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Since they started dating Splendont, he'd taken them on a few dates in public. It was mostly just out to eat, but Shifty liked food. Especially food of the free variety. The bulk of their dates were at their apartment, playing video games and eating more - also free - food. And cuddling. Which was surprisingly nice. Nice, like the time that they slept in the redhead's bed and cuddled.
Shifty actually really wanted to do that again, especially since it was getting colder now. And then he wanted to do it again after that. Plus, even more times after that.
He mentally chastised himself for being sappy, rubbing his eyes as he forced himself to wake up more. Lifty was on his phone, sitting next to him as they waited for Splendont to pick them up. He had told them they were going somewhere different today, had told them to get dressed in comfortable clothing, but neither were really sure what he had planned. It kinda made it all the more exciting. A good surprise rather than the bad surprise of getting killed on a heist or having part of their apartment collapse.
Even if the latter was what led to the cuddling he so desperately wanted.
Once again, Shifty mentally told himself to knock it the fuck off, even going as far as to slap his cheek in an attempt to stop thinking about it. Lifty shot him a concerned look, but he ignored his younger twin.
Goddamn it, the honeymoon phase and his stupid, clingy mind were torturing him with a desire for attention, affection. Not that Splendont seemed to mind, but still! Lifty had been clingy when they were little, so it wasn't too far-fetched that he would be this way. But Shifty? Never before had he been so damn needy.
No… needy was meant for something else, wasn't it? And that was still a long way off.
“Shifts,” Lifty put a hand on his shoulder. “Are you good?”
“Yes, I'm good,” he scoffed, folding his arms. “Just tired of waiting.”
Lifty rolled his eyes. ”As impatient as you always are. I tell you not to eat food before it can cool, you eat it anyway and burn yourself. I tell you to wait a second, you charge ahead.”
“Fuck off!” he growled, lunging to hit the other.
“You two better not be fighting in there.”
Shifty clicked his tongue against his teeth in annoyance before he realized who had spoken to them through the door. Immediately, he pulled back, stumbling and falling on his ass.
“Haha!” Lifty cackled, turning back to look at him, before opening the door for their boyfriend and wrapping his arms around him. “Hi!”
“Hey, Lifts,” Splendont chuckled, ruffling his hair and giving him a quick peck on the cheek. “Shift, you good?”
As he forced himself up to his feet, he grabbed his fedora off the ground and put it back on his head. He pressed against the other, a low purr in his throat as he nuzzled him, getting his hair ruffled. The other then placed a kiss on his cheek, making things even.
“There we go,” Splendont hummed. “You two ready? I'm taking you to the local festival. There's rides, games, and food.”
“Huh? It's here now?” Lifty tilted his head. “I thought that it was in summer…”
“Me too,” Shifty mumbled. “To be fair, the one in Nightwood came in summer. Plus, we've only been to one amusement park or carnival thing since we moved here, and then we died on the first ride, so… Y'know.”
Splendont fondly sighed, making sure they locked the door as they left. “I'll do my best to make sure that doesn't happen today. Now come on.”
“I call shotgun on the way there!” Lifty grinned, sticking his tongue out at Shifty, who glowered at him, but didn't protest. Though, Splendont's brief but stern glance at him may have contributed to that. Nevertheless, he followed, taking the backseat once they'd gotten outside.
—————
Not too hot, not too cold. That was why fall and spring were the best. Summer and winter were extremes, but the other two seasons were happy mediums. Which made this all the much better, aside from having a boyfriend who was paying for them.
The last time they'd gone to a festival was when they were 10, on a hot day in Nightwood. It had been overwhelming as fuck, all loud and stuffy. But they got funnel cake, and that made it all worth it. Things were more overwhelming as kids anyways, so mixed with the cooler temperatures, Shifty had a feeling things would be fine.
The line for tickets was long, but they made it through just fine before Shifty grabbed his brother's hand, running off towards a roller coaster. They weren't too extreme - those were mostly reserved for theme park coasters, but still. They needed a redemption arc!
Their boyfriend quickly caught up to them, grabbing them by their hoods. “Hey, hey. Don't run off. I have the tickets, you know.”
