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Nathan was standing in front of a closed coffin. He looked around and saw the inside of a church. The whole room seemed to faintly glow with an eerie white glow. Candles were lit all around him. Black flames guttered on the tips, seeming to pull the light from their surroundings into some unseen abyss, he averted his eyes. The room was devoid of other people and yet he could hear a quiet hymn, barely too low to make out the words. The room was cold, and the faint sound of howling winds could be heard from outside.

A loud creaking noise focused his attention on the casket. It opened slowly before a body climbed out from the shadows. The fox woman had the same scarlet red fur as Nathan, and as she rose to his height, he knew exactly who had lain in that box.

Her fur was matted and half-missing. Gaunt dried-out skin showed in patches through rips in her scarlet red dress. A band of cracked brown leather hung around her waist, and a sword on her hip.

"Mom?" He walked towards the figure, stopping when her head snapped towards him, a cold glare in her eyes. It felt like she could see into his soul and pick out each and every one of his fears. Nathaniel shivered, staring into eyes that perfectly mirrored his own.

His mom spoke with a raspy voice, cold as the grave she was buried in. "You failed me, my child, and your father as well. It's no wonder that your sister abandoned you. Who would waste time on such a worthless wretch?"

He staggered as if struck, the words like hammer blows. Nathaniel cried "I tried! I did everything I could-."

Her hand shot out like a whip and struck him across the face. "Excuses! You failed to protect him. Your sister left because of your shame. You will be the downfall of your new friend too. No. I will not allow any more lives to be ruined by my shameful spawn." Her free hand reached lower before settling on the hilt at her waist.

He stumbled back, "Mom! Please! Help me fix this. There's gotta be a way to get him back."

She laughed," There is only one way for someone like you to help anyone.'' She pulled the sword from the scabbard in a flash, cold steel racing to meet his neck.

Nathaniel woke in a cold sweat gasping and heaving for breath. A second later his hands felt around his face. "Just a dream, it's fine, fine, fine, fine." His breaths came in hard and short, too close together. His lungs burned with the effort and yet they felt empty. He could feel the fibers in his sheets and the low hum of the vents. It was too much. He couldn't focus. His mind was racing, replaying the dream over and over. His mother's condemnations echoed in his mind. Over and over. He managed to flare his ki. A wave of heat and warmth flew through his body. Everything else faded into the background, muted by the soothing warm breeze of his own life energy.

Muscles relaxed, he didn't even realize his fist had clenched tight in his sheets. He managed to take a single deep breath. Okay, okay, okay, okay. Just relax and breathe. That's easy, right? He sat there for several minutes, or maybe an hour, just breathing.

Nathan jumped when his alarm went off. He slapped the button to shut it off and slowly laid back down on his bed. A few moments later his heart finally slowed to a reasonable pulse.

Just one more day, graduate today, get that stupid piece of paper and I don't have to go back again. Yep, gonna be getting up any minute now. Getting up, let's go. It's Friday and I'm almost done. This will be an easy day. Just get up. Yep, right now, my legs are moving.

One leg slightly shifted towards the edge of the bed. He closed his eyes for what felt like a moment, then the alarm rang again. Ten minutes, crap!

A few minutes later saw him running out the door, a pair of jeans and a band t-shirt most of the way on, belt clenched between his teeth. I Gotta move, I So don't want to deal with the lecture for being late today. He climbed into the truck with one hand while the other finished pulling his belt on. The engine turned over with a sputtering start and a roar and the old Chevy tore out of the driveway.

A few minutes past the start of classes a roaring engine announced the truck; He pulled into a space and finished straightening out his clothes. A quick look around and he sighed. Not seeing anything Nathan began to sneak his way toward the building. He made it about halfway before he was caught.

"Nathaniel, I should have guessed, though it disappoints me greatly. You are the only student I've ever had the displeasure of hosting at this institution of learning who would show up late to their own graduation of all days. Oh, and if you do wear a belt, most would suggest buckling it before going out in public."

He felt the heat race to his cheeks as he reached down to do just that. Principal Landry was a real ass, at 50 years of age the old dog had particular ideas about how things, and people, should be, this went doubly for students. Though he should have caught the belt on his own he supposed.

To the principal, it didn't matter that his home life involved an eighteen-year-old living alone, his father being dragged out of the house just last week, or even that he had a business to help manage now. No, of course not. That just wouldn't do for any respectable, put together individual. He should be pulling himself up by his bootstraps or some crap like that.

