A/N: I'm finally back from National Novel Writing Month! That means updates will return once more. The updates for this story may not be as frequent as I'd like, but I'll try my hardest to push new chapters out. Enjoy chapter four!
-o0o-
Lunch had come and gone, with Fox and Wolf grabbing a protein bar and a soda from the cafeteria vending machines after breaking from Falco and the others in the vulpine's group. The two canines were headed to their next class, individual flying simulators.
Apparently, it pitted two pilots against each other in a simulated dogfight. Those two pilots were to be each other's dorm mates, which wasn't bad. Fox had heard quite a lot about Wolf's 'prowess' from the excessive boasting that he had done. Despite the lupine's ego, Fox was impressed with him.
"Ready for me to kick your ass?" Fox teased as the two walked down the halls to the class. Wolf scoffed, nudging the vulpine.
"Whatever. You're gonna eat those words, Fox," the lupine replied, giving a toothy grin. Fox's ears heated in response to that, and he looked away.
They kept going, and eventually found themselves in front of a large set of doors. Fox shoved one open, and they entered a hangar filled with the simulation pods. They were about the size of a ship, and looked like big black orbs. They were sectioned off in pairs of two, presumably for each combat session.
"This is a pretty cool place," Wolf remarked, nodding to himself.
"You're right about that. Now come on; I see the instructor over there," the vulpine stated, pointing to a space where a large projector screen was located, on the wall near them. A grey feline in the standard Academy outfit, plus goggles around his neck, was waiting with a clipboard. It seemed that some other students had already arrived, including Falco and Bill. The avian waved them over.
Wolf huffed in frustration. "Do we have to go stand by them?" He asked almost whiningly. Fox looked at him confusedly.
"Why? Do you not like Bill and Falco, Wolf?" The vulpine questioned with concern. The lupine shook his head, looking frustrated.
"No, it's not that. I just want it to be the two of us, I guess," Wolf muttered, looking away from Fox. The vulpine smiled a bit, his face heating slightly.
"We won't be hanging by them for too long, Wolf. Besides, I want to meet Bill's dorm mate. He sounds like a pretty cool guy," Fox stated, starting to walk over to his friends. Wolf reluctantly went to follow him.
Bill nodded in acknowledgement at seeing the two walked over to stand by the small group. Fox stared at the hound expectantly.
"So where's this Panther guy you've been speaking of?" The vulpine asked. Bill's ears perked.
"Ah, he's just over here. Panther, come here!" Bill called out into the throng of students. A tall, black feline shouldered his way through the crowd and came to a stop next to Bill. His physical features were rough, but the feline smiled warmly at Fox and Wolf. The vulpine found himself grinning back at Panther's friendliness.
"Hello there. My name is Panther Caroso; pleased to make your acquaintance," the feline said politely, extending a hand. Fox shook it for a moment.
"Hey there. I'm Fox. Nice to meet you, too," he said. Wolf grunted, and didn't grasp Panther's hand when it was offered.
"Wolf. Name's Wolf," the lupine stated gruffly. Panther looked slightly hurt for a moment, but the pain was quickly masked with a smile. That made Fox wonder if the feline was hiding something.
"Are you guys ready to get in the simulators?" Falco asked, piping up suddenly. Fox nodded.
"Yeah, but we probably won't get to use them today. It is only our first day, after all," the vulpine said, shrugging.
Wolf huffed dramatically. "We'll probably just be going over the rules, and how not to get killed or something," he complained. The vulpine nudged him.
"Hey, there's going to be some people here who are stupid enough to do things to get themselves killed. Just be patient," Fox chastised. Wolf grumbled in defeat.
The instructor cleared his throat to speak, and the room quickly went silent, with everyone looking at him in attention. Fox sighed inwardly. He didn't want to admit it, but he was just as excited about getting to fly in the simulators as Wolf was. They'd just have to be patient for a day or two, he supposed.
-o0o-
Fox was right about not being able to get in the simulators.
The instructor, known as Mr. Adams, has gone over the rules in great detail, making sure that absolutely everyone knew them. Fox nearly fell asleep a number of times, and it seemed Wolf did, as well.
