So, she's known around the school as "the violent human".

Appearing even more so as the lone wolf many thought he was, Legoshi sits on the only bench on the field, the sunset painting the world a beautiful warm orange. A windmill stands tall in the grass, reaching for the clouds.

The area is empty besides the wolf, though every once in a while, an animal or two will pass by, enjoying the romantic scenery.

God, they're all so narrow-minded. Well, I'm not really one to talk....I was about to devour her. But I'm not too familiar with girls in general. Truth is, I've never had a girlfriend before.

With a melancholic sigh he slumps back against the bench, shifting his small irises to the apricot coloured sky. This had been the first time a girl had tried to touch him intimately and shamefully enough, they had to be caught by her friend, who's also the person Legoshi is miraculously intrigued by. Sure, he would have stopped either way but the fact that you literally walked in on the two animals will definitely make things very awkward between you.

He's ripped from his thoughts by a familiar smell.

Vanilla. It's you...but what are you doing here?

As quick as ever, his body tenses and his mind goes a million miles per minute. He knows you're approaching and he can practically feel it in his bones when you stop a few feet away from the bench.

What should I do? Sh-Should I talk to her? Greet her? Or should I leave so I don't make her uncomfortable? I want to look at her but it'd be creepy for me to do that! Argh, why is this so hard?!

A small cough interrupts him; you had cleared your throat to get his attention.

Almost instantly, his eyes are on you, standing stiffly with your arms crossed over your chest, your cheeks bright red as he stares at you. Shyly, you avoid his gaze and point to the spot next to him, "Uhm, could I...could I sit there?"

At first, he's not sure how to react and truthfully, it takes him a while to register that you're actually speaking to him, that you want to sit next to him. Moments pass while he realizes that, rendering you in uncomfortable silence.

"Oh, yeah, sure. Go ahead."

He shuffles a little to the side to give you more space, ears perking up as you give him a tiny smile and thank him. Your arms relax and settle in your lap, a tight white bandage now wrapped around your hand and a band Aid on your right knee. Though you try your best to casually hide your new injuries from the wolf, he notices.

"What happened to your hand?" He asks, hoping him speaking to you isn't scaring you.

Embarrassed, you bite your lip and your head burns a bright rose red, a colour he enjoys on your skin.

"Well uh, when I was packing the roses for your club, I uhm, I also tried to de-thorn them and being the clumsy idiot that I am, I cut myself and got a few thorns stuck in my hand," you lower your head, your voice growing hushed, "That's w-why I walked in on you two. I-I was looking for a pair of tweezers, t-to get them out and...well you know the rest."

Now it's Legoshi that goes red in the cheeks, "Oh, uhm, about that, I wanted to apologize."

He's watching you, admiring your profile as you admire the scenery around you, "I wasn't trying to get with your friend. I especially didn't want to do....that with her. I'm sorry."

You suppress the sniffle and the tears that want to resurface but thanks to his enhanced senses, the wolf catches it. And he catches your small, delicate and yet broken giggle.

"No, it's okay, I'm not angry at you. It's not your fault. Even if you wanted to do that with her, I wouldn't be mad at you. It's normal for people to want to engage in sexual activities with others, unless they're asexual of course, which is also completely valid. It's not my buisness anyway. As long as everyone consents, there's nothing wrong with being sexually active. "

That catches him off guard and his entire body goes stiff; why are you talking about this?!

Why-Why are you telling me this?! You should be angry with me! How are you so calm about this? And....and why are you crying?

You cannot stop the few tears from falling but you try your damn hardest to wipe them away before he can catch sight of them; unsuccessfully.

"I'm actually mad at Haru for trying to have sex with a guy with me being only a couple feet away. I feel like...like she just forgot I even existed, that I didn't matter enough for her to warn me and tell me 'Hey, by the way, I want to hook up with this guy right now, just so you know and don't accidently come in while we're at it," you imitate the rabbit with a high-pitched voice and Legoshi swears he feels your pain in his gut. Like someone had punched him.

"It doesn't really matter now; I'm not sure we're friends anymore...but," finally, you turn to him, yet still won't meet his eyes, "Are you okay?"

"Huh?!" Why are you worried about him? He's fine, you're the one who's injured and crying!

