# Mother's Day Chapter 2

Chapter 2
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It had been a week since I accidentally kissed my girlfriend's mom.
​
Fang had thankfully been incredibly understanding when I told her how shitfaced I had been, and that I had genuinely thought that the tiny pterodactyl I had been dancing with was her in the heat of the moment. She didn't rip my head off, at least, but she spared no expense when it came to informing me just how much of a fucking idiot I was. Thankfully, the entire incident was pretty obviously a spur-of-the-moment kind of thing, and not an actual affair. For the entire rest of the week, Fang had been relentlessly making jokes at my expense about how I was into "older women", and she had also told me that I was no longer allowed to drink unsupervised.
​
As for the rest of my little friend group, the incident blew over surprisingly easily. Nobody ever really said much of anything about it, aside from the odd joke here or there. I had gotten plenty of weird looks for the next two days or so after the incident, but nobody ever actually said anything. I don't think any of them wanted to be at all involved with that sort of weirdness any more than I did, and thank fuck for that. After that, everyone sort of moved on from the whole affair, though Naser was still speaking to me noticeably less than he usually did. Whether that was by his own choosing or at the whims of the ever present Naomi, nobody but them knew.
The real struggle had been living under the constant fear that Ripley would one day appear out of nowhere to snap my fucking neck at a moment's notice. Try as I might to push the entire incident aside, the pure rage I had seen in his eyes when he stared me down outside that house stayed fresh in my mind, as did his final warning to me.
"If I were you, I'd start watching my back."
I had no idea how much control his wife really had over him, nor how far he was willing to go to take revenge for me accidentally kissing his wife, but judging by his general attitude that night, my guess was pretty fucking far. But, an entire week had now passed without incident. Every morning I had woken up expecting to find him towering over my bed, or to find limbs or organs missing. I wonder if he -
​
"HEY! Earth to Anon!"
​
I jump in my seat, the sharp voice in my ear shaking me abruptly back to reality. Fang shakes her head, glaring at me with a disappointed look.
"Geez Anon, you've been sitting there staring off into space for like ten minutes. I was starting to think you were dead or something."
I give my head a little shake, trying to clear my mind. A quick glance up at the clock shows that lunchtime is already half over, and I've barely even touched any of my food yet.
"Yeah, sorry. Just got lost in thought, is all."
She smirks, leaning back in her seat a bit.
"Thinking about my mom again?"
"You're never going to let me live that down, are you?"
"Not on your fucking life, dweeb."
She brings her arms up behind her head, her smirk growing into a full blown cocky grin.
"Speaking of my mom... She actually wanted me to get you to come by my place at some point. Apparently she wants to talk to you about that little incident."
"Uhh, isn't your dad actively looking to murder me still?"
"Probably. But even he knows better than to piss off my mom, and apparently she really wants you around for something. Who knows, maybe she just wants to kill you herself."
I slump down in my chair slightly. Not exactly the most reassuring sentiment, but considering she was willing to save me once already, my chances of survival were probably a lot higher with her than they were with Ripley.
"Ah. Wonderful."
"Besides, you can easily just come over when he's out working or whatever. He works late nights all the time."
With a sigh, I lift up my sandwich that I've gotten for lunch, still in the wrapper. My appetite is practically nonexistent right now.
"I'm guessing I don't exactly have a lot of choice in the matter, do I?"
"Well, think of it this way. You'll either be dealing with her, or with my dad. That's your choice."
"Greaaaaaaat."
Fang chuckles a bit, that shit-eating grin of hers only growing wider at my misfortune.
"I think he works late tonight, if you want to get it over with now. I can always make up some bullshit about a study session to Naser."
"Thanks, I guess."
"Hey, you're the one who got yourself into this mess. You should be grateful I'm helping your dumb ass at all."
"I know, I know. Kind of hard to be thankful when I'm being led towards my own grave, though."
Fang merely giggles in response, that toothy grin of hers wide as ever. I pick up my sandwich once more and begin to undo the wrapper. With a little luck, I'd be able to -
​
*BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIINGGGGGG*
​
... God dammit.
I stuff my sandwich into my bag with a grumble as the oppressive bell blares though the auditorium. Guess I'd have to find an opportunity to actually eat later.
​
The rest of the day goes by without incident, and later on that evening I find myself in the backseat of the NasCar. Fuck, now he's got me calling it that too, god dammit. The ride is mostly silent all the way to Fang's house, with Fang reclining back in the passenger seat and Naser staying firmly focused on the road. He's still willing to interact and give me rides, at least, but the entire incident with his mom has seemed to put him kind of on edge around me. Can't say I blame the poor guy, honestly.