"You really must figure out how to arrive on time, and in the correct attire, or you will never do anything worth doing." Nathan tuned out the lecture after that, he had heard it before... many, many times.

Once Mr. Landrey had finally had enough of lecturing him he made a hasty retreat to his second-period class, before the man could come up with anything else to say.

The hours passed all too quickly in his mind. He didn't want to be here. Didn't want to stand up on a stage surrounded by all of the people who had someone supporting them. He felt like a freakshow attraction, the one guy with nobody to cheer him on. No friends to celebrate with after. No family watching with tears in their eyes. He was alone, nothing new. It still hurts though.

Students were called up alphabetically. He would be one of the last names to be called. He watched them get called up one at a time to collect their diplomas, watched their families stand up and clap and cheer, and cry for them. It hurt, knowing nobody would be there for his turn. So he buried it, the tears behind his eyes, and the tightness in his chest, nobody wanted to see that. Nobody cared.

Finally, his name was called. He walked out to the podium to take his diploma, staring out at the crowd. Seeing the students before him celebrate with their families, it was finally too much. The grief and loneliness made his chest ache. He turned and left, ignoring the yells of the other graduates and staff. He turned a corner and slumped against a wall, finally letting himself cry. Why can't I have anyone? Why am I all alone?

The next morning, Nathan dragged himself out of bed. He hadn't slept at all. After he had gotten home he'd simply laid on the couch for a few hours before returning to his bed. Unfortunately, his bed offered no respite. Thoughts of his father, and his sister, and how horribly alone he was circled in his head. The only thing all these thoughts had in common, was that he just wasn't good enough. That if he were better he wouldn't be so alone. He cried a lot that night.

Nathan's alarm went off. Morning...fine. His head still felt screwed on wrong, and he just wasn't ready to deal with the world. He forced himself to get up and get dressed before going down to the kitchen.

He managed to find a box of cereal. After the bowl was poured he went to get the milk, only to find it had expired 3 days ago. Dry cereal, great. He started a pot of coffee while he ate the cereal from the bowl. Most of a bowl of dry cereal and 2 cups of coffee later, he felt somewhat ready to adult again. He took a moment to clean his mess and headed down to the basement.

Down in the basement, he moved a rug aside and pulled open a trapdoor. He dropped into the stairway and resealed the hatch behind him. The hall filled with a dim glow as he entered, and he began walking down. At the end of the passage was the training room. The same room where he used to train under his mom. The same room where Ash and he had found mom's corpse. He shook off that memory. One day he might be able to go down here without thinking about it. Maybe.

Nathan opened the door and sealed it shut behind him.

The room was modest in size and styled like a Kenjutsu dojo in miniature. The back wall was covered in a series of weapon racks, and there was a small set of gym equipment off to the side. In the center of the back wall was a small shrine. Pictures of his mom and sister as well as the Bible of Clan Yoshino adorned the shrine. The book contained the collected memoirs and martial knowledge of all those who had followed the creed of their clan, as well as no small amount of supernatural lore. It was easily the most prized possession of his family.

First, he bowed in the direction of the shrine, his mom might not be with him, but it was her picture that sat on the mantle, and she was still his teacher. Then he got to work.

He started his training by stretching out his muscles, he had no intention of hurting himself for simple practice. Once that was finished he began a series of strength training exercises. The pain of training helped to clear his head, as did the focus required to maintain his form. He kept it up until his head felt clear again. His limbs were straining under the effort when he finally stopped. As he replaced the weights on their stands he took a long drink of water.

Time for katas. These were always hard, the memories of his mom and sister training with him. It reminded him just how alone he was, now that dad was gone.

First was unarmed combat, he took a stance and bounced lightly a couple of times, feet moving under him he launched into his practice. Step in with a left, right, block, kick, step back, repeat.

Mom would have never accepted them standing still while fighting, even for practice. Movement is life, she would shout, before knocking them off balance, with a bo staff. It was an important lesson and well learned. He repeated the kata for a while before switching to another form. Kick, block, block, step back, forward into another kick, kick, block, repeat.

Satisfied, he nodded once to himself before wiping the sweat from his face and neck with a towel, a few moments sitting with a water bottle and he went to the weapon rack to take the katana from its place. He was almost reverent with the blade. It was his mother's weapon of choice after all. He still remembered practicing with the blade when mom was alive. She would use the smallest knives to counter his rookie swordplay like it was nothing. He wanted to get that good one day, even though she wasn't there to teach him.

