“You’re…” The boy slowly furrowed his brow. “What…?”

“We could be twins.” Patton mumbled, staring wide eyed at him. 

The sound of a tray of cookies falling to the floor was heard behind Patton, and he turned towards the source.

It was his father, and he was looking directly at the boy Patton was talking to. “No.” He mumbled breathlessly, hands shaking. “No--No! Get out! Get out of my bakery!” He shouted at the boy, who recoiled in alarm.

“Woah, relax, old man!” The boy hissed, frantically looking behind him. “They’ll hear you!” 

“Dad!” Patton exclaimed, grabbing his father by the arms. 

“You’re not welcome here.” His father snarled at the boy, glaring daggers into his face.

The boy scowled. “If this is how you treat your customers, I don’t think I want to be welcome.” He told Patton’s father, pulling the hat further down his face. 

“Remus!” Someone shouted outside, and the boy instantly froze. 

“Oh shit.” He hissed, running behind the counter.

“You’re not allowed back--!”

The boy shushed Patton, crouching down in order to conceal himself. 

Two large men walked into the bakery, eyeing the sweets warily. “Hey,” They directed their focus to Patton’s father, “have you seen a guy come in here? Eighteen, brown hair, brown eyes, green jacket?” 

Patton didn’t dare glance back behind the counter, he was pretty sure that the boy didn’t wanna be caught by these guys.

“Actually,” The second guy spoke up, peering at Patton, “isn’t that him right there?” He pointed at the young baker, smirking a bit.

The first guy looked too, before bursting into laughter. “Thought a pair of glasses was enough to fool us, did ya? That’s cute.” He sneered, harshly grabbing one of Patton’s arms.

“Wait--I think there’s been a misunderstanding.” Patton’s father stammered. “This is my son--”

“Your son, eh? Give it a rest, you geezer. You don’t need to make lies for this little twerp.” The second guy growled. “He’s a crook, just like us.”

“I will not tolerate this kind of violence in my bakery!” Patton’s father furrowed his brow. “That is Patton Hart, my eighteen year old son, and I ask that you unhand him immediately!”

“Put a sock in it!” The first guy barked. “The jig is up, old man! You think we’re stupid?! It’s obvious that this is Remus Duke, just like it’s obvious that the sky is blue!”

“You’re wrong!” Patton spoke up. “I’m not him! My name is Patton!” 

“You lying little shit!” The second guy laughed maliciously, grabbing Patton’s other arm. “Don’t make this hard on yourself!” 

Patton winced. Their grip was tight, practically digging into his skin. They dragged him away from his father, who was staring in terror. 

“Let go of me!” Patton exclaimed, struggling. 

“You’re not gonna escape this time.” The first guy whispered into his ear, causing Patton to pale.

"Stop!"

Everyone froze as the boy stood up from behind the counter. “I’m right here, okay? Stop harassing these people!” He glared at the two men, who stared at the boy incredulously. 

“There’s two of him?” The first guy asked, releasing Patton’s arm.

The boy, Remus, rolled his eyes, walking out from behind the counter. “I know that I’m legal now, but seriously. Contain yourselves, gentlemen.” He winked. 

They both cringed, grabbing each of Remus’ arms. “You’re gonna regret running away, Duke.” The second guy spat.

“What’d you expect me to do? Ask you to hit me harder?” Remus asked sarcastically as they began to drag him out of the bakery. “What kind of kinky shit do you think I’m into?” 

The door closed.

Immediately, Patton turned to his father. “Dad, why did you treat him like that?!” He asked. “That boy did nothing to us!”

“If he comes back here, don’t talk to him.” His father snapped, eyes narrowing. “Don’t talk to him, or anyone who looks like him.”

“What? Why not?” Patton asked, frowning. “He didn’t seem dangerous.”

Mr. Hart paused. “Listen, Patton. There are forces in this world too strong to mess with. Just trust me, okay? I know what’s best for you.” 

Patton crossed his arms, sighing and looking away. “What aren’t you telling me, dad? I thought we didn’t have secrets.” 

Mr. Hart didn’t answer, that strange expression from earlier returning to his face. After a moment, he sighed and placed a hand on Patton’s shoulder. “I only want what’s best for you, you know that.” He mumbled. “I want to keep you safe and happy. That boy? He’ll bring you nothing but trouble.” 

“How do you know that? Patton asked. “He barely even talked to us. You can’t judge someone based on their looks. You’re the one who taught me that!” Patton exclaimed. 

“This is an exception.” Mr. Hart asserted. “I don’t want you talking to him.” 

“Why did he look like me?” Patton asked. “What if...what if he’s part of my biological family?” 

Mr. Hart huffed. “He’s not. Now, I don’t want to hear about this again. You’re forbidden from talking to that boy, or anyone who looks like him.”

“Anyone who looks like me, you mean.” Patton crosed his arms. 

Mr. Hart fixed him with a stern glare. “Lose the attitude, young man. We have work to do.” 

Patton sighed, before continuing to sweep the floor.

