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The late October chill had begun to settle over Faraway Town, and with Halloween right around the corner, it came with an undercurrent of excitement. Kel and his partners had made plans for pumpkin carving, with the caveat that they had to do it at Basil's house, because neither Mari nor Hero wanted to deal with the mess. They were supposed to meet up and head to the local pumpkin patch soon, but...
Kel closed the door to his wardrobe before pulling it open again. Still half empty. He craned his neck to find Hero lounging on his bed, flipping through a book. His brother often visited over the weekends, trying to spend as much time with his family as he could after the arrival of Sally just a few months ago.
"Hey," Kel said.
Hero glanced up from his book, questioning.
"Have you seen any of my sweatshirts?"
Hero shook his head. "Any chance they got mixed up with someone else's laundry?"
"No way," Kel replied. "Who would mistake my stuff with theirs?"
His brother shrugged. "I dunno, Kel. Accidents happen. Anyways..." He snapped the book shut and set it aside. "You can borrow something of mine in the meantime." At that, he moved over to his own wardrobe - mostly barren except for a few outfits to tide him over during his visits. Hero pulled out a dark blue knit pullover that screamed 'I'm a proud Honors Student!' and handed it over.
"Uh, thanks," Kel said, taking it and trying very hard to keep from showing his inner thoughts which were almost entirely 'Holy shit, do I actually have to wear this? It's so nerdy...'
Judging by Hero's wry smile, he didn't do a very good job of it. "It's just until you find your stuff again. And I'm not letting you go out without something."
"Why not? I'll be fine!"
Which was probably true, since Kel didn't get cold easily. In fact, he tended to run pretty warm, which had the added benefit of his partners huddling up next to him as the seasons turned. But Hero refused to relent, so Kel stepped out of the house ten minutes past the agreed meeting time looking like he was on his way to a college admissions interview.
Fortunately, the bus stop was just in front of the plaza, so he didn't have to walk very far. Kel spotted Aubrey curled up on the bench by herself, fiddling with a GameBoy. It was a surprisingly cute image, so much so that he wished Basil were here to capture it. She looked up as Kel neared. Mild surprise passed over her face, followed by amusement.
"Took ya long enough," she said as he slid into the space next to her. Aubrey took the opportunity to scoot closer and leech warmth off of him. Her eyes flicked over his outfit. "What the hell are you wearing?"
"Hey!" Kel protested, but wrapped an arm around her shoulders all the same. "I think I look cool!" Which was a lie, but he wasn't going to let Aubrey know that.
She snorted, returning to her game. "You look like an escaped Mathlete."
"Your escaped Mathlete."
"Pffft. What the fuck does that even mean?"
"I dunno, you tell me."
Aubrey rolled her eyes, grinning. "Whatever, dork. Seriously, though, what's with the sweater?"
"...Hero made me wear it. But, like - I couldn't find anything else!" Kel admitted, remaining thoroughly indignant as he pinched the sleeve of the letterman she was wearing. "You don't even have any room to talk! You're wearing the same jacket you do every-"
Wait. Kel squinted, noticing something off about Aubrey's jacket. There was a little too much room in the shoulder area, and the sleeves were long on her. Normally, her letterman fit like a glove, but this... he noticed a faint orange stain on the hem of the right sleeve. His eyes widened as it all clicked together. "Aubrey! You stole my jacket!"
Almost instinctively, Aubrey straightened up and snapped, "No I didn't!" After a moment, she looked down at herself in silence, then back to Kel's admonishing gaze. She crossed her arms and continued her defense. "Well... okay, maybe! But you let me wear it home last week, and you didn't ask for it back, and, like, this is the only thing I even have that's yours! And it's not like-"
"Oh, hey guys!"
Kel and Aubrey's heads whipped to their left to see Basil approaching, holding a drink carrier filled with steaming cups.
"Sorry I'm late," he chirped. "I decided to get us some coffee - you wouldn't believe the line at the café!"
