Ocean Depths part 30
#30 of Ocean Depths
Ocean depths (30) By Roofles
"Owen, hun." Lucas started off simple enough. His tone light and even. Tip toeing around the subject at hand was easy enough with the otter across from him who looked at him with those large innocent, naive eyes.
Zo' Noodles was a simple restaurant the two had never went to before. It was always something for them when they went out. To find a new place and see if they liked it enough or not to come back for future occasions. The red panda behind the counter was friendly enough even if his english was broken and spoke in one word sentences with a smile on his face. His two daughters worked there as well. "This Saterday, the sevententh." He pressed mentioning the date heavily. Already he could see the otters ears twitch and rise a bit. It was so easy to read a fur once you got used to it. Their expressions spoke louder than any words and as such most furs tended to speak less and let their actions talk for them. "Plans came up."
Those words were enough to spark the otter into action. A twitch of those whiskers, the shift of his paws as his tail thumped uneasily against the chair leg. Those beady ears spinning to attention and his eyes giving him full focus as he took a labored breath that rolled his broad shoulders back. "I see." Was all Carlson said.
Visible cues allowed Lucas to see the gears turning trying to grasp and figure out what to do with this news. It was so obvious when the party was. The otter continuously asking him about the day and checking with him to see if his friends were free. How the otter bought several bags of decorations doing a very poor job trying to hide them and explain why he bought armfuls of the cheap dollar store cups and disposable plates. Or the fact he bought more hotdogs and hamburgers that even with Carlson's appetite they couldn't possible go through. Let alone all the buns he bought with it. The otter had tried to explain he "simple liked buns."
"An old friend is coming to town and we were going to just go grab a bite to eat or something." Lucas went on stiring the home style authentic ramen noodles looking at the cloudy broth that was stirred up from the bottom like the mud in a river. "If that's not a problem I mean."
"Oh, of course it's not a problem. You got your friends. I got...mine." Carlson whiskers drooped and he looked down at his stagnate soup before him. "You know all of mine." He muttered a bit that whiskers face drooping even more.
"He's an old friend I haven't seen in a long time. If you want he could come over instead. So you could meet him as well." Lucas cast the net.
The otter perked up a smile tugging at the corner of his lips despite how much he wanted to make it seem like he was uninterested in the conversation. Hook. "That'd be good! I mean we got all those hotdogs for a reason." And sinker.
Lucas put on the perfect honest look of mild surprise. "Oh? I'm sure he'd love to meet you. I told him all about you. It'll be fun. He can meet Justin too. That twerp has been at his friends place far too long."
"Don't worry. He'll be there this Saterday." Carlson said scooting a bit closer. "He, huh? Who is he?" He inquired his brow narrowing a bit as if he was accusing him of something.
"Joey's an old High School friend. From back home. We got in touch through furbook and he was going to be in town for a meeting anyways." He brushed a sandaled foot against the otter leg. The otter returned the gesture slipping his webbed paw out of the loose sandals he wore and trace his big toe down the front of his leg. That blunt claw and warm soft pad of that biggest toe always did feel great.
"Ah, ok. That's good. Don't want to not know someone you know. If he means something to you and all...I think I should just...you know...know." He mumbled a bit becoming rather sheepish by the end. Lucas was able to compare him to the ram and sheep next to them and was able to say with a certainty he was indeed being rather sheepish. The soft features of his face, his muzzle tipped down while he eyes looked up at him. Stupidly attractive otter, Lucas smiled back. A face like that made him want to top said otter.
"I'm sure you guys will be best of friends. So how's Justin doing. Haven't seen him too much of late and was worried." Lucas was more than happy to change the subject getting the feeling that Carlson was not only uncomfortable about him seeing an old friend but possible jealous. Carlson never spoke of old friends or hung out with coworkers. If it wasn't for him being with Lucas, he figured, he'd still be a home body.
Now that Lucas thought about it. Carlson never spoke of anyone else. Friends or family, except being disgruntled over his brother calling him at work every now and then just to get under his fur. That did always seem to ruffle him up for the rest of the day. Lucas couldn't count all the times he had to rubbed the otter paws or back to calm him down while he grumbled on. And on more than one occassion Lucas ended up punching said brother rather hard in the arm for it. Otherwise though Carlson only really had Burke and Anders whom both seemed to hang out with Lucas more so than Carlson. The otter only went out when Lucas did or for work. And if not he was glued to the couch lazy out with his paws kicked up stark nude half the time or only in his briefs, scratching himself and drinking a beer.
"And although I love your beer gut," Lucas had chided. "I think it'd be best if you got out more. See the sights. Smell the fresh air and enjoy the sunshine while it lasts!"
"I rather see your sights." The otter lewdly replied crawling onto him. "Smell only you. And enjoy only your sunshine." And with that they did it. After long sniffs and licks of course.
"Justin's doing great. He's been on the on-a-roll since last term and his grades have improved, he doesn't seem to be so violent anymore..." He continued bringing Lucas back to the present. "He's doing a lot better with that whole thing...since moving in with us. It's 'cause of you, hun." The otter cooed caressing his hand with a paw.
"He's living with his father. In a stable setting, and a wonderful nurturing neighborhood with less street crime and more diversity than anywhere in my home town. Three full meals hand made by you with light healthy snacks inbetween. Would that have anything to do with it?" Lucas teased sticking out his tongue a bit.
