"Looking Back"

By Kjorteo Kalante

2010

---

"A picnic? You can't be serious." The human in the passenger seat gave a teasing smile to the husky as she pulled over, apparently having reached their destination.

The husky gave an equally teasing grin to match the human's, but otherwise ignored his disbelief. She had plans for him, after all, and those plans did not involve spoiling the surprise before he was out of the car. She wordlessly got out and opened its trunk, retrieving her goods from within.

"Good heavens, you are serious! You have a basket and everything!" He pointed accusingly at the basket after he joined her outside the car and noticed it. It made her seem much more dainty than she had any right to be.

She stared at him for a few moments, though it was growing increasingly difficult for either of them to keep a straight face. She was the first to lose her composure, her smile nearly doubling in size as she tried and ultimately failed to contain her laughter. This proved too much for him, and his own chuckling quickly destroyed his pretend sternness as well.

"Well, you do! Besides, doesn't this seem a little...I don't know...quaint? I mean, really, a picnic? I don't think my parents even did that in their day, let alone us in ours."

"It's just for fun, silly." the husky finally spoke, and wasted little time in setting up the picnic. She had even remembered to bring a blanket! "We're all alone out here, and I won't tell anyone you lowered yourself to doing something out of a cartoon if you don't. Besides, your mother was the one who gave me this basket, remember?" She grinned, both in response to the playful banter and because she had an idea to get her plan started.

As she spread out the blanket, she turned to face away from him, and bent over and leaned back in such a way that allowed her to press her haunch directly against his outer thigh, tail hiked to avoid crushing it against his leg. He blinked, looking at her in stunned surprise as she held that pose much, much longer than what was actually required to legitimately set the scene for the picnic, though still not quite long enough to lose plausible deniability. Was she up to something? He highly doubted that was innocent, though he knew better than to expect her to admit to anything if he actually asked.

"Wait...she was?" He didn't remember his mother giving her the basket, and asking about it was at least something else to focus on as he desperately tried to pretend not to notice what the husky was doing.

She finally pulled away and sat down on the newly-spread blanket. "It was a long time ago...one of your birthday parties, I think. You remember how she'd always give little side presents to everyone else at the party, too, just so they wouldn't go home empty-handed? You got your stuff, and I got this basket."

He found a seat as well, and looked at her as he attempted to locate the memory. "Huh...no, I don't remember that. Well, I do remember how she would always do that, but I don't specifically recall the time you got the basket from it." He paused, and smiled. "At any rate, though, it's good to see you again. A picnic of all things may be a little silly, but anything to catch up with an old friend, right?"

"That was the idea." She returned the smile, and retrieved some sandwiches from the basket before handing them over to him. "To be honest, I'm not quite sure why I went with a picnic, either. I guess I was reminiscing a bit and saw the basket, and thought, hey, why not? Either way, though, I just wanted to see you again. It's been way too long."

"Yeah, I know. I've just been so busy with everything...but I have enough of a break now, at least." He looked at her, something about her statement having caught his attention. "Reminiscing?"

"Oh, just thinking about things. That basket, your birthday parties, things like that. Just nostalgia, I guess." She procured a sandwich of her own, and happily took a bite.

"I guess I can see that. I mean, it has been a while, hasn't it? And we do go back. We lived right across the street from each other the whole time we were growing up, after all." He started to think back to their childhood friendship, her nostalgia apparently contagious.

"I always liked living next to you. If I ever wanted to play with any of my other friends outside of school, it was this whole formal thing, and someone's parents had to drive over, and that had to be scheduled, and everything had to be planned way in advance. With you, I could just walk over to your place whenever I was bored." She was doing well so far. Her nostalgia was buttering him up before she made her move, and she also genuinely enjoyed the reminiscing for its own sake.

"Meanwhile, I don't think I really even had that many other friends besides you. I didn't really get along with the other kids in my school. Sometimes...well, very frequently, I wished I could go to your school, instead." He looked embarrassed after saying that, as though he had somehow said too much.

"Mine? Ha!" She couldn't help but laugh at the logistics of the suggestion, even if it was a sweet intention. "It's a nice thought, and I'd have loved to have you there, but there's a reason you guys get your own school system. It's not like you need to learn how to keep your fur clean or groom your tail, you know."

"That can't be all they teach you in yours, but I see the point, I suppose." He couldn't help but chuckle at the mental image, either, at least after she put it like that. "Still, at least you lived close by. You're pretty much what kept me sane growing up." He grinned, failing to resist the temptation to follow the compliment with a friendly barb. "Even if you were a total tomboy."

"Hey! I wasn't a tomboy. You just always had cold feet."

"Oh, you totally were! I always got in trouble because of you. Do you remember when you made me sneak out of my house after my parents were asleep and walk all the way down to the beach with you? That's a long walk, especially at that age! All just so we could look for shells!"

"I didn't make you do anything. I merely invited you." Her grin was nothing short of devilish. "And we found some good ones, too. Do you still have that really big pink one?"

"I do, actually. I've kept it this whole time. But...still! We were gone for hours! My parents nearly killed me when we got back!"

"Hey, I didn't exactly get off light for that one, either. I think it was worth it, though. I mean, I had so much fun, even though I knew how much I'd pay for it later."

"Yeah, I guess...."

He trailed off, having finished his food and finding himself with little else to do but lose himself in thought. This was good. It was time to make her move. He was obviously thinking what she was, anyway--she simply had to be the one to take initiative, as usual.

