Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Knock.

Scratch.

Whine.

And repeat.

Roman woke up on his day off to barking and an insistent knocking. Javert, his scruffy terrier-mix, scratched at the apartment door. He wasn’t sure who he was more annoyed with: His dog, the knocker, or the sun simply for existing and pouring entirely too much light from the window. The annoyance fell to the knocker who decided to visit at 8:00am on his day off.  

“Roman, I don’t have all day.” He could hear his twin grumble through the door. Of course it was Logan. Roman didn’t bother putting on actual clothes to let him in; Logan would have to deal with him in his boxers.

His brother was a mirror image of him, except he wore glasses instead of contacts and dressed like a 50 year old math teacher rather than the 23 year old he was. Whenever he came over, he always had his nose scrunched up in disgust, like he smelled something rotten. 

“This place looks like a mess, Roman. When was the last time you vacuumed?” It wasn’t a mess, just some organized clutter, and he had vacuumed a month ago, thank you very much. Logan looked over him over again. “Were you still asleep?” Of course he was, it's his day off.

“Morning to you too. Is there a reason you’re here, or did you just want to lecture me about my life choices again?” Roman locked the door behind him. Javert wagged his tail at Logan, jumping around the twin wildly, but his chance of him getting positive attention from him was slim. Logan ignored him, with the exception of a hurried “ hush ”, and sat in a chair, quickly swiping off Roman’s dirty clothes as he did so.

“I have a reason.” He poured some unscented hand sanitizer onto his hands, quickly rubbing it in as he spoke. “Patton and I have been dating for a few months now, and I asked if he would like to be introduced to you. After all, you are my brother and he values family above all else.”

“... So I finally get to meet your prince charming?” Roman flopped back onto the still-open futon, grinning at his brother. 

“Yes, Patton is very excited to meet you. He wants to go out for drinks.” Logan sat with a perfect posture that he had forced himself into since they were kids. “He’s bringing his brother and wanted recommendations to dog-friendly establishments.” Both Roman and Javert perked their heads up. 

“Dog-friendly? I can get you those. Is he bringing his dog?” Roman could never hide his excitement when it came to dogs. He adored dogs: from mangy mutts to prissy poodles. Logan rolled his eyes. 

“No, his brother is.” Logan already sounded annoyed. Roman looked down to Javert, who’s tail seemed to be wagging faster. “You’re not bringing Javert.”

“What was that? Bring Javert?” Mischief tugged at Roman’s lips. Of course he was going to bring Javert, he was going to recommend one of his favorite dog-friendly restaurants. 

“ Don’t bring Javert, Roman.” Logan sighed. It always baffled Roman how his twin ended up being his exact opposite. Logan was very much a cat person, for practicality and cleanliness alone. He always regarded Javert with a poorly disguised distaste. 

“Okay fine, I’ll leave Javert at home. I’ll text you some recommendations.” Roman gave his brother a pout before picking up his phone. He sent him a few places, his favorite at the top of the list. Logan sighed with relief.

“Thank you. I’ll update you with the time and place later.” He visibly relaxed his shoulders. Logan hid his anxiousness about the situation poorly. “I’m excited for you to meet him. Patton is… wonderful.” Roman noticed his brother smile a little when mentioning his boyfriend of 3 months. Roman beamed.

“Awww, gay.” Roman laughed. “I’m excited to meet him too.” 

Roman arrived with Javert leashed to his side. Okay, so he might have lied to Logan, but Javert was incredibly well trained and friendly. There was no reason to not bring him; The only thing Javert did that could be deemed ‘bad behavior’ was kissing people on the face. Roman walked into the restaurant, a cute little diner and bar, and was immediately greeted by Remy in his uniform. 

“Hey Ro-Ro, looking for your bro-bro?” He smiled, dark bags under his eyes from his partying the night before. The two had met at a club a while back, but Roman had grown out of the scene. Remy did not. However, their friendship was lively as ever since they both loved gossip and Remy was Jav’s self proclaimed godmother. He quickly bent down to give Javert a scratch behind the ear. “I see you brought my son!” 

“Of course! I wouldn’t ever leave Jav at home when I’m coming here! I’m meeting Logan and his new boo.” Roman glanced at the time; he was only 5 minutes late. “I’m guessing they’re already here?” 

