Rules

Story by Celestiality on SoFurry

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For some, rules are a burden - a tiger that forces you back into a cage. For Taylor, there's nothing wrong about them. He likes his rules and he doesn't break them, but when a cinnamon-y wolf comes by and just wants it all from Taylor, also in the same boat, will he break his rules just for this wolf or will he toss him away?

So, I've decided that I can deal with one more website to check every time I go online. Here's my first submission to SoFurry. :)


"For some, rules are a burden - a tiger that forces you back into a cage. For Taylor, there's nothing wrong about them. He likes his rules and he doesn't break them, but when a cinnamon-y wolf comes by and just wants it all from Taylor, also in the same boat, will he break his rules just for this wolf or will he toss him away?"

To warn you, there are guys in this story and they do stuff. Don't read if you're under 18 or have an aversion to M/M sex. Otherwise, enjoy the story! Comments and crits are appreciated.

Rules

Two at most to enjoy the night.

"A Coors' Light, if you will good sir," and the greyhound bartender got to it right away. Cash on the table was swapped with a mug of beer still foaming at the top, the mug sliding slightly to make a soft clinking noise for the other. "Thanks." The 'tender only nodded as he went on to polishing his next mug.

Taylor was dressed in skinny jeans and a shirt that was two sizes too small, to show off his skinny figure. The jeans showed off his taut butt underneath his bushy, white tail. His bright green shirt had the red remnants of an old message that used to be on the front. His grey zip-up outside of the shirt was plain and old, something he wore to hold off the bright green from viewers. It gave him somewhat of a passive appearance, as though he could be bursting with color at any moment.

By the time he had gotten through that second beer, Taylor felt ready to take the floor. Wiping the foam from his muzzle, he padded his way to the crowd, slightly inebriated, and let the music flow through his system. He closed his eyes as he let his body react to the heavy techno, stepping in time to the beat and letting himself flow loosely through it all. He felt like he was being swept around by currents as his body started to move on its own, bringing his paws up here and there and waggling his hips to and fro while his tail snaked just behind him.

He'd gotten himself lost on that floor, becoming oblivious and not seeming to care as the bodies of others would bump him now and again. The effects of the alcohol were stronger than he had led on to have believed, bringing to drift in and out of his own actions and thoughts on the floor. Gaps filled his memory lapse and he would not remember things that happen.

Needless to say, he was rather alarmed to be finding someone else's paws feeling him up and the body of the paws' owner closely behind when he drifted back in another time. The paws strayed up and down his thin form, managing to invade the confines of his shirt, contacting with his belly fur underneath. Taylor couldn't smell anything about the person behind him since the floor's stench of multiple smells had clogged up his nose. Their bodies still seemed to be moving to the music, though, so Taylor had not paid it so much as a way to invade his personal space as just a nice feel.

The paws ended up on Taylor's butt and chest, inside the shirt, and he could feel a warm breath in the flesh of his ears as a tongue dipped in to tease his left ear, bringing Taylor to moan aloud. Soon the two had stopped moving with the music and the tongue left his ear was the only part of the two that was dancing.

"Buy you a drink, boy?" came to Taylor's ears over the loud music, though it was only softly spoken. The male behind him - it was clearly a male - released his grasp over Taylor. The only response he gave was a flick of his ears, allowing him to be brought away from the floor and back to the greyhound's bar. Taylor saw that his pursuer was a wolf, like he was, but bigger and with cinnamon brown fur. His scent was odd as well, Taylor noticed as he was brought out of the dancing crowd long enough to unclog his nose. It was like cinnamon, to match his fur. The wolf sat on a stool and brought Taylor onto his lap, trapping the white tail under Taylor to where it couldn't move, though it wanted to wag madly.

"Two Coor-," the wolf spoke, bringing up two paw digits for the greyhound and slapping down some money onto the table with his other paw.

"One. I'll have a Coke," Taylor cut in before the bartender came around with the two mugs. He noticed that his two mugs from before had disappeared, most likely cleaned by the greyhound by now. There was no telling how long he'd been on the floor before he was pulled off. No later had the drinks came than the bartender had decided to go back to his own business as he went on to serve a particularly obese skunk, leaving the two wolves on their own.

The muzzle of the larger wolf crept back to the left ear of the smaller. "So, little fella, what's you're name?" He let his muzzle run its way over Taylor's ear once again, inducing a giggle from the smaller wolf.

"Taylor Jacks," he answered simply, bringing the drink to his muzzle and guzzling it more slowly than he usually would, "what's yours Mr. Big Bad Wolf?"

That brought a chuckle to the muzzle of the larger. "Ryan. Ryan Locke. What are you doing alone here tonight?" He tipped the edge of the mug of beer towards his muzzle, draining half of its contents in one mighty gulp.

"Oh, nothing really. Just came down for a little fun," Taylor noticed that he began to slur his words. He tipped more soda down his maw, keeping track of how his enunciated his words. "I never expect to leave alone, though, on nights like these."

Ryan's ears flicked to the comment. "Well, why not, I've already groped you, right?" He played with the mug, sliding it back and forth between his paws, the condensation beneath the mug giving allowing it to slide easily. "You go to school around here? You don't seem that old."

"Yeah, I go to Toursant. How about you, or are you out of college already?"

"Nah, I go there, too. Coincidence, eh?"

