a/n- The following takes place within The Perks universe. It's Nick's thought process leading up to his crash with Judy in the park.
Happy belated (very belated) Valentine's Day, everyone. More Perks to follow!
…..
"Hi!" The young todd had a hopeful smile on his muzzle as he swallowed his nerves and continued speaking what he had rehearsed. "I've seen you around, well, you know…Running around…. and you, umm…..Look pretty fast!"
His ears splayed as the meaning of his words hit him.
"I mean, uh! Not that you you look…slutty…or anything…."
His grin started to fade as he watched the grey rabbit doe jog in place at a crosswalk. Her ear buds kept her from hearing his poorly executed speech, which was just as well. It obviously need some work. As the 'walk' sign illuminated, the doe started to run again at her usual quick pace. The todd watched her vanish wistfully and gave a small sigh.
"I'm Nick, by the way," he whispered, kicking himself for missing another opportunity.
…..
"So, I see you like the Otterton's flower shop!" Nick said brightly. "I love the Ottertons! Katie Otterton makes the BEST candied crickets, they're really addicting!"
He watched as the bunny, today dressed in jeans and a plaid button down, left the flower shop. A purple tulip was slowly dissected, each petal placed on the enticing, little pink tongue before it was consumed. The small smile she gave as it was chewed made the fox's heart skip a beat, a small sigh being released as she turned and started walking away from her unknown admirer.
"I mean, I don't know if bunnies eat crickets…..but their flowers are the best in Zootopia! Speaking of the best, have you ever been on the gondolas? They give you the BEST view of the city. It's definitely one of my favorite parts about living here….."
He trailed off again as she vanished into the crowd.
"I'm Nick, by the way….."
"Ten bucks says he never talks to her," whispered a wolf to a fennec fox seated on the hood of a van.
The fennec grinned and held out his paw to shake on it. Both watched their friend's ears and tail drop as he turned away and walked back to them. Pawpsicles in paw, bought off a street vendor not far from the Otterton's shop, the red todd smiled awkwardly at his friends.
"Long line," he lied as he passed the pawpsicles to the waiting fox and wolf.
The fennec thoughtfully sucked on his, eyeing his blushing friend.
"Hey, Dave?" The grey wolf perked his ears towards him. "Wasn't that bunny hot?"
"Really hot, Finnick," Dave agreed. Nick turned his attention to his treat and tried to block out their conversation. "I bet she's single, too. Maybe you should asked her out."
Finnick nodded thoughtfully as his bit off a piece of his pawpsicle. Both noticed the red fox tense at Dave's words.
"Maybe I should," he responded. "I bet she would be down for anything. You know how bunnies are." Finnick grinned and wagged his eyebrows at the wolf.
Before he could stop himself, Nick's ears splayed and he growled lowly at Finn, baring his teeth as he did. Finnick and Dave raised their eyebrows, unimpressed at the display. The taller todd straightened, a look of mortification washing over his face. Melting into a smirk, Finnick hopped down from the van, his pawpsicle stick clamped between his teeth as he scooped his backpack from the side walk.
"Or you could stop being a chicken and actually talk to her," he said, the stick tossed into a recycle bin nearby. "Let's get out of here. There's a billboard down the street for that new club in Tundratown. It's begging to be re-designed."
A small paw shook the backpack, the jingling of metal cans heard from inside it. The trio started to make their way down the street. Nick paused and looked back to where the bunny had vanished to.
Someday, he thought, you're going to notice me. Someday.
…..
The bunny wore black running leggings and a hot pink tank top this time. She was running a different route then what she normally took, this one causing her to run in front of the courthouse, where a certain todd was skateboarding with his friends.
Trying to grind down the stairway railing before security came after them, Nick threw his fists up in triumph as he landed in one piece at the bottom. He didn't fall, didn't wobble, his balance was perfect, and his ankles weren't over taxed. Happy to be in one piece, he pumped away from the building, knowing the others would follow.
