Chapter Ten: Shopping with Duo
Duo woke to a strange sound. He opened his eyes and stared straight ahead at the curving interior of the cement tube and listened intently for the sound again.
There it was.
It sounded like… a snore? He pushed himself up quickly and looked to his left. Solo was lying on his back with his arms and legs flung carelessly in every direction. He was holding the enormous Desert Eagle loosely in his right hand.
He snored again.
Duo lifted a hand to his mouth to stifle a laugh. The Japanese boy must have been exhausted. The braided boy couldn't recall seeing the other boy sleep before now. It occurred to him then that perhaps Solo hadn't slept in two days. Carefully he crawled closer to the other boy and peered down through his own messy bangs at him. Solo's face was slack and his mouth was cracked open slightly as he slept. His eyebrows, which usually were angled down in an intense expression, were high up on his forehead creating two long, gentle curves. Duo thought he looked very peaceful, well… except for the massive gun clutched in his hand.
As he was staring at his friend his stomach growled loudly.
Food…was the prevalent thought at the moment. He reached a hand down to touch the Japanese boy's shoulder to wake him. Then he paused and let his hand hover over him hesitantly. Nah… he needs sleep. I can bring something back for him, he decided. Quickly he surveyed his partner. Solo seemed to be sound asleep. Then the American boy spotted the corner of one a Colony Credit poking out of Solo's pocket. This made Duo grin. He hadn't picked a pocket in a long time but was confident that he could still pull it off. He slid his fingers steadily towards the credit and with a deft tug pulled it free. Solo's breathing changed. The braided boy froze in place with the credit in his hand. The Japanese boy shifted slightly against the hard cement before drifting back into a deep sleep-induced coma.
Duo grinned in satisfaction, pocketed the credit and then grabbed the gun Solo had stolen for him from the bag that lie nearby. He tested its weight in hand and then looked down at his clothes and began searching for a place to hide it. It was a large handgun and his clothes didn't have a place to stash such a formidable weapon. With a defeated sigh he placed the gun back in the bag and began hurriedly working his way out of the tube.
The colony's morning lights had just begun powering up as he slipped through the flap in the fence. He stopped on the opposite side of the fence to look back over the construction yard. There didn't seem to be any workers this morning. Then he remembered it was Saturday and that nobody would be coming in for work. He nodded to himself, satisfied that Solo would be safe to sleep there alone, then turned and scampered down the street.
He made his way quickly to the shopping district. Many of the stores were still closed. However, as he wandered through the lines of shops he spotted a sleepy-looking employee opening the doors to a sporting goods store. He approached the man with a friendly smile.
"Hey, you open?" Duo asked cheerfully. The older man turned to look at him, yawned loudly, and then nodded in response. That was all Duo needed. He pushed past the man and made his way into the small store. He began scanning the store intently for a few minutes before spotting what he was looking for.
A large, silver bicycle hung on the wall in front of him. The corner of his mouth perked. He spun on his heels and began looking for the shop keeper.
"Hey guy! I want this bike!" Duo yelled. The man appeared from behind a display of tennis balls and regarded the little boy with a curious expression.
"That is quite a bike, kid. You got money?"
Duo scowled before nodding vigorously. "Of course I have money! I would steal it, but it is too high for me to reach!" This made the man laugh. Little did he know the truth behind that statement. The man casually wandered up to the braided boy and looked up at the bike.
"That bike is 22 credits." The man said. He looked down at the little boy with a grin. "You got 22 creds?" Duo smirked and pulled forth the bill he had swiped from Solo earlier that morning and held it up at the man.
"Sure. I got 50 creds!" Duo stated. The man's eyes widened and he stared at the bill clutched tightly in the little boy's hand.
"How did you-"
"My dad is rich." Duo lied. He grimaced as he did. He hated to lie. "So get me that bike!" The man didn't need any more urging than that. He hefted the silver bike from the wall and set it in front of the young boy. Duo studied the bike closely before thrusting the credit into the man's hand.
