Warm Hearts, Padded Tails: Chapter 2
#2 of Warm Hearts, Padded Tails
Chapter 2 has arrived! Enjoy the beginnings of Finn and Vulcan's first date! Chapter 3 will be coming soon~
Finn sat on the edge of his bed, legs swinging in the air nervously, the tips of his paws not quite grazing the ground. The buizel's two tails twirled quickly, swapping between clockwise and counterclockwise as he looked down at his phone.
The water type wore a simple blue t-shirt, slightly oversized for the small pokémon, but comfortable for lounging around in his small apartment. The other garment he wore was also great for that purpose - that being a moderately sized adult diaper taped around his waist. It was comfy and comforting as the pokémon felt the nervousness welling up in his chest once more.
The buizel nervously looked at his phone, tapping the screen again to keep it from turning itself off from how long he'd stared at the same screen, too afraid to do anything. His phone was open to his texting app, with a number he'd yet to text.
Ever since he found the note from Vulcan in his shopping bag, he'd been in a perpetual state of embarrassment, even now, a few days later. After a bit of contemplation, (and yelling into his pillow with how mortified he was that the kind stranger had seen the diaper that he was wearing), he punched the number into the contacts on his phone and saved it, making sure he didn't lose the number of the kind typhlosion. Of course, he also may or may not have pinned the note onto his cork board to keep...
But actually texting him? That... was terrifying. Mortifying. Impossible to do. Sure, he was really nice and friendly, and the only person he'd actually met in the city aside from his co-workers, and he seemed like he was... okay with him wearing diapers? Like, the note even implied that he maybe liked them? Maybe??
Plus, he was pretty cute... and he called Finn cute too...
"Hey, this is Finn, from the store. I saw your number, you wanna chat?"
His pawpad hovered over the send button, fear welling up in his chest. He wanted to do it so much. The guy was cute and interested in the same stuff he was? And thought he was cute? He just had to do it, he couldn't throw away the opportunity.
But fuck he was so scared.
Finn took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and pressed the send button.
Vulcan let out a content sigh as he leaned back in his recliner, a warm mug of tea and a good book in hand, happy to be able to relax. It had been a stressful day of work, and he was glad to have it over with and have the chance to relax.
The typhlosion set down the tea on a table next to him, stretching his sore arms before leaning back peacefully. It was going to be a good evening.
He then heard his phone buzz from the table next to him, a quick two vibrations to signify a text. He cracked open an eye, a bit confused, not really expecting anyone to text him at the time. He didn't have many contacts, and definitely not many that used texting as the main way to talk to him.
The fire type lazily reached over to the table next to his chair and flipped his phone over to check the text, sliding it into one of his paws as he pulled it up to get a good view. A number he didn't recognize was on the screen as he swiped to the side and put in his passcode, only to read something he hadn't expected to see, especially a few days later. The typhlosion had sadly given up on getting a response from the cute buizel he met before, but a smile came to his face as he looked over the text.
He quickly saved the number to his contacts under the name Finn, before typing out a reply to the bui.
"Well heya! It's nice to hear from you again! Been settling into life in the big city?"
Vulcan quickly pressed send, happy to have finally gotten a message from the small pokémon. With any luck, he might actually be interested in getting to know him, or at least, he hoped.
Finn breathed slowly as his eyes stayed screwed shut, trying to calm himself down after sending the text. What was he doing? This guy was basically a stranger and he was probably just making fun of him anyways and it had been a few days so it wouldn't even--
He nearly jumped out of his fur at hearing the ding from getting a text back. His eyes shot open as he read over the message, a smile lighting up his face as he saw the nice text from the friend he'd made just a few days prior. He quickly set about typing a new message, renewed confidence flooding through the weasel.
"I have, it's been a bit hard to get used to, but I'm getting into a rhythm, I guess. Started at my new job and all that."
A few moments of eagerly watching the pulsing "..." at the bottom of the screen later, he got another response from Vulcan.
"Great! I'm glad to hear that you're getting settled.~"
The buizel immediately blushed at the tilde at the end of the message, his thoughts racing with what it could mean. In his wait to respond, though, he saw the typhlosion typing out another message.
"So, just texting for a chat, or were you planning on taking me up on my offer?"
Finn could feel his paws start to shake as he read over it, his tails standing up and twitching nervously as he read it. The offer to get shown around the city? Was... was that a date? Did he ask him on a date? Already? Was it just that easy?