“Yep. They’re toward the back, close to the wall.” He pointed him toward the back. Roman began to head back. “Later Ro! Bye Jav!”  Roman laughed waving farewell to his friend and following the direction. He soon found his brother, smiling brightly at a booth with two other men. 

The one to his right looked 25 but dressed like he was 40: khaki pants, a light blue sweater draped over his shoulders, and glasses. He had a round face covered in freckles and blue eyes that were locked on Logan and seemed so filled to the brim with fondness that it could spill over any second. This must be Patton. It was fitting that his brother’s boyfriend have equally abominable style.

The brother was the complete opposite of Patton in fashion, but nearly as bad. He didn’t seem much younger than Roman and Logan, but dressed like he was a 16 year old that had just walked out of a Hot Topic closing sale. His hair was brown and a purple that matched his shirt and the plaid patches sewn into his hoodie, and wore foundation that seemed a shade too light for his skin. Everything else was black: his jeans, his shoes, his way too heavy eyeshadow, and the adorable Pomeranian at his feet. She was the first to notice them, but didn’t bark. She just stared, aware and alert, with big, intense, brown eyes. Roman cleared his throat awkwardly, grabbing the rest of the group’s attention. 

“Oh, hello! You must be Logan’s brother; he has told me so much about you.” Patton quickly stood from his seat and shook the hand that wasn’t holding a leash. “You two look so much alike.” 

“Yep!” Roman laughed, taking back his hand. Roman put on his most charming smile and bowed. It was time to embarrass his brother.“Roman Prince, at your service.” Patton’s brother raised an eyebrow, and Logan’s face was already in his hands. Roman quickly picked up Javert, holding him up. 

“-and I’m Javert! Do not forget my name!” Roman sang in a slightly higher pitched voice. Javert wagged his tail. Roman peeked from behind his dog to see his brother sufficiently mortified, a playful smirk playing on the brother’s lips, and Patton looking absolutely delighted . Roman set Javert back on the ground. His dog seemed more interested in the Pomeranian than any of the humans at the table. 

“Oh my goooood. That’s amazing.” Patton squealed. He kneeled down, eager to shower Javert in a attention. “He’s such a good boy!”

“He is.” Roman agreed. Roman found himself glancing at Patton’s brother again, a slight smile on his lips that quickly disappeared upon noticing Roman’s gaze. Their eyes locked, and Roman could of swore there was a hint of purple or puce among the brown. He took the opportunity to extend his hand and give the moody looking man a bright smile. “Hello, you must be Patton’s brother.” 

“Virgil.” He said, giving him a handshake so quick that Roman was scarcely sure it had occurred. The pomeranian eyed him closely. Roman took that as an invitation.

“Who is this lovely creature? He bent down slightly and cooed at the dark ball of fluff. She turned his head at him, tail wagging slightly, as though she was trying to figure him out. 

“Her name is Maleficent.” Roman’s head snapped up so fast he was lucky he didn’t get whiplash. The only thing that rivaled his love for dogs, besides acting, was Disney . 

“That is an amazing name!” Roman took his seat across from Logan, who’s mortification was only increasing with every passing moment. “Are you a big fan of Sleeping Beauty?”

“It’s okay, I prefered the Maleficent reimagination.” Virgil said casually, avoiding his eyes. “I like Disney in general-”

“I love Disney!” Roman leaned closer to Virgil with his exclamation. Perhaps it was his sudden movements, or his loud voice, or Virgil’s nervous tapping on the table, but suddenly the little Pomeranian was barking. He quickly shifted back to take a look at the dog. “Is everything alright?”

“Startles easy.” Patton quickly explained, refocusing Roman’s attention. He was here to meet Patton, not gush over dogs and Disney to an emo boy with horrible fashion sense and a cute smile. He could already foresee keeping his attention on the conversation was going to be difficult, since said cute emo boy had moved the adorable Maleficent into his lap.

“Of course, my apologies. I seem to get tunnel vision when dogs or Disney is mentioned.” 

“I’m the same way with cats! I’d love to have one but I’m allergic.” 

