The ubiquitous sound of birds chirping filled the campus with news of daylight.

A pair of eyes opened slowly, watching the blur of her dorm room come into focus within seconds. Judy winced once her vision registered the intensity of light pouring in from the window, drowning the carpeted floor up to the walls. The disoriented rabbit grunted as she tried lift herself up into a sitting position using her arms but failed miserably— instead, she plopped right back onto her comforter, her brain pulsing behind her skull as her head sought the relief of a pillow.+

Mother of Mercy… my head's like a ton of bricks.

She shut her eyes and stroked her temples, focusing solely on stretching slow and taking lung-filling breaths. The extension of her limbs caused the sore muscles within them to protest her every movement; she almost caught a Charlie's horse in one of her calves, and quickly withdrew the leg so that her foot was flat against the bed and her knee pointed up.

Her entire body felt like it had just been rolled down every hill in Bunnyburrow. Twice.

A sensation of bile burned low in her throat, sparking an aura of nausea that vanished once she willed it to with a stubborn swallow of spit. Nooope. Throwing-up made top on her list of least favorite things, right after hangovers. This would be her first experience dealing with the after effects of reckless alcohol consumption, and it wasn't fun.

This is what I get for my not-so moderate and otherwise mindless drinking last night at the…

Oh yeah.

Wrapping herself under her blanket like a bunny burrito, she recalled how magical the party seemed at first; the overwhelming numbers of mammals flooding the house, how friendly everyone became once a little (or a lot) of alcohol got involved, the wild party games, the roof-climbing antics…

A sheepish smile braced her muzzle when she remembered her absolute favorite tid-bits: like when she had learned some new suggestive dance moves from her friends (her favorite was a tie between a sidesplitting hip-thrusting motion and the paws-on-your-knees-ass-in-the-air move), or when she got over her hesitation to drink for the night with Fru Fru's help (albeit illegally), and the truly blessed image of a soaked cheetah crawling out of a kiddie pool after falling a height of over ten feet. Judy sputtered a weak laugh as she reminisced in the comfort of her blanket. Gooood times.

But there was a point where her memory became, well, spotty.

The bunny forgot the chronological order of some parts of the night, there being gaps in between events that failed to register in her previously inebriated mind. She actually had no recollection of how the party ended, or how she, Ben, and Mabel all managed to get back to campus safely. But she did recall there being lots and lots of beers cans. Running, picking up, and stumbling over said beer cans. Was there an after-party cleanup effort?

Her scent magnified within her burrito fort, the reek of liquor suddenly causing her stomach to painfully churn. A shower was definitely in order, then whatever kind of breakfast she could scrap together, maybe even some pain meds if her nagging migraine persisted.

Slowly again, her eyes opened and she allowed them to adjust to the bright light in the room, the ceiling spinning. Grabbing a hold of the mattress beneath her she exhaled in preparation. C'mon, stand up, I can do it…

And so the hungover bunny did.

Having left the comfort of her blanket burrito Judy slid off of the bed, her feet finding the carpet as she groaned from the change in position. The time on her desk clock read 1:58 pm, a sight so unexpected she had to do a double take to make sure her mind wasn't playing tricks on her. Whoa, no way, I've never slept in so late before!

Then she collapsed onto her carpet, wobbly knees giving way.

"Oww-ha-howw!" She squealed once she collided against the rough textured floor, landing on her side. "I'm… a mess," she whined softly, staying down for a few moments before conjuring the strength to do a push-up, bringing herself onto her feet again, this time holding onto her desk chair for support.

The lightheaded doe peeked across the room to check for Bellwether but saw no sign of her, just a well-made bed and the sheep's typically organized desk. On Judy's desk laid a neatly folded sheet of loose-leaf paper, and once it caught her attention she approached the note and opened it.

Morning Judy,

I was upset at you for the whole party thing yesterday. But then you gave me such a scare last night, not responding to any of my texts or phone calls and coming back so late (4 am!). You were pretty drunk and kind of out of it so I'm grateful that you got home safe. Help yourself to some fruit and water in my fridge whenever you get up. I'll be in the Diversity Centre.

-Dawn

Judy smiled warmly to herself at the thoughtful sheep's letter and tucked it away in one of her desk drawers for safe keeping. So I got home at 4 am, she noted to herself surprisingly, feeling somewhat guilty that she neglected to check her phone for the entirety of the night. She didn't even want to imagine the sound of the sheep's angry voice mail messages probably sent throughout the course of the night. That's gonna be fun to listen to later.