Normally, Kel would find the gesture adorable, but at the moment, he was occupied by the sight of Basil absolutely swimming in the bright orange hoodie he was wearing. And, okay, still adorable, but Kel forced himself to hone in on the fact that he definitely lost this exact sweater about a month ago. He thought he left it on the bus or something!
Sensing the tension, Basil shifted from one foot to another. "Is... everything okay?"
"Yeah," Kel said. "Just wondering. Where did you get that hoodie?" Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Aubrey shaking her head and making rapid cutting motions across her throat at Basil.
Silenced reigned for a few moments. Basil's eyes darted to the right for a split second before he spoke up again. "I... found it."
Kel narrowed his eyes. "Where?"
Basil fidgeted, face flushed with nervousness. His gaze swept from side to side, as though he were looking for an answer that would make sense, an answer that wouldn't come. It only took a few more moments of silence for the truth to come tumbling out. "Inyourcloset-"
"Basil!" Aubrey admonished.
"What? It was a lot of pressure!"
"I can't believe I'm dating not one," Kel said, "but two thieves. Unbelievable!"
Basil shared a knowing look with Aubrey before shuffling over to Kel's other side and sitting down. He had the audacity to try and huddle close, and Kel had the audacity to let him. "Sorry, Kel... I can dig up what I have-"
Kel's brows shot up. "Wait, you have more?"
"Haha... maybe..."
Kel was just about to question Basil further when, Sunny finally arrived, strolling down the street at a leisurely pace.
"Hey," was all he said before slumping down next to Basil, taking one of the cups, popping the lid off, and downing it all in one go. He looked like he just rolled out of bed, hair so badly mussed that Kel could see Basil's hand twitching like he wanted to reach up and fix it.
Kel noticed something different. That- that sweater! Hero gave him a sweater from his college. The mascot for the school was a bee for some reason, so it had a cheesy little slogan on it that read 'BEE YOURSELF AT NEARBY U!' But after Kel had washed it a couple of times, the lower part of the 'B' peeled off so that it read 'PEE YOURSELF AT NEARBY U!' which he and Sunny and laughed themselves to tears over because they had a shitty sense of humor, and then Kel was super sad when he couldn't find the sweatshirt again. Hell, he even accused Hero of hiding it from him!
"Sunny! Not you too!"
"Hm?" Sunny seemed out of it, looking around, before he realized. "Oh, right." Unlike the other two, he didn't seem particularly embarrassed about being caught. "Took you long enough to figure it out."
"This is a racket, dude! I am being systematically stolen from-"
"Basil steals from me all the time," Sunny pointed out. "He still hasn't given me back my Twisted Sister t-shirt."
"Sunny," Basil said, "you don't even listen to Twisted Sister."
Sunny shrugged. "I was going to start tomorrow."
Aubrey blinked for a moment, as though she were having a revelation. Her eyes widened. "Motherf- that's where my shirt went? What the hell, Sunny, you wouldn't even fit in that shit!"
"O-kay!" Kel said, trying to get everyone's attention again. "We're all sometimes stealing from everyone, but the real problem is... I have nothing to wear." He gestured at the sweater he borrowed from Hero.
Basil, at least, looked apologetic. "Sorry, Kel, but... your stuff's just more cozy! I guess... I just feel happier when I wear something of yours, if that makes sense."
Aubrey nodded, reaching over to grab one of the cups. "It just kinda feels. Nice. To wear things that are a little large? And, um. Yeah." She shrugged and sipped at her drink to cover her flush.
"Reminds me of you," Sunny added with a small smile.
Kel blushed. That was actually... really sweet. "Okay, that's cool, and I... well, okay, I don't get it, but like-" He gestured vaguely. "Maybe a bit of warning next time? I don't mind you guys borrowing stuff, but, y'know..." He looked around. "I mean, it's cute and all, but just be sure to return them, okay?"
The other three nodded, and they all huddled close, waiting for the bus. Even if Kel couldn't wear one of his sweaters right now, well, maybe this was the next best thing.