12:27pm

To everyone curious the name change went well! All teachers/tutors/professors/staff (whatever you call 'em) were so sweet about it!

Trigger warning: Remus being Remus, memories/mentions of past bullying, present bullying, hospital, mentions of blood, physical abuse

Au
—

"I'm doing it!"

"You are not-"

"Remus dared me to!"

"Remus ended up in hospital a month ago because he stole a pram and rode it down a fucking hill into oncoming traffic!"

"But he survived-"

"Holy shit- why are we even dating"

As laughter rose between the four boys the door to the otherwise empty theatre opened and a tuff of curly blond hair poked it's way in, gentle blue eyes gazing up at the stage curiously. With a printed schedule in his left and a horribly conducted map in his right, he was a very confused boy indeed. These were the first people he had come across, even if he was meant to be in science, he somehow ended up in the drama department. He hoped these boys would help him.

Walking through the hallway between the rows of red-plush chairs the boys didn't notice him due to the light blocking their vision of the world beyond stage.

"Roman, don't test me, if you do that fucking handstand-!" Virgil tried but once Remus gave his brother a dare nothing could stop Roman from following through, so like the dare entailed, he thrusted forward through the air, hands barely landing on the edge of the stage. His legs swung up and he let out a girl-ish scream, other than that he was fine. He had attended gym-club for many years before eventually quitting, so he still had some skills left over. He could even do the splits.

"Aha!" He declared, landing back with an excited bounce, bowing before the audience of Remus, Deceit and Virgil, the former two grinning, the latter glaring. "Told you everything would be fine" Roman cooed, walking over to his boyfriend who shoved him away at first but subdued and allowed Roman to gently kiss his forehead in that way he loved.

"Um-excuse me?"

The four boys turned to the blondie who stood next to the stairs leading up to the stage, gripping onto the papers given to him by reception tightly. "I'm new...and I was wondering if you knew where the science block was?" He was a little nervous but on his first day, talking to people he didn't know, most people would be. Plus he didn't have such great memories from his old school. But he didn't want to think about that.

"No" Deceit responded instantly and blondie's frown deepened. "Ah, um-that's okay, sorry-"

"Wait, wait" Virgil cut him off, jumping down from where he sat on a table, sending a glare to Deceit who smirked and hooked his ankles together. Today they wore a loose fitted green dress cutting off at his knees, with sleeves that reached his wrists. Instead of their usual boater had they wore a black bowler hat, simply because it went with the dark green better. They had added more green dresses and outfits to his wardrobe after he and Remus became boyfriends, simply because green was Remus' favourite colour, and absolutely lit up whenever he saw Deceit wearing it.

"I'll take you, anything to get away from these dicks" he shot with no real malice, he was still calming down his anxiety after Roman's stunt however and knew a relaxing walk through school would help that. "No, you don't have to-" the blond-boy tried but Virgil insisted, reassuring him it was no big deal, and Deceit didn't mean what he had said earlier.

Leaving the theatre Virgil glanced at the new boy. "I'm Virgil, friends call me Virge" he introduced, usually he found it easier to talk to people who had an obvious sense of discomfort that needed to be soothed out. He had anxiety himself, but if with someone who had it worse or the same as himself he'd stand up and push aside his own worries for them. It became instinct, luckily his close friends and boyfriend didn't need that - all three were pretty confident, especially Remus.

"I'm Patton, thank you for this" he managed a smile, feeling better with every passing second, especially when the corner of Virgil's lips quirked up. "Really, it's no trouble" he dismissed and Patton smiled wider, standing that little taller. His first experience here was already ten times better than his old school, he hoped it would continue but his inner flame of hope was scarily close to diminishing completely. Once the size of a bonfire, now a candle with a thin layer of wax - and it was melting quick.

"And yeah, I'm not surprised you need help-"

Cus' you're a fucking idiot-

"That map is fucking trash" Virgil finished and Patton chuckled awkwardly shuddering at the whisper of a memory that faded through his mind, "I don't think I'm even holding it up right..." he admitted sheepishly, quickly folding it in a way that it wasn't supposed to go and shoving it into his bag. "But I'm not surprised, silly ol' me can't even..." Patton drifted, taking one glance at Virgil he noticed his demeanour changed, his smile was gone and his eyebrows drawn together in worry.

"Nothing" Patton chuckled with a slight wave of his hand. "Um-yeah.." Virgil drifted, he didn't want to push the boy, they barely knew each other, but Virgil knew it wasn't just 'nothing'.

"Anyway, here's your class" Virgil stopped a few minutes later outside of a lab, he had glanced at Patton's schedule and knew exactly which room he had to be in. Patton glanced in through the round window, visibly wincing when he saw everyone sat down and doing work.

Virgil noticed and with a deep breath he opened the door, desperately keeping his eyes glued to the teacher and ignoring the looks from students who turned their attention to the sudden noise.

"Virgil?" The teacher asked in confusion, "uh-yeah, hey, this is Patton. He was lost" Virgil opened the door wider to reveal a timid boy, eyes covered by his blond locks that fell when he tilted his head down. All that could be seen was the dark coloured freckles sprinkled from both cheeks, meeting at the bridge of his nose. "Ah! Patton, I was about to send someone to look" the teacher smiled warmly, taking a step out the class and closing the door.

"Thank you, Virgil. Now, don't you have class?"

"Nah, I miss first period cus' I help out in theatre" he explained, then with a two finger salute in Patton's direction he turned around and walked down the hallway, disappearing out of sight by the corner.

