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2 PM, Tuesday. A perfect time for rain to ruin a teenager's perfect lunch. Well, actually, two teens. Didn't matter, though. The rain was about to fall all over everything. How very tragic that Cobalt's second sandwich couldn't be saved. He was so desperate to save it that he tried to shove the whole thing down his throat.
"Dammit, Cobalt, that's the second time you've almost died while eating!" The young wolf Douglas said, as he walked along the sidewalk with soaked fur.
"Seriously? We're not counting the time you tried making macaroni and cheese?" Cobalt said with a mischievous grin as he walked at Douglas' side.
"You're an overdramatic bitch, ya know that?" Douglas quickly replied, which earned a laugh from the slightly taller hybrid.
Cobalt maintained his look of mischief as he thought of his next wise-crack at the shorter lupine. "Heh, what can I say? I learned from the best."
Douglas couldn't help but start laughing, as did Cobalt. It took at least a minute for the two to calm down before they continued on their path, still getting tormented by the rainfall.
They were getting closer to their apartment, but they rain wasn't letting up anytime soon. Cobalt noticed this, and looked to his friend as he shivered. He looked like he decided to go swimming, fully clothed.
He looked around for ways to protect his friend from the rain. He was almost out of luck, until a shiba and calico bumped into them.
"My bad! Sorry 'bout that!" They shouted as they rapidly made their way down the street.
They in particular caught Cobalt's eye. He'd just so happened to notice that the calico was using his coat as an umbrella of sorts.
While his hoodie wasn't the best at keeping the pair dry, it'd help immensely. So with little hesitation, he followed suit and threw one of his favorite hoodies over their heads.
"Huh? What are you doing?" Douglas asked, confused, and a bit surprised.
Cobalt fumbled over his words for a bit. He couldn't really explain this either.
It took a whole 2 minutes to get back to their apartment. By now, Cobalt's hoodie had gotten completely soaked. At least it protected them from the rainfall, however minimally... He shivered as he put his third-favorite hoodie back on.
The duo walked down the hallway, towards the newly-installed elevator for the building. To their surprise, only one other person was entering.
"Heh, guess everyone else was lucky enough to NOT get drenched." Cobalt laughed, making light of the situation, and subtlety pointing out the stranger's dripping beanie and sweater.
Douglas would've laughed, but he was still shivering. Instead, he noticed something else about him.
"He looks familiar... Cobalt, do you recognize him from anywhere?" He questioned, approaching the elevator at a brisk pace, eager to dry off.
Cobalt eyed the fur up and down, looking for signs of familiarity.
"You... Don't remember Gabe? That's our neighbor! We live across the hall from him!" Cobalt said, surpassing Douglas' speed with ease.
The grey wolf looked towards the unsuspecting individual, who was now waiting for the unbearably slow lift, and listening to music at a volume he probably shouldn't be listening at. Even so, he looked utterly unamused. Didn't even notice the two as they approached.
Attempting to break the awkward silence, Cobalt leaned in close to Douglas, and whispered, "Um, I dunno if this sounds rude, but... Should we like, introduce ourselves or something? We barely even know eachother, but... We could expand our social circle?"
At that moment, Gabe turned his head slightly, acknowledging the two. He removed his ear pods, which now needed to be charged, and let out a small giggle and smile as he glanced at the two.
Of course, the duo didn't miss this. While both were too nervous to say anything, Cobalt managed to form the words, albeit with lots of stuttering.
"Uhh... W-what's so funny?" (I toned it down for ya. You woulda died of cringe otherwise.) He would've asked specifically about them, but he was simply too anxious to do so without passing out.
Gabe let out another small laugh as Cobalt clinged to Douglas. In the two months they'd be living together, he'd grown used to this.
"It's just-" he started, before bursting into another small fit of laughter. "And you two say you're not a couple." He said as he snickered to himself.
The wolf and hybrid exchanged a confused look. Last they checked, neither had expressed any interest in romance.
Right as they were about to attempt to correct Gabe, the elevator FINALLY opened. A ridiculously tall draconid exited, and nearly trampled the trio as he ran.
"Seriously? THAT'S what kept me waiting?" Gabe groaned. He entered the elevator, and waited for the "couple" to enter with him. They did so, but painfully slowly. A very awkward situation indeed.
As the lift slowly took them up to their floor, the fifth, the only sound in the elevator was water dripping off of Gabe's clothes, and the hum of machinery. While Gabe was able to tell almost right away the two were canines, Cobalt had to use his sense of smell to determine that Gabe was a cat. Neither commented on it. No one said anything, made any jokes, or even hummed along with the elevator music.
All of a sudden, the lights flickered. All heads immediately looked around in shock. On top of that, the elevator stopped ascending, which slightly startled Gabe.
Before anyone could come to a conclusion, the elevator went pitch black.
At least... For a moment.
While the group panicked, no one happened to notice that parts of Cobalt's fur began to glow like an LED light.
Well, until they opened their eyes, that is.
