A/N: ALRIGHT GUYS, GALS, AND NONBINARY PALS. THIS IS MY VERY FIRST PRIDE PIECE.
Azure is my OC. I made them non-binary because I want to include more people, but I am not nonbinary. I'm a demigirl, but not enby. SO if any of my non-binary peeps out there catch any issues with Azure, don't be afraid to tell me and I'll change it!
EDIT: OCTOBER 12 2021
I was in denial at this point... I am non-binary, Azure was the first manifestation of my identity. So uh, yeah... Just putting this here...
NOW ONTO THE PRIDE CHAPTER.
TW: severe Homophobia, sadness, maybe a little physical abuse?? Ig?? And Karens and Chads. Because sure.
Word count: 2237
Logan took a seat at the little booth, putting his coffee down in front of him. His boyfriend, Patton, was quick to follow him. He put his Hot Chocolate down next to Logan and scooted over until he was leaning on him.
Logan smiled slightly and put his arm around Patton's shoulders. "I'm going to work on one of my papers," Logan informed him.
Patton nodded and yawned. "I'm exhausted!" He muttered, "I might just take a nap."
Logan nodded in understanding. The life of a student was hard! He didn't blame Patton for wanting to sleep. It felt like forever since the two had had a good night's rest.
It had become tradition for the two boys to go to the cafe down the street and just relax. Goodness knows they needed it! They came here so often they'd made friends with some of the employees! It was a break from everything at home, a welcome escape from the abundant homophobia that constantly surrounded them. Nothing hurt the way those words do.
Logan pulled a laptop out of his backpack and set it down on the table. Patton relaxed into him as Logan began working on the essay. He had most of it down, but the closing paragraph and the Bibliography needed help.
Psychology really was a fascinating class but the reports could get tedious over time.
About 30 minutes later, Logan had submitted the report and sat back, breathing a sigh of relief. Patton had finished his Chocolate a while ago and was leaning on Logan's shoulder, his eyes closed.
Logan looked down at his boyfriend and felt a smile creep onto his face. Patton's rounded glasses were slightly askew and his freckles stood out against his pale skin. Logan was a very lucky man.
He leaned down and kissed the top of Patton's head. His hair smelled like vanilla and strawberries, making Logan smile. He rested his head on Patton's, just enjoying his presence.
Patton stirred at the contact, his beautiful baby blue eyes fluttering open.
"You fell asleep," Logan whispered, looking down at his boyfriend.
Patton nodded groggily, smiling up at him. "I didn't think I was that tired," he said, "but it sure felt good!"
"I bet." Logan felt a smile tease at his lips. Patton always was one to see the good in everything. That was one of the plentiful reasons why Logan was so in love with him, although he'd never admit it.
Logan wasn't good with feelings. He had trouble expressing how he felt about most things, relationships being at the top of that list. He understood how frustrating that must be for Patton, who was basically the complete opposite. Patton, however, never snapped at him; yet another reason why he loved him.
Patton grinned, snuggling closer and laying his head on Logan's shoulder. Logan smiled as well, wrapping his other arm around his boyfriend.
"I love you, Lo," Patton whispered. He stretched up and pecked Logan's cheek, making him blush. They'd been together for a while now, but Logan still got butterflies!
"I love you too," he said affectionately. The sun from the shop's window illuminated his freckles and the stunning shade of his eyes. Logan leaned down and pressed his lips against Patton's in a chaste kiss. Patton kissed him back, smiling gently.
Logan loved the feelings that Patton incited in him. They were the best thing to happen to each other!
Through the haze of fog that the kiss had created in his mind, Logan heard the small ring of the bell over the door. He thought nothing of it, enjoying the pure bliss of this moment.
And then came a sound he hoped he'd never hear. It pierced like an arrow through his mind, making his heart drop into his stomach and a frantic terror grip his chest.
"LOGAN?!"
His eyes flashed open and he jerked away from Patton, who gasped and spun around. Both of their gazes immediately flicked to the group who'd just entered the coffee shop.
Patton shot to his feet, Logan following. Quickly, he stepped in front of the smaller boy, putting himself between them and their parents. This must be the worst way for them to find out!
Logan's mother stalked over to them, followed by Patton's father. He could feel Patton shrink behind him, trying to hide.
Then the yelling began. "HOW DARE YOU?", "SO IMMORAL!", "YOU'RE GOING TO HELL FOR THIS.", "GOD DOESN'T LOVE YOU!"
Patton had tears streaming down his cheeks as he faced his father. Logan's jaw was clenched and he just stared at the ground. He didn't want his mother to find out like this!
He wanted to reach out for Patton, to hold him and protect him from the horrid words being hurled at them. He wanted to comfort him! Is that so wrong? Is it so wrong to love someone? Love is an undescribable emotion, not something you're allowed to pick and choose! Why can't people see that?
The ranting went on for a few more minutes before Patton's father grabbed his forearm harshly and tried dragging him away. He yelped and tried pulling away but his father just kept dragging him toward the door.
Logan started forward but his mother pulled him back, saying something about "not being done with you yet." Logan was barely listening to her. All his attention was focused on his boyfriend.
Patton looked over his shoulder, still trying to free himself, tears falling from his face. "Dad stop! You're hurting me! Stop!" He whimpered, "Logan!"
"Patton!" Logan yelled back. He violently ripped his arm out of his mother's grip and ran to Patton. He grabbed his hand and jerked him roughly away from his father.
Patton immediately buried his face in Logan's chest, crying, and clutching the front of his shirt. Logan wrapped his arms protectively around his boyfriend, glaring at the 4 people in front of them.