"I guess the map wasn't at all helpful?" He smiled and Patton relaxed, nodding in agreement. "We complain and complain yet nothing is done" the teacher sighed then gestured to the class, "you've only missed ten minutes, sit wherever you want and don't hesitate to ask me something" Patton nodded with a smile, feeling immeasurably better than he did this morning. Once filled with worries and nerves, now he was much more relaxed, thankful people here were much nicer than his old school.

Following after the teacher, Patton managed to keep his smile, especially when at this point only a few people paid him attention. Everyone else focused on their friends or work. He noticed the few spare seats at the back, unfortunately there wasn't a table on its own so he hurried along the gap between benches and took the one right at the end, beside a boy who was deeply invested by his work, black rimmed glasses perched on the end of his sharp nose, a dark blue tie hanging from his neck and down his chest.

Patton admired him for a few seconds, seemingly frozen in shock until he blushed deeply and quickly looked away. He didn't realise he had sat himself next to the hottest boy he had ever seen but that's fine, this is fine, this was completely fine. Patton wasn't internally freaking out. Or anything. But holy shit was he gay in that moment-

The boy had very dark brown hair, bordering the edge of black, styled neatly over his forehead. Patton kept looking up at it, it seemed so soft! And smooth! Is it weird he wanted to touch it? He wouldn't, obviously not, but that's where his thoughts went and if he could scold them he would! His jaw was angled perfectly, seemingly sharp enough to cut steel, and his cheek bones- oh! So prominent. So...beautiful.

Patton ducked his head, feeling his whole face heat up in embarrassment. He was one hundred percent sure the boy noticed his staring but that could also be his anxiety - he seemed very interested in his work and hadn't given him a weird look. Or made any move to show he noticed.

Pulling out his pencil case he waited patiently for the teacher to bring out a workbook from the closet and hand it to him, the teacher then glanced at the student next to him. "Has he spoken to you yet?" He asked Patton, nodding his head at the boy who hadn't removed his eyes from his book. Patton shook his head, worried; should he have? Should he have said something to him?

"I'm not surprised, not many things can take this boy from his work" the teacher smirked in amusement at the boy, "Logan? Logan" he tapped Logan's workbook, finally managing to make the boy look up, face expressionless. Now Patton had a better sight and was mesmerised by his incredibly unnatural eyes. Patton had never seen anything like it before. His left was seemingly normal from the side, but now Patton could see his pupil was seemingly 'leaking' into his forest green iris, like the yolk of an egg after being torn. His right was multicoloured, half green like the left, but with a brown pigment prominent on the side.

"This is our new student, Patton Ambrose, I'm sure you two will make great friends" the teacher introduced, sent Patton one more smile, turned and left back to the front of the class, ready to help any student in need. Logan looked over at Patton and the shorter boy quickly glanced away, busying himself with writing his name on the front of the book.

Patton wasn't surprised Logan didn't say anything, after opening his book and copying down the title, he noticed Logan had returned back to his work. Although a little disappointed he wouldn't push it, maybe Logan just didn't want to talk that day.

Later on in the morning Patton was relieved when break rolled around. Not that he didn't enjoy his classes so far, but he was getting quite hungry and needed a little pause from work. Packing away his belongings he waved politely at the teacher and hurried out the class, ready to find a secluded area to sit and eat. He did ponder the idea of finding Virgil and sitting with him, but remembered he probably would much rather spend time with his friends without a newbie there disrupting the normalcy.

After a kind student gave him directions, he found himself outside the library five minutes later. (It took him awhile...). Opening the doors he smiled at the librarian who was focused on the book laid on the desk. Not wanting to disturb them, Patton continued down the large room, glancing up at the tall and intimidating bookshelves, knowing he would not be able to reach the few shelves at the top without help. That didn't matter, he was sure he wouldn't want to get a book from there anyway.

Sitting beside a table pressed to the window, he dropped his bag to his feet and pulled out his lunch box, ready to pop in his earphones and watch Spongebob when a voice halted his movements. Now, he wasn't one to eavesdrop, and found the notion rather rude, but whoever spoke sounded aggravated, and he wondered if sitting so close was a good idea. From past experiences, it really, really isn't.

An intense fear-spike shot through him, urging him to pack away his things and get the heck out of dodge, which he did without a second thought. Swinging his back over his shoulder, he got ready to dart away but again, something stopped him, a second voice, presumably belonging to the person the first voice was speaking to.

"And this is the last time I will do your homework"

The first voice let out a low rumble of a laugh, one that even shook Patton who ducked behind a nearby bookshelf. "Are you sure about that? Maybe this time around I can give you two black eyes, or worse" he chuckled again, sinisterly, Patton shuffled even further back. "I'm not afraid to blind you, L"

The second voice didn't speak up again, Patton could only wonder what was happening until he heard the sound of a body colliding and books collapsing to the ground. He gasped and slapped a hand over his mouth, cowering as he listened to the pure evil laugh of the first voice. Then a tall boy emerged, so tall Patton wondered how it was possible, appeared around the shelf Patton was hiding behind. Luckily he avoided him and disappeared behind between a corridor of books.

Bringing himself together, he peered through the entrance to a small seating area. In it a round table with a few chairs around it, surrounded by tall shelves of books, a window to the right overlooking the play field, but Patton didn't pay attention to any of it, his eyes solely confused on Logan who leaned against the shelf on his hands and knees, bringing in staggering breaths, books scattered around him.

"Lo? Are you okay?" The sudden boy beside him made him flinch, but other than that Logan didn't respond, instead hauled himself up and fixed the askew glasses on his face. "Logan?" Patton tried again, although a little more timidly. The boy in question huffed and turned to face Patton coldly. His eyes were like ice and Patton shrunk back instinctively.

