The Den: Chapter 1: The damn computer dies
#1 of The Den
Here is a story series called 'The Den' that I used to have, but lost. So, I'm rewriting it from memory. Enjoy.
Lexter Alley walked into his apartment, flopped his books onto the sofa, pranced over to his computer and with a smile, turned it on. With college classes over and summer starting, he had the whole summer vacation free, and intended on combining his two college majors into a single summer project: He was going to make his computer dance ballet.
Lexter Alley was a very good looking nineteen years old college student. He stood at about 185 centimeters tall and had a very muscular frame of 100 kgs. He was a handsome husky of a fur with some wolf blood in him, according to his mother. He majored in computer graphics and dance, with a specialty in ballet dancing. Today, he wore old worn out jeans and a t-shirt with the logo for 'The Coffee Chop' on it, the place he worked as a dishwasher.
Lexter's mother was also a star ballet dancer in her time, who danced at 'The Metro City Ballet Company' before she gave birth to Lexter. When she danced ballet, she was lithe and light. But the pregnancy wildly accentuated her figure, enabling her to strip for a living and afford to raise Lexter by herself. Lexter never met his father. She said that it was a one-time encounter from a husky-wolf football player that didn't lead to anything special. Growing up, Lexter followed in his mother's pawsteps and also danced ballet with expertise and passion. Due to the great money she made from stripping, she managed to pay for Lexter's expensive classes. Lexter hated it that she stripped and argued with her to stop doing it. Nightly, he would have to help put her to bed when she came home late at night, drunk and exhausted from her nightly session of being pawed and objectified. But she dutifully performed the task night after night.
When Lexter was 13, his mother had an accident at work which left her unable to work. Being tall for his age, Lexter got a job as a dishwasher (and lied about his age), and supported his mom while she recovered. His mother objected, but their finances stated otherwise. Due to the financial situation, he had to stop taking ballet classes he so loved and dropped out of school for a year. However, he continued to train under the expert and watchful guidance of his mother while she recuperated. After she recovered, she received training as an office worker under a government program, and managed to secure a government office job. Lexter was able to go back to school, but not take up ballet classes again (which he very much missed). But his mother continued to coach him.
After he graduated from high school, he applied at his mother's old ballet company, and applied for a dance scholarship to The Metro City University. Due to the recommendation from the former ballet star his mother and his impressive auditions, he was accepted into both. After a great deal of thought and consideration, he turned down the offer from the ballet company, and accepted the scholarship to the university. He decided to do a double major of computer graphics and dance at the university. When she asked why, he explained why he did this. "I want to make sure I've got a back-up plan, in case dance doesn't work out." His mother beamed on him and hugged him when she heard his explanation. "I'm so proud of you!" she said to him.
Right now, it was the end of school, and he just completed his final performances in dance and received glowing reviews from the school newspaper critics, and good grades from his professors. He also submitted his computer art projects for his finals to his professor and received great grades on it. He was on a high that had no end.
During the summer, he wanted to do a summer project where he would create computer objects that would dance ballet to music. He talked it over with his professors, they helped to brainstorm ideas, and now with class out, he was about to focus all of his spare time on the given task at hand.
His apartment was a very small two bedroom apartment, located near the university that Lexter and his roommate shared. Lexter loved it, and loved the adjacent proximity to the university. It had two small bedrooms, a general living area and a sub-kitchenette area along with a minimum bathroom, which suited him just fine.
Lexter turned on his 'Frankenstein' computer under his desk that his roommate chunked together, after his old one caught on fire a year ago, due to an 'unfortunate ballet' accident that caused his roommate to snicker every time the subject came up. He stared at the oddly shaped computer, with odds and ends stuck into it to make it work. The computer screen flashed all of the boot information as it went through the start-up sequence. That sure is ugly, he thought to himself. But at least it is fast enough to do what I need.
Suddenly, the computer sparked with a blue flash and a loud pop. Lexter jumped out of his chair in surprise as the screen went blank, and then the terrible smell of smoke leaked from the now silent computer. "Noooooooooo!!!" Lexter shouted as he grabbed his ears in panic. "You can't die on me! No! No! No!" he yelled at his box.
A stereotypical computer nerd badger walked out of his room and said "What the..." He saw Lexter next to his computer and saw the smoke stream from the box. "Oh... yeah dude, that was bound to happen sooner or later." He walked over to Lexter and put his arm around Lexter's shoulder. He slurped beer from a can in his other paw.
Barry Winters was a 115 kgs badger who stood at 173 cm tall, whose stomach had seen better days. He was the proverbial computer nerd genius, who majored in computer engineering, and could fix anything whether he knew about the system or not. He was also 19 years old, but just finished his undergraduate degree in computer engineering, due to his brilliance in computers and starting college early. Next year he would start his graduate degree in computer engineering. For the summer he would work at his dad's computer company 'Computer Fur' as an intern.
