FSE

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formerly SoFurry search engine

Striped Candy

Chapter Four

By Roofles

It was a brisk spring afternoon as Jeff went through the aisles at the local grocery store. It was near Parker Street and the customers inside reflected that. Few humans and several others. With the sun out, no rainclouds in site people were out and about this day. As such the store was packed. Back to back crowds of fur, flesh, scales and feathers moved around to their own respectable area of the store.

The selection here was well different than what Jeff was used too. He had to stop every couple of feet just to pull something off the shelf to read over it. The brands, logos and even food here was different. As different as a regular supermarket to an organic only, vegan store.

“Fresh, creamy, tuna bites." One of the bags read with a cartoony cat on the front eating one of the fish shaped crackers. It took longer than Jeff was willing to admit to realize it wasn't a pet cat food treat. That it was in fact meant to be eaten by those in this aisle. The felines that walked on two legs; Jeff wondered if Bruce might like a bag to snack on while he worked and ended up putting it into his basket.

A rather large, stunningly handsome panther snagged a bag right in front of him and dropped it into his own cart, continuing down the aisle as if never even noticing the human had been there. Jeff felt like a creep standing there reading everything over as if it was his first time here; even though it was. The fact he was checking the panther out all the way down the aisle until he vanished around the corner did make him feel like a creep.

Good thing that large panther didn't notice. Having to put the human in his place, Jeff blushed at the thought shaking his head. The human got goosebumps at the thought. “I'm such a sucker." Jeff grinned guiltily like a kid in a candy store as he continued on.

Grocery shopping was one of the things he hated most to do. It was boring. Slow. Costed too much money for too little and the mandatory aspect just killed all fun that could possibly be had. And that boredom was already setting in. As such his eye tended to wander.

From the “cat food aisle" to the “Dog food" there was enough people out this afternoon to keep his mind occupied as he wandered aimless around.

The store itself was divided into different section based solely off the diet of the species. Most privately owned grocery stores catered only to one animal family. They didn't last long. The large chain stores tried to make everyone happy and as such made very little happy. Each aisle being designed for a certain species in mind left very little in total for them in the whole store.

In a crude kind of way, it was almost like a pet store. Each row was filled up with the species it catered specifically too. Jeff couldn't help but look down each one as he walked by. Checking out who was out this afternoon, what they were getting. What could be on the menu for them. Getting ideas for his own dinner that night; being an omnivore, Jeff could choose from nearly anything in this store where others didn't have such luxuries.

Jeff walked past the seafood without even giving It a second glance. There was hardly anything left and what they did have seemed to be the bare minimum. Things you could get nearly anywhere. The far side wall had the meats crudely bagged up and forced into the small space. Jeff could tell they were flash frozen without even picking one of the bags up. It was far more interesting checking out the otter, bent over, trying to get something in the far back.

He wondered if those massive rudder tails ever got in the way. It looked like the aquatic mammal was carrying around his very own anchor weight as he walked off towards the front of the store. Jeff decided it was best to wrap this up before he followed one of them home.

A rather gruff looking timber wolf was filling his cart with packages of beef at the other side of the store, the area Jeff had been looking for. His whole basket was filled with different sauces, seasonings and other toppings to try and spice things up for the numerous packages he was putting into the cart. Jeff knew he'd get quickly sick of being forced to eat the same thing for every meal. And try as he might, he could tell the wolf was feeling the same. No matter how much he garnished a steak it was still a steak in the end. And after the fifty thousandth one you had in your life, it would still be the same.

That did make him pause, thinking it over. The timber wolf noticed and gave a low growl in warning, pushing his cart away quickly in distaste before Jeff had the time to apologize. Even walking away the wolf made those nearby take notice, stepping out of the way and even leaving their own carts behind as he passed by. Jeff had been staring and so was the others; he hadn't even meant too. It just happened before he could catch himself.

“And he wasn't even the king of the jungle." Jeff mused aloud, grabbing the largest bag of ground chuck and putting it in a plastic bag. It had been one of the few things he had been asked to pick up before coming over for the evening.

Jeff moved away from the nearly deserted rows of reprocessed meat as he looked his cart over. “Chips. Check. Beef check. Soda. Check. Beer…" He frowned at that, that was usually the first thing he got at a store. He chuckled, shaking his head as he used one of the reusable bags to cover the beefs with in his cart so no naysayers would give him hell for it.

He never thought much about it until he began hanging out with Bruce. Even as a human, an omnivore, there was an almost taboo about eating meat. Jeff could fake it. He could pretend to just be a vegetarian around his rabbit friend or someone who “only eats seafood" as there weren't any fish up and walking, talking around. In fact it was one of the very few living creatures that people didn't have anything to say about killing and eating.

Look at a chicken breast and hell would rain down on you for it. Even if they were in fact farm raised animals and not the ones shopping in the “Seeds, nuts and corn" aisle.

Fast food places went out of their way to describe their food as fake or artificial. Made of bean paste or with an extensive vegetarian option. To the point, it was something you had to ask for. To add beef or chicken to your meal. Even shrimp or fish.

The majority of the world were in fact herbivores after all. Only a small minority were forced to eat meat and thus were shunned, looked down on and singled out. Few in number there wasn't any real money to be made mass producing something they could freely eat. And over the many years it just became common to hate them for “The lives they stole" or “killing the planet." Jeff had heard it all before when he ate something.

Jeff had a wide variety of taste an never had much of an issue going out to eat before. As such, never had a reason to think about it. To worry about if there was something on the menu he could eat or at least stomach.

The other day when Bruce had been complaining about an upset stomach after eating out at “Off the Falafel," Jeff had figured the tiger had just been acting like a giant pussy. Which he was. Something he ended up texting Burt about as he slowly made his way around the store and towards the back where the beer and wine was kept.

