Tilted

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#105 of Against All Odds Universe

Hey there,

Here's what was my first story of 2022, featuring a couple of familiar faces. I came up with this idea a little before Christmas 2021 while playing a fighting game against a totally not cheap, not abusive AI that in no way got me annoyed and completely 'Tilted'.

It features Sam & Marek about a month after their summer holiday, spending some time at home together playing a fighting game of their own. One of our competitive 'pandas is enjoying a whole lot of winning, while the other... might be tempted to find a very different way to 'win'.

As always, I hope you enjoy!


_ Tilted _

A warmer than usual summer meant another hot, sticky summer's evening. An evening made even hotter and stickier by how hard Marek and me were going at it on the couch... playing our new fighting game: Rift Warriors 2.

My paws were so damn sweaty, forcing me to grip my controller even tighter. That didn't help the directional pad not to be slippy, making the more complicated moves even riskier to pull off. I had to be careful. Not open up too much to let the long, fiery legs of Chai, Marek's magical kickboxer tiger, through my guard. Health low, just like his, he had me up against a wall, literally, in the shattered, crumbling ruins of a temple that was his character's home stage. Block, block, dodge, weave: Lance, my boxer skunk, needed all of his shadow power to steer clear of those relentless kicks. Jeez, Marek's button-mashing had my heart pumping almost as hard as the stage's guitar-driven rock soundtrack.

"Stand still!" he rumbled, shifting hard with every attack his character threw out. By extension, I shifted too, bouncing, almost going airborne from my seat to the left of him. "How... Why can't I hit you!?"

His tiger launched forward with another spinning flame kick. It went high. My skunk was crouched down low, loaded with a maxed power gauge. Sorry, Marek. My round. Again.

Down, back, down, back, forward: sweaty pads or not, I moved my thumb as fast as possible. A jab of the heavy punch button turned the screen black. The frame froze. I grinned.

"No!" Marek sure didn't. "How--?"

In a flash, Lance sprung up to unleash a rapid-fire rain of shadow-streaked fists on a helpless Chai. The combo meter hit double digits fast, then climbed further, only stopping with a rising uppercut that sent an explosion of purple and black right across the stage. The tiger smashed down to the temple floor, smouldering. My skunk landed next, punching the air as the announcer declared a win by, "Super K.O!"

"What the hell was that!?" Marek threw up his arms. "I had you!"

My bare back sank into the very bottom of the backrest. It was tough to hide my smile as I said, "He just told you."

"What?"

"...That was a Super K.O."

My big red panda glared down at me, eyes like daggers. I heard his tail slap the cushion on the other side of him. Neither of those were enough to keep me quiet.

"I mean... It _was_a pretty super K.O. In my opinion anyway."

Marek snarled something under his breath, dropping his controller into his lap and throwing a paw to his face. His white snout creased. Head shook. My cue to shift over towards his heavily flattened cushion and reach up under his shirt.

"Sorry, hon," I sang, rubbing, then kneading deep into his hip. "That was a really close fight."

He huffed, grunted again... then reached down to rub a finger between my ears. "You're not sorry."

"Sure I am."

"No. You're not."

I couldn't stop a short, snorting chuckle from sneaking out, even after shoving my face into his orange-furred softness. "Okay... What I meant to say was, sorry, hon, but that makes five wins in a row."

Marek leaned over, turning the tables so that it was his hip now smothering my face. I wasn't about to complain. At least not until he grabbed my tail between two fingers and tugged. "You make it sound like I haven't won at all."

I yipped, jolted away, rubbing my tinglingly sore tailbase. "I didn't say that!"

He sighed heavily enough to bounce me back against his fuzz. "Why don't we just play the first Rift Warriors? At least I know how to play that."

I pushed into his bulk, leaning away to find a pouty frown beyond his round stomach and chest. "The new game's not that different."

"It's_very_different."

"How?"

"Seriously? Are you kidding me?" Marek swiped a paw towards the TV, jaw hanging, eyes wide. "There's this whole new dodge system, those damn super K.Os... not to mention the new characters with new moves, and..." He grunted, raising that paw to tug at his increasingly messy turquoise-tipped headfur. "It's starting to piss me off."

"Come on, it's all about practice." I spread my arms and cuddled as much of his side-belly as I could get them round. "We only got the game last week. How-"

"Yeah, and you've played a lot more of it than I have. It's pretty much all you've done this weekend."

