~Sibirskaia Zero~
The Masters Chapter 12 -
Domini
(September 23rd)
It was just another Monday at Sibirskaia high.
Bells rang, and students squeezed through hallways long ago too narrow for the mass of life they were expected to corral. Teachers robotically repeated the same lessons they'd given a semester ago, and would give again a semester away. Some students listened, some slept, and some faced disciplinary action for various levels of disobedience and insubordination. But everyone, teacher and student alike, awaited lunch and its respite free of classroom monotony.
And for one specific sophomore tiger: this was especially true.
Hunter Thurman had more reason to look forward to lunch this particular Monday, than usual. Today, Sibirskaia's freshman were shut up in a number of auditorium seated rooms, facing the tedium of yet another standardized placement test...and the canid object of Hunter's affection -- one Elliot Masters -- was among them.
As such, their gym class today had been replaced with study hall. Hunter was one of only a couple of non-freshmen in the class, and there was no point in holding gym for only three students. Not that Hunter minded having the class off, of course, but he DID miss his husky.
And so, the tiger greeted the end of study hall with a happy and expectant smile. Certainly Elliot would be done with his test in time to eat, and that was greater reason for Hunter to look forward to lunch than any amount of food or academic respite.
However, Elliot's wasn't the first face he'd seen, and at the moment, he found himself in conversation with his old friend, Michael Taylor. And the subject at hand was the events of Friday evening...
It had become pretty obvious, early this Monday, that everyone who knew either Hunter or Ell, had heard about their Friday night date. It hadn't exactly become a school wide news-bulletin like they were worried it would -- `Attention: Sophomore Tiger and Freshman Husky spotted on homosexual outing!' -- but the rumor, mild as it was, had spread at least throughout their individual circles of friends and acquaintances, and slightly beyond.
Hunter had heard his share of snide remarks over it, but, seeing as it was still only a rumor, and anyone who'd heard it held some form of friendship for the tiger, no one took their remarks very far. Most were just inquiries disguised as euphemisms, from those wondering if the rumor was true, or mostly harmless jokes from those who knew it WAS. Most.
Michael, though, was different. Mic was a close friend, a former `playmate' in his own right, and had actually spoken to them on the date...so Hunter figured he'd indulge the hyena's curiosity.
``Yeah, Mic, the movie was good enough.'' Hunter leaned against the wall in the cafeteria as he spoke to the Hyena in front of him, ``but the rest of the night was much better.''
Michael was far better groomed than the mangy hyena stereotype would have one believe, but he was still every bit a hyena, and the laughter on his lips proved that not all stereotypes were so easily avoidable. So far, his friend's story sounded like a basic date, but `the rest of the night' bit sounded like it would make for a much better story. ``And? What happened? Does the pup fuck on the first date,'' Mic put his money into the machine before him while he glanced impishly at the cat, ``like I do?''
Hunter just chuckled softly, ``That depends on your definition of the word: `fuck.' Because he and I have never done anything more than oral.'' He shrugged lightly, ``But, since neither you nor I have raised tail for one another...then yes! Exactly like you!'' Hunter stepped up and pushed his friend out of the way after he'd gotten his very nutritious bag of chips, and went about putting his own money in, ``Though technically you and I never had a date, either...first or otherwise.''
The hyena retrieved his chips quickly, trying to ensure no one saw him with his head by the tiger's crotch, especially with the news floating around. With a claw he popped open his bag and began munching while Hunter retrieved his own, ``Well is he any good at it? Oral that is.''
``He's getting there. He's very inexperienced.'' Hunter snatched his own even more nutritious cinnamon roll and stood back up, ``But I could really care less. This isn't about sex. I've had sex of one kind or another with plenty of people.'' He smiled at one of those people, Mic, as he opened his sugary treat, ``But I've never taken anyone else on a date and risked outing myself to the whole school.'' He held it to his lips, ``this one's worth it,'' and took a bite.
``Oh yeah?'' Mic ate a chip with a mocking grin, ``I'm glad to see he's here with you to celebrate the glorious `outing,' then! Instead of him, though, you found me, and now everyone's gonna' think I'm cruising for a date. So where's he at?'' The hyena looked around for the specific husky in question, but with no luck.
``He should be here soon.'' The tiger tapped his snack against the side of his muzzle, ``He's a freshman, remember? So he's taking that placement test thing.'' He lowered his paw, treat and all, ``But he should be done soon. I seem to remember us all finishing around the beginning of lunch last year...''
Mic ate another chip and walked slowly towards the cafeteria's exit, guiding his friend along with him, ``You don't think anyone's hasslin' him, do you?''
``With him having been testing this whole time?'' Hunter followed close behind, ``I doubt it. But I'm sure it's coming,'' he let out a sigh, ``and I'm just hoping I can protect him from it as much as I can.''
The hyena nodded and scowled at a group of whispering, giggling freshman -- certainly classmates of Elliot's who the dog would rather not have heard the rumor, but obviously had. But before he could say anything, or continue his conversation with his tiger friend, he stopped and turned to the cat. ``Well I guess I'll leave you alone then,'' he pointed a thumb toward the school's entrance, guiding Hunter to see a slightly slouched husky entering, ``cause here he comes.''
Hunter broke into a wide smile and waved absently at Mic, neither saying another word as the hyena went about his business. Taking another bite of his snack, Hunter nearly bounded forward to meet up with and stop Ell before he got too far through door, ``Hey, Pup! I missed you in PE today.''
Elliot nodded and gave him a half hearted smile, ``I...I missed you too. But we need to talk.'' With that short introduction, he pulled a small note from his pocket, folded into a delicate little package, ``Or, I guess not so much talking. It...here: it's all in the letter...''