Barry's family situation was unique, to say the least. He had two moms and two dads, all four of which were gay. His two moms raised him and his sisters, but his dads were very much actively involved in the children's lives. When he came out as gay himself, his family accepted it as matter of fact. His badger mom worked as a math teacher at a community college, and his wolverine mom worked as a county clerk at the court house. His badger dad worked as a computer engineer, and his sea otter dad owned a surf board shop by the beach. His biological badger parents decided to team up and have kids, and all parents loved their kids very much.
The fact that Barry was gay didn't bother Lexter a bit, although he could do without the constant flirting from the badger. But they were the best of friends.
The fact that Lexter was an incredibly hot looking muscled fur DID NOT BOTHER Barry ONE BIT! He enjoyed rolling his gaze up and down Lexter's body again and again. Unfortunately, Lexter was straight. However, that didn't stop Barry from enjoying the sight of Lexter's stately physique.
Lexter turned to Barry and with a flustered look begged him "Please, you gotta fix my computer! Please please please!"
Barry smiled at his roommate. "Hey, no problem, curly tail. Let ole Barry do his magic on your thingie, OK there?" he said to him. He slurped down the last of the beer and set the can on the desk. He hoisted the computer onto the table, sat in the chair and worked on taking the case off to look inside.
Barry's nickname for Lexter was 'Curly tail', due to Barry's focus on Lexter's nice derriere. Lexter didn't mind the nickname. While Barry examined the case, Lexter spent his time nervously looking over his shoulder while he raised and lowered himself on his toe paws, a habit he developed to build up strength in his lower leg muscles.
Barry opened the case and glanced in. The last of the smoke seeped out. "Well, at least it didn't catch fire this time." He glanced back at his friend with slight snicker. "That's good, right dude?"
Lexter nervously whimpered as he raised and lowered himself again.
Barry returned his attention to the computer and traced out the route of the wires he custom jury rigged to the CPU. "Yeah dude, that over-clocking trick fried the computer." Lexter let out a little yelp. "I'm sorry doggie, but the computer is now junk." He turned to Lexter and said "There's nothing I can do."
Lexter's face showed extreme anxiety as panicked. "But I neeeeed it!" he said in a frantic voice. "You can fix it, right? Please please please?" He gave a hopeful smile to Barry and nodded his head like a bobble headed doll.
Barry stood up and shrugged. "Sorry there, curly tail. There's nothing I can do. I don't have any spare parts right now." He chucked his thumb toward his room. "All my other parts are being used for my Beowulf system, dude."
Lexter let the air out as despair set into his posture. "Well, oh fur. That stinks." He looked at the Frankenstein system with longing.
Barry smiled and patted Lexter on the back. "Now dude, you can get another computer. You know, a good one?"
Lexter knew that any kind of expense was completely out of the question. But he asked the inevitable question. "So... uh... how... how much would one cost?" He prepped himself for bad news the best he could.
Barry thought about it for a moment. "Well, to do the graphics you need, you need at least a certain level of performance." He stated a price to Lexter. "But come on dude, you need a real furs computer." He stated a higher price.
Lexter blew air out as both prices hit him full force. "There's no way I can afford anything like that. Like, I mean my next paycheck will cover just expenses, as well as pay you back for covering for rent." He looked at the ground dejected. "I guess I'll just use the school's computer system."
Barry worked on the dead computer, unplugging the cables in back. "Now, come on there, curly tail. All isn't lost." He picked up the dead computer box and walked into his bedroom. From his bedroom he continued to speak. "I know how you can get that cash, if you don't mind shaking that nice tail of yours."
Barry folded his arms and sternly looked at Barry bedroom. "Absolutely not! I'm not stripping. My mom did it, and it was bad."
Barry walked out to the living room, holding a smaller computer and set it on the desk. "I'm not talking about that, dude. But thanks for the nice visuals next time I'm in the shower." Once again, he rolled his eyes up and down Lexter's body with a grin.
Lexter stuck his tongue out at him.
The two roommates seemed like an odd match, but they were good friends. Barry routinely brought home furs to screw, Lexter seldom dated, due to his workload and lack of money. Barry used his computer systems to do school work and view porn, Lexter used it only for school and communication. But the two got along very well.
Barry continued to speak as he set up the small computer. "Could you get me a beer while I do this? I'm talking about serving drinks down at the nightclub I started going to. Haven't I told you about it?"
Lexter went to the fridge and grabbed a beer. He shook his head. "No."
