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Betrayal is a funny thing. You never see it coming, until it hits, unlike a rainstorm or a fire. Tommy thinks a knife in the back is the perfect way to describe it, he also thinks that's a bit too harsh, violent, antagonizing, it’s more of a car crash. It’s a small chance, yet, the person who inflicts the damage always knows what they are doing.
Perhaps the best way to avoid being betrayed is to be careful who you trust. Be watchful and tentative, be the one who drives with caution. But this isn’t a story of being betrayed, it’s a story of betraying.
And Tommy knows how to manipulate the trust one keeps guarded and close. Trust is an interesting thing, one Tommy could study for years, takes so much to build up but can be blown down in a sigh. Being able to appear to be trusted is something he takes pride in, a talent he exploits. He was always told to practice his talents, they never specified if the talent was conventionally wrong.
Though all his talent did for him was get him in jail. He was particularly skilled in his ability to deceive, he wasn’t planning on using it as a villain, but it seemed it was the only thing it was good for.
At least he got to keep his mask, which was helpful in juvenile detention. He didn’t like people looking at him, with his mask he felt as if he was invisible. And nearing the end of his time there, he might have thought he finally managed to become translucent, eyes seeming to look through him.
Until Tommy met Wilbur.
Tommy remembers the explosion in the cell next to his, a boom that sent the ground rattling and the alarms blaring. It tore up the concrete wall like paper, expanding just enough into Tommy’s cell for him to slip through. And so he did, without a look back, he ran.
The group of men he was following he didn’t know, they were big and tough, all older than him. They crowded into a van waiting outside the prison, over a fence Tommy remembers snagging his sleeve on. Tommy sat down in a seat that was open, everyone was panicking around him, yelling to move, to go, to drive.
Tommy leaned back and he closed his eyes and the car began to jerk forward, moving faster and faster until he could hear the city around him. He remembers a certain pair of brown eyes in the rear view mirror, he turned around with a hand on the back of the passenger chair and he asked,
“Who the hell are you?”
He remembers the voice was rough, but not mean. He was out of breath, sweat on his forehead and so much emotion in his eyes Tommy couldn’t look anywhere else.
“I’m Tommy,” He responded, he hadn’t told anyone his name in months. He smiled, an unpracticed thing, and climbed up to the front seat.
The confusion fell off the driver's face in an instant when Tommy pulled a gun out from under the seat. Cocked and loaded, and Tommy was standing up through the sunroof shooting at the cars following them with blue and red lights glinting off the skyscrapers.
Tommy thinks he heard a laugh then, in disbelief, maybe surprise, but it was then that Tommy knew he was the one. That Wilbur, the driver of the getaway car, wasn't a good criminal, and he left his trust out in the open to take and run off with.
Of course he didn’t know his name until he pulled him down from the roof to hand him a better gun, his gun. The back doors opened and they lost a few guys that day, Wilbur was a sloppy driver, but he was a fast one.
The rest of the police were off their trail by the time the sun fell. The guys dispersed, expressing their thanks but running off their own ways. Tommy was the last one left, he was probably the only one who had a family who needed him, but he couldn’t go, not yet.
The other man who was left, Wilbur’s brother, Tommy noted that he would be much harder to win over. He had callous, harsh eyes and an even harsher smile, if you could call it that. But everyone had a weakness, and his was Wilbur. And if Wilbur wanted Tommy to stay, Tommy would stay.
From there it was almost fun, the brothers wanted him to tag-along. If it was for his skills, or his passion, maybe because he expressed his loneliness and they felt bad. Whatever it was, Tommy was with them now.
They crossed borders in that black van Tommy knew so well, Tommy smiled and laughed. He let them joke with him, he would joke back. Successful bank robberies would end with praise and celebration, Tommy would take every drop of it.
He took off his mask for them. Trading his faux trust for the real thing. It may have been a scam, but who's counting. Really the mask was just for security cameras and when he wanted to be discreet, but he didn’t explain that. He explained that he wanted them to see him, that he never took his mask off, it was a sacred thing. And if he added a shake to his hands when he removed it and winced a bit when Wilbur traced the scar along his cheek, no one knows if that was real or not.
