Virgil took very long strides on the way to campus this morning. Roman was lucky he was quick, because Virgil had long-ass legs. It was a few blocks away, not really a terrible walk. Roman hated being up this early, though. He and Virgil didn't even sign to each other. Roman was pretty sure Virgil would also give anything right now to go back to bed, just based on his glower and the way he kept seeming to lose focus.
Roman wasn't doing any better. Roman kept yawning and accidentally tripping on uneven parts of the sidewalk. Virgil didn't even make fun of him. Roman hadn't known him that long, but Virgil never missed an opportunity to until now. Mondays, maybe. Or just mornings. Roman wasn't sure it mattered. Maybe Virgil was mad at having to show Roman the way to campus early. He didn't seem to care when Thomas asked him to, though. But Roman didn't have the best read on him. The parts of the night he managed to sleep he had his patented nightmares again, so it just a step above complete insomnia.
When they got to campus, Virgil quickly veered off down a hall without waving bye as Roman headed to the front office. The exhausted-looking administrative personal looked up when he stepped in.
"Um, Roman Reinhart?" Roman said warily.
"On the right, first door on the left. Councilor's office," She said, pointing behind her to the hall on the right, not looking away from her computer screen. Roman nodded and shuffled quickly down the hall, peeking through the cracked open door.
"Oh, Mr. Reinhart?" The man at the desk asked. Roman nodded and stepped in. "Alright, we've just put you in the core classes that we had spots left in based on the transcript from your last school. You just have to pick your electives. You can keep taking art if you like, there's room in the class. This school doesn't have Latin, so you can't keep taking that one. There's no room in Spanish II this semester year, but you can take it next year. You only need two language credits to graduate. Colleges like a balanced transcript, so trying something new wouldn't be a bad idea. Pick two," The councilor handed Roman a piece of paper with the remaining available electives. Roman just stared at them, dumbfounded. He didn't know what he was interested in and he wasn't even sure he'd be here long. Roman looked up at the counselor, looking at him expectantly and somewhat annoyed.
"Um, yeah, art, and uh, choir?" Roman said, picking the first thing that came to mind before the councilor got mad at him. The councilor took back the sheet and typed at his computer in silence while Roman sat there awkwardly. He probably thought of choir because of what Patton said. Maybe if Roman signed up for the stuff Patton wanted him to, he could… that was probably too much to hope. It was just a gut decision. But he could give it a shot. At least he could know if he liked choir or not before they kicked him out. It's not like he was doing stellar in Latin. "Uh, I'd like to do cross-country, maybe? I'm sure I missed tryouts. How would I join?" Roman asked tentatively.
"Ask the PE teacher after class. You've got PE just before lunch, so you should have plenty of time to get it sorted out," He said, continuing to work on his computer. After a few more uncomfortable moments, the ancient printer finally spewed out a class schedule.
"Here you go, kid. Maps and school calendar are on the wall in the front office. You've got about a couple minutes until the first warning bell goes off, so try to familiarize yourself with the map. You've got 8 minutes between classes to get where you need to go. Here's your locker assignment. There's no room in the sophomore locker hall so you're with the junior lockers on the second floor," He handed Roman a little slip of paper with a combination on it and the locker number.
"The teachers should already know to expect you, except for in art and choir. If you just ask them your seating assignment before the bell goes off and you should be golden," Roman nodded and stepped back out of the office to grab the map off the wall and start trying to navigate this monster of a school.
—
Roman sighed and picked at his school lunch as he sat alone at the edge of the cafeteria. He'd met some nice people in his morning English class, but they didn't share his lunch period. Roman wouldn't mind eating alone so much if it didn't look like he was literally the only person doing it. He'd done this a million times before, so he knew he'd eventually find a friend group to tolerate him. But the first few weeks always sucked. And the food sucks. This breadtangle of pizza was soggy and gross, and what even was on these green beans? Why were they slimy? The texture of everything was pretty disgusting. He'll need to ask Virgil what's edible here before lunch tomorrow.