Her thoughts were interrupted by another ambushing wave of nausea.

"Ughh..." Judy felt the familiar stirring in her stomach, an overpowering sensation, and prepared herself accordingly. The rabbit scrambled to the only trash bin in the room, and once on her knees, compliantly lurched the disagreeing contents of her stomach into the can.

Her small form rocked during each heave, about three or four times consecutively with shuddering breaths in between, until most of it was expelled. She groaned, a mild feeling of relief washing over her as the undigested alcohol was finally out. It's over…. thank God. She tied the plastic bag off in a tight knot with a tired sigh, the bag filled with that haunting bright green color of spiked punch. Now to drown myself in water.

Digging through Bellwether's well stocked mini fridge she found a bottle of water and chugged it eagerly, humming contently as the cold rush of fluid tamed the burn in her throat and pain in her gut. Since she, as a rabbit, had the ability to drink and breathe simultaneously, she had no qualms in tearing into another bottle without a moment of rest in between. The drink was so refreshing it almost made her eyes swell up with tears of gratitude.

Withdrawing the now empty bottle from her lips she recognized then, something peculiar about the arm holding the very bottle she drank from.

There was a crimson sleeve over that arm.

After racing to the mirror, her eyes widened.

She was wearing an Alpha Preda jacket.

"How in the…?" Judy breathed in disbelief as she spun around, looking over her small form's reflection on all sides.

The jacket smelled musky, a canine-like musk no doubt, and it was an overwhelming scent. Oddly, it was overwhelming in a good way. Like some kind of mild, sweet earthy cologne. Very earthy, like wet sandalwood, and refreshingly balsamic. Judy took a deep inhale of the dyed cotton and recoiled once she realized how disturbing her action was.

But she also recoiled because she recognized it was the scent of a predator, a scent that rang an alarm in her brain that yelled her to flee, but as usual she ignored the instinct. The jacket's smell also came in other notes, notes of alcohol and smoke, a combo almost as potent as the musk she picked up on first.

Judging from how it hung from her, it was definitely several sizes too big, making the sleeves baggy and the bottom of the sweater's white hem reach slightly beyond her knees. "Where did I… how did I..?"

Judy then explored the depths of her memory, or at least as far as it could take her. She remembered laughing. Then throwing cans up, landing back into the grass and giggling some more.

My last clear memory is…

The rabbit gnawed on her lower lip.

Hiding. Hiding in the bushes… hiding and… and being hushed.

Hushed by a red fox.

That jacket wasn't just anyone's jacket.

She was wearing the one belonging to the one and only, Nicholas Wilde himself.

Suddenly her ears drooped, a wild blush conquering her cheeks beneath fur and painting the cavities of her ears as her mind contemplated on all the wild and endless possibilities of what could have occurred between them. What in the hell happened last night?

Her jaw tensed as Judy started to pace the room, trying to reason through what very little she remembered. Laughing, then silence. The lawn, then the bushes. Fear of getting… caught? Seen? Surely her memory could lead her to it. There had to be a logical explanation, right?

However, that part of her night was particularly fuzzy.

'Slow your breathing, Carrots.'

So of course, she imagined the worse.

Judy recalled their banter on something sex related and thought maybe, just maybe, she had done something with him in those very bushes she would (and definitely did) regret.

There was just no way to justify why a self-righteous guy like Wilde would ever give up his sweater, the very piece of clothing that marked him an Alpha, willy-nilly to any drunk freshman mammal at a college party—especially to his assumed arch-nemesis. He presumably hated her, and she reciprocated the sentiment, so there was just no way. No way unless…

Oh god—we got drunk and had sex in the bushes.

Judy Hopps was definitely one to jump to conclusions.

She cupped her face with her paws to muffle her exclamation. "Holy SHIT!"

It was the only plausible explanation in her mind that would explain why she ended up with his sweater— I can't deny he looked reeaally good last night, and maaaybe the rush of our chase probably did something weird to me, not to mention how he kept looking at me with that dorky but suave quasi-interest…

Unless he looked at all the girls that way. But what set Judy apart from the others? Why was I the one drunk girl to end up with it?

Keeping her balance, she whipped and flared her comforter and snatched up the phone that revealed itself from the tangled bedding. Hesitantly she created a new message, swearing to herself low, paws trembling.

(2:34 pm) J: I think I have something of yours. What happened last night?

With closed eyes, she sent it.