"What do you want?" He snapped irritably, Patton shrugged meekly, he didn't want to say anything more in fear he'd annoy Logan even further. Instead he bent down and collected the books that had fallen, tucking them back onto the shelf while Logan sat down at the table and held his face in his hands.

Once finished, Patton looked over at him and chewed his lip, feeling a sense of empathy build up within him. Unable to stop, he pulled out a piece of paper from his bag, scribbled a short note; 'I hope you're okay, you can talk to me if you want' and left it before Logan on the table, scurrying away before he'd end up on the wrong side of someone's temper. It was his nature to care for people, even if that person wasn't entirely nice to him. However he sympathised with Logan, after that sort of run in with a bully Patton wouldn't be in the best of moods either.

By the time he found somewhere else to sit the bell rang for his next class. Until lunch he was uncomfortably hungry, between classes he'd sneak a few snacks but that didn't appease his stomach for long. However he didn't regret what happened during break, he hoped the note brought some sort of comfort to Logan, either way, he just wanted Logan to be okay, even if he had just met the boy that day.

Fortunately Patton had another science class the next day. His first day of school passed without much more drama luckily, he got home with a half smile on his face but it didn't last for long simply because he didn't have anyone to show it to. He didn't move here because his parents were worried about what was happening to him in his old school, rather for their business, which boomed as soon as they moved to this state.

The common neglect came from such workaholic parents, Patton tried not to let it get to him but he wished he had someone to talk to, someone that would comfort him, love him without second thought. It wasn't too much to ask, was it? Caring parents? Maybe he'd get a friend in this new school, maybe then the piercing ache of loneliness would subdue and stop his tears soaking his pillow every night.

Waking up bright an early, Patton gulped a painkiller and a glass of water to ease the throb of a headache after crying the evening before and after a moments reprise got up and ready for the new day. He knew to get a friend he'd have to put himself out there, but after so many rejections in his old school he didn't know how well that would go. He certainly wouldn't be getting close with Logan any time soon, maybe Virgil was his best bet?

Putting on a strong face in the hallway mirror, he pulled his lips into a smile, but often forgot eyes were a window to the truth.

Locking the door to his house which he hadn't even explored completely, he didn't think he ever would. The room he cared most about was his own, it came with a bathroom and he only had to enter the kitchen twice a day. What was the point in going anywhere else? Not like he could have movie nights with his parents...

The walk to school was short, thankfully, and he had a time of rest before first period so followed the route he did yesterday to the theatre, hoping to find Virgil or one of his friends, they seemed nice even if one was sorta rude to him. Opening the doors to the theatre, a frown etched onto his face when he saw the stage to be empty, but stood up taller when he heard the sound of distant voices.

Hoping they belonged to the boys he was searching for, he climbed up onto stage and grabbed the red curtain, ready to pull it back and slip on through but he hesitated; was he even allowed back here? Backstage usually isn't meant for everyone...but there wasn't a show going on, plus the voices were joking around, so he knew they weren't doing anything serious. Taking a breath he grabbed one strap of his bag tight and pushed past the heavy curtain, trailing through the clutter of props and stage-related machines until he found a small staircase. The voices were definitely down there.

He did have fluttery feelings of panic and regret, wondering if they'd get mad he was down here, but at the same time he didn't want to turn away now. He wouldn't know where to go, and after accidentally ripping the map that wasn't much help than it was before.

Grabbing the banister, he slowly slid down the stairs, pressed to the cold stone wall, his movements were very timid, by the time he finally reached the ground floor an hour might as well have passed. Blue eyes instantly landed on the four boys who were all smiling, the one who was a little rude yesterday wore a mustered yellow dress with dark green vines covering it, Patton supposed their favoured type of clothing was dresses. He sat beside a boy dressed rather clumsily, giving off a 'couldn't care less' vibe, his hair mused up and grin a little crazy.

They were holding hands and Patton began to smile, if they were dating he found it to be adorable. The two who were sitting on a table were gazing at two boys on the ground, one dressed in dark clothing, face covered with piercings while the boy on top of him dressed formally yet somehow extraordinarily extra. Patton guessed they were trying 'couple yoga poses' as they were both yelling profanities and orders while trying to balance each other, Patton couldn't help let out a giggle.

Deceit caught it and looked up, his smile turning into a grin as he nudged Remus and gestured lightly in his direction. "We're not being creepily watched right now" he mused and Patton froze, face flushing as he caught Deceit's gaze. Roman and Virgil looked over, Roman drawing his eyebrows together in confusion while Virgil smiled and shoved Roman away, earning a cry of alarm then a whine of indignation.

"Hey Pat, need help with directions again?" Virgil dusted himself off while asking, Patton smiled again and tucked some hair behind his ear shyly. "Uh-yeah! Sorta...but I didn't come down here for that, I thought I could...hang out with you guys?" He offered, before he knew it the boy with permanent 'bed head' swung his arm around Virgil and leaned on him heavily, the pierced boy rolled his eyes but let it happen.

"A new victim!?" He giggled, Patton shrugged lightly. "I...don't know what you mean"

"Oh don't worry!" The extra-dressed boy came up beside them. "No one does! But that does mean he's excited!" He reassured and Patton smiled again, looking at the boy in a dress. "If you can handle Remus, then you can join us" he spoke smoothly but a little sinisterly too. Patton took a slight step back, he had heard that tone before, dealt with similar people...he didn't want to be hurt again.

Then Remus swung forward, Patton's reaction silenced them all.

