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For the rest of the school day Daren was nowhere to be seen. He must have had a different lunch hour than me because he wasn't anywhere in the cafeteria, and I knew I didn't have any classes with him. I was expecting to maybe bump into him again in the hallways again, but that didn't end up happening. Still, I wasn't about to wait until tomorrow to apologize. No, I wanted him to realize that I wasn't some dog-hating, bigot panther as soon as possible! Well, and maybe because I wanted to get another chance to check out that sexy Rottie. Only this time without him looking at me like he's about to strangle the life out of me. Yeah, that would be nice.

I didn't have any luck finding the stern-looking Rottie at first, but thankfully I had a secret weapon: Alison Borgois. She was a squirrel with the same seventh period precalc class (blech) as me, and was just one of those people that seemed to know everything about everybody. I figured she might know if Daren was in club or something after school, which would make it a fairly simple task to track him down if he was.

When I entered the classroom, Allie was already in her desk, texting somebody on her phone, so I wasted no time going over and asking her for assistance. "Hey Allie, I need your help with something."

Her attention directed to me. "Whaddaya need, cat?" she said with a curious smile.

"It's about a Rottweiler. Named Daren... Something. I need to find him, so I was wondering if you know where he usually goes after school."

She started nonchalantly nibbling on her mechanical pencil's eraser. "Yeah I can help you there... If you're willing to do a little something for me," she said with a mischievous wink.

That wasn't a good sign. "Uh, what would that be?" I asked, a little perturbed by her suggestive tone.

She grinned, showing off her shiny pair of buck teeth. "Pull up your shirt. I want to see what you've got packing down there."

I cringed a little when I heard the request. "Right now?" I asked timidly as I surveyed the classroom: it was two minutes till the start of class with maybe half of the students already in the room, though most of them weren't paying attention to me and Allie, thankfully.

"Yeah, right now," she said a smug laugh. She was enjoying this way too much.

I sighed despite myself. It was embarrassing, but it seemed easy enough. "Alright," I said as I slowly lifted up the white T-shirt I was wearing under my letter jacket, trying my best not to be too obvious about it.

Then out of the blue, Allie started running her paw against my abs. I clenched down on my teeth to stifle a yelp, as her paw made contact with my sensitive midsection. "Oooh, that feels good," she said as she started tracing the lines of muscle with her index finger. A few of my classmates were giving me strange looks, but I guess Allie must pull shit like this pretty frequently, because they didn't seem too surprised.

I noticed something running down from her nose. "Allie, you okay? Your nose is bleeding."

She looked downwards toward her muzzle and noticed the blood, seeming entirely unsurprised by it. She chuckled a little. "Oh, that's normal, don't worry about it." She took a tissue from and used it to dab up the blood streaming down her muzzle. Strange girl.

She laughed again. "Well I guess I should tell you what you want to know now. Daren, right? Yeah, he usually goes to the library after school to do his homework, so you should probably be able to find him there," she said as she clenched her nose with her tissue in hand, preventing any more blood from spilling out.

The library, huh. It was a strange thought; the Rottie didn't really seem to be the type to hit the books everyday right after school. But if Ali said it was true, then it probably was, strange or otherwise. Seemed convenient enough too; football practice didn't start until some twenty minutes after school ended, so that was probably enough time to apologize and still be on time.

I thanked Allie and then went to my desk as the bell rang, Mr. Schwartz telling the class to quiet down for roll call. Today's lecture was as boring as always, and I was extra anxious for class to end, but just as always, I forced myself to pay attention to Mr. Schwartz drone on about functions and parabolas and how we were definitely going to use this stuff in the future. I was never really one of those incredibly smart kids who could get away with sleeping in class and still somehow manage to get an A in the class, so I had to at least attempt to pay attention to keep my grades up. It didn't always work, but at the very least I was proud to say that I wasn't just some dumb jock.

When the dismissal bell finally rang after what felt like a century, I was the first one to get out into the soon-to-be-packed hallways. I guess I didn't need to get there right away, considering I had no idea what class Daren would be coming from or how long it would take him to get there, but Grovedale High's hallways were just way too small to fit as many students as we had, so you really had to dart out of your class if you wanted to get anywhere once school ended.

It took me maybe three minutes to make it to the library, what with it being on the other side of the school and on the upper floor and all. It was fairly large room, filled with rows upon rows of towering bookcases.

I wasn't really sure if Daren was already there or not, so I decided that it couldn't hurt to start by asking the librarian if she'd seen him yet. It'd been a while since I'd last been in the school library. Who was the librarian again... Oh yeah, Mrs. Grevenieks! The school's parrot librarian had a reputation of being exceptionally creepy. I wasn't worried though. After all, how bad could she possibly be?

I approached the librarian's counter left to the library's double door entrance; Mrs. Grevenieks was on the station's computer, staring at the screen intensely. "Hi, excuse me, Mrs. Grevenieks?" I asked politely.