Even though it may have been counter-productive, Judy couldn't help but try to fill in the gaps of her memory on her own. Her conclusions were lacking foolproof evidence, that much she knew, but it was the only scenario that made an ounce of sense, the only evidence being the underlying attraction for him she tried so hard to disregard.

The bunny paced back to the full length mirror beside her closet for a final look at the bulky jacket. It all made sense. In exasperation, she sank down with her back against the dorm room door.

Judy imagined how the scenario must've played out: Nick and her sneaking into the shrubberies, wasted out of their minds, having something of a quickie before they scrambled their clothes back on and she took his jacket.

In her outright embarrassment, her head knocked slowly back against the wood, a fluttering exhale drifting from her mouth.

The bunny had her fair share of intimacies with bucks back in the Burrows. The difference was that she was sober for each experience and could remember the events. This time? She had no clue if it even transpired, and if it did she couldn't even recall if it was at least enjoyable. Even as an optimist, Judy couldn't escape the suggestive mental crawl space she had subjected herself to. Did he at least use a condom?

(2:40 pm) Yours truly: Haha, she lives. But yeah, you have my sweater. Care to drop it off at my place? Elm 505 1.

He didn't really answer her last question. But she'd get an answer. 'Elm, 505, 1,' was all he informed her in regards to his address, a bit vague, but nothing the aspiring cop couldn't crack. Just a quick destination search in Zooglemaps produced the only street in Zootopia with the word 'Elm' in it. Twenty minutes away on foot.

She stood fast, ignoring her pounding head, her ears tall in newfound determination. "I can make it in ten."

That was, if the farm-raised bunny could navigate her way through the foreign city on her own.

After briefly freshening up and changing into a dark grey sweater and a trusty pair of jeans, she was off, having shaken all the contents out of her book bag and stuffed Nick's sweater into it. It was so bulky it made her bag look like it was going to bust at the seams of its zipper, but somehow the resolute bunny made it work.

She also made sure, in a last-minute moment of nonsensical panic, to grab the fox repellent hidden in a dresser drawer.

With her phone, repellent, and lanyard in her pockets she sprinted down the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator, her bag jerking and bobbing against her back as she went. Oddly enough, she saw no one along her speedy way outside of the dormitory building. It was particularly quiet this Saturday afternoon, perhaps the result of the majority of Hornstein Hall being hungover or sleeping in. Based off of her best guess, it was most likely the former.

Tired yet focused violet eyes intently stared down at her phone GPS app. The bunny realized she had to walk from her current position in West Campus towards East Campus, a far side of the school district that she was by far the most unfamiliar with. Great, veeery convenient.

So she had to pause at a nearby campus directory for several seconds before snapping a photo of the paths she had to take and trotting forward. "Okay… so I go down Main, then make a left at Zoology Drive, then straight 'til… uh, I reach University Boulevard…" she zoomed in with her fingers, keeping a rushed pace. She was lucky that the campus paths were mostly vacant or else she would've no doubt knocked into some mammal, like she had a reputation of doing.

Even with deep breaths, there was no sign of her calming down as her trot gradually evolved into a full sprint. In no time she made it off campus and onto the city streets. The sun was high and bright, the sensation of sunlight potentially comforting her if not for her rampant panic. Why was I in the bushes with the last mammal I would've wanted to find myself with?

Judy's eyes darted between street signs and (unbearably slow-changing) crossing signals. She endured a three minute jog of continuous self-reprimanding and anxiously avoiding getting hit by reckless taxi drivers before finally standing in front of the green and white-lettered Elm street sign.

"Yesss, I made it to Elm!" She did a quick hop to celebrate her city-travel victory, but then remembered why she traveled off campus in the first place, and regained focus. I'm here for answers. "So what's 505, 1 mean?" She scrutinized the numbers in the fox's text message before glancing around her.

Directly ahead were rows of identical apartment complexes, all one story flats somewhat small in size. Each complex's front had three spaced out entrances, olive green doors accented with gold numbering.

"There's building 500… so I'm looking for building 505!" she murmured to herself once she figured out the second of Wilde's mystery numbers. So '1' must be the door number. She marched forward, eyes darting between the apartments.

The apartments were adjacent—no, directly attached to one another, a typical example of inner-city building design that the Bunnyburrow rabbit wasn't accustomed to. No front lawns either, just littered sidewalks and trash waiting to be picked up by tardy sanitation trucks. Probably not a street she'd feel safe waltzing down in any hour of the night.

