Chapter 1: The Cornerstone Cafe

"Ok, fresh breath? Check. Slick hair? Double check. Pruned and combed tail? Triple checkerino! Date number thirty seven, here I come!" I say as I check off my imaginary list before strolling into the Cornerstone Cafe in rural Indiana. I'm here to meet Angela Melacine, a timber wolf, and my girlfriend of two years. I casually stroll into the cafe stand in line at the bar, glancing around every few minutes to see if I can find her. I look around several times but to no avail. Finally, after having ordered my coffee and turning around, I see her there, at a small table against the front window, looking at a laptop. I walk over to her table and slowly push down the laptop screen. "Evening' sweetie. Mind if I sit here?" I say as I gesture toward the seat. "Oh, Richard! I didn't see you there, you sly bastard." She exclaims with a radiant smile. "And no, that seat's taken." "By who?" " By my boyfriend, who should be here any minute." she says while making exaggerated looks around the cafe. "I guess I'll just have to kick his ass then, cause no one takes my seat." I smile back at her and sit down. "So, what's been going on with you lately? It's been a little too long since we last spoke." "Oh, not too much. Still living in that rinky-dink old apartment. And I lost my job last week. I'm struggling to pay rent, and my family refuses to help me, considering most are either in prison, or close to it." "That's terrible," I exclaim as I grab her hand. "Well whatever you need you've got this guy and his two thumbs ready to help." I point two thumbs at myself and give her a borderline goofy grin. She smiles and laughs a bit. "Thanks, that means a lot." "Any time sugar." "Don't call me sugar." We look at each other for a silent moment before I break the pause. "Ya know, I've been wanting our relationship to get a little more serious, if you get my meaning. I mean, we've been kinda intimate before, but I'm really ready to get much, MUCH deeper." I wink at her in a comedic fashion. "Oh, yea? Maybe I'll take you up on that." She smiles back at me, this time with a little more sexyness throughn into the mix. "Actually, I have the perfect idea. … Why don't you move in with me? I mean, I have plenty of room, and it sounds like you're getting a little tired of your current situation." "True, true, but are you sure? I don't want to be a burden. I mean, don't get me wrong I would love nothing more than to move in with you, it's just…" Her lilac eyes start to brim with tears. I come over to her side of the table and wrap her in a hug. "I-It's j-j-just, my parents a-always ca-called me a 'burden to society' and t-told me that I-I was a 'm-ma-mistake.'" "What no. No, no, no, no, sweetie. You're not a mistake." I hug her even tighter and give her a light kiss on the cheek. "If anything, you're a blessing on Earth, and even better, you're my blessing." Angela, sobbing, "R-r-really? Sniff ``''Yes, you little devil, really." I say as I wipe the tears from her cheeks. "Now whaddya say we ditch this joint and head west?" "Don't I still need to move my stuff out of my apartment?" "Already got moving crews headed there now." "Oh, then tell them to burn the apartment with everything inside." "Wait, what?!" I say with an astonished look on my face as we exit the cafe. "I don't think I can do that. You sure you don't want anything?" "Positive. I don't want any remembrance of the hell hole that kept me cooped up for ten long years." "Alright" I say with a shrug of my shoulders as we walk to my car, "Your call." At this point, the sun has begun to dip on the horizon creating long shadows that dance in the fading light. I pull a fancy key out of my pocket and point it at a Koenigsegg One:1, unlocking the doors with a flash of the lights. "Wow," Angela says with a gasp. "That's your car?" "Yup" I say as I open the door and help her in. "All mine." I climb into the driver's seat and fire up the monstrous engine. "With 1341 horsepower and a top speed of over 250 miles per hour, I'll have us to Colorado in record time. Now, hold onto your ass." I floor the car out of the lot and onto the almost empty interstate home. I bring the car up to around 200 mph and look over at Angela with a smile. She is sitting, pushed back into her seat with an expression of terrified joy on her face. "Having fun?" I ask, somewhat sarcastically. "Are you kidding me?! This is terrifying!... but yes, also fun." She gives me a forced smile. A few hours have passed at this point, and Angela turns down the radio. "I need to pee. Like, now." "Then I guess it's a good thing I'm pulling over for a special ... pit stop." The time is now about midnight as I pull the One:1 off on a long gravel side road before stopping in front of a field and getting out. "Why have we stopped here?" "You ever been cow tipping before?" She gives me a confused look. "Cow tipping?" "Yea, we sneak up on the cattle in the tall grass, then howl, yell, yip, and scream as loud as possible, scaring the cattle and causing them to fall over. It's quite the past time." Angela looks at me as if I'm crazy. "What?" She says at last. "Actually, don't explain. Why the fuck not. Let's go!" "Hold up there pony" I stop her from getting up. "I've got one rule," I say as I take my shirt off, "No, clothes. Period. I make us stealthier and we won't get snagged on stuff as easily." She looks at me with a blank expression. "Wait, seriously?" "Yea, seriously." I say as I lose my pants. "Now, are you in, or out?" "You're crazy." She says with a wary glance down. She undresses and gets out of the car. "Ok, now what?" "Follow me." I run off into the tall grass, Angela at my heels. I can feel the warm summer air caressing my body. After a short sprint, I spot a small calf and crouch down, motioning for Angela to do the same. "Follow my lead." I whisper to her as I slowly approach the dozing calf. At no more than six or so feet away, I let loose a mighty howl, causing the calf to vault into the air momentarily before falling to the ground on its side. "WOOO!" I yell with my tail wagging violently, "THAT WAS EPIC!!" I turn back to Angela, who is clapping politely and staring at me like I'm mentally insane. "Alright, now you try." "Me?" "No, invisible Bob in the corner over there, YES you! Go on, try it!" "O-Ok. Here I go, I guess." I watch as Angela creeps up awkwardly behind a large steer, her slightly lilac and white fur shining in the moonlight. She lets out a guttural howl, tipping the steer in front of her. She turns to me with a grin on her face. "Huh, now I see the appeal here. For the time being you have earned the title of slightly less crazy." I sit down on a nearby log and Angela joins me. I notice a puddle forming near Angela. "Really?" I ask with a sarcastically tired expression. "You had to pee now?" "What? I told you I had to go earlier." I move in closer to her, "Because I was going to get real close tonight, but now I have to ask if I can enter your territory. Learned that lesson last time I dealt with wolves." She looks at me with a smug look on her face. "Well if that was you asking, permission granted, fox boy." I move as close as I ever have before, our tails wrapped around each other as we lean in. Soon, one thing leads to another and we find ourselves rolling through the grass, staring into each other's eyes. "That felt great." "You're telling me." "Why have we never done that before?" "No clue." I turn and lay on my back in the grass, staring up at the endless array of stars. I then turn to Angela and say, "Whaddaya say we finish our journey? Only have about two hours left." She turns back to face me, "Sure, lets go." We get up and walk back to the car, hand in hand after having the best night of our lives… at least so far.