After a late-night outing, Lorenzo decides he needs to vent and visits one of his old friends.

This is a short story set in my VN universe and is canon!

Story/Characters©:iconyoung-fever

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The wolf-man shivered. He shivered despite the thick layers of clothing that seemed too small for him. His denim jacket stood wide open, the cold, winter wind blowing against his broad chest and thick gut that hung below his belt. The wolf took a moment to touch at his gut with one paw, his mouth turning into a grimace. It was an embarrassing reminder to the older wolf that his “young glory days” had long passed. Perhaps it was for the best?

He took the time to pull out a cigarette, wrinkling his nose at the cheap smell from the mass-produced thing. The smell was far from what he was used to and he snorted in a vain attempt to keep the smell from reaching his mouth. All the same, he took a lighter from his jean pocket, flicking once, twice, until a short curl of flames erupted from the small metal lighter. As he took the cigarette in between two of his fingers, he almost dropped it as his hands shook violently and cursed silently before managing to regain his dexterity and lighting his cigarette.

Despite the offending stench, the familiar taste and scent of nicotine was still there, even if it was faint. Slowly the stink turned into something more recognizable that began coating the inside of his nose and throat. He held his breath, keeping that warm and thick smoke deep inside his chest and lungs before giving a deep breath. He could feel the small bit of soreness that moments ago had worked its way deep inside of his muscles starting to vanish. There was a feeling of lightness that filled the inside of Lorenzo’s head. The sensation allowed his body and mind to relax and he found himself leaning against the wet brick wall behind him.

“Tastes like shit, but nothing beats a daily dose of Nicotine.” Lorenzo gave a small chuckle towards himself before taking a deep drag from his cigarette once more.

He closed his eyes, listening to the soft drops of rain as they slapped against the cracked asphalt beneath his feet and the low hum of the wind blowing through the abandoned alleyway.


A sound akin to the crack of a whip followed by a low boom interrupted Lorenzo’s thoughts. The small, high feeling he had felt a moment ago began to dissipate quickly. His ears twitched slightly, ringing from the sound of thunder and he huddled closer towards the wall behind him. He could only grumble under his breath as he felt the rain beginning to grow heavier, soaking through his clothes and his thick light brown fur. The realization of tonight's events seemed to grow clearer and clearer with each thick coating of water that fell against his body.

Was it that bad, if he just stayed out here for a while? There was nowhere to go this time of the night anyway. Lorenzo looked at the watch on his wrist, an older model unlike the smartwatches many people wore nowadays. The pure silver watch glistened despite the low light-brown lighting coming off of the lamp posts in the alleyway. There was a small sense of pride that accompanied Lorenzo every time he looked it over. His eyes looked over his prized possession with a sense of both longing and regret.

How long had he had this watch for anyway? 10 years? It had been one of the last things his father had given him, shortly before his untimely demise and it was a small reminder of his past… both good and bad that gave him mixed feelings. The two hands read just before midnight. There had to be somewhere he could be that wasn’t here. The thought of sitting in his office, working on bill payments, and adding up paychecks, surprisingly didn’t fill him with any sort of eagerness.

Midnight wasn’t anything to a late nighter like him. There was too much quiet in sleep, too much time to ruminate at things, and people better left forgotten. If only it were that easy now. Those times had begun to fade, ever since “he” had come in and complicated things. Now the wolf was left in a state he hadn’t felt since he was a young adult some twenty years ago.

A small throbbing ache echoed in Lorenzo’s head, reverberating off his hard skull and sending small shockwaves of pain throughout his head.

Lorenzo growled and heaved his half-finished cigarette against the brick wall, causing embers of ash to scatter as they landed in a puddle of water. The small memory of his new worker cascaded quickly into downtrodden thoughts of his current predicament. What the hell was he going to do? He didn’t have time to be feeling sorry for himself, at least not more than he usually did. He had a club to take care of and Freddy to look after. But his normal medicine of whiskey was growing steadily weaker and weaker against the flood water of thoughts that threatened to erupt and drown his brain.

Lorenzo walked solemnly into the street, the long shadow of his tall frame washing over the ground as he emerged from out of the dim alleyway and into the bright yellows and overly saturated browns of Vintage Street. His pupils shrunk back as he entered the street, no longer needing to see through the dark blanket of the night. Nausea overcame Lorenzo and he bent over as the shaken contents of the night threatened to come up. Thankfully the feeling passed, only leaving him with a sour and strong taste in his mouth. It was times like this he thought about quitting drinking.

He knew his destination. It had been a few months since he had been there, but living in this city for most of his life it wasn’t hard to remember where to go. He hunkered down, keeping his head low as the rain continued to fall from the sky, cold and hard. Before too long the wolf’s denim jacket had turned a dark shade of midnight blue, a vast contrast from the normally faded baby blue coloring. Still, he walked grimly down the street, stepping cautiously over cracks and holes on the sidewalk.

