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"Really?" Matt was elated, about to get even more excited. They were sitting against the wall of Matt's room, having a conversation that they both knew would happen. Matt started clinging onto his friend's shoulder, his stubby feline tail waving, unsure if what he has just heard was true. He had been rejected so many times; this was a very, very pleasant surprise. Strabus, his wolven friend, wasn't nearly as enthusiastic. This wasn't anything to do with his natural pensive manner. He had already regretted his words, and he knew he wasn't going to be able to take them back now, especially since Matt was already bouncing with excitement.

Strabus, procrastinating, hesitated before he repeated himself. "Yeah, Matt, I'll do it," He said with a lot of breath, already weary of this situation. He began to rake his claws against his the cloth of his blue-jeans. Matt would have noticed this as a sign that Strabus was uneasy, but all he could focus on were Strabus' words. "Really! You will?" Matt lunged in front of him to look him in the eyes, planning to check for sincerity, with his hands resting on Strabus' limp shoulders. He waited to hear him say it again, just one more time for luck. "Yes, I'll do it." Strabus leaned his head up against the wall and groaned, eyes closed to avoid his friend's gaze, letting his arms rest motionless at his sides. He was just realizing how much of an ordeal this would be, made worse with Matt's obligatory shenanigans.

Matt has asked him many times before, each time he would refuse, but this time was different. Strabus had just been dumped. He had almost no interest in the girl, and he didn't miss her. She was boring, cold, and dim; he hated being with her. She was, however, a good excuse to say "No," and even Matt, who had just enough conscience not to be a part of an affair, couldn't argue. Now there was nothing to protect him from Matt's pleas or from his own nagging conscience. He watched Matt pine after him for months, who was pretending to be okay and pretending not to care. A broken heart couldn't be anything fun, Strabus had only assumed, having never known the feeling himself, but observing enough from his friend. He knew this wouldn't solve the problem, but maybe it'd make Matt feel a little better, for at least a little while.

"And you're going to do a month of my homework in return, right, my Math and English?" Strabus made sure that that half of the deal was noted; he felt it would be fair for him to get something out of the situation. Matt had actually been the one to offer it, and was prepared to offer a lot more, but Strabus had stopped him at the homework. He believed that taking too much payment would be unfair for his friend, especially since Matt's only asking for him to do it once. He convinced himself that this would be the right thing to do. "Anything!" Matt said before he leapt from the ground in his excitement of the contract being finalized.

Matt was absolutely elated. He had thought about this moment for months, waiting for it, thinking that it might never happen. Perhaps he might have hoped for more honest circumstances, like his more romantic and idealistic fantasies. But it didn't matter to him that much; this was close enough for an opportunist like Matt. He exulted in front of his companion, and then turned to him, leaning into Strabus' face. Strabus almost flinched, but Matt stopped leaving an inch or two between their muzzles.

"So, Straby, where should we do it, huh?" Strabus only mustered to give an empty blink to his question. Matt continued, "My bed, the couch, we could go outside, it's a bit cold but there should be a full moon in a few hours. What do you think?" Matt was floating while talking about these romantic things, but Strabus was cringing while Matt threw those sweet words at him, "I don't know, I don't really care," he looked at the ground as he spoke, talking like a reluctant child would at a dentist. He wasn't as wistful about it as Matt, but more or less nauseated by it. Matt liked inciting a reaction from Strabus: he was always so stoic that Matt took it as a challenge to invoke a response. He also liked seeing Strabus when he got nervous and bothered, because he thought it made Strabus look cuter. Matt noticed, however, that Strabus was distraught, more than anything. When he messed with Strabus he'd usually get a more pleasant reaction, where Strabus was upset but still jestful, but Strabus was as serious as a heart attack.

"Y-," Matt lost his vigor after seeing Strabus' less than desirable reaction, "You could at least pretend this isn't pulling teeth for you." Matt did a lot of things for the sake of Strabus' reaction, but even he had a line, which he knew had already been crossed. He wanted to see Strabus' usual stutter and nervous laugh, but not this, not Strabus slouching and depressed. "Please, try to have some fun from it. Give me a smile or something?" Strabus lifted his head up with Matt's melancholy voice echoing in his head, "all right, the couch, I guess," and he forced an awkward looking teethed smile, but his tail was still limp behind him. Matt grinned with him, grabbed Strabus' arm, and pulled him onto his feet quickly, causing Strabus to stumble. Matt held on to his friend's arm tight and led Strabus into the next room.

