Sweet Memories Chap. 2
Wren Adams, 20
Ian had waited for me in the dining room of Pizza Hut waiting for me to get off work. As I clocked out he caught my eye, and I looked down blushing. What had happened to me earlier? Thankfully, Justin had saved me and hadn't asked for an explanation later. I was thankful, because honestly, I don't know what I would have told me. Ian was my best friend wouldn't have worked cause best friends that are guys don't normally hold each other like lovers, but I know with certainty that we aren't lovers, are we?
I clocked out and grabbed my jacket. Ian met me at the door and we walked out together. When we got outside the restaurant he put his arm around my shoulder and started talking. "So I figure I'll be on vocals since you are so recklessly ruining your voice with that smoking habit of yours."
I laughed. "I hate being a lead singer anyway, everyone knows that's, besides I have plenty of experience playing bass as you said yourself hours ago. Our problem is finding a guitarist and drummer." I looked at Ian. He knew something I didn't, the look on his face proved it. "What are you hiding?" I said, shooting him with another suspicious look.
Ian giggled and grabbed my tail. "We already have a guitarist and drummer, the bassist was all we needed." I felt dumbstruck; he had been planning this for month. Either that or he was sneakier than I thought he was. "Come on kitty, don't give me that look." He said ruffling the fur on my tail.
I yanked my tail out of his hand, and he laughed. "I was right; you have been planning this for months, haven't you? You dirty little sneak." I said giving him a rather cynical smile. He looked at me, doing his best to give me the innocent as a saint smile.
"Would I do that?" He asked batting his eyelashes.
"Yes, you would..." I stormed off to my truck. He chased after me, catching up and walking beside me. "Come on Wren! You have the better ear for music and you know it! We need you! I promise you weren't some last resort I had planned just in case!" Funny he said that because I had just been thinking that exact same thing. I was starting to think like him, sweet Jesus, Mary and Joseph.
He grabbed my tail again as we came up upon my truck. "Ian, stop it. Let's just go before I change my mind." I was angry; I wasn't going to tell him that though. He was a smart fox; he could figure it out on his own.
By the time we had arrived at my apartment, I was starting to get hungry. "You want something to eat? I could whip something up real fast." I said with the blankest face I could. I knew what was coming next. His eyes widened and before he could say anything, I said, "Save the girly freak out, and tell me what you want to eat." Ramen, of course, typical Ian. I can make some mean ramen. I always use fresh noodles none of that nasty pre-packaged shit they sell at super markets for 89 cents a pack. My dishes are never incredibly fancy but they taste good and they're easy to make, so Ian wouldn't complain.
I pulled frozen noodles out of the freezer and started boiling them with butter and salt. I also pulled out soup stock and garlic cloves for the soup. I ground the garlic up in my food processor and boiled it with the soup stock in a separate pot from the noodles. I added butter and salt to the soup and let it simmer for another five minutes. By that time the noodles were ready so I drained the pot and divided the noodles into two separate bowls and ladled in soup from the soup pot still sitting on the burner.
I got out two forks and put one in each bowl and set one down in front of Ian. As I sat down to start eating someone knocked on the door. "Always during dinner...." I grumbled and stomped off towards the door. I looked through the peep-hole in the door and asked "Who is it?"
Someone on the other side of the door said back, "Its Ian's band mates, he called us over here to meet our new bassist." I sighed and opened the door. In front of me stood a woman. She was a wolf, and about two feet taller than I was. Tallest woman I had ever met to be sure. Her body fur was the rich color of honey, I wanted to say the color was chemical but it would have been rude to assume that without asking. Her face was striking, she was quite beautiful, but then again most men see tall women as intimidating, I sure did. Her eyes were that pale sapphire that some wolves get, the color of winter skies, if I had to put it in words. She was dressed anything but sensible for someone in a band anyway. Her shirt was a striking lilac and the cloth looked like something akin to crushed velvet. Her pants were normal blue jeans so faded they were almost white, they also had several rips and tears around her knee area that told me she had owned the jeans for years.
