Morality

When Roman went to the bathroom to change into his uniform, Virgil and Logan leaned across the table to whisper to Patton.

"Are you guys dating yet?" Virgil whispered with a smirk. Patton's smile drooped for a second, but he pasted it on brighter.

"No. Not yet!"

He tried to sound okay with it, but it was killing him inside a little bit.

Logan frowned, probably guessing at Patton's suppressed feelings, but didn't say anything. Virgil, however, was looking a tad murderous.

"I swear, Roman is just trying to get killed. You guys are soulmates for heavens sakes!" He threw his hands in the air dramatically. Patton was happy Virgil cared, but he was legitimately worried for Roman health after seeing Virgil's look.

"I thought you two were friends?" He asked nervously. Virgil just sent a glare towards the counter, where Roman was now working.

"I am sure he is just confused. He confessed to me that he did not think he would ever meet his soulmate. He was sure they would die or something before they met." Logan paused, flushing a little. "I thought the same thing, actually, until I met Virgil." 

Virgil turned toward Logan, who was squishing himself into the corner in embarrassment. Patton's heart broke as he watched Virgil tenderly hold Logan's hand, wishing Roman ever showed him that kind of compassion.

"Me too! It's nothing to be embarrassed about!" Virgil smiled. Logan relaxed a little.

"Am I the only one who actually thought I'd meet my soulmate, and was excited about it?" Patton asked cheerily. Virgil chuckled a little, still clutching Logan's hand. Great, I'm the third wheel.

Just then, Roman sauntered over.

"Greetings, guests. Orders?" He said, gesturing wildly with his hands.

Virgil rolled his eyes. "I don't have the money. You know this!"

"I work here!"

"Your point?"

"You get a discount."

"Fine. Just get me the cheapest thing that isn't water or a bagel," Virgil finally agreed.

Patton laughed to himself as Logan pulled out a small list for his coffee order. When Logan got hot cocoa, he just got plain Swiss. But when it came to coffee... well, that was a bit more complex.

Finally, Roman turned to Patton. He was originally hurt, because he thought Roman would know his simple order. But then he realized Roman was doing it to offend him. Patton decided not to let it get to him. He gave his simple order.

Roman practically skipped off. Employees didn't usually do table calls unles business was slow, and it was, so there was another employee wandering around and taking orders.

It wasn't too long before Roman was back, balancing three coffees in his hands. He passed them out to Logan and Virgil, before 'accidentally' spilling a little bit of Patton's coffee on Patton. Thankfully, it wasn't burning hot, so while it was definitely unpleasant, it didn't actually burn him.

Patton grabbed it quickly before he could spill more. He was trying to hide a little smirk, and Virgil wasn't even pretending to be okay. He glared viciously at Roman, who shrugged and wandered off to grab some napkins.

Virgil let out a growl. He turned to Logan. 

"What is up with him? He's your friend!"

"Like I said, he just does not know how to confront his feelings. He has had his heart broken too many times." Logan must have seen the crushed look on Patton's face, because he quickly corrected himself. "Platonic heartbreaks, of course. Friends and family. He is not one of those people. Ask him about it sometime." He turned to Virgil. "And I thought he was your friend, too."

Virgil declined to answer, opting instead to take a sip of his coffee. He shuddered happily.

"Okay, as much as I hate Roman right now, he can make a good cup of coffee."

"True," Logan said.

"I'll toast to that!" Patton chimed in. He took a sip and grimaced. As he did so, Roman walked over. He slid onto the cushioned bench Patton was on, across from Virgil and Logan. Patton wasn't stupid. He knew Roman was just trying to push his buttons and get a reaction.

For a second, Patton was angry. Very angry. Why did he, the nicest guy pretty much ever, have a soulmate who completely hated him?

He quickly shoved the thought out of his head. It was not fair of him to judge Roman. Logan had hinted that Roman was going through something, and Patton had to try to help him. Even if it felt impossible.

"This isn't what I ordered!" Patton said smiling. He saw a flicker of humor flash in Romans eyes, but before he could say something, Patton continued. "It's really good! I should go thank whoever messed up my order!"

Roman scowled. 

"It was me."

Patton pretended to gasp appreciatively. "Aww! Thank you Roman!"

His scowl deepened, but he said nothing.

. . .

Eventually, they ended up at Romans. They all cuddled up in heavy blankets. Virgil and Logan took the couch, Roman the armchair, and Patton the floor. Someone else might've complained about getting the floor, but Patton really didn't mind. As a matter of fact, he preferred it.

It was Romans pick tonight, so he chose Tangled. Literally the only movies the four of them watched were Disney or other animated kids films. 

After that was finished, they started Hercules. Halfway through, Roman fell asleep, curled in a ball on the armchair. The three of them voted to just let him sleep.

They were, of course, planning to leave, but that never happened. The movie was almost finished when he looked up to check on Logan and Virgil. They were asleep, Logan holding Virgil safely in his arms.

Patton smiled widely. He remembered when Virgil would stay up excessively late because he was lonely, and Patton wasn't always available. He'd been sleeping much better recently.

When the movie ended, Patton decided it was too late and he was too tired to drive home. It was nearing two in the morning, and he didn't want to miss out on the fun of an impromptu sleepover. He curled up at the base of Romans armchair and fell asleep to the loud snoring of his friends.

So, I've decided to update this book on Wednesday's and my other one on Fridays, so hopefully my updating will be more consistent. I'm also trying to write longer chapters. If you notice any inconsistencies, typos, or plotholes, please let me know. Thank you all for actually reading my book! 400 reads! I hope you enjoyed! ❤️