Matt was almost prancing as they moved to the next room, Strabus being dragged along with him. Strabus was still slightly unwilling to play along, but he had certainly lightened up. He remembered why he was doing this, and forced himself into a better mood. "It's worth it to see him skip around like that," he thought. Matt opened the door into a small reading room, filled with a few books and shelves, and in the center of which was the aforementioned couch. "Go ahead, sit," Matt gestured to the far side of the two seated couch eagerly, so Strabus obeyed by plopping down rigid into his predesignated spot. Matt climbed on with him with glee into the next spot, adjusting himself until he was comfortable, and finished by leaning his shoulder onto his friend's.

"Reeaady?" Matt stretched out himself along with his words, his head turned up to meet his friend's gaze. Strabus, ready to go along with his friend's little game, croaked "yep," with a less than sincere grin. He wasn't very up to this, but he had an obligation to do it, coming more from his own conscience than from his friend's constant pleas. Matt had placed Strabus' arm around his own shoulder, without very much resistance from Strabus, who let his arm fall limp around his friend and tried to forget about it. He enjoyed Matt's company, but anything touchy was never his thing, with Matt, other animals, family, or even his ex. Just being this close to anyone, any species or gender, forced his fur to stand on end. This was no exception; he could feel his skin crawl and hair churn under his clothes.

Having enjoyed snuggling against his friend, Matt was ready to begin the process, starting by turning to look into Strabus' eyes and lurching forward. Strabus became anxious watching as Matt moved closer and placed both his paws on him. His nerves had gotten much worse feeling Matt's foreign phalanges at his sides, and a stubby orange snout hovering only inches from his own. He panicked, looking for an escape. "It can wait a little longer," he thought. He hurried to think of a way to stop Matt from getting any closer, to stall him, to dawdle about something else, anything else but this.

"Why do you like me," Matt stopped in his tracks, his mouth dropped more than it was before, completely caught off guard by this question, "in, in that way," Strabus finished. He had pushed Matt away with one of his own paws to accentuate the question. It was only a question, a rather half-baked one, but he knew it would buy him a lot of time. Matt liked to talk; he'd love to waste time talking about anything, especially deep or emotional stuff. And Strabus himself was even interested in hearing the answer. He had never been a very curious person, but this has been on his mind for a long time now, months even. "Like, when did this all start?" He knew that this would distract him for a while.

Matt was thoroughly surprised, he never got an opportunity like this, open permission to talk about his feelings with Strabus. Usually Strabus would just weasel out of the conversation every time Matt brought anything like it up. This was a good chance to vent, and maybe to tease his friend a little bit too, hopefully invoke some sweetly shy reactions from his friend, who was now in a better mood. Matt backed off from Strabus only to relax his head onto his lap. Strabus had wanted to object, this position wasn't very much better than before, so close to that area, but stopped himself from doing so. Matt also made sure to steal one of Strabus' paws and hold it onto his own chest. He wanted something to occupy his own paw, but he had to hold it tight because Strabus was softly trying to tug it away.

"Well, if you really want to hear about it," Matt suayed his voice sarcastically, "Then I'll tell you everything." Strabus was trying not to be affected by Matt, who he knew was just trying to tease him, but was diligently listening for the answer to his question. "We met iinn," Matt was thinking, "Gym class, right." Strabus took a second before he realized he was being asked a question, "Oh, yeah yeah, it was the first day of school or something." Matt chuckled from thinking about his own memory, "Then, d'you remember when you hit that raccoon kid with a dodgeball? Uhh, Jeremy, I think."

Strabus honestly hadn't remembered much, aside from the fact that Jeremy had been a pretty belligerent rodent, and it was only the first day of class and he had already been trying to pick fights with others. "Yeah, something like that." Strabus answered after managing to free his paw while Matt was preoccupied with his memories, but Matt just moved his arm up to his friend's chin to play with the soft fur and collar on and around his neck instead. "I saw you; I thought you looked really sexy." Matt emphasized the last word, and Strabus cringed at it. The romantic words and the paws ticking his neck weren't doing much for Strabus' anxiety. "You should wear shorts more often, you look good in them," Matt added to make sure that his friend would be sufficiently affected. Strabus didn't like attention, especially directed at his body, but the compliments still had meaning, even to someone as detached as him. He felt his heart begin to race and blood rush to his cheeks, reddening his skin under his fur.

