crying in a park. Meghann just nods and turns back to her dresser, adjusting her hair. 

Patton turns and leaves, stopping by his room to pick up his dinosaur for protection and heading out the front door. Taking a deep breath, he sets off down the hall, reaching the elevator and getting in. He presses the button with a car drawing and waits, watching the doors sit open. He presses the button again, and again, before looking up to the swipe pad next to it. 

Wandering back to the apartment, he counts the doors, one, two three, stopping at the fifth and trying to open it, finding it had locked behind him. He knocks lightly, waiting patiently for Meghann to open it. 

“The elevator didn’t work without your card. May I borrow it?” She looks down at him with distaste, pulling her cell phone from her ear to talk to him. 

“There are stairs for a reason, kid.” She laughs loudly, slamming the door shut, just barely missing his fingers on the wall. Patton jumps, not used to the loud noise and steps back, tripping on his laces and falling to the ground in the hall. 

“I don’t think I like it here, Fluffy.” He mumbles, picking up the plush dinosaur before heading back towards the elevator, finding the staircase to the left and starting his descent. 

By the time he reaches the bottom, his legs hurt and he’s out of breath, so Patton takes a seat on the bottom stair and catches his breath. After a few moments, he steps towards the car park, staying close to the cars like his dad taught him and searching for the car amongst the others. 

When Patton finally finds the right car- he recognized a sticker that had a bad word in the back window- he tugs on the boot, pulling at it roughly in an attempt to get it open. 

“Hey, kid!” A voice shouts, Patton dropping his toy and spinning around to see an older man stalking over. “What do you think you're doing?” His hair is long and tied up in a bun like Virgil’s often is, but far greasier and untidy. A scruffy beard lines his jaw, and his dark eyes glare down at the small boy like a starved wild animal.

“I just moved here with my Mum, but my clothes are in the boot. Can you help me open it?” 

“Oh, Paddy right? You’re Meghann’s brat?” He laughs loudly, the sound like nails to a chalkboard. “I’ll see you ‘round kid. Don’t scratch the car, it costs more than you’ll make in a decade.” 

“Sir? Could you please help?” The man just cackles again and wanders off to the elevator, disappearing inside as quickly as he appeared in the first place. 

Patton stares at the door to the elevator for several moments, slowly thinking through all the things he could’ve done wrong to deserve being left out here all alone. 

Was it that time he didn’t hold the door open for Mr Phillips? He had his arms full of books but Patton was carrying his show and tell project and couldn’t get a free hand. Was it the time he didn’t let Archie borrow his orange crayon? The boy had shoved his green one up his nose the week earlier so it was probably justified. 

Turning and kicking the car once, Patton sits on the ground against the wheel, Fluffy the Dinosaur sat in his lap. Why would you leave a child to collect his things from your car without telling him how to do so? Without warning, tears start to stream down his cheeks. 

“I want to go home!” He cries loudly, furiously scrubbing at his cheeks. 

“Hello? Is someone there?” A voice calls through the parking garage. Patton sniffs loudly, curling up in a ball around his toy and waiting for the person to leave. 

“Hello?” They call again, footsteps echoing across the concrete. “I know you’re there, I heard you crying. My guess is you’re only a kid too. I promise I’m not gonna hurt you, ah, wait that sounds bad. Hang on, I didn’t mean it like I would and I’m tryna trap you but, um, dammit. This isn’t working.” Patton sits up, leaning his head around the edge of the car to find a familiar teen with bright orange hair and a studded jacket shuffling his feet between the rows of cars. 

“Toby?” Patton calls, standing slowly and watching his babysitter look up. 

“Patton? What are you doing here? Where’s Mr C?” Another sob leaves the boy’s mouth and, before he can step any closer, Tobias catches an arm full of sobbing child. 

“Hey, little man, it’s okay. What happened?” The boy simply shakes his head, wrapping his arms tighter around the teen's waist. They stand there for several minutes, Tobias awkwardly smiling at passing cars as Patton clings to him for dear life. 

“Pat? Can you tell me why you’re here alone?” He asks, crouching down to the boy’s height despite the stabbing of the spikes on the back of his boots. 

“I live with my mum now.” He whispers, clinging tightly to Tobias’s jacket with one hand and Fluffy with the other. 

“Okay, and why are you down here by yourself? I know you're a big kid but it’s not safe to be here this late alone.” 

“Meghann, my Mum, didn’t bring my stuff up so I had to come to get it but I can’t get the car open and I just want Papa back.” Patton sniffs, rubbing at his eyes as the fatigue sets in. 

“Which car? I can help you.” Patton takes the punk’s hand and leads him over. Tobias reaches inside the front seat, tugging on a lever insistently before returning to Patton’s side, tugging on the boot as well. 

“It needs the key. Don’t tell anyone I did this okay?” Patton nods as he watches his babysitter pull a small pouch out of his jacket pocket, taking two metal objects and poking at the keyhole until the boot pops open. 

“You’re a magician.” Patton awes, smiling as Tobias pushes the boot open further. 

“Not a magician, sadly, just been in a few situations myself.” Together the two pull out the few boxes Patton had brought, stacking them at the bottom of the stairs. Tobias’s phone starts to ring, the boy sighing deeply before answering. 

“Hey, yeah I know something came up. Can’t I just come later? Yeah, yeah, I know. Okay, I’ll be there soon.” He hangs up, taking a deep breath and clenching his fists a few times before crouching back beside Patton. 

“Do you have someone to help you take these up?” Patton shakes his head and Tobias sighs again. “Okay. Let’s get these in the elevator.” 

“But it needs a card.” He pipes up, pushing the box of clothes across the floor. Tobias pulled the remaining three on top, pulling out his own swipe card from his wallet. “Wait, do you live here too?” 

“I do. What floor’s your Mum’s place?” 

“Nine. She doesn’t want me to call her Mum.” Patton hugs his dinosaur tightly as the elevator rises, ignoring Tobias’s concerned look. When they reach the ninth floor, Tobias's phone rings again, this time with a loud bell ringtone that makes his eyes blow wide. 

“Shit, Pat, I’m really sorry but I can't help you get these down there. This is my number- if you need anything, call me. I’ll come to check on you in when I can, okay?” Tobias gives him a tight hug, pressing a piece of paper into his hand and helping him get the boxes out of the elevator before saying goodbye again. 

“Bye Toby.” Patton waves sadly as the doors close, leaving him alone in the hall again. He tucks the paper into his pocket, pushing the first box down the hall noisy and leaving it by the door, returning to find a child poking at the box of books like it’s a new type of animal. 

“Oh, hello. My name is Patton.” The child looks up, startled, and scampers behind a pot plant, hiding almost successfully due to their small size. 

“It’s okay, I’m not gonna be mean. What’s your name?” Patton steps closer, trying to get the child to come out but receiving a small hiss in response. “It’s okay if you don’t wanna talk to me. I have to take this box down to my new house so I’m gonna leave my dinosaur here to keep you company okay? I’ll be back in a few minutes.” 

True to his word, Patton places the dinosaur on the ground around the other side of the pot, where the child can see it, before pushing another box down the hall. This one takes a bit longer than the first because of the weight, books and toys aren’t light. 

When he returns, the child is back next to the remaining two boxes, playing with the dinosaur like it’s an aeroplane. 

“His name is Fluffy. He’s a steg-o-saw-rus.” Patton sounds out the word, remembering how Mr Phillips had pointed to each part in class. The child looks up, mismatched gold and brown eyes staring up at him with curiosity. They have messy auburn hair falling over their eyes, long enough to reach their shoulders, and freckles dusted over their face and neck. 

“What’s your name?” The child shakes their head, looking back down at the dinosaur in their hands. 

“Can you not talk?” Patton asks carefully, gaining a small nod as their response. “That’s okay, I’ve been told I talk enough for me and my friend so I can talk for you too. Can you spell your name?” 

The child looks up slowly, pulling a face before nodding. Patton steps up to the box nearest to him, pulling open the top and taking out his letter board. It’s made from a whiteboard and has a little basket of letter magnets attached to the side.

"My Papa got me this to learn to spell. You can use it to talk to me if you'd like?" He watches the child think a little, setting the dinosaur aside and taking the whiteboard, using a pen to write in shaky letters. 

"Darwin? That's a nice name." Darwin smiles a little, looking down at the ground and playing with a pulled thread. "How old are you? I'm 9." Darwin slowly uncaps the pen again and draws a number 8, looking up through his fringe at Patton, who smiles softly down at him. 

"We can have play dates then. My friend Logan and I do that all the time, we go to the park and he comes and watches movies with us, would you like that?" Darwin nods again, shyly playing with the dinosaur again. Patton smiles triumphantly, moving to the other side of the boxes and starting to push them down the hall. 