He stepped out to the center of the training floor. Sword in hand he set his feet wide and held the sword in a high guard. He breathed in sharply before lashing out with the blade. Strike, strike, parry, low sweep, Stab, block, repeat. He kept up like this for a while until he was drenched in sweat. He'd been at it for a while, and he supposed it was about time to cool off. He lowered the blade and re-sheathed the katana. Once his gear was put away he repeated the stretches from earlier.

Rounding out his training was Ki studies., Nathan had never gotten far in training with the mystical energy. His mom had passed before he was old enough to learn, and unlocking the power on his own had taken years. That didn't stop him.

His practice had allowed him to reverse engineer a few techniques over the years, improving his strength and speed to a bit above baseline, enhancing his senses, and speeding up his healing when meditating. There were a couple of minor tricks as well, though he had yet to test them.

His study of the clan bible was slow and difficult. The concepts were strange and abstract. Many of the descriptions described a practitioner who knew the arts using their own ability to guide a new student. That wouldn't be an option for Nathan. Still, it was his duty to learn. As things stood he was effectively the current clan head. Isn't that depressing? He read until his head ached, and his mind began to shut out new information.

He put the book away and meditated for a while, feeling the energy circulate in his body and the energy of the room as it pushed against his own energy. Ki was strange, like a warm breeze flowing through him. He idly flexed one arm, and the matching hand, feeling the energy flow and strengthening the muscle fibers, the limb felt light and hot, he settled again and focused on cycling the energy through each muscle in his body. The warm heat settled deep, soothing his aching muscles and relieving the cramps and pains of a hard training session.

The final part of every training session was to pray to mom at the small shrine in one corner. He was afraid. That was why he hadn't been down here in over a week after all. He wasn't ready to tell his mom. To admit he failed. He hesitated for a moment, flashbacks of gleaming steel and hard eyes raced across his mind. Words that cut deeper than any blade ever could. He shook it off. Shoulders tight and face set he sat down on his knees to pray.

"Hey, mom. It's me, Nathan. I know I'm not doing so well. Sorry about that. Dad's gone, they took him away. Said he killed somebody. But we both know that couldn't happen. Dad couldn't hurt a fly. Anyway I'm still trying to get him out. I found a good law firm, and they seem optimistic. I don't know what else to do."

"Training is going okay, I think. Well other than that week I put it off. Sorry. I guess I was just too afraid to tell you about all of this. Oh, I graduated, my lowest grade was a B, I'd like to think you'd be proud of that." He never got through this without crying at least a little bit lately.

His voice cracked a bit, tears clouding his eyes, and the words started tumbling out. "I just miss you, and dad. Ash and I aren't getting along lately. I had a big fight with her over the phone. I can't seem to talk to her without fighting. She just doesn't get it. All I want is for her to care. Sorry, I didn't want to make you sad. You used to always hate it when we were fighting. It just hurts, you know."

His eyes had finally let loose, tears falling in earnest now. "Anyway, I just wanted to tell you I love you, and that I'm not giving up. Not now, not ever. I'm gonna get dad out, and make things right. So don't worry about a thing up there. So, yeah that's things lately, I love you mom, I'll talk to you again soon."

He paused for a moment before adding, " I just want to be someone you can be proud of, you know. I've got a long way to go for that, and I keep making mistakes but... I'll keep trying until I make it. So, I just wanted you to know. I still miss you mom."

Nick P.O.V.

Nick was excited, the band had needed a new guitarist for a while, ever since Sebastien's now-ex girlfriend had quit, and Nathan would be perfect. The fox was really good with the guitar, and if he was half as good at singing they'd finally have a second vocalist. He had forgotten to ask him the other day with all the- No, don't think about it!

He shook himself out of that train of thought and pulled up the band's group chat.

Calico Voice: Hey guys I found our new guitarist! This guy is great, you should hear him play!

Tigertunes: New guitarist? What?

Ott-Drums: Yo, what's up?

Calico Voice: Yeah, his name's Nathan.

I was thinking of bringing him into practice to meet you guys, you in?

Ott-Drums: Yeah whatev.

Tigertunes: Hell yeah!

Calico Voice: And seb, no flirting! We don't need to scare him off.

Tigertunes: oh c'mon I wasn't going to flirt

The chat paused for about 30 seconds.

