Sound and Silence 6: Party
#8 of Sound and Silence
Cat throws a birthday party for himself... in his home.. Obviously.
Birthday bash n' all that.
There was a knock at the door, which Clair eagerly ran to to answer. He was surprised to see a Panther who he had never met before, but he greeted her with a smile all the same!
"Hey! Are you here for the party?" he said with a smile.
"Yeah! Reyson invited me! Are you... uh... Clair?" She asked, taking a moment to remember his name.
"Yup! That's me! The man of honor! Birthday boy extraordinaire! Pleased to make your acquaintance! Last I saw, Ray was chilling on the couch, we got some stuff playing on the TV. There's also drinks in the fridge, some food out, and some party games happening, so come in and take it easy!"
"Alright! Thanks! I'm Sarah, but you can call me Sal!"
"Sweet! Nice meeting ya, Sal! And I also want to say, you're definitely dressed for the occasion!" He said, noting her fairly tight shirt exposing her midriff and shorts, almost matching Clair's crop top which read "Party Animal!!" and ripped jeans.
"O-oh! Yeah! Ray said it was uh, casual! So I decided to wear something comfy! Anyway, Happy birthday! Hope I'll get to know you better tonight!"
"For sure!" Clair said as he ushered her into the apartment. As Sarah walked in, she was surprised to suddenly hear EDM filling the room as she passed through Clair's sound barrier without realizing, suddenly able to hear the sounds of conversation and games from within the complex.
At this point, the place was already pretty well furnished, with several people who had arrived earlier sitting on the couch and watching some TV and chatting while others were already playing drinking games on the dining table. Sarah spotted Ray sitting by himself on the loveseat and sat down next to him with a plop.
"Hey, Ray! Is it alright if I call you that?" The wolf was surprised by the sudden shift on the couch, but smiled gently when he saw her.
"Sarah, you made it. Yeah, that's fine. You look pretty." He said, taking a note of her remarkable change in clothing style from her usual athletic wear at the arcade.
"Yeah! I'm glad you like it!" She said, scooting a little closer to him. The two sat wordlessly for a while as Reyson continued to watch the TV. Quickly realizing that he was not going to be the one to initiate the conversation, Sarah decided to try striking the iron.
"So.... It's pretty loud in here. Won't we disturb the neighbors?" Sarah was screaming at herself internally. Why did she pick the most awkward thing to ask? Reyson paid it no mind though and answered her as if it were a natural question.
"It's alright. Clair has uh... some magical powers. He can control sound. He put up a sound bubble. No one outside this room can hear us. Just try not to shake the building."
"Sound bubble?" Sarah asked, clearly not familiar with the concept, and understandably so. She then thought back to how she couldn't hear anything until she entered the apartment and decided not to worry about it too much.
"A-anyway, this party is pretty cool, huh?" More internal screaming. 'WHY WOULD YOU ASK THAT TO THE COHOST OF THE PARTY??' she thought. Reyson still paid the questions no mind, and answered with the same unassuming demeanor as he always did.
"Yeah, Clair is good with parties. You should go grab some food. The spread is nice."
"Really? Okay, I'll go check out what you guys got! You want to come with?"
"I'm good-Ate a while ago-been here since work, after all."
"Oh, right... that makes... a lot of sense, haha... Ok then!" Sarah quickly got up, unfazed... maybe a little fazed... and made her way towards the kitchen area where the food was laid out.
There was another knock on the door, and Clair was ready to answer it, as usual. Upon opening the door, he was met with the sound of party poppers going off in his face.
"Happy Birthday, Asshole!!" came the resounding cheer from his friends, Trey, Chris, and Alex as they covered him with confetti from the poppers.
"Aw, thanks, you dumb fucks!" He replied happily as he pulled his friends into a big group hug.
"Hey, that's what we're good for!" Alex chimed in.
"It's still early for that! Come in, guys! There's a sound barrier up so you can be as loud as you want, but don't stomp too hard or bang the walls or anything-I can't silence it if y'all cause an earthquake."
"Gotcha Gotcha. You got drinks right? Let's get wasted!" Chris shouted as he headed inside to raid the fridge. The others followed close behind to get a good look at the apartment. Clair made sure to give them a little tour, since they had been asking to see the place for a few weeks now.
Suddenly, Clair stumbled as Alex gave him a big thump on the back.
"So! That's all well and cool, but where's your roomie? It's about time ya stopped hiding him from us!"
"Yeah! We gotta find out for ourselves if he's as cool as you keep saying he is." Trey chimed in. Chris was already back with several beers in his hand as he also interjected.