"Oh, so I'm not allowed to have fun now?" I wrenched myself out of that one-sided hug. My tail's turn to lash the couch. "Anyway, you still could've played it."

"Not with you occupying it all the time-"

"Not all the time."

"_Most_of the time-"

"No." I shoved against him with both paws and leapt up to my feet. "We had the gym yesterday... and grocery shopping Friday night after I got done with work."

"Yes,we." Marek leaned and loomed further over me, steamrolling even more of the couch cushions and threatening my balance. "How am I supposed to play when I'm not here either?"

"I dunno! ...But I was just pointing out that I haven't had it _all_the time."

"Sam, you-! Don't play dumb."

"Anyway, I was talking about the fact that you could've played with _me_any time you liked."

"That wouldn't have helped."

"Why not?"

"Because!" He threw both arms towards the TV so hard that it legit lifted him up from his seat. "It'd have gone down just like this!"

To be honest, I'd totally run out of counter-arguments to toss back at Marek. But even if I hadn't, I doubt I'd have managed to, what with how hard my big 'panda came crashing back down to the couch. The whole thing groaned, trembled, wood and metal working overtime to resist and support his weight while a gust of hot, humid air blasted my entire front side. His seat cushion damn near disappeared beneath him, dragging a good chunk of the one under me along with it.

"Jeez-!" An invisible force slammed into my back, hurling me towards Marek as his big fat butt settled. I got myself another faceful of his side-belly. Armfuls, too. Too bad I rebounded right back off him again.

"Oof." Marek's cringing snout moved overhead. It stopped spinning a moment after. The ceiling above, too. "Sorry, little 'panda."

"Guh." It's only when I sat up that I realised he'd knocked me flat on my back. "Hey... Watch where you throw that thing."

"What?" His cringing morphed into grinning. Hard enough to crease his eyes closed and show off those chocolate cheek stripes. "Upset that I missed you?"

I smirked back at him, tail sweeping the cushion. "Anyway, moving away from your oversized butt and back to the game-"

"Moving away from my butt? Now _there's_something I never thought you'd say-"

"Back. To. The game..." I held up a finger, smirk stretching to rival his grin. "Whether you'd practised alone or not, you fighting me was_always_gonna go down like this."

"Really?"

"Really. I can't help being talented."

"Oh, what a gracious winner you are." Marek prodded a finger of his own into my chest, pushing me back down to the couch. "I can't wait to wipe that smirk off your snout."

I grabbed it with both paws and started rubbing. "Wanna give that a shot? Right now?"

"Of course I do." He pulled away and grabbed his controller from his lap. "I'll try another character."

"No!" I sat up again. Brushed down my chest fur. "Stick with Chai. You're getting better with him."

"You_would_say that. Trying to keep me on this losing streak."

"You are! And I'm not!"

He humphed, starting a scroll through the character roster. "We'll see."

Fine, I thought to myself. If Marek didn't want my advice, then I'd just have to beat him up some more. Sure, the last thing I'd ever want would be to annoy or upset him, but... I dunno. There was something about getting one over on my big 'panda that put an extra wide smile on my face. Using these smaller paws and this smaller controller to put on a masterclass, right there on our big Visoka-sized TV, took me right back to university. Those Rift Warriors tournaments held in my friends' dorm were always a good time. Especially when I, the only Maleni in the place, came out on top. Size didn't matter then. Just talent... That, and some practice, too.

"This guy will do," Marek muttered, jamming a finger to his select button. "Can't be any worse, anyhow."

I peered up at him. Found the focus in his eyes, but also the grumpy twist in his mouth. Our living room wasn't the dorm, and my 'panda wasn't one of my old uni friends. I figured I ought to remember that.

"Choose a character you like to play and stick with them," I said softly, scooting over to rest my head against his hip. "It'll help. Trust me."

"Thanks, coach," Marek shot back with no shortage of sarcasm.

"I mean it."

"I know you do." He sat forward, pulling me along with him. "Come on. Let's go."

"Well... Alright." With a tap of my controller, I opted to stick with Lance, my favourite character. Yeah, I was playing against Marek, and yes, I didn't want to upset or annoy him, but... I still wanted to win!

