Thing 1 & Thing 2
The evening sun had finally started dipping below the horizon, casting a warm, amber glow across the pool. The water shimmered, reflecting the colors of the sky in a soft, almost dreamlike way. A faint breeze whispered through the palm trees, and the faint hum of the city made everything feel distant and untouchable. It was just one of those nights, the kind where nothing was urgent, where the world could be paused for a little while.
Barty, completely unfazed by the luxury surrounding them, was sprawled lazily on a bright pink floatie, the inflatable almost comically large beneath his frame. He looked like a kid who didn’t give a damn about the world, drifting slowly in the water, legs stretched out and hands behind his head. His wet hair clung to his forehead, droplets of water trickling down his face and into the pool as he lazily rocked himself from side to side with the gentle waves.
Evan was lying on a lounge chair nearby, sipping from his glass of whiskey, cigarette dangling loosely between his fingers. The sun reflecting on his blonde hair. He glanced over at Barty, his eyes catching the ridiculous contrast between the vibrant floatie and Barty’s usual dark, brooding vibe. There was something both absurd and strangely fitting about it.
“You seriously had to pick a pink one, huh?” Evan drawled, raising an eyebrow. His voice was lazy, teasing.
Barty didn’t even open his eyes as he answered, his tone full of unbothered arrogance. “I don’t see you on a floatie. Not even in the pool. What’s the problem, Evans? Afraid of getting wet?”
“I don’t have a thing for bright pink,” Evan said with a smirk, clearly enjoying the sight of Barty’s unexpected leisure. “It’s a little… loud for your usual vibe, don’t you think?”
Barty let out a low chuckle. “You’ve got a lot to say for someone who spends more time pretending to be a goddamn statue than actually living.”
Evan chuckled and raised his glass to his lips. “Maybe. But at least I don’t look like a fucking kid in a plastic pool with that floatie.”
“I bet it’s comfortable,” Barty said, barely opening one eye, the corners of his lips curling in a subtle smirk. “And besides, this floatie has better taste than your entire wardrobe.”
Evan rolled his eyes, but the smile tugging at his lips was undeniable. “Keep dreaming.”
They settled into a comfortable silence, the sounds of the city in the distance growing quieter as night slowly took over. The two of them, now far removed from their old lives, found solace in this strange kind of peace. They weren’t criminals anymore, at least not in the sense they used to be. But some habits died hard.
“So,” Evan began, leaning back against his chair and taking another long drag of his cigarette, “you’re really gonna lie there all night?”
Barty opened his eyes just enough to glance over at Evan. “You can’t rush perfection.”
“I think it’s called ‘laziness,’” Evan quipped, flicking his cigarette butt into the pool with a casual flick of his wrist.
“Yeah, well, I’m fucking fantastic at it,” Barty replied with a lazy grin, then looked up at the sky as the first stars began to appear. He pushed the float gently with his foot, keeping himself gently rocking in the water. “You think Regulus would have liked this place?”
The question came out of nowhere, and for a second, Evan was caught off guard. He stopped mid-drink, the glass halfway to his lips, and let out a soft exhale through his nose.
Things were not perfect for Evan and Barty, when Regulus died. Barty and Evan had to accept the fact that life would never go back to how it was. The hollow empty feeling will still come no matter how long the years pass, and that was okay.
“Regulus?” Evan repeated, looking up at the darkening sky as if trying to find the words. “He’d probably find a way to laugh at us from up there. I can almost hear him mocking us for enjoying a moment like this.”
Barty snorted, leaning back on his floatie, the water rippling around him as he swayed ever so slightly. “Yeah, I can hear it too. He’d be the first to tell us that we’re acting like we’re still too young to know what to do with our time. But… I think he’d appreciate it. He was always the smart one.”
“Always had the answers,” Evan agreed, his voice softening a little. “Didn’t mind getting dirty either, though.”
“No, he didn’t,” Barty said with a slight frown, his face darkening as his thoughts wandered. “Always knew how to balance it out, though. He’d probably be the one telling us to stop pretending we’re perfect just because we’re not pulling heists anymore.”
Evan laughed quietly, glancing at Barty. “He’d tell us we’re still fucked up. But he’d also probably crack a joke, calling us idiots for thinking we’d actually go straight.”
“Yeah,” Barty said, his voice low. He shifted on his floatie, pushing himself further into the center of the pool. “I miss him.”
Evan didn’t respond immediately. The weight of those words was heavy between them. Regulus had been the glue that held them together, the steady presence in a world full of chaos. The man who could walk into the room and instantly take control of the situation. And now… now they had to live without him. Without his steadiness, without his control. They were learning, but it wasn’t the same.
“Yeah,” Evan said finally, his voice softer. “We lost a lot when we lost him. And not just the good stuff.”
Barty closed his eyes again, letting the water hold him. “We’re not the same without him. But that doesn’t mean we stop. Just… means we have to keep going. For him.”
Evan smiled faintly, raising his glass. “For Regulus.”
Barty raised his drink in return, his smile bittersweet. “For Regulus.”
They sat in the quiet, the dark sky stretching out above them as they both floated in the calm of the moment, the memory of their past lingering like an unspoken truth between them.