It’s not distorting reality, when there’s not a set one. Tommy’s reality was ever-changing.
They were the perfect team, the three of them. Committing crime from city to city, their bond was unmatched. Well, Wilbur shared enough love to count for Techno’s unrelenting stares and Tommy’s apathy. Tommy almost felt bad for him, the fondness in Wilburs eyes never wore off, it only got stronger. He was so open and emotional, it looked dangerous, and it was. It was only helpful for Tommy though, the faster the car the harder it hits.
He was always closer to Wilbur for that reason, their relationship was like blaring sirens, warning sounds but too incomprehensible to understand. Wilbur's arm was always around Tommy’s shoulders, and if Tommy said he sometimes enjoyed it, that was something he would never admit. Wilbur was warm, for the first time in forever, he felt warm. Between the hair ruffles and hugs, they had deep conversations, Tommy felt like he could tell Wilbur everything and anything. He didn’t of course.
Tommy could tell Techno tried to get rid of him. It was a daily thing, an argument between him and Techno, it never escalated to anything. Eventually, he saw Techno’s smile, it was even brighter than Wilbur's, but it wouldn’t come out often. Techno wasn’t like Wilbur, who would laugh at anything Tommy said. Techno was more held back, he reminded Tommy of himself.
Sometimes Tommy thought of running back to his family. But he would lie in the back of the van, the ground feeling too much like the bed in his cell, and it would remind him he had a job to do. So he would gasp and cry and have two voices whispering reassurances, he would fall into Wilbur's beckoning arms and act like he was meant to fit there. It wasn’t hard to shape his personality, maneuver his life to fit into theirs.
Tommy would sit in the passenger's seat, he would get excited over the passing cities, he would play road trip games until it was time to be a villain. At first it was petty, doing as much as they could until someone punched in numbers into their phone. Then they were a bit more risky, bank robberies were never that fun before. Tommy found it was actually enjoyable committing crimes with a team, with someone in an earpiece, with someone to rely on.
Wilbur would always be there in a getaway car, ready to take them away to safety.
In between crimes it was odd, something like family, something Tommy couldn’t imagine criminals could be. He supposed criminals were humans too. Wilbur would make fun of Tommy for being so young, which Tommy always protested, banter between them was easy. Techno would point out how they looked similar, Tommy didn’t see it. Their complexions were nearly opposite, everything about them was different, it was foolish to assume they were any more than partners in crime.
Techno and him bonded as well, if he had to say something, he would say hanging with Techno was much less overbearing, he could breathe. Not too much, he couldn’t breathe the wrong way, he knew Techno was smart.
Though Techno always had this thing where he always knew when Tommy was getting tired. He would always offer to give him piggy-back rides, and maybe it would be patronizing, but Tommy enjoyed it. He could fall asleep on Techno’s broad back as he talked about mythology and while Wilbur hummed along. Techno taught him a bunch of really cool tricks, like how to disable security cameras. He also taught Tommy how to fence in his free time, he had this gimmick where he would sometimes fight with a sword. Tommy thought it was cool as hell, it must have slipped through because he started to teach Tommy all about it.
It was a weird time, but Tommy always had a clear mind. Even when Techno left. He claimed it was family business. Tommy said his goodbyes, sprinkling tears and giving hugs but his plan didn’t change. Techno said something about seeing him again, Tommy smiled at that. He missed the daily fencing lessons, so he taught himself. It was easy to prove that he could always replace others' efforts with himself.
Techno’s departure is besides the point. A couple weeks later the biggest heist of Tommy’s life arrived.
Him and Wilbur robbed the largest bank Tommy had ever known. Everything went perfectly, no alarms were triggered, for a large bank the security was shit. He pulled stacks of money into bags, Wilbur giggled from behind him the way that sent his eyes glinting in the moonlight. Tommy carried the bags on his shoulder as he hauled them out, and the pair of them drove away. The van disappeared into the night, moving so fast the stars reflecting off it looked like they were falling.
