Extra Chapter

Idea given by devilscrown

Life got better by each day after his doctor had cleared him out.

Ryan, who had been longing for months, now could resume his usual morning exercise again, finally go on active duty, and do anything his doctor had said not to do. His police work was not dull anymore. Instead, it was getting more exciting and challenging. His body, without doubt, was getting back in shape again. Sure, after hitting the gym regularly and pumping his muscle up, he made many fellow officers of his jealous of his buff figure. However, there was an exception for some like Benjamin Clawhauser, the cheetah receptionist of the precinct one who rather enjoyed his round, chubby body than quit eating sweets.

Another great news was that his partner, Star, had decided to move in with him. It happened a week after they had officially become a couple. She had asked her father about moving out to live together with Ryan in his apartment, and much to her surprise as well as bewilderment, Edgar seemed to be jubilant when he knew that they were dating.

"Why you have to ask for my permission?" he had said to her. "What is it, 1950? No, you don't have to ask for my approval, my dear. Go on, live with him."

"Wait, dad. I used to ask for moving out months ago — surely before Ryan and I become a couple — and you didn't allow me to. Why?"

"At that time, you were going to live alone — no one was to protect you over there, so I didn't let you move out. But now, I have Ryan to watch over you, instead of me. So, I have no worry anymore. Now, go pack your things and don't forget to visit us sometimes, all right?"

On the first day of living with him, Star found herself not knowing what to do and felt totally awkward despite the fact that she had visited him for nearly every day when he had had the amnesia issue. She should rather be happy or exciting that she finally was with him, but instead, she felt empty as though her ultimate goal in life was completed — honestly, living with Ryan was one of her goals. Not only the emptiness but the helplessness too, since her boyfriend was an active guy for most of the time, he always finished all the things, including chores, before she noticed them, making her feel even worse like she had been taking him for granted, and with that, she became more stressed.

When Ryan saw her being stressed out like that, he tried to cheer her up and told her that moving into the other place was kind of a big change in life, and it could use some time to adjust her life. He even told her more that she did not really have to help him with the housework; he did not mind having them done alone at all.

Whether he really meant it or not, Star was not going to let him do all the works, of course, while she was living with him. She began to observe him and see what thing she could do to help him out. Over some time, she took more and more parts of housework, cooking together, laundry together and running an errand together, and pretty soon everything they had done altogether became their routine.

"See, you just need some time to adapt to the change," Ryan had said to her a week after she had moved in, and now she could not be more happier.

Now that time had passed and October finally had come, the weather here on Acacia Street started getting colder, bit by bit. All the trees that lined the street begun turning their leaves yellow and brown, and casting them down onto the ground as the chilly wind blew. The pedestrians of various kinds of mammals began to wear sweaters and jackets to keep themselves warm as they strolled around and enjoyed the shower of golden and brownish leaves. Every day the street would be densely covered with the fallen leaves which some time later, they would be cleared away by the sanitation department.

Although Ryan had been trained as hard as hell to be able to handle any situation when he was to become a personal bodyguard back in his old world, there still was a few things he could barely manage to handle. And one of them was the coldness. Since he was born and used to live in the tropical city for more than two decades, the lowest temperature he could remember over there was 77 Fahrenheit and no less. To compare to the place he lived now, the highest temperature here so far in this month was even colder by 12 degrees. And with his one physical incapability such as not fur like other mammals to contain heat — not to mention some mammals that had their own natural coats for winter — Ryan had to wear a thicker jacket, thicker gloves, and thermal underwear to warm himself up, which they all gave him much difficulty to do his usual morning workout and some routines. However, it had not been long before he found himself getting accustomed to the cold weather and thicker clothes; they were not bothering him anymore.

Anyway, more days passed uneventfully and peacefully with both of them having a life together until one Saturday. For them, it was not a normal Saturday. It was their special day.

It was their first one-month anniversary of being a couple.

As the sun had yet to rise, it was still dark and cold outside, and Ryan was the first to wake up as the alarm on his cell phone rang. Without opening his eyes, he reached out his hand towards the sound to turn off the alarm. He fumbled for his phone for a moment, then finally grabbed it and turned it down. He did not have to check what time it was; he knew by heart it was five in the morning like always, and it was time to begin the day with his usual morning jogging.

If it happened to be a month ago, he would have bolted off his bed, changed into a sweater and jogging pants, and rushed out of the room. He would have been in front of his apartment building warming up his body and getting ready for the jog. He would already have been out there by now if it had not been for Star who now snuggled closely to him, sleeping soundly on his bare chest.

With one of his hands still wrapping around her, Ryan whisked it up over her back and fondled the back of her head. His mind started thinking how blessed it was that she was not tossing and turning anymore, although he still wondered how she could stop that. He still remembered the first time they shared the tent together. It was not a pleasant time then. But on the first night she moved into his apartment, as he had been prepared and braced for her tossing and turning, it had not happened. It really surprised him, and it also surprised him, even more, when she still did not do anything but snuggled him and just slept on the next night and later and later nights as though it had never happened at all.

Maybe she found the way to stop tossing and turning on the internet, he thought. Anyway, it did not seem longer matter to him anymore. As long as they could cuddle up together, fall asleep in each other's arms, and wake up in the next morning without getting neck cramp, he was okay with it and so thankful for that.

With a sigh of contentment, Ryan pressed his lips to her forehead. "It's time for you to wake up now, Pookie," he whispered deeply into her ear and feel a shift slightly on him. The panthress was about to wake up from her slumber, but then she fell back to sleep again.

Shaking his head disbelievingly with a smile, something about her never changed.

He bent his head down and kissed her again. "Come on, wake up already. We don't want to miss our early morning jogging, right?"