This time of the night, Lorenzo wasn’t surprised that he was the only one on the streets. A few cars passed by him, but otherwise, the night was quiet. Save for the low boom of thunder overhead. The sound caused Lorenzo’s upstanding triangle shaped ears to curl slightly each time the sound of thunder passed overhead.

The place he was heading was just down the street and he found his pace starting to quicken, his long and aching legs finding newfound strength in them. His body had started to ache again, a grim reminder of the fight he had gotten into earlier in the day. He stopped after a few minutes as he shoved open one of the glass see-through doors to the cafe.

Lorenzo had no reservations as he began to shake himself dry violently. Thick droplets of water flew from his body and landed onto the polished floor underneath of him. He grimaced as he looked himself over, his fur poofing up like some kind of pomeranian. He heard the soft scrape of a chair nearby, right before he tilted his head in that direction. Despite the heavy and tall woman’s surprising appearance he could only smile as he saw his old friend.

“L-Lorenzo?” The woman blushed and waddled over. She didn’t even bother to take the dirty washcloth in her hands, dropping it right onto the table she had been sitting at.

Lorenzo could never get over seeing her. He had seen his fair share of large women, but Cassie was much more than that. Despite her timid and meek face, she had been one of the few people he called a friend. Even in the dim, ambience themed lighting of the cafe, her bright golden coat shined. It suited her, Lorenzo had always thought. No matter how bad things looked, she was never one to shy away from giving a bright fanged smile to anyone who needed it.

Lorenzo was immediately smothered by a pair of thick and pudgy arms that caused the older wolf to groan in surprise. Despite the obese lab’s outward appearance, she had a hidden strength that always left him mildly amused. He let her hug him for a minute, before giving a small cough of impatience. The warm and thick blanket of fur and fat let go of him abruptly, nearly shoving him away.

“S-Sorry about that. It's been a long time though. Is there anything I can get you!? You want the usual?” Cassie’s voice started picking up pace, and her normally quiet and meek tone began to turn into something higher pitched. Her ocean-blue eyes seemed to turn a lighter shade before Lorenzo blew out an indigent breath. Cassie seemed to get the message and giggled as her yellow cheeks reddened, turning them pink.

“Sorry, you can sit down at the front, nobody else is coming in.” Cassie waddled over to the door. Her wide thighs and plump buttocks bumped softly against Lorenzo’s more sturdy and tough frame as she slipped by him.

The open sign covering the front doors was flipped over by Cassie before she headed to the frontend counter. it wasn’t an issue for her to close a little bit early especially with business being like it had been lately.

Lorenzo had always been mildly amused by the cheerful attitude of his long time friend, it was a sight to behold on the now rare occasions he managed to stop by to visit. There was also something curious to behold when the two of them were seen by other people. Lorenzo with his shaggy, woodland brown fur and the small bit of cream-colored fur that started at the top of his forehead and expanded outward from that point to just above his nose. His left eye milky white, with a thin but long scar that started from above his eyelid and to just above his left chin. He could faintly see in his left eye and he was willing to count his blessings he hadn’t lost all vision in that pupil.

His chest was tight and thick, a noticeable contrast to the small gut that hung slightly from the waistband of his pants. It was a pitful reminder that his body was no longer handling the gratuitous amounts of liquor and late-night eating he was prone to doing. Sometimes when he was busy changing his clothes or just coming out of the shower it was hard to ignore the physical changes overcoming him. Still, he noticed the small bit of muscle that remained, mostly in his thick arms and it helped to alleviate some of his worries. There was still some strength in this middle-aged wolf.


Lorenzo was certain he’d look downright fat if it wasn’t for his tall figure, coming in at a good seven feet, give or take an inch or two. It also helped his increasingly growing late-night escapades allowed him to burn off some much-needed calories and pent up aggression. There was only so much he could stave off though. He gave himself a year or two of his terrible eating and drinking habits, before his “daddy physique” was covered up by a thick layer of pudge and adipose.

Cassie on the other hand seemed to have taken in all of the fat that Lorenzo was staving off with his exercise and late-night endeavors. The Lab woman had always been big, but over the past few years she had grown from thick to downright obese. Her normally small breasts over the years had turned into plump beach balls that covered the majority of her chest, despite their immense weight and size, they retained a degree of tightness that kept them from sagging. Her stomach on the other hand spilled from the tight confines of her dress pants and the bottom of her button-up shirt, constantly struggling to stay contained.

Lorenzo strode over towards the bar counter, sighing as he placed his forearms on the counter. The polished marble counter felt cold to the touch, even against the stormy background outside he could do little to hide the shiver that came from him. He planted himself on one of the numerous bar stools that dotted the outside of the counter. The seat was chilly, but he could already feel his warm body heating it up.