Up came the preview screen, confirming my next fight would be against Magnus, a huge grappler polar bear that used lightning power to boost their strikes and throws. They were a nightmare and then some to fight against when in the AI's capable virtual hands. In Marek's? I fancied my chances. "Have you played as this guy before?"

"You know I haven't. He wasn't in the first game."

I did know that, but... Yeah, I wasn't sure where I was going with that particular line of conversation. "Okay."

"Why?"

"No reason."

"There must be a reason." I could almost feel his eyes narrowing over me. A fast glance up from beside him confirmed my suspicions. "Does he suck?"

"No way! He's a real pain in the tail to play against."

"Hah, good." Marek nudged me with the lightest hip-bump that a 'panda his size could manage. "Let's get it on."

I barged back at him, sinking into that always comfortable mix of fat and fur. The temptation to stay there was strong, but the urge to right myself and ready up proved stronger.

The stage loaded up: a snowy lakeside forest clearing that I'd have gladly traded for this searing summer evening in the city. Our characters performed their opening routines. The announcer gave us the 'ready'. Then, he gave the signal to 'fight'.

Right away, Marek had Magnus charge forward, aiming to grab me up at the earliest opportunity. In return, I did what I could to keep Lance's distance, throwing out quick jabs to hold him off before timing a dodge to escape grappling range. The whole time, a part of my thinking and focus stayed back on my university days, remembering the good times I'd spent with my friends and also imagining the great times I hoped I'd share with them soon.

"Hey, y'know I was talking to Dan a couple of days ago." Marek met my statement with silence, only grunting deep in response to another successful dodge away from his bear's arms. "Him and Arno were suggesting we all meet up sometime soon. Haven't seen them for a while."

He grumbled again. His character threw out a wild, useless sidekick. "Yeah?"

"Yeah... The thinking was we might go see a movie. Then get some food or some drinks. Or both." That received even more silence, clacking buttons the only exception. "Marek?"

"What?"

"Did you hear me?"

"Bah!" He tried a dash. Came way too close to grabbing me up into a hold. "Stand still, you little..."

"What do you think?"

"...About?"

I let out a grumble of my own. My skunk threw a stiff one-two-three combo into the big bear's gut. "About meeting up with those guys. We haven't seen them since before the summer."

"Right, sure, that'd be nice..." Marek took me by surprise, jumping forward and coming down with a brutal elbow drop that left Lance flat on his stomach. "Hah! Gotcha."

I rolled back to recover. Get some distance. Marek rushed forward. My quick feint before throwing a shadowy haymaker caught him totally off-guard. "So seeing a movie sounds-?"

"Damn it!"

I scoffed. "Okay then."

"Huh?" The couch shook. A very different shadow overtook me. "Okay then, what?"

"I was just talking about plans!"

"I know you were!" I glanced up to find his irritable scowl before he added, "But I'm trying to play and you're distracting me."

"Not on purpose."

"Sure you're not."

"I'm not!"

As if channelling Marek's annoyance, Magnus lunged for me, arms raised, readying an axe-handle smash. A split second faster and he'd have caught me flush. As it was, a tap of the dodge button was enough to slip away. Countering with an overhand left, right uppercut combo came instinctively. Crash down onto his back he went. First round K.O to me.

"Oh, for-" The whole couch rocked. That shadow hanging over me got darker. I peeked back up to see Marek's arms held high, snout creased with outrage. "What was- That's... Damn hitboxes."

"What's that about hitboxes?"

"They're shit, that's what."

"And how do you reckon that?"

"Because I was right on top of you with that attack, and you _still_dodged!"

"You weren't."

"I was!" His orange and brown tail thumped the couch so hard that it whipped all the way back into his lap. I figured it best to stay quiet. Let it go. Marek wasn't done, though. "How the hell did it let you punch back at me so fast anyway? Damn this... busted game."

"I counter moved. No cheating, no messed up hitbox-"

"Counter move?" I nodded. He frowned, asking, "What's a counter move?"

"If you dodge at just the right moment, you get a small window to counterstrike. It's faster than a regular-"

"I didn't know that! Why didn't you tell me?"

"You never asked!"

"How would I know to!?" He tossed his controller away. It clattered noisily across the coffee table and against his used mug. "_You're_the one who's been playing all weekend, Sam. You could have said something."

