Thanks for the help with my question, guys. Here's the fanfic I made. I hope you like.
The Girl, the Guy and the Gundam
a Class Menagerie Fanfic
By Rolland Therrien
It's late in the evening in Richter Hall, and only one soul disturbs the unusual silence on the third floor: the feline figure of Kevin Nekohashi, Room 303's resident wiseacre, Mechanical Engineer and sedentary techno-geek. None of those traits, however, were the reason why he was currently in the lounge, with armfuls of snacks and drinks.
"This is gonna be a great Friday evening, I can just feel it in my whiskers. Just me, every snackfood item known to fur and an evening long marathon of Gundam Wing on Cartoon Network... The perfect evening," the cat said with a smile, setting up his snackfood items before laying back on the couch, "...for an Anime Nut like myself!"
He took up the remote, twirled it in his hand a few times then turned on the television, setting it to one of his favorite channels, then tossed the remote back on the coffee table, not having the intention of changing channels for the whole evening. He leaned back into his seat, a can of soda in one hand and a bag of chips in his lap, then just relaxed as the shows began on the cable TV. He suddenly started thinking as he nibbled on a chip.
"Hmm... Let's see... Tony and Cindy are out on a date, and won't be back for hours. Mikey is off watching a lecture on physics, while Lisa is gone watching a play for a class. Brad's gone to watch a wrestling match, while Biff and Scott went to crash a Sorority party on the other side of town. And I have more then enough snacks to last the whole evening, so why do I get the feeling I'm forgetting something?"
"Are you eating snacks in the lounge again?"
"...Oh yeah, one anally-retentive mouse..."
Kevin turned his head to look at the stringent and authoritive female mouse who served as the floor's Resident Assistant, who was currently standing beside him, tapping her foot on the floor, while she was tapping her trademark clipboard in her hand, apparantly itching to use it on someone as she was used to.
"...Count yourself lucky I'm used to your wisecracks, or you'd already be recovering from a boarding from that line."
"Whatever you say, Dani. I'm feeling too content for you to bring me down now."
"What have I told you guys about eating snacks in the lounge?"
Kevin, in response, just hands over a bag of cheese doodles, waving it under her nose. she sniffs a moment, then snags the bag and starts to eat: "*Munch-munch* Thanks... I was afraid you'd forgotten
already..."
"No problem. I love bribing officials."
Dani sat down on the other end of the couch, eating a handful of cheese snacks, then turned her attention to the TV screen:
"What are you watching?"
"Gundam Wing. One of the better Anime series straight from Japan, that's what." Dani seemed unthrilled with the idea.
"Oh, great, yet more senseless violence and gratuitous exhibitionism on TV. Just what Cable TV needed..."
"Hey!" Kevin yelled out, "Gundam Wing isn't like that at all! It's a serious dramatic action series about War and how it affects people's lives and minds! It's very philosophical..."
"Yes, I'm sure Aristotle had giant robots in mind when he started Philosophy..." Kevin just snorted at the Mouse's response and leaned back into his seat, ignoring the smirking mouse.
With that, she just relaxed in her seat and watched the opening credits of the show. Kevin, not wanting to miss on any of the action, just relaxed himself and focused on the show. After a few minutes of watching the show, she comes to a realization and turns to Kevin, who's
sipping a drink.
"Hey, Kevin, did you notice that all those Gundam Pilots look all slim and stringy, and not too muscled?"
"Yeah, that's the idea," Kevin said with a smirk. "In Japan, male heroes aren't rated by the size of their muscles, but by the strength of their character. Just one of the reasons I admire the civilized culture of my ancestors..." Dani just snorted and smirked at him.
"Right... This, coming from a culture that considers anyone not Japanese to be less the sentient, and which treats wives like possessions, not people... Yeah, real civilized..." Kevin coughed on his drink at the time, then tried to recover.
"Well, I never said they were perfect..."
About an hour later, after a few more episodes, both Kevin and Dani are relaxed and watching the show, with Dani only asking a few questions, mostly about this character or that group...