The PE teacher told Roman to come after school to practice to try out, and Roman kind of looked forward to that. They didn't meet every day and the PE teacher said anyone who could run under an eight-minute mile could join. Roman had never timed himself before, but he was pretty certain he could do that. It would be nice to do something he was okay at for a change instead of always fucking up. He was still nervous about choir later this afternoon, but he knew he could run. You don't have to try out for choir or anything, but he still didn't want to find out he was a bad singer. It was probably a poor decision. Stupid impulsiveness.
Roman's stomach turned as he forced down the food. It was vile, completely, and the texture was a nightmare that made his skin crawl, but he couldn't throw it out and waste food. He still had some free time before the next bell, so he went to go sit outside. He needed some fresh air for the nausea from lunch. The cafeteria was really loud, and it was wearing on him, too. Roman sat back under a tree in some weird wood chip garden and took a deep breath of the autumn air. It was at least a good thing it wasn't too far into the semester so he could catch up easier. But he will have an unbearable amount of homework this week. Roman leaned back and closed his eyes, trying to get a brief rest before lunch was over.
—
Roman stretched out nervously. He was in kind of tight jeans and not exactly prepared for this, but he was just supposed to run with the others, keep in his lane, and clear 8 minutes, and then the PE teacher would make her decision. The regular-track kids were also here, and they were staggering start times to share the space. Roman watched football practice on the field while the track kids started off. He took a deep breath and joined the cross-country kids as the starting lines, waiting for the teacher's whistle to take off.
Roman started running at the whistle, and some kids took off much faster than him, but Roman didn't want to tear these pants. They were possibly just trying to show off, because they slowed down as the group turned the corner, and Roman pulled ahead with a smirk. He got a glower from one of the ones he passed, but the other held up his thumbs and looked pretty excited. As he turned the final corner, Roman ran faster to try to make sure he stayed under 8 minutes. Another two kids beat him to the finish line, but the exact middle of the pack was a good sign.
"Roman! 5:48!" The PE teacher called, walking up to him while he caught his breath at the edge of the track.
"What, really?" Roman smiled. He probably could keep going, too.
"You're welcome to join if you'd like," She said, sounding excited. "That's an impressive time for a newbie,"
"I, yeah, yes," Roman stammered.
"Well, go ahead and queue up with the same pack to run it again slower, and come to my office after practice so we can get the paperwork. You need parents' permission to join so I'll need you to bring back a signed form. You can drop it off during PE tomorrow or the next meet on Wednesday," She said and Roman nodded excitedly and walked over with the pack.
"Hey, congratulations, dude!" One of them smiled. "I'm Toby," He drank some water. Roman didn't have the forethought to bring water out and felt like a thirsty idiot.
"Roman," He smiled brightly.
"You've got pretty good form, did you run at another school?" Another boy asked. "Seth's the name,"
"No, just a, uh, hobbyist," Roman said as dismissively as he could manage.
"I can tell from the fact you're wearing jeans," Another boy scoffed.
"I didn't expect to be able to try out as soon as I asked," Roman rolled his eyes. "Maybe you should worry how fast I'd go with practice," Roman smirked. Seth and Toby laughed.
"Yeah, chill out, Nolan. Roman's new," Toby said, patting him on the back.
"Ugh, whatever," Nolan rolled his eyes and started stretching out again.
"That's Augustine, call her Aggie or she'll tackle you. The last one is Julie. She thinks she's better than all of us so don't bother talking to her," Seth, Toby, and Aggie laughed and Julie scoffed.
"I am better than all of you," Julie flipped him off quickly and went back to stretching.
"So why'd you pick cross-country over track?" Seth asked.
"Tracks get boring. I'm an urban runner if anything," Roman shrugged.
"Same. We practice on a track pretty often and I get sick of it quick. Other than running around campus, they bus us out to a hiking trail or send us back to the obstacle course sometimes, unlike track, though," Seth shrugged.
"An obstacle course?" Roman's face lit up.
"Yeah, dude, it's pretty cool. It's splinter city, but it's a pretty big course. Some other schools in the district even come out here to use it," Seth smiled.
"We have a friendly competition about obstacle course times if you're interested," Nolan smirked mischievously.
"He's literally never run it before, it's not fair to him," Toby rolled his eyes.
"No, I'm interested," Roman said, eying Nolan suspiciously.
"It's nothing major. Loser accepts any dare the winner chooses," Nolan said with a small shrug.
