Open Audition
The black wolf cursed under his breath for the third time in as many minutes as he slipped on the sidewalk but didn't quite fall. He pushed towards the theater, lamenting his failure to find a closer parking space. One would think that people would stay in during winter weather like this, but every viable parking space within a block of the theater was taken. So as a result he was stuck navigating icy patches and lumps of thick slush while dealing with the biting scent of winter on the breeze.
Up ahead the theater disgorged people onto the sidewalk. The winter breeze carried several conversations and a mix of accompanying scents towards the wolf's nose. His focus switched to spotting Kurt coming out rather than going in after him. He could have just waited in the car, but it was easier to walk 5 minutes to the theater and 5 minutes back than wait 20 for Kurt to find the car.
It wasn't long before he saw his rat, 24-years old with white fur featuring splotches of black and brown mostly hidden by that coat. Kurt's muzzle wrinkled as he felt the cold and pulled the coat tighter over his slim, light-furred form. The wolf smiled and waved to Kurt, seeing the rat's eyes light up as he spotted him. He wrapped him up in a tight hug, nuzzling the rodent's cheek. The scents of old wood and dust mixed with something spicy and bitter, probably a co-star, to cover Kurt's natural scent.
"Hey there, hon," he said, feeling Kurt's pink furless tail brush along his pant leg as his own wagged happily.
"Hey yourself." He was hoarse from rehearsal and the wolf offered a sympathetic smile. "Mmmmm, wolf hugs. I missed those."
"You okay, Kurt?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Just tired and hungry. After being stuck in the theater all evening it's actually a little refreshing out here."
"Well, it's a few minutes' walk back to the car. Give yourself time to hate it."
The rat smirked at that and leaned up to kiss his boyfriend on the nose. He gave the wolf's broad shoulders a squeeze and just leaned against him to rest his head on his chest.
"Somebody's in an affectionate mood tonight," the wolf teased. "Tongues might wag."
"Let 'em. I don't think anyone's going to be too scandalized about the twink-ish theater guy turning out to have a boyfriend." Kurt smirked. "Especially a big strong one who obviously likes having a skinny little boy-toy. The stereotype police might come after me, though."
Then Kurt got a look on his face like he'd just remembered something and held up a finger as if to say 'hold that thought.' He looked around for a few moments, whiskers twitching. He waved to someone coming out of the theater.
"I want you to meet someone," he said, indicating a badger headed their way.
The badger was older, probably about the same age as Kurt's father. The wolf's nose wrinkled as he caught a whiff of the scent he'd noticed on his boyfriend. The badger nodded in greeting as he dug out a pack and tapped out a cigarette. He bore the telltale twitch of a smoker who'd had to go a whole hour without a nicotine fix and the wolf subtly shifted so he wouldn't be directly downwind.
"This is Mitchell Ball," Kurt said. "He's playing Mr. Barrett. Mitch, this is my boyfriend Thaddeus Sheen."
"Pleased to meet you," the wolf said, offering a hand to the badger and getting a firm shake for his trouble. "Call me 'Deus.''
"Call me 'Mitch,'" the badger said, shielding his lighter from the wind and occasional drizzle of rain. "Mr. Barrett's a good role. Kurt's a talented writer."
Mitch lit his cigarette and Deus nodded like he knew off-hand which character that was. Kurt was indeed a talented playwright but he wrote so many plays that the wolf couldn't keep half of the characters straight. Deus shot his boyfriend a quick glance to see if there were any signals there but Kurt was just waiting for the chance to get back to the car and go.
"Well, it's a pleasure to meet ya, Mitch, but I'm afraid we've gotta run." Deus punctuated that with a jerk of the head back towards the car.
"I'll see ya at the next rehearsal," Kurt said, giving the badger a light hug before the two of them darted back to the car.
Kurt kicked snow off his paws and rolled down his window to shoot a wave to Mitch as Deus pulled out. In the mirror Deus could see the badger wave back, the glowing cigarette tracing the arc of the gesture like a flag. He maneuvered into the proper lane as best he could despite the mass exodus going on around him. Kurt relaxed in his seat, doing his best to take himself out of 'theater geek' mode.
"So, was that a 'formal' introduction?" Deus' question was loaded with subtext.
"He probably thinks it was," Kurt muttered with a sigh. "Are we still doing the buffet? I'm starving."
"Yeah, sure." Deus nodded and laid his ears back slightly.
The car was silent for the rest of the ride. The restaurant was too close to make screwing with the radio worthwhile and Kurt seemed just content to quietly lean back in the seat. The restaurant's parking lot was half-empty but Deus had to drive around for a minute to find a space where he and Kurt wouldn't have to wade through a pile of slush to get out of the car.