Barry hooked up the monitor. "It's a gay bar that opened a month ago. It caters to furs who like my sizely shape." He grabbed his stomach and gave it a brief shake. "Yeah, I'm a hot piece of stud, dude!"
Lexter let out a chuckle as he handed Barry the beer.
Barry opened the beer, slurped and continued to work on the computer. "It's called 'The Den', and it's real great. It's got everything that makes a gay fur smile. Male review, dancing, alcohol, a great clientele. In a week, I'll be entering a chubby beauty contest. And I'm gonna win." He turned to Lexter and struck a beauty pose, causing him to laugh.
Lexter responded with a smile. "And, you'll probably win, my furry friend."
Barry went on working and talking. "It's a really great place for a gay fur. And, with your good looks, you'll make great money from tips."
Lexter began to stretch his arm behind him. "Well, I've already got a job. And, I don't know about being in a gay bar, Barry."
Barry winced as he watched Lexter turn himself into a doggy pretzel. "Yeah yeah dude, so... um... how's minimum wage treating you? Anyway, you've been a gay bar before, remember?"
For Lexter's birthday last year, Barry took Lexter out to a dance nightclub called 'Vibrations', a place that catered to the city's elite and good looking. Lexter spent his time on the dance floor shaking it up with furs of all types and sexes. He loved to dance, and would dance with anyone, regardless of gender. Barry spent his time checking out all the good looking guys coming over to check out Lexter.
Lexter shook his head as he switched arms. "No, technically that was a mixed bar."
Barry shrugged and focused on the computer. "Same thing. You got hit on by guys, so it counts, right?" He turned to Lexter and asked in a condescending voice "Now, did you back up your data like I taught you to?"
Lexter returned the attitude with his own sneer. Barry pestered Lexter to perform weekly data back-ups, and Lexter finally relented, and performed the task on a regular basis. In a snide voice, he said "Yes, I did, 'Barry-is-great'."
Barry smiled back. "Well, it looks like you can teach a straight dog new tricks." Not getting a response from that, Barry reached into the desk drawer and retrieved the latest disk backup. "Think about it, curly tail. You shaking your tail in that bar, serving drinks to all the gays sitting on fat wallets, I mean, you can get cash for your computer in no time."
Lexter glanced at the smaller computer and sighed. The small computer was his original one he purchased when he first started school, continually reassured by the sales person that it could perform the graphics he needed. Unfortunately, it didn't perform to his needs, and through excessive scrimping, saving and extra hours of work, managed to purchase his graphics computer. Unfortunately about a year ago, Lexter practiced his ballet too close to his computer. With a high leg swing, he accidently kicked the graphics computer, causing it to crash into the smaller computer, and causing both to catch fire. Barry managed to repair the smaller one while suppressing his giggles, but couldn't salvage the high end graphics one. So, he chunked together a 'Frankenstein' computer using spare parts, which lasted until now.
Lexter did not want to use the school computers for his graphics homework. He liked the convenience of having his own computer at home, to be used whenever he wished to. He also liked having his own personal computer expert who could fix anything or any issue he had.
Lexter sighed, as the situation decided for him. "So, it's a gay bar?"
Barry turned on the computer. "Yeah dude. That's the spirit. And with your nice looks and hot tail wagging down there, you'll entice all da horny critters to treat you right." He logged into the system once the login prompt occurred. "Kevin, the owner who's a friend of my dad, asked me to be on the lookout for hot waiters, and you are hot." He inserted the backup disk into the computer and began to load the data into the system. "Two months ago, I set up his computer system for him."
Lexter nodded. "OK, OK, you talked me into it. I'll try it out. Let me get changed to lift, since I'm not getting much done today." He headed to his bedroom.
Barry waved at him as he focused on the computer. "No problem, dude."
Lexter entered his bedroom and closed the door. He stripped off his pants and shirt, and donned a pair of shorts. His bedroom was small, which matched the rest of the apartment. Barry occupied the larger bedroom, due to the excessive computer equipment in there. Lexter's bedroom featured posters and flyers from various dances he performed in, during college and in school. The pictures showed various ballet dancers in mid dance. On the back of the door was a large older poster, featuring a female husky ballet dancer with one arm stretched above her head and one arm to the side, while she stood on her toe paws. She was thin and lithe, a classic ballet dancer. On the top of the poster were the words 'The Beauty of Dance' and on the bottom 'The Metro City Ballet Company'. It was his favorite poster. After all, it was his mother during her heyday. The ballet company did an ad campaign, and used her for the model. Lexter spent a lot of time studying the poster, drawing inspiration from it. He studied every detail of it.
After Lexter put his shorts on, he stood up and studied that poster again. With a quick flourish, he struck the same pose and held it in perfect form. He performed a double pirouette and stopped himself, with both arms spread out. He held that pose, drawing in the energy and beauty from the dance, and slowly lowered his arms with a smile.
