Tropical Revised - Chapter Eight
Soft chirping noises breached Rye's bedroom, carried upon the back of a chilled breeze, which rustled Rye out of his slumber and away from a very pleasant dream. Uncertain of which memories were a dream or real, Rye was slow to open his eyes and awake. The answer came to him when he felt a warm and wet pressure against his ear that nearly made him moan. The pressure came back and a soft moan escaped from his throat.
"Good morning Rye," Cloud's soothing voice echoed near his ear before it was = licked again.
His ear folded back against the lick instinctively before his eyes finally blinked open. He was now lying against Cloud's chest, who was sitting up against the headboard of the bed already.
"How long have you been awake?" asked Rye, rubbing his eyes.
"For a little while," answered Cloud, switching from licking to nuzzling again.
When Rye shifted to sit up next to Cloud, he remembered that they were both naked and completely exposed for the lack of any covers. His mind still in a haze, he allowed his eyes to explore Cloud's body.
Before his gaze lowered past the white furry abdomen, Cloud squirmed just enough for Rye to return his gaze back to those green eyes. The white otter's ears were slanted back slightly against his head and his gaze was avoiding meeting Rye's in embarrassment.
"Sorry," muttered Rye shamefully. With effort, he kept his eyes off Cloud's body.
"I know you've seen me naked before, Rye" said Cloud, turning his gaze back to meet Rye's. He now smiled even though it was clear he was still blushing.
"I was hoping you didn't notice," replied Rye, returning the smile. "I didn't stare at you in the locker rooms, but you are one otter that lures my gaze."
"I knew it," muttered Cloud, his smile widening.
"You left some clothes here last time you visited, so if you want to shower and get dressed you can do it here," mentioned Rye. He pushed himself up and sat on the edge of the bed, with his long tail almost curled around him.
"I'll keep it quick," Cloud said, while he crawled off the bed and headed for the shower.
Rye's gaze was again lured at the white otter's naked back. The door shutting behind Cloud interrupted his gaze. He rubbed his groggy eyes before standing and reaching up toward the ceiling with his webbed paws in a tall stretch.
The sounds of water splashing on the shower floor seeped through the door. Rye threw on a silky robe before heading out into his living room and heading for the kitchen. He retrieved some food from the cold storage and began preparing a light breakfast for himself and the otter in his shower.
Some lightly seasoned aquatic meat sizzled in the frying pan while Rye carefully tended to the other dishes he was preparing. Four dishes were steaming up when he heard the bedroom the soft pawsteps of Cloud emerging from the bedroom. The white otter had a blue towel wrapped around his waist.
"I should have asked before I got into the shower, but where are my clothes that I left here?" Cloud asked from across the recreational room. His nose twitched at the scent of the food cooking.
The white otter held the towel tight around his hips with a paw. He wasn't dripping wet but his fur was still damp enough to make it shine in the sunlight.
"They're in a drawer next to the dryer," Rye informed the otter he stared at. "I washed them for you and forgot them in the dryer."
"Okay thanks," Cloud said. " I just didn't know where you had put them." He turned back into the room and disappeared behind around the corner.
Rye attended to the dishes over the stove again but it only took a few minutes until Cloud returned, dressed in clothes this time.
"Feel better now?" asked Rye, glancing over at the otter briefly.
"Fresher at least," Cloud answered, smoothing his clothes out with his paws. "Thank you for washing them, Rye."
"It worked out great for me," said Rye after he finished plating the food on two dishes. "I kept you here for the day."
He set the plates down on the table that was near the kitchen and gestured for Cloud to sit. The otter from across the room obliged, and sat down at the table with him.
"I haven't had a cooked meal for breakfast in a while," said Cloud, eyeing the food set in front of him. "You're washing my clothes and cooking my breakfast. How motherly of you."
A smile tugged at the corners of Rye's muzzle, while he sat across from the white otter. He watched the otter's green eyes scan at the food that he prepared for him.
"We have a couple days off from school so is there anything you want to do?" asked Rye, only smiling at the previous comment.
"I was thinking of crashing here," Cloud said. The otter slowly sniffed the different foods on the plate before pecking at them as if he were checking for the slightest sign of poison. "I feel a little responsible for the mess in this place is in since I've crashed here so many times so I'll clean up after myself a bit, if you'll allow me."