Strabus hadn't anything to say, he was too busy being thoroughly embarrassed to speak, so Matt went on. "So where was I? OH, and Jeremy's an ass. He deserved it. I thought it was - really cool - that you hit him like that." Matt let out those last words with a slight shake to his voice. He was an avid actor, but he couldn't hide how much meaning was in what he said, and how many more things he meant in addition to "really cool." They both tried to laugh in order to fill a dim silence, "That's when I... well, yeah. It was just something about you, so I made an effort to find you at lunch that day." Strabus should have had his answer but wasn't really enlightened. Matt's infatuation at first sight seemed so strange to him. He had never felt so much as a slight obsession or even a crush if he tried, but Matt could do it completely on accident.

---

Strabus was getting noticeably encumbered by Matt's ardor. He was pondering what Matt had said, trying to make sense of it. Matt liked watching Strabus at the peak of his contemplation, "like a monk," he thought. The one thing Strabus could do well was doing nothing, but that was a little too boring for Matt. He caught an idea, though, one that would make the month of extra homework well worth it. He thought of a good question to interrupt his friend's meditation, which he thought would stir Strabus up for sure. "What did _yoouu_think of me when we met?"

Matt smiled with all his teeth at Strabus, who became lucid suddenly. Strabus knew that Matt was waiting to hear sugary words, something he had always refused his friend, because he hated even the thought of trying to say anything passionate. Strabus had jeers and objections waiting in the back of his throat, but Matt had already guessed what they were. Before Strabus could voice himself, Matt responded, "You promi_ssss_ed." He hissed within the word, a playful threat. Strabus knew that it wasn't fair for him to argue, and that Matt still had his claws a little too close to his own neck.

He began to come up with an answer, but didn't put much effort into his words, "uhh, I think you sat next to me at lunch out of nowhere. You kept hanging around me so I just went with the flow." He looked at Matt staring up at him from his lap, who he could tell was not yet pleased with what he had heard and wanted to hear more, and so he tried to think of anything complimentary to say. All that was on his mind was about the situation he was currently trapped in, about all the romantic shenanigans up to this point, even before the deal, and from that he got his answer. "You were a lot more fun to hang out with than everyone else, I guess, even if you were manipulative," he added, hoping to flatter Matt without the sarcastic edge of his joke being too sharp.

Matt appreciated the joke, and the praise that came along with it, but it wasn't exactly what he had been looking for. He had only dreamed of hearing heartfelt words from his friend: something of true emotion and tender feelings, of which he thought Strabus might have been truly incapable. "Okay, Straby, but how did you feeeel?" Strabus rolled his eyes, but thought up a real answer, hoping that would be the last time he'd get called "Straby". "I don't know, you were really touchy, so I ended up feeling really weird around you." Strabus had spoken smoothly, calmer than Matt had hoped. Matt started to play with the collar of Strabus' shirt; he needed something else to occupy his hands now. "That's the best I'm gon'na get out of you about your emotions, isn't it." Strabus nodded his head. Matt thought Strabus was gaining back too much of his composure, which meant he needed to be pushed back into a nervous state.

"Then talk about me instead." Matt said proudly. "Do you think I'm cute?" That question was a ton of bricks for Strabus, to which he had no idea what to say. "Umm, sure?" He gave what he thought would be the right answer. He looked down at Matt to see whether or not his response was acceptable, although he had a sick feeling it wouldn't be. Matt closed his eyes and shook his head, and took his hand away from Strabus' collar to flick him in the nose.

"No no, details and complements, romantically. Make me feel pretty, Straby!" Matt had tugged on the top button on his friend's shirt, forcing Strabus to look down, giving him a full view of Matt who was now giving him a gentle look, "Please?" He tried to think of something that could sound genuine, but he had nothing really affectionate to say, and his imagination was significantly limited by his own lethargy, so he just complimented the first thing he saw. "Umm, you have pretty... eyes?" He had literally mentioned the first thing he saw, the two azure irises that were directed at him. He forced himself to forge his next words. "Yeah, I like blue-eyed -" and the last word gave him the most trouble, "boys."

Matt blushed under his fur, "Go on." Strabus tried to think of something else. "I like your... tail," Strabus had picked the next obvious detail. "It's short but that's... handsome?" He was almost randomly picking flattering words. However, the pseudo-compliment had worked well, causing Matt to grab Strabus' arm with affection. "D'aw, what else?" He had lifted himself out of Strabus' lap and nuzzled his head under Strabus' muzzle, rubbing his hair all over his friend's chin.