Another slight shift of her, Star let out a soft, throaty groan and buried her face into his chest. "5 more minutes," she replied lazily. "Besides, it's our day off, let's sleep more, and stop calling me Pookie."

"Why not?" asked Ryan, smiling at her even though she still hid her face. "It's the name of a cute, lazy cat, isn't it? And I see one here right now, lying on my chest."

Star groaned once more and looked up at him, still not fully awake. "I shouldn't have let you ask Finn where he got that name from," she said. "And like I always say, I'm not lazy. I'm just not a morning mammal." She flopped her head down on him again and closed her eyes. "You could just go ahead jogging. I'll catch you later in 5 minutes."

"Oh no, I won't let you go back to sleep." Ryan grasped her shoulders and shook her gently. "I know it won't be just 5 minutes, and by the way, how am I supposed to get out of here when you're trapping me like this?"

"You'll have to force me to get off you then. You know how deep sleep I can be."

"Oh…is that a challenge?"

Star hummed and nodded lazily with a smile.

"Well then, I'll have to annoy you until you awake."

With that Star wrapped her arms and her legs around him, locking him in place.

"What can you do to me now, stud?" she said. "I'm sure you don't want to use your noise to annoy me if you don't want to disturb our neighbors too. You know how sensitive their ears are, and also, they had quite a night last night. So, I assume that they don't want to be up before 7 for sure."

Ryan sighed. "Okay then, there is only one thing left I can do to you."

"Hmm? Bumping your head into mine?"

"Oh thanks, I got two things now," he chuckled, "and the funny thing is I like your idea."

"Oh no, please don't do it, sir," cooed Star, snuggling her head against his chest. "I will be angry at you if you do that."

"Aw, man. You are not making this easy, aren't you?" complained Ryan, and Star giggled at him softly in return.

With him being confined by her, Star did not think what he was going to do to her could annoy her anymore. Even though she still did not know what thing he was going to do, she was well aware that Ryan was a gentleman (or gentlemammal?) enough that he would not do anything to hurt her, as well as well-mannered enough to cause no such trivial trouble to his neighbors. So what else he could do?

As there was neither sound nor movement from her loving prey, she began to allow herself drifting off to sleep without worry. But, before she could doze off completely, she heard him saying, "Well then, I'm gonna wake you up by…" and then felt a soft peck on her head again.

"Hmm? By kissing me on my head?" she asked. Another kiss landed upon her.

"Uh-huh. I'm gonna kiss you — smooch you until you give up and awake," he said between kisses.

"Well," she giggled, "it's kinda lovely and soothing I could fall asleep easily instead."

"With an extra saliva."

A disgusting shiver ran down her spine.

"Ew, that's gross!" cried Star, springing herself off him.

She quickly ran her paw over her head to wipe the slobber off, but only to find that the kissed area was still dry and clean. Looking down upon him and he sending her a victorious smile, she now realized that she had released him from her confinement.

"Ugh, all right," she groaned, shooting him an irritated look. "I'm up."

"Good," he smiled. "Now, go get dressed. It's jogging time."

The sun was rising above the skyline, the birds were singing merrily in the trees, and the door to their apartment swung open.

"Ahh, best way to start the day," said Ryan, stretching himself as he walked through the living room into the kitchen. "I'm gonna make us some breakfast. You should take a shower first."

At the doorway, Star gripped the door frame with both paws for support and struggled her way through the door into the apartment. She still did not understand why her boyfriend seemed to be perfectly fine like he always was. Unlike herself, she got tired quickly lately and she knew that the coldness was to blame. What she had been wondering for some time was that how Ryan was not also getting tired easily like her. Instead, he seemed to be more energetic and livelier.

"R…Ryan," she began, thinking it was time to ask. "How you're not tired? You know, it is hard to breathe in the cold. How do you manage to breathe?"

"Well, tip is you have to breathe through your nose," answered Ryan, poking his head out of the kitchen and pointing at his nose. "Our noses help us filter and warm the air as we inhale, so no freezing cold air hit our lungs." He then disappeared into the kitchen again.

"I see…" she sighed, closing the door. "You know, it still surprises me somehow, that you know a lot of things."

Ryan chuckled, "I've learned so many things from pros — and the internet too. And I'm glad most of them are useful."

"Yeah, I can see that," said Star, collapsing into the couch like a knocked-out boxer. "You sure can be anything from a servant to a secret service."

"That's right, I'm a man of many talents!"

If Ryan could see her rolling her eyes, he would say she overdid it. "Oh, stop it already. Your head is already big enough, and I don't want to see it get any bigger."

Ryan laughed out from the kitchen and soon, so did Star, giggling sweetly from the couch. Then, there came the silence as Ryan continued busying himself making their breakfast and Star was taking rest before cleaning herself.

"Hey, speaking of servant, Ryan," began Star, "we haven't heard any news from our new Sultana since we came back. I hope she's doing fine and still remember us."

"Oh how could I have forgotten?!" exclaimed Ryan. "Sorry I've forgotten to mention that I got an email from her a few days ago. Well, our soon-to-be Sultana still remembers us although she had a lot of things to take care of. In the email, she wrote that being Sultana is not easy as she thought. It was not only the hunger of her people she had to deal with but everything from law to economy. But on the bright side, she now has more mammalpower to help her get through them. And apart from that, she said she's doing well."

"That's good to hear." Star inhaled deeply and got to her feet. She walked into the kitchen and stood leaning against the wall, watching Ryan cooking. "And what about her coronation?"

"No word," he sighed. "She didn't mention anything about it at all. I think the thought of the ceremony might not be in her head right now. After everything her father had done to his country, she has a lot of things to fix. And I'm sure her first priority is her people's happiness."

"Yeah, I think so. She is too busy making her country a better place," said Star. "But if she wants her people to be happy too, the coronation ceremony is helping her to get one too, don't you agree?"

