Mahogany and Teakwood

Chapter 22: Begonia

i'll wait for you another night

as you like

dressed in himalayan white

Virgil and Patton didn't go out the next day because Patton had to work.

The day after that, Patton also had to work.

The Patton Virgil had known in Arcadia was loyal to a fault, and always, always there when you needed him. The Patton of today hadn't changed much, except he consistently worked long, weird hours at the animal hospital, and constantly agreed to cover other people's shifts.

His work got in the way of so many plans that even anti-social Virgil got a little fed up with it.

It was why two whole weeks passed before Patton finally rolled into the apartment parking lot, driving the oldest, tiniest, brownest, dullest Toyota Camry Virgil had ever laid eyes on.

"Good lord, Patton." Virgil gingerly swung into the car. "What's holding this rattletrap together? Faery dust?"

"Now, don't you insult my Linda." Patton patted the faded dashboard. "She may not look like much, but I'll have you know she's been my faithful girl for over three years."

Virgil adjusted the threadbare seat.

"Only you would give this bucket of bolts a human name. It has a freaking tape deck! Does anyone under age fifty even know what a cassette tape is?"

"It's ok, Linda, he doesn't mean a word of it," Patton whispered, stroking the steering wheel. "Where are we going first?"

Virgil rubbed the back of his neck. He'd given a lot of thought to what his "next" hoodie would look like, even going so far as to browse online for inspiration.

"I actually, uh, had this idea," he said. "But like, it's a little out there, so..."

"Aw, come on, Virge." Patton smiled.

"Well, first I'll need to go to Walmart or someplace and get a plain jacket," Virgil explained. "But after that, could we maybe go to Joanne's? I know the nearest one is all the way in Sanford, but—"

Patton gasped and clapped his hands. "You're going to make something! You were always so good at sewing."

Don't remind me.

"Yeah." Virgil rubbed his neck again. "I know it's kind of a long drive, but—"

"Oh, I can't wait to see it!" Patton threw Linda in reverse and pulled out of the lot. "Walmart, here we come!"

Virgil spent the short drive brainstorming ways to bring up Patton's past, but Patton kept up an incessant chatter about various animals they'd treated that week; he couldn't get a single word in. So instead, he listened, and he catalogued all the little differences between current Patton and the boy he remembered from Arcadia.

This Patton was better fed, a little soft around the edges, but in a sunshine and cotton balls kind of way. His voice was the same: cerulean tenor, gold excitement, slight burr. He squinted less, probably because he finally had the glasses Virgil was sure he'd needed all along. This Patton's hands and heavily freckled forearms were more defined, and he had more of a jawline than Virgil remembered, with a hint of ginger stubble. It made him look noticeably older; although, to be fair, it had been years.

He was also huggably, boy-next-door attractive, Virgil realized, and felt weird for noticing.

They reached the store and walked inside, Virgil feeling naked in public without sleeves and a hood. He hated his skinny arms and jutting elbows; he hated crowds in general and Walmart in particular. Unfortunately, he needed the cheapest option. Halloween had tapped heavily on what little he'd saved up, and Christmas's week-long paycheck gap hadn't helped.