Rye's looked around his place quickly. "It's not that big of a mess," he said. "It'd take me only a few minutes to tidy things up."
"An extra set of paws will take even less time," claimed Cloud.
"You're stubborn," Rye commented, smiling into the green eyes of the white otter. "Do you mind going shopping with me later? I have to restock my food cache."
"I don't mind at all," Cloud answered, smiling back. "Let's hurry and eat then."
Their plates were soon emptied and washed. They didn't waste time and started to clean up the small apartment, but the playful white otter slowed their progress down a bit when he jumped on the couch after Rye and just brushed it clean of excess fur. Despite the playful otter, the place was cleaned and locked up before they set out for the store.
Cloud was eyeing the bred fish swimming in a large tank hungrily when Rye's PawPad notified him of an incoming video call.
" Good morning Ariel," the otter answered.
Cloud curiously glanced away from the fish back at the blue otter but was met with a sarcastic smile. Keeping his silence, the white otter returned his attention to choosing which fish he'd want to have for dinner.
"Good morning Rye," Ariel's small portrait on the device's screen replied. She smiled up at him. "Where are you?"
"I'm getting some groceries with Cloud," Rye answered, following the other otter while he paced along the side of the fish tank.
"You two are doing your errands together?" she asked but had no intention of waiting for an answer. "He must have slept over again. You otters are becoming inseparable. Anyway, do you and Cloud want to meet Nate and me for lunch later? If you're not doing anything today we can go back to my place and play some video games afterwards."
"Sure! Where should we meet?"
"We're going to the Tai Diner near the school. Be there by noon."
"Okay, I'll see you then." With farewells exchanged, the otter placed his PawPad back in his pocket.
"So where are you going?" Cloud asked, collecting the packaged fish.
"We are invited to lunch with Ariel and Nate," answered Rye, curiously observing Cloud's actions. "After all the time you spent choosing that fish out, I hope it's tasty."
"It's the best out of the tank," boasted Cloud, smirking at him. "An otter knows a good fish when he sees one."
Rye answered by sticking his tongue out slightly before moving on to finish shopping. They purchased a few more items, along with herbs and spices from the gardens before leaving the store and returning to Rye's home.
There were still a few hours left until they'd meet up with their friends for lunch so they packed away their groceries and sat together on the sofa. The white otter had lied across the larger sofa but encouraged for Rye to join him. Playfully Rye climbed onto the sofa, over Cloud and smiled down at him.
The lower otter bashfully smiled as Rye licked his nose. The blue otter rolled behind Cloud and pulled him close against his chest while they both faced toward the television system. Both otters comfortable they wasted time by watching random programs on the large screen until their designated time to meet up with their friends.
Time passed with the otters comfortable snuggled on the sofa but they eventually sat back up and stretched before heading back out to Rye's vehicle. No more than a few minutes later, they were parked at the diner.
Outside the diner Ariel and Nate were waiting for the otters to arrive. They approached Rye's vehicle just as they were stepping out. The usual greetings were quickly passed around while they walked inside the diner.
"Are you two hungry?" asked Ariel, sitting at a table.
"We haven't eaten since breakfast," remarked the blue otter, sitting next to Cloud and across from Ariel. "We were going to have a snack a few hours ago but figured we'll wait to eat with you two."
"You're eating breakfast at Rye's?" Ariel asked, glancing between the two otters were her narrow eyes. "Did you two move in together? I wouldn't think that place could sustain two otters for very long."
"No," answered Cloud. His ears folded back while he answered. "We live so close that it's not much of an event for me to go over."
"You all know you're welcome over at any time," Rye chimed in, folding his paws across the table's surface. "Cloud lives conveniently nearby, and it's nice to have some one around after school and work." He turned to smile at the other otter, and was greeted with a cute smile in return. Turning back to his friends, he noticed Nate was grinning in a mischievous way at the otter.
Before the wolf or otter could exchange any words, a diner employee approached the table. The four of them placed their order in the old fashion way before the waitress turned back toward the kitchen and left them to chat.
"So where did you two go after the run yesterday?" Nate asked, his grin still holding some mysterious meaning.