After only a few metres, he's out of breath and tired, Darwin still watching silently with Fluffy in his hands. He stands slowly, shuffling over and putting his hands on the boxes, grunting a little as he pushes them forward. 

"Oh, thank you, you don't have to help." Darwin nods quickly, pushing the boxes again with all his might. Together, the boys get them down the hall and place them at the door, panting with exhaustion. 

"Thank you, Darwin, that would've taken me forever." Patton steps up to the door, trying the handle before knocking, just in case Meghann had been kind enough to unlock it for him. Only silence answers, so he knocks again a little louder, smiling nervously at Darwin behind his stuff. 

"What do you, oh, took you long enough." Meghann rips open the door, glancing down at Patton before spotting his new friend behind the boxes. "Did you multiply, who's this?" 

"This is Darwin, he's my new friend, can he come play?" Meghann looks between the two. Even with her cold, dead heart, she can't help but melt at the puppy eyes Patton gives her. 

"Not tonight, Paddy, it's late and you look like me after a night out. Tomorrow, if his parents agree." Patton thanks her loudly and starts to ramble to the boy about all the things they can do, earning a groan from the woman at the door. "Okay, too loud, enough sappy shit. Get your stuff inside, there's shit for a sandwich on the bench for dinner." She turns and walks back inside, ignoring the kids once again but this time with the door open. 

"I'll see you tomorrow? You can come over after lunch?" Darwin nods quickly, pointing at the boxes and then inside. "I can get them to my room from here, it's not nearly as far as the elevator." Patton holds open his arms for a hug, gaining a small shake from the boy as he holds up a hand. "High five then" Patton laughs, lightly hitting their hands against each other. 

Darwin smiles beneath his hair, patting the dinosaur in his arms and handing him back, waving as he wanders off down the hall again. 

With a smile on his face and his friend gone, Patton drags the boxes one by one into his new room, collapsing on his bed as soon as he's done and falling asleep instantly. 

[rosettahart]

Glass-says: Chapter 9

Chapter 1, Chapter 8

Ao3 link

Summary: Not much time left until the curtains open, will Virgil find Roman before then? Maybe. You can probably guess the answer.

Warnings: Flirting? None I could really find. Let me know if I missed anything.

Chapter 9

“Where could he have gone? There’s a little over an hour till curtains, which means people will be arriving early to get their seats and he isn't even in costume yet! Maybe we should just use the understudy…” Mrs Lake sighed as she paced back and forth in front of the stage with a few of the stage hands.

“Virgil, do you think Ro’s okay?” Patton asked, unable to stop glancing at the door Roman had rushed out of almost a half hour ago.

Virgil worried his lip between his teeth, also watching the door anxiously for any sign of the stupid theatre geek. Roman would come back on his own, wouldn't he? But then again he had said he only needed a minute and yeah just a minute wasn't meant to be taken literally, but he still wasn't back yet!

What if he didn't make it back? What if the understudy had to take over? How was that going to affect Roman? He had looked and sounded so upset when he left. Roman had been so passionate about the musical and there was no way he wouldn't be at least a little shattered at missing opening night, right? 

Virgil sighed grabbing his backpack unable to stand around and wait any longer.

"I don't know." He finally answered, heading down the stairs and stopping by the director, hesitating.

Mrs. Lake turned her attention to Virgil, glancing down at something. "Is everything alright?"

Virgil followed her gaze to his backpack. "Oh, uh, yeah. I was just going to find Roman… and do his makeup. He'll be ready for mic check." He assured awkwardly, hoping he was right.

Mrs. Lake gave a nod. "I hope you have better luck finding him than Marie and Aubrey had. But if you can't find him in fifteen minutes come right back, okay?" She directed, waiting for him to motion that he understood.

"Okay." Virgil nodded. He stayed where he was till Mrs. Lake waved him off. He quickly made his way out of the theatre turning to check the parking lot first.

"I thought we were going to go look for Roman, kiddo." Patton pointed out, glancing back into the school. "So why are we leaving school?"

"We aren't. I'm checking for his car first." Virgil explained, surveying the parking lot, spotting the older looking red car not too far away from where they were.

"You think he's hiding in his car?" 

"No, I wanted to make sure he was still here before searching the school." Virgil answered, turning back around to head back into the school.

Patton, glanced back to the car Virgil had been looking at before following. He caught up, floating beside his friend, a smirk taking over his face. "How do you know what Ro's car looks like in the first place?" He teased.

Virgil shook his head. "Reasons."

"Reasons?" Patton echoed with a teasing tone and a raise of his eyebrow.

"Not those kind of reasons."

Patton chuckled. "You still only have eyes for Prince Charming?"

Virgil's face heated up, moving up the stairs to check the second floor for Roman. "N-no, of course not. We haven't even met each other in person." He stuttered. "Can we maybe talk about something else?"

"Awe, it's nothing to be embarrassed about, Kiddo. I've seen the way you smile when the two of you are texting each other. I know that look." Patton smiled fondly.

Virgil stopped, motioning for Patton to be quiet. He thought he had heard something coming from inside the boys bathroom. He moved closer, entering. "Roman?" He called out unsurely. He heard some shifting.

"Just a minute." A hoarse voice answered from inside one of the stalls, followed by some quiet sniffling.

"Are you- are you okay in there?" Virgil rested his backpack on the sink, uncertain if he should get closer or stay where he was.

"Of course! Nothing can keep this Prince down!" Roman replied as dramatically and as confidently as he could.

"Are you sure? Paris said some pretty nasty things…"

Roman flinched at the reminder but exited the stall, trying to come out looking unphased as he strolled over to the sink, splashing some water on his face. "Yes I'm sure! Why wouldn't I be?" He returned, fighting against the urge to check his appearance in the mirror, instead turning to face Virgil with a smile.

Virgil grimaced at the puffy red eyes.

Roman frowned, letting out a tired sigh. "I'm okay now, really."

"You… want to talk about it?" Virgil offered awkwardly, handing over a paper towel so Roman could dry his face.

"I'd rather not."

"Are you good enough to perform tonight or…?"

Roman chanced a quick look in the mirror at his eyes. He turned back to Virgil with a nod. "How long do I have before mic check starts?"

Virgil checked his phone. "Forty minutes-ish." 

Roman exhaled, shaking out his hands. "I guess I'll have to make do with what little time I have to get made up."

"I could…" Virgil hesitated, scratching his neck. "I could do your makeup for you. I already mentioned to the director I'd do it…"

"Would you? I mean Reese is no edge lord, but I'm sure the makeup teams have got their hands full. If you're the only one I have to work with, I guess I can make it work for tonight." Roman commented.

"I can do more than just foundation and eyeshadow, you know." Virgil returned annoyedly, picking up his backpack to leave. "I don't have to do your makeup. I could leave you to do it yourself."

"No! I'll shut up! Just please do my make up." Roman implored, grabbing Virgil's arm.

Virgil shook his head, struggling to hold back his amusement. "I don't know, Prince, there are plenty of other actors needing their makeup done that would be more appreciative with the time and effort I put into making them look stage ready." He pointed out.

Roman pouted. "Now you're just teasing me! Please help me, I don't have much time."

"Right, sorry." Virgil laid his backpack back down and pulled out a black makeup bag, unzipping it and pulling a few things out. "Could you sit on the counter?"

Roman nodded eagerly, doing what he was asked to. "Of course."

Virgil moved over to stand in front of Roman with some foundation ready to go on the back of one hand and a little sponge in the other. "Could you also, um…" Virgil motioned to Roman's legs, awkwardly making an opening kind of gesture.

Roman smirked. "I never would have expected you'd be so forward."

Virgil rolled his eyes. "Well I never would have expected you'd be so annoying." He quipped back with his own smirk. He stepped closer, getting to work on Roman's makeup.

Roman sputtered offendedly. "I am not annoying! I'm charismatic! People find me charming!" 

Virgil snorted. "Name one person who has actually called you charming other than your grandmother."

"My Aunt." Roman replied defensively.

Virgil burst out laughing, but quickly slapped a hand over his mouth, self conscious of the sound and turning away in embarrassment. What was he doing?! In less than two, maybe three hours spent with Roman within the span of five days he was already getting comfortable around him. He had spent so long avoiding him so he wouldn't be pushed around and walked all over by the groupies. And now here he was messing around with Roman like they had known each other since they were kids. Was it weird that it actually felt like they had? Like he was talking to a good friend of his?

Roman took Virgil's hand in his to bring his attention to him with a frown. "Why'd you stop? Your laughing was so carefree."

