Virgil took a small, thin notebook that was squished between the bulky books on his bookshelf. The notebook was empty besides a few entries of notes he'd written sometime after his hour. From the middle of the notebook, he took out a small piece of paper. He had wanted to destroy the little note, but he could never bring himself to do it.

Roman Cascales.
I never wanted this, still don't want this. Don't look for me.

He couldn't understand why Roman wouldn't want a soulmate. Of course, he knew why Roman didn't want him as a soulmate, but would it be different if it weren't Virgil? With the note in his hand, he walked to the bathroom and stared at the reflection in the mirror. The sharp lines of his features were harsh, making him look almost lifeless. Paired with his pale complexion and his fading violet hair, he looked like a disaster. No wonder no one wanted him. He looked down at the note again and read the last line.

If you ever see me, walk the other way.

When he first saw Roman back at the supermarket anger had stirred in him. He stayed rooted where he stood. He knew he should have walked away to spare himself the pain, but he could only stay there until Remy called him. He had wanted to walk away, following what the note asked him to do, but something in him told him not to. Maybe because he was too stubborn to back down, or perhaps he didn't want to believe his own soulmate had pushed him away. He had placed so much hope, wishing that he might belong with someone—but even that wasn't real.

He'll always be alone, and nothing could ever change that.

"Ey, gurl. Sum's up?" Remy walked through the open bedroom door, standing next to his cousin's hunched figure by the desk. Virgil quickly hid the note in his fist, not caring that he was crumpling the paper.

"How's Damien?" Virgil stealthily placed the crumpled note back into the pages of the thin notebook, away from Remy's view. "You were out with him, right?"

"He's fine," Remy said with a flamboyant wave of the hand. "He's still kinda down, though. But like, no one could blame him, so yeah."

Virgil noticed how Remy's posture deflated slightly. His shoulders that were always pulled back with confidence now slumped forward. And his mussed auburn hair was a mess. "What's wrong with you, Rem? It's like the storm in your sass moved to your face."

"Why does everyone ask that? And excuse you, honey. My face is perfectly fine! You, little bitch, should look in a mirror."

Virgil rolled his eyes playfully with a smirk. He loved getting Remy riled up, however small it might be. He remembered when he first met his cousin nine years ago back in Russia. It was the second time he saw his uncle. His uncle was a big burly man with a full beard and strong, straight posture—unlike his own father who was lean with thin features, though both men shared their massive height. When they arrived in Moscow, Virgil had hid behind his father while his cousin was jumping excitedly, screaming in Russian which Virgil did not understand. Their fathers had to be a bridge of communication between the two children—though Virgil's father spoke better English.

Virgil looked over to his cousin who was looking down on his nails. Sometimes, Remy would vent about Damien—how he was a little dejected and distracted when Damien was down. Other times, Remy would speak about how he was clueless as to how he could comfort Damien. It all brought a sense of emptiness in him, knowing he didn't have someone who would care about him the way Remy does Damien. Virgil would never admit how many times he lay awake at night to simply imagine what it would be like to have someone by his side.

"When are you going to the Harveys again?" Virgil asked, eyes darting around awkwardly. He pursed his lips into a thin line.

" Like, this evening, I guess?" Remy said, still looking down at his nails. "Why?"

"Can I come with you? I mean, I haven't seen them in almost a month, so I thought why not..."

"Sure, honey. Imma drag Logan with me, too."

----------

"Don't worry, Remy. You don't have to force me this time," Logan said, looking down on his watch. After hanging up the call, he smiled to himself. Remy was growing on him. Thinking back, Logan found Remy's spirit and vibrancy a little contagious—though not to the level of Patton's sunshine charm.

He walked back to the bedroom, getting his wallet and keys before heading out of the apartment. He walked with a little bounce in his step—something that he almost never did in the past. He had felt a deep warmth in his chest when he left Patton that evening after their date. Thinking back, they never actually acknowledged that it was a date—they just had fun together. They certainly learned a lot about each other.

