#mtjsb

Virgil had never felt more thankful for hating his body, as bad as that sounded.

So many years of suffering dysphoria had let him to collect a wide variety of loose fitting clothes, which were proving to be helpful now that he could actually see a baby bump starting to form.

If Virgil even thought about wearing tight clothes, his thin complexion would immediately draw attention to his belly, and that was a big no.

Winter break was over sooner than Virgil would have liked, and now Roman and him were forced to go back to school like two normal teenagers who totally weren’t having a baby. Easy, what could possibly go wrong?

After making sure for the millionth time that his Corpse Bride graphic t-shirt covered his growing belly, Virgil walked out of the bathroom to have some breakfast.

Luckily for Virgil, there was already a plate with pancakes for him once he got to the kitchen.

“Good morning V.” Roman greeted him as Virgil sat down next to him, and gave Virgil a quick peck on the cheek.

Virgil couldn’t help but blush at the affection. It had been three weeks since their talk back at Christmas, and even if they agreed to take it slow and go with the flow, that didn’t keep Roman from pampering him with affection whenever he could.

Virgil could tell he was dialing it back, and he was thankful for Roman respecting his boundaries. It wasn’t like Virgil minded, it was just hard to get used to sometimes.

“Morning, Ro.” Virgil replied as he reached for the blackberry jam. “You know there’s no need to make breakfast for me every morning, right?”

Roman shrugged, already taking a bite of his own pancake tower. He swallowed before replying. “I know, but I like doing it. My brain is still programmed to wake up early to take Zero for a walk, I wouldn’t be able to fall back asleep anyways.”

Virgil could only give him a small smile as a response. Maybe it was his hormones making him extra tired lately, but Virgil couldn’t understand how Roman was able to be so productive this early in the morning. “Well, I do appreciate it. Thank you.”

“Plus,” Roman added as he nodded. “I want to make sure you’re well fed. If it were for you, you’d be napping all day. I’m not going to let you skip breakfast as long as I’m here.”

Virgil rolled his eyes with a light chuckle. “You make it sound like I would starve myself.” He took a bite off his pancakes, waiting to swallow before continuing. “Between you and the baby, there’s no way I would forget to eat. I’m so glad the nausea is dying down, but now they won’t even let me sleep without a snack first.”

Yeah, new pregnancy symptom unlocked. Cravings.

So far, none of Virgil’s cravings had been extremely weird. Virgil had been fully expecting his mind to play tricks on him and convince him that a pickle with chocolate or something crazier would taste good like all the pregnant people on the internet claimed, but there hadn’t been anything like that in the past couple of days.

Virgil was still being careful with what he ate, though. They had a list on the fridge with the food the doctor told them were off limits during the pregnancy, so there was no way anyone would forget… except for that day Remus had decided to cheer his brother up with sushi. At least the edamame beans were good. Maybe they should go get some on their way back from school.

Oh yeah, Remus. He had been coming over during winter break to hang out with Roman. He came with a full on Santa Claus costume on the morning of the 25th, claiming he had to practice his performance to be the cool uncle. Cute, if his “performance” had been family friendly in the first place.

Even with Remus over, there was still no word from Roman’s parents. Virgil stopped asking at some point, not wanting to see Roman’s disappointed look as he had to reply. Honestly, Virgil had the suspicion that Roman was simply choosing to ignore this situation entirely.

Obviously, Roman refused to reach out first. Virgil couldn't blame him even if he wanted, considering Roman was not the one in the wrong here. It was better not to bring it up for now, but it was still an issue they definitely needed to tackle in the future.

“Are you nervous to go back to school?” Great, onto another issue.

Virgil shrugged, staying silent as he chewed on his food. “I just don’t want anyone treating us differently. This is not the same as if any girl at our school showed up pregnant.” Virgil poked a pice of pancake with his fork as he spoke. “I’ve been doing a great job at going under the radar, and I’m not planning on it changing anytime soon.”

Not like keeping his invisible status would be possible with Mr. Popularity by his side, but Virgil didn’t want any more attention than the one that came with being Roman’s… situationship. Ugh, he hated that word.

“I’m sure we can keep the secret for a bit longer”

Yeah, Virgil didn’t even want to think about walking into school with a seven moth pregnant belly. “I’m not ready for my name to be in everyone’s mouth yet. I think I can get over it by the time we can’t hide it anymore.”

Roman placed his hand on top of Virgil’s, stopping the nervous movement before he crumbled the entire pancake. “And even then, I’ll make sure they mind their own business.” Virgil gave him a look, and Roman sighed. “Remus will make sure they mind their own business.”

Virgil chuckled. “Thanks. Just tell him not to threaten them with cockroaches on their lockers or something”

“You’re saying it like he would actually listen to me.” Roman let go of Virgil so they could both finish eating. “But I’ll tell him to dial it down when the time comes. Don’t worry about it.”

Virgil managed to pick up what was left of his pancake with the fork, not taking too long to finish since they had to head out soon. “Right, when the time comes.”

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Apollo had hit Virgil with the gift of prophecy or something.

As if it wasn’t creepy enough for the cheerleaders to practically move in sync, it was like they were all part of the same hive mind when they all backed away screaming from their lockers, plastic cockroaches falling out of them.

Virgil stood at the end of the hallway, right in front of the rapidly growing crowd of students who were ready to get lunch. The current commotion kept him and the rest of students from walking to their lockers to get their stuff. Virgil would assume a fair bunch of them would be afraid of finding themselves in the same situation as the popular girls. What was going on here?

“Get back here you little shit!”

A scream could be heard right behind the crowd, just as someone pushed past the sea of people. Almost like they were running from something… or someone.

Remus was running after them, with a look on his face that Virgil could only describe as predatory.

Virgil was quick to quietly shuffle away from the situation. He needed to find Roman, fast. His escape plan was interrupted when the student running from Remus latched onto his shoulders.

Virgil looked back at them, trying to pry from their grasp and identify who the fuck this was. This wasn’t even someone Virgil interacted with, but he knew enough about them to get why Remus could be hunting them down.

This person was the worst, always talking behind people’s backs and getting innocent people in trouble with their pranks. Virgil was pretty sure someone made a rumor about them living in the detention room once. They meant trouble, and Virgil didn’t want to stick around and find out what they had done this time.

“Virgil. Virgil, please please please tell Remus it wasn’t me. I would never say those things about you. Someone is trying to frame me!” They kept a strong grip on Virgil, turning him around to use him as a human shield despite this person being like half a foot taller than Virgil.

Seeing Remus emerge from the crowd didn’t give Virgil any time to reply. He marched right to them, towering over Virgil but directing all his anger towards the person behind him. “You don’t get to drag him into this any more than you already did.”

Geez. Virgil made it a mental note to never get on Remus’s bad side. He wasn’t even mad at him and Virgil was feeling like a deer in headlights. “Could anyone tell me what the heck is going on?”

As if his cries for help were heard, Roman appeared just in time to drag Virgil away from the unwanted grasp he was in. “I came as soon as I could. Are you okay?”

“I am now.” Virgil gave Roman a small smile and looked back at the two troublemakers.

With Virgil out of the way, Remus was quick enough to grab onto the shirt of their fellow classmate and tug them close to his face. “You are dead.”

This person was practically sweating by now. “I-I don’t know who told you it was me, but I swear I didn’t do it.”

“Do what?” Roman asked, trying to push his brother away from his “prey”.

Remus was practically growling. “This fucking!-” He stopped himself, feeling hundreds of nosy eyes on them. Remus dragged the trapped student away to a secluded corner, not even flinching as they struggled to get free, and gestured for Roman and Virgil to follow.

Once they were further away from the rest of the students, Remus kept explaining, keeping his voice low this time instead of screaming. “This rat told on you both. I heard the cheerleaders spreading the rumor and tracked the source. Which lead me right to you.”

If it wasn’t for Roman keeping them separated enough, Remus would have bitten this person’s nose off or something. Though, considering the reaction Roman had to this new information, they may not be out of danger just yet. “They what?”

This was bad.

Virgil had expected to have a few months to prepare for his pregnancy to be revealed to the entire school. Were they seriously so bad at hiding it that it only lasted a few days? Virgil looked around at the students passing by, most of them not aware of their presence. There were, however, a couple of them that noticed the group hidden away in a corner, staring as they walked away.

Virgil wouldn't be able to deal with this right now, not in a cafeteria full of students that had probably already asked what was going on in the hallway earlier. Virgil guessed he appreciated Remus’s intentions, but the cockroach infestation only brought more attention and raised more questions within their peers.

“Okay, yeah. You can kill him.” Roman said, stepping out of the way.

“No. No, no, no. Stop” Virgil took his place as Roman moved. “You are not murdering anyone. No matter how much they deserve it.”

“Once again.” They spoke up, with the confidence of a person who wasn’t about to be decapitated, “I didn’t do it. The cheerleaders told me, not the other way around.”

“They’re telling the truth.” A fifth voice joined their conversation. Janus. Thank God, someone who could actually control Remus.

Janus walked closer to his boyfriend, holding his phone up for Remus to see. “One of those bitches started it. It’s hard to know which one since they’re all clones of the same demon, but they started talking about it before this scumbag even arrived to school today.”

Remus looked between Janus’s phone and the student trapped in his grasp, as if deciding if he should believe the security footage that showed the nosy cheerleader. Virgil decided not to question how or why Janus had access to school security cameras.

With a scoff, Remus let go of his prey, pushing them away as he did. “I guess I believe you. But I’ll make sure you get your own dose of my shit if I ever hear you talk about my brother. Understood?”

The student only nodded and ran away as soon as he could.

Virgil hadn’t even noticed when he had held onto Roman’s hand. He had barely been aware of the last few words spoken. Virgil stared at the ground while he fidgeted with his shirt with his free hand, going through every mental exercise he could remember to ease his anxiety. “W-what are we going to do now?”

Feeling a firm squeeze on his hand, Virgil looked up at Roman. “I can drive you home if you want. We don’t need to be here right now.”

Virgil considered it for a moment. If they fled school now at the middle of the day, then the rest of their classmates would definitely know the rumors about them were true. If they stayed, then Virgil would have to face the whispers and the stares he had already been dreading.

Whatever he decided to do, Virgil knew Roman would stay by his side.

Virgil took a deep breath. This had to be done sooner than later, right? “No.” He replied after some more seconds of thinking. “I… we can face them. There’s no need to give them another show, that’s exactly what the people spreading the news want.”

Roman smiled at Virgil, giving his hand another squeeze. “I admire you for trying to be strong, but seriously, if you need to go just say it.”

“I will.” Virgil nodded, sounding more sure than he actually was. “I just need to show them their words don’t matter. Don’t give them the satisfaction of bothering me and all that.”

“Look who’s finally listening to my advice.” Janus placed his elbow on Virgil’s shoulder, leaning against him. “Who knew it only took a pregnancy for you to grow a pair.”

Virgil snickered and playfully shoved Janus away. “Shut up, or you might actually talk me out of it.”

“I can punch anyone who even dares to look at you.” Remus suggested, receiving a glare and a loud “No” from the other three teenagers.

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Surprisingly, this was easier than Virgil thought it would be.

He had expected to feel at least one pair of eyes on him at all times. Someone’s presence keeping him from simple tasks like enjoying his lunch or gathering his stuff from his locker.

So far? Virgil had almost finished his salad without any major or minor incident.

People definitely stared when his group walked into the cafeteria. A mix of curiosity and surprise caused by what had happened in the hallway, the fact that they were late to grab their lunch, and of course, the news of Virgil’s pregnancy.

Virgil heard a couple of whispers about him as they walked through with their lunch trays, but they were lost between the natural hustle of lunch break. This was fine, like actually fine, and part of it still made Virgil uneasy.

Perhaps their peers’ behavior would change once Virgil’s belly actually started being noticeable, but he didn’t have to worry about that for now.

Between the mix of confusing feeling that had flooded their winter break, this almost seemed like nothing. Virgil was more than glad he had overthought this situation beforehand, probably the first time he would ever thank his anxiety for something.

Virgil was still more than aware of people talking and watching for the rest of the day, but he genuinely couldn’t care less. It was such a weird feeling, not caring about what others think. Virgil had heard every possible opinion about their situation in his own brain, so nothing was surprising him so far. The rest of the school seemed to be just as anxious about their own business to care about anyone else’s.

“The popular kids have boring lives, that’s why they care about ours so much.” Janus mentioned as they walked to their local McDonald’s to get some fries and ice cream. “No offense to your boyfriend, but it’s the truth.”

Virgil rolled his eyes. “He’s not my boyfriend. Besides, Roman doesn’t hang out with those type of people.”

Even if Virgil was definitely biased, he still told the truth. It was well known that their school had two kinds of popular kids. The ones that were just loud and overstimulating, Roman’s gang, and the ones that were actually mean and self centered, the cheerleaders and other assholes.

With how egocentric they were, it was ironic how much they liked to talk about others.

“If you’re sure. They’re all kind of the same subspecies to me.”

Virgil was eventually able to convince Janus to change their topic of conversation. He didn’t want their hanging out time to be corrupted thinking about those people. It had actually been a while since it was just the two of them together, even before the pregnancy.

Remus and Janus had been dating since like, forever. It had been a transition so smooth that Virgil wouldn’t have noticed had they not started showing affection in public. Remus still knew his place and let them be on their own, of course, but Virgil didn’t really mind having him around. Their friend group still felt the same, for the most part.

Still, Virgil was glad he got some alone time with his best friend. And if Janus’s overprotectiveness was any indicator, Virgil would guess he did too.

“So, how have you been feeling?” Janus asked once they had their food. They had decided to sit at one of the booths on the second floor, since there usually were less people there.

Virgil shrugged, dipping a fry in his ice cream before eating it, and receiving a grossed out look from Janus. “I’ve barely thrown up this week, and other than the tiredness, I haven’t had any other major symptoms.”

At least nothing extreme or out of the ordinary. Virgil had noticed some soreness in his chest, but he didn’t want to acknowledge it just yet. Virgil knew he had to stop wearing his binder eventually, but he intended to push the limits until his doctor told him to stop.

Janus hummed, eying Virgil up and down as if he was scanning him. “We did have to stop for you to breathe a couple of times on the way here. Honestly your stamina was already a joke, but it’s only gonna get worse the more weight you have to carry.”

Virgil groaned, not liking what Janus was implying. “The doctor told me not to push myself. If I didn’t exercise before, I really shouldn’t be doing it now.”

“That is precisely why you should be doing it right now.” Janus pointed an accusatory fry at him. “I’m not suggesting you go and run a marathon or win the Olympics, but you can’t be a couch potato with a baby growing in your uterus.”

“I’m gonna start waddling by the time I’m done with the second trimester. I don’t think I’ll even be able to get out of bed on my own, do you seriously expect me to keep a consistent work out routine? Plus, I’m going to be sweating a lot more by then.” Virgil almost gagged at the thought. “Roman makes enough exercise for the three of us.”

Janus just gave him a look. “That is not how it works.”

Virgil whined, resting his head against the table. “Can’t you just let me dream? I’ll be fine, we’ll be fine. I can definitely stay in my house and nap all day long if I want to and nothing will go wrong.”

Virgil wanted nothing but the best for his baby, he really did, but if there was a thing Virgil absolutely despised, it was exercising. He’d always been the slowest kid in his class, and had to take years of P.E. where his classmates mocked him and the coach did nothing. Virgil could deal with the looks at school, but at a gym? A bunch of muscly guys looking at him with pity was the reason he didn’t go to the gym in the first place, he wasn’t going to add a pregnancy to that recipe for disaster.

