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Bad news hits. Core and Petra struggle to weather the storm.

Core's Opportunity - Chapter 23 by Zmeydros

On his next date with Petra, they have sex the moment Core steps foot in her apartment. First, he gives her another blowjob, then she fingers him, and then she sits in his lap on the couch taking all of him once again. With her happily knotted, their bodies finally come to rest.

She says, "Your pussy training really is coming along nicely."

He blushes. "Well, I've been using toys every day."

"You're a good fox!" She pats his leg.

He nuzzles her neck. "And you're a good kitty."

She nods. "I met with Millie yesterday."

"Oh? How did it go?"

"Starting a business is overwhelming, but she gave me a bunch of helpful sites and this form thingy that I can use to develop my business idea. After that, she has this other form that will help me refine my idea into a business plan. She got them from her friends in her entrepreneur group and I'm already invited to go to their next monthly brunch." She sighs. "Millie is awesome."

He smiles. "Yeah, she's the best."

When his knot softens enough to pull out, they wash up only to give each other oral again. Is he turning into a slut? It doesn't matter, he wants to do this more than anything: pleasure his wonderful kind and lewd girlfriend. He slides his tongue all the way inside her and strokes her shaft while she gasps against the shower wall. Feeling her tremble due to his eager oral treatment is like opening a hundred Christmas gifts all at once. He never thought he'd be so comfortable with someone's balls draped over his muzzle.

Meeting her, being able to date her, is the luckiest coincidence of his life. Getting Millie's help was one in a million, but Petra is one in a billion. Out of the small number of herms out there, she's his age, likes the same things, was available for a relationship, and is unbelievable in bed.

As she cums around his tongue and makes another mess with her massive tool, he gets hard. He grabs her, shoves her against the wall, and takes her as hard as he can. She pulls at his fur, makes out with him, and wraps her legs around him so she can hump harder. It's only the third date, but he can't help but wonder what it would be like to plan trips with her, go everywhere as a couple, and wake up next to her every day. Be able to feel her get off every single day!

Clenching around his prick, she arches her back and digs her claws into his shoulders. He gives her the knot again. She cums even harder than before making a mess on his chest. Tears fall down his cheeks, but are hidden by the flow of the water. This woman against him is just so gorgeous, inside and out.

She kisses him deeply and then says, "This is nice."

He nods. "It's like we're in heat."

Her eyes go wide and she stares at him like she's just remembered something very important. "When is your next heat?"

"I'd have to look at my calendar," he says, blushing.

"When we get out, look it up and I'll get some estrousync."

"Estrousync?" he tilts his head.

"It lets you synchronize your heat with your lover's." She grins.

He bites his lip and rubs his thighs together unable to contain his absolute delight at that idea.

"Ooh, did I hit on something the foxy likes?"

He hides his face by nuzzling under her chin.

She chuckles.

After that, Core pulls out and they get finally get clean. Core finds he's really starting to get the hang of Overwatch and they do far better than the last time they played. As they're lying in bed, Petra says, "So, for our fourth date, maybe we should go out as a couple?"

Core's tail wags. "Sure!"

"Okay, do you want to find us a place to go or do you want me to pick?" she asks.

"Hmm, I think I can find a fancy restaurant we can have fun dressing up for," he says.

She shakes her head. "Nah, take me to a place you love to eat that you'd want to show to a friend."

"Oh, okay!" he says.

"You free on Saturday for lunch? Like, one p.m.?"

More than one date a week is just fine with him. "Yeah, I think I don't work till the evening...but let me check." He lazily flops onto his front and then reaches for his phone. "Yep, that works." He puts it in his calendar.

She grabs her phone and does the same. They talk about strange anime shows they've watched until they fall asleep in each other's arms.

* * * * *

Core stares out of the oval windows in the old-timey doors of Old Spaghetti Factory watching for Petra. It's almost a quarter past one and Petra still isn't there. His chest tightens as steps outside to check one more time. Texting her one more time, he tells her he's going home and that he hopes she's safe.

Instead of walking straight to his car, he walks aimlessly through the parking lot. Just as he's passing a black SUV on his left, he sees her sitting in her car, head bouncing up and down.

Is she crying? He rushes up to her door. As she looks up at him, tears fall down her cheeks. When she pulls at the door handle, he moves back so that the door can open. Then she steps out and pulls him against her not even bothering to close her door. With the car beeping unhappily about her door being open while the keys are still in the ignition, she cries on his shoulder.

