#steph's stuff

“I guess he’ll tell us when he wants to.” Logan sighed and went back to reading his book.

“But I want to know!” Roman complained loudly.

Virgil walked into the living room, sandwich in hand. “What do you want to know, Princey?” he questioned, smiling at the other’s childish behavior.

“Umm… I want to know… where..” Roman stammered out, not quite the best at improv...yet.

“He wants to know where the Crofters jam is!” Patton blurted out helpfully.

“Yes! Crofters jam! Where it is!” Roman quickly picked up the lie.

Logan just rolled his eyes and continued reading.

“Well, it’s just in the kitchen, Princey,” Virgil looked confused. “I don't know why you don't seem to know where it is. It’s in the fridge. I literally just used it.” He held up his sandwich.

Roman just nodded, a huge, embarrassed smile on his face.

“Alright, you dork, I'm gonna go now,” Virgil walked away, looking back confusedly several times at Roman.

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“Where’s Virgil?” Patton asked, plopping in a chair, next to Logan.

Logan sighed. “He’s disappeared again, hasn’t he?”

“It does appear to be that way, doesn't it?” Roman came into the room, holding up his phone. “He’s not answering his phone, again, so it looks like he’s gone.”

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Virgil walked into his yoga studio.

“Hey, Virge!” One of the yoga instructors called to him. “It’s good to see you here, today. I’ll get you signed in!”

“Thanks!” Virgil smiled at them, and went to put his mat down. He greeted some other instructors and people he knew.

“Yo, Virge, you ready to get hot and sweaty?” a friend called out to him as he made his way back.

“You know it!” Virgil grinned at them, excited for another hot yoga class.

He out his mat and towel down and laid there before class started. The soothing music and darkened studio coupled with the heat and humidity of the room relaxed his usually anxious mind as he meditated.

“Welcome everyone, to our flow class. I’m glad you all could make it here today, let’s make this a good class. ” An instructor walked in and started the class.

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As the class ended, Virgil relaxed on his mat for a few more seconds, enjoying the quiet rest after an intense, sweaty workout. He then got up, rolled up his mat and went to shower and change before he headed back home.

He grabbed his bag, and realized quickly that it was too light. He had forgotten his change of clothes.

“Well, frick,” he muttered under his breath. He usually showered at the studio, so he wouldn’t have drive home all sweaty. He also did not want his friends to know he practised yoga.

His therapist had recommended it to him, as he wasn't getting enough exercise and it helped with depression, anxiety, and insomnia, all of which, he had pretty bad. So he went, a bit reluctantly, at first, but had loved it more than he could say, and now went almost every other day.

He sighed and headed home, saying his goodbyes to the instructor and his friends as he left.

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Virgil tried to enter quietly. He really did. But as soon as he opened the door, Patton came running to him, to bear-hug his friend.

“Virgil! Welcome home!” he grabbed him up in a big hug, and swiftly released him as he realized the Virgil was sweaty. Like, just ran a marathon sweaty.

“Ummm, kiddo?” Patton questioned. “Why are you so sweaty?”

Virgil shrugged. ”No reason.” and ran upstairs to shower and change.

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“Logan?” Patton ventured into the living room where Logan was catching up on some homework.

“Yes, Patton?” Logan did not look up from his textbook.

“Virgil’s home.” he informed, sounding confused.

“Oh, good. Ask him what he wants for dinner. I’m cooking tonight.” Logan’s eyes and focus remained on his homework.

“He came home… really sweaty.” Patton added.

At this, Logan finally looked up. “Really?” he got up from his desk and went over to Patton. “He was gone, presumably doing the mystery activity, correct?”

“Uh, yeah?” Patton saw the look in Logan’s eyes, and knew it well. This was the first bit of information they had gotten on where Virgil had been going, ever.

“How sweaty was he?” Logan asked.

Patton sighed and sat down, knowing that there was a slew of questions that Logan would ask, practically interrogating him, until he thought he had the answer.

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A few days later, Virgil would be more than happy to curl up on his bed with a movie, and maybe a friend, but he wasn't feeling like watching any of the movies he usually wanted to watch. He sighed, and got up from his bed to head downstairs.

As he left his room, he heard yelling. He wasn't too concerned, though because it was probably Patton watching a goofy cartoon too loudly, or Logan yelling at a YouTube video that was entirely too incorrect.

What he was not expecting to find was Logan and Roman in a full blown argument.

“Why can’t we just let it be?” Roman yelled, clearly furious.

“You were the one who said you wanted answers!” Logan shouted back, forcefully.

