"He doesn't sound pleasant at all, RJ. Why do you live with him?"
Ozzie was showing genuine concern for RJ's current position. The raccoon hadn't told him everything, but enough to alarm Ozzie.
"He's gonna come looking for me. I left and I know it's not just an ass-beating now." RJ said quietly, pulling his legs up to his chest. "Normally he'll kinda just... Kinda throw me around a bit, yell at me. Then he starts with his sweet talk again, all that 'i'm sorry, I didn't mean it' crap."
Ozzie was starting to get the picture now. "RJ, you and Vincent are an item, aren't you? A couple?" He asked, and RJ scoffed.
"That's how it was, at first. Now he's really possessive. I know he's bad news, but I can't stop myself from going back. He says he needs me, but I kinda think I need him. I need him and he couldn't care less." RJ was shivering slightly now, the wind picking up. As he stood to leave, Ozzie stepped forward and pulled him into a hug.
The raccoon froze in place, almost unsure of what he should do. Before he could react, ozzie broke the hug and stepped back. "You can come talk to me any time you'd like, RJ. It's alright." He said, motioning for RJ to follow him back towards the log.
Ozzie stopped once he realized RJ wasn't following. "Sorry Ozzie, but I'm gonna head back to my tree for a while." Before the opossum could reply, RJ started walking the other way, leaving Ozzie standing by himself in the clearing.
By the time RJ sat down, not in the tree but just at the base, he was suddenly very tired. He couldn't have made it up the tree if he tried, so he simply curled up under a nearby bush and fell into a fitful sleep.
"Hey, ringtail. You cold or something?" Vincent asked, looking up from his resting place. RJ was shivering, though he tried not to show it. Before he could reply, however, RJ felt the bear's paws scoop him up from the cave floor, and set him gently on on his soft, furry chest. "Better?" Vincent asked.
RJ stuttered. "Y-yeah it's better." He said, flicking his tail nervously. Vincent grinned. "Good. I'm glad..." He trailed off, simply smiling at the small raccoon on his chest. "Vincent, I really -" RJ started speaking, but he was cut off as the bear pulled him forward and kissed his forehead. "Get some sleep, RJ. It's late."
RJ was still rather shocked, but complied almost instantly. He curled up on Vincent's chest, falling asleep to the sound of the bear's heavy breathing.
RJ woke up, the sunlight hitting him right in the face as the clouds parted. He sat up and yawned, stretching his arms over his head. As he started to gather his things, he noticed that somebody had left a large pile of berries next to him as he slept.
RJ smiled and took one in each paw, thinking that it only could have been Ozzie. The others followed him, but still seemed wary. Certainly wasn't Verne, for sure. He set the thought aside for the moment, looking over his list of things to steal. After the four days worth of stealing anything and everything from the humans, they really were almost finished.
It almost hurt him to have been deceiving everyone for so long. Ozzie was fond of him, hammy simply adored him. Even Ozzie's daughter Heather had really warmed up to him. RJ briefly thought back to Ozzie's behavior towards him. he was kind, trusting, and incredibly smart. Not to mention being as handsome as he was, even in his older age.
At that, the raccoon stopped and shook his head. A painful as it sounded, even in his head...
He wanted to remain faithful to Vincent.
–
RJ spent more time with Ozzie over the next day than anything else. They shared stories, RJ's mainly concerning the humans and their lives, cities, and other elements of human life. Ozzie told stories about his life with the others, when heather was born... what RJ would expect, really.
Either way, they both enjoyed the time they spent together. Both of them had been avoiding the subject of Vincent, but they knew it would come up sooner or later. Ozzie took a bold step and simply asked him.
"RJ... Would you like to talk about Vincent?" RJ froze up for a moment. Ozzie continued. "You're very distracted lately. You're thinking about him, right?"
Ozzie sat next to RJ, waiting for a response. "I am thinking about him. I want to go back, but I know he'll hurt me. Even if I beg, and cry, even if I try to look as cute and attractive as I can, he'll hurt me." Ozzie put his arm RJ's shoulder.
"You can talk to me. Anything that's on your mind, RJ." He said, sensing the hesitance in the raccoon's voice. The opossum could tell that he wanted to say more. Something big.
"I'm gonna leave, Ozzie." RJ said quietly. "If I go, he won't kill you. I don't want him to hurt you, Ozzie. You, or your family." The thought of losing these animals he barely knew made RJ's stomach turn.
Ozzie frowned. "RJ, you're not a part of his life anymore! You've left, and you can stay away, and he can't hurt you!" He said, the alarm in his voice clear. Ozzie pulled RJ close to him and hugged him tight.
RJ didn't stop himself from hugging back. He felt safe here, holding someone so close. It wasn't like Vincent. This was loving and wonderful, not something forced onto him. Ozzie released the raccoon for a moment, only to pull him forward and kiss him. RJ froze up again, for mere seconds before returning the kiss.
It was intense, truly. RJ hadn't felt this attraction to anyone in his entire life. He wanted to stay there, now he was sure. Any time he'd been kissed by Vincent, it wasn't any more than an attempt to shrug off his prior abuse. There wasn't any ulterior motive in Ozzie's kiss. It was something genuine, a truly foreign feeling for RJ.
The kiss lasted for what seemed like hours. When Ozzie finally pulled away, he knew that RJ wouldn't leave. The two stayed close to each other for the remainder of the night, RJ falling asleep quickly in Ozzie's arms.
The sunlight woke RJ the next morning, per usual. However, he'd slept much later than he planned to. He felt so comfortable,when somebody who truly cared for him held him close. However, he knew he couldn't show it if his plan was going to work. RJ stopped to think: Did he even want to finish it now?
He stretched and made his way towards the log, but he stopped dead in his tracks. The food was gone. The food was gone. It took RJ a moment to fully register what he was looking at. The entire wagon, its contents, everything was gone. The raccoon panicked for a moment, starting to walk alongside the tracks left by the wagon.