Resolutions

One: A New Year

The club was packed, for the final hours until the new year
had gotten every fur in the city to go downtown. And while Dean did not mind a
bit of a crowd, he had been trying for several minutes to take his drinks back
to the table
his friends were all sitting at. Keeping the glasses high about
his head, the Doberman pushed through the crowd.

There were not many openings in the groups of furs for him
to easily walk back. When he did manage to find one, the dog had maybe a few
seconds to move before other patrons filled the gap. Looking down at the groups
that he passed, the canine became frustrated.

Shuffling sideways by some mice, he woofed in disdain as a
smaller mouse fell backwards into his gut. The canine naturally curled a lip
and snarled under his breath, but cooled off as she turned around. The rodent
was clearly drunk, giggling in a fit while almost falling backwards a second
time into her group of friends. She apologetically patted the dog's stomach. He
continued directly through a group of tigers. The males angrily growled at him,
slashing lethal claws in his direction and meowing their agitation, but the
tigresses seemed less flustered by the dog. He caught a few of them looking his
body over while a couple others winked. One brave tigress even meowed in his
direction and tried putting a paw on his side. He slid past the group to
side-step a rather large flock of sheep. While these furs took little notice of
him, he wondered why they still wore full coats of wool inside the hot bar. His
eyes flowed lazily over them, only for a moment catching as the little nerdy
one in glasses skimmed over his body like a text book. When their eyes met, she
quickly looked away and slurped on the straw sticking out of her drink. He knew
she was only buying herself some time before attempting to get a second glance.

There was no denying that Dean was a handsome canine or that
he wore the badge proudly. His biceps were thick, his shirt one size too tight
so he could show off his nice chest, and of course he topped his good looks off
with handsome pair of emerald eyes. Hell, he even made sure to groom his fur
every day so that the colors (mocha and latte as his last girlfriend had
described them) were displayed with perfect and smooth lines. Yet even with all
these girls complimenting him, drinking him with as much vigor as they were
lapping up their liquor, he just did not want any of them. He took their gazes
for the praises they were and pushed on, certain that tonight would end like
any other night.

He could see his other friends waving him in for the final
stretch and so the dog began to ignore the animals around him as he made his
way by. White, black, orange, and brown, the furs he passed blended together in
a swirl of color. Their voices were now in range, though what they were saying
was lost in the room, but he pressed harder. The canine was ready to sit down,
relax, and rejoin the conversation; or at least he had been.

A faint smell tickled his nose that caused the dog to stop.
Dean looked around for a moment, inhaling deeply to see where the fragrance was
coming from, but the direction was impossible to tell in the large crowd. Closing
his eyes and lifting his muzzle, he drew in a deep breath. The scent was
somewhere in all those mixed musks and prominent perfumes, but just barely.

Then the canine felt someone, or rather a single paw, pressed
lightly against his chest. He snapped his head downward to see a bunny girl with
fur as white as fresh snow. They were against one another, that paw perfectly
placed in the center of his chest where his heart beat, and their noses a mere
inch or so away from one another. “Excuse me," articulated the hare. For a
second they stopped, the both of them, and looked into each other's eyes.

Dean lost himself in an instant, all the while his heart pounded
away under his ribs as if to try and break through to the paw on the other
side. He parted his lips, but the words were not there, for his mouth had gone
dry. The canine breathed out, causing the pink nose in front of him wrinkled a
few times, and yet still not a single sound.

A second paw touched his hip and he knew the moment was
passing him. “Sorry," the lapin added as a smile cracked across her face.

The first paw very cautiously dragged across his chest and
the rabbit turned away. Where that paw touched, a tingle persisted on his fur.
Little sparks of electricity were shooting through his spine, an electricity
that made his heart beat faster and his nub wag wildly; but as quickly as those
sensations had come, so too did they pass. The bunny pushed through the crowd,
leaving the canine in same state as he had been before they had met.