Shifty's ears twitched and he mumbled a soft apology.
Lifty swatted his brother's shoulder with his sleeve, and then readjusted his hoodie. “Let's go on this first.”
A boring line, and then a thrilling ride. He and Lifty sat together, Splendont in the cart behind him. Shifty's hat had been left in the car by popular request, so there were no worries of it flying off. It was fun! …Buuut it ended way too soon. That was what one got when they went on a short roller coaster. Not quite the redemption arc Shifty had wanted, but it'd do for now. Until their boyfriend took them to an extreme one, this one was fine.
“What do you wanna do, Dont?” Lifty asked once they were off the ride. “Do you have a favorite ride or something?”
The redhead hummed, grabbing both of their hands. “I like the Avalanche. You know that one?”
“Mmhm! It's the one that spins around on a beam, right?” Lifty nodded, letting Splendont lead him and Shifty to the ride. He nodded in recognition upon seeing it, and so did Shifty as they got into line.
This was a pretty good one, too. God, how he missed stuff like this, feeling the wind in his hair, feeling the drops in his stomach… Lifty's grin was wide on the other side of their boyfriend, golden eyes lit up with a sense of wonder. Of love, when he looked at Splendont.
Did he look the same way? Did he have a look of love in his eyes despite not knowing how to express it sometimes? When he looked at Splendont, his heart felt warm, he felt safe and loved. Sure, he felt that in a familial way with his brother, but most of the time their struggles overshined the feeling.
With Splendont, they could forget about it for a while. He'd eased a lot of their burdens. It wasn't a matter of ‘when or will we eat next’ or ‘will be able to pay rent this month’ anymore. It was ‘Splendont will make sure that we can eat every day and that we don't get evicted because he loves us’.
…Was he a sugar daddy? No, they hadn't had sex yet, and Splendont was older but not like… OLD old. And sugar daddies usually went for young women…
Shifty shuddered, a bad taste left in his mouth afterwards. That was enough of that train of thought. Splendont was just their boyfriend, and they were his boyfriends. Nothing different than that.
“You good, man?” Lifty asked as they got off. “You started spacing out halfway through.”
Shifty nodded. “Fine. I'm fine. Got lost in my head for a second.” A pause, then he continued talking. ”The first was my choice, so this one's yours, Lift.”
The younger hummed, looking around. “Uh… well… Hm. Maybe the… uhh…”
Was it that hard to pick a ride? Really? Shifty rolled his eyes as Lifty continued glancing around, still trying to decide.
“Himalayas?” he finally decided, though he didn't seem too confident.
“That's fine,” Splendont smiled, taking them by the hands and leading them to the ride. Shifty was fine with this, he liked this one too.
—————
After going on a lot of the rides and getting some snacks, it was finally time for some games. Shifty narrowed his eyes as he threw the dart, only to miss. He scoffed, annoyed. At least Lifty hadn’t won either. Toting around the jumbo prizes from the squirt gun game must have thrown them off. Though Splendont was the one who had won them. They had tried their best, but he was too good!
It did make them more sentimental, though. He held the Fuecoco plushie close as he blinked away tiredness from his eyes. Lifty was getting sleepy while cradling his Sprigatito too, it seemed. It had been a pretty long and exciting day, and they had some keepsakes. Hell, they had managed to each win something for Splendont, though they were smaller prizes from luck based games.
“I think we should call it here, huh? You two are barely awake,” Splendont chuckled, pulling them closer.
Shifty opened his mouth to retort, or at least ask for more food. Instead, a yawn came out. There wasn't really much denying it anymore. He and Lifty were tired. Exhausted.
The sensation of the arms around him calmed him down more, and eventually his mouth closed, and soon followed his eyes. An unusual spectacle for him and his brother, plagued by insomnia and fairly closed off. Why would they ever have fallen asleep in public?
Now, the answer was obvious. They felt safe and comfortable and…
…and…
…ZZZ…
—————
Splendont smiled softly as the twins leaned into each other. Or maybe the Pokemon plushies set in between them. Both were tuckered out, and were getting some well deserved rest.