A moment later Cassie followed close behind him, passing by as she gave a quick flourish of her hand while she grabbed a small styrofoam coffee cup, her other hand pushing the nozzle down from the coffee dispenser. Despite her weight, when it came to her job, she moved like a dancer. She gracefully slid the cup ever so slightly over the counter towards Lorenzo.

Lorenzo rubbed at his temple, the start of a headache forming before using one hand to roughly grab the cup, yelping as a small drop of the steaming liquid scalded his hand.

"Goddamnit!" Lorenzo glared at the cup with venom before rubbing the spot where he was burned. The pain faded away, but Cassie handed him a few napkins all the same.

"You ok?" Cassie asked, her voice coming out loud and hyper and Lorenzo tried to settle her with a dismissive wave of his paw.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm just a little bit distracted is all." Lorenzo reached for the cup again, this time a bit more gently and with both hands. He lifted the cup to his lips, exposing a set of sharp and slightly yellowed fangs before it was drowned by a small wave of muddy water. He gulped loudly his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as the scalding hot liquid burned against his long tongue before flowing down his throat. The coffee was refreshing, spreading its warm, if bitter fingers throughout his insides.

Cassie placed a gentle and pudgy paw on top of Lorenzo's hand as he placed the half-empty cup back onto his side of the counter. She looked at him, her brow in a furrowed way and Lorenzo looked up at her before turning his head away giving a small snort of disdain.

For a moment Cassie struggled to speak. Her throat grew tight and her jaw refused to unclench before she tried to remember what Lorenzo had taught her and gave a deep long sigh. She exhaled deeply, partly in frustration and partly in concern for her friend. It was hard to talk to Lorenzo on most days and she was still amazed Lorenzo considered her a friend. He didn’t have many of those, especially now and she wasn’t sure if he ever really did.

"What's wrong, Lorenzo? You usually don't come here unless something is up." Cassie pried gently as they played their "game". Lorenzo was stubborn and Cassie knew he required a small bit of pressure before he'd open up. She knew he hadn't come here just for her company, as much as that thought would bring her comfort. Looking at his face she could see something in his eyes she had only glimpsed at once in a blue moon. Sadness. It was a rare sight from the normally fierce-looking wolf-man and she felt privileged that he felt comfortable around her to let his barriers down.

"What a guy can't come and just visit an old friend?" Lorenzo gave a bitter chuckle before he took a moment to run a rough paw through his unkempt head fur. Cassie noticed a few small silver hairs in stark contrast against his otherwise almond colored “hair”.

Cassie rubbed Lorenzo’s hand softly, moving up and down in a rubbing motion against the top of his exposed hand reassuringly before he gave a heavy sigh. "Lorenzo... you know you can talk to me, I wish you came here to visit but I know you want to talk. Is it about.."

"No." Lorenzo cut her off harshly. The word came out in almost a growl and Cassie took a step back. She wasn’t afraid that he would hurt her, but the aggressive growl sent shivers down her spine all the same.

"I mean yes... I mean I don't know!" Lorenzo slammed a fist down on the marble counter, causing the salt and pepper shakers beside him to shake and his coffee cup to wobble dangerously. He laid his head on the table.

Lorenzo's chest tightened and he could feel himself shaking before he clenched his fists tightly together. His long and groomed nails dug painfully into the palms of his hand. It was enough to stop his shaking body and he lifted his head to look at Cassie. She didn't say anything, looking him over with wide innocent eyes. The blue of them reminded Lorenzo of the sea and once again he had that thought of simply sailing in the waters or perhaps just running into the woods that surrounded this city. Until he thought about Freddy.

Freddy with his long slender figure and his emerald green eyes that shined whenever he talked to his adopted father. He couldn't leave him behind. It was already a struggle for the two of them to talk about much else besides the club. The numerous bantering between the two had grown cooler as of late. It used to be easy to read his son, but now it felt like the two saw each other through a glass wall.

What kind of man had he become? Lorenzo had promised to take care of him and here he was.. closing the club early and sauntering off to let off some steam and hide away from everyone. He was some kind of person. No, he was just.. weak.

"It’s complicated. I.. I think that I might be falling in love." Lorenzo said the words so low they came out as barely more than a whisper. For a moment he was afraid he'd have to say it again, but Cassie smiled brightly at him before squeezing him tightly, pushing all her weight against him. He felt her breasts squishing against the back of his head and he gasped out in surprise before snapping his jaws at her in a warning. She quickly released her hold before sighing.

"That's great news, though. Lorenzo, I'm happy for you, honest." Cassie smiled at him warmly, a faint smile that gave a glimpse of her small, perfectly white fangs. Her fat cheeks combined with her joyful smile to give her an almost childlike look that made him calm down a bit.