The tiger took hold of and blinked at the note, ``Wait...what?'' He felt a sudden sinking in his stomach, all manner of worries falling down on him as he looked at the folded paper. Something was wrong, and every idea suddenly flooding into his mind brought him to the same conclusion: his first real relationship might already be on the verge of ending. But why? He chuckled nervously, though, trying to convince himself that he was wrong. ``Elliot, you're scarin' me a little bit, sweetheart. What's this about? D-don't make me read it in a note.''
Ell laid his ears back as a loud comment from a passer-by broke the silence before he responded. He gulped and looked around, noticing a few furs in the cafeteria were paying him and the cat a bit more attention than he'd like. ``I don't want to talk about it here. Let's go somewhere else...please?''
``Sure, hun. Let's head outside...'' Hunter put his paw with the note in it on his friend's shoulder and motioned back at the entrance Ell came in through.
The husky walked with Hunter silently, biting his lip as he trying to quickly muster the courage to say what was on his mind. It was so much easier to just write it down. Outside, Ell sighed deeply and began, simply spewing out the first thing that was bothering him, ``Why did you lie to me Hunter?''
Hunter had his mouth open when the question hit him, having been about to ask Ell if this was all about the other kids at the school. Apparently it wasn't. He blinked and his brow furrowed, ``I lied? When?''
Elliot gulped and took in a shaky breath, already feeling a bit queasy about the conversation, ``I asked you how much you had told Stan about me. You said you hadn't told him any of the really personal stuff, but you did.'' He looked up to the tiger, his knees and jaw quivering slightly; he was obviously new to this sort of thing.
``Oh fuck. I'm sorry. I didn't think it would be that big of...a...'' the tiger stopped and looked down, not having actually let that sink in before he responded. ``Wait. How could you even know about that?'' he looked back up, more confused now than anything.
``Stan...his brother Aaron knows my uncle Will. And this weekend, they BOTH met my dad!'' Ell helplessly crossed his arms over his stomach, ``So, now Stan knows, and Aaron knows, and even my DAD knows what we've done!'' He motioned with his snout and a gentle wave of his paw toward the school entrance, ``Who's next?? I mean, everyone at school knows we went out, now, but I don't want them to know about everything we've done, too...like in the showers or what happened Friday after the movie...''
``And they're not going to, Ell,'' Hunter put his paw on his friend's shoulder. ``Are your uncle, your dad, Stan's brother, or Stan gonna' tell them? Are we?''
``No...but...'' the husky looked down and shuffled his feet nervously, ``They're still more furs who know, already, than I wanted to know! Nobody else was supposed to find out about this. It's our personal lives: our relationship, Hunter.''
``But they already knew!'' Hunter shot back more defensively than he should. ``After Friday night, your dad and your uncle knew about...our personal life...anyway. So what if Stan told them a little bit more? Did it cause you extra trouble or something?''
Elliot shrunk away from the harsh response, ``It's not about the problems it started, Hunter. It's that you lied! And that you knew how important it was to me for us to keep it a secret, but you told Stan anyway.''
The tiger flinched at the words and put his paw on his forehead; Ell was right, and he knew it, ``I'm sorry. You're right. I...I know. I shouldn't have lied, and I'm sorry, but it's not like you would listen to me about it.'' He tried, in some way, to defend his decision, nonetheless, ``Stan's like my dad, Elliot. And we have such a close relationship BECAUSE we're so open with each other. He and my grandmother are really the only family I have left, and I tried to explain that to you, but...'' he sighed and stopped himself, looking down as the gravity of his boyfriend's feelings finally dawned on him finally, ``...and the fact that you still fought me so hard on it should have proven how important it all was to you.''
``Thank you...''
``But, for the record, I'm not the only one who hasn't been completely truthful.''
Ell gulped and looked away from Hunter, confessing before he said anything too serious, ``Okay! Okay, I told Will some stuff too.''
``Exactly!'' Hunter actually snapped a little bit, ``I knew it! Right when all of this first came up, last week, I knew that I wasn't the only one lying. The way you talk about Will -- all guarded and secretive, with this tone of admiration in your voice just this side of idolizing the guy -- I could tell how important he was to you, and I KNEW you were gonna' tell him about us, too.'' He held his paws up in shrug, ``But you're upset with ME? It bothers you enough to get onto me like this, and even write me a note, when you told Will TOO?''
The husky let his head hang low, not sure whether to feel guilty for getting mad at the tiger or to cry because of how insensitive his friend was being about it. Just above a whisper he responded the only way he knew how, ``Will's different though.''
Seeing the husky break like that calmed Hunter down immediately, if not just because his point had actually sunk in with the younger fur, then also because of the look that was on his face now: a defeated frown that the tiger just couldn't bear to see. ``Ell, I'm sorry I lied. I'm sorry it hurt you, I really am. But don't you see there's a double standard here? You're allowed to tell Will whatever you want, but I can't say anything to Stan?'' He gently lifted Ell's muzzle, ``How is Will so much different?''
Elliot tried and failed to gulp, his stomach burning and his throat dry, ``Will's like my friend, more than anything...one of my few good friends. A-and I know I can trust him to keep the secret. He and I are...are like you and Mic.''
``I think I get your point, but Stan and I have the same kind of relationship, Ell,'' the tiger smiled comfortingly and lightly petted Ell's cheek, not quite catching his boyfriend's point yet. ``I'm not mad that you told Will. I'm not even mad about the note and everything. I just want you to see that it's no different than me telling Stan.'' He let his paw drop and let out a soft chuckle, ``For the record though, Mic and I aren't really that close, Pup. We're just friends who've fooled ar-'' he stopped cold in the middle of his sentence and took a more full look at the husky in front of him -- the way he was standing and the look on his face -- and finally let what he'd just said, and how he'd said it, sink in ``...wait.''