"So, just because Noin is a woman, Wufei won't fight her?"
"That's pretty much the size of it."
"Geez, that tiger's a serious sexist bastard!"
"I know. Wufei's not one of my favorite characters either. I'm more of a fan of that witty fox Duo Maxwell, anyways. Plus, he knows how to treat a lady. You'll see in later episodes..."
"I'm starting to feel like catching those later episodes myself. Thanks for introducing me to this show, Kevin."
"You're quite welcome, Dani."
Dani couldn't help but giggle at Kevin's behavior.
"What's so funny?"
"Sorry, I'm not used to getting such polite treatment from a guy who's not trying to seduce me or trying to convince me not to
give them a severe clipboarding."
"Hey, don't worry about that. My mother always taught me to be a gentleman, and I live up to it. ...As long as it's with people I respect..." Dani smiled at that comment.
"Glad to hear I qualify. Must be a narrow range, though."
"Oh, just about everyone qualifies for polite treatement, in my opinion. Except for jocks and jerks of all sizes."
Dani chuckled a bit at that, almost smirking in disbelief.
"Oh? Judging from your constant baiting of Brad and Biff, I hadn't noticed that."
"Biff gets what he earns by being a brainless jerk. And Brad and I are just playing, usually. I noticed he pulls his punches."
"He does? And how do you know this?" This revelation had taken Dani somewhat by surprise, and she needed to know more.
"I've been punched and hit a lot of times before, back in High School." He quickly turned to her and added: "...And before you ask, no I didn't do anything to the guy. Not intentionally, anyway."
"What happened?" By now, she was genuinely interested, feeling concern for learning something out of his past. For a moment, Kevin just stared at the TV screen, which was now showing a perticularly annoying chip commercial, then turned back to Dani with a sad look in his eye, as if it hurt to even remember. She started to regret bringing up the subject, but the cat just looked down and started talking;
"Well, it was on my third year of High School, I was assigned as a lab partner to this vixen, some cheerleader I think. Turns out her boyfriend wasn't treating her well, and she started talking to me about it while we worked on the experiment. I just made some comments to the fact she deserved someone better then that bastard, just to agree with her and get that conversation over and get back to the experiment."
"That's it?"
"Oh, it doesn't stop there. The next day, the vixen's boyfriend and school halfback, a huge Boar who makes Biff look small, comes up to me just before I enter the School, grabs me and tosses me against the wall, screaming some obscenities, only stopping long enough to tell me his girlfriend broke up with him after I told her to, and then he starts to beat me up, punching me senseless..."
At this point, Dani was silent, more stunned at that story then anything. Not noticing her reaction, Kevin just continued his narration:
"After the first few blows to the head, the whole even became a blur, the pain in my head and ribs blocking everything out. I don't really remember much afterwards, but I do know someone stopped that guy. ...I think it was Tony, because I remember seeing him with a shiner afterwards that day, while I was in the school infirmary. He also started working out after that day, stating that he wouldn't let
anything like that happen to one of his friends again." Kevin started to smile somewhat weakly at that memory. "Heh... Best friend I ever had, that bull. Even if he did become a muscle-bound tough guy, he's
still a nice guy at heart. ...Unlike most of the other athletes I've known."
"Oh, so that's where your dislike of sports came from..."
Kevin turned to look at Dani, who had turned to look at him without having to turn her head too much. He was a bit surprised at her growing interest in him, but continued telling his story, not realizing that he was telling her stuff he'd kept to himself for the past few years.
"Actually, a lot of stuff caused that. Before that day, I was actually a pretty good soccer player. But after that beating, it took me a while to recover, and I spent time looking at the various athletes out on the field." Kevin took a more serious attitude as he continued. More serious then Dani had ever seen him before, she thought to herself.
"...After a while, I realized all of them were acting more or less like jerks at one level or another, thinking their physical prowess mad them greek gods or something. The bastard who'd beaten me up was just a more extreme version of the variety. I started getting afraid that if I'd keep playing sports, I'd become a bastard like that guy..." Kevin suddenly stopped talking and just stared at the TV screen, but not watching the show.