The dog stayed a moment longer, perhaps reminiscing of the
warm paw, before turning back to his table. He closed both eyes before mentally
beating himself up for not finding the voice to speak. Dean pushed through the
final few furs blocking his way and put the drinks down.

“What took you so long," ask his shepherd friend Aaron from
across the table. The other canine gave a goofy, open mouth grin before
continuing. “Some of us have been dying of thirst over here, puppers."

The Doberman rolled his eyes as his friend hugged his
girlfriend sitting next to him. Sliding a drink across the scratched top of the
wooden table, he shouted, “Here's your Nancy Drew, hot stuff."

The German shepherd's mouth instantly shut and his ears
stood tall as the table erupted into laughter. He glared back at Dean while a
skillful paw caught the sliding glass before it tipping over the edge of the table. “It's
called a Hardy Boy when a guy drinks it," he corrected. The other dog rolled
the ice around inside with a coy look on his muzzle. “Besides, what did you
get?"

The canine watched as his friend sipped lightly at the
liquor before answering. “Whiskey on the rocks," the canine cracked back. “You
might know it as a real dog's drink." Dean took a defiant sip of his own, head
tilted back as the ice fell onto his black nose. The reaction he got was pretty-close
to what he wanted, the small group continuing to holler before adding in their
own remarks. He put his glass down on the table and smiled across the way at
his disgruntled best friend.

Yet even with the conversation to distract him, his mind
fogged over with thoughts of the lapin from before. There was something special
about that bunny he could not explain, a pulse or whim that got his blood
rushing. The dog let his eyes drift over his shoulder for a minute or so to see
if he could spy the rabbit through the crowd. He hoping he could maybe to catch
a glimpse of her ear, but the club was lit as dim as ever and the crowd was too
thick. There was no way he could see her now. He took another sip, taking a breath
of the liquor in deeply, and let his gaze drift back towards the table.

A muzzle pressed against his chest, nuzzling softly. He
turned his muzzle down towards the female wolf that had been sitting next to
him. Dean had never met her before, but he knew she must have been a friend of someone's
at the table to be sitting with them. Putting an arm around her, he gently
rubbed and hoped she could help him forget. “You know," she whispered, “I
always get a cottontail cocktail."

Caught off-guard by the comment, mostly by the drink's
reference to a rabbit's tail, the Doberman stared down into her grey eyes. He
drifted from one orb to the other, studying her deeply as if hoping to find a
deeper meaning to her drink of course. Of course, there was no deeper meaning,
nor were there stars aligning above as a sign that he should go in search for
the rabbit from before. Everything she had said was a mere coincidence at best,
and the real reason a fur like her would even state that was as a way of asking
him to buy her another drink.

He groaned deep in his throat knowing perfectly well she
would hear him with how her ear was resting against his body. He wanted her to
know he was not interested in buying her another drink, because that was how
they trifled one another in these little games. In a firm voice, he asked, “I
take it you want me to buy you a round?" His words were perfectly stiff in
dissatisfaction.

A paw gently caressed his leg and she smiled back up at him.
“Well only if you want to," she played along.

The dog patiently held off for a moment, waiting until her
paw wander a bit too high on his thigh, for this was just another part of the
sport they were playing. Dean was no stranger to invitations, but he needed to
be sure they both understood how she planned on ending the night. Now that she
had proposed her part of the bargain, he thought the deal over for a minute.
She was pretty, that much he knew, but he was still uncertain if he wanted to wake-up
next to her in the morning.

The thought of being alone the next day drifted into his
mind. He could feel the cold covers and the empty bed, a shiver shifted down
his spine. His ears fell flat as he realized ending the night with some tail
was better than going home alone. With an annoyed roll of his eyes, he finished
off his drink and got up from the seat to venture back towards the bar once
more.

The shepherd across the way called out. “Hey Dean-ey, you
gonna to get me another drink?"

“Get your own, bitch boy," he shouted while stepping around
his chair He flipped off his friend with a paw held high as he drifted back
into the over-crowded room towards the bar.