"Yeah, that makes sense. Her people will be happy to see her become their next ruler."

Ryan put their breakfast on two plates. The smell of Omelet Soufflé hung in the air, making Star's mouth water.

"I hope there will be the ceremony soon, and you, Pookie—" he shot a sweet glance at her — "should have gone shower already."

"Yeah…" said Star, nodding her head.

Her interest was apparently on that fluffy omelet as her eyes fixed incessantly on it, wondering the taste of it and how soft it would be. She had not seen him making this kind of breakfast before. Since they had to be at the precinct before the roll call, he would always make a quick and easy meal every morning.

And with that, there came a thought into her mind about today.

"Anyway…" she cooed, taking her eyes off the omelet and looking at him. "Do you know what day it is today, Ryan?"

Ryan looked back at her, raising his brow. He knew too well what today was, but he did not show any slight hint of excitement like her on his face as though it was just another normal day, nothing special.

"Well, it's Saturday, isn't it?" he answered innocently.

"Yes, it is." She smiled. "But, what is this day?"

"Erm… it is a day of the week following Friday and preceding Sunday."

"Uh-huh," she nodded, her patience getting low. "Do you think today — this particular day — have something special? Between us?"

Ryan closed his eyes, acting like he was thinking for a second. "Nah, I don't think so," he said. "Aside from Chief Bogo giving us a weekend off, I don't recall any special thing between us happened in the past." He paused and peered at her. He could see the disappointment on her face before she turned away. Fearing that he had gone too far on her, he quickly walked up to her and appeased her by taking her paws and raising them to his lips.

"Except for that it is our one-month anniversary," he added finally, hoping that he did not make her sad, but once Star turned to look up at him again, her eyes were filled with tears, and he could not feel more horrible about himself.

"I thought you'd forgotten," she said, tears dripping down her cheeks.

"Oh no, my sweetheart, I never forget anything like that," he said and held her close, feeling her body shaking. "Aww, come on, don't cry. I'm sorry for teasing you like that."

"You know you're a jerk sometimes."

"I'm sorry I don't want to be a jerk," cooed Ryan, rubbing the back of her head. "But I'm your jerk right?"

Trying to stifle the sob that was collecting in her throat, Star only nodded against his chest in response.

For next few minutes, not a single word left from either of their mouths. Ryan did not say anything but just kept holding her tight and patting her head. Eventually, Star was still and no more sobbing.

"Now, let me see if my cheerful girlfriend is back yet," he said and lifted her face up. "Oh, no." He made a worried face. "She isn't back yet. What do I have to do to have her back?"

The panthress giggled finally, wiping her tears away with her paw. "Kiss me."

"Oh, my." Ryan looked surprised but then smiled. "Such a bold request you got there," he chuckled, "but luckily that we're in our apartment right now, so I'd gladly do it." He cupped her chin in his hand and kissed her lips. "I hope that's enough to make up for what I've done."

"No, I want more."

Another surprised look on his face. "You know you kinda get greedy lately, right?"

"Yes, I know," said Star. "But, I'm only greedy for something like this, stud." She made a pleading face that probably won her all things. "Can you please give me one more of your kiss?"

Ryan rolled his eyes in disbelief, but then again smiled adoringly down at her. "All right." He pulled her close to him. "And you have to answer me what you want to do today, all right?"

Star nodded again with a smile, closed her eyes, and prepared for his kiss. She pushed her lips together, waiting eagerly with anticipation for his smooth, gentle lips, and there she felt them once again upon hers.

"Wow…" she purred, looking up at him as their lips parted. "Best kiss ever."

"Thanks." He smiled. "Now, sweetie, what do you want to do for today?"

"I want to be with you."

"Well, I am literally with you right now, will be with you all day and night, and hopefully for the rest of my life," he said, poking her nose gently with his finger. "But what I want to know is what do you want to do with me today? Going shopping? Strolling around the park? Or watching a movie?"

"I don't know." She shrugged. "But a few days ago, I heard that there is a new nightclub called Muse opens in Herd Street. Maybe we should go there tonight."

"That's a good idea. And what you want to do before going there?"

"I think it's your turn to suggest," said Star, taking a step back and crossing her arms. "It is our one-month anniversary, Ryan. You should tell me what you want to do with me too."

Ryan smiled at her. "Actually, there is a place I really want to go for some time now, so we will go to that place and spend our time there, all right? But now, it's time for you to stop being cute and take a shower. Otherwise, our omelets will be cold before we gotta eat them. And besides, we have a lot of things to do today too."

A lot of things turned out to be a few things.

Once the two of them had cleaned themselves up and finished their breakfast, Ryan made a call for a taxi and had the driver taking them to downtown. As there was not much traffic during this hour, they smoothly passed many tall modern skyscrapers and fancy shops in Downtown District without a stop. The taxi driver turned right into a narrow byway that had only two lanes, drove for another five minutes, and then pulled over in front of a white-painted wooden detached house with flowering shrubs lining the front yard.

Stepping out of the cab after paying the fare, the pair looked up at an iron letters on top of the wrought-iron front doors.

"Vanilla Garden?" Star read the sign and then looked down into the lonely, grassy yard beyond the entrance. "I never thought there still has this kind of peaceful place here in downtown."

"Yeah, right? I saw it on FurBook. The owner of this house turned it and this landscape into a garden café for those who seek tranquility without having to go outside the town."

"So, what are we going to do in here?"

"Just think nothing and relax."

Blinking in confusion, Star turned and looked at him.

"Really?" she said, and it was the last word before seeing her boyfriend walk through the gate without answering her or giving her any comment about it.

Once Ryan had finished ordering their refreshments and dessert inside the house, he set off back into the front yard and crossed to the table under the parasol where his girlfriend sat and was reading her newest book she bought.

