"Probably. The guy needs a family." Gilbert knew he and his brother were rarely at the house at the same time, but there would always be someone there for the dog. This way, the house wouldn't be empty when either of them came home either. He told himself he wanted a dog for Ludwig, but he was the one that made the snap decision when he walked in here. "I don't have much money though."

"That's fine. All of our adoptions are very affordable." Matthew told him. He still refused to look at the guy. A part of him found it suspicious that this guy decided he wanted a dog and came here to get it out of every place in the city. Most people would have gone to a more well known place than this. "Is there anything else I can help you with?" he asked, trying to be polite.

Gilbert blinked and turned his attention away from the dog long enough to really look at Matthew. "I need help picking out supplies I guess. The cheapest stuff." He really didn't have that much money. Unsurprisingly, dancing around a pole did not pay high, not when you were supporting your brother as well. He stood up and gave the dog another pat. "...And can you smile or something?" he added with a mumble.

Matthew stood and went over to the dog supplies to pick some things out. Even though the other man had mumbled his last comment, he understood well enough. "Why should I?" he asked, keeping his back to the other man. He grabbed some of the stuff and brought it back over to where the man was.

Gilbert followed some distance with the dog ever at his heel. "Because this is awkward! And a smile suits you better than this..." He waved a vague hand at the other. "...whatever mopey thing you're doing." He didn't mention that he thought he'd get beat up if he didn't fix things with Matthew. That would only make things more awkward. He just wanted to make things alright again so he could walk away with no guilt.

"Why do you even care? After you leave here you're very likely never going to see me again." Matthew asked, turning to glare at him. The longer then man stayed here, the worse the tightness in his chest seemed to feel. He just wanted him to get his stuff and leave so that he wouldn't ever have to see him again. That thought hurt, but it hurt more to be around him. So he knew it would be for the best if he never saw him again. Then he'd be able to move on with his life.

"M-maybe," Gilbert stammered. "But that doesn't mean you should mope over me! I'm not worth it!" he exclaimed. When he realized what he said, he snapped his mouth shut and looked away. "If it helps, I'll go away. Um...that's what I wanted to do, but since I'm here..." He scratched the side of his face, still looking away. "I just wanted to say this in a less douchey way."

"Do you track down all the people you've hurt just to tell them you'll go away? And why do you think I'm moping because of you? Despite what you seem to think, the world does not revolve around you. So just shut up, buy your stuff, and leave." Matthew snapped at him, angry tears burning behind his eyes that he refused to let fall. He would not let this man see him cry. He refused to show any sort of weakness in front of him.

Gilbert sighed. As expected, Matthew really didn't want to talk to him. Even if he lied to himself an apologized for things he didn't feel sorry for, he didn't think it would help. "Damn it, I'm just trying to be a good person. This isn't exactly easy for me," he snapped, though in a quiet voice like he didn't really want to fight. Matthew was definitely moping over him though and Gilbert would know it even if his brother didn't say so. "But fine, I'm leaving now." After a second of hesitation, he turned to go find the check out counter.

Matthew watched him go before falling to the ground, sitting down and pulling some puppies into his arms. Only then did he allow the tears to fall, burying his face into their fur.

Waiting on the other side of the door for him was Alfred. He stood, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed across his chest. When he saw the albino exit the room, he glared coldly at him.

Gilbert shuffled his feet as he left the room. He really hoped the other would say something more, but apparently even Gilbert's half-assed, sorta apology had no affect. Exactly how was he supposed to smooth things over if Matthew didn't want him to? He'd taken barely one step before he saw who waited outside, looking not the least bit happy. Gilbert let out a little squeak and quickly retreated to the backroom again, slamming the door shut and falling heavy against it. He stared at the figure on the floor, half obscured by dogs. "...Um, are you crying?"

Matthew jumped when he heard the guy speak again. He quickly looked up and wiped his face. "N-No! W-Why would I be crying?" he stuttered, wiping his face again. He took a deep breath to center himself. "What are you still doing here? I thought you left." he asked, confused by this fact. He was sure there was nothing else the man needed. Unless he came to mock him so more. He really hoped that wasn't the case.

That was definitely a yes then. Gilbert stayed rooted against the door, looking very awkward in this situation. He could deal with his brother crying when they were kids, sort of, but he had no idea what to do now. His first instinct would be to run out the door again, but that wouldn't help. "Sorry..." he muttered so low the dogs might have been the only ones who heard him. "There might be something dangerous blocking the door."

"Dangerous? What could possibly be dangerous blocking the door?" Matthew asked, confused. This was an animal shelter, for crying out loud! There wasn't anything dangerous here, not even the animals. They were all so sweet and Matthew wished he could take them home with him. But his apartment doesn't allow pets. So, he liked spending as much time with them as he could.