Passing through the groups again, he pushed aside several
furs. Without drinks in his paws, he could be more forceful with getting
through the different packs. At that moment, he felt like being a bit rougher.
Something had been rubbing him the wrong way all night, though he was uncertain
as to what. Maybe he felt dismissed by his friends and their new year's antics,
or by the wolf and her persistent persuasion of sex for drinks. Yet he knew he
could never be forceful or malicious to his friends, at least not if he wanted
to continue being friends with them this next year. Instead, he would need to
roll all of those grievances off of his shoulder, let the liquor soak in, and
keep his building frustration on the other furs packed in the club.

Except he did not care about his friends or his friend's
friends tonight, nor did he care for the crowd and the celebration. Somewhere
inside he knew that tonight was no more special than any other, but rather just
another reason for furs to gather and drink until they felt sick. Dean was
ready for the festivities to be over, to be back home in his own bed, and waiting
for the year to tick upwards another number.

Forcing himself between two furs at the bar, he questioned
why he had come out to the clubs anyway. He knew why, and as he pulled out his
wallet and grabbed a couple of fresh bills he thought back to the night's
original quest.

Tail.

He knew the scene all too well and had become well versed
with knowing bitches did a lot of dumb shit when they got drunk. Maybe that was
a little bit sleazy of him, but he wondered how many other guys had left home
in hopes of getting some under-the-covers action. Truth was, most of the men at
the bar were looking for it, so he wondered why should he feel any more ashamed
than any of them.

A reason why he should be ashamed of his actions drifted
back into his head, the rabbit. His shame burned where her paw had pressed on
his chest, the thought like a plague on his plans. The Doberman was not looking
for a one-night stand or a quick hook-up, for he wanted something more
fulfilling. He wanted a girl that made his heart skip a beat, that made a
moment slow-down and speed-up at the same time, and a fur he could wake-up to
without regrets. He wanted that electricity against his fur again, he wanted to
nuzzle between those bunny ears, and he wanted to feel her body against his.

He shook his head and let the fantasies drift off. Putting a
paw to his muzzle, he whistled for the bartender to come over, and the pudgy
panda on the other side did just that. “Another whiskey on the rocks," he shouted
before putting his empty glass on the far side of the counter. “Oh, and I a
cottontail cocktail, I guess."

The panda nodded and went to work, but a sweet voice
suddenly prompted the canine to raise his ears. “A cottontail? Why're you
getting that shitty drink?"

Turning about, he found himself staring at the white rabbit
from before, and for a second time his heart skipped a beat. Dean licked his
lips while his eyes got lost in her rosey irises. “Well it's not for me," he
barked in defense.

“I never said it was, stud." The bunny let her ears drop and
smiled back at him, that undecipherable coy grin etched across her muzzle. “I
guess she must be pretty beautiful though if you're willing to pay for that
tonight."

Chuckling at her comment, he scooted a bit closer so they
could hear each other better. “Well, she's not quite what I was looking for,"
he continued, “but I didn't really feel like going home alone." Lifting his
paw, he whistled again for the pudgy panda on the other side of the counter.
The bartender turned around and glanced his way, shrugging as a sign to ask his
patron what he wanted. Dean called back, “Scratch the cottontail," while making
a cut motion across his throat. The bartender nodded again, then returned to
working on the other drink. The canine reestablished his focus towards the cute,
little lapin near him with smiled. “Can I at least get you something?"

The rabbit laughed with a paw covering her muzzle, then
leaned in and softly kissed him on the nose. He felt his heart explode in his
chest, his eyes automatically shutting as her little paw grabbed at his shirt.
But she kept their touch simple, then let go. “Maybe I'll see you on the roof deck
in a little while?"

Dean watched as she turned away, taking her drink in one paw
while sliding through the crowd towards the stairs. His eyes followed her ears
until again she had disappeared into the crowd.

A glass landed next to him with a thud, his whiskey on the
rocks poured and ready. “Thanks," he said while tossing a ten onto the sticky
counter, which would be more than enough for the drink “Keep the change."