Lexter shifted his attention to the mirror and looked at himself. He could make out the faint but familiar telltale characteristics of a wolf through his husky physique. As he looked in the mirror, he noted the impressive build he sported. In the past year alone he put on almost ten kgs of muscle, since he upped his strength training at the gym. He flexed his shoulders and arms and saw rippling muscle dance under his fur. He saw the familiar muscled abs, so hard to showcase unless someone had very light layer of fur. He flexed his nicely developed legs and saw movement of chords, tendons and muscle. I must have inherited muscle building also, he said to himself. He grabbed an old shirt and put it on.
Lexter exited the bedroom and saw the small computer on and ready. He glared at it. Not again, he thought. He sat down at it and typed away, reacquainting himself with it. On the computer, an instant messenger program called 'Jabber' blinked, indicating that a friend of his was online and wanting to talk to him.
Lexter launched the program and typed. "Hey James, what's up?"
Words typed out onto the screen from James. "I saw you perform today, and you were incredible. I mean, you were on fire."
James was an internet friend of Lexter he got to know several months ago, through the local city dance forums. They never met, but spent a great deal of time talking about various dance events around the city. From what James told Lexter about himself, he worked as a web page coder at 'The Metro City Newspaper', was a gay male husky, and was really into dancing and dance events. Lexter kept pestering him that they should meet face to face, but James would always get out of it.
Lexter smiled as he typed back. "Thanks James. I put a lot of work into that Jazz ensemble, and the professors really liked it. But you should have come up and introduced yourself."
James responded. "I couldn't. I had to run afterwards. But it was incredible to see you perform. You were amazing."
Lexter stuck his tongue out at the screen. "Bull. We should meet. I mean, we are already friends, and have a lot in common."
James typed back "We will, we will. Just later on." James typed again. "So, what's up?"
Lexter sighed as the computer frying event ran through his mind. "My Frakenstein computer just went 'Blamo'! Barry can't fix it, so I'm back on my ole small computer."
James typed back. "You mean you're on 'Kick-boot'? Ha ha!'
Lexter rolled his eyes up and sighed. "Yeah, yeah, kick-boot. Oh come on, that happened a year ago."
James answered. "Hey now, it's funny."
Lexter smiled at his friend on Jabber. "Yeah, yeah, it's funny. Hey, let's team up next week and hit the town for dancing. School's out, and I'm itching to dance."
Lexter watched as the Jabber program paused. "I can't next week. I'm kind of busy with work."
Lexter felt put off by the avoidance. We would totally get along, he thought to himself. So what if I'm straight and he's gay? "That's what you always say, James."
James typed back. "I know, and we will get together later on. But, just not right now."
Lexter typed in response. "Well, I'm heading out to lift weights, since the graphics computer is fried. I'll woof ya later."
James responded. "You do that. Bye bye, curly tail." And Lexter saw that James signed off.
Lexter chuckled at that comment. Why does every gay fur have to comment about my curly tail? Because it's attached to my beautiful nice ass, he thought to himself. Lexter turned off the computer, stood up and shook out his arms. He planned on heading out to lift, and mentally prepped himself.
Barry walked out of his bedroom holding a slip of paper. "Good news, curly tail. I called Kevin and he's interested in seeing ya. So, I set up an interview for you in two days." He handed the slip of paper to Lexter. "I wrote it all down here. Also, I called my dad. He said he'd co-sign a loan for ya, to get a new computer."
Lexter sighed out of relief. "Thanks Barry. That's the best news I've heard in a while. I owe you." Barry began to speak in an excited manner when Lexter cut him off. "...in a heterosexual manner only."
Barry closed his mouth and sighed. "Hey, ya can't blame a gay fur for trying, but no problem. I can see you when you work down there."
Lexter shook out his arms. "Well, I'll go on down to the school gym and lift weights."
Barry smiled even wider as he gave Lexter a sexy leer. "So, gonna work out that beautiful body?" He rolled his gaze up and down Lexter. "And, you'll come back even more beautiful?"
Lexter smirked at Barry. "Yes, but I'll come back all stink and smelly."
Barry pointed a thumb toward the bathroom. "No problem dude. I'll set up a web cam in the shower."
Lexter continued to smirk.
Barry continued to speak. "And I'll give you 60% of the proceeds when I post the vids on the internet."
Lexter threw the balled up slip of paper at Barry.
Barry shielded himself from the attack and said in a mock shock voice. "OK, OK, 70%. Oh fur, you are not cheap." He hightailed himself into his bedroom before Lexter could respond.
Lexter shook out his body and headed out of the apartment.