"Let me in on this! I still gotta decide if he's hot before getting his number!" Clair sighed with an amused tiredness before caving to their demands.
"Alright Alright!, he's just one dude but if you guys are that desperate, I'll introduce you to him. Let's get this over with."
"From the way you describe him, he definitely doesn't seem like 'just one dude'~" Alex playfully replied, eliciting a bit of a blush from the cat. Surprisingly, the trio of friends did not give him any more of a hard time for it.
Clair walked the delinquent trio over to Reyson, who was still minding his own business on the loveseat and watching TV.
"Hey, Ray! These are some of my friends, Alex, Trey, and -"
"Hey! It's soooooo nice to meet Clair's boyfriend! I can see why too! Looking pretty cute, man. I'm Chris." Apparently the third musketeer was capable of introducing himself as he offered a handshake. The wolf slowly offered his hands when suddenly Chris pulled him close and gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead followed by a big hug. Clair immediately started shaking his head as Ray stared down at Chris' back blankly before awkwardly hugging him back. One of the other friends quietly asked if Clair was jealous, which was responded in record time with the good ol' "shut up!" maneuver.
Soon, the others started egging Reyson on.
"Yeah, you're just as dreamy as he said you'd be~ So, how far have you two gone?"
"Yeah, spill the beans! Clair over there sure won't!" Ray looked over towards Clair, who mouthed the phrase "Play along" to him while giving him a pleading look. He looked back at his friends, waiting for an answer. He put his hands on his muzzle and pondered what kind of answer to give, but eventually answered with a smile.
"We're happy together." Clair sighed with relief. That was a pretty tame answer, all things considered, and hopefully they would get off his back no-
"Oooooohhh... So, are ya gonna tie the knot?" Chris continued the questioning of the group. Ray looked back at Clair, who was making a X with his hands at him. Ray looked back at his friends.
"...Soon." Clair's jaw dropped. The guys looked at each other with shit-eating grins.
"I don't know, man, This guy over here is a pretty wild one, you sure you're gonna be okay with him?" Alex was the next to ask. Clair already had his hands on his temples. The betrayal had begun and it was a downward spiral that would lead to his doom... and there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.
"I'll be okay, I have him whipped." There were gasps from Alex and Chris, as Trey stepped in closer to whisper one last question, though still loud enough for everyone to hear.
"I've seen Clair at the club though... He's gotten pretty close to a lot of the guys there... probably fucked a lot of them too. He's basically cheating on you-you sure you okay with that?" Clair was already burying his face in his hands from embarrassment, but was still hoping beyond hope that Ray would somehow spare him any further humiliation. Ray pondered his words for a second, tilting his eyes towards the ceiling as he pondered his response. He looked back Trey, and answered innocently:
"Who do you think he comes home to every night?"
Clair's three friends looked at each other... and howled in uproarious laughter.
"Dude, your friend is a fucking riot!"
"Yeah, I can't believe you said he was anti-social, he's hilarious!"
"Clair, you really got yourself a keeper, don't ever let him go, alright? Ahahaha! C'mon, let's go play some games." The three gave Ray a friendly bump on the shoulder before heading towards the table where the drinking games were being played. Ray watched them leave, and then looked back at Clair with a subtle smirk. Clair looked back with a face that was some amalgamation of tired, embarrassed, entertained, and kind of... just over everything.
"I'm going to kill you.." he said with a worn out exhale.
"...That's fine," Reyson replied with his "I'm fucking with you" smile... though it was hard to tell, it looks shockingly similar to his "I'm genuinely happy" smile.
"Well, Don't I get a kiss from my fiancé?"
"...I need you to stop."
30 minutes had passed, with everyone having a good time, and Clair, as usual, doing an excellent job entertaining all of his guests as Reyson stayed in his seat and made his best efforts at small talk with anyone who dared approach him. Outside Clair, who he very much knew how to interact with, and more importantly, tease, he was still having some trouble adjusting to general social interactions.
Many of Clair's friends asked him about why he had a full set of Neko Neko Kyun~ CDs, to which Clair strategically dodged the question and said to re-read the extra chapter... and that it was Ray's fault. Frankly, Reyson was surprised the cat even kept the CDs at all. He was expecting them thrown away, or even burned- they were basically just mediocre kidz bop versions of nursery rhymes. Did that seem redundant? Well.. that's because it was.
Chris approached Ray with an unopened can of beer. He was clearly at least a tad buzzed as his footsteps were already showing signs of misalignment.
