Thomas Sanders Sides OneShots 4

Saved by a prank call - No ship

8:09pm

Trigger warning: abusive parents, animal cruelty, homophobia

Au
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"Bye, Logan!" Patton called into the phone with delighted glee. "Goodbye, Patton" Logan responded before hanging up. Patton giggled, kicking his legs back and forth from where he laid, stomach down, on his friend's (Virgil's) bed. Said friend was lounging in the desk chair opposite, somewhat doing his work, other times just listening to his friend.

"Who should I call next.." Patton murmured, mostly to himself. "How about Deceit?" He suggested, looking up at Virgil who breathed out a snort and shook his head. "Fuck no - last time I called him he answered while in the middle of having sex with Remy" Virgil shuddered at the memory, never imaging his friends to be into so much...weird stuff.

Patton just shrugged and carried on. "Oo! How about Roman?" He suggested, pressing call without hearing Virgil's response. "Who?" He called over his shoulder, for while Patton spoke he was more focused on his work, and didn't hear him properly.

"Roman!" Patton repeated, making Virgil freeze and drop his pencil. "No, wait-hang up!" He tried but the ringing stopped - Roman answered. Shit, shit, shit! Virgil rushed across the room, ready to grab his phone and throw it out the window when he stopped...

"Don't hurt him" Roman pleaded over the other end, Virgil dropped the phone onto the bed in fright, gazing at Patton who's expression also dropped to fear. "Please, father, please don't hurt him" Roman begged again. Virgil and Patton didn't know what to do - why did Roman answer? Does he expect the two to help? If so, what should they do? Tell their parents? Call the cops?

"Why not?" A deeper voice replied,

"It's just a stupid mutt" they heard a sudden whimper from what sounded like a dog. Patton tensed up, backing away from the phone.

"P-please" Roman's voice cracked as he begged, "he's-he's my friend.."

"He, huh?" The deeper voice laughed, and the dog let out another whimper. "Is this what made you turn gay?" He teased, Virgil and Patton could only imagine what Roman's dad was doing to the poor dog on the other end. "What? Dad, no, I'm not gay...please, put him down, you're hurting him"

"It's a mutt, faggot! And if it'll hurt you more, then I think I'll carry on"

Patton gasped, covering his mouth with his hands. Virgil was frozen in place, stuck to the ground, fear striking him to his core. Suddenly, Virgil's bedroom door opened, and his father stepped in. Before he could even open his mouth, Virgil and Patton sprinted over and held their hands to his mouths, harshly whispering 'shh!' while gesturing to the phone. His eyes widened in shock at the teens behaviour, but followed their silent demands without saying a word.

"No, please! STOP! NO!" Roman's voice screamed and cracked through the speakers, Virgil's dad finally understood why he was instantly banished from uttering a sound. They all stared at the phone, flinching and clinging onto Virgil's dad when a heart shattering dog whimper shot out through the speakers, and Roman's crying echoed around the room.

"Crying over a fucking mutt" the father muttered darkly, and Virgil's dad clenched his hands tightly. "Fucking faggot" Roman yelped when a loud slap pronounced clearly through the speakers, a distant door slam, left with Roman's sobs and cries.

The two boys stared at each other, then looked up to Virgil's dad who looked furious. He picked up the phone, put it off speaker and it to his ear. "Roman, Ro?" He called, leaving the room to talk in private. Virgil and Patton wanted to follow, but his dad made it pretty clear they shouldn't when he closed his bedroom door behind him. Instead, they found Virgil's mother downstairs, laying across the couch, staring at the book in her hands.

"Mom" Virgil's soft voice caught her attention. She looked over at the two boys, concern washing over her viciously when she noticed Virgil's tears pooling in his eyes, and the tears streaming down Patton's cheeks. "What happened!?" She worried, placing the book on the coffee table and ushering the two over. They sat on either side of her, hugging her tightly as she held one arm around them, whispering words of soothing reassurance. Even if Patton wasn't her child, she would treat any of Virgil's friends like one, especially if they came to her crying.

Before they could explain themselves, their father came in, handing Virgil's phone to him, but the call had ended. "I'm picking him up" he stated, tugging a coat around his body. "Belle, put up a spare bed, please, Roman will be staying for awhile" he carried on without much of an explanation and left before any questions could be asked.

"Pat, V, what's going on?"

Half an hour later, Virgil's father parked outside of Roman's house and left without a second thought, slamming the door shut behind him. Walking straight up the overgrown path, he rapped on the door heavily. "Piss off!" A voice called from inside. Virgil's dad rolled his eyes and barged on in without bothering to knock again.

"Hey, what the fuck-" a man a few inches shorter than himself stepped out from the living room, glowering at the man who loomed over him intimidatingly. "Stay out of this, you pathetic excuse of a parent" he spat with malice. Creaks on the staircase caught both men's attention. They looked over and spotted a timid Roman, gripping a bag strap tightly, staring right at his dad with eyes full of fear. Then, he looked at Virgil's dad, begging to be helped...saved, even.

Roman's dad figured it out. "Roman, get upstairs, now" his dad demanded icily, but he didn't listen instead he slowly carried on his descent until he was close to Virgil's dad to feel safe. "I said-"

"You don't have any say on what he does, if that phone call was anything to go off, I can't imagine what Roman has to go through everyday living with you. I'll be sure to report the blatant animal abuse, and child abuse to the proper authorities" Roman's dad's jaw slacked, eyes averting to Roman who rushed out the house before anymore harm could come his way. He crazily opened the car door and slammed it shut, covering his ears to try and block out the screams coming from the house.

He only looked up when the car door opened, and Virgil's dad was sliding in, locking them both when he entered. "If he's smart, he won't hit the car, it'll just be more I report" he murmured, glaring at the man who stayed on his porch. Roman looked down again, unable to face his gaze.

The car drove away, and Roman didn't look back once.

—

8:39pm