"Everything alright?" the black wolf asked once he and Kurt had gotten inside and gotten their first plate of food from the buffet.
"Yeah, I'm fine, just a little tired."
"You sure? You sort of dodged my question earlier." Deus tried very hard not to sound paranoid or accusatory as he dipped chicken in the little cup of sweet and sour sauce. The distinctive tangy scent of the sauce threatened to distract Deus, but he remained focused.
"Which one?" Kurt sounded really out of it.
"About Mitchell. Was that a 'Rule 1' introduction?"
"What?" The rat blinked, straightening up. "I answered it."
"You muttered a crack about him I'm not sure I caught," Deus chided. "Not the same."
"Oh, oh." Kurt shook his head. "No, no, it wasn't that. He's interested, but trust me on this. There's nothing there worth getting a repeat of. He just wanted to meet you."
"How much does he know about our relationship?" Deus asked, finally getting a bite of that sweet and sour chicken.
"He knows we're open, although as far as he knows it's just because your hospital schedule and my rehearsal schedule don't always let our evenings line up. He knows we've got rules to make it work, but it's not like I gave him the list." Kurt frowned, his whiskers twitching defensively. "Probably could have told him that Rule 1 is that you've gotta approve of anyone I see more than once and vice-versa."
"He's not bugging ya, is he?" Deus asked, now concerned.
"Just reminded of why we don't normally mess with folks we work with, is all."
Deus took a deep breath and thought for a moment.
"Can I ask you something, Kurt?"
"Sure." The rat frowned and braced himself for the question.
"I'm not the jealous type, right? Have I honestly given you the idea that I have issues with our open relationship or that I'm really self-conscious about your..." Deus paused, chose his words diplomatically. "...fondness for older gentlemen?"
Kurt sighed.
"No, no, you've never come across like that before," he admitted guiltily. "And you don't come across as jealous now."
"Right. Well, we make this work because I'm not that type of guy and because you've never given me reason to think I should be. "
Deus reached across the table and gave Kurt's hand a squeeze. He leaned in and looked into the rat's dark eyes. The look he gave him sent a blush creeping up Kurt's ears.
"We're great together even if you've got some itches I just can't scratch. And I'd rather let you scratch that itch than be without you. Whatever happens, you and I both know it's just blowing off some steam." He gave Kurt's hand another squeeze. "So please be up front with me. Just start from the beginning. Tell me what happened. No dodging or trying to be extra clever to keep from sounding upset. Start at Point A and progress to Point B."
"You're right." He smiled softly. "You're right."
Kurt sighed and slipped his hand out of Deus' and took a drink of his soda. He tilted his head back and forth to pop the vertebrae. Deus took a few bites of his food and waited patiently. Just when the wolf was going to call him on stalling for time, Kurt spoke up.
"First off, I just want to make clear that Mitch is an okay guy. I met him a couple of weeks ago. I was running around the theater while we were doing auditions for the play and doing various theater-type things. He didn't know I was the playwright; he figured I was just there to audition. We talked a bit and hit it off and well..."
"You fooled around with him," Deus said. Not an accusation; a simple statement of fact.
"Not right away. Auditions were about to start and we didn't have time. But you know how I am about older guys. They make me all melty and squirmy and to be honest I enjoy being good at getting them worked up. And just for the record, when he's freshly groomed and hasn't had the opportunity to smoke, he smells really good." Kurt gave Deus a playful grin. "I saw your nose wrinkle when I introduced him. You deserved that little dig."
"C'mon, stay on topic." The wolf rolled his eyes and took a drink.
"Right, right," the rat said with a chastised tilt to his whiskers. "Anyhow, he auditioned and he was right for the role and everything and we didn't have a lot of folks going out for the role. And like I said, he didn't realize who I was at the time. He thought I'd auditioned for another part and was just sticking around. Once we were done for the day he offered to give me a lift back to the apartment and I..." Kurt paused, looking for the right words and twirled his hand around as he searched. "...just happened to mention the coffee shop near our place."
Deus raised an eyebrow but he was in the middle of some wontons and didn't have much to say.
"We got coffee and we'd parked in that garage that's like right between Coast of Java and the apartment. And I wound up going down on him in his car."
Deus' ears flicked a bit at that and he self-consciously glanced around. They were in a public place but fortunately it was a quiet corner of the restaurant. Kurt caught Deus' reaction, though, and self-consciously pushed food around on his plate.
"And he asked if I was seeing someone and I told him I had a boyfriend but we were open and we had some rules." The rodent's anxiety caused him to speak louder and his voice's pitch grew higher. "And next thing I know he's talking about setting up a date for after they announce the results of the auditions and--" Kurt stopped, interrupted by Deus giving his hand a squeeze.
