FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Finally got around to writing just regular, original stories. Not that I don't enjoy writing my fanfiction, I really do, but I've been wanting to break out of the box for a while now. that being said, this is also my first attempt at a third person story. So if it's a little choppy at some points I apologize. As such, feedback would be greatly appreciated, but is not neccesary. Hope you enjoy.

---

...A tornado.

...That would be the only logical explanation as to why the dorm room of Collin Mitchell was in its current state. Some freak of nature, miniature tornado had manifested itself within the single bedroom of the college sophomore, and completely tore it apart. At least...that would be the first thought to enter the mind of anyone that knew him well. However, it wouldn't be because Collin was normally very clean. Quite the opposite, he was actually a bit of a slob, but Collin was also a creature of habit to an almost scary degree.

Every week was essentially the same thing. Wake up at the same time, eat the same cereal, take the same classes, hang out at the same places with the same friends, have the same conversations, even going to the bathroom at the same time every day. It wasn't that he planned to keep on repeating the same habits over and over again. In fact, if ever confronted about it, he probably wouldn't even know what they were talking about. It's just that he rarely stepped out of his comfort zone, forcing him to subconsciously fall into a pattern that seemed to endlessly loop. One of these unintentional habits was to tidy up every Wednesday.

...It was Friday.

Various forms of debris littered the floor, from clothes, to notebooks, to empty packages of takeout food. Even the walls were a mess, the numerous posters of lostprophets, A Day to Remember , Skyfox, and other assorted musical groups were either torn up or caked with some kind of food or drink. Among everything, and quite possibly the most significant object to litter the floor, a shattered picture frame lying face up on the ground. The picture itself, which was once a source of great joy, now only caused the young adult's stomach to churn with depression and misery. It showed him during freshman year, back when he had first started attending college. He didn't look much different back then...in fact, with the exception of a few pounds lost and a bit of stubble growing on his chin, he was exactly the same.

He had short, very untidy black hair that looked remarkably like a giant brillo pad and a pair of bright, almost pale looking blue eyes that gazed through a set of bulky glasses. He actually was quite fond of his glasses, even though they used to be the cause of many fore-eyes jokes in elementary school. He used to think that it made him look like a nerd, but once he reached high school, he thought they made him look intelligent...which was completely false, but it's nice to give off the impression that he was. Besides, it's not like they were full-on coke bottle glasses. They were more like hipster glasses if anything else. But considering he was in no way a hipster, he was wearing them ironically.

He stood pretty tall at an even six foot. Not gargantuan like some of his friends, but he liked his height. It was tall enough to make him feel secure, yet not so tall that he started to feeling like a freak. He wasn't anything special in terms of muscles. In fact, in the picture, he was a little bit chubby from his "freshman ten". But although he had slimmed down since then and had given an honest effort to try and work out, he never gained any kind of considerable muscle tone and had long since stopped lifting weights at the gym.

He wasn't alone in the picture, though. Standing in the center of the frame, being hugged from behind by the beaming, freshman version of Collin was a girl. She was almost as tall as him, trailing only by a few inches and her long brown hair was fluttering slightly in the breeze. Her hands rested upon Collin's arms as her luscious red lips spread into a smile for the camera. Everything about her was absolutely perfect, at least in Collin's eyes. From Her flawless, cream-colored skin, to her slender yet curvy figure, he absolutely adored her.

...Her name was Erin, and for the past two weeks now...she has been his ex-girlfriend.

The heartbroken student hadn't felt much like keeping up his routines...or doing much of anything, really. He felt more content just staying holed up in his room, hiding his sorrow and shame from the world. It was the first relationship he'd ever been in and he wasn't accustomed to dealing with the heartache that came with a break up especially with a relationship that seemed it would last forever. So, he dealt with it rather poorly. He spent all of his free time lying in bed. He had been missing his classes, not turning in assignments, blowing off his friends when they called...he couldn't even remember if he showered any time recently.

For the better part of today, it was no different. He lay under the covers, slipping in and out of naps -his sleep pattern was growing steadily more erratic since the event- until he heard a knock at the door.

He groaned as he slipped his head out from underneath his pillow to look at the clock.