I felt bad for Marek, I really did. That said, I couldn't fight back a snort into my fist over his waving arms and wild, slashing tail. "Okay, don't go getting tilted, hon."

"Tilted!?" He froze solid, eyes big and jaw hanging once again. "I'll... tilt you."

"Tilt_me_, huh?"

"Yeah."

"Wanna explain what that means?" My tail swayed as I poked his thigh hard enough to make sure he'd feel it. "Or are you just totally rattled right now?"

"Gah, you little..." Marek growled. Loud. Loud enough that it was him rattling me. "Gods damn!"

"Okay, okay." I slid over, hugging tight against his side. "Honestly. I totally forgot about counter moves when we were setting up, and..." Pressing my nose under his shirt and into his fuzzy bulk, I gave him a smooch that I hoped would show I was, "Sorry."

"Sorry?" Everything tilted for real as he leaned forward fast. I pulled back to watch his paw snatch his controller from the coffee table. "I'll show you sorry..."

He spat that out kinda fierce. I pushed away, trying to find his face beyond his shifting side-belly. "Are you good?"

"Oh, I'm great," Marek insisted with a tone that said otherwise. His huge tail refused to settle. "Come on, ready up. It's round two, right?"

"Uh, yeah..." I scooted a small ways away from him, picking up my own controller. "...Round two."

The opening of that second round went pretty uneventfully, given how irritated Marek sounded just a few moments beforehand. I kept on glancing up, quietly checking in on him, even as I went on the retreat from his ongoing attempts at grapple moves. His tail had calmed and his fur itself didn't seem quite so frizzy. None of that made sense. I knew as well as anyone how good he could be at hiding his emotions and putting on a brave face, but even for Marek, this was one hell of a one-eighty. I couldn't fight it. I just had to ask, "Are you sure you're good?"

"Can you see okay?" he questioned in return, not skipping a beat. That made even less sense. "Past the coffee table, I mean. There isn't too much junk there, right?"

"Uhh...?" What the hell? Was this an attempt to throw me off? The table was clear, his coffee mug and our two differently-sized bowls left over from dinner the only exception. Even in my low position on this big couch, seeing our even bigger TV wasn't an issue at all. "I'm fine? I would've said something if not."

"Good to know," said Marek. Quiet. Steady. Like the calm before the storm... Or the still before the whole living room shifted around me.

His thick paw whumped down next to me. Heavy enough to sink the cushion and drag my focus well away from the TV. I almost dropped my controller from the shock of it all. The force of what followed made sure to finish the job.

"What the-" I looked up to find nothing but black. Black wrapped tight around two immense, growing curves. The whole of it, everything, came crashing down, right ahead of me. Everything shook. Rumbled. Like the damn world was ending. Another rush of air struck, harsher and hotter than the last. I raised an arm to shield myself. Only in time for the cushion beneath me to roll like water. And to turn from a flat seat to a wickedly steep angle.

"Ah, there we go," I heard Marek say, chilled and easy. The weight of his impact made it hard to hear, and the airtime I caught, surprisingly, way harder to focus. "Just as I thought. I can see better from over here, too."

Face-first, I collided with the rear of his doughy muffin top. The rest of me meanwhile found the plumpness of his wobbling left buttcheek. Before I could work out what was what, I'd bounced right back off the both of them, landing flat on my back but reclined on the heavily sunken couch cushion behind him. Above, all I could see was Marek, his rear, hips and back, all looming large and oh so wide, blotting out the TV and so much of the wall behind it. Normally, I'd have kicked back and admired my landscape of a boyfriend for as long as he stayed settled. But, hearing Marek dish out a couple of cheap shots in-game, the only thing I wanted right then was to pick myself up and find my controller. "Hey! You cheat-"

So focused on his bulk ahead, keeping me stuck deep in that divot, I forgot all about a whole different part of his softness. That was until it flumped right down on top of me. I caught a hefty faceful of orange and brown. Thicker and warmer even than all the soupy air Marek's sitting had thrown out. His tail had totally smothered me on all sides, adding to the difficulty of trying to move.

"Did you say something, Sam? I can't seem to hear you so well back there."

"I said-" A mouthful of his fur cut me off. I spat it out then spat back, "You're a cheat!"

"Cheat?" I heard him throw another attack. A snicker followed one of our characters thumping to the ground. "Never! I wouldn't dream of anything but a fair fight."