The class passed by extremely slowly, and when the bell rang to signify the end of it, the vulpine sighed in relief, getting up from his desk. He and Wolf quickly left the room, and stepped back out into the hallway.
"That was so boring," Wolf groaned as they walked down the hall. Fox nodded, chuckling slightly.
"Maybe we'll get to use simulators in individual flying tomorrow," the vulpine said hopefully.
"God, I hope so. I need to fly soon," Wolf said desperately, clutching at Fox's shoulder. The vulpine almost reeled away at the sudden contact, his chest tightening. He didn't shrug it off, though.
"Maybe we will get to fly in team simulators," Wolf muttered as they walked. His hand was still planted on Fox's shoulder.
"Not a chance. I guarantee there will be even more rules for that class," the vulpine replied, sighing.
"Why do we have two different instructors for the simulators classes, anyway?" The lupine questioned, dropping his hand from Fox's shoulder. That was a good question. Two different classrooms, or hangars, for extremely similar classes? It was strange.
"Perhaps it's just to even out the amount of students in each class, I suppose," Fox suggested as they rounded a corner into another hallway. The vulpine was glad he knew where to go in the building.
The two walked on in silence, moving through the hallways. Everything was so spaced out in the Academy; you hardly ever ran into another student. Everything felt so quiet and eerie all the time.
Fox took the silence to use as time to think on a few things. They were mostly about Wolf. One such example that was burning at the vulpine's mind was why Wolf didn't like to hang out with Fox's friends. Of course, he just might not like meeting new people, but the vulpine knew that probably wasn't the case, as he'd taken an immediate liking to Fox and that Fara girl.
Speaking of Fara, Fox despised the way Wolf looked at and spoke to her. He clearly had a thing for the vixen, and that made Fox extremely upset, but he had no clue why. Just the thought of Wolf dating her made the vulpine slightly sick to his stomach. Why would he date her when Wolf could date-
"Fox, are you alright?" Wolf asked, his ears pinned, ripping Fox from his train of thought. How was I going to finish that sentence? He thought.
"What do you mean, Wolf?" The vulpine asked, a little confused.
"You were scowling really terribly, and you almost sounded like you were about to growl," the lupine stated, eyeing Fox in a way that made the former feel like he couldn't breathe properly.
"I'm fine," Fox started. Thinking of Fara had made him remember something Wolf was supposed to ask him. "You never finished that thought after I had refused wanting to date Fara. What was it?" He asked. Wolf suddenly looked very uncomfortable.
"I'll… uh… tell you after… uhm… this class. Yeah, I will," Wolf muttered, sounding nervous. Fox eyed him, confused.
"Okay, as long as you tell me whatever it is, I'm fine," the vulpine remarked. The lupine nodded, looking away. Now Fox was really confused. He realized that Wolf had been acting really strange over the day. That didn't seem like him.
Fox was so distracted he nearly slammed into a door. He looked over, startled, to see that it was the one for the team simulators class. He shook his thoughts off and opened the door for Wolf, who walked inside. He followed, and saw that they were in a hangar nearly identical to the last one, except that the simulators were in groups of four. Must be two per team, the vulpine inferenced.
"I'll bet we've got more rules to learn," Wolf muttered, sighing. Fox poked him in the arm.
"Have a little patience. We'll be able to fly soon. Just wait a while," he remarked, grinning. Wolf nodded glumly.
Fox saw a group of students huddled near another teacher. This one was a tall raven who was wearing spectacles.
"Come on. We've got to learn these incredibly important rules," Wolf said sarcastically, faking a smile and walking to the crowd. Fox rolled his eyes, trailing behind. He was so ready for another lecture. That was going to be so fun.
-o0o-
Fox was right; they had another lecture and another list of rules. The instructor, named Ms. Seyn, had a cheerful demeanor, which was nice, he supposed. The vulpine half listened during the class, more distracted by Wolf than anything.
He found himself just looking at every movement the lupine made, every twitch of his muscles, every eye movement he made. Fox had no idea why, but sometimes he just found that he couldn't rip his eyes away from Wolf's figure, no matter how hard he tried.
