//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Just Bros Being Bros // by DualSoul1423 //------------------------------// When Flash arrived at the mall, he found that Timber was already waiting for him in front of the arcade, the spot that they agreed to meet at this time. As he approached, Timber managed to make eye contact, and his face lit up with excitement, calling out to Flash with a wave. “Hey-hey! There you are, man. I’ve been waiting for ya. What took you?” Flash scoffed with a roll of his eyes as he lightly punched Timber in the shoulder. “I’m not late, you’re just really early. How long have you been waiting?” Timber blushed, scratching the back of his head as he averted his eyes in embarrassment. “Not super long, about half an hour. I was pretty excited to see you today, so I might have left home earlier than necessary.” With a laugh, Flash shook his head in amusement. “If you got here so early, you should have texted me. You should know by now that I don’t want you to wait for me. This is like, the third time you’ve done this.” Timber put up his hands defensively, giving a reassuring smile. “It’s not a big deal, really! I’ve got a lot of free time these days, and considering I get up pretty early, I don’t mind waiting around a while. It beats waiting around at home, that’s for sure.” “Yeah, ok sure,” said Flash with a teasing smirk, clearly not buying the excuse. “How about we stop standing around then, huh? I’ve got some cash burning a hole in my wallet, and I’m looking to play some games.” Shouldering past Timber, Flash took the lead into the arcade and headed over to the front counter. Beside it was a bulky machine that read "TOKENS" in faded letters, and Flash began to feed it bills in exchange for arcade-branded coins that clattered noisily into a complimentary plastic cup. “Have I mentioned that you make me feel poor?” asked Timber as he leaned against the wall next to the machine, “You’re always paying for me when we hang out. When’s it gonna be my turn to treat you?” Flash waggled a finger at Timber, clicking his teeth disapprovingly. “Not gonna happen, dude. You hang out with me, I pay, that’s the deal.” With a playful wink, he added, “Why do you think Sunset dated me? My two defining traits are being hot and being loaded. If I stop paying for you, then I’m just hot.” Timber frowned response, saying, “Hey, you’re a lot more than just a hot rich kid. Don’t sell yourself short.” Flash grinned slyly as he handed Timber a plastic cup of tokens. “I’m just joking, man. Though if you want, you can totally keep stroking my ego, I don’t mind.” Snatching away the cup, Timber blew a raspberry before cracking a small smile. “How about I knock you down a peg instead? I bet I could kick your butt in some Fatal Kombat.” “Oh, is that a challenge I hear?” Flash said as raised an eyebrow at his friend. “You’re about to eat those words, Timber… I’m undefeated.” Timber rolled his eyes, but the two quickly made their way to the fighting game section of the arcade, where they found a dozen electronic cabinets, each with their own characters ready to beat the snot out of each other. Finding the particular one with Fatal Kombat: II plastered on its side, the pair each took a token from their cups, and selected their preferred warriors. As they engaged in a digital battle to the death, the two friends focused intensely on the screen in front of them, not speaking for fear of breaking concentration. The silence between them didn’t last long however, as Timber cried out in dismay as he watched Flash deliver the finishing blow to his avatar, a well-timed uppercut popping the head off his ninja like the cork from a bottle of champagne. Timber sighed with disappointment before chuckling in acceptance. “Damn, man! I guess you weren’t kidding when you said I was gonna eat my words. You annihilated me! How’d you learn to play like that?” “I have a lot of time to practice, I guess,” replied Flash with a shrug. “I don’t work, so when I’m not wandering around Canterlot, I like to come to the mall to hang around, usually here in the arcade... Can’t say I didn’t warn you.” “Yeesh. You could have at least gone a little easy on me.” Flash sneered as he elbowed his friend. “Hey, my pride was on the line! Can’t expect me to hold back if you were going all-out.” Picking up another token from his cup, Flash offered a more sincere smile as he held out the token to Timber. “Wanna