"Relax, hon. Take a breath."
Kurt sighed and took a bite of his food. He glanced up at the buffet like he was about to get some more food but shrugged and turned back to the table. He made a big show of taking a few deep breaths before continuing.
"Well, I gave him kind of a non-committal 'we'll see' and 'I have to talk to my boyfriend' and got out of there. It was just getting a bit too fast." Kurt sighed and rubbed his forehead. "But I think he took it as me just being nervous and he's been trying to wear me down."
"Would you like me to have a talk with him?" Deus asked.
"No, no, I'll talk to him. He's a nice guy and all, but not someone I'd want to pursue long-term. Or even a-little-longer-than-short-term. I'm a little worried that he thinks that he got the role because I was into him. And now I'm paranoid that his interest in me is based less on actual interest and more on whether a relationship would be good for him career-wise."
"Lion Christ," Deus muttered under his breath. "That's not the case, is it? How he got the part? I gotta ask."
"No, no," Kurt said defensively, and Deus saw him wince when he heard his own tone out loud. "I had some input on the casting but it's not up to me and he was genuinely good for the part. I swear."
"If you say so," the wolf said, frowning.
"Hey, you asked what the situation was." Kurt's eyes narrowed. "You don't get to ask me something like that and then ambush me on the answer."
"Okay, okay, I'm sorry." Deus sighed and shook his head. "You're right, hon. But this guy's not making a great impression on me."
"The closest thing we had to a viable candidate besides him is that rabbit who thinks he's James Lipton."
"Wait, the one who played the Criminologist when you did Rocky Horror?" Deus' ears flicked back at that. "Okay, point made."
Kurt chuckled despite himself at the wolf's reaction. He then sighed and reached out to give his boyfriend's hand a squeeze. His hand moved to rub the wolf's forearm as he leaned in to look into his eyes.
"If you're really worried about it," the rat said. "Come to see this one when it opens. I guarantee you; Mitch and I have almost no actual chemistry when you see us together. If I was playing one of the leads, he wouldn't have gotten it. It's that bad. He's a good enough actor and I'm no slouch, but get us together and it's like the Star Wars prequels."
Deus made a big show of flinching in disgust. He looked at his plate like he was considering whether he could continue eating. He shot a clownish wink at Kurt and the rat couldn't help but laugh out loud at that. He gave the wolf a grateful smile now that the tension was broken.
"When it comes out, I'll come see it," Deus said with a warm smile. "Opening night, even, when you'll be at your most nervous. What's it called, again?"
"'Shared Hallway.' I appreciate this," Kurt said with a sigh, looking down at the table and then at his empty plate. "And apparently I've gotten so worked up by this that I ate that entire plate of food without noticing. Okay, then. I'm gonna go grab seconds and when I get back you're going to tell me how your residency went at the hospital today."
Kurt slid out of the booth without waiting for a response. As soon as he was gone Deus sighed and let himself get back to worrying. He loved Kurt but also knew the rat overestimated his ability to cleverly think his way out of any situation. He cleared his head by mentally reviewing his day for anecdotes to share and had a few by the time the rat returned.
*****
In the weeks leading up to the premiere of Shared Hallway, both rat and wolf went through their respective rehearsals and residencies. The subject of Mitch barely came up as time passed. When Deus picked Kurt up from practice the badger appeared to be keeping his distance if for no other reason than to avoid an awkward conversation. And Deus, as a show of trust, resisted the urge to ask if Mitch was still bothering Kurt.
"I still don't see why they don't do reserved spaces and parking passes for folks appearing in the play," Deus said as he fought the play premiere traffic to get into the parking garage.
"They used to," Kurt explained as Deus drove up and down the parking garage's spiral structure. "Until someone was caught forging them and so the theater owners decided that nobody could have them."
"That's fucking retarded," Deus growled as he finally found a space near the elevators. "Pardon my language."
"I know that. You know that. The city knows that. The people who run the theater know that. Can't be helped," Kurt sighed. "That's why I told you we needed to be out here extra early for the premiere. The theater parking lot fills up quick."
"Anyhow, are you nervous?" the wolf asked as he stopped the car and the two of them got out.
"Always." Kurt's tail twitched as he dug out Deus' ticket and handed it over. "Here you go. I don't think the box office is letting folks in through the front yet so you might have to entertain yourself for a bit, sorry."
"Don't worry about it," Deus said, breath fogging in the cool air as the two of them took the elevator down. "We're downtown. I'll figure something out."
The wolf listened as Kurt muttered theoretical reviews to himself while they walked the block and a half to the theater. Some were glowing, some were terrible, some were silly, but Deus was used to Kurt's own little soothing mantra. He suspected that Kurt was thinking out loud as a means of hoping to avoid a last-minute discussion regarding the older badger.
