The bar was crowded tonight. I didn't usually do work for places like this, my music was more fitting for the clubs and dance halls around town. But tonight was a special circumstance. My best friend, David, was having his 21st birthday party here and had asked if i'd DJ for him, even paying off the bar owners to let me bring my own gear here. This place was special to him. It was where he found his first real love, before they had left him and moved off to god knows where. I couldn't really fault David for wanting his birthday party here, and who am I to turn down a request as simple as this for a friend?

My name's Ryder. Ryder Trayson. I'm 22 years old, and I've been a DJ ever since I was 14. I've known David since I was 3, and we've never been any less than best friends. There's not a lot to say about me. I like music, I work out now and then, not that I need to. Being a Great Grey Wolf has its perks, including a healthy dose of muscles that most would kill for. Of course, it also comes with a massive appetite. I can eat just about as much as the hungriest hog and still want more. But hey, you're not here to listen to me go on about myself forever. Let's get back to the story, yeah? One more thing about me is that I don't care much for talking about me.

The music blared throughout the building, and I could see some of the patrons getting irritated and complaining to workers. Probably regulars that weren't used to people having fun. I felt my phone buzz in my pocket and, after setting up the next couple songs to play on their own, I checked it. David had texted me saying he wanted me to play Digging Alone, a pretty upbeat song that I had promised to play before the night was up. I cancelled the other two songs in the queue and, as the current song finished, I gave my best wolfish grin, turned off the music, and grabbed my mic. "Alright everyone, we got a request from the big man himself! So you can thank him for the next beat!" I let out a howl of excitement as I turned on the song, and heard a chorus of cheers from the crowd below as the music began.

A second later, David texted me again, this time to thank me and show me a picture of the guy he was dancing with. Not a bad looker, but I didn't exactly trust the look in his eye. Not that it was any of my business, David was a smart cat. I trusted his judgement. I kept the music going, turning it up a bit at the popular parts, and back to normal for the rest. Looking out, I eventually saw David, dancing like his life depended on it. It brought a smile to my face, knowing he was having fun. He rarely got to just get out and cut loose anymore, with his job being so time-consuming. Finally, after a few more songs played, I finished my set with David's favorite tune, a remix of "Everybody Wants to be a Cat" he'd found ages ago. I'd gotten the okay from the remixer to play it for him, and hadn't told David beforehand. I couldn't help but smile when I saw his eyes light up, and I shifted all the lights on my rig to aim at him, following him with it as the music played, making sure all eyes were on him. He adored it, dancing to his hearts content and cutting loose like it was his last dance. 

After the set finished, I got all my stuff packed away and was in the middle of carrying it out to my truck when David ran up and hugged me. I nearly dropped the box I was carrying, and hollered out. "Hey! Watch it Davey, I'm carrying some expensive shit here!" He giggled and let go, smiling at me. "Sorry Rye, just wanted to thank you for making this such a great party. You really made my night with that last song." I couldn't stay mad at him, he was just trying to be nice and thank me. "You're fine, man. Wanna ride home? I'm heading past your place anyways to grab some food before I head back to mine." He nodded, and made his way to the passenger side. I put my gear in the back and covered it up with a tarp before hopping into the drivers side, heading out of the parking lot.

"Y'know, I hate places like that. It was fun to see all those stuffy suits getting mad over the music and dancing." I smiled, my eyes never leaving the road. "Yeah, that was pretty fun. But don't make fun of suits, people look good in them. At least, Jonas did." I rolled my eyes. I had no clue who Jonas was, but I could only assume it was the guy he took a selfie with. "Hit it off with that guy? Gonna invite him over some time? Better get my blessing before you do." I chuckled, and he punched my shoulder. "Come on Rye, you know I wouldn't invite a guy over without asking you over too." He smirked, and I saw a glint of light from a streetlamp shining on one of his fangs. This was an old routine of ours. A back-and-forth we had started in high school and hadn't stopped since.  "Long as I get first go, we're good." Looking ahead, I allowed myself a glance over to him, flashing him a grin before returning my attention to the road.

It wasn't long before I got to his place, a big apartment complex that David lived on the fifth floor of. He was hesitant to get out. "What's up man? We're here." He gave me a bit of a look. I couldn't quite place the emotion in it. "Mind if I actually stay at your place tonight?" I nodded, giving him and understanding look. David was a social guy. More so than most, and he was at my place more often than his when he was off work. I joked about how his apartment is basically a super expensive storage unit for his stuff once. He didn't like the joke, but he didn't disagree. I started driving again, heading to the pizza place a few blocks away. He was quiet most the way there, and didn't speak again until we sat down to eat. "Hey Ryder? Can we share the bed tonight?" I blushed a bit, thankful my fur hid the fact. He didn't ask that often. It wasn't so much the thought of sharing the bed as it was what it entailed. David was a sleep-cuddler, and while it wouldn't be the first time we'd shared a bed, it was odd to me that he'd ask. He usually only asked on a particularly bad day.

"Something wrong? I thought you enjoyed today." He shifted a bit. "I did, but...it's my birthday and all and...I...Really...Really...Like to...Cuddle you..." I cocked my head to the side, an ears perking up. "You what?" He sighed. "I really like to cuddle you. I don't usually ask unless it's been a rough day cause that's usually the only times I feel like you will." This wasn't much of a shock to me, it just caught me off guard. He was always open and never really hid what he wanted or thought, so to know he was hiding something as simple as that from me was strange. "I mean, if you want to then yeah, we can. I wanna make your birthday good, dude. If that means cuddling, then let's go for it." I smiled reassuringly. I would rarely deny a request from David. I knew him all my life, and he'd always been there for me. Only fair I be there for him.

He smiled, perking up and nodding. I'd paid for buffet, and we spent a good chunk of the night there eating, me more than him. By the end of it, David was full and complaining about being too stuffed. I was content and ready to head home. Getting into the truck, I headed home with David in the passenger seat whining about a stomach ache. As we got to my house, I opened the door for David and let him in first, watching as he let himself flop onto the couch. "Hey, if you sleep there you're not getting cuddled. There's not enough room for us both to lay down on that thing." He laughed at me, smiling. "Maybe not like this, but if you lay down first I could lay on you." I could tell he was tired. He sounded exhausted. "True but I don't feel like getting crushed by all 90 pounds of you." He giggled. "You could hold 90 pounds up with your pinky, I'm sure your whole body can handle it." He clearly wasn't going to get up on his own, so I decided to do it for him. I reached down and picked him up. Heading to the bedroom, I dropped him on the bed and lay next to him, holding an arm out for him to get close. Our friendship was a little different, I knew that much. But I liked the warmth and it felt good to have someone else so close. David liked the affection and felt safe this way, so why would I deny either of us of the comfort? 

What did shock me, and what threw me for a loop for the rest of the night, was when he looked up at me. "Thanks for a great birthday party, Rye." He leaned up and kissed me, and I could feel myself lose the ability to speak. He'd kissed me before, but never like this. It was always a peck on the cheek to tease, a kiss on the hand as a joke, or blowing kisses to be playful. He'd never kissed me on the lips, and hadn't ever shown a desire to do so. By the time I realized fully what had happened, he was snoozing quietly against my chest. I lay there, looking at him, unsure of what to make of the situation. Eventually, I decided it must have just been the exhaustion, coupled with him being grateful, making him go a little further than he actually meant to. For all I knew, he had meant to kiss my cheek and just missed. Surely that was it.

As I would come to find out the next morning, that most certainly was not it.