"Could be," Taylor said. It'd only been a week since he'd moved into the apartments of the area, but that was no indication of him being fresh. This was one of his regular hang out spots whenever he didn't have any work to do from his classes. "What are you majoring in?"

Ryan downed the rest of a beer in one more gulp. "Engineering. You?"

"Chem, but it's a total drag since our professor's making us do really boring stuff." It was true. It'd been weeks since he last blown something up. He drank to that thought.

"Uh huh..." Ryan's paws began to wander under Taylor's clothes again, making Taylor's tail twitch in excitement. "Well, what have you been doing lately?"

"Not much," he began panting lightly from the contact. "Coming and going as it is already. Only good thing is that I get more time to hang around, now that I don't have to spend half my afternoons in some lab making things go 'boom.' Also means that I can bring someone back with me some night for some more fun." He lifted his tail with much effort into a less trapped position, giving Ryan more passage from his groin to Taylor's bottom.

"Well, not much to say there. I'm willing to have some fun with you tonight..." his paws wandered down to the crotch of the white wolf in his hold. He began caressing the smaller wolf in his paws and it soon became more intimate with Taylor's small moans accompanying the paw rubs. Taylor's tail wagged in a white blur and Ryan soon began playing with an ear again.

The greyhound came at that moment, wiping his mug a little faster than he did before. "Please, sirs, I will have to ask you to leave. You are disturbing the others." It was obviously not the case, but it was policy for the staff to tell the customers of such when the occasion arose.

Ryan's eye seemed to glint as he responded kindly to the 'tender by scooping up Taylor in his paws and padding up the stairs that led outside. Before leaving, he gave the greyhound a small wink.

The stars and moon shown down on the two as they came out of the club, the winding road dark without street lamps. Their eyeshine were visible in the moon's silver glow as their gazes wandered to each other's faces. The smell of cinnamon was almost like a musk, it emanating from Ryan's body so copiously.

"You're coming back to my place tonight, boy."

Taylor whimpered as he adjusted his position in the bigger wolf's arms. He draped one arm over the shoulder of his carrier and brought the other one around the back and lightly gripped the shirt as his feet hung in the air. His skinny jeans made the bending in his knees rather uncomfortable, but he could bear that until they reached wherever Ryan was going to take him.

Ryan started walking down the street, heading in a route Taylor was somewhat familiar with. It was the way Taylor came to the club, of course, but he wouldn't tell his captor that. "Are you hungry or anything? We can always go stop at a mart or something."

Taylor shook his head, "no, I'd rather just get back to your place for now."

"Aren't we jumping into this headfirst?" Ryan smirked. "Well there's no point in rushing it. you sure you don't want to stop somewhere and grab a bite?"

Taylor frowned. "I'm not hungry. Let's just go back and just settle down. Are you hungry?"

The larger wolf's ears lowered to the back of his head at the rejection of his idea. "No, I jus- never mind. Let's head back to my place."

They set off again, Taylor watching Ryan gaze at a little café as they passed it. The blue and orange neon "OPEN" sign lit up their clothes as they passed by the little corner. Taylor only looked up to the sky, seeing the stars clearly twinkle in the pitch black around them. The stars glowed brightly with the silver moon shining down upon them. In that faint silver light, he could see the droop in Ryan's whiskers and ears. He was fairly sure that if he could see behind the wolf, then he would see the bushy cinnamon tail dragging along behind the two, as well.

He rolled his eyes, Oh, what the hell, and bent upwards to lick the cinnamon wolf's muzzle. He could immediately feel the larger perk as they walked, Ryan righting his posture as they continued down the familiar path.

Lefts and rights passed by unnoticed to Taylor as he continued staring skyward. Moments went by before Ryan came to a halt after one more turn. Taylor was amazed that Ryan was able to carry him all the way to his house, though he did only weigh a hundred and three. Ryan let Taylor out of the "cradle" and set him down so that he could take a look at where Ryan had stopped. His jaw dropped as he looked up to the window of the second floor and noticed moon drop flowers glowing with a dim dark color. His moon drops.

Ryan looked at Taylor's expression, raising an eyebrow. "What, don't like apartments?"

It took a while for Taylor to respond to that. "...No, there's nothing wrong with your apartment. It's just that it's got moon drops up there. Every time I see any, I feel nostalgic." And he did. It was his mother who had originally put any effort into giving Taylor a good life - in place of his late father - giving him sets of rules to follow as she patiently planted the moon drops in her windowsill garden. She gave Taylor strict rules to obey, but that was something he hadn't minded at the time and eventually, those rules became a part of him.

"It looks really nice, what with those bamboo wind chimes, too, an all." He pointed to the said chimes that were hanging in front of the door.

"Oh, yeah. I got those as a gift from my first boyfriend," Ryan explained, looking at the chimes now. "Ever since we broke up, they never sounded as happy as they used to. The flowers aren't mine, though."

They walked over to the apartment, Ryan bringing the smaller wolf towards his place. Taylor looked to the stairs that he had known for a week, it's sixth step still familiarly broken.

"Why's that step broken?" he asked, now pointing in the new direction.

"I don't really know. It was like that when I moved in a couple weeks ago."

"A couple of weeks ago?"

"Yeah, for school. It was a lot cheaper than living in the dorms."