"Is Mitch still bugging ya?" Deus asked, tired of ignoring the elephant in the room.
Kurt jumped when Deus asked that. He frowned and nervously bit his lip. He hesitated with a sigh before responding.
"Not really." When Deus gave him an expectant look, Kurt looked away and continued. "I just put him off enough that I'm pretty sure he got the hint that I'm not interested."
Deus' ear twitched and he couldn't keep from clenching his jaw at Kurt's 'not really' and 'pretty sure.' The rat smiled up at Deus and the wolf forced a smile in return. He just slipped an arm around Kurt, hugged him close and kissed the top of his head.
"I just thought I'd check," he said softly, brushing muzzles with the rat. "Knock 'em dead, break a leg, don't say Macbeth and all that good stuff, okay? I'm gonna go get a sandwich before the show."
*****
Kurt waved as Deus took off towards downtown proper and spent a minute just watching him go. With a sigh and a soft smile, he headed around to the cast and crew entrance. He stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets and hoped he could get someone to open the door from the inside so he wouldn't have to actually dig out his key. He paused, surprised, as he rounded the corner to get to the door.
"Hey there, Mitch," Kurt immediately said to the badger.
Mitch was standing there by the door, propping it open with a cardboard box as he smoked a cigarette. Kurt forced a friendly smile and headed for the door. He nudged it open further with an elbow to head inside. He briefly contemplated 'accidentally' kicking the box away and trapping Mitch outside for a minute or two. The door was supposed to stay closed anyway.
"What, no hug?" The badger slipped an arm around the rat's shoulders, briefly stopping him in the doorway.
"It's cold out and I didn't think to grab gloves. Chilly rat hands stay in comfy warm pockets." Kurt squirmed a bit in the embrace. "Besides, you're definitely busy."
Mitch gave him that fatherly look that tweaked Kurt in all the right ways and had inspired his original offer to get coffee all those weeks ago. He released the rat but left a hand on his arm. Kurt took a breath to calm down the sudden tension in his pants. That turned out to be a mistake when that breath inhaled a cloud of lingering smoke. Mitch frowned at Kurt's coughing fit and quickly put out the cigarette against the brick wall.
"Whoa, you okay?" he asked, patting Kurt on the back and getting the two of them inside.
"Yeah, yeah," Kurt said between coughs. "Just bit of smoke got me."
"I'm sorry about that, cutie. I know it's a naughty habit." The badger leaned in to whisper in Kurt's ear. "But I'm a naughty man."
"Okay, this is definitely not the time for this." Kurt's hands pulled out of their pockets and one gently pushed against Mitch's firm chest to get him to back off. "I've got prep work to do and so should you."
"Well, how about we make some time later?"
"We'll see, but I'm pretty sure my boyfriend and I have plans for after."
Kurt suddenly squirmed and reached for his pocket. He dug out his phone, pretended to check a message that wasn't there, and took off down the hall before Mitch could respond.
*****
Deus was good and well relaxed by the time was able to take his seat. After dropping off Kurt at the theater he slipped into what passed for a sports bar downtown. He figured Kurt would be ready to eat after the performance so he limited himself to poppers and a single beer. Sometimes going through the ritual of sitting at the bar and working on the beer was soothing enough.
Even still, when he took his seat he popped one of those little minty breath strips so as to not give anyone sitting around him the wrong idea. The minty odor helped block out the scents of the rest of the crowd anyways.
The lights dimmed, the curtain rose, and the play began. Even though he knew that Kurt was only playing a small part, he was still surprised that it was nearly 10 minutes before the rat appeared on stage. And while he was more than capable of appreciating live theater he had trouble sitting up and paying attention when neither Kurt nor Mitch was on stage.
Not that the play was bad. It was about a group of college students in a co-ed dorm trying to sort out whose drugs were found in the shared bathroom on their floor. It was a little 'Breakfast Club,' but it worked. Mitch played Mr. Barrett, a member of the faculty given the job of interviewing the various students so the school would know who to inevitably blame. Deus admitted to himself that Mitch was a decent actor, but when both Mitch and Kurt were on stage he couldn't keep from scrutinizing any interaction they shared.
Kurt played Michael, the floor's R.A. who'd already been cleared of any wrongdoing. And when he was on stage the same time as Mitch, the badger would stand a little closer than he needed to or brush his arm against the rat's and such. Deus tried to keep his annoyance in check but that went out the window when he spotted Kurt glaring and muttering something to the badger.
