A/N Hey guys, welcome to another chapter so let's hope this one goes well and without further ado, enjoy.
'Seriously, what the hell is taking them so long in there?' I thought as I was busy clipping the thorns on the roses.
I was focused on my task of clipping the thorns and bundling them up to take them back to the drama club with Legoshi, the activity actually quite relaxing for me since there was something about gardening that feels peaceful in a way.
Still, Legoshi and Haru were taking a while so I don't know what they were doing in there but Legoshi and I should head back to the drama club soon since we didn't want to make Dom and the other members of the stage crew wait for us.
I sighed while I worked on getting the roses ready and could see that there should be enough for the play so I stood up, brushed any dirt off my pants, and began to make my way to the shed when I soon stopped at the door and slid it open.
"Hey, I got the roses ready so are you-" I started to say and was cut off.
"No, it's not okay!" Legoshi screamed suddenly, startling me and then I saw what had been going on in here while I was outside.
I stood in the doorway with my mouth agape and my body frozen in shock as Haru was in her underwear while Legoshi's suspenders were undone with his pants unbuckled and the zipper down, though the meek grey wolf quickly fixed that as Haru frowned and hadn't noticed me yet.
"What's wrong? I'm doing all the work trying to set the mood, you know. That's the reason you're here, aren't you?" Haru questioned as Legoshi was quickly glancing between me and her, the poor wolf looking overwhelmed and quite clearly panicking.
"W-What?" Legoshi asked as Haru crossed her arms and started appearing confused.
"Don't you want to-" Haru started to inquire but she immediately stopped and her eyes widened.
Haru appeared to have figured out that Legoshi wasn't here for that type of thing and let out a gasp, looking like she was freaking out at the knowledge that she almost accidentally forced herself on the wolf who had clearly shown that he had no idea what she was doing and how it had him avoid eye contact with me while the male wolf went to cover Haru with a blanket.
"H-Here, y-you're going to catch a cold so y-you should put on your uniform. I'm gonna go!" Legoshi stammered and head to the door before his eyes met mine for a few moments, silently portraying how embarrassed and sorry he is for being caught in such a situation with Haru.
"H-Have a good day!" Legoshi added as he slid open the door and wasn't paying attention.
"Legoshi-" I tried to warn, but I was too late and winced as he slammed the door on his sensitive tail which made him yelp in pain and he ran away after that.
"Come back soon," Haru said and I awkwardly cleared my throat.
"Um, Haru," I spoke up hesitantly, then Haru looked at me and gasped in alarm.
"O-Oh, Connor, I-" Haru stuttered but I waved my hands to reassure her.
"N-No, it's fine since I should apologize for coming in without knocking," I assured and Haru sighed while looking guilty.
"I messed up, didn't I?" Haru questioned and my eyes softened.
"Look, I could tell it was a misunderstanding so I don't hate you or anything, was more surprised by what happened but try to be careful next time since Legoshi clearly had no idea what you were doing and it freaked him out, okay?" I suggested, giving her advice and Haru nodded.
"Don't worry, I will and I'll apologize to him if I see him again," Haru told me and I was happy to hear that.
"Good, I'll go see if he's doing okay so I'll come back later for the flowers, though are you okay with having lunch with me later?" I offered and Haru smiled.
"Sure, I don't mind," Haru replied and I smiled as well.
"Great, then I'll see you later," I said before quickly leaving the shed and running after Legoshi to see if he was okay since the poor guy was clearly freaked out by what happened to him, though I ran down the steps later on and managed to find Legoshi as he was resting his hands on the wall and gasping for breath.
"Hey...are you okay?" I asked carefully, startling the grey wolf as he jumped with a yelp and the fur on his tail puffed up until he quickly turned around and relaxed slightly.
"O-Oh, C-Connor..." Legoshi trailed off as he looked highly uncomfortable and I felt sympathy for him since this was the first time he had ever been in such a situation and he clearly doesn't know what to do.
"Legoshi, I know you're freaking out right now so I talked to Haru and she'll make sure to apologize to you if she sees you since she feels guilty for what happened and how she misunderstood the situation," I said and Legoshi looked surprised.
"O-Oh, you didn't have to do that for me," Legoshi told me and I shook my head.
"It's fine, Haru's actually an okay person so I didn't want things to be awkward between you two if you were to ever encounter each other again," I reassured him when I heard someone approaching us and I could see it was Kibi as I turned to look at him.
"Legoshi, Connor, sorry about earlier. I was waiting for you two to come back," Kibi said and Legoshi also turned to look at him.
"Hey, why did you leave us like that?" Legoshi questioned but Kibi shook his head.
"Nevermind that, did anything happen?" Kibi asked with a look of concern and Legoshi's eyes widened slightly before he schooled his features.