The late-morning sun shone brightly in the blue sky, and its rays were getting warmer and warmer. Despite the cold air outside Ryan took off his thick sweater and draped it over his chair's backrest. The temperature seemed to be pleasant to them, just a little bit chilly for Ryan, but the sun was giving him some warmth.

After finishing settling down, Ryan too took out his book to read. A small, pink-covered book he had bought a month ago was going to be read for the first time.

Although he could complete Reincarnation Blues within five days as he promised, he did not have much free time to read his own since he was able to go on active duty. Sure, by the size of his book, it would not take anyone longer than a day or two to finish it — even Star could finish reading it within four hours. But, his police work had taken up far more of his time and his energy too that someday after coming back from the precinct, he did not do anything but went straight to his bed and slept away.

But now, as he finally had his first free time in these ever-busy weeks, he promised to himself to finish this book within this afternoon and hoped there would be nothing to interrupt him from reading it. Ryan's first misjudgment, his first interrupter turned out to be the smartly dressed waiter, who came to their table to serve their order.

As hot cappuccino with a light sprinkle of cinnamon was placed in front of him, hot cocoa top with whipped cream in front of her, and a dish of irresistible strawberry chocolate chip pancakes in between them, they could not help to put down their books and started digging into their dessert.

"Oh my goodness, it is amazing," said Star, still chewing.

"This pancake is so good," said Ryan, sipping his coffee. "I gotta admit they're doing better than me. No wonder why it's on the recommendation list."

"Even my personal chef himself said so." She smiled. "Maybe this is the best pancake in the world."

"Well, it might not be," he said, cutting the pancake into another small piece and putting it into his mouth. "But still, better than mine."

"Say, I still wonder why our boss gave us a weekend off," said Star, changing subject.

"It's because I asked him," said Ryan, taking another sip of his drink. "I told him that today is our one-month anniversary and I want to spend time with you, all day and night."

"And…he just gave you?"

"Oh no, he didn't, of course," he said, chuckling. "He doesn't like anyone to mix their personal life and work together. It would make things worse. So, I…let's say, have some cards to play and talk him into giving me the weekend off…in exchange for one-week overtime." He quickly placed his finger against her lips to stop her protest. "Don't worry, though, it'll be just doing paperwork for a week. That's all."

There was a lot of protests in her mind that she wanted to throw at him. But since the price was paid already, it would be a waste of time and make him sad, if she argued with him about it.

"You know what, Ryan?" Star sighed softly and put his finger away from her mouth. "Actually, you don't have to get in all trouble to have this. We could just spend time together after work, eating the take-outs and watching Pawflix, but thank you for that. You've made me feel good, and to pay you back, I will do the overtime with you."

Ryan wanted to say she did not have to do that, but it would not have mattered for sure. He knew by looking into her eyes that she was going to do it no matter what.

"That would be nice of you," he replied with a smile. "Thanks."

Takaki Tohno was just about to kiss Akari Shinohara for the first time when there was a throat clearing sound from his front.

Groaning internally, Ryan took his eyes off his book and looked up at his second interrupters who stood before him.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here, Carrots," said the fox in uniform, flicking his sunglasses up. "What a surprise to find you two lovers in this café."

"Hey, Nick, Judy," replied Ryan. "What bring you here?"

"We were assigned to patrol around this neighborhood," said Judy, "and we saw you guys while passing this house, so we decided to drop by and say hi—"

"Say why don't we take a coffee break for minutes, Carrots," interjected Nick. "We've been on the road for hours, and my butt hurts."

Judy rolled her eyes and shot a look at him. "Correction, you slick. We've been on the road for about an hour. Not hours. Don't try to exaggerate."

"I don't exaggerate about my butt, though." He smiled pleadingly at her. "Besides, we didn't have our coffees yet this morning."

"It's because some fox forgot to turn on the alarm last night, and that caused us to barely arrive at the briefing room in this morning," retorted the rabbit. Nick did not comment and only gave her his signature pleading smile and big puppy eyes that could bail himself out most of the time. "Oh, all right," she sighed, giving up all that she wanted to scold him. "Just one coffee, and we hit the road, okay?"

"Yes, ma'am." The fox saluted. "Carrot Latte, right?"

"Yep, and be quick, all right?"

Nodding confirmation, Nick turned away and walked into the house.

Returning her attention to Ryan and Star, Judy said, "So, if I remember correctly, today is your one-month anniversary, right?"

The pair nodded.

"Do you have any plan to spend time together afterward?" continued Judy, taking a vacant seat. "Don't have to tell me where you go, though. Just answer me only yes or not. I can recommend you a romantic place to go if you don't have a plan."

"Thanks for the offering, Judy," said Star, "but we already have the place to go in our minds for this evening." Judy nodded. "However, if you want, you and Nick can come and join us at Muse."

"Really?!" Judy's ears shot straight up in delight and looked at Ryan. "Are you sure?"

A third surprise look of the day as Ryan looked at his girlfriend and friend, he completely did not prepare to respond to this. In fact, he did not have a thought of inviting others to join them along in the first place; he really wanted to be alone with Star only, no one else. But, Nick and Judy were his close friends, like a brother and sister to him, and they were also a couple that he had been rooting for.

How could possibly be bad to have them along tonight, he thought. Since he did not mind them and Star had already signaled him that it was okay, he did not see anything to object to.

"Yep! We don't mind having you two with us at all," confirmed Ryan, with a smile. "The more, the merrier, right?"

Judy swiftly jumped up and stood on her seat. "Oh, that's great!" She made no attempt to hide her joy at all. "When shall we meet? What shall we dress?"

"Well, make it seven-thirty," said Ryan, trying to suppress his laughter at her. "It will give you some time to get ready after coming back from the precinct. And as for the dress, I think we just dress casually like we always did for the hangout."