Ell kept his head hanging low, the weight of what he'd just said seemingly pulling it down. He could feel the tension in the air as the sudden realization of how serious he was with Will finally set in with his friend, and he couldn't even look at the cat as it happened.
Hunter just blinked at the husky for a moment. ``You don't mean that...'' he paused and gulped hard, feeling sick at his stomach. ``Fuck. You do! Th-that's why he already knew you were gay! I...I wasn't your first at all.'' He started taking deeper breaths and took a step back, ``Fuck, Ell.''
Elliot looked up, his eyes red and the fur on his cheeks already sagging with moisture, ``Hunter...please...'' he looked around at the surprisingly sparse amount of furs who were watching their fight, but despite the audience, it was everything he could do to not go to tears on the spot. ``L-let me explain,'' he took a step forward to try and console his friend.
But the tiger Hunter pulled back from the touch, ``No. Just...just no!'' He shook his head, still breathing heavily, ``You start in on me for lying about what I told Stan and you've been hiding,'' he paused, ``hiding THIS!?'' He shook his head again, ``No. Just...just leave me alone. I don't wanna' talk to you anymore.'' He threw his paws up at the end, and turned back toward the entrance to the school, walking into and past the quiet onlookers.
Ell watched on as Hunter left him, and then glanced to the onlookers and quickly down to his feet. He bit his lip hard, doing his best to keep from all-out crying or running away; he couldn't afford to make an even bigger scene. With a slight sniffle and a hiccup, he turned and headed toward another part of the school, away from the crowds and the gossip. He sought only refuge and privacy from a world which seemed to be crumbling around him entirely.
And inside the cafeteria again, Hunter's ear twitched at the snickering and the muttered comment of a nearby fur -- the same comments he'd been ignoring all day. His head turned sharply, and he saw the snickering underclassmen staring at him. Four strides and he was on top of one of the younger furs, lifting him up and pressing him against the wall, ``Say somethin' else!!''
Under the large cat's eyes, the underclassman froze, and the others around them fell silent for the few long moments until Hunter put him back on his feet. No matter how much he wanted to, there was no point in hurting the ignorant little fur. He wasn't really the problem.
He turned again, away from the group, and past Mic, who he only waved off dismissively as he disappeared into a nearby hallway.
~
A town away, an older husky sat in his office with an open manuscript spread out before him. With a breath, William Masters closed the folder on his desk and pushed it aside as his daily ritual began. First came the closing and moving of the folder, then the anxious readjusting in his chair, and finally the scanning of his desk for any other work too prudent to be put off.
As usual, there was no such thing. His old monitor clicked and buzzed as it powered on, and his computer's desktop lit up with an artist's rendering of a confrontation between a shadowy beast and a bruised, beaten, and nearly nude otter. It was a bit of illustration that had been used for one of the company's books, and he had taken a liking to it mostly because of the inclusion of an uncovered male ass portrayed in such a work-safe format.
Next came the appearance of his thumb drive out from within the folds of his pocket, followed by its insertion, his computer's suggestions on how to handle the arrival of this new storage device, and a few mouse clicks which lead him, quickly, to opening document simply titled `Chapter 4.'
The document scrolled quickly, a flash of illegible text zipping from the bottom of the window to the top, and halted on page 10, where the mass of text found its abrupt end.
And the ritual continued...just as every other day...with the soft, muted tap of a finger against his space bar: never so soft as to go unheard, and never so hard as to insert a space to the end of the text. His eyes scanned the final paragraph again and again...
His characters were in a robust capital city, and they were in route for an ancient palace. All he had to do was describe the city on their trek. It was simple, it was inconsequential, and it had proved nigh impossible. As so many times before, he knew what to say...but had no clue how to say it.
Two space were inserted, followed by a series of new letters - `The houses w' - but, just as quickly, they were gone and his cursor returned to a spot two empty spaces from where it had begun. Not `houses.' Houses wasn't the right word.
And that's when his phone rang.
His ritual, as had happened more than once since his chance encounter with his newest client, and oldest friend, was cut short today. His book could wait...it could always wait.
Aaron had arrived for lunch.
~
Elliot Masters, now back inside the walls of the school, ascended the stairs to its second floor. And there, free of the prying eyes of the cafeteria below, he finally let himself cry in abandon: sniffling, hiccupping, and sobbing without shame.
He'd lost his appetite and any interest in spending lunch with the students of Sibirskaia High, least of all at this moment: Hunter. Instead, he decided simply to head on to his next class early. With any luck, Mr. Hammond would be gone to lunch, but, even if he wasn't, one pair of prying eyes was better than hundreds.
Along the way, he passed another teacher he knew, Mr. Callaway, but he averted his eyes from the raccoon, not interested in being stopped for questions. Luckily, Mr. Callaway had his own concerns, and was no more interested than Elliot...and the two passed in silence.
As the husky drew closer to the room, he was greeted with the sound of country music coming from the open door: old country music, at that. Mr. Hammond was there. But, undaunted, and with nowhere else to go, the boy pressed on into the room, tossing his backpack to the floor and immediately burying his muzzle in his arms as he sat down at the nearest desk.
Barely a second later, the music stopped with a click, and Elliot flinched. He liked Mr. Hammond: he was a good teacher, friendly, only appropriately strict to those who deserved it or would be motivated by it, and seemed to genuinely care. But Ell wasn't so certain, even with Mr. Hammond, if he had any interest in talking.