The four of them continued to chat lightly over their lunch, but Rye was growing annoyed by the smile worn by the wolf. He eventually decided that if the wolf wanted to share whatever his devious mind was thinking up, then he would whether the otter wanted to know or not.
With crumbs left on their plates, they all walked out of the diner. They agreed to meet back at Ariel's place before they separated into the two separate vehicles they used to get to the diner. A short drive later they were soon playing video games in the felines lower basement. Around the entertainment system was insufficient seats, so the otters silently volunteered to share a seat where they could sit comfortably close together.
For hours the otters stayed and wasted time playing a variety of video games, yelling and laughing with their friends. Later when they grew hungry again, the four friends stopped playing video games and gathered in the kitchen to eat.
Slowly the sun moved across the blue sky while the hours passed. Before the day could draw to a close, the wolf left with their squirrel friend, mentioning something about recreational tree climbing. The otters stayed with Ariel before the sun went down.
Rye had to work the next morning so he and Cloud left a little early. Once they were behind the closed door of Rye's apartment, they lied snuggled together on his bed and quickly fell asleep.
While the otter prepared for work, he felt guilty leaving Cloud alone, so he offered to arrange for a few friends to come over. The offer was declined, and instead Cloud asked if he could stay to play some video games or watch a television program. Of course, Rye agreed but still felt guilty leaving Cloud alone while he drove off to work.
Beach Lagoon was closed after the games but the core crew was required to work. The moment Rye arrived he was met with the ermine manager who burdened the otter's day with cleaning out buckets and buckets of fur from the pool's filters. All the fur was placed in machines to be cleaned and then piled to be sold to different vendors. Rye assisted the manager in negotiating with new vendors, and directing the crew how to sort the different types of fur but only the time he wasn't assisting in hauling the fur out of the filters are machines. The laborious work exhausted the otter but after mountains of fur were gathered and shipped out, the otter was finished working and able to return home.
Most of the sunlight was burned by the time Rye returned home, but he was surprised when he noticed Nate's car parked outside his place.
"Just don't start a fire," Cloud could be heard the moment Rye opened the door.
"I'm not," the voice of a familiar wolf replied, shortly followed by the sound of a rush of flames and his laughter. "Oops."
"Nate?" Rye questioned, quickly heading toward the kitchen. There he saw Nate and Cloud leaning back away from one of his dishes that were on fire. The flames quickly died down once the fuel burned off. "What are you doing?"
"Hey Rye," Nate said innocently but looking full of amusing guilt.
"Hey," Cloud said quietly. "We were trying to cook your dinner before you got home."
After extinguishing the flames, Nate walked around the corner and uncharacteristically hugged Rye.
"Hi Nate," said Rye, muffled by the taller wolf's fur. "What're you doing here?"
"You know me," Nate answered, releasing the otter and walking back to the kitchen. "I'm very curious and I have to know what's going on. I knew you liked Cloud."
Cloud acted busy to stay out of the conversation but his ears were folded back.
"You tricked Cloud into telling you about us?" Rye asked suspiciously, unsure to be annoyed or impressed. The wolf nodded and had a large grin across his muzzle. "We've only been together for a couple days, you couldn't wait?"
"It makes me happy to know that you both are happy together," claimed Nate before he returned to the kitchen to cook for his newly coupled friends. "Is it really a big deal that I know that you two are boyfriends? I've discussed about the possibility of you two with the others before."
"Great," Rye said, rolling his eyes. He walked away from the kitchen and disappeared inside his room to begin dressing out of work attire. Cloud followed him into the room and sat on the bed.
"Sorry Rye," Cloud said, looking guilty again. "Nate came over so I let him in and he's very clever with words so he found out. Did you not want him to know?"
"I don't mind," Rye claimed, pulling on more comfortable clothes. "I just want to know how the students at school will handle the news before we tell the others." Once dressed more comfortably, Rye exchanged a quick hug with Cloud and headed back to kitchen. He was immediately presented with a plate with a slab of fish steak on it.
"I'm sorry for coming uninvited Rye," Nate said, smiling while holding up the plate. "And for cooking your food from your fridge."
"That's fine, Nate," he responded, accepting the dish. Despite having a hard day at work, he smiled at his friend. "You are persistent, and unnaturally curious about my personal life but it's still nice to have you around."
