Vigilante PAW

Chapter Six: That Night

Marshall walked back into his pup house, throwing his pup tag on his bed. If this hangout with Rocky really was going to go the way he thought it would, he begged Rocky to leave their tags back at the lookout. He didn't want anyone else knowing about what was on his mind. Not even Ryder or Chase.

Rocky, while unsure about leaving their tags behind, eventually agreed.

After they finished getting ready, Rocky drove the two to Mr. Porter's Café. The fire pup jumped out quickly, excited to get some food after a long day of playing with the others. Rocky, meanwhile, was just curious about what was troubling his friend.

The pups walked into the building, getting a table at the far side of the interior.

"Okay, Marshall. I took you out for food..." The mixed breed pup smiled faintly, "That's my end of the deal. Now how about you tell me what's up?"

"Oh look at the time!" The Dally suddenly stood up from his seat, looking at an invisible watch on his wrist, "We should probably get back—" Marshall tried to walk away, but was stopped when Rocky grabbed the back of his collar.

"You don't have a watch. Sit down."

Sighing, the fire pup sat back down in the chair, shifting nervously. He had never admitted it out loud. He never really vocalized how he felt about Everest. Everything up to this point, for however long he had a crush on her, he had never admitted to it in front of anyone. All of the thoughts, all of the feelings, were bottled up inside of him, waiting to be spoken.

"Rocky, I like Everest."

"I thought you liked everyone on the PAW Patrol..." Rocky, never one to understand tone as well as the other members of the team, looking at the Dally with a deadpan expression.

Marshall sighed, "No, Rocky. I have a..." The Dalmatian looked around them quickly to make sure they weren't being watched, making the mixed breed roll his eyes, "...I have a crush on Everest."

Rocky's eyes widened, "Oh? Ohhh... That makes so much more sense!" He exclaimed, "Everything adds up better with that in mind."

Marshall, who was covering his face in embarrassment, peeked from behind his paws, "...You're not gonna tease me?"

"Of course not!" The recycling pup smiled, "...Right now. I won't right now. I'm just happy that you can acknowledge it. We're getting to that point where we're gonna start having crushes, but we won't exactly know what they are."

The Dalmatian's eyes narrowed, "You're saying that like you know."

Rocky suddenly stopped, his heart beginning to beat faster. He looked down, finding a sudden interest in the rigid bumps of the table they were sitting at.

"Rocky...?"

The recycling pup wasn't embarrassed. Not by any means. He was scared. Scared of his own feelings, scared that Marshall wouldn't like what came out of his mouth next. He hadn't told anybody besides Zuma about how he was. About his feelings. He let out a shaky exhale.

"Marshall, I'm... I'm into guys."

Silence.

Marshall's face remained expressionless, a blank stare shooting across the table at the eco pup. The Dalmatian thought about what his friend had just told him, thinking about everything he'd seen from Rocky before. He had never looked at Skye or Everest in any kind of strange way. The Dally had always just assumed that Rocky was too socially challenged to deal with anything romance related.

On the other side of the table, Rocky's head lowered in shame, beginning to sweat. He knew it! He knew that Marshall wouldn't take it well! The recycling pup gulped faintly as his claws gently scraped at one of the table legs. He could always look back up and tell Marshall that he was joking, that he had a crush on one of the girls on the team, that he wasn't what he was. That wouldn't work, would it? It was already out there, and he had taken so long to say it.