If he was going to admit—he wasn't—Logan didn't actually want to leave that evening. He wanted to stay with Patton and wrap his soulmate in a protective embrace, shielding him from everything in the world. He wanted to be by Patton's side, despite the uncomfortable feeling he would get when he spends time with Patton. There were times when he sat on his desk and read Patton's hour note. He would smile to himself re-reading Patton's round and bubbly handwriting that gave him so much conflicting emotions.

His phone rang again, buzzing inside his pocket. It was Remy, again.

"Hello. Yes, I am already nearby. Do have some patience, Remy."

"Patience? Darling, I've been waiting for seven minutes. Seven minutes, girl! That's, like, real outrageous. Be quick or I'll drag you by your ankle on the damn concrete!"

"Alright, alright," Logan said with an amused huff. "Also, if you want to drag me on the concrete, it will only be fair if you allow me to punch you in the gut."

"Oh, guurrrrl! Since when do you have a clever mouth? I thought ya can only be so robotic all the time."

"Um, sarcasm comes from the brain, Remy. Something that you might lack."

"Uh... excuse you, ma'am, I skipped a grade in high school. That's, like, a gigantic sign that I ain't stupid. Look, just get yo' ass over here!"

Remy hung up the phone call, rolling his eyes. That Logan was really something. Logan, he thought, was a surprisingly interesting fellow. When Remy first saw him, he thought the geek was just another analytical person who knows everything about everything—a polymath of some kind. While he wasn't wrong, he was definitely mistaken in thinking that Logan was boring. Having a verbal spar with the astronomer was a stimulating activity, however short their debate might be.

He walked to the apartment entrance with Virgil following him silently and went to the elevator. They went up to the floor where the Harveys resided with slow steps. Remy didn't know what to expect when they meet the twins. Damien had looked rather somber and troubled when they parted ways. It was adorable when he had asked for the hug, but it was apparent that it wasn't enough for Damien. Remy sighed, pushing his worries to the back of his mind and knocked on the door.

They heard a series of footsteps before the door opened to a disheveled-looking Patton with his glasses askew.

"Oh, geez, didn't expect you to come—and Virgil's here, too. Hey, kiddo!" He waved at Virgil who stood hidden behind Remy.

"You, uh, you good, Pat?" Virgil asked awkwardly, pulling at the cuffs of his heavy hoodie.

"Ah, well, I've been better." Patton opened the door wider to let the two guests come inside. "Damien's in his room. He—I don't know what happened to him. He wouldn't talk too much after he went out a few days ago..."

"He went with me, honey. It's okay, I wanna talk to you first."

"Where's his room?" Virgil asked, still pulling at his sweater paws.

"Down the hallway," Patton answered, pointing at the short hallway.

"Door in the corner," Remy added.

----------

Virgil disappeared into the hallway and carefully knocked on the door at the corner. The door opened a fraction, but not more. Seeing it as a welcoming gesture, he pushed the door open and slipped inside. Damien was sitting on the bed with a mess of blanket wrapping around his waist. He looked up and his expression shifted to surprise before going to its neutral state.

"I thought you were Remy."

"Oh," Virgil halted his steps. "Sorry, I—do you want me to get him?"

"No—wait, I don't mean to—" Damien sighed, unable to find his words. "Just come in."

Virgil moved farther into the room and stood by the bed, wasn't daring to even touch the bed. He looked up to Damien again who was looking down at his own hands.

"How are you?" Virgil let his question hung in the air.

"I'm okay... I guess." Damien didn't look up, choosing to pay attention to the sliver of skin hanging on his thumb.

"You guess?" Virgil gave a side smile. "Remy's been ranting about you. He's—I think he's a little worried."

"Worried?" Damien finally looked up with a slight crease of his brow. "About what?"

Virgil walked around the bed and sat on the floor. "About you. He's kinda... down, I guess, because he said you were so sad." Virgil shifted as Damien got up from his bed and sat on the floor in front of him. "He said he didn't know what to—what to do to make you happy..."