"Hmm? Of course not, not really," Legoshi lied while avoiding the male tapir's gaze.
"Hey, how about we walk and talk while heading back to the drama club?" I offered and we started walking our way back to the club, passing by a couple of mice students as Legoshi spoke about the conversation he and I had with Haru.
"I see...well, that's a relief since you were jumping down four steps at a time so I thought something bad happened," Kibi said and Legoshi went to look at him.
"Something bad like...what?" Legoshi inquired, sounding genuinely curious when Kibi suddenly pinned him to the wall by his lower half as the male tapir sent him a distressed look.
"Apparently, this is a pretty well-known rumor among the herbivores so the talk around the school is that she's really promiscuous and has been with a lot of guys. Basically, she's a slut...she's trouble so stay away,
Disappointing, right? I mean, the rabbit looks so innocent but I guess she would never attempt to seduce a wolf and a human," Kibi explained while Legoshi appeared stunned and I frowned at the derogatory name.
"Kibi, it's not polite to call somebody that when you haven't even had the chance to get to know her and rumors aren't known for being reliable so I wouldn't pay too much attention to it, and even if it were true, what she does behind closed doors is not exactly our business," I lectured calmly and there was silence for a little bit until Kibi cleared his throat.
"So, did you two get the roses?" Kibi asked and Legoshi glanced wistfully at the plants outside as he appeared to be deep in thought about something.
"I'll talk to the others...figure out somewhere else to get the roses," Legoshi murmured as Kibi stepped back and allowed the large grey wolf to turn away from the male tapir.
"There may be a lot of rumors out there, but I think she's a good person," Legoshi added as he walked away from us and I looked thoughtful as I recalled that I would head back to the gardening club to get the roses since I didn't want Legoshi to go through the trouble of speaking to Dom about searching for the roses elsewhere.
With that in mind, I left Kibi behind as I went back the way we came from and pretty much spent the rest of the day getting the flowers for the drama club, having lunch with Haru, doing club activities, going to my classes, and having dinner until school ended as the sun set over the horizon so I went to my dorm room and had gone to bed, getting some sleep for tomorrow.
The next day, I had gotten up and went to my usual classes for the day until they ended and I had to join the other drama club members as the headmaster presented us with the Cherryton honor award and I never thought standing on stage in the auditorium with hundreds of faces staring at us could be so nerve-wracking, though Louis went on to carry out a speech about the importance of co-existence and I listened.
I knew that the idea of co-existence was important, maybe even necessary to achieve peace, though I was unsure if humanity ever succeeded in that since I died before it could be realized but my actions across the entire wasteland inspired a lot of people so it was possible that humanity managed to get their act together and started co-existing.
Still, I didn't know what Louis' intentions were or if he really meant what he said, but everyone else was practically hanging on to every word and I think I heard a couple in the audience mumbling about how beautiful it was.
Even so, there were those who weren't happy about his speech and Kai was a perfect example of that as he was complaining about it while he, Legoshi, and I were working on the spotlights up above in the practice room of building 3 later on while I was wearing the same outfit the other male club members were, which was a white t-shirt, red sweatpants, and white sneakers.
"Co-existence? What a joke!" Kai growled as he sounded pissed while the three of us were taking a break.
"Keep it down, would you?" Legoshi whispered as he looked uncomfortable and Kai glared at him.
"He kicked me off the actor's team so what do I care who hears!" Kai shouted and I shushed him since he was going to cause a scene.
"Kai, calm down before you cause a scene and if you want my advice, you need to learn to let shit like that go because complaining about it all the time isn't going to help," I said quietly while sending him a firm glare, then Kai sighed and stood up before heading over to the railing as it prompted me and Legoshi to stand up as well.
"I'm not as bitter as I was before, though," Kai admitted as we rested our arms on the railing and watched the actor's team and dance team practice for the upcoming play.
"I'm glad to hear it," Legoshi said as we kept watching what was going on below.
"I was wondering, have you two ever thought about joining the actor's team?" Kai asked me and Legoshi, taking me aback as I glanced at him.
"Not really, I'm not the greatest when it comes to crowds and having hundreds of people staring at me while I'm on stage is stress I don't need right now," I admitted quietly and Kai hummed thoughtfully.
"How about you, Legoshi?" Kai inquired and Legoshi looked hesitant.
"Who, me? Never...hey, those lights need adjusting," Legoshi said before stepping back from the railing and walking over to one of the spotlights.
"Then you and Connor must've been surprised when you two were scouted by the adviser," Kai commented and I chuckled at that.
"Believe it or not, Tem actually recommended me to Louis before he passed away," I pointed out, causing the two male carnivores to look at me in surprise.