"And how will we get there?"

"I will have a chauffeur to get us there," answered Ryan promptly. "You probably don't have to think who might that be—"

"It might be our little friend, Finnick, right?" said Nick as he had come back from ordering their drinks. "What are you guys talking about while I'm away?" he asked, a smile curling the corner of his mouth as he saw a grin on Judy's face. "One thing for sure, it really makes my fuzzy bunny happy."

That night, thirty minutes before the appointed time, Ryan emerged out of his bathroom, wearing only a towel around his waist. He was on his way to his bedroom to suit up for tonight's double date, but then, he stopped in his tracks as he saw someone he did not expect to see now sitting in the couch and playing on the phone.

"Nick? What are you doing here? And where is Star?"

Nick looked up from his phone. "Well, my girlfriend took yours into our apartment and chased me out to yours instead. I don't really know the reason, but my best guess would be that they want to surprise us with their outfits for sure."

Ryan groaned in disbelief. "But I said we could just dress casually. No dress code. And look at you, what are you wearing?"

Nick hopped off the couch and swirled once to show off his outfit. He was dressed in his best suit, without a tie, of course; he never failed to show his slackness. However, he had chosen a navy blue one which surprisingly went well with his red fur that Ryan had to rethink about this fox's sense of fashion.

"Me? My night-out outfit, of course," answered Nick proudly. "Want me to help you with your clothes?"

But thinking back to see how Nick had usually dressed, a light green Hawaiian shirt with a dark indigo striped tie and khaki pants, for example, it would be wise for Ryan to trust his own sense.

"Hard pass, Nick," he said, continuing on his way to the bedroom, "I still don't trust your fashion sense, though. Anyway, you can help yourself to some coffee in the kitchen. It will be some time for me to dress up matching you."

"Be quick, though. You have less than half an hour now before Finnick arrives."

"I know." And the bedroom door clicked shut.

Five minutes to the appointed time, the door opened again, and Ryan came out into the living room, wearing dark jeans and a slim black shirt beneath a black vest, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows.

"Wow, cowboy," Nick whistled as Ryan walked past him. "You said yourself to dress casually, and look at you now, are you going out to pick up girls?"

Ignoring the remark, Ryan walked across to the mantelpiece near the front door, picked up his watch and strapped it around his wrist. "I'm done now, Nick," he said, putting on his polished shoes, and stood up. "How about you?"

"I'm good," replied Nick, walking up to him. "Let's go wait outside. Our chauffeur will be here any second."

"What about Judy and Star?"

"They will finish dressing up soon. Come on, let's get going."

As the time on Nick's phone displayed seven-thirty, the same old reddish-orange van pulled over and parked in front of them. The driver's window rolled down and revealed no one else but Finnick.

The small yellow fox poked his head out of the window and flashed his two male passengers a lopsided toothy grin.

"Well, well, well, look at you two," he began, "are you going to go hunt some girls at the nightclub, huh?"

"I would be if I'm single and available," said Nick, pacing up to him. "Too bad, I'm no longer in that game anymore."

"What a relief to hear!" laughed the small fox. "You really did much favor to all males in Zootopia, stud."

"Is this something I didn't know?" asked Ryan, looking confusingly at two foxes.

"Oh it's nothing much, Ryan," said Nick. "Just before I met Carrots, I might have been seeing a few girls—"

"A ton of girls, slick," corrected Finnick, emphasizing the word, "a ton of them. You gotta see him before, Ryan," continued the small fox, turning to Ryan. "He was not only a con-mammal but a lady-killer too. And you can guess who was his best wingmammal. Way before this hustler got hustled by that bunny, he used to be dating at least 3 chicks at the same time, and they all didn't find out about that until he dumped them. Oh! There was a time when—"

"Okay, that's enough," interjected Nick, clamping his paw around Finnick's muzzle. "Bedtime story ends now, or you want me to tell your past too, huh?"

The smaller fox grinned, shaking his head in response, and Nick released him.

Lost for words, Ryan stared steadily at Nick for a second and shook his head dramatically. "Oh, slick. You were so bad. I can't believe you'd been a bad, bad boy. But, good thing is you've changed to a gentlemammal now, and I like this version of you. Please don't be right that again, I don't want to see you two break up."

Sighing heavily, Nick leaned his back against the van and crossed his arms. "And I don't want to break any more hearts too," he said, and then came the silence.

"Say, what took our girls so long?" Ryan changed the subject, turning towards the front door of the apartment building. "Did they forget that we have a nightclub to go to?"

Nick shrugged. "Well, they should be finished by now—" the door opened — "and speaking of evil…" He trailed off as he saw his date coming out the door.

Judy was wearing a black mini dress which showed her shapely long gray-furred legs as she paced towards them. The dress hugged her perfectly that revealed every curve of her body, making all three men stand dumbstruck.

"Sorry for coming late," said Judy. "I didn't know choosing the right dress for Star is taking more time than I thought. Well, how do I look, guys?"

Ryan was the first to pull together. "You look great, Judy. Right, Nick?" he said, nudging the red fox with his knee. "Nick?!"

"Just amazing," said Nick finally. "I've never seen you in this dress before."

Judy smiled slyly and stroked under his chin. "Thanks. I just picked it up for this kind of occasion. I haven't dressed up like this in ages. By the way…" She turned to Ryan. "You gotta see my masterpiece. She's kinda shy, but I warn you to keep your mouth shut tight. Otherwise, your tongue will roll away off for sure." Turning towards the front door, the rabbit called out, "Come on out, Star. We gotta go already."

Judy was not kidding at all about the warning. As the front door of their apartment building opened again, Star walked out of the building wearing a beautiful royal blue velvet, off-shoulder dress with a black sash belt around her waist.

