Plenty of Treasures

a tiny interaction and distraction

summary: Logan's just trying to study, but a sudden interaction brings out a confidence he honestly believes is manifested purely from the galaxy against his legs

word count: 1,246

pairing(s): logicality and mentioned background prinxiety

warnings: strong language/swearing and implied ADHD! Logan (though I don't really know if that should be a warning)

___

As pen scratches paper, a galaxy brushes against his thighs, one leg crossing over the other in an attempt to get comfortable. He was going to be here for a while, after all.

His thesis is due in three weeks and he's still in the revision stages. For most people, this might seem like an achievement, but Logan has a tendency of getting distracted without the intention of doing so, therefore, the revision stages take much longer than those of other students. He almost envies them, not for their intelligence or their choice of thesis subject, as he is fairly comfortable with his own. But of their seemingly consistent ability to concentrate without falling victim to silly distractions. He can barely ever even remember what he gets distracted by most of the time.

Eyes skittering frantically across the screen of his laptop, he reads through the same sentence three times before huffing loudly and leaning back in his chair, ignoring the few pairs of nosy eyes that glare at him from several areas of the room. 'Oh, fuck off, I wasn't that loud.'

"Excuse me?"

A voice to his right startles him out of his frustrated muse - not a tantrum, thank you very much - and he is startled again at the sudden beaming smile glowing in his direction. "Yes?"

The man standing beside him - very almost looming but Logan doesn't really believe he can be taller than five foot five - seems to eye him up for a moment before smiling even wider. "Do you mind if I sit here? It's just, I usually sit here and it kind of frazzles me to be taken out of my routine, y'know?"

And Logan does know, so he nods curtly and turns back to his screen. Beside him he hears shuffling and a chair being pulled out, a tiny 'oof' as the chair collides with his foot (probably), and another even quieter 'oof' as the student plops down into his seat. His fingertips tap against the firm keys of his laptop keyboard, leaving no words and simply feeling the surface of the plastic glide beneath his dark skin. Unlike the stereotype suggests for men his age, his hands are actually smooth and clear of any callouses. He's stronger than most people assume when they meet him for the first time, able to lift his friends and most of his loved ones.

However, he doesn't enjoy physical labour very much, so he avoids it as much as he possibly can. Though, he can't always do so and, for the love of god, he's distracted again.

Closing his eyes, he rubs them harshly and sighs, waiting for the man beside him to click his tongue in irritation and possibly move away. But what he receives instead is what many would call a miracle. "I hope you don't mind me saying, but I really like your skirt. Where'd you get it from?"

He pauses for a second, processing the question in his mind before looking down at the colourful material hiding the top of his legs from view. Swirls of silver and plum all mixed in with a stunning sky of navy blue, it was just so beautiful and in tune with his interests that Logan felt an almost clawing need to buy it. He shrugs loosely. "Uh, thank you. I purchased it from an online store called Etsy, perhaps you've heard of it?"

"I have, actually!" His grin deepens the dimples in his cheeks and Logan feels compelled to smile along, which is certainly the only reason he is doing so. "My friend runs an account with his boyfriend, they make hoodies and stuff."

Logan pauses. "What is their account name, may I ask?"

His companion beams wider. "DarkStage Fashion."

It's almost funny, the coincidence of this entire interaction, but Logan fails to laugh, only raising his eyebrows and tilting his head to one side. "You know Roman and Virgil?"

And although he doesn't laugh, the man sitting beside him does, giggling with surprise and something else that manages to take ahold of something in Logan's chest, and he knows it will refuse to let go for some time after this interaction. "Wow! I had an idea that maybe you were the 'Logan' they're always gushing about, but I wasn't sure."

Pushing the fact that his friends gush about him behind his back aside, Logan takes a few seconds to memorise each and every detail sitting in front of him. The strawberry blonde curls resting upon a light brown, almost honey-glazed face, hiding half of his left eye, which is glowing juniper and matching the other in terms of intensity. Though they're light and, quite frankly, lacking in number, he can still make out the freckles adorning his cheekbones and button nose. His button nose, he discovers, has a small jutting bump as if it'd been broken before. And for some reason, he worries about why his nose was broken in the first place, despite there being a large number of possible causes for the jutted area.

With an air of confidence he never knew he had or would ever want to use, he turns more towards his new companion and smiles. "Well, it seems a little unfair that you know my name, yet I don't know yours. Don't you think so?"

"Oh, ah," his eyelashes flutter and he giggles breathlessly before gazing down at the hands gently placed in his lap, "I'm- My name is Patton. It's lovely to meet you, Logan."

Flirting has never been an activity Logan has found himself interested in, but as his eyes catch the pink staining Patton's skin, he finds it a bit more... exciting. He speaks the name coolly, not daring to meet his new companion's gaze, for fear that he'd notice the nerves bubbling beneath the surface of his brown irises. "Unusual, but I like it. It's a pleasure to meet you too, Patton."

Patton, still stumbling slightly over himself, looks up at the clock and sighs regretfully. "I knew I wouldn't have much time... Uh, do you have a phone number?"

The moment the last word leaves his mouth, a mortified hunch possesses his posture and he reddens an alarming amount. But, despite Logan's usual personal strictness on how others act around him (as rude as that may seem, he likes to ensure that the person will not be a hindrance or a toxic energy before he grows attached to them), he only manages to find his rather... unnecessary question endearing. He picks up his mobile from where its resting on the desk right in the middle of them, unlocking it and swiping until his phone number is on the screen. "I do, actually."

"G-Great!"

After exchanging numbers, Patton offers Logan a heart-stopping grin and heads off to wherever he needs to be. Logan, sitting in front of his laptop screen, a galaxy brushing gently against his thighs, wonders why the hell he'd even felt attracted to the man at all. They'd barely been talking five minutes! But, he supposes that not everything has to have an answer. Not immediately, anyway.

And, fuck, he got distracted again.

But he finds that, this time and this time only, he doesn't mind as much.