Eventually, we arrive at the large two story home, and the three of us proceed up the front walkway to the front door. Fang quickly turns her head towards me while Naser unlocks the door, giving me a quick, coy "good luck" before making her way inside along with Naser.
"Moooooom! We're home!"
Fang calls out, making her way into the living room with her bag slung over one shoulder. Out of the kitchen, the little pterodactyl matriarch appears, a smile on her face as she greets her children.
"Welcome home, dear! How was your day?"
Her gaze is immediately drawn to me as she spots me, and she straightens up a little bit.
"Oh, I see you've brought Anon home with you as well!"
Her voice retains its usual motherly enthusiasm, she doesn't seem to be particularly upset, at least not at the moment anyway. Either that, or she's hiding it very well. I do my best to be polite, offering a sheepish greeting.
"H-hello, Mrs. Aran."
She gives a subtle nod, the smile on her face still present, but something seems different about it somehow. Like it's being held more out of politeness than as a natural show of emotion. She continues to look right at me, the little ptero keeping her hands clasped in front of her.
"Kids, why don't you go on upstairs. Anon and I need to have a little talk."
​
Without a word, Fang and Naser both depart, making their way up the staircase, Fang stopping only for a moment to look back at me over her shoulder with a hint of worry on her face, before turning away again and continuing up the stairs and out of sight. The little lady standing before me watches as they go up the stairs and out of sight... then continues to follow them, even after they've left the room and gone out of sight completely, her snout tracing their unseen path as she watches and listens carefully, the sounds of muffled footsteps on the upstairs carpet growing fainter and fainter. A few seconds later, there's the sound of a door closing, then another. Upon the second door shutting upstairs, the petite ptero looks forward again, her head dropping slightly as she lets out a deep sigh. She reaches up and rubs her fingers along the bridge of her snout, shaking her head slightly.
"Alright, Anon. Please, come with me."
​
With that, she turns to lead me through the house, leading the way through the kitchen and towards a door on the far side of it. She must have noticed how incredibly tense I was as she glanced back over her shoulder at me. She gives me a reassuring smile and speaks.
"It's okay Anon, you aren't in trouble or anything. I just want to talk."
She opens the door into the garage, stepping inside and moving aside to let me in past her, then closing the door behind her. As I step inside, I look over the garage quickly, mostly out of fear that Ripley will be waiting in the corner to jump me. Only one of the two vehicle bays are occupied at the moment, by a rather generic looking white car that must be her own, leaving the other spot for Ripley. One of the walls is lined with boxes and various knickknacks, the other is lined with tools. Against the back wall and in the corner, an unknown vehicle sits under a black cover, parked sideways, the bottoms of its wheels just barely visible. Thankfully, there's no sign of the murderous patriarch anywhere.
Samantha takes a deep breath, letting out a long, slow exhale as she turns back towards me, slowly walking across the concrete floor. She stops next to the car, turning to face me and leaning back against the vehicle, looking me over as I stand in the remaining empty vehicle spot with her arms crossed over her chest.
"So I'm guessing that Lucy already told you why I wanted to speak to you, yes?"
I nod and dip my head a little bit, unable to maintain eye contact with her.
"Uhh, yeah. That thing that happened last week at the party, right?"
She nods in affirmation.
"Yes, that's right. Look, Anon. I know that entire thing was probably a little bit awkward for you after the fact..."
Yeah, no kidding. All of my friends thought I was some kind of freak and my girlfriend nearly tore my head off over it.
"... but, I want you to know that I don't hold it against you at all, Anon. In fact, I... Oh, god, how do I even put this."
She tilts her head back, looking up at a random spot on the ceiling as she tries to find the words to express a thought she can't quite explain. Not blaming me for it was easy enough for me to grasp, at least. We were both pretty clearly out of it. Was the entire incident eating at her as badly as it was at me?
"Anon... Right before that happened, when the two of us were dancing, and singing, and having fun without a care in the world who saw us or what people thought... I felt something."
​
My heart stops for a brief moment. Oh christ, was this ptero MILF about to confess to having feelings for me? My entire body locks up a bit, and I have no idea what to say or how to respond. All I can really do is stand there, and hear out the rest of what she has to say.
"I felt... I felt so young, I felt so alive! For that brief little moment, I didn't feel like I was the old woman that I've grown into, I felt like a young girl again, having the time of her life!"
My heart rate drops, but only slightly. Okay, no confessions of romantic longing, not yet at least. Just a simple mid-life crisis. One that I apparently was responsible for starting. But what exactly did she want me to do about it? Why was she even telling me all of this?
The tiny woman continues, picking herself up off the side of the car and slowly walking over towards me, her gaze firmly locked to me.
