The Curse of Beasts (BEASTARS)

Within the In-between

Alan would be lying if he said his last session didn't stick with him. Despite the weirdness of it, Gouhin's bamboo metaphor actually made a lot of sense. Louis is far from stupid— at least from what he's seen, and is more than able to handle himself. Even then, becoming a gang leader in The Ghetto was a huge change for him. Could he have really done it for his own reasons? Was "adapting" his true reason, or does it go deeper than that?

Was he even happy at Cherryton?

The thoughts were muddling together and Alan decided to drop the subject for now. His feelings around the deer were mixed at best, and right now thinking about him only brought confusion. They certainly wouldn't be seeing each other again— and if they did, it'd be a bad situation for both parties involved. After how their last meeting ended up, he saw wasn't sure if he could keep from lashing out. Given his emotional state, it'd be best to keep his distance.

Besides, there was another strange herbivore on his mind.

~~*~~

Alan didn't want to make a fuss, nor did he have to. Pina had made an occasional habit of early appearances to the Drama Club like the human did, whether to tease him or otherwise. He didn't mind it, though, as it did lighten his mood at times. The sheep was good at charming people, and it worked well with his role in the Adler play. Speaking of...

"You can take away my life, but I won't cower away from you!"

Something stuck when Pina said that line, and it was only furthered by everyone's reaction. They were stunned into silence at the act! The emotion and power in it was palpable, almost...real. Alan couldn't help watching the sheep as he seemed to be shaken up before playing it off with a smile. The others seemed okay with it (though it may have just been because of Dom dropping the paint), but Alan could tell something was up. That line felt different from the others, and it almost felt like an eruption of sorts. He had gone to the club earlier than usual, wanting to confront Pina without any chance of someone walking in on them.

He thought to himself as he leaned against his locker, It seemed like he said something to Riz before he went out. Did something happen between them?

"Hey, Wolfboy! You're earlier than usual.", the sheep's voice broke his thoughts.

"Yeah...", he rubbed the back of his neck lightly. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Oh? What would that be?"

"It's about what happened yesterday during practice."

"Oh, that?", he opened his locker with a chuckle as the human turned his gaze away. "It was nothing. I just thought I'd try putting more spunk into my acting."

"I'm pretty sure it was more than just spunk."

"Well, I may have put a little charm into it—"

"That's not what I mean!", he snapped before sighing. "It wasn't just an act...was it?"

There was silence for a moment, "What do you mean..?"

"That wasn't just acting back then. It was genuine— real. The others may have brushed it off, but I can't. I could tell something was up, but I didn't want to say it outright."

The locker shut and Alan looked over, seeing the sheep dressed and smiling almost mockingly. "And you expect me to just tell you?"