The two had left class as soon as the bell rang, and started back towards their dorms. Thankfully, the last class wasn't terribly far from the dormitories. It was just a quick walk before they'd arrive.
"Oh, finally. The first day is over," Wolf said in relief. Fox nodded in agreement.
"Yeah. I just want to head home and have some of you delicious cooking. What time is it, anyway?" Fox asked. Wolf took his phone from his pocket and turned it on, staring at the time.
"It's about ten past four, Fox. We've still got plenty of time in the day," he answered.
"Alright, that's good. Do you have plans for dinner?" Fox questioned, eager to know what Wolf would cook up.
"Hmm… what to make…how about some homemade pizza? How's that sound?" The lupine asked. Fox nodded vigorously.
"Oh, that sounds perfect! I'm down for that!" The vulpine exclaimed, his tail wagging. Wolf chuckled, walking a little faster. Fox opted to trail behind him, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"Then I'll get the oven turned on and all that when we get back," the lupine remarked idly.
Fox nodded, starting to become distracted by Wolf's tail. It was moving erratically at some points while he watched. Other times, though, it would droop so far it almost seemed like it'd tuck between the lupine's legs. The vulpine was slightly amused, yet concerned for Wolf. He was curious to know what that was about. He was also curious to know what question Wolf needed so desperately to ask him. He said he'd wait until they reached their dorm, but why?
A good five minutes later, the two canines had arrived at the dorms, and climbed the staircase to reach their dorm room. Wolf used his key card on the door, and it unlocked. He opened it, letting Fox through first, before shutting the door and making his way to the kitchen to start on the pizza. The vulpine took off his uniform top and kicked off his boots, sinking into the couch with a heavy sigh. He was exhausted.
"I'm tired," he stated simply, turning on the TV to a random station and pulling his PDA out from his pocket. He heard a slight chuckle from the other room.
"I'll bet. I am too; everything was a bit stressful. I was really nervous," Wolf replied. The vulpine heard the sound of the oven turning on.
Fox stretched out on the couch, opening up his PDA and checking his messages. He saw one from Bill.
FROM: BILL G.
Yo, dude. R u up to come to my place? We got food and friends! :D
Fox chuckled at his friend's casual nature, and started typing out a response.
TO: BILL G.
Sorry, man. Wolf's already in the kitchen making us homemade pizza. No way I'm missing out on that stuff.
The PDA was silent for a few moments, as Fox waited for a reply from his canine friend. He whistled softly to himself as he half listened to the TV in front of him. It was talking about politics, or something like that. The vulpine really didn't care. He looked back at his PDA to see that Bill had replied.
FROM: BILL G.
Aw :( That's cool, I wasn't expecting u to come. I guess don't get into trouble with Wolf, plz. Gtg… Falco is here now. Bye!
Fox snorted in amusement, sending a farewell message and setting his PDA on the coffee table. The vulpine got back up off of the couch, walking into the kitchen, where Wolf had put his apron back on and was busy chopping up some bell peppers. Fox coughed to get his attention. The lupine looked over at him, his face instantly brightening. That made Fox's face heat up slightly.
"Did you need something, Fox?" Wolf questioned.
Fox nodded. "Yeah, I do. You still haven't explained to me what you were going to say earlier about me not wanting to be involved with Fara. Could you?" He asked.
Wolf hummed. "Well… you sounded pretty sure about that whole thing with me not going after Fara. That convinced me to not go after her, you know?" The lupine asked, shrugging. He was kneading the pizza dough as they spoke. Fox rolled his eyes in amusement.
"I just think she wasn't good enough for you. I'd bet you could find someone much better than that," the vulpine replied, smiling.
Wolf nodded, staring at Fox. "Yeah. Maybe I could," he said.
The vulpine walked back to the living room, sitting back down on the couch. He wondered why he was so adamant on making sure Wolf didn't go after Fara. He told some of the truth, he supposed, but he still didn't feel right. Fox felt kind of empty for some reason.