Nonetheless, though, the fox's soft voice soon broke the new silence, ``Elliot...?''
The husky didn't lift his head, but he did his best to stop crying. It was no simple feat, though, and before he could answer, he fought through one final fit of sniffling and hiccupping, ``W-what?''
``Do...do you need someone to talk to?'' Elliot could hear his teacher's footsteps drawing him closer.
The teenager rubbed his eyes against his arms and then looked up to his teacher, shakily breathing as he tried to both calm his fit of crying and to think of how best to explain the situation. ``I...I screwed it all up!'' though, was all he could manage, as more tears flowed from his reddened eyes and into his cheek fur.
The elder fox let out a short sigh, holding a silent paw up at the boy. Before he could sit down, he walked to the door and pushed it closed, ``Try to calm down Elliot, and just talk to me.'' He turned back, walked to the husky, finally sitting down in the desk beside him, and turned to face him, ``Is this...is this about the rumors going around? If some of the students are bothering you, you know that's not your fault.''
Ell jumped slightly, not expecting his teacher to have heard anything, ``R-rumors? You've heard them too?''
Mr. Hammond just nodded gently, ``I just overheard some of your friends. Don't worry; it's not like it's going around the teacher's lounge or anything.''
The husky nodded back, and then wiped his eyes onto his sleeves, inhaling a deep, calming breath, before he attempted again to clarify the situation, ``It's not about that anyway. I just screwed things up...with...'' a quick hiccup interrupted him, ``with Hunter.''
``The rumors then...they aren't just empty talk? You two are...'' Mr. Hammond trailed off, instead of finishing the sentence.
``Mm-hmm...'' Elliot kept his mouth shut, afraid of crying even more if he opened his muzzle at all.
``What happened, Elliot? I'm sure you didn't screw anything up. It's probably just a little fight.'' The elder fox simply tilted his head, ``Couples have them all the time. Just tell me what happened. I'm sure it's not all that bad.''
Elliot hiccupped and sniffled again, choking on his words and forcing an uncomfortably long silence between them as he recovered and began anew, ``He...I told him something...personal.'' He breathed deeply and exhaled a sigh, ``and he got mad and left me. I thought he'd understand, or at least TRY to...but he didn't even...he didn't want to hear it.''
``What were you trying to tell him?'' Mr. Hammond didn't pause long enough for Ell to respond, ``I don't mean to pry, and you don't have to share any more than you want to. It's just...well: I can help more if I at least know a little.''
The husky shook his head and looked away from the fox's gaze, ``It's private.''
``Elliot...Ell...it's okay. I promise that whatever you say won't leave this room.'' Mr. Hammond put his paw on his student's desk and tilted his head again, ``You don't have to be specific...but I want to help, and to do that I need to know at least a little bit about why he got so mad.''
Despite calming down, Ell gave out another broken hiccup, biting his lip and fidgeting his paws nervously. His stomach hurt, his head hurt, he still felt like he was going to cry, and his nervous stomach was threatening to come up on him, but from prior experience he knew it would be best to talk, ``I...I lied to Hunter...''
The elder fox raised an eyebrow, ``And he wouldn't let you explain or apologize? Must have been quite the lie.''
Elliot looked away from Mr. Hammond again, interpreting his `must have been quite the lie' remark as an insensitive joke.
``Whoa! I didn't mean anything bad by that. It's just that I know Hunter too. I had him last year, and I don't see him acting like this over nothing. If he did, though, I'm sure he'll listen to reason, and I have no problem talking to him for you...'' Mr. Hammond paused, ``...but that all depends on the lie.''
The husky pulled his paws across his stomach defensively, just wanting to hide from the world and have everything be right again. ``I told him I was a virgin...'' he took a deep breath. ``And, today...when I told him who my first really was...'' he just trailed off, not wanting to repeat the outcome again.
``I see.'' Mr. Hammond looked down for a second and then back up, ``You care about him a lot, don't you?''
Ell wiped his eyes on his sleeve again, ``I do...and I don't know why I lied.''
``Don't beat yourself up about this, Elliot.'' The elder fox put his paw on his student's shoulder, ``It's not the end of the world, I promise. This happens to a lot of people. Just last week I learned a pretty big lesson about all this honesty stuff, myself.'' He smiled a wide comforting smile, ``I promise you: everything will be okay. It shouldn't matter if you were with someone before him OR who it was.''
Elliot kept looking down at his lap, feeling positive that it DID matter who it was with, especially when it was his own uncle, ``Mr. Hammond...he hates me now.''
``I'm sure he doesn't.'' Mr. Hammond lightly rubbed Ell's shoulder, ``In fact, I think he cares about you more than you think. And that's why he's so upset about all of this.'' He moved his paw away, ``How about this? You make me a promise, and I'll talk to him for you and get this all squared away.''
The husky looked up at his vulpine teacher, questioning his sincerity, ``Y-you will?''
``Depends on the promise,'' Mr. Hammond smiled wider. ``And here it is. Lying will only hurt you. It very recently nearly ruined something special for me and someone very important to me...and hurt someone else in the process. So, you promise me that you'll be honest with Hunter, and avoid problems like this in the future...and I'll talk to him for you.''
``I promise! I won't lie to Hunter anymore,'' Ell smiled nervously at his teacher, and rubbed his face again to try and clean himself off.
The elder fox pointed with a smirk, ``No hiding things either!'' He stood up, ``Hiding your feelings can cause a bunch of problems too.'' He started back toward his desk, ``Even if that isn't what started all of this for YOU...it's still helpful advice.'' He sat down, ``Now, since you're here, is there anything you'd like to listen to?''
