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By now, most of the wolves in my pack had mates. But not me. I had never found that connection, that passion, for any wolf. And my pack was always very particular about "staying in the species". Guess I'm destined to die alone. Or so I thought.

My eyes opened, taking in the apartment filled with cardboard boxes stacked higher than the bed. My best friend and I had just moved into the apartment the previous night and hadn't had the time or energy to unpack yet. I shifted my gaze to the ceiling. Then, the radio alarm I had set went off, blasting Metallica through the speakers. It went off so suddenly that I instinctively jumped and accidentally rolled off of the bed and into a stack of boxes, which collapsed and spilled their contents all over me. Sitting up, I sifted through the contents and placed them back in the boxes. I stopped when I picked up a framed photo of me posing with a group of rowdy wolves-my pack. We took this before I left, having given them no warning.

I set the picture on the table next to the bed and rose to my paws. I twisted my back, trying to stretch every last muscle before walking out of the room into the adjoining bathroom. In the gleaming, recently cleaned surface of the mirror, a purple-maned, black and blue wolf stared back at me. I fussed with my eternally messy mane, soon giving up and moving to brush my snout full of teeth. After pulling on a faded black tee and dark denim jeans, I stared at my reflection and prepared for my day.

Looking at me, one would never guess that I struggle with confidence. I've always been different than others. I was born a black wolf to a pack of greys and reds. Born an anthro in a predominantly human city. 19 and still unmated. A canine, best friends with a saber-tooth. Abnormal purple eyes. And the cherry on top: the pupil of my left eye is a broken heart. Others tend to be a little apprehensive, that is if they aren't just plain scared as humans and more timid anthros tend to avoid me. I don't like scaring people, but I could see how I could come across as intimidating.

I let out a heavy sigh. "They say that the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step," I quote. Letting loose another sigh, I flicked off the lights and exited the room. I grabbed my phone and earbuds from the night stand and left the apartment, immediately regretting opening the door. Across the hall, two anthro girls, a fennec fox with a sandy coat and an avian--a raven--were passionately making out, the fennec pressed against the wall next to the door to their room. The fennec saw me and pushed the raven off of her, embarrassed. "Fila, why don't you come in," she told her partner. "Okay, Mina," the raven responded. The otter, Mina, pulled out her room key and they went inside. When Dio and I were looking to buy the apartment, the owner warned us about our neighbors being a little... frisky.

I tried to shake the sight out of my head while walking towards the elevator. Thankfully, the elevator's descent to the ground floor was uneventful. Once I had walked out of the complex, I pushed the earbuds into my ears and hit play on Fall Out Boy's album MANIA. I ignored the strange looks, double-glances, and avoidance of the people, humans and anthros, around me as I made my way to what Yelp listed as the best café within walking distance.

. . .

Not long after, I had a steaming cup of mint chocolate latte. As I stared at my reflection in the coffee, I zoned out from the world and retreated to my mind.

I had never been so far away from home. Or my pack. I left because there was too much pressure with me lined up as the next Alpha. Too much pressure to mate. That, and they never really liked Dio. Dio, short for Dionysus, was my best friend, though most people thought we were a couple. Even if we were gay, Dio was too much like a brother. The pack never liked us being friends because he was a saber-tooth and I was a wolf and my pack was very strict about tradition. But he saved me from a destiny, a burden, that I didn't want. And when we left, they all thought it was his idea not to tell anyone. It had been mine.

As for my excuse of not having a mate, there is none. I tried. And I tried to keep to their rules. But I never felt that spark for any other wolf.

During the silence between songs, I heard the bell on the café's door ring. I turned, expecting Dio to walk up. But it wasn't Dio. Walking into the café was a female white fox. She was tall and fit, with long legs peeking out from under her knee-length sapphire skirt. A big, fluffy, blue-tipped tail swayed behind her. She wore a black sports bra under a black leather jacket with the sleeves cut off at the shoulders, revealing much of her pale tan underbelly. A black leather guitar case was slung over her shoulder and a sapphire pattern of whorls and curls ran down her left arm. A chain link collar encircled her neck. Her lips were a deep shade of purple that matched her mascara. As she walked, her hips swayed with a powerful confidence and her long, sapphire blue hair flowed behind her..

I couldn't take my eyes off of her. She looked over her shoulder and her golden eyes met my gaze as she passed the table I was sitting at. And for a single, fleeting moment, I saw through her. And the expression on her face told me that she had let me. Something wordlessly passed between us, something that I had never felt with another wolf.

