From What I've Heard - Sanders Sides

Chapter Thirteen

Logan laid his head onto his pillow. He was desperately trying to get some sleep, but his mind couldn't stop racing. Everything about The Phantom and this project. It was beginning to frustrate him. Everything was becoming too much for the student. All he wished was for it to all go away. In a weird way, he wished he never saw The Phantom on stage. He wished he never fell for him. He wished for it to all stop.

But the truth was, that wasn't what he wanted at all.

Love was hard. Harder than Logan ever thought it would be. He groaned, picking up his pillow and smashing his face in it, letting out a muffled scream. When he moved the pillow, he could hear a failed held back laugh coming from Dee.

"Something wrong, dude?" He giggled. Logan rolled his eyes, turning over to face away from Dee. "Hey, I didn't mean to make you feel bad," he admitted, walking over to Logan's bed. "Seriously, what's the matter?"

"Are...are emotions always so hard?" Logan grumbled. He shot a glance up at his roommate, seeing him trying to hold back another laugh.

"Unfortunately so, lover boy." Dee joked. He took a step back so Logan could get out of bed. It had become clear to the student that he wasn't going to get any more sleep. He grabbed his coat and threw it over his shoulders. "Going somewhere?"

"A walk. I need to clear my head."

"And what? You expect to go alone?" Dee questioned like he was crazy. Logan looked back at him, seeing him grab his coat as well as his key and a fresh blunt. "With how many times you've been attacked these past couple of days going out all by yourself? You're an idiot if you think you're going alone."

Logan sheepishly smiled. Dee swung his arm around Logan's shoulder as the roommates headed down the hall before defending down the stairs. Once outside, they mindlessly wandered the paths outside.

Dee lit his joint as they walked along, doing his best to blow the smoke away from Logan, which he appreciated. "So, how did you start weed anyway?" Logan curiously pondered.

"That's an odd conversation starter, but okay," Dee laughed. "Right before high school, I started on regular smoking. That only made me feel numb and fucked with my asthma really bad. So, during my junior year, someone offered me a joint. And it was that day I knew, there was no fucking way I was going back to cigarettes."

"Don't the joints mess with your asthma too?"

"Yeah, but at least I can suffer high. Better than to not." Dee shrugged. "Can I ask you something now?" The student nodded, his attention focused on his roommate. "Do you think you're going to find your Phantom?" Logan was a little stunned by the question.

"I don't know. I like to wish, hope, and pray that I will but, life is unpredictable."

"Amen to that," Dee muttered, taking another smoke of his joint. Logan laughed off the response, sending them both back into a peaceful quiet. As they continued to walk along, Logan began feeling better. Maybe it was a mild form of a contact high, but Logan felt better.

Dee and Logan stopped just outside the theater before deciding to turn back around. As Logan turned, the student was stopped by his roommate sticking his arm out in front of him. "What gives?"

"Shh! Look." Logan gazed upward to see the crazed mustached man that had been his attacker. He was sitting on a bench, his elbows on his knees whilst having an intense staring contest with the ground. Logan sucked in a gasp before taking a step back. "Was he on that bench when we walked by it?"

"No. He must've been following us." Dee toughened up, holding his feet equally apart while puffing out his chest.

"You got shit against my friend here, or do you always follow people creepily in the dark?!" Dee yelled out to the man. He lowly chuckled, pushing himself to his feet. Even Dee couldn't hide his rising fear. The stranger was at least a foot taller than him.

"He knows exactly what he did!" The stranger remarked, pointing a crooked finger at Logan.

"I genuinely don't know what you mean! I don't know you!" Logan tried to defend.

"That's where you're wrong! You've done more than you know to me, Logan!" It struck a nerve to hear his name come from the stranger's mouth. His heart thumped faster and wilder in his chest. Dee still stood protectively between the two.

"Leave him alone! You heard him, you've got the wrong guy!" Dee spoke again. The stranger snorted, moving closer to him. Logan wanted to shout a warning to his friend but the words got caught in his throat.

"You think you're a hero, don't you?" The stranger smirked. With one grand punch to the head, Dee fell flat on the ground, unconscious before he hit the concrete walkway. Logan flinched as he went down. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the blood dripping down his roommate's head like a river. "That didn't take much," The stranger laughed, stepping over Dee to make his way closer to Logan. "Wonder how many hits it'll take for you to go down."

Just as he came closer, the sound of a squeaky door ripped through the deadly silence of the night. Both of their heads turned as someone walked around the theater. "Remus, what have I told you about being around here!" The other man yelled. Logan couldn't make out his features, only seeing his silhouette as the light from the door blinded him. This is Remus? Logan thought to himself.

Logan took this as his chance to duck under Remus, sneaking his way over to Dee. The student examined his friend, tuning out the other two men argue. When Logan looked up however, he froze. The person yelling at Remus from the theater was wearing a black sequins cape, a white blouse with black pants, along with royal red gloves. That wasn't it, his classic mask was resting at the top of his head, showing his face to be one Logan had grown to recognize.

Princey. Roman Rodgers is The Phantom of the Opera. Roman Rodgers is Princey.

Logan felt faint but quickly shoved the feeling down. He tuned back into their argument, "Shouldn't you be backstage or something?" Remus spat.

"Anton said that you were out here. I couldn't just stand back idly! You know what he told you, he doesn't want you anywhere near this theater anymore!"

"You have no right to be wearing that costume! You know damn well that it was mine!"

"Shut it, brother!" Roman hollered. Logan froze again, watching Roman slide the mask on his face before releasing a heavy sigh. "I have to go. Please, just leave." With that, Princey rushed back inside.

Remus looked back at Logan. He helplessly clung to Dee, not wanting him to get hurt even more. "Consider yourself lucky!" He grumbled before marching past the two. Logan watched him leave, taking heavy breaths as he faded away into the night.

The man in Logan's arms let out a groggy moan, moving his hands up towards his head. "What the fuck just happened?" He questioned. Logan helped him stand, wrapping his arm around his shoulders so he could support the disoriented man while they walked.

"You won't even believe it."