"There's more than that though." Lorenzo muttered. The rain outside started to pick up, thick and heavy raindrops slapping against the front, large pane windows. He took a moment to sip at the rest of his coffee, the undiluted black coffee was bitter, but it kept him awake and that's all he was worried about.

"What do you mean?" Cassie frowned as something flashed between her eyes, and she narrowed her eyes in concern before speaking again. "Is it about Melissa?"

Lorenzo didn’t say anything as he put his cup onto the counter. For a moment his eyes opened wide before narrowing back down in that half-glazed way they normally looked at the world.

"Maybe."

"Lorenzo you know... you can’t keep beating yourself over this. It's not your fault."

"Bullshit! You can't say that not after.. after." Lorenzo rubbed roughly at his eyes feeling tears threatening to come. His eyes were burning and he could feel a dampness on his left forearm.

"Lorenzo, stop. Do you think that this helps anyone? You're an amazing guy, I'm glad you're my friend. And Melissa... I miss her too, a lot."

"You aren't the reason she's dead though. If I had just… given up the club or taken another loan."

"You couldn't. You told me the bank wouldn’t give you another loan. You know just like me the companies don't care for us Anthros. You did all you could... you did what you thought was right."

Lorenzo growled before shoving his barstool to the ground, wincing as he felt a sharp pain against his arm. A harsh reminder of tonight's escapade. He looked down to see a small cut on his knuckles through the thick brown fur.

"Shit!" he roughly grabbed a napkin, dabbing at the crimson liquid seeping out of one of his knuckles, a small sting accompanied his rough touch before Cassie gingerly grabbed at his hand looking him over.

Cassie's face darkened as she realized where it came from and an unexpected growl escaped her thin black lips. "You're still doing that!? What do you think, you're some big bad night wolf, some savor of the ghetto?"

"It barely even hurts, I'm fine." Lorenzo looked away from Cassie before a small hiss escaping his lips. Cassie gently touched around the cut, flipping his hand over and rolling his sleeves up. She bent down, Her thick and fat fingers grabbed at a small rectangle plastic box underneath the counter. Her breasts pushed against her chins and she found herself panting heavily as she got back to her feet. The struggle was a reminder to Cassie just how overweight she had gotten over the past years.

Despite that Lorenzo had always been one of the few to pay her weight no mind. She had always been fearful of Lorenzo. The way he scowled at everyone he looked at and the way his body always seemed tense as if he was preparing for a fight. Melissa had almost made Cassie cry when she had introduced her new boyfriend to the large lab a few years back. Barely muttering a greeting until Melissa had punched her new love in the stomach causing the wolf to groan before giving a cheerful if pained greeting towards her.

Now Lorenzo had grown close enough to Cassie over the years to become more talkative. It turned out he was a lot nicer than he appeared, even if he claimed he couldn't stand Redwood. She had seen the way he tried to help the people of the city. Sneaking a meal or two towards the homeless and on occasion, he’d buy drinks for everyone at the bars the trio frequented. Yeah, Lorenzo was a lot softer than he appeared and Cassie, while reluctant at first, started to admit that he was a good fit for her sheep best friend, who kept his gruff nature in check with her fiery one.

"Here use this." Cassie opened the first aid kit as she placed it on the counter in front of Lorenzo. He grumbled but grabbed the small bottle of peroxide, holding a napkin over the top as he popped the cap off. A moment later he dabbed at his knuckles hissing slightly, but otherwise not saying a word.

Lorenzo placed the bottle back onto the table, screwing the cap back on before muttering a small word of thanks. He bent down while picking up his overturned seat, placing it back against the countertop. Plopping himself back into his seat, a loud groan escaped his lips as he prepared for an earful.

"You can’t keep going out and doing this." Cassie crossed her arms against her chest, squishing her breasts against her thick arms.

"Well you know, nobody is doing anything in this godforsaken city. You'd think in one of the few anthro cities people would try to help each other. Oh, who am I kidding, people have never been good or nice. Especially Not in this city."

"Then let the police handle things. You think this is honoring Melissa's Memory!? You going out and fighting some purse-snatchers or two-time robbers? Where did you get those bloody knuckles from, hmmm?" Cassie slapped a hand against the counter firmly planting it in front of Lorenzo who scoffed.

"Bunch of guys from the old gang. Didn't recognize them though. Probably new blood, it seems like that’s all I see now. Bunch of fucking upstarts with itchy fingers and small dicks."

"What the hell are you thinking!? What if one of them has a gun.. or stabs you?"

"Oh one of them tried to. Don't think he'll be trying again anytime soon."

"You didn't…"

"Nahhhh. I just broke his arm. Lucky I didn't break his other one.” Lorenzo couldn’t hide the small smirk that crossed his lips. “His friend didn’t even stick around, the fucking hyena. I swear he pissed himself too, could smell it coming off of him as he ran out the alleyway."

