Burdens [Furry BxB]

Chapter 65 - In The Cafe

They had taken their leave of the park. It no longer seemed appropriate to stay there when the air hung heavy.

Not very many words passed between them. They made their way to a place where they could eat, hoping that at least some food could help distract them.

They found a cafe not far from the park. The fox managed to look it up on his phone, and it seemed that the prices were fair and the food was well-liked, albeit mediocre judging by the comments others had left.

When they arrived, they noticed that it was very crowded. All types of other animals the fox had not even known to be present in their area were now in existence, and he wondered to himself why he had never seen them before. They had to wait a few minutes for a table to open up, but it eventually did.

It took some time for the waitress to get to them. Amidst all the conversations around them, they could hardly hear her, while she could hardly hear them. They ended up ordering just a couple of simple sandwiches and water to accompany it.

Out of the corner of his eye, the fox spotted one of his friends sitting at a table far from them. With luck, he thought, his friend would not have seen them. To be sure, he crouched down a little to hide.

In retrospect, however, he wondered just what he was hiding from. If it was from being caught, then what was the worry? He was merely hanging out with another friend, that was all. But, then again, he worried that he might show too much of an outward attraction for the wolf. Would everyone else be able to see it? He became nervous.

Hunter crouched down closer to the table, imitating the fox. He smiled and Roger could see his tail waving behind him, though it was merely in glimpses as it passed by.

The fox realized that it looked like an awkward love scene and retreated back into a normal position, to divert any unwanted attention. Still, he quickly returned the smile, and then looked around the room.

His friend was gone when he inspected his table. The companion was still there, so perhaps he had gone to use the restroom.

He felt a tap on the shoulder. He turned around defensively, and then realized it was just his friend, who looked slightly surprised to see him there, but not in a negative manner. A golden Labrador that stood on two legs and spoke.

"And here I thought you were too good for this place," his friend joked.

Roger rolled his eyes. "Maybe I am."

His friend looked at the wolf, and the wolf back at him. Hunter gave him a smile and folded his ears submissively.

"Right, uh... this is Hunter," Roger said. He gestured to the wolf, and then back to the dog, saying, "And this is Daniel."

The Labrador offered his paw for a shake, saying," You can just call me Dan. Nice to meet you." The wolf took it. The dog winced in pain, retracted it, and murmured, "Guy's got a grip on him."

He asked, "So what are you two doing out here? I didn't think you'd be around this type of place." The last statement was directed at Roger, but it applied to both of them.

"Well, we were just looking for a change of scenery," the fox explained. "After this, probably going to have to study a bit; I'm tutoring him, you see."

Hunter nodded as if to confirm what the fox had said. He stood up and informed the fox that he would be back in a moment, that he needed to use the restroom.

The Labrador sat down in the wolf's seat. "How's the tutoring going? Or just things in general. You've seemed a bit off lately."

Roger shrugged. "It's alright. The guy's learning a lot. And... well, I don't know, I've just been tired, I guess. School isn't really doing it for me, you know how it goes."

The dog nodded. His face then brightened and he gave the fox a head nod and smirk, saying, "So I heard you and Mary went on a bit of a date, huh? How'd that go?"

The fox shook his head but smiled in return. "It wasn't really a date. She had her friends, and Hunter was with me. It was... as well as could be expected."

"So not well at all?" the dog remarked.

Roger gave a soft growl and showed his teeth, in a playful manner.

It caused Dan to laugh. He looked back and noticed the wolf approaching, and said, "Well, I better get back. Don't have too much fun, huh?"

The fox nodded. Hunter sat back down as the dog left, a smile still playing across his face. The wolf had a puzzled expression.

"Just an old friend," the fox said.

"He seems nice," the wolf commented.

Roger nodded. "He is," he responded thoughtfully.

"Why don't you two hang out more?" the wolf asked.

The fox looked down at the table. "I... don't know, really. I never really have hung out with a lot of my friends. Us hanging out is more than I've done in... ever."

"You should try to hang out more; you seem happier when you do," Hunter said.

"Yeah..." the fox agreed. "I'll try."

Their food finally arrived, and they ate quietly. It was as if they were in the midst of a storm, the cacophonous sounds all around them. Roger watched as his old friend left, and tried to see if he recognized anyone else in the cafe. There were no other.

It was not just that he did not recognize anyone, but it was as if he had never seen any of them before. Were they tourists or foreigners of some sort? It was odd that he would not have seen them around, the proximity of the cafe to be considered.

He shrugged and they discussed what they would do. It was the day Hunter had to return home, and it was the time to study. They could not escape, nor did he believe that they should. The wolf's success depended on his commitment to helping him, and if it was truly his goal, he would do what he needed to.

He figured that perhaps there was something he could extract from what they had told him. He would try.