"Are you out of mind?", Masahiko exclaimed as he heard what the twins were planning.
Their small headquarters shook a little as he unconsciously released a small amount of his aura, and that made a considerable cloud of dust fell from their cobweb-infested ceiling.
"Don't be so harsh on us, little brother; we know that we can work this plan out," Tyson said while swatting the falling dust.
"We may be old-timers now, but you know—we still got it!", Tyron agreed while grinning his teeth out.
Masahiko let out an exasperated noise.
'These two never learned,' he thought silently as he gazed at his two equally half-witted friends.
"Look—let's just wait for Justy... Maybe he can sort this out," he said in reluctance, and just a second after he said that, their old door opened widely, revealing a tall man in a suit.
"Speaking of our justice, here's finally Justy!", Tyron cheerfully said as he stood up and made his way to their scowling friend.
"What's up, buddy! Looking great, huh?", Tyron said loudly as he patted Justy's shoulder.
Justy just grimaced as he felt the impact of Tyron's hands. Tyron's a power user, so his usual friendly pats were quite dangerous.
"Good morning... What do we have here?", he said calmly.
The twins immediately rambled on their plan to rob big fish downtown. His face remained unfazed for a while, but soon his brows knitted as he heard who's the big fish they're robbing blind.
"Wait, wait, wait...", he interrupted hastily as he squinted his eyes on them. "You don't mean Don Liu, right? Because if he is, we won't get out of their turf alive, or worse, we—
"Exactly, he is!", Tyson exclaimed, completely ignoring what Justy had just said.
Masahiko clicked his tongue in annoyance as he stood up quietly and made his way to the door.
"I'm outta here... and please stop this nonsense you're planning. You're only getting yourselves killed," he reasoned out.
"But Masahiko, we swear this will be the last... I know you're not up for this because you already have a content life with Brenda, but please, join us. Rotting away in this world without experiencing the thrill won't just do good with us. We ain't got family, so we'll promise that we'll be your shield once things get out of hand—
"Brother, I don't remember agreeing to that—", Tyron interrupted.
Tyson just gave his brother a sharp glare, and as if reading what his mind said, his brother scowled and just conceded.
"Yeah, we will...", he said half-heartedly.
Justy fished out something from his chest pocket, and after getting the tobacco, he lit it up. Smoke gradually wafted across the cramped old room.
"Just this one, brother, I promise this will be the last... Please just do this for your old, broke friend who yearns for some thrill," he said imploringly.
"This whole plan was so stupid, yet somehow it made sense... Let's give this a shot, Masahiko," Justy agreed coolly as he puffed smoke towards the small window.
Masahiko let out a sharp breath before answering. "I-I'll think about it...", he said while glancing at the twins, who looked at him expectantly.
"Being a family guy sure made you smart, Masahiko," Justy joked as he grinned mischievously at him.
"Yeah, yeah, bring back the never-say-never guy we knew before," Tyron butted in.
He glanced at them for the last time and just smiled.
"I'll reconsider it," he muttered sincerely, and with that, he went out and closed the door silently.
'Yeah, what happened to him?', his mind asked while he moved downstairs.
"I don't know," he answered silently as he snapped his fingers. The surroundings suddenly warped, and the moment they cleared out, he's back in real space again. He's now standing still at their front porch, yet his mind seemed left off in their old cramped headquarters.
The twin's plan was risky, yet somehow it made sense. It seems that they really poured out every single piece of intelligence they had into that plan, but still, the stakes were too high.
'But this will be the last one, Masahiko, and after that, you'll retire with a fat purse and a great story to tell your grandchildren'
'Of 'course, this will be a good story only if you're alive to tell it'
'What of your friends? Will you just abandon them like that? You're not that kind of person, Masahiko. People who abandon friends are worse than scum, remember?'
'Then you'll gladly die for them? You now have family! Think smartly and don't let—
His pondering got interrupted when he heard a tiny voice calling out his name.
"Papa, Papa, I got a star! Look, look here!", his daughter called as she tugged on his pants. She showed him a star stamped on her wrist.
He smiled genuinely at his daughter, but his daughter just frowned as if she noticed something different.
"Papa's sad! Papa's sad! Mama! Mama! Papa's sad!", her daughter exclaimed.
Brenda went to her daughter and lifted her up, then she eyed her husband concernedly.
"What's the matter, Masahiko? Was there anything bothering you?", she asked while gently touching his cheek.
He held her hand and kissed the back of her palm. She smiled at him sweetly while she put her daughter down. The girl squealed in excitement and immediately sprang out of her mother's hold.
"I'm fine... It's just—you see, I met my old pals; you know my friends before I met you...", he muttered weakly.
"And?"
"They're asking me to join them like before..."
She blinked for a while, as if trying to recall something.
"So you're going with them?", she asked in a hesitant manner.
He sighed and rubbed his chin. "I don't know, but I wanted to...", he said quietly while wrapping his arms around her waist.
Looking up at him, she answered. "Then go with them."
"You won't get angry?", he asked cautiously while peering down at her.
"Why would I? Just don't get yourself killed," she smiled knowingly as she patted his cheeks.
Shocked, he stiffened and stared down at her, dumbstruck.
"You know?"
"Of 'course I know... I wouldn't marry a guy if I didn't know him," she said while grinning at him.
"Ohh...", he muttered idly as he rested his head on her shoulder.
"So you're fine with a man like me? I thought I'd concealed it well... I never thought you'd discover it," he mumbled.
She chuckled. "I read minds—of 'course I'll know."
"Wait—what?"
"Yeah, you heard it right, so quit gaping there and get your daughter. She's planning to climb her way up to the cupboard."
He groaned as he let her go and stride his way towards the kitchen, and indeed, her daughter is already piling up boxes.
He laughed and pulled out his phone. He dialed a number, and in just a few rings, someone answered.
"So what's your say, little brother?"
"I'm in...", he said as he snapped his fingers. Her daughter suddenly disappeared, and she reappeared in his arms.
"Then good—same old time, at the same old place... I'll end this call soon because I know you definitely need to feed your daughter first."
Masahiko frowned and turned around to see that their windows were open.
'No wonder,' he thought while gazing through the opened windows.
"So see you, brother?"
"Fine, see you...", he said before ending the call.
"Papa, who's that?", his daughter asked him innocently.
"He's an old friend...", he answered simply.
"Will he visit us?", she asked while reaching out her father's chin.
"Yeah... Someday they will."