Cassie breathed a sigh of relief. She couldn't say that it would have been a big deal if some asshole gang member ended up kicking it early. But she knew despite Lorenzo's supposed callousness he wasn’t that far gone and she wasn’t either. She frowned as she heard Lorenzo laughing.

"This isn't funny you know. If somebody finds out you're the one who's attacking that crime family.." Cassie didn’t need to say more. Maybe in the past, the Longhorn family had mostly been a crime family in name only. Now though over the past decade they had become the most ruthless and violent crime family on the eastern United States coast. Slavery, forced prostitution, and fight clubs were just a few of the things the Longhorn Family had dipped their fingers in. And here was Lorenzo targeting them along with various other criminals across the city.

"Oh please, I'm careful. I cover myself in that nasty anti scent balm. And I always wear a ski mask. Nobody is going to find out a goddamn thing."

"And again what about if you get stabbed or shot?" Cassie placed her hands against her wide hips.

Lorenzo shrugged his shoulders. Not even bothering to look away as he spoke. "Guess it's just my time. It would be fitting for a guy like me, right?" Lorenzo went back to sipping the rest of his coffee and barely had dropped the cup onto the counter a moment before he was slapped savagely across the face. His head swung to the side and he didn’t say a thing, barely feeling the stinging blow despite the strength beneath it.

"You're awful." Cassie could feel tears filling her eyes. Her already bright blue eyes looked even bigger as she cried. In that moment she felt a hatred and pity towards Lorenzo she hadn’t felt before. How could he just do this, not thinking about anybody else, but himself.

Lorenzo grimly sat there with his head down, a weight filling his chest as he listened to his friend crying. That's what he did right? Ruined people's lives? Maybe it was punishment for his criminal past? Or maybe it was because he had been stupid enough to truly believe that both prey and predator animals could get along with humans. He could only sit there staring at the small grains of coffee grounds left in his cup.

"If that's all you want then you're an idiot. I thought you cared about me, about Freddy. What about all the people you bought together at your club?"

"You know as well as I do. Nobody gives a fuck about that club. It's was a stupid pipe dream of mine and Melissa’s. It was tainted when I built the fucking place. This whole fucking city is just cursed."

Lorenzo slammed a fist down on the table. He couldn't hold back the tears that threatened to come forth. He let them flow as he felt the warm and salty tears flow down his face, through his thick fur and down to his chin.

"It’s because I built that place with no fucking knowledge we got into debt and it's because of that I went to the old gang and.. and…" Lorenzo placed both his hands over his face, sobbing angry and bitter tears. He wanted to throw things to scream and yell and curse at everyone until his throat was sore and hoarse… even with his years-long friend though he couldn't break through and expose himself so openly. Instead, he just sat there with tears running down his face.

"I.. I'm in love with a guy.. but that's not the worst part. It's the fact he's a goddamn human. I wouldn't be surprised if my wife didn't come back from the dead and throttle me until I'm dead.” Lorenzo sat there, his thick and muscled arms covering his head as if he could cover the shame of defiling his now-dead wife’s memory.

When he had first saved that human from that alley, he wasn't sure why he had done so. Perhaps he thought about his former wife's wish to see humans and anthros come together or perhaps it had been that he couldn't stand the thought of seeing anyone, even a human abused and mistreated. He hadn’t thought when he rescued the human, trying his best to ignore the sharp smell of iron as blood fell from the nearly dead man. The young one had felt almost lifeless, his body had been heavy and Lorenzo had worried he might have already died in his arms. Thankfully his club had only been a few blocks away and he had slung him over his shoulder, taking long heavy steps back to the club.

The club had thankfully been closed for delivery and Lorenzo had little trouble slipping through the emergency fire exit in the back and shoving the door aside with one hard shove of his shoulders. He had gingerly dropped Hiro onto the large couch that usually served as Lorenzo's bed before going to call one of his old friends. A street doctor called The Healer.

The call had been quick and despite biting his lip as he heard the charges he didn't refuse and simply urged him to get here quickly. He had spent the next hour or two looking at him. His caramel color skin had been slick with sweat and fresh blood and the way his chest seemed to struggle to move up and down as he breathed. Each breath sounding forced and labored, as if his body was struggling to make one final breath.

It hadn't taken long too before Lorenzo had come to the steadfast conclusion that he wasn't going to make it. For some reason, that thought had troubled him as his thoughts went to his adopted son. This man couldn't have been much older than Freddy, hell maybe the same age. He wondered about when you passed, was there anything after this life? Or did you just end up as some cold body in six feet under? The thing was despite his hate towards humans the thought of his adopted son had made him realize this was somebody who might never get to find love, to be married, his parents would ache over their child being gone.