“Fine.” Janus sighed. “I’ll let it go for now. I can’t force you if you really don’t want to do it.”

Virgil decided to take the win, even if it was weird how quickly Janus conceded. If it meant not having to hear whatever Janus had planned to convince him, Virgil was more than okay with it.

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His so called gift of prophecy had been of no use in this situation.

Virgil should have suspected a bit more when Janus agreed to drop the exercise topic just like that. He should have known that wasn’t the end of it.

“Come on, it’ll be fun.” Roman insisted, standing right outside Virgil’s house with Zero’s leash in one hand and a bag of clothes in the other. “You, me and Zero going for a walk around the park. You’ll barely even see it as exercise.”

Virgil leaned against the front door’s frame, his arms crossed as Roman kept going on and on about this stupid walk. “No.”

Roman wasn’t having any of it, apparently. He offered Zero’s leash to Virgil. “Look at those sweet eyes begging for a walk. You wouldn’t say no to this poor dog, would you?”

Virgil looked down at Zero, sitting between them and wagging his tail excitedly. Virgil had always been more of a cat person, but he found it impossible for someone not to like this white ball of fur and energy. Just seeing how excited the dog was made him reconsider…

“Why are you suddenly listening to Janus? I thought you didn’t like him.” Virgil shifted the conversation away from the cute bribery Roman had brought to attack Virgil on his weak spot. Rude, honestly.

Roman huffed, suddenly at a loss for words. “I don’t don’t like Janus. He’s your best friend, how could I even have beef with someone so dear to you?”

Virgil raised an eyebrow at him, not buying anything Roman was saying.

“Fine.” Roman conceded. “He may not be my favorite person in the world, but he makes a very good point. You need to start being a little bit more active, for both yours and the baby’s health.”

Virgil let out a “pfft” sound. “You guys are acting like I do nothing all day. I am active, we’re gonna be just fine.”

Roman raised his hands at Virgil’s defensive tone. “Then just come fore a walk with me, really. If you decide you hate it and want to come back, then we’ll come back.” This time, Roman offered him the bag with extra clothes he brought. “It’s been a while since I’ve taken my dog out, and I really want to spend more time with you too.”

Virgil stayed quiet for a moment, letting out a long sigh and grabbing the bag. “Alright, we’ll go to the stupid park.”

The last thing Virgil saw before walking up to his room to change was Roman’s smile growing. Ugh, he was so lucky Zero wasn’t the only cute one.

With a fresh set of work out clothes, Virgil was handed Zero’s leash and they started walking towards the park.

Roman swore up and down Zero was the most well behaved dog in the world, but he pulled. Zero was dragging Virgil along with the strength of a doberman, maybe even a horse. Virgil would be more annoyed if it wasn’t impressive.

Because of the dog’s excitement, Virgil was walking at a faster pace then he would have liked, constantly trying to convince Roman to drop this nonsense and do something a lot more fun.

“You know what?” Virgil stopped abruptly, taking one more step forward as Zero caught up. “It’s your dog, you walk him.”

“Uff, yeah… you see the thing is...” Was the only warning Virgil had before Roman started sprinting towards the park, leaving him with an even more excited Zero.

Virgil stood there, baffled. “Wha- Roman! Come back here!”

No response. Virgil watched as Roman’s back got further and further away from them, taking some more steps forward as Zero kept pulling on his leash.

Virgil could walk back home, even if they were more that halfway to the park. He definitely didn’t want to give Roman the satisfaction of getting away with this ridiculous and childish stunt.

He turned back to walk home, only to be stopped by a dog who now didn’t want to move. Virgil looked back at Zero, who also looked back at him as he stood ready to keep walking. “What?”

Zero whined, moving his head between Virgil and the road ahead of them. He was almost begging for Virgil to take him to the damn park like it was the dog’s greatest wish.

Virgil was going to kill Roman.

“Look at you two scheming against me.” Virgil told Zero as they kept walking, returning to the weird pace that made it look like Zero walked him instead of the other way around. Roman may had won this round, but Virgil was not running to catch up with him.

Finally at the park, Virgil had to actually walk further in to find Roman, sitting on a bench by the lake with two water bottles.

This jerk had the audacity to look up at Virgil and smile at him. “What took you so long?”

“Whad dood dou do dong?” Virgil mocked, glaring at Roman. He sat down next to him with an exaggerated sigh, leaving the biggest gap possible between them.

Roman chuckled, clearly taking Virgil’s annoyance with a grain of salt. “Come on, it wasn’t that bad.” He said, offering one of the water bottles to Virgil.

Virgil wouldn’t have taken it, out of principle, but he was thirsty. He took the bottle and handed the leashed dog to Roman. “Says the not pregnant guy.”

Roman took Zero and unhooked his leash. This was a dog friendly park so he could roam around with supervision. Plus, there weren’t many people around anyways, and Roman knew Zero wouldn’t walk far.

Virgil looked to the side, crossing his arms defensively and actually pouting. He noticed when Roman looked back at him, but didn't acknowledge him.

“Come on V, are you actually mad?” Roman kept Zero in his peripheral vision, but still kept his eyes on Virgil.

Virgil huffed, not bothering Roman with a response.

Even taken aback by the childish behavior, Roman did feel a tad guilty for tricking Virgil like that, but decided to keep the act going. “Have you even taken a look around the park yet?”

Virgil wouldn’t have cared less, but he figured since they were already out here he might as well enjoy the view.

Looking right in front of them, Virgil’s anger started to dissipate. The sunset reflected against the lake perfectly from this angle, filling the nearby trees with a bunch of different colors. The water looked like it sparkled as it moved with the light breeze. There were a couple of ducks swimming around, adding an extra level of magic.

Roman scooted closer to Virgil, leaning forward a bit to try and look at him in the eye. “So, still mad at me?”

Virgil looked down at Roman, pushing his face away with his hand. “You are insufferable sometimes.”

Roman chuckled, taking Virgil’s hand from his face and kissing his palm. “Come on. I knew you’d love this.”

“Well you’re wrong. I’ve seen better scenery vacationing with my mom.” Virgil took his hand back, but did nothing else to get further away from Roman.

“You expect me to compete against Rome or something?”

Virgil tsked. “You would if you were a good boyfriend.”

They stayed in silence for a moment. Roman’s smirk dropped and Virgil’s face flushed up at the realization. Virgil looked away, embarrassed as he covered his face in shame.

For what felt like hours, both teens could only hear the birds chirping around them. Virgil’s voice echoing in their minds. Boyfriend. Virgil had actually called Roman his boyfriend.

Virgil glanced at Roman, peeking at him through his fingers. He was distracting himself with supervising Zero. Virgil was more than embarrassed, of course, but at the same time… he had said it so naturally. Virgil couldn’t understand it but… it felt right somehow.

“You were right,” Virgil finally spoke up, gaining Roman’s attention. “I love it.”

Roman smiled softly, turning around to rest his elbow against the back of the bench. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry I ran away like that.” Roman reached forward to grab Virgil’s hand and take it away from his face. “Janus and I just worry about you two, and sometimes it feels like I’m doing nothing to take care of you.”

Virgil sighed, intertwining their fingers. “It’s silly, the whole working out thing. I don’t like doing stuff I’m not good at, so I avoid them like the plague.”

“I noticed.” Roman went back to his playful tone, shifting closer to Virgil until their legs touched. “And you get quite defensive over it.”

“I don’t,” Virgil replied instinctively, and it clicked in his mind as Roman gave him an ‘I told you’ look. “I do.” Virgil groaned, covering his face again with his free hand.

Roman gently pried Virgil’s hand away from his face, replacing it with his own as he cupped his cheek. “On the plus side, getting defensive over something knocks all your other walls down.”

Virgil leaned against Roman’s hand, allowing himself to relax against him. “Go on, tease me all you want about it.”

Roman smiled softly. “No. I promised we would take it slow, under your terms.” He stroked Virgil’s cheek with his thumb, enjoying the remaining sunlight shining around them. “Did you mean that?”

Did he?

Virgil was still so worried about everything going south, especially with their baby involved. He acted like his parent’s divorce hadn’t affected him, but it did, even if Virgil would never say it out loud outside of his therapist’s office.

Even before the divorce, Remy and Viette were constantly at each other throats. Throwing passive aggressive comments, refusing to speak to each other for days. They did their best to keep that toxic behavior away from Virgil, but they were far from perfect.

Virgil spent a long time without properly seeing his mom after she left, only appearing to take Virgil on an expensive trip or to drop an extravagant birthday gift on her way to her next runway. Luckily for him, his parents had been able to work it out eventually, but that didn’t erase all those years of feeling left to the side.

The last thing Virgil wanted was for his kid to go through that.

Virgil looked back at the lake, trying to find some calm in its water, still shimmering under the sunset. Roman nailed it on choosing this place, it was certainly a great argument into convincing Virgil to do this more often.

To think this all started with a stupid argument over exercising… actually, this whole deal had started because Roman wanted the best for Virgil and their baby.

Janus had most likely bombarded him with articles about the pros of working out while pregnant, just as he had tried to do with Virgil. The difference being, that Roman definitely read through every single one of them, unlike Virgil who just ignored them.

Virgil thought back to his first appointment with the obgyn. Roman had been very insisting to come along, despite Virgil telling him it would be the most boring out of all the appointments in their future.

Even if Virgil convinced him to stay outside, Roman couldn’t stop harassing the doctor with a billion questions once they were done with the check up. Stuff even Virgil hadn't considered. Virgil tried to apologize for Roman’s behavior before leaving, but the doctor reassured him it was normal with new parents. There was a large chunk of new dads who went into panic mode and absorbed all the information they could, so he was used to it.

Roman had tricked him to walk all the way here because he cared. They had come a long way from the Roman who pushed him away at Halloween.

Virgil looked back at Roman, who had shifted his gaze back to Zero due to the lack of response. He was an amazing dad already, worrying so much about their child.

Then, it clicked.

Virgil was putting their child first, but Roman was too. He looked past Virgil’s discomfort for the baby’s sake. Not the most ideal way to show his love, but Virgil got why he did it now.

Even if something went wrong between them, that didn’t mean they would end up like Virgil’s parents. Roman promised to stay, and if he didn’t stay for Virgil, he would definitely do it for their child.

What did they have to lose?

Virgil reached for Roman’s face, pushing softly for him to turn back at him. Without warning or hesitation, Virgil closed the gap between them with a kiss.

Roman was surprised by the sudden move, but quickly started kissing back once the initial shock had passed.

The sun was barely visible in the sky by now. The dim light coming from the lanterns around the park started being more noticeable as the sky turned darker. The natural noises around them were quieting down, allowing them to hear the cars passing around and remind them they were still in the middle of the city.

Virgil pulled away after some more seconds, feeling Roman’s hot breath against his face. “I know one thing for sure. I really meant that.”

Roman chuckled, causing Virgil to laugh with him. “So the walk was a good idea after all?”

Virgil playfully shoved Roman away. “I’ll admit it wasn’t horrible, but we’re not doing this daily.” He leaned his head against Roman’s shoulder, their hands still locked together. “Let me catch up to the sporty lifestyle first.”

Roman wrapped his arm around Virgil, pulling him close. He whistled to get Zero’s attention. “Ready to head back home? Boyfriend.”

“Ugh, don’t be weird about it.” Virgil blushed even brighter as Zero walked towards them, satisfied with his time at the park. “Only if you take the dog this time.”

“Sure.” Roman shrugged, letting go of Virgil for a moment to put the leash back on Zero. “His energy is drained by now, which means no more pulling.”

Virgil let out an offended gasp. “You’re an asshole, having all this thought out like an evil mastermind.”

Roman chuckled, leaning closer to give Virgil a peck on the lips. “But I’m your asshole.”

“Don’t test your luck.” Virgil stood up, offering his hand to Roman. “Not a word on the way home or we’re never doing this again.

Roman took Virgil’s hand and stood up. “Deal.”

With Zero all relaxed, the walk home was actually quite enjoyable. Being by Roman’s side under the moonlight, Virgil could sort of understand the appeal now.

Virgil would have sworn it was a dream at first, he didn’t even remember getting out of bed and walking all the way to the kitchen. In hindsight, having easy access to the stove even while half asleep wasn’t safe at all. They really needed to start baby proofing the house.

At least he wasn’t alone, since Zero had been following his every move for a couple of days now. Roman had tried to take the dog back to his parent’s house, but Zero refused to leave Virgil’s side, so he was living with them for the time being.

The sound of Zero’s little paws against the wood floor and his name tag making noise as he moved were enough to finish waking Virgil up.

The baby was just begging for some pancakes at three AM, apparently. How was Virgil supposed to say no?

Virgil was just about to start baking the batter when Roman showed up, definitely more awake than Virgil was.

“Are you two having a party without me?” Roman asked, leaning against the kitchen’s doorway.

Virgil shrugged and took a pan out of the cupboards. “We were hungry and I couldn’t sleep after that.”

Roman walked over to Virgil and picked up the bowl with the batter. “Isn’t pancake making my job?”

“I didn’t want to wake you up.” Part of Virgil expected Roman to hand him the batter, but the rest of him knew his boyfriend would take care of the rest by himself.

Roman kissed Virgil’s forehead. “You thought I wouldn’t notice you were gone? Let me handle the rest and serve you a very very early breakfast.”

Virgil smiled, he still felt a little bit groggy, so he agreed without any complaints and handed the pan to Roman.

Roman continued with pancake duty and Virgil moved to sit at the kitchen’s isle. He immediately felt a little wet nose pressing against his legs. “The food is not ready yet Zero.” Virgil reached down to pet the dog’s head.

Between the softness of Zero’s fur, and Virgil’s body practically begging him to go back to bed, he barely even noticed when a plate of fresh pancakes was left in front of him.

Roman sat right across from him, haven stolen one of Virgil’s pancakes for himself. “Bon appétit.”

Virgil chuckled and looked down at the pancakes. “You know, I think we’re missing one more crucial ingredient.” He stood up and walked over to the fridge to take a tub of ice cream out of the freezer. “We shouldn’t teach our kid to have ice cream for breakfast,” Virgil said as he turned back around to look at Roman. “So let’s take advantage of their absense while we can.”

Roman chuckled at Virgil’s attempt to justify his cravings, only for his face to drop in horror in an instant. “Uhm, Vi…”

Virgil looked at Roman with a confused expression. He followed Roman’s gaze to the floor, where a puddle of water seemed to appear out of thin air. “Oh… does that mean?”

“I think your water just broke.”

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“Yeah, so there’s no contractions yet, but his water definitely broke already.” Remy spoke with the doctor through the phone. They had to wake him up to have adult supervision, and because each teen was panicking in their own way.

Virgil had reacquired his google rights after the Braxton Hicks diagnosis, and he had spent a long time researching what to do once one was actually in labor. This could go on for hours, but if the contractions didn’t start soon they would have to go to the hospital and induce labor. Virgil just had to wait and hope his body started acting to push the baby out.

In the meantime, he wasn’t going to let a broken water keep him from enjoying ice cream and pancakes.

Roman, on the other hand, seemed like he had absorbed all of Virgil’s anxiety. He was constantly asking Virgil if he was feeling anything yet, pacing around the room with Zero right behind him. “Nothing yet?”

Virgil swallowed the piece of pancake he was chewing. “No, Roman. I haven’t felt a contraction in the ten seconds since you last asked.”

Roman tapped his foot and crossed his arms, trying to calm his anxiousness down. “How long has it been? Should we just leave now and let the hospital staff handle everything?”