The vulpine let his thoughts wander as he tried to remember what day it was. Wednesday. It was Wednesday, wasn't it? Yeah. Fox sighed in contentment, burying himself further in the couch cushions. The condition he was in made him feel sleepy. He yawned, closing his eyes. Sleep quickly found him, as he was exhausted.
-o0o-
Fox awoke to the smell of freshly baked pizza. He cracked open his eyes, and saw amethyst ones staring at him. They quickly moved away as Fox gained his bearings and sat up. Wolf was standing in front of him with a few plates of pizza in hand.
"You looked really peaceful, so I didn't bother ya," the lupine said, smiling and handing Fox a plate that held a few slices of pizza with pepperoni and jalapeños on them. He had two glasses of water on the coffee table.
"Thanks, Wolf. These look delicious," the vulpine remarked, licking his chops and picking up a slice from his plate.
"I… I try my best," the lupine muttered, looking away. Fox cocked his head slightly in confusion.
A moment later, he shrugged and took a bite out of the pizza. He immediately knew that it was his favorite slice of pizza ever.
"This is the best pizza I've ever had!" Fox exclaimed after taking a few more bites of the food. He took a long sip of the water, as the jalapeños added a serious kick to the dish.
Wolf smiled shyly. "You really think so? Thanks," he said.
"I'm glad I got a great cook as my dorm mate," the vulpine declared. I'm really just happy I got you as a dorm mate, Fox thought to himself.
The two ate their food relatively fast, as the day had exhausted them and given them huge appetites. Fox loved the pizza, and went back for two more slices, eating those just as fast. He wondered if Wolf could make every type of food taste perfect. The vulpine certainly hoped so.
A while later, the two canines were sitting on the couch, their stomachs full and plates empty. Fox sighed in content, glancing over at the lupine beside him. He was frowning at something.
"What's the matter?" Fox asked, a little concerned.
The lupine shook his head. "Nothing. I'm fine," Wolf said, getting up off of the couch. The vulpine followed him to their bedroom, where he was pulling out sleeping clothes.
"I'm gonna go take a shower. It's starting to get late," the lupine remarked, walking back out and into the bathroom. Fox climbed up to the top bunk, sighing as he lay down. He'd shower after Wolf got out, of course.
The vulpine sighed softly, already stressing about the next day. More school, more rules, but hopefully, they'd get to start flying. Probably not, though.
Fox needed to call his father. He said he'd do that. The vulpine nodded to himself, getting off of the bed and walking to the living room. He heard the sound of water running, and inferred that Wolf was showering. Fox grabbed his PDA from the coffee table, and found his dad's contact information. He hit call, and put the device to his ear, listening to the ringing noise.
Just as Fox was worried it'd go to voicemail, the other line picked up.
"Dad?" Fox asked excitedly. His father was able to pick up!
"Son? How are you? Is school alright so far? How was your first day?" James asked rapidly. Fox chuckled.
"First, I want you to tell me what you have been doing," the vulpine replied.
"Oh, alright. I met up with Peppy, and the new guy, Pigma, his name is. I think he's alright, but Pep doesn't like him. Oh well. We ship out in a few days; for now, we're preparing. Now, answer my questions. Tell me all about the first day," Fox's dad said.
"Oh. Of course! It wasn't too bad; I got to meet my instructors. They were all pretty cool. I met some new people too. Bill's dorm mate was one of them, a guy called Panther. He's kind of quiet, but he's cool. No flying simulators yet, though; I only got to learn rules I already knew," the vulpine explained. He heard a chuckle from the other end.
"I'm glad you had a good first day. So who's your new dorm mate, son?" James asked. Fox smiled at the question.
"He's a guy called Wolf O'Donnell. He's awesome! Wolf knows how to cook, so we get homemade meals all the time! He's also a really good fighter, and I think he's going to make a good pilot. He can be a little aggressive towards other people he doesn't really know, but he's really protective. I'm really glad I met him; he's a great person," Fox explained, smiling wide. He heard some silence from the other end for a moment.
