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HOLY CRAP! I thought I had completely lost the second part to this story. Finish it, now I can! *Dances a little*

So, anyway, now I'm trying to explore the characters and their pasts instead of just focusing on the sex (but don't worry, there's still plenty of that!). I also tried to make the dialogue a bit less blocky, more fluent. So, where we last left off, Jake was in Nate's car speeding off into the night towards Jake's apartment. Let's continue, shall we? *Oh yeah, if you're under 18, blah blah blah, don't read, blah blah blah, syphilis of the eyes, blah blah blah, mice in your, blah blah blah, with a squid.

Stripping Stripes 2: The Neighbor

By Arohk

Nate swerved to the left to avoid a late night jogger. Of course the idiot didn't have any means to make himself visible and gave him the finger for nearly running him over, as if it was Nate's fault. Gotta love those health nuts. They're incredibly irritating, and the worst part is they live so damn long. Frankly, if Nate met another carnivore claiming that tofu is a much better way to live, he would lose it and shove a cheeseburger down their throat.

Nate, however, had never been an excellent driver in the first place. It wasn't really helping that he was driving in a part of town he was yet to be familiar with and in the dark on top of that. He'd only moved here three months ago with big dreams of becoming an actor; he didn't believe the stories that the city of November, one of the biggest theatrical cities on the East coast, was so inhospitable to rising stars, such as himself. He probably should have, as up until now he'd spent every night in his car, unable to afford to rent a starter home or even a flat. He'd been seeking a place to rent for months, but couldn't find a single place that was willing to settle for less that $675 a month. Needless to say, this was way out of his price range. In a last ditch attempt, Nate had answered an ad for a fur of his stature and looks- from the Broward Talent Agency- in order to avoid that shaming telephone call to his father to tell him he couldn't make it on his own, that he would be forced to return home with his tawny tail between his legs. After one look, Mr. Broward had given him an assignment, and given that nothing went wrong, he would be hired on as a steady client.

Nate chuckled softly as he remembered his reaction when he found out what the required "talent" for Mr. Broward had been.

"You think that was funny, huh?" came an irritated voice from the passenger seat of the Accord Coupe. A tiger rubbing his forehead was glaring playfully at him. "Swerving so I hit my head on the window?"

The lion put a paw over his mouth to stifle a laugh. "Whoops! Sorry, Jake. I didn't mean to. There was this idiot running in the road and I had to. I didn't know you had your head against the window."

Jake smiled. "Yeah, I must have dozed off there. You really wore me out back there. Tell the truth; are you sure that was really your first time?"

"You were my first, Jake." The lion paused thoughtfully. "Well, you and your friends were my first. I still can't believe you guys were so into it. I thought I was there to strip, but it really got out of paw, didn't it?"

"Well, BCC is known for that kind of thing."

"The what?"

"The BCC. Big Cock Club. It was a stupid little thing we started in the locker room in high school. The guys with big cocks all had one side and the others had the other side. Like I said before, stupid. But I made some good friends. Almost all of them were there tonight. George and Tommy weren't there. Those two are crazy."

"You mean it could have been crazier than what happened? I find that rather hard to believe."

"Well, when you sat on my face- truck."

"What?"

"Truck!"

"Truck? Oh- oh shit!" Nate swerved out of the left lane of the two lane road to the blaring horn of a red Dodge truck rumbling past them, the driver yelling some profanity from his open window. Both cats let out a sigh of relief. "Truck, right. These streets can be dangerous at night."

"Yeah. Especially when you drive on the wrong side of the road. All right, before we wrap ourselves around a tree, you do know where we're going, right?"

"North."

"Okay, number one, you cheated. Your car has a compass. And number two, 'North' isn't specific enough. If I'm not mistaken," Jake said as he peered out of the window at the suburban centers lining the road, "we're still an Aldren Highway, right?"

"Aldren, right."

"Okay, you're going to want to take a left at Blueshell Road."

"Right."

"No, a left."

"Ah hah ha, very funny. Now, do you want me to get there at all or what?"

"I can't help it, I love that joke. Okay, okay. Left at Blueshell, then follow it for about a mile or two. You'll pass a Target and a Shell station and then it will be your third right. It's a road call Northshore and there's an apartment complex called Lakeside. Well, it's really like a townhouse complex 'cause they're about twice the size of apartments and they're two stories. And I don't know why they call it Lakeside, I mean it's close to the ocean, not a lake. Anyway, you just follow Northshore to Northbeach and it's number twenty-f..."

"Yeah? Twenty-what, Jake?" Nothing. Nate glanced over. Jake was out cold. Something to look out for in the future, Nate thought. He babbles when he's tired. Nate found it cute.

Twenty minutes later, Nate was flicking his left turn signal and turning onto Northbeach Lane. He let out a low whistle. Even in the dark, he could see a clear view right to the beach and the dark ocean, the moonlight dancing upon its rippling surface. It was across a highway and a boardwalk, but it still meant these apartments would have to be very expensive. He also had no idea he had driven this far East, so close to the Atlantic. As he continued up the lane, counting off the numbers, he thought that it made sense that his new lover be so close to the beach; he was a tiger after all and they loved to swim. He wasn't a big fan himself, but he certainly wasn't afraid to get his feet wet. He pulled into one of the empty spaces in front of numbers twenty-four and twenty-five. He knew that Jake had left it clear it was one of the two.

"Jake?" said Nate after slipping a finger into the ring of his keys in order to keep a good hold of them. "Jake? Which one is yours?"

Jake just snorted when Nate poked him. Nate rolled his eyes and got out of the car, closing his door and circling to the passenger side. He clicked open the door and grunted as he felt the door, with Jake's weight upon it, swing out to hit him in the stomach. He gently maneuvered the sleeping tiger into his brawny arms and closed the door after him with his footpaw. As he walked up the neatly manicured path to the doorways of houses twenty-four and twenty-five, he dug a paw into Jake's pockets, carefully extracting a set of keys. He looked at Jake's keyring, hoping to see some indication of which house was his, but no luck. Standing in the lamplight, Nate had to make a decision: twenty-four or twenty five? He shrugged and walked towards the right to the door of house number twenty-five. He extended his right arm and put the key in the lock, making sure not to drop his precious cargo. As he couldn't see the lock very well, he scraped about the lock for a few seconds before finally managing to slide it into the deadbolt. He turned the key, only to find it wouldn't budge. He pulled it out, scraped around again and once more attempted to turn the key, but to no avail. He had pulled it out once more when he heard the bolt suddenly unlock and the knob suddenly squeak as the door was flung open.

With the illumination of a hallway light behind him, the horse in the blue boxers seemed to have an aura glowing about him, outlining his thick neck, his bulging arms, his massive chest tapering to a waist the size of Nate's own, with thighs that appeared to have two hams shoved beneath the skin, they swelled so much. Nate was in awe and the nearly laughed at the first, stupid thought that popped into his head: "Wow, he must work out."

Nate nearly dropped his Jake as the deep bass of the horse's voice washed over him. "Can I help... you...?" he trailed off. The horse suddenly tensed up, his muscles notably tightening and bulging as he took a defensive position. "Who are you and what'd you do to Jake? You've got three seconds buddy before I-"

"Hey, hey! Whoa, there, whoa! I'm just bringing him home. He didn't tell me which house was his and I just picked the wrong one. He must be in twenty-four then," Nate said, backing up a bit as he spoke quickly.

"Yeah, twenty-four. But you still didn't answer my first question."

"I guess you could say I'm Jake's new... boy- uh... ahem... friend. His new friend who met him at Andy's house." Nate was glad he caught himself. He wasn't sure if Jake was public yet with these neighbors. Among friends it was a different story. He didn't know enough about Jake to go blabbing about sensitive things like that. But he hoped he would be, very, very soon. It was only now that Nate realized he was still naked. Luckily, Jake's body was keeping the horse from seeing anything below Nate's chest. A good thing too; seeing this buff fur in almost nothing but his own fur was causing some tingling in his sheath.

"Andy's, eh?" said the horse as he crossed his arms. "All right, well, you seem to check out. Uh... thanks for bringing him home safely; I know he parties too hard sometimes. It'd be boring around here without him. I didn't catch your name."

"It's Nate."

"Nice to meet you, Nate." He held out a thick hand, but Nate motioned that he had his full. "Oh, yes, right. Well, I'm Quinn, but my friends call me Brick."

"Why's that?"

"Well, when I let you call me Brick, you'll find out. Now take him home and don't wake me up again. I gotta be to work early tomorrow." With that, he slammed the door.

Nate raised an eyebrow to no one in particular and turned to the door of number twenty-four. He shifted Jake in his arms as he tried to push the key into the deadbolt of the other door, his fingers slipped and he dropped the keys. "Shit!" He couldn't bend over, so he bent his knees into a squat, keeping Jake's limp form held up in one arm while he felt around the ground beneath him. His tail swung about wildly, keeping him balanced, and he let out a relieved "Yes!" when he felt his fingers close around the keys.

"What exactly did you say you were doing with Jake again?" asked the deep, rumbling voice behind him.

Nate whirled around. Ben was standing in his doorway with his arms folded across his massive, bare chest. "Uh... why?"

"Well, lion boy, it's just that you seem to be delivering my friend home, passed out, all without the aid of pants to cover your ass."

Nate cursed inside for leaving himself so exposed. The doors here did have peepholes after all. "I... uh, yeah, well you see, there was this drinking game... and I lost so-"

Nate was immediately cut off by Ben's raucous laughter. "Let me guess, they had you playing '10 questions,' right?"

"Uh... is that the name of it?" Nate offered weakly.

"They made you get rid of piece of clothing every time you answered a question wrong, right? And all of them are trick questions?"

"Yeah! Yeah, that was it. Then they hid my clothes afterwards. Jake had asked me to go home, but they still wouldn't give 'em back."

"Did they make you beg?"

"Yes! But I said 'Fuck you, guys,' and I decided to go home without them."

"Ha ha! You're my kind of fur, buddy. Nate, was it?"

"Yeah."

"I'll be seeing you around. Put some clothes on before he wakes up. He's not accustomed to waking up to naked guys in his house. We don't want him to freak out when he comes to, do we?"

