December 19th - 11:45am
"Roman?" Gabriel asked the boy in confusion when he saw him sitting in the basement with the other kiddos, playing with them and their toys. The man lifted his head and smiled his usual smile, as if everything that had gone down yesterday hadn't occurred at all.
"What are you...doing here?" He asked, finally climbing down the rest of the staircase and walking over to him. "Oh, Virgil wanted some alone time, and I missed my Prince's and Princesses" he shot a grin at the kids around him who all giggled and Gabriel sighed, at least some people in the house were happy. Actually, he was glad Roman was here, he didn't leave Virgil's room at all yesterday only to get some food, he didn't allow anyone inside unless Virgil let them and even then Roman couldn't leave his side - Gabriel could see why, but he also wanted to talk to Virgil alone, he guessed this was as best time as any.
Not saying another word he headed back up the staircase, catching Harper before she could go into the kitchen. "Make sure Roman doesn't leave the basement" he murmured and Harper nodded, changing her route towards the room. Once the door was closed Gabriel looked around the empty foyer, slowly creeping up the staircase, not wanting anyone to see him enter Virgil's room in case they followed him in.
He didn't knock (knowing Virgil would just send him away) instead he stepped into the room, closing the door behind him and opening his mouth to speak but he stopped when he saw the state Virgil was in. He sat on the edge of his bed on the side, head in his hands, breathing harsh and sporadic.
"Virgil...?"
The boy cowered closer to himself, "l-leave me alone, Gabriel" he demanded but his voice wavered, the boy didn't take it as a threat and walked across the room.
"Do you...need help?" Gabe offered, awkward around the man he barely knew anymore, that ripped him up inside, he was his brother for fucks sake, he wanted to know things about him! Things siblings should know! He wanted a bond with him, but he was scared of rejection, which was why he rejected him first.
"No, Gabe, I'm fine" Virgil responded, tone sharp. Gabriel rolled his eyes, "you're having a panic attack, you are not fine"
"Like you would even care!" Virgil finally lifted his head to send the boy a glare, but it lasted a mere few seconds before he was staring at the ground again, this time gripping the mattress under him tight, gulping in short gasps of air.
Gabriel sat down beside him, but he hadn't dealt with this sort of thing before - sure, he's seen people go through panic attacks, but did he help them? No, someone else did. Someone much more knowledgeable in this certain scenario.
He looked around the room he hadn't been in since Virgil left, he couldn't bare to. He tried once but he guessed it hurt too much.
"Remember when you pushed William out of a window?" He brought up suddenly, Virgil did remember, the memory flashed before his eyes instantly. "How'd you remember?" Virgil responded, voice low and groggy.
Gabriel shrugged, "just one of those things, I guess. Harper was terrified - I found it fucking hilarious" Virgil couldn't help but snort a little, letting out a sigh that hitched but he seemed to be calming down, so Gabriel carried on. "I also remember something else, ma said it was a dream but it's so fucking vivid- you were getting away from dad and slid down the banister, landing on the ground on your back but it didn't bother you at all, you just fucking finger-gunned him as he rushed down the staircase but you were out the house before he could even get to the ground floor"
That memory came back, too, Virgil remembered that day. His dad was pissed because he found weed in his son's room, and Virgil himself was too high to even care, instead of sticking around he bolted and - like Gabriel said - escaped down the banister and out the house fast. Of course when he came back a few days later Matthew was still annoyed but luckily not as angry as before. His weed was gone but Virgil got his hands on more, he stopped years ago now, though. Still, a humorous thought to look back on.
"Yeah, no, that happened..." Virgil drew his eyebrows together, glancing at Gabriel. "You were, like, one, how the Hell do you remember?"
Gabriel rolled his eyes, "I was three, you fuck, besides, I have a good memory"
Now Virgil rolled his eyes, "if only Harper was here to hit you" Gabriel barked out a short laugh, reaching over to swat Virgil who playfully hit him back, but it continued, a back and forth between the two until they were laughing, rolling around on the ground while throwing punches that barely hurt and pulling each other's hair.