"Whatcha lookin' at?" Dionysus the saber-tooth tiger leaned into my field of vision. I yelped and jumped back. He smiled broadly and chuckled before sitting across from me. "Sorry I'm late." He wasn't. "You scared the shit outta' me," I complained, paw over my racing heart. I turned off my music and pulled out my earbuds.

"Hope you wore brown pants!"

"I hate you."

"Aw... I hate you too!" Classic Dio.

"Anyway, how'd the show do today?" Dio was a stand-up comedian who performed at open mics and small gigs.

"Good turnout. I got a standing ovation."

"Dude, that's awesome!"

"Except there were no chairs."

"Dio, fuck you."

He chuckled again. I met Dio at one of his shows. His first, actually. Not able to shake the feeling, I looked around for the white fox. She was sitting at the coffee bar, her guitar case leaned against the empty stool next to her. Her gold eyes darted back and forth as she stared at the menu hanging above the kitchen. Dio smiled encouragingly and supportively punched my shoulder. "Go talk to her," he urged. "Are you kidding me?" I responded.

"The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." Yep. Dio's the one that told me that.

"What if I trip?" I love talking in metaphors.

"Then you can get back up. Unlike stairs, you won't break your neck if you fall on asphalt. Success is not measured by not falling, it's how you get back up. Look, just go up to her and be yourself, man. You'll never know if you don't try." He had a point, though I would've never admitted it.

I took a deep breath and rose out of my seat. It was honestly hard to walk up to her. As soon as I got close, her ears twitched but she remained focused on the menu. "My favorite is the mint chocolate latte," I said after gathering my nerves. She nodded and signaled to an employee. "Large mint chocolate latte, please." Her voice was melodic and sweet but had an unexpected but not unwelcome edge. She turned to me. "Now, I'm trusting you. How 'bout we make a bet?" I repressed the urge to step back in shock because there was no hesitation or stutter, she was talking to me like someone she knew. "O-okay," I tried to keep my nerves from coming out in my voice.

"Do you want to or not? Be confident."

Fuck it. "Yes. I'll do it." A cup of coffee was set in front of her.

"Good. If this coffee is as good as you imply by it being your favorite, then I'll owe you something."

"I don't need any money."

"Okay, then how 'bout... a kiss?"

"..." I was speechless. There was nothing that had prepared me for that.

"I'll take your silence as a yes."

"And if it's not that good?"

"Then you're paying for it."

I tried to regain control of my breathing as she raised the cup to her purple lips and took a long sip. "Oh my God, that's the absolute best coffee I've had in years!" Her beautiful golden eyes met my gaze and she smiled and giggled. "Why do you look so nervous?" She got closer to me until her body was almost pressing against mine. "I've never kissed a girl before," I said softly for only her to hear. Dio was the only other person to know this. Her smile softened and her tail found its way to the back of my legs. Something changed in her eyes as she got ever closer, her breasts gently pressing against my chest. She was slightly shorter than me, but had no problem looking into my eyes. "How about a kiss, and a name?" I nodded. "Okay," she continued. "My name's Katarina, but most people call me Kat."

Without waiting for a response, Kat brushed a rogue strand of hair out of her face then tilted her snout up until our lips met. She closed her eyes and I followed suit, the world fading away for the few moments that the kiss lasted. All my worries just melted away. We parted when her phone vibrated. "Oh, shit! I'm gonna be late! I gotta go," she said as she rushed to the door. Right before leaving, she turned to me and said "see you 'round, Nightshade."

"Wait how d'you know my-" She was gone.

As I turned to return to my seat, I noticed a napkin on the bar that had a number written on it in black ink. She left it for me. But I never saw her write it. I pulled out my phone and took a picture then tossed the napkin in the nearby trash bin. I typed the number into my contacts as I walked back to my seat and now-lukewarm coffee. "Dude? Who was that girl?" Dio asked in wonder. "Her name's Kat. I've never met her before today," I answered.

"Kat?"

"Well, Katarina."

"Dude, I think she lives in the same apartment building as us."

"No way."

"And on the same floor, next to that fennec fox girl."

"You're joking right?"

"If we're talking about the same Katarina whose name was on the list for our floor, then no."

"That would explain how she knew my name."

"No, the apartment is under my name, remember?"

"Then how did she-?"

Dio shrugged in response and rose to his paws. "Something to bring up next time you see her." I stood and stretched out my legs. I lazily nodded in agreement and began walking toward the door, coffee in hand. Dio followed not too far behind as I left the café.