Virgil took his hand back. "Its nothing." He continued doing Roman's make up in lost in thought. The way Roman and he had been talking to each other just felt so familiar to him. He really wanted to understand why. What about Roman Prince made him feel so… comfortable around him? Was it just his personality or was there more to it? He finally put down the lipstick he had finished putting on Roman, grabbing a paper towel and handing it to him. "To get off some of the extra lipstick so it won't get on your teeth."

Roman sighed. They were making so much progress. He glanced down at the paper towel for a moment before looking back up at Virgil an idea popping into his head. "And what if I kissed your cheek instead?" He tried with a mischievous look in his eyes.

Virgil looked up at Roman. "Don't even think about it." He warned, cautiously taking a few steps away from him and packing his makeup stuff away.

Roman hopped off of the counter, moving to stand beside Virgil. "What if we both raced back to the theatre? If I win I get to kiss you on the cheek and you have to leave the lipstick there until after the show tonight, or... if you win I will…" He paused trailing off, trying to come up with a good incentive for him, glancing at Virgil's backpack then at his eyeshadow. He snapped his fingers. "Let you do your makeup on me any day you wish and I'll wear it for the rest of that day." He offered.

Virgil thought it over, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. "Only if you do it outside of the theatre. I mean that's if you win." He smirked with his own mischievous look.

Roman grinned. "Deal, my chemically unbalanced romance."

Virgil rolled his eyes as Roman stretched in the middle of the hallway, pulling his other strap over his other shoulder as he did. "Are the nicknames really necessary, Prince?"

"Of course they are! They-" Roman started to defend before being rudely cut off.

"Go!" Virgil called out, dashing toward the staircase.

"That's not fair!" Roman yelled, darting after Virgil, taking the stairs a couple at a time. "I was not done stretching!"

Virgil glanced over his shoulder to see how far behind Roman was, tripping slightly at the distance between them even though he had gotten a head start.

Roman smirked, now right beside him.

They both picked up speed as they neared the end of the hallway. Virgil struggling to push himself much faster in order to get some kind of a lead and Roman content with the idea of a tie, keeping pace with him. They reached out, slowing slightly to avoid crashing right into the door, their hands hitting it at the same time.

"You're a hard one to keep up with, Moodyson Felix." Roman huffed, catching his breath.

"Oh, just kiss my cheek and get in there already." Virgil grumbled, a little out of breath. He was more annoyed with himself than the fact the race had ended in a tie. He crossed his arms.

"Remember, any day you wish." Roman whispered into Virgil's ear before giving him a gentle kiss on the cheek and heading into the theatre.

Virgil stood in the hallway, blankly staring at nothing in particular as he raised his hand to hover over his cheek. Did he kind of like Roman? He shook his head trying to clear the thought. He liked Princey, he couldn't be thinking like this with a little over a week left before finally meeting his actual crush. He turned to the door. Why did it feel like he was missing something so obvious, though? He sighed as he opened the door, heading back up to the sound booth. He'd figure it out eventually, but right now he needed to help finish setting up for mic check.

Author's notes: Sorry it's been a while since I've updated this fic. I just kept getting stuck. I'm actually not too sure what I'm going to be doing for the next chapter so I don't know when it will be coming up, but it could be a while. It might be a more Logicality focused one or it could be a chapter I've had almost completed for some time now. If theres maybe some background stuff you're curious about maybe I'll write a bit about that if you leave a comment. It could really help me to get the next chapter up sooner. Anyway thanks as always for your patience and for reading and following this fic! -Danielle

Chapter 10

Taglist:

@kittiebrick

@absolutesandersidestrash

[timeywimeygalaxy]

The Ghost Of You {Chapter 1}

A/N: Hiya! so earlier today I wrote a post about a fic idea I had based on BuzzFeed unsolved Shane and Ryan but with a Human AU sanders sides, a few people responded so I decided to write it! [shameless MCR reference with the title as I think it kinda fits for maybe later chapters? I dunno.] xD

So this started out a prologue but it completely got away from me and I pretty much had to make it the first chapter xD please bear with me we are going to get into the ghost story in the next chapter! (that’s if people like this one at all) I’m sorry if this is crap I’m still rusty after many years of not writing anyways enough of my rambles I hope you enjoy this! 

Warnings: I’m not sure, none yet, I guess someone talking about murder?

Words: 2120 

Pairings: None (yet....) ;)

Tag List: @accio-hufflepuff-power  , @just-an-anxious-ravenclaw-boy

Let me know if you would like to be tagged in future updates!

Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4

They were always told to never go near that house at the end of the street, their parents said that something very bad happened there years ago and even though it had laid abandoned, untouched for nearly a decade, rumours, stories flew around about that place, “it’s haunted” someone said “there was a horrible murder” others gossiped “ I once saw blood run down the walls” one person remarked, though none of this had been proven, all three teens were forbidden from going anywhere near it, not that it ever stopped them… well most of them.

“Hurry up specs!” Roman roared after his bespectacled nerdy friend, who was dragging his feet behind him.

“I never agreed to this!” Logan called back from behind.

“Two against one!” Virgil retorted as Roman continued to drag him by the hand to the end of the street.

At sixteen the three friends had been inseparable since infant school, though they all had their differences they decided that’s what made them a great team, Roman Prince the dramatic, theatre geek, though the theatre thing was very recent, he was always up for a laugh and cared immensely about his two friends,  Virgil Summers , the anxious yet sassy emo who was obsessed with anything of supernatural origin and Logan Fray  the intelligent, calm collective cynic of the group, though some may argue he’s the one that keeps the other two in line a lot of the time, but somehow today was not one of those times, despite his protests to the other two, their minds had been made up.

It started with a game of truth or dare, that escalated into a bet and they had somehow ended up outside of the ‘haunted’ house at the end of the street. Dam Logan hated that game.  

“Go on Hot topic! $20 says you can’t go into that house and stay in it for 5 minutes” Roman coaxed.

Virgil thought this had been a great idea and a great way to earn a quick buck but as he stood on the edge of the driveway and looked up at the house he was beginning to have second thoughts, despite it being derelict it looked pretty good from the outside, the inside, however… he stood there biting his lip,  he wanted to do it really he did, ghosts and demons had always fascinated him and he had always wanted to communicate with one….despite his anxiety telling him it was a bad idea, weighing it all up in his head, he finally turned to Roman.

“If I die in there princey then I’m haunting the fuck out of you”

Roman grinned at him as Logan caught up to them “Virgil, this is a ridiculous idea, we need to end this experiment It’s not safe.”

“Says who?” Roman scoffed

“Everyone!” Logan argued as he looked positivity dumbfounded at Roman’s nonchalant attitude towards this, Virgil raised his eyebrow at him “you don’t believe in ghosts so why are you worried?”

Logan adjusted his glasses as he spoke “whilst it is true that I don’t believe…apparitions can exist, the house may otherwise need much repair work and therefore will not be safe to enter, under those circumstances, it could lead to injury and or other life-threatening scenarios”

Before Virgil could think about what he said, Roman interrupted “oh hush pocket protector he’ll be fine! double or nothing!” he held up two twenty-dollar bills and Virgil slowly grinned and pushed all his anxious thoughts to the back of his mind.

“you’re on!” he shook Roman’s hand before pushing his own into his pockets, pulling his purple plaid hoodie around himself even tighter and headed towards the front door of the house he inhaled deeply then placed his hand on the doorknob and pushed.

The door slowly creaked open as Virgil stood in the entrance hesitant, gradually stepping inside, making his way down a small hallway he was greeted with a rather dishevelled living room, dust covered the couch and a broken wooden coffee table lay on the ground, it looked like it had almost been split in two, a staircase stood by the living room and to the left of him stood a small kitchen with a stove which looked almost ancient by today’s standards, it’s off-white nearly brown colour stained the counters next to it as Virgil looked around, he thanked the heavens he wasn’t in full darkness as the windows despite them being encompassed with mould and dead flies still let some sunlight shine through, taking a few more strides further into the living room he made sure not touch anything, it was all gross anyway, looking around he felt…off.

“he-hello?”  no answer. he glanced around again, it felt like someone was watching him and he swore he heard a low growl at one point, his heart had started racing but with excitement or fear he couldn’t tell anymore as he tried to control his breathing, bringing his hoodie up to his mouth as to not breath in a crapload of dust, he ran up the wooden staircase which luckily for him didn’t cave through thanks to his skinny ass, coming to the top of the stairs he found a bathroom and a bedroom.

Entering the bedroom, he found a double bed, a wooden wardrobe and a desk sitting in the corner, all once again covered with dust and god knows what else, looking down he could see the carpet in here had been torn, like there had been struggle of some kind, not wanting to think of the horrors this house had once bared within its walls Virgil carried onto the wardrobe opening it, there were mostly empty coat hangers save for two, on one hung a pink shirt with a yellow star in the middle, and the other hung a light blue polo shirt, his heart sunk at the thought of these two pieces of garments belonging to the people who lived here before…who had died here as well.