“A fact I had to learn for myself.” Logan interjected, finally pulling the attention back to him and Patton. “Our first date I took Patton to an animal shelter, as I was well aware of his love of cats and animals. It was a deduction I made based off of several articles of clothing he favors that involve fluffy creatures. I digress, he was very excited when we arrived, and to say it was adorable to watch him play with the cats would be an understatement. Adorable, that is, until he started to get urticaria and eye irritation. He didn’t tell me until then that he was allergic to cat dander.” Roman found himself giggling at the anecdote. 

“I think Patton told me about that when he came home covered in hives.” Virgil smiled at his brother. Patton looked down, a little embarrassed. 

“I was so excited to see the kitties! Plus, I didn’t want to ruin your moment, Lo. It was so thoughtful! I had so much fun.” Patton said with a smile. Logan flushed pink before shooting a glare at his cooing brother. 

“Well, the next time we do something similar, we will just have to focus on dogs. I don’t particularly care for them, but I am alone in that assertion here.” Logan gestured to the others, making eye contact with Maleficent. Virgil cuddled her closer. 

Their dinner eventually arrived, and the black puffball was placed back on the ground next to Jav, who continued sniffing and greeting her. Logan talked about how anxious he was to start his doctorate program. Patton told Roman some fun stories about his time counselling kids, and excitedly insisted the four of them pose for a picture to post on Facebook. Virgil vaguely alluded to his tech freelance work. Roman found it interesting, but he was itching to talk about his own passions.

“I used to work in an office, but I just stopped feeling it.” Virgil picked at his cuticle. He looked to Patton. “Nothing interesting with the freelancing. It’s pretty boring.” 

“Roman, what do you do?” Patton finally looked to Roman, who bounced in his seat.

“Well, I’m an actor .” He said with a flourish, pronouncing “actor” like “auteur”. Logan rolled his eyes, and Patton and Virgil seemed surprised. They both froze in place for a moment, but Patton quickly smiled wider. 

“Oh. What kind of acting do you do?” Patton asked after a beat, voice cheery as always. Virgil stared at his hands. 

“Theatre, commercials, short films, ect. Whatever I can pick up work for-”

“What little work that is.” Logan cut in. Roman rolled his eyes

“I work at Disney World at one of the booths too, but I’ve been auditioning a lot for the cast. Unfortunately, fortune hasn’t been in my favor. With enough perseverance I’ll manage something.” After saying this, Logan had continued talking, but Roman noticed that Virgil’s expression wasn’t surprised as he initially thought. He was… uncomfortable. He looked a little sick. Like Roman when he starts thinking about that time in high school he saw Saw II high off his ass.

“ANYWAYS.” Roman cut off his brother, who was probably talking about the unlikelihood that he would actually be cast as Prince Phillip at Disney World or job security. “I want to talk about dogs. Virgil-- could you please tell me more about Maleficent? She is just a perfect little puffball.” At being spoken to, Virgil seemed to shake off whatever thought he had traveled into. 

“Mal is great. She’s really smart. I’ve had her since she was a year old, and she always picks up commands super fast. I couldn’t have asked for a sweeter and more well behaved girl.” Virgil started. He smiled down at the dog that peered up at him. “She’s the only thing that loves me unconditionally.” Roman chuckled at the joke.

“ I love you unconditionally!” Patton pouted. Virgil patted the Patton, a cute, genuine, smile on his face. It sent a flutter through Roman’s chest that he ignored.

“I know, Patt.” 

The mood picked back up after that. Roman spoke emphatically about the local dog park, and Virgil agreed that is was very nice. They found themselves discussing which Disney movie was the best, but Logan was having none of it. Virgil seemed to relax as the night went on, which was a relief. Roman didn’t want to make his maybe future brother-in-law’s actual brother uncomfortable. Plus, he was very cute. Roman hastily wrote his number on a shred of receipt when the bill came. 

He stood up and suddenly the oddly dressed emo 8 that was Virgil Sanders became a hard 9. Roman couldn’t help but release a soft gasp at realizing that he was towering over him. He had to be over 6’0 . He could feel the blood rush to his cheeks. 

“Holy shit, you’re massive .” Roman managed. He didn’t acknowledge Logan’s “That was very rude, Roman” and Patton’s “That’s what he said!” at looked over what had to be a man that was 50% leg. He quickly added to his statement, “In like, a really good way.” 

