"Fuck. Fuck!" The word had lingered in the samoyed's head all week.

Maybe Andrey really was fucked, because he stalked the dinosaur he met the week before. Among the aisles of a grocery store, the little dog cast discreet glances at his “target" without much clue of what to say.

If he didn't have the social skills of an amoeba, he wouldn't be in that situation. After all, it was just a matter of going up to the boy, saying what he had to say, and accepting the answer. You know, like an adult.

Unfortunately, from the short moment he had met the dino, feelings—ones the canine still didn't fully understand—complicated everything.

The previous Friday, the samoyed had entered that same market when the young man approached him with a proposition. His rebellious sister had moved out, and Andrey looked like he'd pay something for the records she left behind.

He visited the boy's house the following day and marveled not only at the collection, but at the dino as well. That guy, Tyler (who heretically didn't understand music), let the canine take the LPs home to try them out without fear that Andrey would just steal them.

“You don't seem like the type who would do that," he had said; and that was enough for the dinosaur to dominate Andrey's thoughts.

However, that did not excuse what the dog was doing at that time. He had already been caught in his “spying" a couple of times, but that didn't stop him from continuing to sneak into that market.

"Fuck!"

Before he could stop them, the samoyed's short legs guided him towards the dinosaur. Still without a plan, he hid countless anxieties behind a frown.

Tyler was too busy with the shelves to notice Andrey. So distracted, in fact, that the dog questioned whether he was being ignored. Barely able to contain the blush on his white muzzle, the little dog let out some frogs to finally get the boy's attention. The dino looked around for a while before finding Andrey, and when he did, a sharp smile formed on his face.

"Hey, what up doggy!" said Tyler, before continuing in a mocking tone. “Fancy meeting you here!"

For a moment all the dog's complicated emotions dissolved in a snarl. “Fuck you! Every time with this 'doggy' shit!"

“Haha, chill. Just messing with ya. In fact, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you're following me."

“Uhh." He could no longer contain his shame. “Yeah… No… Look, this market has good prices and you're tall enough to reach the top shelf."

“Uh huh."

Then, silence. The kind of stillness where everyone involved knows full well that something isn't being said. Andrey imagined how ridiculous he looked standing there, but really, Ty just waited to hear what the little dog wanted from the top shelves.

Fear didn't leave his mind, every second that passed the samoyed became more self-aware. At last, his feelings erupted as a long sigh.

“Andrey, are you–"

“Look, I'm going to play at a kind of underground pub downtown this Saturday, open for some bigger bands and stuff." He pulled a flier from his black coat and pointed it at the dinosaur. “I wanted to know… if you wanted to go with me.

“Oh," Tyler's whole face broke into a new smile, “cool!"

“Uh…" Suddenly, the dog realized that the conversation sounded like a date. “It's just that… I need a ride! Yeah. You can't take a bass on the subway and Uber-ing is expensive there, you know?"

“Uh huh." The boy replied while taking the paper from Andrey's hand. “I get ya." Ty then inspected the paper, until he shot a teasing smile. “Saturday is... the fourteenth?"

“Yeah."

“February fourteenth?"

“Yes? So what?"

The dog's confused, restless eyes caught the briefest glance at the shelves around Tyler. That's when he noticed an insignificant detail: white, pink, and red heart-shaped paper decorations placed around the price tags. Suddenly it became painfully obvious; fourteenth of February, Valentine's Day.

“GAH!" The samoyed shouted, hiding his embarrassment from the man's laughter. “Look, fuck the date, it's Saturday, okay? You in or not?"

"Of course, doggy. I–"

“TYLER!" The market's loudspeakers blared an irate yell. “Stop bothering the customers and go replace the rice! Only you can handle that SHIT !"

After an awkward exchange of laughs, Ty wrote down the date and place on his cell phone before taking his leave.

“We'll touch base online," said the dino moving away from the dog while waving. “See you on the fourteenth!"

Andrey waved back and sighed what remained of his anxieties. He knew he still had a lot to do before understood his feelings for Tyler, but he left that store confident that the first step was behind him.

* * *

Saturday came pretty quickly, and the boys were ready. The concert itself started at nine, but Andrey needed to get there around seven; preparations and such. Since neither of them lived near downtown, they had arranged for Ty to pick Andrey up around six.

“Yo," said Tyler as he saw Andrey come out of his apartment.

“You're late," Andrey replied, frowning for a moment. “Eh, whatever. It won't get in the way, I think."

“Wow. Well, excuuuuse me, m'lord doggy."

“Hilarious."

With more difficulty than he cared to admit, the dog climbed into the backseat and positioned his beloved bass with all the tenderness in the world. Afterwards, he sat down and closed the door, but as he put on his seat belt, Tyler's confused face caught his attention.

“What?"

“Don't you wanna sit in the front seat?" He let out a mixture of sigh and chuckle. “And you were the one who asked me on a date in the first place. Ass-em-eight."

“Argh!" Andrey raged with a reddened face “Whatever! This is not– You know what? Fine, I'm going there."

In restless movements, the dog left that perfectly comfortable seat, and positioned himself next to the dinosaur.

