If the Shoe Fits (Prinxiety Cinderella AU - Roman x Virgil)

Chapter 2

3/21/19 at 2:01 pm: I'm dating these to help the people reading in the future.  Well, way future.  I wanted to ask if you guys wanted a fairy godmother or something else.  Because, like, the fairy godmother might be a bit difficult.  Lemme know.
                 at 10:05 pm: I'm literally doing research for this fucking book. I'm watching every Cinderella movie on Netflix to see how they tackle the story with a twist. I'm hoping it will give me some ideas but I highly doubt it at this point... Shit, I need to take my meds. Ugh.

Virgil woke up early in the morning, just as always, and began working on making breakfast, just as always.  Breakfast was mandatory for him--not to eat, but to make.  No, he never got a single bite.

He looked at the clock and groaned.  He walked down the hallway and banged on one door, then another.  It took a few tries, but, finally, Virgil's two cousins arose, mumbling curses at the sun and the time.

"Good morning," he greeted in the nicest way he could muster, pouring orange juice for the both of them.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," mumbled Jayden, ruffling his blond hair.

Virgil hid his stomach growls and went down into the basement to his bedroom to get ready for school while they ate.  His phone, one of his cousins' older ones, vibrated.

Thomas: I'm outside. I know I'm early so take your time

He grinned, slipping the phone into his pocket and skipping up the stairs.  He took care of his cousins' dishes as quickly as possible before dashing out the door.

"Hey!" Thomas greeted from inside the car, watching as his friend opened the door and sat down.  "Took ya' long enough."

Virgil laughed--oh, how he missed laughing when he was away from his friends--and rolled his eyes.  "It's not my fault you can't wait to get to school."

Thomas glanced Virgil's way before turning his eyes back to the road.  "I'm not excited for school--I missed you.  You never let me see you outside of school, so I missed you like any normal friend."

Virgil fell silent, as he always did when someone brought up his home life.  Sure, Thomas knew about the history of his parents--or as little as Virgil could get away with--but, no matter what, the teen would never tell his friend about the way his uncle and cousins treated him if he could help it.  Thomas seemed to know not to press.

---

Virgil sat down next to Thomas at the lunch table, giving his lunch a scowl.  Around him, a few friends offered greetings: Joan, Patton, Logan, Valerie, and Terrance.  Talyn was, unfortunately, missing.

"What's up?" Joan asked.

Most shrugged, but Patton said, "A new guy showed up to Theatre on Saturday."

"Oh, yeah," Valerie chuckled.  "A few girls were talking about him in first period.  Apparently, he's really good looking."

Virgil rolled his eyes.  What does that have to do with anything? he questioned silently, sipping his milk.  "What's the big hype?"

"Apparently," Val began, her voice deep and dramatic as she leaned over the table, "he was one of the most popular kids in school until one day, he disappeared.  No one's heard from him since and he just showed up like it never happened."  Her posture straightened and a smile returned to her pretty face.  "It's all very suspicious, if you ask me."

Virgil cocked an eyebrow.  What the hell was all that about?  How did she learn all of that exposition in half of a day?

---

"Could you repeat that for me?"

Virgil looked down at his French notes, noticing a few people glancing toward the back of the room at him.  "Yeah, um, 'Pour être heureux, il faut sourire.'"  His hands shook and he was amazed he hadn't stuttered like the last time he'd taken an oral exam.

The teacher marked something on his paper before calling the next student's name.

Virgil stood up quickly, his breathing rapid.  He went back to his desk.  Calm down; calm down; calm down, he prayed, but nothing worked.  Slowly, tears flooded his eyes and he buried his face in his hands.

Someone touched his arm and he jumped.

"Hey, it's Joan."  Their voice was kind and understanding.  "Go on to the bathroom.  I'll tell the teacher where you went so you can calm down in private, okay?"

Virgil nodded.  Standing up, he couldn't even bring himself to look at Joan as he darted past.

---

Stupid errands, Roman thought, grumbling to himself as he struggled to figure out where the hell he was.  His friends had warned him the History of Theatre Production teacher was horrible--whatever her name was--and always picked on new students.  Even so, he'd never imagined this!  He had no idea where the front office was and he hadn't even been late in the first place.

So caught up in his own internal dialogue, he didn't notice the person in front of him until they bumped shoulders.

The stranger looked up, tears streaming down his face.  His entire body seemed to shake and his breaths sounded like choked wheezes.

Roman recognized the situation instantly.  Unfortunately, he didn't know the person in front of him; he didn't know what would calm him down from the obvious panic attack.  He wound up staring, trying to think of something to do.

The teenager shoved passed.

---

"Oh, Virge, I'm sorry that happened.  I wish I'd been there," Thomas said.  He touched Virgil's shoulder as they walked in an attempt at comfort.  "Is there anything I can do?  I mean, that guy just... stared?"

Out of the corner of Virgil's eye, he saw the same guy from the hallway and dropped his head on instinct.  He stood in the middle of a group that could really only be described as "popular."  They were tall, pretty, strong, smart, and generally well-liked.

"Virge?"  Thomas looked around, his brows furrowing in confusion.

Now that his mind was clearer, Virgil couldn't help but notice how handsome and happy he looked.  "That's him in the middle;  that's-that's the one from the hallway."

"Wait."  Thomas stopped moving completely.  He nudged his head in the person's direction.  "Him?"

Virgil rolled his eyes.  "No, I said that for fun."

"That is the new guy, Roman--the one Val and Patt were talking about."  He chuckled.

Virgil glanced one last time at the man that had completely humilated him.  So what if he's good looking, he thought, but the idea suddenly seemed out of place in his mind.  He groaned and sped-walked passed Roman and his friends.