5:38 p.m.

He rolled his eyes, having a pretty good idea who it was.

"Go. Away." He articulated very clearly in an irritated voice.

"Dude, its Luke, open up!" A deep voice resonated from behind the locked door, confirming Collin's prediction.

"That's why I'm telling you to go away." He mumbled in response.

"I heard that."

"You were supposed to." Collin responded as he sat up and rubbed his eyes.

"Come on, let me in. Everyone's worried about you." He pleaded.

Collin gave a slightly amused snort. Yeah...everyone...I bet all two of you are really concerned, he thought. Collin was never one to surround himself with people, preferring to have a handful of friends he could trust explicitly than a large group of acquaintances. Even now, in college, he could count his friends on one hand, and he was completely ok with that.

Luke, being one of those few people, was concerned for his friend's wellbeing just like any companion would be, but unfortunately for Collin, he was also the kind of person who was way too intrusive in things that weren't his business. Collin had managed to send him away the first few times, but his friend was getting more and more persistent.

The sophomore decided to just ignore him in the hopes that he'd give up.

...no such luck. "You know, my Dad's a cop, and he taught me a few things." The college senior explained nonchalantly from behind the door. "I can easily pick this lock. Asking for your permission is just a formality, so will you just let me in."

The bespectacled human groaned audibly. He knew Luke was telling the truth about his Dad being a cop, and he also knew that his friend wasn't one for kidding around in a serious situation such as this. So, rather not risk having his friend break the door just to get inside, he decided to open up.

With a yawn and a groan, Collin begrudgingly slumped out of bed, taking his sweet time about getting to the door. Like everyone else, Luke probably wanted to talk about this, something Collin wanted to avoid at all costs. Whether or not his friend was trying to help was inconsequential, the subject was on his mind much too frequently without having his friends rub his nose in it even harder.

Still, he opened the door, leaving just enough space to peer through the crack. "Can I help you?" He asked dryly.

The six foot two black panther had dawned the most intimidating glare he could muster, his arms crossed tightly across his chest and his green eyes narrowed into slits as his tail twitched behind him impatiently. It would have been terrifying...if he were actually angry.

Although Luke tried to look daunting, Collin knew him much too well. This menacing stance was just an act; A ploy to try and get Collin to comply. He was more worried than angry, something the human knew quite well, so he was relatively unfazed and still just as annoyed at the disturbance.

Luke opened his mouth to say something, but stopped as a stench reached his nose. "Shit, dude, did something die in there!?"

Collin rolled his eyes. "Thanks...I feel so much better," He deadpanned as he began to close the door "really dude, thanks, you're a miracle wor-"

He was cut off as Luke slid his paw in the crevice of the door and shoved it open, getting his first glimpse of the junkyard that was once a dorm room. He stopped and stared for a moment before slowly stepping inside.

In all his years of babysitting his little siblings, and being quite the messy teenager in his youth, Luke had never seen a room in such disarray, and he was only able to gawk at the sheer amount of crap that had been piled up.

"Collin...how...what the hell happened in here?"

"It's not that bad." Collin defended as he crawled back into bed.

"Not that bad?" The large cat repeated in disbelief as he absentmindedly picked up an empty

McDonalds bag, returning to his angry glare, but this time, somewhat meaning it. "NOT THAT BAD! Collin, there are french-fries ground into your floor, it looks like your dresser threw up, and-"

He stopped as he accidentally stepped on a shard of glass from the picture frame. Luckily, he was wearing shoes, but still, the fact that his foot could have just been ripped to shreds pissed him off.

"That's just fucking perfect." He muttered under his breath.

Determined not to go kicking the small hazard around, he crouched down, carefully picking up the shards and placing them on the picture frame. When he was sure that he managed to get them all he stood up and dropped the entire thing in the trashcan.

The shattering noise managed to get Collin's attention, as he snapped his head around. His first reaction was to yell at him for throwing it out, but the human bit his lip to stop himself.

...let it go, Collin. He thought to himself. You're the one who fucking broke it in the first place... He knew he should be moving on...getting on with his life...but that was easier said than done...he loved her, after all.

"Seriously," Luke continued, "this can't be healthy, bro. Have you even been going to class?"

