Changing Sides and Heaving Sighs

7

     Virgil hadn't expected walking around town feel so different.
     He had grown accustomed to certain things: glares from elders, children being hurried away, and police subtly reaching for their guns. People would see Remus, a young man in flamboyant and stereotypically gay clothing, and scramble for bibles or other religious items. Virgil always felt certain he'd get shot.
     (Speaking of the dark sides, Deceit had been texting him where are you messages and similar the whole time. Virgil ignored them.)
     Walking with Logan and Patton, however, showed Virgil how nice the city could be. Elders suddenly had wrinkly smiles on their faces, children skipped around freely, and even police officers gave friendly nods. Patton knew everyone, greeting each person he passed gleefully. Logan returned nods but for the most part, kept to himself. Virgil almost felt safe.
     The sense of safety faded when he noticed how people looked at him specifically. Surprise flickered across faces that had been sunny only seconds ago, then quickly turned to protective distrust. Right away, Virgil knew what they were thinking. They thought he was a bad influence, a bottom-feeder trying to drag respectable teens down into a life of crime and uselessness.
     (more texts kept flowing in. Virgil didn't want the guilt of answering his questions with lies.)
     Maybe they're right, Virgil started to reason to himself. He didn't want to do that to Patton or Logan, but he could start corrupting them subconsciously. He was a bad person with no place in the world but making life worse for others. He already felt certain his birth had caused his mother's health to steadily decline over the years. He knew that he had turned Deceit from a lonely compulsive liar into a full criminal. Virgil had ruined so many people's lives just by existing already, maybe it had become a habit.
     "Well, look at that! It seems our timing wasn't off after all!" Patton's voice snapped Virgil back into the present. "Roman! Hey, over here!"
     Lo and behold, Roman had just turned the corner of a building across the street from them. Waving emphatically and bounding across the street, he greeted Patton with a twirling hug. The sun itself seemed like a feeble lightbulb in comparison to Roman's delighted grin.
     "I have absolutely marvelous news!" He announced, rocking back and forth on his feet.
     "What is it?" Patton asked, matching his energy and enthusiasm.
     "If I play well this year, which I do every year, I will be granted a full four year scholarship at the city university! It covers every expense! My coach just got word of it today."
     "That's amazing, Ro!"
     The two kept talking about college, sports, the arts, and everything else for quite a while. They seemed to have, for a moment, forgotten there were other people there. Seeing as they were mostly talking about the future, Virgil managed to learn a lot about them both in seconds. Apparently Roman intended to get to Juliard after his four years at the local university while Patton hoped to go into social work or animal rescue.
     Now, Virgil had known Remus for a few years, and henceforth one would think chatter didn't bother him. This assumption would be vastly incorrect; Virgil hated excessive talking. In fact, Remus might have worsened Virgil's disliking due to the horrible things that he babbled about. This incessant noise, however, was almost tolerable. They seemed so hopeful about a future Virgil had decided to give up on long ago.
     Logan, who appeared to be fighting a smile, rolled his eyes. "Could you two tone down the enthusiasm for a moment? We are about to enter a small building and I don't intend to let our presence interfere with the quiet atmosphere."
     "Oh, alright. I was just celebrating- Anxiety?" Roman's good natured quip stopped short as he spotted Virgil.
     "Hey there, Princey." Virgil's defenses went up and he glared at Roman.
     Virgil felt sure that if he let down his guard around Roman he'd end up growing too fond of him, which would put him in an even more traitorous position. He wasn't allowed to befriend anyone else, especially not Remus's twin brother. Even with a disapproving look on his features, Roman was still too pretty to be real.
     (He ignored the calls Deceit was making.)
     "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be lurking somewhere with your edgy delinquent lackeys?"
     "I invited him, " Patton interjected. "Be nice."
     Roman had a point, what was Virgil doing there? Remus, Virgil's friend since freshman year, hated Roman and everyone he hung out with. Deceit, whom had been by Virgil's side since seventh grade, didn't like when any of their group of four spent time with other people. Despite that, Virgil had agreed to hang out with people he barely knew even after finding out a friend who had always been there was looking for him.
     "We're loitering, let's go inside." Logan opened the cafe doors and ushered everyone inside.
     Virgil had never been in a cozier place in all his eighteen years of life. The lighting, dim but not dark, cast a soft golden glow on the mahogany ophulstry. Plush cushions, scattered all over the cafe, made the place seem even more like the home Virgil wished he had. A small piano stood on a slightly raised platform, unused; soft jazz played in the background. The dark brown color of the walls shimmered with delicately painted gold patterns. Remarkably, the brown plush carpet didn't have a single stain.
     "Well, if it isn't my favorite regulars!" A rather plump woman with clear dark skin and a full head of corkscrew curls came bustling around the counter and up to them.
     Immediately, the woman swept Patton into a full bear hug and moved on to hug Roman and even Logan with just as much intensity. Virgil quickly noticed her hands- or, more accurately, hand. Her left hand was fully intact, but in the place of her right, there was only a stump at the wrist. She must have lost her hand long ago because the skin there had almost no scar tissue at all. He didn't mind in the slightest; he had seen several disabilities or injuries in his lifetime.
     "it's so nice to see you! Is Emile working?" Patton's smile was bigger than ever.
     Virgil's phone went off.
     "' course he is, I'll go get him." The woman made her way to the backroom
     A text lit up on his screen; a text from Deceit.
     "Emile!" Patton leaped into the arms of a taller young man of maybe 23 who looked a lot like Patton.
     "Heya Pat!"
     Circe says she doesn't know where you are and Remus is done. Your phone still has GPS locating on, right?