"Anon, I'm... I know it's not really my place to ask you for anything like this, but... I'd like someone to spend a day with me this weekend. Someone younger, someone who can help me feel that way again."
Okay, this has officially gone from kind of fucked up to super fucked up. Is she seriously asking me out on a date right now? No, there's no way, I have to be misinterpreting something. After staring at her flabbergasted for a few moments, I remember how to speak again.
"Uhh, Mrs. Aran... Aren't you married?"
The little lady immediately brings her hands up, shaking them in front of her in dismissal, her eyes going wide.
"Oh! No no no no no, dear! This isn't a date or anything like that. I just want to..."
Her voice trails off, her head turning away from me as she stares off into the distance at nothing in particular.
"I want to feel young again. I want to be able to just let go of all my cares and worries, to just relax and have fun with myself. That day... that was the only time that I've felt like that since I was a girl, Anon."
​
She closes the remaining distance between us, reaching up and gently laying her hands on my shoulders, once more looking right at me.
"Anon... I don't want to force you into anything. If you say no, I will completely understand. But... I'd really like for you to spend a day with me, this weekend. Will you help me?"
​
I'm completely dumbfounded at the request. I look down at her face, the subtle wrinkles around the edges of her eyes betraying the beginnings of age. She looks at me with such desperation, such longing. It's evident that she wants, hell, NEEDS this far more badly that she's letting on. As messed up as this entire situation is... I find myself unable to say no.
Looking into those eyes of hers, I see that they're colored amber. So very, very much like Fang's. For a brief moment, I see her, and not Samantha, standing before me. So desperate, so needy. I wonder, would I really deny Fang in her hour of need if it were her standing before me like this?
​
"...Yeah. Okay."
​
The pterodactyl immediately relaxes, her shoulders dropping slightly as she lets out a sigh, a soft smile of relief coming over her face. She drops her hands down off of my shoulders, clasping them together in front of her, lifting them up and holding them against her chest.
"Thank you. Thank you so much, Anon."
"So uhh... I'm flattered that you'd come to me, but... Why me, exactly? Why not just spend the day with your husband?"
"Oh, Ripley... I'd love to take him with me on something like this, but honestly, he'd just think it was silly, would try to talk me down. All I want is a day that I can relax and not have to worry about anything. Including trying to get him to cooperate. Besides, he's working late this weekend, so even if he was cooperative, he wouldn't be able to go. As for you..."
She turns, making her way back over towards the garage door.
"Well, frankly dear, you're the one who awakened this desire in me. This urge to feel young again. And I don't want to do all of this by myself, so it only makes sense to invite you along!"
​
With that, Fang's mom opens the door to the main part of the house, holding it open for me and turning to face me with a smile.
"Now go on, go back upstairs and have your fun with Fang. I'll send you all the details later."
With a nod, I make my way through the doorway back into the house, with the petite ptero following closely along behind me. I try desperately not to let her see the nervousness in my face or the shaking in my legs.
What the hell did I just agree to?
​
That Saturday, I find myself walking down the streets of Volcaldera Bluffs, on my way to whatever the hell it was that Samantha had in store for me. Definitely not a date though. Nope. Nuh-uh.
I desperately keep telling myself that as I pull out my phone, checking the address she had texted me to meet her at. Thankfully, it was close enough to my place to walk to.
[See you there! -S]
I sigh and shake my head, trying to calm my nerves. Trying to justify the fact that I'm going on a da- err, spending the day with my girlfriend's mom. A quick glance at the time shows that it's still about ten minutes before noon, our agreed upon meeting time. The place is less than half a block away, so I've thankfully got a bit of time, no need to rush. I round the corner, and nothing could have prepared me for what I see next.
​
My eyes are drawn naturally to the bright, vivid red of the car first. A huge, boxy metal monster of a vehicle, it's sharp, pronounced corners and angles in stark contrast to all the other sleek, rounded, samey looking white black and silver cars everywhere else on the road. The next most prominent feature of the vehicle is its apparent lack of a roof, the windshield giving way to open air the whole rest of the way back to the trunk.
The fact that I think I see Fang for a split second is the next indication that I'm in the right place. Leaned up against the driver door of the vehicle is who I can only assume is the pterodactyl I'm here to see, but her appearance, much like at the party, is completely different from her usual image.
Her long blonde hair has been released from its usual braid, allowed to flow freely down her back. A pair of sunglasses rests tilted up on her forehead, with large tinted lenses. Her usual green day dress is nowhere to be seen, replaced by a pair of faded denim jeans, a red cutoff tanktop that left just a tiny bit of her belly exposed, and a leather jacket worn over it. An outfit that likely hadn't seen the light of day since she was still a teenager herself. Her makeup is absolutely impeccable. The signs of age on her face that I had noticed the other day were completely absent, and she had somehow found that perfect balance between prettying herself up and looking like a dolled up nightmare. If I hadn't already had an idea who I was looking at, I never in my life would have imagined that this little lady was probably pushing her 50s. She looked a full 20 years younger, at least. Slowly I approach her, still looking her over carefully. Even now, I was still uncertain that it was really her, and not just some other ptero on an 80s binge.