501… then 502…503…

Building 505.

At long last she stepped onto the one-level concrete stoop at the base of what she assumed had to be Nick's flat, if she cracked his text code correctly. "Elm, 505, 1… this has to be it, I'm here." Judy affirmed as she eyed the shining number 1 on the door above her head.

Underneath her was a rugged door mat with the words 'Wipe your feet, Asshole!' in classic calligraphy styled font, a subtle reminder to the bunny of just whose home she was about to enter. Riiight. So she braced herself.

Raising her fist she knocked solidly, twice.

Silence.

Judy pouted, suddenly impatient as she knocked a second time. Silence again. Isn't he expecting me?

Startlingly, the door swung open and there stood a groggy fennec fox, practically glaring up at the bunny in his black night robe, the scruff of his chest exposed. "Yeah, yeah, come in," he muttered as he stepped back into the flat, and Judy followed suit.

"Hey so, uh," she spoke distractedly as she glanced around the place. It was smelly, musky to be precise, and she honestly wasn't all that shocked at how horribly disordered the apartment was. Unwashed dishes stacked to the highest mountains, empty pizza boxes and cigarette butts strewn over the tiled floors. Clothes scattered on the couch like the hampers were at maximum capacity. And there was a faint smell of… weed? Shower gel? "I came to return something that belongs to Nick, so he told me to come by and drop it off here… where is he, exactly?"

"He's in the back, down the hall. Said to tell you to just wait out here until he's ready, though," the tan fox shrugged carelessly before walking away. "I'm going back to bed now."

"Alright," Judy nodded as Finnick made his leave, a bit irritated that she rushed all the way to the apartment out of self-induced panic only to be told to just wait until the fox felt ready. Ready to what, climb out of bed? Being well past noon, she saw no good reason to wait any longer.

The musing bunny made sure to wait until Finnick's door slammed shut before quietly stepping over the mess in the living room to get to the hallway.

But the damn floor was like a valley of land mines. Shit was everywhere. A laptop here, a nearly-destroyed textbook there. Bent beer cans, shoes, an assortment of bongs, speakers connected to a DJ spin table on the sofa next to the endless pile of clothes, a zebra blow up doll (what?), an unfinished game of chess, and small-sized Alpha Preda jacket on the floor— those were only a few things out of the entirety, much to Judy's acute observation.

The sound of running water became audible as the bunny made her way down the hallway quietly, a more traversable battleground, while her ears attentively minded the sound of a faucet turning, the previous rush of water now becoming a measly drip.

"Nick?" She called out, but there was no response. The bathroom door was cracked open just a tad, the misty room releasing a more heady scent of clean fox. Out of some bizarre and unnamed curiosity, Judy peeked inside with a twitching nose, her small paws holding onto the door frame.

Red fur over sculpted shoulder blades, wet and disheveled, filled her vision.

Her eyes traced down the back end of his slender figure, unaware of the shade of red that possessed her inner ears as she eyed his wet tail sway calmly near the bathroom floor.

The fox leaned forward with large paws on the sink counter to shake off most of the excess water soaking his upper body, the droplets flying as his head-hair tussled, the scruffy-likeness commonly attributed to him becoming reality.

Her eyes lowered further, silently admiring the contour of muscle in his lower back. Then lower, still.

This is wrong, so so wrong. I'm going to turn around and pretend I didn't see a th—

Then on all fours, he shivered the rest of his fur dry, his erect tail shimmying droplets every which way. Her sights were between his hind legs, eyeing something dangling there. W-was that his ballsack?

In a mixture of fascination and lust, she imagined what she must have looked like then, running her paws over his fur drunkenly, watching him struggle out of his clothes over her in the backyard of The Jungle. But the visualization didn't help jog her memory. It only served as an aggravating turn on.

Nick stood slow, draped a white towel over his lower half, and sighed.

"You've seen enough yet, Carrots?" he chimed, a wise smirk spreading over his muzzle as he turned on his heels to meet her wide eyes. "I don't give these kinda shows for free, I'm afraid."

Judy swore she had gone without a pulse for a solid three seconds as she stood there, mortified that he had been aware of her silent admiration of his naked body.

"Uh-um…I was just…" she stuttered, averting her eyes downward to the tiled floor and away from his ruffled chest in an effort to distract herself. What the hell? I can't think straight. "I'm only here… t-to return this to you…" She barely mustered the words, lowering the book bag from her shoulders.