“those poor people” he muttered to himself, as sadness bubbled up inside him.

THUD

His heart skipped a beat as he stayed rooted to the spot, that…that sounded like it came from downstairs, slowly and quietly closing the wardrobe doors he silently creeped to the landing and sneaked down the stairs holding his breath.

“is there anyone here with me?” his voice was shaky as he spoke, trying not to freak out.

THUD

the wall banged next to him and he jumped a mile away from it, he heard that growl again, “uh I’m sorry for what happened to you! I-“

THUD

He jumped again as a thud was heard from the front door, the front door suddenly swung open making a bang into the wall opposite, Virgil screamed as he whirled around to see Roman laughing his ass off.

“oh my god that was great!” Roman howled as Virgil stormed up to him and punched him the arm.

“you fucking asshole!” he punched him again and shoved Roman out the door, as the sun hit his pale face, Roman continued giggling holding his knuckle in his mouth to stifle them, as Virgil paced the front lawn of the house.

“C’mon it was pretty funny!”

“I swear dude- just-“Virgil couldn’t get his words out, the more Roman tried to stifle his laughter the more annoyed he felt, who was he kidding? Did he really think he was close to seeing a ghost? Probably not.

“Virgil are you quite alright?” Logan enquired placing his hand on Virgil’s shoulder gently, exhaling Virgil looked at him and a small smile tugged at his lips, “I’ll be ok” he replied, “did anything happen in there?” his bespectacled friend asked, he thought for a moment before answering “nothing out of the ordinary” he answered as he looked at Roman and realised something, he smirked and made his way towards him.

“I did my time, cough up princey” he demanded as he held his hand out to him, Roman’s laughter ceased as he saw Virgil’s hand, he groaned “ohh fine! Worth it though!” he pulled out the two twenty dollars from his jean pocket and Virgil snatched them up, “thanks sir sing a lot”

He held out his hand once more, Roman grabbed it and was pulled to his feet.

“you’re such a jerk” Virgil remarked as Roman smirked at him “you love me really” he batted his eyes at him and was met with a small shove, “I get the front door crap but how did you do the other things?” he asked curiously.

“what other things?” Roman looked confused as he walked off before Virgil could react.

10 YEARS LATER

10 years had passed and the incident with the house was all but nearly forgotten by Roman and Logan though Virgil held on to that memory, the three men sailed through the rest of high school and eventually university together, Roman majoring in theatre and Film, Logan majoring in English literature and Virgil majoring in journalism.  

After graduation they decided it would be best to move in together realising that rent would be a hell of a lot cheaper living together than on their own and eventually found a small apartment on the outskirts of LA, Virgil found a graduate job at a media company and started working on his own articles, mainly about the supernatural world, eventually he managed to get the other two jobs there too with Roman working in the video section and Logan working with Virgil with writing articles and scripts for videos.

“uh guys…” he caught both men’s attention as they turned to him from the each of there desks within there cubicles.  

Logan raised an eyebrow at him “Is everything ok Virgil?”

He had to breach this carefully, “so uh my boss is letting me do my own project for an article and I said about something supernatural related I want to find evidence that ghosts and demons actually exist by filming them and I also may have said that you guys would help me” he winced and closed his eyes expecting rejection and sure enough.

“I can’t do that, I have other projects that need my attention and besides why did you tell him that we can help?” Logan removed his glasses rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“C’mon specs, sounds like an adventure, this could be the chance for some fun!” Roman mused as he walked by slapping Logan’s back, Logan fell forwards slightly with a gasp and glared at both of them.

Virgil sat down in the cubicle opposite him swinging on his chair slightly fidgeting with a stress ball “I don’t know, just thought it would be good, spirits and stuff, I love that kind of shit”

“yes, exactly you love that…stuff, not me, not rom-“

Roman gave an offended gasp “Hey, I may not be as into this supernatural stuff as you are Virgil but I’m not as skeptical as Logan here”

“then where do you stand?” Logan eyed him

“We get to fuck with demons… that sounds like a fun adventure to me” he grinned.

“Oh Jesus Christ…” Virgil let out under his breath, “no demon fucking princey!” he said sternly wagging his finger at him, Logan groaned and rolled his head over his chair he leaned forward as Virgil wheeled his chair over with his feet to Logan’s desk, Roman leaned on it and listened.

“okay, say hypothetically I do agree to this, why?”

“you would get to do all the boring stuff like the research!” Roman divulged.

Logan’s eyes lit up behind his glasses, then the light vanished.

“Falsehood. Research is not boring, but I am intrigued, continue.” he gestured his hand.

“well…you got me the believer, you the cynic-

Logan opened his mouth to say something, but Virgil continued

“And Roman the…in-between?” he asked himself, Roman grinned “I bring much needed comic relief to otherwise scary situations!”

“yep! That!” Virgil pointed at Roman and looked back at Logan with pleading eyes

“Look, buddy I know you’re like skeptical about all of this but at least open your mind a bit, who knows maybe you might see something that’ll change your view” Virgil encouraged, and Logan stared at him as a warm smile slowly came to his face.

“Awesome! We are so doing this!” Virgil said excitedly as he punched the air.

“Shall I get on with the research then?” Logan enquired as Virgil got back to his computer “Actually I got this one covered buddy” as Virgil placed a small stack of papers on Logan’s desk, picking them up he read “494 Skylar avenue? But that’s-“  Roman looked over Logan’s shoulders as his eyes grew wide, “our hometown!” he squealed as he finished Logan’s sentence for him.

“Yup, gather your things boys, we’re going home”

There you have it! first chapter! I hope you guys like it, please let me know what you think, I do have more story planned so please let me know if you’d like me to continue or not! ^_^ hope you all have a lovely day!

[madly-handsome]

The Gang’s All Here Chapter 1: Just a Dad in his Thirties

After this chapter I’m going to make a masterlist so it makes everything so much easier. 

Prologue / Chapter 2

Notes are below the tags <3

Word Count: 2952

Pairings: In the tags 

Warnings: Angst, Fluff, kind of dystopian and sci-fi esque, Patton had a thing for a girl, mentions of minor character deaths, implied suicidal thoughts/attempt at the end of the chapter (If there are any more please let me know)

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“Dad guess what happened at school today?”

“It was so cool! Liam did something BIG!”

The yellow, cheddar cheese bus roared back to life, rolling along the unbeaten path. Patton was excited to have his kids back home, and he enjoyed listening to their excited rambles over their days’. His face lit up like the sun, heart beating erratically as it pumped paternal love through his veins. God he loved being a dad! “Ooh what happened?”

“So we were playing duck duck goose at recess,” his son recalled, adjusting his glasses, “And I got picked as the goose from the fastest kid in class AND I CAUGHT HER!”

“He was so fast Dad! The fastest ever!” Fiona gasped, eyes sparkling over her brother’s victory. Patton’s heart melted. His children were the cutest and nobody was allowed to say otherwise or he would physically fight them.

“Aw that’s amazing! And nobody got hurt?” he asked.

Fiona smiled brightly, “Well this other boy tripped and fell and scraped his knee, but Liam didn’t do it, and I got him a bandaid. It had strawberries on it.”

“That’s good to hear. I’m proud of you both!”

Patton pulled his children in a loving embrace, his heart soaring out of his chest. He was so proud of them! And how could anyone not love his little chickadees? Of course, nobody could love them like he did, but just look at them! Their cute ‘lil smiles, their beautiful and loving hearts...agh! He loved doting over them! He didn’t understand how parents could just abandon their kids, especially precious little ones like his own. It sickened him just thinking about it. Every child should be loved, and that love cannot be bought with money. That love is created through memories, happy and sad. It’s being there.

The ivory door revealed their home like Vanna White revealed prizes on Wheel of Fortune, enveloping the family of three in warm tan walls and soft yellow glows. Afternoon sunlight streamed through the open windows, reflecting through the sheer white curtains cascading from their respective curtain rods, the ends glistened with golden knobs. They used to be his mother’s curtains, but she got new ones and Patton practically begged her not to throw them out. Her and Roman found it ridiculous, but it was the little things in life Patton wished to hold onto. The little details nobody wished to pay attention to...he wanted to hold onto them forever. These curtains were included.

The house itself was spacious, the kitchen and living room were the largest rooms of the house. There was a soft, dark sectional and dark wooden coffee table in the living room, the hardwood floors fun for sliding around. The television was hung across from the couch, connected to the wall just below the stairs. The kitchen also had hardwood floors, and a center island. There was plenty of granite counter space, which Patton never took for ‘granite.’ The first thing anyone saw when they first stepped inside was the carpeted staircase leading to the bedrooms. The small bathroom upstairs had a cute shower curtain with ‘lil baby fish, and the mirror was the perfect size for both children to use at the same time.

