You And Me - A Collection of Les Twins One Shots

In Between

The beat is so heavy, that it sends little shockwaves up his spine.

Larry holds a chilled water bottle in his hands and runs his thumb over the ridges. He plays with label, picking at the corners, and peeling the plastic off before smoothing it back into place. Nobody sees it in the dark, but his fingers are shaking.

His brother is pacing up and down the hallway and shooting passing glances at Larry every so often. They don't talk. They don't need to. It's all there anyway, in the oppressive calm before the storm. In the sweaty palms and the tense muscles, the way Laurent can't stop moving and Larry stands frozen in place. 

Larry feels Laurent more than he feels himself in those moments. He feels his brother's nervousness, his fear, his dedication, his pride, his self-doubt. It can all become a bit much sometimes because it's impossible to tell which of those emotions are even his own. He swallows, and closes his eyes against the sudden burst of light-headedness but his saliva is pooling in his mouth and his ears are ringing from the noise. And shit because he's supposed to be calm and ready, but he's not. He's really really not.

"Hey." Something reaches for him and there, suddenly. Contact. Warmth like a human hand against his neck. And not just any hand, but a hand that's more familiar to him than his own. 

Larry shivers and opens his eyes to the sight of Laurent hovering over him worriedly. He reaches a shaky palm up to squeeze Laurent's wrist, signaling that it's okay, he's okay.

He gives his brother a tight-lipped smile, but Laurent can see right through him. 

There's no point in trying to hide how nervous he is. 

"Stay here."

"What? No."

"It's just one round, Larry."

"But I can—" 

"You can watch it from here. Just focus on yourself for a minute."

Larry opens his mouth and then snaps it shut again, staring off to the side somewhere so as not to make eye contact. He wants to go out to back his brother up, but he also can't deny that a few minutes by himself would give him peace of mind. 

Laurent takes his silence as approval and gently squeezes the tense muscle in Larry's neck before turning toward the noise coming from the main hall.

The song has finished and the MC is calling Laurent's name to the stage.

They look at each other one last time and then he's out of Larry's sight.

Xxx

When the judges call a tie, Larry doesn't even notice at first. 

It takes one of their friends elbowing him in the side to capture his attention because Larry is lost in the music blasting from his earpods. 

"Tie," Spider tells him and Larry's heart sinks. No no no. This can't be happening. Already a tie in their first round? Laurent can't lose this one. Not the first one. Larry's eyes fly to the screen and there Laurent stands out on the stage, with his hands buried in his pocket and an uneasy expression on his face. He looks a bit lost.

"Shit." 

He pulls earphones out and shoves them unceremoniously into Spider's chest. 

"They've already started—" Spider tries to calm him down, but Larry ignores him and starts jogging toward the stage. Hell will freeze over before his brother will lose a tournament of this calibre during his first round. And IF he loses, than Larry will be damned if he's not out there, standing right by Laurent's side to help him through the aftermath.