The Rainy Day Coffee Shop - Sanders Sides AU

Part 11 - The Family

Virgil walked down the deserted street, glancing at the house numbers every so often. It was Saturday, and Virgil's week had been uneventful - Roman had come back to the coffee shop on the Tuesday, relieving Virgil's anxieties by assuring him that he had a big project due that he'd forgotten about. He came back the rest of the week, and they chatted like usual, however the topic of their kiss had never seemed to come up. Virgil texted with him each night, along with chatting on the group text too. They decided to watch a movie at Patton's house, so that they could meet his brother and dad. Roman got to pick the movie, and chose Frozen. Patton seemed up for it, but Logan said it was too childish. In the end, his need to impress his crush got the better of him and Virgil took Roman's side. Glancing at the passing houses, Virgil felt nerves and excitement pulsing through him as he thought about meeting Patton's family. What if his Dad didn't like him? What if it was really awkward? Various other "what if?"s and "I bet"s were flying around his head, as he assumed and worried over every little detail, before he finally arrived at Patton's house. It was a fairly big family house, pleantly of space for a parent and two children. Virgil recognised Roman's white car parked outside the house; he must already be here. Virgil walked through the front yard and knocked on the blue door. There was a pause as he heard commotion behind the door, along with the barking of what sounded like a small dog. Then, the door opened, and Virgil found himself in the presence of a short adult man. He had dark brown hair, and was wearing a red shirt. In his arms was a small black Pomeranian, panting and squirming with excitement. The man wore a big smile on his face when he saw Virgil.

"Oh, hello! Are you one of Patton's friends?" The man asked.

"Uh, yeah. I'm Virgil." He replied.

"Nice to meet you, Virgil! I'm Thomas, and this is Terrance." He gestured towards the dog, before extending a hand.

Virgil shook it politely, and Thomas invited him inside.

"Patton," Thomas yelled upwards, "Your friend Virgil is here!"

"Tell him to come upstairs!" A familiar voice yelled back.

Thomas turned to Virgil, "He'll be up in his room. I believe you're the last to arrive!"

"Thank you, sir." Virgil mumbled, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"Oh, please," the man chuckled, "Call me Thomas."

Virgil laughed nervously, before heading towards the staircase. He couldn't believe how welcoming Thomas had been. His parents had never let him have friends over, and even if they had they probably would have yelled at the guests like they were intruders. Besides, nobody wanted to come round to theirs anyway, due to their bad reputation.

Virgil was so deep in thought, that he nearly ran into a small child on the staircase.

"Ah, sorry Dad!" The boy giggled, before glancing up, "Oh, you're not my dad!"

"Not last time I checked." Virgil chuckled.

The boy laughed. He looked a lot like Patton - the blonde hair, the glasses, the wide smile. He seemed to be around ten or eleven, and was wearing a shirt with some cartoon character on it.

"I'm Emile, nice to meet you!" The boy said, grinning.

"Uh, nice to meet you too?" Virgil was a little confused. Why was this boy being so friendly?

"If you're looking for Patton, he'll be in his room. Third door down!" Emile bounced on his heels, before scurrying down the stairs with a giggle. Virgil look back at him, his heart warming. Emile and Patton had gone through so much as kids, and yet they were both so... happy. It almost made Virgil feel guilty; they had gone through so much more than him, and yet he was a million time more depressed than the two of them combined. Hot with shame, Virgil made his way up to Patton's room.