If one didn't know how to read Kurt it would just be interpreted as their characters disliking each other. But Deus, experienced at reading his passive-aggressive boyfriend's body language, made up his mind in that moment to have a chat with Mitch after the show and ask him to back off. The wolf wasn't normally a physical person, some high school football aside, but he actually hoped a little bit that Mitch gave him an excuse to threaten him.
Once he made that decision the play became a little more enjoyable. He was able to relax and follow the rest of it. Zac the wolf had admitted a past substance abuse problem but convinced the others he was past it, Rachel the tigress was definitely hiding something from the rest of the characters, and Mark the fennec finally admitted that the secret box in his room was his gay porn stash and not something his former roommate left behind.
In the final act it finally came out that the drugs belonged to the guy that Rachel had been cheating on her boyfriend with. She was suitably reprimanded for bringing the guy into the dorm, Zac forgave Eric the otter for trying to scapegoat him when everything pointed to Eric and everyone learned a lesson. When the cast came out for their bows, Deus allowed himself a little finger wave in Kurt's direction.
'See you in a few,' Deus silently mouthed, nodding towards the door backstage.
Even though his role was a small one, Kurt got his own dressing room as a perk of also being the playwright. Really, it was more of an office with a mirror than a 'proper' dressing room but it allowed him some privacy and had a door that locked. Deus took it as a good sign that the doorknob turned when he got there.
The rat was in his arms instantly like he'd been waiting by the door. The wolf nudged the door shut with a foot as he held Kurt close, kissing him passionately. The rat reached over to lock it before the two of them moved towards the small desk next to the mirror. Kurt was only half-dressed, just wearing his 'civilian' slacks and leaving his torso exposed for the moment. The rat's exertion mixed with the scent of dust, and the wolf picked up an undercurrent of excitement as the kiss continued.
"You were good out there, hon," the wolf whispered, tail bumping the back of Kurt's chair as they broke the kiss for a moment. "I'm proud of ya."
"You see what I meant-- aaah..." The rat gasped and shivered when the wolf nibbled his neck. "See what I meant about Mitch?"
"Kurt, hon," Deus panted. "Mitch is the last person I feel like thinking about at the moment."
Deus nibbled and licked at the rat's neck and shoulder, feeling familiar fingers stroke over the front of his pants. The wolf moaned softly and despite himself pressed the rapidly-growing bulge in his pants against that kneading paw. Kurt whimpered and squirmed as he slid back to sit on a clear part of the desk. The rat glanced nervously at the door.
"You sure this is the place?" Kurt gasped, fingers fumbling for the wolf's fly despite his anxiety. "I dunno... how much time we'll have back here..."
"Let 'em wait, let 'em notice," Deus growled, his eyes gleaming in the low light of the office.
The wolf grinned widely at the rat, both of them ready to burn off some tension as the musky scent of arousal began to fill the room. Deus shivered when his zipper slid open and the pressure let up on his sheath. He could see in the rat's eyes that Kurt wanted this just as much, wanted to be here with Deus and him alone.
A buzzing sound came from Kurt's rear pocket. Something vibrated, making him jump as his weight made it grind against the desk. He nudged Deus back and slid off the desk. The wolf's full sheath, exposed through his open pants, throbbed like it hadn't gotten the memo that the moment was over. Kurt pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and checked it as he grabbed his shirt with his free hand.
"Rick needs to talk to me in his office," the rat sighed. "It's important, sorry."
Deus sighed, disappointed, and started to do his pants back up. Kurt stopped him, tucked him back in, and gave him a kiss on the nose. He brushed his muzzle against the wolf's, pausing a moment to take in his scent.
"We can pick this up afterwards, hon. I love you."
"I love you too," Deus said, too worked up to think of a clever response. "I'll meet you outside the office when you're done."
Kurt tucked his shirt in and unlocked the door to slip out into the hallway. Deus stood there for a moment to catch his breath and cracked the window open to let out the smell. He just waited there a few minutes to relax so nobody would notice the tent in his pants. It wouldn't be the first time or the last that someone had been caught messing around backstage, but there was something to be said for a little discretion.
Once he was pretty sure he'd calmed down enough he went to find Rick's office. Someone he didn't quite know but recognized him nonetheless pointed him in the right direction. He headed back that way and tried very hard not to lay his ears back when he caught the twin scents of badger and fresh cigarette smoke. He nodded in polite greeting to Mitch when he turned the corner to find him outside the office. Deus leaned against the wall next to the door as he waited.
"Evenin', Deus," Mitch said. "So, how'd we do up there?"
"You guys were good. The play's a little 'afterschool special,' but it was enjoyable. You were very good; Kurt's been impressed with your performance."
Mitch smirked the sort of smirk that existed for the sole purpose of making people want to physically smack it off of a muzzle.