Elliot smiled again more widely. He felt better knowing that Mr. Hammond was going to talk with Hunter, but he was still worried that it wouldn't turn out like the fox had promised. ``Uhm...what do you have?''
``Lots of things!''
``Uhm...'' It took the husky a moment to think of something, ``In the City? By The Eagles?''
``Surprisingly enough...'' Mr. Hammond chuckled and went about clicking with his mouse to find the song.
~
``Don't enjoy yourself too much, honey.'' Kristoff Masters slipped his robe over his body, clad otherwise in only a pair of boxers, as he prepared for the lazy remnants of his Monday evening, ``And remember, Robyn, a detachable showerhead can never really replace a live male participant.''
On that note, Kris made his way out of the bedroom with a silent roll of his eyes in response to his wife's casual `show's what you know' from the adjacent master bath.
Now, with her distracted, he could finally feel comfortable talking to his son. When he and Elliot first talked about how they would handle the boy's new life, and keep it from his mother, it seemed like an easy enough arrangement. He hadn't realized how hard it was going to be to get away from her, though.
Down the hall, and with a soft knock on the door, he pushed slowly into the darkness of Elliot's room. ``Kiddo...?''
Aside from the glowing computer screen and dim desk lamp, the younger husky sat in darkness, looking back and forth between a few pieces of paper and the monitor as he typed. It was getting late and he needed to finish his English homework, but he could still make time for his father, even if his sarcastic attitude and response were less than welcoming, ``It's open.''
Kristoff closed the door behind him slowly, ``Wanna' step away from the work for a second?'' He walked in and sat down against the edge of his son's bed, ``Your mother's finally busy. This has been my first chance to come check on you.''
Ell nodded, continued with his work just long enough to save it and then turned in his desk chair to more easily face his father. ``I'm fine, Dad.'' but his face and muzzle easily told the older fur that that wasn't exactly the truth.
``Elliot,'' the older canine continued in a less authoritative, more caring tone, ``I told you that you could come talk to me if something was wrong. After last Friday, there's no reason for you to withdraw now. Not much left to hide.'' He patted the bed beside him, ``Come on over and talk to me. Take the opportunity before your mom gets out of the bath.''
Elliot stayed silent for a moment, his stomach beginning to silently act up again, seemingly burning a hole in his abdomen, ``No Dad, really: it's nothing.'' He motioned to his remaining homework, ``I've just got a lot of stuff I need to do.''
Kris let his paw sit where he'd been patting, only moving it when he realized Elliot wasn't going to sit by him. He couldn't honestly say he was surprised. Their new bond notwithstanding, a teenager was still a teenager, and being withdrawn was nothing new. That wouldn't deter him from trying, though, ``Elliot, you've been moping around all day, and I've caught you more than once with a wet muzzle.'' He tilted his head slightly, ``What kind of father would I be if I just sat by and did nothing?''
The younger dog kept quiet for a longer moment this time, but eventually he rose from his seat and repositioned himself by his father's side, to the elder's surprise. The boy crossed his arms over his stomach defensively and began anew, ``Dad, I appreciate that you care, and that I can go to you...but I just don't want you to pry, this time. It been a rough week, but I'll be okay. If...if I think I can't handle it any more, I'll ask for your help, then...okay?''
``Well at least let me cover my fatherly bases.'' Kristoff stood up and put a paw on his son's shoulder, talking in a more authoritative tone again, ``Does this have anything to do with school? Grades? Disciplinary? You know if it's anything like that I'll be less mad now than if I find out later.'' He lightly squeezed the younger husky's shoulder, knowing he was wrong, but feeling obligated to ask anyway.
Ell looked down into his lap and shook his head once, ``No...''
``And I'm sure it has nothing to do with the law,'' the older husky posed, as more of a joke.
Elliot looked up to his father, somewhat entertained by that, but his muzzle still showing neither a complete smile nor a complete frown, ``No.''
Kris moved his muzzle in a motion beckoning his son to stand, ``Get up for a second.''
The younger canine stood as direct, cupping his hands together, so his upset stomach didn't seem as obvious.
Kristoff pulled the littler husky into a hug, ``Just remember that I love you, Elliot. If you need me at all, you know where to find me.'' He rubbed his son's back, ``But if you don't wanna' talk, that's okay too.''
Naturally, as most teens would, Ell felt uncomfortable with the hug from his father, but after only a few seconds, he accepted it, unclasping his paws and returning the hug, happy to have the comfort where ever he could get it right now, ``I love you too Dad. Thank you.''
The older dog let go and turned to walk away. ``And, by the way, if you wanna' skip school tomorrow so you don't have to see him again, so soon,'' he looked back with a soft, knowing smile, ``I'll tell your mom you're sick.''
Elliot just stood there silently, his jaw slacked in shock and disbelief, ``Er...I uhm...I'll think about it?''
As he left, Kris had to restrain a laugh. He could barely believe his boy really thought it wasn't obvious what was wrong, ``Try not to let it distract from your work, kiddo.''
~
(September 24th)
Tuesday came, like Tuesdays do, and Hunter was back at Sibirskaia High.
Elliot, though, was nowhere to be seen. And to tell the truth, this morning, Hunter wasn't sure if that made him happy or sad. On the one paw, he'd gotten quite accustomed to seeing Elliot every morning before their first period class, and again at gym and the lunch break that followed...but on the other paw, after yesterday, he wasn't even sure if he could face the dog now. And really, for that matter, he hadn't proven to be in much of a mood to face anyone, having already rudely dismissed even Mic's attempts at conversation.
But, in the end, it was still early, and Ell still had time to show.