“...Thanks?” Virgil said, unsure. “That wasn’t awkward or anything.”  He gave Roman an awkward chuckle and Roman was so gone that he had completely forgotten to give Virgil his number.

It was unfair that he was tall, hot, and adorable.

Roman didn’t see or speak to Virgil again until over a week later. The dog park was rarely crowded on Tuesday afternoons, and today was no exception. It was easy to spot the tall, dark, and lanky figure with a black puff in the distance. Javert almost ripped Roman’s arm off from tugging his leash at seeing them himself. 

“Jav, keep cool! You’re not going to impress a cute girl by misbehaving.” Javert only whined and ceased his tugging in response. “But let’s go say hi.” Javert wagged his tail excitedly. 

Roman approaching Virgil for the second time wasn’t unlike the first. Maleficent noticed them well before Virgil did. Virgil seemed to have his headphones in.

“VIRGIL!” Roman spoke perhaps too loudly, as Virgil jumped a half a foot in the air in surprise. Mal inserted herself between the two of them and barked on her owners behalf. 

“Jesus christ, you scared the shit out of me.” Virgil took out his headphones, and visibly relaxed seeing it was just Roman. Mal quieted. 

“I’m sorry. I don’t scare you too much I hope.” Roman smiled, standing up as straight and tall as possible, trying to get a read on exactly how tall Virgil was. Meanwhile, Javert wagged his tail and politely sniffed at Mal, who didn’t seem to mind. 

“You surprised me. You’re not exactly frightening , Princey.” He fiddled with his sleeve. Roman perhaps smiled too hard at the nickname. It was unfairly adorable, like everything else about the 6’3ish emo.

“Princey? I love that actually. Am I allowed to give you a nickname?” He could see a bit of color rise in Virgil’s cheeks. 

“Nope.” Roman pouted at him. “Fine, Virg is acceptable.” 

“Alright, Virg! Perhaps I can think of some more when we hang out.” Roman smiled before pulling out his phone and offering it out. “Put your number in my phone. The dogs could have play dates, and maybe we can gossip about our brothers or something.” Virgil raised an eyebrow before complying. 

“Fine. You better not send me nudes or write my number at a truckstop.”

“What am I, 12? Of course not. I only send consensual nudes.” Virgil handed the phone back to Roman, having put his number in and a stormcloud emoji. Roman’s didn’t feel a fluttering at seeing that adorable emoji, at all. He sent a quick confirmation text to Virgil’s phone.

“Well, you look like you’re 12.” Virgil snickered, and the fluttering was immediately replaced with a flash of playful annoyance. 

“I’m not that short, Slendy.”

“ Slendy? ”

“Yeah, you're like a hotter, less fashionable Slenderman.” Virgil seemed too baffled to notice the compliment. 

“Less fashionable? What, are you super into guys without faces?” Virgil’s pure confusion was enough for Roman to start laughing. 

“No, I’m into men in suits. You are definitely hotter than Slenderman, but he has you beat in fashion.”

“It’s just a black suit. It’s boring. I’m incredibly offended that I’ve been insulted by a Jr. J.Crew model.” Virgil said, running a hand through his hair and that adorable smile tugging on his lips. Roman started laughing again. It took a moment to compose himself and check the time. The after work rush would be starting up in the park soon.

“Okay, I need to go. Text me later?” 

“Sure.” Virgil agreed. “I need to get going too.” They waved farewell, and Roman felt the pleasant buzz of his phone and was greeted with a text back in the form of a dog emoji.

Chapter Text

When Roman was a child, he dreamt of being an Actor-Prince-Vet-Astronaut-Millionaire but only managed the first part. While he had given up the vet and astronaut portions of his dreams long ago when he discovered he hated both biology and physics, he was still holding on to hope for the “Prince” and “Millionaire” aspects. In the meantime, he was working a few days at Disney World's ticket booth and the rest of the time scouring for auditions. 

Orlando, and the surrounding area, was a big place for actors. While this meant a lot of competition, it also meant a lot of acting jobs from background characters to speaking roles. Roman went to every audition he could, and saw lots of familiar faces and odd characters.