Or... was it the other offer? No, that couldn't be it. No way. It was the... the date...?
"Well, if you're up for it, sure! I'd love to get a personalized tour around the city from someone who apparently knows the place like the back of his paw."
Finn typed out the message and quickly hit send, before feeling some anxiety flood over him as he sent another message quickly afterwards.
"At least, if you want to, no pressure or anything."
He waited a moment, watching the screen and biting his lower lip as he hoped he hadn't seemed too pushy or needy or--
The typhlosion had started typing again, and quickly sent out another message to the worried buizel, settling his worries.
"Of course! I'd love to get a chance to meet with you again, and to show you around! We could go to a café that I'm a fan of, or take in the sights, there's plenty of things to do around here. Of course, we'd need to set up a time for it. When are you free?"
Finn read over the text, eyes wide and mind racing with possibilities, before very quickly sending out a response.
"Well, I'm off work tomorrow, so we could do it then? It's a bit short notice, I guess, so it's fine if you can't."
"I'm all free for tomorrow too! Wanna meet at around noon? I dunno where you're staying, but we could meet at Fraire Park if that works for you."
The buizel, a newcomer to the town, had to quickly pull up a map on his phone, looking for the location of the park. Finding that it wasn't too far away from his apartment building, he responded to the typhlosion.
"Sure! Tomorrow at noon works well for me, I'll see you there!"
"Glad to hear it! Looking forward to seeing you again!"
The buizel let out a massive breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding in for a while. He collapsed back on his bed, mind going crazy. Did he... just get a date? With someone?? Was he going on a date tomorrow? No, couldn't be a date. No way Vulcan was into him like that. Or was he? It was probably a date, right? aaaaAAAAAAA
His thoughts continued to go crazy until he sat up and looked at his phone again, laying on the bed next to him, seeing a text he'd missed as he laid back.
"Make sure you're ready for a day of walking tomorrow! I can always bring a change if you end up needing it~"
Finn nearly fainted.
Vulcan finished typing out the last message, and waited a bit before sending it, not sure if he should. He'd retyped it a few times to try to get the wording right and not make it seem to pushy or invasive, but still give a hint that he knew some things about the buizel that might make him blush.
Eventually he settled on the right wording and sent the message, closing his phone and laying back in his recliner once more. It was going to be a good day tomorrow.
Finn found himself in a familiar position the next morning - looking at himself in the mirror by his bed, making sure of a lot of things. He was wearing a similar outfit to the last time that the went out like this, with some light grey sweatpants and a light blue hoodie. Baggy clothes to hide anything he didn't want to be obvious... like the diaper bulging out between his legs.
Arceus above he was so embarrassed. He was about to go out on a date with someone who... knew about what he was wearing. The second time ever that he was wearing them outside of the safety of home, and the first time he even got outed to somebody. And now he was going on a date with them? And they thought they were cute??
He took a deep breath and steeled himself, making sure from all angles that it wouldn't be noticed by anyone. Turning around, he gave himself a few pats on his padded rear, giggling a bit from it as his tails flitted back and forth. He could do this.
The buizel gathered up his things and stepped out the door, heading down to the first floor and stepping outside. It was a fairly cool day, so he at least wouldn't be boiling inside of his excessively heavy clothes. He pulled up a map on his phone that he had opened last night, looking at a good route to Fraire Park and setting off, a happy waddle in his step.
He felt much more confident doing this the second time rather than the first, though there was still a voice in the back of his head, trying to tell him how obvious it was and how everyone knew... but he mostly tuned it out and tried to think about the day ahead of him as he waddled along.
He glanced up at the top of his screen and saw the time - 11:45. He was doing really well on time based on the map's eta, so he should be good. He didn't want to be late to his first da-- th-the tour of the city that Vulcan was giving him.
He shook his head and continued walking, eventually able to see the lush green trees off in the distance. He picked up the pace just a bit, walking into the greenery. The place was beautiful, and felt very peaceful after stepping out of the large crowd of commuters. The buizel breathed in deeply, his air sac collar inflating a bit as he took in the surroundings.
Fresh air, less people, the calm and quiet - all things he appreciated plenty of, and that he didn't get all too much in the city now. He felt at peace here, though. It was pretty nice. He walked through the park, looking for a place to sit and wait for Vulcan to arrive, planning to text him and let him know that he'd made it.
