It seemed no matter how close Lifty got to someone, Flaky soon found out that he'd always find a way to distance himself from that person. In the days following their kiss, Flaky noticed a change in Lifty's demeanor to her. Whenever she'd come home from the store or work and sit next to him on the couch, he wouldn't even give her a passing glance before he'd get up, muttering about how he needed to use the restroom or another excuse to get away the redhead. It started to worry Flaky as she was growing close to the thieving man as he was to her. But now it seemed like he wanted nothing to do with her anymore.
After the third time it happened, Flaky decided to try and get some answer from her kleptomaniac friend. She returned home shortly after going to the supermarket and sat down next to the thief, waiting for him to move. It only took a minute before Lifty started to rise from the red sofa, halfway through mumbling another one of his excuses. He stopped, however, when he felt the girl's hand on his shoulder, surprising him as he looked at her.
"Red, let me go. I gotta use the bathroom."
"Lifty, you always leave whenever I s-sit down," Flaky shook her head, staring up at him as her big red eyes started to fill with tears, "I just w-wanna know what I d-did wrong."
Lifty sighed and slumped back into the sofa seat, running a hand over his face before answering, "You didn't do nothin' wrong. I just don't want someone like you getting close to someone like me."
"Why?"
Lifty shrugged, "Have you met me? I'm a thief. A criminal. You're too nice to be around a guy like me."
"I don't care. I still c-care about you."
Lifty sighed again, seeing there was no way he was going get the girl to leave this alone and shook his head, "Fine. But don't say I didn't warn ya."
The girl ignored his warning and instead stood up from her spot, grabbing the thief's hand as she pulled him to his feet. She led him to the front door and he stopped her there, pulling his hand from her grasp as he stared at her curiously.
"Flaky, where are you taking me?"
"I gotta go to the supermarket, and I figured y-you could come with me"
Lifty frowned, even more confused, "But didn't you just come home from the store earlier?"
Flaky nodded, "Yup, but you haven't left my house since we w-went down to the library. So I figured it'd be good for you to g-get some fresh air. Plus I forgot to grab a f-few things."
So without even listening to Lifty's protests of him saying that he'd rather just stay inside and watch television, both of them piled into Flaky's red car and she started the drive into town. Lifty sighed and just stared out the window, thinking to himself this might not be so bad. After all, it was true that Lifty hadn't left the girl's house and it was being to bore him with seeing the same rooms every day and every night.
But if Lifty knew who he'd see in the market, he never would've left the couch.
X X X
Lifty trudged along, a bored expression on his face as he followed Flaky from behind as the girl pushed a cart down the aisle. He watched as her crimson eyes darted from the shelves to the paper list in her hand, muttering quietly to herself.
"No, not t-that one. Maybe. . .no. . ."
They passed another aisle and it seemed to catch the girl's attention as she tore her eyes away from the list in her hand as she stared down the aisle, searching for whatever it was she needed. She frowned and turned to Lifty, who was busy picking at a string on his coat only to feel the redhead's eyes on him as he looked back at her.
"Lifty, t-there's something I need from down that aisle. But I c-can't reach it," Flaky pouted at her shortness, but continued, "C-Could you grab the flour on that top shelf while I go grab some o-other stuff. Please?"
Now even though Lifty had changed slightly after being around Flaky, becoming a bit of a caring person and all that junk. He still made sure she and everyone knew he never did anything, no matter how small, unless he got something in return. So it came as no surprise when the green-haired kleptomaniac simply replied with, "Hmm. . .well what do I get out of helping?"
Flaky already knew he was going to ask that, so she dug around in her wallet and produced a few crisp dollar bills. Holding one out to the man, she mentioned with a small smile that he'd get more if he helped her. Not wanting to pass up the opportunity to get some free cash, the thief swiped the bill from her hand and told her he'd be back with what she needed. Lifty went down the aisle and Flaky left down another, leaving Lifty alone as his eyes scanned for the flour she needed. The only problem was she didn't tell him what kind she needed or which top-shelf she meant. He frowned to himself and was about to go back to Flaky and ask which flour she needed when he was suddenly struck in the back of the head by someone's hand.
Whirling around in anger he started to shout at the person, "What the hell was that for?! Ya friggin' idio-"
Lifty choked halfway through his rant, the heated words now lost in his throat as he stared with wide eyes at the person before him.
"Now, is that any way to greet your brother?"
Lifty backed away from Shifty's sadistic smile, only to regret it as he saw, the older twin's smile to grow with satisfaction, obviously pleased with how bothered his little brother was by his presence.
"Shifty," Lifty steeled his nerves as he glared, "Why are you here?"
"Oh, you know a little of this, a little of that," Shifty started to look at the shelves as he grinned, "I was actually in the neighborhood and decided to come to do a little shopping. Then I saw you and wanted to catch up with my little brother."
"Like hell you did," Lifty's glare never left as he examined his brother, just now noticing a nasty purple and brown bruise on the twin's face, "And what the hell happened to your face? You look even uglier than usual."
That wiped the smug smile off of the brother's face as Shifty's hand went up to his face and softly brushed against a still healing bruise that covered his left cheek.
"An accident, Splendid caught me after I tried robbing a coffee shop," Shifty growled, "Beat the crap outta me before just leaving. Said I learned my lesson. Pfft, as if."
"Good, glad you got what you deserved."
Now Shifty was starting to get angry as he clenched his coat with a closed fist, "Seems you've grown up a bit since what, a week and a half? Two weeks? Thought you'd still be a little whining bitch. But maybe I was wrong, huh?"