“Roman, it’s way too early for all this.” Virgil rubbed his eyes and looked down at his belly. “We’ll only move if the contractions don’t come, but if they do I would prefer to go through as much labor as possible here at home.” Virgil took another bite off his food and talked with his mouth full. “It could take hours before I’m even ready to push. All we can do now is wait.”

Roman nodded as Virgil spoke, but it didn’t serve to ease his worries. He started biting his nails in an attempt to keep his mouth shut for more than a minute, without actual success. “Anything?”

Virgil sighed. “No, Roman. I-” Virgil didn’t even get finish his sarcastic reply. The baby was very eager to prove him wrong this time. Virgil closed his eyes and tried to hold back a groan. “You know what, I actually felt something this time.”

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At four thirty in the morning, it had officially been one hour since Virgil started having contractions.

His pancakes had been eaten a long time ago and Virgil was forced to move to lay down at the living room. Virgil had kept a strong grasp on Roman’s hand, who sat on the floor next to him, and squeezed it every time a contraction came.

They were only ten minutes apart by now, which meant they could stay home for a little longer.

Zero, as a surprise to no one, laid at Virgil’s feet.

“I guess now it makes sense why he’s been so clingy.” Virgil commented in regards to the dog’s behavior, looking up at the ceiling. “I guess he knew, somehow, that the baby was coming soon.”

Roman glanced over at Zero, as if he could try and read the dog’s thoughts. “A clearer warning would have been more helpful Ze.” The dog didn’t even move from his place, and Roman sighed. “How are you feeling?”

Virgil shrugged, “The contractions hurt, and they’re nothing like the fake ones. Other than that? Everything is starting to sink in now.” Virgil kept looking at the ceiling, only to groan again as another contraction came.

Eight minutes apart now, if Virgil’s mental counting was correct.

He turned to look at Roman, who had the same scared and worried expression Virgil probably had. “The baby is coming. Like, they’re going to be born in less than a day or so. This is… it makes it seem even more real somehow.”

“The months of a growing belly felt fake to you?” Roman knew exactly what Virgil meant, but he was trying to ease the tension.

“Obviously they didn’t.” Virgil had been thinking about their baby ever since he decided to keep them. With school done and no other activities left for him, the baby had been the only thing Virgil thought about.

Virgil had been imagining their face, the moment him and Roman would return home carrying them, even how their future personality could be. They had a whole life in front of them, one where they would be responsible for a human being. Virgil had somehow convinced himself they had more time to keep imagining, but the moment was already here.

It was time to stop idealizing and start acting.

Another contraction came, around seven minutes now.

“You know what?.” Virgil let go of Roman for a moment so he could sit up. “I think we should start heading out now.”

Roman helped his boyfriend stand up. “What about the 5-1-1 rule? We’re just at-” He checked the timer on his phone to corroborate before continuing. “Six minutes.”

Virgil nodded. “I know, but they’re getting closer together fast. I want to get into some more decent clothes before leaving, and we have to double check the hospital bag.” Virgil held Roman’s hand again and started making his way to their room. “By the time we’re done with that, they'll already be five minutes apart.”

Roman had already went through the hospital bag like five times since Virgil’s water broke, but he knew his boyfriend would want to make sure everything was in there himself, so he didn’t argue against his reasoning. “I really hope you know what you’re talking about.”

“I do, and you heard what dad said.” Virgil groaned as he walked. “The doctor said to wait and we’ve been waiting for too long. Let’s just go have this baby.”

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Virgil had been forced to bounce and move around in a yoga ball. Despite his contractions being consistent, which he could feel because the nurse was nowhere to be seen with his epidural, he wasn’t dilated enough to start pushing.

Roman had asked for a yoga ball too, either because he couldn’t stay still or to give moral support, Virgil couldn’t decide.

“Feeling anything yet? Can you even feel the dilating happening?” Roman asked. He held onto Virgil’s arms as they sat in front of each other in their respective yoga balls.

“I don't know.” Virgil groaned, doing his best to copy Roman’s movements and stay in sync. “The only thing I feel is pain… when am I getting that damn epidural?!”

Roman almost lost his balance as Virgil squeezed his arms, pulling him closer. “I’m sure the nurse is already on her way.” Roman took impulse and stood up before Virgil managed to knock him over. “I can go press the button again if you want.”

Virgil whined. “No, don’t leave. My mom already went to ask fo her.” He took a deep breath and dried the sweat from his forehead.

Thanks to Viette, the nurse practically came running to their room, and Virgil was more than ready for the pain to dial down.

Due to hospital policy, Virgil could only have three people accompanying him, but Remy had notified them that Remus and Janus were already in the waiting room. That was nice to hear.

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After maybe hours of walking and bouncing around, along with one last check up from the doctor, Virgil was finally dilated enough to start pushing.

With Virgil on the hospital bed, with Roman and Viette by his side and Remy standing with the doctor, the real workout was at last ready to begin.

“You can do it Vi.” Roman whispered into Virgil’s ear, holding his boyfriend’s hand tightly.

Virgil tried to focus on his breathing. He could do this, he definitely could.

“Alright Virgil, start pushing when I tell you to, alright?” Dr. Sanders spoke in a calm tone, managing the situation like the professional he was. “Ready? Push.”

Virgil did as the doctor instructed, pushing as hard as he could. He had to take a deep breath afterwards, that took so much more energy than he thought it would.

“Push.”

But Vigil kept going. He didn’t let his own negative thoughts get to him. Even while medicated, Virgil was still feeling pain. The next push came with a scream, and Virgil absolutely heard a crack coming from Roman’s hand.

Virgil turned to look at his boyfriend, who looked as if he was also experiencing Virgil’s pain. Good, honestly, because it seemed more than unfair that Roman would only have to deal with a sore hand.

“Keep going Virgil.” His dad cheered.

“You can do it sweetheart.” His mom reassured him.

“Push”

Virgil’s breathing had become more rapid now, making it harder to gather enough strength to push as hard as how he started. Virgil was starting to feel exhausted.

“I see their head, we’re almost there.”

Virgil turned to look at Roman, hoping hat would give him the last burst of confidence he needed. But his boyfriend looked just as scared as he did. Virgil pulled him closer, bumping heir foreheads together.

“I’m so sorry…” Roman admitted, seemingly out of nowhere. “I know we already went through this, but I still feel like it’s my fault.”

“Roman, now is no the time to be talking nonsense.” Virgil readjusted his grip on Roman’s hand, working against the sweat that made his grip start to slip. “Look at me, I need you now more than ever okay? I need the overly confident, over the top, and sometimes quite annoying, jock theater kid that I love.”

Roman took several deep breaths, and even chuckled a bit at Virgil’s attempt of a motivational speech. “I’m here, I’m here. You were right earlier, this is getting too real now.”

“And whatever comes next, we’ll go through it together.” Virgil glanced at the other people in the room. “All of us”

One last deep breath. One last push before their lives changed forever. Before their lives changed for the better.

“Push!”

Virgil’s groaned turned into a scream. Roman squeezed his had just as tight as Virgil squeezed his. Virgil did his best to push for as long and as hard as he could, and for moment afterwards, everything went silent.

Until the cries of a newborn baby flooded the room.

Virgil practically felt his soul returning to his body, and he was sure Roman would have fainted if they weren’t holding each other.

“Congratulations, it’s a boy.”

A boy. Virgil raised his head in time to see Dr. Sanders holding the baby. Their baby.

“Roman, do you want to come over here and do the honors?”

Roman glanced at Virgil, who allowed him to go by nodding. Roman kissed Virgil’s hand before letting go of him and walking over to the doctor. He followed Dr. Sander’s instructions and cut the umbilical cord.

After the nurse gave their baby a quick clean, he was handed over to Virgil.

Virgil took happily held onto his baby, and Roman didn’t wait anymore time to sand by his boyfriend’s side again.

Virgil looked down at his son, with nothing more than genuine and complete adoration. “Hello little one. Our baby Patton.” Virgil looked up at Roman, tears already running down his face. “This is our son.”

Roman looked as messy as Virgil, with puffy eyes and a red face covered with tears. He reached down to move the top of the blanket away from his son's face. “He's beautiful.”

Virgil gently rocked his baby to try and ease his crying. “There, there. You're safe now Patton. We're your parents.”

Patton’s screams slowly turned into soft cries, which allowed him to open his eyes and look at his family.

Roman couldn’t stop smiling. “He has your eyes Virgil.”

Virgil blushed. Even after all this, Roman still found ways to make him feel all mushy. “But he looks more like you.”

“Only because we both have a red and swollen face right now.” Roman tried to clean his tears, but they just kept flowing. “He’s still perfect.” Roman leaned against Virgil, resting his head on his boyfriend's.

Virgil let himself relax against Roman, with their son in his arms. “More than perfect.”

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Virgil fell asleep pretty much right after the nurse took Patton for his check up, so Roman decided to also take a moment to rest.

Back at their hospital room, Roman was way too engrossed with his son to sleep. Patton had been left there in the room with them, and Roman felt like a little kid looking at the fish in an aquarium.

Roman sat next to the bassinet, being forced to stay still since Patton had held onto his gloved finger. Well, Roman would have stayed either way, but he wasn’t going to make his baby let go of his papa.

A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts, and it was also enough to wake Remy up, who had been sleeping on the couch. Roman glanced at Virgil, relieved to see his boyfriend was still sound asleep.

“Could you go see who it is?” Roman whispered to Remy, who only groaned and nodded in response. He was quite tired as well, and Roman couldn’t blame him.

Remy walked over to the door and opened it, only to be immediately bombarded with way too many blue balloons. Shoving them out of the way, Remy was met with Janus and Remus. “Is he-”

Remy closed the door on Remus’s face. His volume had been too loud and he was also trying to give Virgil some proper time to rest. After checking on his son and locking eyes with Roman, who was definitely thinking the same thing he was, Remy opened the door slightly. Just enough to poke his head through.

“Be quiet, Virgil and the baby are sleeping.”

“Is he here?” Remus spoke quickly but quietly. “Can we come in? What’s his name? Is he as adorable as his uncle?” Remus bounced on his feet, making the balloons move around them.

Janus placed a hand on Remus’s shoulder, forcing him to stay still. “How’s Virgil? Other than utterly exhausted.”

“Virgil is great, everything went smoothly.” Remy was quick to reassure Janus. “But as you said, he is tired. So if you want to come in, do it quietly.” That last part sounded more like a threat than a warning, but whatever worked to keep Remus from yelling in excitement.

Remy stepped out of the way so his son’s friends could walk in, wincing at the sound the balloons made when bumping against each other. Something that would go unnoticeable if it wasn’t for the dead silent room.

Roman’s face lit up as he saw his brother, only for his smile to drop as he saw what he arrived with. “Rem, we don’t need that many balloons.”

“I wanted to see if the baby could float with these or if we needed more.” Remus replied, and was immediately elbowed in the abdomen by Janus. “I’m joking, I’m joking.”

Remus left the balloons by the door and quietly walked over to Roman and the baby, holding Janus’s hand and dragging him alone.

“Rem, Jan, this is our son; Patton.”

Patton was unbothered by the new people in the room, sleeping peacefully just like his dad was, while still holding onto Roman.

Remus stayed silent for a moment, admiring his nephew from afar. “…He’s so little.”

“He was just born an hour ago Remus, of course he would be tiny.” Janus leaned closer to look at Patton, and even him couldn’t help but smile at the baby. “You did a good thing after all Ro, he’s adorable.”

“Thanks, but,” Roman looked over at Virgil. “Virgil did most of the work. The credit should be his.”

Another knock at the door, a quieter one this time. Remy had stayed by the door so he opened it up once again, letting Viette in once he saw it was her. “Are our boys still resting?”

“I don’t think Roman ever went to sleep.” Remy took the coffee cup that his ex-wife had brought for him.

“Good, because you have more visitors sweetheart.” Viette fully opened the door, and Roman’s parents stepped into the room.

Celeste carried a small gift bag with her, and she was out of her usually well put appearance, which meant they probably came running to the hospital as soon as they got the news.

Salvador was on a similar state, but he was carrying a takeout bag instead. “I heard hospital food is disgusting.”

Roman chuckled, being glad to see them here even after everything that happened.

His dad walked over to Roman, only to be stopped halfway by Remus. “Ooh, what did you bring?” He tried to peak into the paper bag, but Salvador took it away.

“Don’t you think your brother needs this food more than you now?” Salvador raised an eyebrow at his son, pushing him away so he couldn’t reach the food.

“Please, it’s not like he was the one who gave birth or anything.” Despite his complaints, Remus was still making sure to be quiet.

Celeste had walked past her husband, getting to where Roman was sitting before him. She peaked into the bassinet, freezing for a moment at the sight of her grandson.

Roman offered his free hand to his mom, pulling her closer. “Hey Ma.”

“I can’t believe I almost missed out on this, on him.” Celeste wrapped her arm around Roman’s shoulders. “Will I ever be able to gain your forgiveness?”

Roman smiled softly. “You’re already on your way to get it, ma. I see how much you’re working to be better.”

Celeste stroked his son’s hair. “I’m here now, mijo. I promise I’ll never push you away like that again.”

“Thanks ma, it really means a lot to hear it.” Roman looked from his mom back at his son. Everything he’d been feeling these past few months had only grown stronger in the little time since Roman had met Patton.

His parents were making an effort to be better for his and Remus’s sake. Roman knew he would mess up, it was unavoidable, but he would never let his mistakes get in the way of him and his Patton.

Virgil groaned as he started to wake up, and the room fell silent. As Virgil yawned and opened his eyes, seeing such a large number of people in the room with him helped him wake up faster. “Where you all having a party without me?”

Roman chuckled. “You just have the best support system, they wented to make sure we were okay.”

“It’s another onesie.” Virgil announced as he unwrapped one of the last presents left from their baby shower. Him and Roman were adding what they were gifted to the list of stuff they already had from Virgil’s childhood, just so they wouldn’t buy more of the same thing.

The number of gifts they brought back home yesterday was considerably disproportionate form the amount of guest at the party, and for some reason all of them decided their baby needed at least three outfit changes for each day.

Virgil was convinced the baby’s wardrobe was already bigger than his. Luckily, their friends and family thought ahead and gave them clothes of varying sizes. It didn’t make it any less disappointing when they encountered yet another miniature item of clothing. They were adorable, but Virgil would expect people to be more creative with their gifts.

Virgil threw the onesie over to Roman, who was organizing everything in the dresser at the baby’s corner.

“Another one? How many pajamas does a baby need?” Roman caught the onesie and folded it neatly before storing it according to its size.

Virgil read the note as Roman spoke. He should have guessed this was from Emile once he saw the golden star in the middle of the pink garment; clearly a Steven Universe reference. “I mean, a baby sleeps a lot. I would need a fair amount of pajamas if nap time was the most interesting part of my day.”

Roman huffed, “Yeah right. You lay down in your everyday clothes when you need a nap.” He turned to add one more line to the list sitting on top of the dresser. “But I guess you have a point. At least they will be useful when they get dirty.”

Virgil grabbed another gift from the pile, grateful for whoever chose a gift bag instead of wrapping paper. A quick look inside immediately told Virgil this gift was from Janus.

Virgil took the jar of goodies out of the bag to take a better look at what was inside it. Nipple cream, lactation teas, compression socks. Of course Janus would rather gift something that would be useful for Virgil. “At least someone put a little more thought into it.”

Roman sat next to Virgil on their bed, taking a look at the stuff as Virgil took them out. “A self care package, is this from Janus?”