"Anything else you need, kid? You might want a helmet and maybe some decorations for your wheels?" The man asked as he grabbed a helmet from a shelf to display to the braided boy. Duo shook his head and waved a hand in a dismissive gesture.
"Nah…" He crawled onto the bike and grasped the handlebars firmly. "Hey, do you have ammo?"
The man blinked. "What do you need that for?"
"My dad told me to pick some up for him." Duo explained while making a puckered expression. "So.. um… you have 9mm?" The man nodded. He was desperate to sell the boy anything, even ammo. He vanished behind the counter and retrieved a formidable box of the specified type of ammunition.
"That all?" The man asked while he began ringing up the purchases on the cash register. Duo stopped his inspection of the bike and began searching the shop with his eyes.
"You got any clothes?" The braided boy inquired. The man nodded and pointed to a rack of items nearby.
"All I have is athletic clothes. Over there." The man said. Duo popped the kickstand of the bike before climbing off. He then padded over to the rack and began pushing things around.
"This is all you got?" Duo asked. He picked up a pink and yellow jumpsuit and regarded it with distaste. The man nodded from his spot behind the counter. The braided boy sighed and searched for a minute or two within the rack before pulling forth two items.
"Okay. I will take these, too." He said as he approached the counter and handed the articles of clothing to the man. The clerk then rang up his purchases. Duo paid him then began wheeling out his new bike onto the sidewalk. The morning lights were almost at full illumination. He climbed up onto the bike and pushed off with a foot. He hadn't ridden a bike in some time and his trip had begun quite wobbly but four blocks later he was a natural. He darted through the growing crowd of people that littered the sidewalk. The growing population of pedestrians wandering the sidewalk began hindering his progress towards the Wackdonald's so he decided to take a shortcut. He cut to the right and pedaled swiftly into a back alley. The alleyways on L2 were much like a labyrinth and if you weren't familiar with the territory it was easy to get lost. However, Duo knew these paths very well and could navigate them with his eyes closed. He continued confidently through the maze and was just about to encounter the final pattern of twists and turns before someone jumped out from behind a dumpster, grabbed the handlebars of his bike and knocked him over.
The silver bike fell on its side with a loud crash and Duo hit the ground hard. His face had dragged against the cement and was now ragged and bleeding. The impact of his head to the ground had left him dazed so when a large figure approached him and grabbed him by the front of his shirt he did little to fight it.
"Well if it isn't the little asshole who swiped my stash." The hand on Duo's shirt tightened. The braided boy's vision returned to him and he looked up helplessly at the round, fat face of his attacker. He recognized him immediately. His name was Stent and he was the local thug. The last time Duo had seen the massive kid was when he had snatched the other kid's money.
"Hey…" Duo finally managed to reply. "I remember now… how have you been?" The braided boy forced his sore cheek to tighten so he could give the thug a taunting smile. Stent didn't find this amusing and with an angry hiss grabbed the boy with his second hand by the throat and began to squeeze.
"You little fuck! I should snap your neck!" Stent grumbled then gave Duo's neck a tighter squeeze for good measure. Duo gasped at the choke hold he had found himself in and began attempting to suck in air. Stent noticed the small boy's struggle and began grinning maliciously. "But this seems like good revenge! I will snap your neck, and take your bike!"
Duo began seeing spots. He was regretting not taking the gun. His eyes searched around frantically for anyone who could be watching but saw nothing. He began to dig his fingernails into the other boy's hands in a failed attempt to get the bully to release him.
The world around him began to grow smaller and the colony lights seemed to be dimming to black. He pounded anxiously at the larger boy's chest and kicked with all his might at his stomach but it didn't do any good. Just as his vision became nothing but a plane of faded black the hand released its grasp on his neck. Duo fell to the ground. His own hands lifted to rub at his sore neck as he gasped for air.