“Should I like apologize for that?" Jeff asked his friend, after explaining the situation. “Kind of funny still. Seeing a big tiger dude act like a whinny baby. Crying over spilt milk."

Bruce tail tip flickered at that. He wanted to text back that he didn't whine. Or complain at all. It had just been a small comment on the food, which didn't sit well in the tiger's gut after. He had to deal with that for the rest of the day, stuck in his own food truck without a bathroom.

The disgruntled tiger ignored the text as he continued to set up for the BBQ they were going too.

It was a little over a month since the two began hanging out. Bruce didn't get why Jeff liked his company. Always coming over to watch shows, drink beer, just chat about nothing and everything. Apparently, they were increasing the rent in his place and had inquired about Bruce's apartment. The tiger held his tongue about that, for more than one reason. Even if Jeff hadn't been interested in moving in.

On one hand Bruce liked his independence, his freedom, and the time he got to just be himself, alone in his apartment with no one else around to bug him. Having Jeff around twenty-four seven would be a bit much for Bruce to handle right now. Focusing on his job took the majority of his time anyways.

Then there was the other reason why Jeff couldn't. The apartments were a piece of crap, that was a reason in itself not too move in. Bruce didn't want to get Jeff stuck in them like he was. The other more important fact was simple. They were rent controlled. And made for people like Bruce. Not a tiger or carnivore, though they did tend to be more than others.

Bruce was an ex-con. Not something he was proud of or liked to talk about.

There was a reason why the tiger met Jeff outside and walked with him up the stairs; the elevator not working. Why he let the human crash at his place if it got too late and even why, though Bruce hadn't worked that day and wasn't wearing much, the tiger saw him all the way out.

It was also why they weren't having this party at his place and instead was going to one Bruce knew about.

Just in passing, Bruce accidentally let it slip he had been invited to a Sunday BBQ of a friends. The tiger had no inclination of going or want thereof. Jeff had been the one to express interest in the matter, wanting to meet the tiger's friends as well as go to the “first BBQ of sprin!" They both knew Jeff had ulterior motives for it but it was hard to say no without a good reason for it. Bruce had already let it slip that he would be free that afternoon and knew Jeff wouldn't let him just get out with the “got to work" excuse he used nine times out of ten.

So here the tiger was, in his tiny ugly apartment that smelled of rot and mold from the decrypt building it was in. Standing in front of the mirror in his tiny bathroom, looking at his reflection and trying to smooth down his scruffy fur.

Bruce needed a good full body trim. The fur around his neck especially was sticking out more than usual from the top of his shirt giving him an even gruffer appearance than normal. The tiger stripped the shirt off, tossing it to the side without looking.

Bruce was muscular. He worked out during his time served and carried it over after. However, with his endless appetite he ended up keeping the pounds rather than shedding any off from the holidays. Giving him a good girth and weight to him. The floorboards creaked with his step as he moved back into the main part of the apartment to look over what he had to wear.

Same old clothes as any other day. The tiger frowned. Why was he worrying about this now? His tail kept swaying and despite his efforts, no matter how many times Bruce smoothed his fur down it would just stick back up. And he began to pace. Pace back and forth in his small apartment that felt more like a cage right now.

Whiskers straight, fur sticking out, tail tip flickering. He was bothered by this. Bruce shouldn't have agreed to go, let alone help host this damn party! He thought about it bitterly as he put the shirt he had worn the other day. The tiger didn't care if it was old, used and stunk of his musk. He was comfortable in it and that was what he needed right now as he packed his things up, locked the door and headed out.

Bruce already wasn't the most social of guys and now here he was agreeing to deal with Jeff meeting his friends. Which meant hanging out with Congo, again. Something he really rather not have to deal with. Tiger's weren't family cats and what with their past, Bruce rather keep it that way. There wasn't any reason to get the old gang back together.

His phone buzzed again and he checked it out as he piled his things into an old Volkswagen beetle. Some would call it a classic these days, his car. He called it a piece of junk and it took three tries to get the thing started. Bruce, even with the seat all the way back, barely fit in and ended up getting a bad cramp in one of his legs as he headed out.

“I'll pick you up." Bruce ended up texting, regretting it a second later as he slammed his breaks on and making the car behind him come to an abrupt halt as well. They honked and he flipped them off. “Fuck, shit shit, fuck cunt." Bruce cursed loudly looking at the text. He had been preoccupied, his mind elsewhere and now here he was even more worried about all this.

Bruce had been texting as Burt, unable to explain the misunderstanding even after all these months. A part of him enjoyed the company, able to reply at his leisure rather than force out conversation when he was face to face with someone. That's how he normally kept things. Even at work he could keep a sheet of glass between him and the other person.

“Mistext." He tried to play off, deciding it would be best to kill some time before picking Jeff up instead. Hoping to play it off. Hoping, being the key word.

“Who too?" Jeff asked, ever the nosy one. Bruce grumbled at that. Even if the human was just being friendly it could get annoying at his persistence. Sometimes he could be the exact opposite of who Bruce was.

From there Bruce ended up telling him all about the sister he didn't have and about her son, his supposed nephew, and all about taking him to band practice. A simple lie soon became a story about how the sister he didn't have husband left her and their son to go off to be with some tramp instead. With every word Bruce texted, the larger the hole he ended up digging for himself became. Until all the tiger could do was stop. Rest his head against the steering wheel and let the horn go off as he cursed his own stupidity.

Jeff was soon in the car with him and the human, ignorantly, told Bruce all about what the tiger had just told him. Bruce said very little about it all, focusing on the road and kept his answers short to brief to just grunts as Jeff gossiped about it all.

