Didn't Know { Book 1 }

~Chapter 15: Purple Rose Confession~

(Art not by me! Obviously...)

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~Virgil's POV~

Saturday (Rick-)rolled around quicker than I expected. I was helping Remy get ready. I ruffled his hair. Then I did it again just to make sure it was perfect.

"Why do I need my hair like this?" Remy asked.

"Because it suits you better and you had really messy hair when you were younger," I explained.

"What does me, having this hairstyle when I was younger, have anything to do with this?"

"When I first showed a picture of you to Emile he said 'He's cute...'. I was confused, as I didn't know that Emile was Bisexual then." I said.

"Oh..." Remy muttered. "Is this rose good enough?"

"Wha- Remy, Deirdre knows a lot about the meanings of flowers. A red rose signifies love, romance, and passion. Just give it to him."

"What does Deirdre know? She's just a homeless girl. Who taught her the meanings of flowers? She couldn't have taught herself."

"Remy, I swear- Oh... you are so lucky right now. I could punch you." I said.

"But you can't."

"That's what I'm saying. Just shut it and go out there," I said.

We walked into the living room. Emile was standing there, looking at the flower in a vase next to the door. I pushed Remy a little bit. He stumbled forward, caught himself, and hid the rose behind his back. He cleared his throat, which caught the attention of Emile. Emile stood up and instantly looked at Remy's hair and outfit and blushed.

"Is that the same hairstyle from when you were younger?" Emile asked, looking up at Remy's hair.

"Yeah..." Remy nodded.

"Hm... I like it." Emile smiled.

"You do?" Remy asked in disbelief.

"Yep, you look like the younger you. Cute."

Remy looked back at me. I mouthed 'I told you so'. He looked back at Emile.

"Right... um. I got this for you." Remy said and handed Emile the rose.

"Aw... how sweet! Thank you." Emile said and put it in the vase where the other flower is.

"Um... I know of this place. You'll like it for sure."

"Lead the way, Rem!" Emile said and practically dragged Remy out the door.

Later, Logan and Patton almost had the same conversation and left.

I looked over to the couch and I practically face-planted onto it. I grab the remote and turn on the TV. I flicked through the channels to find some conspiracy theories or something. I settled on one channel and began to watch it. I unknowingly started to chew on my jacket sleeve. I didn't even see Roman enter the room and sit beside me.

"Enjoying your sleeve?" He asked. I jumped and looked at him, then at the sleeve that I paused on chewing. I slowly put my sleeve out of my mouth and lay it on the couch. I noticed Roman had one of his hands behind his back.

"What's behind your back?" I asked.

"Hm? Oh, that's right. I got you this." Roman said and revealed a flower. Not just a flower, but a rose. The color is what threw me off.

Purple.

He gave me a purple rose... does he realize what purple roses mean? (Love at first sight and enchantment)

I took the rose from his hand and looked at it.

I touched its soft petals. I felt tears prick my eyes.

'Is this a joke? Does he know what this means? If it is a joke... it's not funny.' I thought. I bit my lip to keep me from choking. 'He doesn't... he can't...'

"Virgil, is something wrong? What's the matter? Why are you crying?" Panic was etched in Roman's voice. He reached out to touch me, but I slapped his hand away and shoved the rose into his chest.

I stormed out of the room and into mine and shut the door. I fell onto the black beanbag chair in the corner of the room.

The voices in my head were shouting at me, saying Roman could never love someone like me. I trembled and curled up into a ball. My breath quickened and I covered my ears with my hands. I couldn't stop any of the tears from falling. I just let it happen.

I then felt a pair of arms wrap around me. I forgot to lock the door... dang it. I heard a familiar voice, recognizing it as Roman's. He went through the breathing process with me. It took a couple of tries to get it right.

"...eath, Virgil. You're okay." I heard Roman say. I breathed in and out, slowly. "There. Keep going."

Once I had fully calmed down, he sat next to me and placed me in his lap.

"T-thank you..." I breathed out.

"You're welcome... can you tell me why you're crying?" He asked.

"I just. The flower threw me off." I said.

"What do you mean?"

"The meaning of the flower made me cry."

"Oh... I'm sorry."

"It's fine. You didn't know the meaning anyway."

"Actually... I did."

I looked up at him in shock. "W-what...?"

"The flower meant love at first sight, right? I knew that already. I'm like a flower connoisseur.

"So, was it a joke or did you mean it?"

"Virgil, I would never joke about something like this. I meant it and I... I love you."

"Really...?"

"Really. I love you and I know you could never love me-"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, you are straight, right?" He said. I laughed.

"Let's see if you think I'm straight after this," I said and pulled him toward me into a sudden kiss.