Dani just turned back at the screen, not really knowing what to say. A lot of her old misconceptions about Kevin's personality had just been shot down in a few minutes. He'd originally come off as an intellectual snob, talking down to anyone who didn't meet his mental standards, but now she saw it was quite the opposite; Kevin was someone who disliked athletic bullies, who treated like something to step on anyone not built like a fridge. This was something Dani decided she liked about him.
"If it's any reassurance, Kevin, I don't think you're a bastard." Kevin suddenly turned around and looked at the mouse like she'd suddenly turned into an alien being, surprise showing on his face. A bit startled (and not a little mbarrassed) at his reaction, Dani decided to cover herself; "...When you're not shooting your mouth off of, that is," which had for effect of making Kevin smirk. The two just sat like that in silent, trying half-heartedly to get focused on the shows again.
After a few minutes, however, it was Kevin's time to turn towards the mouse with a smile.
"Your turn," he said, causing Dani to look at the cat a bit confused. Kevin smirked and decided to explain. "I told you about my past, and why I'm like this. Now it's your turn," Kevin said with his usual sly smile, his mischievous nature now back in force. Dani couldn't help but blush when she saw his face, but quickly controlled
herself and took her usual "Tough independant woman" stance and leaned back into the couch, trying not to look self-conscious.
Kevin, undeterred, just leaned forward and smirked, "C'mon, I confessed a deep, dark secret of my past, here. Are you just gonna keep me hanging in suspense?"
Dani just sat there, eyes closed and armed crossed, until she finally sighed and relaxed, turning towards the feline, "Oh all right," she said, "I'll tell you about my own past... But don't tell anyone, ok?"
"My lips will be sealed," he answered with a grin.
Dani just sat there a bit before she finally began, "Ok, I've told you and Tony before, I'm not used with being a RA for a mixed genders dorm. The thing is, I'm just not used to dealing with mixed genders in general. I grew up in a pretty conservative household, and my childhood and early teens were spent in all-girls schools. The nuns
there were usually of the "Keep your Virtue, or Else" school of sex education, so I never had a lot of practical experience in dealing with guys until my High School years, when my parents had to send me to a public High School. That's when I got my first real social contact with guys. Unfortunetly, it mostly consisted of getting gawked at and
propositionned by nearly all the guys..."
Now it was Kevin's turn to feel a sense of concern as he listened to Dani's story, even as she continued: "...After a while, I'd gotten used to the catcalls, though. Heck, I even felt flattered. And then I met this really cute hound, real nice too. It didn't take long before we started going out. ...Up until one evening, when he
insisted we... you know... go to the next level..."
Dani paused, apparantly hesitating before going on... Kevin just reached out and took her hand. She looked at him for a moment, and saw him smile reassuringly. She blushed again, in spite of herself, then smiled back and continued her story.
"Dispite the fact I loved the guy, I couldn't. Not so soon, anyways. But he kept insisting, claiming our relationship depended on it. The jerk even forced himself on me, forcing me to knock him out
with a punch."
"Ouch," the cat winced.
"-Ouch,- indeed. I just left the guy there, at the drive-in we were in, and walked home."
"Good for you!"
"Yeah, except afterwards, I saw that tailhole again in the Cafeteria, talked about the night, showing the bloody nose I gave him, calling me a tease and a psychotic bitch..." Dani closed her eyes and sighed at the memory, before smiling as she added; "...Of course, that's when I took my hard plastic tray and smashed him over
the head with it."
Hearing that, Kevin couldn't help smirking, trying very hard not to laugh. But after Dani just smiled back at him, he just let it all out and fell back laughing, causing Dani to laugh as well. The two just laughed for a good moment, before coming to a stop, catching their breathes before Kevin asked, "I assume that's where you got the
idea for the Clipboard?"
