The morning sun, a pale yellow finger through the gap in the curtains, woke Kev. He groggily checked the watch on the side of the bed – 6:30 am. With a sigh, he got up and stretched, his muscles still protesting slightly from the opera house stairs and the general tension of the previous night. He put water on the stove for coffee before taking a quick shower, the warm water doing little to dispel the lingering images of Cindy in wrestling gear. He was just about to pick out some clothes when there was a frantic, heavy pounding at the door, a sound that reverberated through the small apartment.
Kev's heart leaped into his throat. He hurried, pulling a shirt over his head with fumbling fingers before running to the door. He yanked it open to see Horns, and Kev's breath hitched. The mooseman's eyes were bloodshot and wild, his massive chest heaving with ragged breaths, and his usually upright posture was hunched, radiating a raw, volatile energy. For a terrifying moment, Kev thought Horns was drunk and angry again, a repeat of the barroom confrontation.
"Why didn't you tell me?!" Horns bellowed, his voice a choked, thunderous sound that was more anguish than anger. Before Kev could even stammer a response, Horns surged forward and enveloped him in a fierce, crushing hug. Kev's feet left the floor, his ribs groaning under the sheer force of the mooseman's embrace.
"Horns!" Kev gasped, his voice muffled against the rough fur of Horns's chest.
"This whole time!" Horns yelled, his voice thick with emotion, tears now streaming freely down his face. "You were so lost, and I just thought… I just thought you were from some tropical island or something!" Kev tried to push away, a desperate, suffocating pressure building in his chest, but Horns's grip was like iron bands. He couldn't breathe.
"If I knew," Horns continued, his voice cracking, "I would have helped you so much more! I would have…" His words devolved into a series of choked sobs and bellows, his massive frame shaking with the force of his grief.
Kev was feeling lightheaded, black spots dancing at the edges of his vision from the lack of oxygen. Panic began to set in. "Horns," he managed to whisper, his voice a thin thread, "it's… it's okay… let me go…"
Horns's grip only tightened. "It's not okay!" he roared, his voice a torrent of despair. "I'm never letting you go!"
Kev felt like a squeaky toy whose eyes should be bulging out of their sockets. Horns' wailing continued, a sound of pure, unadulterated distress. "You looked so lost when I saw you after you arrived!" Horns sobbed, his grip somehow tightening even further. "And when you said there was some sort of accident, I just panicked! How was I supposed to know you're an endangered species?!"
Kev's mind was on fire, every thought a frantic scramble for air. Through the haze of impending unconsciousness, he managed to murmur, a faint, desperate sound, "I… forgive… you…"
Horns looked down at Kev then, his big, tear-filled eyes focusing on the human's face. His own tears splattered onto Kev's cheeks, surprisingly warm. "You… you do?" Horns sniffled, his voice thick with unshed emotion.
Kev nodded weakly, half from acknowledgement and half from the sheer effort of staying conscious.
At Kev's faint nod, Horns' grip finally, blessedly, loosened. He sniffled again, a shudder running through his massive frame. Kev sagged against him for a moment, then Horns let go completely, and Kev slid down to the floor, landing in a heap, gasping and coughing, precious air flooding back into his lungs. The room swam, and black spots still danced before his eyes.
Horns, collecting himself a little, looked down at the coughing, gasping human with a new wave of concern. He sniffled loudly, wiping his eyes with the back of a massive hoof. "Are you… are you getting sick?" he asked, his voice still thick with emotion, but now tinged with a bewildered worry.
Kev, still coughing, shook his head, taking in ragged gulps of air.
Horns sniffled again, his red-rimmed eyes filled with a lingering concern. "That's good," he rumbled, his voice still thick. "I thought you might have some scary island disease or something."
Kev pushed himself up from the floor, his legs a little shaky. He leaned against the doorframe for a moment, his head still swimming. "Come in," he managed, gesturing towards the apartment. "We can… talk." He closed the door behind Horns, the click sounding unnaturally loud in the quiet room.