“Bingo.” Virgil took his phone to write a quick thank you text to Janus before taking something else out of the bag. “I think this is for you.”

Roman caught the package as Virgil threw it to him, reading the sticker holding the paper together that indeed indicated this was for him. Roman unwrapped it, encountering a pair of red fluffy slippers, along with a note that he decided to read out loud. “For checking on the baby at night. Do not even dare to wake Virgil up.”

Virgil laughed as he stored his stuff back in the jar, trying and failing to arrange the care package as it was before. “You heard him. Night check-ups are yours only.”

Roman threw the wrapping paper at Virgil, even if it only made it halfway before flopping down to the bed. “Bold of you to assume I didn’t plan it that way already.” With their bed mostly gift free, Roman had ll the space he needed to lay down dramatically. “I can’t believe you and Janus think so low of me.”

Virgil rolled his eyes and patted Roman's head. “There, there. I just thought we would need more time to discuss our task assignments for when the baby arrives.” He picked up another gift and opened it to find yet another onesie. “This one doesn't have a card, but who else would gift this?”

Virgil flipped the onesie so Roman could look at the text printed on the front. “My uncle is cooler than my dad”

“That can only be from Remus.” Roman sat up with a chuckle and waited for Virgil to toss him the garment before walking back to the other side of the room so he could put it with the rest of the baby clothes. “And it’s gigantic too. He wants our child to wear that years from now.”

Virgil gathered the trash from the last gifts they opened and stuffed them in one of the gift bags. “I think he just grabbed the first one he found. Would you expect Remus to know how big a newborn is?””

Roman added Remus’s gift to the list and walked back to Virgil. “You have a fair point.” Roman sat next to his boyfriend and took one last look at their inventory. “Alright, we have your old booster seat for the car, a not too fancy but still decent stroller that your mom gave us, a care package for you, a circus themed baby mobile, and a million onesies.”

“That sounds like a good start for now.” Virgil handed the trash bag to Roman and started making himself comfortable in bed. “But we definitely still need to go shopping.”

“If you say so.” Roman took the bag from Virgil and leaned down to kiss his boyfriend’s forehead “I’ll take all this mess upstairs and then we can go to sleep, alright?”

“Sure.” Virgil leaned against the bed frame and waited for Roman to come back.

Even if they weren’t 100% ready yet, Virgil was already feeling a lot more confident. Time seemed to move quicker the closer they got to the baby’s due date and Virgil’s anxiety had been working overtime.

If it wasn’t for his giant belly in the way, and Roman watching over him, Virgil would have already rearranged their room at least twice a day. Janus made fun of him for going into “nesting mode”, and Virgil just argued that he wasn’t a bird. Even if he was, in fact, in nesting mode.

The lights of the room turning off was Virgil’s indicator that Roman was already back. He had been so distracted with the current state of their baby station that he didn’t even heard his boyfriend’s footsteps. Luckily Virgil had already turned on the lamp on their bedside table, so he wasn’t left in complete darkness.

Virgil immediately grabbed Roman’s arms and wrapped them around him as Roman laid down. They had discovered that Virgil being the little spoon was the most comfortable way for them to cuddle while sleeping. Roman would have held him eventually, but Virgil was quite tired and eager to go to sleep.

“Someone’s desperate for affection today.” Roman rested his head on the crook of Virgil’s neck, taking advantage of his position and kissing his boyfriend’s cheek multiple times.

Virgil only hummed in agreement and leaned against Roman’s affection. “If we don’t sleep I’ll probably end up making another list.”

Roman chuckled and fixed the covers around them, making sure Virgil wouldn’t get cold during the night. “Okay then, I’ll make sure you sleep and stop thinking about baby shopping for a while.”

Virgil was about to ask how exactly would Roman do that, but his boyfriend decided to run his fingers through Virgil’s hair and massage his scalp. Virgil closed his eyes and sighed. “You’re the best…”

Roman chuckled and kissed Virgil’s cheek again. “Goodnight sweetheart.”

Good thing Roman didn’t expect an answer, because Virgil was already sleeping soundly.

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Virgil was once again walking backstage with a bouquet of roses, but unlike five months ago, Virgil didn’t have the chance to dress up nicely for his boyfriend’s presentation this time. It wasn’t like he didn’t want to, but there was no way Virgil would fit in the same suit he wore back in December. Still, he made his best to look nice and be there to support Roman.

Virgil expected to find Roman taking off his makeup and costume, but instead his boyfriend was surrounded by the rest of his cast as they sang a birthday song for him. Roman had been more than delighted to perform on his birthday, but Virgil was still glad the rest of the cast didn’t forget about his special day.

Not wanting to interrupt the moment, Virgil decided to wait until Roman blew out the candles on the small cake his mates had gotten for him. He looked for the dressing table with Roman’s name and left the bouquet in front of the mirror. The baby had been more active than usual today and Virgil needed to sit down for a moment.

It didn’t take long for the song to end, followed by clapping and cheering. Next thing Virgil knew, Roman was already walking over to to him.

“Happy birthday, Sky.” Virgil greeted his boyfriend without standing up. “I think I’m gonna need to see that ‘Lay all your love on me’ choreography again one of this days.”

Roman chuckled and leaned down to greet Virgil with a kiss. “I’ll be happy to show it to you, mi amor.” Roman looked over at the bouquet and his eyes immediately lit up. “For me? You shouldn’t have.”

Virgil snorted at Roman’s reaction. “Don’t act like you didn’t see my dad bringing them home.” He made a sign for Roman to help him stand up, which he did after putting the cake down next to the flowers, and gave Roman another peck once he was up. “What a way to ruin a surprise."

“I still appreciate them, surprise or not.” Roman placed his hand on top of Virgil’s belly. “Did you two enjoy the show?”

“Oh yeah they definitely did.” Virgil replied with a little bit of an annoyed tone. “You’re absolutely getting a dance partner because this little one was enjoying themselves in there.”

Roman’s cheerful expression broke for a moment, momentarily turning into concern. “Is it normal for them to move that much all of the sudden?”

Virgil shrugged, “I don’t know.” He replied honestly. His Google privileges had been taken away shortly after starting his third trimester, in an attempt to manage Virgil’s anxious thoughts. “I’m not feeling any pain or anything. Maybe I ate something that made them upset or gave them a burst of energy.” Virgil cupped Roman’s cheek, who smiled again in response. “Don’t worry too much about it.”

“Wow.” Roman took Virgil’s hand on his cheek and kissed his knuckles. “Who are you and what have you done with my boyfriend?”

Virgil took his hand back and shoved Roman playfully. “Sue me for trying to enjoy your day with you. If you don’t like it I can go to the library and panic research the old fashioned way.”

“Don’t even think about it.” Roman gave Virgil one last kiss before he started to take his stuff out of the dressing table’s drawers. “Now, are you going to help me get out of the disco costume?”

“Mmmm… I don’t know.” Virgil fake thought. “I think you’re rocking this look.”

Roman grabbed some make up wipes and rolled his eyes at his boyfriend. “Duh, nobody was questioning that. But the costume department would kill me if I tried to leave with this on.”

Virgil chuckled. “Then I suppose I’ll just wait right here for you to get back in civilian form.” He said as he sat back down. “I don’t think I’ll be of much help anyways.”

Roman only leaned forward to kiss Virgil’s cheek as a reply, hurrying up to get out of character so they could go back home.

As Roman got ready, Virgil pretended to play on his phone or scroll through Tumblr, but in reality he was checking on his dad back home. Virgil had to distract Roman just a little bit longer to make sure everything was ready. That wouldn’t be too hard of a task.

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“I can’t believe you don’t want to keep this picture! It’s the coolest one out of the whole session by far.” Remus walked behind Roman and Virgil, holding the ultrasound picture in one hand and Janus’s hand on the other.

“Because it makes our baby look creepy.” Roman glanced back at his brother as he spoke. “I should have expected you would rescue it from the trash.”

Remus stuck out his tongue and held the picture against the sunlight. “You can see their skull clearly and everything! At the very least it’s funny.”

“How did the doctor even manage to take that?” Janus snatched the picture from Remus’s hand to take a better look at it.

Virgil shrugged, but didn’t look back at his friends. “He was measuring the baby and they decided to look straight at the camera. The other pictures we got look normal.” Virgil had to give it to Remus though, it had been quite funny to him when they saw the picture for the first time. He knew Roman found some amusement in it, even if he refused to admit it.

“Why are we walking home again? I thought Remy was going to stay with you and see the show.”Roman asked, not so subtly changing the subject.

“He had some stuff from work to look after.” Or that was the excuse they decided to go with. Virgil wanted to give his parents as much time as possible to make sure the surprise was perfect.

Roman pulled Virgil closer to himself. “Look at Mr. I don’t exercise being okay with walking home from school.”

Virgil rolled his eyes. “I had your bad influence.” It wasn’t ideal, but Virgil didn’t mind having to walk at a slower pace.

Janus, on the other hand, had been very vocal about Virgil’s pace since they started walking. “Why do we have to walk behind you two? I would prefer not to be reduced to senior citizen speed.”

“Because Roman is being paranoid and thinks Virgil is going to trip and fall.” Remus replied in a mocking tone. “And we’re the safety net in the wild chance that happens.”

“And I would like to keep it like that, thank you.” Roman interrupted, his grip on Virgil’s hand tightening unconsciously.

Virgil only squeezed back, catching his boyfriend’s attention. “I’m fine, and we’re almost there anyways. Let them walk in front of us.”

“See? Virgil doesn’t hate us.” Janus chimed in before Roman could argue. With a strong grip on Remus’s hand, Janus walked around the couple in front of them dragging his boyfriend behind him. “This is a better arrangement anyways.”

“Hey you-” Roman was about to complain when Virgil stopped walking. He immediately looked back at his boyfriend. “Are you okay?”

Virgil placed his free hand over his belly, the sudden cramp he had felt now gone. “I- yes, it’s just the baby kicking on my bladder or something.”

Roman raised an eyebrow, moving closer to Virgil. “Are you sure? Maybe we should call the doctor.”

“I’m fine.” Virgil squeezed Roman’s hand again, trying to reassure both of them. That had been a little scary, yes, but Virgil didn’t want Roman to spend his birthday in the hospital. It couldn’t be a contraction anyways, it was still too soon for the baby to come out. “I’m sure it was nothing, but I’ll tell you if it happens again, okay?”

Still not so sure about Virgil’s response, Roman was forced to concede. He sighed. “Fine, but I want to be the first to know if you’re feeling any pain or anything.”

“And you will be. Now let’s catch up with Jan and your brother.” Virgil pulled Roman along so they could keep walking.

Maybe Virgil overestimated the distance between school and his house. Everything would be fine once they got home and he could sit down. Everything was fine… no need to panic.

Lost in his thoughts, Virgil didn’t even notice when they arrived home until they were already at the front door. Good thing he snapped out of it in time to not ruin the surprise.

Virgil let Roman open the door for them. The four teens walked in, Roman and Virgil in front with Remus and Janus behind them, only to encounter a living room in complete darkness.

Roman thought it was odd how the curtains were closed, since he had never seen them like that in the months he had been living here. He pushed his worries to the back of his head and felt around the wall for the light switch, flipping it once he found it.

As the lights turned on, Roman was met with red and gold streamers hanging from the ceiling, along with balloons and a banner that read “Happy Birthday Roman” in a matching color pallet.

Just as Roman was processing what he was seeing, Remy and Viette appeared from their respective hiding places. “Surprise!”

The sound of party blowers made Roman turn back to look at Janus and Remus, who had already put on a party hat when Roman wasn’t looking. Turning to Virgil, Roman found him in the same situation. “You did this?”

“We all did.” Virgil reached up to put a golden crown on Roman’s head. “But I guess the whole thing was my idea.”

Roman chuckled and pulled Virgil in for a kiss, smiling brightly as they pulled apart. “You’re the best boyfriend ever.”

Virgil smiled back and gently pushed Roman towards the living room. “Come on, enjoy your special day, birthday boy.”

Roman listened to Virgil and walked in only to be tackled in a hug by Viette, who kept congratulating him.

Virgil took the chance to look back at Remus, gesturing for Janus to leave them alone for a minute. Once his best friend walked away, Virgil pulled Remus as close as he could so no one else would listen. “Anything about them?”

“Eh… not really?” Remus replied in a disappointing tone. “I mean, I’m pretty sure pa was at the musical today, and he was trying to talk some sense into ma when I left home.”

Virgil sighed. He had hoped Roman’s parents would come to their senses by now. Would they really miss their son’s birthday over a stupid fight? “They would already be here if they were coming, right?”

Remus shrugged. “If pa saw Roman on stage, yeah probably.”

“Did they say something about your birthday tomorrow?” One thing Roman and Remus had always been grateful about, was that they were born in different days. At first their parents tried to throw one party for both of them, but with such clashing personalities it was better to give each twin their special day.

Remus huffed and crossed his arms. “Ma was about to suggest some bullshit dinner but I told her I wouldn’t do anything without Roman.” Remus had made sure his parents didn’t forget about his brother, in part because he truly wanted to help, but Remus wanted them to feel as guilty as they should. “I tried my best, really. Sorry it didn’t work out.”

“Yeah, thanks for trying either way.” Virgil took a deep breath and forced himself to smile for Roman. “Let’s go with the others.”

Remus nodded enthusiastically and walked towards the party. “I want to push Roman into the cake!”

“You want to what?!” Roman turned around just in time for Remus to jump over him and ruffle his hair.

Virgil only chuckled at the twins’ antics. This could still be a great party without Roman’s parents. They didn’t need them in their family if they didn't want to be here.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Roman was mostly enjoying himself. Don’t get him wrong, he was very grateful for the surprise, but part of him was still worried about Virgil.

His boyfriend insisted he was fine, and Roman really wanted to believe him, but he couldn’t shake off the feeling that not everything was okay.

It had been almost an hour since they got home and Virgil hadn’t complained about any weird feeling, so Roman was probably overreacting anyways.

Until they were about to cut the cake, when Virgil approached Roman and pulled him aside for a moment. “Okay, don’t panic. I promised to tell you if I felt anything and I’m not going to break that promise.”

Roman was about to bombard Virgil with questions, but his boyfriend put a finger over his mouth. “I said don’t panic.”

Virgil sighed. “I felt like a cramp or something like five minutes ago. I already checked in the bathroom and there’s no blood or anything. It’s gone now, but I would be lying if I told you it’s not starting to scare me.”

Roman nodded as he listened. “I still think we should call the doctor Vi. Do you feel anything else?”

Virgil shook his head. “Just that, and it’s not an unbearable pain or anything, just uncomfortable. I don’t want to cut your party short.”

“Vi-”

“I’ll text him, promise.” Virgil took Roman’s hands and gently squeezed them. “I promise I’ll be the first one out the door if he says it is something we should worry about. Until then, let’s go eat some cake.”

Roman couldn’t even fathom how Virgil expected him to enjoy himself with this situation lingering around them. “I can try, but you just scared the hunger out of me.”

“Kids, it’s time for cake!” Remy called out for them to walk back into the dining room. Which left Roman with little option other than comply with what Virgil wanted.

Roman stood alongside Virgil behind his cake as the rest of their family sang happy birthday. He pulled out his best acting skills to fake a smile through his anxious thoughts. The song ended and Roman leaned down to blow the candles, only to feel Virgil squeezing on his hand once the smoke started to dissipate.

Looking back at his boyfriend, Virgil was clearly uncomfortable and it showed. So much that the room fell silent and Remy was already walking over to them.

