Chapter 2:

Nothing came to rest here for long in this city. People were constantly coming and going, cars would start and stop as lights changed or as people hurried across the street at the last second. Horns honked, people shouted advertizements or arguments. Nothing stayed still for long. Even at night, lights were always on. It wasn't called the city that never sleeps for nothing.

Which is why it was a perfect home for someone who never slept himself. Victor could tolerate the noise coming from outside, but it was always a relief when he made it indoors. Inside, the noise was muffled and he could escape from the city. Even a barbershop provided him with much needed sanctuary. It was a place he could relax and enjoy some quiet time. Plus, it served a purpose.

Victor's hair had grown longer since his last visit. Nothing changed about his appearance. He was always the same height, the same build and he never aged. The only thing that seemed to change was his hair. Like normal human beings, it grew over time. However, Victor was far from a normal human. Still, making frequent tips to the barbershop did help keep up appearances. It was one of the few things he could share with normal people.

The barbershop was very narrow, squeezed between two other shops, sharing a skyscraper. There was a beauty salon across the street and another haircut place on the same block, so most of the time this shop had plenty of space and empty chairs. Whenever Victor stopped by, there was only one person on staff so it was possible that there was only one barber in this shop. He was getting on in years but still knew his stuff. He was also particular about which customers he spoke to. He seemed to be more friendly when Victor was in his shop for a trim. He was very good for business, after all.

It was no secret that Victor was a very charming man with soul-snatching good looks. Which may have been why the barber had as many customers as he did. Women would turn away from the salon to enter this barbershop when Victor was waiting his turn. Once they found out that Victor made this is regular shop, women flocked to it, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. Victor knew he was handsome. Whenever he entered the shop, he took notice of how many women would look up and start blushing. They would stare at him over the tops of their magazines, admiring him. Women passing on the street would suddenly duck inside just to see him. The longer they stayed, the longer they got to watch him, so many of them would stay for a haircut themselves.

Thanks to all the business Victor brought him, the barber treated him very well. He had to make sure he kept coming by otherwise no one would show up.

Today, Victor was the only customer. No one else had stopped in, which suited him just fine. He was indifferent about the stares he received, but sometimes it was nice to be without them. He sat in the cushioned chair with a newspaper on his lap, reading. Putting his trust in the barber's abilities, Victor remained still while the scissors snipped away his locks. The old barber's hands were wrinkled but never shook once as he worked. He was very skilled and always did Victor's hair just right.

"It's been so quiet today," said the barber. "So far, you are the only one who has come in this afternoon."

"Perhaps no one is in need of a trim today. Hair only grows so quickly."

"Yes, yes. I'm sure I'll see some faces in the next few days. Thank God hair grows or I'd be out of a job. I can't do anything else at my age."

Victor shook the paper in his hands, getting rid of some hair trimmings. This paper was from two days ago.

"I'll need to do your bangs next."

Victor folded the paper in half and closed his eyes. He had done this so often, he knew the routine. He found it relaxing. The sweeps of the comb through his blond hair and the rhythmic snips of the scissors. They never missed a beat and his head grew lighter but only slight.

"Seeing anyone?"

"Pardon?"

The barber laughed. "Come on. A handsome man like you. Are you seeing anyone?"

Victor returned the laugh. "If I was, what would that do for your business?"

"Oh, you know women. Even if you're married, it doesn't matter to them. Not as long as you're good-looking. They just want someone to stare at."

Victor grinned. "There is only one woman in my life. She is the one I live for."

"What a romantic!" the barber laughed. He ruffled Victor's hair with is fingers. Short hair clippings floated down, tickling his cheeks and neck like the strokes of a paintbrush. "All done."

Victor opened his eyes and looked into the mirror the barber placed in front of him. There was a large mirror mounted on the wall, but the small one was for looking up close. He moved the mirror behind Victor's head. Using the large mirror, he could see the neckline in the mirror behind him. "Nice job. Thank you."