Clawing at the couch, kicking at his butt and tail, working my way out from under Marek's weighty fuzz proved a battle and then some. A workout almost as tough as our gym session the previous morning, even. Once I did make it into the relatively cooler open, breathing hard on a not-so-cratered part of the couch cushion, I made sure to give a pawful of his tail fur a good firm yank. "You're just a... You're such a sore loser!"

Marek paused the game. The couch trembled all over again from him moving, leaning to one side to peer down over his shoulder at me. "And how exactly do you come to that conclusion?"

"Uh, I dunno? Maybe from you throwing your overgrown self right in front of me!"

I could see his teasing smile in his creasing eyes alone. "I was just getting myself comfortable. That's all."

"Sure you were."

"I was!"

"By jumping across the couch and damn near breaking it?"

"As if you'd complain if I _did_break it."

"Hold on." I took a moment to try and shove his flicking tail away. "You said you figured you could see better from over here, too."

He paused. I could see well-oiled gears turning behind his increasingly taunting eyes. "It's both. I'm efficient like that."

"Of course you are."

"I am. In fact..." The cushion shifted again. I lost sight of his face as he leaned forward. Pushed upwards. "...I'm not quite finished getting comfy."

"Wait-"

Marek lifted, putting even more of his sprawling backside firmly on display. Slowly, those steep twin hillsides overtook everything.

"Hold on-"

Then, they moved backwards.

"Hon-"

I kicked out, trying to move back. To get away. As if I had the faintest chance against my big, broad 'panda.

"Marek-!"

He came down gradually, cautiously, but still with more than enough force to utterly smother me between his super-heavy butt and the couch's fast-retreating backrest. Everything turned black as the brown-furred bulk beneath his skin-tight shorts moulded around me. Pulled me into its heat. Gentle, yet unstoppable. Irresistible.

"Okay, I reckon I'm good now." Marek wiggled his hips. Slow and deliberate. "Are you ready to continue?"

All of that weight intensified. The pressure, too. His rear poured around my legs, ultimately sucking them in. My arms and snout started to follow. Not quick enough to stop me shoving back and calling, "Do I look ready to continue!?" I pushed at his cheek again as best I could. Some of it began to spill out over the lip of his shorts. "I don't even have my controller."

"Well you don't seem ready now." He tutted, swaying his wide self along with his tail. "Too busy playing with my butt."

"I'm not!"

"No?"

"No!" Limbs stuck and sunken into him, peering up at all that escaping brown bulk building into a potential avalanche, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't pretty... _very_turned on from my 'panda playfully crushing me. He didn't need to know that right then, though. "How the hell am I gonna play with your butt... when you're sitting right on top of me."

"Yes, because that's stopped you before." Marek leaned back just a fraction. Still enough to put a crease in my nose. At his size, however, even that small shift of his weight sent a tremor through the couch. All while an increasingly teasing tone worked its way into his song-like voice. "C'mon. I know you can never get enough of me. There's no harm in admitting it, sweetheart."

The air got warmer and warmer, soaked in Marek's strong, sweet scent. It left me panting while I sat there, near motionless under all that pressure. I couldn't resist thinking about how I'd practically become one with my 'panda. If he'd decided to stand up, no doubt I'd have been pulled right along with him. The only way I could've been smooshed any deeper would've been if he'd dropped me inside his shorts first. Shorts that I fantasised about giving out from the strain of his enormous rear, ripping and tearing violently, parting at speed to allow so much beautiful bulk to flood over and bury me completely. Sure, I might not have actually been playing with Marek's butt, but the new divot my stiffening shaft had pressed up into it gave away just how much I wanted to.

"Is that something I can feel growing back there?" Marek chuckled, sending breathtaking ripples and crotch-tingling vibrations all over and right through me. "Are you _sure_you're not fooling around with me, little 'panda?"

Gods damn. He was making it tough to keep quiet and avoid admitting what felt like defeat. What I'd have given to throw myself against him and start grabbing and grinding. "...N-No. Still stuck. Still waiting to pummel you some more."

"Hmm... Now that _does_make a change. Heh, usually I'd have a hard time dragging you away."

"Usually_you're_not freaking out over losing at a computer game. Sore lose- Oof!"

Marek sat back. Found yet more weight to pile on upon me. "Sorry, did you say something?"