“There it is again.” Virgil whispered to Roman.

“Okay, no. We’re getting out of here now.” Roman pulled Virgil towards the door, with Remy and Viette following after him. He tried to explain the situation as he opened the front door, only to be stopped by yet another surprise.

His parents.

Roman froze for a moment, before his mind reminded him of his priority. Virgil.

Roman had to push his parents aside in order to get out of the house, as they were standing right in front of the entrance. He heard their voices for the first time in months, telling him to turn around and listen, but Roman wasn’t going to let anything delay them any further.

Roman helped Virgil get into Remy’s car, with them sitting on the back and Virgil’s parents on the front. His entire attention was on Virgil. It didn’t matter to Roman if he had to pretend his parents weren't only footsteps away. It’s not like they had ignored his existence for months, why should he give in right now?

Roman held Virgil’s hand as they made their way to the hospital, probably more for his own comfort.

Virgil cupped Roman’s cheek, gently pushing for his boyfriend to look at him instead of staring at the car’s floor. “Hey, it’s okay. I’m okay now.”

“I know.” Roman moved closer to Virgil, gently bumping their foreheads together. “But we’re still going to the doctor. I want to make sure nothing is wrong with you or our child, okay?”

Virgil nodded, closing the gap between them with a peck. “I want to be sure too… you don’t think they’re…”

Both teens stayed in silence for a moment, the same scenario in their minds.

“I know it’s too soon but… if they want to come out now, then we’ll make sure they’re alright.” Roman tried his best to not sound scared, for Virgil’s sake.

Viette looked back at the couple and reached over to grab one of Virgil’s hands. “They’re going to be okay, baby. Did the pain stop?”

Virgil looked at his mom and nodded. “It’s gone, yes. Let’s just hope it doesn’t come back…”

With the reassurance from his son, Viette turned to look at Roman. “And how are you feeling, darling?”

“Me?” Roman didn’t even know where to start. Was he scared? Anxious? Confused? Angry? Maybe all of the above? It was too soon to tell. Roman needed a moment to breath and let his mind stop spinning. “Overwhelmed…” was the best answer he could come up with.

Roman looked up at Viette, who was now holding his hand instead of Virgil’s. “And there’s nothing wrong with that. Take a deep breath, both of you, and let Remy and I handle the scary stuff.”

Roman decided to listen to Viette, looking back at Virgil to make sure he followed her instructions too. They held each other close, with Roman being ready to be squeezed in case Virgil felt another sudden pain… or, contraction, if that’s what they were.

Just as she promised, Viette and Remy dealt with all the paperwork and nurses once they arrived to the ER. Since Virgil still hadn’t felt anything again, they were moved to a medium to low priority section as they waited for the doctor to arrive.

Roman sat next to Virgil, who laid on a hospital bed already on a paper gown. Waiting felt like an eternity, but Dr. Sanders eventually arrived to take a look at Virgil.

It was still a bit surprising for Roman when Virgil asked him to stay. Despite their relationship growing stronger with each day, Virgil was still very protective over his privacy, especially when it came to his body or any health related issues. It wasn’t like he kept Roman in the dark, but he knew it was best to give Virgil his space.

“Good news.” Dr.Sanders spoke as he finished examining Virgil. “You’re not dilated, which means your little one is not ready to be born yet.”

Roman felt like a weight got lifted off his shoulders, and he let out probably the loudest and longest relieved sigh ever. “But then, why was Virgil feeling those sudden shocks of pain?”

The doctor took off his gloves and started gathering his equipment. “Now that we’ve ruled out a premature birth, I can tell you with certainty that those were Braxton Hicks contractions.”

“Oh, I forgot that was a thing that could happen.” Virgil looked over at Roman apologetically. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry.” Roman was quick to reassure his boyfriend. “What are those Hicks contractions?”

“Basically, fake contractions. They feel a little more like period cramps than actual contractions.” Dr. Sanders explained. “It’s easy to confuse them with actual labor if you’re not prepared for them. If you feel them again try to drink some water and change position.”

Dr. Sanders took one last look at the baby and Virgil’s vitals before ordering for his discharge. “We’re still a bit away from our weight goal, so I’ll need to take another look at your diet. And with how often you felt the Braxton Hicks in a day, I recommend you to rest as much as possible. Avoid any potential strains for you or the baby.”

Virgil nodded and made a mental note about the doctor’s indications. “I will, thank you.”

Dr. Sanders left their cubicle so Virgil could get dressed, and - with Virgil’s agreement - Roman decided to give him his privacy as well and wait for him with Remy and Viette in the waiting room.

What Roman didn’t expect, was to see his own parents waiting with Virgil’s. They had already managed to surprise him twice in a day, it would be impressive if Roman wasn’t mad at them.

Salvador was the first to see Roman, and he immediately stood up and walked over to Roman. “Mijo, how’s Virgil? And the baby?”

It took Roman a second to react, but he immediately went into defense mode. “Oh, so now you care?” he replied, crossing his arms.

That little bit of attitude was enough for Roman’s dad to look defeated. “Ro, I’m so sorry for leaving you behind for so long.” Salvador tried to reach for his son’s hands, only for Roman to step away. “There’s no excuse for my actions, but I’ve been wanting to reach out to you for so long now.”

“Then why didn’t you?” Roman wasn’t going to let his parents get away with an apology so easily, not after weeks of waiting and hoping they would reach out, not after months of giving those hopes up.

“Because I didn’t let him.” Celeste chimed in as she walked closer. “Your dad has been begging me to reconsider my actions for months, and I refused to listen to him.”

Roman huffed, of course his mom was the one behind this. He was still disappointed in his dad, though. “Do you really have to do everything she tells you? You could have gone against her but chose not to.” Roman looked over to his mom. “Don’t try to take the blame off him.”

Roman could practically see the anger from him talking back bubbling up in his mother’s eyes, but his dad stopped her before she could speak again.

“You’re right.” Salvador admitted. “Your mom and I have been a team for so long, it felt wrong to act behind her back.” He reached into his pocket to take his phone out. Salvador scrolled through his apps to find the camera roll and showed the last pictures to his son.

Roman took the phone, surprised to see himself looking back from the screen. Low quality pictures that Roman could tell were taking from a considerable distance, but he could recognize his Sky costume anywhere, along with the Mamma Mia scenography.

“I’ve never missed your shows, and I wasn’t going to start now.” Salvador reached over to scroll through his camera roll, eventually getting to Roman’s swimming competition from a few months ago.

Roman looked back up at his dad. The thought of him not being there had been bothering Roman for days before the musical, more than he thought it would. He looked back at Celeste. “And you were okay with this?”

Celeste sighed, crossing her arms in a similar stance to the one Roman just had. “I didn’t know he was doing this until today. You’re dad is not the coward you think he is.”

“I never said-”

“I could see it in your eyes.” Celeste interrupted. She cleared her throat afterwards, “Sorry. I’m not taking the responsibility away from him, but he’s been a better parent than me. At least give him credit for that.”

Roman looked back down at his dad’s phone, staring at the picture that showed him in the second place podium for a moment. “Then, why are you here?”

Roman looked at his mother in the eye, refusing to be intimidated by her gaze. It was almost as they were competing to see who would give in first, and eventually, Celeste did.

“Remus said earlier that we had never missed your birthday before.” Celeste looked away from Roman, almost as she was ashamed. “But we did. We missed those years when we insisted on you two having the same party.” She was unsure whether Roman resented them for that, but it was still something that haunted her even after all those years.

“I remember the first time you celebrated your own birthday instead of your brother’s. You were so exited to have a whole party for yourself, and Remus was too the day after.” Celeste looked back at Roman, tears forming in her eyes. “We knew right there it was a mistake to try and treat you two as one.”

Salvador held his wife’s hand. “Having you two taught us a new thing everyday, but we never imagined it would show us how wrong a parent can be until that day. And we forgot about that when you told us about Virgil.”

Roman crossed his arms again, going back to his defensive stance. His heart was begging him to let go and run to his parent’s arms, but his mind knew better now. Roman knew forgiveness shouldn't be given so easily. “Well, I’m glad you remember now.”

Celeste looked like she was about to turn to anger again, and honestly, Roman fully expected her to do so. Roman expected her to yell at him for not accepting their apologies, to try and force him to shift his views and stop painting them as the villains.

Instead, his mom took a deep breath before she kept talking. “My dad left when I was your age. I didn’t let myself grieve his absence for your grandma’s sake, and part of me thought it didn’t affect me that much anyways. It did, and my birthdays were never the same cheerful celebration of life, not until I had you two by my side.”

“It shouldn’t have taken a special day for me to realize how wrong I’ve been acting.” Celeste squeezed her husband’s hand in an attempt to keep the tears in. “But when I thought about you celebrating without us, I just started realizing just how much I was losing because I was angry over something that shouldn’t have been a disagreement in the first place.”

That was when Roman’s expression softened, and his body started to loose it’s tension. “At least you came to your senses. Quite late, but I see you’re willing to admit you were wrong.”

Roman and his parents stayed silent for a moment. Salvador had to nudge Celeste’s arm to get her to keep talking. “Right, I was wrong.” She stopped, only to be nudged by her husband a little harder this time. “And I’m sorry my actions hurt you.”

Roman looked between his parents, letting out a dry laugh and rubbing his face. “Come on, dad has to prompt you so you can apologize?” Roman didn’t even give his parents the chance to argue and kept going. “Don’t get me wrong, I know you’re trying because this is the closest I’ve been to a proper apology for my entire life.”

What his parents weren’t aware of, was the sessions of therapy Emile helped Roman get right after the fight with his parents. Looking back to his childhood had made Roman realize just how messed up his mom’s actions could be. Never taking accountability for her mistakes, making Roman and Remus believe everything she did was justifiable. Roman wasn’t falling for it this time.

“I haven’t even met my kid and I know there’s nothing they could do for me to stop loving them, especially something like what I did.” Roman had tried to understand his parent’s actions for months, but he couldn’t. How could someone be okay with knowing nothing from their child for days, let alone almost half a year?

“I appreciate the attempt, but I’m not ready to forgive you just yet.” Roman looked from his mom back at his dad. “You’re a little closer to that, but please stop listening to everything she says without giving it a second thought.”

Roman looked over at Viette and Remy, who had walked over to Virgil as soon as he walked into the waiting room. “You don’t need to worry about me lacking a family, and I hope you realize this is about more than you two missing my birthday.”

Not giving them a chance to reply, Roman walked over to Virgil. He took his hand and dragged him out of the hospital, all without looking back.

Roman and Virgil had to wait in the car for Viette and Remy to pay, which gave Roman a chance to calm down.

Virgil only waited by his side until his boyfriend was ready to tackle what just had happened, but he couldn’t take it any longer. “I’m sorry… I told Remus to invite them to your party…”

Roman looked over at Virgil with a small smile. “This is not your fault Vi. I invited them myself to the baby shower, they could have shown up there.” But they didn’t, and maybe that was the day Roman truly gave up on them. “I wasn’t expecting to see them, but at least I could sort of handle them.”

“Sort of? You were amazing back there.” Virgil kissed Roman’s hand, stealing his boyfriend’s signature move. “I’m so proud of you.”

Roman’s smile grew wider with Virgil’s words. “Good, because I blacked out and can’t even remember anything I said.”

Virgil couldn’t help but chuckle at that. “Trust me, you said everything you needed to. I’m sure that will make them reflect even more.”

“It’s only fair to keep them sleepless for a change, isn’t it?” Roman chuckled as well, the numbness inside him slowly being replaced with calmness. “I’m just glad you’re okay. To be honest, I wasn’t ready to share my birthday with my kid.”

Virgil gently slapped Roman’s arm. “Tell me about it. I’m sorry today didn’t go as planned.”

Roman kissed Virgil’s cheek. “At least we have cake waiting for us back at home, right?”

When Virgil woke up, there was a clear absence of a second source of body heat beside him, which made Virgil go from a droopy half awake state to fully conscious in a matter of seconds.

Virgil only had a towel and the bedsheets covering himself, and the memories from Roman’s massage came flooding back to him as he looked down at himself. Gosh, he must had been exhausted last night.

The room was a lot quieter without any music or Roman’s voice, which made it easier for Virgil to hear the noise coming from downstairs. Right, he should have expected Roman to continue with his breakfast making duties even on vacation.

Virgil glanced at the clock on the bedside table. It was actually a little later than when they usually woke up, and that made him wonder how long ago had Roman gotten up.

It didn’t take long for Virgil to get dressed and head downstairs, seeing his boyfriend in the kitchen just like he expected. Virgil walked closer to Roman, standing behind him to place a hand on his shoulder.

Roman flinched at the sudden touch and quickly turned around. Virgil had failed to notice he had earbuds on. Roman sighed in relief as he removed one from his ear. “Good morning stormcloud.”

Virgil chuckled. “Am I so scary to look at or what?” He asked with a smirk, but still leaned forward to give Roman a kiss on the cheek.

“You’re not.” Roman replied as he resumed with his cooking. “I just didn’t expect your pretty face to creep up behind me all of the sudden.”

Virgil took a seat at the kitchen isle, where Roman had already set up plates for both of them. “I’ll make sure to be extra loud next time then.”

Roman turned around to face his boyfriend, pan in hand with already crisp bacon. “I think next time I’ll ditch the earbuds.” He served some bacon on their plates while Virgil was already grabbing pancakes from the pile. “I didn’t want to wake you up, and with how expensive this house looks one would think the walls wouldn’t be paper thin. I could hear your snoring all the way down here.”

“And it was disturbing your cooking?” Virgil reached across the isle for the maple syrup, and Roman handed it to him once he noticed his boyfriend having a hard time reaching it.

“Not what I meant and you know it.” Roman sat down in front of Virgil, grabbing some pancakes for himself. “How did you sleep?”

“Wonderfully.” Virgil finished prepping his pancakes and started eating. “You shouldn’t have shown me you could do that.”

Roman raised an eyebrow at him. “Why?”

“Because you’re gonna have to do it every night until the baby’s born.” Virgil’s back had genuinely never felt that good, not even before the pregnancy. He used to have a horrible posture anyways, and that hadn’t changed that much with the extra weight.

Roman chuckled at that, taking a bite of his breakfast. “I’ll be happy to do so, but I might start asking for compensation.”

Virgil blushed and refused to acknowledge that comment, focusing on his breakfast instead. “What’s the big plan for today anyways?”

“Today we’re going to have some fun. Something that will hopefully distract you from the remaining worries in your head.”

“Wha- I’m not.” Virgil wanted to argue, but the look on Roman’s face was enough to shut him up. “Fine. I can’t help but be worried about them though, even if there is nothing to worry about.”

Roman nodded. “I know, therefore it’s my duty to keep you from thinking too much.” He grabbed his phone and opened the notes app, showing Virgil a list he had written. “I found a bunch of old wives’ tales to reveal the baby’s sex, so I thought it would be entertaining to try them and see if they actually work.

Virgil read through the list, squinting at most of the suggestions. “Do people really think their partner’s weight tells them if it’s a girl or a boy?”

Roman shrugged. “It’s not meant to be taken seriously, or at least, we won’t. They’re silly superstitions, but they’ll keep us busy for a while.”

“Alright, sounds fun I guess.” It would still be a while before they knew the baby’s gender, and obviously Virgil would be fine with whatever they got, but it would be nice to have an excuse to start thinking of names.

The supposed predictions did serve to keep both teens entertained for the entire morning. Roman had a small whiteboard where he was keeping score for all their girl or boy points. So far? Girl was winning.