"Yo! You've just been here the whole time? 'hic, C'mon, ya gotta live it up a little, especially for your roomie's little shindig! Here, have a drink!" Reyson eyed the drink a little nervously, remembering the times his father would come home drunk ever since...
"I... uh... I don't drink much... sorry."
"Awwwwwww, well, at least come play some games with us! They're setting up another game of beer pong, and I bet if you play with Clair he'll be more than glad to drink your share of the booze. That guy sure can pack it in. And he's packing more, if ya know what I mean, hehehe~" Reyson chuckled.
"You two ever do anything fun together?" He asked.
"Ooooo wouldn't you like to know! My guy caught the curse of the green-eyed devil?" Chris continued teasing. Ray smirked at him.
"Just want to know what I'm missing out on." If he was in fact jealous, he was doing an expert job at hiding it. Chris chuckled with a burp.
"Well, you're not missing out on much. We've made out a few times, and have gotten a lil' touchy at times, but that's it."
"...That's good." The wolf said, absentmindedly, a rare moment of him not thinking about his words much..
"Good? Eh? Glad we didn't take it any farther, huh?" Chris jabbed in response. Clair's expression didn't change, but if you paid close attention you could see the slightest hint of a flush on his face.
"Hmm... Maybe a bit." He responded with his usual unreadable smile.
"Haha! Honest! I like it!" Chris opened up the can of beer originally meant for Reyson and took a big gulp out of it. He then leaned in closer to Ray, who leaned a bit back. He didn't mind the closeness, but the smell of beer was not something he particularly enjoyed.
"You know, and you didn't hear this from me, I knew Clair for most of his college years. He's still the same dumb lovable guy you see now, but he was... uh... not quite as chipper. I guess."
"Oh?"
"Yeah, 'hic, and like, it's not that he wasn't energetic, because he still was, but sometimes it felt like it was-I don't know, kind of a front? Like he was running away from something. Definitely fucked a lot more during his college years-but then again, who doesn't?" Ray decided not to respond to that rhetorical question.
"Ever since he moved in with you though, it seems like he's kind of mellowed out a bit. He seems more genuine now, and I'm all for it. I don't know what it is you two got going on, and I'll stop-urp-screwin' with ya about it, but I think it's doing him good, so i'm happy for the guy...ah-and you too, uhcourse! Happy for both-a y'all." Ray took a moment to ponder everything Clair's friend had said.
"I-" He started to respond before he was interrupted with Chris' mouth pressed against his own. It was just as quickly that Chris pulled back. Ray stared at him flabbergasted.
"Hehe~ Can't help it. You're as cute as Clair said you were. Good sport too.'' Chris flashed him a goofy, half dazed smile. "Anyway, Beer pong? Play alleast one game with us!"
After everything that had just happened, it probably wouldn't be the best of ideas to refuse the proposition, so Ray got up from the chair.
"Sure, why not?"
"'hup-Hope that wasn't your first."
"...There will always be more."
Reyson gave Clair a friendly tap on the shoulder as the group finished setting up the beer pong cups. Clair gave him a surprised look, but the surprise quickly turned into excited cheer.
"Oh, Ray, Chris actually convinced you to play with us?" The wolf nodded. "Awesome! You're partnering with me then."
"Mm," was all Ray said as he got into position. Clair explained to him the rules, and as he did so, a thought occurred to him.
"Did.. did you want to drink?" The cat asked his friend, well aware of his inclinations towards alcohol. Ray stared at the liquid in the cups arranged in their pyramid formations, an idle sense of curiosity washing over him, but hesitation was still written all over his face. "You don't have to drink if you want to-I can carry enough beer in my belly for the both of us!" Clair puffed his chest out with pride, which was now extra exposed thanks to the crop top. "...But if you feel up to it, I'll watch over how much you're drinking. I know this would probably be your first time, so I'll stop you if it looks like you're having too much-It's really easy to lose track when it comes to drinking games. How's that sound?" Ray looked at Clair, his face clearly communicating patient concern and a respect for his boundaries. Making eye contact, Ray decided to take the plunge.
"Okay."
"Yeah, didn't think s- Wait." The cat had to do a double take. "You sure?" The feline made an effort to confirm.
"Yeah." Clair held his firm gaze for a second to make sure Ray wasn't just giving into peer pressure, before throwing his hands up.
"Hell yeah! My bestie is gonna get wasted for the first time! Let's do this!" Some of the other party attendees cheered along, excited for the newbie's initiation, including Sarah and Alex, who were their opponents for this round.