Lifty didn't have a comeback or insult to fire back so Shifty just continued, hands on the shelf in front of him as though he was going to send it toppling over.
"But I'm not. You're still a wuss, a coward. But. . ." Shifty raised his hands and shook his head, "Enough exchanging petty insults. That's not why I'm here."
Lifty wondered what was taking Flaky so long and briefly wondered if he should just shove his brother down and make a run for it. But considering Shifty was always the faster of the two, Lifty knew that he'd be back on his feet and on him before he could even take two steps. So he crossed his arms and didn't try to hide his scowl as he spoke.
"So why are you here then?"
"I'm just curious about how you been," Shifty narrowed his eyes as his smile came back, "And curious of whose been helping you out."
"You're an asshole," Lifty glared, "I can take care of my fuckin' self."
Shifty let out a chuckle, "As if! I just know that someone's been helping you. You'd never last this long without me. And this must a hell of a friend, huh? I mean, who would let someone like you into their home without questioning a single thing."
Lifty didn't answer and instead started to move down the aisle, intent on getting away from his brother. He was stopped by Shifty darting in front of him, outstretched arm blocking the aisle exit.
"Oh, no! We ain't done talkin' yet, little brother."
"Yes. We are. Now move your damn arm before I break it."
"Oho! Someone's got their panties in a bunch! I'll let you go if you just tell me who's been letting you stay with 'em."
Before Lifty could either attack or argue with his sibling, the worst thing happened as he heard a soft voice call out from a couple of aisles down. It was a voice both Lifty and Shifty knew well, and one that Lifty started to like and feel comfortable around. But now it sounded so horrible at that moment as Lifty's blood ran cold.
"Lifty? W-Where are you? Flaky called out, her voice fading as she went down a different aisle away from the twins, "Did you find the f-flour?"
Her voice grew fainter and fainter until it was quiet as she went farther away from them. Lifty's mouth was open slightly as his eyes went wide. Then Shifty's grin grew bigger than he'd ever seen as the other man slowly turned to stare at him.
"You smart motherfucker! Flaky?" Shifty gave his brother a pat on the back as he grinned, "That's who's been letting you loaf around all this time? That's fuckin' genius, gaining her trust like that."
"What are you talking about?"
"Oh, you know. Gaining the redhead's trust so you can rob her in the middle of the night and make off with her stuff." Shifty threw his arm over his twin's shoulder as he smiled, "I think you're getting to be more like me every day, bro."
"That's not why I'm staying with her. She's helping me get ready for life." Lifty ripped the man's arm off of his shoulder as he scowled, "Without you. She's my friend. "
"That's where you wrong. She'll never think of you as a real friend. And you know why? Because you are a criminal. Like me. A bad guy. Like me. You know it. I know it. She knows it."
Lifty frowned, feeling the sting of his brother's cruel words as he shook his head, "You don't know that. Y-You're wrong."
"Listen to what I'm saying. What your brother is saying. Would I ever lie to you, Lifty?"
Before Lifty answer, he was pulled close and he saw how truly messed his brother really was. Besides the bruise covering his cheek, Shifty also looked like he hadn't slept in days. Tired bloodshot eyes stared through his brother as a broken bandage hand gripped his coat. The twin's smile was gone, replaced by a bitter frown as he whispered out, voice dripping with soft anger.
"Look at what you did. You motherfucker, you did this."
Lifty pulled away from his brother's grip, confusion was written on his face as he backed away, "I didn't do that."
"You did." Shifty hissed, eyes staring at his shoes, "You left me, and because of that, I got hurt. This is your fault."
Shifty didn't see his brother's confusion turn to anger as he kept talking.
"But I can forgive you. Just come home. I got our van parked out back. If we leave right now, Flaky wouldn't even know you-"
"No."
Caught off guard by his brother's blunt and quick response, he took a step back. "What?"
"You fuckin' heard me," Lifty took his chance, stepping forward and jabbed a finger into his brother's chest, "I said no, brother. You kicked me out, said I wasn't your brother anymore. And now when you realize you can't do shit by yourself, you suddenly want me to come home. Well, I say no. Fuck you."
Lifty started to walk away from the stunned Shifty, who just stood there for a second with his mouth open in shock. He quickly recovered and his face was a mask of anger as he shouted out to his retreating brother., who stopped to stare at his enraged twin's ranting.
"Well, fuck you too! Fuck you, fuck you. Fuck! You! Just you fuckin' wait. Her friends won't accept you! They'll just see an outcast, a crook!" Shifty started to walk away as well, anger boiling his blood as he shouted out one more time, "You know we're in this together so you can't just walk away! Sooner or later you'll be back! We both know it."
That last part barely made to his ears as Lifty continued walking away, but he could hear the furious and almost heartbroken betrayal behind his brother's words. Leaving his brother behind, Lifty felt a weight lift from his shoulders, as though the weight of Shifty's burden was finally gone. But now it was replaced by a sense of dread. He didn't hear a single taunt or feel a single hint of humor from his brother's final words, just a wave of hurting anger. He knew how underhanded and malicious his brother could be when he wanted revenge, so he knew Shifty would be plotting how to get back at him as soon as the two departed.
Lifty felt like his world was had just crashed down around him, yet at the same time, he also felt like a new and better world was being rebuilt around the wreckage. He didn't need his brother. Turning to look where Shifty just was, he nodded to himself before continuing to walk.
He didn't need his brother. And that was okay.