Beside the woman sat a young man in a wheelchair, he had the same honey colored fur and blue eyes, definitely related. His face was striking as well, very handsome and like his sister he looked like he had been cut out of stone. His upper body was built like a truck, he obviously worked out.
The woman tapped her foot at me, "Well you gonna invite us in or what? It was tough enough hauling his ass up here without standing at your front door for hours waiting for you to make up your mind." She said point at the man in the wheelchair.
"Oh! Sorry please come in!" I said stepping aside for them to make their way in. I followed them back towards the kitchen where Ian sat, two empty bowls in front of him. "Ian! You are such a pig! I'm hungry too!" He smiled at me and pushed away from the table.
"Well guys," He said to the other two," meet our new bassist. This is Wren." He stepped back beside me. I smiled and held my hand out for the woman. She looked at it like it was some kind of inanimate object.
"Skip the niceties, Ian. This isn't decided until I've heard him play." She spat at Ian. He just smiled at her. "Wren, this is Tara, local badass and one of the best guitarists in town." I looked at her. Badass was right, she either didn't like me or she was all about business. I was guessing both.
"Beside her, is Ethan. He is her brother and one of the best drummers in the business." I had been right, the two were related.
"Go get your Bass Wren, I'm gonna go help Tara unload the rest of the band equipment." Ian said, putting his hand on my shoulder. I cocked my head at him, but did as I was told.
Ten minutes later and my apartment was a decked out band studio, complete with drums, microphone and subwoofers. Apparently my jack wasn't good enough because they had brought one for my Bass too. Once we were all hooked up Ian gave me a sheet of music, and pointed out the bass line, a bit condescending considering he had told me himself I had the better ear for music not an hour ago, but I let it go. From looking at the notes I saw I wasn't supposed to start playing until at least thirty seconds in.
Right out of the box, and to my surprise, Tara started playing, followed shortly by Ethan, and then it was my turn. I started playing, letting the music ride me, and letting my hands follow the beat letting the song wash over me like an ocean of sound. I played. I played as I had three years ago before I graduated. I let them feel my beat. Ian had started singing, and the music washed over the apartment in waves of beautiful sound. It felt like a tangible thing, like velvet sliding across my skin. I felt alive again, and, my problems forgotten, came upon the bass solo and executed it flawlessly.
The song ended, and silence filled the apartment. The only sounds were the heavy breathing of my fellow band members. Ian laughed. "You still got it, Wren." Was all he managed to say before there was a loud beating on my door.
I propped my Bass up in its stand and ran for the door. Looking out the peephole I called once again, "Whose there?" A fist landed again on my door. It made me jump. I unlocked the door and opened it. It was the land lord. She was a raccoon about my height and getting rather large in her old age. She was definitely not aging gracefully.
"You do know we have a rule against breaking the sound barrier here, yes?" She said, and her nails were filled with spite, like nails scratching across a chalkboard.
"Sorry," I said, looking embarrassed, "I'll keep it down, I promise." She continued staring daggers at me. "You had better," She spat, "I can and will evict you if you do that again."
She walked off down the hall, tail wagging dangerously. Ian had followed me to the door, and was smiling at me when I turned around, "Sorry Wren, didn't mean to get you in trouble." He said, with a sorry smile.
I laughed. I honestly didn't care at that point; I could still feel the music in my bones and was high with the pure joy of it all. I hugged him, "Thank you, for bringing music back into my life." He hugged me back tightly, "So, you'll do it then? You'll be our Bassist?" He said down to me.
I looked up at him still hugging him, "Of course, I haven't felt this way in a long time, and I don't want to lose this feeling again!" He smiled down at me, and started to say something but Tara came down the hall towards us at just that moment.
"Sorry to break up the love fest, but it still isn't decided Ian. I want a vote." She said, pulling Ian back down the hall. I followed quietly, wondering what her problem was. She couldn't be pushing a vote solely because she didn't like me. Then it hit me, she saw me as competition. I didn't get why; after all we played two completely different instruments. I've also never touched a guitar in my life. I just don't understand women sometimes.