I walked mostly in silence, listening to Dio as he told me about his show. I still couldn't get that white fox out of my head. I kept thinking about how she had kissed me. When making the bet, she made it sound so usual. But when she had actually kissed me, it felt a lot more passionate than I had expected. And she was so confident and beautiful. The best part was that she didn't give a shit who I was, unlike the wolves that I'd met who treated me differently because I was an Alpha. "Hey, Dio?"

"Yeah?"

"I think... I think I may be in love."

"Well holy shit, it's about time."

. . .

Dio and I went back to the apartment complex after exploring the city. He had just told me the punchline of a joke and I was laughing so hard that I could barely see. I fumbled for the elevator button to go up to our floor. When it finally opened, I felt a paw wrap around my arm and I was pulled into the elevator. "What the-" I stopped because I saw a flash of sapphire-blue hair and snow-white fur right before the elevator doors closed behind me. "Hiya, Nightshade," Kat's voice greeted me. Even though we had the entire elevator to ourselves, she was somewhat pressing me into the door. I met her eyes and immediately felt like I was falling endlessly. They hid the same expression as she had the first time we made eye contact--that magnetizing and hypnotizing glance that gave away more than any words ever could hope to.

My senses kicked into overdrive, being in a tiny ass space with her. I could hear her heart racing, feel her fur bristle, smell the mint still on her breath. Though there was already almost no space between us, my body ached for there to be less. I could tell by the way her heart raced that she felt the same way. She leaned forward and nuzzled my neck before bringing her lips to mine. This time, there was a tangible heat as her feather-soft lips moved against mine, a dance of push and pull choreographed by our racing hearts. I let my eyes close. Her kiss was a drug and I was hopelessly addicted at the first taste. We were so enveloped in each other that we didn't hear the elevator ding, signalling that the doors were about to open. And when they did, I fell and Kat collapsed on top of me.

The brown-haired human that had been waiting for the elevator looked like he'd seen a ghost. Granted, a black wolf and a white fox not-so-gracefully tumbling out of an elevator having been in the middle of kissing would scare the shit out of anyone. Kat had to get off of me so I could stand up and brush myself off. Also, it wasn't our floor, so we had to get back into the elevator and have an awkward ride up with the accidental witness.

We got off at the right floor the second time, the human needing to go further up. Once the doors closed, Kat and I looked at each other and busted out laughing. She grabbed my wrist and led me down the hallway, past my apartment and to the door to hers. I turned in time to see Dio emerge from the stairwell, panting. He took one look at Kat and I--her paw still holding my wrist--and smiled slyly. "Don't worry 'bout it, I'll unpack," he said, making my one and only backup plan obsolete. Kat returned his smile and nodded. She reached into her bra and, to Dio's and my surprise, pulled out her room key. She saw my shocked expression and giggled as she pushed the card into the reader. Dio shot me a thumbs-up before I disappeared into her apartment.

I didn't even get time to look around before Kat was on me again as she not-so gently pushed me into the door. Her warm tongue found its way into my mouth and her paws to the small of my back as her tail brushed against mine. I wrapped my arms around her as she started walking me deeper into her apartment, never taking her lips off mine. Running out of breath, I momentarily broke the kiss. "Kat?" She opened her eyes and looked up at me. It was good that I didn't have to say it, because looking into those magnificent golden orbs was all it took for the train of rational thought to derail and plunge into the beautiful abyss that they held. She grabbed my wrist once again and led me through the only closed door: the door that led to the bedroom. She reached around me and pulled off my shirt then let her leather jacket fall to the floor. I took a second to admire how beautiful she was, the marking on her left arm reaching all the way to her shoulder and her body having well-defined curves. She pulled me towards her black-sheeted twin-sized bed as she fiddled with the chain collar around her neck. Placing it on her nightstand, she sat down on the bed and looked deep into my eyes. "Will you..." she started nervously. "Will you be my mate?" Pure vulnerability flashed across her face as she awaited my answer. And I could see it.

She'd been hurt before.

I had just met her that day and yet, I knew my answer before she had even asked the question. I was in love with this beautiful fox. I didn't give a shit how long I had known her, or how she knew my name. I brushed a tear away from her cheek and gently kissed her. "My heart belongs to you, Katarina."

. . .

Our legs tangled, Kat's bare body curled against mine, I nuzzled her neck and breathed her in. Her scent was intoxicating. "Hey, Kat?" I know I didn't need to say it, but I wanted to. She angled her head to look at me. "Hmm?"

"I'm in love with you."

"I know."

"I love you, Katarina."

"I love you, Nightshade."

And we fell asleep like that. I had a mate. And I would never let her go. Not even death could separate us.

-Nightshade