The sun was hanging low in the sky, just on the verge of dipping behind distant buildings. The evening air was faintly warm with a gentle breeze. Grant, the red-headed young man, strolled down the sidewalk. His hands were kept firmly in his pockets with and he kept his gaze cast downward. He frequently found himself counting cracks and occasionally attempting to avoid stepping on them if he could manage when no one was looking.
Before long, the local pub came into view. After various occasional glances upward he noted his location and peeked up for the first time enough to look down the sidewalk. Grant saw the pub and let out a soft sigh of relief. "There it is. That's what I need after a long day." he said quietly toward himself as he approached the building. He reached out and took hold of the doorknob. With a firm twist, the door clicked and swung open as he tugged on it. He crossed the threshold and allowed his hazel hues to wander. All the booths were relatively taken, even the bar itself was almost completely stacked! It's a busy night, it would seem. He noted an empty stool almost at the end of the bar. One lone buck sat on the left-hand side of the empty seat with no further chairs for other patrons. However on the righthand side of the same stool was a long line of other patrons.
Clearly, the elk wanted to sit alone. Grant took a moment rather nervously. He too preferred to sit alone but there was only the one seat available. He swallowed hard and glanced about before letting out a defeated sigh. Beastmen were not common, especially in public. They typically stayed to themselves. Those who wandered out into venues such as this were commonly looking for trouble. Grant only hoped that this was not one of those ocsassions.
The young man slowly approached the empty seat. Once he got up to the bar, he slowly slid onto the stool. To his left sat the incredible elk. He must have been at least 9ft tall and weighting over 500 lbs. Grant couldn't help but glance in his direction and stare almost awestruck at the large male. The elk wore a flannel top and jeans that clung to his powerful trunk-like legs, reaching the tops of his hooves. His large white antlers had a certain glow to them,perhaps due to the way the light reflected off of them.
The elk cast his gaze down to the human, "Take a picture, it'll last longer." He said with a chuckle, seeming unbothered by the look. It was perhaps common to be the center of attention for beastmen such as himself. Grant, flustered, looked away quickly and glanced to the various bottles on the wall, "Oh! Ah, I, uh. Yeah, sorry. I uh, I'm not used to seeing beastmen around here.." he said nervously, "S-sorry for staring.. Haha.." He chuckled weakly, tapping his hands nervously on the bar top, waiting for the bartender to swing by.
"The name's Flynn." the elk said, ignoring the human's nervous apology. "I don't come around here often, how about you?" He asked as he turned slightly, leaning one elbow onto the bar top. Grant slowly turned to look back to Flynn, "Oh, I uh, well. Yeah I come here pretty frequently, I.. I don't think I've seen you around before." He said as he swallowed harshly, "I'd probably remember someone like you.." He joked nervously. Flynn let out a deep chuckle, "You can relax.. I don't bite, hard." He said as he leaned back a bit and placed his other hand onto his own thigh. The hand which rested on the bar top lifted to beckon over the bartender.
"Gin and tonic for the boy and I." He said with a nod in Grants direction. Grant blushed at the request and how he was referred to. "Thanks, Flynn. I appreciate that." It was now as he relaxed, that Grant took in a deep breath through his nose. The scent of camping flooded into his sinuses. It was like sitting next to a campfire in a forest. He blinked a few times before looking up at Flynn once again, "So, what brings you around here..?"
Flynn parted his thighs a bit, easing back into the bar top for comfort as their drinks arrived. He took a swig of his and waited for Grant to do the same before continuing. Grant brought the glass to his lips and tipped his head back. It went down relatively smoothly with that burning aftertaste. The elk finally spoke up, "Just relaxing. Enjoying a night out for once. Meeting interesting people, it would seem.." He said with a wink. Grant blushed in response before speaking, "O-oh. Yeah sometimes I just need to get out too."
Several drinks and a bit of small talk later led to Flynn leaning in close, "Aye, why don't you come by my place. You've never been to a beastkin home before, I'm sure. Let me show you around." He said with a sly grin to which Grant swallowed. "I, uh.. Uhm.." He pondered for a moment and glanced around before refocusing his attention on the elk. "You know, sure. Why not? It would be cool to see!"