Twisting back towards the crowd, the dog leaned against the
bar to enjoy his drink. He lifted the glass to his muzzle, feeling the cool tip
touch his lips, and thought about how many furs were packed in here. He
wondered what the odds were of meeting someone like the rabbit and if having a
larger crowd increased or decreased his chances. Taking a long sip while the
ice bumped his nose where she had kissed, he let that thought settle. His idle
paw pulled out his phone. He needed to send a text before heading up the
stairs. After unlocking the device, he opened the messaging app and selected
the picture of his shepherd friend from the list.

Met a cute girl 

Woof 

Going to the roof 

He put the phone down and took another sip of his drink. His
chest warmed, though he was unsure whether from the alcohol or thoughts of the bunny.
He let her memory and her delicate kiss resurface as a smile cracked across his
face. His smile faded as his phone buzzed.

Bark bark 

Meet you up there soon 

He looked at the texts, thinking for a moment before
realizing he did need to do one last thing. Whistling for the bartender one
final time, he asked for that cottontail cocktail. By the time the panda had
finished making the drink, he had tossed back the rest of his whiskey and
handed him another ten. “Thanks."

Dean pushed back through the crowd towards the table with
his friends, though this time noticing a lot of the same groups from before had
barely moved. He managed to walk around the pack of striped cats this time and
noticed the sheep were still in their corner chatting. But he was more agile
and faster this time, using his free hand to carve openings in the furs until
he was back at the table.

The canine gently set the drink down next to the wolf and
leaned over, kissing her on the cheek before she could ask him why he had taken
so long. “I have to go," he calmly stated, “but you were lovely." With a final
pet and scritch behind her ear, he grabbed his coat from the chair and moved
away.

Quickly circling around the table to his shepherd friend, he
leaned over to whisper in his ear. “Try to lose the group first, I don't want
any of them getting upset." While no specific motions were made towards the other
dog, he knew his friend would take the hint. He stood back up and watched as
Aaron nodded before giving him wink. Dean patted the German shepherd on the
back, smiling at his girlfriend, and then waved them all off before slipping
back into the crowd.

His heart was yet again vigorously pounding against his ribs,
the force of which increased with each step towards the stairs. Excitement
rushed through his veins. Something about this rabbit set his nerves on fire,
something he could not put his paw on, but he wanted to learn more. Pushing
through the furs, he rounded the iron hand rail and began his climb. At the top
of the stairs was a heavy, metal door held open by an old, metal chain. The
closer he got, the cooler the air became. When the cold began tingling the
short fur on his arms, he pulled on his jacket and breathed in once more before
walking outside.

The rooftop deck was less crowded than the bar below, though
there was still a fairly-large crowd on the terrace for a December night. He
looked from muzzle to muzzle, eyes darting quickly across the different coats
and furs as he hunted for pure white. After searching for a bit, he spotted the
slightly smaller rabbit leaning up against a twisted-iron column. The lapin
must have spotted him at the same time, for he could see the other fur push-off
the column to stand-up straight.

The rabbit waved him over, to which he moved quickly towards
her. “I needed some fresh air," she breathed. Dean watched as the fluffball in
front of him shivered a bit before breathing out a foggy wisp. “Besides, it's
quieter up here."

“It's a fuckin animal house tonight, that's for sure," He agreed.
Wrapping a paw around his waist and getting in close, the canine noticed she ever-so-slightly
relaxed. “Wanna sit by one of the heat lamps?" The hare nodded and they both
walked around the terrace in search of a spot to sit, but most places near the
warm electric heaters had already been taken. The canine guided her around
while continuing to ask questions. “So, can I get a name, or should I just call
you cottontail?"

The rabbit laughed with a paw in front of her muzzle. “Well,
does that make you whiskey in my address book," she puffed, “or do I put you
under 'on the rocks'?"

He laughed, and he like that she was playful. “You can call
me Dean," he replied as they rounded the small roof without finding a place to
sit.

She nuzzled into his arm, which made him breath in
excitedly. “Well then I guess you can call me Riley."

