Alec and his friends, Casey, Zeke, and Ona, all meet up at a bar together, an event that happens every other Saturday at Reno's Bar, a popular bar within their town of Wolfpine, with Alec sitting next to Casey, with Zeke and Ona sitting across from them. Alec's friends, like him, are Werewolves, and they all feel a sense of unity due to that fact.
Casey leans forward, his blue hair and ears shining in the sunlight from the window right by their table, and looks to Alec, "So, Alec. When do we get to meet this hot boyfriend of yours? You guys have been dating for almost four months already, and we haven't even gotten to have so much as coffee with him."
Alec sighs a bit, "I'll introduce him to you guys when it's time. I don't want him scared off like my last two boyfriends."
"We aren't scary, we're just… protective," Zeke responds, "Plus, it's not our fault you have a thing for non-wolves."
Alec laughs a bit, "Don't worry, he's nice. He would've come if he wasn't recovering from being sick."
"That sucks, but we will meet him. That's not a request, by the way, it's a statement," Ona tells him. She takes a drink of her pop.
Alec starts laughing a bit, "Okay, sure."
He takes another drink of alcohol, and he loosens up a bit more. The group continues drinking and later decides to play a game of pool together. Alec and Zeke decide to start it off while Ona and Casey sit back, watching them.
"You're going down, Zeke. I'm great at pool," Alec exclaims, grinning.
Zeke snickers, "Yeah, right, Howler. Let's do this."
Alec grabs his pool stick and then hits the cue ball, and it hits a solid 2 ball that goes into a hole. Zeke then hits a striped 14 ball into a hole. They continue playing pool together while Alec continues drinking, and as they continue their game, Alec starts becoming drunk.
Zeke looks towards Alec and notices him visibly drunk, "Hey, Alec. I think it's time to stop drinking. You look drunk."
Alec looks at Zeke, drunkenly, "I-I'm okay, Zeke. I still got this." He tries to hit the cue ball but hits the black ball instead. He throws his hands into the air, "I win!"
"Nope. I know drunk you, and you are drunk. It's time for you to go home, let's go," Zeke tries to help Alec by placing Alec's arm over his shoulder, but Alec resists Zeke's help.
Alec swats him away, and Zeke lets go of him, "I-I got this, Zeke." Alec tries to stand on his own but trips over himself almost immediately, with Zeke catching him just as quickly.
"C'mon, Alec, let's get you home." Zeke starts carrying Alec away. He and Alec start walking away, with Ona following them. Casey walks up to them
"Hey, Zeke, Ona, I got the bill. You guys just pay me back later," Casey tells them.
Ona turns around, "Okay, thanks, Casey." Ona turns around, "Let's go, Alec."
The group walks up to Zeke and Ona's car, and Ona lets go. Zeke carefully places Alec in the backseat on the passenger side. Alec giggles when he sits down. He grabs Zeke and tries to bring him down.
"Y-You know, the three of us should go back to my place and just hang out," Alec tells him.
"No. We got plans in the morning." Zeke then pushes himself off Alec then puts the seatbelt on Alec. Zeke starts walking around the car.
"C'mon, guys. We can have a party or something. There's no reason for the night to end so soon."
Zeke gets in the driver's seat and pulls out of the parking lot. He and Ona talk together while Alec sits in the backseat, giggling at the sights from the outside. Eventually, Zeke reaches Alec's apartment and pulls out in front. He gets outside, and he and Ona grab Alec and start carrying him to his apartment. When they reach Alec's apartment and carry him to his bed.
"Do you need to puke?" Zeke asks him, caringly. He rubs Alec's back, and Alec shakes his head and leans down onto his pillow. Zeke gets up and grabs some Ibuprofen and a bottle of water from the kitchen, then lays a garbage can next to Alec's bed and notices Alec asleep, he smiles slightly while taking Alec's earrings out. He and Ona quietly walk out of Alec's apartment, locking it behind them with Zenix's spare key.
The next morning, Alec wakes up, holding his head in pain from his hangover. He looks over and notices the Ibuprofen and a bottle of water on his nightstand. He takes the water and Ibuprofen, and his head gets slightly better, then he grabs his spirit phone. A phone that is infused with mana that creates a mana spirit that can interact with its owner.
"Hey, Oli, wake up."
"Morning, you have one new message. Would you like me to read it to you?" Oli asks.
"Sure."
"Okay, 'Hey Alec, hope you're doing better. Just don't make a habit of hanging onto Ona and I.' " Alec then blushes at his behavior the night before.
"O-Oh my. I can't believe I did that."
Oli beeps, "You have one new message. Would you like me to read it to you?"
"Who is it from?"
"It is from Elio Starshade."
"Then read me the message, please."
"Okay, 'Hey Alec, how was your night? I hope it went well.' Would you like to respond?"
"Yes!"
"Message recording now."
"Hey, El. My night went very well. When you're feeling better, my friends would want to meet you. Hope you're feeling better."
"Would you like to continue the message?"
"No thanks."
"Message sent!"
Alec lies back down on his bed, still embarrassed. He screams into his pillow when he gets another message from Elio about wanting to meet up with Alec due to feeling better. Alec immediately says yes, and they meet up in a park. When Alec sees Elio, he runs up and hugs him with his tail wagging.
"I missed you so much!" Alec says to him, his tail still wagging in his excitement.
"It's been three days, Alec. I couldn't have missed much in that time," Elio tells him, "So when do I get these friends of yours?"