"Sure," Nate agreed and turned to finally put the key into the deadbolt, eager to get out of the lamplight and into Jake's house. Not accustomed to naked guys, huh, Jake thought to himself. The horse at least definitely doesn't know Jake's gay, or at the very least just came from an all-night orgy. It was a good thing Nate had shown a little forethought. As Jake turned, he couldn't see Ben cocking his head to the side to get a better view of his well-toned ass. He was just glad that the horse either didn't notice or say anything about his densely matted fur due to all of the dried tiger cum from the party earlier that night.

"Night," Brick called as he turned quickly back into his own house and slamming the door again.

Nate stepped into the darkness of Jake's house, tossing the key onto the nearest flat surface and closing the door behind him with his footpaw. He stepped carefully through the dark, spacious home, sidestepping a couch and passing what must be the kitchen. He followed a hallway and stepped into what he assumed to be Jake's room, as it was the only bedroom of the two with the bed not made. He carefully put Jake's sleeping form into the bed and walked out, closing the door softly behind him. Nate went to the bathroom and stepped into the shower, wincing as he did as best as he could to remove the dried cum of Jake's friends from his body. His hands explored his hard body as he soaped up, his hard, eight pack, his chest, two slabs of thick meat, his diamond- cut legs, his bubble butt. He stopped there, running a soapy paw between his two perfect cheeks, his finger brushing slightly against his tail hole. He moaned softly, in pleasure and in pain. It was still so sore from his first time with the tigers, but it still elicited an erotic sensation as he ran a finger over it. Nate ran his hands over his hard stomach as he allowed himself to push a soapy finger into his hole, easily past the second knuckle and wriggled it around inside. He moaned softly under the stream of steaming water. He licked his lips as he pushed his middle finger inside to join the first, twisting them and wiggling them, sending shocks of pleasure up his torso. The itch of orgasm was building again inside of his dripping balls as he rimmed himself. His sheath expanded as his pink cockhead poked out, Nate moaning again at the feel of the warm water cascading over it. As inch after inch slid out, Nate began to bend his knees, pushing his fingers further into himself.

As he wrapped a meaty paw around his hardening cock, he managed to slip another finger into his abused hole. He "ooohed" as he began to stroke himself in time with the thrusting of his fingers, leaning against the tile wall of the shower as he continued to pleasure himself. He thought of Jake and how he'd finally found another who could rival his own lionhood. He had put Jake through what he wanted the most right then with his own cock. He had filled him, stuffed him, impaled him with his massive tool. He jammed his fingers father up his tunnel in a desperate attempt to quench that desire. His hand became a blur, splashing water everywhere as he pumped himself. He pulled his cock down and then let go, letting it snap back and wetly hit his stomach. "Uhhh..." he moaned. He grabbed his massive dick once more, his fingers just barely wrapping all the way around the thick shaft, sliding them down to the base, pulling the skin back from the head and then sliding them to the tip where he brushed his slit, ever so gently. He was driving himself wild. Nate began to pant, throwing his head back into the stream of water as he felt his muscular body giving into the sensations from his ass, as well as his cock. Breathing sharply, he twisted all three fingers about inside, slowly opening them, loving the way his sphincter fought back from spreading any further than it had that night. He wasn't sure how much longer he would last; he could feel his sac tightening up against his body, the heady rush and numbness that precedes a great orgasm.

The sudden "bang" of the bathroom door slamming open caught him by surprise. "What the hell are you moaning about?" cried out a voice.

Suddenly, the shower curtain was whipped to the side and Nate jumped, at once releasing his cock and pulling his fingers a little too roughly from his ass in an attempt to defend himself from his attacker. He gritted his teeth at the pain and slipped in the hot water, throwing out his arms to grab onto something to stay his fall, but only succeeding in grabbing and dragging the shower curtain, rod and all, down with him. Laying on his back, the translucent shower curtain draped over his muzzle as the water beat down on his chest, Nate looked up as Jake, who stood there in his open pants, laughing at the wet, hunky lion.

"Nate, what the hell, man? You look like some cub who's been caught masturbating for the first time. Ha ha!" Jake laughed, holding his sides and having to sit on the lid of the adjacent toilet. "Absolutely classic!"

Nate smiled deviously and replied, "Shut up, you jerk!" splashing water on Jake, who threw up his paws in mock defense. Nate detangled himself from the curtain and stood up, holding the bar in his paws, the water still beating down on him. He reached up, Jake watching in awe through the curtain as Nate's pectorals rippled and stretched, how his biceps flexed, how his stomach elongated, and attempted to replace the shower curtain rod to its proper position. Nate couldn't seem to make the rod fit, and Jake stood, reaching his hands up to meet those of his lion lover, and engaged the latch that allowed the spring-load rod to shorten and tightly fit against the walls of the shower. As they both stood there, peering up at the curtain rod, their bodies pressed together through the plastic, Nate feeling the warmth and comfort of Jake's stomach and chest, Jake feeling the power of the muscles in Nate's. They both looked down slowly after the rod was in place, into each other's eyes through the plastic curtain and began to press into one another, grinding their bodies against each other through the transparent shower curtain. Nate being taller than him, Jake could feel the outline of Nate's limp cock rubbing against his stomach, loving the feeling of the tube of flesh rolling along his body.

"It looks like you got my pants wet, Nate," Jake said, using a cheesy baritone voice.

Nate let go of the rod and threw aside the curtain, advancing on Jake. "Well then, it looks like we'll have to take them off." His paws slid down Jake's chest, his stomach and rested on the waist of Jake's jeans. With a quick rippling bulge of his shoulders and arms, Nate ripped the jeans apart, the denim splitting down the seams of the leg. He threw the remnants into the sink on the other side of the bathroom.

"Dude!" Jake yelled, pushing Nate lightly in the chest. "Those were eighty dollar jeans!"

Nate suddenly felt very sheepish. Okay, he thought. He doesn't like his clothes destroyed. Just off, in general. I can live with that. Acting quickly, he bent down a little to pull Jake into a deep, partially apologetic kiss. Jake seemed to forget all about the jeans in an instant.

"Sorry 'bout that. Let me make it up to you," Nate said seductively, using a much more effective baritone than Jake had. Slowly sinking to his knees while tracing along Jake's body with his paws, Nate came eye to eyes with Jake's pride and joy. He took a paw underneath Jake's limp pecker and lifted it up, letting the head rest on his wrist. He took his other paw and began to rub up and down its length, inhaling the intoxicating scent of Jake's tigerhood. As he rubbed Jake down, Nate brought the huge cock to his lips and deepthroated it, nearly down to the base, in one gulp, like a pro.

"Oh my GOD!" Jake cried out as he grabbed onto the wall with one paw and the back of Nate's head with the other. "Where the hell did you learn... ohh! Fuck!" he cried out.

Nate wouldn't let Jake see his eyes were watering from suppressing his gag reflex; he was going to impress Jake enough to make him his forever. He forcibly relaxed his tongue and his throat and let Jake's rapidly hardening member slide out, leaving only the tip in the lion's muzzle. He lovingly licked all around the head of Jake's cock, tracing the glans and rubbing that oh-so-sensitive spot underneath. When he felt Jake was hard enough for a second try, Nate plunged down again, this time enveloping the entire thing, his nose thrusting into Jake's pubic fur, his chin resting on his fuzzy balls. He moved his head from side to side, adjusting and repositioning, while Jake let out low moans.

"Nate..." Jake whispered, his voice filled with disbelief and lust, "no one has ever done that before."

Nate replied by placing his paws on Jake's hips and pulling Jake's cock out of his mouth, until only the head remained. He then slid his paws behind his lover and squeezed his butt, kneading the flesh and working ever closer to Jake's tight tail hole. On his own, Jake began to thrust in and out Nate's mouth, slowly at first as he stepped fully into the shower, closing the curtain behind him, and then with his paws splayed out against the wall under the showerhead, he began to face fuck his new lover. Nate bobbed along in time, turning Jake's shallower thrusts into deeply penetrating drives. Jake began to hump faster and faster, driven by the heat enveloping him cock from Nate's throat, enveloping his body from the water, and invading his tail hole as Nate pushed two fingers in. Jake began to gasp as Nate began to synchronize his fingers and his bobbing, making Jake's head reel in the steamy shower. Nate knew Jake wouldn't last for much longer; he could feel his balls pulling up against his chin and Jake's ring closing tighter around his fingers. Time for a little payback, he thought. Jake began to shudder, only a few more seconds would push him over the top and then-

Suddenly, it stopped. His ass was empty, grasping for the fingers that had been removed and his hips continued to buck, despite his cock no longer being within its warm enclosure. He nearly stumbled forward, the pain in his testicles was so intense. They literally screamed at him for release, but the suddenness of Nate's disengagement had shocked the cock-driven lust, temporarily, right out of him.

"Shit, Nate! What the hell was that for? You nearly had me!" Jake cried, glaring down at his obnoxiously grinning partner.

"Heh heh heh," Nate cackled evilly from his knees on the shower floor, "now you know how it feels, my pretty, to be so close and then to have someone interrupt all your fun! Hee hee hee!"

"Your Wicked Witch impression sucks, by the way," Jake shot back.

"Don't get pissy, Jake. Besides, that was just a warm-up. You caught me fantasizing earlier, remember?"

"Yeah... and just what would that fantasy entail?" Jake asked, the water beating down on the back of his head as he looked down at the muscular lion on his knees before him.

"Earlier tonight, I dominated you. I impaled you, speared you even. I was imagining you returning the favor," Nate said with a seductively raised eyebrow.

"No need to imagine, Nate. All you had to do was ask."

Jake took a step back as Nate stood up. They embraced and kissed deeply. Nate reached up and directed the showerhead to point towards their bodies as he passionately invaded his tiger lover's wet mouth, their tongues swirling and dancing together. Jake's paw ran through Nate's red mane, pulling Nate's head down and pressed his mouth tightly into his own, while his other paw meandered its way down Nate's body, massaging his rock-hard muscles beneath his wet fur, sliding around to his ass. He gripped and kneaded the sculpted muscle, pulling towards him as well, forcing Nate's body to grind into Jake's, the feeling of the 6'4" lion towering over him by four inches, his chest almost twice as wide as Jake's own, and his obscenely thick cock and orange-sized balls rubbing into his own was overwhelming. Jake broke the kiss and spun the lion to face the wall. He grabbed Nate by the wrists and planted his paws into the wall, sliding up his arms and then pressing down on his back, forcing the lion to bend at the waist, presenting his rump to the eager tiger. Nate licked his lips once more as he felt two of Jake's fingers begin to widen him from behind, both massaging and spreading his hole at the same time. Nate clenched his ass cheeks as he unexpectedly felt a tongue grazing over them.