"Wow, right?" said Judy, smiling as she saw Ryan staring at his date helplessly. "Well, Ryan, say something," she continued. "How is her dress?"

It took him quite some time to get it together after getting lost in his date's beauty. "You look gorgeous," he said finally and took her paw in his hands. "Very, very stunning."

"…Thanks," the panthress replied shyly and smiled as he kissed the back of her paw.

"Well, you know what?" chimed in Finnick, earning everyone's attention. "You girls are really overkilling tonight. Anyways, come on, chop chop. We got a place to go, right?"

The quartet stepped out of the van after Finnick parked it at the drop-off point in front of Muse. There was no queue outside as most mammals did not arrive much at this time, except for two rhino bouncers who stood guard at the entrance. Walking towards the doors, the four of them paid their entrance fee and continued into the club.

It was dim inside. Quite a few mammals populated the dance floor and the bar, as expected. Ryan took the lead and walked further down along the wall to find the perfect spot, and there, facing towards the dance floor, was a vacant table with red leather seats in the alcove, perfect.

But what was not perfect was that a group of mammals in that area was someone they knew best, someone from work. A fourth surprise look on Ryan's face.

"Oh…everyone is here."

"Hey, guys," chirped Clawhauser, dashing to them.

It was too late to turn away now.

"What a surprise to see you four here!" said the cheetah.

"Yeah… What a surprise—"

"You all look great!" the cheetah continued, ignoring his sarcasm. "Especially you two, Judy and Star, oh…you look so exquisite and stunning. And your dress!…"

While the chubby cheetah continued on praising the girls' dresses with a shriek from time to time, a polar bear walked up to Ryan from the behind, put his arm around his neck, and pulled him close.

"Why the long face, stud? Ain't happy to see us?" greeted the bear. "You look cool, by the way."

"Thanks, Grizzoli," replied Ryan, no attempting to hide his disappointment. "I'm kinda surprised to see you, my fellow officers and boss here tonight. What brings you here? What's the occasion?"

"Aww, come on. Don't speak so distantly. Cheer up, mammal!" Grizzoli laughed. "It's our chief's idea to come here in the first place. He said he wanted to relax and have a night out with his subordinates, to quote him, to strengthen the bond."

"Oh, did he?" said Ryan, arching his brow and putting the bear's arm off him. "Well, I'd better go say hi to him and let you enjoy the night with your friends."

"Ha! You know you can join us at my table too, Ryan, if you get lonely," said Grizzoli, patting Ryan's back with a thud. "I gotta love the endgame of the bet."

"The bet?" asked Ryan, but Grizzoli was not here to elaborate anymore; he had walked back to his table, joining Officer McHorn and Fangmeyer.

Oh, right. The bet, Ryan finally realized. But shouldn't have they known already?

Shaking his head once, Ryan walked over to the bar at where a lone water buffalo sat and sat down on the bar stool next to him. The bartender came over to him to take the order, but Ryan just waved him off politely and continued sitting in silence.

"Aren't ready to have a drink, huh?" came a familiar deep voice beside him.

"Yes, boss. I prefer to savor the atmosphere first, and then the drink comes next," replied Ryan, spinning his stool around and leaning his back against the counter. "Anyways, boss, we haven't been drinking together before. Why you just sit here all alone? Come and enjoy with others."

With a clank of ice cubes against a glass half full of whiskey as he turned towards Ryan, Chief Bogo gave him a smile and said, "Oh, cut the boss crap, Young. It isn't a working hour anymore, and we aren't in the precinct. So, just call me Bogo." The buffalo chief turned back to the counter again and took a sip of his drink. "I also like to savor the atmosphere too," he continued, "but unlike you, I savor it with a glass of whiskey and in solitary. I will join my squad later, though…after I finish this glass."

"All right," chuckled Ryan. "But before I'm gonna leave you be, I wanna ask you something."

"Shoot away."

"Do you really come here with the whole squad just to chill out, or you have some other thing in your mind? vis-à-vis the bet?"

"Well, I really come here to relax and enjoy the night with my squad at first," said Chief Bogo, then smiled at Ryan slyly. "But, it seems to be both now when I see you four here."

"Aw, jeez, man. I thought everyone should've settled the bet after I told you. Why you withhold it."

"It's because I want to see everyone's reaction after they find out with their own eyes. And I have a feeling that I'm gonna see it today."

"That's evil," gasped Ryan, and Chief chuckled. "Well, I gotta go now, Bogo," added Ryan, hopping off the stool. "It's good to see you finally smile in a while."

"Thanks and hey, Young," called Chief Bogo, earning Ryan's attention. "Don't worry about others bothering you, I'll get them distracted. Now go enjoy your night."

"It's relieved to hear that, Bogo. Thanks." Ryan gave him a smile and walked back to his table.

By the time he arrived, his two little friends and Star already had drinks in front of them and were talking and laughing with one another. Much to his relief, they seemed relaxed and enjoying even though tonight was not going as they planned.

"Hey, how dare you start drinking without me?" announced Ryan as he took a seat beside Star. "You gotta start it all over again with me."

"It's your fault, Ryan," retorted Star, with a smile. "You have us waiting for you while you go and talk with Chief. And for your information, we just got our drinks, so why don't you order yours, and then we start it together when your drink comes."

"All right!" Ryan waved his hand at the waiter to come to him and ordered himself a pint of beer.

A couple hours later, the club was getting more cramped with customers. Eight empty glasses were on their table, and the same waiter arrived again with more of their drinks. Judy seemed tipsy now as she laid her head on the table, pasting a silly smile on her face and giggling at everything Nick, Ryan, and Star said. Nick too admitted that he was getting a bit lightheaded after finishing his second glass of Blueberry Martini. But as for Ryan and Star, they were far from being drunk. In fact, the pair felt still the same as though they were just drinking water. Was it the size of their bodies made them drunk quickly, Ryan wondered.