"Really? I didn't know that," Kai admitted and I sighed wistfully.
"Yeah, surprised the hell out of me when I heard it from Louis so guess Tem saw something in me and figured I would fit in as a member of the drama club if he went to all that trouble for me," I replied as Legoshi and I went to start adjusting two spotlights.
"That's surprising since you can only join this club if they scout you, which is exclusive to those they see as worthy of representing the drama club," Kai told us as I was focused on the spotlight in front of me.
"Okay, but what do they judge you on?" Legoshi inquired and Kai chuckled.
"Come on, don't tell me you joined the drama club without knowing any of this? For example, uh...let's take Sheila from the dance team. At age 14, that cheetah was scouted while she worked part-time as a dominatrix at a BDSM club to make ends meet.
Mina the giraffe can't look at her own body because she's got trypophobia. Moro the rhino believes he sees his guardian angel when it's really his own horns in his line of sight, and in case you and Connor are wondering about me, I'm a mongoose who was abandoned at birth and raised by a family of hyenas, and the list goes on and on.
The drama club is a mixture of unusual characters so only those with unique circumstances can join. It operates with the general theme of exposing life for what it really is...so, Legoshi, what's your secret?" Kai wondered while I was now fully listening to what he was saying.
"What's my secret?" Legoshi questioned but I stared down at Louis with a thoughtful frown as he gazed up at us with a steely expression.
'Interesting, for all your attempts to be perfect, what kind of unique circumstances were you involved in to get selected to be a member here, Louis?' I thought since knowing that I wasn't the only unusual character here felt relieving in a way, though I was mostly curious about what Louis' story could be since his steely attitude and the way he strives for everything to be perfect possibly indicates a dark past.
It makes me wonder what I really know about him since all I know is that he was the son of the CEO of the Horns Conglomerate, a major company in the business industry but that's all I know since the red deer keeps everything close to his chest and protects his privacy with fierce independence so who knows what kinds of skeletons he has in his closet.
Either way, I continued to do my job as a member of the stage crew as time passed by until club activities were over and I changed into my school uniform, leaving Building 3 and going to head to the main building when I heard an announcement over the intercoms that today was biology day so I checked my watch.
'Oh yeah, I need to go to the basement and use up my biology hour today,' I thought as I continued to make my way to the main building.
From what I knew about biology day, it was a special activity where carnivores and herbivores go down to the basement to enter rooms that were built for specific carnivores and herbivores like some kind of habitats to make them feel as if they were in their elements so it was apparently soothing for their instincts and it was mandatory to attend.
As for me, the school faculty had no idea where to put me since there wasn't a room for humans so there had been a discussion until it was brought up that humans had a symbiotic relationship with canines such as dogs, and because dogs take special classes during biology hour, the wolf room was the only option for me so now I use the wolf room every time its biology day.
I didn't really mind all that much since I find the wolf room very relaxing and soothing for me so I was currently heading to the basement as I noticed that the sun was setting during my trip to the basement until I went inside the wolf room.
I paid no attention to the other wolves as I went to take a seat and as usual, it was mostly quiet and the room was nice and cool while I was staring up at the device that simulated moonlight, the sight relaxing me and I was reminded of the time back in the wasteland where I was sometimes camp outside and just gaze up at the night sky.
It usually helps me relax and think about what I should do next in terms of planning out my next move but now that I'm in a world where the only thing to worry about is schoolwork and getting a job to sustain myself, it got me to loosen up more but I was still anti-social because of my 13 years of experience in that post-apocalyptic hell.
I was mostly deep in thought until I felt the sensation of being stared at and glanced out of the corner of my eye to see Legoshi staring at me, which took me by surprise since I wasn't expecting to see him even though he uses the wolf room just like every other canine here.
Legoshi went to take a seat next to me and it was quiet between us for a while, the two of us not saying anything to each other and I was fine with that since the quiet helps me think as I started thinking about the wolf next to me.
I didn't know why, but something about him had my attention since he mostly acts nervous around me and tries to go out of his way to avoid looking at me so if I didn't know any better, it was almost as if he was guilty about something.
What he was guilty of was unknown so I didn't know what it was, but one thing I do know is that it had something to do with me and that confused me since I barely know the guy because he kept to himself most of the time.
Either way, it wasn't long until biology hour was over and I headed to the cafeteria for dinner so I picked the carnivore meal and was thinking about the play that would be tomorrow, wondering if Louis took my advice about icing his leg and keeping it elevated during free time.
I knew that he was stubborn so I was more than concerned that he might not have listened to me and would've made the injury worse, and if that was the case, then I will personally wring his neck for being a stubborn asshole since he shouldn't perform with his leg like that.