"You're not much of a theater guy, are you?" the older badger asked.
"I know what I like, but I'm not much of a connoisseur." Deus shrugged.
"Well, I hope you can at least appreciate everything Kurt does, not just his acting but also his writing." Mitch was clearly trying to work up a properly indignant look. "He needs someone in his life that can do that."
"He gets the appreciation he deserves. It's not all sunshine and rainbows, but me not being a theater geek has never been a problem," Deus confidently responded.
A raised voice could be heard through the door and both badger and wolf stopped to glance at it. The door was old and too thick for even Deus' sharp canine hearing to make it out. He responded to the badger's questioning look with a shrug.
"Speaking of appreciating our little playwright," the badger said after a moment, checking his watch and nodding towards the door. "I was thinking of taking him out for a little celebration. Y'know, if you don't have him tied up tonight or anything."
"We've got plans."
"Maybe tomorrow night? I like spending time with my co-stars and would definitely enjoy spending an evening with him." The badger's lecherous smile gave an obvious definition of 'spending an evening' and Deus' ears laid back just a bit.
"Okay, look," Deus said, holding a hand up. "Kurt's a sweet guy, he likes making people feel good and he's got a bit of a thing for older guys."
Later he would treasure that slightly offended look he provoked with the 'older guys' line.
"He's not that great at confrontation," Deus continued. "And since he's not likely to tell you himself, I'll take the liberty as his boyfriend. He's not interested in taking this any further than it got in your car. And quite frankly, he regrets that just a bit. So we'd both appreciate it if you'd please back off and leave him alone."
The badger snarled and bristled up. One hand clenched into a fist.
"I thought you two have an open relationship," Mitch growled. "Kurt's a big boy; he can do what he likes."
"And Kurt doesn't like you." Deus' ears laid back and he found himself sizing Mitch up like he would have back in his high school football days. "You've been a little pushy and even though I love him dearly he's a bit too passive-aggressive to tell you outright to give it a rest."
"Maybe I should ask him," Mitch growled back.
Out of the corner of his eye, Deus saw the office door close from where it had been slightly cracked. Mitch didn't notice as he grabbed the doorknob and paused like he was waiting for Deus to give him a reason not to turn it.
"Ask him if you want," the wolf said. "But we've got our rules and a few not-quite-rules. Rule 1 is that if one of us wants to see someone more than once, the other has to give his okay. You haven't made a good impression on me, Mitchell. So I'm asking you nicely to back off. Please."
"Or you'll do what?"
Deus growled and leaned in, looming over the shorter badger. He locked eyes with the older man and his whole body tensed up, fur standing on end. He snarled and spoke through clenched teeth.
"Well, I doubt it'd look good for you if word got out that you were chasing a guy young enough to be your son and his boyfriend took offense and kicked your ass. I played football until a couple of years ago and I'm becoming a doctor. I know how joints are put together and I know which nerves hurt. So if you don't back off, if you keep getting grabby, if you so much as lick your lips suggestively at him then I. Will. End. You."
Mitch actually took a step back, releasing the doorknob and averting his eyes. Within moments both of them heard the doorknob jiggling a bit before turning all the way. The door opened and Kurt came out, breathing deeply and clearly forcing himself to be calm.
"Hey, hon," Deus said, taking the rat's hand to give himself an excuse to unclench his own. "Ready to go?"
"Yeah," the rat said with a relieved smile. "Well, one sec. Hey Mitch?"
"Yeah?" The badger perked up a bit.
"Rick wants to talk to you in his office." He turned back to the wolf. "Okay, I'm done here. Let's roll."
Both were silent on the way back to the parking garage. Deus just kept glancing at his boyfriend, who had a goofy little smile on his muzzle the whole way. By the time they get into the parking garage the wolf was starting to worry.
"Is everything okay, hon?" he asked.
"Just reminded of why I love you." Kurt threw his arms around the bigger wolf and hugged him tight.
"How much did you hear?"
"I started listening about the time Mitch said I was a 'big boy and could make my own decisions,'" the rat said against Deus' chest, taking a deep breath of his scent. "I didn't catch all of the rest but I got enough." He let out a little sigh.
"So what did Rick need to talk to you about?"
"It was me who wanted to talk to him. That's why I wasn't sure about our time earlier; I was waiting for him to let me know when he was free." Kurt paused. "I wanted to drop out of the play."
"Because of Mitch?" Deus growled.
"Yeah," Kurt admitted. "He's a good actor, just..."
"So your next few nights are free?"
"Nah, he talked me out of it. He wanted to get rid of Mitch, but I talked him out of that. No point in him taking sides, even if it is my side."
"So what happened?"