"... Mrs. Aran?"
She turns towards me, the smile slowly creeping across her face telling me that I'm right on the money.
"You've got it, tiger. But please. Just call me Sam, for today."
"Okay... Sam."
She picks herself up off the car, walking right up to me with her hands on her hips. She only comes up to my chest level, but the way she moves, the way she stares me down... she has an aura of command about her.
"Soooo. What do you think?"
She gives a slight giggle, the expression of shock and disbelief on my face filling her with joy. There was no denying it, she looked... good.
"Uh, wow. That's something else."
"Hee hee~! I'm glad you approve!"
She spins around, one of her wings unfurling and gently pressing on my back, guiding me towards the vehicle as she speaks again.
"So! Ready to party like it's 20M1987?"
My body remains tense and locked up as it begins to dawn on me just how deep I had gotten myself into this mess. But I couldn't exactly back out now and leave this poor girl hanging. Especially when she looked so much like Fang. The prospect of breaking her little heart, even when my head told me so many times over how fucked up this entire situation was... I couldn't bring myself to do it.
"Yeah, I guess so. What exactly are we doing, anyway?"
"Hop in, and you'll find out. I've got a couple places in mind."
​
I make my way around the front of the vehicle, over to the passenger side as Samantha gets into the driver's seat. Gripping the metal handle, I pop open the door, and seat myself on the black leather. This stuff was probably genuine leather too, not that fake pleather shit so many cars used nowadays. The doors close once more, with the resounding, heavy thud of steel. Samantha pops the keys in the ignition, and starts up the engine. It whirs for a bit, then turns over with a deep, heavy rumble, the car vibrating a bit as it roars to life. Almost immediately, my ears are greeted by the sounds of classic rock blasting over the car's radio. With the grin on her face only growing wider with each passing moment, Samantha flicks her sunglasses down onto her face, putting the vehicle in gear and pulling away from the curb.
​
For a while, the driving is uneventful, and the two of us make small talk. Apparently, this car was the one I had seen in the garage sitting under that black cover - an old pet project of Ripleys that they could never quite bring themselves to get rid of. The very mention of his name sent shivers down my spine. Evidently, it showed, because Samantha took the time to repeatedly assure me that he would be kept in check. Her reassuring did little to actually reassure me, however. Eventually, the two of us make our way onto the highways leading out of Volcaldera, and it's there that Sam really lets loose. I feel the vehicle surge forward, see it pulling past the other cars as the wind blows over me from the open top. The speed limit is 65, but a quick glance at the speedometer shows that she's doing at least 90. Whatever it was that I had awakened within her, it had the normally sweet and motherly Samantha acting shockingly bold and adventurous.
​
Eventually, after maybe half an hour or so of driving, the freeway leads us to another city, where her driving falls mostly back into check. She drives to a large building, the neon sign out front giving the name of the establishment, but doing little to say what the place actually was. Whipping into the parking lot, the miniature Fang is eager to pull me from the car, leading me by the hand inside. Evidently this place is some kind of dance club. The room is dim, with most of the lights being colored or strobes, the beats of 80s dance tunes thumping throughout the building, the outfits of the other patrons and the music and general atmosphere suggesting at the place was having some sort of 80's night. Almost immediately, I'm reminded of the fact that I can't dance for shit. Even if I could, everything about this encounter just feels kind of... awkward. Sam drags me to one of the tables, plopping me down into one of the booths.
"Wait right here. I'll be riiiight back!"
With that, she heads off in the direction of the bar, leaving me alone with my thoughts for a bit. As much as I wanted to help her, my mind couldn't help but shake the overall weirdness of this entire situation. Trying to convince myself that this wasn't actually a date was hard enough. But add to that the fact that it was a not-a-date with my girlfriend's mom... How was I supposed to ever get relaxed enough to help her like she expected me to? It had only happened at the party because I had been too drunk for my inhibitions to stop me. But right now, I was all too sober for this. Maybe I should have hit up Reed again before coming.
Evidently, Samantha was all too aware of my concerns, and had the solution. She comes back with a drink in each hand, setting them down and sliding one across the table towards me.
"I know this whole thing probably feels a little weird. Just try to relax a little, won't you? Neither of us will get to have any fun if you're so tense all night."