"I see. Are we gonna go in?"

Ryan grinned. "Sure, but I do require a payment for all that carrying."

"What, the lick wasn't enough?"

"What. 'Course not. Why would you ever think that that would ever be enough for anyone?"

"Well, it sure was enough to get you all perked up back there." Taylor was sure Ryan would blush from that comment at least a little. He could tell that he was right when he saw the wolf's ears draw back and his mouth curl into a sheepish grin. "Well then, what kind of payment do you want?"

Ryan didn't answer. He pulled up a paw to Taylor's face and bent down slightly before planting his lips onto Taylor's. The two shared the moonlight as they softly caressed each other's lips with their own, melting into a kiss so deep and sweet. A breeze picked up, sending the bamboo chimes into singing a surprised tune. Taylor was completely taken in by the wolf, the smell of cinnamon becoming intoxicating.

Once they finally pulled away, the chimes began to play a new song. They played as if they were laughing, rejoicing.

"Well, they sounded pretty happy to me, that time," Taylor said.

Ryan nodded. "It's been a while since they've sounded that way." He took out his keys and slid a thin one into the keyhole, turning it and opening the door to the darkness inside. "Well then, shall we go in?"

Taylor walked in first, getting a chilly feeling as the cold air inside the apartment pierced through to his fur into his hide. He shivered slightly.

"Oh, yeah, sorry, I guess I just left the AC on a little too long," Ryan apologized.

Taylor paid the comment no mind as his mind went back to the flowers that glowed black in the night. The rules his mother had made for him were nothing short of ordinary, for Taylor to clean up after himself, take extra care of his fur, not to eat too much, make sure that he balance his nutrition, et cetera. They were all normal things, yet Taylor abided to those rules so strictly. Even his apartment didn't have very much dirt or stray clothing or dishes lying about. He'd only broken those rules when it was absolutely necessary for him to do so.

_ _

I wonder how far I _'__ m going to take this charade with Ryan_... he thought.

"Taylor? You okay there?" Ryan asked. He was right in front of Taylor's face, staring right into his eyes once Taylor came out of his thoughts.

"Huh?" Taylor asked as he brought himself back into focus. "Oh, yeah I'm fine. I was just thinking about stuff."

"Oh, I see," Ryan gave a grin that could live up to his species' standards, "you're pretty eager, aren't you? C'mon, let's go to my room, then." He took Taylor's paw in his own and led him down a hallway to a sliding door that seemed no different from the rest - even from Taylor's.

"Here," Ryan put his paws under Taylor's shirt, "let me get that for you." He lifted the two layers with ease, leaving the white wolf bare on top. Ryan moved his paws around, ruffling his brown fur in the white, feeling all around the chest and pulling Taylor in close.

"Mmm... you're really good with your paws, aren't you?" Taylor turned around in the Ryan's grasp, gripping his shirt and tugging upwards. "Why don't I return the favor?" He pulled the shirt completely off and tossed it behind him. He didn't hear it land as Ryan assaulted his muzzle for another deep kiss, this time more full of want and lust. Two tails wagged in blurs as the heat of the kiss pursued. Soon the cold of the room was negated by the passion of the two wolves. Taylor's paws could feel the muscle underneath Ryan's fur, hard and sinewy. But that wasn't the only thing that was hard.

"Heh," Ryan chuckled, breaking away from the kiss. "You seem to be poking me down there." He gently squeezed the smaller wolf's hard length through the jeans.

"Mmph," Taylor moaned softly. About time to stop this soon. Please don't hate me, Ryan. "It's your fault, stud."

"Well, then. Why don't we get out of these uncomfortable confines?"

As Ryan moved his paw up towards the zipper of Taylor's pants, he was stopped by white paws. Taylor looked into Ryan's eyes and saw surprise and confusion creep into his expression. "I'm sorry, Ryan. I don't want to go any further than this."

"What? Why not?" Ryan asked. "Are you dating someone?"

"No, otherwise I wouldn't have been kissing you." Taylor sighed. "It's just against my ways to fuck if I'm not dating the guy I'm about to be fucking with."

"What, so you were just leading me on?" Ryan started to look a little angry. "Why didn't you just say so in the first place?"

Taylor shifted uncomfortably in the brown wolf's grasp. The cinnamon musk had a more sharp smell to it, now. "I don't know. I just thought that it was nice being with you like this."

"What the fuck, Taylor," Ryan growled, letting go of Taylor. Taylor flinched slightly.

"I know, and I'm sorry." Taylor paused. "How about we just meet up some time, then?"

"What gives you any idea that I want to meet up with you? Especially after you do something like this."

Those words were like acid to Taylor. They burned right through and ate away at him. He closed his eyes tightly Did I honestly do the right thing?

"Okay, then. I guess I should just be going. I'm sorry." Taylor made his way to the door, doing his best to keep his head up, though his tail was most likely betraying him, the way it drooped. He picked up his shirts from ground and put them back on, preparing to leave. He opened the front door and waited, hoping that Ryan would come talk to him or something. Anything.

No such luck. Taylor closed the door silently and walked out.

Ryan just stood there for a while. How could he just lead me on like that and expect everything to come out all right in the end? He sighed. He thought back to the white wolf, how he'd looked so enticing back at the club, how he'd been nice enough to let Ryan carry him, and how even though Taylor'd been the one to get him sad, he was the one to cheer Ryan up with just a lick.

