While Roman didn't have an electric guitar, he had an acoustic one. He pulled it out of its case, tuning it quickly before beginning to play. A sigh escaped his lips as he strummed the notes of a familiar song. It happened to be by Virgil's band, Anxious Storms, Malicious Roses, and it was on of his only real love songs. Glancing at the clock, he put the guitar away and carried it out to his car. Once he was ready to go, he put the address into his navigation system and headed for the band's rehearsal space.

The closer he got, the more nervous he felt. He'd done his homework, but Roman couldn't help but be scared to mess up. It didn't feel real; he was actually going to be playing music with Virgil and his band.

Is this a good idea? the actor wondered. Should I be trying this during my break from theatre and film? This isn't just dabbling in music, this is filling in for a world famous band, with someone I used to be madly in love with, scratch that, am still madly in love with. Will this help or harm my mental health?

Roman wasn't given anymore time to think about it, pulling into the parking lot of the studio. He swallowed nervously, parking his car and heading inside with his guitar. There were a bunch of unfamiliar faces, all moving with a purpose or busily working on something. The princely man was beyond flustered as he read the studio number on his card again, trying to find his way.

"Roman?"

His head snapped up upon hearing a familiar voice. He sighed in relief, smiling. "Thank god, I have no idea what I'm doing," he told Virgil, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. The darkly dressed man jerked his head in a way that said to follow him. He led him to their space, which was huge and had so many instruments he couldn't count them all. "Wow, you guys really have been doing well!"

"Yeah, we've been fortunate..." Virgil managed in response, voice quiet.

The actor looked toward him, feeling his heart sink. "Regretting this already?" he asked with a sigh. "I can go, Virgil. If you're not comfortable with this, you don't need to do this."

"No, I'm fine, and we have a concert in two days, so I don't really have a choice," the rockstar said, sitting down. "That's not what I meant though... sorry, I'm just stressed about the tour. Okay, come over here so I can make sure you know what you're doing."

He handed Roman an electric guitar, tuning his own. The instrument felt foreign in his hands, having not truly played in years. The actor sat down next to him, testing out the guitar. Within twenty minutes, he began to wonder where the other members were.

"Hey Virge, where's the rest of the band?" he asked.

The rockstar laughed, looking at him with a head shake. "I told you to come a few hours early so I could make sure you didn't make a fool of yourself in front of the others," he explained, smirking.

"Oh, ha ha ha," Roman replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "I wouldn't do that."

"Sure," Virgil said with a laugh, looking at him with a smile.

For a moment, both of their hearts stopped. Roman's stopped because of the way he was looking at him. He had that soft smile and affectionate eyes. That's how he used to look at you... he thought. There's that look... that look you should've acting on seeing before. It's right there. It's been almost seven years since you've seen it, and there it is.

A small breath escaped Virgil's lips as he looked at the princely man in shock. They'd only been alone together for twenty minutes and he felt like his chest was going to burst.

"Uh, so... you were showing me the chords?" Roman managed, voice shaking as he played the wrong one.

The darkly dressed man reached out instinctively, stopping his hand. "That's not right..." he said quietly. He guided his hand to the correct chord, looking up to meet his eyes. "There..."

They stared at each other, flushing bright red. They were too close to each other for their heart rates to be normal. Roman's eyes slipped down to the singer's lips, feeling guilty the moment it happened and quickly averting his gaze. Virgil had done the same when he wasn't looking, biting down on his bottom lip as the princely man turned his head away with a shuttering breath. 

"Sorry," the rockstar breathed, pulling away with an embarrassed laugh. "Old habits..."

"Yeah, they're a little hard to get rid of completely, aren't they?" Roman said, chuckling and smiling up at him in a way that made his heart jump in his chest. "I mean, not that I can blame myself, given you've only gotten more attractive."

Virgil blushed and laughed, embarrassed and flustered as he brought a hand to his mouth to stop the giggles. "Thanks Princey, but let's not go back down that road."

The way he said it didn't suggest anything malicious. "Bygones," the fill-in guitarist nodded.

With an agreeing nod, they were back to rehearsing. The pair lost track of time and forgot the others were coming when they heard the knock on the door. Two familiar faces entered, smiling. "Hey guys!" Luis greeted, looking between them. Roman swiftly stood up and moved to shake hands with them. "Nice to be reacquainted, Roman."

The princely man nodded, offering a smile as he moved to shake hands with Joan. "Nice to see you again, Joan," he greeted, smiling. The non-binary bassist nodded.

"Alright, he knows all the songs for the show, we can worry about teaching him the other ones later, but we need to focus on being prepared for tomorrow."

They all nodded and got in their positions. Virgil picked up his mic, clearing his throat. He was feeling nervous about singing live in front of Roman, but he took a deep breath and began the song. 