Wilbur pulled into a motel, the vacancy light was flashing and the parking lot puddled with old rain. Wilbur threw Tommy a smile and they walked into the bar, pride vibrating off the odd pair. No one spared a look at them when they entered, Tommy remembers it was around eleven and the motel was nearly empty.
That night they checked into a room under a dumb name Tommy made up. Wilbur shook Tommy’s shoulders, riling him up with shouts of celebration. When they made it to the shitty room, they spent a considerable time hitting each other with pillows until Tommy got the bed by the window. Still Tommy sat next to Wilbur, and he wasn’t sure that was part of the plan then. They watched cartoons on the TV until Tommy fell asleep on Wilbur's shoulder by accident.
He woke up to the cheap dimly lit lights and Wilbur was still awake. It was one o’clock and they both were starving, so they traveled down to the bar. Tommy was wearing Wilbur's jacket, and for once his head was fogging up.
That night Wilbur let the server call them brothers. Tommy let Wilbur ruffle his hair without pulling away. That night the emotions in Wilbur's eyes became too overwhelming. He bought Tommy ice cream just how he liked it, and he laughed when Tommy split the chocolate syrup on the table. Then he wiped the ice cream off Tommy’s nose, smiling the way he did.
Tommy was nauseous.
You can’t blame Tommy for excusing himself to the bathroom.
He only wishes that you give him the credit for what he did next.
He was fast through the hallways, opening the door to the room he shared with Wilbur. He grabbed the car keys off the nightstand, took off the jacket that was becoming too warm on his skin, and left.
He left through the back door, splashing through shallow puddles until he got to the car. His hands were shaking as he slammed the door and pushed the keys into the ignition. But Tommy knew what he was doing, and unfortunately, Wilbur would be on the receiving end of this car crash.
Tommy backed up and pulled away. He didn’t feel any regret or remorse. Tears were shed when he met his own blue eyes in the rear view before seeing Wilbur. Painted in red and blue lights as he stood still on the curb, face shadowed by the night, but Tommy could imagine what he looked like. Police cars flooded past his car right on time, the call still in his recents on his phone.
But he wasn’t crying for Wilbur, not for the man who stood as tall as he was distressed as he was arrested.
He might have loved him once, like family, like a brother. Maybe that's what the tears were for. Maybe if they had more time, maybe if Tommy was someone different, maybe if they were more similar.
But no, Tommy already had two brothers. He was crying for them, he was free, he was finally free from jail and was bringing them a fortune that would make them forgive him for what he did. They would be a family again, Tommy wouldn’t have to be a criminal, he could finally live.
It was best Wilbur was going back to jail, it was where he belonged, where he couldn’t interfere with Tommy.
Tommy did it. He went through with his plan and it went exactly as planned.
He drove into the rainstorm that clouded above the motel and flooded the sky like impending doom, he was going home.
-
Betrayal is a funny thing.
Done by the most heartless and smartest individuals. Yet, there always seems to be a flaw in their plans.
Tommy’s flaw was that he didn’t get rid of everyone, he didn’t eliminate all the possible threats, or the worst one, Techno.
Techno was on his feet the minute he found out what happened. If someone messed with his brother, they messed with him.
He always had his suspicions about Tommy, he was always too careful. It's an easy thing to hurt someone, especially when they trust you, or even pretend to.
Techno got to Tommy’s house before he could. Leaving two fencing swords embedded in Tommy's brother's chests. Anger dipped handprints laced the hilts, but Techno didn’t care.
Tommy got what he deserved. For lying, for leaving his brother behind, the money was lost in the reasons that Wilbur and Techno hoped Tommy didn’t fake everything. The both of them would have cared less about the money, if Tommy was still by their side, that would be the only thing that mattered.
But he was now a traitor. Techno hated traitors.
This could be considered another lesson to Tommy, if you are going to hurt someone, do it right. Or don’t do it at all.
Tears were shed that night, all by Tommy, which was horribly ironic.
Betrayal is a funny thing.
The betrayer comes out the most hurt and lonely, losing everything he was trying to fight for.