"Shit, dude, that's fine by me," Roman laughed. He'd probably do any dare he was given anyway, he had shit impulse control and was very aware of that fact.
"Cool," Toby laughed, and they walked to the track to wait for their start again.
—
Roman's mouth was dry as hell by the time he got back to Thomas and Patton's house. He chugged some very metallic water from the fountain after practice, but he had that whole paperwork thing, and then jogging back defeated him. Lita barked excitedly as Roman came in. Roman bent down to scratch her head and made a bee-line to the kitchen to chug some water.
"Roman? Is that you?" Thomas called.
"Mm-hmm," Roman grunted between gulps of water.
"I was surprised not to see you come in with Virgil," Thomas said, walking into the kitchen.
"Patton told me I should try out for cross-country or something," Roman said, pouring another cup of water.
"Oh, did you?" Thomas asked curiously.
"Yeah," Roman breathed. "I don't want to bother you or anything but there's stupid stuff to sign so I can join," Roman kicked his foot lightly into the tile.
"Oh, you passed the tryouts?" Thomas beamed. "Congratulations! I'm happy to sign a permission slip. Oh, we should probably get you some running gear. Did you really run in those jeans? I'm surprised they didn't rip," Thomas asked, sounding concerned.
"It was kind of a last-minute decision," Roman huffed. "I don't need anything," Roman rubbed his arm awkwardly.
"Roman, half your clothes barely fit you from what I've seen," Thomas said critically.
"I had a growth spurt at 14 and I probably will again soon," Roman said dismissively, backing up a bit.
"That doesn't mean we have to wait until your clothes don't fit at all," Thomas frowned. "Virgil, back me up here," He asked Virgil as he walked past them to the fridge.
'About what?' Virgil signed. 'That Roman is an idiot?' Roman rolled his eyes.
"I don't think he was listening," Roman took another drink of water.
"That Roman doesn't need to wear clothes until he explodes out of them like the hulk," Thomas said emphatically.
'That'd be cool to see, can you do that?' Virgil signed, and Roman laughed.
"He's not backing me up, is he?" Thomas huffed. Virgil saluted them and left the kitchen with a drink and chewing on something from the fridge.
"I think he's on his own team," Roman chuckled. "You just got me some clothes, it's fine,"
"We got you two outfits worth, Roman, and if I knew most of your shirts were nearly see-through, I would have pushed for more," Thomas frowned.
"I- I don't…" Roman trailed off.
"You don't what?" Thomas asked, leaning against the counter and looking at Roman in a way that just unnerved him.
"I didn't… I don't," Roman stammered and drank his water nervously. He couldn't say it. He left the kitchen. Thomas doesn't want to hear it.
"Roman?" Thomas asked, following him. Roman headed upstairs and closed himself in his room. Thomas didn't follow, luckily. Roman didn't want to disappoint him again. He thought running would be free and just need to bother them one time. He didn't realize the clothes were such a big deal. Roman leaned against the door and dropped his backpack on the floor next to him. He slightly pulled his hair as he ran his hands through it.
Roman slid down against the door and held his knees close to his chest. He didn't have to join cross country. He could probably still back out. The sheet isn't signed or anything. He wanted to make Patton happy, but Roman was used to being a disappointment. It was better than being a burden. Roman sighed and got up, picking up his backpack and dragging it to the desk. He had a shit-ton of homework to do and didn't have time to mope.
—
"Want to help us pick what to make for dinner?" Patton asked through the door after a quick knock. Roman rubbed his eyes, uncrossing them after looking up from his textbook.
"Too much homework. I'm fine with whatever," Roman called back and glanced back down at his textbook. He fought the urge to just bash his head into it to try to force it into his brain physically.
"Maybe you should take a break, kiddo," Patton replied. Roman managed to bite his tongue before he said he was fine again, but he did literally bite his tongue and it kind of hurt. He held open his mouth and felt it pulse slightly, but it didn't taste like it was bleeding. "Roman?"
"Ah bit mah tongue," Roman tried to reply. "Sorree,"
"Is it bleeding?" Patton asked with concern through the door.
"Nah, jus' hur'," Roman said and took a big drink of water. "Is good,"
"Can I get you some ice water for it?" Patton asked.
"No, is already fadin'," Roman said and took another drink.
