Stuck Between Sides (Sanders Sides)

4. Thomas? Are You Listening? (Virgil)

They're both crowded around me.

My social anxiety is raging like an untamed fire.

Roman is sitting beside me, his hands clasping mine, calming me slightly.

I look up and catch his intense gaze and I feel a strange tug. Something unknown washes over me. A feeling like nothing I know. The unfamiliarity is scaring me but I find I cannot look away. His eyes are so perfe-

"Virgil!" He pipes up, yelling his regal song. I wince at the volume of his uncontrollable joy.

He's so cute.
There's no way he'd ever like me though. He hates me, I know it.

"How are you feeling? Are you okay? Please tell me you're fine." His tone filled me with worry even though I know I'm fine and so does he but he's Roman; his dramatic nature makes his mood infectious.
"I am so sorry I failed you." He sat back down. Wait, when did he even stand?
His eyes... they're so deep and dark. "Virgil?"

"Huh? Sorry. What?" Focus Virgil.

"Forget it, it's not important." He dropped his hands into his lap and began playing with his sash. I know that look; it's the look that wants me to ask again. Ugh. Why does he have to be so adorably dorky?
Stop it Virgil, he'll never like you the way you are.

"Roman, seriously. What did you say, it clearly is important?"

"The fact that you're acting like a child and saying it's not important means that it is important. Ninety percent of the time anyway." Logan spoke from behind the purple-haired Prince. "Stop using reverse psychology you malodorous centurion."

"Shut up, Logan." Woah, that was not my Roman. Although... this dark, dangerous side of his is kinda worth going for. I smirk to myself.

Snapping back to reality I realise there must be something pushing him to act like this.

"Hey, ahh, what's wrong with you?" My bangs became lodged in my eyelashes, sticking me in the eye.

"It's just- hhh." Roman reaches forward and brushes the loose hair away and tucks it behind my ear. This feels weird but it's my Princey so I'll deal with it; just this once.
"I failed you. I let you down when you needed me but I was too busy being caught up in myself to notice you falling until it was too late. I failed the person I love and I can't forgive myself for that. Ever."

Person he loves? What? There's no way he's talking about me. The dark side. The side that causes Thomas his issues; the burdens he faces daily. I am literally anxiety. He must mean Patton. It can't be me.

"You must be mistaken. How could you like me?" Leaving a pause between my words in astounded confusion and amazement, I feel my eyes soften from their dark shell. He said he loves me. Virgil, stop it. He can not mean you. Roman looks at me with a mix of guilt, sorrow and longing.
My world lights up and I suddenly feel I could tackle the problems in it; well, maybe not that. There's too much social interaction and too many anxiety probing problems to face.
You know what I mean.

How could he mean me, I am the most useless out of all the sides. The fans love Remy more than me and he's so fanciful, much like Roman. They're a good match, right? Maybe he meant Remy?

"Uh. Sorry, not sorry, to interrupt this confession of each other's l-llove." Tucking a flash card in his pocket, Logan seems to struggle with that last part. I try to stifle my giggle before looking away from Roman's piercing gaze. "But we need to tell Thomas, do we not?"

Dagnabit!

"Thomas!" I fly out of the bed and instantly pop up before Thomas, who was... on... the toilet...
Why do I never check where he's at before popping up.

"Thomas! There's something we need to-" Roman's hand comes around from behind me and finds its way over my mouth, muffling my words.

"Uhh, Roman? Virgil? Can you guys give me a minute? I'm kinda poopin' here." Thomas looks down at his light brown trousers; why the light colours?

Motioning towards the door he silently tells us to leave. 

"Awkward." Logan pops his head around the door, earning a large huff from Thomas.

I'm barely around the corner before Roman has me pinned to the wall.

"What the gosh darn heck do you think you're doing Virgil?" The panic his voice holds is enough to make Deceit quake in his boots.

"He is right, we do need to tell him." Something is horribly wrong, why is Logan agreeing with me. Maybe this is a mean joke. Maybe this is all in my head. "We need to tell him the right way."

The door clicks and Roman slaps his hand to my arm and squeezes my hoody sleeve.

"What's up guys?" Thomas said monotonously like he knows what's coming next.

No one speaks.

Roman is hyperventilating.
Logan is stuck on loop flicking through his stupid cards.
I guess it's up to me to 'say it the right way' or whatever.

"Thomas. You know how you've been feeling off and bored and stuff?" I fiddle with my free hoody sleeve as Thomas stares blankly at me, unfazed. "Well it's because... because..."
I can't do it. The words just won't form. What is wrong with me? I am the bringer of bad news. Why not now? Why when I need it, does it not happen?

"Patton's dead." Roman yells at the top of his lungs before clamping his hand to his mouth and slapping himself in the face. What is wrong with him?

"Ohh. That makes sense. Cool. Thanks guys." Thomas says nonchalantly, as if nothing has happened.

Roman begins to sob hysterically and crashes himself into me. Stunned, I flex my open hands before engaging in this unusually constricting hug. Thomas just watches this happen and walks away to sit on the couch.

All three of us stare in utter amazement as Thomas sits playing his phone as if it were a spider that died.

"Thomas?" Logan finally speaks.
The only thing to follows is awkward silence as Roman's sobbing gradually fades into nothingness; oh, how I wish I could too.
"Thomas, are you listening? Patton is dead!"

"Mhm."

That was it.

His morality, his dad character, the fan favourite, the cute little guy that was Patton is dead and 'mhm' is all that he can muster!

"Thomas Foley Sanders! You insolent bas-" 

"Logan! Now is not the time." I whisper to the illogical Logic before he can ruin anything further.

"We need to find out what happened to Patton to prevent it from happening to one of us next." Roman and his drama, always adding a nonexistent layer of fear to everything. Good job, dude.

Good one.