"Ooh, I'm so curious to see what Ray is like when he's drunk! We better take them out fast!" Sarah said, reading her ping pong ball.
"Yeah, I ain't pulling no punches either, I'm finally gonna getcha this time, Clair!" Alex rallied behind her in kind.
After Clair also made sure to pour Reyson a glass of water in advance, the game started.
Despite his skill at the games in the amusement park, Ray found himself fumbling at Beer Pong, unable to land any shots in the cups. Eventually, Sal and Alex both landed their first shots in two different cups at the same time. Clair and Ray picked up one cup each, looked at each other and toasted before downing their cup. Ray noted the disgusting bitter taste, something he clearly remembered since the time he tried a sip of it as a teenager. He followed through and chugged the rest, however. Looking at Clair afterwards, he cocked his head to the side in confusion.
"You're not going to feel it just like that, silly. Now c'mon, we still got a game to play!"
The game continued for a bit, with Reyson eventually starting to get the hang of things. After downing the third cup scored by Sal, he was about to drink the fourth before Clair stopped him.
"Hold on, Ray-I want to see how you're feeling in a few minutes so slow down a bit. I'll drink the rest for this round. I'll pass you a beer later if you want some more, alright?" Ray nodded and passed him the cup.
After a hard fought battle, Ray and Clair managed to take the game with two perfect throws in the center cup. Clair jumped up, celebrating their victory as he gave Reyson a chest bump. An unsuspecting wolf stumbled back a bit, not expecting the friendly ritual. As he regained his composure, he suddenly realized his face was very warm, as were his arms.
"You feeling alright, buddy?" Clair asked his friend, who looked at him with his usual blank stare for a moment. Reyson's eyes then softened as he gave the cat lazy smile before pulling Clair into a hug.
"Yeah... we won, hahuh~." Clair was not expecting the sudden embrace, and patted him on the back, not really sure what to do.
"Alright, alright, Ray! You drunk already?" The cat finally managed to pull the wolf out of the hug. Ray looked at him and smiled sweetly, as his expression limped in a bit of a daze.
"I...uhh.., Think I might be a bit buzzed... This feels kind of... nice, actually. Thanks, Clair." He pulled his teeth out into a grin as he put his hands on the cat's shoulders. Reyson hadn't smiled with his teeth in years. Clair felt his heart skip a beat, but quickly composed himself as he made sure Ray wasn't losing his balance. Meanwhile, Clair's friends were already chanting "Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!"
"Okay, Ray, let's get you back on the couch. Can you walk? Take that water with you, you want to stay hydrated."
Reyson didn't have too much trouble getting back to the couch with Clair's help, but he was clearly enjoying the feeling of being inebriated for the first time, absentmindedly indulging in the buzz he was getting. Clair squatted down to meet Ray at eye level.
"I'm going to go mingle with some other friends for a bit, but I'll check back up on you in a bit-make sure you're drinking the water, okay?" Ray chuckled at his friend.
"Okay~ Thanks, Mom... You're the best~"
"You're drunk."
"I know~"
Clair sighed with a smile, Pulled Reyson's headfur back as he gave him a few head pats, and went on to chat and party with a few of his other friends, making sure to check in on Ray every once in a while.
"Whoo!" Sal plopped onto the seat next to Reyson, waking him up with a jolt. He didn't realize he had fallen asleep. "You doing okay there, Ray? It's too early to black out, hehe!" It had only been a few minutes since he had sat down, so Ray was still very much intoxicated.
"Y-yeah, I think I'm doing alright." He said as he took a gulp from the glass of water Clair left for him on the nearby table.
"Sooo~ what's your first time being drunk like?" She asked.
"It feels... uh... good. I don't really know how to describe it, but I guess.. I don't feel as inhibited? Like I can do whatever I feel like.. Or something, haha. I, uh... sound pretty weird, huh?"
"Aww!~ not at all! You're like a sheltered teenager having alcohol for the first time! It's so cute!" Sarah was clearly amused by the spectacle of her CDE tutor being nervous about being drunk. The two shared a lighthearted giggle. Sarah continued.
"Still though, gotta hand it to your friend-He really knows how to host! This is a banger of a party! Haven't kicked back like this in a long time!"
"Yeah, me neither. Clair's always been good at this kind of stuff.. He's definitely the coolest person I know." There was a moment of silence when Ray suddenly felt a hand on his thigh. He looked down to see Sarah looking at him longingly.
"Hey... are you and Clair... you know, together?" Ray looked at her as her face inched slowly closer to his.