While Bruce tried to stay away from such subjects, Jeff ate it all up. Dishing about his friend, talking about it all without shame. There wasn't an ounce of judgement in Jeff voice as he talked about it all, just sharing their blight and talking about things with someone else. Misery does love company, Bruce could only figure.

“So like… there's going to be some of the players, maybe, at this party." Bruce brought up as they pulled in around the corner to the place. It was a large house out alone near the trees. It was far nicer than either Bruce or Jeff's home and even had a second floor to it.

“Sabers players?" Jeff's eyes already lit up at the very idea.

“No. Bad. Get rid of any of those thoughts!" Bruce snarled in warning. Jeff was already looking up towards the house. “The pants stay on, Mr."

“No promises." Jeff unbuckled and got out. The tiger could only sigh, shaking his large head as he got out too.

“Just, if you're uncomfortable or something… let me know and we can go." Bruce just started up, giving himself a way out from this as they headed up the long walk way through the side gate. They had to be buzzed in. “I just don't want to have to carry your drunk ass home again."

It had been only a slip of the tongue, about this party. Bruce had mentioned that he knew someone that was holding a large BBQ, Congo, his own brother, had invited him along to it. Bruce had just been venting, talking about it without even trying to insinuate anything behind it. Jeff pounced on the idea and strong armed the tiger into going. And with every heavy step the jungle cat took the sooner he wished for this day to just be over and done with.

He'd even let Jeff come over again, sleep on his chest if that's what he wanted if he only just agreed to leave early.

“You need to go out more." “You can close up your truck for a couple of hours, at least!" “We never get to hang out anymore." “It'll be a great opportunity." One thing after another Jeff had brought up until Bruce had finally told him to shut up, then agreed after. Feeling bad about yelling at him. “I miss hanging out with you."

Jeff had started off light and ended up guilt tripping Bruce into going. The tiger already felt bad about lying about being someone else and just ended up agreeing. If only to shut Jeff up about it. Bruce still couldn't let that go.

And now here they were.

This party was far more lackadaisical than the parties the two tiger brothers used to throw in college. There wasn't anyone passed out on the lawn for starts. All the windows were in take. No one had tossed the empty keg out of one, yet. The front door was even closed and NOT ripped off the hinges. Bruce had a smirk on his face as he knocked on the door, before trying to just open it. He had been the one to do that years and years ago after trying to open a locked door.

He wasn't sure why it had made him so mad that he ripped it out from its own hinges. Things people do when their drunk.

The door was soon answered by someone, Jeff would swear, looked nearly identical to the very tiger standing next to him. As if the door opened to a mirror rather than another tiger. Other than a change of clothes, it was hard to tell the difference still.

Congo was wearing loose shorts, a tank top and a pair of oversized sandals. The tiger lifted up the shades from his eyes to look at Bruce as if unsure himself who this other strange, nearly identical tiger was. Then Congo let the shades fall back down on his muzzle and threw both arms up in the air.

“Dude! You actually came over for once!" And Congo hugged his twin brother with enough force Jeff was sure if Bruce had been, say, a normal human, he'd have snapped in two.

“Yup." Bruce grunted in reply, wincing until Congo finally let go. The tiger rubbed one arm. “I brought a friend, cool?" He just asked not even waiting for a reply before pushing his way inside.

“Yeah, sure. No probs, man." Congo just said watching Bruce head inside. The larger tiger all but ignoring the human still standing next to him as he watched, tail swaying lazily behind him. The smile on his face told Jeff enough.

“Been a while, huh?" Jeff only chuckled. Congo finally looked over and down at the human as if only now noticing him. “Jeff." He offered a hand. Congo took it, enclosing his own around the smaller humans and let Jeff do the shaking. “You're Burt's brother I take it?"

“He mentioned me?" Congo asked mishearing what Jeff had called Bruce. The tiger was more interested in if his brother was concerned about him than anything else.

“Not… much." Jeff said honestly. He was a bit flushed in the face. He had never been good at lying. It was more for the fact that Congo, like Bruce, was a handsome large feline that got the humans attention more than anything else. Making it hard to think straight.

“Figures." Congo just gave a similar sigh that Bruce had given earlier. Like his brother, Congo was a classic orange fur black stripes tiger. It was the highlights of white around his ears, whiskers, neck and chest that made him stand out. The white on his chin and cheeks had stripes of black through it like the orange giving him a distinguished appearance.

“He's not much of a talker." Jeff tried to explain, for Bruce's sake. Defending the tiger even now in his own way. Trying to make Congo feel better on top of it.

“He wasn't always like that…" Congo just clapped his large hands together and turned back inside as if to say to forget what he had said. “It's a party! Relax. Mi casa su casa!" Congo said far more fluently than Jeff ever could. And the tiger just headed inside leaving the door open and the human behind. Jeff wasn't ashamed to say he gave the tiger a good once over as he followed behind.

From those massive paws wearing sandals, to the loose pants hanging down a little under his tail. To the shirt that clung to his thick furry muscular back, trimmed sides and firm chest. Jeff could just trace a finger around those muscles all night long... He wasn't about to mention that though.

For a Sabers party, there were very few cats here. Jeff was more hoping for it than expecting it. There were numerous humans here and there, mixed with other species varying greatly. Talking among themselves in their own little cliques. Jeff hated to say it but it would have been more accurate to say they “kept with their own kind." Humans together, felines together and then there was him walking among them like some kind of natural geographic guide studying the different groups.

Then there was Bruce. A large tiger that was keeping separate from the two, near the drink table, with his brother hovering nearby. It was clear Congo wanted to go over and say something to him but couldn't find the words too.