"Well uh," Strabus moved his head around Matt's so he could talk, "You have, cute ears. Cat ears ar-" He was quickly interrupted by Matt, "Lynx, Lynx ears." Matt never appreciated being called a "cat." He didn't like being thought of as domestic or small, and so that word brought out both ire and a slight hiss from him. "Oh, yeah, Lynx ears are really a-adorable," he finished, having two of said ears jabbing into his neck. Matt pulled himself away from Strabus only to come back and peck a kiss on Strabus' fuzzy cheek, managing to push quicker than Strabus could flinch. "Thanks str_aa_b_yy_."

Strabus rubbed his face, almost in disbelief. He had never before had the pleasure, or displeasure, of that gesture, not even from his ex, who wouldn't have dared to do something with so much care. Strabus had already been developing a bizarre feeling within his chest from his forced compliments, but that little stunt had certainly topped it off. "H-hey wait," Strabus was realizing what his friend had just done, "does that count?" Strabus knew the answer before he asked. "You know it doesn't, silly," Matt poked Strabus' soft brown nose. "Yeah."

Matt laid back into Strabus' lap, not very gingerly. "You know, you're pretty hot, too," Matt flirted while popping off the top snap of Strabus' shirt. Strabus fixed his button before Matt could do another. He was used to having his clothing be assaulted by Matt, but it still made his skin and fur crawl. "You have a nice body, too nice to be wearing long sleeves." Matt was now fiddling with the wrists of his shirt. Strabus was trying not to be bothered by Matt's sensitive words. "I- uh, it's cold," He returned a half-thought reply. He wasn't sure what else to say to that. He always wore clothes that weren't revealing, never feeling it very necessary to be ostentatious.

Matt moved his hands down from his friend's neck to his stomach, feeling through the slightly thick shirt. "Abs too. Can you flex them for me?" "I don't- no, I can't," Strabus was getting more uncomfortable, writhing around a little to avoid his Matt's grasps in vain. It was hard to keep Matt from touching him when he was in his lap. "Can I go lower, then?" He said with a more than devious grin plastered halfway across his muzzle. "No! No-no." Strabus' voice was shaken just a little. "Oh it's okay, you're saving it, right?"

Matt was grinning but Strabus was fairly uneasy. "Chill out, Straby, I was joking." Matt gave him an innocent smile, knowing he had gotten the reaction he wanted: nervous, in a sweetly cute way, not a sad way. Strabus wasn't used to anyone touching him so kindly, he would always avoiding contact with anyone, even, and especially, friends like Matt. His paws had started shaking a little, and his feet were cold even within wool socks and shoes.

Strabus wasn't planning on stalling anymore; it obviously wasn't getting him anything in the long run, but only forcing him to endure more of Matt's games. He took a deep breath, calming himself down. He managed to still his shaky appendages. He had been silent for a full minute; Matt had finished playing around and was watching him, patiently, observing how peaceful he seemed to be. It was strange, Matt really couldn't tell which side of Strabus, nervous or meditative, he thought was cuter.

"Hey, uh, you ready?" Strabus finally inquired, having built up the courage necessary to throw himself back into this maelstrom of romance. Matt sat up, "I've been ready for a while." He smiled and cuddled up close to Strabus, who was only lazily complying. Strabus was rigid, looking his friend in the eyes. They're gazes were locked for a minute, Matt smiling and Strabus forcing away a pout for the sake of his friend's smile. Matt seized the moment and started to glide closer to his companion.

Matt stopped, still a fair distance away from Strabus. "What?" Strabus asked, confused. He thought Matt was eager for this, but he noticed that Matt had stopped smiling. "None of that was true, was it?" Matt said with a monotonous voice, speaking like an animal who had lost his hope. Strabus sighed; he was never going to get out of the question game, not now and probably not after, even weeks and months from now it won't be done. And this was no simple question, either; it would require a sincere answer, a real one.

"Umm, the tail part was?" Strabus tried to joke, anything but having to give him a real answer, or trying to sugar coat it to be easy on his friend's feelings. Matt started to grin slightly, but went serious again quickly, "Well I mean, everything I said was true, and more. You're just so..." he thought, "Perfect. Like, everything about you, and it's as if you couldn't do anything wrong, I wouldn't care if you did." Strabus could only be awestruck by the mass and candor of what he heard.