"That came much later, actually, when I became RA for this dorm. Before that, I just kept a large notebook handy. The clipboard's actually lighter, so count yourselves lucky."
"I will, don't worry. So, you've never had a boyfriend after that guy?"
"Oh, I'm no spinster. I've dated more then a few times after that, but I made sure all the guys I've been with knew the limits, and the consequences. I just haven't had much luck finding Mr Right.
They're either all after one thing only, with IQs smaller then their muscle size, or have serious psychological problems..."
Kevin chuckled a bit, then reached up to pat her shoulder;
"Just hang in there... You're bound to find that right guy yet..." he then pulled the bowl of popcorn back between them, while Dani just smirked.
"Heh. Yeah, right. Life isn't like one of those romantic comedies, where two people just made for each other suddenly touch each other's hands, lock their eyes together and suddenly fall in love, you know..." she then reached down to take some popcorn...
...And her hand met Kevin's, just as he was reaching for popcorn himself. They suddenly turned to one another, and their eyes locked. Both cat and mouse just sat there, silently gazing into each other's eyes, each one's heart beating somewhat faster. Kevin could do nothing but silently look at the first woman who respected him as
an individual, but without keeping him at arm's length. Dani could do nothing but see the first guy she'd actually made friends with, and see there was potentially more then friendship to be made with him.
They just kept looking at each other, both leaning forward, their muzzles coming closer, when suddenly they heard someone stumble and fall in the hallway, causing them both to blink and pull back,
mumbling some barely omprehensible "Sorries" and "I didn't mean to's", before the voices of Cindy and Tony made them aware that the official couple of Richter Hall, third floor, had returned from their date, and where now heading closer to the Lounge, which they would pass on their way to their respective bedrooms.
Dani suddenly acted on instinct, getting up to grab her clipboard, and swatting Kevin upside the head with it. He fell back, rubbing his head and looking at her in shock and anger.
"OWW! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?"
"For eating in the lounge, what do you think?"
"What? but you were..."
"Kevin? Dani?"
The sound of Cindy's voice made Kevin shut up, as he stood up and looked off the couch to the lounge door, seeing Tony and Cindy standing there, looking at him and Dani, apparantly having an argument. Before anyone could say anything, Dani just pointed at the snacks and said, "You'd better have this mess cleaned up soon, Mister, or I swear that me hitting you with the clipboard will be the LEAST of your worries..." She then started storming towards the door, but took a moment to look back, apparantly to glare some more at him, from Tony and Cindy's point of view, but actually giving Kevin a sly wink, which he kept to himself, just starting to clean the mess he and Dani had made, while she went back to her room.
Tony and Cindy, meanwhile, just walked back to their rooms, Cindy just shaking her head. "You know... Somedays I just wish those two would stop arguing... I'm sure they'd make good friends..."
As the bull and filly gave each other a goodnight kiss and went to their rooms, they missed Dani sneaking back out to the lounge to help Kevin in his cleaning. He looked at her and smirked. "Did you have to hit me like that?"
"Sorry... But would you rather Tony and Cindy had caught us... like we were?"
"... Ok, you have a point. I guess you couldn't afford to lose your precious "I am the Iron Woman" image..."
At that point, Dani just dropped the waste basket, then turned around and sighed.
"That's not it, Kevin... It's just..."
"...just what?" He walked over to her, putting his arm around her shoulder, making her turn to face him. She looked up at him, then said, "...It's been so long since I've felt like this... I don't want
to make the same mistakes again. I need some time to think about this..."
Kevin just nodded and let her go. "Ok. If that's what you want, I don't mind. I can wait..." Dani smiled and gave him a warm hug, which he gladly returned. The two stayed like that for a moment,
then finally let go. Dani walked back to her room, but soon turned around, asking,
"Is there another festival next week?" Kevin just smiled and shook his head.
"Nope. ...But I can rent tapes of "Vision of Escaflowne", original edition."
"What's that?"
"Oh, a show I'm sure you're gonna love." Dani's face practically beamed, as she smiled and winked.
