Chapter 2: Cooper Rides Again!


After a few years of being Cooper's best friend, Stone learns something he should have already known.


"Don't get your baggies in a wad dude!" the small tax furred fox in the teal blue sleeveless tee shirt and tropical swim trunks laughed. Stone Kole had a grin on his muzzle that was almost as wide as he was tall while he looked at his best friend.

The little wallaby was face down in the sand and looking up at the fennec fox with an angry glare. He was bare chested, his grey fur was covered with sand and his oversized, loose fitting green and white striped boxer swim trunks had been ripped off in the back, showing his tail and much more.

"Bloody screaming gulls!" Cooper growled as he reached for a beach towel. The wallaby looked up at the sky as he wrapped the blanket around his waist before standing. "That bugger pecked my tail!"

The fox wiped his face because he was laughing so hard that it had brought tears to his eyes. His friend just gave him a look that caused the fox to begin laughing again. "So…sorry!" Stone finally gasped. "That was hilarious!"

"Why don't those terror beasts every attack you mate? They seem to like going after me instead and I'm taller then you are."

"It's the chompers! Even a gull is smart enough not to fight with something with teeth like these."

As Cooper limped slowly down the trail towards their camp, he lost hold of the towel. "Ugh, that's a sight that I didn't need to see Cooper!" Stone called out. "That gull yanked a good chuck of your fur off from down there."

"Wondered why I was cold in that spot! At least he missed the tail this time."

"You need to see the doc?"

"Naw, the only thing bruised is my bloody pride! Between the gull today and coming in sixth during yesterday's competition, you'd think I was a shark biscuit."

"Come on, we'll get changed and go into the village. You want to have a few brews?"

"I could do with really getting pissed," the wallaby sighed as he entered the shower shack and closed the door behind him.

Stone sat down in the hammock that they had strung up inside the gazebo and waited his turn in the shack. "Don't use all the hot water brah!" he called out to his friend. "I still need to shower and we don't get that much solar heated water."

After a few minutes the wallaby came out of the shack with a towel wrapped around his waist and shook off the excess water. Stone watched as Cooper entered the camper to get changed before he stripped and got under the shower. The water washed off the salt and sand in his fur, it was still reasonably warm but finally it began running cold. . He shook himself as he slipped his shorts back on and padded his way towards the camper. Cooper was now lying in the hammock, the small wallaby had changed into a tee shirt with a surf logo and a pair of grey cargo shorts.

Stone pulled on another sleeveless shirt, which was relatively clean, and a pair of rumpled shorts. Looking around at the room he sighed when he realized that they needed to do another laundry run soon, despite the fact that they really didn't wear that many clothes. Inside of the small camper was a cot where Cooper slept and a basket where Stone curled up inside during the night. They also had stuck in a corner, a larger inflatable air mattress which they pulled out and blew up when one of them had company for the evening, or at least when the fox "entertained a friend" for the night. Stone momentarily pondered about why Cooper never seemed to have company that spent the evening. When Stone and his latest female friend were using the camper, the wallaby would give them their privacy and roll himself up in a blanket on the beach for the night.

It was less than a mile down the beach to the Blue Mermaid Bar and Grill and as they entered the beach front bar there was giggling from several of the female tourist who recognized the fox as he entered. Stone grinned as he walked across the sand to the counter and climbed up onto a stool. The old waitress named Mabel sashayed her way over to his seat with a beer. "Complements of the ladies," the seal laughed as she handed him a mug of his least favorite beer, but it was the one that he once got well paid for shilling in an advertisement, so everyone thought it was.

He looked over at the two young roe deer does, even though they were a small species just at under three feet tall, they were way too big for the fourteen inch tall fox and he gave a sigh as he hopped off the stool and walked over to join them. "A show for the fans," he whispered to Cooper who was trying not to laugh.

"LAADDIIEESS!" he greeted them by dragging out the vowels. "I didn't see you riding the waves today! It was totally awesome out there, bam, bam, and wham, shredding the surf babes. Don't tell me you fine ladies are just shubies?"

He had them giggling and ultimately buying him dinner. He ordered the squab and was impressed that they didn't turn their noses up on him as he chowed into the meat. Too bad they're so much larger then me,he sighed to himself, but he was going to ride this hustle for as long as they were buying. Cooper knew when to rescue him, but as the evening wore on and as one of the does began to get a little too friendly, he looked for the wallaby to save him. That's when he spied Cooper at the bar chatting with another tourist, this was one another male wallaby and they were sitting real close to each other. It was then that the little fox suddenly realized why his old friend had never brought a girl back to the campsite!

"Yo Stoney!" Mabel yelled to the fox. "Al needs you back in the kitchen. He says you've got a call from your agent."

"Sorry ladies, I hate to leave you hanging, but my main mammal calls." Stone dramatically sighed as leapt onto the table and took a moment to kiss them both before he jump into the sand and practically ran towards the kitchen.

He stayed back there talking to with Al and Mabel until the does finally left, before he slipped back into the bar and looked around. "Where's Cooper?" he asked Mabel.

"He took off down the beach with that other wallaby. I think his name is Billy and they were holding paws as they left and were heading towards your campsite."

"Hey Mabel, did you know he was gay?"

"Everyone did," she answered while giving him a puzzled look. "He's your best friend and you didn't know?"

"He never told me," the fox answered. Then his ears dropped as he added. "But I never asked him either."

"Don't tell me you've got a problem with Cooper being gay?"

"Nope, but I guess it's my turn to sleep in the sand tonight!"

Shoving his paws into his pocket, he happily whistled as he walked along the moonlit surf. Stopping he watched the water as it shone white as it crashed onto the sand. Then with a grin, he laughed at himself as he made his way back towards their campsite, knowing that he would have to find a cozy place to curl up on the beach.