The poor blondie couldn't help but let out a shrill, falling to the ground and covering himself out of instinct, he couldn't stop himself if he tried.

Roman was quick to pull Remus back, sending him a look that silently told him to 'settle down'. Even Deceit seemed shocked at his reaction, watching as Virgil knelt by his side and rested a hand on his shoulder gently. Patton was quick to remember this wasn't his old school, he wasn't surrounded by the people who would hurt him, he was safe. He unwrapped himself but was unable to smile, face red with humiliation.

"I'll go" he whispered, swift to pick himself up and hurry away but Virgil stopped him before the stairs. "No, wait, Remus doesn't want to hurt you. He won't hurt anyone unless they deserve it...he didn't mean to scare you like that, he's just...that's just his nature" his voice was soft, not to prevent his friends from hearing, rather because he knew loud voices could be a trigger to people who have been physically abused, and it seemed Patton had been in the past. He didn't want to assume but the reaction spoke for itself.

Patton shifted his bag nervously, eyes gazing at the ground intently. "That's Roman, Remus' twin brother" Virgil pointed to the boy who was quietly explaining what just happened to his twin, Remus' faced dawned in realisation but he didn't know how to apologise. "And that's Deceit, we usually call him De, he doesn't mind which" Virgil then pointed to the boy who sat on the table, seemingly deep in thought.

Patton was still anxious, he didn't know whether to leave or stay. "Are you sure you want me here?" He asked, needing the reassurance in his state. Virgil smiled, "I promise, besides having someone new will be nice" Patton smiled slightly at that, he did feel better but the smile was sort of forced.

Virgil led Patton further into the room that seemed to be the prop room, sitting him on the desk near De who shuffled to face him while Remus, Roman and Virgil spoke, changing the subject to something less awkward. Patton met his eyes politely, still smiling. Deceit shook his head.

"You don't have to pretend around me" he murmured quietly, Patton's expression dropped to shock, no one had ever seen through his smile before...

"If you want to join our cliche, you'll have to do one thing..." Deceit pulled his satchel onto his lap, Patton watched nervously, he hoped it wouldn't be a ritual of some kind, or anything strange. He knew that was a little far-fetched but at the same time half of Deceit's face was scarred, one eye faintly yellow, let's just say Patton wouldn't be surprised. Not to say the scarring looked ugly, Patton actually thought of it as cool, much like Logan's unnatural eyes.

"I hope that reaction wasn't the cause of troubles at home..." Deceit prompted while pulling out a piece of paper from a note book. Patton rushed to shake his head, "no, nothing like that! Please don't worry, I just had some trouble with boys in my old school" he explained, Deceit rose an eyebrow, clicking his pen.

"Some trouble?" He repeated, but didn't press, instead he wrote 'triggers' at the top of the paper and handed it to Patton with the pen. "I would like you to write down anything that will trigger horrible effect, we wouldn't want such a reaction like that to happen again, now would we?" Patton shook his head and took the items delicately, his heart blossoming in his chest. He's never been treated with such care before...

Leaning on his leg, he wrote down the list which wasn't too long, mainly consisting of 'loud/angry voices, sudden movements, raising an arm close to him, etc'. Handing it to Deceit the boy took it with a slight nod, reading over the list before neatly tucking it back into his note book.

"Thank you" Patton murmured sincerely, he really did mean it after all, "so much..." he added. Deceit rested a hand on his leg, "we're friends now, aren't we?" Patton smiled again, but this time it reached his eyes, and Deceit smiled back in satisfaction.

The bell was close to ringing so the five boys left and started the walk through the halls, Virgil splitting off to take Patton to class while the rest went to theirs.

"Thank you for stopping me, Virge" Patton expressed once the two were alone, "I don't know what I'd do alone" Virgil rested his hands in his pockets and shrugged lightly, "I couldn't let you go off upset, besides I wanted to find you yesterday but couldn't, I would've offered to hang out" and that made Patton light up. They really did want to be this friends. It wouldn't be his first friends, but his first friends for years certainly.

Stopping outside science Patton was unable to stop himself from giving Virgil a hug, it didn't last long but it was enough to express his gratitude even further. A little frozen, Virgil watched Patton smile cheekily and enter his classroom, leaving Virgil alone in the hall.

He then let out a breathy chuckle, knowing he and Patton would become close friends.

Meanwhile, in such a good mood Patton skipped to the back of the room, taking his seat beside Logan who was indulged in his work once again. Thankfully Patton wasn't late today but somehow Logan was already starting before the teacher had even arrived.

"Morning, Lo!" Patton greeted cheerily without second thought, pulling out his belongings. "Sleep well?" He conversed, glancing at him when he didn't receive a response. "Lo?"

The boy huffed, placing their pen down a little harshly. Patton flinched, he couldn't prevent it. "If you want to talk during class, I advise you sit somewhere else" he responded in the same tone as yesterday. This boy was rather negative, huh? Patton would take up that offer but after what happened yesterday he needed to know he he was okay, and if that meant getting close to him, so be it.

"But I want to talk to you"

Logan bit the inside of his cheek, he didn't know how to feel to that, no one had willingly wanted to speak to him. Mostly because he's not much of a conversation starter. And his eyes...

"What is it you wish to speak about?" He finally agreed with a sigh, giving off clear signs he'd rather do anything but, however Patton would go along with it. "Are you okay? After yesterday I've been worried" he admitted, slowly placing his bag beside his feet.

Logan turned away and stared at his work, but didn't pick up his pen. "I am fine" he responded simply.