"It's a Date!"
The Girl, the Guy and the Gundam
a Class Menagerie Fanfic
By Rolland Therrien
It's late in the evening in Richter Hall, and only one soul disturbs the unusual silence on the third floor: the feline figure of Kevin Nekohashi, Room 303's resident wiseacre, Mechanical Engineer and sedentary techno-geek. None of those traits, however, were the reason why he was currently in the lounge, with armfuls of snacks and drinks.
"This is gonna be a great Friday evening, I can just feel it in my whiskers. Just me, every snackfood item known to fur and an evening long marathon of Gundam Wing on Cartoon Network... The perfect evening," the cat said with a smile, setting up his snackfood items before laying back on the couch, "...for an Anime Nut like myself!"
He took up the remote, twirled it in his hand a few times then turned on the television, setting it to one of his favorite channels, then tossed the remote back on the coffee table, not having the intention of changing channels for the whole evening. He leaned back into his seat, a can of soda in one hand and a bag of chips in his lap, then just relaxed as the shows began on the cable TV. He suddenly started thinking as he nibbled on a chip.
"Hmm... Let's see... Tony and Cindy are out on a date, and won't be back for hours. Mikey is off watching a lecture on physics, while Lisa is gone watching a play for a class. Brad's gone to watch a wrestling match, while Biff and Scott went to crash a Sorority party on the other side of town. And I have more then enough snacks to last the whole evening, so why do I get the feeling I'm forgetting something?"
"Are you eating snacks in the lounge again?"
"...Oh yeah, one anally-retentive mouse..."
Kevin turned his head to look at the stringent and authoritive female mouse who served as the floor's Resident Assistant, who was currently standing beside him, tapping her foot on the floor, while she was tapping her trademark clipboard in her hand, apparantly itching to use it on someone as she was used to.
"...Count yourself lucky I'm used to your wisecracks, or you'd already be recovering from a boarding from that line."
"Whatever you say, Dani. I'm feeling too content for you to bring me down now."
"What have I told you guys about eating snacks in the lounge?"
Kevin, in response, just hands over a bag of cheese doodles, waving it under her nose. she sniffs a moment, then snags the bag and starts to eat: "*Munch-munch* Thanks... I was afraid you'd forgotten
already..."
"No problem. I love bribing officials."
Dani sat down on the other end of the couch, eating a handful of cheese snacks, then turned her attention to the TV screen:
"What are you watching?"
"Gundam Wing. One of the better Anime series straight from Japan, that's what." Dani seemed unthrilled with the idea.
"Oh, great, yet more senseless violence and gratuitous exhibitionism on TV. Just what Cable TV needed..."
"Hey!" Kevin yelled out, "Gundam Wing isn't like that at all! It's a serious dramatic action series about War and how it affects people's lives and minds! It's very philosophical..."
"Yes, I'm sure Aristotle had giant robots in mind when he started Philosophy..." Kevin just snorted at the Mouse's response and leaned back into his seat, ignoring the smirking mouse.
With that, she just relaxed in her seat and watched the opening credits of the show. Kevin, not wanting to miss on any of the action, just relaxed himself and focused on the show. After a few minutes of watching the show, she comes to a realization and turns to Kevin, who's
sipping a drink.
"Hey, Kevin, did you notice that all those Gundam Pilots look all slim and stringy, and not too muscled?"
"Yeah, that's the idea," Kevin said with a smirk. "In Japan, male heroes aren't rated by the size of their muscles, but by the strength of their character. Just one of the reasons I admire the civilized culture of my ancestors..." Dani just snorted and smirked at him.
"Right... This, coming from a culture that considers anyone not Japanese to be less the sentient, and which treats wives like possessions, not people... Yeah, real civilized..." Kevin coughed on his drink at the time, then tried to recover.
"Well, I never said they were perfect..."
About an hour later, after a few more episodes, both Kevin and Dani are relaxed and watching the show, with Dani only asking a few questions, mostly about this character or that group...