The barber removed the black bib from around Victor's neck and shook it out over the floor. He quickly dusted off Victor's white suit with a small brush and stepped away from the chair. Victor reached into his pocket and took out his wallet. "Sixteen bucks, same as always." Victor handed him the money. "Thanks. Pleasure doing business with you."

"See you again."

The barber grabbed a broom and started to sweep up the hair on the eggshell colored floor tiles. "Come again soon. Bring customers."

Victor nodded at the joke and opened the door. The bell rang overhead but was quickly drowned out by the noise from outside. Loud chatter, honking, truck engines... This was the city, alright. Victor missed the quiet of the tiny barbershop already. He entered the flow of the pedestrian traffic and became a part of their current. He was meshed between people on cellphones, beeping pagers, a couple walking hand-in-hand and a woman walking her dog. Honestly, a handsome man in a perfect white suit did not blend in very well with this crowd at all.

At the next traffic light, Victor slipped away from the crowd and down another street. There were no venders here and any shops down this way had no windows. Making sure he wasn't followed, Victor moved down this path and as soon as he was away from any doors, he jumped.

His jump took him to the top of the building thirty-stories up. As soon as he landed, he jumped again. From roof to roof he jumped. Keeping track of his progress, he started to take larger strides. The buildings would start to gain some distance now. There would be bigger gaps and less skyscrapers. He moved faster and faster, leaping so far, it almost looked like he was flying.

On his last jump, he cleared several buildings and landed in a driveway. He brushed himself off and straightened his tie. He walked up the stone path to the front door of a large house and let himself in. "I'm back."

The large man in the kitchen turned around with a bowl in his hands. "You left this in the oven, Victor."

"I know, Cedric. I knew I would be back with plenty of time. I was just about to take that out."

"What if it ran long? What if there was a line at the barbershop?"

"Then you would have taken it out like you just did. That's why you're home."

Cedric set the dish down on the counter, frowning. "A little warning would be nice. You didn't tell me you left it in the oven. What if I found it and it was too late and got burned?"

"Don't worry. I also have risotto leftover from last night. She won't starve. She is the only one who eats, after all."

Cedric had nothing more to say to his brother. Victor always had an answer for everything which sometimes got annoying in Cedric's opinion. Cedric only spoke when he felt he had to. He was the more quiet of the two. The quiet observer.

"Did Linnette move from that spot since I left?" Victor asked. When last he left her, Linnette was parked in front of the TV watching her program.

"She did. She attempted to make lemonade." Cedric pulled it out of the refrigerator and poured Victor a glass. "Here's what she came up with."

Even though neither Victor nor Cedric needed to eat, both did possess a sense of taste. Victor enjoyed wine while Cedric drank nothing and enjoyed that. Having a sense of taste allowed them to judge Linnette's cooking whenever she had a desire to attempt it. They were then able to give her pointers and help her improve.

Victor took the glass and drank Linnette's results. Victor frowned and lowered the glass. He forced himself to swallow but it looked painful.

"It's horrible, isn't it?" Cedric asked.

Victor shut his eyes tightly, licking his lips. "No, no. It's... It's um..."

"Bitter?"

"Yes, that's it. And it's... It's salty. Did she mistake the salt for the sugar?"

"I'm not sure what she did."

"Weren't you watching her, Cedric?"

"I did. She also said I was making her nervous so I stepped aside. She wanted to do it on her own."

Victor set the glass on the counter and chuckled. Linnette relied on them for many things, but Linnette also wished to be independent and do things on her own. He knew it was good for her, but it also made him feel a little sad. It made him feel proud when she succeeded and showed growth. However, it also showed that she didn't need them as much as she had in the past. It was as if every step she took was another step away from them. It was such a strange mixture of emotions.

Still, this little concoction proved that she still needed them for a little while longer.

"She will always need us in some way," Cedric said softly. He could read his brother very well. Cedric was very good at that.