The kisses were nice, too. He couldn't recall when the wind chimes had sounded happier, even. If that wasn't a sign, he wasn't sure what was. A sign? What the hell am I thinking? I just liked his muzzle. He'd go at least apologize to Taylor before he had gotten too far away.

Grabbing his shirt that was flung - apparently - right on the bed, he tucked it over his head and got to the door and opening it. He wandered outside for a little while and found Taylor sitting at the top of the staircase with the broken step. Apparently deep in frantic thought.

Why did I even bother going with him? He thought, his mind starting to jump around. I'm such an idiot. I bet he'll never look me in the eye again. Can I ever make it up to him? I wonder what'll happen once he finds out we're neighb-

"Taylor," a voice called out from the dark. Taylor looked over the railing of the staircase and saw Ryan looking up at him.

"Oh, hi Ryan," Taylor returned dejectedly. "Look I'm really sorry for wha-"

"Yeah, I'm sorry, too. That was some stunt you pulled there boy."

Taylor's ears perked at the name. "Wait, are you forgiving me?"

"Just maybe. I dunno, but I don't think I can pass you up. I mean, the wind chimes seemed pretty happy and all, right?"

Elation. "That sounded super cheesy, but if you're willing, do you want to meet up tomorrow or something?"

Ryan looked off to the side. "I... kinda have work tomorrow. Both the school kind and the work kind."

"Oh? Where do you work?"

"At Bernie's and Kerbopple's. The one by Hurdock's, you know that one, right?"

"Yeah, I heard they have a café there. Maybe I'll drop by. When's your shift?"

"I work afternoons from three to closing time. Would you really?"

"Of course. What would stop me from seeing more of that?" He gestured towards the Ryan's shirt.

Ryan grinned. "Well, I hope to see you there then." He looked down and shook his head. "Man, and I was kinda looking forward to tonight, too. Don't know if I can even think about getting off tonight."

Taylor got up and descended the stairs silently. He embraced Ryan, giving him a soft, sensual squeeze where he needed it. He could feel the rest of the fur on Ryan's body stand up on end and a hardening something or another began growing from the confines of his pants. The scent of cinnamon became more spiced. "Oh, I'm sure it'll come back somehow, stud."

"You are such a little devil, aren't you?" Ryan reached down to play with Taylor's ears. They melted with each other into one last kiss for the night. "You want me to walk you home or something? It's kinda late."

"No thanks, sweetie. I think I'll manage on my own."

Ryan nodded. "Alright, then I hope I can see you tomorrow, then."

"Me, too," Taylor waved to Ryan. "Good night."

And Ryan walked back into his apartment. After making sure that Ryan wouldn't be coming back out, Taylor quickly ascended the stairs, careful not to trip on the sixth step. He took out the key from his pocket and opened the door to his apartment. As he got into his own bed, he thought about Ryan. It was hard not to, after a night like that.

I wonder if I've been too strict with myself for following those rules, still. Should I just break them tomorrow? I don't want anything more getting in the way. Ryan seems nice, I don't want to ruin things between us, especially with those rules. Besides, I'm responsible enough without them, right?

* * *

Keep good notes of things you learn in class. You will need it.

"Mr. Jacks, would you like to tell the class what the function of pectinases in animals and how they are important to the environment?"

That snapped Taylor out of his daydream. He'd been thinking of Ryan throughout class. Enough, he realized to be able to look down and see a blank sheet of paper with only the words, "Catalysts Lecture" underlined and a perfectly sharpened pencil next to that. Normally, he'd have a full set of notes - as was a part of his rules - especially from one of Mr. Lith's lectures, which he found the most interesting of all his other teachers.

"Oh, sorry, Mr. Lith, I wasn't paying attention." At least there wasn't as much embarrassment from being snapped out of a reverie in a class of only six but of course that meant that it was easy to be singled out.

The lynx at the front of the room looked at Taylor as if there were something peculiar about the wolf that day. That much Taylor wouldn't deny. "...and so an enzyme is a certain kind of catalyst. Tomorrow you are all responsible for a test on the structures of the catalysts we covered today as well as knowing their functions. Good day."

Taylor sighed, knowing that he'd have to get all the information by himself, now, but that was okay. He'd be heading over to the book store soon, anyways. He picked up his textbooks, placing the blank paper in the catalysts chapter, and unused pencils, stuffing them all into his "Bag of Holding" shoulder-strap bag, a remnant of his days when he used to play video games online with his high school friends. He brought it over his shoulder, careful not to mess up the collar of his polo T-shirt, and patted out the creases in his cotton shorts.

He walked out and away, heading towards Bernie's and Kerbopple's, making his way through the street, ignoring the commotion of a weekday afternoon's city traffic. Red lights and cars blocking the crosswalk impeded his progress towards his destination, halting his progress enough that his trip had already been extended at least another hour as he baked under the hot, early autumn sun. His white fur didn't do much to reflect the sun.

By the time he'd reached the store, it was already five, meaning that he had kept Ryan waiting an hour more than he'd intended to. He sighed and opened the door, immediately feeling the blast of the cool air conditioning as he stepped into the store, a refreshing feeling after soaking in the sun's rays. As he walked in and found himself a seat in Gee's Café, he noticed that his cinnamon scented wolf was nowhere to be found. He occupied the table for his work, getting out his chemistry book and his pencil, getting ready to outline the text.