~

To say Virgil was nervous about their show would be an understatement. It would be Roman's first time playing live with the band since they'd been forced to get him at the last minute, and it would be his first time performing without De.

He stood alone in the dressing room, makeup finished and completely in costume, but unable to make his way to the stage. He knew they were starting in just a few minutes, but he stood there fidgeting with a pencil and leaning forward to jot down some lyrics. The others were looking for him, he knew.

Roman had been the one to find him, opening the dressing room door not expecting to see him. He let out a quiet gasp upon looking at the rockstar sitting there with his head down.

"Virgil? You okay?" he asked as he stepped inside and closed the door behind him. "You know the show's starting soon."

"I know..." he replied softly, not looking up.

The guitarist frowned, sitting down next to him and placing a hand on his shoulder. "Do you always get nervous?" he asked, keeping his voice as gentle as possible.

"Not really, but this is different," Virgil answered, staring at his hand on his shoulder. "What happens if they don't like you? This is already monumentally bigger than either of us have prepared for. I didn't stop to think about what would happen to your reputation enough... what if something goes wrong on stage? What if this ruins your image as an actor and performer? What if-"

Roman reached up, putting a finger to his lips. "None of the 'what if' questions, Virge," he scolded. "You'll freak yourself out."

He nodded with a heavy sigh as the guitarist pulled his hand back. Something crossed his mind that hadn't before. The rockstar flushed looking down as he swallowed. "H-Hey Roman, um... De and I..." he started, rubbing the back of his neck. "We... we used to do a lot of... well, stage gay... to make the fans crazy... I'm not saying I want to do that with you, especially given our precarious relationship, but I'm warning you because... I kinda forget who I am when I perform..."

He didn't know how to respond, so he nodded. "I'll play along with whatever you end up doing," Roman said calmly.

The rockstar nodded, swallowing again. "I just hope that I don't accidentally go too far," he mumbled. "With the heat and adrenaline and everything... my judgement usually goes out the window."

"I'm not worried!" the princely man replied with a laugh.

Virgil managed a shaky smile as he put a hand around his shoulders and they started walking toward the stage. They separated once it was time to go on, the singer taking a deep breath as he soaked in the sound of the people in the stadium. Sure, some of them were just here because they thought he was cute or hot or wanted to fuck him. Some were just here for Roman after catching wind that he'd be performing with them; but the majority of those people out there resonated with his words and that filled him with an energy he couldn't describe. His shaky smile turned to a smirk of confidence as the other band members headed onto stage and began the first song. The screams grew louder as he held the mic to his lips and began singing from off stage.

Roman smile breathlessly when the singer made his way onto the stage, looking like a completely different person. He looked so alive as he pranced across the stage with smile. At the end of the song, he bowed briefly as they screamed.

"Alright! I can tell you guys are going to be awesome tonight, BUT! Before we can continue I want to introduce someone you may have heard of," Virgil said, smirking as he looked around. The guitarist flushed, having not expected to be announced like this. "My best friend from childhood, a kick-ass actor and our replacement guitarist for the time being: ROMAN PRINCE!"

The actor was shocked by the wave of screams and cheers that followed his name. He was used to fame, but actors were different from musicians. He could see people gawking at his films and shows, but this was entirely different. He smiled shyly, rifting a little on the guitar and earning a shocked smile from Virgil.

"When the hell did you learn that?" he asked as he walked over to him.

Roman took his microphone, leaning into it as he answered him. "I watched some of your old videos," he replied with a wink, earning more cheers.

"Oh, so you've been stalking me, Prince?" Virgil questioned, approaching him with a flirtatious look on his face. "You've been stalking me?"

"Only a little," the guitarist replied, earning a laugh as the singer cued for them to start the next song.

The show continued, with Virgil coming over to tease or flirt with Roman at the guitar stand from time to time, but not doing anything too explicit. He kept his head on, and the princely man kept it together as he performed for an audience in a way he never had before. When it was over, the band members of Anxious Storms, Malicious Roses were hugging him and slapping him on the back in the dressing room. 

"Dude you were amazing!!" Luis exclaimed, squeezing tightly around his middle. 

Roman laughed and hugged him back. "Thanks! I'm glad I could help!" he said, grinning up at Virgil who was smiling a little ways away. "It's a shame you only needed me for one show, that was a blast."

"Well, actually," Joan piped up, grinning. "We were planning a Euro tour, and haven't had time to find a replacement. Would you be interested?"

His eyes went wide, flying to the singer to make sure he was okay with this idea. He nodded, giving him a knowing smile that told him he'd already thought about it. Roman smiled, focusing back on the bassist. "Why the hell not?"