Judge the Pages, Not the Cover

It was that time of year for Logan Sanders and his class; sleigh bells ringing, frost appearing outside that made them all envy the states that had snow, and the teachers had to prepare their students for finals. However, school wasn't only going to be associated with finals for that time of the year since the student council convinced the faculty that they should have a winter get-together after finals. After some negotiating, they agreed on having the get-together as well as having willing staff and students bringing in refreshments so that too much wouldn't be taken out of the budget and they'd have the parents and teachers join in on the meetings for planning the get-together.

The meetings were held in the same classroom the regular student council meetings were held. When Logan entered the room, the first thing he noticed was the man he hadn't seen before sitting at one of the desks in the front row. The man had glasses similar to his own as well as a gray hoodie over his light blue shirt. The man also had sweet chocolate eyes, entrancing freckles and a warm smile that all caused the teacher to think he was about to pass out. Logan wasn't really in control of his body at that moment, so he was in awe when he found himself in the desk next to the man. The man looked at Logan before he could leave the desk.

"Oh, you must be Mr. Sanders. I'm Patton Andrews," the man introduced.

As Logan was shaking hands with the man, he thought of two things: the man's hand was incredibly warm and the surname sounded so familiar.

"Nice to meet you, Patton. Do you have a relative that is in one of my classes?" he finally had the nerve to ask.

"Oh, yes, Virgil Andrews. He's my foster son, but I'm planning on revealing my intentions on adopting him for Christmas," Patton retorted.

Logan immediately remembered which student Patton was talking about. Virgil Andrews was the kid in one of his English classes that he saw as an uncooperative problem child. When it was Virgil's turn to read out loud, he object. He wouldn't participate in oral presentations and argue before just turning in his typed report. He even suggested Virgil join the poetry group at their school for a constructive outlet and he loudly protested. Some of the other teachers have complained about Virgil over the two years he had been at the high school. Logan couldn't help but think of how bad he felt for Patton.

It took Patton speaking up, but the two of them actually managed to socialize while also giving occasional contributions to the meeting.

"What's your secret to keeping a smile on your face when parenting someone of Virgil's...characteristics?" Logan tried to politely ask.

Patton tilted his head as he saw Logan struggle to get the question out.

"Don't worry, I get that question a lot. It's not that hard, really. I just remind myself that I'm doing a better job at raising him than the foster home he used to live in and the negative reinforcement they possessed. He's been in my care for one and a half years and the moments that reveal that he trusts me makes me so happy," he genuinely remarked.

Logan felt confused upon hearing that. It made him wonder how much of Virgil's issues were a result of him living in the foster home and if the other faculty knew.

During that day in the English class he had with Virgil, he looked at their past and present without the "problem child" label lingering over Virgil's head. He acknowledged that Virgil wasn't really so bad of a student when it came to the nonverbal assignments or homework, so he wondered what Patton was doing that Logan wasn't. He made mental notes to from that day forward and stopped calling Virgil out on his "lack of participation." At the same time, he was also socializing with Patton during the planning meetings.

About a week before finals and the get-together, Virgil came to Logan's class after school while he was finishing up some paperwork.

"Mr. Sanders? Are you free to talk?" Virgil asked nervously.

"Oh, yes, Virgil. I was actually hoping to talk to you without drawing attention to you," Logan explained.

Virgil backed up slightly which Logan took as a sign to start and the teacher took a deep breath before speak.

"Look, I've noticed that you've been more academically skilled in the nonverbal assignments than in the verbal assignments. Is there any particular reason why?" he asked.

"Funny, it relates to what I wanted to talk to you about. Patton has talked about you plenty of times without asking about my work. From what I can tell, it might be best if you stopped socializing with him," Virgil retorted.

"Excuse me, but why are you suggesting such a thing?"

"Basically, the guys he has had a crush on in the past end up breaking his heart as soon as they find out they'd have to deal with me and my anxiety."

"Anxiety? But no one mentioned you needing accommodations for that."

"The foster home never found it necessary, so nor will I!"

Logan looked at the door to make sure no one else was listening to them. As much as he wanted to acknowledge the possibility that Patton might have a crush on him, he knew it was best to make Virgil's needs the main priority.

"Well, how do you and Patton take care of it?" Logan asked with interest in some kind of advice.

"Well, Patton has let me do my homework with music playing as a reminder that I'm doing my work in a safe place. He has also given me flashcards of encouragement and steps to calm myself down in moments when I'm stressed and he's not around. As for what I do? Time in the foster home has helped me develop a dark image since you can't let someone down if they have low expectations of you," Virgil explained faintly as if he was worried about someone eavesdropping.

"Why are you telling me this even though we've had a rough semester?"

"In all honesty, Patton is the only adult I've ever trusted and I think it's best if you stop leading him on now before you him!"

Virgil left the classroom and Logan was completely stunned. He never would've thought someone with such a negative reputation would be suffering so much. Then again, he has seen that sort of thing on Breakfast Club. He wanted to do something for Virgil and Patton.

As finals came closer, Logan gave reminders to the other teachers that there are students that might need accommodations to succeed the best they can manage. He also had got something for both of them that he wanted to give them at the get-together.

Pretty soon, the get-together was happening and everyone was taking part in the different activities (building gingerbread houses, exchanging gifts, eating goodies, singing to the songs on the holiday playlist, etc.). Logan saw Virgil sitting at one of the empty lunch tables close to one of the walls. He also saw Patton wearing a unique Christmas sweater that reminded him of a trans pride flag. He took a deep breath and approached Patton as the latter was helping himself to some of the food.

"Happy Holidays, Patton," Logan greeted.

Patton turned and smiled at Logan.

"Happy Holidays, Logan. Are you enjoying the party?"

"Oh, very much. How was Virgil after finals?"

"He was glad that it's over, that's for sure. His Spanish teacher actually suggested he do the oral portion of his final on a voice recorder instead of in front of her."

They snacked on some Christmas cookies Patton made as they were talking until Logan felt his pockets.

"Oh, I almost forgot, there are some things I want both of you to have," Logan exclaimed before handing over two small boxes.

Patton opened one of the boxes and was surprised to see it had a gift card meant for audiobooks. He looked at Logan in awe.

"He seemed entranced in reading, especially when it came to books not necessary for my class, but I'm sure there are other noises that might keep him uneasy, so this might help. Just don't tell him it's from me," Logan explained.

Patton smiled as he closed the box and put it in one of his pockets. He opened the other box and saw a charm bracelet with various animals on it.

"It came with a donation at the animal shelter, so I thought it would be a two-in-one if I got this after donating in your name," Logan shyly told him.

Patton put on the charm bracelet and hugged Logan immediately. Logan awkwardly hugged back and melted in Patton's embrace. As they were hugging, Logan saw Virgil walking towards them and considered pulling away, but saw him whisper something to one of the taller guests. As the taller guest walked to the other side of the two, Virgil had a smirk on his face and Logan pulled away with slight concern. He saw Patton look up and gasp and followed suit to find the tall guest holding above their heads a cookie shaped like a mistletoe. Patton blushed and looked away from Logan.

"I guess word spreads around quickly," Patton claimed.

Logan felt his chest warm up and a smile grow on his face. He turned Patton's head so that they would look at each other and proceeded to kiss the blushing man. As they were kissing, Logan felt a sensation in his body that he couldn't easily identify at first, almost like a combination of safety and euphoria. The two pulled away after half a minute and giggled like a high school couple. Logan looked towards Virgil who gave him a motion of "I'm watching you" before a smirk. Patton and Logan exchanged numbers and, though they didn't rush into anything, Logan made sure that he was there for both Patton and Virgil from that day forward.