Alec gets nervous, looking right at him, "You don't want to meet them. They can be intense at times."
Elio looks at Alec a bit confused, "Why not? Haven't they wanted to meet me for a while now?"
"Yeah, but they scared my last two boyfriends off. I just don't want you to be scared of them as well."
"Trust me. There's nothing I can't handle." Elio reassures him.
Alec reluctantly sighs, "Okay. I guess you can meet them, just don't get intimidated by them."
The next night, Alec brings Elio to meet up with Zeke, Ona, and Casey. They meet back up at Reno's Bar with Elio sitting closely next to Alec.
Zeke looks right at Elio, "So, this is the famous Elio we've heard so much about. I can see why Alec likes you."
"It's a pleasure to meet you all. I'm glad to be here tonight," Elio says, formally.
The group, except for Alec and Elio, starts laughing. Elio looks around at them with a mix of confusion and discomfort, "What's so funny?"
Zeke continues laughing, but starts talking between laughs, "It's nothing. You're just being so formal with us." Ona tells him, causing Elio to blush a bit at her comment.
Zeke then tries to turn the conversation away from Elio's comment, "So, Elio. How did you and Alec meet? He's been so secretive about it."
Elio looks a bit confused for a moment, then decides to answer,"Um, well, I was at a coffee shop when Alec ended up walking over and accidentally dropped a cup of coffee on me. I was upset having a coffee stain on me, but he was such a nervous wreck that I couldn't stay mad at him."
Alec groans for a moment, "Please don't remind me, it was so embarrassing."
"Oh, but you're cute when you get embarrassed." Elio rubs Alec's back while Alec slides deeper into his seat out of embarrassment. His friends laugh at Alec's misery. Alec, Elio, and his friends continue with their night of drinking and eating. They then choose to play some darts, with Alec and Elio being on one team. They gather around a dartboard to play 501. Everyone starts playing, with Alec and Elio facing Zeke and Ona. Alec gets a couple of low-number points, while Elio is getting perfect shots. After two rotations, Elio steps up again and hits a perfect mark, exactly hitting 501.
"You're amazing, El!" Alec jumps to him, hugging Elio. "How did you do that?"
"I guess I'm just a good shot." Elio smugly tells him, smiling. Alec lightly punches him, laughing.
The group finishes their game of 501, and afterwards, the group decides to head to a park to continue their party. They take a seat on a bench where Elio and Casey sit down, and Zeke decides to walk up to Elio.
"So Elio, what's it like being an Elf?" Zeke asks him, suddenly. The group looks at him, surprised, with Alec choking on a bottle of water.
Elio shifts uncomfortably, "Why do you ask?"
"Well, I've just never met an elf before and was wondering if it was any different than us."
"Um, it's okay. I don't do much differently than a non-elf."
"What about your skin routine?" Ona kicks Zeke's shin. Zeke limps down a bit in pain.
"No, I don't have a skin routine. Why are you curious?"
"Well, Elves are known for their looks. Therefore, Elves must have one." Ona kicks her foot against his foot again. He grabs it in pain, "Okay, I'll stop."
"Sorry about that, Elio," Ona apologizes.
"It's okay, Ona. It happens sometimes," Elio responds. Alec looks at Elio with a mix of confusion and concern.
"A-Are you serious, Elio?" Alec asks him, concerned.
"Yeah. I'm used to it, though." Elio responds calmly, shrugging his shoulders.
"Well, if it's okay with you then…" Alec's voice trails off. Everyone sits quietly for a moment, awkwardly.
"I'm, um, going to go. It's getting late." Casey tells them, awkwardly.
"Yeah, we have to head out too," Ona adds.
"Well, it was good seeing you guys," Alec tells them. They nod their heads in agreement and wave before heading out, leaving Alec and Elio alone in the park. They start heading to Alec's car, with Alec getting in the driver's seat and Elio sitting next to him in the passenger's seat, and turn his car on without putting it into drive.
Alec turns to Elio with confusion, "So, El. Were you serious when you said you were used to questions like that?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Well, it's just that you didn't seem bothered by Zeke's comment in the slightest. What's up with that?"
Elio rubs the back of his head, thinking for a moment, "Well, I usually get this when meeting new people that aren't Elves. I even got it at my job in the beginning. It took them a few weeks to realize I was serious when I said I didn't have a routine of any kind."
Alec thinks for a moment when he has a moment of realization, "Wait… didn't you just start that job like three months ago?"
He cocks his head to the side, "Yeah, why?"
"We started dating three and a half months ago. Why didn't you say anything?"
"I didn't want to worry you. Especially when we were just starting out dating. Plus, you were just as surprised when you first found out."
Alec blushes, rubbing his hand behind his neck, "That-That was different. You are just so good-looking, I was taken aback by it, that's all."
"You worry too much, Alec." Elio kisses him on the forehead while Alec is hunched over.
"I guess… I just don't like seeing that happen to you." His ears droop a bit while saying that.
"I'll try not to let it happen again, Alec," Elio responds, rubbing Alec's head. His ears slightly perk up with his tail wagging once when he smiles.
"Good. I just want to see you happy," Alec tells him, kissing him, having to stand on his heels, and starts to walk out.
Elio grabs Alec by the hand, stopping him in his tracks, "Well, while we're at it, do you want to watch a movie while we're here?" Alec blushes even more to Elio's amusement.
"S-Sure." Elio moves Alec over to the couch, and they sit next to each other. Alec still blushes when Elio picks out a movie. Alec cuddles right next to him with Elio patting him on the head.