go again? We’ve got a lot of these to burn through before lunch.” With a shrug, Timber accepted, popping the shiny coin into the machine and preparing himself for another brutal fight. This time though, the two took the match less seriously, splitting their attention with some small talk. “Oh hey, did you hear,” began Flash, “Sunset and Twilight are moving in together soon. Sunset texted me yesterday after she told the girls.” Timber tore his gaze away from the screen to look at Flash, wide-eyed. “Woah, for real? Haven’t they only been going out for a month? That’s a pretty big leap to take so soon.” His moment of distraction was rewarded with a swift K.O. by Flash, who shrugged in response. “They’ve known each other for years, so I can’t say I’m really surprised. Besides, they’re smart girls.” He paused in consideration before adding, “Actually, they’re probably the two smartest people I know. They wouldn’t take the risk unless they were really sure of it, y’know?” Timber nodded with a small frown before replying, “Yeah I guess you’re right. Just seems surreal to me. I was dating Twilight for over two years, and we never even talked about that sort of thing. I don’t think she ever saw a future with me.” “I totally feel you,” said Flash as he put a sympathetic hand on Timber’s shoulder. “I was dating Sunset for most of middle school, and I’m pretty sure I was just a walking ATM for her. I guess we just can’t compete with the Big L.” Timber made a confused expression as he blinked several times. “The Big L? What’s that? Lesbians?” At that, Flash broke down laughing uproariously as Timber looked on in bewilderment. Only after nearly a minute of laughter was he able to compose himself enough to explain. “Love, dude! I was talking about love! Oh man, I can’t remember the last time I laughed that hard.” Timber crossed his arms as he blushed in embarrassment, trying to suppress a laugh of his own. “Come on, cut me some slack. We were talking about girls dating, I don’t know… It made sense at the moment.” Wiping a tear from his eye, Flash stood up and threw an arm around Timber’s shoulders with a big grin. “It’s alright, I know what you mean. Honestly, those two girls were made for each other. We didn’t stand a chance.” Finally, Timber managed a small smile, unable to resist his friend’s boisterous positivity. “Yeah, I probably shouldn’t beat myself up about it. After all, we probably wouldn’t be hanging out together now if we didn’t get dumped by them. I’m pretty content with getting you out of the whole ordeal.” Flash snapped his fingers encouragingly as he let go of Timber, “Hey, that’s the spirit! Besides, it’s not like we’re gonna be single forever. There’s plenty of fish left in the sea.” “Ha, you make it sound easy to bounce back from a breakup. What, do you have eyes on a girl?” When Flash seemed to deliberate on his answer, Timber raised a curious eyebrow. “Or… maybe a guy? No judgments here, just curious.” With a bashful laugh, Flash shook his head. “Honestly? No clue. I could probably find someone if I look, I just haven’t bothered these past few years. Sunset burned me pretty badly, and I guess I just kinda got used to being single. How about you? Got anyone in mind?” Timber went quiet as he considered his answer, his lips taut with contemplation. He seemed to study Flash’s face as he thought, and for a second, Flash felt like he shouldn’t have asked. Finally, Timber replied with a shrug and a defeated sigh, “I guess not, no. Still too soon after the break up to tell for sure.” Nodding empathetically, Flash said, “Yeah, that makes sense… Shame there’s nothing we can do about that broken heart of yours…” Just before Timber could answer, Flash suddenly slapped his hand down on the cabinet’s control panel, rattling the two cups of coins. “Except play more games together! C’mon, we’ve still got like, twenty bucks worth of tokens!” At that, Timber couldn’t help but laugh aloud. Flash was more than happy to join in, and the two shared a healthy laugh until Timber calmed down, giving his friend a pat on the back. “Yeah, alright… But if you insist on kicking my ass every match, I’m going to make you buy me lunch.” With a toothy grin, Flash shot his signature finger guns at Timber. “I’ll do you one better, we play a co-op game, and then I’ll treat you to lunch anyway. How does Manor of the Dead sound?” Smiling broadly, Timber simply replied, “With you? Sounds awesome.”