But he had pulled through, somehow. The man later found out to be called Hiro had ended up recovering and as supposed payment had begged to work for Lorenzo. Of course, Lorenzo didn’t want some wetback human working at his club, but now here he was. A human working at his club.. and he was in love with him.

Lorenzo could feel the heat as it started to creep up his neck and to his cheeks. An unceremonious blush covering his whole face. He could feel his senses tingling. Everything felt so warm, and he couldn't resist the urges that were spreading down to his nether regions. It was worse than he thought.

"So? Is there an issue because he's a human? Lorenzo I… I'm surprised, to say the least, but.. you can’t push away from this. I can tell it’s bothering you to say the least" Cassie wiped a finger against Lorenzo's cheek, wiping away a stray tear that dangled lazily on the surface of Lorenzo's chin. She leaned in to hug against Lorenzo's side, feeling the tightness of his broad shoulders and his thick back before pulling away from him.

"What the hell am I supposed to do, huh? I've never had to deal with these goddamn feelings. After Melissa died I thought no, I knew I wouldn't be able to love somebody, and this now this!?” Lorenzo pushed aside Cassie, feeling something coming up in his stomach, like he was going to throw up.

Cassie could only stare at him for a moment, but she didn’t resist him and stood there. Partly she was filled with surprise, but there was also a sense of pity. Lorenzo had never been one to open up his feelings, at least not when he didn’t want to. Here he was though, admitting his confused thoughts and feelings towards somebody he felt he was in love with. It wasn’t even the fact it was a male. Cassie was open-minded. In this day and age it wasn’t uncommon to have same-sex species relationships even among anthros, but she knew that Lorenzo was old-fashioned and she could scarcely imagine how he felt towards the idea.


“Listen to me. I know you’re worried about your feelings, but you can’t just bottle them up. I’m not saying you have to be with this human, but you need to admit how you feel to them. Nothing is going to be resolved if you can’t at least be open with them.”

Lorenzo simply scoffed, a loud snort of disdain escaping his lips as he stared into the bottom of his coffee cup, wishing more than ever it was full of liquor. For now, he’d have to suffice with something else.

Lorenzo dug into his jean pockets, pushing a paw past the rough leather of his wallet before his paw touched something cool and smooth. He pulled out his lighter, the silver thing shimmering despite the low lighting in the cafe. He reached into his breast pocket to pull out a cigarette, flicking his lighter as he began to take a deep drag.

Cassie eyed him with a look equal parts disgust and annoyance. “Do you have to smoke in here?” Cassie’s voice was almost a whine, but she didn’t protest anymore until she noticed the cigarette in his mouth, as he pushed his lighter back into one of his jean pockets.

“Wait is that, a cigarette?”

“So what about it?”

Cassie couldn’t hide the slight smirk that crossed her face, exposing her double chins more promentialy. “I thought you only like cigars? Finally decided to think about your health or?” Cassie clapped her hands together excitedly, almost bouncing on the spot.

“Don’t tell me, did…”

“Cassie, don’t.” Lorenzo grumbled under his breath, just as he blew out a circle of smoke that wafted in the air before fading as it headed towards the other side of the room.

“You do care about him. Don’t you?” Cassie couldn’t hide the smile that continued to plaster her face. She wanted to hug him, but she knew better than to express her happiness in that way towards him.

Despite the fact Lorenzo had been the former husband of her best friend, she didn’t feel any anger towards him for supposedly moving on. It had been five years, long enough she thought that he deserved to move on. He had always been a grumpy guy, but she could always see the slight smirk on his face when he had been around Melissa. The way his normally rigid muscles would relax, ever so slightly, Even with the fact of a prey species being so close to him.

Now though he just seemed to always be lost in thought, he had never really explained to her what had happened to Felicia. Cassie thought that Melissa must have been in some accident or finally be caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. It wouldn’t have surprised her, Felicia had always been one to go after a good story, damn the consequences. She thought that Lorenzo was just taking the blame for not protecting her, but a part of her always felt that maybe there was more to the story. Whenever she tried to mention it though, he’d just clam up and look at her with eyes that didn’t seem to be fixated on the here and now.

“His name’s Hiro… He works for me. Started a few weeks ago actually. He’s a good kid, a little shy and unsure of a lot of things, but I can’t blame him. Especially with him being a human in this kind of city.” Lorenzo took another drag from his cigarette, his eyes seemed to be looking at nothing and everything at the same time. Looking around himself at the low hanging bulbs from the ceiling and then towards outside. The storm outside was picking up strength and thick raindrops coated the cafe windows, obscuring the view outside.

“But there’s something about him that makes him… different. I wish I could explain it better. I guess for one he’s not like most human’s he doesn’t seem to have that superiority about him. Hell in fact he seems unsure about a lot of shit, but ironically he kind of reminds me of Felicia. He has this strength about him and... He gets along great with Freddy.”