We ended up sitting at my kitchen table, Ian sitting beside me and Tara and Ethan sitting across from us. Tara was glaring at me from her seat and Ethan was staring passively at the soup pot that was still sitting on the stove. Tara spoke then, "I'm putting it to a vote. Should Wren be allowed to play bass in our band? All in favor raise your hand."
"Tara I don't recall you being the band leader..." Ian growled at her. He was shooting her with a very dark look, but he raised his hand anyway. He was shortly followed my Ethan. Tara gasped and glared at her brother. He smiled at her with that passive dreamy look of his and said, "I liked his playing, and I'm all for him joining."
Tara crossed her arms, and leaned back in her chair, pouting like a defeated child. "So it's decided then!" Ian smiled, "As of today Wren is an official member of Dragons of the West Wind." He said it right as I was lighting a smoke, and I choked at the name.
"Little long, don't you think?" I said, coughing. Ian gave me a quizzical look. "Do you honestly think an announcer is gonna be able to pronounce that quickly when we take the stage?" Ian laughed at me. "What do you propose mister know-it-all?"
I took a long drag of my smoke and sighed, "Something a tad shorter maybe? Traveling Dragons perhaps? It's a lot shorter and I think it has a better ring to it personally." I smiled at Ian, he was the band leader? We were doomed.
Ian's ears twitched and he smiled. "Fine traveling dragons it is."
"Oh come on!" Tara protested, but Ian cut her off. "We've done enough for today so let's pack it up." He said getting up from the table, and starting towards the living room. Ethan wheeled after him. Tara stayed sitting where she was, glaring at me.
"I'm warning you, get in my way, and Ill end you." She got up knocking her chair over, and starting for the living room. She was being petty, makes a guy curious I guess, so I decided to try a little experiment, "Hey Ian!" I called from the Kitchen, "Why don't you crash here for the night?" There was a crash from the next room, it had been Tara, she had knocked over a stack of drums and gongs from where she had them piled them against the wall.
I knew it; she was crushing on Ian, and saw me as competition for his affections. Ian bent down to help her pick up everything she had dropped, "You really oughta be more careful Tara." He said lifting the drums and stacking them back up. "And sure Wren I'd love to stay the night."
Fifth-teen minutes later we had Tara and Ethan's truck packed up with the band equipment and they were gone. Ian and I went back up to my apartment. It was only then I realized I was still in my work clothes. "I'm gonna go take a shower, Ian." I said, grabbing some clean cloths out of the dresser, and heading for the bathroom. He didn't say anything just watched me go.
I went into the bathroom and closed the door, I didn't bother to lock. Not like Ian was gonna come molest me while I was in the shower. I undressed and looking the mirror. My golden fur was still dusted with flour from earlier at work. Working with Pizza dough, flour gets everywhere. My eyes are so dark brown; a lot of people mistake them for black. It was an odd color against my bright body fur but not like I could change my eye color. My head fur was a brighter red than my body fur. Genes from my mother's side I guess.
I turned on the water and adjusted the warmth to an appropriate level, and hopped in. The water felt good against my body, like warm silk ribbons it rushed over me, soaking me in warmth down to my toes. After enjoying the warmth for another minute, I grabbed the shampoo and started working it all over my body with a loofa. I always hated washing my tail, the soap never came completely out and I had to squeeze it like a wash cloth to get the water completely out.
The bathroom door opened then, I would have grabbed the curtain, but unfortunately I have one of those glass shower that has glazed glass surrounding you so even if someone walks in they'll still have to open the door to get a good view of you, and I certainly wasn't about to open the door, I'm modest that way, or maybe just self-conscious. Ian could be the only one standing on the other side of that door, so I called over, "What is it Ian, I'm kinda busy."
Suddenly the glass door to the shower shattered and a piece of glass cut a gash across my forehead. Tara was standing there with a metal bat in her paws, a look of pure rage on her face. The look on her face was all it took to know that I was in trouble. She was rearing up to bring the bat down on me when it wrested from her hands. I saw flashed of dusky orange fur, and knew who my rescuer was, it was Ian.