"You're a good friend, Rye," Nate said, passing a plate of food to Cloud. "Sharing your burdens with your friends will help you make it through life."
Rye looked up at the wolf and smiled crookedly. "You must be thinking about majoring in counseling. So are you going to stay for dinner?"
"No," answered Nate, marching back into the kitchen and began cleaning. "I'll let you two have the night together." The moment the otters cut into their steak, Nate finished up and headed for the door. "I'll see you two tomorrow at school; and don't worry, I know how to keep a secret."
"Thanks for stopping by, Nate," Cloud said, standing up to hug his wolf friend. "It was great to have a friend over while Rye was gone."
"No problem." Nate returned the hug. "We'll have to get together sometime so I can tell you all the great stories about Rye."
"It's all lies," the otter interjected, remaining at the table.
With a giggle, Nate bid farewell before he walked out the door leaving the otters alone together once again. Cloud sat at the table again and began eating.
"You look tired," he commented, glancing up from his food at Rye.
"I am," confirmed Rye, focusing on his food. "It's amazing how much a small amount of fur can weight, and yet we have so much more than that on our bodies all the time." Cloud smiled in return, chewing on the food. "So how'd Nate know you were here?"
"I don't know. I was lying on the couch when he knocked on the door, saying that he knew I was in here."
"That's strange," commented Rye before he changed the subject. Similar to the time when Nate discovered Rye's secret of being interested in other males, Rye did feel relieved again that he knew about his relationship with Cloud.
After they ate and cleaned their plates, Rye and Cloud gathered their school supplies and a fresh set of clothes for the following morning. The white otter obviously felt uncomfortable about making space for himself in Rye's apartment but he never said anything, even after he lied down on the couch with Rye.
The night was spent casually but together, and neither desired to go back to school but they went to bed on earlier than normal in preparation of waking the next morning. In a rather comfortable position, the otters fell asleep quickly despite the early hour.
The next morning, they woke to an alarm and were reluctant to break away from each other to wake up early. Eventually Rye rolled out of bed. They took turns showering, and the usual morning routine went by quickly to their disappointment. Soon enough they were at school, waiting for the day to start.
Waiting in the usual room of one of their favored teachers, Rye and Cloud sat on a couple desk, Rye leaning slightly on the other otter. Accompanied by the squirrel and the grinning wolf, Cloud was still a little shy but allowed Rye to lean on him because in truth, he enjoyed the physical contact from the otter.
Ariel entered the room with her boyfriend, and Marvin. Immediately the room fell silent, but the caribou exchanged a quick glance with Shasta. His ears were folded back and it was obvious he was uncomfortable being around his best friend who just rejected his affection a few days ago.
With Marvin and the squirrel sitting far apart from each other, Nate was able to bring up a lighter conversation.
"It was cleaning day," Rye answered one of Ariel's questions. She was giving him a curious expression because he was still leaning on Cloud affectionately. "Normally work is fun but I hate cleaning out all that fur, especially when it has been in the water for too long. It always gets slimy for some reason."
"Don't look at me," Nate objected when the otter glanced at him. "My fur gets oily but I wash it every day."
"Everyone has oily fur," remarked Shasta, avoiding eye contact with his best friend. "If my fur got into those filters, some of the oil would be still trapped there."
Rye glanced at his caribou friend, but he wasn't giving him a curious glance; it almost looked like a glare. Marvin looked away but the otter was left confused by his reaction, and he finally supported his own weight instead of leaning on Cloud.
The rest of the morning continued to be slightly awkward but their classes started soon enough and they dispersed. The otters casually held each other's paw while they walked through the halls, so they wouldn't lose each other and because they liked it.
Their first class went by normally and much to fast for their liking. Nate harassed the otter with questions about his new relationship during the second class of the day but before they knew it, it was lunch break and the otters were reunited.
"How were your classes?" Cloud asked while they waited in the line for their food together.
"Nate's pestering me for personal details about us," complained the blue otter. He sighed but smiled at his boyfriend. "Other than that, they were fine. How about yours?"
"I have a lot of homework to do this week," Cloud groaned. "I wanted to go to work with you a couple times but it looks like I'll be stuck doing homework."
Rye smiled sadly and gave Cloud a friendly hug. Their obligations were going to cut into their time together. Releasing the white otter, Rye looked around his surroundings but was greatly disappointed when he saw Diane quickly approaching him.
