Competing Talents

Along with being a major thespian in Florida, Roman Ellington was known for being extra. When it came to any episode of the most recent season of "The Masked Singer", there was no doubt about it. Roman prepared a viewing party for the finale with food and Instagram pics much to the dismay of part of his friend group. Everyone there knew that it was a big deal to Roman, but they had no idea how big of a deal it really was to him.

Many months before, Roman left town for a long time and did his best to keep in touch with his family, friends, and Virgil. Unbeknownst to them, Roman was performing under the alias of "The Frog" on "The Masked Singer". As much as he wanted to reveal his identity sooner rather than later, he knew surviving the competition for as long as possible would be a big deal for him. He made sure his selected songs and clues made it evident, at least, to the people who knew him well (from singing everything from Broadway to Beyonce to claiming the kiss of victory will turn him into a prince). The only thing that stood in the way of him and the Golden Mask was his fellow finalist: The Purple People-Eater.

The Purple People-Eater had one horn and one eye as well as wings. Roman knew that he wouldn't be able to know the identity of his fellow costumed performers until everyone else did, but that didn't stop him from trying to guess who the one-eyed foe was. The foe described themself as a "faithful Alvin Lipschitz" and great with doing artwork on various types of canvases. The foe also performed various types of songs that he realized connected to mental health in different ways. According to Roman, the singer was also an amazing singer that sounded mildly familiar, but he wasn't sure where he heard them before.

Pretty soon, they reached the part where Nick Cannon would decide between Frog and Purple People-Eater. When the Purple People-Eater was decided as the winner, Roman was struggling to hide his smile as the judges were making their final guesses. As much as Logan said he wasn't into the show, everyone knew that he mainly loved trying to solve the mysteries within the episodes. He glanced over at Roman a few times. At the same time, Patton was on the edge of his seat and Virgil was sitting on the kitchen counter keeping a distance between himself and the rest of the group. The Frog soon removed his mask and the crowd cheered as Roman's face was revealed. Patton and Virgil expressed uncontained surprise while Logan's eyes were wide before he looked down at his notebook.

"Well, surprise!" Roman proclaimed once commercial break happened.

"No wonder you were excited about the season. Though, I'm impressed you could keep it a secret for so long," Logan told him.

"Congratulations, Roman! You should've won!" Patton announced before hugging Roman.

Roman looked around and noticed the absence of his emo boyfriend. He understood if Virgil wanted to wait until they were not in mixed company to express any kind of affection, but he hoped that he would at least get an ounce of support from Virgil.

He gave up looking for Virgil once the commercials were over and it was time for the unmasking of the Purple People-Eater. If the room wasn't filled with so much shock before, the amount of shock that came from the unmasking of the champion could've been enough to make the whole world and then some pass out at the same time; without the mask, everyone could recognize Virgil looking at the audience in awe.

"Virgil Vanta! Congratulations! What made you decide to do this?" Nick Cannon asked the emo.

"Well, I've painted and done makeup for so long, I thought I'd try something new with anonymity. Besides, my boyfriend once said that when you receive an applause, it's for a reason," Virgil responded on T.V. while clinging on to the mask.

As the episode was ending, Roman rushed off to the bedroom and knocked on the door gently. Virgil shyly opened the door.

"Frog?" the artist asked.

"Purple People-Eater?" the thespian responded.

Virgil led Roman inside and went to his closet to pull out the trophy as a sign of proof.

"You...you were amazing! But...why?" Roman asked while still stunned.

"A lot of people know me for what I create. I heard about this show and the anonymity made me want to stay in the game for a really long time. It felt...better being me when no one knew who I was. I thought that maybe my own anxiety wouldn't recognize me and I would be free of these expectations of myself. Obviously, you know what the costs of that freedom are. What I'm trying to say is...winning this was less about the bragging rights and popularity and more about proving to myself that I'm capable of so much more. I just...didn't think it would come with surpassing you," Virgil explained.

Virgil was about to hand the trophy to Roman, but the latter pushed it back to Virgil's chest.

"You're champion for a reason. If I could be bested by anyone, Virgil, I'm glad to have been bested by you," Roman responded.

Both of their phones buzzed, but the couple remained in their own world with a silent agreement that the crazed responses to their participation in the season could wait.