The canine smiled as they rounded the roof for a second time.
“Riley," he softly woofed. Dean was happy to have a name to put to her sweet,
white face.

Finally, a couple of polar bears got-up from a couch and
moved away, giving the two a nice spot right next to one of the gas lamps to
snuggle around. The two sat down close to one another, his paw still wrapped
around her, and cuddled for warmth. She shivered, but still smiled at the dog
before asking, “So, what did you tell her?" She could tell by his look that he
did not have a clue what she was talking about. She restated her question. “What
did you tell the fur you bought that drink for?"

Dean erupted with a bark of a laugh, rocking backwards before
he pulled the bunny in close. “I just said I had to go." He smiled, but more-so
because he liked the feeling of her smaller body pressed against his side. “I
guess I figured she wouldn't come up here," the canine added before looking
down at the hare.

The rabbit leaned in, letting her nose touch his very
gently. “I take it then that you met someone," she paused, her little eyes
darting around theatrically as if searching for the right word, “better?"

But the dog did not answer her with words. Instead, he
rubbed his wet, black nose against her smaller, pink one. His eyes closed and
he twisted his head to gently press his lips to hers. He then let the moment
play out in what looked romantically planned to onlookers; a paw to pull her
closer while his other one wrapped around her side.

She did not resist his dominance of affection, which he
recognized as her arms wormed their way past his open jacket and around his
chest. They clung weakly to the Doberman, paws gripping his shirt as if to hang
on. When he pulled her in even closer, kissing her a second time by sucking
lightly on her upper lip, he felt her leg move across his.

They broke the kiss off slowly, but Dean's ears twisted
towards the sound of a slow clap. He kept his eyes on the bunny for a moment,
smiling into his performance before turning to look up at his friend and the
shepherd's girlfriend. “Enjoy the show?"

“Well I sure as shit wasn't going to stop yah." In a manner
of teasing the two, Aaron pulled his girlfriend in close to him and tried to
kiss her. She resisted with a head tilted back and a paw on his chest, but he
persisted until he kissed her cheek. He then turned back towards the two and smiled.
“Besides, I'm sure you've watched Dezi and I make-out more times than you care
to remember." He licked the female dog's nose quickly before releasing his
girlfriend.

With a small squeak, the rabbit got up. “I'm going to go get
us something to drink. Beer alright?" Before anyone could answer, the hare had
turned to walk away. Her quick motion was for naught, for they had all already
seen that she was flush with embarrassment.

“Hey, can you get me another Hardy Boy," the other canine
asked his girlfriend while pulling out a twenty from his pocket. Desiree kissed
him on the cheek and took his money, but he held on tight until she gave him a
real kiss. He released her and watched as she trotted over towards the bunny.

For a moment, they both watched as the two hopped off towards
the bar. The shepherd took a seat next to his friend. “Never would have guessed
you'd be into another guy," he commented.

Dean turned to look back at the shepherd, which in turn
caused his friend to stare back at him. “Excuse me?"

“Well I mean he's pretty cute even for a guy, but…"

“She's a woman," the Doberman proclaimed a bit louder than
necessary. He stood up in frustration while turning back to look down at his
friend.

The shepherd went silent while his eyes dropped back onto
the two as they stood at the bar waiting to be served. “No, that's definitely a
bunny boy, Dean." He got up from his seat and pointed at the lapin. “He's may a
very feminine body, but trust me, that's definitely a guy."

Dean followed his friend's paw until his gaze met their
companions. The rabbit sort of had that hourglass figure and moved with a sway
to her hips, both of which he could clearly see from where they stood. She even
stood one foot at the bar while twisting the other leg about on the tip of her
toe. Yet the longer he stared the more he noticed. The lapin was flat-breasted,
and while her clothes were well-fitted for her frame, they did look a tad bit more
like men's clothing than feminine. Slowly the little things started to pop-out
until finally he could only see another male. “Oh fuck."