"Are you feeling alright?" You question again, gaze shifting back to your hands, "When I interrupted you two, you seemed...well you seemed really against having Haru....continue, and from the short time I've known you, I think it's safe to say that you get lost in your head pretty easily. So I was worried that she...kind of forced herself onto you..."

Is he...is he going to think I'm weird now?

Our good boy Legoshi on the other hand, is too stunned to find an answer at first, even when he notices your body growing stiff and tense.

She...she was worried about me? Worried that her friend, a rabbit, forced herself onto me, a carnivore? She's not angry at me? Am I really that obvious or...or did she actually care enough to figure me out? To understand me...and to treat me like a person, not like a monstrous carnivore.

I wonder though....Do you just see a grey wolf when you look at me, like everyone else ....or do you see more?

"I-I'm fine, "He finally answers, "You're right, I didn't really notice what was happening until...until she had her hands on my belt. I'm okay but...thank you for worrying."

You exhale an obvious sigh of relief and grin at him, "I'm glad, then. She should have been more aware of the situation though, instead of just going straight to your no-no-square. But I'm glad you're okay."

You grin again and giggle, which causes his tail to wag slightly without Legoshi noticing. After a few moments of silence, his attention goes back to your knee.

"So what happened there?"

"Ifelldownthestairs... ," you grumble as your face turns into a childish pout.

"Huh?"

"I fell down the stairs, okay? I was angry after fighting with Haru and I didn't look where I was going, so I fell down the stairs!" You repeat, louder this time, with your head turned away and lifted in an embarrassed yet prideful way. With your cheeks glowing red and your lips pouting like a young pup, Legoshi couldn't keep his eyes off of you.

She's...She's so....

"...cute," he finishes aloud, only to freeze when he realizes his mistake.

Oh no, did I say that out loud?! What is wrong with me?!

With a high-pitched yet quiet squeak, you freeze as well, unable to handle the embarrassment. E/c eyes are wide with surprise as they flicker towards the tall frame next to you.

He...he called me cute. He just called me cute! He thinks I'm cute!

"I'm sorry! S-Sorry," he stammers loudly, already stumbling off of the bench, "Uh, I gotta go! Goodbye!"

"Wait!" You call out.

But he's already too far gone to stop now.

"Argh!"

Frustrated, you kick the bench, only to hurt your leg further, "Ouch! Fuck! Fucking stupid idiot, Ow!"

Thankfully, no one is around to see your failure. With a groan, you slouch forward, hugging yourself with your arms in an attempt to keep the loneliness at bay.

I probably reminded him of Haru...that's why he said 'cute'. I should have known...how could I be even remotely appealing to someone like him?

"Tch! Idiot!" You fuss through gritted teeth; your hair's a mess on your shoulders, "I'm perfectly fine on my own. I need no one but me, myself and I! I'll show you!"

You turn up towards the sky, a scowl on your face.

"I'll show you, I don't need anyone but myself!"

And I'll say it often enough, that it'll come true.

The next day, you mindlessly tug at the bandage around your hand. You'd gone to the infirmary yesterday after falling down the stairs because it was closer than your dorm and the nurse was nice enough to treat you.

I need to be more careful. If I continue hurting myself so frequently, I'll be looking like Squidward in a wheelchair by the end of this year!

Classes had ended for the day, thankfully, after another stressful day of being stared at as if you're the antichrist. Of course, you hadn't been able to skip Louis' bullshit speech about the importance of coexistence after the principal had presented the drama club with the Cherryton honour award.

You know that the idea of coexistence is important, even necessary to achieve peace, but it's nothing more than a naïve dream. Humans couldn't coexist with one another, you doubt they ever will; they fight wars against one another for no apparent reason, like it's engrained into every last strand of DNA. These animals, though they don't look like it, have much more human characteristics than they would like to admit.

How can this deer go on about coexistence, when he himself down right assaulted you just because he thought you're a carnivore?

But you seem to be the only one who saw right through the deer because everyone else was practically hanging onto every word from his lips. You swear you even saw a few students crying at how "beautiful" it was.

You stop in front of the door to the principal's office. He had called you here for an "urgent meeting" and your head came up for a thousand different ways that may go.

