HEAL

18 -- LOVE, BY ANY OTHER NAME

                                             ^^^^^^^^^^  Nathan  ^^^^^^^^^^

The benefit was a huge success, by any standards, and not just local, the Twins absolutely being responsible for much of the larger than expected total raised.  When they were done, the crew came over to congratulate them, as did Maddie and Larry's friends from New Horizons that had attended too.  

Laurent had noticed that Marcus had appeared from somewhere outside, looking sheepish, and as he approached him, Laurent just walked away, pretending to talk to someone else.  He was done.  Their last "meeting" had ended badly, and he was no longer in the mood to entertain Marcus in any way, shape or form, anymore.  Larry had clocked him long ago, and Laurent was more than ashamed to admit that he was wrong, that he should have listened to his brother.  He should listen to him a lot more, he reminded himself, he was a lot smarter and wiser than people gave him credit for.  Larry had been looking out for him, and now he would do the same for his brother.  Marcus would be let nowhere near either of them.  

Larry and Charlie, on the other hand, were like besotted teenagers in love.  They talked or face timed every day that they weren't actually together.  They held hands and gazed into one another's eyes.  Evelyn, Charlie's mom, just smiled and "awww"ed at them, Graham seemed nervous, for obvious reasons.  He refused to believe what Marcus had told him, he knew he was just trying to get a rise out of him.  And Laurent ?  While he knew that he and Marcus were over, he still wanted Larry, as much as he tried not to.  And they'd had that moment, hadn't they ?  He hadn't imagined it, that gaze that neither of them could look away from, that Larry'd told him he was special to him, and not just as brothers, as twins ?  Laurent was so conflicted, he didn't know what the fuck to do anymore.  But now, Larry had Charlie, and Laurent had just been shoved out that particular door, it seemed, and it was his own fault.  But one thing he'd learned lately, was that nothing was ever as it seemed.  

Nothing. 

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Larry still went to the day centre, and it just so happened, he went on the days that Charlie was teaching her dance class.

"When's your next class ?" he asked her after she was done one day.

"Um ..... another couple of days, why ?"

"Then I'll be here .... if you want ..... "  He was still so adorably shy around her, and she loved it.

"Of course I want."  Larry was walking her to her parent's car, hand in hand, as they always did.  He pulled her in to kiss her, as he always did.  It was sweet and tender, and loving, very PG, as everyone was watching them.  Falling over themselves to "awww" at them, but still watching, none the less.  When they pulled apart, Charlie blushed, as she always did.

"Charlie ?"  She cocked her head at him, "Can we, um.... go on a date, sometime ?  I know we meet here and stuff, but I want to ....." Her lips silenced his suddenly, surprise in his face.

"Yes, I'd love to go on a date with you, Larry.  But how do we do that ?  I don't drive, I live an hour away ... "

"We'll figure it out."  He pecked her lips, "I can't wait.  I'll see you soon.  Bye, Charlie."

"Bye, Larry."  She waved at him as she got into the back seat of her parent's car.

The love birds didn't know that Laurent had been watching their little interaction, as he always had, just as he had watched all those that had come before.  And while he thought it sweet, this version of Larry being much preferred to the old version, his heart ached, just plain and simple ached.  While the thought that he continually pushed to the front of his mind, that Larry more than anyone, deserved to be happy, and he wanted that, of course he did, but he wanted him to be happy with him.  If that was what he truly wanted, all he had to do was tell him.  Larry had told him as much, that that was what he wanted too.  So, why was he so afraid to ask ?  And while Laurent was waiting for his fear to subside, Larry was going about his life.