"You know, it always meant a lot to me to have you so close by." She lowered her voice, making that line sound even more sultry than it already was. He was known for being somewhat oblivious at times, but he could not possibly have missed that.

"I... um... really?" That surprised stammering from his having been caught off-guard...that must have rattled him. So he did catch it. Perfect.

"Of course, silly. I didn't get to see my other friends very often, and I always liked you more, anyway. Having each other to rely on all that time was a mutual thing. And... well... I suppose this recent time away has been hard on me. I don't want us to drift apart now, not after all these years. I miss you."

"Hey, now. I know it's been a while, but come on. You've always been there for me, and I'm not about to forget that now. I wouldn't have kept that shell all this time if that weren't the case." He smiled. "Just because real life has been keeping me down a bit lately doesn't mean I'm going to leave you, so don't worry about that."

"Maybe...maybe I'm just too worried. You're right. I'm sorry." Her response was emotional, yet still carefully crafted in regards to her plan. She was now in a position she could easily work into her approach, and she knew it.

She stood up for the sole reason that she had finished her food and it was now time to clean up, but her timing after the apology could easily make it appear as though she were about to turn away.

"Hey, it's okay." He quickly jumped up and approached her, his hands on her shoulders before he was even aware of what he was doing. He had fallen for the appearance of her turning to leave, and petting a sad dog was an instinct that was simply too ingrained and difficult to ignore, even if the dog was fully sapient and talking to him about relationships. He had therefore trapped himself in an awkward position, as he was now touching her, and struggling in vain for an explanation. It was just as she had intended.

"I...." She was almost tempted to say something to attempt to segue into her next move, but changed her mind at the last moment. After all, there was no real need. The signs were obvious to both of them. Even if she were to suddenly kiss him at that exact moment, he could not honestly be surprised by her intention. By the suddenness with which she actually did it, perhaps, but not that the moment was becoming that intimate in the first place. So, she did.

His reaction was about what she had expected--surprise to the point of panic at first, followed by returning the kiss as the heat of the moment claimed him too, concluding with him suddenly breaking it in another panic as he regained his senses. "What... what was that for?"

As if he didn't know! She simply looked at him and smiled.

"I'm not sure this is a good idea," he continued, obviously nervous.

"You're never sure anything is a good idea." It was now her turn to hold his shoulders. "You're the sweetest guy I know, and you always have been, but you're timid. You've always needed me to lead the way."

"And you've always led me directly into trouble! Didn't I just say--"

"Yes, I know. But was it worth it to you?"

"Was it... what?" He had not expected that question, and had to give it some thought His punishment for the seashell adventure had been quite severe, but groundings come and go. He did have fun while he was out, and he even got to keep the shell. "It... well... I suppose it was worth it in the long run, yes."

"So come on."

He had to admit that she made a convincing argument.

He kissed her again--or, more accurately, he was still paralyzed with nervous indecision while she kissed him again, but he enjoyed it. He had to admit that he enjoyed it, and that he did have very strong feelings for his childhood friend. Exactly what kind of feelings, he wasn't as sure, and would have to contemplate later. That would come later, though. For now, he simply enjoyed the kiss.

It was impossibly awkward and deeply pleasurable at the same time. He struggled in vain to find a way to align his lips to her muzzle in a way that seemed even remotely natural, and grew increasingly convinced that no such way actually existed. The hopeless attempt felt wonderful to him, though, if only for the realization of what he was doing, who he was with, what she meant to him. To anyone observing them, the sight of them attempting to kiss would appear to be clumsy to the point of utter ridiculousness. To him, as a participant, the feeling was an amazing, unrivaled rush of euphoric passion.

Time seemed to pass strangely to him, as though he were locked in that moment for ages, yet it was still over all too quickly. He genuinely had no idea how long they had kissed before she finally pulled away--seconds? Days? It had to have been a matter of seconds, but the feeling of it all left him overwhelmed.

"I'm sorry. This must be quite a lot to think about. Let me take you home. It is getting dark, after all." Nothing to do now but take him home, let it all sink in, and hope for the best. For better or for worse, she had done it. Her plan worked as perfectly as it possibly could have. How he reacted at this point was beyond her control, and whether he accepted her advances was obviously up to him, but she had at least made as flawless an approach as was possible.

"Is it? Oh...." He looked up at the sky somewhat dreamily, before catching himself. He quickly rattled his head, attempting to return himself to his senses. He didn't want to remain dazed in front of her, if only because of the sheer embarrassment of it all.

What manner of trouble had she gotten him into this time?

---

"Thank you for joining me. I had a lovely time. It's always so good to get to see you."

"I did, too. Thank you for taking me out." Neither of them mentioned the advances at the end of their time together, focusing exclusively on superficial pleasantries as they said their goodbyes. He would have more than enough to think about on his own once she left, anyway.

He waved in the general direction of the car as it pulled away, and turned and entered his home, completely unable to decide where to even begin. He had loved every second of it, but could he... could they...? They had known each other since childhood, but her advances had suddenly introduced all sorts of layers of complexity between them. Past and present blurred as he tried to evaluate his feelings for her. Exactly what kind of relationship did they now have?

He sighed and shook his head. Even when he enjoyed it, that girl was nothing but trouble. Just like it always was with them, he supposed.

Just like it always was with them....

He looked over at his shelf. There, amongst the miscellaneous photographs and books, was a large pink seashell.

Was it worth it...?