Horns shuffled to the couch and immediately lit a joint, his movements still a bit jerky from the emotional storm. Kev, still trying to catch his breath, made his way to the kitchen counter and took a long, fortifying sip of his lukewarm coffee. The familiar bitterness helped to ground him. He poured a glass of water for Horns and then sat down in the armchair across from him, his heart still hammering against his ribs.
"So," Kev said, his voice a little hoarse but steadier now, "Fang finally caught up with you last night."
Horns took a long drag from his joint, the smoke briefly obscuring his tear-filled eyes. "He had a lot to say," Horns rumbled, his voice still thick with emotion. "But none of that really mattered once he told me about your conversation in the park."
Kev winced slightly, remembering the raw vulnerability of that moment in the graveyard. "I appreciate that no one has said I'm insane yet," he said, a small, humorless laugh escaping his lips.
Horns looked at Kev, his large, gentle eyes filled with a profound sadness. "How could you not be?" he asked, his voice cracking. "I really don't understand how you've stayed so calm and, uh... friendly."
Kev sipped his coffee, the warmth a small comfort. "In a place where everyone can kill me with their bare hands," he said "it pays to have friends."
Horns's gaze hardened, a flash of protective anger replacing the sorrow. "If anyone messes with you, they'll regret it," he growled, his voice a low, dangerous rumble.
Kev smiled at Horns, a genuine warmth in his eyes. "I don't think I have to worry about that here in the club."
Horns nodded. "I guess it's lucky in a way," he said, his voice softening. "You ended up here instead of somewhere else."
Kev frowned, a flicker of confusion crossing his face. "You mentioned seeing me on my first night," he said, "but I don't remember meeting you until you broke that door down."
Horns's eyes welled up again, fresh tears tracing paths down his furry cheeks. He took a shaky breath. "It was a hectic night," he began, his voice strained. "Fang was running around, trying to find any excuse to avoid meeting his new assistant. When I went to check on you... you were really out of it. Looked like you had just come from the hospital or something." He paused, his gaze distant, lost in the memory. "I helped you get changed, and I helped you lay down on the bed, and I cleaned up the room. I had so many other things going on, and you just kept saying how tired you were." His voice choked, and he buried his face in his massive hands for a moment, his shoulders shaking.
Kev's heart ached at the sight of the gentle giant so overcome with emotion. He stood up and walked over to the couch, tentatively placing a hand on Horns's trembling shoulder. "You didn't put me in that room, Horns," he said softly, his voice firm but kind. "There's no way you could have guessed."
Horns looked up at Kev, his tear-streaked face contorted in anguish. He cried out louder, his voice a heartbroken bellow, "How could I not have known?! Just look at you!"
Kev frowned, but continued to rub Horns's shoulder, his touch a gentle reassurance. "Everyone here looks so different from each other," he said, his voice calm and steady amidst Horns's emotional storm. He grinned, a small, wry smile. "If we were in each other's shoes, and you were from where I'm from, you wouldn't even be able to talk to most people without them running for their lives."
Horns looked over, his sobs subsiding into choked gasps. "Really?" he managed, his voice thick with tears.
Kev nodded. "I'm honestly lucky in a lot of ways," he said, his gaze unwavering. "Sure, I get a few weird looks, but no one seems to care that much."
Horns sniffled, wiping his eyes with the back of a massive hand. "You're not the strangest person I've met," he rumbled, a hint of his usual gruff affection returning.
Kev chuckled. "Uh, thanks, buddy." He sat back down in the armchair. "Where I'm from, it's only humans. So, anyone around here would stick out like a sore thumb. Everyone would notice right away that they didn't belong."
Horns's eyes widened slightly. "That's scary," he said, his voice a low murmur.
Kev nodded. "Yeah, it is."