Damien stayed quiet, contemplating what Virgil had said. 'Why would Remy... why would he be... sad?' He couldn't understand why Remy would ever think of him that way—that Remy cared enough about him to ever worry. There were things about "having friends" that Damien wasn't familiar with. He glanced at the door, wondering what Remy was doing outside. He looked back at Virgil who was looking at him with rapid attention. Was Remy worried about his brother, too? Was it weird that he felt somewhat queasy?

"Did he—did he say anything else?" he clumsily mumbled his question.

"Um, he said he wanted to—you know what, just talk to him." Virgil gave a sly smile—as if he knew something that Damien didn't. "How are you with him anyway? I mean, you guys are like... soulmates... right?"

"Uuuuhh..." Damien felt warmth rose to his face. "Yeah? But, I mean, I don't know... I guess we're pretty okay? I don't want anything yet right now."

Virgil smirked at the red tint on Damien's face. A question was niggling in his thought, begging to come out. Should he ask? Would it be weird or embarrassing? He watched Damien fidgeted with his fingers, occasionally glancing at the door. Virgil shook his head in amusement.

"What is it even like to have a soulmate?"

"Isn't Roman your soulmate?"

"Uh, yeah, but he hates me so I don't think it counts. It doesn't feel like I have a soulmate at all."

"I, um, well I guess you guys should talk. I'm not good at this, but I know you should communicate somehow." Damien crossed his hands on his lap in thought. "Find your similarities instead of focusing on your differences."

"How did you and Remy find that? Heck, lemme just ask you: do you like Remy?"

"I—" Damien hesitated. Did he like Remy? Sure he did. Remy was a great friend. But from the look Virgil was giving him, he might be referring to something else. "I guess I do... I just don't know how I like him, y'know."

"You wanna talk to him or something?" Virgil asked, tapping on the floor with his fingers. "You did say communication was important, so..." He gave an innocent side smile, but his eyes glinted with mischief.

"Ugh, whatever." Damien groaned with a smile, ignoring the faint flutter in his stomach. What did he think about Remy?

----------

After Virgil went into Damien's room, Remy looked over at Patton who was cleaning the table half-heartedly. He threw his messenger bag onto the sofa and joined the older man on the table. He plucked the cloth from Patton's hand without a word and wiped the table clean quickly.

"Remy, you shouldn't—"

"Nu'uh, girl. Ya clearly didn't wanna do it," Remy said, tossing the now-dirty cloth aside. He pulled a chair and sat down, gesturing at the chair for Patton to sit as well. "How you been?"

"I'm honestly feeling okay. I had another date with Logan the other day."

"Another? How didn't I know there was another one?"

"Yeah, it was before this whole mess." Patton gestured vaguely at his surroundings.

"Hm, honey, " Remy sighed, "I'm sorry."

"It was great. We learned a lot about each other," Patton said, looking out the window with thought. "I like Logan. He always knows so much about so many things, it's fun to talk to him. It's like he has a library hard-drive in his head."

Just then, there was a knock at the door. Remy let Patton get the door, knowing Logan was likely standing outside with his ever-so-straight posture. 'Hah! The man himself ain't even straight.' He smirked at his own thought, ignoring the two people by the door. He looked out the window, seeing a few birds fly by—he couldn't hear their chirps over the closed windows. There was a glass door near the window, presumably led outside to the balcony. However, he was too lazy to check what's outside. He turned his back to see Patton came back in with Logan trailing behind him.

"Finally show up, mister Spaceman."

"Hm, Remy, I think you're worse than Roman," Logan said with a raised brow, folding his arms behind his back.

"That's, like... the best thing you've said so far. Thank you, professor!" Remy said sarcastically. "Now, how 'bout that deal about dragging your face on concrete."

"If you're strong enough to actually drag me, you're welcome to do it."

