He Gave Me Wings ° TSS Wing AU ° ON HOLD

Chapter Thirteen

CW: swearing, second-hand embarrassment, fist-fighting

Roman's POV

I groaned, heaving myself up the rope ladder.

We really gotta do something about this, I'm not as agile as I used to be.

I climbed up the wooden ledge, knocking on the front door of the clubhouse.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty!"

That's weird. No groans of displeasure? No snarky retorts?

"Virge! Patton wants us to go somewhere, and that includes you."

Still no response. I opened the door, cautiously walking across the threshold. I checked the kitchen, the living room, even the closet. 

I suppose he might have just left... But without telling Patton? That's cold, even for Virgil.

I shook out my hands, forcing myself to breathe.

I'm sure he's fine. Knowing him, he's wallowing in some forest somewhere.

But for some reason, I still couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong. I pulled out my phone, opening my texts.

     Romano 👑: Is Virgil with you? He isn't at the clubhouse...

     Puffball: I don't think so! Not unless he snuck in like a ninja, anyway 😉

     Romano 👑: All right, do you have any clue where he might be?

     Puffball: The woods at Pike Park, or walking around town. Or maybe he's here, I'm telling you, he acts like a sneaky raccoon sometimes!

     Romano 👑: Okay, I'll take a look around. But you owe me after this!

     Puffball: You owe me from the cat incident! So I guess we're equal...

I laughed, putting my phone away. I couldn't help that those pesky cats were out for blood! I descended the rope ladder, heading to my car again. At this rate, we were never going to make it to the city in time, and I needed to see AKB in Tuck Everlasting. But I guess Virgil still didn't even know that we were looking for him.

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Virgil's POV

"I had a feeling you'd come."

The smirk on Janus' face was smug. He knew why I was here. 

He took my arm.

"Let me show you around the place."

I gritted my teeth, allowing him to steer me into the back rooms of the warehouse.

You assholes better be worth it.

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Roman's POV

"I don't know, Pat. Maybe we should just go without him." 

Patton looks visibly deflated.

"But the whole point was to bond with him!"

"Well, maybe he doesn't want to bond with us! A-and maybe we don't want to bond with him either!"

Patton looks up at me.

"Do you... not like Virgil?"

I'm shocked.

"Not like him! Oh god, Pat, I love you, but you are so dense sometimes."

His eyebrows begin to raise in realization.

"Oh. My. God."

I groan, hiding my face in my hands.

"You like-like him?!"

I let out a muffled laugh, looking up.

"Patton, we are nearly grown adults. We can't just say 'like-like' unironically!"

"Stop trying to change the subject! This explains everything! Why you don't flirt with him as much as other people, why you look at him like th-"

"Woah, woah, woah. Look at him like what?"

"All weird and mushy!"

"Gah, it keeps getting worse somehow! Wait, do you think he knows?"

Patton shrugged.

"For someone as perceptive as he is, he can also be a little dense."

We stood there in silence for a minute. He was the first to speak, as always.

"If you want, we can go out just you and me. We can talk about this-"

He registered my still red face, giggling.

"-or not. But we can do whatever you want, together, just like before him. Does that sound good?"

I smiled.

"Yeah. That sounds amazing."

"Aw, c'mere."

He pulled me into a hug that smelled like vanilla and baking powder, and for the first time in forever, I wasn't thinking about Virgil. I was thinking about my best friend, and how we were gonna have the best day ever.

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Virgil's POV

"Then this is where the... younger members spend their time."

I quick scan of the room told me that this was a sort of arena. Two teenagers were fist-fighting on a dirt floor surrounded by rope. A group of people sat in makeshift stands cheering every time someone landed a punch.

One of the boys in the ring drew my attention. He was radiant, even with blood on his knuckles and unkempt tawny hair falling into his eyes. Then I realized something.

"Oh my god..."

The words fell out of my mouth before I even noticed. Janus turned towards me, confused.

"What is it?"

"Nothing, I just... thought I recognized someone."

"That is highly possible. We have members from all over the nation that frequent or live here. Which one was it again?"

I pointed awkwardly.

"That one."

He looked over, snarling when he saw who I was pointing at.

"I am quite sure you are mistaken. Now, let's move on."

As he dragged me from the room, I hazarded a glance behind me. Lo and behold, I met the boy's eyes. The last thing I saw was his lips, forming a familiar name.

"Vee?"

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A/N: Hey guys, long time no see! Well, more like a month or two. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you did, please hazard a glance at the vote button, and maybe consider following me! Have a great rest of your day/night. -BinChild