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Deceit took a deep breath, trying to ignore the nerves fluttering in his stomach. ‘ Calm down, it’s okay, you’ll be fine. They’ll accept you.’ Easy for his brain to say, it didn’t have to wear a dress, go down in front of a bunch of people that hated him, and hope he doesn’t get lynched. He shoved the thought out of his brain. Not helping.
He wondered why he thought this was a good idea again before he reminded himself that he was too good for them and that it didn’t matter what they thought about him because he was his own person(kind of) and he could do what he wanted. Now if only his thumping heart would get the memo, that’d be great. He sighed, straightening. He prepared himself to go downstairs into the main part of the mind space. He made the dress himself and it had taken him forever. It’d be a waste for him to not show it off, honestly, but he was really tempted to do so. He smacked himself lightly, shaking himself off before sinking down.
When he reappeared, no one was around. He breathed a sigh of relief, before striding down the hallway as confidently as he could. He tried his best to ignore his anxiousness and paranoia, screaming at him to retreat, escape, hide before someone saw him. Shut up , he scolded himself. You can do this . He took a moment to compose himself before heading into the living room. Patton was sitting on the couch, swaying to the theme song of Winnie the Pooh that was playing on the TV. Deceit tensed before walking over to the couch, sitting down as far away from the other as possible.
“Hey, kiddo!! You want to watch something with me?” Patton offered, turning to Deceit before he noticed who it was, distrust and surprise blooming on his features. “...D-Deceit..?”
Deceit forced himself to roll his eyes as his lungs tightened. “ No , it totally isn’t me.” He fidgeted in his seat before making himself sit still. Patton cleared his throat, asking cautiously, “U-Uh… w-what’re ya wearing, kiddo..?”
Deceit’s eyes stared at his now clenched gloved hands that were folded in his lap, tension coursing through him as he responded, “..I-I’m wearing a tuxedo, obviously. What does it look like I’m wearing?”
Patton smiled tersely. “Well, it looks like you’re wearing a dress.. It looks really nice on you, kiddo, I’m just… kind of confused why you’re wearing it.” Deceit huffed, crossing his arms, ignoring the warm feeling in his chest from the compliment. “Because I can is why. I can wear a dress if I feel like it.”
Patton nodded complacently, smiling more genuinely this time as he responded, “Well, yeah, of course, you can!! So, is there an occasion, or..?” He glanced expectantly at Deceit, his head tilted like a curious puppy, his eyes wide and magnified by his glasses. Deceit shrugged in false nonchalance, fiddling with the edges of his gloves.
“There is totally an occasion, I definitely didn’t just feel like wearing a dress.” Patton chuckled, saying in an understanding voice, “Yeah, that’s fair. I-I’mma be honest, kiddo, I do that sometimes, too.. Sometimes it’s just nice to put on a skirt, just because you can. I get that.” Deceit blinked in surprise, trying to push down the hope filling in his heart.
“Y-You.. You do..?” Patton nodded again, a soft smile gracing his lips. Deceit’s eyes, to his horror, started filling with relieved tears which, before he could scrub away, started to fall down his face. He quickly rubbed at them, the fabric of his gloves absorbing them, but it was too late. Patton’s eyes looked concerned, and he sat up slowly, moving to sit by Deceit, asking in a careful voice, “Hey, hey, are you okay, kiddo? I’m so sorry, I-” He let out a rush of air, his eyes widening in surprise before he looked down at the now sobbing Deceit who had tackled him, his head buried into Patton’s shoulder. Patton blinked before smiling gently, softly moving to embrace the crying side, moving his hand soothingly along Deceit’s back. “There, there, it’s okay, buddy.” Deceit sobbed harshly, choking out, “T-Thank you..!!”
Patton sighed, beaming contentedly as he whispered, “Anytime, son.”