Collin groaned, wishing he was anywhere but here...or rather, wishing Luke were anywhere else. "...So I've been taking a few personal days, big deal."

"A few-!" Luke began to shout, but caught himself as he realized yelling would only make things worse. Regaining his composure, he stepped forward and stood over his human friend. "Look, Collin, I get it, alright. I've been where you are before. It sucks, and I really feel for you, but-"

"Oh give it a rest!" Collin interrupted, "You didn't even like her."

The feline rolled his eyes impatiently and folded his arms again. "Yeah, you're right, I didn't like her. But she's not the one I'm worried about. This has nothing to do with her."

Collin shot him an incredulous look. "Where the hell have you been? This has everything to do with her!"

Luke brought his hand up and rubbed the space in-between his eyes, the same way a human would grab the bridge of his nose. "Alright, that was a poor choice of words."

"Yeah, you think?" Collin mumbled, burying his head down in his pillow.

He grumbled something incomprehensible, but then continued. "Look...what I meant was, the fact that I don't like her doesn't affect what you're going through in any way...I feel sorry for you, really I do. But you have to move on...so how about you get up out of bed and we'll go somewhere. Distract yourself for a while, hell, I'll even pay for whatever you want to do. I promise you, if you stop brooding for just a few hours, the rest will come easy."

"I'm not brooding." Collin grumbled, still face down in his pillow and counting the seconds until the feline just gave up and left.

"Clearly you are, or you'd be in class right now." He countered as he pressed further. "Come on, we can grab Blake, hit that bar out on Ogden, and have a guy's night out. Have some fun, get wasted, hell, maybe even laid. Anything but this, alright?"

The depressed human sighed as he thought over his friend's proposal. Blake was another human, and Collin's roommate during freshman year. In fact, he probably still would be if Collin hadn't been able to get a single room. In retrospect, Collin could never figure out how they became friends in the first place, as their personalities contrasted greatly and they didn't share that many common interest...but his theory was that a case of monster, six bags of Doritos, and an all-nighter spent playing Halo could bring just about anyone together.

Other than a love for video games, they spent most of their time together in heated debates and verbal sparring, but somehow they both found it quite enjoyable. It was odd to say the least...but still not as odd as Luke and Blake together. Not that they hated each other-they were all friends here- but Luke and Blake hadn't been to a bar together since the overenthusiastic human tried to force Luke into having a double date with him and two girls, knowing the entire time that the feline was gay and had nothing to gain out of it. Luke had gotten over it of course, but hadn't gone out to a bar with Blake since. The fact that they were both getting together to drag their depressed counterpart out of his room only made Collin ponder the offer longer.

...Perhaps he should go with them...go to a bar, get drunk, forget about life for a while...but would that really solve anything? In the morning...he'd be right back in bed and with a possible hangover to boot...nothing would be solved.

No, what Collin needed was more time. He knew he had taken a lot of time already, but he'd get over it eventually.

"Luke...I appreciate what you're doing, but I don't think that a night out is going to help me. So please...just go away."

And with that, he plopped his face back down in his pillow, hoping that it would end the conversation. Quite frankly, he should have known better. There was a short silence in the air and for a moment Collin had thought that the his friend had left, but quickly found that he wasn't so lucky. A rush of cold air greeted him as the blanket was yanked off of his body. He snapped his head around to glare at the panther. "What the hell are you-GAK!"

The human's sentence was cut short as Luke grabbed the back of his shirt collar and heaved, dragging him out of bed. "I tried asking nicely...now I'm not giving you a choice." He grumbled, walking over to the dresser, still pulling the sophomore on the ground behind him as he ruffled through the drawers for a fresh pair of clothes.

"You're taking a shower, putting on some clean clothes, and possibly a smile while you're at it, and then we're forgetting about your stupid bitch of an ex-girlfriend and finding you someone else to screw." He ranted as he pulled out a shirt and pants that didn't have that sweaty armpit smell like the rest of the room. Collin opened his mouth to protest, but Luke shot him a hardened scowl before he could say anything else. "And you have absolutely no say in the matter, so just shut it." He said in a quiet but stern voice, like a father who was in the middle of grounding his child; his face cold, with a small but articulated frown. It was this that made the human flinch as a shiver went up his spine. As stated before, he knew the cat quite well...and this was his real angry face.