Bruce moved on towards the kitchen with the things he and Jeff had brought, planning on making the hamburgers for the party. “Give you a real taste of meat." The tiger had teased the other day. Jeff knew it was one of the main reasons why Bruce even agreed to come along. He really did love to cook.

Congo followed after him and instead of butting in on the two reunion, Jeff decided it was time to mingle with some of these people. Most turned out to be the behind the scenes people that worked with the team. From marketing to friends of friends of family members. Each just as boring as the people in the grocery store sadly. Something to look at and not much to talk too.

In the kitchen, Bruce was already slicing the bag of chuck open with one claw and slapping the wad of meat onto the counter. The tiger was focused on his work. Washing his hands, getting the spices down from the cupboard and measuring everything out as Congo came into the kitchen.

“Glad you came over." The tiger started up friendly enough. Bruce grunted in reply. Congo took a moment on that, not sure where to begin. “So uh… I see you brought a friend over. Is he like…"

“No." Bruce just replied flatly not even looking over at him. He always did hate when people just assumed things about his sexuality and those he hung out with.

“Oh, cool. Cool." Congo shifted uncomfortably, shifting his weight from one leg to the next. “So like he's a… neighbor?" The other tiger offered, still trying to spark some kind of conversation.

“Nope." Bruce just replied as he rolled the first patty out then slammed it down with one hand, crushing it under his hand with excessive force. Congo didn't miss that.

“Look. I'm sorry about the whole… you know." Congo took a step forward opening his hands up to show his palms in apology.

“Don't want to talk about it." Bruce only replied coldly, looking up at him for a second before back down at his work. The tiger didn't need to measure out the meat. He could easily tell which ones were too large or too small and adjusted the ratio as needed.

His nose twitched. The smell of raw meat before him, still bleeding was making his stomach grumble. Bruce growled at that, he should have eaten something before coming over. He always was a grouch on an empty stomach. There were still some tigers out there who ate it raw. Even others, in other countries, who would pay to hunt their food down. Bruce would openly deny such interest, yet he knew where they were coming from. People might try and argue they've advanced as a society, matured and become civilized but all predators still had that hungry predator lurking inside.

“If you ever need money or anything, you can always come to me bro." Congo snapped him out of his funk, the tiger looked up at him with sharp hungry eyes.

Bruce blinked that away and went over to wash his hands again. It kept his large killers under the running faucet longer than was needed. Just feeling the warm water wash the blood off his fingers. One finger twitched and a claw sprung out; he took a second on that. Letting his breath out to relax. The tiger decided to get a few chips before continuing.

“Don't need nothing now." Bruce only replied with a low growl, annoyed by all this. His tail tip flickered as if batting away an annoying insect. A pest that wouldn't leave him alone. He liked to work alone, one reason why he never hired anyone to help man the food truck with him.

Congo didn't reply to that, knowing what he meant by it. Congo had been doing a tour with the team and hadn't manage to come back in time for when Bruce got out of prison. No one was there waiting for the tiger as he finally earned his freedom. Standing there outside the gates with no one waiting.

“Look…" Bruce finally turned the sink off and dried his hands. Congo ears perked up, the tiger taking another step closer. “The guy out there I brought…"

“Yeah?" Congo just asked figuring he knew where Bruce was going with this. It wasn't the first time Bruce had brought a guy home; that was a long time ago, though.

“Jeff thinks my name is Burt." Bruce just said with a heavy sigh, rolling his eyes. Congo wasn't expecting that. “It's a long story. So like, if you could just play along… that'd be great."

Congo opened his mouth, about to say something about that and chose not to. Just swallowing the retort, he was about to laugh out. If that was what his brother wanted, needed to keep the peace between them, so bet it.

“Sure, whatever. I did the same thing with this filly girl down in Louisiana just a couple of months ago." Congo chuckled recalling the horse. If Bruce wasn't going to explain, Congo could for his own time. “Told her I had taken the wrong train and was now late for some meeting. Was just some rich tiger businessman who wanted to get reacquainted with the country, the people but just… I needed help too." Congo chuckled, only to look up and see his brother taking the tray of patties out onto the patio to begin cooking them. Congo wasn't about to just give up there and headed out after him.

Jeff was in the other room talking with whoever passed by.

“Bus driver." One tom cat said, moving by to go get another drink. He didn't look all too happy to be here. Which Jeff couldn't understand. The full team wasn't here, still this was a great opportunity he knew most regular people would never get a chance to experience. To actually meet some of these players in the person! Casual in the home setting.

All you had to do was make some effort.

Jeff knew that if he brought someone, say, another cold beer they'd be more than happy to open up and the panther linebacker wasn't no exception to this.

“I saw your game in '09. That save you made was just incredible!" Jeff stroked the player's ego as he handed him the drink. Focusing the whole conversation on them. Who didn't like talking about themselves?

“Well…" The panther smiled, glad someone appreciated his work for a change. It was usually the quarterbacks that got all the credit and news coverage. Random people like him were just ignored and shoved into the sidelines. “I was just doing my job." He tried to be modest but the grin on his face told Jeff enough how much he was enjoying this.

“Still. Was amazing play. I think I even have it recorded!" Jeff thought it over. He did record most of the games. It was one of the few teams he could actual get invested in and looked forward to watching. As a kid he never understood why people were such sports fans until he found his own team. To root for. It changed the entire way he viewed the game.

“Oh, yeah?" The panther ears perked up at that. The LB was a bit shorter than Bruce was, a bit wider and had the build of someone that needed to stand their ground. One of his ears were notched and his face beaten up from the plays. Still Jeff thought his smile was nice on that obsidian black muzzle.