“Not this way!” Roman gestured around himself with his hands as he looked at the usually smart roommate. “Not by...whatever this...is!”

Virgil came down the stairs, Roman and Logan were standing in the middle of the living room, shouting at each other. Patton was on the couch, curled up in a ball, crying. Papers were strewn around the floor.

“What...happened?” Virgil said softly, not quite sure what to do. He surveyed the room once more and decided Patton was his first priority. He went to sit by him and comfort him. Nobody had noticed his entrance until he put his arm around his sobbing friend.

“Virge!” Patton flung himself into the arms promising safety. “I told.. Then he..and now..my fault!” Patton managed to say in between sobs, but his words only succeeded in confusing Virgil even more.

“Hey Pat. Listen here,” Virgil whispered so that only the sobbing man could hear, not that he would disturb the other two, still yelling at each other. “It’s not your fault, mkay? Those two argue all the time. It’s not your fault.” he continued, and slowly he stopped crying.

“Why couldn't you just leave it alone?” Roman’s voice dropped suddenly, tired from yelling so much, from having his words falling on almost-deaf ears. “Why?”

With this statement, Logan stopped yelling too.

“Um, guys?” Virgil ventured a question. “What’s up?”

Roman jumped, surprised to hear Virgil’s voice. “Oh, uh, nothing!” Roman quickly tried to lie.

Virgil glared at him. “That...was not nothing! That was a whole ton of something. Now spill!” This last demand, he aimed at Logan, who looked very embarrassed.

“Well… uh,” Logan figited. He took a deep breath. “Wewantedtoknowwhereyougoeveryfewdays soIdidabunchofresearchandmaybekindasortastalkedyouabit.” he spit out in one breath, his head mostly down, making it hard to hear him.

Virgil took a few moments to register what he said, but when he did, he started laughing. Not his usual snicker, but a full-blown laugh. He bent over, and fell to the ground howling with glee.

His roommates watched, having never been to confused and concerned in their lives. They looked at each other, concerned for the man dying of laughter in the middle of the living room.

“Virge?” Paton spoke first, concern prominent in his voice.

Virgil slowly stopped laughing. He got up and wiped tears from his eyes. “That's what all this was about?” he questioned, still chuckling slightly, looking around at his friends. “You coulda just asked!” he teased them.

The three men were still confused. Virgil could laugh? Virgil could tease? What was going on?

“Guys, look.” he reverted back to his more composed demeanor, but a smirk still remained on his face. “If you were so curious, you could have asked, I would have told you. Did you end up even finding out what I was doing?” he asked Logan.

“Well, no,” he looked chagrined.

“Then what were you even fighting about?” Virgil scoffed. “Look, my therapist recommended something to help me with my depression, anxiety and insomnia. It helped, so I kept going. That’s all.“ he explained.

“Oh.” Patton sighed in relief. “Okay then, kiddo, I’m glad that you found something that helps. I’m exhausted, though, I’m going to bed.” he trudged up the stairs to his bedroom.

Virgil smiled fondly at his retreating back, then turned back to the other two.

“Sorry, Virge. I should not have gone so far. We- I- should have handled that better. I am going to my room to think about some...things.” With that, Logan followed Patton upstairs, to go to his own room.

And finally, Roman. He was sitting on the couch, head in his hands, lost in thought. Virgil knew he would be like this for a while, and decided to leave him be. He headed upstairs, glad to have that encounter over with, and utterly exhausted by the all the talking he had just done.

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At breakfast the next morning, everything was back to normal. Everyone was talking and laughing, and just enjoying themselves.

“Hey Virgil, you never told us what it was exactly that you do when you slip away,” Patton brought up playfully.

Virgil looked self-conscious. “Well, I, uh..” he drifted off, not wanting to say it.

“What was that, kiddo? I couldn’t quite hear you because you didn’t quite say it,”Patton teased gently.

Virgil took a deep breath. “I do hot yoga…” he spoke softly, not wanting the others to know, despite having told them he would tell them if they asked.

“Hot...yoga?” Roman rolled the words around in his mouth. “Like..regular yoga, but...hot?”

“Yes.it’s a yoga class in a heated and humid room. It makes it very sweaty and the sweat helps release toxins and other things.” Logan helpfully supplied this bit of information, causing everyone to look at him.

“Yeah, I guess. Anyways, it helps...so ya know…” Virgil looked super uncomfortable.

“Hey, Virge,” Patton reached over and grabbed the anxious man’s hand. “If it helps you, there is no judgment from us.”

Roman and Logan made sounds of agreement and smiled at Virgil.

“Thanks, guys,” Virgil grinned at his friends, grateful to them for being accepting of him.