He opened his mouth to defend himself and Patton, but was cut off by someone else.
"Hey, is there a problem?" One of the employees had come over, trying to see if this was something that needed to be handled, "You're disturbing everyone else here!"
Logan knew them. They had a pixie cut, dyed in three varying shades of blue. Their name was Azure and they regularly served him and Patton their drinks! A little Enby pin was stuck onto their apron, just above the name tag. This would not end well. Azure could be extremely confrontational if they were pressed.
Logan's mother spun around. "Of course there's a problem! How dare you let this immoral THING happen in your shop?! It's wrong, disgusting, and shouldn't be legal! Don't let them corrupt you, young lady. If I had any idea this was happening, I would have put a stop to it a long time ago."
"Oh," Azure said, obviously uncomfortable, "I use they/them pronouns."
"Why?" Patton's father said, his nose wrinkling in disgust, "You have a gender, young lady. Use the CORRECT pronouns. You were born a girl and you always will be a girl, so start calling yourself one before you confuse yourself."
Logan watched as Azure's eyes narrowed. Yeah, this wouldn't be good. They tilted their head back and breathed deeply through their nose, as though begging for patience.
Slowly, with their eyes still closed, they said, "If someone calls me 'young lady' one more time, I will harvest their toes and feed them to my chickens." They opened their eyes defiantly, glaring at the parents. With an icy hardness in their voice, they said, "I am NON-BINARY. I use they/them pronouns and I'll thank you to respect that, unlike the respect you show your own sons."
Azure turned their head over their shoulder, keeping their cold gaze locked on the homophobes. "Hey Liz! Sierra! Come over here! It's your time to shine!"
Patton had turned his head so he could see what was happening, but refused to look in the direction of his parents. Logan followed his gaze and looked over at the cash register as two more employees came to stand at Azure's side. The two girls had smirks on their faces, their fingers laced together. Little pride buttons were pinned on their aprons; one a lesbian flag and the other a trans.
"These... Individuals say that you two are unnatural and immoral," Azure informed them, "What do you have to say to 'em?"
Sierra, always one to take charge, pulled Liz into a passionate kiss without a moment's hesitation. Liz seemed surprised to be so open, but kissed back anyway. Azure stood back with a gleeful smirk plastered across their face.
Logan's mother stared at Azure, opening and closing her mouth like a fish on dry land. She tried to stutter something out but she was so shocked all she could manage was a few syllables before eventually giving up. She turned and stalked out the door. She was soon followed by her husband, who shot a disgusted look at Logan as he left. It hurt. For some reason, Logan got the impression that he wouldn't be welcomed home anytime soon.
Patton's father was glaring at everyone, especially Logan and the two girls, who were now standing with their arms around the other's waist.
"I hope you all rot in hell." He spat. Patton flinched, leaning into Logan even more. Logan tightened his grip on Patton, glaring at the man.
"Well," Azure said, that smirk still spread on their face, "if we rot in hell, at least we know we'll have better company than you." Waving sarcastically, Azure gestured to the door.
And with that, Patton's parents were gone.
Logan held Patton tighter, burying his face in his boyfriend's curly blond hair. The smaller boy was still shaking, his hands traveling up to his arm where his father had gripped him.
Azure glanced at Logan and Patton, the smirk instantly fading from their face. They walked over and said, "C'mon you two. Come sit down." Logan sent a mouthed 'thank you' to them, to which Azure just nodded, smiling slightly.
Logan brought Patton over to the booth they had been occupying. Liz and Sierra went back behind the counter, busying themselves with something. Azure followed Logan. He sat down, pulling Patton next to him.
"Why would they say those things?" Patton whimpered. "Why don't they love us anymore?"
"I'm sure they do, sweetie," Azure said softly, "they're just going to need some time to think this all over."
Logan nodded, gently slipping Patton's glasses off. He wiped the salty tears off with the hem of his shirt and placed them on the table. Patton looked at him, his eyes and cheeks wet, red and puffy. Logan wiped away his tears with the pad of his thumb, smiling sadly.
"And even if they never accept us," Logan whispered, "we still have each other. No number of homophobes or wounding comments is ever going to make me love you any less."
Sierra had come back, holding a large cup of coffee. Liz followed right behind her girlfriend, carrying a mug of steaming hot chocolate. They set them down in front of the two boys before taking a seat on the opposite side of the booth.
Liz laid her head on Sierra's shoulder, giving Patton a small smile. "It's going to be okay, hun," she said softly. "My parents reacted like yours did. Sometimes they don't come around and sometimes they do. But whether they accept you or not, you have to remember that they are only a part of your life. They don't control you! You can be whatever you want to be, you can love whoever you want to love! You will never be alone because I know for a fact that the man sitting next to you will never leave your side."
Logan and Patton both blushed, looking at each other for a second. Patton smiled and leaned into him, nodding.
"I know," he whispered, "I love you Logie." Logan grinned and pulled Patton's head up, pressing a tender kiss to his lips. Patton's lips were salty from the tears and his cheeks were still damp, but Logan didn't give a flying fluff. Patton was his, no matter what. Nothing would take them away from each other.
Azure, Liz, and Sierra all let out little squeals. Sierra pulled Liz into another kiss as Logan and Patton pulled away from each other. Now, it was Patton's turn to squeal.
Azure snorted, "I'm SUCH a fifth wheel, you guys!"
The couples laughed, pulling them in to a makeshift group hug across the table. Logan and Patton smiled at each other. This was fine.