As far as he could tell, Taylor was the only student who was studying there. He was the only one there who was bothering to write anything down on paper that wasn't for a crossword puzzle from the daily paper. Taylor's canine sense of smell took in the bitter coffee smell now and then and it especially didn't help his case whenever he smelled cinnamon, thinking that his wolf would come around.

Taylor would occasionally look up from his textbook to see if there was any sign of his wolf. Only the people who came and went into the café differed, but it never differed in a way to bring Ryan into his company. He looked down to his wrist watch to which it was already showing a disappointing six-thirty. Where the hell is he?. He thought to himself, looking around, wish I _'__ d asked him for his number. Oh, well, if I don ' t see him, I can always just go downstairs when I get back home._ The thought disturbed Taylor, though.

Make some kind of contact on the first date.

He resumed his studying again, hunched over the book and tapping his pencil on the table in agitation. He found that it was harder to focus on his work now that he was actively thinking about Ryan. Another fifteen minutes had passed and he found that he'd only been able to get through half a page of notes. Is this even worth waiting for, anymore? I can _'__ t even focus on my work._ He sighed in resignation, putting his pencil aside and sitting up straight in his chair. He packed his things and got up. It was about time to start looking for Ryan.

He got up from his table and started walking through the shelves and corridors filled with books and more books. He passed so many books and the rows all looked so similar that he nearly disoriented himself, if not for the visible café that he started from. He'd walked through fantasy, science fiction, manga, nonfiction, cookbooks, tourist guides... God, why do there have to be so many kinds of books here? This is ridiculous even for the bookstore level.

He'd gotten all the way to the magazines before he noticed that his watch read eight. The last section he hadn't been to was the cubs' books section, marked by a frog-patterned arch and had a lot of green and blue everywhere as if it were trying to imitate a swamp setting in a cartoon.

The parents of the cubs chatted quietly to the side about how cute the other parents' cubs looked, then moving on to random parenthood banter. The children, on the other hand, sat in a mass with their tails still, eyes transfixed on a brown figure in a green, collared Bernie's and Kerbopple's shirt and brown cargo shorts in the middle, their ears perked and attentive. The invisible fog of a light cinnamon smell, Taylor found, was rather subdued compared to what it usually was like, though it was still quite noticeable, enough for Taylor to catch a "isn't that cinnamon cologne just a great smell for him?" from a parent once in a while.

The familiar voice in the middle of the mass of cubs read from the fairy tale book with a tone of mystery, looking up once in a while with a look to follow the particular mood of the story. Taylor's ears flicked from hearing the pleasing sound of it.

"And so the princess was taken to the castle of the Evil Weasel Queen who wanted to steal her beauty." Taylor recognized the tale as The Glass Box, the story of a vixen princess trapped in a glass box until her prince rescued her. It was one of his favorites when he was little.

Taylor crept around the mass, timing his approach with utmost care towards the fairy tale's proceedings. He found his way behind Ryan and his crowd of eager little ears and stopped right above the cinnamon wolf, who hadn't yet noticed Taylor's presence.

"When the prince arrived, he spoke, 'what have you done to the fair princess?' but the queen only laughed.

" 'Your princess is in a deep slumber that only I can awake her from. I shall take that beauty from her face for only I can be the most beautiful in the world!' the Evil Weasel Queen boomed."

Taylor tuned out the story for the moment while he positioned himself behind Ryan, waiting for the denouement.

" 'How could you defeat me with such meager weaponry?!' the evil queen shouted as she was slain by Prince Jacques, 'It matters not, for your princess shall never wake, now!'

" 'My princess!' Prince Jacques cried out as he leapt towards the glass box. He opened it to find the sleeping princess inside, her chest rising and falling in a slow, rhythmic beat. He put his head down in a gesture of mourning, his ears drooping behind his foxy head and his fluffy tail coming across to caress her body before coming down..." as Taylor mimicked, "... and draping his arms across Princess LaRouge's body."

As Taylor mimicked.

Ryan's ears perked in surprise as he felt himself being embraced from behind and he looked up quickly to see the content face of a white wolf resting on his shoulder. He went back to the fairy tale, as he finished the rest of the story to the cubs, who had just noticed Taylor, as well.

"I've finally found you, my sweet wolf..." Taylor whispered as so no one else could hear. His ears picked up change in the parents' bantering as they looked over at the two of them in a new way. Some with disgust and others with curiosity.

" 'I've finally found you, my sweet princess, but here you are, asleep to no ends of waking up,' mourned the fox prince as he wept on her shoulder. He wept and wept, but in his heart he just knew that there was no way that the princess would ever wake up again...

"But suddenly, the body underneath Prince Jacques stirred a pleasant stirring. It was as if the sun began to rise again as the vixen princess arose from her deep slumber with a bright glow in her eyes.

" 'My princess!' Prince Jacques exclaimed, 'You have awoken from your sleep!'

" 'How long was I asleep, my prince?'

" 'Not long, my princess. I have come to rescue you from the Evil Weasel Queen. Will you come back to my kingdom with me?'