"No... we aren't." He answered, not quite comprehending what was happening.
"Then... it's fine if I do this... right...?" As she leaned her face in, her advances finally clicked in Ray's alcohol-addled mind. She was an attractive woman, and he thought of her as a good friend, but was this what he wanted...?
Just before their muzzles connected, the lights suddenly went out. The moment was lost as the two of them looked around to see what was going on, along with everyone else. In the area of the living room where beer pong was being played just moments ago, a luminous array of instruments suddenly appeared, with Clair standing among them in the center of the room, along with some of his musician friends with instruments of their own. He spoke, his voice reverberating throughout the room.
"Alright everyone! It's the moment you've been waiting for! Thanks again, for coming! It's been a blast having you all here for my birthday bash, so I wanted to thank you all by playing some music for you guys. Let's go wild tonight!... but again, please don't shake the building, I don't want complaints from upstairs."
Holding what looked to be a cross between glowsticks and drum sticks, he clicked them together to count down the timer before starting the first song.
Music: Virus Funk - Nhato
As he played his array of aetheric instruments by moving his hands, bright lights blossomed around the room to match with the beats and rhythms of the song. Those already familiar with the nature of Clair's powers were already vibing and dancing to the music, whereas those experiencing this talent for the first time were looking around at the bright lights with awe. Sarah was no exception.
"W-wow... Clair can do all this? Ray-this is so cool! He's amazing!-" She stopped when turned back and saw Reyson, his eyes firmly fixed on the cat as he worked his magic on the instruments and the crowd. His intense gaze and gentle smile spoke volumes, indicating a mixture of pride, admiration, and tenderness towards his friend.
"Yeah... he is."
All she could do was smile in defeat. Could she ever find someone who would look at her the same way he was looking at Clair now? She thought to herself.
But this music was too good to just be wallowing in her own disappointment. She grabbed Reyson's hand, getting his attention.
"C'mon! Music was made for dancing, Ray! Let's go!"
"Alright~" Ray enthusiastically took her hand and made their way to the living room dance floor.
Clair played a variety of songs for his party goers, ranging from EDM, trance, cute stuff, anime, alternative rock, country, the list goes on. He even played something from one of the Neko Neko Kyun~ CDs Ray had bought for him, but quickly changed it after much public disapproval, though most of it was in good jest. As he eventually got tired though, the music party eventually had to come to an end. It was also starting to get late, so people started making their way out as they had to go for the night. Alex, Chris, and Trey all thanked Clair for the good times and unanimously wanted Ray to go clubbing with them next time they went out. Ray, who had already sobered up a bit, reassured them with a resounding "Maybe."
Soon, It was Sarah's turn to head out-one of the last to leave, and Ray walked her outside.
"I had a lot of fun tonight, Ray. Tell Clair I said thanks as well."
"Yeah. Glad you enjoyed yourself."
"Oh! I have a present for you, but you have to close your eyes, okay?" Reyson was surprised-it's not like it was his birthday, but he closed his eyes, as instructed. He felt a peck on his cheek as he opened his eyes in shock. Sarah was looking at him with a playful grin.
"Keep this a secret, okay?~ I'll catch you at the arcade sometime!" She said, turning around to head to her car. As she got in, she moved her hands to her face to wipe something from her eyes. Ray waved as she left, feeling a bit of regret that he couldn't quite understand. Eventually, he shook the feeling off and headed back inside, where Clair was already cleaning up. Reyson got to work helping out as well.
"Phew! Pretty good turnout, if I do say so myself! You have a good time, Ray?"
"Yeah... Sarah also said she wanted to thank you."
"Oh, Sal? Yeah! She's a sweet girl! I'm really glad you're finally making some new friends at Game Engine, Ray! I hope you can eventually open up to more of the people there too."
"Yeah... maybe so." Ray quietly said as the two continued picking up cups off tables and floors and moving glasses and bowls to the dishwasher. As they finished loading the dishwasher, Ray got up and looked at Clair for a moment.
"...What? Is something on my face?" Clair asked teasingly.
With the remaining few seconds left on Reyson's "liquid courage" status effect, he pressed his muzzle against Clair's. The cat was surprised at first, but didn't make any effort to resist. Eventually, he leaned in as well, gingerly wrapping his arm around him. After a few quiet moments of intimacy together, the two pulled away. Clair was grinning.
"What was that for?" he asked with a chuckle.
"...Another birthday present." Ray replied, not missing a beat, back to his familiar neutral expression.
"Ah~ Well, I liked it. Thank you."