There's A New Horse In Town: Let's Do Lunch
A couple of horse anthros continue getting acquainted.
Let's Do Lunch
Fidgeting with the pencil, Claymore stared at the drawing on his sketch pad. The latch design he'd come up with was workmanlike, but it was missing panache. Although he had the pragmatism typical of a Clydesdale, Clay was also something of an artist at the anvil, and 'plain' just didn't suit his style. Part of the reason for his shop's modest growth was the fact that his work both looked good and worked well. He was scratching a few more lines on the page when his cell phone jangled suddenly.
"Hay, this is Clay, can I help you?" he neighed after flipping open his phone. The interruption was especially welcome when he heard the caller's voice. "Oh, Kimi! How ya doin'? No, no, not a problem, glad to talk to you. I'm just doodling with a design right now. What's up?"
Leaning back in the ancient wooden desk chair, Clay swiveled to put his hind hooves up on the desk. His mood, though slightly perturbed by the drawing's lack of progress, instantly relaxed as he listened to the young stallion. He rocked back and forth in the creaking oak chair, snorting and twitching his ears as the two made small talk. At one point his ears perked suddenly forward.
"Oh, I'm glad to hear that, and yeah, I drink an occasional beer," Clay said, nickering softly and without a trace of irony; he might as well have called the Monogahela River a pretty good sized ditch. "Well, listen that sounds good, you want me to meet ... oh, sure no problem. Pick me up at the diner then. I'll see you Sunday morning at eleven!"
Closing the phone, the Clydesdale sat upright in his chair. It wasn't often that he had plans for a Sunday morning, and the prospect had livened him up a bit. After Brad had left town last year, he just hadn't felt much like socializing and besides -- Crawford Corners wasn't exactly known for its anthro population. A picnic on Sunday sounded like a great way to get a little better acquainted. "Although," Clay mused quietly to himself, "things are gonna go a little differently this time around."
Sunday dawned bright and cloudless, a perfect midsummer morning that was only just warming up as Clay settled on the bench outside the Home Cookin' Kitchen. He sipped his coffee, glancing at his watch and noting he was early. A moment later a beeping horn caught his attention, and he waved at the driver. "Figures," he thought, smiling as Kimi parked, "one of those 'green' cars that's easy on the environment."
"Clay, good morning!" Kimi nickered, laughing a little as he got out of his car and waved. "I'm not late, am I? Gosh, I hope you haven't been waiting long!" Dressed in faded jeans and a casual, brightly coloured shirt open at the collar, the horse looked like he was dressed to go to class. His walk was jaunty as he stepped over the Clyde, who rose to greet him.
"No, I'm early Kimi, and I just got here, thanks. Only had time to get my coffee and sit down." Reaching out his hand, Clay shrugged and held out his arms for a hug instead. "Might as well get this over with," he teased, a pretend scowl twisting on his muzzle. "Just don't expect any kissin', bub, I'm not... ."
Laughing as he gave the Clyde a gentle hug, Kimi snorted. "Not what? Friendly and a decent stallion? And by the way, too late!"
"Too late for what?" Clay blustered.
"This," Kimi neighed, pecking Clay lightly on the side of his muzzle. "Now, how's about you show that picnic spot you told me about, Mr. Tough Stallion?"
"What?" Clay bellowed, followed by a booming laugh. "What the heck? Hay, I told ya, I don't need anybody talking about me in this little burg, wise guy." He shook his head, trying to remove the rosy shade he knew his cheeks were turning. He gave the horse a quick pat on the withers before releasing him with a soft neigh.
"Yeah, you said they're already talking, so now they have something to say. Problem?" Kimi teased, quoting one of those stupid yet catchy Internet memes.
"Um, sure, 'Y U NO PAY ATTENTION,'" Clay chuckled, doing the best he could with what he knew about popular memes. "That's gonna cost you, and I expect payment in BEER!"