Without thinking, Douglas shouted, "What the f***!?!" In a tone that was partially confused, frightened, and entirely dumbfounded. Actually, Douglas and Gabe both shouted the expletive, in sync with eachother.
And Cobalt was trying to find whatever it was that the two were screaming at. He hadn't removed his hand from his face yet, and was simply feeling around the elevator with his hand, while his other hid his eyes.
He let out a small sob as he searched. For anyone. Anything, even. The screaming settled, and Cobalt's slight sob was the only noise in the (incredibly cramped) room.
While he couldn't see himself, the others could. They could see him VERY well. When he gave up searching, he was curled up into a ball, and was even shaking. In his mind, he felt like such a child. Such an idiot. He was hoping he'd never have to face this ever again.
Somehow, it was almost as if Douglas could tell exactly what was going on in Cobalt's mind. But he was conflicted. He knew he had to help his friend, but he didn't know what caused his fur to glow. What if it was radioactive? A fire hazard?
After a few moments of contemplation, Douglas finally decided on cautiously going to comfort Cobalt. If he died, he died.
"Uhh... are you... okay?" Douglas whispered as he got close, barely even audible. Right after he asked that, he felt like a total idiot. "Of course he's not okay! He's curled up in a ball on the floor, and he's f***ing GLOWING!!!" He thought to himself.
Cobalt's ears perked up hearing Douglas' voice. He slowly looked up as well, but did not expect to see Douglas's face so clearly. In fact, he could actually see the whole elevator! But... it looked like half of every PC gamers set up.
The hybrid wiped his eyes, making sure he wasn't hallucinating. Nope, this was... real.
It took Cobalt a moment to figure out how to respond to this. Eventually, he settled on the classic and much beloved "WHAT THE F***!?!?", when he came to the realization that HE was the source of the light.
In his panic, Cobalt looked all over his fur for parts of it that were glowing. He quickly determined that his face, chest, midsection, and just above his ankles illuminated the elevator. Those parts of his body were always unique, but he'd never think that they did THIS!
Cobalt, with some assistance from Gabe, managed to calm himself. It was long before questions were asked about this.
"So, uhh, can I ask... How did you not know about this before!?" Gabe asked, in a tone that sounded more astonished than anything. Because, even though some furs tend to discover some kind of power, ability, or quirk at Cobalt's age, there SHOULD be some kind of hint.
Cobalt stayed silent. He hoped that would silently tell him, but neither Douglas nor Gabe got the message. So, he heaved a heavy sigh, and prepared himself to recall his story.
"I... guess there's no better way to say this; I'm scared of the dark. I think that's called "nyctophobia" or somethin'. It's exactly what it sounds like. I don't do well in dark places. Never have. Remember that nightlight I brought to our apartment for "sentimental reasons", Doug? Heh, I li-Wait, actually, I guess that's partially true."
The hybrid went on for a bit longer about how he always felt alone whenever he was in a dark room, and why he left his phone's flashlight on overnight, when he sleeps on the couch.
"So... yeah, that's pretty much all there is to it. Just- like, been stuck with it since I was a little kid, and I don't think it'll be leavin' me anytime soon." Cobalt said, with a hint on melancholy.
There was a look on Gabe's and Douglas's faces that was unreadable. To Cobalt, it looked like a mix between sorrow and empathy. Really, Douglas felt immensely sorry for Cobalt, and was pondering ways to comfort him, and Gabe was a little bit surprised that this is how he met the wolfdog.
Suddenly, Douglas walked the short distance between him and Cobalt, and embraced him in his arms.
Cobalt let out a small, shocked gasp as Douglas hugged him. He hadn't exactly been expecting such kindness. But really, what could be expected at this point?
Gabe followed Douglas, and warmly embraced the wolves. His clothes were still quite wet, but no way in hell he was taking them off.
Cobalt was still partially surprised by the sudden group hug. But it was much appreciated. So, he hugged the pair back. Unbeknownst to both lupines, Gabe silently left the hug, and began playing one of the most romantic songs he could think of: "Beauty and the Beast". Specifically, the 2017 version.
If looks could kill, Douglas would probably be thrown in jail as soon as they got out of the elevator. Thankfully, his death stare doesn't actually cause death. But even with the music, Cobalt was more than happy to see that his nyctophobia wasn't a burden to Gabe or Douglas. Plus, he's a HUGE Ariana fanboy, so really, he quite liked the music.
Cobalt let out a small sniffle as Douglas slowly let go. Softly, he whispered, "Thanks." Somehow, even with their heightened hearing, neither noticed Gabe whisper-chanting "Kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss, kiss!"
Nearly half an hour had passed since the trio wound up in this elevator. As a positive, they all received confirmation that the elevator was (hopefully) going to be in working order again soon. In the meantime, they simply sat in the elevator, slowly air-drying their clothes. To break the silence, Douglas spoke up.
"So, uhh... Gabe, was it?" He asked, awkwardly.
"Yup. Gabe Lovejoy, in case you were wondering." He replied, turning around to show the backside of his hoodie, which featured the name "LOVEJOY" on it.