"Guys," Patton interrupted, turning his hands up in a halting gesture with a smile of mirth. "What's goin' on?"

"Logan wanted to punch me!" Remy pointed an accusing finger, eyes flashing with joy behind his sunglasses.

"To be fair," Logan lifted a hand to his chest, "he wanted to drag me on concrete."

Patton giggled with glee. The sound of his joy rang in the room, making the other two laughed along—well, Remy did while Logan let out a chuckle. He bumped his shoulder on Logan's arm and looked up at the taller man with a soft gaze. He loved Logan's smile. He thought it suited him better than the all-serious look he always wore. Logan returned Patton's gaze with a small smile and raising his brows in a small gesture of delight.

Unbeknownst to the two, Remy was watching their small interaction from behind his sunglasses. 'Ey, ochen' milo. This two need to just hook up or something.' He crossed his arms with a smirk, seeing how long those two would stare at each other before they remembered he was there. It had taken another minute before Remy finally cleared his throat. The pair jumped away from each other and looked at Remy awkwardly, a warm pink coloring their cheeks.

"Geez," Remy huffed, "you two just get together already."

Patton giggled while Logan rolled his eyes. Logan dragged a chair and sat down, Patton following a second later. Remy smirked again, satisfied with his handy work of making the two flustered. He rubbed his hands together and leaned back on his chair. There were a few questions he had for Logan and Patton, but those will have to wait.

"Anyways, guys, the hell are we even doing here?" Remy asked again sarcastically. "It's like we forgot the purpose of this freakin' visit."

"Well, I'm here for Patton. So, I didn't forget why I was here."

"Hm, of course, you're here for Patton, eh?" Remy gave yet another smirk.

"Excuse me! Let's stop this right here," Patton said with a pop of confidence in his words. "How 'bout you and my brother, huh?" he said, sounding victorious.

"Uh..." Remy trailed off, feeling uneasy. The nightmares had become more frequent, coming to him every single night. It was to the point where he was too afraid to even sleep. "I dunno. I don't think I want anything yet..."

Patton propped his head on one of his hands with elbow resting on the table. Did he want something with Logan? Patton was usually so sure of his emotions. But with Logan, he had to step back and see where the pieces are—he had to slow down and think. What exactly he wanted with Logan he wasn't sure. It was a nice thought to have something domestic with Logan, but he was thinking ahead of himself. What did he feel when he thought of Logan? Logan always made him feel at peace—as if every problem would find its own solutions. He felt safe and secure in Logan's arm, like he could stay there and not let go.

A click was heard from the hallway. Virgil came walking out and sat down with the others. "You, uh, you might wanna check on that one." Virgil gave his cousin a look, indicating he should go.

Remy, looking confused, got up from his seat and walked towards Damien's bedroom. Virgil watched Remy's steps until he retreated down the hallway. He turned back to the two people sitting in front of him. "So, I haven't seen you guys in ages. How are you, Pat?" He was feeling more confident after his short conversation with Damien.

"I'm great, kiddo." Patton got up and walked to the kitchen. "Everyone's been asking me that question lately." He took out a few bags of chips from the cabinet and three bars of chocolate from the fridge, bringing them to the table. "I... I miss him—my dad. I just, y'know... I don't know. It feels wrong not to have him anymore. And mom hasn't even come around. Maybe I should make a visit to her place."

Logan placed a hand on Patton's hand, squeezing it lightly in reassurance. He gave Patton a tender gaze which told him that it was alright. He felt words always failed him in emotional instances, so he opted to stay quiet. Logan didn't actually understand what Patton needed, but he was willing to try to help however small it might be.

**********

Hey there! I was cooped up in the hospital last week, so this update came a little late. Hope you didn't mind. I honestly feel a little iffy on this one, so please tell me your opinions (both good and bad). I really need your feedback so I can improve myself. Anyways, hope you had a good read and see you in the next one!
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Russian stuff (tell me if I made any mistakes!):

очень мило.
ochen' milo.
[very cute.]