He stepped forward slowly and opened the door wide.

"Yeah, you brought it?" He asked in a low, somewhat husky tone, the creamy fur on his front trailing all the way down his abdomen, and most likely down further beneath the towel. Keeping her eyes away from his body, she zipped open the bag and revealed the bunched up sweater inside of it, much to his satisfaction. "Greeeaaat. I missed ya, darlin'," he cooed frivolously to the concealed sweater. It made her roll her eyes. "Okay, give it over and scram. I've got a hot date to get ready for tonight."

Hot date, huh? She lifted a sleeve of the maroon jacket over to him, offering it with the hopes he'd just yank it out of her bag and let her run out of the apartment as fast as her two sore legs would allow.

Once his paw hovered over the sleeve, she abruptly withdrew her offering. "Wait."

His ears perked up as he flashed her a questioning look.

She gathered herself enough to meet his eyes. "I want you to tell me why I have your sweater in the first place. Why I woke up with it on this morning."

Nick crossed his arms, now leaning back against the bathroom door frame with his green eyes traveling up to the ceiling. "Uh, well," he searched for the right words, his cool nonchalance becoming mild annoyance. "Why do you care, anyway? Just give my sweater back and be on your merry way. So hippity-hop back to Hornstein." He extended a paw, looking expectantly at her.

But Judy didn't budge. "I care because I don't trust you for a second," she practically spat, the words more harsh than she anticipated. "It's pretty obvious you're incapable of selflessly lending it to just anyone."

He nodded slowly, acknowledging her claims as accurate. "Uhuh, soo… what's your point?"

"My point," the bunny sighed, her free paw giving her knit brows a quick rub, her migraine still very much present. "Is that you and I were in the bushes last night."

A few moments of silence. Awkward silence. She thought her suggestion was a dead giveaway of what she thought transpired between them, but Nick looked puzzled.

"Er, yeah," he shrugged. "Lots of mammals hid after the party ended. Y'know, when it got busted."

"What?" The rabbit tapped her foot slowly, wearing a clear look of confusion. "It got busted?"

Then a restrained smile found its way to Nick's muzzle once he realized: Oh shit, she totally blacked out last night. "Yeah. A bunch of noise complaints and sightings of open containers along the street practically led the cops to The Jungle's door step."

Nick arched a brow, giving the rabbit a good look from ear-tip to toe, studying her jaded appearance despite the clean clothes she wore. She's hungover too. "Geez, you don't remember a thing from last night… do you?" He hummed in an insinuating tone, his tail sweeping the floor in front of him.

Judy watched his tail dance and scowled. "Regardless—"

"How do you think you ended up with my sweater?" His coy question was laced with curious amusement, a sure trap, Judy knew. The fox waited calmly for her response, parting from his position against the door frame to stand tall over the rabbit.

She blinked at how close he was suddenly, being naked and all, and her stomach flipped. She was basically eye-level with his abdomen, a strong yet pleasant masculine scent filling her nostrils. "W-we were hiding in the bushes... and you told me to quiet my breathing..." She explained nervously.

"Oh shit." Nick cracked a grin as he leaned forward, now at eye-level with her. "You think we fucked in the bushes."

Heeere it comes. Judy averted her eyes from him in embarrassment as he barked a laugh so loud it surely woke his flat mate down the hall, the sound making her realize how absolutely pathetic she was for even thinking that was a logical explanation for why she had his sweater this morning.

It took him a few seconds to compose himself while Judy groaned.

"Oh, this is rich!" He exhaled in a chuckle, paws on his stomach. "Are you subconsciously confessing that you really do want me as your sex slave?"

"Nick," the coarse way she spoke his name barely reflected the anger that flared inside, making her nose scrunch up and her paws holding her book bag tense. "Just tell me if we really did or didn't do something last night. Like you said, I can't remember a thing, and I don't find this funny at all."

"Aw, don't get your ears in a bunch, fluff…." He eyed her, noticing she was practically trembling in anger, and relished the very sight. God help me, I can't help it, he thought to himself whimsically. A fox likes to play with his food. "I might be a little hurt that you don't recall our special moment under the stars," a toothy grin appeared, in opposition to her jaw drop. "But that doesn't mean we can't recreate it, right here, right now…" He took a step towards her, resisting a gut-busting laugh when she squirmed back.

"Don't you dare, Wilde. You're naked." She whispered the last bit in a 'are you completely insane?' sort of tone, her cheeks burning under grey fur; Judy held her book bag with both paws in front of her as if she could fend him off with it.