"The vixen princess was delighted by the request. 'Yes, of course I would Prince Jacques! I would happily do so!' The creases of a grin touched the muzzles of both foxes as the prince saddled the beautiful vixen princess on his trusty steed. With a kiss, they set off back to Prince Jacques's kingdom and they lived happily ever after."

And Taylor ended the reading with a kiss on the cinnamon wolf's lips. Ryan's eyes widened by the action, and tried to resist just a little, but found himself melting into the kiss a little before pulling away gently. The cinnamon fur covered the blush he held as Ryan thought about their surroundings and the cubs and adults who were openly watching. Taylor payed them no heed, however.

The parents seemed to be collecting their children now as they left towards the exit, some more hurriedly than others. "Mommy, didn't you say that boys aren't allowed to kiss other boys?" one of the bear cubs asked his mother.

"Yes, but it's okay for some people," the mother responded, giving the two wolves a wink before leading the bear child out.

He made a face. "I wouldn't ever want to kiss another boy," he said as the mother and son left the children's section. But Taylor and Ryan only looked at each other in good humor, chuckling at the bear cub's comment.

"Hi, Cinnamon Bun," Taylor nuzzled against Ryan.

"Cinnamon Bun?"

"Well, yeah, you smell like cinnamon all the time, and you've got some white on you right now," Taylor pointed towards himself and swirled his tongue around in his mouth, " and you taste nice, so it fits, don't you think?"

Ryan chuckled again, nodding his head and bringing a paw up to Taylor's front. "It's about eight-thirty now, right? If you wanna stick around for another hour and a half, then maybe I could walk you home, right?"

"What, another hour and a half?" Taylor mock complained, "Fine, at least I know where you are now."

" 'Another'?" Ryan raised an eyebrow. "How long have you been here?"

Taylor gave Ryan a lick on the cheek. "I dunno, five? I was waiting in the café for you, but you never really showed up."

"I didn't think you would be there," Ryan said sheepishly. He rose from the place he was sitting on the swamp mat.

"Well, I guess you're not all that noticing of things around you, huh?" Taylor shook his head as he got up, too, making sure that his Bag of Holding didn't fall off of his shoulder.

"And why is that?" Ryan raised his eyebrow again.

"I did drop a less-than-subtle hint last night about this place having a café, didn't I? And you didn't seem to notice me when I went around the circle and hugged you," Taylor pointed out, "and later tonight, I can give you the third reason why if you want."

Ryan shrugged, his ears and tail twitching. "Sure, but only as long as I get to walk you home this time."

The corners of Taylor's mouth seemed to stretch from ear to ear. His plans were working out exactly how he wanted the night to run. "But of course."

"Well, I've gotta stay here for one more reading. You gonna stay here with me?"

"Are you sure that's okay? I'm not exactly a cub, you know."

"Well, you could be my cub, you're small enough to be," he joked. Taylor only stared. Ryan shrugged again. "I'm sure you won't get in trouble if I tell the boss you're with me. Besides, you're not doing anything wrong, right?"

"Nah, not really. Sure, I'll stay."

Time passed quickly for the two wolves. Taylor managed to finish his chemistry notes and Ryan gave the last reading for the night to the next batch of cubs that came by. From the time Taylor had found Ryan to when the store closed, nobody seemed to give either wolf trouble about Taylor being in the cubs' section. The ferret at the register did give the two a curious stare, but thinking nothing of it, got back to his own work. When Taylor's watch beeped ten, he packed and left for the entrance. He waited there for Ryan to clock out his time for work and greeted the cinnamon wolf only minutes later, each grinning as they saw the other.

"Like idiots in love, eh?" Taylor commented.

Ryan snorted, coming up to Taylor and grabbing a paw. "Don't know about that second part there, boy."

The two walked down the street following Taylor's instructions, turning left and right at the very convenience of hitting every red light. They shared sweet hugs and fuzzy words as they made their way back towards Taylor's home.

"One more left and we're on the street to my place," Taylor said. The instruction made Ryan look up and around to see where they were. The familiar scenery touched his eyes as he began look around more frantically.

"What? Really?"

Taylor raised an eyebrow at Ryan. "I think I would know what street I live on, Ryan."

"No, it's just... whatever," Ryan gave up, knowing fully well that he'd never be able to win an argument against Taylor as he clearly saw the white wolf as the smarter one.

The two made the left turn onto Taylor's street and Ryan spoke up again. "What does your place look like?"

"You'll see when you get there right?"

"Yeah, but I kinda want to know what it looks like so I have an idea of where to drop you off, right?"

When he gets you back home, give him one last bit of contact and say your 'byes for the night.

"Yeah, but I'd rather not tell you," he said wryly.

Ryan grumbled something unintelligible and just followed Taylor's instructions.

"Fourth apartment on the left, second floor."

"...You've been living above me all this time?"

"Well, no. Only for a week, now. I just moved in because it was cheaper than living in the dorms and for the same reason as you," Taylor gave Ryan a smile. "I told you that you're really bad at noticing things. Do you still not believe me?"

Ryan rolled his eyes. "Whatever. At least that means that I don't have to go too far to find you." He hugged Taylor closer to himself. "I swear, you're part fox or something."

"And if I were?" Taylor asked innocently, curious of the response he would get.

"I wouldn't give a damn." Ryan scooped up Taylor again, bringing them into the same position they were in the night before. He walked up to the apartment, bringing them up past the broken sixth step carefully and up to Taylor's door.

