Thomas Sanders One Shots

A Robotic Heart

"Roman, can you put the book down, please? Food's ready." Patton placed a plate in front of Roman.

"I'm sorry, Patton but this is amazing! It's called 'A Robotic Heart' and it's about a boy called Liam who lives with his three brothers, Robin, Patrick and Vince. He's smart and funny but slightly odd. Robin is a theatre nerd who's very extra but caring and brave. Patrick is the oldest, and he's selfless and overprotective but naive. Vince is the youngest and he's kind of the black sheep of the family because he's very negative but he's also really sweet and sensitive. So far, Liam has been trying to grasp his feelings for his brothers and his friends and his confidence in himself."

"Well, that does sound very interesting, kiddo. I might borrow it when you've finished. Who's it written by?"

"Someone called...L.S.Newton. Might be a pseudonym. It says here that he grew up with four brothers and based the characters on himself and his family."

"Huh. I didn't know Princey could read." You could hear the smirk in Virgil's voice as he leaned over to see what Roman was looking at, careful not to spill his fresh cup of coffee over the table. Logan seemed to be the only one who wasn't infatuated with the novel, preferring to eat his breakfast and watching as the others neglected theirs.

Virgil snickered. "From Princey's description, it sounds pretty familiar."

"How so?" Patton sat down in his chair, checking the temperature of the forgotten food.

"Well, Patrick sounds like you Pat, Robin sounds like Roman, Vince sounds like me and Liam sounds like... Lo. It's gotta be a coincidence, right?" They looked over at Logan, who looked back at them, one eyebrow raised, sipping his coffee. "You should know that there's often no such thing as coincidence." Roman burst out laughing and Lo smirked.

"No way. You? You wrote this masterpiece? But it's so... emotive and you're... not. I don't believe you at all.

But I would believe you more if you could quote the book. It only came out today so you haven't read it." He looked at Logan, feeling triumphant.

Logan thought for a second and sighed. "Page 207. Line 16 onwards...
'There could have been a hundred things that he said in that moment but he pushed it all aside, not speaking, not thinking, only feeling. His brother reached forward, taking him in his arms, ignoring the tear stains that would be left on his shirt or the hot drink that was quickly cooling. Those things could be forgotten but the rare sight of someone who was once so confident curled into him so tightly was not one to be taken lightly. Liam was strong, but even the strongest have their off days. A door and two hushed voices, then more warmth. A hand on his shoulder added to the protective arms that were wrapped around him, then a hand gently stroking through his hair. This was what was important. Not his thoughts but his friends, his family, his home.'" His eyes watered slightly and he gave a small, genuine, smile.

Patton stared at him, tears glinting from behind his glasses, and carefully placed his mug on the table. He walked over and wrapped his arms around Logan, not caring if the logical side squirmed or stiffened. He did neither. Instead, he leaned into the touch, relaxing. Virgil's hand rubbed soothing circles on his shoulder and Roman ran his fingers through Logan's hair. His characters surprisingly weren't far off. Maybe he should write a sequel...