"So, just because Noin is a woman, Wufei won't fight her?"
"That's pretty much the size of it."
"Geez, that tiger's a serious sexist bastard!"
"I know. Wufei's not one of my favorite characters either. I'm more of a fan of that witty fox Duo Maxwell, anyways. Plus, he knows how to treat a lady. You'll see in later episodes..."
"I'm starting to feel like catching those later episodes myself. Thanks for introducing me to this show, Kevin."
"You're quite welcome, Dani."
Dani couldn't help but giggle at Kevin's behavior.
"What's so funny?"
"Sorry, I'm not used to getting such polite treatment from a guy who's not trying to seduce me or trying to convince me not to
give them a severe clipboarding."
"Hey, don't worry about that. My mother always taught me to be a gentleman, and I live up to it. ...As long as it's with people I respect..." Dani smiled at that comment.
"Glad to hear I qualify. Must be a narrow range, though."
"Oh, just about everyone qualifies for polite treatement, in my opinion. Except for jocks and jerks of all sizes."
Dani chuckled a bit at that, almost smirking in disbelief.
"Oh? Judging from your constant baiting of Brad and Biff, I hadn't noticed that."
"Biff gets what he earns by being a brainless jerk. And Brad and I are just playing, usually. I noticed he pulls his punches."
"He does? And how do you know this?" This revelation had taken Dani somewhat by surprise, and she needed to know more.
"I've been punched and hit a lot of times before, back in High School." He quickly turned to her and added: "...And before you ask, no I didn't do anything to the guy. Not intentionally, anyway."
"What happened?" By now, she was genuinely interested, feeling concern for learning something out of his past. For a moment, Kevin just stared at the TV screen, which was now showing a perticularly annoying chip commercial, then turned back to Dani with a sad look in his eye, as if it hurt to even remember. She started to regret bringing up the subject, but the cat just looked down and started talking;
"Well, it was on my third year of High School, I was assigned as a lab partner to this vixen, some cheerleader I think. Turns out her boyfriend wasn't treating her well, and she started talking to me about it while we worked on the experiment. I just made some comments to the fact she deserved someone better then that bastard, just to agree with her and get that conversation over and get back to the experiment."
"That's it?"
"Oh, it doesn't stop there. The next day, the vixen's boyfriend and school halfback, a huge Boar who makes Biff look small, comes up to me just before I enter the School, grabs me and tosses me against the wall, screaming some obscenities, only stopping long enough to tell me his girlfriend broke up with him after I told her to, and then he starts to beat me up, punching me senseless..."
At this point, Dani was silent, more stunned at that story then anything. Not noticing her reaction, Kevin just continued his narration:
"After the first few blows to the head, the whole even became a blur, the pain in my head and ribs blocking everything out. I don't really remember much afterwards, but I do know someone stopped that guy. ...I think it was Tony, because I remember seeing him with a shiner afterwards that day, while I was in the school infirmary. He also started working out after that day, stating that he wouldn't let
anything like that happen to one of his friends again." Kevin started to smile somewhat weakly at that memory. "Heh... Best friend I ever had, that bull. Even if he did become a muscle-bound tough guy, he's
still a nice guy at heart. ...Unlike most of the other athletes I've known."
"Oh, so that's where your dislike of sports came from..."
Kevin turned to look at Dani, who had turned to look at him without having to turn her head too much. He was a bit surprised at her growing interest in him, but continued telling his story, not realizing that he was telling her stuff he'd kept to himself for the past few years.
"Actually, a lot of stuff caused that. Before that day, I was actually a pretty good soccer player. But after that beating, it took me a while to recover, and I spent time looking at the various athletes out on the field." Kevin took a more serious attitude as he continued. More serious then Dani had ever seen him before, she thought to herself.
"...After a while, I realized all of them were acting more or less like jerks at one level or another, thinking their physical prowess mad them greek gods or something. The bastard who'd beaten me up was just a more extreme version of the variety. I started getting afraid that if I'd keep playing sports, I'd become a bastard like that guy..." Kevin suddenly stopped talking and just stared at the TV screen, but not watching the show.