Damn, she had hit the nail right on the head. I glance down at the drink she's offered me, grabbing hold of the glass.
... Did she really just give me alcohol?
I turn back up to look at her, the pterodactyl already taking a sip from her own drink. Hopefully nothing too strong - she still had to drive, after all.
"Uhh... You do know I'm only 18, right?"
"Yes, I know. Which is why you're only getting one. Don't think I didn't notice how hard you had hit the alcohol that night."
She pouts at me slightly for a moment, that motherly attitude briefly returning. Within a few seconds, though, her smile returns, and she seats herself in the booth across from me.
"Just try to relax a little bit."
​
I glance down at the beverage, lifting it up off the table. Well, she wasn't wrong. It was going to be a long and miserable day if I was so tense the entire time. I needed to loosen up a bit if either of us were going to enjoy ourselves. I raise the glass up to my lips.
"Bottoms up, then."
With that, I raise the glass to my lips, tilting my head back slightly and sipping from the drink. It's some manner of mixed cocktail, though the taste of alcohol is still noticeable among the taste of coconut and cranberry filling my mouth. The action elicits a little giggle from her. The pair of us sit there, continuing to talk a bit about nothing in particular as we finish off our drinks. Slowly but surely, the uneasiness I'm feeling about this whole thing fades away, and I find myself getting more involved in the conversation with her, laughing and chatting along as she talks about the good old days. Apparently she had been a bit of a wild thing herself during her teenaged years - with more than a few habits from those days that she had decided should stay dead, even tonight. The more I learned about her, the more I saw Fang, sitting there before me. Though Fang had always been so insistent that she and her mother were nothing alike, it was shocking to me just how similar the two were... Far more alike than Fang would probably ever realize.
As I sit staring at my now empty glass, a small, taloned hand suddenly grabs me by the wrist, Sam standing up from her booth and pulling me to my feet.
"Cmon, let's dance!"
"Now's probably a good time to mention that I can't dance. Like, at all."
She gives a quick little laugh as she continues to drag me in the direction of the dance floor, looking over her shoulder at me.
"Oh, trust me, I'm well aware of that. Your little display at the party kind of clued me in. Don't worry about it, just follow my lead."
With that, I'm dragged the rest of the way out onto the smooth, polished dance floor, Sam spinning right around on the balls of her feet to face me. As the high energy upbeat tunes and the sounds of electric guitars, keyboards, and synthesizers fills the air around me, the little pterodactyl begins to move her body, starting to shake and twist her hips, swaying them slowly back and forth while she bounces her knees a bit. She shouts out to me over the sound of the music.
"You don't have to do anything fancy, just move your body! Swing your hips, bend your knees, do what comes natural!"
With that, she closes her eyes, letting the music take her. She brings her hands up level with her head, puffing out her chest slightly as she takes off, twirling around a bit as she sways and twists her body. She incorporates her wings into the display as well, unfurling them and opening them wide, slowly swaying and twisting them behind her. As she slowly rotates herself around, I can't help but glance down at her tail, and it too flicks about behind her, swaying to the beat of the music.
I'm not exactly drunk by any means, or even really buzzed for that matter. But, whether by the alcohol or some other factor, I'm willing to give it a try for her. I begin to bob my knees a little bit, bringing my arms up in front of me. I'm completely lost. In my desperation, I resort to the only tactic I know - bringing my hands in front of me, I begin mimicking reload animations from various first person shooters in the air before me, pacing them to the beat of the song as I bob my knees. Sam's eyes drift open as she turns to face me again, watching me as she continues to sway her body and limbs. My "dancing" brings a grin to her face, the little ptero giggling as she takes a step closer to me.
"Wow, you really weren't kidding, were you? Here, let me."
With that, she reaches out, gently clasping my hands in hers, her fingers slipping between my own and interlocking with them. She brings herself nice and close to me, wiggling her chest and her hips. It's amazing how youthful she looks like this. Several more times, I find myself completely forgetting who it is I'm dancing with.
"Start with moving your body like me."
I begin to follow along with her commands, moving my body as she takes the lead.
"Okay, now step!"
She takes a step towards me, and I have to scramble for a few moments to keep my feet out of the way as she advances on me, my hands still interlocked with her own. In a few moments, however, I'm able to quickly fall into step with her, moving my feet to the beat of the music.
"And back!"
She reverses direction, and I have to adjust myself again quickly, but I'm able to fall into step again much more quickly this time around.
"Now, give me a little twirl!"
She releases one of my hands, bringing the other above her head as she spins herself in front of me, her soft wings oh so gently brushing against my face for a moment before she retakes my hand in her own.
"There we go! Now you're doing it!"