The kids immediately sat on the floor, pulling off the shoes that confined their socked tootsies for so long. Patton did the same, placing his shoes on the rack along with theirs. With the spring air getting warmer, it was almost time to switch out the winter boots that had been dormant since their last snow storm. He’d save that for later. There were more important matters to address.

“Uncle Roman’s going to be visiting tonight.” he said, “I know you’re my perfect little darlings, but please be good for him.” A light smile dusted across his cheeks, “Be the sweet angels I know you are.”

“Sure thing Dad!” they cheered in unison, practically slipping up the steps to the hallway connecting all of their rooms together.

“Bless them both.” he chuckled to himself, sighing as he pulled his phone out of his back pocket. The satisfying click of unlocking his phone made his heart warm, seeing that he was still wanted to someone, even if that someone was his twin brother. Oof! Roman was obviously very excited to watch the little ones again. He tapped on his messages, smiling at Roman’s name at the very top….but there was another number he didn’t recognize….followed by two messages from…..

Virgil? He...hadn’t seen him in years.

He opened his brother’s book of texts first.

Roman: I shall arrive at four. I have so many plans Patton I’m so excited!

Roman: We shall have a slumber party in the living room, possibly watch all the Disney movies you own.

Roman: Ooh I might bring my own too. Too late I am.

Roman: ANYWAY so we’ll most likely start out with Moana since that’s Fiona’s favorite at the moment, and then Liam still liked Toy Story right?

Roman: Or did he change his favorite? It’s been a year and usually children change their minds very often so I’m just wondering. <3

Roman: Either way we’ll watch all of our favorites and then we’ll watch the others that we admire greatly but aren’t exactly our favorites. You’re really missing out Pat.

Roman: But.... I shall be the best knight for your prince and princess! And if you need me to stay the night I will.

Roman: They are in good hands, and I will always be here for you.

Roman: Also I will most likely bring more blankets because I know you have plenty already but you left a few at my place last time you came over.

Roman: They are of the softest fluff and I wish not to steal them

Roman: Yet~ ;)

Roman: With your permission? Perhaps? If not then it is inevitable for they are still in my custody!

Roman: I am on my way! See you soon puffball <3

Patton’s smile grew after scanning through each message, thankful for his brother’s playful antics. He did very well watching children, but his love of performances and entertainment drove him into the magnificent man he is today. Sure they didn’t always get along as kids, especially when they were young and still trying to learn what sharing was, but after that they were the perfect duo. Patton overshared his toys with Roman, and Roman would always protect him from the bullies at school. Anyone who touched Patton got a plastic sword to the head. His brother always wore prince costumes when they were youngsters, even to school, and he’d get made fun of for it. It hurt Patton to remember those unkind words, but Roman stood strong and said, “If I like it, then why does it matter to you?”

Roman was his hero.

Even as teenagers, when Patton would wear his favorite cat hoodie and pastel pink jeans, slurs and insults would fly through his ears. He could handle it alone, but Roman would always be close by and ready to pick a fight anyway. He got into so much trouble back then, and every time Patton would say he was fine and Roman shouldn’t risk his education for him. The other would always laugh and say “You’re my other half puffball. We were supposed to be the same person at some point, remember? I love you like I love me. You’re worth more than you think.”

Needless to say, Roman had been his best friend since they both came out of the womb.

Patton was grateful to have him in his life.

With a nostalgic sigh, he lightly tapped out of their messages. He’d express his gratitude to Roman while he wasn’t driving. He knew how his brother could be with texting and driving every now and then, and if he could somehow prevent any potential crashes he would.

The unknown number and Virgil’s name blared through his eyes, and he couldn’t tell which one was scarier to open. The unknown number wrote an elaborate paragraph, while Virgil had sent him two messages. Virgil was...well…

They used to be best friends...but they hadn’t seen each other since the incident.

He had to be strong. Strong for his children, strong for Roman, strong for himself…and if Virgil was finally and officially calling it off after so long then...honestly what took him so long...but Patton didn’t blame him. He could see why Virgil would want an official goodbye...in text.

His eyes darted across the small phrases, his fear turning to...a different kind of fear.

Virgil: sup dude, been forever. Miss you and all that mumbo jumbo….

Virgil: Listen, i know things are still hard, and today’s the worst day for something like this, but Logic took my phone and your number. Got the phone back and this is me but...you know... thought I’d warn you. Said something about one final match or whatever but...your call dude. I’ll get the gang set up if you need me to.

Memories of his glory days made him chuckle.

He hadn’t seen his emo right hand man since...wow. Had it really been five years since that fateful day? Patton found himself missing the makeshift family he had associated himself with for years, his eyes stinging with potential tears at the memories that flooded his mind. It’s been way too long and...maybe it was time he paid a visit.

Me: I’ll be there. Old hangout. Just like old times :)

“Uncle Ro-Ro’s here!” Fiona called, her knuckles rapping against the hollow wooden door that led to Liam’s room.

Patton immediately pocketed his phone, running towards the front door that was merely steps away from him. Peeking through the small window that viewed his driveway, he couldn’t help but smile at Roman’s bright red sports car. It was hysterical how different the two could be at times. Patton never bothered to learn a stick-shift, feeling safe and comfortable with automatic cars and taking an instant liking to the hybrid, eco friendly ones, preferably his Prius. Roman took the road by storm, living on the edge with the top down at all times.

The kids bound down the stairs, giggling as they stood behind their Dad. He moved back to kneel in front of them, hugging them close. “Remember, be good.”

“We wiiiiill,” Liam huffed.

“If he isn’t good I can tell you,” Fiona added.

“W-Well I can tell you when she isn’t good either Dad! ‘Cause I’ll be gooder.”

She shook her head and crossed her arms. “Gooder isn’t a word Liam.”

“It is now. I just made it up.”

Patton’s smile didn’t waver, yet he gave his tone just a tad bit of firmness. “Ah ah! Be good!”

“Yes Dad.” They both deflated, shoving their hands in their pockets.

Opening the door, he was immediately greeted with bright white teeth and a wide grin. The kids ran to him immediately, hugging at his hips. “Uncle Ro-Ro!” They giggled, both squealing as Roman somehow picked them both up at the same time.

“Your knight in shining armor has arrived~!”

“Welcome your highness!” Patton giggled, stepping to the side and bowing extravagantly. “Please make yourself at home.”

The kids scrambling out of his hold and ran back upstairs, probably getting all of their Disney toys and movies out for Roman. The thought made the dad feel a bit guilty for not being able to stay...but...

Roman unzipped his knee high boots, pulling out his feet with grace and placing the shoes on the rack with the others. “As I have been doing ever since you bought this house.”

With a hearty laugh, he maneuvered into the spacious living room so he could drop his bag unceremoniously on the couch. Immediately after doing so, he gave Patton the tightest hug he’s ever experienced. Warmth seeped out of him, comforting Patton immediately. “It’s been a while.” Roman whispered, the woeful expression making him look older than he was. “How are you fairing?”

“After all these years?” The father smiled sadly, thankful he was still in Roman’s thoughts. “It’s not as bad as it was. I um...well….here’s the thing…”

“Changing it up this year, aye?”

Did he...how did he know? Roman knew he was a part of the gang but…?

“Virgil hit me up,” he chuckled, holding his own phone up in response, the sparkling gold case making Patton smile. The man changed his phone case every week, and every one was so Roman.

Patton awkwardly fiddled with the sleeves of his cat hoodie, picking off the little fuzz balls that accumulated there. “I’m surprised Logic still remembers me after all this time honestly. It’s been so long since our last battle.”

Something glinted in his brother’s eyes, but Roman quickly glanced away as soon as he’d noticed. “It has been a while hasn’t it? Look Patton I….you know how I felt about the gang. I never liked the idea of you potentially getting caught. The authorities caught a bunch of big name gangs recently. Thankfully you haven’t been meeting regularly for a while but...you always seemed so happy. Spreading good in an ungodly fashion? And you say I’m the role model in the family! I...I’m proud of you Patton. Even if I didn’t say it out loud in the past as much as I should have...I really am.”

“So...you want me to go?” Patton asked, mouth gaping at the confession, “You...you want me to reconnect with them?”

A soft smile dusted his face. “Why not? I got the kids and your number. Everything will be okay. And hey! It’s one more time. If things aren’t okay, you can always back out. I’m sure your other family wouldn’t be mad at you.”

Patton sprung into his arms, all feelings of sadness and doubt immediately escaping him. If his brother, his hero, felt that it was right to go? He had to, and he was excited about it. “I love you so much Ro. Thank you for always being there for me. Even if you weren’t always physically there, you still went out of your way for me and...I’m the luckiest brother ever.”