"I called you a sore loser- Man, get your butt off me already!"

"Why don't you just counter?" He shook his wide hips again. Made sure to get my face squished into him, just like the rest of me. "Or did I forget to tell you how?"

"Marek, stop, my gods," I called past an uncontrollable chuckle. A chuckle that continued as I surrendered and started nuzzling. "You're too damn big... and it's too damn hot."

"Now,_that's_the first time I've heard you say I'm too big. Or too hot."

"Oh, harhar." If I could've moved a paw, never mind an arm, I'd have batted at him. "I never react like this when it's you kicking my tail at something."

"As tenacious as you are, Sam, somehow I can't help but think you'd have a tough time sitting on me, no matter how annoyed you were."

"No! I mean..." I had to catch my breath. As much as I was basking in Marek's weight atop me, as well as the view of even more of his jiggling rear overpowering the elastic his shorts, the pressure had begun taking its toll. "What about our first date...? We played the first Rift Warriors that night... Imagine if I got pissed over losing as many matches as I did that night."

"You still remember that? That's almost a year ago now."

"Of course! I lost like... ten times in a row at one point." I collapsed back even deeper into the couch. Marek's heftiness made sure to follow. "Point still stands you... big jerk of a 'panda."

"Hmm... Well, I imagine if you _did_get pissed that night..." He lifted himself up a short way from his seat. The pressure eased. I still found myself plastered to him. "...I should count myself lucky that you can't do this."

"Marek?" Back went his hips. Tilting, too, angling his rear to point more backwards than downwards. "Hey-!"

My stomach lurched into my throat as we dropped but raced back too. It was as much Marek as it was gravity that caused the next crash, hammering into the couch somewhere between the cushion and backrest. Wood creaked. Crackled. A solid whomp radiated out from us like a shockwave. The couch itself moved, I swear, casters scraping across the wooden floor to add to the thundering racket. I heard and felt all of it, even as I wound up lost, sprawled and smothered, in total darkness behind and beneath so much of my Marek.

"Did you say something?" he asked in a voice majorly muffled and distorted by all the bulk and fabric pressing and squeezing around me. I couldn't move a muscle, a few fingers drumming and pushing back at him the only exception.

"Mar-ack..." Even opening my mouth was a challenge. My heart was pounding, but no longer just from excitement.

"I think you might need to forfeit this fight... Our game, too."

The idea of hitting back at Marek's taunting with a joke of my own had long faded. I grumbled deep into so much rippling softness, doing my best to put up something that did resemble a 'fight'. Still, no matter how hard I tried, those drumming fingers were the best I could manage.

"...Sam?"

It was no use. I had no choice but to try pushing and pinching what little I could of him. Heat swamped my mouth as I opened it. I took in all the air I could find to call, "...September." For the first time in a long while, I fell back on our safeword. "September, Marek! Can't breathe-"

Marek didn't waste a moment. He rushed upwards and forwards with such speed that my head whipped back, even with so much of his fat butt wedging me deep within. I hung there, my view still pitch black, all but suspended in the air. The heat remained. Kept breathing a challenge. Fresh air would come fast, though. Almost as fast as Marek's paw.

His thick fingers prodded and dug around me, forcing himself aside. Coolness tickled more and more of my backfur. Gravity began to tug my chest and stomach away with the rest of me. I started to fall. Only a little. The softness of Marek's leathery palmpad made sure of that.

"I'm sorry, Sam," he cooed sweetly, navigating me around his side-belly to meet his other paw beneath his warm, gentle smile. "I think I got a bit carried away there."

I gasped greedily for air, rubbing my own paw over my forehead, then back through my headfur. A laugh stowed away with my heavy exhalation. "Just a bit."

He lifted me to his chocolate-striped cheeks and white-furred snout, breathing a far more comfortable heat over me as he nosed delicately into my chest fuzz. "I hope it wasn't too much. Too far. Nothing's broken, right?"

"Broken?" I breathed deep again, reaching to rub at the fur around his whiskers. "Come on. You weren't _that_rough with me. You could never-"

"I meant something like your phone." His face creased from the grin I spotted after. "I was so worried about that the whole time..."

"Phone?" My gasping turned into a growl. A good firm swipe at Marek's nose drew a fur-tingling snort from him. "Hate you... Gah!"