One more brush of contact and a 'bye for the night.

"Do you want to stay tonight, Cinnamon Bun?" Taylor asked, having certain ideas in mind.

Ryan looked down at the white wolf, setting him down right in front of his door. "I don't know, I mean I don't live that far away."

"So you'll stay?"

Ryan nuzzled Taylor. "Yeah, I'll stay."

Taylor produced a key from his pocket and unlocked the door, bringing the two in. "Make yourself comfortable, hon. Do you want anything? Soda, water, food?"

"Nah, it's okay. I was hoping I'd get a little more white wolf tonight, though."

Snuggle to a movie on the first or second date.

Taylor grinned. "That's on the platter for later tonight, stud."

"Aww, I have to wait?" Ryan gave a mock whine.

"I dunno. Do you wanna watch a movie or something?"

Ryan shifted on his feet. "I think I'd be watching the you more than I would the movie."

"You're so cheesy, you Cinnamon Bun, you." Taylor stuck his tongue out at the cinnamon wolf. "Fine, just plop one in. We can snuggle to it or something."

"Okay, how's Nick and Norah _'__ s Infinite Playlist_ sound?"

"I love that movie. Want anything to eat?"

"Doesn't matter. I'll just be likely taking it out of your mouth, anyways."

Taylor laughed. "Guess I'll just take out some candy so I can save you the trouble of soggy popcorn."

He grabbed some Sour Patch Kids, Jolly Ranchers, and a big blanket from his room. He found Ryan waiting for him on the couch, already lying in a position that was absolutely inviting to Taylor. They cuddled up to each other, Taylor drooping the blanket over their bodies and holding the candy in his paws. True to his word, Ryan didn't pay much attention to the movie. Taylor didn't either, and they just let the film flash as they laid into each other enjoyed the contact. They kissed and cuddled, kissed and cuddled, kissed and cuddled... an infinite play list.

They barely had any candy and the times they did was just to share a sappy moment. Taylor set it down on the table by the couch once Nick and Norah ended.

"Taylor," Ryan spoke. Taylor looked at him. "I had a really good time tonight."

Taylor's tail started to wag happily. "I did, too." He climbed back onto the couch and found Ryan's paws groping at his clothes.

Always consider hygiene before going to sleep.

"Hold on, stud, lemme go brush and stuff."

Ryan put his paw to his muzzle for a moment, his breath and sniff audible. "Okay, I'll be right back. I'm gonna go do the same." He got up and quickly went out the door, leaving Taylor alone in the room.

Taylor chuckled and went into his bathroom, brushing his teeth and fur before changing out of his clothes into just a pair of boxer shorts and going back to lie on the couch under the covers. The door reopened a moment later with Ryan and his distinctive scent coming in with a casual pair of shorts and a loosely fitting shirt. Taylor only ate it all up with his eyes.

"Care to join me?" Taylor asked, raising the blanket and revealing his body to the cinnamon wolf. He could see the brown fur begin to ruffle up, already. Ryan's whiskers, ears, and tail all twitched at the same time, showing obvious excitement.

"You look so cute," Ryan said as he removed his shirt and threw it to the side. He caught Taylor's wide stare as the shirt landed. "Like what you see, hon?"

"...Wow, you're fucking hot." Taylor said, staring in awe at the toned body Ryan sported, able to appreciate without the worry of having to stop the proceedings of sex this time. There was muscle in every aspect of his body, but it showed in a way that made it look natural, almost as if he were born with it. Taylor, himself, wasn't very muscular at all, and he stared at the bigger wolf's body with a look of hunger and lust.

"Glad you approve," Ryan said, walking over to the couch and getting in with Taylor. He let the covers fall over them both and brought his paws down to the crotch of Taylor's boxers and squeezed the pair of orbs underneath the fabric of the boxer shorts. "I certainly think you're nice, if you wanted to know."

Taylor moaned lightly. "Oh, I think I could tell when I gave you that opening."

No sex before the third date.

Well, fuck that. I want this now.

Ryan's paw grew hotter and hotter as it continued to play with Taylor's sheath and balls. He began to feel his cock harden and come out of his sheath. Taylor began to respond, kissing the brown wolf and pawing at Ryan's shorts. He fumbled with the zipper and brought it down, soon the shorts following until Ryan was left in only his boxers. He tossed the shorts off into the darkness of the room.

Taylor was completely hard at that point, moaning more urgently as Ryan's paw started to bring his boxer shorts down, now. Taylor worked at Ryan's boxers, too, finding them easier to pull down than the shorts. Both were naked in an instant, throwing off the covers and the last of their clothes into the abyss of the room. Ryan grabbed Taylor's legs and hoisted them up, bringing a leg to rest on each shoulder. Taylor could see that Ryan had gotten himself going without any help, the heat from Ryan's own length hot against his exposed tail hole.

"You ready, Taylor?"

If you're going to be having sex, use the lube.

"Hold up a sec, babe." Taylor reached into the drawer and gripped the small tube inside, bringing out the lube. He squeezed the bottle, letting too much come out, but he didn't care. He applied the paw to Ryan's cock, rubbing up and down slowly and sensually. Ryan moaned as his member was slicked and stroked. "You're quite big down there, aren't you?" Taylor teased, bringing the paw to his tail and applying the lube down there as well.