Carlson held his hand with both his paws bringing it up as he lowered his muzzle down to kiss the top of it. Looking up at him again with that sheepish smile. "Just one father?" His fingers continued to caress his bare flesh with their fleshy warmth pads, the slight fur brushing against his furless fingers tickling ever so softly.
Lucas voice caught in his throat as his heart joined it. He could feel the warmth wash over his face as if someone opened an oven before his eyes. The heat making him pull back a bit. The movement only prompted the otter to scoot closer his legs wrestling with his before a paw brushed up the side of it again as he won the match. Asserting his dominance a bit more as his fur raised a bit, with a cocked eyebrow and a smirk on his face.
The subtle shift wasn't lost on Lucas as he took a sharp breath between clench teeth. "Owen," He spoke softly looking down at the table. "I'm not sure if it's time for that-," he looked up with solemn eyes waiting for the otter to flinch away. To whine or pull back.
Instead a paw brushed his cheek as the large Mustelidae leaned over the table. The muzzle brushed the other cheek the whiskers tickling his nose and scratching over his cheek before pulling back. Looking at him with those deep ocean blues deeper than the sea itself as a smile crossed his muzzle. His eyes sparkling with an undying fire as his lips touched his. So strong and yet soft as they pulled back. The paw slipping from his cheek, the claws slowly trailing across his bare flesh making him shiver as Carlson sat back in his chair not caring about a few looks they had gotten.
"Ok." Lucas mumbled blushing deeply and looking at his food once more. The otter's movement had stirred up his dish again the tranquil water now muddled and foggy with that broth once more. "That's not fair," he glared at the otter who still had a smug look on his face. "You can't just do that to win an arguement." He referenced to their morning spat about Carlson making him breakfast and in turning messing up their whole kitchen without cleaning up after himself.
"I can do what I please." Carlson said licking his lips and looking back down at his own soup. "Your soup tastes better." He looked up. "Your lips taste better than this. Like honey, smothered over a moist, smooth vanilla raspberry cake."
"Honey on cake? I rather have it on toast, thank you very much." Lucas laughed feeling his face begin to drain. They were talking about cake after that question. It seemed silly. But such was the otter sometimes.
"I rather smere that honey all over your belly and lick it off." Carlson lewdly replied with half closed eyes picturing it. "Letting it drip down further. I'd clean every inch of you my silly furless man you."
"Hah, funny." Lucas picked up the glass of ice water and took a long drink cooling the rest of himself off.
"I want another kid." Carlson blurted out and Lucas spat across the table.
"What do you mean you want another kid? It's not like I can just give you one. We can't just go to the park and pick one up." Lucas continued as the two walked down the street. It was a nice day out and Lucas wanted to get the otter out and about in the sunset. He had spied the small restaurant on one of his outings on his way home one evening. And knew the otter would enjoy it. He did not expect this conversation coming up though.
The otter held his hand not with his head held high looking up at the sky with a soft smile on his face. "Not like we haven't not tried." Lucas flushed a bit at the reference only furthering the otter smug grin forming on his smile.
"Don't expect me to be the mom in this." Lucas said flatly.
"You'd make a wonderful mother," Carlson teased looking down at him. He wasn't hunched over as he normally was and held his shoulder back with that same air of dominance. He only ever did when he wasn't about to back down.
"Oh yes, I'd be an amazing mother!" He said a bit louder getting a few stares from a nearby couple walking past them. "I'd take the kids to church and bake cookies. Rock the babies to sleep and take the kids to school. Go to their plays and help them with their homework."
It only seemed to fuel the otter on. "How many kids you talking about here?"
"Well we already got Justin." Lucas grumbled frowning as the paw holding his hand gave him loving squeeze.
"We," Carlson spoke the word softly and lovingly. "Do. It's not like I was saying we should go to the adoption agency now. But it'd be nice to...in the future sometime. Too." The otter was the one blushing now, scratching under his muzzle with his other paw looking anywhere else but at Lucas.
"We may be living together. You may have a kid. We might 'shag' every other night and its not like we have gotten into any serious fights or been apart for the past year now. But it does seem fast. Heh, it's not like we're even married." He joked laughing a bit.
Carlson scratching his cheek looking away again, his inner ears going a dark reddish brown. "True. It's not like we're legally unioned yet. We're only mates."
"And still I don't know what that means. Being your mate." Lucas frowned still fathoming the word over.
"It means something different to everyone I guess." Carlson said. "I guess - to me - we might as well be...that way..." The otter was a bit meek again but spoke boldly. "I see us that way. Even if you don't, that's ok."
"It'd be easier if it was on paper." Lucas spoke flatly. He wasn't sure if his brain fully registered what the otter just told him. "I mean during surgery you couldn't even come in for this," he said liftng up his poor leg. There was another reason why the two always walked together these days. Carlson made a good crutch. "It'd just be easier if it was a bit more than just words - for us to know I mean." He spoke as flatly as before but the weight of those words were still heavy on his lips as he spoke them.
"That's true," the otter said rather smugly swishing his tail behind them. "I mean if we just went on got that paper signed and all it would be good for the long run. If something happened to me. I'd want you there. For Justin if nothing else. I wouldn't ever want him to go back to his mother just because I wasn't in the picture anymore. He deserves better than that. You deserve better than that."
The otter turned quickly, already on one knee and holding his hand with both paws looking up at him with those deep ocean blues. "When I do propose, because I'm the father." He teased lightly. "It'll be better than this." He got up and kissed him lightly giving him a loving hug.
"Carlson, your drawing a crowd." Lucas blushed trying to push the otter off of him.
"Like I give a damn."