But the familiar tail twitching in front of him threw him off. If it hadn't had been there, he would have noticed the uneven sidewalk. And he would have taken precautions to not go flying off his board, and avoid rolling his ankle in the process. The earbuds she wore drowned out the sharp cry of pain he let out as he landed on the hard cement.
His skateboard rolling towards the street, pain filled green eyes narrowed after the cute little tail as the bunny attached to it continued her jog. A paw going to his hurt ankle, Nick imagined for a moment that she happened to glance at him.
The concern those beautiful purple eyes would hold made his heart skip a beat. Maybe her mouth would form a perfect little 'o' shape as her brow furrowed. It's entirely possible she would lean in, her own small paws reaching out to his injury.
"Are you alright?" She would ask.
And he would simply smirk and stand up, brushing his khakis off before winking at her. That would make her blush.
"Nothing treating you to ice cream wouldn't help," he would say.
She would giggle, of course, and accept. Perhaps take his paw in hers as she gazed up adoringly at the strong todd accompanying her. He would get her name and some interesting trivia about her. He would then smile down at her before saying….
"I'm Nick, by the way…"
Nick found himself yanked up by the scruff of his neck, his board shoved into his paws.
"C'mon, grace," said Dave as he smirked down at the smaller predator. "Shake it off. I really need a Bugga Burger."
The red todd looked up at his friend before casting a glance back at the disappearing bunny. He nodded and followed after them, limping slightly from his fall.
….
Half pure coincidence, half sly, stalker fox, Nick found himself yards away from the pretty grey bunny nearly every weekend he was out. He didn't know her name, didn't know what school she went to, or what part of the city she was from. But he did know he wanted to know.
He never felt much of anything for the females who went to his school. The vixens whom he had classes with and talked to in the halls were pretty, but they grated on his nerves after a while. The prey he went to school with were terrified of him, or ignored him completely, while the predators tried a little to hard to flirt. Or ignored him completely.
It was a paper he had to finish for history class that gave him his first glimpse of her. Standing in front of the Savanna Public Library, with a list of books he needed to check out, he looked up to see her paused just outside it's doors. Her slight, trim figure got his attention, with those strong legs and nice hips, but her eyes peaked his curiosity.
Purple eyes that gave a quick glance to her surroundings before they fell to her phone. The cord to her ear buds draped around her neck, dressed in blue running shorts and a yellow tank top, she was scrolling through her phone as she made her way down the steps. An older swift fox, his paws filled with books and folders, found his path blocked by the bunny.
Nick had seen this scene several times around the city. Most of the time, it was a just a simple glance and nod of acknowledgment, no smile or words exchanged. Were the predator a fox, weasel, coyote, or ferret, an insult or barb would be normally be thrown out. As pretty as he thought the bunny was, Nick had scowled at her, expecting her reaction to no different.
Instead, she glanced up at the rumpled fox in surprise, gifting him with a kind smile as she stepped out of his way. She even followed him up to open the door, least he drop his things trying to do so. Nick felt his eyes widen as she bounced back down the steps, earbuds in place, and jogged away.
There was a whirl wind of things he was feeling after that moment. Confusion was the biggest, leading him to trying to flirt with Franchesca Bush, a ruby red vixen in his math class. Just to prove he wasn't attracted to a bunny. He felt he could get over her shrill voice and maybe ignore how gossipy she was, until her tail brushed over his feet. That caused him to jump back in surprise and glare at her.
Other attempts to talk with females, both vixen and other preds, were met with the same results. An odd reaction, or lack thereof, especially considering each one was physically compared to a total stranger. One he was unlikely to ever see again.
That weekend had him sitting with Dave and Finnick in Savanna Central Park, boards strewn next to them in the grass as they tried figured out what to do. Then she came running past.
Eyes focused on the path in front of her, strong legs carried her small form across the park, away from the todd who tensed at the sight of her. He would bet anything she smelled as lovely as she looked. Even in unattractive, black sweatpants and white baggy shirt.
That night, Nick started to practice his speech. It always started in the bathroom before he showered in the evening, the sound of the water running drowning out his voice. He didn't need his mother and older brother to hear him and start their teasing.