"Alright, alright, get off me you homo" Gabriel finally shoved him away, dragging himself up by the bedpost. Virgil snorted at the name-calling, sticking out his tongue at his younger brother childishly. "Fine, hetero, what'd you want?' Virgil fired back, sitting down comfortably on his bed again, glad for the distraction from his thoughts, as before Gabriel entered he wasn't exactly thinking...good thoughts.
Gabriel sat down opposite him, kicking his legs up and leaning on the bed frame. "Wanted to talk" he shrugged nonchalantly, "with the American out of the way I thought now's the best opportunity" Virgil's lips lifted in amusement, eyes gleaming, "wow, Harper really keeps you in check, huh?" Gabriel scoffed, "don't start, anyway..." he drifted, crossing his arms.
"You left, I was pissed about it, I thought it was cus' they were homophobic, that's it" Gabriel pressed his lips together tightly before continuing, "I didn't realise she did what she did to you, and I guess I'm sorry, I treated you like shit because I was still annoyed...growing up William was always fucking off with his work and dad barely understands anyone, teenagers no less, all I had was Harper and ma and I guess I directed my anger at you because I felt so lonely. Low and behold not many people want to become friends with a loser, especially a loser who pushes everyone away.." Gabriel sighed again, his position shifting drastically, once laid out, now scrunched up, one leg hanging off the bed, the other drawn to his chest where he rested his face against his knee, hands fiddling with anything they could find.
"I wanted you, and now you're back I pushed you away like I do to everyone and I wanted to say...sorry" once Gabriel finished, he rose up from the bed and headed to the doorway, not expecting Virgil to grab his wrist, turn him around and tug him into a fierce hug, face pressed into his shoulder. Gabriel stood rigid in shock for a moment, the only people who ever hug him being Harper and his ma, so this was very...new.
Nevertheless, he hugged back, clenching his eyes shut tight and hiding his face in Virgil's neck. The two stayed like that for awhile, unaware of the world around them, thankfully no one disturbed them and they could just have that moment together.
"Now, serious talk" Gabriel pulled back, hands on his brothers shoulders. "Stop using Roman as your personal body guard, you are a grown fucking man, dude, plus you won't be able to keep him away from the kids for too long"
"Look, I'd rather not receive any more homophobia-"
"Yeah, from who, gran?" Gabriel snorted and pushed himself away, "you think I'm letting that cunt anywhere near you? Think again, I'm your brother, I'm your body guard, not that gay Disney Prince"
Virgil rose his eyebrow, "you do realise that's kinda offensive-"
"-Plus, the others want to talk to you, you came here to bond and that's what you're doing - we're having a damn family Christmas once and for all if it fucking kills us, so buck up, bro, cus' ma feels real fucking guilty right now" and in the end that's what Virgil needed to hear. He didn't need protection from his family that weren't planning to hurt him again - apart from Charlotte but Gabriel seemed on that and Virgil was sure the boy might be as strong as Aiden and Aria.
The two left his room, descending the staircase and heading towards the kitchen. "Storage room, I'll knock twice when the coast is clear, then you can talk with ma" Virgil nodded and did as instructed, entering the room while Gabriel carried on into the kitchen. He couldn't really hear much, just a muffled conversation that lasted nearly five minutes before footsteps sounded, coming towards the storage room, a knock rapped twice before the pair of footsteps headed away.
He waited a few more seconds before leaving, spotting the tail end of Gabriel as he turned the corner. Breathing out, Virgil walked into the kitchen, hands stuffed into his jacket pockets. Amelia stood by the kitchen counter, staring through the window at the winter wonderland, sipping from her coffee - Virgil shuffled awkwardly before slowly walking up to her, she spotting him in the window's reflection.
