My first attempt at an AU. I hope it doesn't turn out too terribly.

I sat in the waiting room, my leg shaking as I listened for my name to be called.

I had my hood up, trying to appear as unapproachable as possible to avoid the other people waiting, but of course with my luck that wasn't going to happen.

A guy I'd never seen before sat next to me and I blinked in surprise, caught off guard by his appearance.

He didn't look like the typical person you'd expect to see waiting to be seen by a therapist. He looked as if he had everything going for him.

He was good looking with a fancy looking suit on, complete with hat and a pair of tinted yellow aviator glasses.

All in all he looked like a serious businessman who had his life together.

I couldn't help but compare him to myself. I was slouching in my chair, hood up and wearing ripped skinny jeans. I probably looked like a right mess.

Not that that wasn't an accurate description of me, both mentally and visually, but I did feel a bit self conscious while sitting next to Mr Fancy.

"Virgil?" a voice called and I jumped, my face flushing as I realised I'd sat staring at the guy next to me while I was lost in thought.

I quickly got up and followed my therapist into the usual room where I flopped down onto the chair.

"You seemed a bit distracted just now, would you like to tell me what you were thinking about?" My therapist asked and I shrugged.

"I was just trying to figure out what the guy in the suit is here for. He didn't look like he needed to be here."

"Ah, but you know as well as I do that looks can be deceiving." Patton peered at me over his glasses with a small smile and I rolled my eyes.

Patton was a good guy, he'd been my therapist for a couple years which was definitely an accomplishment.

I had been so adamant about not needing therapy, that I could deal with everything myself, but I ended up having mandatory sessions.

They were mandatory for the first couple of months and I was a nightmare. I would refuse to answer questions or I'd shout at Patton angrily as a way to keep him from knowing how I really felt.

Patton never once shouted back or gave up though. He always reacted with the same smile and soft voice.

After a few more months I started opening up to him and kept coming back, despite the fact the sessions were no longer mandatory.

Over the two years I'd known him Patton had become like my best friend which probably sounds sad but I don't mind.

"How's everything been since our last session?" Patton asked and I grimaced.

"more of the same. I still feel like I have no purpose in life, nothing to really look forward to or live for."

Patton looked at me for a few seconds, his tongue sticking out slightly like it always did when he was thinking.

"Did you try calling..." Patton started to say but cut himself off at the look on my face.

"what do you think?" I muttered and crossed my arms.

Patton sighed. "I'm sorry Virgil but I really think it might do you good. Give you closure."

I fidgeted slightly but was saved from answering by a knock at the door.

"Come in!" Patton called and the door opened to reveal one of the other therapists.

His eyes scanned the room, lingering on me for a second before focusing on Patton.

I shuddered slightly at the way his eyes felt like they could see through me but the guy didn't seem to have that effect on Patton.

I watched as Pattons cheeks flushed slightly and as he spoke he was fiddling with his pen in a nervous manner. I looked between him and the other therapist and suddenly realised something.

Patton had a crush.

I bit my lip to hold back a small laugh and waited until the other therapist had left to send Patton a knowing grin.

"he seemed.... Nice." I said, watching Pattons face redden as he realised I knew.

"he is." Patton said and quickly changed the subject. "is there anything you've ever wanted to do? A place you've wanted to go?"

We were back onto the subject of my feelings of being pointless.

I sighed and shrugged, I'd never really been much of a dreamer so I'd never really thought about visiting other countries or anything.

"maybe you should start thinking about somewhere you'd like to go and then work towards that?" Patton said and I shrugged again.

"I don't think I'd ever be able to save up enough money to visit anywhere."

"well not with that attitude." Patton said brightly and I shook my head. He was annoyingly cheery sometimes but it helped.

"I guess I could probably take on a few extra shifts or something." I said reluctantly. "although not too many. I wouldn't want any to conflict with my volunteer work."

Patton nodded encouragingly and I suddenly remembered something.

"Oh, you know last month when that dog went missing? She turned up yesterday!"

Patton beamed at that. "That's amazing. I saw the posters and she's a truly beautiful dog." I nodded in agreement.

"yeah, I doubt it'll be long before she finds a nice home. She's good with kids so I'm certain a family will snatch her up as soon as they get the chance." as I spoke I began to get more comfortable and animated, something that only happened when I started talking about something I was passionate about.

I rambled on about the dog and why I thought she'd get a home almost immediately and Patton just sat listening with a genuine smile on his face as I started talking about all the other animals I encountered at the rescue centre.

After a good ten minutes of me rambling I fell silent and Patton took it as his opportunity to ask a question.

"What have you been up to other than working and volunteering? Did you hang out with anyone? I know last time you were considering asking someone to see a movie with you..."

He trailed off as I let out a heavy sigh.

"I ended up not doing anything. I just... I didn't feel up to leaving the apartment and when I did I spent most of my time at the rescue centre."

"When was the last time you spent time with another person?" Patton asked and I rolled my eyes at his concern.

"I'm fine by myself, I like being on my own."

Patton leant forward and looked me right in the eyes, making me look down at the floor uncomfortably.

"Virgil, listen to me, you may like being on your own but there's a difference between being on your own and being lonely. Humans are social creatures and whether you like it or not you still have that need to interact with someone. Cutting yourself off from the world is doing nothing to help you, what you need is to spend more time around other people."

I immediately opened my mouth to protest but Patton cut me off. "Please Virgil, just give it a go and if it doesn't help then you can forget I said anything."

I sighed and reluctantly muttered "Fine. I'll give it a go." I didn't think it would work anyway so I didn't really have much to lose by agreeing to give it a go.

"Would you also maybe consider calling..."

"No!" I growled, raising my voice at Patton for the first time in months. "just.... Just drop it OK? I'm not calling him."

Patton held his hands up in a sign of surrender and I put my head in my hands, feeling bad for shouting. "I'm sorry I shouted, but there's no way I'm calling him ever again. Not after what happened."

"it's alright Virgil, I should apologise too, I shouldn't be pressuring you to call him." Pattons tone was apologetic and I waved him off.

"it's fine, I known you're just trying to help."

There was a few moments of silence where we both tried to think of something else to say but eventually Pattons alarm went off to signal the end of the session.

I sighed and said goodbye, telling Patton I'd see him next session and not really paying attention as I walked out of the door.

That's when I collided with someone and went crashing to the floor.

"Sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going." I said quickly, glancing up and feeling my eyes widen as I realised I was looking at the guy from the waiting room.

"It's fine, these things happen." he said and held out a hand to help me up, completely oblivious to how I'd shivered at his deep voice.

I took his hand and when I was stood up he tilted his head slightly as if studying me.

It took a few seconds before either of us noticed we were still holding hands and I laughed nervously, stuffing my hand in my pocket while he let his fall to his side.

"I... Uh... Should be going" I said and walked past him, trying to remain calm despite the way my heart was thumping crazily in my chest.

I managed to walk out of the clinic without losing my composure and I let out a huge sigh of relief and quickly put earphones in, letting my music calm my still racing heart.

That night as I lay in bed, struggling to sleep same as always, my thoughts drifted back to the well dressed stranger and in spite of myself I found myself wanting to know more about him.