"Mmm..." he purred, closing his eyes and breathing deeply the steam mixed with both males' sex.

"We're just beginning, big boy," Jake replied. He then immediately attacked Nate's hole, grabbing both cheeks in both hands, spreading them as wide as he could, and then lunged forward, darting his tongue in and out and around Nate's well-prepared hole. Jake was fueled by the intoxicating scent of his lover's ass, having loved it at once at the first sniff at Andy's house, and also by the taste of cum leftover on the lion's ring and in his tight tunnel from the previous orgy that night. Literally cheek to cheek with his lover, Jake licked and probed him deeply, causing Nate to moan even louder than Jake had heard him when he was going solo before. The powerful muscles of Jake's tongue and Nate's ass-ring fought for control, Nate fruitlessly attempting to still the invader and to hold it in place, Jake fighting back and pushing forward with all of his might, eager for a deeper taste of Nate's hot, wet passage.

"Ahh... nnngh! Deeper..." Nate moaned. Jake obliged by wrapping his arms around the lion and pulling back on his hips, pushing his tongue as far as possible into the lion's ass. Nate rhythmically ground his ass into Nate's face, still wanting deeper penetration. Jake pulled his tongue out, releasing Nate's hips and gave his hole one last swirl before standing and replacing his tongue with the familiar two fingers. Meanwhile he began to stroke his sheath, coaxing the rest of his cock out; several inches had poked out during the assplay. With his free paw, he reached over Nate's shoulder to the soap dish mounted on the wall at chest level and rubbed the cake along the length of his cock, making it slick and slippery in the hot water, stroking himself to hardness.

"Deeper, huh?" Jake asked playfully.

"Much..." replied Nate lustily.

"Let's see how deep we can go." Removing his fingers from Nate, he offered his cock to his hungry ass, which greedily sucked it in, Jake's tip quickly swallowed. "Damn, you really want this, don't you?"

Nate looked over his shoulder. "You've got no idea." Pushing against the wall, Nate lunged backwards and impaled himself onto his lover's 13" cock, eight of which were swallowed by his eager butt in one pounce. Jake backed away a little, planning to drive himself into further, but Nate beat him to it, leaping back once more, purring loudly when he felt his ass grind against Jake's crotch.

"That's more like it," Nate said softly, reveling in the full feeling in his bowels. His hole was stretched further than ever before, far more than he'd ever been able to stretch himself. As the hot water poured over him, Nate took one paw from the shower wall and ran it down his stomach, gasping in surprise as his fingers crossed over the firm lump in his stomach. "Is that you, Jake?" he asked, massaging the hard rod inside of him from the outside.

"Yeah, that's me, big cat. And so is this..." Jake trailed off as he slid himself out of his lover's tunnel, leaving only the tip inside of him, and then inching his way back in. Both cats moaned as Jake began to speed up, gripping Nate's hips and pulling himself inside of him as far and as deep as he possibly could.

"Deeper..." Nate whispered above the water.

"You'll have to loosen up a bit then," Jake replied. At once, Jake felt Nate's sphincter begin to push him out, but when he relaxed it, it drew Jake in further than before. "That's pretty impressive." Jake smiled as he began to massage Nate's rump and lower back, his hands slick from the water and the soap. With every contraction, Nate drew Jake deeper within himself, until finally, with a gasp from both of them, Jake hilted into his lover.

"That's more like it," Jake murred. The smooth muscle of Nate's passage caressed and massaged the tiger's stiff member, enthralling him to no end. He had never before felt something so exhilarating, so sexual, so intense and so intimate. He had only known the lion before him, enveloping him, for a few hours, and through some unexplainable bond, Jake felt as if he had known Nate all of his life, felt as though he could share anything and do anything with him. Had he thought more of the certainty of the idea, he would have said "soul mate," but being jaded before, having labeled others with the same name, Jake was hesitant to allow this beautiful specimen of a lion the title. He didn't want to screw this one up. Above all things, he prayed, let this last.

These thoughts flashed through his head in a matter of seconds, and were washed away by a wave of pleasure from his groin, his physical senses overpowering his thoughts. Nate had begun to grind himself into Jake's crotch, looking back at him over his powerful shoulders with those beautiful golden eyes, a look of pleading and glazing them. Jake smiled down at him and began to thrust, to spear, to pummel Nate's ass in order to fulfill his interrupted fantasy. Taking long, deep strides, Jake repeatedly filled and refilled Nate's rectum, gripping his hips tighter and tighter. Amid the steam from the water that poured over the couple, Jake inhaled the undeniably intoxicating scent of the lion he was mating with, the aromas of his fur, his sweat and his sex mingling together in Jake's nose. It was driving him wild and he began to lose control as the heady perfume brought his primal instincts bubbling to the surface of his consciousness. He began to dig his claws into Nate's hips, making Nate gasp in a small shock of pain. Jake began to plunge into him faster and faster, pushing himself as far as possible into the slick passage. Nate could feel Jake's dick caress his prostate and massage his insides. Nothing could block out the pain of being so deeply penetrated, but the staggering sensation of being filled so completely, his tailhole stretched around his lover's dick, overwhelmed any notice of it.

Nate made to move one paw off of the wall to paw himself off. He quickly realized his mistake as he was nearly slammed face first into the tile wall. Jake had picked up in speed and force; in fact he seemed to have lost control and was now plowing the lion with near animalistic abandon. Nate realized that the overpowering feelings radiating from Jake's cock within his body was leading him down the same path. He put his hand back on the wall quickly, and a low rumble from his throat permeated the steamy air of the shower. His claws began to slide out of his paws, scraping the tile as he curled and uncurled his fingers. He suddenly found his senses heightened as he gave in to the powerful stimulation from his ass, the energy from each of Jake's thrusts rippling throughout his entire body, and he no longer was in need of pawing himself off. It was as if his dick had developed a mind of its own, jerking about wildly and leaking pre-cum onto the tile floor. He sucked in the warm, moist air greedily, inhaling Jake's scent from over his shoulder, merging with his own as Jake had merged with him. To his intoxicated mind, it felt as if he was receiving the best paw-job ever, but from inside his body. The itch of orgasm began to spread throughout his abdomen and Nate threw back his head as his entire body began to clench, seemingly around the invader within him. His chest heaved, his back arched, his quadriceps tightened, his arms bulged and his stomach tightened as an intense wave of euphoria ripped through him. It flew out to his extremities and then shot back down towards his middle, converging in his balls, the tightening feeling Nate knew all too well. However, he'd never known it to be this extreme. The churning in his groin left him weak in the knees. He gasped sharply as climax hit him like a ton of bricks. He had thought that the earlier orgy was the most amazing experience he'd ever been through. Boy, was he wrong.

His cock swelled and his abs constricted. Semen blasted from Nate's cock, splattering all over the wall of the tile, splashing up onto Nate's hands and face, and down upon his legs and footpaws. He fired again and a third time, each more powerful than the next. It was then he heard Jake cry out, "Fuck... Nate, I'm cumming!" He felt Jake wrap his arms around his waist and pull him back into his groin as far as possible. He felt a swelling press against his tailhole and then slip inside of him, Jake's cock widening his passage even further. Deep within him, Nate could feel Jake's steaming cum splash into his bowels, coating his insides and filling him even further. Both moaned in unison, releasing their pent-up ecstasy verbally and physically beneath the cascading waters. Both of them drained their fuzzy balls for the next few minutes, Jake feebly humping into his lover, each movement sending shockwaves of pleasure along his ultra-sensitive cock. Now that Jake had stopped trying to hump him into the wall, Nate reached down and milked the last of his cum from his dick, rewarded with the almost paralyzing sensation of after-orgasm. After few minutes of basking in the warm steam, Jake released Nate and pulled his cock out of him with a soft plop. Nate stood up and the two embraced, Nate pulling Jake deep into his powerfully muscled chest, Jake never wanting to leave this moment. The water poured over both of them, their consciousnesses swallowed by the night.

***

The beams of sunlight poured through the slats in the blinds in Jake's room. Nate's eyes blinked open, taking in unfamiliar surroundings. The light blue pillowcase and sheets, the dark blue comforter that covered him still retained the light scent of Tide. Propping himself up on his elbow, he stifled a yawn with the back of his paw. Blinking rather owlishly in the bright light, he chuckled softly at the size of the twin-sized bed, his tail poking out from underneath the covers and hanging halfway to the floor. He guessed that Jake didn't share beds with many, if any, others. He definitely had the innocence of one just starting life on their own. Another sign was the décor of the room. The walls were mostly bare except for two large posters of Sin City and the Nightmare Before Christmas, a few framed photos and a shelf with models half-on and half-off of it. There was a desk with a laptop and a printer in the corner and the sliding doors to his closet on the far wall were closed. A medium-sized TV sat on a waist high, Build-It-Yourself-With-A-Provided-Hex-Wrench entertainment center. The shelves were packed with a jumble of paperback books and DVD's. He turned his attention to their owner, the tiger sleeping soundly next to him, one of his toned legs and arms hanging off the bed. Despite the fact they had slept together, his back to Nate's muscular stomach, his furry butt nestled in Nate's navel, there still was hardly enough room for the two. Nate smiled as he laid eyes on him, admiring his curves shown beneath the comforter, the shape of his body and head, the cute way the little tuft of hair between his ears was forever standing up. Suddenly, the true meaning of every love song he'd ever heard dawned on him. Here he was, staring at what must be the most beautiful creature upon the planet, sharing a bed with him. The feeling was indescribable. The whole world seemed to brighten. So what if he couldn't find an apartment? He loved someone. So what if he had to take a job that would cause his family endless shame? That someone loved him back. It didn't matter, nothing mattered but Jake. Nate suddenly felt like doing something nice for him. He didn't want to wake him; Jake seemed to be one to enjoy sleep.