"Virgil?" She murmured, turning to her boy, setting the mug down. Virgil smiled back awkwardly, not really knowing what to do with himself. "Are you okay?" She asked quietly and Virgil nodded in response, his body yelling at him to just turn around and go, this moment was becoming more uncomfortable as the seconds ticked by and honestly Virgil didn't know what the Hell to say to her.
He glanced at the doorway to the room but didn't move. He remembered what Gabriel said, and he did feel bad his mother felt so guilty, plus Gabe might beat his ass if he left without making amends so instead he headed towards the cupboards, searching through them to find the ingredients he would need. From baking cookies with Patton (many times) in the past he knew what to do off by heart now, and apparently so did Amelia who realised what he was doing quick, bringing out bowls and a weighing scale, too.
Although it was quiet, they shared small smiles and glances every now and again, which settled them both even further. Neither was mad at the other. Which was a great relief for both of them.
"Can you pass the flour?" Virgil asked, not watching his mother, hands currently mixing what they already had in the bowl. Before he knew it, a white cloud appeared before his eyes and the side of his face was coated in flour. He turned to his mother who covered her mouth and giggled joyously, the corners of her eyes crinkles and the edges of her lips stretched into a wide grin.
Virgil couldn't be mad, he hadn't heard her laugh like that in awhile and it made his heart feel warm. "Thanks, mom, greatly appreciated" he murmured sarcastically, but the smirk on his face proved he wasn't mad. Reaching for the flour himself, he couldn't help but get some on his fingers and flick it at his mum who laughed harder and shielded herself.
"No, no! Virgil! I'm going to pee!" She yelled out, twisting her legs while Virgil himself began to laugh, the two leaning on the counter while barely letting out any noises. Finally, a full six minutes later they had calmed down, using tissues to wipe away the tears in their eyes. "You started it" Virgil shot immaturely, not swatting away his mother who cleaned away the flour from his face as best as she could.
"You have more grey hairs than your father" she joked and Virgil rolled his eyes fondly. Once the flour was cleaned, the two carried on with the cookies, but now they were talking, sharing jokes and smiling wider now.
Virgil slid the tray of cookies into the oven, wiping his hands on a cloth and telling how long it would take. He glanced over at her when she didn't respond, noticing she was staring at the fridge with a reminiscent gleam in her eyes.
"Mum?"
"Remember when you put Olivia's pet hamster in the freezer?" Virgil hesitated, he did that when he was young, very young, he must've been turning eight around the time. He then relaxed when he realised she wasn't mad. "Yeah well, I was the youngest child for like twelve years, had to get attention somehow" Amelia snorted breathily, turning to stare at her son for a moment before she stepped closer, cupping his cheeks and pressing a kiss to his forehead. He relaxed in her hold, eyes closing for a moment.
"Luckily she survived, although very cold" Virgil chuckled lightly, "I never told her, y'know" she added which made Virgil quirk an eyebrow, the two leaning back. "You didn't?" Amelia shook her head with a smile.
"I feared for your life" she explained jokingly, "she loved that damn hamster, ask her about it now she'll still cry about her death" Virgil chuckled but nodded slightly in agreement, Olivia became attached to that hamster from the start and it lasted for a few years - the day she finally died was a month full of tears and Olivia locking herself away in her room.
"What was her name again?"
Amelia laughed, shaking her head. "Who knows"
"Probably Olivia" Amelia chuckled at his response, "don't mention it to her, I'm begging you" at this Virgil smirked, leaning on the counter again and crossing his arms, she could see the mischief in his eyes a mile away.
"What do you want?" She asked knowingly, "oh, nothing, nothing..." he drifted, "just make sure William has a cold shower tomorrow" in the house it was common knowledge William always got to the shower first, (well, that's what most thought, different for Olivia, Roman and Virgil though who get there before everyone else) and while he doesn't spend too much time in there, Virgil thinks he should let others have first go.