He barely even paid attention as the cat decided to tug him out into the hallway. He was too stunned. After the human insulted and yelled at him, calmly declining his offer for help is what set him off? It just didn't make any sense. It wasn't until he was being towed across the crowded hallway of his dormitory that he snapped out of it, as a number of other students were laughing, cheering, and whistling at him.

"Hey, look at that, Luke's got himself a new bitch."

"I knew those two had a thing for each other!"

"Looks like Erin got him to switch teams."

...the air was full of comments like that, each one more immature and frustrating than the last. He knew it was just lighthearted teasing, and even if it wasn't, it shouldn't bother him, but in his current state, the student couldn't help but let it get under his skin.

"Luke," He pleaded, "Come on, this is humiliating!" He yelled over the noise of the others.

"You brought this on yourself." Luke grumbled over his shoulder as he reached the dorms bathroom and shoved open the door. Before he even knew what was happening, Collin felt himself being pulled to his feet and hurled into the shower, stumbling right back onto his ass and involuntarily banging his head against the wall.

"Gah! Fucking hell!" He yelped as he curled up in the fetal position, cocooning his head in his arms to try and relieve some of the throbbing pain which was now coursing through his brain. However, a spray of cold water began to wash over his back causing him to jolt at the contrasting temperature. Having been in his warm bed all day, it felt like diving butt naked into a pile of snow. Quickly he pressed himself against the white-tiled wall of the shower and slid into the corner to where the steady fall of water couldn't reach him.

All the while, Luke's eyes were fixed on him in an icy gaze; one which Collin more than graciously returned as soon as he was able to recover. No words were spoken between the two for a long moment, but being that his patience with his human counterpart was very thin at the moment, Luke was the first one to say something.

He tossed the clothing so that it landed just outside of the shower. "I'll bring you a towel, put those on when you're done. No dawdling either. We're leaving in a half an hour whether you're ready or not."

Collin griped the safety railing on the wall, partially for balance, but mostly out of anger. The black furred cat was having none of it though, turning to walk out the door but stopping in the doorway for a second longer. "And don't try and slip away, because believe me, I'll find you."

"Go fuck yourself, Luke!" Collin shouted in return as he finally stood up, an attack that the feline simply brushed aside as he exited the bathroom. The thought crossed his mind to go back and give him a piece of his mind...but quickly discarded it. What good would that do? He's a stubborn bastard and he just plainly showed that he's not above dragging me against my will.

Collin began calculating his options (what little ones he had), but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that Luke would win every time. He slammed his fist against the wall of the shower as he was forced to accept that there was no way out of this, begrudgingly beginning to remove his shirt and flinging it onto the ground with a wet smack.

"...stupid fucking cat..."

---

Luke made good on his promise even though Collin tended to dawdle in the shower a bit. The oversized feline nearly dragged him out the door once again while he was still trying to shave off his stubble. Luckily he didn't get very far and there were no uneven patches or anything, but he still nearly scraped open the underside of his chin when the cat grabbed him by the arm and yanked him out the door.

Also as promised, Blake was waiting in his oversized black van. It was the kind of van that an amateur band might use to lug their gear from gig to gig. If nothing else, it had a lot of trunk space, having the classic carpeting of a van from the seventies which made for a comfortable ride.

In retrospect, it wasn't that horrible a thing that Collin was being forced to do, and his anger, for the most part, was gone. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he realized that the Luke was probably right, so he decided to try it his way...he was tired of being depressed anyway. And if he was wrong, then he'd spend a night being depressed at a bar instead of holed up in his room.

Nevertheless, within a short, fifteen minute car ride, the group arrived at a bar simply known as "The Pit". This particular pub wasn't anything that special by most standards, but it was a popular hangout for Collin and his friends simply for the fact that they played live music. Again, nothing too special, just a few local bands that would probably never make it past this stage in their career, but still, they had a certain, indescribable appeal to the group that kept them coming back.