However, as he searched around, he eventually found a bench, and with it, he found Vulcan as well. The typhlosion was sitting peacefully on a simple iron bench, looking up at the trees with a peaceful smile on his face. He wore a striped button-up shirt like the last time Finn had seen him, though he was wearing some more casual looking sweatpants this time, the name of a nice brand marking the bottom of the left leg.
Finn started walking over, and Vulcan, noticing the sound coming from the side, turned his head to look. Upon seeing the small buizel again, he gave a wave and a kind smile, and Finn felt the tension in his chest suddenly ease up as he walked over to see the typhlosion again.
As he approached, Vulcan scooted over on the bench, giving the smaller pokémon plenty of room to sit next to him, which he did, looking up at the typhlosion who towered above him, even seated.
"W-well hey, it's nice to see you again," Finn said, feeling a bit bashful talking to the larger pokémon.
Vulcan, noticing the mood, gave a quick chuckle patted the buizel on the shoulder in a friendly way. "Great to see you too! I'm glad you saw the note I left you, I was worried it had gone unnoticed. I'm happy you responded!"
The buizel's blush only intensified at the shoulder pat and the mention of the note, clearing his throat a bit before looking back up at Vulcan. "Yeah, I noticed it, and I'm glad I did, I'm happy to take you up on your offer to see the city. It's nice to have a friend here, especially one who knows his way around."
The fire type smiled down at Finn, responding in his deep voice. "I'm always happy to help you see the sights and get to know the place, plus it means I get to learn a bit more about you in the process! It's always good to have a friend around."
Vulcan looked back up at the treetops, taking a breath with a smile on his face, relaxing for a moment with the smaller pokémon. Finn, despite not being the best talker, felt at ease here for some reason. Something about the way Vulcan talked and laughed and smiled just felt easy to be around, and it was comforting to him.
After a moment of relaxing in the park, Vulcan eventually pushed off of the bench, looking back to Finn. "So, you want that drink I promised you? The café isn't too far from here, and they've got great coffee and tea."
"Sure, that sounds great!" Finn replied, hopping off of the bench as his paws hit the ground, having been swinging in the air as he sat. "Lead the way!" he said, walking along behind as Vulcan started walking down a path in the park.
They walked for a small distance, idly chatting about life and how it was going. Finn let him know that things were going well at his job, and how he was getting used to it all, and Vulcan happily held up a large portion of the conversation for the shy buizel, giving a seemingly endless supply of topics to keep things flowing.
Eventually, they stopped in front of what looked to be an outdoors café, with a stand set up to prepare and serve things, and plenty of tables and chairs set up with shade from the sun. A few tables were taken by others, either couples or families, or perhaps close friends, but the place didn't have too many people around.
Finn's eyes sparkled a bit at seeing it, not expecting a place like this to be here. When Vulcan mentioned a café, he was expecting some drab modern indoors café, sleek and simple... not really his style. But an outdoor seating area in a park, open to the sky and the sounds and smells of nature... this is just about everything he could have asked for.
Vulcan looked back at the buizel, easily registering the twinkle in his eye, giving a smile. He thought he'd picked right with this place, someone from outside of the big city would want a touch of the natural world in their life, after all. He looked down at Finn before making his way forwards to the café's stall.
The place had a few workers walking around making things in the back, but the person at the front was a mienshao, who was wearing a white apron. The stall had a menu at the top behind the cashier, as well as one in front of the stall for shorter individuals to see what they wanted to order.
As they walked up, the mienshao smiled at the pair, giving a wave, which Vulcan gave back with a kind smile in return. "Ah, hello Vulcan! Very nice to see you today, and you've come with a friend?" the mienshao said with a slight accent that Finn couldn't quite place. He was surprised to hear that the lady knew Vulcan by name, though he had mentioned that he knew the place pretty well.
"Yup, I met someone new recently, Kaia, and I offered to show him around! This is Finn." Finn looked up from the menu that he'd been studying as he heard his own name, snapping out of his concentration as he looked to the mienshao, who gave him a wave.
"Er, hi, nice to meet you," he said, shaking his head a bit to clear his thoughts as he smiled at the mienshao before looking back to the menu. It looked daunting, with about a thousand different combinations of berries in specific ways with an incomprehensible amount of options at every step of the way.