Putting his arms around her, he says, "Are you okay?"

It takes her a while to answer and all she says is, "No."

"Want to talk about it?"

She shakes her head.

"Okay, I'm here if you want to talk." His eyes start feeling wet. Is she okay? Did someone die? Did she lose her job? He has a really bad feeling about this. Whatever is going on, she was hiding in her car instead of texting him or telling him. She seemed fine when they texted on Thursday. Did it happen on Friday, this morning?

His legs are aching from supporting her weight by the time she finally calms down enough to say, "I'm going to Florida."

Feeling dizzy and sick, he says, "What?"

"My-my parents called on Thursday night and helped me put together a counteroffer for the job asking for more pay, ten thousand more. It was a compromise since they told me they wanted me to take the job and I said Florida just wasn't a good place for me and that I had a boyfriend I really liked here." She says all of this like it will hurt him less if she gets it all out as fast as possible.

Still feeling like he's about to fall over from sheer shock, he says, "But didn't you want to try your own business? I thought Millie was helping you."

"We went over all the risks in starting a business and...I don't feel ready. It's terrifying, overwhelming. And the Weather Service accepted my counteroffer. Now they're paying so well that I can't just ignore it."

"Are you sure this is what you want?" he asks.

"After all the work they put into helping me with that counteroffer, I can't just turn the job down. And they're right that it's the best, and most stable, job I can get. I can't imagine getting a better gig."

This is just what the universe does to him. If he has a dream, the universe's job is to crush it. He'd be mad at her, but money really does make everything easier. She'd be able to save up for starting her business, go on vacations to places he's never even heard of, and have a nice place to live without needing a roommate. If he got a job working on a triple A game somewhere far away, he might be the one leaving.

That's what's crushing him. This is actually good news. Florida is like the worst place for him or her, but this will open up so many opportunities. He's cursed.

"I was really starting to like you," she says.

"Me too." Why did he ever let himself believe she would stay? That he would get lucky? It's possible that they would have ended up breaking up at some point, but now he can't even try!

"I wish I had a private jet so I could visit you every weekend," she kisses his cheek.

Trying to hide the fact he's crying, he says, "Well, once you get settled in, maybe you can come visit."

"That might not be for a couple months, but I sure will. You keep training that puss of yours and I'll stuff it good when I visit."

He sniffles as his tear trails soak through his fur to his skin. "I will." This is what happens to him. He didn't deserve her. Maybe all this was a brief vacation from his actual life. Maybe in a month he'll have to beg Rudy for his old job back. Acid travels up his throat, but he swallows it down. The burn reminds him: pain is what he deserves.

"Do you still want to have lunch?" she asks.

He doesn't need to drag her down with him. There's no reason for her to stay. "Nah, you probably have packing you need to do."

"Oh?" She lets go of him and looks into his eyes. Seeing his tears, she says, "I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry about me." He forces a smile. "I'll be waiting for you when you visit." There's no way she's going to visit him. His luck has run out.

She forces a smile, eyes still wet. "We're both hungry and I can't pack on an empty stomach. How about we go inside? Who cares if someone sees us with damp cheeks?"

"O-okay," he looks up, hunger completely overtaken by shock and sorrow.

As she starts to close her door, he says, "Your keys!"

"Oh!" she stops the door and leans in to get them. "Thanks!" she says as she puts the keys in the pocket of her jeans.

She leads him into the restaurant as he stares blankly at the even blanket of grey clouds covering the sky.

The tall lemur at the podium looks at their faces and tilts his head slightly before straightening his back and remembering his professionalism. "Welcome, table for two?"

They nod.

"Alright then, wait here and someone will bring you back shortly."

A group of eight raccoons sit in fancy old chairs against the wall waiting to be seated. The antique wood has nicks and scratches that have been re-stained and varnished. Stained glass light fixtures hang from the ceiling. They are flanked by stained glass doors that have been turned into dividers for the various seating sections of the restaurant.

Looking at the colored glass depicting flowers and plants, Core frowns. This was supposed to be their first time out, their first time as a couple. Now it's their last time as a couple. It's goodbye.

A osprey waitress comes up. Her feathers are neatly preened and her motherly bosom reminds him of Millie. She says, "Follow me."

"Can we sit in the train car?" Petra asks.