The shepherd patted him on the back, laughing a bit. “Hey
man, don't sweat it so much." He moved slowly around his friend until he had
both paws on the Doberman's shoulders. “I mean, if you like him then go for it."
There was a break in his speech as a rubbed his friend's shoulders a few times.
“And who cares if you kissed another guy and liked it."

Dean looked up, paw rubbing against his forehead. The rabbit
had felt so right in his paws, like he was meant to hold onto that bunny
tightly. And the electricity that flowed through his body when they touched,
something the canine could never explain. And that kiss. The sensation of their
lips pressed together continued to tingle, as though the little hare had left a
fire to burn across his flesh. He put a paw to his mouth while the thought
pushed forward.

His insides began to pull him apart, his stomach becoming
volatile as he felt the previous drinks starting to come up. He gagged for a
moment, unable to believe the argument going on inside him. His brain shouted
he should not have kissed another man, that the very action was immoral and
wrong. On the other side was his heart, which beat triumphantly the strange
though that this was love. His insides were twisting, his gut churned.

The paws on his shoulder shook him lightly. “Dude, look at
me." He looked up into the shepherd face, though there was clearly internal
unrest in his mind. “There's nothing wrong with being attracted to another man,
you've done nothing wrong."

He breathed out, looking down at the ground while trying to
pick-up the fragments of his heart. He lifted his head with another sigh. His
eyes glancing to his friend's face before drifting over to the bar where the
two were just getting their drinks. He repeated the process, then shut them.
“There's nothing wrong," he mouthed.

“Don't think about any of that other crap," the other dog
added. “If you like that bunny, then you like him."

His heart slowed and his insides unknotted themselves as he started
to take deep breaths. There was still this nervous guilt in his veins and a
weird twitch in his arms. He tried to return to being in a calm state and in
control. Putting his paws in his jacket's pockets, he watched as the two furs
started walking back towards them.

As they got closer, he could see Riley was smiling from one bunny
ear to the other. The canine could feel his insides warming up the longer he kept
focus, but he could not turn his brain completely off. Somewhere in him existed
a notion that two males could not be together or love one another. That thought
confused his heart. He could feel the muscle beating faster only to slow-down,
or thumping hard only to pulse softly a second later. He tried putting on a
smile to hide his confusion, but the look came off goofy as they approached.
“Welcome back," he yelped.

His friend shot him a look from the side before quickly
stepping in. “Yeah, wasn't much to talk about with you two gone." He reached
out and took his drink from his girlfriend before pulling her in for a quick
kiss. “Dean here just muttering on about all the girls he's had this last
year."

A blush quickly spread across Dean's face as his ears shot
up. “Fuck you," he spat back before turning to a giggling bunny. Again, he felt
torn by how much he wanted to impress the rabbit in front of him while another
part of him wanting to run away. He felt lucky his feet could only shake and
thankful for the cold to hide the quivering's real meaning. “Besides, they
weren't my type."

“Oh yeah, too much
baggage,"
the shepherd laughed while pushing his wrist up against his breast.

His ears fell flat as his friend continued to make fun of
his mistake in front of the others. “That's not funny," he muttered.

A white paw thrusted a beer against his chest, which he
grabbed and took without much thought. “I wasn't sure what you wanted," the
little rabbit smiled. “Thought maybe you'd like to sip on that."

Although his mood had gone south, the Doberman glanced up to
find a smiling rabbit still looking his way. His heart beat hard, which he displayed
with his own grin spreading across his latte-colored muzzle. “Thanks," he murmured
as the smaller hare came closer.

Over the speakers surrounding them came the voice of the DJ
from downstairs. “Listen up, you wild animals! We've got less than minute left
in this year, so say your final thoughts and get ready to start a new one."

“Hey," motioned the shepherd, “we're going to go back down
to the table." He nodded towards the door to the stairs while pushing his
girlfriend to lead the way. “We'll see you two next year, alright?"

Dean nodded, raising his beer towards them as a second
signal of thank, and watched his friend begin walking away. His nerves were
still tense from the recent discovery and he wished the other dog would stay,
but his voice was lost. He ended his toast by taking a large gulp of the liquid
courage in his hands, hoping the alcohol could help him now.

