Escaped - Sanders Sides

Chapter Ten

(POV: Patton)

I watched helplessly as Logan paced around in Thomas's living room while our poor host stared blankly at us.

His eyes looked so dull and almost gray from their original dark chocolate hue. But it did make sense. He was missing two vital parts of his personality!

"I don't get it!" Logan blurted loudly, making me jump. "Roman was in the house last night, correct? I mean, I know he was upset about Virgil, but you had eased his thoughts! He went to bed knowing that we'd all find him, right? Then why isn't he here, leaving Thomas creatively void!?"

"L-Logan, calm down, please!" I begged. He took a deep breath, leaning back against the wall for a second to collect himself. "I don't know, kiddo. But I know one thing; Thomas can't continue to live like this!"

"What do you suggest that we do?"

I thought for a moment, trying to come up with a way to keep Thomas stable until we found Virgil and Roman. There weren't many options, but for now, Logan and I would have to do what we did best.

"Just be yourself. Pretend like everything's fine and maybe Thomas might too! I'm sure that they'll be back soon," I smiled hopefully, hiding the fear that I was feeling beneath it.

As Thomas's morality, I had to shine a light on the worst of situations and make sure that everyone stayed positive. Lately, it was starting to seem like that wasn't helping Thomas at all. I was letting him down.

"I doubt that this will work, but I will try," Logan sighed, pushing his glasses up. "Thomas, I know that you're lacking the motivation to do things and you feel as if everything is pointless-"

I cut him off by rapidly shaking my head and slapping my face. "Thomas, what he means is that we're still here for you! They'll be back really soon, so there's no need to be all down in the dumps, right?"

Thomas continued to stare right through us at the wall. His eyes were so empty now. More lifeless than they were before.

"I... um. I don't think it's working, Lo," I mumbled.

"We gotta try something else. Maybe we act like Roman and Virgil and ourselves. It'll be like we're all here."

I was losing hope, but I couldn't let Thomas and Logan see that. I had to help in any way that I could.

"Alright. I suppose I could try to be Virgil," Logan sighed. He pushed his glasses up his nose, trying to think of what he could say to seem more like anxiety than logic. "Uh, Thomas?" He called out, our host loosely turning towards him. "It has come to my attention that you are not fully living your life anymore. I mean, you're making absolutely nothing of yourself by sitting here and sulking. I'm afraid you have a busy schedule to attend to and are wasting your short life."

I flinched a little bit at some of the things he said. I was unaware of how well Logan could play Virgil.
Thomas' eyes darted around Logan's body, almost like he was looking for something. But instead, he released a heavy sigh, slumping further into the couch.

"Sorry, Logan. I just have...no motivation or energy right now. Maybe another time."

"What?! No, Thomas, you have to do this now! You haven't posted anything in almost a week, you've flaked out on hanging out with your friends, and you haven't left the house in five days! Thomas, this is unhealthy! You're falling further in darkness than you should be! Yerks Dodson, remember? Now, get up!" Logan tugged at Thomas' arm to pull him off the couch. His legs gave out as Logan got him to stand and he fell flat on the floor. I rushed over to make sure he was okay, but he looked even worse. He now had heavy gray bags forming under his eyes and a bloodshot look around his pupils.
"Thanks, but I'm okay."

I groaned and sat down next to Thomas. "Hey, I've got an idea! Why don't we watch something funny to cheer you up?"

Thomas's eyes closed and he mumbled that he wanted to rest for a while. All the while, the bags under his eyes grew darker. It reminded me of when we were in Virgil's room and the anxiety became too much for us.

"Lo Lo, I think he needs less of Virgil and more of Roman right now. Look at his eyes," I said softly, brushing Thomas's hair out of his face.

The logical trait looked closer and recognized what was happening. Thomas's emotions and personality were unbalanced. It was up to Logan and I to fix this.
You're letting everyone down, Patton. You're just making things worse.

I rubbed my forehead and tried to clear my mind. I had to act like Roman. I had to help Thomas get better.

"Hey kiddo, why don't we play a game!" I suggested, trying to perk up. "Name me the silliest monster you can think of and describe it to me!"

Thomas groaned, shutting his eyes for a second.
Logan and I both leaned in. The cogs in his brain were cranking, I could almost see it. His mind was trying to imagine something, but it was up to me to help that aset of himself to do it.

"I-I don't know, Patton," Our host muttered after a while.

"Sure ya do, kiddo! Think of it with me! What colors does it have? Does it have stripes, spots, nothing at all? What kind of feet does it have? What can it do? Does it smell like anything? Do you-!"

"Patton," Logan interrupted. I snapped out of my wheel of questions to see Thomas harshly rubbing his fingers to his temples.

My face immediately dropped, a wave of concern flooding me.

"It is clear that we cannot do what Virgil and Roman do. And obviously us trying only results further into Thomas' suffering."

"But, Logan! Come on, buddy! We're so close, can't you feel it! We are breaking through to his creativity and anxiety, just...maybe we should switch rolls! Why don't you be Roman and I'll-!"

"THIS ISN'T HELPING THOMAS!" Logan snapped. I jumped back in shock, watching logic collect himself before adjusting his tie. "Right now, I think it would be best if we continued to play our parts so that Thomas can continue to somewhat function."

"But he's not functioning, Logie! We aren't helping him! More of us is not what he needs!"

"I said, somewhat function! And the more we argue about this, the more we disrupt him functioning!"
Ilooked back at Thomas, seeing him blankly stare at nothing once again. A heavy sigh pushed through my body before turning back to Logan.

"I am going to my room to relax, Patton. I suggest you do the same."

He sunk down into the floor, leaving me with our zombie-like host. I fell backwards onto the couch, putting my head in my hands.

Of course I screwed this up. How could Logan do something wrong? He's Logan; he's perfect! But me...I'm not. I know that.

"Patton?" Thomas meekly squeaked out.
I poked my head up, seeing him look at me. A small smile grazed my lips as I helped him balance his head against my knee. My arms were wrapped around him, trying to comfort him the best I could. "Am I okay?" He grumbled.

"I don't know, kiddo. B-But I guarantee you, Logie and I are going to make sure you are. Don't worry about a thing, kiddo."

Thomas slowly nodded, mindlessly looking down to the floor. My fingers massaged through his scalp, which I could tell was deeply relaxing to him.
"Get some sleep, kiddo." I told him.

Thomas nodded, his head falling further into my lap. As his breathing came to a steady pace and his face seemed calm, I sighed to myself.

"Virgil? Roman? Come back... please."