Wiping the sleep from his eyes, he decided to make him breakfast. That is if there was any food in Jake's place. He was a young guy after all, not much younger than himself, so Jake knew there probably wouldn't be much to work with. Still, he'd find something. Carefully shifting his body along the sheets to the edge of the bed, Jake lifted the comforter and slipped out of bed, onto the plush carpeting. Knowing he had no clothes anyway, Jake didn't bother with modesty and scratched his ass as he walked softly into the hallway. He remembered it was a left to the kitchen. The tile was cold on his bare footpaws, but it didn't seem to reach him; he seemed to be walking on air. Slipping a claw between the fridge and the rubber gasket that kept the door sealed, he released the seal, and opened the door almost noiselessly, a trick he'd learned when he wanted to sneak a midnight snack with the kitchen next to his parents' bedroom. Nate was shocked to find that the fridge was well-stocked. He took out a carton of eggs, a piece of cheddar cheese, some butter, and a carton of milk. Placing these on the island, he quietly began opening drawers and cabinets in search of something else. He found a box of pancake mix. Pancakes were his favorite anyway, hopefully Jake liked them. Gently opening a drawer, he found the silver ware, and, thinking ahead, took out forks and spoons along with the knife, whisk and spatula he found. In a bowl on the counter were three oranges and a plum. Nate grabbed two of the oranges and sliced them into wedges. While searching for bowls and plates, he turned on the stovetop in the middle of the island. He grabbed a large mixing bowl and two, thin cereal bowls. In the latter he put the wedges, and into the mixing bowl went the two required eggs. He paused. He needed a measuring cup and those little measure-y spoon thingies. He found them in the second cabinet he opened. At least Jake kept things organized. Pouring the milk and the measured mix into the bowl, he held the bowl in the crook of his arm and began whisking it, while at the same time, opening the lower cabinets with his toes while standing on one foot in search of a skillet or large pan. He found them underneath the counter with the fruit. Finished with the whisking, he grabbed two of the pans and put them on the stove. Wiping the knife clean with a napkin from the counter, he cut the butter into two pats and tossed one into each of the pans. Waiting for them to melt, he began slicing the cheese into thin pieces.

Nate began to hum to himself. He always had one song or another running through his head. He told his friends back home that it was like going through life with a soundtrack. They told him that was stupid. As he scrambled eggs in one pan and began pouring batter into the other, the humming rose to a soft singing.

"No more talk of darkness.

Forget these wide eyed fears.

I'm here, nothing can harm you,

my words will warm and calm you."

He flipped the first batch of pancakes onto a plate and began to place the cheese in the middle of the quickly solidifying egg. He stepped away from the stove momentarily to set the table, singing louder as he went along.

"Let me be your freedom,

let daylight dry your tears.

I'm here, with you beside you,

to guard you and to guide you."

Nate knew he could never reach the next notes of the song without going falsetto and just decided to sing them in his own octave.

Jake woke slowly, convinced he could hear angels singing, and dismissed it as the remnant of a good dream. Maybe even of that dream about that wonderful lion. He opened his eyes fully and smiled at the sunlight. He bolted upright when he heard the sound again, knowing he was no longer asleep, and also, not alone in his own home. Grabbing the jeans from last night, he tugged them on and crept out into the hallway. How had he gotten home last night? One of his friends must have dropped him off, or called him a cab after his little birthday party. He felt a sudden pain in his head. He must have had too much to drink last night and passed out. Again. God, he was such a lightweight. Andy wouldn't let him live it down. He heard the singing again, at first it had been very low, but now whoever it was might as well have been giving a concert in his living room.

The voice sang,

"Say you'll love me every waking moment.

Turn my head with talk of summertime.

Say you need me with you now and always.

Promise me that all you say is true,

that's all I ask of you."

Jake had the fleeting thought that this robber had the most beautiful voice he'd ever heard. He pressed his back against the wall and inched towards the doorway to the kitchen area. Whoever it was, they were in full swing of the song. Jake listened to the words, and smiled despite himself. They were sweet, beautiful even, like the voice that sang them. He had to find out who this was. The voice continued,

"Let me be your shelter,

let me be your light.

You're safe, no one will find you.

Your fears are far behind you."

Nate flipped the last batch of pancakes, sighing as he realized he'd slightly burned two of them. Oh well, he thought. I'll eat those. As he flipped the cheese omelet, he continued singing.

"All I want is freedom.

A world with no more night.

And you, always beside me,

to hold me and to hide me.

Then say you'll share with me one love one lifetime.

Let me lead you from your solitude.

Say you need me with you here beside you.

Anywhere you go let me go too!

Christine, that's all I ask of you."

Suddenly realizing he smelled breakfast. Of all things for a robber to be doing, he thought. Cooking. Jake peeked around the corner and his eyes shot wide open. It was the lion from his dreams. The memory of last night came rushing back, a bright beam of light cutting through an alcohol induced haze in his brain. Nate. He loved him, loved Nate. More than anyone else in his life. So much so that he had thought he was a wonderful dream. Just to make sure he wasn't, Jake peeked around the corner again, just to make sure. There was no doubt he was real. In fact, he was flipping an omelet, in the nude no less. He began to look back up and Jake pulled himself back against the wall. He wasn't sure why, but he just wanted to wait for the right moment to say good morning to the dream made flesh singing and cooking in his kitchen.

Nate caught a glimpse of orange fur disappear around the corner of the hall. He smiled, and decided to give his new boyfriend a glimpse at his other talents. He breathed deep and continued with the song.

"Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime.

Say the words and I will follow you.

Share each day with me, each night, each morning.

Say you love me; you know I do.

Love me, that's all I ask of you."

As he finished placing the steaming food on the little wooden table in the corner of the kitchen and pouring two tall glasses of orange juice, he turned towards the doorway.

Jake stepped out into the kitchen stopping at the counter to take in the view of the breathtaking lion before him. He was better than any dream. The way his tawny fur barely covered the muscles of his beautiful body, and grew along their contours, creating shadows that displayed his Adonis-like body, every last gorgeous inch of him. Nate looked up and smiled, as his eyes met Jake's. Nate had never seen kinder eyes. They seemed to have a smile all their own. Nate spread his arms and walked towards Jake, as if to hug him. He put his heavy paws on Jake's shoulders and held him at arm's length. He could barely sing the last line for the huge grin upon his muzzle. The power of his voice washed over Jake.

"Anywhere you go let me go too!"

He pulled Jake to his chest and wrapped him in his arms, Jake throwing his own around Nate's back. He could feel Nate's chest reverberating with the strength of his instrument against him as he sang.

"Love me, that's all I ask of you..."

...his voice trailing off beautifully.

Nate pulled him closer, bending his head down to Jake's shoulder. Jake could have spent eternity in his arms. Nate released his grip on his lover, allowing him to step back. Jake just stared at him.

"What's wrong?" Nate asked.

"Nothing... that was..." Jake started. "That was beautiful." He reached up and grabbed Nate's head, pulling him down into a deep and passionate kiss. Morning breath be damned, Nate thought. I want to taste the inside of that beautiful instrument. It was a full two minutes before they broke the kiss.

"Good morning," Nate said as he gave Jake another hug.

"A very good morning." Jake replied.

"I made breakfast," Nate said, gesturing to the table. "Join me?"

"You made pancakes."

"What, you don't like pancakes?"

"I... love... pancakes. How the hell did you know?"

"Well, who doesn't love pancakes?" Nate replied with a grin as they sat down.

"You forgot one thing."

"What?"

"Syrup."

"Oh, yeah. Be right back." Nate pushed his chair back, stood and walked to the refrigerator. Jake could not have taken his eyes off of the lion's perfect ass if he wanted too. Nate grabbed the maple syrup and sat back down at the table. As they began eating, Nate slightly blushed at the compliments on his cooking.

"Normally I don't like eggs. Is this cheese?"

"That is necessary when making an omelette du fromage."

Jake screwed up his face in thought. "Well, I know 'fromage' is French for 'cheese,' so I'm just going to assume 'omelette du' is an omelette."

Nate laughed. "Close enough."

Jake took a sip of orange juice, and then pointed at Nate with his fork. "You have got a great voice, Nate. It's beautiful."

Nate smiled. "Thanks."

"Speaking of that," Jake continued, "what was that song you were singing?"

"You're joking, right? I thought everyone knew that song."

"Well, I don't."

Nate looked at him incredulously. "You mean to tell me you've never seen or heard The Phantom of the Opera?"

"Considering I've never seen a play in my life... no."

"There was a movie made recently. Some canine played the Phantom. He's got nothing on me. You didn't go to see that?"

"I got sick when me and my friends-"

"My friends and I," Nate corrected with a smug look.

"When me and my friends had planned to see it," Jake continued, ignoring the correction.

"Fine then," he said, making a "nyah" face at him, tongue included. "Either way, I'm going to make you watch it. I'll buy the DVD for you sometime. And definitely, if it comes to town, we'll go see it. With the money I'm making with this new job, I'll be able to buy out at least half the theater. That would be awesome," Nate said, trailing off into a daydream.

"Yeah... okay. Come to think of it, there is a theater a few miles from here, closer to downtown. We could always go see something there. I'd love to see my first show, you know, with you." Jake took another bite of his omelette, looking up at Nate.

"I'd like that too."

"So, are you a big theater buff?"

"You could say that. I'm an actor."

"Well you certainly put on a show last night... and earlier this morning, if I may say so myself."

"Well, that's part of the job. But I meant an actor actor. You know, on stage, like on that theater you were talking about. I've got a degree in it."

"Really? Cool. I mean if you can act half as well as you can sing, you're a shoe in for an Oscar."

"Tony."

"My name is Jake. You should at least know that by now. Sheesh."

"No, no the award for theater is a Tony."

"Oh." Jake thought about it. "You know, I like Tony better than Oscar. It has a better sound to it."

Nate laughed. "You're so damn cute."

"As a button," Jake replied. "But enough about me; let's talk about you. How did all this acting stuff start?"