"Done and done" Amelia grinned, the two shaking hands on it. Virgil wouldn't be surprised if his mom already wanted to do that to William, anyway.
The two finally sat down at the table, waiting for the cookies to bake while chattering mindlessly, on and on about anything they could think of. Awhile later, Gabriel came into the room with an urgent look on his face. "Up, you two" he demanded, "up up up!" He continued without giving them an explanation, grabbing his brother and mother by the arms and pulling them out of the room then into the storage room beside.
"Wait in there" he commanded, closing the door quickly. Virgil glanced at his mom but he couldn't see much with the lack of light. "Oh, Gabe" Amelia sighed and Virgil snorted, the two going silent to hear what was happening.
"Where's Amelia?" They heard her voice and instantly Virgil grabbed his mum's hand, she held his back tight.
"She's busy" Gabriel responded, watching as Charlotte looked around the kitchen, sniffing the air for a moment. "Cookies, huh? A tasteless snack" she tutted and Gabriel's eyes hardened, how fucking dare she diss cookies like that. That's it! He officially hated this woman he wished he wasn't related to. It's not like he's ever liked her, really, she was that person he and Harper strayed away from whenever they could, especially as she always had something to say about Harper's appearance or how Gabriel isn't doing anything sporty or mechanical at the moment.
The one time she made Harper feel so self conscious she cried Gabriel was so close to punching her into unconsciousness, but after Harper swatted him jokingly, telling him 'that would be rude' he didn't, he stayed by her side the entire night and kept Charlotte away from his sister for the rest of the holidays which thankfully only had a few days left.
"Do you need anything else?" Gabriel asked, leaning back into the wall when Charlotte shot him a glare that shut him right up. "Watch your tongue, Gabriel. Amelia didn't raise you to be rude" she spoke sternly and Gabriel bit his tongue hard to stop himself from shooting back an insult. She didn't say anything else, just gave the room one more once over before she left to a separate part of the house.
Gabriel relaxed, taking in a few breaths before knocking on the storage door twice, leaving the hallway before either his ma or brother could talk to him.
"I've never eavesdropped like that before" Amelia said once they were back in the kitchen, looking all giddy. "It felt amazing" she added and Virgil chuckled, he did feel a little worried for Gabriel but knew if he tried to find him he'd most likely bump into Charlotte and starting another argument didn't sound like such a good idea.
In the last remaining time, Virgil rummaged through the drawers until he picked out a set of cards, laying them out on the table so the two could pass the time quicker. Low and behold, it worked, and soon enough the cookies were done.
"I'll take them out, don't want you getting burnt" Amelia cooed at her son who stared at her blankly, "I'm a grown man-"
"Still my baby boy!" She corrected, pulling out the tray and placing it on top of the stove, putting the oven-mitts to the side. "Whatever" Virgil grumbled, staring at the cookies in satisfaction, they looked good! Thank you Patton, he thought to himself.
"Where'd you learn to bake?" Amelia started conversation while bringing out two plates. "Oh, my friend in America" Virgil waved off, using a tissue to place a few cookies onto his plate, Amelia doing the same for the two were very hungry for the delicious delectable. Once waiting for them to cool for a few minutes, they both took a bite and groaned in delight.
"They're good!" Amelia complimented and Virgil smiled. "We should bake more often" She then added as an afterthought and Virgil agreed.
Afterwards, he grabbed another plate of cookies and left the room, Amelia going about to do her own thing while Virgil walked through the house and to his father's office. He didn't knock, he walked straight in and sat down opposite his desk, placing the cookies beside his laptop, carrying on eating his own while watching his dad who blinked, silently asking what all this was about.
Virgil stayed quiet, just ate his cookies, one by one so William began to eat his too, the silence was a tad awkward, both of them not really knowing what to do with their eyes that lingered on one another as they ate.
"Thank you" his dad gestured to the cookies, "these are...nice" he added awkwardly.
