The port lights came on one by one, the sea dyed orange-red by the setting sun, waves lapping the pier over and over before being gently drawn back into the deep blue.

Pawbert leaned back against the rough breakwater, the blurred skyline of Zootopia behind him, Nick beside him. The sea breeze carried a salty tang, pressing Nick’s shirt to his frame, outlining clear, warm lines.

He turned his head, his gaze falling on Nick’s face—those emerald eyes reflected the sunset, and also his own image, a look so full of promise it made his heart skip.

“Little lynx,” Nick said suddenly, his voice lower than usual, as if afraid to disturb the peace, “sometimes I wonder—if we hadn’t met that day in the alley, what kind of relationship would we have now?”

Pawbert didn’t answer right away. He reached out, brushing aside a few strands of silver-gray fur ruffled by the wind, his fingertips tracing from Nick’s ear tip to his jawline—gentle, yet certain.

“I don’t know, Nick.” He finally spoke, a hint of a smile in his voice. “But without you, I’d probably have been ground down by that cold house, learned to please everyone, done all sorts of outrageous things just to prove—even a little—that I wasn’t the ‘useless Lynxley’ they saw.”

Nick froze, then gave a low chuckle. The laugh softened, turning into something tender, almost cautious. He shifted closer until their shoulders brushed, body heat seeping through the fabric.

“Pawbert, me too.” He spoke softly. “Without you, maybe I’d still be the fox they all called sly—smart, cunning, and untrustworthy. But it’s different now.”

Nick looked up, green eyes fixed on Pawbert as if etching his features into memory. “All I know is, no matter where I go, I’ve always got a little lynx behind me who trusts me unconditionally and refuses to let go. For me, that’s enough.”

Waves crashed against the breakwater, churning foam like scattered gold, a distant ship’s horn wailing long and low. Pawbert’s eyes lowered, but the corners of his mouth curled upward. He reached out, looping an arm around Nick’s shoulders, drawing him gently into his embrace.

Nick closed his eyes, burying his face in Pawbert’s neck, breathing in the familiar, reassuring warmth. The port lights brightened one after another beside them, as if laying down a road toward the future—from partners who saved each other, to each other’s one and only love.