Lorenzo snuffed out the cigarette in the small trickle of mud water in his cup and sighed as he ran a hand through his mangy head fur, working out the small knots in it.

“Look I don’t know what else to say. Maybe I’m just getting old, or maybe it’s hitting me that I’m not going to be around forever and... Ehh, forget it.” Lorenzo stood up out of his seat, reaching a hand in his pocket and slapping a five-dollar bill onto the counter. “Thanks for the coffee.”

Lorenzo started to turn around, heading for the front door. He took one long look outside, sighing as he noticed the thick rain that fell onto the streets outside, the rain heavy and thick enough he could vaguely make out the faint outline of the brightly colored neon signs outside.

Cassie placed a thick and pudgy paw on his shoulder, gently holding him close from behind. “Lorenzo.. I’d tell you to stay for the night, but I know how stubborn you are. I can’t tell you if you should give this Hiro guy a try or not, but.. Talk to him about this or somebody. You know I’m always here to listen, even if you can be thick-headed.” Cassie wrapped both of her thick arms around Lorenzo’s stocky body, squeezing him as tight as she could, before releasing him. Lorenzo had to admit it felt comforting if only a brief amount.

If she wasn’t one of the only people I could talk to in this city. Lorenzo pushed the thought out of his mind. This wasn’t the first time he had the thought that perhaps if he hadn’t met Melissa maybe he’d be with Cassie. She might have been a bit on the heavier side, but he had known her long enough that he felt a sort of kinship with her. Which was why he didn’t feel he could ever be more than friends with her.

Lorenzo rubbed the back of his head, scratching at his tangled fur before crossing his arms standing there awkwardly before muttering something. “I guess I better go. It’s getting late. I need to stop back by the club to go over some finances.” His voice trailed off at that last word, he wanted to explain to her there was more than simply possibly being in love with somebody. The state of his club for one with his unexpected finances was one of the issues, but he didn’t want to bother Cassie anymore than he already had. A deep pit seemed to have formed in his stomach, a result of both shame and pride that fought against one another like two rabid dogs. He felt a tingle at embarrassment at having opened up to his best friend about some of his issues. He was a proud wolf after all. Supposedly of semi-nobility from his ancient ancestors though he doubted the validity of those claims.

Lorenzo stepped over to the door, almost bounding across with Cassie following right behind with heavy and slow steps. Lorenzo took a look outside, already shivering despite still being inside the warm cafe.

“Lorenzo, I meant what I said though, just be safe, ok? I know I can’t talk you out of everything, but at least make sure you stop getting into random fights, If I heard on the news or through the city you ended up... De” She couldn’t finish her sentence before Lorenzo uncharacteristically placed a large but gentle hand against one of her soft and padded shoulders.

“Pfff ain’t nobody can stop this wolf, I’d like to see somebody try.” Lorenzo chuckled, a good-natured chuckle that made Cassie’s heart slowly untangle itself and she gave a small smile before nodding.

“Yeah you’ve got a pretty hard head, I’d be surprised if anybody could knock you out.”

“Fuck. You.” Lorenzo growled and rolled his eyes, before pulling aggressively at the front double doors, taking one last look at Cassie who waved at him, her other hand one of her wide hips.

“Heh, I’ll see you around Lorenzo. Don’t be gone for too long. And don’t be afraid to bring Freddy, I haven’t seen him since he was a teenager.”

“He’s still a teenager, at least he acts like it.”

“Oh leave him alone. I know you love him, besides he’s 18 and you’re his father. I’m not surprised if he comes off a little stubborn like somebody I know.”

Lorenzo snorted before a heavy huff escaped his lips and he started to head outside, pulling up the collar of his denim jacket. The strong winds blew through his body, and Lorenzo was thankful for the thick fur that covered him from head to toe. Even so, the cold air was bitter and seeped through his thick fur and onto his foreskin underneath.

Lorenzo kept his head dipped low, the rain continued to fall and in the distance, he could hear the loud distinct boom of thunder, as his ears twitched towards the sound. There were few things Lorenzo was afraid of, but he felt something inside of him stir at the sound. A small ancient part of him wanted to run off somewhere. That small part of his ancestors was speaking to him through his DNA and sensed danger. Lorenzo brushed off the notion, stuffing it deep inside of him. Even though he could feel the hairs raised on his neck he did his best to ignore the tingling sensation.

Lorenzo became lost in thought as he thought about the conversation he had just had. Am I allowed to let things go? I loved her, right? Somebody like me don’t deserve to be happy… How could I try and move on after what I did?

Suddenly Lorenzo was no longer walking downtown, the sky was bright and sunny, a few clouds lazily drifting through the sky high above. He could feel the knots inside his stomach straining heavily against a barely visible stomach, covered by tight and thick abdominal muscles that showed off easily beneath the slim-fit T-shirt he had on. Even now it felt strange wearing casual clothes. He had been used to wearing fancy suits, custom-made, flashing clothing that showed off his status.