Dani just turned back at the screen, not really knowing what to say. A lot of her old misconceptions about Kevin's personality had just been shot down in a few minutes. He'd originally come off as an intellectual snob, talking down to anyone who didn't meet his mental standards, but now she saw it was quite the opposite; Kevin was someone who disliked athletic bullies, who treated like something to step on anyone not built like a fridge. This was something Dani decided she liked about him.
"If it's any reassurance, Kevin, I don't think you're a bastard." Kevin suddenly turned around and looked at the mouse like she'd suddenly turned into an alien being, surprise showing on his face. A bit startled (and not a little mbarrassed) at his reaction, Dani decided to cover herself; "...When you're not shooting your mouth off of, that is," which had for effect of making Kevin smirk. The two just sat like that in silent, trying half-heartedly to get focused on the shows again.
After a few minutes, however, it was Kevin's time to turn towards the mouse with a smile.
"Your turn," he said, causing Dani to look at the cat a bit confused. Kevin smirked and decided to explain. "I told you about my past, and why I'm like this. Now it's your turn," Kevin said with his usual sly smile, his mischievous nature now back in force. Dani couldn't help but blush when she saw his face, but quickly controlled
herself and took her usual "Tough independant woman" stance and leaned back into the couch, trying not to look self-conscious.
Kevin, undeterred, just leaned forward and smirked, "C'mon, I confessed a deep, dark secret of my past, here. Are you just gonna keep me hanging in suspense?"
Dani just sat there, eyes closed and armed crossed, until she finally sighed and relaxed, turning towards the feline, "Oh all right," she said, "I'll tell you about my own past... But don't tell anyone, ok?"
"My lips will be sealed," he answered with a grin.
Dani just sat there a bit before she finally began, "Ok, I've told you and Tony before, I'm not used with being a RA for a mixed genders dorm. The thing is, I'm just not used to dealing with mixed genders in general. I grew up in a pretty conservative household, and my childhood and early teens were spent in all-girls schools. The nuns
there were usually of the "Keep your Virtue, or Else" school of sex education, so I never had a lot of practical experience in dealing with guys until my High School years, when my parents had to send me to a public High School. That's when I got my first real social contact with guys. Unfortunetly, it mostly consisted of getting gawked at and
propositionned by nearly all the guys..."
Now it was Kevin's turn to feel a sense of concern as he listened to Dani's story, even as she continued: "...After a while, I'd gotten used to the catcalls, though. Heck, I even felt flattered. And then I met this really cute hound, real nice too. It didn't take long before we started going out. ...Up until one evening, when he
insisted we... you know... go to the next level..."
Dani paused, apparantly hesitating before going on... Kevin just reached out and took her hand. She looked at him for a moment, and saw him smile reassuringly. She blushed again, in spite of herself, then smiled back and continued her story.
"Dispite the fact I loved the guy, I couldn't. Not so soon, anyways. But he kept insisting, claiming our relationship depended on it. The jerk even forced himself on me, forcing me to knock him out
with a punch."
"Ouch," the cat winced.
"-Ouch,- indeed. I just left the guy there, at the drive-in we were in, and walked home."
"Good for you!"
"Yeah, except afterwards, I saw that tailhole again in the Cafeteria, talked about the night, showing the bloody nose I gave him, calling me a tease and a psychotic bitch..." Dani closed her eyes and sighed at the memory, before smiling as she added; "...Of course, that's when I took my hard plastic tray and smashed him over
the head with it."
Hearing that, Kevin couldn't help smirking, trying very hard not to laugh. But after Dani just smiled back at him, he just let it all out and fell back laughing, causing Dani to laugh as well. The two just laughed for a good moment, before coming to a stop, catching their breathes before Kevin asked, "I assume that's where you got the
idea for the Clipboard?"
"That came much later, actually, when I became RA for this dorm. Before that, I just kept a large notebook handy. The clipboard's actually lighter, so count yourselves lucky."