"Well, Rick's going to tell Mitch to give it a rest when we're on stage and to leave me alone if at all possible when we're not. This is his one warning." Kurt looked up at Deus and grinned playfully. "Although if I'd known there was a chance of you ending him, I might not have bothered."
Deus gave him a squeeze and leaned in to brush muzzles with him.
"So what now?"
"Well, now, we head back to the car and show my big strong protector my appreciation. Maybe even pick up where we left off earlier..." Nimble, rodentine fingers untucked Deus' shirt and teased over his abs. "Then, once we've worked up even more of an appetite, we're gonna get something to eat. Cool?"
"Cool," Deus said as he swept Kurt up in his arms, provoking a squeak of surprise from the rat.
About half a dozen steps later, back already protesting, Deus set Kurt down in front of the parking garage's elevator doors. They were both a little squirmy with anticipation and as soon as they stepped into the elevator car Kurt grabbed Deus and kissed him deeply while he was hitting the button for their level of the garage.
Deus had that instinctive 'this isn't the place' thought as the doors closed. A dressing room with a locked door was one thing; a public elevator was another. Before he could say anything or nudge Kurt back a bit or even turn this around and pin the rat against the wall instead, he felt his boyfriend's fingers slide under that untucked shirt again. They immediately wriggled down the front of Deus' pants. The wolf groaned into the kiss and wrapped his strong arms around the rat's slim body.
By the time they'd gotten to the elevator his heartbeat had just come down from the encounter with Mitch but feeling long, thin, familiar fingers on his stirring sheath sent it pounding again. The rat had a knack for handjobs and it was only after the wolf's dripping cock was fully out of his sheath that he noticed Kurt had gotten his pants fully open and tugged his underwear out of the way. Skilled fingers wrapped around his prick as he sucked needfully at the rat's tongue invading his muzzle.
On some level Deus was dimly aware of the elevator door opening and closing. The elevator car remained quiet and still outside of the moans and smacking noises the pair were making in addition to the brushing sound of Deus' tail wagging against the wall. The wolf let out a gasp when he felt Kurt's bellyfur brush along his sensitive shaft beneath the rat's own untucked shirt. He whimpered and kneaded Kurt's backside as he felt those fingers stroking his balls. He reluctantly broke the kiss.
"We... we should take this... mm... take this to the car," he hissed in a voice that plainly said he didn't want to stop for that long.
Reluctantly, Kurt agreed and hit the button to open the doors. Cool air rushed in and stirred the cloud of the males' shared arousal and Deus' musky precum. He released the wolf's cock only to tug down his shirt enough to keep him decent without having to tuck him back in. Both were grateful that Deus had gone out of his way to park near the elevator when Kurt yanked one of the rear doors open.
"Okay, get in," Kurt panted.
Deus reached in and swept a handful of clutter to the floor before climbing in. He stretched out on the back seat as best he could. The oh-so-flexible rat climbed in on top of him and pulled the car door shut behind him. He gave Deus a smoldering look before straddling his tummy, facing away and leaning down to take the wolf's cock into his muzzle.
The wolf's body tensed and as he stretched out he pressed his feet against the inside of the car door. The rat's mouth bobbed up and down along that throbbing cock, fingers teasing what he didn't have in his mouth and working over his swelling knot. Kurt let out a squeak around that cock when he felt Deus' hands grabbing his hips and repositioning him a bit.
Deus got Kurt to stretch out as well so he was more laying than sitting on top of the larger wolf. The rat let out another squeak when Deus undid his slacks and slid them and his underwear down enough to expose his own hard shaft. The wolf stroked his fingers over Kurt and provoked a whimper around his own shaft by licking over his tip. Kurt squirmed and pressed his cock against his boyfriend's ministrations while diving down completely onto that dripping canid length.
The wolf reached into the pocket on the back of a front seat as Kurt's lips brushed along his forming knot. He gasped and almost lost his grip on the 'travel-size' bottle of lube he was fishing out when the rat's throat muscles squeezed his tip. He lubed up a couple of fingers and used his muzzle to keep Kurt too distracted to notice. The rat's squeal when the first finger teased against his pucker made it all worth it and within moments Kurt relaxed for him.
Deus worked that finger into the wriggling rat as he put the lube back in that pocket. He grinned and licked along the underside of Kurt's shaft and his heavy ballsac. The rat whimpered, giving his knot a squeeze and pulling back on the blowjob just a bit like he was afraid to end the fun too soon. He eased a second finger into the rat and robbed him of his ability to focus on the blowjob.
Kurt tried to keep it up as Deus fingered him and the wolf felt that tongue swirling over his tip to taste more precum. He shivered as he felt warm breath on his sensitive cock and he responded by working a third finger under the rat's tail. Kurt squealed again while he rocked back and forth from Deus' fingering.