Most non-humans team tended to be far more aggressive with their tackles and plays than human teams were. It created a far more brutal experience when one of the players got sacked, only to take their helmet off and have their fur covered in blood. Add claws, horns and other natural defensive mechanics into the mix and things could get violent fast. Which made it highly entertaining for the crowd.

Where most human teams would sue over such things, to try and complain about head injuries or the like; non-humans couldn't afford such luxury or news media coverage. They just worked with what they had, making nearly half as much as their human counterparts.

Compared to a Sabers game, any human team was boring and uninteresting to watch as far as Jeff was concerned.

The two continued to chat for some time in the corner of the room until the room took notice of the new person that came in late. Jeff had to admit the black maned lion made an entrance.

Reggie arrived coming in through the side door with two of the other members of the team following behind like an entourage. The lion was shirtless in a large fur coat and ended up handing it off to someone else as he came in. He got another person to lit the cigar someone else handed him and then jumped over the couch, half-pushing the people on it off as he lounged out.

“Last game man. All me!" Reggie cheered. Jeff was aware Reggie had made a good play near the end of the game, however it alone was in no way the winning pass. “Just give me the ball anyday and bam! Touchdown."

He laughed.

The crowd laughed.

And Jeff was already sick of him. The star player wasn't anything more than a sellout that would take any endorsement that came along. Living for the camera and being the spokesperson for the team these days.

Lars, Jeff soon learned the panther's name, was one of the few who didn't seem to think as highly of his teammate as the others did. In fact, most of the other players seemed to be in the same mindset as he was. Everyone else was eating up the long, over-dramatized story Reggie began spilling out after he got his drink refilled. Gathering around him as the black maned lion lounged out with his feet in some bimbos lap and began describing point by point everything he did to make it possible.

“The way he makes it sound, he could win the entire game by himself." Lars grumbled, arms crossed as he shot daggers over at the lion from the corner they were in. His nails kept popping out to dig into his thick black fur, muscle flexing and the corner of his muzzle flashed showing fangs (one of which was missing).

“We both know, that's not the case." Jeff just pointed out pushing the forgotten beer bottle towards the panther. He gave him a reassuring smile with it. “It's always the loudest ones ya got to watch out for." He added with a wink and placed a hand on Lars arm. The panther flexed at that, looking down at it, then him and then relaxed.

“Too true, brother." Lars just agreed taking the drink. Jeff couldn't help but notice the panther move a fraction of an inch closer to him. That long black fur tail rubbing along the side of his leg.

“Want to see how them burgers are coming along?" Jeff just offered instead, looking away from the attention whore in the middle of the room.

“Sure." Lars just agreed giving Reggie one final cold look at the lion surrounded by everyone and the two headed towards the kitchen an out onto the wooden patio deck. There was a large awning behind the back door that kept the sun at bay.

Bruce was standing off to the side next to a good old Broiler King Deluxe grill; Jeff recognized it from the add. One of the most expensive grill on the line. Sleek chrome exterior with stainless steel grills and enough setting on it to put the Apollo space capsule to shame. The tiger had an apron on, focusing on the grill too much to pay attention to anyone else out here. Bruce didn't seem impressed in the least with the grill, tinkering with it with a heavy frown.

Congo was standing nearby, once more trying to think up something to talk about with his brother. And it was clear he wasn't about to make any progressive anytime soon on it.

“I got the biggest one I could find." Congo offered weakly.

“It's a piece of shit." Bruce only growled in reply, keeping his back turned.

“What's up with them?" Jeff had to ask keeping his voice low and not even looking over at the two tigers, as if not even that interested about it. He rested against the railing and the panther followed suit at his side. Once more that tail snaked down to run along the back of his leg; Jeff had to stop from shivering .

“Family shit." Lars only shrugged. The panther wasn't too sure what the deal was and never had been one to pry into others matters, having to deal with his own was enough. His attention turned back towards the back lawn. It was large enough to hold a football game on.

“I see." Jeff only frowned not about to drop it so easily. Wanting to know more about it. It was hard enough prying anything of any real substance out of Bruce, the tiger was a locked vault when it came to his feelings. “What do you want on your burger?" Jeff asked to be polite instead of just ditching Lars, he could get an order and investigate at the same time.

This wasn't his first rodeo.

“I want cheese on my burger." Congo just ended up saying as Jeff headed over to investigate. The tiger wanted to face plant the grill after that as Bruce just grunted in acknowledgement. Talking with his brother was like talking to brick wall and was just as informative.

“I'm a vegetarian now, so like if you could just like make mine a veggie burger with extra lintels and tofu. I'm also trying to watch my gluten intake." Jeff started up as he joined the two talking in a prissy voice and even doing the hand motions. “Could you make it brown but not crispy and I want mustard only on one of the buns. NOT the other. No mayo. So help me if I find mayo on my burger I will burn this house down!"

“You'll take a cheeseburger and like it." Bruce just smirked glancing over at the human, ignoring his brother as he let Jeff slip in on his other side.

“So, this is the best meat in town, huh?" Jeff said clearly unimpressed. He had been the one to buy the chuck after all.

“It's all about how you prepare the ingredients, young one." Bruce said sagely, chuckling a bit after. His face splitting into a warm smile as he showed Jeff the difference between the patties he had put on. “The ones in the back get more heat in these newer models. So, you got to put them on last. Never add the cheese until right before you take 'em off the grill or you're gonna end up with a huge mess. Even on these stainless-steel pieces of crap…" Bruce just grumbled as he tried to flip a patty and ended up pushing it off and below into the burner, used to some friction on them.

“What seasoning did you use? They smell fucking delicious as balls." Jeff said moving forward a bit, standing on his tip toes to give them a good sniff. Bruce stopped him, teasing him about the balls comment and that of course Jeff would say something like that.