She stood up abruptly from her seat to address me. "HOW MAY I HELP YOU MY DEAR?" the elderly green and orange parrot said in a piercing, shrill voice.

Okay so her voice did sound worse than the wailing of a thousand baby puppies being stuffed down a wood-chipper, but that was probably the extent of why people were creeped out by her, right? You just gotta be polite Rob! "Um, well I was wondering if you could tell me if... ah..."

Cocking her head, the parrot brought her beak uncomfortably close to my muzzle, scrutinizing me with her left eye, the other one just sort of looking downwards lifelessly.

"I DON'T REMEMBER YOU VERY WELL. YOU MUST BE NEW HERE! I JUST HOPE THAT MY LAZY EYE DOESN'T TURN YOU OFF AT ALL. OR MY DEMENTIA, BECAUSE THERE'S THAT TOO!"

All I could do was stare at her with a frightened slack-jawed expression.

"WAIT, WHAT ARE YOU HERE FOR? CHECKING OUT A BOOK IS IT? ALWAYS GOOD TO SEE CHILDREN READING BOOKS."

I took a step back and raised a finger in protest. "Uh, no actually I.."

Suddenly Mrs. Grevenieks furrowed her brows and make a somehow even creepier, twisted and aggravated face. "UNLIKE THOSE OTHER CHILDREN THAT ONLY COME IN HERE TO DO THEIR HOMEWORK! DAMN THOSE LITTLE BASTARDS; DON'T THEY REALIZE THAT LIBRARIES ARE MEANT FOR READING BOOKS!?" Suddenly her expression turned entirely neutral again. She looked as if she just forgot something. "WAIT, WHAT WERE YOU HERE FOR AGAIN!?"

Okay, fuck this creepy bitch. "Uh, nothing, actually! I think I'll just ah... leave..." I said meekly as I slowly backed away and turned around.

"JUST DON'T DO ANY HOMEWORK WHILE YOU'RE HERE!" she shrieked as I made my way far, far away from her.

On second thought, maybe I should just look for him myself.

Allie said he came here to do his homework, so he was probably in the study area, right? I surveyed the area and noticed a small alcove with wooden desk type computer stations and chairs past all the tall bookcases.

Bingo.

When I went over, I spotted Daren at one of the computer stations. He was logged onto the computer, but didn't seem to be using it. He had a textbook and notebook placed before the keyboard, and was working on some problem in his notebook, occasionally glancing at his textbook from time to time.

It was the strangest sight, seeing this Greek god of a Rottie in his sleeveless shirt and sweatpants, sitting in a library and just... doing his homework. His arms and paws were so large and muscular that the pencil in his hand looked tiny and out of place. And he was so focused too...

I casually approached him from the side; if he noticed me he didn't make any sign of it. "Hey Daren can I..."

I was assaulted by a barrage of 'SHHH's and dirty looks by most the other furs studying in the area.

I dropped my voice down to a whisper. "I was wondering if maybe..."

SHHH

I sighed. Daren glanced at me disinterestedly from the corner of his eyes. He then pointed his thumb in the direction of a poster on the wall.

No talking in the study area you little assholes.

-Mrs. Grevenieks

Really? No talking at all? What kind of outdated stereotypical library policy was that, anyway? I rolled my eyes and took out my Eyephone and typed the message that I didn't have the privilege to speak. I flashed him the message when I had finished,

Can we talk? Outside preferably?

Daren read the message and huffed in exasperation, placing his things back in his backpack which he then strapped onto his back. He headed toward the exit and made a paw motion for me to follow.

By the time he had gotten back into the hallway, most of the furs had already left the building, save for a few stragglers, but it was still decently private for a conversation, especially considering how the school's upper level was usually much less frequented. The Rottie didn't seem too pleased by my offer to talk. "Okay, what do you want?" the Rottie said disinterestedly. His voice was deep and gruff, but surprisingly soothing at the same time. I liked it; it was the type of voice that you would hear on commercials trying to sell you some fancy wine or something.

"Look, I just wanted to apologize about earlier today, about the whole dogs and uh, the B-word thing," I said, trying my best to sound genuinely apologetic, which I was. I made extra sure not to give him any unsolicited pats on the shoulder this time.

He cocked an eyebrow at me. "Okay," was his simple, understated response. I guess he really wasn't the chatty type.

"Look, I'm not racist or anything, I swear! I just sort of call everyone bud... nicknames like that. You understand right? It was just a misunderstanding." I said in my best good-guy Rob voice, folding my ears back trying to look all cute and friendly.

Daren sighed. "It's fine. Just forget about it," he said yieldingly.

Okay, making progress, but still not really the response I was looking for. "Come on dude, don't be like that. Hey, actually, is there anything I can do to make it up for you? Come on, anything you want: just name it!"