The place was a rather small, "hole-in-the-wall" type establishment, consisting of a bar, a few booths and tables, and a pitiful little stage that most of the people that played there could barely fit on. It was very dimly lit as well, although probably only to make up for the fact that their spotlights and stage lighting sucked.

As they entered the bar, Collin fully expected that his friends would stick to his side all night just to keep an eye on him, but was surprised when they each went their own way instead; Luke towards the stage and a group of seniors that were probably his friends, and Blake to the nearest attractive girl...you know...if you liked the blonde haired, sparkly eyed, big-boobed, nitwit type of girl, which was what Blake seemed to thrive on.

Not quite sure which one he should be following, he decided that he really had no place following either of them; being a horrible wing men and not feeling like introducing himself to a bunch of upperclassman who would jusr forget his name the minute he walked away, so instead, he made a B-line for the bar to get a drink.

Surprisingly he was able to relax rather quickly, sinking into his bar stool like a lounge chair. There was just something about this place that had a cathartic effect on his body...although he quickly worked out why. This was probably the one place where he didn't have any memories of her. It was hard to find a place in this town where he wasn't soon reminded of Erin...but here was different. She never set foot in this place, saying that it was a disgusting establishment.

This place...this place was safe.

"You alright there, sweetie?"

Collin barely even noticed the small voice that came from the female bartender. It was barely audible to him and he didn't think that she was talking to him so he just ignored it until the pretty redhead placed a hand on his shoulder, making him look up to a face of confusion a sympathy.

Although he frequented this bar, he had never seen her before and...she was really rather beautiful, a definite step up from the usual kind of people that inhabit this place...In the student's past experience, all the good looking girls go to the nightclubs, not bars, and especially not this bar...then again, she was an employee so that rule didn't really apply here.

Realizing he still hadn't said anything yet, Collin recollected his thoughts and finally opened his mouth"...uh...sorry, did you say something?"

The ginger gave him a look over before speaking.. "I'd say you've had too much, but you just got here. Something got you down, hun?"

"Surprisingly...no.." Collin said with a sincere smile..

"You sure? I don't see many people looking like they're about to fall asleep at the bar unless they've had too much or their depressed about something."

He shook his head, though. "No, I'm fine, really. Can I have a Fat Tire, please?"

She gave him a sympathetic smile before leaving to get a drink. Though not two seconds after she was out of earshot, Collin felt a hand slap his back as a spikey-haired blond sat down next to him. "Going after the bartender, eh?" the man asked with an enthusiastic grin. "Bold choice."

"...I'm not "going after" anyone, Blake." Collin mumbled in reply, pushing his glasses back up into place, as their perch had been disturbed by the exuberant greeting.

"'Course not" The fair-haired sophomore replied, beating his chest with his fist in a rather pompous and self-important manner. "Not without the best wingman this side of Harbor City, you aren't."

Collin snorted in amusement. "In other words, the only reason you're over here is because that girl just shot you down?"

"Faster than a red shirt on Star Trek." He admitted unashamedly with a little chuckle. "It's for the best anyway, she was kind of a bitch."

"...And since when do you have standards?" Collin asked sarcastically.

"I may not have standards, but that doesn't mean I don't have preferences."

"Oh yes, he's right." Luke jumped in with his regular nonchalant humor as he grabbed the seat on the other side of Collin. "You see, that blonde girl over there wasn't nearly stupid or drunk enough. But after she orders a few more rounds, I'm sure she'll be his type."

Blake scoffed and clutched his chest in fake pain, as if he was just stabbed in the chest. "That was a low blow. I'm hurt, Luke."

"Wounded even?" Luke shot back with a raised eyebrow.

"...hurt, Luke." Blake reiterated. "Are you saying I couldn't pick up a girl without the help of alcohol?"

"That's exactly what I'm saying."

Blake frowned a bit, mulling over the insult in his head. He could have just dropped the conversation there, but his ego wouldn't let him. Instead, he continued on. "Alright then, what say you to a little wager? Twenty bucks says that I can nail the bartender tonight."

Luke flicked his eyes over in said person's direction as she had just filled a glass with my drink. Chuckling a bit, he extended his hand. "Alright, fine...easy money."