It was light, casual and easygoing. Something Congo watched with a bitter envy. He and his brother hadn't gotten along well in their youth let alone in later years. And now, here this random guy was talking with him as if he had grown up with Bruce. And he wasn't proud to admit that he hated Jeff for that.

The tiger clenched his teeth, claws extended for only a split second before he turned and walked off. He didn't give an excuse or a reason, knowing Bruce wouldn't listen. Or care. Hell, Bruce probably didn't even notice Congo had left. And hating himself more for it.

Several others soon showed up distracting Congo away from the two of them focusing on the party now instead. Able to play the good host as he greeted everyone warmly and offered drink or chips while the food was cooking.

There was a basketball playoff on today of their sister team to the Sabers; instead of football they did basketball. It was a common theme for teams that focused on one species to also have additional teams, owned by the same franchise, for different sports. This covered a wide genre that went from tennis to basketball to even golf. Congo knew there was even a Sabers team that played some video game online and held large tournaments for.

As such it only made sense for the Sabers to watch and support the out of town game. Cheering them on, holding a party, getting attention of the big wigs, look good for the news crew that was sure to get wind of it somehow and even trying to score additional franchise deals. One of the marketing ladies for a cola company had been invited to come and was soon flirting with Congo who poured her another drink.

There was a whole world behind the screen, behind the games. A cruel, cold place that would gladly chew you up and spit you out the second you stepped out of line or became dead wait for them. A contract could easily be tossed out if you ended up on the news or in prison. A dozen, a hundred others were just waiting to take your spot after all.

And it wasn't like a human team. Where the media would back you for foul play on their part. They'd be more than happy to twist it around to blame someone like Congo for speaking his mind even if he were in the right. People just ate it up news reports of carnivores going bad and in the end, all the media cared about were ratings.

So here Congo was, putting on the friendly face and being a gracious host as he showed these people around. Talking about how it was all thanks to the team that he could afford such a place, that he was only ever grateful for all they had been done. Never talking bad and thus talking very little in the end. They just loved the sound of their own voice, just wanting a yes man to listen to them in the end anyway.

His mind kept wandering to the back yard, hoping Bruce would stay longer than an hour as he had done last time.

The Pep girl was no difference. Yamming on about her bosses after a couple of drinks and how if it was up to her the stocks would be up at least five percent. Congo just nodded along, ignoring her by the end as he showed her the second floor.

“And this is the master bedroom." Congo just said flatly, curious about what was going on downstairs. His attention was turned elsewhere.

“The bedroom?" She giggled moving forward and opened the door for him. “Is this the end of the tour or are we just beginning?"

Congo could smell the alcohol on her breath. Humans got drunk before he even felt the slightest bit tipsy. The tiger could down a six pack and feel little. Which left him in very sound mind as she took a seat on his bed. Undoing just the top of her business suit due to it being “stuffy in here."

“I'll open the window." Congo only rolled his eyes heading over to do just that. He threw them open and stuck his head out, getting a fresh breath of air himself. Just off to the side he saw the back patio. Of his brother and that human talking once more. Smiling, pushing one another as they joked back and forth.

How easy it was between the two of them. How it should be for them, they were brothers after all.

Congo turned around to find the girl passed out on the bad. He knew better than to just leave her there, not wanting THAT to end up on the news and easily carried her out, fully dressed, and dumped her off in one of the bathrooms instead. At least that way when she woke up she'd be able to regain some dignity; locking the door before heading out. Also, giving him a good alibi in case she was looking for money out of this.

Wouldn't have been the first time someone tried…

Annoyed by it all he wasn't in the mood to humor Reggie who came over seeing him come down the stairs.

“I see you're alone, now." The lion nudged his side.

“Nothing happened." Congo just growled in return, keeping it low so no one else at the party heard them. Normal people didn't react well when a large predator growled suddenly. They tended to think it was in hunger or as if Congo was about to maul someone's face off.

“Sure it didn't…" Reggie just nudged him once more, giving him a wink. “I totally understand."

“She just passed out." Congo kept his voice low, rolling his eyes.

“After you boned her." Reggie only grinned. Congo was sure in his own head Reggie was being a good bro and friend. Right now, it was only pissing him off. All of this was.

Congo didn't want to host this dumb party anyways. It was only because Bruce had actually agreed for once to come that he even went through with it. Otherwise he'd let one of the other team members handle everything. Maybe it was a tiger thing but Congo disliked large crowds and this place was becoming increasingly packed as the game finally started. It was becoming noisy. Congo was already getting a headache from it all.

One side of the living room was taken up not by one but five TVs. One massive flat screen in the middle with several smaller ones on the sides. Showing the game from different angles, channels and allowing everyone to watch. The surround sound worked nicely too and it helped drone out the buzz of people. Congo was a bit claustrophobic, there was a reason why he played an outdoors sport like football.

“I need a smoke." Congo just said and was heading out back.

“Yeah you do after all that pumpin big guy." Reggie hip thrust with a laugh, following after. “I'm always game for a good smoke." He said with an underlining meaning Congo didn't miss.

“Not with everyone here, you're not." Congo made sure to point out. Catnip wasn't exactly illegal, it still wasn't accepted in the league and he wasn't about to throw away his career for a quick high. Not after what he'd sacrificed to become a member of the team.

“Didn't mind last time." Reggie wasn't even keeping his voice down. Congo ended up grabbing him by his mane and tossing him outside before he said something someone else might overhear.

“Dumbass." Congo just growled slamming the door shut behind him. Reggie already was pulling out the cigarettes underneath the patio table Congo kept hidden and was pulling one out. He lit it.