As I move along with her, I find myself more and more willing to go along with it, and more easily able to keep up with her. The smile on her face grows wider as I start to pick it up, our little improvised dance session growing more refined as it carries on. One song fades into another, and we seem to lose ourselves to time as our dance session goes on, both of us letting the music take us away and moving with one another as we did on the night of the party. Singing along with the songs we know, merely dancing for the ones we don't, minutes all too quickly turn into hours.
​
As the day turns into the evening, we end up leaving the dance club to go get some dinner. Samantha takes us to an older styled restaurant, one of those places with red leather seats and chrome absolutely everywhere. Once again we end up seated in a booth, chit chatting with one another over our food about her past, only this time, it's much more lively. As the night has carried on, my inhibitions have seemed to vanish. Time and again I find myself compeltely forgetting who it is I'm with, and merely enjoying her company for the sake of it. I almost call her Fang on several different occasions, and have to catch myself. I look at her, and I don't see a mother, or that sweet, petite older woman that I've met a couple times at Fang's house. I see something else. A spry, energetic young thing, practically indistinguishable from my girlfriend. Sometimes for minutes at a time, I think that she IS my girlfriend and simply roll with it. One thing, however, is certain - I'm having a wonderful time with her now that I've allowed myself to relax a little bit. All my concerns about how I would feel, what people would think, all of them have gone out the window.
"Hey Anon, pop a quarter in the jukebox for me, would you?"
"Uhh, what?"
"Put something on for me!"
She slides a quarter across the table, practically shoving it into my hands. I turn over towards the jukebox sitting in the corner of the room against the wall. I stare at the machine for a bit, before turning back to her. Her head tilts a bit, her eyebrow raising slightly. My confusion must be pretty evident.
"Oh come on. You've NEVER used a jukebox before?"
"Well, no, not really. Never really been in a place like this before."
Samantha rolls her eyes, tilting her head back and shaking it slightly, before grabbing my wrist once more, a tinge of playful annoyance in her voice.
"Come on."
For the second time that night, she leads the way, leading me by the hand over to the jukebox and popping the quarter into the slot, showing me how to operate the controls as the lights on the machine turn on. The machine faintly whirrs as she has me flip through the selections, the pages of the little mechanical song menu behind the glass flipping with each press of the buttons. Half the songs on the machine are ones I've never heard of, although there are a small handful more popular tunes that I've heard before. Eventually, the two of us decide upon a song, and I awkwardly push the buttons to make the selection. The arm inside the machine comes to life, rising and rotating to grab a large vinyl record from where it's stored, lowering it into place and beginning to spin as the needle positions itself. A few seconds later, the music starts up, the machine playing in a much higher quality than I would have expected from an old record like that. I can see the desire to dance burning strong in Sam again as we make our way back to our seats, the subtle sway and slight bounce of her hips, the way that tail flicks about and dances behind her. Eventually, the two of us finish up our food, but the night is still young. And evidently, Sam still has more in mind for the evening. Instinctively, I try to pay the bill for her when it comes around, but she slaps my hand as I go to reach for it with a playful smirk before snatching it up herself. I ask her, still rubbing the back of my now stinging hand. Even messing around, she still hits surprisingly hard.
"So, where to next, Sam?"
"Well, I was thinking maybe for the rest of the evening we could hit up a drive-in and catch ourselves a movie."
"A drive-in? Do those places even still exist?"
She nods, folding up a handful of bills and stuffing them into the small leather envelope with the check, setting it down on the table and stuffing another small handful of bills underneath her drinking glass to tip the waiter.
"Just barely. There's a small handful that still operate. Nowhere near as popular as they used to be, but I know a place!"
​
With the bill all paid and our bellies full, the two of us once again drive off into the evening, the sun by now setting over the horizon. I watch her as she drives along, sunglasses shielding those amber eyes of hers from view, a smug grin on her face as she handles the steering wheel with one hand, the other arm resting over the door. Her hair billows behind her as the wind flows through it, her hair shimmering like gold to Fang's silver as the light catches it. The pair of us arrive a while later at the drive-in theater, with Sam paying for a pair of tickets and pulling into a spot. She leans out of the car and grabs what she tells me is a speaker off of its stand, affixing it to the driver side door. By now the sun has completely set, and it's dark enough to see the projector lighting up the large screen. For the time being, it's nothing special. Just previews and advertisements.
"Hey, Anon..."
My attention is drawn from the screen by the sound of her voice. She's leaned over the center console, looking at me with a soft, subdued smile on her face. Her sunglasses are flipped up onto her forehead once more, letting me look right into those deep amber eyes of hers.
"Would you like to... sit in the back with me?"
Oh fuck.
Is she seriously asking me for what I think she's asking me for?