He sat in a small car, despite the size the inside almost seemed bigger. The cushions are red velvet and saturated in the smell of cheap cigarettes and booze. A thick almost overbearing smell that greatly contrasted the otherwise sleek looking car. He almost regretted leaving behind the gang, but he knew it was for the better. And now here he was. Doing one last job, after years away. He looked around the otherwise vacant street, waiting for the client to come along.

What the hell was he doing? He had promised Melissa that he was done with this shit, they had been together for a few years now and they were married, wasn’t that enough? He wished it was, but he knew that the bar was going under fast... The bills were piling up and he needed some money quickly. Wasn’t that why he had walked back to the gang, asking for one last job. He had never felt more like some mangy dog then that moment, he wasn’t one for asking for help, but he knew he needed to figure something out, despite his “now” wife’s promises that they’d figure something out.

He was interrupted by his thoughts as the person beside him tapped him on the shoulder. An up-start buck with a huge chip on his shoulder. It amused Lorenzo somewhat despite the buck’s thin and small frame, his face showed a mixture of both annoyance and disgust as he eyed Lorenzo here and there with red-rimmed eyes. Lorenzo could smell the scent of weed on him. Had the gang gone this far downhill since he had left, years ago?

The gang had stood for something in the past, his adopted father had wanted to bring the city together. Now though he was long gone and all that Lorenzo had was memories, bitter ones, and the sad realization that perhaps his dream had simply been that, a dream.

Suddenly Lorenzo was somewhere else now, the sun had set and he had somebody in his arms. A small sheep, who even as the life faded from her had white wool that was brighter than the sun. she looked like an angel even now and Lorenzo could feel something inside of his chest break, his lungs had stopped and his heart felt like it had shattered into a million pieces.

“It’s not your fault. It’s ok, hun. I don’t blame you.” A small hand caressed his face and he grabbed it with all the strength he could muster as if he could take some of the life inside of him and will it into the small sheep that lay in his lap in a crumpled heap. Something wet and slick fell from her body in a great torrent.

Lorenzo couldn’t hold back the tears that fell from his face, ugly sob’s escaped his lips and he could hardly see his wife through his tear-filled eyes. He held onto her, begging her to stay with him. He couldn’t lose her... Not like this. Not when it had been his fault.

“Please don’t go. I’m sorry. I’m sorry, stay with me we can leave this city…”

Despite the weakness in her body, Lorenzo felt a sudden grip on his arm that was stronger than any he had felt before. His wife’s blue eyes grow cool as ice. A light blue that sends shivers down Lorenzo’s spine and froze his chest.

“No... Don’t ever say that. I need you to stay here, promise me you won’t give up our job. I know you don’t always believe it, but there’s good people here, even the humans. Promise me you won’t give up… you’ll keep that place of our’s as a welcome place for everyone in this city!” Again that grip that almost crushed his hands and Lorenzo struggled to get the words out, not because he didn’t want to, but he knew this would be the last words he would be able to say to his wife.

“I-I promise. I love you” He bites the bottom of his lips painfully, ignoring the fresh salty taste that streamed down his lip and onto his chin. The sheep’s grip loosened, and he held her there nuzzling against her cheek, not caring about the wet and warm blood that seeped into his fur. She smiled at his words before he felt her relax as she closed her eyes softly.

“I love you too, Lorenzo. More than I ever got to show you. Don’t give up though, don’t blame yourself for this.. I’ll never forget you, Mutt.” She teased him one last time, giving off a soft giggle of a laugh, even in her current state. It wasn’t long till her laugh became strained and she grew still…

The loud sound of a horn blaring at him woke Lorenzo from his thoughts and he had to nearly dive out the way as a speeding car almost plowed into him. A string of curses and other unmentionable words followed as the car continued to speed through the mostly abandoned street.

A small part of Lorenzo wished that the car had hit him, he didn’t want to think about this anymore. He had enough trouble surrounding him without thinking about old wounds that refused to close and bled daily... Now more than ever.

“If only she knew,” He thought to himself before shoving his large and scarred paws roughly into his jeans.

Cassie would never understand why he could never fall in love with anybody again. He didn’t deserve it, not somebody like him. He’d keep on going the way he always had, and maybe the feelings would go away. if that didn't work, well… he had always thought that perhaps he had lived long enough for this world anyway.

Lorenzo had made it to his Club, the bright pink neon lights spelling out Last Chance and he chuckled as he thought once again about the rather fitting name. He thought about the secret stash of whiskey in the bottom drawer of his work desk and thought maybe he’d down the whole bottle tonight. He didn’t think he was going to get much sleep tonight, another sleepless night suited the Middle-aged wolf, just fine. After all, he was used to it.