Virgil didn't respond to it, he instead put his empty plate down and leaned forward, a smirk drawing at his lips. "Round two, old man?"
Not even five minutes later the two were outside in the back garden, dressed in winter gear while throwing snow balls at one another, laughing and ducking behind tress, bushes, anything they could find really.
"You're going down, Virgil!" Matthew yelled from behind a tree, a few snowballs resting on his arm, ready to be thrown in Virgil's direction.
"Ha! As if I'll lose to a senior citizen" he taunted, tucked away around the side of the porch, eyeing the side of his dad that poked out from behind his hiding spot. "This senior has a lot left in him!" Matthew called back, turning his head to see where his son was, spotting his head poking out over the wood. The two had the same idea, as quickly they were launching snow at each other over the garden, their laughter filling up the outside world.
And suddenly, Virgil had an idea. When his dad was down, gathering more snow, he grabbed a bunch in his arms and sprinted over as fast as he could, dumping it all onto his head and laughing while he did so. Matthew let out a yell of surprise, reaching to grab Virgil's leg before he could run, which resulted in him falling head first into snow, yelping in shock but laughing again afterwards.
"Sneaky, very sneaky" Matthew commented, flinging snow at Virgil's face, the boy squawking and kicking snow back at him. This lasted for awhile, Virgil finally rolling away, both men on their knees, gathering snow their arms and launching it at the other until the space around them was snowless and they could actually see the ground beneath.
"Alright, alright" Matthew panted, collapsing back into a tree. "I'm done" he held up his hands in surrender and Virgil smirked triumphantly, sitting in the dug up space around him so his butt actually sat on grass and not snow.
"So, bet life sucks in America, with no snow and all that" while most of America does get snow, the area Virgil lived in certainly did not, while he didn't hate that, he sometimes missed it over Christmas, not being able to watch the snow glide from the clouds, or have snowball fights with friends.
"I guess, but nothing could beat the snow battles we used to have" Virgil smirked a little and his dad chuckled, "William and Olivia would get so mad they couldn't join in" that made Virgil cackle, one of the memories he actually savoured before he came out as a young teenager. He and Matthew didn't have much to bond over, so when they began their snow ball fights they were for each other only - his older siblings didn't like that much.
"Thank you for coming here, Virgil" Matthew murmured after awhile and Virgil sighed, tossing a light bit of snow at him playfully. "I wanted to hate you all, but hey? Your family, so whatever"
Matthew nodded in understanding, "not all of us our family. Not the ones who have passed, or are so close to passing you just want to do it yourself" Virgil grinned at his insinuation, murdering his grandmother? Didn't seem like such a bad idea at the moment.
"Soon, then we can have a Christmas we can all enjoy. Please, as soon as she's dead invite me! Staying over Roman's house with like seventy people is fucking torture! A big mansion can feel like a one story, two roomed shit hole! And don't even get me started on the fact they all speak Spanish, which isn't bad, but what the Hell are they saying!?" Virgil wasn't really mad, a little ticked off as he thought about it but when his father began to laugh he did, too.
"You should've heard what he said to Charlotte a couple days ago, couldn't understand a word but the way he said it, I shuddered - I think Aiden shuddered"
Virgil smirked, "he does sound dangerous when he speaks Spanish" he agreed and the two fell back to silence for awhile, then before they knew it conversation was flowing between the two like nothing, they were bonding more than when Virgil lived with them (post coming out) and although Virgil couldn't really understand why, he was glad for it.
Finally, when their teeth began to chatter so much they could barely speak they retreated inside the house, warmth surrounding their shivering bodies.
"Go warm up, wouldn't want you getting ill" Matthew ruffled his hair then pushed him away with a smile on his face. "You too, old man" Virgil fired back before he left the room, darting upstairs and into his room, hoping to not bump into anyone, especially her.
His room was empty, so he assumed Roman was with the kids. Sitting on his bed, he smiled down at his hands covered with gloves.
Maybe coming here was a good idea after all.