One of her eyebrows raises as I stare in silence at her, her smile turning to a frown for just a moment.
"Anon, I mean just to sit with me. I'm married."
"Uhh... Sure, why not."
She rolls her eyes, giving a soft snort as she stands up in her seat, swinging her legs over the center console and stepping into the back of the vehicle. She helps me to my feet and over the seat as well, and the entire process is made significantly easier by the lack of a roof on the vehicle. The two of us seat ourselves once more, both of us sharing the bench seat. Sam snuggles herself right up against me, nestling right into my arm, wrapping one of her arms around mine and laying the other across my chest. Ordinarily I'd be a bit more freaked out by the display of affection, but... something is different now. Somehow, I don't at all feel repulsed or weirded out by tonight anymore at all. In fact, I've actually quite enjoyed myself,
and my time with Sam. She drags one of her fingers over my chest as the previews come to a close, drawing her snout nice and close to my head, sneering at me.
"Trust me, Anon. If I were twenty years younger and wasn't married, I wouldn't be asking nicely."
Instantly, my blood turns to ice. The tiny pterosaur bursts into a fit of laughter upon seeing my shocked expression, tightly clinging to my arm as I try desperately not to think too hard about the implications of what she's just said. She lightly slaps my chest, grinning from ear to ear.
"Oh, relax a little, Anon! I'm only playing with you. A girl has to have fun sometimes too, you know!"
The movie eventually gets started, some old 80's action flick, with Sam laying herself against me the whole while. However, my attention is only half on the movie. The other half remains on her. The more time I spend with her, the more this little lady utterly mesmerises me. The more I see her as a wonderful, beautiful woman. The more I see my girlfriend within her. Her petite little body lays snuggled against my chest, her head resting on my shoulder. At one point, my own hand moves purely by instinct, wrapping itself around her side to hold her close, oh so gently rubbing her, with the steady, rhythmic thump of her tail against the seat proof of how much she's enjoying herself. One of her wings unfolds as I hold her close to me, wrapping itself around my back and pulling me right back against her, the touch of that soft, downy wing firm, yet gentle at the same time. Like pressing myself against a soft, feathery pillow. I stare down at her, watching as the light of explosions and gunshots on the screen light up her eyes, and in the ever dimming light around us, all signs of her age have completely vanished. The color of her hair indistinguishable in the darkness behind her. With none of the subtle differences tipping me off, only my memory of who I'm with is able to tell me that this is anyone other than Fang. For the next hour and a half or so, we simply lay in one another's arms, with me occasionally glancing down at her, and her looking right back up at me. That smile on her face tells me all I need to know - She's had a wonderful night.
​
Eventually, as the movie draws to a close, she sits upright with a soft sigh, gently pulling out of my grasp and unwrapping her wing from around me, pulling it back in against her back, and allowing the cool night air to wash over my back and sides once more. It's a pleasant temperature, with the gentlest breeze present to caress our bodies. Unfortunately, the night was drawing to a close, and it was a decent drive back to Volcaldera Bluffs. She turns over towards me, a slight longing in her eyes. Without words, I know exactly what she's thinking. I know, because I'm feeling the exact same way.
Neither of us want this night to end.
Unfortunately, we're both equally aware that time is merciless, and flows ever onward. As all bad times eventually pass and fade away, so too must the good times eventually come to an end. She forces a soft smile onto her face, reclining in the seat a little bit, her hands neatly folded in her lap.
"Well, Anon... It is getting kind of late. But, I was thinking... We have just enough time for one last stop. You wanna grab some ice cream before we head back?"
I nod, my earlier reservations about spending more time with her completely absent by this point, smiling right back at her.
"I'd love to, Sam."
Her smile grows, a bit more genuine now.
"Let's do it."
She grabs the back of the driver's seat, pulling herself up and stepping back over into the front of the vehicle, with me following suit in the passenger's seat. She places the speaker back onto its holser, and once more the engine of the red beast that we ride in rumbles to life as she backs out of the parking space, slowly making our way through the sea of cars and following the trail of tail lights out of the drive in, towards our final destination of the evening.
​
The road eventually takes us to a small shop on the road alongside the sea, absolutely jam packed with people on such a lovely evening. However, the massive line does nothing to deter either of us, and we both stand happily side by side in the line, talking and conversing with one another, with Sam as eager as ever to reminisce about days gone by. I'm not sure when, but at some point we've started holding hands. However, I make no attempt to separate. Whereas at the start of the day, everything about this felt so wrong, so unnatural, it now felt as natural as ever. Though there must have been at least a dozen or more people in line ahead of us, we make it to the counter in what feels like no time at all, and place our orders. Sam opts for a chocolate cone with chocolate dip, with myself getting a caramel swirl. Ice creams in hand, the two of us decide to walk along the sidewalk together, staring out over the dark sea and the starry, moonlit sky above. Even after our ice creams are both gone, we find ourselves losing ourselves to time once more, wanting nothing more than to enjoy one another's company.
