Two of a Kind

5

Liliana walked outside with the crowd of students that were eager to leave the school. She kept her head down as she walked across the street. Her earbuds were back in her ears as well. As she walked, she occasionally looked around to see multiple trees that were planted near the sidewalk.

As she walked past some of them, she felt a hand on her shoulder. She quickly turned around, ready to strike whoever was behind her. However, to her delight, Brian was directly behind her with his hand on her shoulder. "Hey." He said.

"Hi. What are you doing here?" Liliana asked.

"I wanted to see if you wanted to hang out." Brian said as he looked around. "Do you?" He asked while putting his hands in his pockets. Liliana nodded in response, smiling slightly at the offer. "Then follow me." Brian said as he turned around and began to walk in the opposite direction that Liliana was heading.

Liliana hesitantly followed him. As they walked, she took out her cellphone and sent a text to her parents, telling them what was going on. Within minutes, she got a reply. "Congrats! Have fun! Please be safe!" They sent. After a few minutes, she also got a reply from her younger brother. "Take him back here so I can have someone to play with!"

Liliana quickly put her phone away in embarrassment before catching up with him. They spent some time walking, passing the school, and heading towards a residential area. Many trees separated the sidewalk from the street, allowing pedestrians to sneak their way onto the street whenever they wanted.

As they walked, Liliana occasionally took glances at Brian. Her eyes didn't stay focused for longer than a second or two before they turned away again.

After a bit of noticing her take quick glances at him, he stopped walking. Liliana stopped next to him and gave him a puzzled look. "What's up?" She asked.

Brian put his finger up to his lips before quietly walking back. He passed three trees before stopping parallel to the fourth. Without warning, he kicked the side of the tree that Liliana couldn't see. Once the kick connected, they heard a groaning sound come from the tree.

Liliana was about to say something when she noticed two arms slowly slide down from the middle of the tree. She quickly ran up to Brian. When she got to him, she noticed Carol slumped over next to the tree. "Don't follow us." Brian said before returning to their walk.

Liliana looked at Carol in shock. She was befuddled by what happened. "You coming?" She heard Brian ask her.

She slowly looked at him in disbelief. "Why?" She asked. Her mouth was barely able to ask the question.

"She was after you. I gave her a warning, and she didn't head it. It's her fault that she got punished for not listening." Brian explained as he looked away from her.

Liliana turned her attention to Carol again. Her eyes focused on the girl as she slowly got up. She was about to walk away when Carol grabbed her arm. As soon as she felt it, Liliana let out a scream. Brian immediately turned around and ran towards them. As he ran, Carol was attempting to pull Liliana away from the street.

Once Brian was within range, he punched Carol. She quickly let go of Liliana and fell to the ground. "Damn it." She mumbled while getting up.

"You really want to steal ideas that bad?" Brian said as he walked up to the slightly wounded girl.

"Shut up. I can see what you mean." Carol said as she began to walk away from them. "I'll see you two."

Brian watched her walk away. As Carol walked, Liliana stared in shock. "What was that about?" She asked nervously.