Still, it wouldn't do me any good to keep worrying myself like that so I finished up with my dinner and dumped my tray in the trash bin before making my way back to my dorm room since the play was tomorrow and I needed a good night's sleep for the big day tomorrow so I had gone to bed and went to get some sleep after that.
The next morning, I had gotten up feeling oddly refreshed and did my morning routine until I left my dorm room fully dressed and wearing my backpack as I made my way to the cafeteria while feeling a little lighter for some reason until I arrived at the cafeteria and soon spotted a familiar tall wolf.
"Morning, Legoshi," I greeted as Legoshi's roommates look bemused and I started introducing myself to them.
His roommates introduced themselves as Voss the fennec fox, Collot the sheepdog, Miguno the spotted hyena, Durham the coyote, and Jack the labrador but it became quite clear that Jack and Legoshi have been friends the longest.
Legoshi's roommates gazed at me with looks of curiosity and interest as I chatted with the grey wolf about how the play might go until I told him I would see him later and went to get my breakfast, picking the herbivore meal and eating outside this time.
It wasn't long until I was done and went to my classes after that, the day going by steadily as I was inwardly preparing myself for the school play since I would be working the lights with Legoshi and that had been on my mind most of the time until classes ended and everyone had free time right now.
It didn't take long for me to make it to the drama club and change into my club attire as everyone was hurrying to get everything set up at the auditorium and after a few hours, I was next to Legoshi in the auditorium as we were taking care of the lights for the play.
The place was packed with animals with every seat being taken and they are eagerly waiting for the play to start, conversing with each other in hushed but excited voices and I couldn't help but be amused by spotting one group of fans in one of the rows, finding it funny that the charismatic deer could make both males and females swoon for him.
Legoshi and I sat in comfortable silence as I think back to Louis' speech of motivation, or at least I think that's was what it was supposed to be since the speech seemed more like a frantic turmoil of words that you string together in an assignment to hit the necessary word count.
I had a feeling that he was mostly telling those words to himself than to anyone else, not that I could blame him since he is the star of the play with the spotlight constantly being on him and with it, the pressure of meeting about a hundred different expectations and pleasing as many people as possible.
Frankly, I had no idea how he was able to do it since I would've gone crazy from the stress alone but I was shaken out of my thoughts when I hear a voice through Legoshi's headset, asking if the lights are ready to go and I watch him scramble for an answer.
"Uh, spotlight 1 is good to go," Legoshi replied on his headset.
With that said, it didn't take long until the play began with Louis running out onto the stage in his Adler outfit and with such passion and ferocity that even took me by surprise, but then I noticed something was terribly wrong as his body language and the angle of his leg clued me in as to what it was as I recalled the disagreement I had with him about his leg.
'That dumbass, he didn't even take the effort to take my advice, did he?' I thought as I was in disbelief at how this stubborn bastard was making it worse for himself just because of his inferiority complex.
"Legoshi...something is seriously wrong with his leg so I think he broke it and is making the injury even worse," I whispered, bringing the wolf's attention to me.
"Yeah, now that you mention it, he's not moving right so why would he keep performing if his leg is broken?" Legoshi wondered while looking highly concerned as Louis' fierce performance was captivating the audience.
"I don't know, maybe he's stubborn but I do know that he's just making it worse for himself by doing this," I muttered back while the play was ending and the audience cheered and applauded while the curtains began to shut.
When they were low enough, Louis started swaying as it appeared he was losing consciousness from the pain of moving around with his broken leg and I felt like strangling the idiot deer for doing this to himself as the curtains closed, just before Louis collapsed and I quickly stood up before hurrying to the ladder with Legoshi behind me.
'That fucking moron, the hell was he thinking?!' I thought as the other members of the drama club started hurrying over to Louis to check on him and I started gesturing for everyone to back up and give me space.
I knelt down and started turning him over until he was lying on his back, removing his boot before seeing bandages covering his broken leg until I undid them and was completely horrified by how much his ankle has swollen up to where the bruises were a very dark purple that was close to black and everyone gasped in shock from the sight when I looked at them grimly.
"He needs medical attention, now," I stated urgently and went to move my hands under Louis.
I lifted the male deer in my arms and started dashing my way to the infirmary as Legoshi and the other club members were right behind me, swearing under my breath and hoping that I made it in time since the state of his leg was pretty bad and if it wasn't allowed to heal pretty soon, then Louis would be forced to walk with a cane for the rest of his life and it was that thought that made me hurry as I hoped that the deer would be okay.
A/N Well guys, Louis didn't listen to Connor and now he's paying for it so hopefully he'll get better since Connor is going to rip him a new one for being so stupid and reckless, so let me know what you think and stay tuned.