With an overconfident grin, Blake shook hands with the cat as the redhead returned with Collin's drink...yet he continued to brag, oblivious to the world around him as usual. "Just wait and see. By the end of the night that pretty little redhead will be screaming my-"

The words caught in his throat as he finally realized that she had returned, but it was too late. She had heard enough of the comment to know who it was about and for a moment her face was redder than her hair...not from embarrassment, but anger.

"L-look miss," the blond stammered as he tried to save himself, "I was just-"

He wasn't given a chance to finish as she wordlessly, yet angrily, threw my drink right in his face. It was a direct hit, right between the eyes, then continuing to soak through his button down shirt. The mental blow was far more detrimental than the physical one, leaving the him sputtering in confusion as to what just happened before tensing with anger, himself. However, he kept it all inside, at least wanting to keep some kind of dignity. After all, he only had himself to blame

With a "hmph" and a hair flip, she turned back to Collin, although keeping her eyes fixed on Blake in a hateful glare. "My apologies sir, let me get you a refill."

The venom in her stare and her tone made it quite obvious that she wasn't in the least bit apologetic, but with that one last jab towards Blake, she left to do just as she said, letting Luke finally break out in hysterical laughter that was loud enough to shake the entire bar. Even Collin, who always felt a little embarrassed showing such a display in public found it hard not to laugh just as hard.

Still, settling down rather quickly, he pulled out a packet of tissues and offered it to his now drenched friend even though he knew it wouldn't really do that much..

Blake snatched the packet up and took out about half of them all at once, burying his face in them. Meanwhile, Luke was hunched over the bar holding his sides as the he finally calmed down enough to talk.

"Aw man...that was priceless...easiest and most entertaining twenty bucks I've ever earned in my life." He managed to sputter out between his laughing fits.

Blake retracted his face from the now rather damp tissues with a fire in his eyes, looking just about ready to punch the cat, but reeled himself in rather quickly. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, in a few seconds, the same cocky grin (albiet, a bit smaller and more half-hearted than usual) spread back across his face.

"Yeah, whatever. That was just unfortunate timing. It doesn't prove anything. I've still got game." He said, trying to defend himself even though there was no way he would win the argument at this point.

"Snrk" the cat snorted at the comment, "I don't know what's more pathetic, the fact that you just said 'I've got game' or the fact that you still think you have it after that facial."

Blake rolled his eyes. "Luke...you're gay. I don't follow you to gay bars and criticize how you pick up guys, so you don't get to judge me on how I pick up girls."

The feline shook his head in amusement. "Something tells me I'm still better at it than you."

Blake made a very audible tch as he scoffed at the suggestion. "Yeah, I'd love to see that."

The cat leaned back, pondering the comment as the bartender, still keeping a watchful gaze on Blake, came back with Collin's second drink.

Collin muttered a thanks, but kept watching Luke. The cat had a look about him...like he was thinking about something really hard. Still deep in thought, he turned away from the bar and observed the crowd for several moments, scanning over it's occupants.

Collin raised an eyebrow, not quite sure what was going on in his head. "Uh...Luke, you still with us?" he asked, waving a hand in front of his companions face, only to have it brushed away as the feline took a deep breath and audibly exhaled. Whatever he was thinking about, he had come to a conclusion.

Without any explanation, he snatched up Collin's drink and walked away.

"Hey, what the hell?"

"Where are you going?" Collin and Blake each said respectively as their furry friend stood in between a few tables near the other end of the bar, holding the glass against his stomach.

"What's he doing?" Blake asked, to which Collin could only shrug. The panther had his eyes set on a young, female husky who had just stood up from her booth that she shared with a rabbit of the same gender. Yet, still locked in conversation, she was slowly walking backwards, probably heading up to the bar to grab a round of drinks. Luke, while watching this, was timing his entrance perfectly, rounding the table and heading towards her as she finished talking with her friends and turned around. The husky's elbow knocked into Collin's beer, and the two humans watched in confusion as Luke basically spilled it on himself.

"...did he just do that on purpose?" Collin wondered allowed, even though he knew the answer...the real question was why.