After a few moments, Kurt turned his full attention back to the wolf's dick. This time, though, he wasn't as much sucking as he was getting him nice and wet with saliva. Deus slid his fingers free of the rat's rear and got another squeal out of him.
Without needing to be told or saying a word Kurt slid his muzzle off of the wolf's shaft. The flexible rat slid the rest of the way out of his pants and turned around so he could look Deus in the eyes. The wolf's yellow eyes shone brightly in the light filtering into the car through fogged windows and Kurt gave him a warm smile as eased down onto that stiff cock.
The wolf whimpered as he felt his boyfriend slide down onto him. He gripped the seat and let Kurt move at first, resisting the urge to just start thrusting into him. He looked lovingly up into the rat's eyes and Kurt began to grind against his lap. Deus whined and slid his hand down to stroke Kurt's shaft as the rat squeezed so tightly up and down along that shaft. Kurt's tail whipped back and forth behind him in the car when he felt Deus' still-slick paw on him.
Deus' other hand took Kurt's hand and squeezed it tightly. He ground his hips against the rat's rear to help him rise and fall on his lap. Kurt bit down on his free forearm to keep from moaning too loud in the enclosed car while the wolf thrust deep into him.
They moved together, eyes meeting, and Deus felt like everything outside the car was another world altogether. The car shifted and rocked as the wolf stroked deep into the rat who was all too eager to press back against him. That hot, slick shaft buried itself deep into Kurt as he straddled his boyfriend.
Kurt released his forearm and dove forward, kissing Deus deeply. The wolf drove nice and hard into Kurt by now, provoking all manner of squeaks and moans from the rodent. The kiss was as hot and frantic as the wolf's thrusts and in the heat of the moment Deus lost track of jerking Kurt off and instead just lightly squeezed and kneaded his member with his fingertips.
"I love you," Kurt whispered as they broke the kiss to come up for air.
The pressure was so built up inside Deus that he could only respond with incoherent whispers and yelps but Kurt understood him just fine. Kurt smooched him once more and sat up to bounce even harder on Deus' lap. The wolf, already nice and close, grabbed his hips and thrust deep into him. His boyfriend was more than ready for him by now, sinking completely down onto his canid knot and trapping himself there.
No longer concerned with privacy or propriety, both males groaned loudly as a dam seemed to burst. Kurt trembled and squeezed Deus' arms hard and clenched around that knot just as Deus also climaxed. Kurt's moan became a squeal as his cock jumped and spurted, his seed splashing over the wolf's shirt and his bellyfur. He seemed to melt in Deus' lap when he felt the wolf's hot cum pouring into him, held there by that knot.
They lightly ground against each other as Kurt flopped over onto Deus and kissed him again. This time the kiss was slow and tender, a kiss of affection rather than arousal and need. His hands rubbed over the wolf's chest as they looked into each other's eyes and his legs lost the strength to ride Deus' cock any more. He wriggled his hips a bit, feeling the solidity of the tie.
"God, we're gonna need to go home and clean up a bit before we go out to eat," Deus panted, licking his lips. "And I dunno about you, but I'm not sure if I'll have the energy to go out by the time we're done. And if we get back in this car, who know what the smell will do to us."
"Fuck it, we'll get pizza," the rat said with a contented smile. "Hey Deus?"
"Yeah?"
"I wanna invoke Rule 5."
"You sure?" Deus blinked.
"Yeah. Rule 5. Two weeks of just you and me. Maybe longer. We'll see."
"I think we can do that, hon," the wolf said, kissing the top of Kurt's head.
"Thanks, love. For making things easy when I make them hard."
"Yeah, but I don't mind making things easy. Just keep making things hard and we'll be fine."
The wolf gave Kurt a sly grin and a wink and Kurt burst out laughing when he realized what he'd just walked into. He sighed and just snuggled up on the wolf's chest and glanced up at the foggy car windows. Deus, with a satisfied smile on his face, closed his eyes and relaxed in the mixed scents of satisfied rat and wolf.
"Hey, Deus?"
The wolf's ear twitched, which Kurt apparently took as an acknowledgement.
"I betcha that it'll be snowing again by the time we pull out." The rat paused. "When we pull out of the garage, you doof."
"I'll take that bet. What's the winner get?" he asked, eyes still closed.
"Winner picks pizza toppings."
"Deal. Just let me lie here for a sec and enjoy the moment."
"I'm good with that."
"By the way," Deus chimed in. "I didn't get to say it earlier. I love you too."
"I'm good with that, too."
He couldn't see it, but Deus could pick up the rat's smirk and wink as he just lost himself in a combination of afterglow and his love's embrace.