"Okay. I'll come get you for dinner, then. Let us know if you need help with your homework," Patton said.
"Kay," Roman called back and rubbed his eyes again before getting back to catching up to the classwork. Why can't teachers all use the same syllabus so Roman doesn't have to do this all the time? Roman sighed. His eyes hurt from reading all this shit. Packets at least are the easiest way to do classwork and some of his teachers game him some. It's like a scavenger hunt for answers in the textbook. What he wouldn't give for some skittles right now, though. He was running out of steam. He was just going to finish this page and take a break. There was no way he could finish all this tonight, anyway.
Roman came down the stairs and waved awkwardly to Thomas as Roman passed his office. Thomas didn't notice him, though. He headed into the kitchen, instead.
"Hey, are you okay if I take Lita on a quick run?" Roman said, pulling a water bottle out of the fridge.
"Go ahead, kiddo. Sounds like a nice break," Patton said, stirring something savory smelling on the stove. Lita was wagging her tail brightly at Roman's feet and made a very cute noise when Roman reached for the leash on the hook.
"Who's a marvelous girl," Roman cooed and scratched behind her ear before hooking up her leash. "See ya," He waved to Patton before being nearly yanked out of the house by Lita.
Running in the cool evening air was much nicer than any other time of day. Lita was boisterously bolting as fast as Roman would let her go as usual. She stopped at the same stop sign and fire hydrant again. Dogs really were creatures of habit. Humans, too, probably. Roman kind of wished he had that kind of stability to get habits. He got a cute photo of her hopped up on a rock and barking at a squirrel up in the tree that threw something at her. She growled and Roman gave her leash a few gentle tugs and she jumped off and walked away from the squirrel angrily.
They settled back into a run after she was done fuming about the squirrel's audacity. Which was very funny and lifted Roman's mood a bit. The run helped clear his head, though not much. He probably should have thought to try running for fun instead of for work before. It was nicer than just working out in his room. Having a dog to run with was likely what made this nice, though. They turned the corner and Roman pushed himself to sprint as fast as possible to squeeze that last bit of run out of Lita. She raced excitedly up to the door, panting happily as she came inside. She trotted happily to the kitchen to get some water, and Roman followed.
"We're back," Roman said to Patton as he passed to the fridge for more cold water.
"Hey, there, kiddo! Did you have a nice run?" Patton smiled.
"Yeah, weather is nice outside right now," Roman said and enjoyed some water. "Check out this photo I got of Lita yelling at a squirrel for throwing an acorn or something at her," Roman said and pulled up the photo on his phone.
"Oh!" Patton cooed. "She's got such an angry little face!" Patton squatted down to pet Lita. "Did that mean old squirrel assault you?" He rubbed her head and neck between both hands and Lita wagged her tail in a wide arc and licked his hand. Patton got up to wash his hands with a smile. "Send me that, wouldja?"
"Oh, sure," Roman shrugged and sent it to Patton, then washed his hands right after him. "Do you need any help with dinner?"
"Nah, I've got it," Patton shook his head and went back to cooking.
"Um, let me know if you do," Roman mumbled and left the kitchen. He really didn't want to go back to homework just yet. Dinner smelled good, and he was feeling lazy. Roman flopped down on the couch with the family laptop, opting for Minecraft. He probably didn't have enough time to play the adventure game for long, but he could play creative mode for a bit.
Virgil came downstairs while Roman was working on his mansion behind a waterfall and leaned forward on the couch, watching Roman build as he laid across the couch with the laptop.
"You need the laptop or something?" Roman asked, trying to turn his head to see the answer. Virgil stuck his arm out to sign 'no' almost like a hand puppet. Roman shrugged and went back to placing the carpet pattern. Virgil stayed and watched, which was unexpected. Mostly because Virgil was willingly standing within three feet of Roman. He'd probably bolt if Roman made any sudden moves. Roman would, at least. Roman gave him a confused look, but he just shrugged in response. Virgil just watched quietly as Roman kept placing blocks.
Roman was putting vines on some marble pillars when Patton interrupted him.
"Dinner's ready," Patton called from the kitchen. Roman saved and quit while Virgil headed into the kitchen. Whatever it was, it smelled good. Roman put the laptop back on the side table and went to go eat dinner.