This got his attention. "Hmm," he said, bringing a paw to his chin in contemplation. For a few moments he started evaluating me with his eyes. Looking up, down, really soaking in every aspect of my person: my ears, my tail, my arms, my chest, my burnt auburn head-hair and eyebrows, my uh, crotch too I think. The last thing he looked at was my eyes, his stunning amber eyes locking in with my blue ones. He gave himself a slight nod as he brought his paw back down.

He raised an eyebrow. "You really want to make it up to me?" he asked in a serious tone.

"Yeah dude, I'll do anything. Come on, just give me a chance!" I pleaded.

It was just for a fraction of a second, but I swear I saw a faint impression of a smile on Daren's lips."Aight then, go out on a date with me," he said, completely deadpan.

I froze as my hackles started sticking up; there was no way I could have heard that right. "W-What?" I stammered.

"You heard what I said. You. Me. Date. That's how you can make it up to me," he said, pointing at me then himself to exemplify. "You said you'd do anything, so don't be half-steppin' on me now."

Half-stepping? What the hell does that mean?

Wait, dammit Rob's Mind, that's not what's important right now! I just asked out on a date by one of the hottest guys in school, even if it was a strange and roundabout way. Was I blushing? Yeah I was blushing. Shit, usually I try to keep my 'straight-boy Rob' act up at all times, but I guess it couldn't be helped; there was no way I was going to manage after an advance as forward as that, from a guy as hot as he was. Okay Rob, calm down and think; if you're gonna do this thing, you have to at least not be a complete fruit about it.

"Y-Yeah, okay, I'd um, like that," I stammered, my mouth seeming to speak on its own as I began blushing despite myself.

Well fuck, I tried.

Daren didn't seem to be expecting my response. "Wait, seriously?" he asked, seemingly amused by my flustered state and cracking a slight smile.

I-It's not like I'm going to date you because I like you or anything you d-dummy!

Shut the fuck up Rob's Mind, there's no way in hell that I'd say that. Still, the response I ended up going with wasn't much better.

"I mean, I did say I wanted to make it up to you," I said, completely oblivious to the fact that I was fiddling my thumbs. I felt so flushed at that moment that I wouldn't have been surprised if the fur on my face started turning a rosy pink.

Daren grinned. "Heh. I mean, I wasn't really serious." My eyes widened as I broke into a cold sweat. "You know, suggesting a date to try to offend your masculinity or whatever."

Oh.

Oh shit, he was joking?! Argh, why was I so bad at realizing things like this? Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuck, how was I going to get myself out of this one?

"I, um, I, uh..." I started stammering.

By babbling incoherently, apparently. Good going Rob.

Daren chuckled a softly and his grin relaxed to a regular smile, "But I guess I wouldn't mind a date with a good-lookin' guy like you..." he said smoothly.

Oh.

Oh okay, we're good!

"Why don't you start by shooting me your digits?" he said as he pulled an outdated looking flip-phone from his black sweatpants.

"Uh, what?" I asked, uncertain as to what exactly he meant.

He looked at me with a hint of irritation. "Digits, you know, your phone number?"

Wooooow did I feel stupid for that one. Digits... of course that meant phone number! Argh, he even had his phone out while he said it! Some Shamrock Holmes I was...

I told him my digits and he punched it into his phone. "I'll text you my address," he said as he started doing so. "Saturday at seven work for you?" he asked casually. I nodded. "Cool. I'm also going to need you to pick me up from my place. You've got a car, right?" I nodded again. "Aight, solid. Since you'll be driving you can pick the restaurant, but you're going to be paying."

"I am?" I interjected.

Daren gave off a half huff, half laugh. "'Course you are. Poor-ass city boy like me ain't got no money."

I wasn't quite sure if he was joking about being poor or not, but I went with it. Daren continued, seemingly much more eager to talk than he was a few moments before. "Anyway, you can dress up if you want, but I ain't plannin' to. I ain't got nothin' nice to wear anyhow. Oh, if you want to pick out a movie or whatever after dinner, that's fine too. Yea, and after all that, if you want to maybe..." he smirked, "have some fun, well... I'd be up for that," he said smoothly with a lick of his lips and very suggestive smile. "How's that sound?" he practically purred the last line.

My pants got uncomfortably tight as I felt a tent forming by my crotch. Holy shit-cakes, I never realized how hot just talking to somebody could be. "That sounds... good," I managed, practically mesmerized by his bright smile and soothing voice.

He closed his phone and stuffed it back in his pockets. "Aight then, it's a date." He walked past me and back to the library entrance and opened up one of the double doors. The muscular Rottie looked back at me and smiled again.

"I'll see you Saturday at seven then... stud," he said before returning back to the library, his tail wagging the whole time.

I wasn't quite sure how long I stood in place trying to process what just happened. But what I did know what that for the rest of the day, I couldn't help but grin like a complete idiot.