Nate leaned back in his chair, staring downward into his plate, recollecting. "Well, I guess it all started when I was about five. My mom tells me that I practically came out of the womb singing. She says that I would repeat the chorus of a song until I drove everyone crazy. Like I said before, I was five when it all started, when I heard the Phantom of the Opera for the first time. Well, not the whole thing, just the song called the 'Phantom of the Opera.'"

"So there's a song in the play by the same name?"

"Technically it's a musical."

"Same difference."

"There's no such thing."

"As what?"

"A 'same difference.' At least in this context. Calling it a musical is right, whereas calling it a play is wrong. There isn't a difference, nonetheless a 'same difference.'"

"Someone's got a pet peeve."

"Yeah, sorry. I just hate that. But anyway, yeah, the song is the same as the musical, but it is one of the best in the whole production. It's got organ music and electric guitars."

"Interesting."

"Anyway, I would sing it all the time, in the car, in stores, at home, at dinner. I drove my family nuts. My dad suggested that I just needed to get it out of my system, so he put me in the choir at my church. He only made it worse. For once, I actually looked forward to church every week. Eventually, they made me choir leader. I had solos and I led the whole choir, and I loved singing even more. It's like an addiction. The adrenaline rush when you know all eyes are on you and the joy afterwards when you know you did well. I can't even begin to explain the feeling you get when people you don't even know want to shake your hand and tell you how great you did. It's wonderful."

"So basically, you're a junkie."

Nate laughed. "I guess you could say that."

"So when did you actually get into theater?"

"Well, for my twelfth birthday, my parents bought tickets for the production of Phantom in our town. We weren't really rich or anything, but we didn't have the money to fly to New York and see it on Broadway. But I didn't care. I was actually going to see it, and let me tell you, I was blown away by the whole thing. The actors were great and to hear the music live from an orchestra was amazing."

"We'll definitely have to go one day. To Broadway, I mean."

"I'd like that."

Jake smiled. "Me too."

The two cats gazed at each other for a few moments, just drinking each other in, wondering and appreciating how beautiful each other was, how incredible it was that two furs could find happiness in complete strangers.

Jake looked down first, swirling a piece of a pancake in syrup. "Please, go on," he said as he chewed.

"Anyway, I got involved with my middle school's, and after that my high school's, drama programs. I was in a bunch of school plays and talent shows. In high school I even went to state and national competitions. I placed tenth out of two-hundred and thirty-eight other thespians."

Jake nearly choked on another piece of "What?"

Nate laughed again. "I get that a lot. Thespians. It's basically what you call those in the theater community."

"It sounds like-"

"Yeah, I know what it sounds like. I heard all the jokes. Thespians, lesbians. I even had a t-shirt once that said 'Thespians do it on stage.' My dad didn't get it and hit the roof. That was a lot of fun."

"Was that when he found out?"

"About what?"

"You know... well, you are gay right?"

"Oh, that. Yeah, I am. It was about that time that I came out. My dad wasn't very happy. He yelled and screamed about how he should have seen it coming, that all actors were fags, that he should never have let me join the choir. Mom was more supportive. She said she just wanted me to be happy. However, dad always had a lot of influence over her as well. Basically I graduated from high school with honors and the like, and then I wanted to go into theater as a major in college. But dad wouldn't put up any money for me if that was what I was going to do with my life. Luckily, though, I was able to get an academic scholarship from the state and another from the college theater program. I got free room in the dorms, as well as fully paid tuition. I only got two-hundred dollars per semester for books, but they also gave me an extra three hundred for expenses."

"For one semester? That's stretching it a little thin, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I ended up getting a few different jobs to cover the difference. But I joined the troupe at the state theater by the college and I acted in a bunch of different plays and musicals. I learned a lot there, both the college and the state theater, I mean."

"What college did you go to?"

"Oh, yeah. Forgot to mention that. It was actually just outside of town."

"What, the University of November?"

"Mm-hmm. Well, it's actually a college within the university. It's officially called the November University of Theater."

"N-u-t?"

"Yeah, we called ourselves 'NUTS.'"

"Mmm..." Jake smiled. "I love nuts, myself."

"I'm sure you do," Nate replied, raising an eyebrow. "Anyway, after I graduated from college, a few months ago, actually, I tried to find a steady acting job, but no one in this town seems impressed with my major. I was really surprised, considering how much of a theater town November is. That's how I ended up in my present job."

"Wait, wait, wait," Jake said, shaking his head and holding up a paw to stop the lion. "You just graduated from college?"

"Well, yeah."

"So, you're like, what, twenty-six? Twenty-seven years old?"

"Twenty-two next month, actually."

"You're only twenty-one?!" Jake exclaimed. "Sheesh! You look like you're twenty eight! Do you work out all the time or what?"

"No. I mean, I don't go to the gym or anything, but I certainly don't eat gallons of ice cream at a time. I shot up during my freshman year of college from being five-eleven."

"I'm so freakin' jealous of you, right now," Jake said, mockingly glaring at him.

"Sorry," Nate offered weakly, shrugging.

"Don't be, you tall, genetically lucky bastard."

"Speaking of age, how are old are you, Jake?"

"I turned twenty-four a few months ago."

"Cool. I'll have to remember that." Their conversation and breakfast was interrupted by a trill, but muffled ring. Both Nate and Jake looked around, wondering what it could be. Jake laughed and threw up his hands in a "duh!" gesture.

"It's my cell phone," he said as he fished around in one of the pockets of his jeans. He flipped the small silver phone open. "Hello?"

Andy's cheerful voice crackled out of the speaker. "Hey, Jake! What's up man? How are you, after that party last night?"

"I'm fine, Andy. How was everyone after I left?"

"You mean left with that studly lion? We basically went home, but I wanna hear what happened with you and the lion. Anything... exciting happened after he drove you home?"

Jake didn't think this was the best time to go into such details. "Maybe I'll tell you later, when you earn it."

"Aw, you bastard! I can't believe you! I hire him, introduce you, and I don't even get details?! Weak, man. Fuckin' weak!"

Nate gave Jake a questioning look. Jake met his gaze and mouthed the word, "Andy," to which Nate nodded and began to finish off his last pancake.

"Andy," Jake continued. "I know this isn't the only reason you called. 'Cause if it is, I'm hanging up."

"Whatever. Anyway, you left your truck over here. And a few birthday presents." Jake knew perfectly well what "presents" he was talking about. Mainly the horse-sized dildo he'd received for his birthday yesterday. "I was just calling to say that I'm going to be at work all day, double shift today. So if you want to pick up your stuff, I'm leaving you a key on top of the door."

"Oh, OK. Cool, man, thanks."

"You're welcome. If you ever see that stripper again, make sure to give him my compliments and that I want to see him again, real soon."

"Yeah, sure," Jake said. There was no way that was happening. Nate was all his. "Bye, Andy."

"Yeah, man, see you later."

"See you," Jake echoed. He flipped the phone shut. Jake smiled at the lion across the table.

Nate grinned right back. "I still can't believe you did it."

"Did what?"

"Work up the balls to ask me to give you a ride home."

"What do you mean?"

"You had your truck there, right? You said that your friends wouldn't drive you home or give you any money for a taxi," Nate recollected. "Pretty good, tiger."

Jake laughed. "Well, yeah... I guess you got me. I really wanted to go with you."

"Lucky for you I wanted to drive you home. You were pretty drunk. I'm not sure if you would have made it home."

"Huh?"

"Jake, you passed out in the car. I had to carry you into the house."

"Really? Wow...," Jake said, scratching the back of his head.

"Yeah, 'wow.'"

"That must have been awkward."

"No kidding. Oh, and I completely forgot my clothes when I ran out of your friend's house so quickly. I was running late to get back to Mr. Broward's office and I didn't have time to look for them anyway."

"Yeah, I noticed."

"But the worst part was I didn't know which apartment was yours. Before you passed out, you said 'twenty-fuh,' and I wasn't sure if you meant twenty-four or -five."

"Oh no... don't tell me."

"And I tried to open apartment twenty-five."

"Please tell me no one was home."

"Yeah, no one..."

Jake let out a long, relieved sigh.

"... except for this huge horse named Brick."

"And he saw you naked?"

"And holding you in my arms," Nate added.

Jake stood up, rubbing his temples as if he suddenly developed a terrible migraine. "No! Dammit, dammit dammit! I can't believe-"

"Hey, hey, don't worry. I told him I was at Andy's with you and you passed out. And somehow I managed to convince him we had been playing this question game and they wouldn't give me my clothes back, so I left without them."

"Bet he liked that." Looking relieved, Jake sat back down.

"Yup. Said I was his kind of fur."

"You didn't say anything about... us? Did you?"

"No. I kind of figured that... well..."

"What?"

"I didn't know if he knew you were gay. I avoided the topic entirely, but I don't think he noticed."

Nate began to laugh. "Oh, trust me, he knows. He's had a crush on me since I moved in a few months ago. He is the one who won't admit he's gay. It's pretty funny actually. Brick is really defensive of me. Always screening everyone of my friends who comes over here."

Jake raised an eyebrow. "And how many 'friends' have you had over here?"

"Not like that. I mean friends like Andy. Like one time, I was outside getting the mail and Andy decided it would be fun to sneak up on me and grab me. You know, to scare the stripes off me. Unfortunately for him, Brick was walking by and saw him.

"He didn't," Nate said.

"Yes, he did. Took a flying leap and tackled Andy. Nearly broke his everything in the process. Brick means well, but he overdoes it. Truth be told, he's a little slow, but he's really got a good heart. On top of that, I've never had a boyfriend before. I know the way he acts around just friends. I shudder to think of what's in store for you."

"Don't worry. I think I can handle him. Speaking of our personal lives, and just out of curiosity, you ever have a girlfriend?"

"One. Wasn't for me."

"Well, I'm glad."

"Me too."

"While we're on the subject, where are you from?" Nate asked.

"I grew up here. My dad's rich. He invented some new computer thing after he married my mom. I don't know what; I've never been interested in electronics."

"What about your mother?"

"She died when I was only three of years old. Some sort of brain thing."

"A stroke?"

"No, it was much more sudden. I don't know what it's called, but she basically had an aneurysm in her brain. They couldn't operate or anything. They found it when she was about four months pregnant with me. The doctors told her she could have died in the next few moments or she could live for another couple of years. It was impossible to really say."