"You don't have to tell me, Lo" Patton responded quietly, "but please don't lie"

Logan glanced at him but with the teacher arriving and hushing up the class, he couldn't respond. Not that he'd know what to say. Only teachers have made the effort to talk to him, even then it's only about work.

Halfway through the lesson Patton was getting bored. Not wanting to talk and get told off, he flipped to the back of his book and ripped out a piece of paper, writing a note at the top.

'Hey :)'

He then slid it over to Logan who couldn't help but look over at it, reading the note and rolling his eyes. Of course. He pushed it back without responding which made Patton frown but was he one to give up? Never, his determination willed him on.

'Wanna know why flamingos sleep with one leg up?'

Logan read the note and huffed through his nose, he knew the answer but was curious to see where Patton was taking this. Random facts were a direct way to Logan's heart.

'What?' He responded. Patton grinned and hurriedly wrote out the response.

'Because if they slept with both up they'd fall over!'

And Logan pressed a hand to his face, of course it was a stupid pun! Did he really think he'd get anything serious from the blond boy stifling his laughter beside him?

'C'mon Lo! Talk to meeee! Whats your fav colour?'

Logan rose an eyebrow, why on Earth is Patton still attempting? But he responded in hopes of appeasing him to prevent such nonsense from continuing for long.

'I do not have one.'

'Whaaaa?' Patton was truly astonished. 'Everyone has one! I promise I wont tell!!'

'Why would I care if you were to tell someone? I suppose I have preferred colours, but not a favourite.'

'Okay, what's your fav preffered colour?'

Logan noticed the spelling error but didn't comment on it, still the response made him roll his eyes.

'Blue.'

As Patton read this Logan heard him gasp quietly and scribble out a quick response, now Logan was actually getting interested.

'My favourite is blue to!!! whats your fav animal?'

And this continued between them for some time, nearly the rest of the lesson, the teacher noticed because of course he did, but he had never seen Logan interact with anyone before, and to see him genuinely talking with someone and making them smile was enough for him to let it pass.

By the end of class the note was filled back to back, Patton smiled at the sight and hid it in his bag. Before Logan could leave he saw his opportunity and grasped it. "Could you help me find my next class?" He asked softly, he wouldn't mind if Logan denied, but he really wanted to spend more time with him.

Logan, who had finished packing away and was just about to leave, hesitated and rose an eyebrow. "You were given a map, were you not?"

"Yeah but it's hard to understand...and I ripped it" he admitted and Logan sighed, glancing around the emptying class room. He didn't have anything against Patton, nor against anyone who tried to talk to him, but being alone for so long, dealing with the people that use him for his intelligence, it's made him a standoffish person. Somewhere he does want to be a nice person, but the rest of him wants to keep his guard up, who knows what Patton could do if he ever were to gain his trust?

"I suppose I can, what is it?" Patton beamed and showed him the schedule, thankfully it wasn't too far away from his own so he left the classroom with Patton walking happily by his side. Turning a corner the two passed by a group of boys, the tallest in the group the one who pushed Logan into the bookshelf. They passed by, only him noticing the two boys in the crowd, Logan and his eyes met, the former forcing himself to look away and walk faster - he hated that boy with everything in him, but he couldn't stop him...he knew he'd go through with his threats, after warning he'd break his arm, he did a day later. And Logan really didn't want to go blind.

"This place is just so confusing!" Patton sighed, but still smiled with a preppy bounce in his step. "Maybe one day I'll get used to it....or maybe you'll just have to keep helping" he winked and Logan deadpanned him "you will get used to it" he confirmed which only made Patton giggle.

He made it to his class, thanked Logan and slipped inside, leaving Logan to stare at the closed door for a few moments. On his way to lesson, he couldn't help that small thought in the back of his mind, one that told him he might have a chance.

During break Patton found his friends hanging outside, all sitting on a bench while Remus laid on the ground, digging at the dirt.

"Patton!" Roman cheered when he saw his nearing figure, walking over to him happily. Patton grinned right on back, "hiya Ro!"

"Are you feeling better now? I'm still terribly sorry about what happened-"

"It's okay, Ro, really" Patton giggled, squeezing Roman's hand reassuringly. They had apologised quite a few times already but Patton had forgiven them, he knew the action by Remus wasn't on purpose. Sitting down beside Virgil they all started a new conversation to include Patton while everyone ate.

It was nice, extremely nice. Patton hadn't felt like this in a long, long while. In all honestly he was relieved the sense of loneliness has finally disappeared, even for that short amount of time.

While munching on a sandwich, he looked at Remus who sat beside him, a little dirty but other than that his normal self. He poked Patton's arm then handed him a crown made from daisies. He gasped and put down his food, holding it delicately.

"Remus, this is beautiful!" He was quick to place it on his head, smiling brightly up at Remus. "Thank you" the boy, seemingly proud of himself, grinned back and returned to his digging beside Deceit who sat the opposite end of the bench. Virgil leaned closer to Patton.

"That's his way of saying sorry, he's really bad with words and usually when he's like that he'll poke your arm and stay quiet" he explained and Patton's heart melted. Standing up he lowered to the ground beside Remus, pulling him into a hug when the boy leaned up curiously. "I forgive you, Remus" he whispered, but everyone at the table heard. While they hugged Deceit smirked at Roman - looks like Patton really was a keeper.

And Patton's life really started to look up from there. While home life was still neglectful and lonely, he spent more and more time outside of school with his new found friends than inside his own home, and when he was home he'd spend hours in the group chat, talking the evening away. This happened over the course of four weeks, while bonding closer to the four boys, he also bonded with Logan but that, unfortunately, was a slower process. Didn't mean Patton was going to give up! Logan was a tough cookie to crack but the more science lessons they spent together the more Patton wanted to befriend him, become close with him.