The husky, startled, turned to face the black-furred brick wall she just bumped into, thinking that the spilling of the drink was completely her fault. "Oh!...Oh my gosh...I am so so sorry. I didn't see you and...I'm sorry." she said, still in earshot of the two sophomores so they could eavesdrop.

Luke, putting on a rather good show, gave a fake frown of disappointment and held up his hand to stop her, sighing before he spoke. "It's...it's fine. It was my fault." He said as he wrung out his shirt a little to get some of the beer out. "...I don't even like this shirt, so..." He raised his head and flashed her the most charming smile he could muster, "...no harm no foul. Just gotta go grab some paper towels from the bathroom or something. Sorry for bumping into you, Miss."

...and he did just that, walking off and leaving her to her business as he walked to the back of the bar and entered the restroom.

Blake furrowed his eyebrows and grabbed the bridge of his nose. "Ok...I'm confused...what the hell was all that ab-"

"Shh" Collin quieted him as he watched the canine looking back and forth between the bar and the restroom. Blake was a little slower, but Collin managed to figure out what he was doing...the only question is, would it work. "Just wait...you might learn something."

After watching the dog thinking about what to do, she finally settled on something, going over to talk to her rabbit friend for only a split second and then leaving her to go wait outside the restroom.

Blake's eyes widened as it finally clicked. "No fucking way!" he exclaimed a little too widely, earning him the attention of some annoyed patrons, but neither of the humans cared that much. Collin was too amused by this new installment, having been momentarily distracted from his ex and the fact that he was forced to come here. Meanwhile, Blake was looking on with despair, praying that he wouldn't be severely embarrassed twice in one night.

Luke emerged from the bathroom, wiping his shirt down a bit for emphasis and the canine approached him immediately. They were too far away for the others to hear this time, but after a few words were exchanged the husky gestured towards her booth and he smiled. The female returned to her booth as Luke turned to grab a chair from an empty table, but not before turning towards Blake and giving him the biggest shit-eating grin that either of them had ever seen in their lives. But, deciding to let the situation gloat for itself, he grabbed his chair and sat down with the two girls, striking up an instant conversation.

Blake just stared with his mouth agape. "Un-fucking-believable," he grumbled to himself while Collin just laughed as he continued to watch his the feline talk to his new companions.

...was it really that easy? ...sure, Blake made it seem difficult, but that's only because he's way too overconfident for his own good...maybe he should try to meet a girl tonight. He was never one for meaningless flings, but whether he found it to be a worthwhile experience or not, it had to be better than sitting around and moping all day and he'd much prefer a girl's company than sitting at the bar with Blake all night.

Before he even decided what he should do, he was already scanning through the bar. After a quick look through, he frowned...his options weren't all that good. There were a few loners, but they were all much older than him, and all of the girls that were anywhere near his age were all in groups of four or five.

He wasn't even completely comfortable with the idea yet in the first place, so a large group of girls seemed rather intimidating...so maybe tonight wasn't the best night to do this...or at least, not at this bar.

Giving one quick scan through again, his eyes stopped on a blonde haired girl facing away from him. She was in one of the large groups that he had seen before, but now with her back turned to him she looked just like...just like her...like Erin.

With that one little thought, his mind began to wonder about her. How was she doing? Was she in as pathetic a state as he was? Had she moved on? Had she...had she found someone else?

It didn't take long before he was off in his own little world again, making himself more and more depressed with each second he spent thinking about her until finally-

"Hey!" Blake shook his friend out of his stupor as he finally sat up from the bar. "I know that face. Stop thinking about her, it only makes things worse."

"...sorry." Collin muttered under his breath, not really meaning it, but at least trying to comply with his request. He knew Blake was right, and at this point, he was really sick and tired of being depressed. Although he had to be dragged out tonight...he finally made up his mind that he would, at the very least, try to forget.

"It's alright," Blake answered, patting his saddened companion on the back sympathetically, "Now...I may not be on my game tonight, but I'll try to help you in any way I can, so who've you got your eye on?"

Collin chuckled at the offer. "Thanks, but somehow i don't think a wingman covered in beer is the best..."