"So, do your feet get tired from you running around my mind all day?….
"That's lame," he muttered to his reflection. "How about….
"I got the latest issue of Hereafter! Have you ever read it? It's awesome!
"But, what if she doesn't like comics," he asked himself, dunking his head under the shower head. "I could try…
"I aways wanted to know what an angel looked like," the towel he was using to dry the fur on his head was pulled off, his most charming grin aimed back at his reflection revealed. He gave himself a quick look over, eyes half lidded, picturing her in front of him. "It was worth the wait." Followed by a wink.
"Ugg, no!" He pulled pajama pants on, tightening the drawstring as he thought. "There's always…
"Did you know the Natural History Museum does a star night? Once a month, they bring a projector in and highlight the constellations. Maybe you would want to go with me sometime?
"I'm Nick, by the way…." he sighed out as he fell back onto his pillow.
With a smile he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, his dreams filled with skateboarding trophies and an adoring bunny girlfriend with purple eyes.
…..
"That's it?" Nick looked at the tall railing in disbelief, before looking back at Finnick and Dave. "Grind this and then move on?"
Dave to a worn bar of wax and ran it down the beaten metal pole. Perfect hight for medium mammals, straight, even, no large gashes for their boards to get caught in. The wolf grinned and turned back to the two foxes.
"Yup!" He looked down at Finnick, who would definitely have the most problems grinding it. Maybe he could try for a lower rung. "You got this, short stack?"
He walked towards the fennec, who rolled his eyes and slammed his board into his stomach as he passed by. The wolf groaned and laughed as the smaller fox tossed it down and hopped on. A few pumps to gain speed and he ollied, gaining impressive hight.
The front truck made contact with lowest rung, giving him a short, but complete grind. Not enough to satisfy the small fox, but both his friends whooped in encouragement. Dave set himself up next. He managed to hit the top of the rail, drawing out a low whistle from Nick and Finn.
"Not bad, pup," smirked the red fox as he backed up and stretched out his back. "But, and I don't know if you know this, red foxes are the epitome of grace and fluid motion. Poems have been written to describe the beauty of which we-"
"Just fucking go!" His friends shouted, causing the young todd to smirk and shrug.
"Just prepare yourselves for the most awesome moves you have ever seen in your life.." he narrowed his gave at the rail, giving himself a running start, before throwing his board down and hopping on.
As he approached, Nick prepared himself for the ollie. And knew right away, he wasn't ready for it. It was timed poorly, his feet feeling insecure in their placement, and he knew the truck wasn't going to fall where it needed to. All he could do is focus on falling properly, to minimize the damage to himself. A plan that would have worked…
…had he not noticed her right in front of him. The sudden shock at see his crush in such close proximity threw his balance off even more, the truck sliding against the rail, the wheel catching on it and sending the todd flying towards the unsuspecting bunny.
"LOOK OUT!" He managed to shout before he collided with her, his board flying in the opposite direction.
In a jumble of arms and legs, pain filled yelps, and a spinning world of grass and sky, Nick landed hard on his hands and knees. What was left of his breath left him when something made firm contact with his lower abdomen. Dropping his head into the grass, he gave a hiss of pain before inhaling deeply.
Even if he never got another good look at her, he would remember exactly how she smelled for the rest of his life. He had expected some artificial, floral smell, maybe from her shampoo or body spray. Instead, she smelled like….
Sunshine, right after a rainstorm. Like cool spring air, fresh with blossoming honeysuckle and daisies. It was sweetness and enthusiasm, it was laughter and mischief. It was a scent that would make any healthy, adolescent male weak in the knees and eager to do anything for another chance to near her again.
As he pulled back from the grass to look down at her, only one thought fluttered through his mind.
Don't say anything stupid to piss her off, Wilde…
…
a/n- And yes, the Hereafter mentioned in this story is a shout out to my dear friend, ScaraMedn. Hereafter is amazing and if you haven't read it, please do so! Though, I'm fairly certain all of you are amazing, so don't take my word for it :)