Tally Marks (Prinxiety and Logicality)

Best Friend < Favorite Person < ???

Logan ran his hand through his hair, looking down at the spotless kitchen tiles. He'd cleaned up the mess, and realized a slight problem with their little impromptu arrangement: he didn't want to cook for Patton.

Perhaps that was wrong of him? He listened for any interfering footsteps or voices, and, hearing none, decided to completely over-analyze the issue.

He leaned over and rested his arms on the countertop, goosebumps raising on his skin from the cool surface. His breathing became the only sound, heavy and slow in the complete silence.

'If there is a problem there must be a foundation, solution, and justification for having it. Now,'  Logan clasped his hands together, fingers intertwining as if in prayer, 'What, exactly, is my problem?'

An answer floated to the surface of his mind. 'Well, yes, I realize I don't want to cook. Is there any specific motivation towards my apprehension? It does not usually bother me when I am inexperienced with matters outside of my "comfort zone".  I am not a cook, though I respect others' for their ability. But I'm not terrible. So why does it bother me right now?'

'Oh!' His eyebrows raised, and the corner of his mouth twitched upwards. 'If I make food, it will be average, at best. That might not bother me, but I am preparing food for more than one individual; Patton, of course, will also be having some.'

The satisfaction in his discovery was short-lived, his eyes squinting, though they had closed. 'I do not wish to serve sub-standard food to Patton, as he is my friend. Friends put forth effort to preserve their bond.'

He crossed his arms, shifting his weight. Involuntarily, his nose scrunched, and his lip curled. "No, that's wrong...somehow." He whispered, voice almost ringing back in the sparsely-occupied room.

'There must be something about Patton that makes him different. Would I care as much if I were to eat alone with Roman or Virgil?' It took minutes to scavenge a proper answer for those, but they didn't call him Logic for nothing.

'Alright...so, it feels different being adequate in my cooking towards one individual, Patton, than it does involving the others. Roman and Virgil, though I include them as my dear friends, whom I indeed care for, I honestly like being in Patton's presence more. This gives Patton a, conceptually speaking, "higher" ranking among my friends.

'No,'  he shook his head, ', this puts him in an altogether different category than just a friend.'

This didn't entirely shock him. He knew how much he liked spending time with Patton, and how much he appreciated his warmth and fun-loving nature, so unlike his own personality. He made Logan laugh, regardless of how much he pretended to despise it. And Patton liked Logan, for reasons he couldn't determine, no matter how much he thought about it.

'In conclusion, my hesitation to cook is not due to laziness, or lack of sympathy for an injured friend. I am simply disinclined to make a fool of myself in front of Patton, because I like him more as a person than anyone else. He is probably...my favorite person.'

Logan sighed and opened his eyes. Nothing around him had changed except the amount of natural light coming in from the living room windows, displaying the brilliant star that is the sun rising higher in the bright blue sky.

Checking his watch, he still had some time to start cooking, regardless of how futile his attempts may be. 'Patton will be grateful, I think. He is incredibly kind in that regard.'  The thought made him smile, and he kept smiling as he began his task, even if he didn't comprehend the silliness of such a thing.