#sweetapplcider

Otters were supposed to be Cute.

Cute, fuzzy, friendly, and warm.

And for the most part, that’s what they were. They were also playful, smart, and extremely expressive.

The boys expected nothing less from you; a sweet, big eyed, brown furred, otter hybrid. You were the newest addition to the team, a play hybrid. Simon was the most reluctant to bond with you, claiming that the military had no room for “play” but John always rebuttaled by telling him small comforts are good form therapy for men like them.

You warmed up to Kyle the quickest, he was the easiest to get along with. He was gentle and kind to you. Always getting you treats and foods, having you taste test different teas and what not. He taught you how to play many board games and gave you all his best cheats in card games.

And you liked Johnny. Though you thought he was a bit annoying. He was always trying to tease and fluster you, not to mention how handsy the bastard was. But he had some good qualities too. You had to admit. So far he was the only would who agreed to hold hands and cuddle, something that often soothed your instincts.

And John… John was nice enough. He wasn’t mean or rude to you, but he was strict and not around much. He was a very busy man, for Christ’s sake. What did you expect from the captain?

But you started to a sort of animosity towards him when he sent Johnny away. He said the Scot would be back soon but you didn’t believe him. He had already been gone for three weeks. You had no one to cuddle with or hold now and it’s taken a toll on your attitude.

They all noticed the shift but they couldn’t figure out why you were being this way.

John caught the little glares you sent his way and the pouts that would appear on your face every time he walked in the room. Little to say he did not appreciate it. He never said anything about it but he tried to fix it by spending more time with you and trying to give you treats. That seemed to only have the opposite effect.

You stopped wanting to play with Kyle too, and if he did managed to get a game out of you, you mouthed off if he won. He tried to correct your behavior with scoldings, but that only ended up with you chattering your teeth at him in annoyance.

It all got so bad, to the point where when Simon hissed at you for being in his path, causing him to stumble a bit, you bit his hand aggressively.

“Bloody hell! You damn bastard!” Was all it took from the bigger man to send you scurrying away from him, leaving him there with two bleeding holes in his hand.

None of them expected that from you. They didn’t even know your teeth were that sharp??

Now Simon was in the infirmary getting his hand wrapped up, you were no where to be found, John was filling out an incident report, and Kyle was tasked with locating you.

You had ran off in frustration and shame, you didnt want to be found, at least not for a bit. You wanted a chance to sulk and pout and think about what you did. You were ready for a scolding, or worse. 

You were predictable though, hiding in the little river next to the base that you often played in. You were sniffling and hugging yourself while padding around in the water; self soothing or whatever a therapist would call it.

You didn’t even notice that Kyle was out there with you until he started skipping rocks against the water. You were going to try to swim away until you heard his voice, it made you stop in your tracks. You expected a yell or at least an angry tone, but instead you got something sweet and pleasant, like honey.

“Come over, for just a second love. I want’a show you something.” He hummed. You hesitated for a moment but you eventually swam over and sat next to him on the rocks.

He took your palm in his hand and put a flat rock in it. “You know how to stone skim?” He asked, looking at the water instead of you, you shook your head no and he chuckled.

“Try to flick it on the surface of the water.”

You tried and the first time it just sunk and you pouted but he instantly reassured you, handing you another rock and telling you to try again. This time you got it, it didn’t go very far but you were proud of yourself. “Did that feel good?” He asked, you nodded in return.

“I’m glad. I could tell you didn’t want exactly have a good output for your emotions, especially with Johnny gone.” He sighed softly, running his hand over your back.

“figured this might help , you spend a lot of time out here, so I thought I would be convenient too.” He used his free hand to pick up another rock and flick it into the water. “Don’t worry love, Johnny’s coming back. He’s just on a mission, thats all. In the mean time you can sleep in my room, might help. Though, you need to apologize to Simon.”

“I will, promise.”