"Absolutely." She leads them toward the old train car that's in the center of the restaurant. Its open sides and comforting ornate interior helps him calm down just a little.

Enough so that when he sits down, he manages to relax his shoulders. Everything sucks, but at least he's getting to sit in the train car this time.

Petra sits next to him on the bench-like seat pressing her shoulder against his.

Ordering the food goes by without him really thinking about it. Petra being right next to him is making this easier and harder at the same time. Easier because being next to her comforts him. Harder because he now knows this is only temporary.

After the food is ordered, Petra says. "I'm glad I'm getting to see you before I leave. They're flying me in on Monday."

"Monday? Like in two days?"

Looking at her foot paws, she says, "I didn't respond to their offer until the day of their deadline. The reason I got into this job is because they needed a replacement as soon as possible. Otherwise, they would have waited for someone more experienced."

That's exactly the sort of thing that would happen to him. Of course they need her to fly in on Monday. It makes it so she won't have time to see him before she leaves. "Oh, okay." He looks down.

She pulls his chin up and kisses him. "How about we Skype every week?"

His tail wags, but he doesn't let himself get his hopes up. It's not going to satisfy his needs. Or hers. "Sure."

"Maybe we can keep this going long distance," she says.

He squeezes her paw. "I don't want to stop you from getting someone who can actually be there with you, hold you in their arms. You deserve that."

Her muzzle contorts into a deep frown as tears fall from her cheeks once again. "I--God, this is so hard--you deserve that too."

It takes a lot of will to hold back the dark secret of his life: he doesn't deserve lasting happiness.

"Maybe we could just be poly? Would you want to be my online boyfriend?" she asks.

"Only if it doesn't interfere with you getting a Florida boyfriend." There's no way long distance is going to work. They're just going to talk less and less until they stop talking at all. He'd tell her right now that they should just break it off, he'd release her from him and let her live her life, but he's a coward. He's probably going to ruin both their lives. That's all he's good for.

She pulls out her phone. "Let's plan for next Saturday. How about the same time as today? I'll just let my phone worry about the time difference."

"Sure." Putting the date into his phone, he forces himself not to cry anymore. No reason to make her feel more sad then she already does.

She grabs two napkins off the table and wipes his tears with one of them. "We could watch each other play with toys."

Blushing, he he takes the other napkin and starts drying her tears. "Yeah."

When she puts her arm over his shoulders, he does the same to her. They lean their heads against each other and hold each other's hand. Their salads come not long after. At first, they just stare at it. Then both of them try to eat. Petra manages to eat, but he only picks at his salad.

By the time the full meal comes, three-quarters of his salad is still there. Petra glances at it and says, "Not hungry?"

"Not really." He frowns.

She looks down. "I understand."

Dipping his fork into the spaghetti noodles, he pulls some up to his mouth and chews. It's mechanical. He can't bring himself to care about the food enough to recall what he ordered. It tastes like energy his body needs. It tastes like nothing.

She only manages to finish half of her meal. Neither of them thinks of something to say.

When their spumoni ice cream comes, she eats a spoonful and then says, "Wow! This is amazing!"

"They have a special freezer that keeps the ice cream at the perfect temperature," he says.

"It's so creamy!" She starts purring.

A weak smile makes it onto his muzzle as he watches her fall in love with her dessert. It's just enough joy to allow him to enjoy his as well. He savors each spoonful enjoying the slightly bitter chocolate, the nutty pistachio, and the sweet sharp cherry flavors. All balancing each other out, a combination that's far more than the sum of its parts. His relationship with Petra was becoming that. Was...he doesn't manage to hold back his tears and some spill down his cheeks.

He quickly dabs them with a napkin and stops crying. After they're finished with the ice cream, Petra says. "I'll get the bill. I'm going to have plenty of money."

"Nah, I'll get it. I was planning to."

"You sure?" she asks.

"You've got your fancy new job and are going to be starting your new life in Florida. I don't have time to find you a gift, but at least I can do this." He puts his card on top of the bill. This is it, this is all they have left. After they leave this restaurant, the most irreplaceable person he's ever met will slowly drift out of his life. It's like reality is shaking him to wake him from a silly dream. Maybe he needs to stop dreaming these dreams.

She hugs him. "You're sweet."

He hugs back. "So are you."

"I wish this date didn't have to end."

"Me too," he says softly.