"They found this out when she was carrying you?"

"Yeah. But she was determined to have me. Dad tells me he barely slept or ate the rest of her pregnancy. When I was finally born, my dad tells me my mom was the happiest he'd ever seen her."

Nate had a very concerned look on his face, and he reached across the table to take Jake's hand in his. Jake looked up. "Don't worry. My father told me that for the rest of the time she was with us, she lived every day to the fullest. Told both of us how much she loved us, made amends with everyone she had a quarrel with. What? Why are you smiling?"

"It's not about your mother. It just reminds me of a song."

"Again with the songs? All right, I'll bite. Which one?"

"I don't know who it's by, but the chorus says something about doing all the stuff he ever wanted to do, like a ride some bull name Fu Man Chu, or something like that. But the only good line out of it says, 'I hope you get the chance to live like you were dying.' It's a country song."

"That describes her perfectly," Jake said with reminiscent smile. "Wait... you like country music?"

"Me? God no. I just remembered hearing it once and that line struck me as particularly poignant for a country song."

"Good. I couldn't live with a fur who liked country."

"Well, there are a few songs I like. But on the whole it's not my favorite genre."

"I can live with that."

There was a silenced that followed. It wasn't that they didn't have anything else to say to each other. They both felt that words would just ruin the moment. After a few minutes, Jake broke the silence.

"Nate? You do love me, don't you?"

"Yes. I do. You love me?"

"Of course."

"It wasn't just the sex, was it?"

"It wasn't for me. I just feel I-I know you... but I don't. Not really. Not the details, anyway. I don't know your last name. I don't know all that you like, all that you don't. But I just feel like-"

"I want to spend the rest of my life finding out," they said in unison. Another silence descended upon them. This one of awe.

"That was like a really cheesy scene from some bad play," Nate said. They both burst into laughter. "Jake, just out of sheer curiosity, how rich are you?"

"So you're a gold digger now?"

"No... just curious."

"Well, to be honest, I have no idea. My dad never would never tell me, even if I asked him. He always just said, 'Rich enough.' Whatever the hell that means. He never spoiled me. It's not like I got everything I asked for. And even if I did ask for something, I had to do chores and stuff to get it. But when I wanted a car, I got it."

"Maserati?"

"What?"

"It's a sports car. Like a Porshe. Only better."

"Oh."

"You know, in the comics at least, the Batmobile was a modified Maserati."

"Good to know, but no. It was a Toyota. Don't look at me like that. I told you that he refused to spoil me."

Nate stood and began to pace. "So, do you have a ballpark range at least? Or are you going to torment me by stalling some more?"

"Less than a billion."

"That's it?"

"For now. Maybe I'll tell you more, later."

"You're a jerk you know that?"

Jake patted his stomach. "A well-fed jerk. The worst kind."

"Oh yeah?" Nate said as he walked over to the window. "Than have a helping of-" he threw open the curtains, letting in the blinding morning sun "-this!" He laughed as Jake threw up his arms in mock terror.

"It burns!" he cried as he began to hiss. "It burns us!" They both laughed. Nate suddenly realized he was naked, and standing in front of a large bay window that looked out over the street and the beach beyond that. He quickly dashed behind the island in the kitchen, a rather embarrassed look on his face.

"Hope nobody saw that," he said sheepishly.

"Coming from a stripper, I find that very funny."

"Bite me, Jake."

"Say, speaking of the sunshine and the beach-"

"I didn't say anything about the beach."

"- why don't we head down and go for a swim or something?"

"Is it a nude beach?"

"Jeez! Are you some kind of nymphomaniac or something?"

"No. It's just that, if you've forgotten already, I don't have any clothes."

"How the hell is that possible? You mean to tell me that you came to this city with no clothes and the only outfit you had was that cop costume?"

"No. Trust me, I had plenty in my suitcase, before it got stolen."

"Stolen?"

"Yeah, some jerk broke into my car and took it. I'm lucky that it was the only thing of value in my car. And that the idiot didn't know how to hotwire. Then I would have been screwed."

Jake laughed as he stood, bringing the dishes on the table to the sink. "Don't worry, Nate. You can borrow some of my old clothes."

"Old clothes? No offense, but I'm bigger than you now. I hardly think I'll fit into clothes you outgrew."

"Believe it or not, stud. Not all of us are blessed with the body of Adonis without any effort at all. I lost a lot of weight over the past year and a half. Trust me. I'll have something big enough to cover that cute butt."

"If you say so," and he added with a devious grin, "fatty."

Jake punched him in the shoulder.

***

Jake pulled on his swim suit, Nate watching with a huge smile.

"What, no Speedo?"

"Oh, ha ha. I'll have my revenge, lion-boy." For the next ten minutes, Jake thoroughly enjoyed having the tiger model his old bathing suits. Jake laughed as Nate came out of the closet, nearly swallowed by a pair of green trunks.

"Oh, you think this is funny? You were the one who fit in them at one point," Nate said, sticking out his tongue.

"I'm just glad I don't anymore. So none of 'em fit you?"

"No. None of 'em."

"Wait, wait," Jake said as he pushed past the tiger into the closet. He dug round in a white box in the corner. "Here, try these." He held up a pair of black trunks with a stylized red dragon on the right leg.

"Cool," Nate purred as he undid the strings of the current green pair. The trunks fell immediately to the floor. Nate kicked them into the corner of the room as he grabbed the new ones from Jake's hand. He slipped them on.

"They fit." Nate sounded surprised.

Jake slapped his rear. "And you look good in 'em. C'mon. I'll grab some towels and then we'll head out. After we swim for a bit, we'll go and get you some clothes."

"You really don't have to do that."

"I know," Jake said, pulling Nate's head down to his own and kissing him. "That's what makes me so nice." Nate just laughed.

Nate met Jake in the hall and threw the towel over his shoulders. "Shall we?"

"We shall."

Jake locked the door as they walked outside. "Take my car?"

"If you want to drive around looking for a parking space for three hours."

"Walk?"

"Indeed."

As the couple walked away, they had no idea they were being watched.

***

They walked along the beach until they found an empty stretch, away from the boardwalk. After sunning themselves for a while, Jake dragged Nate into the water. It was high tide, and they body surfed the waves for about an hour before they swam out to deeper waters.

"Come on, Nate. There's an awesome sandbar out here!"

They swam to the shallow stretch a couple hundred feet off shore. They were able to sit and talk for a while, as the water only came up to their stomachs as they sat.

"You know what time it is? I'm getting hungry," Jake said.

Nate looked at his wristwatch. "It's five 'til."

"Five 'til what?"

"Three."

"We've been out here a while. Let's head back and get something to eat."

"Sure," Nate said. They stood and dived back into the water, swimming back to shore. High tide had gone and come again.

"Come on, I'll race ya!" Jake called as he splashed water at Nate. Jake responded by dunking the tiger under the waves and taking a head start. The lion sped through the water, pulling himself along with huge strokes of his muscled arms. He reached the shore in no time. He practically leapt out of the water onto the empty beach, pumping his arms in the air.

"I win, tiger," he taunted as he turned back towards the water. He fell silent as he realized Jake was not behind him. "Jake? Where are you? C'mon, Jake, this isn't funny!" He felt his heart catch in his throat as he saw a flash of orange floating in the waves. "JAKE!"

Nate flung himself into the ocean. He found Jake facedown in the surf. He grabbed him around the shoulders and hauled him to the shore. Pulling him above the wave line, Nate looked around for a lifeguard, but they had chosen an empty part of the beach to swim and no one was around. He put his ear against Jake's mouth to feel if he hear or feel if he was breathing. Nothing.

"No, no, no," he moaned as he looked down at the lifeless tiger. He barely remembered the lifeguard training he'd taken when he was sixteen, but he didn't see any other option. He tilted Jake's head back, making sure he wouldn't just be blowing air into his stomach, as he'd learned. He took a deep breath and put his lips over Jake's and began to blow into him. He turned his head and exhaled. Putting one hand over the other, he began to apply three quick presses to Jake's chest. He put his ear over Jake's mouth again. Still nothing.

"Come on Jake, don't do this!" He breathed in again began to blow into Jake once more. This time, he felt Jake's tongue snake into his mouth and wrap around his own. Jake's arms enclosed around him and pulled him into a kiss. Nate scrambled off of the tiger, wiping his mouth with the back of his arm.

"Jake, what the hell man! I thought you were dead!" Nate shouted.

Jake sat up, laughing. But when he saw the anger in the lion's face and the tears that were welling up in his eyes, he stopped immediately. "Nate... it was a joke."

"No, it wasn't! I thought you were fucking dead, man!"

Jake scrambled to his feet. "Nate, I'm sorry, man. I'm so sorry. You're right, it wasn't funny."

"You're damn right, you ass! It wasn't," he yelled again, wiping his tears away.

"I know, I'm really sorry." Jake moved closer and put his arms around him.

Nate still wouldn't look at him. "You scared the shit out of me, Jake."

"I'm sorry," Jake repeated.

Nate unhooked Jake's arms from around his waist and then held him out at arms length. "If you ever do that again, I will kill you. Got it?"

Jake stared at Nate's footpaws. "Yeah. I'm sorry, Nate."

"You're sorry?"

Jake looked up into the lion's face. "Yes. I am."

Nate smiled. "Not as much as you're going to be." He grabbed Jake and put him in a headlock. "C'mon, Stripes. You can apologize some more by buying me a whole 'lotta shit that I don't need!"

Back on the Boardwalk, they stopped in a restaurant and bought a few wraps and a large strawberry-kiwi smoothie to share. After ducking into a few of the beachfront outfitters, Nate had a good start on replenishing his wardrobe.

Jake checked the bag again, eyeing the shorts and t-shirts with beach themes on them. "You should be good for now. We'll do suits later."

"Suits? You're gonna buy me suits? I was just kidding about the whole 'buy me stuff' thing. You didn't even have to buy me any of this."

"I told you before, Lion-O, that's what makes me so nice."

Nate playfully shoved him. "I hope you don't expect me to pay you back or anything, Moneybags."

"Not with money, anyway," Jake winked. "C'mon, I think we should head back home. There isn't a great selection here anyway and the beach is really starting to get crowded now."