"Hi Diane," he intended to say but before he could, the mare struck him across the cheek. Shocked, Rye took a moment to regain his posture. Cloud was wide-eyed next to him but he didn't say anything.
"Outside," demanded the blue otter oblivious to the commotion around him. He felt Cloud grip his paw but he ignored it.
"And who do you think you are to command me?" responded Diane, her voice carrying across the cafeteria. She had tears in her eyes, but she raised her paw again ready to strike at Rye. Before it made contact, Rye reflexively grabbed her wrist and yanked it down with a slight twist. "Let me go, you bastard!"
"Outside, now!" With a shove, the mare tripped toward the exit. She regained her balance and stormed out the doors with Rye following her.
"What is your problem?" Rye nearly yelled, his cheek still stinging.
"You!" she screamed, sobbing either from sadness or anger. "I was being so nice to you, trying everything I could to make you notice me and then I find out you're already in relationship with someone! And he's a guy!"
"To be fair Diane, you weren't being nice when Cloud and I started to hang out. You always tried to distance me from my friends."
"And was I wrong to do so? Look at what happened."
"Yes you were wrong," declared Rye, folding his arms across his chest. "You wanted to break all my friendships just so you can have me for yourself? That's not being in a relationship, that's being in a stranglehold."
"You could have given me a chance, I would have eventually opened up to your friends," claimed Diane, sounding desperate for Rye to change his mind about Cloud.
"Isn't that at all a bit selfish to you?" asked the otter. The mare's mentality truly baffled him.
"Selfish?" repeated the mare. Her expression changed from appearing desperate and distraught, to hate and anger. "Stop being so self-righteous, otter! Do you have any idea how it makes me feel that I was rejected for a guy? You clearly weren't thinking about my feelings when you decided to start lying in bed with otter boys! You're such a hypocrite, you... you... bitch!"
Rye didn't have a chance to respond before Ariel walked right up to Diane, and threw the back of her paw across the mare's cheek. She fell to the ground, holding her cheek but her eyes blazed with fury. Without warning, she lunged at Ariel leaving Rye barely enough time to step between the two of them.
Firmly he held Diane back while avoiding her swinging paws, but Ariel was easier to hold back and she only tried to get at the mare.
"Damn you Ariel! You're going to regret that!"
"Bring it on, it's been a long time coming!"
"Ariel, Diane, enough!" the otter yelled. The lynx obeyed and she took a step back while Rye dealt with restraining Diane. Pushing her several steps back, he firmly held her by her shoulders. "Diane, there's no way I'm letting you touch Ariel. Even if you did get by me, I doubt Patrick would let you touching her slide by."
"This is why I always hated your friends," spat Diane before storming off.
Rye sighed and turned to look at Ariel who was still scowling. Staring at her for a moment, Rye found her amusing for some reason and laughed.
"What?" asked Ariel, her scowl turning into laughter. "Rye, what?"
"That was a bit dramatic, don't you think?" he asked, walking up to her and giving the lynx a hug. "Thanks though. She needed some sense knocked into her."
"Too bad you didn't allow me to knock some more sense into her," Ariel grumbled, looking at the fleeing mare across the alleyway. "I've been wanting to do that a long time; ever since she tried to sabotage our friendship."
"Well, I hope you're satisfied because she can be feisty," stated Rye, walking back to the cafeteria with Ariel. "Let's hope that this will just all blow over."
"Right," said Ariel, distracted by another thought. "So you and Cloud are boyfriends now. That's quite a dramatic way to break the news to us."
"Ariel," groaned Rye but he smiled. He knew it was inevitable. "Cloud and I have only been together for a couple days."
"I didn't know you were open to being friendly with other males," Ariel admitted, looking up at the otter. "And to think all this time I was trying to find you a nice girlfriend."
"Tell me you're joking," grumbled Rye, walking through the doors of the cafeteria to rejoin the others.
"Anyway, I'm really happy for you," Ariel said, stopping them on the other side of the doors. "Cloud is really cute and he's a nice otter. You're my best friend Rye, and I want to see you happy. Now that I know I can help you two whenever and wherever you need it."