Virgil still thought most of the superstitions were ridiculous. Having sweet cravings? Girl. Thicker hair? Boy. Not reeking after eating almost an entire loaf of garlic bread? Girl. Roman wasn’t a reliable source when it came to pregnancy glow, since he swore Virgil looked as handsome as ever, so that test had came out inconclusive.

Currently, Roman was swinging Virgil’s necklace over his belly. The test told them to use a ring, but they figured the necklace Roman got him for Christmas held more sentimental value. Most recommended to use a wedding ring anyway, and they clearly didn’t have one.

“Is that a circle?” Virgil questioned as he looked at the necklace swinging over him. The movement was not as obvious as one would expect, and it was a little hard to tell how it was moving.

“I think? It could also be just back and forth though…” Roman tried not to move his hand too much as to not affect the result. The whole day Roman had been more enthusiastic about this than Virgil, but that was starting to die down with all the inconclusive tests. “Nope, I can’t tell.”

Giving up, Virgil was handed his necklace back. “You still have another test right? We could look online for more if you want to keep trying.”

Roman stood up and offered his hand to Virgil, who took it after putting his jewelry back on. “This one is simple, you just have to sit on a chair.”

Virgil raised an eyebrow, letting Roman guide him to the dinning room where two chairs had been separated from the table. Virgil let go fo Roman’s hand and chose one of the two to sit on, not thinking too much about it. “What now?”

“Now,” Roman crouched to get something out from underneath Virgil’s chair. “We check to see if you chose a spoon or a…” Roman tried to add dramatic effect as he took out the utensil, revealing a fork. “…fork.”

Virgil looked between his boyfriend and the apparently dreaded fork. “You sound disappointed.”

Roman sighed, standing up to walk over their score board. “I mean, that leaves us on a tie.” He took the marker and made a mark under ‘boy’. “So, still a fifty-fifty chance. No big deal.”

Virgil noticed how Roman hadn’t turned back to look at him yet, but rather stared at the board in silence. “Alright,” Virgil finally spoke up, getting Roman’s attention. “Come here.”

Roman walked over to his boyfriend, sitting next to him. He leaned down to unstick the spoon from under the chair and left it with the fork on the table.

Virgil grabbed his boyfriend’s hands. “Do you have a preference over boy or girl?”

“What? No.” Roman was quick to defend himself, but bit his lip as Virgil only stared at him. “I mean, maybe? I don’t know, it makes me sound horrible.”

Virgil pulled on Roman’s hands so he could move his chair closer to him. “You’re not horrible for having expectations. It doesn’t mean you wouldn’t want the opposite sex at all.”

“Of course not! I’m definitely going to love them no matter what.”Roman rubbed the back of Virgil’s hands as he spoke. “But I don’t know anything about girls, but then what if we have a boy and he turns out to be a stereotypical straight manly man and we don’t connect at all?

Virgil let Roman speak his thought out loud. He’d been so attentive with Virgil’s nervousness, but it seemed like Roman hadn’t worked through his own worries.

“I think is less of a what are they situation, and more of me being afraid to mess them up.” Roman shrugged, taking a moment to figure out his next words. “I’ve only ever taken care of Zero, and even then Remus did all the training. How am I supposed to make sure we have a competent and nice human being?”

“You know their sex has nothing to do with that.”

“Yes, obviously.” Roman let go of one of Virgil’s hands to rub his face. “But I suppose knowing would help me mentally prepare or something.”

“Then why did you agree to the sex reveal?” Virgil would have been fine with finding out at the anatomy scan. The reveal was more for their amusement than anything.

Roman stayed silent for a bit, avoiding Virgil’s gaze. “…Because you wanted it.”

Virgil’s expression softened and he let out a long sigh. He looked down at his belly and then back at Roman. “Ro, this is our child. What you want regarding their upbringing matters too, even something as small as knowing their sex.”

Roman finally looked at Virgil in the eye, but didn’t speak just yet. There was something in his face that Virgil couldn’t decipher, and it left him more confused than scared.

“It’s just.” Roman cleared his throat. “You’re dealing with this because of me. I don’t feel like I have the right to demand anything that goes against what you want.”

“Roman, that’s the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever said.” Virgil replied, and stopped Roman from making an offended sound. “I wouldn’t have gone looking for you if I didn’t want you to be involved. Even if I’m always joking about this being your fault, it doesn’t mean I resent you or anything.”

Roman blinked. “You don’t?”

Virgil made an unamused face, like Roman just told him an awful joke and he was missing the punchline. “You think I resent you for getting me pregnant?”

“I mean, I think you should.” Roman admitted, finally voicing the main concern in his mind. “This is in no way what you had planned for your future, it’s a constant reminder of your dysphoria and it will forever change your life.”

Virgil rolled his eyes, genuinely not believing Roman felt like this. “Ro, did you forget I chose to keep this baby? Sure, a pregnant teenager is not the best case scenario, but I doesn’t have to mean I’m throwing my life away.”

“This child.” Virgil grabbed Roman’s hand and placed it over his belly. “Is my future, our future. Had I wanted anything different, I would have chosen it months ago when I still had the chance.”

With his free hand, Virgil cupped Roman’s cheek and forced his boyfriend to look at him. “I could never resent you for this, for them.” Virgil didn’t need to say it to know Roman and him already felt so much love for this child. “Whatever I had planned for my last years of high school is well in the past now. Today, I couldn’t imagine a life without you two being my family.”

Roman was doing his best not to cry, but tears had started forming in his eyes either way. “P-promise?”

“A thousand percent, dumb-ass.” Virgil kissed Roman’s forehead. “You may not be doing the hard work, but you’re also going through this pregnancy. And I find it very hypocritical that you force me to work through my worries and still hide everything that bothers you.”

Roman chuckled. “I didn’t mean to hold such double standards.” He took Virgil’s hand holding his face and kissed his palm. “But I promise not to do it anymore.”

“Good.” Virgil smiled, leaning forward to give Roman a short kiss. He only pulled away after he felt the baby kicking. “And they agree with me.”

Roman kissed back and smiled as well. He looked down at Virgil’s belly and rubbed his hand across it. “For the record, in case it wasn’t clear.” He got off his chair and knelt on the floor, being eye level with the baby bump. “I will love you no matter what. Sex, gender, sexuality, you will always be my child.”

Virgil felt another kick and chuckled. “They like to hear your voice. The baby goes like crazy whenever you’re talking.”

“Is that so?” Roman glanced up at Virgil before looking back at his stomach. “You’re just as eager to meet us as we are, aren’t you little one?” He kissed Virgil’s belly, feeling a kick right under his hand.

Virgil smiled softly and ran his free hand across Roman’s hair. “You’ll be a great dad, and I’ll be very mad at you if you dare to doubt it again.”

Roman chuckled at the touch. He grabbed Virgil’s hand and stood up. “Thank you V. You know, for listening.”

Virgil stood up with Roman’s help. “It’s what an awesome boyfriend does, is it not?”

“It is.” Roman gave Virgil a peck and moved a strand of hair away from his face. “And I love my amazing boyfriend.”

Virgil froze and blushed brightly, but Roman didn’t seemed to notice. With his enthusiasm back up, his boyfriend turned around and dragged Virgil back to the living room, rambling about the test that didn’t gave them clear results.

Virgil was barely listening, with only one word echoing through his brain.

Love.

------------------------------------------------------------------

“You already used our room as a canvas. Why do you have to paint my stomach too?” Virgil was laying outside in one of the lounge chairs next to the pool. Roman had prepared a whole face painting station on the table next to him, only he intended to paint on Virgil’s belly.

“It’ll look cute. Plus, you can just wash it off later.” Roman sat next to his boyfriend and finished preparing his paints. “Just lay back and enjoy a moment of peace and quiet, I’ll do all the work.”

Virgil made himself comfortable as Roman suggested. “Whatever you say then.”

Despite his arguing, Virgil wasn’t actually mad about this arrangement. Specially since he could only think about what Roman had said earlier.

Love.

He had said it so nonchalantly too, and it was eating Virgil up. Did an ‘I love you’ meant nothing for this guy? It certainly did for Virgil, or at least, he was pretty sure it did.

It wasn’t like Virgil didn’t feel the same way… he just wasn’t ready to say it yet. Roman didn’t seem to expect hearing it back, or he would have definitely made a bigger deal about it. Honestly, Virgil preferred one of his dramas than whatever this was.

Virgil would have fallen asleep if his mind has stopped bothering him, but his spiraling did seem to make time move faster, since Roman was almost done already.

Per his boyfriend’s instructions, Virgil didn’t look down at his belly to keep the surprise, but Roman was starting to clean his brushes, which meant he no longer needed to use them.

Since he could no longer distract Roman in a way that would ruin his work, Virgil decided to put an end to his suffering. “So… about earlier.”

Roman glanced up at him for a moment, before looking back at what he was painting. “I know, I know. I promised I won’t hide my issues any longer and I’ll stick to it. No need to say it twice.”

“No, it’s not that.” Virgil knew he didn’t need to make Roman promise something more than once. His boyfriend was quite good at keeping his word, and Virgil didn’t think this would be the exception. “It is about something you said, but not about that.”

Roman stopped his painting to look at Virgil with a puzzled expression. “What do you mean?”

Virgil’s bravery almost went away as he locked eyes with Roman, but he managed to hold onto it. How was this guy still making him nervous? “You said you loved me.”

Roman didn’t seem that taken aback by this ‘revelation’, which made Virgil start to panic. What if he had said it without meaning it? What if Roman didn’t even notice?

“I did, and?”

“And? What do you mean ‘and’?” Virgil asked in a semi offended tone. For someone who was known for romance, his boyfriend was being annoyingly nonchalant about this matter.

Roman set his brush aside and looked back at Virgil. “Did you not want me to say it? I thought you would like to hear it back.”

Virgil’s panic turned into confusion. “Hear it back? Wouldn’t I have to have said it first to hear it back?”

Roman stared at Virgil for a second, before he burst out in laughter. That only made Virgil more confused. What was so funny about it?

Before he could ask about it, Roman calmed down enough to speak. “I really need to stop listening to you when you’re half awake.”

Half awake? Virgil tried to remember last night’s events. He obviously remembered the incredible massage Roman gave him, but not much after that. Had they talked before going to sleep? Did that mean Virgil… oh.

Virgil didn’t need to look in a mirror to know his face was completely red, since Roman laughing once again made it pretty clear. Virgil tried to hide his face on his hands. “S-shut up! I don’t remember what the heck I said to you!”

“Nothing bad.” Roman reassured him between laughs. “I swear. We were cuddling and you said you loved me right before falling asleep.” Roman shrugged as he picked his brush back up. “I tried to keep you awake to reply, but either you were exhausted, or my hands really are magic.”

Virgil peaked at Roman from between his fingers. He’d been torturing himself for hours, juts for Roman to drop a bomb like that on him? Virgil groaned and dragged his hands down his face. “I can’t believe I don’t remember telling you I loved you.”

Roman glanced back up at Virgil as he kept painting. “If it makes you feel any better, we can pretend like I was the one who said it first.”

“Are you joking? I have the right to brag about this.” Virgil may not remember it, but he didn’t want Roman taking all the credit. “I beat Mr. Romance on saying ‘I love you’ first. You think I’m going to let you take over my victory?”

Roman chuckled. “I shouldn’t have assumed.” He grabbed the towel he’d been using to clean his brushes to take the excess paint off from the one he was just using. “But just to be clear, I wouldn’t mind hearing it again.”

Virgil glared at Roman’s teasing look, but still smirked. “What? You’re doubting my sincerity?”

“Hmm… I think you’re making it up, actually.” Roman stood up and got closer to Virgil’s face. He slid his hand under his boyfriend’s cheek and made Virgil look up at him. “I don’t remember letting you beat me in my own game.”

Virgil blushed, but didn’t let his expression soften. “Would you really dare to go against my word, Mr. Flores?”

Roman leaned down, as close as he could get to Virgil’s face without their heads bumping into each other. “I want you to prove me wrong, Mr. Sallow.”

Virgil didn’t break eye contact with Roman, gaining his sudden burst of confidence back. “How rude of you, making me repeat my words.” He reached to place one hand on the back of Roman’s head, pushing him even closer. “But if you’re so desperate to hear it, I guess I’ll be good with you.”

Roman couldn’t even reply before Virgil pulled him into a kiss. He let Virgil take the lead and explore his lips as long as he wanted. They only pulled apart when Virgil was out of breath. They kept each other close, feeling the other’s breath and warmth.

“I love you.” Virgil spoke softly, almost whispering. The way he said it made it sound like a secret, something only him and Roman were allowed to know, but the way Virgil felt it? That was a completely different story. Virgil felt like he could shout it out loud for the entire world to know. “I really do.”

Roman smirked, leaning in for a shorter kiss. “I love you too.” He said after they pulled apart.

Virgil knew he didn’t need Roman’s confirmation to know he felt the same, but it was always nice to have it. Plus, he was starting to like how those words sounded coming out of Roman’s mouth.

“Now, with that out of the way.” Roman stood to his full height and stretched his back. “It’s time for you to see my masterpiece.”

Virgil took Roman’s hand with a smile and let his boyfriend guide him all the way to the bathroom. Once they were at the door, Roman let go of his hand and moved behind Virgil to cover his eyes.

Virgil chuckled and placed his hands over Roman’s. “Is this much suspense really necessary?”

“Of course it is, who do you think I am?” Roman guided Virgil so he was standing in front of the mirror. “Okay, ready?”

“I’ve been ready for like half an hour.” Virgil could almost feel Roman’s eye roll as he uncovered his eyes. The sudden light forced Virgil to blink a couple of times to let his eyes adjust. The blurry image of his refection becoming clearer with each second.

The mirror showed him his belly painted to look like one of the scenes of Nightmare Before Christmas, the one with Jack and Sally on the mountain. Roman had even painted Zero looking at them in the distance. If Virgil looked closer, he would notice the moon’s reflection on the characters. Roman did a very good job, and it left Virgil speechless.

Roman stood by Virgil’s side, bouncing on his feet expectantly. “So? What do you think?”

Virgil couldn’t find the words to express his thoughts. This was another level of sappiness, sure, but that didn’t mean Virgil didn’t absolutely loved it. He didn’t even noticed when tears started running down his cheeks.

Roman got closer to Virgil and grabbed his hand, with a hint of concern in his eyes. “Is everything okay, cariño?”

“More than okay.” Virgil sniffed and turned to look at Roman, smiling despite his tears. “This looks amazing Ro.”

Roman sighed in relief and smiled again. “I’m glad you like it, but can you just say it next time instead of scaring me?” He cupped Virgil’s cheek and cleaned his tears.

Virgil chuckled and turned to kiss Roman’s hand. “I blame the hormones.” He leaned against his boyfriend and stared at his reflection. If only he could keep it like that forever.

Glancing at Roman’s reflection, Virgil could see him holding his camera up. “May I?”

Virgil looked at his boyfriend, hesitant to agree. Roman noticed his reaction and was quick to reassure his boyfriend. “I can take the picture so your face won’t show.”

After some more seconds of thinking, Virgil nodded and positioned himself so Roman could take the picture. It didn’t take long for the camera to activate and flash. Roman took a look at the picture and showed the screen to Virgil.

Just as he said, Roman had only captured Virgil’s belly. It showed what needed to be seen, Roman’s hard work, but Virgil felt like the picture didn’t do it justice, like it missed something.

“You know what?” Virgil repositioned himself, placing his hands under his belly and leaning against the wall. “Take a full body picture this time.”