They had the same powers and abilities, but they were two different people. They had different personalities and roles and reasons for their creation. A full explanation would take ages to cover everything they were. They tried to simplify things as best they could. Put simply, Victor gave Linnette what she wanted and Cedric gave her what she needed. Even so, that still didn't completely explain their roles and duties. Sometimes they crossed into the other's territory which proved that they were more complex than they thought. The one thing they knew for sure was how Linnette modeled them. Victor was modeled after a prince due to fairytale stories she grew up on about the handsome prince coming to save the young girl and take her away to happiness. She wanted to be rescued so she imagined a prince. She also wanted a family and that was where Cedric came in. He was created second to be a more father figure to her. He was decent looking but not nearly as handsome as Victor. He had a more muscular build and could blend into a crowd more easily.

Two men, alike and different at the same time. Both created to serve one girl forever. Two men created to save her from her loneliness. To be her family and to make her happy. Her happiness was theirs as well. They loved her with all their hearts and would gladly serve her forever if that was what she wanted of them. To be with the girl who gave them life and raise her.

Hardly a model family and far from perfect. Then again, what family was? As complicated as things were, the one thing they knew for certain was that they were a family.

"Victor, you home?"

"I am, sweetie."

Linnette turned off the TV and came into the kitchen. Unlike her guardians, Linnette was human and her appearance changed with time. She could age. She was a thin fifteen year old girl with dark hair and big blue eyes and pale skin. She had grown a couple of inches in the past year and a half. Her taste in clothes hadn't changed very much at all. She still had a love for wearing heels if she had to wear something on her feet. Otherwise, she was barefoot, which Cedric didn't like very much, constantly worrying that she was going to step on something sharp and hurt herself. She still loved wearing dresses and skirts as well. She was wearing a blue one with flowers over a lavender T-shirt that very moment and a bracelet on her left wrist.

"So..." she said, rocking on the balls of her feet. "What did you bring me?"

"Kisses." Victor bent down and kissed her forehead.

"I thought you would bring me something from the bakery like the last time you got a haircut. I was looking forward to it."

"I wasn't out that way. Besides, you have sweets here to eat." Victor looked at the jug on the counter. "Speaking of which, what is this? What did you make this time?"

Linnette looked at the jug and pouted. "Oh, that. I was trying to make lemonade but it didn't work out right."

"It's not very sweet, sweetie."

"I didn't add any sugar. I thought it would make it too sweet. The powder had sugar in it."

"You used the mix?" Victor was puzzled. "That's very simple to do. Just add the mix to water and stir. Why would it turn out this way?"

Linnette looked at the jug with disappointment. "I was trying to make pink lemonade."

"Pink lemonade?" Victor looked at the jug. "Was that what it said on the bag?"

"No. It was normal lemonade. I tried to make it pink."

Victor's eyes rolled down to his little girl. "How?" he asked slowly.

"By pouring things that are pink into the water along with the mix. Like the spices we have in the cupboard. And I crushed some raspberries and threw them in, too. But it didn't work."

Victor and Cedric exchanged amused smiles and Victor started laughing. "Did you, now?"

Linnette whined, feeling like they were making fun of her. "Well, I don't know what makes pink lemonade pink!"

Victor hugged her. "It's fine, Linnette. I think you made a discovery. Just because this didn't work out the way you wanted it, doesn't mean it's a failure."

"Can we fix it?" she asked.

Cedric held up the jug with his right hand. "This is beyond fixing."

Even Linnette was laughing now. "It's horrible, isn't it?"

"No. Just... different. And what's wrong with that?"

Cedric smiled. "It's a reminder of the pie you tried making last month. It was burned on the outside and frozen in the middle."

"It balanced out!"

Victor kissed her again and gave her another hug. "What should we do with that... Linne-nade?"

"You named it after me? Why?"

"You invented it so it's only fitting we name it after you. So what should we do with it?"

Linnette stuck her tongue out. "Pour it down the sink!"

"Are you sure?"

"I can try again later. This one's no good. Dump it!"

"Consider it done." Cedric poured the failed lemonade down the sink.

Linnette turned to Victor. "I hope you made dinner tonight. If I have to make it, we'll starve. If it turns out anything like that."

"Everything's taken care of. Don't worry. Would you like to eat now?"

"Yes, please."

"Alright. Let me get it. Go sit down. I'll meet you at the table."

Yay! Them again!

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