Hunter, though, decided it best to give himself a few more classes to think, and to handle his next meeting with Ell once he was more awake. Gym is where they became friends anyway. It and the lunch break afterwards, they were like home field for them. Maybe it was best handled there, anyway.
And so, instead of waiting around, he marched up the stairs to the school's second story, and pointed himself toward his next class.
``James, wait!''
A voice caught his attention, and he shifted his gaze to the door of one of the school's glass-walled class rooms. There, he watched as one of his teachers this semester -- a new raccoon who preferred that his students call him by his first name, James, instead of his last -- marched out and into the hall. And on his heels was Mr. Hammond, a fox that had been the cat's English teacher last year.
He couldn't help but smirk. At least he wasn't the only one buried in some sort of drama. And if he didn't know better, he would have sworn that the sound he heard in Mr. Hammond's voice was that of a lover's quarrel!
Interesting. He'd always wondered about James...but not so much about the fox.
However, they weren't his concern right now, and he continued on his way. He didn't make it far, though, before Mr. Hammond's voice rang out through the hall again...but this time it was deeper and more stern, and it was NOT directed at James.
``Hunter!''
~
Hours later, in the afternoon, William Masters found himself for the third time in two days staring at the open document before him: `Chapter 4' of his still nameless novel. This time, though, he was in the comfort of his home, before his own personal computer, and fighting the urge to leave the document for the allure of his stash of porn.
Again -- like the day before, which was interrupted by Aaron, and earlier this same day, which had produced a grand total of one new line -- his ritual went on: typing, deleting, typing, and deleting, until his frustration had built to the point of near-rage, culminating in a violent swat at his desk lamp, knocking it to the floor.
With his forehead in his paws, he cursed his inability to make any real progress in his writing project, but was pulled away from his self pity by his ringing phone.
With a sigh, he answered without even a glance at the ID, just happy to have the distraction, ``Hello?''
``Hey!'' a cheerful voice responded.
``Aaron!'' Will nearly chirped, happy just to hear the rabbit's voice. ``I missed you today.''
``Yeah, sorry I was too busy to come by. We'll have lunch tomorrow, though.''
``It's okay, I know.'' The husky leaned back in his chair, ``So what are you up to?''
``I uhm...I actually called about something important.''
``Oh?'' and the dog leaned back up, just as quickly.
``Yeah. Stanley just called me.'' There was a short pause, ``We need your help with something...''
~
A short hour and a half later, just now the earliest minutes of evening, Will pulled his car to a stop, and shifted into park.
He turned his gaze to the right, where, past Aaron's head, Kristoff and Elliot's house was framed by his car's window. Turning more, he looked into the back seat, where a nervous tiger sat, looking down at his lap. With a cough, he roused the boy's attention, ``We're here, kid.''
The tiger looked up from his lap, blinking in confusion as if he hadn't caught what the husky had said at first, ``Wha-? Oh...y-yeah.'' He turned his head, as well, to look out the back door's window, and at the house he'd only seen once before.
The bunny riding shotgun, Aaron, looked to Will, and then, with the assistance of his sun visor's mirror, took a look at the nervous tiger as well, ``You gonna' to be okay, Hunter?''
``Not if it weren't for Stan and you,'' Hunter stammered momentarily and looked at Will too, ``Both of you.''
Will shook his head, ``Before you even think about it...we don't need to be thanked. Ell's my nephew...and you're his boyfriend.'' His voice was oddly cold as he spoke, even though his words were kind, ``What kind of uncle would I be if I didn't help?''
Aaron shot the husky a glance, noting and disliking the tone. He understood Will had to be defensive of Elliot, but he didn't have to sound mean. Hoping to help, and lend some advice, the rabbit turned to face the tiger behind him properly, and not through a mirror, ``If you don't mind my asking, Hunter, what happened with you and Ell?''
William immediately looked down and then back up at the tiger with his eyes alone, unseen to the rabbit beside him. Will had spoken to Elliot...and he knew the answer.
Hunter looked away from the bunny, ``It...it's personal. Ell wouldn't want me to say.'' And then he turned to look at Will, the following comment entirely for the husky's benefit, ``I didn't even tell Stan.''
At that, Will gave the tiger a small nod of approval, ``I'm sure Ell would appreciate the privacy,'' and his voice regained some small bit of its usual friendliness.
Aaron nodded with a simple and quiet ``Okay'' before he situated himself back into his seat. ``Does your brother know we're here, Will?'' he asked as he undid his belt and put his paw on the door handle.
``Not at all.'' William reached over and put his paw on the rabbit's arm, ``But I need you to sit out here for a minute, sweetie. My sister-in-law,'' he glanced at Hunter too; Aaron had already been told, but the tiger needed to know too, ``Well, she can be a twat when it comes to gay people. Let me make sure it's okay for her to even SEE you, before we start having you show up at her house. `Kay Aaron?''
In the back, Hunter opened his own door, but didn't step out yet. Somehow, he assumed Will had other reasons for not wanting the rabbit to follow them up...
Aaron nodded and sat his paws in his lap. ``Alright, you and Hunter go on ahead. Leave me...'' he feigned a whimper at his Husky, hoping to lighten the mood a bit.
``Nah, I'll be back for you in a minute, I'm sure. I just have to come up with a reasonable lie to explain who you are.'' Will paused, ``Toffy'll help, I'm sure...but try and butch up a bit while I'm gone.'' A quick, dusty rabbit paw popped him in the arm immediately for that, as the dog opened his own door, ``Ow! Mean! Come on, Hunter.''