"Don't like crowds?"

"I don't have agoraphobia, if that's what you're asking. Do you?"

Nate looked slightly indignant. "No! I've never had an STD in my life!"

Jake burst out laughing and nearly dropped everything. He had to lean against the blue wall of a surf shop to keep from falling over.

"I don't see what's so funny," Nate said with a reproving raised eyebrow.

Coughing a little, but with a huge grin, Jake replied, "You're so cute when you're dumb. Agoraphobia is a fear of crowds."

Beneath his fur, Nate turned beet red. "Oh, like I was supposed to know that little trivial fact. Besides, I thought it was called demophobia."

"It's the same thing," Jake said. "And by the way, why am I carrying your clothes?"

"Because you're a gentlefur, and you wouldn't want me to bear such a burden in such heat, would you?" Nate asked, using his best Southern Bell accent.

"Yes," Jake smiled as he shoved the bags into Nate's paws, "yes I would."

***

Except for some idiot in a BMW who couldn't tell the different between a stop sign and a tomato, nothing too exciting happened afterwards. The walk home took much longer than the walk to the beach. This was partially due to the fact that Jake pulled Nate into almost every clothing store along the way. Ruffling in one of the newly added bags, Nate pulled out and put on a black t-shirt that read, "Britney's Having My Baby," in bold, white letters.

Jake raised an eyebrow. "You had to get that one, didn't you? You wouldn't fuck Britney if she showed up on our doorstep, naked, and in a cold rainstorm."

"So? I like to show I'm up to date on current events."

"By that logic, you're an idiot. That t-shirt is already out of date."

"You just gotta bring a fur down don't ya?"

"Sorry. In that, you just remind me of those crazy goth kids and their 'Keep Staring, Maybe I'll Do A Trick' shirts."

"I could have gotten the one that said 'John Queere' on it. Like the tractor."

"I know what it meant. I guess it could be worse."

They arrived at Jake's door, and as Jake turned the key, Nate had the eerie feeling of being watched. He turned around, but saw nothing. He shrugged and followed Jake inside.

"We're gonna go out tonight, Lion-O. It's 5:40 now. Let's see if we can get out of here by 6:30. Otherwise every restaurant will be a madhouse."

Nate moved towards the bathroom. "Cool with me. I call-"

"Shower? Nope. Already did!" Jake laughed maniacally as he dashed in ahead of him. He closed the door before Nate could muscle his way in. From behind it, Jake called, "Make sure the front door's closed, will you love?"

"Fine." Nate smiled to himself as he went to close the front door. He stopped in his tracks as he turned the corner. In a pair of jean and a black t-shirt, the horse from last night filled the doorway.

"I see you found yourself some clothes there, mate." The horse had his arms crossed and he was leaning to one side. Nate couldn't tell if he was checking him out or pissed off.

"Y-yeah... These are an old pair of Jake's. He's letting me borrow them, at least until I can replace the clothes that got stolen out of my car."

"Stolen? I thought you said your clothes were at Andy's."

"Well, some are, but the others were stolen."

The horse looked at him doubtfully. "Mm-hmm. And why should I believe that?"

"Look, Brick, was it?" Nate began, furrowing his brow. "I don't know what you're getting at, and, no offense, but I don't think it's really any of your business."

Despite all of Nate's athletic skills, Brick still caught him by surprise with his speed. Moving towards him, he enclosed one meaty hand around the lion's throat and pushed him backwards into the kitchen. Nate stumbled and began to cry out when he hit the island and was forced to bend backwards onto its surface by powerful horse. Brick quickly stifled his cry with his other hand.

"Well, listen up, kitty. I'm making it my business. Now the stud in the shower doesn't know it, but I've had a crush on him since he moved into this here apartment. I don't like you moving in on my territory." Brick reached behind Nate's head and pulled a chef's knife out of the wooden block built into the island. He studied it methodically, and without looking down at the lion asked, "Now give me a good reason me why shouldn't I get rid of you right now?"

Nate had had enough. With a swift sweep of his foot, he brought the horse's legs out from under him, sending him crashing to the floor. The knife flew out of his hand. In an instant, Nate had caught it, and pinned the horse to the floor. He threw the knife, the blade catching it's point in one of the cabinet doors. "No, you tell me, Brick."

The horse held up both hands in surrender. "Hey, hey I was just joking, man! Damn, it was just a joke!"

"Is that so?" Nate asked as he bared his fangs.

"Swear to God, man. I swear."

Nate stood up and pulled the knife out of the cabinet and replaced in the empty slot in the block. He helped the horse to his feet. "We should take this outside." He pushed the horse forward and out the door, closing it behind him.

As the horse turned to face him, he was floored by what he saw. Brick had tears in his eyes and everything about his posture marked him for nothing but pity.

Nate was still angry. "What the hell was that about?"

The horse began to sob and threw his arms around the lion's neck and bawled into his red mane. Now Nate was really confused.

"I'm so sorry... I-I wanted him for myself... for... for so long and now... now you've taken... taken him away!" Nate nearly staggered under Bricks's weight.

"Is that it? I knew you had a crush on him but, damn... What you just did-"

"Was completely out of line... it was stupid... I-I thought I could scare you away... I knew it wouldn't work... but I... but I had to try!"

Nate reached around him and hesitantly patted the horse's back. "Um... it's okay. Everything's gonna be okay. Uh... I won't tell anyone if you don't."

The horse stood up, with a tear-stained look of hope. "You won't?" Nate shook his head. "Thanks, Nate. Thanks."

"You remembered my name."

"How could I forget it; you stole my boyfriend."

"I what?"

"Okay, okay. I get it. He was my boyfriend, even if he didn't know it," he muttered.

Nate was beginning to worry for Jake's safety in being around this guy. "Look, Brick. Just, start from the beginning, okay?"

The horse nodded. "Well, I helped him move in, and as I did I really got to know him. He saw me as a friend because he was gay and knew I wasn't, or at least didn't know that I was. I-I've had a hard time admitting it to myself. I mean, all these years I've gone through hundreds of women. My buddies think it's because I'm a 'lady-killer' or something. But it's really because I get bored with women so easily. But with someone like Jake, it's always exciting and new."

"I hear that," Nate admitted. Brick almost looked hurt. "Oh... sorry, Brick. I-I don't know what to say. I mean, we love each other. Jake doesn't seem like the kind of fur who'd take saying 'I love you' easily."

"He said he loved you?"

"Yeah, a lot."

Brick snorted back a sniffle. "I guess I've really lost him then."

"If it helps any, I'm sorry I kind of swooped in and snatched him away from you. Were you... uh... planning to tell him how you felt anytime soon?"

Brick shook his head. "I still can't admit to people I like guys."

"Well, I'm sorry, Brick, but there really isn't much that I can do. I feel for you. I can't say I know how you feel, but I do sympathize. I'm sorry it turned out this way, but I love him, and to be honest, I won't give him up without a fight."

"Well, you already beat me. You're the guy who wins some; you win him. I lose some, and I've lost my chance." He held out a hand. "Congratulations. I hope you two are happy together."

Nate took his hand and shook it. "We can all still be friends, right?"

"Sure."

"Good, I'm glad, Brick. For a looney, you're all right."

Brick laughed. "Gee, thanks. I need a beer."

"I saw a few in the fridge, if you want one," Nate said, jamming a thumb over shoulder at the door.

"Thanks," Brick replied.

Nate swung the door open and froze. Jake was standing there, naked, with a folded towel in his hand. Brick shuddered with ecstacy; he'd never seen his crush naked before and nearly came in his jeans right there.

"How much did you hear?" Nate asked.

"Everything. I-I forgot a towel and I saw you pushing Brick out the door and I followed you," Jake explained. He turned to Brick. "Brick, I feel so horrible. In knew you were giving me signs, but I also you knew you weren't comfortable with who you were, and I didn't want to do anything that might complicate things. I'm so sorry, Brick, but I'm with Nate now, and nothing can change that."

Brick's erection disappeared. His face was downcast and his ears drooped a little. "No, don't be sorry. It was my fault. All my fault. I'm such an idiot."

Jake came forward and put a paw on the horse's shoulder. "No you're not. Don't be down on yourself. Sometimes finding out who you are can be hard to accept and even harder to admit to other people. I know you still want to be friends Nate. Will you still be a friend to me?"

Blinking back tears, the horse smiled. "Of course."

"Good. I'm glad we got that settled," Nate said. "Now, maybe we should all come inside before someone sees our little party."

Jake suddenly remembered he was naked in his doorway and agreed. They pulled Brick inside and shut the door. They all took a seat in the living room, Brick in a recliner and Jake and Nate on the couch.

Brick looked up hopefully at Nate. "I... uh... I don't suppose we could share him, could we?"

Nate's glared should have turned Brick to stone, but instead the horse took it as a solid "touch him and I'll kill you," or more simply, "no."

Jake, however, answered him. "Well, Brick. My heart belongs to Nate, and so does the rest of me.

But to tell the truth, I always thought you were very attractive. I never made a pass at you because I knew you hadn't come out yet, and I didn't want to jeopardize anything with you."

Brick just looked confused. He had gotten very mixed signals. Jake looked at Nate, with a pleading look in his eye. "Come on, Nate. You have to admit, he's beefier than you are. And I know you have to be curious about why they call him Brick."

"Wait, what are you saying, Jake?" Brick asked.

"He's not saying anything," Nate interjected. Grabbing Jake's arm, he hauled him off of the couch. "Can I talk to you for a second? In private?"

Smiling sweetly at Brick, Jake said, "Excuse us, for just a moment," before being dragged off to the hallway.

Jake's back was up against the wall, and, whirling on him, Nate put his hand close to Jake's head and leaned in close to him. Whispering, he hissed, "Are you crazy? This guy practically tried to kill me a few minutes ago! And now you're inviting him to... to..."

"A ménage-a-trois?" Jake asked.

"Yeah, one of those."

"You knew 'omlette du fromage,' but you didn't know 'ménage-a-trois'? Somebady didn't pay attention hard enough in French class-"

"Jake! This isn't the time!"

Jake's smile disappeared. "Sorry."

"Look, we don't even know this guy."