Had Louis told them a lie strong enough to suspend you? To bring you back to the authorities, to force you into a life of experiments? No more than a simple rat for them to pull apart and put back together, to dissect, to poison and to violate? Or had Haru spread a lie?

You had no idea who you could trust in this world and so far, the only one you feel truly safe around is your roommate Aisha. The Greyhound, who didn't question you when you had cried in the bathroom after being attacked; who held you in her arms like a loving sister.

You couldn't even trust yourself.

At every new obstacle, your body betrayed you and became weak, crying and injuring yourself. Your mind is still broken from being shot at the ripe age of 17, on a day that had been like any other. A single decision had changed your entire life that day. You couldn't even say goodbye.

You feel so out of place in this world. Completely and utterly alone, without a home or a family to go to and with no one to care for you. It's just you.

Without wasting any more time, you knock and not a second later are you invited inside. Before you stands the headmaster, a friendly looking tiger, and behind him a pelican, the one you had seen on your first day here, when you had walked into the argument between the drama club members.

"Headmaster," you bow gracefully, aware that missing manners could mean your downfall, "you sent for me?"

"Such a formal, civilized human, isn't she?" The tiger asks the pelican, who only nods in responds.

"This is Sanu, the president of the drama club," you bow again, a forced smile on your lips, "He's a third year student and he will assign you your role in the drama club. He'll also be your advisor if you need help with anything regarding the club."

What?

"Pardon, sir?"

"You will be joining the drama club," the old tiger states, "I am aware that you and our head actor, Louis the red deer, have had your differences and I sincerely apologize on the school's behalf that you had to endure that. He has been made aware of his mistakes and I assure you, he will not bother you any longer."

Formally, he clasps his hands behind his back, an empathic smile on his face, "He has told us of your talent and interests for the arts and as it is mandatory for every student to join a club, the school has decided to put you on the drama club. I understand that this seems forceful and unfair to you and unfortunately it is, however, it is necessary for both the school and you."

He begins his way to you, tall and powerful in stature yet not appearing threatening to you at all. His eyes convey his apologies and sympathy for your situation and the child in you feels safer around the strong carnivore.

"You are the only human who has been integrated into society since the discovery of your species fifty years ago. Your reputation in this school and your participation is extremely important to your future in this world. The best option for you is the drama club, known for its variety of unique animals; carnivore, omnivore and herbivore."

A striped hand enters your vision, held out for you to shake.

So handshakes do exist!

"I've been told that's how you humans greet each other and seal deals," he chuckles at your obvious awestruck face.

Goddamnit! Bambozzled again!

"Even though this most likely seems terrible at the moment, I think I can promise you as headmaster of this Academy, that you won't regret joining the drama club. Now, do you accept?"

Do I? Can I really go back there after what happened with Louis? How could I even fit in, no one would want to work with me. What if this tiger, however sweet he may seem, is wrong? How could I trust him or his word?

Sanu's eyes are fixed on you, as are the principal's and a stream of golden sunlight tickles your face as it shines through the windows. It fills you with new hope and a sense of determination.

What more could I lose?

"You got yourself a deal, sir," you beam brightly, smiling at the tiger and the pelican, "I am looking forward to working with you, President."

I'm not going to be afraid of a little deer! I won't let him keep me from moving forward! 

***

Eyo, welcome to Chapter 10, buddies! I hope you enjoyed it! We've got our first milestone of ten Chapters, wohoo!

Additionally, we just hit 1k reads and I couldn't be happier right now! Thank you all for reading this story and motivating me to keep writing! Our little family is growing day by day and I'm so grateful for it!

Therefore, y'all get an extra meme!

Enjoy!

Now, the song I linked was one that I thought fit our MC's current situation and I thought, hey, why not put it in so you guys can get into the feels as well!

This was a fun chapter to write, though hella emotional because I listened to the Violet Evergarden soundtrack. Makes me extra emotional.

Fun fact, I also watched the Boy and the Beast yesterday (It's on Netflix) and I realized that I probably am a furry cause your girl got a crush on both Len and the bear. Why is my brain like this 👁️_👁️?

Well, I hope y'all are safe at home right now and not somewhere shoving your hands into someone else's mouth 👀  I am looking at you Mr. Bite me! 🦌

Hope you're all safe and healthy!

See you in Chapter 11, Homies (that's my nickname for yall now!)!!!