He chuckled, “You say that now, but just you wait. You’ll be missing those blankets and I’m not giving them back. Ever.”

“You can have them if you want them so badly.”

Roman pouted, “You’re supposed to get angry about it, not agree with me.”

For the first time since...the incident...Patton felt at peace with himself, happy that he can meet his old pals and...slightly scared but he’ll jump over that hurdle when he’s ready. To speak with his brother like this...and to be able to see the gang again? This was the best feeling ever!

Roman hesitated, pulling back to hold his twin’s shoulders. “Be safe on the roads. The cops are getting fishier than usual. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do...which is a small list so you really shouldn’t have to worry and I know I shouldn’t have to worry, but I’m your big brother! By four minutes I know but still! Just...please...”

Warmth enveloped around his heart. Roman was the best brother ever. “I’ll call you first if anything happens.”

With a flourish of the hand, Roman gave an overly elegant bow. “Then I bid you adieu~!”

Patton rushed upstairs to his room, adrenaline surging through his veins. His mind and heart raced, reminiscing over the jokes and clever comebacks he’s shared with them. Thoughts of Logic suddenly filled his brain, remembering the awful jokes and teasing banters between the two of them, watching as their gangs molded together perfectly. How they’d still try to remain professional, but it was just so hard whenever Logic crumbled over his punishments.

He missed the simpler times.

Apparently Logic did too.

Speaking of odd things, he never did read that last text. Virgil said it was him so...what could it be?

He changed into one of his old red polos and black dress pants, reminiscing over the old days. The shirt was a bit tight though, so he settled for the pastel pink one instead, sliding his arms through the sleeves of his trench coat with ease. The familiar weight released a sigh from his chest, calming him in ways he didn’t think he needed to be calmed. It still smelled like his old cologne too, causing nostalgia to wash over him yet again.

As an older man nearing his thirties, he’d come to realize how often he looked back to the past. Whenever he thought about the gang, which was practically the beginning of his life. Or when he thought of the birth of his kids. When he’d think back to the happy times he shared with...her…

No. None of that today.

He had to be happy pappy Patton!

He was going to do what he did best, meaning he wasn’t allowed to sulk over her lack of existence. With a broad smile plastered over his face, he thought of the good times so he could produce the sunshine.

It was going to be okay.

……..

Five years ago he...he nearly….

Ready as he’d ever be, or so he thought...because he thought he was ready...finger resting against the trigger like a child nestled in it’s parents’ arms, feeble and weak. A baby bird incarcerated in the nest within its mind for far too long.

The broken cries of their death sentences ate at his chest like acid.

Hot. Wet. Hurt.

“It’s the only logical thing to do.”

“S-Sir?”

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Tags for everything:  @virgilmood​ @virgil-has-a-houseplant​ @ultimate-queen-of-fandoms​ @valeriebevill1999​ @pastel-patton123​ @dragonesskunoichi​ @emphoenixcat​ @whyamihereohwell​ @icecoldparadise​ @author-trash​ @smokeyrutilequartz​ @hanramz-the-fander​ @toujours-fidele​

Tags for this fic:  @not-so-innocent-bi-sander @pattonwillfight @nightmarejasmine @adfandertime @panic-at-theeverywhere @cloudchaser7 @sander-sideblog @creepyfloof @wrenweasly  @logicallyanxious-morallyromantic @bloodropsblog @cconstantregret @chaosgaminggirl @toujours-fidele @lala-the-rebel @darandomfandoms @purplepatton @broadwaytheanimatedseries @royallyanxious @am-i-heaven-or-am-i-hell @ab-artist @theclassifiedjackass @imnotverycareful @blubblubfishy @hissesssss @patton-loves-coloring @highfivegirl404 @paxtonlovestea

Creators of the original post: @sandersfanders @sanderssidecanons

A/N: Can’t believe I’m actually keeping up with a schedule. I’m so excited to see how this all turns out! I also just saw Love Simon yesterday and I can’t stop loving it agh <3

Thank you all for the support! It really helps with my motivation with everything. You keep me going, and it might not seem like much, but you really do. Thank you for being you <3

[haunting-kind-of-high]

State of Mind (Part 2)

Part 1 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8

Warnings: None… I think

Tag list: @musicphanpie-b, @imin-loveanon, @ordinary-chaos, @sandersandthesides, @ajumbleofwords, @demonickittykat, @zadi-jyne, @serenefreakgeek, @fandons-mangoes, @leesacrakon, @gayfagg, @tree4life25, @loverofpizzaandallthingssweet, @ilovemygaydad, @gaythingsingayplaces, @andy-the-anon

Notes: Tbh, I feel like a few of the thoughts I wrote are really repetitive but ??? this will have to do hahah. Enjoy (:

Link to AO3 will follow when I get home

Virgil groaned as he woke up and looked at the clock next to his bed. It was six thirty, which meant he had about an hour to get ready for his work. Even though he hated his place, he hated his work even more. He would give up anything to get out of working - well, almost anything.

It took Virgil all of his willpower to get up and shuffle to his bathroom to take a shower. Just like the rest of his tiny apartment, the bathroom was just big enough to accommodate everything it needed; a shower, toilet and a sink. At least Virgil had a shower. Some of his colleagues didn’t even own one. It was almost unbelievable. If Virgil hadn’t seen it first-hand, he wouldn’t believe this. He couldn’t believe he didn’t want to believe - that some people had to live like that. Especially while, on the other side of the town, there were people who were so rich that they could almost drown in their own money. It wasn’t fair.

When he had finished his shower, Virgil plodded to his kitchen, getting himself a cracker or two and a glass of water. It wasn’t a good breakfast, but it was all he could afford. Sure, he’d love to get himself a loaf of bread from a real baker, but that would cost him a lot of money. And he couldn’t afford to spend a lot of money on food. Not if he wanted to have a roof over his head. The rent cost him more than half of the money he’d earn each month. The other half would have to be used to buy food and to maintain the few pieces of technology he possessed. Every once in a while, a generous soul would give him a tip - out of pity, Virgil reasoned. Every customer knew he had a low class: why else would a grown man be working in a supermarket? That was no job for the higher classes. So of course, the wealthier people would feel bad for this man, who could only work in a mediocre supermarket. The only advantage to this was that sometimes, he would be lucky enough to receive up to twenty dollars extra for him to spend.

After Virgil had finished his breakfast, he still had some time to sit down in the living room and watch some television before he had to go. There were hardly any shows that Virgil enjoyed, but it was one of the few forms of entertainment he was allowed - and one of the few he could afford. For the lower classes, there were only five channels to choose from. Roman had mentioned there were many more for him to watch, but those channels were exclusive to the two higher classes. Virgil was pretty sure their shows were much better than the crap they presented to the other two classes. The few shows Virgil could watch were either stupid comedy shows that tried too hard to be funny, or shows that were filled to the brim with propaganda. It was fun to watch them if you had nothing else to do, but Virgil would never watch anything like that for his own amusement. It was too predictable and too boring for him.

For about twenty minutes, Virgil sat there, watching one of those shows before he had to go out. Off to another day of work.

As soon as the man stepped out the door, still fumbling with his headphones, he heard another door slam shut not far away. The sudden noise made him flinch and he looked up to see what had caused the noise. He was met with a man, not much older than thirty. He wore black glasses that looked like they could fall apart at any given moment. Virgil had passed him in the hallway multiple times, but they had never really talked.

“Oh sorry,” the man gasped, “I didn’t scare you too much, did I?”

“No… no you’re fine,” Virgil replied, faking a smile at the man. “Just didn’t see it coming. It’s nothing bad.” That wasn’t entirely true. It had startled Virgil more than he would admit. His heart started pounding at the sudden loud noise and his mind panicked for a few moments. But he could deal with it. It wasn’t that bad.

“Well, that’s a relief,” the stranger smiled, “I was afraid you might-”

“You’re fine,” Virgil repeated, slowly moving to the end of the hall, “but… if you don’t mind, I’m kind of in a hurry. I need to go to my work.”

“Oh, I get that!” The man followed Virgil’s lead. “I need to go, too. Where do you work?”

“Harvey’s.”

“I work at the Plaza, not far away from there!” the stranger shared. “Would you mind if I joined you? It’s fine if you don’t want to!”

“No that’s… cool,” Virgil stopped fumbling with his headphones and looked at the man. Honestly, he’d prefer to walk there alone, accompanied by only his music, but he couldn’t tell the male in front of him. The other man smiled at Virgil and stepped closer, extending a hand.

“I’m Patton, by the way!” he introduced himself. “Patton Abbott.”

“Virgil,” the boy said as he shook Patton’s hand. “Casey.”

“I love your name,” Patton stated as they walked towards the staircase. Virgil’s mouth formed a small smile as he looked at the floor.

