Assistance Required

Avoidance

TW cursing, self-deprecation, self-harm, Remus

Tues Nov 17

Beep.

Beep.

Beep.

Virgil groaned. The extra sleep he got didn't do him much good and he had to listen to his least favorite sound in the world. He was better off on the couch.

"Are you actually getting up today, Virgil?" Logan asked.

Virgil sighed and rolled over to face him.

"Fuck."

"You're lucky Patton can't hear you."

"Fuck!"

"Virgil, calm d-"

"FUCK!"

"Virgil!" Patton yelled from the other room.

"FUUUUUCK!"

Patton opened the door.

"Why are you yelling?" Patton asked.

"I felt like it," Virgil shrugged.

"Are you okay?" Logan asked.

"I'm tired," Virgil smiled sleepily.

"When did you go to sleep last night?" Patton asked sitting down on the bed.

Virgil shrugged again.

"I don't know. I didn't really look at any clocks or anything."

"Virgil... that's not good!" Patton said. "Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah, I'm just tired."

"Maybe you should try to get a nap after your classes today?"

Virgil just nodded.

"Yeah.... okay."

Virgil stood up and they all got ready for the day. He and Logan walked to class, Logan dropping off Virgil's stuff before leaving for his own class. During the discussion in his pulp fiction class today, the professor actually showed them a portion of the movie for the book. It took a while for the professor to get the DVD player to work before he could play the scene he wanted to show them. After watching it, they compared it to the book. It was strange how much they could compare from just one scene.

He hid in the library again between classes. His dad might have covered his hospital bills, but he was still paying a lot for food and he needed a new car. Not that he could drive it until he was off of his crutches. He didn't really eat much anyway with the amount of stress he dealt with. He'd be fine.

He almost fell asleep in his other classes. He couldn't pay attention. At least he had gotten all of his homework done. After his last class, he stood in the hall outside and thought about what to do next. He'd usually go to the dining hall to meet with the others for their weekly lunch together. He decided to just go to the student center. He found some of his friends' bags and stuff in the usual spot. He sat down and pulled out his calculus work. He still needed to finish it.

About ten minutes passed when he got a text on his phone.

Patton: You coming?

Virgil stared at the message. He bit his finger before he texted back.

No, sorry. I already ate. I had something I needed to do after class. I'll be in the student center when you get out though.

A few minutes later Patton texted back.

Okay! See you soon.

Virgil chewed on his finger while he worked on his math. His mind went back to what he had just said. He just lied to Patton. He was still lying. He looked around before pulling out his book. He scratched at his arm again while he read. He was such a shitty friend. He made them worry about him. He was avoiding them and lying to them. Why was he still doing all of this? Why couldn't he just talk to them? Why couldn't he just tell them why he wasn't going to the dining hall? They could bring him back food. No. He didn't deserve to eat right now.

He looked down as the skin broke. He looked around again. Seeing the coast was clear he started peeling at his arm again. He listened carefully as he peeled at his skin. He didn't want them to know. Once he was satisfied with himself, he pulled down his sleeve and went back to reading. He'd finish his math later. Soon he heard the others walk over and sit down. Those who had been in class before lunch dropped their bags as they sat down.

"Hey Virge," Patton said as he slid into the seat next to him.

Virgil hummed in response.

"How was your thing?" Patton asked.

"My what?"

"You said you had something to do. I was wondering how it went."

"Oh! Right! Yeah, it was fine."

He thumbed through his book. He should have thought about their inquiries before lying to them.

"What was so important you had to miss lunch with us?" Janus asked.

Of course. He hadn't even thought of anything to say to them. He started scratching at his skin again under his sleeve.

"I had to go over something with one of my professors. Sorry, I couldn't join you," Virgil mumbled.

"You said you already ate though, right?" Patton asked.

Virgil nodded.

"Yeah," he lied.

"Are you actually going to join us for dinner today?" Thomas asked.

Virgil bit his lip.

"Oh, uh, sure."

Virgil turned back to his book. He stopped scratching his arm as he felt a different texture. He thought about how he was going to get out of going to dinner. He was really tired; maybe he could just take a nap? He decided to get some reading done first. He rested his head in his hand while he read.

He managed to get a couple of hours of reading in but he was tired. It felt good to close his eyes. He sat there with his eyes closed for a bit listening to everyone around him. Eventually, he decided to lay his head down on the table. He could feel himself drifting off, but he wasn't fully asleep. He wasn't sure how long he sat like that before he felt something being draped around his shoulders.

He drifted in and out of consciousness for a bit before he heard the others start to shuffle around him. He wasn't sure how long he was out of it before he had come back.

"Is he asleep?" Roman asked.

"Yeah, I think so," Patton said.

"I found him on the couch this morning."

"What was he doing on the couch?" Thomas asked.

"I don't know! He said he couldn't sleep and he walked around the halls for a bit then passed out on the couch. I took him back to his bed before going to class this morning. Did he go back to sleep?"

"I think so. He started swearing as soon as he woke up," Logan said.

"Ha! Mood!" Joan said.

"Oh, is that what I heard this morning?" Janus asked.

"Yes, that was Virgil," Logan sighed.

"Here I was thinking someone was just having a really good time," Remus pouted.

"We're getting dinner soon, should we wake him up?" Thomas asked.

"No, I don't think he got much sleep last night. We'll bring him something back," Patton said.

"Yeah, but if he sleeps too much now he won't be able to sleep later," Logan countered.

"Just let him sleep," Roman said.

"My poor little anxious baby," Patton said softly.

Virgil heard them all leave for dinner. He didn't move. He wanted to go back to sleep but he also felt bad. Why did they all care so much about him? He wasn't worth it.