"I will, don't worry. So, you've never had a boyfriend after that guy?"
"Oh, I'm no spinster. I've dated more then a few times after that, but I made sure all the guys I've been with knew the limits, and the consequences. I just haven't had much luck finding Mr Right.
They're either all after one thing only, with IQs smaller then their muscle size, or have serious psychological problems..."
Kevin chuckled a bit, then reached up to pat her shoulder;
"Just hang in there... You're bound to find that right guy yet..." he then pulled the bowl of popcorn back between them, while Dani just smirked.
"Heh. Yeah, right. Life isn't like one of those romantic comedies, where two people just made for each other suddenly touch each other's hands, lock their eyes together and suddenly fall in love, you know..." she then reached down to take some popcorn...
...And her hand met Kevin's, just as he was reaching for popcorn himself. They suddenly turned to one another, and their eyes locked. Both cat and mouse just sat there, silently gazing into each other's eyes, each one's heart beating somewhat faster. Kevin could do nothing but silently look at the first woman who respected him as
an individual, but without keeping him at arm's length. Dani could do nothing but see the first guy she'd actually made friends with, and see there was potentially more then friendship to be made with him.
They just kept looking at each other, both leaning forward, their muzzles coming closer, when suddenly they heard someone stumble and fall in the hallway, causing them both to blink and pull back,
mumbling some barely omprehensible "Sorries" and "I didn't mean to's", before the voices of Cindy and Tony made them aware that the official couple of Richter Hall, third floor, had returned from their date, and where now heading closer to the Lounge, which they would pass on their way to their respective bedrooms.
Dani suddenly acted on instinct, getting up to grab her clipboard, and swatting Kevin upside the head with it. He fell back, rubbing his head and looking at her in shock and anger.
"OWW! WHAT WAS THAT FOR?"
"For eating in the lounge, what do you think?"
"What? but you were..."
"Kevin? Dani?"
The sound of Cindy's voice made Kevin shut up, as he stood up and looked off the couch to the lounge door, seeing Tony and Cindy standing there, looking at him and Dani, apparantly having an argument. Before anyone could say anything, Dani just pointed at the snacks and said, "You'd better have this mess cleaned up soon, Mister, or I swear that me hitting you with the clipboard will be the LEAST of your worries..." She then started storming towards the door, but took a moment to look back, apparantly to glare some more at him, from Tony and Cindy's point of view, but actually giving Kevin a sly wink, which he kept to himself, just starting to clean the mess he and Dani had made, while she went back to her room.
Tony and Cindy, meanwhile, just walked back to their rooms, Cindy just shaking her head. "You know... Somedays I just wish those two would stop arguing... I'm sure they'd make good friends..."
As the bull and filly gave each other a goodnight kiss and went to their rooms, they missed Dani sneaking back out to the lounge to help Kevin in his cleaning. He looked at her and smirked. "Did you have to hit me like that?"
"Sorry... But would you rather Tony and Cindy had caught us... like we were?"
"... Ok, you have a point. I guess you couldn't afford to lose your precious "I am the Iron Woman" image..."
At that point, Dani just dropped the waste basket, then turned around and sighed.
"That's not it, Kevin... It's just..."
"...just what?" He walked over to her, putting his arm around her shoulder, making her turn to face him. She looked up at him, then said, "...It's been so long since I've felt like this... I don't want
to make the same mistakes again. I need some time to think about this..."
Kevin just nodded and let her go. "Ok. If that's what you want, I don't mind. I can wait..." Dani smiled and gave him a warm hug, which he gladly returned. The two stayed like that for a moment,
then finally let go. Dani walked back to her room, but soon turned around, asking,
"Is there another festival next week?" Kevin just smiled and shook his head.
"Nope. ...But I can rent tapes of "Vision of Escaflowne", original edition."
"What's that?"
"Oh, a show I'm sure you're gonna love." Dani's face practically beamed, as she smiled and winked.
"It's a Date!"