Sometimes he would run into and chat with Missy, who was an awkward guy that had a bad habit of accidentally insulting you twisting it into a compliment. He was nice though, and more pleasant to talk to than Gabriel, who constantly promoted his prank instagram. 

Roman didn’t run into either of them at his latest audition, a small production for a self produced play based on classic fairy tales. Even if the pay wasn’t good, it had peaked his interest. Roman, however, did run into a familiar face who was also drawn to fairytale inspired roles.

“Afternoon, Roman. It is good to see you.” Roman turned his head away from the excerpt of script to find that Cyril Natter had sat next to him. “What role are you hoping for this time?”

Cyril was interesting at best and a slimy prick at worst. He was only a hair taller than Roman, eerily thin, and had a spattering of vitiligo over his left eye. His eyes were the creepiest thing about him, which were a pale, almost yellow green. On top of it all, he had the most abhorrent taste in fashion. He dressed like a moldy lemon could be a “nice guy” edgelord, substituting the fedora with a bowler hat that hid thin, dyed black hair. Roman never bothered to give him the time of day to see if the the inside truly matched the out. 

“The lead, of course. I’m guessing that you’re auditioning for the villain?” Cyril always auditioned for the villain. He was charming, funny, brilliant at chewing scenery, and managed to entertain the audience while also making them feel uneasy. Roman always felt a little bad for him in this respect, as he was probably shoehorned into that role from the very start. Much like his characters, the weird combination of traits in Cyril left Roman unsure whether he liked him or not. He dressed like a cartoon villain and had the sass to match, and his compliments and flattery often felt backhanded. However, he could be hilarious and was a talented actor.

“Of course.” Cyril smiled. “I’m sure you’ll make a great hero.” Roman couldn’t help but snicker. While both of them were hired on quite often, Cyril usually got the part he auditioned for. Roman usually cast as the lead’s understudy or was the right hand man. 

“Thanks, Cyril.”

“Roman, I see you all the time at these auditions, but we never really talked. Pardon my asking, but would you mind joining me for coffee after the audition.” He stopped for a moment, likely seeing the apprehension in Roman’s face. “As colleagues, friends even. I am seeing someone at the moment.” Roman only considered it for a moment, before nodding. 

“Okay, sure.” After all, he’s never actually spent time with Cyril. How bad could he possibly be?

A few hours later, the two walked down to a nearby Starbucks to chat and have an afternoon cup of coffee. It was weird talking with Cyril in a location that wasn’t a set or an audition. It was that slightly unwelcome and uncomfortable surrealism that comes with seeing a teacher or coworker outside of school or work. Cyril’s dark aesthetic seemed to go as far as his coffee, as he ordered his coffee iced and black. Roman ordered a tooth-rottingly sweet mocha frappuccino.

“I could never stomach plain black coffee. My brother loves it, but it makes my face curl.” Roman smiled. 

“Really? I love black coffee.” Cyril took a sip of his drink and his face immediately scrunched slightly before he corrected it. “Delicious.” It took all Roman had in him to not burst out laughing. He quickly changed the subject, and found himself talking to Cyril for several more hours. 

Sundays were usually Roman’s “unofficial day off” as casting calls and jobs were rarely on Sundays, instead typically on Friday evenings or Saturday mornings. Unfortunately, that did not usually mean that Roman had the opportunity to sleep in until past noon as he’d like to. On Sunday mornings, Roman usually woke up to Logan or Mama calling him, but more occasionally and notably he  woke up at around 9:00am to the sound of snoring, not because of a hot one night stand he had the night before, but because a certain best friend who was prone to partying until the wee hours of the morning liked to crash next to him on his futon and had a spare key.

It never ceased to be annoying, waking up to Remy’s snoring while he cuddled Javert next to him, fully clothed including his leather jacket and dark sunglasses. Opting against pouring ice on him and getting his bed soaked, he pushed Remy off the bed to wake him up. 

“Rooooman. I’m hungover and you’re meeeeean.” Remy whined from the carpet. Roman rolled his eyes. 

“You know you can text me and let me know if you’re going to crash here.” He watched Remy crawl back up onto the futon and curl up. “I thought you were saving your cash, why are you going out?”

“I had my midterm for my business final and it suuucked. I wanted alcohol.” Remy whined. “My savings for Barcos had enough to take a hit. Don’t worry about little ol’ me, Romey.” 