“Thanks… I guess.”

As the two walked to their jobs, they got to know each other a little bit more. Virgil discovered that Patton was a Lower Classer. He was Determined to be a stay-at-home dad. But as he was single, he had to get a job in retail. The man was energetic and enthusiastic, the type of person who had accepted his position. The type of guy who believed that his position was fair and just. He was Virgil’s opposite in everything. Yet, Virgil found that he greatly enjoyed Patton’s company. Even after their short conversation, Virgil learned that Patton was incredibly smart and he had so much potential. He could be so much more work than a stay-at-home dad or a retail worker.

Soon enough, he approached Harvey’s and Virgil felt his stomach filling up with dread. His job was honestly the worst thing in the world right now. The male would do anything to talk to Patton for a little longer. But he’d lose his job if he did, so Virgil forced a smile and turned to Patton.

“Well, this is my stop,” he announced softly, “so… good luck today.”

“Thanks,” Patton smiled, noticing Virgil’s hesitance. “You too, Virgil. I’ll see you later.”

“Definitely,” Virgil said with a nod. “I’ll see you.” With those words, he turned around and opened the backdoor that granted him access to the store. Patton waved at him before he continued his walk. Virgil took a few deep breaths and walked further. He headed to the locker room where he placed his valuables in a locker and exchanged his own black shirt for a black one with the store’s logo on it; a green H, surrounded by an aura of white. Taking just a few more deep breaths, Virgil entered the shop itself and prepared himself for another dreadful day.

Hours of fake smiles and forced politeness passed by. More Upper Classers looking at him like he was some kind of animal and Lower Middle Classers talking to him like everything was okay. It was tedious. But, one particular customer seemed to make up for all the irritation of the day. Roman. He stopped by just after Virgil’s lunch break with his groceries for that day - ever since the two started dating, Roman had stopped by the store every day. Sometimes, he’d buy only a few apples or one carton of milk, but he would be able to see Virgil again. That was the real reason for his daily visits. And Virgil couldn’t be more grateful for that.

“Good afternoon, sir,” Virgil said as Roman approached him, trying to greet his boyfriend the way he would greet any other customer. Roman answered with a gorgeous smile as the other scanned his products. He already grabbed his bank card and took out a few bills as well. Virgil told Roman how much money he owed him and the latter announced he would pay with his card. When he had done that, the man handed the bills to Virgil.

“Just a tip,” he remarked before stepping aside to pack all of his newly-bought products. Meanwhile, Virgil looked at the money in his hand. He noticed at least two twenty dollar-bills. This was probably almost the same as he would earn in a day. It was way too much to accept. He couldn’t possibly accept this.

“Oh, sir, I can’t-”

“Take it,” Roman interrupted, shooting Virgil a friendly smile. Virgil looked up at the older male who had finished packing and now clutched the handles of his bag.

“Okay… thank you.” It felt bad to take this amount of money, but he couldn’t refuse it. As Virgil moved to put the money away, he noticed a white piece of paper sticking out. He looked up and smiled at Roman with a small nod, to signify that he saw the note.

“Would you like a receipt?” Virgil asked, looking down at the receipt on the counter in front of him.

“No, thank you.”

“Alright,” Virgil crumpled the note and dropped it in the trash can that stood next to him. It was filled with paper receipts.  "Have a good day, sir.“

“You too,” Roman replied as he picked up his back and left the store, not looking back at Virgil as he greeted the next customer.

The last few hours suddenly seemed much more bearable. Roman would often give Virgil secret notes like this. Sometimes, it would just be a random compliment scribbled on a small paper, but most of the time, Roman would have written down a time and date to meet again. Virgil was anxious to read the message his boyfriend had left him this time, but he would have to wait until he got home. And those last four hours seemed to fly by - a rare occurrence.

As soon as his shift ended, Virgil hurried to the locker room to retrieve his own shirt and phone. He quickly got out his earphones and started playing some music as he left the building. The streets were crowded with people and cars, and as soon as he noticed the amount of noise, Virgil turned up the volume of his music in order to drown out any unwanted sounds. All he could think about was the note in his pocket. He couldn’t wait to get home and read it.

The first thing Virgil did when he stepped into his apartment, was walking over to the window that looked out of the street where he had walked not even five minutes ago. On the window-sill, there stood a small jar with several bills in it. Those were the tips he had gotten from customers. At this moment, it only contained one ten-dollar bill. Now, Virgil added the fifty - fifty - dollars Roman had given him, and another five dollars he had received from another young man.

Then, the male crashed on one of his chairs and closed his eyes for a moment, to relax. He could not wait to get another job. He never liked the prospect of working in an office, but it was better than a supermarket. Nearly anything would be better than this, really.

Virgil sat there for at least fifteen minutes. He just sat there, with his eyes closed. He didn’t want to get up anymore. He was done with all of this. Done with the society and the box it pushed him into. Done with being forced to work at a place he didn’t like. Done with pretending he was single, and done with watching his every move, scared of what the State would think. He was done with the rules the State had forced upon them for centuries. He was done with everything. He just wanted to go to sleep and wake up in a world where he could do whatever he wanted without being judged or even arrested for it. And more than that, he wanted to live in a world where he could see his boyfriend whenever he wanted. He didn’t want to have to communicate through small notes. But this was their life now and he would have to accept it.

Virgil got up and walked to the bathroom. This was the only room where he could open the note and read it without the State looking over his shoulder. Because even the State was humane enough to allow their citizens that tiny bit of privacy. And there were still microphones in the bathroom, so it wasn’t like you could escape to the bathroom to do anything illegal. Besides, there was at least one camera pointed at the door leading to the bathroom, so the State would know if you brought anything suspicious with you.

As Virgil entered the bathroom, he waited for a few moments and turned on the shower. When that was done, he sat down on the ground and slowly folded the note open, afraid to tear its paper. His eyes scanned the paper and his read the words his boyfriend had written down in his elegant handwriting:

Hey there, gorgeous! How about we meet Saturday, eight pm? The place on your side of town?

Confirm tomorrow.

I love you so much, sweetheart. I can’t wait to see you again.  

Love, Roman

Virgil smiled and reread the note over and over again. He couldn’t believe he was this lucky to have someone like Roman in his life. But at the same time, it hurt so much to know that they could never spend more than a few hours together. Their only way to communicate in public, was by giving each other notes in secret. Roman was someone he wanted to spend his life with, but he couldn’t even spend a full day with this man. And it hurt.

Virgil did anything he usually did if he faked a shower; he opened the bottle of shampoo, opened the bottle of shower gel, placed his head underneath the warm rays of water for a few seconds. When Virgil had turned off his shower, he opened the drawer that held his towels and got out one of his new towels - it was still soft. He dried his face and threw the towel on the ground. As he waited for a few more moments, Virgil reread the message Roman had sent him. Then, Virgil hid it in his pocket again and stepped out of the bathroom, acting like nothing had happened. The note seemed to burn in his pocket. He wanted to read it again. He wanted to read it over and over and never stop reading. But instead, he walked to his small kitchen and opened the fridge. It was awfully empty. The only things he kept in there, were a couple of apples and a half full bottle of juice. He still had a number of crackers and biscuits left, too. Virgil picked up the bottle and one of the apples, poured himself a glass of juice and searched for a cracker. That would have to do as dinner. He’d only have a short shift tomorrow, so he could get his groceries then. Maybe, with the tip Roman had given him, he would even be able to get something from the supermarket. Like one of those frozen pizzas or some egg rolls. Virgil had never had either of those two foods before, but they looked delicious. Maybe he’d get one of those soon. Usually, the wares of supermarkets were way out of his budget. But with the money Roman gave him, he might be able to afford buying one thing there. You had to treat yourself every once in a while, right?

After he had finished his dinner, Virgil searched his entire apartment in search for a pen and a piece of paper. He softly mumbled to himself about everything he might need to buy as he wrote a message to his boyfriend:

That sounds great, I’ll try my best to be there! I already miss you.

I love you more. I’m already looking forwards to seeing you again.  

Virgil 

As he finished the note, Virgil put down the pen and folded the paper, making sure the State would not be able to see anything on their cameras. He then placed the note on his table and told himself that he would have to remember to take it with him when he left the house the next day. Virgil got up to look at the street below him. Sure, the neighbourhood might be shit, but he had lived here for five years and something about it started to appeal to him. He knew the name of every little shop there. He knew who ran them and he knew who were regular customers there. He knew where they sold the best drinks and what shops to avoid. He had gotten acquainted with the way the shops looked, the way they smelled even, and he had started to grow fond of it. That didn’t mean he couldn’t wait to get out of this apartment, though. Virgil did hope that, when he did finally buy a new apartment, he would be able to remain in this neighbourhood. Sure, he’d love to move to a better neighbourhood closer to Roman, but after so many years, he knew these streets. He knew the alleys and the people and he didn’t want to move to a neighbourhood where he had to get used to everything all over again. Virgil ran his hands through his short, brown hair and turned back. It was a quarter to six, which meant he had to watch the news in fifteen minutes again. The true highlight of his day.