“There! Can we go now?"

“Heh. Of course."

Minutes passed in silence. During that break, Andrey managed to cool down and collect his thoughts. The guy beside him was there on a favor for some random guy he's only known for a week, and the little dog just complained non-stop.

“Hey," the samoyed turned to Tyler against the setting sun, “sorry about earlier. I really appreciate the ride."

"No way, man. It's all good. I'm excited to see you play, actually. Nervous?"

He was going to say no, and move on to the next subject, but his mouth moved by itself.

"Man, I don't even know anymore. I'm a bit discouraged, to be honest."

“For real? But why?"

“Dude, this band thing sucks shit." He shook his head looking down. “We only open for bigger bands nowadays. And it took forever to get to that level! I don't know, man…"

“It's fucked up…" Tyler was silent for a moment, thinking about the situation. “But, like, are you gonna stop?"

Andrey didn't answer right away, considering once again what to tell him. Eventually, he saw that he had already said more than he should have. Furthermore, the boy beside him spoke in such a friendly way…

"I've considered it. There's not a lot of money in this business and there are times when I want to stop everything." The samoyed looked up at the city through the window. “But, goddammit… I love to play, man. Audience or not, it doesn't matter. I love music, and I want to play."

“Then I think it's all right."

“What do you mean?" Andrey replied, jerking his head towards the dino.

“Like, if you really love what you're doing, I believe everything's gonna be okay. And it's not just me saying that to cheer you up!" Ty sighed. “It's good to have something you enjoy in life. Sometimes I wish I had something like you or my sister…"

“Tyler…"

"But we'll talk about that later!" Are you feeling better now?

“Heh…" Andrey smiled, returning his attention to the road. "Yeah. Thanks dude."

“No prob! But, I also wanna thank you." He chuckled. “I'm feeling very special with you talking to me this much."

“The hell's that supposed to mean?"

“It's just… you're so closed off all the time, bro. I don't know if it's a rocker thing or what, but it would be nice if you opened up more. I dunno. I like talking to you, Andrey."

The dog turned to the boy beside him and found vague signs of embarrassment. First, he thought of how cute he looked. But the second reaction came stronger, a mischievous delight, for the first time he wasn't the person full of shyness.

“Oh yeah?" The samoyed replied with an excited smile. “Then I have one more thing to ask…"

* * *

It was already dark when they arrived at that pub. Saturday night grew colder with winter approaching, but the army of young bohemians who dominated the downtown streets fought the serene with a drunken, warm energy.

The pub Andrey was going to play was still closed and there was a busy queue outside. Of course, the little dog was able to sneak in earlier backstage and take Tyler with him.

“It's Pycnonemosaurus. Pick. No. Nemo. Saurus." Ty said as they walked through the back door of the pub.

"Prick-me-noh-saurus?"

"Now you're fucking with me!"

“Haha, I am. Couldn't it've been something easier, like T-rex?

“Uh, yeah." He replied with his arms crossed. “If I'm a T-rex, then you're a husky!"

A few more steps and the boys ran into the samoyed's band members. Not surprising, all the bandmates dressed so punk that they exuded an intense aura. The dog went ahead to greet his colleagues while the dino stayed behind, paralyzed.

When he realized his friend's state, Andrey returned.

"What are you standing there for?" Said the dog. “Come on, I'll introduce you."

The little dog took the dino's hand, but when he tried to pull him away, Tyler's limp fingers slipped from his grasp. With noticeable confusion on his face, Andrey turned to his friend and there he found a hesitant expression, decorated with an emotion he could not read.

“Tyler?"

“Yeah, no, maybe later," he replied with crossed arms. "They look very… intense."

“Wha?" He looked at his partners and back at the boy, but there was still something in that moment that he didn't understand. “No, they won't bite, not Ty! They just…"

That expression did not change, and it seemed more words would not make a difference. Frustration rose on the samoyed's face for an instant, but that changed when he saw his friend's trembling mouth. Everything became clear. The pub, the band, the whole aesthetic that surrounded them, that wasn't Tyler's world. For someone who doesn't care much about music—let alone something so esoteric as their niche—that situation clearly overwhelmed him.

Guilt and irritation then replaced the frustration. Andrey quickly formulated a tactic to free the dino from that hellhole. He would give up the ride back and apologize, hoping they could remain friends.

He was ready to open his mouth and execute the plan, but a question popped into his mind. Tyler wasn't that into music, didn't care about rock, he could have been spending his Valentine's Day doing anything better, so why was he there? Not running away or protesting, just standing still. The dinosaur, despite everything, did his best, and it was high time Andrey did the same.

“Y'know what?" The dog finally spoke. “S'all good!" He pulled some papers from the inside pocket of his leather coat. “Here. These tickets are worth a few drinks at the bar. Tell the barista that you are a guest of the opening band. He'll get you a table."

“Andrey. Wait, it's not that–"

“Shut it! Get outta here! We have to set up some stuff here, and it's gonna get boring as fuck."

“Heh." Tyler took the papers from the canine's small hand. “Okay, then."