Tigertunes: I make no promises

Calico Voice: Alright I GTG, I'll bring him by in an hour.

He closed out of the chat, and a few seconds later the phone buzzed twice, probably them bickering with each other. Rebecca would keep sebastien in line, probably. He pulled up Nathan's contact and sent him a message.

ME: Hey! Remember me?

There was a long pause before he got a response.

Nathan: Who r u?

Me: It's Nick, you know from the other day?

Nathan: What's up?

Me: I was gonna invite you to my band's practice today

Think I could pick you up?

Nathan: Is this how you find out where I live? Sounds like some stalker stuff to me ;p

Me: What!

No

I just wanted to introduce you

...You're messing with me aren't you :(

Nathan: Lol yeah I'm at 4251 Donners Dr.

cya when you get here

Me: That's pretty close be there in 10

Oh and bring a guitar

Nick quickly got his things together and set off. His car wasn't much, just an old beater of a sedan that his bro passed down to him when he moved out. It rolled from A to B and had enough room for him though, so he couldn't complain much. He placed his guitar and his bag in the back seat before getting behind the wheel and setting off.

Nathaniel P.O.V.

Nathan had just finished making a sandwich for lunch. He had put all the supplies away and was about to take the first bite when his phone buzzed. He set his sandwich down and picked up his phone. It's from Ash.

Ash: Hey, sorry about our last talk... and all the angry texts after. I don't really have time to talk right now, but I wanted to say something.

She still doesn't get it. Her not making time is the problem. He raised the sandwich to his mouth. Just as he was about to bite into it, his phone buzzed again. Then it started to ring. Really? He set the sandwich down one more time. "Hello?"

"Hi, we've been trying to reach you about your car's extended warrant-"

"Don't call me!" He ripped the phone away from his face and pressed the end call button.

Okay, breathe in, then out. Having relaxed he picked up the sandwich for the third time. He glanced at his phone before attempting to take a bite. The phone buzzed again.

"Sonuvabitch! What now?" He put the sandwich down again and unlocked the phone. He had a text from an unknown number.

Unknown Number: Hey! Remember me

There was a long pause before he got a response.

Me: who r u?

Unknown Number: It's Nick, you know from the other day?

Me: What's up?

Nick: I was gonna invite you to my band's practice today

Think I could pick you up?

Me: Is this how you find out where I live? Sounds like some stalker stuff to me ;p

Nick: What!

No

I just wanted to introduce you

...You're messing with me aren't you :(

He could see the frown on the cat's face. It was just too much fun to mess with him. Eh, he needed something to do anyway. Besides It is fun spending time with him.

Me: Lol yeah I'm at 4251 Donners Dr.

cya when you get here

Nick: That's pretty close be there in 10

Oh and bring a guitar

Nathan smiled as he placed his phone back down. I've got something to do today! Okay, back to the sandwich! He raised the sandwich back to his mouth. Wait, did he say ten minutes? I'm still filthy from training. I can't let him see me like this!

He dropped the sandwich and knocked over his chair as he rushed out of the kitchen. His stomach reminded him that it was empty halfway out of the door so he hurried back in. He grabbed a pop-tart for a quick snack and hurried back to his room to get ready. The sandwich lay there in pieces halfway on the plate, completely forgotten.

Nick P.O.V.

Nick was practically bouncing with excitement as he got out of his car. He couldn't wait to get Nathan into their band. Their last guitarist had been alright, but she was a real pain to talk too. He wanted to spend more time with the quiet fox he had met, and this was a perfect way.

Nick rang the doorbell. He heard a decently loud thunk and Nathan shouted, "One second, I'll be right down." A moment later the door opened up to reveal; Oh, oh wow, he has more muscle than I thought. I should definitely stop looking. Yep, totally shouldn't be looking anymore. Did he just get out of the shower? Why am I still staring?

"Hey, Nathan, you're not wearing a shirt right now."

Nathan pulled the hand away from his face, it looked like he managed to hit something rather hard with his face.

"Sonnuva, that hurt. Wait..." Nathan looked at Nick, before slowly looking down at himself. His ears flipped down after he realized his condition. His eyes snapped back to Nick. They looked right at each other for a few seconds. Totally not awkward, nope, not one bit.

"You're staring at me."

"No I'm not."

"Yeah. You definitely are."

"Yeah", He squeaked. Squeaked! I want to die. Nick's cheeks were lit up with a blush so bright it showed through his fur, the downside of white coloring. He turned around so fast his head spun, facing the exact opposite direction.