But just before that, Virgil headed for his kitchen to get himself a glass of water to keep him company during the news.

Like always, the man pretended to be intrigued by everything Rebecka Taylor told him. He feigned shock when she mentioned that a number of people had been arrested on suspicions of rebellious beliefs, relief when she confirmed that their branch of the so-called revolutionary movement had been decimated, and joy when she said that the economy had grown yet again in the past months. The economy always grew and Virgil had barely experienced any changes in his daily life. If there even was any growth, it only affected the higher classes. The lower classes never profited from anything that happened ever. They didn’t matter, after all. They never mattered.

[milomeepit]

Diamond In The Rough: Chapter Fourteen

Roman has always wanted better. Has always believed that there’s a better life, a better world, just out of reach. Just beyond the veil of shitty teachers who don’t care, angry classmates that scream insults and slurs at each other all day, and drug-hazed parents who are more concerned with their next hit than looking after their ten year old son.

When he runs away after a particularly bad night at home and finds a quiet little cafe/bookstore tucked away in a back alley of the city, the sweet couple who run the joint (an odd pair; a quiet, gloomy man with a wry sense of humour and a cynical gleam in his eye, and a bouncy man who smiles like sunshine and laughs like a storybook king) help show him that maybe- just maybe- he really can have the life he always dreamed of.

Masterpost (to be added soon!)

Word Count: 1417

Chapter Warnings: child neglect, child abuse, terrible living conditions, sleep deprivation, starving, panic, yelling, crying, drug mention, implied alcohol use,

Logan sighed as he pulled up outside the Gorgon residence. His digging into their history had been... less fruitful than he’d hoped. Aside from the occasional drug charge from when they were younger- before Roman was born- there was absolutely nothing to go off of. Nothing to prove that Roman shouldn’t live with them, other than the boy’s reluctance to return.

Patton had clung to Virgil when he’d spoken to them in the kitchen of the cafe. Virgil had been silent for the most part, letting Patton explain the sequence of events that had led them to take in Roman. The two of them had apologised for not speaking up, but Logan had been forced to report the situation anyway. Thankfully, the pair had merely gotten a warning for not coming forward with information.

Between what Patton had told him, Roman’s attitude towards going home, and his parent’s reaction to his reappearance, Logan knew something was off.

He killed the car’s engine and plucked the plastic folder with Roman’s name off of the passenger seat before heading to the door. It took a while before Max opened it, his dark eyes squinting in the sunlight.

“Oh. It’s you,” He said gruffly. Logan fought the urge to wrinkle his nose at the stale scent of beer on the man’s breath.

“It is indeed,” He responded. “I’m here for the welfare check I mentioned when I dropped Roman off last week?”

Max stared blankly at him for a moment, and Logan felt a sharp spike of irritation at the man’s apparent disregard for Roman’s wellbeing. “Oh. Yeah. Come on in, I guess.” He stepped aside, holding open the door.

“Thank you.” Logan slipped past him into the house and his eyes widened.

The walls were dirty and stained, marks splashed over the wide cracks that crawled up the old plaster. The carpet in the hallway was halfway ripped up, the remaining threadbare patch at the bottom of the stairs isolated by the old floorboards. Logan subtly sidestepped a few of the more worn-out looking ones as he made his way further into the house.

Each room seemed worse the last. Black grime coated the wooden doorways, most with broken hinges. The living room had a hole at about head height in the plaster, suspiciously fist-sized. The kitchen was so cluttered that he could hardly make out the benches and sink past all of the random piles littering the room. The mirror in the downstairs bathroom was broken, half of the glass just gone from the frame, leaving a large jagged-edged chunk clinging to the top.

Finally he returned his attention to Max, who had already vanished into the living room again. He picked his way past piles of washing and empty bottles and magazines to stand next to Max’s armchair and cleared his throat.

After a moment, Max glanced up at him before returning his gaze to the TV. “Yeah?” He asked.

“Where is Roman? I’d like to speak with him.” Logan asked. He mentally congratulated himself on his level voice.

“Oh, uh...” Max paused, and Logan fought the urge to smack him. “... Oh, right. Basement. Door’s in the kitchen.”

“What.”

Max finally turned his attention back to Logan, the cold tone seeming to pierce through the man’s apathetic bubble. “Basement,” He repeated, sounding a little uncomfortable.

A siren wailed onscreen, its screaming pitch a match to Logan’s rising temper. “And why, pray tell, is he in the basement? Is his room down there?” Logan stared at him. He felt his hands clench around the folder tucked into his arms in a white-knucled grip.

“He, uh... no. It’s upstairs. He’s in time-out.” Max stumbled over his words, his lazy self-assurance evaporating under Logan’s glare.

“Is the basement heated? Is any part of this home heated?” Logan felt hysteria bubbling up in his throat, and for once, he found he didn’t care what this so-called parent thought of him. “What the hell makes you think these are suitable living conditions for anyone, let alone a vulnerable child that who literally depends on you for their very survival?!”

“I-uh... well, his mother and I, uh...” Max practically withered back in his chair. “We just... it’s not like we wanted the kid, you know?”

There was nothing that Logan hated more than people who couldn’t even pretend to be good parents. It was obvious that they knew they were terrible at looking after children, and yet, they continued on with the exact same behaviours. He’d seen it a thousand times, neglect and abuse and awful conditions.

Sure, some families had issues related to mental health, or financial difficulty. But many of the one he dealt with just... didn’t care about the children in their care. It made his blood boil.

Logan shook his head at Max before turning away and striding into the kitchen. He twisted the handle of the basement door. He huffed in annoyance as it rattled uselessly. He dimly heard the front door slam shut and scowled.

Coward.

He rapped on the door. “Roman?” He called out, starting to look for a latch, or a key, anything to help him open the door.

There was no response. Worry began to creep up Logan’s spine. How long had Roman been trapped down there? Was he injured? He couldn’t imagine the boisterous child staying quiet for long.

“Roman?” He couldn’t quite keep his voice level. He ran his gaze over the door. It was in as bad disrepair as everything else in the house. Maybe he could...

He muttered an apology aloud before taking a step back and kicking at the door. His foot thudded against it, deafeningly loud.

“Roman?!” He shouted. The door groaned weakly underneath the force of the blow. He gritted his teeth, and kicked again, and again. The paint peeled from the dilapidated wood as the battered door splintered inwards.

He squinted into the dark basement. Light spilled down the wide stairs, casting deep shadows in the corners of the room. It was as cluttered as the rest of the house, with boxes and piles of junk scattered in high stacks around the room. He took a few steps down the staircase and almost gagged at the strong smell of mould and dust that permeated the air.

As he slowly made his way into the room, his eyes gradually adjusted. He could pick out the outline of a tattered couch against the wall, and a pool table upended at one end of the room. He scanned the room, holding his breath and listening.

A small, pained sob caught his attention, and he looked over the room once more before his eyes locked on what he had assumed was a pile of blankets. He took the stairs down two at a time, his heart pounding in his ears.

Logan dropped to a crouch beside the small, shivering lump on the floor. “Roman...?” He asked, reaching out and gently touching his shoulder.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, please don’t take her away!” Roman wheezed, shaking his head and curling tighter around the small object in his arms. Logan peered at him for a moment before recognizing the red knitted monkey doll that he had clung to the entire drive from Patton and Logan’s apartment.

“I’m not going to, it’s okay,” Logan reassured him softly. “Nobody is going to take her from you.”

Roman took a deep, shuddering breath and finally raised his head. Logan’s heart broke at the dark purple bags under his eyes, his pale face, the tears that were streaming down his cheeks. “I... what...?” He breathed, his voice croaky, unfocused eyes blinking rapidly.

Logan had brought him back here. Despite his instincts screaming otherwise. He’d ignored them, and Roman, and Roman had been hurt in the process. It was his fault Roman was in this state.

He gently slid his arms under Roman, carefully lifting him up, and held him close to his chest as he slowly got to his feet. “You’re safe, Roman. I promise.” He murmured. “I’m so sorry.”

Roman squinted, his head lolling to the side. He was clearly exhausted. Logan wondered how long he’d been trapped in the dark. How long it had been since he’d slept or eaten. “... Logan?” He mumbled.

Logan offered him the softest smile he could manage as he started to climb the stairs back up to the kitchen. “Yeah, Ro. Everything’s going to be okay now.”

He was going to make sure of it.