"Ah, very nice! I am glad to be having you two. Will you be having your normal order, Vulcan?" the cashier asked, getting a nod from Vulcan, before looking down at Finn, who only seemed to be getting more overwhelmed with options by the second. Vulcan could see his eyes starting to seemingly glaze over as he placed a paw on his shoulder, snapping him out of it.
Finn looked back to Vulcan, who was giving a slight smile down to him. "Need help ordering, bud?" The weasel blushed a bit at everything, before giving a nod.
"I've got no clue where to even start..."
"Well, coffee or tea?" Vulcan responded, hoping to help him through it.
"Er, tea I guess?" Finn still seemed a bit worried at the sheer amount of options that he had available to him, even taking it step by step like this.
"Well, do you like it sweeter or more bitter?"
"Definitely sweet," Finn replied quickly, clearly not being the type to like things bitter.
Vulcan made a mental note of the buizel's sweet tooth before looking back up to the mienshao. "How about a Mago Berry tea, with a splash of Pecha?" The mienshao nodded, turning back to the other pokémon working inside and relaying the two orders. A croconaw nodded, starting to blend and mix some berries, as Vulcan started walking over to a somewhat secluded table. Finn followed behind, trusting in the larger pokémon's knowledge to get something good for him.
The two sat down, Finn being slightly surprised at the slight poof from hopping into the seat - in all of the conversation he'd once more forgotten about what he was wearing, bringing a bit of a blush to his face again. It just felt comfortable to wear, and Vulcan seemed to have a way of taking his mind off of things easily.
Vulcan smiled across the table at the small buizel, only making him blush a bit more, thankful that his fur helped cover it pretty well. The fire type struck up a conversation again, with a bit of nervous stuttering from Finn at first before he was able to calm down some and relax around the typhlosion once more.
Eventually, Vulcan's name was called by the mienshao once more, and he went to get his drink, paying for it, and coming back. Finn only then realized that he was carrying both drinks, with the two of them under his name, Vulcan presumably having paid for his drink as well.
The typhlosion set the cup of tea down in front of the buizel, and seeing the look on his face, immediately said "Don't worry about it, it's my treat. You don't even know if you'll like it yet, I'm not gonna make you pay for my experiment, silly." The typhlosion laughed a bit as he sat back down on his side of the table, his stomach giving another hearty jiggle as he did. Finn was surprised by his forwardness, but blushed and smiled a bit at being given a gift by the pokémon.
Vulcan took a sip of his tea and let out a contented sigh, before looking over to Finn, who was looking at his a bit nervously. The drink was a light brown with a swirl of pink artfully in the center of the liquid. He carefully picked up the cup and took a sip, only for his eyes to widen as it hit his tongue. The drink was incredible, plenty of sweetness and not a hint of bitter, with just a little swirl of pecha helping balance out the flavors and not let the mago completely drown it out. He sat in silence for a bit, taken aback by it all, before he noticed Vulcan's face lit up in a smile.
"I'm guessing I got it right, then?" he said with a chuckle once more, getting an enthusiastic nod from the buizel.
"You definitely did, this is really good!" He took another quick sip, the drink not hot, but slightly warm, the perfect temperature for the water type. Meanwhile, he looked at the drink in Vulcan's paws, seeing plenty of steam pouring off of it, the tea likely scalding. The patches on the back of Vulcan's neck seemed to slightly light up with a bit of warmth as he took a small sip, little bursts of harmless flame coming out and a small amount of steam pouring from his nostrils as he breathed out.
They shared a moment drinking together in peace, enjoying the sounds of the outdoors around them, before they started chatting once more, talking about their interests. Finn shared about his love for video games, which Vulcan shared, though they had fairly different tastes. The buizel was more into action games, while the typhlosion preferred slower, more story driven experiences. Vulcan talked about his love for books, something Finn had never had a particular liking for, but hearing the typhlosion talk about the magic of getting sucked into another world to experience kept the buizel's rapt attention, another twinkle in his eyes as the larger pokémon spoke about his passion.
Eventually, Vulcan stood up, the cup of his half-finished drink in his paws, and asked if Finn would like to take a walk with him, which he happily accepted. Vulcan waved to the mienshao at the stand as they walked away, who was already making bets with their co-workers about if the duo would end up being a couple.