"Why did you answer the door without a shirt on?"

"I may have forgotten to put one on, speaking of, I should probably fix that." Nick heard footsteps rapidly walking away from him.

A moment later he heard the fox return, still adamantly staring away from the open doorway. The ants on the sidewalk had never been so interesting. "Okay I'm decent, can we pretend this didn't happen?"

That sounded like a wonderful idea. The best idea ever. Why he had never considered an idea could be that incredible in his life before. "Yeah, I mean, agreed, what muscles I mean, you definitely were clothed when I got here." Smooth, genius. Why is it so hard to talk around him?

"So are we going to go meet these friends of yours?"

"Yeah, right. Just toss your stuff in the back." He had never walked so quickly in his life as he did to the safety of his car. He fumbled with his keys for a minute before managing to unlock the doors. He got in the driver's side door and started the car. Nick began to turn to look at the fox, before snapping back to looking straight ahead, a few seconds later he began to fidget in place.

He heard Nathan sit in the passenger seat, and as soon as the seat buckle clicked, he pulled out of the drive. Neither one said a word or looked anywhere inside the car the entire trip.

A short while later the car pulled into a drive in front of a large house.

They got out of the car, awkwardly avoiding eye contact as they gathered their things from the backseats.

"So this is the place. They'll be inside."

The house they were parked in front of was fairly large, though it was also rather plain. Two full stories, and an attached two-car garage, that appeared to have room for four. It was a very impressive structure. Unfortunately it was let down by the plain white paint covering the building. Even the roof was white for some reason.

Nick rang the bell, then he rang it again...and again. Sebastien, you suck. "I'll text him. He does this kind of a lot."

He pulled out his phone and texted Sebastien to get the door. A couple of moments later the door opened, and a tall tiger stepped out to greet them.

Sebastien was dressed in some basketball shorts and a muscle shirt under an open vest. Nick felt inadequate in his baggy jeans and band shirt.

"Hey bro, and you must be the new guy. Hello, I'm Sebastien." He reached to take Nathan's hand.

Nick quickly pushed his hand away. "Sebastien I said no flirting."

"All I did was say hello."

"For you, that is flirting. Now quit it."

"Fair, but hurtful." He turned to Nathan " Please, come inside." He winked. I hate him.

"Take me to dinner first, and we'll see about it." Nathan grinned in that way that only a fox could, an infinite promise of mischief in his eyes.

Nick's hackles stood on end at the exchange, and he had to will his claws not to extend. He took a deep breath.

Sebastien lit up. " I would-"

What!? No, putting a stop to that right now. "Ok, no, this is not happening." Nick placed his hand on Nathan's shoulders and quickly pushed him around Sebastien.

"Woah, what the heck dude." The fox flailed around in the cat's grip as he was removed from the tiger's proximity.

"Nathan, why don't you go ahead, first right take the hall all the way down, we'll join you in a minute." Nick turned back to Sebastien.

Nathan turned around and passed an odd look over both felines. "Uh, sure. Alright then."

Sebastien and Nick looked at each other as the fox left earshot. Seb grinned harder as Nick glared at him." What the hell is wrong with you, I told you not to flirt with him!"

"You also forgot to mention that he was an eleven out of ten. How could I not flirt with him? I don't even get why you're upset. It's not like you care about that kind of-" Oh no. That's his, I'm about to have a crazy idea, look.

His eyes slowly went wide, as he looked the shorter cat over. "No way! There is no way!", Sebastien grabbed his shoulders and looked him in the eyes. "You, the one who's never been interested in anyone in the history of, of, well ever! You like him, don't you? This is great."

Nick's brain stopped dead, meanwhile, his brother only got more excited, "You have a crush, I can't believe it my baby brother is finally growing up!" He pretended to wipe tears from his eyes with one hand. "Oh, I remember how shy you always were. When I find someone new we can compare notes now!"

"I have no idea what you are talking about. Now please let go of me. I do not want to know where those hands have been.", Nick shrugged free of Sebastien's grip and ducked around him to get into the house. He made straight for the band room. He couldn't be, right? I just think Nathan's a cool guy...right?

Sebastien called out to him, "Well if you're not interested, I certainly am."

He slowed down once he heard the tail-end of a drum solo winding down. The practice room was pretty well sound-proofed, not so much that the noise wouldn't carry into the house, but enough that they didn't bother the neighbors when they played at least.