"Huh. Nice to meet ya. Of course, you already know me as Douglas." The wolf replied. "So like, what's your story? If you're alright with sharing that, of course."
The cat hummed for a moment.
"Hmmm... Alright, here's the basics:" he began, almost as though he were drawing up a plan for some kind of mission.
"Oh, I should probably mention that I'm transmasc and bi. If that's relevant, and it is, I go by he, they, and it. This beanie and earring here will literally never come off. Seriously. I superglued this to my head. And I have 3 of these hoodies. For some reason people say I talk way too fast, but clearly they just can't handle the Neutron style." He rapidly spoke, only pausing to take a breath once. Seriously, he spoke so fast, he could rival professional rappers. "Where was I? Oh yeah, introducing myself at rapid speeds. Apparently having only one paw pad on my hand isn't that common, but I think it's cool. Also, I taped these to my legs." Gabe quickly said, this time gesturing to his legs, which featured what looked to be red knee-high socks, or boots.
"Now, for my backstory; I was raised in a broken and abusive household." He said, trying to hide his laughter with tears he bought on Craigslist. "When I turned 17, I ran away to Hong Kong, where I met triad boss, Kenny Woo, my fir-"
"HOOOOOLD THE PHONE!!!" Cobalt suddenly said, stopping Gabe short. "Dude, you're not even 16 yet." He said, starting to fall to laughter. "And I think it's obvious, that's just another cheap pop culture reference the writer put in." He said, giggling happily.
Gabe heaved out a loud sigh, admitting defeat. "Alright, alright, for real this time; I'm what people would call... a sports nut. That's how I got my Lovejoy hoodies. Oh, and by the way, these are glued to my body. Ask not how I change my clothes, cause I don't know either. Oh, and did I mention that I become emo at random? Cause I do. At least twice daily." He said, finishing up his lightning round of icebreakers.
"How about you guys? Anything you two wanna share?" Gabe said, slumping against the wall, preparing for sleep.
Not even 5 seconds after Gabe stopped talking, Cobalt had something he'd been aching to tell someone, for weeks. Months, even.
"I'd like to announce something. It's been... a lot to process." Cobalt began, standing up as he made his announcement.
"For a while now, I thought I was something else, however, I see now I'm... well, "straight-up" not that." He hinted, which caught Douglas' attention.
"... I'm gay." Cobalt said, shyly. He was hoping he'd be more sure of himself for this...
Again, silence filled the room.
Until, suddenly, Douglas stood next to Cobalt. He didn't say anything, but placed his hand upon Cobalt's shoulder.
"I know how scary coming out can be. I'm scared to do this, too. But... I can't keep denying myself of what I really am." Douglas said, words forged like silver.
And then, his next actions were completely unexpected.
He got up on the tips of his toes, and kissed him.
Douglas kissed Cobalt.
Not on the mouth or anything, but it's still a kiss, which left the hybrid an absolutely flustered mess. So much so that he actually collapsed.
Cobalt was unconscious for about 15 minutes. At that time, the elevator was finally nearing completion.
"Oof... what happened? Did I-..." Cobalt stammered, trying to recall what happened. The last thing he remembered before fainting was receiving a kiss from Douglas, who was now too embarrassed to even look at Cobalt. His face went red again, in a cartoonish fashion. He looked to Gabe for help. Neither had any idea what to do. However...
"Uhh... Douglas? Mind if I-" Cobalt said, seating himself next to Douglas.
"Please... Leave me alone..." The grey wolf whispered.
Cobalt obeyed, and pulled back. It was obvious that Douglas needed some time to himself. But perhaps...
"Can I please just..-" Cobalt offered, outstretching his hand.
"I... You-" Douglas started, before finding that Cobalt was already holding his hand.
The silence among them was deafening, but their actions spoke more than any speech they could ever come up with.
Gabe had started recording the event, Douglas looked at Cobalt curiously, and Cobalt was offering his best reassurance to Douglas, even without words.
To wrap that up, the lupine pair leaned into eachother as they waited, and Gabe's phone battery died when he tried to play "The Way" by Ariana Grande and Mac Miller.
Two weeks later.
Gabe had officially become a close friend to Douglas and Cobalt. And speaking of those two, they were now officially boyfriends, and they couldn't be happier.
As Cobalt got set up for another movie night, Gabe decided to teasingly ask, "So, be honest with me; Who's beauty and who's the beast?" with a light laugh.
Cobalt rolled his eyes as he laughed at the comment. "C'mon, dude! That's an impossible question! You know it's gonna flip between us calling eachother "beauty". And besides, we're watching Princess Bride tonight."
To further exaggerate his point, Gabe used a paint roller to roll his eyes. "Remind me again, how'd you fall in love with him?" He joked, which earned quite a laugh from the apartment.
As Douglas claimed his spot next to Cobalt, he had a look of mischief on his face. "What can I say? I have a thing for himbos."
Cobalt scoffed at that comment. "Stop calling me a himbo." "He said between giggles.
"...As you wish." Douglas replied, with a smooch to Cobalt's snout.