Roman readjusted his grip on the camera, looking over at Virgil in confusion. “Are you sure? You’re gonna let me keep a picture of pregnant you?”

Virgil sighed. “Don’t get too excited. I just want to see how it would look.” Virgil looked down at his belly with a soft smile. “If I don’t like it, I’ll make you delete it.”

Virgil hear the camera noises as Roman took the picture without a warning. He looked up to glare at his boyfriend, who only replied with, “I wanted it to look natural.”

Rolling his eyes, Virgil walked closer to Roman to look at the picture, expecting to hate it and get rid of it for good. Instead, Virgil was met with a sweet moment of genuine happiness and calm.

Virgil should hate what he was seeing, the whole pregnancy package. A swollen face, enlarged breasts, everything that made him look more feminine… but he didn’t. The picture was actually nice to look at, it reminded Virgil of the baby growing inside him more than it reminded him of his dysphoria.

“So… can we keep it?” Roman asked, gently elbowing Virgil to get him out of his trance.

Virgil looked back up at Roman with a small smile. “Yeah,” he replied. “We can keep it.”

------------------------------------------------------------------

Time had gone by in the blink of an eye after their spring break vacation. Virgil’s teachers agreed to let him do his finals early, so he was all free from studying now. Roman wasn’t too far from that, as he only had a couple of assignments left to turn in. School was mostly done with, and that left Viette with the chance to tackle both teenagers with the baby shower.

Luckily, it wasn’t anything too exaggerated. It would only be Virgil and Roman, Virgil’s parents, Emile, and Remus and Janus celebrating at Viette’s backyard. She had been prepared to argue about having more space for decorations, but Remy was just happy he didn’t have to clean afterwards so he was quick to agree.

Virgil would be stressing over his outfit if it wasn’t for Remus, who promised to make him look as hot and manly as he could with a pregnant belly on the way. Virgil had to tell him to dial down the hotness aspect though.

It wasn’t even anything too fancy. Remus managed to find a massive white dress shirt that covered Virgil’s bump, and a pair of matching pants that somehow fit. It was so weird for Virgil to see himself wearing white, but his mom insisted.

“You look like you’re going to melt under the sun or something.” Janus commented as Virgil stepped out of the bathroom already dressed. “I can barely tell where your skin stops and your clothes start.”

“Ha ha.” Virgil only gave him an unamused look, as he was currently held in place by Remus adjusting his clothes.

Somehow, his friends managed to find white versions of their usual outfits. It literally looked like they dipped their clothes in white paint. Virgil would have been offended that they didn’t think to do that whit his clothes, but none of them fit anyways, so this was the best they could do.

Virgil actually made a face when he saw his reflection. How did his mom think white would look good on him? As much as Virgil hated admitting Janus was right, everyone in his family was probably as white as the clothes themselves, and yet Virgil didn’t get his mom’s ability to pull it off.

It was somehow weirder to see his dad wearing white, and he tended to add more color to his outfits than Virgil, at least since he started dating Emile.

At least the white made everyone easy to spot at his mom’s house backyard, which had been bombarded with blue and pink decorations. This almost didn’t look like the same place Virgil and Roman had spent an entire week at.

Speaking of his boyfriend, Roman was nowhere to be seen. Was he really going to take an eternity getting ready today of all days? At least Virgil didn’t have to deal with distant relatives being nosy or anything, or Roman’s family for that matter.

Oh right, Roman’s family.

Apparently, Roman’s parents were both given an invitation to the baby shower, but none of them decided to show up.

Virgil wasn’t supposed to know, but Remus ranted about it to Janus. One would think that with so many years of dating Remus would know not to trust Janus to keep his mouth shut around his best friend. Janus could be very good at keeping secrets, but Virgil had broken that lock a long time around. They told each other everything, mostly against Jan’s will.

The topic definitely still bothered Roman, even more than Virgil thought it would. So, maybe that’s why he hadn’t shown up yet, and as Virgil took another look around to find Remus only to be met with nothing, he got more convinced that that was the case.

Virgil wanted to help with something, anything really, but he was forced to stay out of the way. Even with so little guests, everyone around him insisted on letting Virgil rest. Rest from what? Who knew. It wasn’t like he could put the baby down or anything.

So there he was, sitting at “the couple’s table” in the middle of the decorations. The longer he sat there, the longer Virgil thought it was a little bit ironic how their party’s color scheme was the trans flag colors.

Janus suddenly appeared to sit next to him, leaving a plate of bacon on the table. “Here, eat something before your mom arrives with her fancy food.”

Virgil chuckled. “What? No rabbit diet today?” He though Janus would most likely hand him a piece of celery before letting him eat greasy and over salted bacon. Not like Virgil would complain, he much preferred this over rabbit food.

“I can take it away and replace it if you don’t want it.”

Virgil slapped Janus’s hand as he tried to take the plate away. “I didn’t say that.”

At least with Janus by his side waiting for Roman didn’t seem like an eternity. It was only when Virgil’s mom stepped outside that he knew the celebration would officially start.

Virgil was just standing up when he felt someone walking closer to him, only to turn around and see Roman. As soon as his eyes laid on his boyfriend, Virgil burst out laughing.

Roman chuckled along with him. “What? Is there something in my face?”

Virgil managed to calm down enough to reply. “Other than like half a pound of makeup? What is this? You’re like a step away from being in full drag.”

Roman smirked and posed like a bodybuilder showing of his muscles, which made the white sundress clearly too small for Roman look even more ridiculous on him. “I wanted a new style, to accentuate the heteronormativity in our pictures.”

Virgil was still laughing softly, but his amusement turned into a sappier feeling once he realized what Roman was doing. Virgil was still worried about looking too feminine, so Roman decided to outshine him in that department.

“You are the best boyfriend ever.” Virgil leaned in for a kiss, but decided to kiss Roman’s cheek instead to not ruin his lipstick.

“Awe, come on.” Roman complained, wrapping his arms around Virgil to keep him close. “Remus made sure these lips were smear proof. Don’t be afraid to give me a proper kiss.”

Virgil rolled his eyes, but still gave Roman his so desired kiss. “There, happy?”

“Mmm… maybe I should get another one to make sure.”

“Hey you, lovebirds.” Remus interrupted them. He gestured over to the adults walking towards them. “A different show is about to start, and I don’t think they want to see you eat each other out.”

Roman grabbed a nearby plastic fork and threw it at Remus, making him walk away like a stray dog that had been shushed away.

Almost on cue, Zero walked over to inspect the area. He must had been upstairs with the twins, or Virgil would have definitely been robbed of his bacon earlier.

Virgil couldn’t crouch to pet him, so Roman picked the dog up for his boyfriend to greet him. Virgil pet his head, and Zero wagged his tail in reply.

Virgil took one last look at Roman before making his way over to his parents. “You know what? You should keep that dress, it makes you look hot.”

He walked away just in time to see Roman’s face turn red, but fast enough to keep him from teasing back. Virgil knew Roman would control himself in front of the adults, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t tempt him.

The party was actually not that bad, overly sappy? Yes, but not horrible.

Viette had arranged some activities, so it felt more like a game night than a baby shower. Every guest had brought a small item to add to a time capsule along with a message for the baby. Roman and Virgil got to add their own message too, and they agreed to open it when their child turned 18. It seemed like too long, but Remy kinda scared them into believing time would fly by.

There were bets for both the baby’s birthday, and the baby’s sex, as well as two jars that were already full with name suggestions… and a whole separate jar with Remus’s suggestions. Viette had even arranged a “build your baby” board, and each guest had taken their turn trying to guess which features the baby would inherit. Virgil’s attempt looked like Roman, and Roman’s looked like Virgil.

Finally, as the sun was setting and everyone had finished eating. Virgil and Roman were handed the cake that would reveal their baby’s sex.

The couple stood behind a table, each with an empty wine glass in hand as the rest observed. Janus had to physically hold Remus back or else he would jump into the pool with excitement.

Virgil had an arm wrapped around Roman’s torso. He looked up at his boyfriend and tilted the wine glass towards him. “Ready?”

“I’ve been ready for months.” Roman clanked his glass against Virgil’s. “At the count of three?”

Virgil nodded. Both teens held their glasses upside down over the cake as the rest of the party started counting.

“One… two…”

Virgil took one last glance at Roman, who held Virgil closer with a smile. They joined the crowd for the last number. “Three!”

They didn’t even let them finish before shoving the wine glasses on the cake, pulling them out carefully to take a look at the colored buttercream inside. As the cake’s insides came into view, Roman and Virgil could see they were…

“Is that, green?” Roman squinted at the cake, as if that would make the color magically change.

Virgil stared at his piece of cake for a moment, unsure how to feel about this. He heard his mom swearing she would sue the damn bakery that made this mistake, but Virgil wasn’t infuriated like she was. This was… funny.

So, Virgil started laughing, gaining confused looks from everyone around him.

“It’s green!” Virgil yelled between laughs, more than amused with the failed reveal. Virgil could have sworn he even peed himself a little.

Eventually, Roman joined him as his disappointment slipped away. “It is green! What the heck does that even mean?”

“I don’t know!” Virgil kept laughing his ass off. “This is, wow.” His laugher only started to die down as he felt the baby kicking, apparently as entertained as his parents were. “I’m sorry Ro. I know how excited you were to know.”

Roman looked between the cake and his boyfriend, and only shrugged in response. “You know what? I don’t need to know” He placed the glass down to wrap his other arm around Virgil. “We can wait and let it be a surprise if you want”

“Hey!” Remus yelled. “I put good money in this! Nobody told me the wicked witch of the west was an option!”

Virgil rolled his eyes playfully, putting his own glass down to cup Roman’s face. “Why not? We can wait until they’re born.” He reached down and scooped a bit of icing off the cake, only to smear it on Roman’s nose. “For now, let’s enjoy the cake.”

Roman smiled and copied Virgil’s actions, smearing icing on his boyfriend’s forehead. They both laughed as Roman kissed Virgil’s cheek, and the guests sharing their mixed reactions became background noise for them.

Mr. Sallow

The kitchen's light was somehow piercing through Remy's sunglasses. He groaned and tried to cover his eyes with his hand, but found his arms too weak to cooperate.

“Remy? Remy, please, for the love of She-ra, can you hear me?”

“Dad? Please dad, are you okay?”

Ugh. Remy felt a growing headache as he opened his eyes, squinting at the shadows against the light bulb. “Ugh... just let me die for a moment.”

Remy heard a relieved sigh, and could almost see his boyfriend making a face at his comment. “Come on, help me sit him up.”

Remy felt two pairs of hands grabbing him, some from behind his back and the others pulling on his arms. “What the fuck happened anyway?” He mumbled, feeling consciousness coming back to him.

Once his vision started clearing, the first thing Remy saw was Virgil's face. Vigil's terrified face.

“You uh... fainted”

Oh, yeah, that made sense. Remy's mind was starting to feel less foggy, memories from just moments earlier coming back to him.

“Is he okay?” A third voice asked.

Remy looked up, spotting Roman peeking at him over the kitchen isle. Oh right, his son's boyfriend. No, not even that, the boy that got his son pregnant.

“I don't think you hit your head dear, but let me go grab some ice really quickity quick.” Emile stood up from the kitchen floor, walking over to the fridge and momentarily leaving Virgil and Roman alone in this awkward situation.

Remy finally gathered enough strength to rub his eyes. “Virgil, baby, can you give me my sunglasses?” They weren't even on his face. Gosh, Remy really blacked out badly if he didn't even remember taking them off.

Virgil was quick to get up from the floor and fetch his father's glasses, handing them over to him. “You haven't answered the question.”

Remy sighed, “I'm fine, sugar-cube.” He took his sunglasses and put them on, instantly feeling relieved, as his eyes were no longer bothered by the artificial light. “Your dad has taken more than a little hit to the head, don't worry about me.”

“Here,” Emile knelt back down next to where Remy sat, leaning against the counter, handing him a bag of ice. “We should get you something sweet too, get your sugar blood rushing.”

“Emile, babe, I swear if you give me a milkshake instead of coffee again I'll break up with you.” Remy was only half joking, since he knew his boyfriend was right, but the thought of a sweet beverage still grossed him out.

Remy barely noticed how Roman and Virgil moved to sit back at the kitchen isle where they were before he fainted. He couldn't see it from his place on the floor, but Remy was sure they were holding hands. Gosh, Virgil still had that terrified expression on his face. Yeah, maybe fainting was not the best reaction. Father of the year Remy.

With Emile's help, Remy pulled himself off the floor, leaning against the isle. He looked up, staring at not one, but three positive pregnancy tests the teenagers presented him a few minutes earlier.

Remy sighed. “Virge I... I don’t even know what to tell you I-”

“Please, Mr. Sallow. I know this is unexpected, but Virgil doesn't deserve your anger. I beg you to focus your negative emotions on me and not him.” Roman interrupted, receiving a light kick on the leg from Virgil.

“Don't tell him that, he might take it seriously.” Virgil mumbled, but it was loud enough for the adults to hear.

Remy looked between the two younger guys, going through his next words in his mind before actually saying them. He set his eyes on his son, trying to look as nonthreatening as possible. “What do you want to do?”

Virgil bit the inside of his cheek. There was that question again. What did he want to do? He placed his free hand over his belly. There was a baby growing inside him, or a fetus or whatever they were at that stage. Virgil was pregnant, like actually pregnant! That was crazy to think about.

Everything he told Roman earlier was still true. Virgil wasn't sure if he'd be able to go through an abortion, at least not emotionally, so that was completely off the table.

Giving the baby up for adoption? Uhh... too many variables to think about. Virgil would have to find the most absolute perfect couple. He wouldn't be comfortable with even the smallest flaw. Plus, would he just carry the baby inside him for nine months, push him out and hand him out to someone just like that? Virgil knew he would get attached. Also, seeing someone else raise his baby was going to hurt, as selfish as it sounded, and not seeing them grow up at all felt even worse.

Virgil looked at Roman, his mind still going through every possible outcome.

Roman had reassured him they would do anything Virgil wanted. “This is your body, Virgil, the final decision is yours.” Roman's words echoed in Virgil's mind, somehow helping him calm down.

“I... I want to keep it, them.” Virgil nodded, looking back towards his father, trying to read his expression through the dark lenses. “We're keeping our baby, that is, assuming you're i-”

Roman practically tackled Virgil with a hug, the shorter teen struggling to keep his balance on the stool. Roman smiled brightly, “I would love to! You have my full support, Virgil, both of you.”

Breaking apart from Roman's embrace, Virgil stared at Remy, begging him to say something. “Dad..?”

Emile had grabbed one of Remy's hands, squeezing it gently, but he stayed silent. Even if he was already feeling like part of the family, Emile and Remy hadn't been dating for long. It wasn't his place to parent Virgil, but he could still provide moral support.

A quiet sob broke the tense ambiance the kitchen had acquired. Remy took off his sunglasses, cleaning the few tears that had come out of his eyes. “Oh, Virgil.”

Remy walked around the kitchen’s isle, having recovered enough strength to get to where his son was sitting. “I would never be mad at you over something like that. You were careful, you both were, and accidents happen.” He pulled Virgil tightly against him, stroking the teen's hair.

Virgil's tears started flowing out as soon as his dad hugged him. He could always blame it on the hormones later. Virgil hugged back, burying his face on Remy's shoulder. “B—but you fainted."

"Ugh, I did." Remy spoke with an annoyed tone in his voice, but that annoyance was directed at himself. "My mind was just catching up V. This is not exactly the most thrilling situation for the father of a sixteen-year-old."