He entered the room just as Rebecca finished with her warm-up. It was a pretty complicated set, and she kept adding more to it to challenge herself. Nathan clapped with enthusiasm. "That was awesome, I mean seriously. I don't think I've ever seen anyone play a set like that in person before."

Rebecca was a five-foot-nothing otter. Dressed in dark colors with black fur dye around the eyes. She held both of her drumsticks in one hand as she walked over. "Thanks. Are you the new guy that Calico wanted us to meet?"

"Nathan. Yeah it's nice to meet you...", Nathan trailed off. He had one hand raised to shake.

"Rebecca, and before you ask, I'm trans, so feminine pronouns, please. If you don't, I am short enough to take your kneecaps. So keep that in mind. Okay red?"

"Of course, I mean, I'd never. Uh female, yeah.." The fox practically tripped over himself.

He was cute when he got flustered. Wait. NO! That's not...cute it's just endearing, yeah that's a better word. Stupid brain.

"Damn straight!" Satisfied, she crossed her arms in front of her as she continued her introduction. "Anyway new guy, I'm the drummer. You're supposed to be our extra vocalist and lead guitar, well if we let you in that is."

"I am?" Oh, I forgot to tell him after I saw his...NOPE. Not right now brain! Why do I keep thinking about that?

"Sorry about that, I kinda forgot with the uh, circumstances at your place." Do not blush. Do not stutter, you've got this.

"Yeah, we've been looking for a guitarist ever since our last one left. I was wondering if you might be interested, even if you're not, that's fine." Nick trailed off a bit nervously at the end. He wasn't sure if the fox would really want to join a motley band like them. It's not like it was anything special. Just a few friends who were bored playing for fun. But he did hope the fox would join.

He thought it over for a few seconds. "Sure, it sounds fun. But I guess I should ask. What do you guys play?"

Sebastien finally stepped up, "Really we're just a cover band. We're in it for the fun of it. We play a little bit of everything depending on the vibe, you know?"

Rebecca stepped up in front of Sebastien. "Alright new guy, here's the deal you can get in the band if all of us vote you in, Nicky already gave his vote bringing you here, so that just leaves me, and Seb. But I'm pretty sure he's voting yes already anyway."

Sebastien sidestepped her and moved just the slightest bit in front of where she stood, though off to the side. "Ignoring that I'm calling the audition lead, you did it last time."

The fox glanced between the two. "Uh, okay. So what do you want me to do?" Nathan seemed a bit awkward. Is he nervous?

"Just plug in your ax and get in front of one of the mics, we'll have you play some songs and see if we like you. If we do, we'll let you in the band, if not we'll send you back home."

"Seems fair enough. Okay. nothing hard about it then." The fox leaned over to get an aux cord and set everything up.

Sebastien took the opportunity to lean in and whisper to Nick "He does have a nice figure, if you don't hurry up, I can't make any promises."

Nick frowned as he whispered back. "I don't like him like that."

"Oh, then why can't I flirt with him."

Nick's cheeks burned, "Because- Because he, I mean...Just leave him alone okay."

The two schooled their expressions as the fox turned around, aux cord now plugged in to his guitar. Nathaniel walked back over, one eyebrow raised as he looked at the two cats. He sent a final look at the otter who simply shrugged.

The fox strummed a few random chords and adjusted the strings slightly. "Okay, so do I just play anything?"

"Anything you want Foxy, play me a tune."

"Oh, well if it's for you I think I have a few ideas." Wait, is he flirting back? Why do I care? I'm not jealous. Right?

He started with a guitar riff that sounded distinctly metal. It didn't take too long before the tune was recognizable.

Sebastien lit up like a Christmas tree. "I like this guy more by the minute."

Nick on the other hand was clenching and unclenching his fists, arms wrapped around his chest. Did he have to pick something so suggestive? The lyrics to this song were not subtle.

"He's got my vote, Foxy can play." Rebecca was tapping out the drum part on the wall.

"Red's a good fit. I could listen to him play all night long." The fox continued to play, clearly having forgotten about anything outside of the music he was playing. As he listened, Nick found he couldn't disagree.

The longer Nathan sang the more intense the lyrics got. And the more Nick forgot where he was. He wanted Nathan to sing for him like that. Wait. What? His stomach seemed to be doing flips all of a sudden, and he felt hot. Do I? He thought about kissing him. If he closed his eyes he could just imagine... Oh! I like him. I actually like him.