You And Me - A Collection of Les Twins One Shots

Les Twins VS Les Gamal

Sweat runs down the dip of Loïck's spine as he shakes his legs out in their corner of the stage. 

It's the pre-quarterfinals and he's up against Larry. Not a big deal, he tells himself. But his heart is going a mile a minute in his chest.

Laurent is an omnipresent shadow tethered to Larry's body. It's like they are the same person, the way they are synched up from head to toe. Loïck knows they don't do this intentionally, but the image of Laurent hovering just a half-step behind Larry makes him realize that he is at a disadvantage before the battle has even begun.

The crowd came here to see the twins go up against a worthy opponent. Someone whose bond is just as strong as theirs but now that he looks at them across the stage, Loïck feels like it's not a fair fight at all.

The air is suffocating, sweat is pearling on his forehead, the crowd is deafening.

"Ready?" Emerick asks and Loïck swallows.

The lighting changes, the music starts and his stomach sinks.

Xxx

If there is one thing in the world that Emerick can't stand it is self-entitlement and Laurent is by far the most arrogant, self-absorbed person he's ever met. 

The guy has been fleshing out the same stupid story for the past hour or so, adding more theatric detail with every turn the story takes, and demanding the attention of the whole dinner table for himself.

Emerick is pretty certain that if you were to look up the term word 'narcissist' in a dictionary, it would have a picture with Laurent's face next to it. Does the guy even listen to himself anymore? Does he even notice that it's the third time in a row he's cut his brother off mid-sentence just to take back control of the 'story' he so desperately wants to tell? What kind of asshole goes on a trip with friends and family only to hear himself talk for hours on end? 

Emerick has been low-key wanting to toss a bread roll at his stupid face from across the table. Maybe that would shut him up.

"Calm down," Loïck says, bumping his leg against Emerick's beneath the table.

Emerick makes a point of not giving Laurent any attention whatsoever. He doesn't laugh at the 'funny' bits, he doesn't make eye contact or hang on Laurent's lips as everyone else does. 

Instead, he keeps his head hung low, hair falling into his face as he quietly chews.

Xxx

They are sitting outside, in the Spanish evening breeze, the sound of crickets and the lingering smell of charcoal from their barbecue creating an enjoyable atmosphere.

Emerick's fingers are loosely curled around a coke as he lounges on his chair, listening to the Carribbean tunes coming from the speakers the twins carry with them wherever they go.

Laurent is dancing with himself in the middle of the darkening backyard. He's been doing that for a while now, minding his own business, and yet his attitude is obnoxiously in-your-face at the same time. The guy doesn't know how to spend one second in silence or without some sort of movement. It seems like he's looking for an audience, even when he is by himself. Emerick takes a bit of pleasure in knowing that nobody pays Laurent much attention at this point. The guy has a big enough ego as it is, no need to inflate it any further. Even Larry is not attached to his twin's hips for once, but off somewhere talking to someone on the phone.

Emerick finds that he can tolerate Larry a whole lot easier than Laurent. Larry is likable. He approaches people with the bubbly curiosity of a Golden Retriever pup. He tries to come off as tough and unbothered, but it's easy to see that beneath the tough-guy-act, Larry's hiding a big heart. Between the two of them, he's the baby. The softie. Maybe that's why Laurent is fighting so hard for attention because Larry receives more of it naturally. And maybe that's why Emerick enjoys Larry's presence more than his brother's, because he's harmless. He's just a kid at heart, trying to get by somehow. Unlike Laurent, who seems to play people like a puppet master, and who never says or does anything without an ulterior goal in mind.