𝙊𝙉𝙀 𝙒𝙄𝙇𝘿 𝙉𝙄𝙂𝙃𝙏

The Fox Girl

The bass of the electronic music continued to fill Francis' ears as he stared down at the signup sheet that rested on the fold out table which resided next to the DJ booth. Standing behind him were his two friends and the anthros he had met back in the kitchen just moments prior. Francis continued to stare down at the sheet, the pen trembling in his fingers. He went over each signed name on the list, seeing some names he had actually recognized while most he had no clue who they even were. Although he had convinced himself to come this far, butterflies fluttered furiously in his stomach. He had felt as if he was signing his soul away to some evil mystic force. Drake watched over Francis, sensing the tension within his friend as Sullivan kept the two other anthros busy.

"You guys should have been here last year." One of the anthros says. "Conrad and I literally saw some huge dude jump off of the roof and cannonball into the pool." The anthro said, throwing his arm around the shoulders of Conrad.

"Holy shit! Was the guy hurt at all?" Sullivan asks, taking a sip from his red cup.

"Nah, not at all." Conrad, the second anthro, replied. "But! He did have a bruise that ran all the way up his leg. Nothing all that serious... Alex got soaked like hell though, considering he was standing right at the edge of the pool." Conrad chuckled, gently shoving the other anthro.

Sullivan laughs out, bringing his cup down from his face. "Jesus, man."

"Hey, I didn't know the splash was gonna be that big!" Alex, the first anthro, said as he did his best to not spill his drink as he stumbled a bit forward from the shove.

"The guy weighed almost three hundred pounds!" Conrad laughed, slapping his hand across his forehead.

Meanwhile, Francis continued to stare down at the signup sheet, still debating within himself. Drake had already understood the plight storming within his friend and decided to console him. Placing a hand on his shoulder, he leaned in close to Francis.

"You don't have to do this if you don't want to." Drake says, side glaring Francis.

"It's not that I don't want to... It's just that..." Francis replied, losing his train of thought.

"You're nervous as hell. I can tell, Fran." Drake says. "Like I said, man. You don't have to do this. But if you don't and end up regretting it, it'll stick with you forever."

Francis took in a deep breath. He had felt compelled to enter the tournament, but his fears and insecurities over his dance skills had reared their ugly heads. It was something he wanted to conquer his entire life, but he had immense trouble easing his mind of these thoughts.

Drake then smiles to himself. "Think of it this way, Fran." He said, leaning in closer to Francis. "You remember that night when us three hung out last New Years Eve and we egged you on to show us what you learned in those dance classes you told us about?"

"Yeah..." Francis said with an eye roll. "It took you guys hours to convince me after I stupidly told you about it..." He then sheepishly replied, looking back down at the signup sheet.

"Well, imagine it as if everyone here is just like Sullivan and I on that night. Everyone wants to see what you are made of. That dancing machine which sleeps within you is primed and eager to break free. If you let it out, your ego will cower before its raw power." Drake says, gently squeezing the shoulder of his friend, giving him a grin.

Francis lets out a smile as he looked to his friend. "God, when did you get so good at pep talks?"

"Ever since New Years Eve, Fran my man." Drake responds, letting go of his friend's shoulder.

Francis then took in another deep breath and gazed down at the signup sheet once more. Letting out an exhale, he brings the ballpoint of the pen to the paper and prints his entry into the tournament. Once doing so, he rests the pen down on the desk and straightens his posture. The anthros notice this and suddenly huddle over the table, gazing down at the sheet of paper.