Park Bench (Prinxiety AU)

Chapter 20 - Roman

December 8

Patton didn't stay awake for very long once he set up the couch for me. My sleeping arrangements were nothing extravagant, by any means. Just a couple of pillows and a too-thin blanket that I refused to allow myself to complain about. They were lending me a spot to sleep to keep me safe, the least I could do was not fuss over such trivial details.

Plus, I'd only be in the living room to sleep. The rest of the night was spent with Virgil and Peanut, sitting shoulder-to-shoulder on his bed with a laptop in front of us. I couldn't pay even the slightest bit of attention to whatever movie we had playing. My heart was racing, to say the least.

"God, he's getting so big already," Virgil said. He was petting Peanut, whose head was resting on his lap. He had nice hands, I noticed. I had a sudden, alarming urge to reach out and grab one. I glanced up at Virgil's face for a moment, at his tired eyes, at his soft smile.

Don't kiss him, don't kiss him, don't kiss him. Since when was that something I had to tell myself?

"It sucks that I don't get to see him every day," he sighed and tipped his head back to look at the ceiling, and oh my gods, don't kiss him. It wasn't fair. He looked so pretty in the soft lamplight that washed over the room. All I could do was sit there, frozen, awestruck. Watching him was akin to watching a sunset. Until he asked, "Why are you staring at me?" and I forced myself to look elsewhere. And yes, perhaps my face was a little warm after that, but only because it was warm in the room, okay? I wasn't blushing. I wasn't.

I tried to watch the movie for a bit. Y'know, to distract myself from the fact that any time he moved, I could feel him brush against my arm. It was just some old horror movie, with the volume far too low to actually be scary. It seemed a little cliché, but if I weren't so distracted I'd probably enjoy it.

The main character was walking down a long hallway with nothing but a flashlight. I didn't know what she was looking for.

After at least ten minutes passed, I shook my head. "This is so unrealistic, you know," I scoffed. "Everyone knows that when you hear creepy giggling coming from the basement, that's your cue to either run, or just burn down the whole house because honestly, there's no saving that."

A moment of silence passed.

"Virgil?"

I looked over at him just in time for his head to hit my shoulder. I froze.

Oh.

Uh oh.

I debated on getting up and going back to the living room, but then he smiled slightly in his sleep, and his hair brushed against my neck, and he looked so peaceful that I just refused to be the one to take that away from him. All I could do was try my absolute hardest to just watch the movie.

The main character was running from something. She was covered in blood. She was being chased by some ghost, or murderer, or-

Virgil nuzzled against my shoulder. My heart nearly melted out of my chest.

I watched the rest of the movie quietly, staying as still as possible, unwilling to wake up the beautiful boy laying against me. My breath hitched at each minuscule movement he made. When the credits finally rolled, I gently nudged Virgil off of me. With a hand on his back and another on his neck, I slowly slid him down into a more comfortable position, with his head on a pillow and pulled the blanket over his shoulders. Once I was completely sure that he wouldn't wake up, I slipped off the bed and switched off the lamp.

When I reached the door, though, there was a shuffle behind me.

"Princey?"

I stopped, hand on the doorknob, and looked over my shoulder. Virgil was curled in on himself, facing away from me. My mind had surely been playing tricks on me. He was clearly still asleep.