"Virgie! Look! I found the Winnie the Pooh stuffie! And Lo-Lo got a Baymax one!" one exclaimed. He was the complete opposite of his- older brother, presumably- dressed in a soft, pastel sweatshirt and a knee-length skirt. He pushed the stuffed bear up for him to see.
"Virgil can see that, Pat," his twin stated. Despite the fact of being so little, he wore a collared shirt and blue necktie, like a mini businessman, though there was a light of excitement in his eyes too as he hugged his own plushie.
Virgil laughed lightly, "Patton's just excited, let him be, Logan," he ruffled Patton's hair as he continued. "And it's great, Pat. Are you both happy with what you found?" The twins nodded enthusiastically.
"Did you find what you wanted?" Lo asked, both looking up at their brother with large, expecting eyes.
"Uh, no, no Black Cauldron stuff here," he replied, a hint of disappointment in his voice.
Patton's shoulders slumped, "No Gurgi or Hen Wen?" he asked, sounding so upset, as if he was the one who longed for the merch instead of his brother.
Roman felt his heart drop, he did take this job to see the smiles of kids- and the discounted Disney items- but mostly the smiles.
"It's alright, kid," Virgil gave him a half-hearted smile. "I'll just get something else. Maybe a Nightmare Before Christmas poster." Patton, however, seemed unconvinced.
Roman could sense Virgil's gaze on the wall of posters behind him. He subtly tried to follow his gaze and saw it land on the matching posters of Jack Skellington and Sally. They were limited edition, Virgil obviously had good taste. All of the posters were almost sold out, the shelf where they had been, empty. Roman had managed to nab the last one, placing it in one of his boxes to purchase once he got off of work. Was it fair? Not really. But he had wanted them really bad! They would look perfect on his wall!
Virgil chuckled humorlessly to himself, patting the space where the item would have been. "Or not." Patton looked as if he was about to cry, clinging to Virgil's legs. Even Logan looked mildly upset by the outcome.
At that moment, Roman realized he had royally messed up. Virgil wasn't trying to cause trouble. He, like most everyone else, grew up with Disney and was sharing the magic with his younger brothers. He should've known better than to judge him by appearance. Disney was never wrong in their teachings. He made the split-second decision to help make the twins smile, and perhaps even give a proper apology to Virgil.
"I'd hate to interrupt," Roman started, ignoring the questioning look Virgil sent him, as he crouched down to address Patton. "But did you say you liked Gurgi?"
Patton looked at him with his big sad eyes, sniffling before nodding.
"Well, we don't have any Gurgi plushies, but," Roman pretended to tap his chin thoughtfully before brightening as if an idea had struck him. He searched through one of the boxes he had still yet to stock, and in his, rusty, but decent Gurgi impression he said, "Munchings and crunchings in here somewhere." This got a small giggle out of Patton, even his twin seemed to brighten at the quote. They both tried to peer over Roman's shoulder to see what he was getting, but he blocked the view.
He grabbed the poster he had put away for safekeeping. He supposed there would always be new posters he could buy later on. He dramatically turned on his heel in his crouched position. He pulled the rolled tube into view as if he were unsheathing a sword and held it out to the twins with both hands.
Patton gasped in delight before looking down a bit confused, his enthusiasm ever-present. Logan, however, smiled in recognition. "Virge, it's the poster!"
Roman looked up to meet Virgil's eyes with a small smile, standing up and offering it to him. "Lucky for you, it's the last one. Worthy for a dark and stormy knight like yourself."
Virgil's gaze softened considerably at Roman though he rolled his eyes, a smile tugging at his lips. "If I'm the knight who's the prince?"
He opened his mouth to speak, about to gesture to the twins when Patton beat him to it. "He is, silly!"
Virgil and Roman both widened their eyes, fighting blushes, realizing the implications of the statement. Virgil wouldn't meet Roman's eyes as the employee tried to remedy the situation. "I- I mean, I won't deny that I'm a prince, but I was talking about you little princes right in front of me."
Patton and Logan both grinned at that, as Virgil cleared his throat. "We should get going, Mom will be calling soon," he said, rounding up his brothers and pushing them to the direction of the checkout lines. He looked over his shoulder, sending Roman a crooked smirk. "Thanks for the posters, Princey."
Roman swore his heart skipped a beat. "You're welcome."
YOU ARE READING
Don't Judge A Book By Its Cover
FanfictionRoman Prince loved his job. Sure, the work of retail could be especially tedious at times, but at the end of the day, it was worth it. As long as he could see the young children coming in, eyes full of stars, as they tried to comprehend the overload...
