swampwulf gave me the inspiration for this one. He gave me a story as a reply to how the otter saw the situation of the previous story. I didn't like it at first, but the seeds of a story was planted, so I adapted it and now we have another member of our dramatis persona.

Thanks much, Red!

* * *

The otter tried to maintain his smile as the massive jackal (how could someone get that huge? He must have spent a fortune on steroids, but he didn't seem to have that bloated look to his muscles) handed him his Chai Latte which would, from previous experience, be a bit too strong in flavor and too expensive in price. He liked the delicate flavors that the other coffee house served, but then again, the other coffee house didn't have the shy, unassuming bear at the register. In his opinion, Damon was a total hottie. Not like the usual musclebound so-called "studs" or the lean, twinkish bois that spent so much time wearing skintight outfits to show off their bodies. The otter admittedly belonged to the latter, but he blamed his metabolism and his love for jogging.

"You have a good day, Jere," Venti said as he smiled politely to him. "Hope you enjoy the Chai Latte."

"Thanks, Venti." What kind of name was 'Venti' anyway? It had to be a nickname, but was it supposed to be a reference to the jackal's size? Venti meant 'twenty' in Italian. Wouldn't a better nickname for the jackal be 'Grande' instead?

He took a sip, and stifled a grimace. Too much chai, not enough water, even though he'd asked for less pumps of chai. He wished Damon had been working the espresso bar and not the jackal. He was sure that the jackal's unusual size meant he didn't have the fine motor skills to work the bar.

As he turned around, he put a swish in his step, hoping to gain Damon's attention, but when he glanced over his shoulder to see if the bear noticed, his hope transformed into irritation when he saw Damon was looking at Venti like some starving carnivore at an all you can eat buffet, and the jackal didn't even notice. In fact, Jere could have sworn Venti was leering at him.

Great. The one he wanted had his attention on someone else, and that someone else had his attentions on him. Talk about a triangle of unrequited interest.

Maybe that other coffee house would be a better choice for his patronage.

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