"I'm glad you're happy. I hope you have a great year, Fox. And I'm sorry that I couldn't stay with you, but I'll be back! I promise I'll come back and see how you're doing. Have a good year, and be kind to your friends. Make new ones, and keep with Wolf. I think he'll be a good companion. Just remember to keep pushing ahead!" James exclaimed. He sounded like he was crying from the other end of the phone. Fox hoped he was going to be alright. He missed his father already.
"I love you, dad. I'll call you as soon as I can! Bye!" Fox exclaimed, grinning.
"I love you too, son. I'll be back as soon as I can. See you later," the other vulpine said. He hung up a moment later, and Fox set his PDA down, smiling softly. He was able to speak with his dad. He hoped it wasn't going to be the last time he would have that chance.
The vulpine sat on the bed for a few moments, listening to the drone of the water from the shower. He was happy Wolf was there with him. It was good to take his mind off of missing his father. It was like the lupine was filling a void in his life.
A few moments later, the water stopped, and then Wolf stepped out of the bathroom in sweats and a white tank that hugged his muscled figure. He looked… good? The vulpine smiled when they made eye contact, looking away a second later.
"Your turn for the shower. I'll be laying down on my bed," the lupine said simply. Fox nodded, walking over to his suitcase and grabbing some boxers and a baggy shirt and walking into the bathroom, turning the shower on.
The vulpine undressed, waiting for the water to warm up. He swiped his hand over the mirror, getting rid of the condensation and staring at his reflection. He looked rather tired, but happy. It's what he expected, after all.
Fox entered the shower when he was satisfied with the temperature, and started washing himself off with a brisk pace. His dad had taught him to conserve water usage, so it bugged him to see Wolf taking so long in the bathroom. He wouldn't say anything, it was just a mild annoyance.
Not ten minutes later, the vulpine exited the shower, drying his fur off quickly. His fur puffed out in all sorts of directions, which was rather funny. Fox put his pajamas on and walked out of the bathroom, feeling refreshed. He shuffled into the bedroom with a yawn, throwing his dirty clothing into a pile and hanging his uniform up on the side of the bunk bed.
Wolf was laying on the bottom bunk, looking intently at his phone. Fox smiled, his chest twisting as he watched the lupine smile every so often. He was acting like a dork. The vulpine shook his thoughts off as he climbed up to his bunk and got under the covers. The two lay in comfortable silence for a while, content to not speak. Fox grew tired eventually, his eyes becoming heavy. He was ready to sleep.
"Hey, Fox?" The lupine asked, breaking the silence.
"Hmm?" The vulpine asked, half asleep. What could be so important as to bother him this late at night?
"You're really good with talking about feelings and dealing with girls and such. How come such a great guy like you doesn't have a boyfriend?" The lupine asked. It took Fox's sleep riddled brain a moment to process what he said.
A what?
The vulpine shot up. "A what?" He asked, moving to look down at Wolf's face, which was still staring at his phone.
"Yeah, boyfriend. Noun. Somebody you go on dates with," the lupine said, looking up at Fox's bewildered expression. His ears pinned to his head in his realization.
"Oh… I thought you were… you know. Jesus, Fox, I'm sorry I assumed…" Wolf trailed off, covering his face with a hand.
"No, it's alright. Um… uh… how about…why did you assume that?" The vulpine asked, curious now more than anything.
"Well, you apparently know how girls like to act. And you haven't mentioned liking anybody at all. And you seemed openly disgusted about me thinking you'd date Fara. I might have saw you stare at a guy or two in the halls," Wolf explained, ears still pinned.
"Oh. Well… let's just talk about it in the morning because I don't… I don't think I'm… goodnight," the vulpine said, flustered, as he moved back to a laying position on his own bunk.
"Night," Wolf muttered. He stood and walked to turn the light switch after that, and Fox closed his eyes, trying to find sleep.
But sleep wasn't going to come easy to him at all, sadly. His thoughts became plagued by Wolf's words. If he thought the vulpine was gay after about two days of knowing him, then what did Falco, Bill, and the others think? Oh God, what if everyone thought that?
Fox was pretty sure he already knew the answer to that question, actually.