From the preparation, to the quick rehearsal, to the arrival of the audience, everything seemed to happen in slow motion and in an instant. Andrey was also paradoxically hesitant and excited, confident and flustered.

But everything changed when the spotlight hit his face and the audience cheered his appearance. Problems with money, shaming for stalking, difficulty in dealing with and understanding Tyler, all disappeared the moment he finally surrendered to music.

* * *

As the second song of the night ended, the members bowed to the visitors, and they reciprocated the band with applause, whistles and excited screams.

The samoyed moved in a flash to collect his things and reconvene with the dino. He barely spoke to the band members before he jogged through the pub looking for Tyler; which was pretty easy, as Pycnonemosaurus had the most colorful costume by far.

Still panting, the little dog approached the table where his friend sat alone finishing a drink.

“So?" The dog opened, with a smile. “Did I meet your expectations?"

“And how! You were great, Andrey! For real, I could tell from here that you really like this whole thing."

“Good!" He took a seat next to Tyler before nudging him with his shoulder. "Hey, sorry for dragging you here. I'm so used to all this that I didn't really think about how it would affect you."

"Relax, doggy!" Tyler said between chuckles. “I'm sorry I didn't go talk to your bandmates."

“Nah, fuck them, it wouldn't work." Andrey watched the stage getting ready for the main show and turned back to the boy. “Wanna bounce? If our sound was 'too intense' for you, what comes next will make you sick."

The dinosaur's mouth nearly said that it was okay and that if Andrey wanted to stay, he could wait. But everything changed when he saw the main band taking the stage.

As a pycnonemosaurus, Tyler had a relative or two that might be called monstrous, but this view was different. Amid shouts and applause, eldritch beings full of piercings, tattoos, dyed fur and clothing sharper than a knife shop, took their positions.

“Yeah, you're right," Tyler said in a hurry. “Let's get outta here."

The short dog followed, stifling a laugh.

* * *

They spent the next few minutes in the car, heading towards the samoyed's house. With the amount of traffic, they had plenty of time to talk. Nothing heavy; neither of them wanted to and the yawning dog was clearly more tired than he wanted to admit.

Between brief silences, one feeling became increasingly clear to Andrey: he enjoyed spending time with Tyler so much, he didn't want them to be just friends anymore.

But how to say it? It would be quite a step; not two weeks before, they'd been strangers, after a brief visit they'd become friends, and in that moment… Well, he couldn't tell anymore.

An hour later, they arrived at Andrey's house, and an uncomfortable miasma filled the car. No one had words to give. Through flushed faces and embarrassing coughs, they looked everywhere but at each other.

“Well," the samoyed finally said, “this is my stop."

“Sure is…"

And back to silence. A painful and pleasant embarrassment took over their muzzles and prevented them from forming a decent sentence.

The dino tried first. “I… Um… I had fun today, Andrey."

“Heh… Even with all that intensity ?"

“Uh huh." Tyler's still face heated its limit. “I think it was easier 'cause you were there."

The fur on the dog's face went from white to pink to red in an instant.

And after more uncomfortable silence, the two decided to kill their curiosity and look at each other; by sheer chance, they both did it at the same time. One sheepish look crossed another, nothing would stop them now. The boys drew closer, coordinating each moment in silence and with their eyes closed. Until, contact.

In the brief touch, the boys felt each other's heat; completely different from any other interaction between the two. The little dog discovered that the dino's lips were rough, completely betraying his affectionate personality. Tyler, on the other hand, found sweet affection in the rude samoyed's snout.

The contact didn't last long, that peck satisfied both that night. When they broke away, they looked deep into each other's eyes, and once again found themselves not knowing what to say, only now, they had smiles on their faces.

“So," the dog finally said, “what now?" “A second date, or?"

The other boy let out a smile.

"I thought this wasn't a date?"

“Ha. Ha." Answered Andrey with disdain. “You're lucky you're so cute, prick-me-noh-saurus."

Tyler chuckled sheepishly, not sure what to feel. Andrey used this moment of calm to finally jump out of the car. They didn't exchange a word as the dog got his bass from the backseat nor when he slammed the door, they just smiled with pride and coyness.

Only when his time to go home came that Andrey turned to Tyler again.

“Hey, thanks again for the ride. I promise I'll give you a price for those LPs soon."

The dino's face paled for a brief moment before breaking into a roar of laughter. The dog looked at the situation with confusion and embarrassment.

“Uh, what's so funny?"

Between gasps, the boy calmed down until he could face the canine.

“Haha, man, for real!" The dino replied, wiping a tear from his eye. “Are you really gonna say that at a time like this! Haha!" Another moment of quiet confusion passed until the laughter ended. “You know what, Andrey? Keep'em. I feel that you will have plenty of chances to pay me back." 

The dinosaur punctuated the sentence with a wink, which made the dog's face turn red and hot once more.

“G-go fuck yourself, dude!!"

“Haha! Goodnight to you too… doggy."

Not half a minute later, Tyler had already sped away. Andrey, alone and flushed, but with an inextinguishable smile, saw the driving lights disappear between the city streets and sighed.

“Good night, Ty."