The DJ came on one more time to say a few more things.
“Here's an idea, let's get the new year going right by starting it off with a
first kiss! Go grab someone you love and pull them in close, because you only
have thirty seconds left to find that special someone."

Dean's eyes instantly darted down to the rabbit who was
slowly swaying closer. His heartbeat suddenly went into overdrive and his
breathing was almost frantic. A part of him was ready to reach out and pull
Riley in close while another part wanted to run. Taking a second swig from his
beer, he used the moment to breath in and fight back his inner demons as best
he could. He gulped and put the beer down.

But the choice was ripped out of his paws, for in the final
minute's rush to be with the one you loved someone pushed the lapin into the
dog. “Are you okay," he asked as he caught Riley in his paws.

The bunny looked up at him, a sparkle in those deep, red irises.
“Yeah."

All around them a bunch of furs suddenly started to shout,
“Ten," but the dog barely heard them. He had lost himself again in the rabbit's
pupils. The voices in his head were fading into the air.

“Nine," shouted an even louder crowd, but Dean missed that
as well. He was lost in the warmth that spread from his arms where the two
touched and from someplace deep in his belly.

“Eight." The warmth grew as lighting shot across his nerves
and his blood began to boil.

“Seven." The canine felt the need to lean forward, to let
his nose just barely rub against the hare's pink one.

“Six." The lights, the people, the surrounding all seemed to
fade into the distance.

“Five." He pulled the bunny in closer, pressing his firm
chest against the rabbit's own.

“Four." His paws drifted down until he was holding the other
fur by just the small of his back and between his shoulder blades.

“Three." He could feel the rabbit's own paws sliding upwards
to wrap around his neck.

“TWO." He closed his eyes and twisted his head, feeling the
hot breath of another on his lips.

“ONE!" The canine pushed forward into the embrace as they
kissed.

Through the sound of the other fur's cheers, the wheezing of
little horns, and the pop of cannons being shot off in the distance, they
kissed. Their lips had joined, and for the time being the year and the place were
lost, because those were all irrelevant. He was no longer at the brink of a new
year or standing on the roof of the club. Instead, he was in a place of
indescribable darkness. There were no lights, yet all the colors he knew seemed
to flow around him in streams and pull him closer to the rabbit in his paws.
And through that flood of iridescent color he found a warmth which radiated
from within.

He became uncertain of time, as if the very thought of
seconds, minutes, hours, days, months, and years was an illusion. Time felt
frozen in the moment, and the moment was locked like their lips. Breathing in
deeply, he lost count or care for when the now would end.

The moment faded as quickly as a blink of the eye. The
darkness that had surrounded him and the warmth that had come from within
dispersed as his head came back to the club and to the new year. He fought
back, releasing his lips from the rabbit before pushing up against him again as
the surrounding were pushed away for even just a little bit longer.

Dean could not hold time still forever, for sooner or later everything
would have to fade back into view. Opening his eyes, he was surprised to find
the night sky lit up by fireworks around the rabbit's head. He pulled back from
their kiss, drifting away while breathing heavily.

The rabbit's puckered lips cracked into a smile, his eyes
still closed as his ears dropped down to either side. Dean could feel Riley's
smaller paws gripped tightly onto his jacket, just behind his head, as the
lapin pulled himself in to nuzzle gently against the canine's chest. Another
firework exploded behind him and his grip tightened.

The Doberman breathed in deeply, grinding his own muzzle
against the soft patch of fur between the hare's large ears. He could smell
that scent now, the one from before that had peaked his interest initially. Letting
his paws dip down the lapin's back, he gently rubbed in circles. He felt
different somehow, though the exact reason why having passed him by. As his
mind began to wonder, he realized what had changed: the voices in his head were
gone. No more inner demons were yelling at him and telling him that his actions
were all wrong, nor were his insides twisting into knots anymore. All that remained
was the warmth in his ribs and the steady, heavy beating of his heart.