“What's on your mind, big guy?" Reggie just asked knowing Congo only smoked when something was really bothering him.

Congo didn't say anything until after a good long drag of his own cig. “Bruce is here." He said letting out his breath, smoke trailing up between his whiskers as it escaped his muzzle.

“That's… good?" Reggie only asked, arcing an eyebrow and saying nothing more about it. Times like this someone was looking for an ear to talk to and nothing more. The lion however was already looking around for the tiger brother.

“He brought a friend…" Congo ended up saying after nearly finishing the cigarette in one long, slow inhale. He let it out, resting against the wall now with crossed legs.

“Like a friend? Or a friend friend?" The lion lewdly replied, lifting his eyebrows up several times.

“Just a friend. I think." Congo just shook that off. “The two are so close and here I am just…" The tiger took another long drag, flicking the bud into a metal bucket next to the back door with the rest.

“Just go over there and say something then, dude!" Reggie rolled his eyes unable to understand his dilemma on the matter. Neither Congo or Bruce were one for words and that made this all the more difficult for the two. Someone like Jeff or Reggie would gladly just go over to talk about it without even hesitating. “In fact… why don't I go over there?"

“No. Please don't." Congo groaned, regretting bringing this up to Reggie of all people. They had been friends for a long time now though and old habits died hard.

“I'm gonna go over. Just to say hi." Reggie held up both hands as if to show he meant no harm. The look on his face said otherwise. Like a kid who just found a hornets nest.

“Damnit," Congo growled about to stop the lion. He chose not to. Unsure why until Reggie actually left. He hadn't explained about the whole Burt situation and Congo just stood there. Wondering why he hadn't…

“How'd you turn the grill on?" Jeff inquired on the other side of the building from where the two Saber players had been standing. Bruce looked over at him once more with that smug smirk on his face. “What?" Jeff glared back at him, seeing that smug expression getting defensive.

“Nothing." The tiger just grumbled heavily, his heavy voice laced with amusement as he spoke. “You turn the propane on first," he gestured down underneath the grill. “Then each port. You light it after." Bruce spoke as if talking to an infant who had asked him the question.

Jeff only frowned at that. “Don't have to be an ass about it."

“Well ask a stupid question…" Bruce only chuckled heavily once more.

“I meant the lighting part, ass." Jeff growled himself, or tried too. Bruce almost thought it was cute. The attempt at a growl from a creature Jeff size at a tiger his size.

“Some of these newer models have self lighting switch," Bruce twisted the nob to demonstrate. “However, nine times out of ten I find these nobs on these newer models stop working a couple months sitting in the rain and snow. That's when you use one of these." The tiger pulled out an extended lighter from the side drawer of the grill and gave It a click, turning it on.

“I'm surprised you don't just burn your whole fur off." Jeff chuckled, recalling the time he lost his own eyebrows from doing just that.

“I've done this once or twice." Bruce only teased. “I HAVE done that before though, heh. Whole arm smelled like burnt fur. Not much of an appetite after that." The tiger gave that soft tug of a smile that pulled on the corner of his black lips up into something resembling a smile. His heavy brow weighed down over his eyes making him look more like a man twice his age.

“OK, smart ass. When do you know when its done then, huh?" Jeff just asked, crossing his arms and looking at the tiger as if to say “oh really." He would've love to see a picture of that. The whole front of Bruce's fur burned to a crisp. He wouldn't be so smug then.

“Well, depends on if you want it well done or not." Bruce pushed down one of the patties with the metal spatula. It sizzled, grease and fat seeping out of the meat to fall into the flames below. The fire roared up over it and the smell of it wafted into their faces with the heat.

Bruce's eyes sparkled as he watched. Smelling the meat. The corner of his muzzle was nearly drooling as he stared at it, savoring the moment before flipping it over. It was just another one of those reasons why he worked with sweet things instead of in a butcher's shop. That predatory hunger was growling once more.

Bruce piled the freshly made burgers onto a plate, handing it off to what he assumed to be some kind of waiter Congo hired and went back to work. Talking about the different kinds of meat and types there were, how they cooked differently and which were even worth the bother.

Lars ended up joining them as Jeff waved him over, introducing the two. The panther wasn't familiar with Congo's family and didn't recall his brothers name. Just playing along after Jeff explained the two of them were friends and he had been invited along to this party.

“I'm a huge fan." He just blushed, giving a small embarrassed laugh at that. “A human fan, right?"

“I always appreciate a good fan." Lars just said, becoming far more friendly after finding out the tiger and him were only friends.

“I can't believe you've never held an old fashion BBQ party." Bruce spoke up facing towards the grill and watching each patty cook. Lars laughed at that, taking another swig of his drink.

“I've been to BBQs before! I just never… hosted one is all…" Jeff said once more embarrassment, the two teasing him now about it as the three of them continued to chat. It was good company as far as Lars was concerned, away from the posers and fakes in the other room. It was also nice having someone take such an interest in his career.

“Well, I sort of fell into it really. Dude who was supposed to go into the game got injured and well," Lars only shrugged when he was asked about how he joined the team. “Friend of a friend. We went to the try outs together, a spotter came to our game. I was lucky to get in."

“Well without you they wouldn't have won that one game." Jeff just pointed out, talking about the '09 game he had mentioned earlier. “I do think I have it recorded."

“Would love to get a copy!" Lars was the one to fold his round ears back, blushing lightly underneath his rich obsidian black fur. “W-well for family, see. They love watching the games. And I try to support them when I can in like, thanks. And all." He just chuckled lightly.

“That's great!" Jeff eyes sparkled at the thought. “Helping out your family and such, very admirable."

