Patton smiled as the sun hit his freckled cheeks. There was nothing quite as pleasing to him as the feeling of the sun's warmth after a long day at school. It brought him a sense of calm serenity, something that he longed for following the chaos of his high school.

Today had been especially stressful, having had two tests that Patton was sure he probably did less than well on. But Patton didn't like to focus on that. Instead, he chose to focus on the warmth flooding his body. He smiled lightly.

His serene state was shattered when he bumped into a group of students. At first, he looked up quickly and apologized profusely. However, he then noticed what the group was doing. They were surrounding a boy about his age, pushing him and laughing in his face. Between the fits of laughter, Patton could make out someone saying,"You're such a freak!" The boy whimpered quietly, almost inaudible. The first voice spoke out again. "What was that? I couldn't hear you." With that, the whole group cackled. Patton didn't quite understand why that was funny, but the look in the boys eyes made Patton's heart shatter and prompted him to take action. "Hey! Leave him alone!" The group turned to face him, their expressions being replaced with a slight fearful discomfort. "Uh, Patton, we can explain. It was just-" "I don't want to hear it! Leave him alone. Right. Now."

Patton may not have been the best at the academic aspect of school, but he thrived in the social aspect. Everyone either knew him or knew of him, and he was looked up to by almost every student. Everyone knew that Patton was incredibly nice but could be absolutely terrifying when others weren't as kind.

"Well? I said to leave him alone. So get out of here." The group of students dispersed quickly, leaving Patton alone with the shaking boy. Patton walked over and kneeled in front of him. "Hi, I'm Patton. What's your name?" The boy looked up and met his eyes, but didn't reply. "I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm sorry that they were so mean to you!" The boy smiled slightly. Patton stood and offered his hand to the boy, who took it wearily. Patton pulled him up to his feet quickly, causing him to stumble. Patton giggled lightly. "Sorry! Didn't mean to make you fall for me this quickly!" The boy chuckled lightly. "So.. I never caught your name! Can you tell me? Please, please, please!" The boys eyes widened and he mouth fell open slightly. Before Patton could react, he heard a voice yell from behind him.

"Ro! Are you okay? Is he bothering you? Did he hurt you? How dare you hurt my brother! I'll-" The new voice was interrupted by "Ro" grabbing his arm and pulling him away from Patton. Ro shook his head, causing the other boy to calm down. He turned back to Patton. "Sorry about that. I'm just really protective of my brother. I'm Remus, by the way." Patton stuck out his hand. "Nice to meet you! I'm Patton!" Remus looked at Patton's hand, and decided to ignore the offered handshake. His brother gave him a dirty look, but Patton seemed unfazed. "I was just asking your brother what his name was, but I didn't get it yet." "That's because he's mute, you idiot." That earned Remus a smack on his arm. Patton's eyes widened. "Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry! I didn't realize! Oh gosh, I feel awful." The boy shook his head before pulling out a small notebook and pen. He scribbled a note and handed it to Patton.

Don't worry about it. I'm Roman. :)

Patton smiled up at the boy. "Roman is such a cool name! I love it!" Roman smiled as well, causing his brother to look at him like he was insane. Patton looked at his watch and he gasped. "Oh! I'm supposed to be meeting a couple of people right now at a coffee shop a couple of streets over! Do you guys want to come?" Roman nodded quickly, looking to his brother for confirmation. "I think I'm gonna head home, but you go ahead, Ro. Do you want me to tell Papa you'll be out until later?" Roman nodded and smiled lightly at his brother, who couldn't help but smile in return. "Alright! We better get going Roman! It was super nice to meet you Remus!" Remus nodded. "Likewise. And please take care of my brother." Roman rolled his eyes but smiled at Remus before stepping forward and hugging him. Remus hugged him back before mumbling, "Text me if you need anything." Roman nodded, then began his walk with Patton.

Roman learned quickly that Patton was a talker. For most, that could be rather annoying. But for Roman, it was perfect. He was a very good listener, and he loved listening to Patton ramble on about anything and everything. What made it even more perfect was that every few sentences, Patton would look at Roman and pause, allowing him to nod or gesture in a way that made him feel included in the conversation instead of being an observer. Patton was very considerate, and Roman appreciated it.