"Hey Jude, are you okay?" He looked at the rabbit in question. "Drunk yet?"

"I'm not drunk yet, Ryan," slurred Judy, putting all her effort to sit upright and raise her glass of Carrot Mimosa. "I'm fine. I'm more than fine!"

"Oh, I'm sure you're fine, gal," laughed Ryan. "But seriously, Jude, you should drink some water now, or you'll be trashed before midnight."

"You mind me getting drunk, huh?!"

"No, No! That's not what I meant, Judy. I'm just afraid that—"

"Ha! Gotcha!" laughed the rabbit. "Don't worry, I won't get myself drunk… All right, I'll go get some water from the bar," said Judy, climbing down from her seat. "Back in a flash." And she headed out towards the bar.

"Well, I should go after her," said Nick, slipping out of his seat. "Who knows she would get stomped or lost the way, right? Rabbit doesn't have a good night vision like fox."

"Be careful, you two," said Ryan as he saw Nick set off, then he turned to Star. "Say… How is the night so far, sweetie?"

"I like it," she replied, "even though it doesn't go as I think."

"Well, what you have in mind at first, hmm?"

"I thought our double date would be more romantic and private," said Star, sipping her third glass of mojito, "But, this is fun and relaxed instead."

"Well, it's hard to find some romance and privacy here in the nightclub." He shrugged. "But it is good, isn't it? To me, this place makes me feel like I can be fully myself again, free from everything."

"So, it seems you like to go to the nightclub rather than the fancy restaurant then?"

"No." He shook his head and smiled. "I'd go anywhere you want to go. Whether a fancy restaurant where my heart would melt every time I see you in a beautiful dress or a nightclub like this where I can enjoy seeing you relaxed and having fun, I'll go anywhere with you."

Star smiled back at him. "If I say I want to leave here?"

"Well, just say the words then," he offered and took her paw, "and we'll go."

Her smile grew even broader. "That's really kind of you," she said as she scooted closer beside him and nestled her head onto his shoulder. Her blue eyes gleamed in delight as she looked up at him. "But I love it here," she continued. "I really have a good time now being with you. So, let's just stay here."

A smile lit his face. Ryan put his arm around her shoulder, pulled her closer to him, and kissed the top of her head in response. He did not wonder why he fell even more in love with her. From the first time he met her at the academy until now, she never had changed a bit. Maybe she was maturer than before (and her tossing and turning was cured), but her Star-ishness he loved was still the same. He kept reminding himself how lucky he was to meet her, even though he had seen her as a mere fan at first, as well as his love for anyone was sealed shut at that time. But after being with her, his heart was eventually unlocked and ready to love again. His world once had been painted gray and dull by his past, but now it had turned anew and ever colorful as she showed up in his life and colored his world with every shade of every color that no one had but her.

How could he ever repay her for all she did to him? She was more than he probably deserved. No, she was definitely more than he deserved. She deserved someone better than him…

"Let's go dance, Ryan."

"Huh?" Ryan snapped out of his thoughts. "What now?"

Star took his arm and looked at him. "I want to dance. Let's go to the dance floor!"

"Oh, no." Ryan shook his head desperately. "No, I'm a terrible dancer."

"Oh, come on, let's go," she groaned playfully and pushed him out of the seat. "What do you have to lose, stud?"

Knowing that he had no way to fight her stubbornness, he sighed, "Okay. One dance, but you can't laugh."

"Two dances and I will try my best not to laugh."

Ryan smiled, chuckling as she shoved him towards the dance floor. "Everything is a negotiation with you, huh?" he said.

"Come on, Ryan. To the dance floor already." Star pushed him to the little vacant space on the dance floor, and they started to dance to the music.

Looking at them from afar at the table, Chief Bogo sat sipping his whiskey quietly while his off-duty officers were chatting and drinking with one another merrily. He kept his words, one was that he would come and join his inferiors at the table, and two was that he would keep them distracted away from Ryan, Star, Nick, and Judy. He remembered back one day when his human officer had come into his office and come straight to him about him being date with his partner, he had to put all his effort to keep his face straight and indifferent, hiding his jubilation. Even knowing that dating among the co-worker was violating the rules, he said to his human officer he would close his eyes and let the matter slide. But, it was only on one condition that he would be the only one to announce the news to everyone in the betting pool, and that he could execute his plan.

"Sure, you're smiling a lot tonight What's on your mind, Chief?"

Chief Bogo put down his glass and turned towards the sound beside him to find a chubby cheetah smiling at him.

"Because I'm happy, Clawhauser" he replied, "and we're not in working hour, so stop calling me chief."

"Ha! Of course, and you're happy because of them, right?" said the cheetah, glancing over to the particular couple on the dance floor. "Jeez, why don't they just admit they are a couple already. You know, they really make me frustrated after seeing them close like that and still not admitting that they are."

The chief chuckled softly and took another sip of his drink. "I know you have been rooting for them like you have been rooting for Nick and Judy. But, you have to learn to be patient. Let time works on this for us and we'll see which side of the bet will rule."

After giving his chubby subordinate a smile once, the chief then returned his focus to the human and the panthress on the packed dance floor again and hoped that the timing and the atmosphere were right and his requesting song was played while they were still there.

Ryan wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at his girlfriend who was still dancing wildly without stop. Seeing her being like that, he never wanted to stop her at all; she was so happy and having fun. He hated to see her sad, but it was two dances already, and they had to return to the table.

But before he could make her realize that, the DJ slowed the beat down and played the slow jam. Slightly puzzled, Star stopped from her dance and turned to Ryan.

"Well, I think it's time, right?" said Star, smiling sadly at him.

And Ryan only nodded back at her.