"Glad you noticed. But that's only half of the equation…" He chuckled suggestively, taking another step forward, adoring the quivering twitch of her nose. Oh, this was way too easy.

"How do I know you're not lying?" She countered, stepping back yet again.

"Because admit it, you like me naked," he stated smoothly. She swallowed, not making an effort to deny his claim. "You even snuck a peek at me just now, what more proof do you need?" Question was, would she fall for it?

Her frown deepened from the inevitable truth of his statement—she did ogle him coming out of the shower, probably watched his nude body out of something akin to perversion, and got caught doing so. There was nothing about that to dispute.

As much as she hated to admit it, he was insufferably sexy, but his obnoxious personality made him ultimately unattractive to the bunny. At least, the part of his personality he displayed for the world to see, the part he used to get under her skin, the part that made him flaunt himself off like he was some kind of big-shot. "It's alright, Carrots. I know some girls simply can't help themselves when they're around me. They all want a piece. I'm irresistible." There was no hint of doubt in his words, his eyebrows wiggling arrogantly.

"Oh please." She scoffed boldly. "Regardless of what may have happened between us last night, if it even happened, it was only because we were drunk. I'm not like all those other girls that like to butter you up. I am completely unaffected by that lame front you show everyone— I see right through you." Judy confidently snapped, hugging her book bag close as she glared at the predator.

"Completely unaffected, you say?" Is that a challenge?

This fox liked challenges.

Without warning he sauntered forward until he knelt in front of her, pinning Judy against the hallway wall opposite the bathroom door. His paw met the wall beside where her ears stood, or were standing, before they dropped behind her head in what he could only assume was out of fear.

It was at this point that Judy knew this was another one of his tedious games. She should've dumped his stupid sweater off at the kitchen and sprinted off into the horizon the very first chance she had, if only it weren't for her persistence and his distracting choice of clothing (or lack thereof). He was like some kind of magnet that managed to make the room spin for reasons apart of a lingering hangover. But she'd rather buy into her own spoon-fed lies that he was just as abominable externally as he was internally.

Nick watched her nervous expression with hungry green eyes so deep she swore she lost herself in them. His shit-eating grin was gone now, replaced with a serious look of reserved desire that made her go weak in the knees. Taking the opportunity of their current position he leaned in close, so that they were practically nose to nose, his whiskers tickling her face.

There was an enrapturing warmth coming off of his body as he pinned her, a warmth that fed into her own body which consumed it almost willingly. Her groin ached dully, a head-rolling sensation she ignored as she glared at him.

Judy fought it. She fought the sick attraction and weakly smirked at the fox trying to get a rise from her. She wouldn't let him win. And if he so much as puts a hand on me…

The rabbit recalled the fox repellent in her sweater pocket.

Smoothly, he exhaled from his nostrils, the air hot and drifting over her lips, the sensation making her audibly gasp.

Dammit.

Once his ego got a helpful boost from the flustered rabbit, he withdrew, admiring the result of his demonstration: a heart-fluttering, breathless, now presumably horny bunny. Aaand that's how it's done.

"Could've fooled me," Nick jeered as he admired the dark red tinges coloring her ears, almost unimpressed as he broke away from her, tightening the towel-knot around his waist.

Judy watched him back away, loosening her grip on the fox repellent as rage conquered her features. In his presence she was an emotional acrobat, flipping and turning every which way along the spectrum of tangible feeling, all at the command of a slippery fox. "I swear, if you would've touched me I… I… would've ..." Used something I never wanted to use.

Her hissed attempt of a threat made him roll his eyes. "Relax, Carrots, you're not my type." Nick mused over his statement, knowing that it probably held little to no factual weight. So he had to level it out with some truth to spare his conscience. "Truth is, we really didn't do anything in the bushes. Anything sexual, anyway."

Judy was taken aback, processing his words. So what, big deal if I'm not his type? Her ego didn't fret over it. However his sudden change in demeanor from tongue-in-cheek frivolity to apparent seriousness made her more open to accepting the following confession as honest. So we really didn't do anything last night. I guess I should be relieved.

"Now you know the truth. So yeah, any who, I'd love my sweater back."

Once Judy finally acknowledged him with a nod, she held out her book bag and unzipped it before abruptly pausing.

He narrowed his eyes. "Any day now, fluff."

Judy looked up at him skeptically. "You never told me why I have it. Why would you give it to me, anyway?"