Remy felt Emile's eyes reprimanding him from behind. He turned to look at him with an apologetic face. "Regardless, I'll be with you no matter what. You won't get rid of me that easily, kid.”

Virgil chuckled between tears, pulling his dad closer to him. "I wouldn't dream of it."

Remy wiped the rest of his tears away, looking up from his kid over at Roman. “And you,” despite the moment of emotional vulnerability, Remy still managed to put on an intimidating front. “This is a big compromise, young man. If you do anything to hurt my baby, or my grand baby, you're dead. Capiche?”

Roman gulped, but nodded either way. “Entendido y anotado señor.”

“Come on Rem, don't be so hard on the kid.” Emile finally stepped in, placing a hand on Remy's shoulder. “He's trying, they both are.”

Remy glanced down at Virgil, who gave a nod in response to Emile's words. Roman might have been kind of an idiot before, but he was already back to the charming personality Virgil fell for in the first place.

Remy sighed. “Alright,” he extended an arm over to Roman, “c'mere kid.

Roman hesitated, also looking at Virgil for approval, who just snorted and rolled his eyes. “Join the group hug already, princey.”

And with that, Virgil found himself stuck between his father's and Roman's arms, and Emile's too as he gave them a half hug. Virgil felt so full of love at that moment, and looking back on this moment years from now, he would consider it one of their first family hugs.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Remus

"ROMAN!" Remus slammed the door to Roman's door open, Zero walking into the room before he even had the chance. It had been a long time since the twins stopped sharing a room, but they moved into a house with two rooms linked by a bathroom a couple of years ago. That didn't stop Remus from coming in unannounced.

Roman almost fell into his closet (he didn't want to go back in there, so good thing he caught himself, startled by Remus's scream. "What the hell Rem?! Warn a dude next time you want to give him a heart attack."

Roman's room was currently a mess. Multiple shirts and pants were tossed all over the floor, bed and desk. Despite having just walked in, Zero had already claimed a pile of clothes on the floor as his resting spot for the day. Remus almost made a snarky remark about the mess before focusing back on his mission.

Remus walked closer to Roman with a threatening aura. "Is it true?! Please tell me it's not true."

Roman just stared at him, the initial shock gone now. "Be more specific?"

"Did you get someone-?!" Remus stopped himself from yelling, afraid their parents might hear. "Pregnant?"

"Oh, that," Roman took another shirt out of his closet to try it on, not embarrassed at all about his situation. Sure, teenage pregnancy and all that wasn't exactly the most exciting thing Roman could experience, and it was really frowned upon by society, but Remus and his parents were going to find out eventually. Roman was actually planning a dinner with Virgil's mom to tell them and- wait.

Roman turned back to Remus. "How the hell do you know that?"

"Ple-ase Roman, twin telepathy and that shit?" Remus wiggled his eyebrows. "That shirt and those pants? Awful, by the way."

Roman rolled his eyes, a slight blush on his face as he hung the shirt back in his closet. "That's not a thing. We tried, many times, more than I would have liked."

Remus groaned, shoving Roman out of the way and looking through his brother's clothes. "I have my contacts. Seriously, you need to be more careful. There are always eyes and ears scattered around school craving that sweet juicy gossip. Not literally though, unfortunately. Long story short, you were spotted buying a pregnancy test.”

Shit. "Does anyone else know?" Were Roman and Virgil not careful enough? The only thing that was different in the last week was that they were hanging out together more often. Which, now that Roman thought about it, was actually pretty weird considering how they seemingly started getting along out of nowhere from one day to another.

Roman and Virgil wanted to keep the secret as long as they could, at least until they could finish spreading the news to their families. Mr. Sallow -Remy, as he had asked Roman to call him, and his boyfriend had been the quickest adults to get to, but Virgil's mom lived abroad and none of them wanted to go through this song and dance more than one other time. So, they decided on having a reunion with Remus, Virgil's mom and Roman's parents, with Remy and Emile there as moral support.

"Of course not ya dingus! My informant will keep his face hole shut. I made sure of that." Remus grabbed a red dress shirt, adorned with golden swirls at the neck and cuffs, and threw it at Roman's face. “There, now spill. Who did you fuck so hard that you impregnated her?”

Roman huffed, holding the shirt over the one he was already wearing, surprised at how well it went with the pants he had on. Ugh, Remus having a better sense of style than him would never stop being infuriating. “I didn't impregnate any 'her'...” Roman sighed, “it's Virgil.”

Remus stayed silent for a moment, before letting out a long and dramatic sigh of relief. "Oh, thank Satan! I thought you were corrupted by the straight side for a second there!"

“Really? That's what you were worried about?”

“I'm gonna be an uncle, and you didn't tell me?! The betrayal!” Remus flopped face down on Roman’s bed, not caring if he fell on top of his clothes. “My own brother! Oh, how it hurts.”

Roman sighed. After throwing the red shirt over his shoulder, he started to pick up the clothes on the floor to hang them back up, gently nudging his dog out of the way. “It wasn't going to be a secret forever, Rem. Virge and I just wanted the news to come out smoothly.”

Remus rolled over, frowning at Roman. “You fucked my boyfriend’s best friend and thought I wasn't going to find out? We don't have secrets, RoRo! You know everything that goes on with me and Jan in the bedroom.”

“Yeah, against my will! I've told you many times to keep that to yourself.” Roman shivered at the thought. Remus was always very explicit when it came to his sex life. At least he always let Roman know when Janus would come over.

Remus rolled over again, falling to the floor. Zero walked up to him, licking Remus's face, but he didn't seem to care at all. “Our sex is way too magnificent to be kept in the dark! And Jan refuses to let me record it! Someone else has to know the art we're depriving the world o-”

Remus was interrupted by another shirt hitting his face. He held it to take a better look at it, a white dress shirt with a red rose pattern. “Why do you want to look so dressed up anyway?”

“Virgil's mom is coming for his birthday and staying ‘til New Year's. We were planning a dinner with you and our parents after my play.” Roman moved to pick up the clothes on his bed since Remus wasn't in the way anymore. “I guess I just... want everything to be perfect, including what I wear.”

Remus stood up abruptly. “Why didn't you say so before?! This is not a ‘Hello I fucked your son’ outfit! Save that for dinner, I'll pick out something way better!”

All Roman could do was complain about being dressed like a doll the rest of the day. The outfit Remus ended up choosing was actually nice, so at least it wasn't all for nothing. Roman couldn't help but wonder how his child's relationship with Remus would be. He and Virgil would definitely have to set a lot of rules, but with how much they cared about each other, Remus was going to be an amazing uncle.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Madame Viette

Virgil groaned, moving to sit against the bathroom's wall. “Are you going to let me catch a break anytime soon?” He looked down and placed a hand over his belly. Another wave of nausea hit him, making Virgil turn back to the toilet to throw up. “Very funny... ugh, you definitely got that from Roman.”

Virgil wasn't even sure what he was throwing up. This baby had already been emptying his stomach all morning. The least Virgil needed after a chemistry exam was another date with the toilet.

After waiting some minutes to make sure he wouldn't puke again, Virgil finally stood up and walked out of the bathroom. He closed the door behind him and leaned against it, sighing as he glanced at the clock hung on the wall.

“Is it still morning sickness if you're having it in the afternoon?” Remy walked over to his son, having just gotten out of an online meeting.

Virgil groaned and went straight into his father's arms. “Did mom ever suffer this much with me?”

Remy let out a dry chuckle, wrapping his arms around Virgil. “Oh yeah, you were a pain the first couple of months. And after that? We were constantly going for checkups since you didn't want to move at all. You've always been scaring the living hell out of me.”

“I'm getting my karma now, don't worry about it.”

“Come on,” Remy broke apart from Virgil enough to look his son in the eye. “It's your first trimester, the nausea will die down eventually.”

Virgil whined, pulling his dad close again and burying his face in Remy's chest. “Am I even making the right choice if I can't wait for this to be over already?”

Remy smiled softly, stroking his son's hair. "Doubting is never a bad thing, kid. We're still on time if you don't want to keep going with this.”

Virgil shook his head. “No, I want this baby. I just... I'm already so tired of throwing up all day, how am I going to handle a kid?”

Remy kissed Virgil's forehead with a chuckle. “It's too early for you to be worrying about your parenting skills. Trust your pops, no one is ever ready for this. Not even your mother, despite claiming she's the best at everything.”

A knock on the door interrupted their moment.

Remy rolled his eyes. “Speak of the devil.”

“Dad,” Virgil pulled apart and gave Remy a gentle nudge, “don't talk about her like that.”

By the time both of them got downstairs, Virgil's mom had already walked into the house.

“There is my beautiful baby!” She immediately went to trap Virgil in a tight hug, engulfing the teenager with her white plush coat.

Virgil struggled in his mother's grasp, mostly to keep the puffy coat out of his mouth. “I-It's nice to see you but... I need to breathe, please.”

“What's the purpose of knocking on the door if you're going to walk in like that anyway?” Remy stood behind Virgil, crossing his arms. “That's why you have a key, Viette.”

Viette let go of Virgil, fixing his son's hair, so his eyes weren't covered before walking over to Remy. “It is rude to walk in unannounced, and you know I have to make sure you see my grand entrance.” She kissed Remy's cheeks, “but you would know nothing about class, would you Rem?”

Remy rolled his eyes, but still smiled. “Still the most charming woman around, aren't you?”

“As if you knew, my dear.” Viette turned back to Virgil, walking closer to pinch his cheeks. “How is my sweet angel doing? Are you eating well? Taking your vitamins? We need to keep that body healthy for my grand baby.”

Remy and Virgil froze, the teen breaking free from his mother's grasp to look at his father. “You told her?!”

“Oh honey, there was no need.” Viette gave Virgil a couple of head pats. “Your father simply mentioned you wanted to talk with me about something really important, and I knew it the moment I saw you. You're radiating with that glow the people in my family get while pregnant.”

Virgil snuck away from the touch, trying to take it all in. Sometimes, his mother scared him. Virgil once tried to convince his kindergarten classmates that she was a witch, and was not at all surprised at how easily they believed him. She just always had a sixth sense for everything. The Halloween candy Virgil managed to hide? She always found them. The places Virgil would look for Christmas presents? He would only find a note telling him to try harder next time.

Virgil shouldn't have been as shocked as he was, but he had still expected to tell his mom personally. All that mental preparation was thrown away like nothing. Oh well, he would use it for Roman's parents.

“Now come and tell me everything darling. Who is the baby daddy? I want every single detail!”

“Uhm... that would be me.”

Virgil turned towards the door, sighing -either from annoyance or relief, he couldn't tell- as he saw Roman standing in the doorway. “You're here early.”

Roman hesitantly walked in. “I'm sorry V, the wait was killing me.” He gave Virgil an apologetic smile and turned to the tall, and quite intimidating, woman in front of him. “You must be Miss Allard. I’m Roman Flores.” He offered the woman his hand, “Virgil’s uhm... sperm donor?”

Virgil facepalmed, dragging his hand down his face. An amazing first impression, this was going exactly how they planned it.

“Oh, aren't you such a lovely young man?” Viette took Roman's hand, shaking it firmly. “Please, call me Viette.”

Roman let out a relieved sigh, he hadn't completely screwed it up. With a small but confident smile, he pulled Viette’s hand to leave a gentle kiss on her knuckles. “It’s a pleasure to meet the woman responsible for someone as wonderful as Virgil.”

Remy cleared his throat, “I’m right here?” He commented in an offended tone, considering he should be the one taking most of the credit for the way Virgil turned out.

Viette gave Virgil a look, as if telling him Roman was an excellent catch. “How chivalrous, you could learn a thing or two from this young man, Remy.” She let go of Roman's hand and got closer to him, squeezing his face with one hand as she analyzed him. “Good thing your father's genes are so weak Virgy. Between Roman's looks and mine, your baby is going to be the cutest thing in the world.”

Roman glanced at Virgil as his face got squished. “I’ll take it I’m making a good first impression?”

“Barely” Virgil was still annoyed at his plans not going as he wanted them. “Mom, give him some space.”

As Virgil managed to pry his mom away from smothering Roman, yet another voice interrupted them.

“Whoa Virge, which celebrity are you holding hostage? There's a limo and everything outside!” Remus walked into the house, at least being considerate enough not to get in without permission.

Virgil glared at Roman. “What is he doing here?”

“Oh I am the moral support!” Remus's consideration was thrown out the window as he walked in to wrap an arm around his brother's shoulder. “And the official backup in case of a wardrobe emergency! Can't have my bro looking bad in front of his mother-in-law.”

Feeling Virgil's glare turning back at him, Roman was quick to defend himself. “I swear he found out on his own! He insisted on coming along. I should have known Remus wouldn't keep off of my business.” Roman gently pushed his brother away.

Viette raised an eyebrow. “Twins? Oh, ViVi, you have the chance to have twins?!”

Virgil could practically see the glow in his mother's eyes through the fancy and ridiculously big sunglasses, and was quick to shut it down. “Stop, no. We're not thinking about that right now, don't get too excited.” He sighed. Virgil knew it was a possibility, but thinking about having one kid was already draining him. He didn't want to focus on the possibility of two. “Mom, this is Remus. Remus, my mom, Viette Allard.”

Remus's jaw practically hit the floor. “Viette Allard?! As in Madam Viette?! The Madame Viette?!”

Virgil's mom chuckled, taking off her sunglasses and pushing them up to her head. “The one and only darling.”

“Oh sweet mother of everything unholy. I'm a huge fan of your work! The last Fall-Winter collection presented in Milan?! An absolute masterpiece!”

Viette smirked, eying Remus up and down. She then turned to Roman, “Are you responsible for Roman's attire? Because if so, you did a marvelous job. Excellent choice for meeting the in laws.”

Remus could have fainted there and now, but instead stayed frozen in place, completely astonished at having received a compliment from Madame Viette herself.

Roman poked Remus's cheek. “Sweet Julie Andrews, you broke him. I haven't seen him stay still since we were in the womb.”

Viette chuckled. “I have a natural charm with my fans.” she snapped her fingers in front of Remus's face, bringing him back to reality. “Be a dear and help me unload my bags please.”

Remus followed Viette out of the house without any sort of complaint. Remy, on the other hand, only went out to stop his ex from exploiting the kid's fanaticism.

Once they were left alone, Roman looked over at Virgil with a surprised and curious expression. “Are you aware your mom is like a top-tier fashion designer?”

Virgil shrugged. “She's Madame Viette to the rest of the world, but just my mom for me. My dad was never comfortable showing off his ex's wealth.”

“Speaking of wealth,” Roman offered Virgil his hand as he spoke. "I'll take you anywhere you want for your birthday. It's all on me for today."

Virgil rolled his eyes but still took Roman's hand. "I've been throwing up all day, and you want to take me for a treat?"

Roman shrugged, pulling Virgil closer. "You need something in that stomach. Come on, you're gonna tell me the cravings haven't started yet?"

Virgil blushed at the proximity and stayed silent for a second as he thought. "So you'll pay for ice cream?"

"Anything for you, birthday boy." Roman smiled, pulling Virgil's hand up to his lips to give it a gentle kiss. "Let's go then, Remus won't care if we leave him to be your mom's assistant for the day."

Virgil let Roman drag him out and decided to ignore how he was definitely blushing even brighter now. Deep down, Virgil knew his dad had asked Roman to take him out and back for his surprise dinner, but Virgil decided to enjoy this moment as the spontaneous idea Roman sold it as. It was cute, how much Roman was trying to do better.