Lars tail swayed at that and the panther just chuckled sheepishly, looking to one side. He didn't mind one bit when Jeff took a step closer as the two continued to talk about it.

Bruce just rolled his eyes, just glad Jeff had someone else's ear to chew off for a change. The tiger was already getting the third batch of patties off the grill and putting the next on when Reggie came over. Lars was the first to notice, his sharp blue eyes picking the lion out instantly in the crowd. His ears splayed out, the fur on his neck stood up a bit. Jeff only noticed after seeing that.

“Bruce! Dude, been looking everywhere for you." Reggie called out loudly, waving over at him before jogging up. “Where've ya been?"

Bruce gave a low growl in greeting, eyes darting over to Jeff who looked confused about it all. Silently praying that god would shoot a bolt of lightning at this loud mouth lion and shut him up.

“Can't believe you're here! For once," Reggie gave him a playful punch. Bruce almost snapped and had to stop himself from clawing his face off. “We never hang out anymore! The three of us. Used to be the three amigos," he gave Jeff a wink at that nudging towards him explaining it for the human. “Bruce, Reggie and Congo. Out on the town! Taking numbers, forgetting faces." He laughed at that.

“Jeff." Bruce started, trying to explain. The burgers began to burn behind him.

“Yeah, no one was as good as this guy! Bruce was a killer, you hear me?" Reggie called over loudly to a random group of people, wrapping an arm around the tiger. “Killer right here!" He pointed at the tiger who looked like he indeed was about to kill someone now.

“Thought you said his name was…" Lars asked but sealed his lips instantly at the look Bruce shot him, backing down knowing when to keep his large muzzle shut.

“I can explain." Bruce turned on Jeff, the human seeming to finally put two and two together. Then realizing all the things he had told Burt about Bruce. Fawning over the tiger, talking about his butt. How warm he was even the fact the tiger's natural musk didn't bother him, in fact he kind of liked it.

His whole face flushed brightly, wanting to cover his face and just leave right then and there. Instead. He got mad. It was one or the other.

Jeff turned on Bruce, raising a hand up to point a finger at him accusingly. “You…" He just started. Then the human just turned around. “I'm heading out, Lars. Want to see that video I told you about? I need a ride anyways."

“Uh… yeah, sure." The panther just nodded looking at the human. “I'm parked around back, I'll bring it around…" And Lars quickly exited as the tension only increased in the air as black smoke came off the burners.

“What's going on?" Congo asked catching up to them finally. The look Bruce gave him made the tiger's shoulders sink with his heart.

Jeff just shoved Bruce's arm out of the way and headed out towards the front of the house without another word. Trying to hide his face, his tears of shame from it all.

“I told you." Bruce wanted to apologize, wanted to explain things over. To chase Jeff down and just sit him down, apologize for it and make amends. Instead he listened to his dumb meathead of a brain and got angry about it instead, blaming Congo for it all. “I told you!" Bruce almost shouted, gritting his teeth, claws springing out of his fingers as the back door slammed shut and Jeff vanished inside.

“I didn't say anything!" Congo tried to say in his defense, ears folding back and whiskers drooping.

“Exactly!" Bruce hissed, showing his teeth now as his hackles rose up. If Bruce was a large tiger before, he seemed nearly gigantic as he got angry. “You didn't. Not then. Not now! You didn't say anything!"

Congo met that glare, that anger with his own. “You're going to bring that up now? Now of all times!?"

And Bruce gave a single, gruff laugh. “If not then? If not now? Then when, Congo? When the fuck do we talk?" And Bruce shoved passed him hoping to catch Jeff before he was gone. If he stayed any longer he'd have gotten into a fist fight with brother. And when cats fought, they used their claws.

“Thanks for the lift." Jeff said climbing into Lars's passenger seat. He wiped his face off, giving a half-laugh himself now as the panther slowly drove off. “Sorry about all that. Drama." He said the word, trying to make a joke of it and it caught in his voice. He looked away at that, wiping another tear away.

“No worries." Lars just said facing forward. He didn't look over at Jeff as if that would give the human someway to deny that he was crying. Instead the cat reached over to place a warm, heavy hand on Jeff's leg.

Jeff sniffled at that, looking down at it. He placed his own hand on it.

“You got that video to show me, remember?" Lars just brought up instead as they came to a stop at a light.

“Showing what a big badass you are, huh?" Jeff just chuckled, wiping his other eye off.

“Well, I don't know if my ass is that bad…" Lars just played along, trying to lighten the mood the best he could.

“Well, I wouldn't complain being your quarter back. Right behind you all game…" Jeff chuckled lightly. Lars smiled at that, his tail flopping over and onto the human's lap. The tail tip moved every now and then.

Jeff took a second before gripping it the closest he could to the panther and slowly, semi-roughly rubbing it all the up to the end. The panther noticeably shuddered at that.

“Fuck…" Lars breathed heavily between his teeth, letting out a deep chuff as he came up to another red light. “Jeff," he said looking over. And before the panther could finish the human kissed him.

A heavy kiss dripping with lust and need, petting over the side of that large black fur face and tilting his head just to one side as Lars returned it. Gripping the steering wheel tightly, gripping Jeff's leg even tighter. Licking at those lips. They parted willingly for the tongue that filled Jeff's mouth before Lars pulled back.

“Fuck," he only said again breathing heavily now in the stuffy car. He had to adjust himself as he continued driving. “J-just let me get there first." He managed to say, rubbing his hand up Jeff's thigh, fingers sliding under his shirt. The tip of his claws poked up, touching the human's skin. They didn't hurt, just as if the panther was holding him there so he couldn't possibly escape him… “Soon enough." Was all Jeff recalled as the reached his place…