He took his paw away when he was done and put the lube back into the drawer before giving Ryan the okay. "I'm good, now. Come at me, Cinnamon Bun."

Ryan growled with lust as he started to push his cock into the hole. He sank himself in slowly, bringing him into Taylor inch by inch. Taylor growled at the initial pain of entrance and found that it wasn't going away. He gave a loud yelp as he was spread wider.

"Are you alright, Taylor?" Ryan asked in concern. "I can pull out if you want me to."

Taylor shook his head, bearing his teeth. "We both know fully well that there's no way in hell either of us is going to let that happen. Just let me adjust when you hilt me."

Ryan sank further and further, his cock being engulfed inch by inch. Five inches... six inches... seven inches... and at the eighth, he bumped hips with Taylor. Taylor gave soft whimpers and moans for each inch that went in. "That's it, babe, I'm all the way in."

The pressure from inside grew less intense as time passed. Soon, the pain faded and Taylor was panting heavily. "I may be somewhat experienced, but you're still really big, babe. Make sure you take it easy on me. It's been a while."

"No problem, cutie," Ryan responded, giving Taylor a lick before pulling out and thrusting his hips lightly back into the white wolf.

After several thrusts, Ryan started to pump in and out to a steady rhythm, growling as he went in and out of Taylor. Taylor moaned loudly as he was taken by the large wolf. The lube helped immensely, allowing Ryan to go all the way in without fear of hurting Taylor too badly. The heat of the passion went on, Taylor's tail coming up from under both bodies and slightly curling around Ryan's. Ryan gripped Taylor's member, giving it slow tugs up and down to the rhythm of the thrusts.

Before long, the moans and growls of the two wolves became more urgent as a sign that both were close to release. Ryan's cinnamon scent became more musky, though keeping that spice to his smell, and pervaded through the room, spreading and dominating the musk of the white wolf. Ryan's thrusts grew faster and faster at Taylor's request, the bulb at the base of his shaft expanding. The knot was shoved roughly against Taylor's hole, trying to make its way in with as little subtlety as possible.

No knotting before you're boyfriends.

Shut up. I don't need you tonight, Taylor growled at himself, before opening his muzzle to moan. "Knot me, stud. I want you in me all the way." And to his request, Ryan began to thrust his hips harder and harder, forcing the knot in bit by bit. He gripped Taylor's shaft to the point where it was almost painful and he continued to stroke up and down with incredible ferocity. Taylor began to yelp loudly as the knot was forced into him. All the same time, he could feel his own climax coming closer and closer to the edge.

Dull thuds of pain racked his brain in pulses as the rhythm wasn't broken. The thuds became louder and louder in his head until his ears picked up the audible sound of a popping sound that signaled Ryan's success in completely taking Taylor. Ryan's knot had breached the ring of flesh under Taylor's tail, causing Taylor to make a sound that was a mixture of a yip and a grunt. That was the last push that sent Taylor over the edge of his climax. He moaned loudly again as he let his cum spurt out from his shaft over Ryan's paw, coating it in a thick layer of white.

He clenched down on the shaft under his tail, bringing pressure to Ryan's member. Ryan gave several short thrusts - careful not to hurt Taylor - before his body shuddered as his legs gave way and he let forth a howl as he released his seed into the white wolf.

Clean up post-coitus.

Fuck you. Didn't I tell you to shut up?

Ryan collapsed onto Taylor, both wolves in a deep embrace and kiss as they were stuck together for a while, panting as the afterglow hit them both.

"That was amazing, Ryan," Taylor said, pulling out of the kiss first.

"I'm glad you enjoyed that, Frosty," Ryan replied, giving Taylor a tired lick.

"Frosty?"

"You know, like the frosting on a cinnamon bun."

Taylor gave a soft laugh. "Yeah, I guess that's pretty fitting."

"Are you okay?" Ryan asked. "I mean with this. You have your rules, right? I hope I didn't manage to break any of those."

Taylor shook his head. "It doesn't really matter any more."

"Really? What's the rule that applies to right now?"

Enjoy the night together.

Taylor thought it over for a while. Yeah, I guess I can live with that.

He rose and gave Ryan a deep kiss, pulling him more towards him and reaching down for the covers and pulling them over both of their bodies. "Just for us to enjoy the rest of the night together."

"That's a pretty good rule to have," Ryan laughed.

"Yeah, a good rule to have. Not all of them are that great, though."

"Well, whatever's nice for the moment can stay nice, right?" Ryan gave a yawn, evidently tired from the sex.

"Yeah. You don't have anything to do tomorrow, right?"

"I have work in the afternoon."

"I meant in the morning."

"Mmm..." Ryan seemed to drift off a little bit. "I only have classes on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday mornings."

"Good, so you'll be here..." The two figures started to breathe slowly and easily, drifting through their consciousnesses as they fell into a deep, comforting slumber under the blanket. Smiles touched their faces gently as they snored softly. Below them, the wind chimes hanging in Ryan's house played their tune as the breeze suddenly picked up. The light paean seemed to dance around, its timbre and cheer traveling through the walls and into the room of the two wolves, lightly sending them further into sleep with the sweet lullaby it sang.

Rest easy knowing that you'll be together for a while.

Whatever.