Jake raised an eyebrow, "No, you don't know this guy. I do. He's sweet and he's harmless. Well, he wouldn't have really killed you anyway. If anything, he'd just-"

"I don't care what he'd do, Jake. I'm worried that this isn't what we should be doing this early in this relationship. I'm not ready to share you with someone else!"

There was about a minute of silence. Jake's eyes narrowed, searching the lion's face. A grin broke out over his features and he asked, "Are you... are you jealous?"

"No!"

"You are! You're worried he'll steal me away!"

"Shut up! You're such a-"

"That's so sweet, Nate!"

Nate blinked in surprise. "What?"

"You're worried about losing me! That settles it. You and me? There's no question. I wouldn't let you leave me if you tried."

"Really?"

"Of course. Brick will just have to accept that."

Nate grabbed Jake and hugged him tightly. "Good."

***

"Put your eyes back in your head, Hoss." Jake said. "Nothing is happening tonight."

Brick couldn't help but look slightly disappointed.

"But don't worry. We're not going anywhere."

"You mean that?" Brick asked.

Nate crossed his arms. "What do you think we mean?"

"I don't know. What do you think I think you mean?"

"I don't know, what do-"

Jake held up his paw. "Hey, hey, hey. I've heard this joke already."

There was an awkward silence.

Brick stood and looked at his watch. "Well, I better be getting home."

Again, no one spoke.

Brick walked towards the door.

"Hey Brick," Nate called. Brick turned. "Catch." Jake tossed a beer to the horse, who caught it with both hands. "Promised you one, didn't I?"

"Yeah," Brick said, looking down at the cold can.

Nate walked up to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "Now, just isn't right, you know?"

"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry I put you through all this. I'll go now."

"Are you going to be all right?"

"I'll be fine."

"Are you sure? I mean, Jake and I were going out to dinner tonight."

Jake finished the invitation. "Would you like to come? My treat."

Brick smiled a little. "I don't want to be a third wheel."

"Trust me, no one's getting any tonight. Don't look at me like that, Nate."

Nate raised an eyebrow. "Fine. We'll just eat."

"Sorry to poop on your party."

"What?"

"Shut up, you dumb lion," Jake said playfully.

Brick spoke up. "So, uh... what exactly is going on here?"

"I'm going to put on some clothes and Lion-O here is going to shower. You're going to get dressed and then we're all going out to eat," said Jake.

"Ok. Sounds good to me. I guess I'll see you guys in a few minutes." With that, Brick left the townhouse and made his way to his own.

Nate stared at Jake. "Well, that was uncomfortable."

"Stop it. He's nice."

"And crazy."

"Don't worry, he'll grow on you."

"I'm sure."

"And I'm sure you still have some sand between those two fine butt cheeks, so get in there and shower. I'll have some clothes picked out for you."

"Should I be worried?"

Jake smiled deviously. "I would."

***

Dinner was a smashing success. He knew of a causal Italian place tucked in the back of a shopping center that served the best everything you've ever tasted. Nate finally began to lighten up concerning Brick, and Jake continually kept any tension at bay. By the end of the night, they had really ended up enjoying themselves.

As Nate pulled his Accord into the parking space in front of Jake's townhouse, he noted that he was running low on gas.

He opened the door and folded the seat forward to allow Brick to haul himself out of the back.

"Hey, Jake, thanks for dinner. It was great."

"You're welcome, Brick. And you're welcome too, Nate."

"What?" Nate said, suspecting Jake was once again messing with him. "I said thank you about four times already."

"And you're welcome. Just thought I'd let you know."

Brick laughed. "You guys are a trip."

"It would seem so," Nate replied.

"We should do this again. Like next week."

Brick looked at the ground. "Nah, I can't."

"Why not?" Nate asked.

"It's a work thing. I'm... I got assigned to this big case out in Washington. I'll be gone for a while."

"How long is 'a while'?" Jake asked.

"About 3 or 4 months."

"What?"

"Yeah. But they're going to put me up in this fancy hotel suite while I'm there. And I'll make about two years' worth salary. It's a big thing for me."

"Well, congrats, man. I'm happy for you."

Nate nodded. "Yeah. It sounds great. When are you leaving?"

"Nate! Don't be a jerk!" Jake scolded.

"What? I just wanted to know whether we could hang out again before he goes or not."

Brick laughed. "Don't worry about it, Nate. I knew what you meant. I'm leaving in the morning. I have to drop by the office at noon to pick up a few things and then my flight leaves at five thirty. With security today, if I get there at two I may have a chance of making my flight. I still need to pack, so I have to go. But it was great hanging out with you two. I'm happy for you."

Nate stepped forward and put a paw on his shoulder. "Thanks, Brick."

Jake shoved Nate aside and gave the horse a hug. "That means a lot. Thank you."

"Well, I guess I'll be seeing you two around, huh?" Brick said as he backed up towards his door.

"We could always do something before you leave," Nate offered.

Brick waved his hand. "Nah, don't bother. I'll be getting up real early."

"All right then," said Jake. "Keep in touch, Ok?"

"Sure thing."

Jake turned and walked back to the car. As Brick walked inside his home, Nate whispered, "Hey, Brick."

"Yeah?"

"Not today, but someday," Nate said with a wink.

"Someday?"

"Yeah, someday."

"I'll hold you to that," Brick said with a smile. Then he stepped inside and closed the door.

As Nate turned, he stopped short. Jake was standing there holding up Nate's car keys. "What was that for?" he asked with a smile.

"Nothing. Why do you have my keys- hey, how did you get them out of my pocket?"

"Sticky fingers."

"Oh yeah? I thought you said you'd showered."

"We're gonna go get my truck. I've got things to do tomorrow and I need my truck."

"You don't have work tomorrow."

"Yep. But I do have some things to get done. I'm not officially working, but I have to deliver a few things to my dad from one of his stores. Namely, the one I work at."

"So do I get to meet daddy?"

"We'll see. I'd have to get you something formal to wear."

"I do have money, you know. I could buy myself a suit if I had to."

Jake tossed him his keys as he walked to the passenger side of the car. "Now how could I rightfully call you my bitch if I didn't buy you things?"

"Ha ha. Get in the car, Stripes."

***

Thirty minutes later, they were back outside Andy's house. "Stay here. I've got to get a few things from the house. Don't look at me like that. He left a key; I'm not going to break in, sheesh."

Jake walked up the driveway, the sun having set hours ago, but could still see that Andy's car was not in his driveway. He leapt up the front porch steps and felt around along the top of the doorframe, his fingers falling upon the key. He unlocked the door and walked inside. After switching on the light, he noticed the living room had been cleaned up. There in the corner were his birthday presents and Nate's cop uniform. He bundled them up and walked outside. He locked the door and replaced the key.

"Hey Nate?" Jake called as he walked back to the vehicles. "Nate?"

The windows were down in Nate's car, and the car was empty. Jake couldn't see Nate anywhere. "Nate? Where are you? I know you're trying to scare me. Payback for the beach, right? Well I know what you're up to and it won't-"

Jake suddenly felt the muzzle of a gun pressed against his back. A low voice, with a hint of a New York accent told him, "Move and you're dead. Your friend got what was coming to him, and it's too bad you couldn't stay in Andy's house a little longer. And our job was almost done too."

"Look, I don't know who you are, but my wallet's in my back pocket. Take what you- Hey, wait how the hell did you know it was Andy's... Nate, you son of bitch!"

Jake whirled around to find Nate bursting into laughter, a water bottle in his hand.

Jake hit him in the shoulder, but it failed to do anything but make the red-maned lion laugh harder. "That was so great! Ha ha!"

Now adrenaline rushing through his system, he was tensed but began to laugh anyway. They couldn't stop. Jake repeatedly tried to tell the lion that the prank hadn't been funny through peals of laughter, fully realizing the irony of the situation.

When they finally stopped for breath, Nate realized Jake had his cop outfit. "I've got to give that back to Mr. Broward eventually. What's that other stuff?"

"Birthday presents."

"What are they?"

Jake thought about telling him, but came to the conclusion that he would keep in suspense. "You'll see."

"Oh come on. I told you I hate surprises."

"Exactly. But I think you'll like this one," Jake said as he stowed the boxes underneath the passenger seat. "Come on. It's getting late. You've got to get gas and I've got to get up tomorrow to run some errands for my dad. I'm probably not going to be sleeping much tonight anyway."

"What's that mean?" Nate asked. "What's in the boxes? Tell me. Come on, come on, come on! Tell me!"

Jake smiled devilishly and started the truck. "Let's go Lion-O." He began to drive off down the street.

Nate jumped into his car and followed, muttering about surprises. As he pulled away from the curb, he switched on the CD player. He began to sing to the last bit of the song that was playing.

"You will curse the day you did not do,

All that the Phantom asked of you!"

"Bum bum bum bum buuum..., bum bum bum bum buuum!" he hummed dramatically as he sped of into the night.

There! Ha ha! I finished! Ok, so I bet no one remembers the first part, it's been so damn long. Regardless, tell me what you think, either here or [email protected] Original, I know. Anywho, I've got plans for these two cats. Ok, I know Brick was a big tease. You thought, "Oh! They're gonna fuck a horsie! Bust out the lube, Jim Bob! We's a partyin' tuh-nite! Yee-haw!" Because that's what everyone sounds like when they think about horses like that. Yeah... anyhow Brick is coming back (or is he?) and Nate and Jake will be doing some interesting things in his absence (or will they?) and you'll like it (or will you?) and that's really annoying (or is it? Oops, sorry...). I really tried to focus on characters here, because I knew that they ended up being shallow in the first story. Pretty much, "Hey, you're cute, let's have an orgy. Whee!" Anyway, now that you know what the characters are all about, I'm thinking more sex in the next installment, and hopefully in a less amount of time... Also if you have any ideas, feel free to send 'em!

As always, thanks for reading!

Arohk

P.S. The lyrics from Phantom of the Opera are copyright Andrew Llyod Weber and The Really Useful Group, and all that legal such. Oh, and just as a precaution, I've added a "Long" label to warn those about what they're getting into.

P.P.S. Sorry about the previous formatting! I completely forgot how it shows up on the website, all small and font size 12 microns.