"Tara! How dare you! I knew you were crushing on me, but to be as vindictive as to attack a fellow band mate, because you see him as competition is ridiculous." That was it, she had ruined herself in Ian's eyes and she knew it. She dropped to her knees and started crying. Ian reached his paw out to help me up and I took it, grabbing a towel. I wrapped the towel around my waist and turned off the shower. Ian led me out the door, and set me down on the bed.
He opened his cell phone and dialed Ethan. "Ethan, your sister is over here, can you send a cab over here? Or maybe a police car, she just attacked Wren."
"Oh my god is he hurt?" Ethan yelled over the phone.
"Just a scratch Ethan but I want Tara out of here immediately. You don't have to call the police but send someone over now, I'm sick of her face..."
An hour later and Tara was being taken away in a cab, back to her place I guess. Ian was patching up my forehead. I had squirmed during the entire procedure. I hate being worked on by other people, it makes me feel weak.
"Ian...You didn't have to do that." I said when he was finished. He smiled at me and sat by me on the bed, putting his arm around my shoulders. "Course I did, after all if I hadn't brought her here, this wouldn't have happened. You're my best friend too, sneak attacks just aren't fair."
I leaned against him. Was I stealing Ian away from Tara? Well he was never hers to begin with, and besides we're friends not lovers. It was only then I realized all I had on was a towel and it was becoming looser by the second. I tried to squirm out of Ian's arms, but he was keeping a firm grasp of me. The fox wouldn't let go, it was starting to scare me a little. Where was this going?
He started kissing me, slowly at first, starting with me cheek, but moving slowly towards my mouth. I let him go. It felt good. After all, it was only kissing. He reached my mouth and I felt his tongue slight between my lips. We kissed, and it was amazing. He kissed me like he was trying to drink me down. His tongue exploring every piece of flesh it could touch. We fell back into the bed kissing; he ripped the towel away from hips, exposing me to world. His paw slowly went for my tail. He grabbed it and pulled, still kissing me.
I grabbed his shirt and ripped it off. The buttons gave easily under my pull and his shirt was gone in an instant. I went for his belt next; it went just as quickly as the shirt. I could already see him growing under his pants, and I wanted it. He stopped kissing me, kicked off his shoes and started working on his pants. He hadn't been wearing underwear, I should have known. Those pants were much too tight to hold anything but him under them.
By the time he got his pants off he was fully erect and beautiful. I was growing myself, and seeing him exposed to the world got me there faster, tightening things low in my body. I dragged him up on the bed and laid him against the pillows, straddling him. We were kissing again. This time our tongues met in the middle and massaged each other.
Ian positioned himself below me, and rimmed against my lower region. The feeling of it made me moan into his mouth. He starting to move in, slowly, not wanting to hurt me. On the contrary; it felt wonderful. He pushed in up to his knot and stopped, then started working his way back out, still being careful not to hurt me. The feeling of it sent me reeling, and I moaned into his muzzle again. I stopped kissing him and buried my face into his neck, nibbling lightly; it made him murr with pleasure.
He was going faster now, working his way in and out of me like a machine, his rhythm pounding against me. I screamed into his neck as he slammed my prostate; it felt wonderful. I could feel it, like a cup in the middle of my body. It was filling up with warmth, filling to brimming with his wonderful thrusts. I was fully erect now. Ian moved one of his paws away from my hips and gripped me and started rubbing. The heat built faster, and it finally overflowed from the cup in the middle of my body. I erupted all over Ian's chest. Ian took that as an invitation and shoved himself, knot and all, all the way into my body. I gasped and screamed my pleasure into his neck. He went then, screaming in the throes of pleasure. He held me tight as he painted my insides with his warm juices.
I hugged him and nibbled his neck. He giggled into my hair, taking deep even breaths, breathing in the smell of skin. "That was lovely." He said, sounding exhausted.
It was then I realized. He had a knot. "So...how long am I stuck here?" I giggled into his chest fur. He laughed then, a long velvet thing, it caressed my skin and made me purr with the sound of it.
"Five, ten minutes tops." He giggled into my hair.
"Oh well that's just not fair. We both need a shower, before you dry off and get sticky."
He laughed again, and finally was able to pull out of me. We used to guest bathroom to shower. We showered together. We had just had sex, so what's the point of taking turns in the shower?