On Friday of the fourth week it was near the end of science, it was the last lesson that day and Patton knew it was the perfect opportunity to ask Logan something. During their lessons they had spoken more and more, while Patton would always start conversation he didn't mind one bit, now that Logan was responding, every day with more and more, he wouldn't mind, while he'd often carry this emotionless look, it didn't bother Patton, in fact it made him want to see Logan smile even more.

"Hey, Lo?"

The boy looked up after sipping shut his bag. "Yes, Patton?"

"D'you wanna come over tonight? To mine?"

Logan tensed a little, hangout outside of school? With Patton? That could lead to trouble but...even after four weeks Patton had made no bad intentions clear, he's seemed as friendly as ever everyday, and has always strived to make Logan feel better. Could he say no? He could make up an easy excuse, for it didn't settle well within him just to say 'no' and leave it at that. He realised more and more seeing Patton frown really bothered him.

"You could go home or...y'know" Patton smiled a little sheepishly, "we could have a sleepover"

"I have never had a sleepover before" Logan blurted and Patton clapped his hands excitedly. "Really!? Aw! You have to now, c'mon Lo! I promise it'll be really fun!" Logan bit the inside of his cheek, he was on the fence, half of him wanted to say yes for he truly enjoyed his time spent with Patton, but the other half said no out of fear, past situations making themselves clear in his memories.

"I..."

"Please?" Patton took a step forward, one look into those round puppy-dog eyes Logan couldn't say no. "I suppose so..." and Patton cheered excitedly which made Logan feel a little warm inside, he'd never had someone excited over his presence before - it really made him feel...wanted. A feeling he's not familiar with.

They made a quick pit-stop at Logan's home to collect what he would need before taking the fifteen minute walk to Patton's. All the way Logan stayed mostly silent, listening to Patton's cute rambles about anything that came to mind, most of it about the sleepover but if he saw an animal his mind changed instantly.

"And we can share a bed! Or I can take the couch! Or the blow up bed! Or the-"

"I should sleep on the couch" Logan countered, "it is your bed after all"

"Yeah, my bed, I make the rules, you're sleeping in it no matter what!" Patton argued back and Logan didn't have much else to say in response, he's never been in this situation before. "We'll just see how the night goes!" Patton then shrugged, taking him up his driveway and to the entrance. He knew this weekend his parents were off on a business trip, they left earlier that day.

Opening the door, Patton stepped aside to let Logan in first, sweeping his arm across the foyer. "This is it!" He grinned, "don't worry, we can do whatever we want! My parents are gone for the whole weekend" Patton then walked down the hallway to the kitchen, Logan following behind for he felt awkward being in a new home by himself. "Is that a good thing?" He questioned, standing beside the island counter as Patton opened up a cookie tin and began munching on one.

He hummed, then shrugged, dusting crumbs off his shirt. He debated what to respond with, but quickly went with the open route. He knew the more he was open the more Logan would be (eventually), he needed Logan to know he trusted him, and hiding things about his life when they were now close friends wasn't the way to go. While he was a little awkward talking about it, and at times it did make him upset, he found he did want Logan to know.

"I guess not..." he chuckled sheepishly, crossing over the tiles to stand before Logan, their hands resting on the countertop inches away. "But they're not here often, with work they...they'd rather focus on business than me" Patton's eyes reached to meet Logan's who looked a little disheartened by Patton's admittance, but the slightly shorter boy was still smiling that way Logan had grown to love.

"I...am sorry they're like that, Patton" Logan responded, he truly felt terrible for him but was rather awkward and didn't know what else to say. He wished he did, he wished he knew exactly how to make Patton feel better, because he knew right now he was a little sad - and it pained him, especially his heart. Which was really odd for him.

"Hey! Don't worry, besides, friends in school have made life much better!" Patton hesitated, then smiled shyly, "especially you" the add-on was much quieter than the original statement, but Logan still caught it clearly, and felt his cheeks twinge pink alongside Patton's. "Come on!" Patton then skipped towards the door, "I'll show you my room!" He encouraged, Logan quickly followed behind.

Patton's room was exactly how Logan expected it to be, borderline childish, very bright, walls covered in stickers, some half peeled off, others peeling off themselves - but it added to the nostalgic feeling the room had. Nostalgic of childhood. Seriously, with colours one would expect to only find in a child's room.

"I thought we could play a game?" Patton gestured to the console under the T.V, after Logan admitted he had never played a video game before Patton gasped rather dramatically (thank Roman for that one), sat his friend down and let him choose which game he'd like to play, at least which one appealed to him the most.

He chose Mario Kart. Patton squealed.

Logan awkwardly sat beside him on the couch, glancing at him a few times to make sure he was doing the right thing. Never before has he been in this situation, plus he wanted Patton to be happy in his company, and not regret asking him over. Maybe he was just worrying too much, but he simply couldn't help it. He...cared, a lot, about Patton.

After showing him the controls, Patton was quick to focus on the game. It didn't take long for Logan to become pretty good, but due to lack of experience he didn't nearly get first place as much as Patton. In fact the only time he did come first was when Patton slowed down to let him, knocking a CPU out of the way. (Logan heard him whisper 'sorry' under his breath which made his lips quirk up into a smile).

Patton was quite adorable.

After their final race of the round, Logan looked down when Patton placed a hand on his wrist. Then he met his gaze, noticing it to be quite soft yet fulfilled. "Your smile is pretty" Patton whispered, there was no palaver about it, while he was excited to see it, he knew it was best to stay calm - he wouldn't want to make Logan uncomfortable.