Her persistence made him grunt, his paws running over his face and down the back of his neck in what seemed like frustration. "Does it honestly fucking matter? We didn't have sex, which was your big concern right? Then that's that, now give it back."

She swung the book bag behind her, one of its straps now sagging over her shoulders, her ears perched tall as she observed his sour reaction. "Let's say you didn't give it to me…let's say I found it? Finders keepers, right?"

"You're not serious," he muttered in disbelief.

"I'll give it back... if you just tell me why." Judy tutted playfully by wagging the other loose strap of the bag, any sign of her earlier temper now melting away.

A deep, restrained growl rumbled from his chest. Obviously, he didn't want to tell her that the actual reason she had his Alpha jacket in her possession was because he walked her home and didn't want her to freeze to death along the way. He couldn't tell her that, because altruism wasn't exactly one of his proudest characteristics; not to mention it would insinuate something weak about him that would render Nick vulnerable to Judy's eternal amusement. Even though she was technically in debt to him for his help, he didn't want to give her satisfaction of knowing that he had helped her at all.

"Carrotssss." He whined, watching her confidence harden into a desperate determination. "You got your stupid party and beat me at chase last night. I even assured you that we didn't have sex. All of that should be satisfying enough, you don't deserve anything else from me." He groused in resistance to her questioning. "So I guess we're… done?" He extended his paw for her bag.

Judy sighed. She knew that he was right in a way, she already used the fox as a gateway ticket into a considerable amount of popularity. Regardless of how she mysteriously ended up with his sweater, she was probably making a bigger deal out of it than it was. "Fine." She made a reserved exhale. "We are done." She held the out bag towards him.

Without hesitance he snatched it from her and sought out the zipper.

"Perfect!" Nick cheered in contentment. "Now let me show you out—"

He froze still, his words falling flat as he looked down at the flimsy bag.

It was empty. She had taken the sweater and now held it, still balled up, behind her back. To make matters worse, the bunny now smiled mischievously. Never a good sign. The sweater she attempted to hide from him was pretty obvious, her small form unable to fully shield the bulky thing from his sight. "First off, you hide things like a bunny. Second, you're a very sore loser." He swiftly tossed her bag aside.

"The thing is," Judy smirked softly. "Alpha Preda wouldn't sit well with a frat member chumming up with a freshman— a dumb bunny, no less. And here we have a shifty low-life doing just that. Just imagine them seeing me with your jacket on?" She enjoyed the mild shock that became evident in his expression. "So you're definitely gonna answer my question," she hummed, grinning up at the now very flustered fox who glared down at her.

"More blackmailing. I can't believe this," he grumbled, rubbing his face with a paw.

"If you just told me why I have this," She referred to the balled up maroon material. "I wouldn't feel the need to blackmail you in the first place."

"Look, I honestly don't remember," he lied with a snort, avoiding her gaze as he glowered at the wall between her ears. "I just know for a fact that we didn't get frisky in the yard. You just managed to get your paws on my jacket somehow. If you were looking for a better explanation, sorry to get your hopes up." He extended his paw, feeling entitled to make demands for his rightful belongings. So he did. "Now if we're both done here, I'll be taking my sweater back and bidding you adieu."

Judy shook her head. For all the hell you put me through, I'll put you through it twice, Wilde.

He watched her anxiously, his fur dripping.

"What if I decided to keep it," she started in a taunting voice, much too sweet for the way it provoked the predator. "And wore it through campus? Showed off my new fox-scented fraternity jacket for everyone to see?"

Nick gritted his teeth. "You wouldn't." After all the trouble she gave me, she couldn't honestly keep me on the hook forever.

Judy beamed innocently. "Wanna try me?" Oh fuck, she definitely could.

After a hostile stare down and a quick contemplation on whether it was possible to snatch the sweater from her and kick her out, Nick realized it would take (at most) three minutes for him to catch her if the chase last night proved anything. If she got out of the house they'd make it to campus by then, being on all fours, and if she wore his jacket during the chase, he was definitely screwed. Not to mention he'd be chasing her buck-ass-naked. Finnick's right. I dig my own damn graves.

"Listen," he scowled down at her. "You wear my jacket in daylight and my reputation with the preds is out the window. They still won't let go of the fact that I got hustled by… by some…"

Judy arched a brow. He let out a long groan, signaling his inevitable surrender.