---

That night, Patton was lying in bed, unable to get that boy off of his mind. 

Why did the two of them look so similar? Could they really be related? Were they doppelgangers? Did those even exist? 

He couldn’t sleep. He wanted answers, and his father clearly had them. Why was he keeping the truth from Patton? What didn’t he want him to know? Was there more to his biological family than he originally thought?

There was a knock at his window. He jumped.

What on earth? He was on the second floor! 

Patton shot out of bed, looking out the window. Just as he got there, he saw a small pebble bounce off the glass. He was confused. He didn’t have any friends. Who on earth--?

He opened the window, and was met with a pebble to the face. “Ow.” He murmured, rubbing the spot it had hit.

"Oh."

Patton looked down, finding Remus standing outside of his window. He gasped, giving a wave. “Hello!”

“Hi, uh, Patton, right?” Remus stammered. “Wow, I didn’t think about what would happen after this.” 

Remus was dressed in a black hoodie, the hood pulled over his head. His pants were even darker. He looked sketchy, Patton had to admit.

“Do you wanna come in?” Patton asked before he could regret it. Was it a smart decision to invite a stranger into his home? No, but Patton had always been too trusting. 

“Yeah. Yes. Please. It’s cold.” Remus nodded.

"Okay. One sec--"

Remus climbed the tree next to the house, stepped onto a rather sturdy branch, then jumped towards the window. 

Patton squealed, backing away in surprise. 

Remus had just barely grabbed the windowsill. He pulled himself into Patton’s bedroom, not even winded. 

Patton blinked. “I was just gonna get the ladder.” 

“Nice place.” Remus looked around Patton’s room, eyeing the baby blue walls in amusement. 

“Uh, thank you!” Patton grinned. “I painted it myself!”

Remus hummed, sitting down on Patton’s bed. “So,” He yawned. “Do you know why we’re, y’know, completely identical?” 

Patton sat down next to him. “No clue. I tried to get my dad to tell me, but…” He furrowed his brow. “What happened to your face?”

Remus had a split lip, and a nasty bruise forming on his right temple. There were badly cleaned blood stains that seemed to originate from somewhere in his hair. Clearly, they had been wiped away in a rush. Lastly, there was an angry red mark around his neck, almost like a handprint. 

“I tripped.” Remus blew a piece of hair out of his face. Patton noticed that the piece of hair was lighter than the rest, like it had been bleached. “You’re eighteen?”

“Uh, yeah.” Patton nodded, deciding to address his concerns later. “How did you know?”

“Your dad brought it up when Thing 1 and Thing 2 were trying to drag you away.” Remus shrugged. “I’m eighteen too. When’s your birthday?”

"April--"

“24th?” Remus finished, tilting his head. Patton blinked, slowly nodding.

“How did you know?” He murmured.

“That’s my birthday too!” Remus chirped, a strange smile lighting up on his face. “So we’re identical, we have the same birthday, and we’re the same age.” He counted off. “We have to be related, there’s no way.” 

“My dad told me to stay away from you.” Patton admitted. “He said you were ‘nothing but trouble.’”

Remus scoffed. “What is this? A 2000’s highschool film? Who cares? We’re adults.” He rolled his eyes. “Were you adopted?” He asked bluntly.

Patton blinked. “Uh, yeah. I was. You?” He awkwardly replied.

“Yeah, same.” Remus nodded. He huffed, rubbing his temples. “I’m too stupid for this.”

“Don’t call yourself stupid.” Patton lightly scolded. “You’re not.”

“We met this afternoon.” Remus snorted, raising a brow. “You don’t know that.”

Patton frowned. “Still, you shouldn’t talk about yourself like that.”

Remus stared at him weirdly for a moment. “Whatever.” He shrugged after a moment, a lazy smile on his face. “You’re odd, Patton Hart.” 

Patton huffed. “Anyway,” he ran a hand through his hair, “do you think we really could be...brothers?”

“We have to be!” Remus exclaimed. “We’re so similar!”

“Why do you think they separated us?” Patton frowned, tilting his head. 

Remus shrugged. “No clue. Your dad probably knows, based on the way he reacted to me.” He yawned. 

“That’s what I thought too!” Patton exclaimed. “He was acting so weird!” He sighed. “Do you think it’s anything bad?”

“Honestly? No clue.” Remus shook his head. “You’ll have to ask him yourself.”

"Do you think he'll tell me?"

Remus snorted. “Nope, but it’s worth a shot.” He smirked. “If that doesn’t work, then you need to find a way to figure it out. Use your head, you look like a smart guy.”

“I do?” Patton tilted his head.

“Yeah, which means I also look like a smart guy.” Remus winked. He stood up, stretching. “I better head back before those assholes come looking for me. I’ll be back tomorrow. Hopefully.” 

“Stay safe!” Patton smiled.

Remus barked out a laugh, before climbing out the window.

A/N:

SORRY THIS TOOK FOREVER, THAT CONVERSATION COST LIKE HALF OF MY BRAIN CELLS