He trailed off as someone shoved the door open to the bar, a female red fox that...honestly, looked quite out of place here. Not that this was a fancy place or anything, far from it, there were plenty of people wearing jeans and a t-shirt just like she was. However, the patterned rips in the denim and the style of the t-shirt made it look like she had bought them at Hot Topic or something...the whole outfit just screamed "I'm underge and shouldn't be in a bar."

...actually, everything about her, mostly her short stature and her clothing, just seemed to scream underage. Not under eighteen, but definitely under twenty-one. However, it wasn't the looks of the vixen that had gotten Collin's attention, but rather the frantic way she had entered the bar. She seemed very distressed as her eyes darted from one end of the bar to the other.

...and then...her eyes locked on his. Collin furrowed his brow in confusion as they stared straight into each others eyes. There was just this...determination in her eyes that was almost overpowering. But there was something else there too...just barely, but it was still there.

Desperation? ...no...fear.

Before Collin even knew what was happening, the vulpine began a west-point stride across the bar and stopped in front of the bespectacled human.

"Uh...can I help you?" he asked confusedly while Blake looked on in curiosity.

The fox checked over her shoulder towards the entrance, like she was paranoid of being caught or something and then turned back to Collin. "Look, this is going to sound insane, but I really don't have time to explain myself. I need you to be my boyfriend for five minutes."

"Excuse me!?" The college student exclaimed. Insane didn't even begin to describe the nature of that request...not that he wasn't flattered, but this was just way beyond crazy.

"I promise I'll explain later, I'll even pay you, but-" She cut herself off as the door to the bar opened once again, this time revealing a green-scaled lizard, roughly about Luke's size and muscle mass.

"Shit." She muttered, turning back and yanking Collin out of his seat by the collar, an odd feat being that she was about six inches smaller than him. "I'm really sorry about this, please just play along."

"What are you-" Collin began to ask before he was silenced in a way he did not expect whatsoever. Out of absolutely nowhere, the strange vixen pulled him forward and mashed her muzzle against his lips, wasting absolutely no time in shoving her tongue in his mouth in a sloppy, yet still intense kiss

Collin froze in place, completely shocked to say the least as a deep blush formed on his face. The vixen was certainly throwing her all into this ruse, as her eyes gently shut and her tongue seemed to run circles around his own, exploring his mouth openly

There were a lot of questions he should have been asking at that moment, and he knew that. Who was she? Why was she doing this? Who was the guy who just entered the bar? And above all...why did she choose him?

But somehow...as her tongue started to grind down on his in a most dominant manner, none of that seemed to matter. Instead, a resounding reply echoed through his mind.

...who the hell cares?

With that simple thought, Collin forgot about the strangeness of the entire situation or the fact that he was just being frenched by a total stranger in public. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he returned the kiss with just as much intensity.

Maybe it was because he was thinking too much with the wrong head, but If she wanted him to be her boyfriend for five minutes...this was more than enough to persuade him because she was a damn good kisser.

She was probably just trying to make an old ex jealous, or try to show that she moved one after a break-up...or hell, maybe she just wants to flaunt him in front of her friends, some girls can be bitches like that. The more he thought about it, the more he convinced himself that this wasn't a very big deal, and while it wasn't the best idea, he was more than happy to-

Just as quickly as this strange fox girl had pulled him into a warm and passionate (however fake it might have been) embrace, the lizard man had approached them and ripped the two apart. Collin barely even realized what was happening until he felt himself being lifted off the ground and didn't have any time to react as he was thrown to the ground...hard.

A couple of bystanders screamed and shouted as they saw Collin land flat on his back, cringing as pain shot up through his spine. He tried to stand up and face his attacker, however the shock of the blow left him unable to move for a few seconds...which was really all his green-scaled assailant needed.

The lizard, with a scowl of pure hatred, grabbed Collin's shirt collar and drew his arm back, ready to deliver a haymaker.

...perhaps I misinterpreted the situation...

_ *WHAM!!!* _

---

As Always, I leave it on a cliffhanger, but that's just my nature. Gotta leave some incentive to come back, yeah? :P

Anyway, as I said before, this is my first attempt at writing something in third person so feedback is always appreciated but if you're not inclined to, that's perfectly fine.

until next time.

-Morris Archeltum