"Ugh, fuck it all. Y'know what? Fine." He met her gaze again, paws falling against his sides in exasperation. "We'll make a deal. How about I keep you in-the-know about any future parties or whatever, in exchange that you not wear my sweater out in public and instead return it to me kindly?" He offered, giving the best pleasant expression he could muster despite his annoyance.

He watched the bunny turn her back to him to stroke her chin in thought.

On one paw, I don't get an answer on why I have the dumb sweater in the first place. Unless he really did forget, but I doubt that. On the other paw, if I accept…

I'd be invited to all the exclusive hang outs.

That would mean that The Jungle wouldn't remain her last experience kicking it with the cool mammals. She's be able to stay publicly relevant, even when the semester got going and students got busy. The popular friends she made wouldn't forget about her, and she would fulfill her wishes on becoming the social whizz she knew she could be. Tempting, tempting.

Nick gave an impatient exhale, eyeing the sweater she held. "Well?"

"You've got yourself a deal, Slick," she turned and revealed the now slightly wrinkled jacket in her possession. Nick reached out to grab it, but she withdrew quick, making him miss. Just to fuck with him a little. "As long as I am invited to go to said hang outs for free." She wouldn't forget including that condition this time around.

"Whatever, deal." With great relief, she finally let him take the sweater, and he immediately threw it on, smoothing the material once it framed him. Just a little wrinkled and negligibly smelly. A bunny-kind of smelly. "The next shindig is at the frat house— Alpha frat house, that is. But I'm tellin' ya you're not gonna wanna go."

Judy disregarded his warning as a way to shoo her away from the fun again. "Sweet. I'll be expecting more party details from you via text. Anything else I should know about?"

The fox quietly considered not upholding his end of the deal, but he knew that it would only lead to a promised demise, and he for one was definitely at his wit's end with her hustling stunts. "Not that I know of. But I'll keep you updated." He muttered sourly. Until that recognizable glint appeared in his eyes, one that represented that his hustler spirit had not died yet.

Judy picked up her empty bag from to floor as he watched, his tail wagging gently behind him.

"Actually, there is something you should know. Sometimes we like to hit the bars downtown. How old are you?"

"I'm... 18," The bunny admittedly softly, almost apologetically up at the fox who sighed in insincere concern.

"No can do, fluff. There's no way you'd get in with us, they're untouchable if you're underage." As his words struck a chord in her, he changed his tone to a more hopeful one. "Unless…"

She made a curious look. Bingo. "Unless?"

"A fake ID could get you in." Nick thrummed the cream colored fur on his chest with a clawed thumb as his clever tongue worked his magic. "You happen to have one?"

As expected, she shook her head slowly, her ears low. "Where… do I get one?"

"I figured as much." Another large toothy smile. "I've got a connection. But it's gonna be costly…"

She looked at him for a moment as she internally debated. "Name a price."

He responded with a straight face. "Two hundred."

No way. Her mouth went agape. "You're kidding."

"Now, have I ever lied to you before?" His words made her shoot him a dirty look, which inspired a throaty chuckle from him. "Well, you want one or not? I'm just trying to get you into our stupid hang outs, as part of the deal."

"Fake ID? Ugh, isn't that incredibly illegal?" Judy crossed her arms. "Are you sure… there isn't another way in?"

"Nope. Only way." Nick assured before he deflated. "Most college mammals get fakes eventually. It's not that big of a deal, buuut if getting a fake is too uncomfortable for you, seems like you'll be missing out on some real fun…"

Although her instincts told her to decline the offer, Judy sighed, paws digging into her sweater pockets. "…Fine." She fished through the wallet hanging from the lanyard and pulled out the only two crisp hundred dollar bills she had left, the last of the money she saved for emergency purposes. Money she earned by working tirelessly throughout the summer in anticipation for life at ZU.

Gingerly he took the cash she presented to him, stuffing it into a jacket pocket with a pleasant hum.

Once a street hustler, always a street hustler.

"When will I get it?" She asked quietly, feeling like she had just made some kind of blunder for the sake of getting into an exclusive hang out—illegally, of all ways. It didn't sit with her well, but she didn't want to mope over it. Or cave in. Not to Nick's satisfaction, anyway. Maybe it'd be worth it?

"We'll get it right now, lemme just get dressed." His muzzle split into a uniquely predatory grin. "And I know just the guy to do the job."


A/N:

I'm a slut for good banter, if you couldn't tell. The Jungle was just a warm up- there's more crazy shit on the way. Considering making this story explicit… tell me if I should. 'Til next week!