"Bad idea." He heard a familiar voice say. He looked up from his crouched spot on the ground to see Solo standing beside Stent with the massive, shining barrel of the Desert Eagle pressed against the bully's temple. Stent's face was pale and his eyes were wide. Duo never knew the other boy could experience fear until now. He pushed himself up to a wobbly stand and gathered up his bike and bag of goodies from the ground.
"Now… say you are sorry." Solo said in a cold, flat tone. Duo saw that the Japanese boy's eyes had hardened. They were just as harsh and intense as the first time he had ever seen them.
Stent's eyes glanced sideways at the smaller Japanese boy and scowled. "No. He stole my money! I was getting payback. He fucking deserved it!"
"Wrong." Then a loud, deafening bang resonated through the air. Duo jumped at the sound then stared in horror as Stent fell to the ground. Blood spattered everywhere and the bully was screaming in anguish. Solo had shot off his hand. The now liquefied remains of the massive boy's hand lie over the cement in beside of him. Solo stood calmly with the gun still pointing at Stent with an icy, unemotional stare. "Go."
The large boy was sobbing and screaming. He scrambled up from the ground and ran as fast as he could down the alley and before vanishing around a corner. The sound of his horrified wails faded away in the distance.
Duo stood unmoving with the bike's handlebars clutched tightly in his hands. Solo was staring down at the remains of Stent's hand with a blank expression on his face. Then the shaggy-haired boy's narrow eyes relaxed. One of his dark, angular eyebrows twitched. Then he turned to his friend and released a small sigh. "Are you all right?"
The American boy was speechless. He had seen many violent things on the streets but what Solo just did was ruthless. He was in shock. He wasn't quite sure if he really had seen Solo shoot the other boy. However, the proof was there. The blood was clearly spilled and a thick, dark trail of it was all that remained of the bully as he had run from the scene. Finally, after coming to from his shock, Duo spoke, "how did you find me…?"
Solo approached him slowly. His eyes were locked onto Duo's cheek in close inspection the gash left behind by the thug's encounter. "I followed you. I have been following you all morning." The Japanese boy explained. Duo stared blankly at his friend for a long time before bursting out into an amused laugh.
"That is creepy, Solo." The American boy exclaimed. He couldn't help but laugh. It started as a nervous laugh. Then the act alleviated all fears that Duo had been experiencing. His laughter transformed into a heartfelt, happy sound. Solo's somber expression brightened.
"I know. I wanted to know where you were going to spend my money." Solo replied with a smirk. Duo grinned and pointed down at the bike.
"I got us a ride!" The braided boy chirped. Solo nodded and looked the bike over with an appraising gaze.
"Nice." Then he pointed to the plastic bag clutched in Duo's hand. "What is in there?"
"Ammo. And some new clothes for you." Duo answered truthfully. The Japanese boy smiled and gently took the bag from his companion. He opened it and looked inside. Then he glanced up at Duo with a questioning look.
"Yeah-yeah. I know. It was all they had." The American boy explained. Solo shrugged and pulled forth the clothes from the bag. He held up the first, a dark green tank top, and inspected it curiously. Then he set it aside and pulled forth a pair of black spandex biking shorts. His dark blue eyes widened. Duo gave his companion a sheepish smile.
"I guess it will have to do." Solo said quietly while he stretched the black shorts between his hands. "Thanks, Duo."
The braided boy gave him an accomplished grin "Your welcome, buddy. Now let's eat! I am starving!"
"Ba-"
"Yeah, yeah. I know. Baka…. just get on the bike! We don't have all day!"
((Ah ha! Got it done by 5:00 and for BlackRoseBunny-chan that is EST! Sorry for the confusion. I forgot that the internet is such a massive, magical place! Oh, and I want to shout out to snowdragonct who is quite possibly the best review writer I have ever had! Not to mention snowdragonct always manages to understand the very details I am going for. So if you are confused go read the reviews! Everything is mapped out right there!
More to come! Happy reading!))