Among Golden Rays (Gay Furry)

Chapter Nine: Was That a Date?

They stayed there, at The Roundhouse, for quite a long time. So long that Jake was getting rather homesick, weirdly. His social battery had depleted so much it was quite a way into the negatives, and he was exhausted.

He was exhausted from just sitting in the corner of the room, doing nothing.

To be fair, he wasn't doing nothing, he was idly chatting with Jenson and O'Hare, learning about them and their views on Michael, learning a lot about football and the league in the process, but effectively he wasn't doing anything too, too productive.

Eventually it neared the late evening, and with the days as year-round short as they were in Moonshed, the sun was nearly setting in the horizon despite it being just barely six in the afternoon. The air was filled with a cold breeze, and the trees all swayed with the movement of the wind. Jake stretched as he soaked in the fresh air.

The smell of pizza still clung onto Jake, but he didn't mind it in the least. It wasn't an altogether bad smell.

Michael had followed him out, having stayed behind with Jake to reset everything back to before they arrived, as a courtesy for the staff there at the place. Neither talked much through the process, preferring to talk instead after it was said and done, and everything was back in its proper place. They each got another slice of pizza for their troubles.

"It's kinda cold out, huh?" Michael asked as he exited out of the building, breathing out a warm puff of breath that hung in the air for just a moment. Jake grinned a little, shivering as he hugged himself for some warmth. The inside of the place was rather warm, and even if the fox was fluffy and very used to the cold, it still took a second to get acclimated.

"Kinda is kind of an understatement, Michael. It's really cold." Jake joked, smiling at the other through chattering teeth. He normally wasn't like that, he often stayed outside during the coldest parts of the night without any worry. Maybe it was just the nerves and stress of the day, and staying warm throughout it all. Maybe it wasn't. He surely didn't know.

The wolf-dog chuckled as he walked past Jake, who coincidentally stood next to Michael's car. Michael leaned against it, studying the fox for a second before speaking, "So... how do you like your fellow co... I guess workers? Fellow coworkers."

Jake grinned, his breath spiraling in the air as he responded, "They're fun, I like them. They certainly have personality, and I learned quite a few things." His eyes twinkled as he looked at Michael. He also learned some of the things Michael liked.

Now if he could just slip in a reference to ghosts...

Michael smiled at that, "That's great! They're great friends, and have known them for a long while. Glad to hear that the non-social Author of Moonshed is getting to know them." Jake smiled at that, blushing a little as the wolf-dog used his informal title that he didn't even get to choose.

Jake walked to Michael's car and leaned against it as well, starting to shiver a bit more violently. He grabbed at his fluffy tail, hugging it to his chest for a speck of more warmth. Michael noticed this, "Hey, you don't have to stay and chit-chat, you can head home if you like. I'll be heading to a diner soon to get some sandwiches, I don't much care for Pizza, you see."

Michael leaned against the car with a groan, turning his upper half shortly to stretch as he yawned into the open nighttime air. Jake yawned a long with him, "Ah... it's fine, I can handle the cold normally. Must be the nerves, heh." Jake responded with a smile, and then his stomach rumbled.

"Hungry too?" Michael asked, and Jake sighed but nodded.

"Yeah. DIdn't get to eat much there. Mostly just talked with Coach Loney and Miquel, and the rest of the time I just sat in the corner learning about responsibility and all that. And it's extra sad since I really love pizza. Too bad I'm on... well, not a diet, but you get it, heh." Jake responded, teetering off at the edge and unsure how to verbally explain.