Roman sighed and collapsed back into the shitty mattress, and lazily grabbed his phone to check the time. A wave of panic rolled through him as he read the text from Virgil saying he was on his way. Roman had completely forgotten that they were going to get breakfast this morning. “Remy, you need to go.” 

“Aww, why? Its Sunday-”

“Virgil is coming over. We’re getting breakfast.” 

“Ooh, the tall glass of goth with the cute dog from dinner a few weeks ago? I love a good jock-alt power couple.” 

“Shut up. He’s just a friend. A very hot friend.” Roman said sheepishly. Usually with guys he liked, he would’ve gotten a date by now.

“Hot friend? Where is your game, Prince?” Remy giggled. Roman rolled his eyes and started getting dressed. “You are the world’s most aggressive flirt, what’s going on?”

“I think that title goes to you, Rem.”

“Cut the shit, Ro. GIve me the hot goss.” He lowered his sunglasses for dramatic, showing his very serious icy eyes. Roman sighed. 

“Not much to say. I really like Virgil, but he’s kind of… skittish? He either doesn’t pick up or ignores a lot of my flirting.” Roman ran a hand through his hair, thinking out loud. “It’s like my instincts are telling me to move slowly and don’t push too much on this one. He’s Logan’s boyfriend’s brother, after all.” Remy laughed again. 

“Bitch, only you would be trying to fuck your future brother in law. Just keep me updated, okay?” Roman had planned to respond, but suddenly there was a gentle rapping at his door. Roman took a second to panic, and in those few seconds, Remy leapt off of the bed and to the door. Roman tried to scramble to stop him from opening it, but it was too little too late. 

“Um.. hi?” Virgil looked startled, Mal at his feet on high alert. Roman took the opportunity to appreciate how cute Virgil looked in his oversized hoodie, while Remy was immediately distracted by Mal. 

“OH MY GOD YOU ARE THE MOST BEAUTIFUL THING I’VE EVER SEEN!” Remy’ shrieking surprisingly only made Virgil jump, and not Mal.  Remy was already on the ground petting her. “Look at all that fluff. What a beautiful angel. I didn’t see your full beauty at the restaurant, oh goodness.” Virgil looked very confused. 

“At the restaurant? Roman--” Virgil looked to him, and Roman sighed. 

“Sorry, this is my friend Remy. He decided to drop by without asking.” Virgil looked down at Remy who was still fawning over Mal. “He really likes dogs.” 

“An understatement, Roman. Javert is my son. However, after seeing this beauty I might have to reconsider him for the face of Barcos.” Remy scratched under Mal’s chin, which she seemed to fully enjoy. Virgil seemed to be relaxing at the very least. 

“What’s Barcos?” Virgil said, unknowingly releasing a floodgate. Boys, dogs, and Barcos were Remy’s three favorite subjects. Remy jumped up and started talking at a breakneck speed. 

“Okay, so Barcos is the food truck I’m saving up for. It's a taco truck for dogs. All of the food is dog friendly and tasty for both dogs and humans, obviously, but it’s for dogs.  No places would give me a loan for it, because they have no vision. I have been working on recipes for it for-ev-er.” Remy practically bounced, this demeanor totally different than the cool one he was known for at work. “Javie and Ro are my top two taste testers.” 

Javert, having heard his name twice now, bounded over, wagging his tail and greeting Mal. She wagged her tail in response and they gently touched noses.  Remy barely contained his shriek as he was distracted by the two. 

“Roman, they’re in love. You have to let me cater for their wedding. Promise me.” Remy looked very serious. Virgil chuckled, his cute smile sending a wave of fondness through Roman. 

“I promise you can cater for their wedding, if you let me and Roman get brunch.” Virgil spoke awkwardly, but calmly. 

“Deal. It was nice meeting you too. Roman, I’m going to sleep off my hangover.” With that, Remy flopped back into the shitty bed. Roman grabbed Jav’s leash, and he called goodbye from the door. Rather than shaken from the exchange, as Roman expected, Virgil looked entertained. 

“So, your friend really likes dogs, huh?” He laughed again. It was completely unfair how cute he was when he laughed. Roman felt that flutter in his chest that didn’t seem to want to go away when he heard it.