Eventually, Fang... or, Sam, rather... turns to face me, my hand firmly held in both of hers.
"Anon... I have to thank you. For everything that you've done tonight. Spending your weekend with an old woman like me... It's made me feel absolutely wonderful. It's made me feel young again."
She pulls herself close to me, holding my hand against her chest, closing her eyes for a moment as she dips her head down.
"But... At the same time, I can't just go chasing the past like this, Anon. As much as I'd love to sit here and pretend I'm a young woman again, cling to these memories of the past, of my youth... I just can't. I have new obligations, Anon. Both as a mother, and as a wife."
I stand in silence, gently placing a hand on Sam's side to hold her while she voices her thoughts, her inner turmoil, everything that has been brought up within her ever since that night at the party.
"I've loved everything about tonight. But if I were to go chasing these feelings forever... I'd be robbing my daughter of the chance to make these kinds of memories herself. She deserves to enjoy her younger years every bit as much as I did."
She picks up her head once more, her eyes flickering open once more. Once more I find myself staring into those brilliant amber gems, losing myself in her gaze as she brings her hands up to my shoulders, pulling herself right up against me, her snout pointed right at my face. Her voice is soft, soothing, as she speaks.
"You're a wonderful young man, Anon. She deserves a man like you in her life."
She moves her face in ever so slightly closer. The moonlight catches in her eyes, lighting them like fire. And in that moonlight, I can see it. The tired eyes of that middle aged woman I spoke to in the garage are gone. Replaced, by something else. These eyes burn with life, with vigor, the flame reignited within her. And in that moment, she and Fang are one in the same. A single, indistinguishable entity. I've given her exactly what she needs.
"I want to thank you, Anon. Personally. From the bottom of my heart."
She shifts even closer, her head tilting ever so slightly. I know exactly what's coming. And yet... I don't combat it, at all. As our mouths draw ever closer, she stops just short, bringing a hand up and gently pressing a finger to my nose, an ever so slight smile coming to her face.
​
"You get one, and only one. Make it count."
​
With that, her hand drops back to my shoulder, her fingers interlocking behind my neck, my arms around her waist. We close that final bit of distance between us, and for the second time, Sam and I kiss. Only this time, there is nothing accidental about it. Her lips quiver against mine for a few moments, the little ptero giving a soft, muffled moan as she hangs lightly off of my neck, my mouth locked against hers. She takes the initiative, tilting her head to one side to lock her maw even more tightly against my own. Apparently, this little lady knows firsthand how to make human on pterodactyl smooching work flawlessly. Yet another subtle hint of the experience she has under her belt. Her jaw shifts ever so slightly, reaffirming its lock against my mouth as I return the favor, kissing her nice and deep. Allowing her to savor the warmth of my lips against hers. I can feel a shiver run through her entire body, and the rush of air from her nose over my face as she exhales, relaxing herself against my body. All the while I gently hold her, keeping her pressed snugly against me, my hands slowly drifting up and down her spine, gently slipping under her jacket to caress the bare scales of her lower back. Making her feel young one last time.
But as all good things must come to an end, so too must our embrace. Slowly, we pull apart, our lips gently sliding over one another and separating, mouth still hanging slightly open in the faint hope that perhaps the two pairs of lips will meet one another again. But it simply isn't meant to be. At the end of our day together, Sam has accepted this. Slowly, she pulls her head back, a soft huff escaping her mouth as she breathes, her grip momentarily tightening around the back of my neck as she smiles up at me.
"Thank you, Anon. For everything."
​
Hand in hand, the two of us make the walk back to the car, hopping in, preparing for the drive back home, back to our regular lives. Despite all the reservations that I had before, I find myself oddly at peace. Glad that I had decided to give Sam a chance, to spend a day with her. Glad that I was able to help her come to terms with her life. Help her feel young again, help her find herself again. Not an ounce of regret was within me, except a single small part of me that longed for this evening to continue, a wish that I knew could never be satisfied. As the engine of the car roars to life, Sam reaches over to the center console, popping it open and fishing out a small case. Opening it, she pulls out a small cassette tape, popping it into the player. As the puts the car into gear, the tunes begin to play, the unmistakable sounds of Hall and Oates blasting over the car speakers as we drive off into the night, the cool night air blowing over the two of us as we make the drive back to Volcaldera Bluffs.
​
You're out of touch~♪
I'm out of time~♪
But I'm out of my head when you're not around~♪