3rd Pov

"Come on kiddos!" The young man yelled at his friends. His short golden curls and thick round glasses bounced as he skipped ahead of their group. The two other friends sighed at his enthusiasm. The group was visiting Rome for the first time.

"Patton," The tallest group member started. He had black hair that was combed neatly in place. He wore a black dress shirt with a dark blue tie. He moved his glaces to the top of his head to rub his eyes tiredly. "We do not need to be in such a rush." He replaced the glasses back onto his face and looked at his friend.

"But Logan!" Patton turned back to his friend. "Today is our last day! We are getting on a plane in a few hours, and we still have so much more to do!" Logan let out another sigh and nodded, indicating that he understood. He turned to their third companion. The third member of their party was wearing a black hoodie with patches of purple flannel. They looked like they were stitched on with thick white thread. He had his hair dyed purple and dark makeup under his eyes, which complimented their pale friend well. His eyes were averted under his bangs and he stared at the ground.

"Virgil?" the emo looked up. "What do you suggest we do?"

"Yeah," Patton but in, "Where do you want to go first, kiddo?" Virgil's eyebrows drew together in thought.

"C-can we maybe...uh... if you're alright with it that is... go to the prince's statue?" He asked, nervous that his suggestion was stupid.

"Ooh! That's a great idea! It's the perfect place for tourists! And it is a classic picture perfect moment!" Patton exclaimed, motioning to the camera around his neck, hanging over his kitty cardigan which was fastened around his neck in a cape like fashion. This earned a small smile from Virgil as Logan cleared his throat.

"Excellent. So it's settled," Logan opened the map that was previously sitting in his pocket. He quickly located the statue and pointed in its direction. The trio started their way down to the heart of Rome. Virgil was glad that they could go to the statue. He had wanted to draw that attraction for some time now and he loved the legend behind it. The legend went back hundreds, if not millions of years. Everyone knows at least part of the legend surrounding the ancient prince. Virgil himself knew very little. He just knew that when the prince touched hands with his soulmate, he was supposed to become human again. Virgil figured that the prince must have been cursed if that was the case, but he didn't believe a bit of the story. He wasn't about to be fooled. He knew that someone had just carved a fancy statue and spread a rumor. After all, magic doesn't exist.

They walked up to the statue and saw that it was surrounded by tourists, like always. Patton jumped up and down excitedly, pointing to a bakery. "Can we go there?" He asked Logan. Logan sighed and nodded. They looked at Virgil who shook his head.

"You guys can... uh... go ahead. I'll wait here." He motioned to his bag, where they knew that a sketch book awaited.

"If you're sure, kiddo," said Patton, "We'll be sure to bring you back something." Patton skipped away, pulling Logan's hand behind him. Logan turned a little pink by the contact, but he tried to hide it with an annoyed look. Virgil smirked. He saw it and was glad to get them to go alone. He had been trying to get those two to realize their feelings for each other for so long now.

Sitting down on a nearby bench, he began sketching the statue in front of him. Whoever carved the prince had some mad skill, Virgil thought. He examined the fine cheekbones, the broad shoulders, and his strong stance. He felt a small blush bloom on his cheeks as he noticed how intense the prince's gaze was. It's just a statue! He chasened himself. He noticed how his hand was outstretched and noticed how many people went up and tried to hold it. Maybe believing the legend, maybe not. It didn't matter. It made for an amazing christmas card.

Virgil was almost done with His Royal Highness's torso when his friends returned. Patton handed him a pastry of some kind as he and Logan admired the drawing their friend had made.

"It's quite fascinating how you were able to draw the tiniest details in his face from this distance. And the shading is exquisite." Logan pointed out, causing Virgil to blush a bit. He quickly closed his book and placed it back into his bag. His friends sat down next to him as they finished up the baked goods Patton had got. Somehow, Patton had gotten the recipe for the dessert from the baker. As they finished up, Patton jumped to his feet again.

"We should go hold hands with the statue."

"Why? The hand would be filthy from all the other people touching it." Patton sighed at Logan's words.

"Because it's for the scrap book!" He exclaimed, causing Logan to rub his eyes yet again. "What do you say Virge?" Virgil shrugged. Patton squealed. "Let's go then!" He dragged Virgil and Logan up to the Prince who towered over them on his pedestal. He handed Virgil the camera as he took the Royal's hand and made a dramatic pose. Virgil chuckled as he took the picture. Then Patton dragged Logan over and took the camera back from Virgil. Logan let out an exasperated sigh before he did one of his 'I'm not happy' or 'I'm getting my picture taken' smiles. He gingerly took the statue's hand and the picture was taken.

Virgil sighed, knowing it was his turn, he walked up to the statue. The street was busy with people rushing to and fro. He examined the sculpture's true beauty up close. He smiled, taking the prince's hand and turning to take the picture. He heard a gasp and felt a weight fall on top of him as he too, tumbled to the ground. Everyone on that crazy block stopped and stared. Logan's eyes widened and Patton's mouth was ajar, the camera hung limply on his neck, but his hands were still in the air. Everyone was looking at Virgil.

Virgil felt the eyes and was starting to feel his anxiety kick in. He looked back towards the statue. The podium was empty.

1097 Words

💖 Maybay4