The pair soon rounded a corner, displaying the coffee shop they were looking for. Roman knew this coffee shop all too well. He has a light smile on his face when they walked inside. Patton walked toward a small table with two others sitting at it. Roman followed behind closely and observed the pair as he sat down. One boy had a polo and tie on, as well as very similar glasses to Patton. He looked rather formal. The other was dressed almost as opposite as he could. He had a purple crop top on and beautiful purple and black eyeshadow. Roman continued to admire the second boy's make up until that same boy snapped in front of his face. "What are you looking at?" Roman felt his face flush in embarrassment, obviously not saying anything in response. "Well?" The boy pushed. "Virge-" Patton started. "No, I want to know why he felt the need to stare at me. He can speak for himself." Patton felt his heart drop at that. Roman, however, was all too used to this, and simply grabbed his notebook and pen from his pocket before writing a note quickly and handing it to Virgil.

I'm really sorry, I was just admiring how beautiful your makeup was. I also didn't mean to ignore your question, I am mute so I couldn't answer verbally.
P.S. My name is Roman :)

Virgil immediately felt guilt wash over him. "I-I'm so sorry, Roman. I just get ... defensive when I think people are judging me. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or be so inconsiderate." Roman smiled softly at the boy and raised his hand, showing that it was alright. Logan looked at the pair with an expression of pure confusion. Roman reached for his pen again when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and was met with Patton's light blue eyes. "Hey, if it would be easier, I could explain for you? Only if you want though! I didn't mean that you can't speak for yourself, I just-" Roman cut him off with a chuckle and nod, signaling him that it was alright. "Well, this is Roman! I met him at school today, and he seems really cool! He is mute, so he can't speak with us, but he communicates by writing!" Logan nodded, turning to Roman. "It is very nice to meet you Roman. My name is Logan." Roman smiled and nodded. "A-and I'm Virgil." Roman turned to the source of the voice and nodded in his direction as well, acknowledging both boys' introductions. "So, Roman," Logan began,"Are you new to our school?" Roman nodded.

Before the conversation could progress any further, a loud voice broke their discussion. "Virgil! Babes, what are you doing here on your day off?" Virgil laughed lightly. "Hey Rem. Just hanging out." "Ooh, are these your boyf- Roman?" Roman looked up and waved lightly before turning back to Virgil with a questioning look. "Uh, I work here with him. How do you know Remy?" Roman laughed lightly and looked up at Remy. "Babes, this is my kid." Virgil raised his eyebrows as Remy pushed Roman's hair out of his face. "Did you tell your Papa that you would be out today? You know how totally freaked he gets." Roman nodded, causing Remy to let out a sigh of relief. "Well, I'll leave you guys alone. Have so much fun!" Remy leaned down and hugged Roman lightly, whispering in his ear, "I'm so proud of you." Roman looked up at his Dad and smiled widely, turning back to the three boys once he had left. Virgil was the first to speak. "I thought you were new to our school. Remy has worked here for years." Roman felt his heart rate quicken, trying his best to hide his anxiety. He grabbed his pen and paper and wrote down his message quickly.

I went to school a couple blocks away, but my brother got in some trouble there... our dads moved both of us to your school for a "fresh start". Sorry for the confusion.

He slid the paper to Virgil, who read it out loud to the others. They all nodded in understand, lessening Roman's anxiety immediately. "I'm really sorry Roman. I don't mean to keep being rude to you. It's just a reflex, but I feel like a terrible person, and I just am really sorry, and-" "Dear, calm down," Logan said, putting his arm around Virgil and rubbing his arm lightly, causing him to relax. Roman wrote another note and slid it toward Logan.

Are you two dating?

Logan chuckled, causing Roman to feel self conscious. Luckily, Logan noticed this, and addressed him quickly. "Have no fear Roman, I am only amused because both Virgil and Patton are my boyfriends. I thought Patton would've told you that on your walk over." Roman nodded, but still looked very obviously confused. Patton took notice of this. "Hey, Ro, it's alright if you're confused about our relationship. Do ya want me to explain it?" Roman nodded quickly. Patton smiled lightly and continued. "So basically, Logan, Virgil, and I are all in a closed polyamorous relationship. So all three of us are dating each other. Does that make sense?" Roman nodded, the confusion leaving his face. "Do you think it's weird?" Virgil asked quietly, dreading the response he knew was coming. Roman wrote quickly.

Not at all! I think that it's absolutely amazing, having that much love in one relationship. :)

Virgil passed the note around, and all three boys couldn't wipe the smile off their face if they tried.