He chuckled hard and loud, following up with a wonderfully rough lick from my stomach to my chin. "And of course, awful pest or not, I wouldn't want to hurt my little 'panda, either."

"Better." I leaned up to plant a kiss deep between his sugary lips, savouring his cheerful mumbles as they vibrated from my mouth to my toes. It's only when realisation struck that I stopped, jolting away with an, "Oh no."

"Oh no, what?"

"My controller... Where is it?"

"Hmm?" His head tilted, turquoise-tipped ears stretching upright as he started lowering me down. "Controller?"

"Yeah, I dropped it. Right at the start of all your... sitting." We passed his soft but muscular chest, reaching the even softer hillside of his stomach. "Man, if you've sat on it, then it really is game over."

"I see..." Marek leaned forward right before settling me into his lap. With one paw, he kept me steady against his heavily shifting belly. With the other, he reached towards the coffee table. Even with the fear that my Playmaster controller had ended up crushed into pieces beneath my big 'panda, I wasn't about to miss the way his massive stomach peeked pleasingly from beneath his shirt. I reached down to give him a stroke, a grope, then a jiggle, finishing up once he sat back and offered a rub between my ears. "Do you mean this controller?"

"Huh?"

Marek's thick mitt of a paw eased away from me. Just above my head, I spotted his other paw, holding my controller between the pads of his thumb and two fingers. My tail flicked and waved like a flag as he offered it to me. "Try not to lose it again."

"Thank you." I took it from him gladly. Throwing a playful elbow back into his gut got me a finger-bump on the nose in return. "So, can we play some more now? Fairly? I'm not done mopping the floor with you yet."

"Sure," he said, shaking and wobbling with a snort. That finger of his then shifted to stroke softly down my bare back, ending with a delicate scritch just above my tailbase. "But maybe we can do something co-op soon?"

That expert claw of his worked wonders, sending sparks up my spine and joy through the rest of me. I collapsed against him, only too happy to nuzzle into my cuddly mountain of a boyfriend. Down below, my crotch had no intention of missing out on him, either. "I reckon I might wanna do something co-op in bed a little later after that display."

Marek scoffed. I peered up to find his smirk shining down. "And what happened to it being too hot?"

I shrugged, reaching under his shirt to squeeze directly against his comforting fur. "I'll be fine. As long as you don't try to suffocate me again."

"You weren't going to suffo-!"

"Though that doesn't mean I'm not against you sitting on me some more-"

"I was talking about a co-op computer game, Sam." He groaned, smiling wider, toying with my tail. "Good gods, you really are unbearable sometimes."

"Not sure what you expect after shoving your butt in my face like that." I returned to pressing myself against Marek's stomach. In the process, I caught sight of his own arousal: an impressive semi straining and tentpoling his shorts. It went without saying that scooting closer to fondle its hot hardness with both paws was my only option. "Looks like I'm not the only one that enjoyed it."

"Hey." He prodded me in my stomach, sliding me back to where he'd first settled me with a snicker. "How about we just get back to you pummelling me, shall we?"

"Works for me!" I tugged a small part of Marek's shirt higher. A smooch to his bare stomach filled my nose with his scent and my snout with his warmth. "One more fight, then we can play something else. Something co-op."

I felt him say, "Aww." Then I got to savour his paws wrapping around me, cuddling me gently into his plentiful softness. "Thanks, sweetheart."

"Of course... We'll only play for a bit though."

"Oh?"

"Yeah." I rested my head atop his finger, closing my eyes, breathing deep. "Got a feeling it won't be long before I've got you tilted and flattening me all over again... Be it here... or hopefully in bed."

"Oh for-" Marek released me from his hug, grabbing up his controller to quickly unpause and resume our fight early. "Think fast, little 'panda."

"Hey!" I snatched up my own controller and got back into the fighting groove fast. "Just for that, I'm gonna give you a real beating now..."

"Heh. Bring it."

We ended up playing for a couple more bouts before switching things up and moving on to a co-op game, just like Marek wanted. Sure, the RPG game we settled on was much more up his street than mine, but the smile he wore throughout was way bigger than any I saw while we were going head-to-head.

All in all, Marek having more fun meant that I had way more fun by extension... and once we got done playing with controllers, well, it wasn't too late in the evening for us to move things on and have a whole lot more fun. Together.