For a moment his smile fell, then returned a second later, wider and somewhat...brighter than the one before, Patton giggled lightly at the sight of Logan's cheeks twinging pink. Adorable.

For both the boys the afternoon passed by like a dream. Never was there an awkward moment between the two and even if they spent most their time in Patton's room never did it get boring, repetitive - it was lovely for them both. They often switched from video games to board games, then a few card games plus wordy games like twenty questions, truth or dare. Party games like that. They ordered take out (as neither could be bothered to cook) and ate their Chinese in front of the television, watching a documentary Logan suggested.

He was a little hesitant, Patton didn't seem like the type to be interested, but after the first few lines of David Attenborough's Blue Planet Patton was sucked in, (what could he say? He loved animals) and Logan was ecstatic he was finally able to do something he enjoyed with someone he was close to. It made his heart feel all warm and fuzzy. In fact he thinks it's the first time he's felt this before...

As the night drew to a close, both boys changed into pyjamas and settled down onto Patton's double bed, it wasn't discussed, the two merely laid down and curled up under the covers. Of course they didn't go to sleep straight away, conversation always filled the dark rooms during sleepovers, it was mostly non-committal topics, because of this what the discussed changed quite frequently.

Then, after a rest bite of silence, Logan brought up the confidence to ask.

"Why did you want to become my friend?"

Patton turned his head to stare at Logan, a smile rising on his lips although barely visible with the little light shining through the curtains. "Well...you caught my attention" he giggled lightly, turning back to stare at the ceiling which they felt like they had been doing for hours, when it's only been a half. "You were cute and..." Patton trailed off, a frown tugging his lips. "And I didn't like to think how it must feel to be alone" he admitted quietly, chewing on his bottom lip.

"Ah, I see" Logan responded just as quietly, he wasn't surprised Patton felt this way, he was an extremely caring boy. Although the compliment made his cheeks burn he pushed aside the feeling for now.

"I-well-" he cleared his throat, inwardly cursing himself for stuttering. "Thank you, Patton. I apologise for the way I treated you when we first met. I...find it hard to trust people but..." he slowly looked over at Patton who did the same, "you didn't give up. I commend you for that, I was very harsh"

Patton laughed lightly, not at all mocking, rolling fully onto his side to shuffle closer. "Aw, Logan...don't worry about that now! All water under the bridge" Patton confirmed.

"Water under the bridge? What does bridges have to do with this?"

Although a little embarrassed Patton laughed, he quickly understood it was a metaphor, making a mental note to add that to his 'slang cards'.

"So I am forgiven?"

Patton nodded, "yep!" He then giggled shyly, ducking his head. "You're too cute to stay mad at" He whispered and Logan had never blushed so many times on one day.

He swallowed and gripped the end of his top, "I-um...thank you, Patton. I-er...same for you?"

Patton chortled, softly resting his head against Logan's shoulder. "Thank you? I think" Logan sighed at this, gripping his top tighter. "Sorry, I am not good at this"

He tensed a little when Patton gently laid his arm across his waist, shuffling closer. "It's okay.." he whispered delicately, "it's sweet, but you're trying too hard not to mess up. Loosen up a bit, Lo, I promise you won't say anything wrong" Patton reassured him and that eased quite a bit of tension from Logan who appreciated it greatly.

Then, "is this okay?"

Logan nodded, swallowing. "Y-yes, it is fine" he responded a little stiffly.

Patton frowned and sat up, Logan followed suit, feeling awkward being the only one laying down. "Lo, you don't have to lie, I won't be offended"

"It is not that, I-.." Logan took a breath, "I have never experienced this sort of thing before. I have seen movies and read it in books but I have no knowledge on what to do. I merely do not want to make this unenjoyable for you as I..." he stared down at the blanket, "as I quite enjoyed our...'cuddling' if that is what it was"

Patton's heart melted like butter on a hot day, he held a hand to his mouth and stared at Logan with such a soft look. He then shuffled closer, gently resting his hand on top of Logan's. "You couldn't mess this up if you tried" Patton responded lightly, "I enjoyed it too! And yes, we were cuddling" he giggled and Logan nodded, going to push up his glasses but realising too late he wasn't wearing them.

Patton laughed softly, placing a hand on Logan's chest and gently pushing him down, laying beside him and repeating their previous position, this time Logan awkwardly wrapped his arm under Patton and around his waist, leaving his other arm by his side due to his inexperience and slight anxiety.

Usually calm, collected, stoic - only Patton could turn him into this.

"You're warm" Patton smiled.

"You are too"

Patton let out a small yawn, then with a little boost of confidence leaned up and kissed his cheek, clipping the edge of his lip. Logan's breath caught and Patton bit his lip to stifle his grin, quickly hiding his face back on his chest. "Goodnight, Logy" Patton whispered, finally closing his eyes.

"Y-yes, goodnight Patton" he barely managed.

Yeah, he had fallen. Was he scared? A little...but also immeasurably happy, and that out-ruled everything.

The next Monday Patton's friends were surprised to see him walking over while holding hands with Logan, the student famous for his robotic behaviour and harsh words, but in the end were they surprised Patton was the one to bring out his true self? Not at all. In fact it made them all happy, having a friend like Patton was such a blessing.

Now that Logan had joined their clique, the same thing that happened to Patton happened to him - he didn't feel so lonely anymore. He could actually arrive to school feeling happy, instead of nothing. He didn't hide himself away and felt more and more confident each and everyday. Instead of eating in the library he would sit down at their bench (always beside Patton) and converse with them all contently.

