Gainesville Glamour

Although he was considered the Golden Child in contrast to his brother, Roman still had some parts of him that his mother considered "faults". He felt comfortable hanging out with girls without constantly feeling entitled to a relationship with any of them, he preferred theatre over sports, and he was fond of teaching himself how to do makeup, something he mastered on himself and his female friends. Not only that, but, for the sake of not frustrating his mother, he styled his hair in a way so that some of his hair would cover the rest of it that was contained by a ponytail holder. Everyone else who accepted him knew that he wouldn't dare cut his long locks that he worked so hard on.

One day, as they were all hang out and taking turns playing "Kingdom Hearts", Valerie looked amazed with the makeup Roman did for her and chuckled.

"With talent like that, I'm surprised you haven't signed up for the Gainesville Glamour Pageant," she complimented.

"Oh, I don't know if I could compete with beauty queens like that, Val," Roman countered.

"Well, there's nothing in the guidelines that says only females can participate," Dahlia supported.

"I'd consider, it but let's not forget my mother is part of the City Commission. If she finds out about me entering, the pageant will turn into a live snuff film," Roman shuttered at the thought.

"Well, at least think about it. You know we'd all support you if you decide to do it," Rose informed.

Roman wasn't sure if the discussion was more about lighthearted humor, but he couldn't help but think about it more as he was lying in bed. If it was true that there was no rule against anyone that wasn't a girl participating, then it wouldn't hurt to try it out to see what happened and show how much he cared about himself.

After some thought, he proceeded to enter his name as a contestant and prepared whenever he could in secret. He took into consideration the advice from his female friends, his male acquaintances, and even his brother since Remus had no reason to tell their mother what he was up to.

As his mother and Remus left for the pageant, Roman had an Uber ready to join the rest of the contestants. He saw some contestants backstage who he heard of and never officially met such as Beautiful Gorgeous and Nellie Jurgy as well as well as some of his friends, all of which were surprised and accepting of him being an actual contestant. He had makeup on himself that was sweatproof and styled his hair neat and natural. Roman felt so comfortable talking with the other contestants that he almost forgot that he was competing with them.

Time passed quickly for them and they found themselves next to each other on the stage. He felt relieved seeing some friends and acquaintances in the audience and recognized his brother as well as two students from his high school, Emile and Patton, as judges. The host interviewed everyone one at a time and, while Roman was waiting, he noticed his mother with the rest of the City Commission. The two looked at each other and he saw her whisper something before starting to get up. As if on cue, Roman slowly backed his way into the curtain before she could get on the stage.

Roman made his way backstage with the knowledge that his mother would freak out if she saw him in his comfortable state. There were microphones all over the stage that can allow the noises to be heard from backstage, so he figured he could dodge his mother long enough before the pageant was over.

Roman had caught some glimpses of his mother from a distance and proceeded to find various hiding places as a result.

"You know, 'miss', this is unbecoming of an ideal gentleman," she taunted several times.

As someone who found comfort in the theatre, he was more familiar with what certain tools can do and how to maneuver his way around than his mother ever would. He was listening to the show as he was avoiding her and found himself mildly upset that he couldn't see the contestants, but he felt better when he remembered one of his friends recorded it for a group viewing party.

Eventually it was revealed that there were two finalists present. Roman found himself facing a wall until he heard a chuckle behind him.

"That's a shame. I guess you'll have to take sports like a man after all!" his mother taunted.

Roman rolled his eyes before climbing up to the lights and making his way to one of the lights that was always prone to falling. He gripped onto the light and did a somersault halfway down before landing in a pose while maintaining his hair, makeup, and outfit, much to the shock and amazement of everyone. As soon as he saw his mother angrily approach him, he shed his outfit to reveal himself in a red and gold bikini. Not only was he in the bikini, but he was in tap shoes and he was tap dancing around his mother and the host like his life depended on it. After staring for a while, the host interviewed Roman as he was tap dancing. Everyone, except for Roman's mother was cheering, including the two finalists.

After the tapping, everyone provided a standing ovation.

"GLAMTASTIC! She performed every stage of the pageant in one move!" Patton shouted before picking up a notepad and pen and looking at Remus.

"I'm kind of nervous. Can you get me her number?" he asked Remus.

With a chuckle, Remus responded, "That's no 'she'! That's my brother, Roman!"

"Oh, so you have it, then," Patton countered.

As the three finalists stood next to each other, the judges added the scores up. The host was given an envelope with the results.

"In third place, we have Nellie Jurgy! In second place, we have Valerie Bonita! And in first place, we have...Roman Ellington!"

Everyone cheered and Roman hugged the finalists before accepting his sash, crown, and bouquet. Amongst the celebration, his mother was throwing a huge tantrum that caused some of the contestants to leave the building. It wasn't long before Remus ran out to congratulate Roman and give him Patton's number. Roman giggled inserted the number into his phone.

Several days passed before the social group gathered with snacks and chuckles to watch the recording of the pageant. Roman was amazed by the talented contestants and the friends congratulated Roman before they all made jokes about Roman's mom humiliating herself.