The Lonely Rabbit and Broken Thief

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Shifty and Cuddles had been there the last day B.M. and Jingles were moving out. They wished them well, despite the anger Shifty was feeling that they were leaving. He did like Jingles and B.M. was a relief to have around.

"Promise you'll visit?"

"Of course!"

And the worst part was that Dandy was here to say goodbye, too. It did break Shifty's heart a bit to see them saying goodbye. Jingles didn't look too phased about it, but Dandy was definitely crying.

"Here. I made you a Lego dragon. A little piece of me for you."

Cuddles had to pull Dandy away then because he started complaining for Jingles to stay and not leave. Jingles, ever the sweet boy, only smiled and waved before getting into the truck. B.M. looked amused at their exchange before going up to Cuddles and Shifty.

"I'm glad I took this assignment. Thank you two, for being friends to my son."

"Duh! You just make sure to update me on whereever you two stay so I can send Jingles letters."

"Why not just text?" Shifty questioned, petting Dandy's head to comfort him.

"Pen pals send letters. It's more fun like that. Plus Jingles likes it like that." Cuddles said, shaking B.M.'s hand.

"I'll send him letters, too!" Dandy shouted, his face twisted in a pout as B.M. chuckled.

"Of course. My son will look forward to it." B.M. gave Shifty a hug before he went to his truck.

They waved goodbye as B.M. finally drove off, most likely to his next assignment according to Cuddles. Cuddles ended up taking Dandy home before they went off back to their side of town. After some discussion, Cuddles was basically given permission to move in with Shifty.

"Honestly, the only things I need are my instruments and important papers. I can always buy myself new clothes and other junk... oh, actually, I have a bunch fan gifts I need to take with me. It would be rude not to take it with me."

Shifty glanced at him, "Is it going to fit in this truck?"

Cuddles smiled, "Of course! That's why I traded the Ferrari for it!"

Shifty sighed and leaned back, "Could have gotten a better one..."

Cuddles laughed, "I can't drive anything bigger than this! I promise it's not that much."

"You can put it all in the spare room then. Otherwise, we might have to build an extention in the back for your gifts." Shifty relented, looking out the window.

Cuddles grabbed his hand, making him flinch in surprise, but didn't pull his hand away. His face burned with all the butterflies that churned in his stomach. The fact it still happened was a bit of surprise for him.

He trembled a bit when he felt Cuddles use his thumb to draw circles on the back of his hand as they drove through town to get to his parent's house. The touch itself held no other meaning except affection. He covered his mouth when he felt a smile grow on his face. While he hadn't said anything back yet, he knew the consistent feeling in his chest was going to give him away sooner rather than later.