The tiger nodded and finally stepped out, closing his door, and waiting for the husky to meet him on the other side of the car. He figured it would be best for Elliot's uncle to lead the way up the walk. ``W-Will?'' he spoke nervously once the husky was in the lead, ``I wanted to say I'm sorry.''
``Don't be,'' William let out a sigh. He didn't look back, but his voice had lost its coldness completely, ``It means a lot that you're keeping this a secret for us. That more than overshadows your response to it.''
``Still...'' Hunter came to a stop as his canine escort rang the doorbell.
``Just make it up to Ell,'' the husky smiled back at the boy, ``and we'll all just forget it ever happened...okay?''
Inside, another husky made his way to the door, groaning about his sports being disturbed by the intrusion of visitors. Only when he was out of sight of the TV, did he pull his eyes away from it, continuing on to the front and opening the door without even checking first to see who it was.
Kristoff's face brightened when he saw Billy, then slightly dimmed again when he saw the nervous tiger behind him, and twisted finally in confusion at the realization that they'd come together, ``Uhm...yeah?''
William called him outside with his paw as he whispered, ``You might wanna' step outside, Toffy. Close the door.''
Behind him, Hunter couldn't even manage to make eye contact with Ell's dad.
Slightly concerned, Kris stepped out and pulled the door shut, ``Okay. What's up? What's wrong?''
Hunter took a quick breath and spoke before Will could manage, ``Is Elliot okay?''
Though he was taken aback by the rather straight-forward question, at least Kristoff's assumption that his son's new somber attitude had something to do with the tiger was confirmed, ``No. I'm sorry Hunter, but he isn't. What happened?''
Beside them, Will kept quiet as he let the two talk...but kept a cautious eye on the front door, watching through its high window for any sign of his sister-in-law.
Hunter looked down, away from the huskies, and then back up, ``I...I just fucked up really bad. I got mad, and I hurt him.'' When he realized how that might sound, he quickly stammered to explain, ``N-n-not physically or anything! I just, I...I yelled and,'' he looked back down, ``I just wanna' talk to him.''
Kris bit his lip and looked the tiger over for a moment. He seemed genuinely sorry for whatever he did, and William's involvement was proof enough that this wasn't a joke, ``Alright. You can come in.'' He opened the door again, ``My wife is out for a while, so we don't have to worry about meddling ears.''
``Oh, thank God!'' William nearly cheered, ``I had no clue how I was gonna' explain Aaron to her.'' He turned back toward the car, ``I'll be inside in a minute!''
Hunter smiled at Elliot's father as Will dashed away, ``Thank you.'' He started toward the house, but was stopped by the white paw of the older husky.
``I'm old enough to know that most fights have two sides, and I know my son's not perfect,'' Kristoff looked the boy in the eye, ``but he's still my son. Whatever you're here for...he better not be crying anymore when you leave. Got it?''
``Yes sir. I do,'' the cat nodded politely. ``And,'' he smiled, ``Thank you, for everything. For letting me come in tonight, for not banning me from ever being over again, after Friday, and just...for everything, Mr. Masters. Elliot's lucky he's got you for a father.''
Kris lowered his paw and smiled at that. He was a sucker for compliments, ``That's very kind of you Hunter.'' But he immediately coughed and forced a more adult tone, ``But I'm not the one you're here to suck up to. He's inside.''
And inside, Elliot lay quietly on his bed, his head sunken into a pillow as he stared blankly out towards the opposite wall.
Both Mr. Hammond and his father had assured him everything would be okay, but he worried, nonetheless. When he was busy with school work, or when his parents were in sight, he could keep it all in, but it was at times like this, when he was left to himself, that it really hurt...and when the tears and the loneliness really came through.
Behind him, his door opened slowly, and a tiger padded quietly in, wondering if the husky would even turn to look, or if he'd just assume it was one of his parents.
The younger teenager just pulled his covers close and kept right on looking away from the door, trying to ignore whichever of his parents it was, and whatever they were bringing in, or whatever menial task they were going to ask of him. Maybe they'd think he was asleep.
Hunter just as silently closed the door behind him and walked to the bed, where he sat down on its edge, one leg curled on top so he could face his friend, ``Y'know...if you're trying to look like you're sleeping, you're not fooling anyone.''
Ell's eyes shot open immediately and he hurriedly sat up to face his visitor. For a brief moment he thought about how he had gotten there, but that didn't matter nearly as much as the simple fact that he WAS. In his excitement, anxiety, and continued nervousness, he was barely able to communicate his thoughts, ``I...uhm...Hunter? How?''
``Short version?'' The tiger cast his eyes on the bed, still feeling just as ashamed of himself as he'd felt all day, ``Mr. Hammond talked to me. Then I called Stan, but he didn't know how to get me here. So he called Aaron, and Aaron called Will.'' He looked back up with a soft smile, ``And here I am.''
Elliot smiled at Hunter's quick explanation, but his burning stomach and chest shifted his amusement right back to worry again, ``He talked to you?''
``Yeah. He got me alone in his room today before school and he...well he kind of laid into me.'' Hunter raised an eyebrow, ``He can be mean if he wants.''
The husky nodded and went along with the chit-chat, trying to avoid the subject he knew was at paw, ``Yeah...he's like that to a lot of the kids at school, but not me so much. I guess he likes me more or something.'' He forced out a chuckle, looking down into his lap with a nervous fake smile on his muzzle.
``I'll say!'' Hunter looked around the room for a moment, and then back at his friend, ``...did you enjoy your day off?''
Ell looked up to Hunter, an embarrassed, worried smile masking his true nervousness, ``No.''
``Maybe I can make it a bit better?'' The tiger slowly raised up one of his arms, silently beckoning the husky into it.