While it took longer to ease up to Remus, he did in the end, and ended up liking the brothers very much. Including Deceit who would often talk to him about such philosophical topics. And Virgil? Logan was extremely close to him too, they often related through many deep topics and found each other very grounding and down to Earth. To say Logan was glad he let Patton in would be an understatement. He's never been this content with life before, he's never wanted to live as much as he does right now.

But maybe he got a little too comfortable...

"Guys!" Patton yelled to his friends, dashing across the field to get to his bench. Remus' head whipped up and eyes narrowed into a glare, ready to kill whoever might've made Patton so scared.

"Guys! It's Logan! Please, he's gonna get hurt!"

Other students on break watched as the five students broke out into a sprint to get inside the school, Deceit taking off his hat to hold as they all ran, not wanting it to fly away for he had a very close connection to his hats. While Roman and Remus were very much faster than Patton they had to accustom to his speed as he knew where Logan was but didn't know how to describe it.

They made it to where they needed to be in record timing, the PE department specifically.

"In there!" Patton pointed to the girls changing rooms, while Roman was a little hesitant to enter Remus didn't even register it was the girls room, barging in through the door to see Logan collapsed on the ground, covered in blood, shadowed by the tall bully looming over him.

Remus' eyes glowed and his friends watched helplessly as he grabbed the neck of the bully and slammed him into the wall. Rolling up his sleeves Roman marched over, reeling back and punching him hard across the face while Remus held him.

It came so suddenly he barely had any time to react, brain fuzzy and eyesight blurry. Patton and Virgil carried Logan out the room while Deceit worked as damage control, waiting until he deemed the right moment of which the bully had learnt his lesson. He struggled, fought back, able to backhand Remus which sent Roman into a fucking frenzy, hitting his head against the floor so hard he was knocked out cold.

Instantly Deceit was on it, not wanting his friends to be charged with murder. Cupping Remus's face he kissed the boy gently, which calmed him down instantly. "Go" Deceit whispered, but it was strict - Remus nodded and was off, leaving Roman who breathed heavily, staring down at the boy who dared to hurt his brother.

"Roman, I couldn't imagine how worried Virgil must feel right now. It almost makes you want to check up on him, right?" He soothed, Roman nodded gently and used the bench beside him to stand up, leaving Deceit alone with a bruised boy and two pools of blood.

"You're lucky I don't want my friends in prison" Deceit hissed, rising from the ground and swiftly leaving the room, finding Remus down the hallway - he had waited for him while the rest had rushed to the nurses room.

The hospital had already been called, from the simple examination the nurse concluded he had a broken arm, severely bruised and swollen face, plus some possible broken ribs. Patton couldn't help but sob and sob, he knew the bully was still dangerous yet didn't say anything - didn't try to get Logan to do something before he could be hurt again. This was his fault. He thought everything would be fine! He was such an idiot...

A few days later Patton visited the hospital, between then he had non-stopped cried for hours each day, avoided caring for himself and barely showed up for school. His friends tried to help but knew that Patton wouldn't feel much better any time soon without Logan, but made sure he wouldn't do anything stupid.

Patton was alone as he was led down the hallway by the doctor, he would've invited his friends but he wanted to speak to Logan privately first.

"Logan, you have a visitor" she called gently while entering the room, Logan who was previously reading a book shut it instantly and managed to sit up a little although very achy, smiling at Patton who slowly crossed the room, eyes tearing up at the sight of the bruises staining his skin purple and blue.

"Logy.." he whispered, covering his mouth with his hand, blaming himself over and over. He wished he could have been the one to be beaten up, if he wasn't such an idiot he could've angered the bully to direct his abuse towards him while Logan went and got help. He felt terrible.

"Are you okay, Patton?"

The boy sniffed, "am I okay?! What about you Lo!" He covered his face then sunk onto a chair beside his bed, tears cascading down his cheeks. "I'm-I'm so sorry" he sobbed, reaching over to grasp his hand while Logan stared in shock.

"I-I should've-I should've stopped him or-or-or gotten in his way, I should've protected you-you Logan! B-but instead I ran and let you get hurt...now l-look at you" he heaved, squeezing Logan's hand tight.

"Patton.." he sat up that little bit more and gestured for him to sit on the edge of the bed, which Patton did after a moment hesitation, meeting Logan's eyes after the boy cupped his face.

"What are you talking about? You did not run in fear, you ran to get help. You saved my life, Patton, putting yourself in line of fire would have dangered us both, then where would we be? You did the right thing, thank you" Patton sniffled and curled his arms around him, hugging him so gently yet lovingly.

Logan hugged back as best he could, smiling. He had missed this boy so much.

"I am just glad I survived to see you another day" Logan murmured upon leaning back. Patton blushed and managed a slight smile, although he'd still feel guilty (and probably would for awhile) he was sure Logan would help him through it - and in the end the two came out on top.

They didn't really know what came of Logan's bully, he still went to their school but rarely, especially when he was still messed up after Roman and Remus' doing. While the teachers weren't informed (as the bully was able to leave without being found in the changing rooms) of what happened, they knew Logan was beaten up but even after extensive questioning none of them would admit who did it, much to Logan's request.

But rumours did spread, it didn't take long for the students to know what happened, but they kept quiet about it out of respect of the sacred code; snitches get stitches.

The first day Logan could go home he and Patton (obviously) had a sleepover, mixed with gentle cuddles, whispers of loving words, and soft, sweet kisses...

—
Well this took me awhile...

1:13am