"Okay…" she sighed, beginning to walk back. "Promise is a promise. Let's go back."

"Wait!" Ryan reached out his hand and grabbed her wrist. "You wanna slow dance?"

For a moment a surprised look flushed on her face, but then a brightest, sweetest smile lit her face. "Sure, why not," she purred and was surprised again when they started waltzing. "You said you were a terrible dancer a moment ago, but you now do a really good job at waltzing. What's that supposed to mean, huh?"

Ryan laughed softly. "I didn't lie about the terrible dancer thing. I could see you stifle your laughter at me while we were dancing together. I know how silly and hilarious I could be, but when it came to the waltz, I daresay I'm a pro."

And he did not brag about it. Every pace he moved, every turn he made, he led her around the dance floor naturally without interruption. Sighing contentedly, Star leaned forward and laid her head on Ryan's shoulder.

"It starts getting romantic, doesn't it?" she whispered.

"Yeah, it is. Kind of what you want, isn't it?" he teased.

Star lifted her head. "Almost there, stud. It only there isn't mammals around here."

"Well, you have to learn to ignore them," chuckled Ryan, lifting her face towards his. "Just focus on me, don't care what surrounding us, and you will have only me in this world."

"Really?" giggled Star. "You know how silly it sounds, right?"

"Or you can just close your eyes, cling close to me—"

"And waste the moment of seeing my boyfriend's handsome face?" interjected Star, arching her brow at him playfully. "No, I'll rather choose to ignore the world instead."

Ryan smiled even more broadly, looking passionately into her eyes as he gazed down at her. "Let's forget the world then," he said, and they continued slow dancing into oblivion.

All around them, everything was in slow motion, the love song continued to play in the background, and the lights kept dancing on and off to the rhythm of the music. Spinning above a disco ball reflected the dancing lights in all directions. Like every couple on the dance floor, Ryan and Star could not turn their eyes away from one another. Her ocean blue eyes sparkled radiantly and her smooth, rich black fur gleamed beautifully each time the light shone past, her beauty in the night again capturing him. And the longer he looked at her, the more he had to fight back the urge to kiss her.

Tilting his head up to suppress his urge, Ryan closed his eyes and, in his mind, reflected the joy of standing here and dancing with the one who he was never going to leave her side. And suddenly, there came a thought about the novel he just finished reading in the afternoon.

If only Takaki Tohno braved enough to tell Akari Shinohara that he loved her, Ryan thought. If only Takaki Tohno was to continue to call her and send her the letter after they parted, who knew they might have been a cute couple or even lovers in the end.

Although Takaki Tohno had chosen to go on that way and was going to move on without Akari Shinohara in his life, Ryan Young was not going to lose Stasia Panthera at all cost and would do anything to protect her and make her smile.

"5 centimeters per second…" murmured Star, as though she had read his mind.

"Huh?!" Ryan startled, slightly taken aback by her words.

"Nothing…" She shook her head, smiled and looked longingly into his eyes. "I was just thinking… Everything around us seems slow, and then that words just came to me."

"Well, it's a good book, right?"

"Indeed," nodded Star, "although it has a sad and lonely ending."

"But it is still beautiful in its own way," added Ryan, smiling down at her.

She giggled and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Say, if you were that Takaki boy, what would you do before the train leaving the platform?"

Ryan smiled once again and bent his head down towards her. "I would jump out of the train before the train doors began to close," he whispered. "I would pull that Akari girl to me—" he held Star closer to him, their faces inches apart — "and hold her very tight as if I would never see her again. And lastly, I would say I love you and…"

As he had closed the last remaining space between them, he covered her mouth with his own and drew a good long slow kiss out of her.

"I love you, Star," he said, after parting his lips from hers.

"I love you too, Ryan," she replied, and Ryan pulled her to him again into a second kiss. But suddenly, they broke apart when there was a loud cheer, whistle, holler, and clap from a familiar audience who had been sitting on the edges of their seats.

Without even having to turn towards them, the pair knew who might they be, making all those noises.

"Well, I guess we've made those guys really happy, huh?"

"…Yeah."

'Color My World'

The End

A/N

First of all, I would like to thank devilscrown for giving me a wonderful idea for this chapter. I wouldn't be able to write it without him. Thank you, man!

Second, it's still me. I just change my username. LOL

And third, I have a new idea for my upcoming story that will be my original. It is an action-fantasy story inspired by many animes, comics, games, and TV series such as Metal Gear Solid, Tokyo Ghoul, Terror Man etc. It is about a young man who wants to change the world and cleanses all powerful, corrupted people away. But before he is going to do it globally, he has to remove those people out of his country first. I'll post this on Wattpad.

And here the teaser...

Ever since when I made my first friend…

Ever since when we became so close and knew that we were going to be best friends until the day either of us died…

Ever since when we made a promise that we would forever keep looking out for each other…

But…

Ever since when we chose and walked down separate paths…

Ever since when we broke our promise…

Ever since when was it, my dear friend, ever since when…

The young man sat staring at the rising sun. He was watching the sun coming up above the horizon from the top of the tower of the suspension concrete bridge that crossed the vast canal called 'Thai Canal.'

Up there, the wind was blowing furiously, but he was not moving a bit, only his hair sway. He clutched a black, bird-like beak mask in his hand when the phone was buzzing in his pants.

Taking it out, he looked at the caller ID and answered the phone.

"It's showtime, Young Master," a deep male voice spoke from the other end of the line.

The man — Young Master — hummed once in response and tossed the phone away into the water under the bridge. He put on the beak mask and stood up straight.

Ever since when…

Young Master turned looking at the dawning sun once again, savoring the moment as though it was the last time he could see it from here. The darkness spread out of his hands and continued to envelop all over his body, and then he jumped off the tower.

…I had become…

'The Terror Crow'