They looked peaceful. Content. He didn't want to wake them up to get into their apartment. Maybe things didn't have to end just yet.
He drove to his own place, parking and being quiet and gentle as he unbuckled them and carried them inside and up the stairs to his bed. He took the Pokemon, too, setting them on his desk for when they woke up.
Then, he laid in between them, resting their heads on his chest. Lifty and Shifty unconsciously snuggled closer to him, soft purrs escaping their lips. A sign they were content and happy.
Splendont never thought he'd cherish the sounds other people made so much. But he did. God, he did. Their laughter, their purrs. The noises of embarrassment when they got flustered… Splendont was finding new ways to be smitten every time they were together.
They weren't perfect, but was he? He hadn't asked for permission to take them here and cuddle them while they slept. This could be overstepping boundaries. They'd done it once, sure, but that didn't mean they'd always want to, did it? Didn't give him permission.
Would it have been better to wake up at home alone? Splendont wasn't sure. Either way, they wouldn't be where they were when they fell asleep. If it were him, it'd probably freak him out somewhat.
It could be worse. If his father had taken him through the wormhole while he was sleeping, and then gave him the explanation he was on a new planet, wouldn't ever go back to his home, that he had a brother and mother here, he probably would've caused a rampage. Things would have been different then. But actions changed the future. Anything could make things turn out different.
“I'm glad that this is the present we got,” he murmured softly, running fingers through evergreen colored locks. Lifty’s was easy to comb through, less tangled, while Shifty's was knotted and slightly matted. A difference he had somewhat noticed when giving them headpats, but realized more and more as he touched them. It just set them apart from each other, with their own unique charms.
Shifty's eyes cracked open a sliver. He hummed, eyes fluttering back shut as he moved around a little. “You're comfy and warm. Best damn pillow I've ever rested my head on. I fucking love you, Dont…”
The redhead smiled at him. “You still tired?”
“Lil bit… This your place?” he asked, finally getting comfortable again.
“Yeah. Don't worry, I'll drive you home when you two are ready. I just didn't want to wake you up for your apartment keys and getting on the elevator,” Splendont explained, taking extra care to be gentle with the knots in Shifty's hair. “Did I wake you up by doing this?”
The older twin let out a noise of contentment. “No. I like that. Feels good,” he murmured. “The pulling.”
Splendont raised an eyebrow. “Hm. You know, for someone who says that you can't express your emotions easily, you do so pretty well when you're tired,” he chuckled, eliciting a gasp with a very careful yank. A good gasp.
“You two are loud…” came Lifty's complaint a few seconds later. His eyes were still closed, though Splendont had subtly felt him wiggling around the same time Shifty had stirred. “I wanna go back to sleep. ‘ts comfy and warm.” The same sentiment that Shifty had.
“Go ahead and try, okay? Do you want to borrow clothes or something that'd be more comfortable to sleep in?” Splendont asked, starting to rub the smalls of their backs.
“This is fine,” Lifty immediately responded. “Mmn… I'm okay, I mean. Just let me… in the bathroom a sec.” He got up, heading for the door, returning a couple seconds later and setting his binder near the plushie prizes.
Ah. That was probably not good but… Splendont didn't want to invade their privacy and take them off, so he supposed it worked out. Shifty grumbled softly and undid his own, lazily throwing it over at the desk.
“Lifty hates changing in front of people,” Shifty explained. “Even a little.”
“Shut up,” Lifty huffed, curling back up on Splendont's chest, under the blanket.
Splendont cast them both a sympathetic glance. “Hey, that's perfectly okay. Everyone's got their limits. Now try and go back to sleep, okay? Get as much rest as you need, and I'll make dinner before you leave. We'll be up by 6 pm.”
He set an alarm on his phone and for good measure texted Splendid, explaining the situation and asking him to check on them and wake them all up if they weren't already up and at it. Surprisingly, he responded by saying ‘Sure thing’. Less scathing or judgmental.
Splendont let out a sigh of relief as he put his phone down, which hopefully made things more comfortable for the boys. He let his eyes close too, happy to rest with them after an exciting day.