After a silent moment, Elliot slipped out of his blankets and moved into the cat's arm, wrapping both his paws around his friend's large chest. Considering how Hunter was acting, he assumed that meant he wasn't upset, anymore...but the dog's nervousness made him wonder whether that assumption was based on instinct or hope, ``I'm sorry, Hunter.''
Hunter shook his head as he pulled his friend in close, ``None of that. You don't have anything to apologize for.'' He put his chin down onto the slightly younger fur's head.
The husky hugged the big orange tiger for a few silent moments, then, as he replayed how the situation had unfolded, he spoke again, ``Sure, I do. I need to apologize for getting so pissed at you for lying...when I did the exact same thing, and worse. I had no right to be upset at you.''
Hunter took a breath, as if to argue that, but nodded instead, ``Okay, that's true.'' He pulled his friend a little tighter into their hug, ``But THAT part of the argument isn't why I'm here...and we both know that.''
Ell gulped and let go of his tiger, shrinking back somewhat from what he worried was coming, ``I know.''
The tiger looked down as his husky moved away, and completely misunderstanding why. He began to shake as he took in a long, heavy breath, eyes turning down and muzzle opening time and again, but without managing to speak. And after a long moment, a tear trailed down his short orange muzzle and dripped off of his nose.
Elliot took in a deep shaking breath of his own. The sight of the tear only confirmed what he had feared. Feeling like his own tears would be returning soon, he wanted to scream at Hunter to just say it. He couldn't change the tiger's mind; he couldn't keep what they had from ending. But as he sniffled, tears beginning to soak into the fur on his face, the scream wouldn't come...
``Wi-'' Hunter finally spoke up, his voice catching in his throat, ``will you forgive me?''
The husky reacted in almost slow motion, blinking and lifting his head to look at the tiger. His tears, though, reacted much more quickly, and dried up almost immediately, ``Why?''
Hunter, again, mistook the husky's response. ``Because I'm sorry! Because...because I promise not to act like this anymore...and because...'' his lip quivered, ``Because I can't stand you being hurt by me, or being upset with me! I just want to make this all go away.''
Ell shook his head and wiped his eyes of their remaining moisture, ``Hunter...I'm not upset with you.'' He repositioned himself on his bed so he was better facing the big cat, ``I thought you were mad at me! Or sickened by me or something. But I was never angry...''
``I...I'm not sickened by you,'' the tiger stammered as he looked up at his husky again. ``I don't like it. The thought of you doing something like that...with your uncle...and, at the same time, of not knowing WHAT you've done with him: it puts my stomach in knots,'' he slipped his arms around his stomach, on cue. ``But I shouldn't have yelled at you. I shouldn't have stormed off.'' He took a deep breath and let it out shakily, ``You had every reason to hide it, and I had no reason to...to...Ell, I'm just so sorry I hurt you.''
Feeling overwhelmed and relieved, Elliot finally broke a smile, but his crying tiger kept him from being too happy too quickly, ``Thank you Hunter.'' This time, he pulled the cat into a comforting hug, ``I don't deserve it, but thank you.''
``Of course you do.'' Hunter wrapped his arms around the husky in return, ``It's been all I've thought of since then. I was so angry when I got back inside, but I was just as mad at myself as I was at you. It only took me a few minutes and I...all I could see was how sad you looked outside the school. I was so mad that I nearly beat some dumb ass kid up before I even realized it wasn't his fault. Of course...it wasn't until Mr. Hammond laid into me that I really understood what I'd done, and who I was really angry with.'' He shook his head with a sigh, ``You deserved better than that Elliot. Especially from me. I should never have done something like that to someone I loved...''
With that, the husky whimpered and hiccupped loudly, his tears leaking out again, ``Hunter?'' He squeezed the cat even tighter in his grasp, ``I love you, too.''
Hunter hadn't even realized he'd said it at first, and his eyes went wide at hearing it from the husky in return, ``Shit. I'd meant to make the first time I said that more romantic.'' He pulled away from Ell to better look at his friend, ``It...it kind of slipped out, too early.'' He smiled, ``Sorry it couldn't have been more romantic. I hope this was good enough.''
Ell shook his head wildly, a bigger smile on his muzzle than Hunter had ever seen, ``No! Right now was perfect!''
The tiger lightly kissed his pup, ``No more lies between us, okay? And, also,'' a wry, nervous smile lit on his muzzle, ``n-no more fun...with Will?''
Elliot nodded quickly, ``No more lying, and nothing with Will, ever again!'' He paused though, blinking when he considered what that meant, ``Wait. Does...does that make us a couple, now? Like, official, exclusive boyfriends?''
Hunter smiled optimistically at that, ``I hope it does.''
``Then it does!'' the husky nodded happily, taking his new boyfriend's paws in his own.
And Hunter squeezed them as he smiled, ``So can I, uhm...can I ask a personal question?''
Ell laughed playfully, ``What else could I possibly have to hide?''
The tiger took a breath and sat up straighter, trying to make himself more comfortable with Ell's past, ``What HAVEN'T you done with Will?''
``Other than like, fetish stuff?'' Elliot gulped, but answered as plainly and honestly as he could, ``We never got around to anal.''
Hunter smiled, honestly pleased to hear that, ``Well, then! At least I can still be your first when it comes to something!''
The husky blushed lightly and looked away, ``Yeah.'' He thought back just two days to when he asked Will to take his virginity, and he smiled at the memory. Will had been right. Elliot was happy his uncle had turned him down. It was worth it even if just for that one moment of Hunter's happiness, ``But don't get too excited. I don't think right now's the best time...''
Hunter laughed aloud, ``Well I know that! There are so many more preferable PUBLIC places!''