Matt had spoken clearly. These words didn't come from nowhere; they had been prepared and pondered and practiced a lot. A strong majority of Matt's personal thoughts had been devoted to this string of words, these words that represented the reason he would go through so much turmoil with a friend. Strabus didn't know how to respond. He didn't know what he was supposed to say, but he only sat dumbfounded. Everything seemed to mean so much to Matt, and at the same time it would be so trite to him. He was always seeing Matt suffer over things that he didn't even care about.

"So, none of it was?" Matt broke the silence when his friend was still speechless. Strabus, having heard the forlorn tone of Matt's voice, decided that it wouldn't be prudent to lie or obfuscate. He was going to give a true answer, a real one, for the sanity of his friend. "I can't always pretend like I don't care," he was thinking, "I'll just end up actually not caring if I do."

Matt hoped he would be given good news. He wanted the relationship he had dreamed about. The one that wouldn't be the same with anyone else, but would only work with Strabus. It had to be him. He thought that Strabus would be his soul-mate, who would make his life complete. He wished, prayed, that he'd get an answer that would fulfill this wish, something that would provide hope for him.

"I meant the thing about you not being boring, and about you being manipulative." Strabus said in a slight whisper. Matt listened, wanting to focus on every word. "You're weird and you do stuff to annoy me, but that's fun. I like it when you mess with me. That's why I'm your friend. That's why I said yes. You're exciting, and I did this because I knew this would be interesting." It was the longest string of words Matt had ever hear from Strabus, although still very pithy with each thought, and each one played a note in his heart. Matt had an answer, one that still didn't guarantee anything about romance or his fantastic idea of their relationship, but one that would confirm one thing: Strabus did care.

They were still for a few seconds, before Strabus decided it was enough. He had gotten pretty sick of silence and drama for a little while. "You ready now?" Matt woke from a thoughtful trance from which he had been contemplating his friend's statement of at least somewhat affection, "Y-yeah." They were back into position, and the past was repeating itself. They stared the process again, Matt glided in close to him again, and then Matt stopped with space still filling the gap between, again.

"What now?" Strabus voiced genuine concern; he was afraid of what else he might have to say. "Could... Could you lead?" Matt said sweetly. It was a much simpler request than Strabus was expecting, he was a more likely person to take such a role, "alright," he agreed without argument. Strabus complied knowing he would be able to speed the process up himself. He grabbed Matt by his shoulder and slid close to him, hesitating between the last two inches. He had the bizarre feeling again, in the pit of his chest, but he didn't care. He was thinking about Matt.

Strabus clinched his eyes and quickly filled the gap, connecting his lengthy muzzle with Matt's stout one. This was Matt's first kiss and only a single digit for Strabus, and so neither of them were very practiced, and as a result the snout-lock was a sloppy one. However, Matt had many months of passion saved for this moment, moving slightly and racing along with his heart. Strabus, although remaining rigid for the majority of the embrace, had managed to relax himself, almost to the point of sharing in Matt's romantic inebriation.

Matt was more than enjoying this special moment and absorbed every tangible detail. He noticed Strabus' strong grip on his shoulders and neck, the clean smell that maintains itself within Strabus' aura, the cherry-soda taste now radiating into his maw from Strabus. His thoughts continued to gravitate to his precious Strabus. How much he liked Strabus. How close he felt to him. How cute he was. And, most importantly, what he had said. What Strabus had said and meant, the words echoing within his mind that touched his heart.

They pulled away, much earlier than Matt would have liked, but he was happy, and Strabus even exited with a smile, a real one. This was the best moment Matt had ever shared with anyone, and he was glad to have shared it with Strabus, who himself was glad to have shared it with someone more fun than his ex. There was a short period of silence, both staring at each other, which was broken by Matt lunging into a hug with Strabus, who fell onto his back with Matt on top, but luckily with a soft cushioned couch beneath him.

"Thanks Straby." Strabus was being squeezed tightly by his friend, and he was obliged enough to hug back. Nothing was said, for a few long minutes, they were just silent, together. While Matt was busy embracing the moment, Strabus was still in thought over the situation, and his feelings, overwhelming feelings. They were indecipherable to him, nauseating and intoxicating, always getting in the way and always more or less undesirable for him

He was smiling, though. And maybe, he was starting to think, this nausea isn't that bad.