The Doppelganger

The Corner of 5th and Main

TRIGGER WARNING: RAPE Mentioned. Please skip if this makes you uncomfortable and know that I completely understand.

 From the bushes just outside the main gate, Levi watches his angry 'twin' storm out of the house.

"I'm going to kill that son of a bitch!" He hears him scream, and then the sound of a two wheeled carriage of some sort rumbling to life. "Levi" zips past on his motorcycle at breakneck speed, and Levi creeps in the gate before it closes. He watches the motion lights that survey the front yard for a moment, accurately concluding that being spotted would alert some sort of guard. Timing it just right, he dashes across the yard, and into the house.

He starts down the hallway leading to the set of stairs that led to the bedroom, but has to stop and duck behind a potted plant at the sound of footsteps.
Guards, just his luck.
Entering the bedroom, he looks around and sees no one. Muttering to himself, he starts searching for clues.
"I walked into this room here." He says, feeling along the wall for something...ANYTHING.

"You really shouldn't be here."
He whips around at the sound of your voice, and his eyes widen. You are standing in nothing but a towel. Smiling kindly, you walk to your bureau and start rummaging around.
"He's going to kill you. I'd prefer it happened somewhere else, I already cleaned up one of his fucking messes tonight and I don't fancy cleaning up another."
"He killed someone?"
"Yeah." You say, removing your towel and ignoring his very audible 'gulp'. "He killed Frankie, which is your fault; by the way."
He makes no response, so you continue; slipping your gown over your head. 

"I read the letter after Levi left. $500,000 to each employee? You damn near wiped out our accounts, and took one of my only friends from me." He remembers the man from the tea shop, and can feel a little bit of sympathy for you. 

"What was a man like him doing employed to such a piece of shit? This Frankie seemed like a decent sort."

"He was" You say, patting the spot on the bed next to you. After a moment of hesitation, he joins you.
"He's been with us since childhood, and the only person I trust."
"You don't trust Levi?"
You shake your head. 

"Not a lick. Love him? Yes, Trust him? No."

"Then why the fuck are you with him?" He asks in exasperation. He jumps at the feel of your hand on his thigh. You turn to him then, placing your other hand on his chest.

"If I leave him, he'll kill me. It's that simple." You kiss him gently and he pulls back in surprise.
"Why did you do that?"
"Because I want to." You say with a smile, and before he can react you push him down on the bed; straddling him.
"Is Levi right?"
He's momentarily taken aback by the question. "R-right about wh-what?" He manages to stutter out.
"Levi said, and I quote; "The way that pathetic piece of shit looks at you, I can almost guarantee he's a virgin." You kiss him again, and this time he doesn't pull back. 

"Is he right?"
His embarrassed blush is enough of an answer, and you slip your nightgown off, letting it drop to the floor.
"Let's remedy that, shall we?"

An hour later, he's lying in the hazy aftermath of the first good thing life ever handed him; when a sharp ringing noise startles him. He had been lazily stroking your hair and trying to think of a way to get you both out of this mess. Now, the pit of his stomach is cold. It's him. That ringing signifies 'Levi', he just knows.
He's correct.
You turn to him after a brief conversation on the phone. 

"He's on his way. You need to leave."
"I'm not going anywhere without you." He says, pulling you back onto the bed with him. He rolls over on top of you, and the way he looks at you reminds you of how things were before business and life got in the way. 'Levi' used to look at you this way, adoring and downright worshipful. Now, you feel more like a possession.

But not with him. Not with this version of Levi. With this one, you feel like that look will never stop meaning what it does. With this one, you feel you never need to be scared. That settles it. You push him off, and get up.

"Get dressed. We're leaving."
"Where?" He asks, getting excited at the thought of running anywhere with you.
"The corner of 5th and Main. Last place he'd ever go."
Getting past the guards is surprisingly easy, and within a few moments you're on your way. He looks at you from the passenger seat, feeling a bit queasy in this fast moving carriage.

"So what's at 5th and Main?" He asks.
"Abandoned building. Somewhere we hung out and slept as kids. We met there when I was eight and he was ten." You smile softly. "Even back then he called me baby, although it meant something totally different when we were young. It was him, me and Frankie against the world, and after years of struggle things finally fell into place. We moved up in the world, mostly due to Levi's ruthless tenacity."
He's not surprised at all with how familiar it all sounds, but he has to ask. 

"So why doesn't he come here? Seems like some good memories arose from this place."
"Maybe for Frankie and I, but this place is nothing but a version of hell to Levi. He doesn't like reminders of our dirt past, and he avoids this place like the plague. He was raped here, by a homeless boy about five years older than him. Frankie and I killed the kid, but Levi protected us and took the fall. Spent a couple years in the system until he came back to us. To him I was still baby, but he had changed all the same. More cold, more calculating... I.... we're here." You say, and pull up alongside the road.

He walks into the building, feeling a hint of misplaced sympathy for the kid this version of him was. He follows you towards the back of the building, and that's when the voice sounds from behind. That cold, familiar voice.
"Hey baby, showing off our old stomping grounds are you?"
There's the minute click of a gun being cocked, and Levi grabs you; dodging behind a stack of crates.