Gilbert sighed and decided to just admit it all. "Your brother said he'd break every bone in my body and is standing outside like a total creeper! And I can't afford the medical bills that will bring. Ludwig will have to drop out of school and work and I'll have to take a third job and forgo sleep for a week at a time until I decide to lay on the train tracks and bemoan my ruined life!" he gasped out, all without taking a breath. He'd clearly thought this over in far too much detail. "Ah, but I really did want a dog."

"What? Alfred's here?" Matthew asked, confused. He stood and went over to the door. And sure enough, his brother was there, leaning against the wall and looking down at his phone, completely relaxed. He looked up when he heard a cough and grinned at his brother.

"Hey Mattie! You ready to go to lunch?" He asked, standing up straight.

"Lunch?" He wasn't aware he had plans with his brother today. But then again, he might have forgotten.

"Yeah. We talked about this yesterday, remember?" he asked. Matthew thought about it for a moment before nodding.

"Vaguely. By the way, there is a guy here who is saying you threatened him. Is that true?"

"What guy?"

"In here." Alfred went over to his brother and looked into the room. His eyes narrowed slightly before relaxing as he looked back at his brother.

"I've never spoken to this man before in my life." He stated.

Gilbert flinched but was left just gaping at the guy's response. He jabbed a finger at Alfred. "Don't lie to your brother! I mean...don't lie period! You cornered me in the club with the creepy Russian and punched me for no reason while the creepy Russian watched looking...creepy." Wait, how many times did he just say creepy? Way to be eloquent. Gilbert burned red with a mix of anger and embarrassment, always one to redden easily because of his light skin. "...not that I'm afraid or anything." They sure were acting friendly though. What the hell.

"Creepy Russian? You mean Ivan? There's nothing creepy about him. He's my friend. I really think you might be confused. Why would I have threatened you?" Alfred asked, appearing confused by the accusation. Matthew looked between the two of them, not really sure what was going on. Though he thought the albino looked cute when he was blushing, he kept that thought to himself.

"You know his name?!" Gilbert yelped. "Oh my god. This is not happening." He collected his dog again and tried to slip out the door with as much distance between himself and Alfred as possible. "If you're going to go around threatening people, maybe you should lay off the vodka. I know I smelled a whole lot of it!" He shuddered at the memory, though he'd become more familiar with the scent of his home soaked in rum growing up. "Can I go now?" As in, without getting hit at a later date when Alfred showed his evil side.

Alfred made a face at the mention of vodka. It really wasn't his favorite. "Like I said, I think you imagined it. I've never spoken to you before today." He stated.

"Yes... You can go.. I'll ring you up." Matthew told him. He led the way out of the room and back to the counter. As he was walking, Alfred glared at the albino on his way out and drug a finger across his throat, making the threat clear before catching up to his brother and throwing an arm around his shoulders, grinning happily at him.

Not sure if Alfred lied or told the truth anymore, Gilbert trailed after Matthew. When he glanced back though, he paled as much as an albino could. The guy was a two-faced creeper! Gritting his teeth, he set the few dog necessities he'd collected onto the counter. "How much is all this crap?" he muttered with another wary look at Alfred. Then he leaned over to whispered at Matthew. "You're not anything like your brother are you?"

Matthew began counting up the price for the items and for the dog. He was surprised by the sudden question. "My brother is a good person. Though he's sometimes a bit childish, he has a good heart." He told him, looking over at Alfred. Alfred had been glaring at the albino, but his expression changed the second Matthew looked at him and he grinned at him.

Even though Gilbert was an older brother and would do anything for Ludwig, he couldn't quite relate when he was on the receiving end end of it. He wasn't unreasonabld, unlike Alfred. Gilbert shook his head again. "Then can you tell him I'm not an asshole or something. Although you probably think I am..." Definitely. "Okay, I'm an ass. Whatever." The price of the items was just under what he could afford, so he counted out the money in bills. "I don't need to sign my name on anything do I?"

Matthew had to agree that this guy was an asshole. Mentally though. There was no way he was going to say that out loud. Despite his behavior though, he still felt attracted to the albino. Which he knew would just hurt him more in the end. "No. Nothing to sign. Just have to promise you'll be giving him a good home." he told him.

"Doubt that." Alfred muttered, low enough so that his brother wouldn't hear. He really didn't like this guy and was going to enjoy beating him up since he still hasn't really heard an apology.

"I will," Gilbert assured him. He dropped down to rub the dog's ears again. "Yeah, Lud is just gonna love you! I'll even let him name you. If you're good, I'll even buy you really nice food if I can afford it," he continued to mutter, not paying attention to anyone else. Dogs were so much easier to deal with and loyal. They never tried to ruin your life like people did just by acting natural. He sighed, looking sad for a second, before he grabbed his bag of supplies and sad a quick good bye to Matthew and left.