"Thanks Ariel," said Rye. His cheeks burned a little bit from blushing under his fur. "I won't keep you from Patrick anymore. Sorry for the scene."
"Awe, he wants to get back to Cloud," mumbled Ariel, grinning at the otter. "What a cute couple they make."
"Stop that Ariel," Rye said with a giggle.
"Hey, you know it's true," she laughed while she walked away. "I'll let you two be alone for now but we're going to talk later."
"Okay," Rye said before the chatter of the cafeteria started to drown out his voice. He watched Ariel return to the table where her cougar sat waiting for her before returning the line where Cloud was waiting. The area was cleared now, but Cloud didn't look like he moved from that spot.
"Are you okay?" he asked. Concerned for the otter, Cloud brought his paw up to his cheek to caress it a bit.
"I'm fine," said Rye, reaching up and grabbing Cloud's paw that was touching his cheek. "I think Diane got it worst. Ariel really hit her hard."
"I saw," Cloud said, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "She's not really a friendly person from what I have experienced but Ariel must have really hated her."
"They have a little bit of a history," confirmed the blue otter, leading Cloud toward the cafeteria. They gathered their food and returned to the large table where the rest of their friends were already sitting and eating at.
"You really don't disappoint but that was a bit extreme, even for you Rye," Nate said once the otters sat down together. "Couldn't you think of a better way to tell the school about your new boyfriend?"
"You know I didn't intend for that to happen Nate," Rye said, somewhat irritated.
"I know," admitted the wolf, leaning over the table. "Are you comfortable with everyone knowing this now though?" Both of them nodded in response. "If anyone gives you two trouble, let me know."
"Should we expect trouble?" questioned Cloud. He looked cautiously into Rye's blue eyes.
"You two are the only otters in the whole city," Nate boasted, his mischievous tone returning. "There's going to be a lot of broken hearts when everyone hears that the otters took each other instead of someone else."
"Like Diane?" grumbled Rye, growling at the mention of her name.
"Well, I wouldn't expect that much trouble," laughed Nate. "Anyway, now that I can ask the questions I've been wanting to ask: Is this why Cloud has been spending the night all the time?"
"Yes, it's why he's been for the past few days at least," admitted Rye.
"Have you two gone swimming together alone yet?"
"Yes. Actually last Friday we went swimming together, and that when we, well, expressed our feelings to each other."
Nate gazed at Rye curiously before asking, "Were you swimming naked?"
"What?" exclaimed Rye, nearly jumping from his seat from his friend drawing such a conclusion. "No, nothing like that. Nate, stop prying into our personal lives."
Cloud's ears were now folded back and he was staring at the food on the table, embarrassed by the wolf's question.
"Sorry Rye," Nate laughed. He leaned over a hugged the otter gently and grinned apologetically at Cloud.
"Damn you curious wolves," muttered Rye, still embarrassed.
"I'm just excited that my best friend finally has someone to share his life with," Nate admitted, his smile never fading. "Cloud, you're an amazing and cute otter, and I know that you'll be happy with Rye, even if he can be obnoxiously competitive."
"Thanks Nathan," said Cloud, still recovering from his own embarrassment.
"I'm not that competitive," mumbled the other otter.
For years Nate has teased Rye, so he knew how much the wolf loved to do it but also that it was always harmless.
Nate did stop teasing them and asking questions but instead he started suggesting ideas for dates that the two otters could go on together.
"And if any jealous students giving you two trouble," Nate continued, never stopping for a breath. "You just tell me or Ariel and we'll take care of it."
"Will do," commented Rye. His thoughts went back to when Ariel struck Diane, and he smiled despite himself. "Don't start causing trouble until at least after Chymerage, Nate. Cloud and I would like to spend the holiday without having a bunch of burdens worrying us."
"Since when have I caused any trouble?"
"When don't you cause trouble?" Ariel chimed in.
"Since I met you over four years ago," Rye muttered. He was successful in finally diverting the topic of discussion away from his relationship with Cloud. They stayed chatting about the topic of the upcoming holiday Chymerage until their lunch break was over. The pack of friends quickly dispersed off to their next classes.
School ended but not before Rye was questioned more by many of his other friends throughout the school day. After the final class of the day, Rye waited for his new boyfriend outside the building in his usual spot and together they went home.