Horns lit another joint, his movements slow and deliberate, then handed it to Kev. "Fang says you don't care how you got here," Horns said, his voice regaining some of its usual steadiness, "so I guess I really don't either. You're here now, and you're actually doing your job way better than any of us could have hoped for."
Kev took a drag from the joint, the familiar scent of the herb a small comfort. "I was kinda figuring it out there for a minute," he admitted. "Sorry I had to tell Fang about my situation."
Horns looked at him, a surprisingly fierce loyalty in his red-rimmed eyes. "You should have told me right away," he said, his voice a low growl. "Who else gets to smoke weed with a…" He looked at Kev, a slow, almost wondrous smile spreading across his face. "…a human."
Kev grinned and took another drag, the smoke a calming cloud. "The first few days, I thought I was in some sort of coma dream," he confessed, his voice a low murmur. "It didn't make sense, but why would I fail at making coffee in my dream? And how could I read and understand it?" He shook his head, a small, self-deprecating laugh escaping his lips. "This obviously isn't a dream, so then I started panicking a bit. I couldn't sit still, and I just wandered around all day and got whisked around by Fang all night. But after the last two weeks, and everyone being so supportive, I couldn't keep it in."
Horns nodded slowly, his large, gentle eyes fixed on Kev, a dawning understanding in them. "You said so many things that make so much more sense now," he rumbled, his voice still thick with emotion but now laced with a new kind of empathy.
Kev chuckled, a hint of self-deprecation in his voice. "I guess I wasn't very subtle about it," he admitted. "But looking back, I guess everyone just thought like you did – an endangered species or something like that."
Horns nodded, taking another thoughtful drag from the joint he'd lit for himself. "The city does have all types," he rumbled. "And Fang isn't shy about hiring foreigners, if they're good."
Kev thought of Talon. "Oh, do people usually not hire foreigners?"
Horns shrugged his massive shoulders. "Most places don't, not unless they have to. But the real skilled ones," he continued, a hint of admiration in his voice, "they just start their own businesses. Like Ralph."
Kev's eyes widened slightly. "Ralph is a foreigner? I thought he went way back with Fang."
Horns raised an eyebrow, a faint, amused smile playing on his lips. "I thought the feathers spoke for themselves," he said, a gentle tease in his tone.
Kev frowned, his brow furrowing in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked.
Horns looked at Kev, a hint of surprise in his own eyes. "All birds are foreigners, Kev," he explained, as if stating the most obvious fact in the world.
Kev's jaw dropped slightly. "Wait, what? I thought we were on the Unified Continent this whole time," he said, his mind reeling with this new piece of information. "I really should have spent more time reading that book."
Horns chuckled, a deep, rumbling sound that shook his massive frame. "You really aren't from around here, are you?" he said, stubbing out his joint in the ashtray. He stood up, stretching his arms above his head. "I need to do a few more things before I head out," he announced. "Do you need anything?"
Kev grinned, a sheepish smile spreading across his face. "Maybe just a grocery run," he replied. "You know what I usually get."
Horns nodded. "Really, Kev," he said, his voice softening, "if you need anything, just ask. I'm here for you." His eyes began to well up again as he stood there, a towering figure of unexpected emotional depth.
Kev stood up and nervously stepped in to give Horns another hug, hoping the mooseman wouldn't suffocate him this time. "I know, and I appreciate it," Kev said, his voice a gentle murmur against Horns's furry chest. "I wish I could do more around here to help everyone else."
Horns sniffled and chuckled, patting Kev's back with a massive hand. "You occupying Fang for even half the night has been even better than the day-off thing," he rumbled. "You don't have to worry about anything while you're here. The club will make sure of that."
Horns and Kev awkwardly parted. Kev stepped back, a warm smile on his face. "I'll see you in the evening," he said. "I'm sure it will be nice to sleep in your own bed."
Horns headed to the door, a weary but contented sigh escaping his lips. "Just hope I don't oversleep," he said with a chuckle. "Have a good day, Kev." With a final wave, Horns exited the apartment.