Differences Part 3 by :Pent Ghelsburg
Disclaimer: The characters depicted in this work are purely fictional. Any resemblance to persons alive or dead is purely coincidental. They are the original and rightful intellectual property of their creators. I use them with permission and respect. This work involves underaged characters and some suggestive content. You have been warned.
A few days had passed and with it, the normalcy of school life had returned. The young students of the school continued their lives as their responsibilities would dictate. For Lucy and Chris, it was a time of searching for oneself. To determine if what they had was more than just simple friendship. For cubs so young, this would not be something that would be easy to figure out as it was not always clear what one wanted.
Lucy had returned to her circle of friends. The young otter was a socialite of sorts. She had a bigger group of friends than most girls her age. However, her best and longest-standing friend was Chloe. Chloe was an otter who had a bit of a superiority complex. She was vain and always worried about how she looked. Despite her young age, she had already taken up the daily use of makeup and oil-based perfume in an effort.
Lucy had known Chloe since they were in Kindergarten. They had been in the same class every year since then and were even in the same Girl Scout troop together. Yet, Lucy had not found the inner strength to speak to her best friend about Chris just yet. Chloe hated nothing more than foxes. The species of predator scared her to no end and she had hated them since she had a run-in with one when she was very young.
Lucy had been thinking about it for a while. She wanted to talk to Chloe about this boy she was hanging out with. But she knew that Chloe would have an issue with it. There was no question in her mind that it would cause a problem. She had even opened up to her parents about it, asking their advice about the issue. Of course, they told her she should talk to her friend about it. Telling her that Chloe would understand and give way but in her heart, Lucy just couldn't.
That morning, Lucy woke up to the sound of the buzzing of her alarm. It was the start of another week. She groggily dragged herself out of her bed and rubbed her eyes. Monday was always the most difficult for her. Coming from the weekend was something of a bit of a challenge. The otter pulled herself out of her bed and looked at the calendar. A bright red crayon circle was scribbled on it.
The day in question was the day she had agreed to tell Chloe. Her parents had talked her into it. It had finally arrived. Lucy couldn't help but be nervous about it. Part of her still didn't want to do it but she also wasn't one to lie to her parents. She went over to her wardrobe and put on her clothes. Picking out a nice frilly pink dress, leggings, and some socks to match with it. For some reason, she wanted to look nice today, though she wasn't entirely sure why.
Her mother soon called her to the kitchen. Lucy responded to the older female to let her know that she was coming. The young otter girl picked up pace and made her way down the hallways of her home. She lived in a humble home with only two bedrooms, so it wasn't overly large to navigate. Once she was inside the kitchen she saw her mother had already prepared some pancakes, fish sausage, and fruit.
"Good morning, honey. How did you sleep?" The older otter looked over her shoulder and smiled at her daughter.
Lucy sat down at the table. "Good. Thanks for breakfast."
"Of course, honey. No dilly-dallying around today though…I need to be at work earlier than usual for a meeting." The female got to work on making the girl's lunch for the day.
The young cub nodded at her. "Okay, mom. I won't."
Lucy was silent for the rest of the meal. She was still deep in thought about what she would have to do that day. She worked through her food quickly as she wasn't one to break a promise. Her mother handed off her lunch bag to her and backpack before patting her out of the kitchen. The older female was in a bit of a rush today and she was in no mood for messing around of any sort. Still, that didn't stop her from dropping her daughter off at school, as she always did during the warmer parts of the year.
The girl and her mother made their way to the vehicle. The mother had an old vehicle that she kept in pretty good shape, a beetle. It was an eye-catcher to be sure, especially when they got to the cub's school where her school-mates would often engage in "punch-bug". The two of them got into the vehicle and buckled up before the car got underway. The trip to the school wasn't a long one. The junior high was just down a couple of blocks from where they lived.
When they arrived, Lucy thanked her mother. The otter girl picked up her backpack before exiting it. It was a warm and sunny day out. The moment she got out, Lucy had to shield her eyes from the onslaught of the bright sunlight. She looked around for a moment, searching around for any of the mammals whom she might recognize. Eventually, her eyes came across Julie who was hanging out alone. The otter decided to check up on her since it had been a while and maybe get her advice on what to do.
Lucy made her way over to the tree where Julie was sitting. The smaller darker-furred river otter had her face in one of her school books The other girl was something of a bit of an academic. Always worried about her grades and seldom worried about her social life. Lucy was one of the few people whom Julie got along with as Lucy was the only one who saw past her "nerdy" façade. The bigger otter stood above her smaller friend and looked down at her.
"Is this spot taken, Jules?" She asked with a smile on her face.
Julie fixed the glasses on her snot. "Nupe. Go right ahead."
"Studying for a test?" Lucy sat down next to her friend.
The smaller otter snorted. "Nupe."
"Then why not read something more…enjoyable?" The bigger girl playfully nudged the other girl.
The darker-furred girl fixed her glasses again as they were a bit big on her. "This is fine…I need to make sure I am ready for math class today."
"Fair enough. Can I ask you something?" The lighter-furred girl got right to the thing on her mind that had been bugging her all morning.
Julie looked over at her. "Yup, I don't mind."
"Alright…so I know you're friendly with Chris and stuff. Well…I've been hanging out with him too and I want to tell Chloe about it.' Lucy twiddled her fingers in her lap as her nerves got to her.
The smaller cub hesitated before answering. "Well…from what I have heard Chloe isn't a fan of non-otters and especially not foxes…"
"I know…that's sort of my problem." She signed deeply knowing full well that was true.
The dark-furred cub rubbed her chin for a moment. "Why do you want to tell her anyway?"
"Well…she's my best friend. I can't hide it forever. She's going to find out eventually. Besides, I promised my parents I would…" Lucy looked back over at her friend.
Julie hummed. "Well…your right that you can't hide it forever. Chloe will find out with all of her friends. So it's probably better to just get it over with and just be done with it."
The bigger girl looked down at the ground. "Yeah…I guess you're right. Best to just deal with the consequences now rather than later if I was to try and be secretive about it."
The smaller girl nodded. "Yup."
The bell soon rang a moment later, announcing that it was time to head to class. Lucy got up and helped her friend do the same. They headed in together along with the rest of the foot traffic. Waiting among the sea of students who filtered in through the main entrance of the building. They made their toward the building ever so slowly. The air conditioning from the inside of the building filtered outside making it somewhat colder, their bodies shivering from the sudden transition in temperature.
The Junior High School was a small building since it only housed three grades. The building was set into four corridors, three of which housed the academic classes for each of the grades. In the last corridor were the electives, cafeteria, and the gym. This was the only place, in theory, where the different grades of students would mingle. Of course in practice, there was also passing but it worked for the most part as the administration had planned it.
Lucy and Julie made their way to the first class. With the exception of math, the two friends had the same classes for the most part. Julie only had an advanced math schedule which put her in the same classes as the other girl. Their first class of the day was literature. A class which the dark-furred girl enjoyed far more than her friend did. Mostly because Lucy hated reading…and this was one of the few classes that required it.
They made their way inside and waved to the familiar sight of the teacher. A greyed old grizzly bear who went by the name of Mr. Benson. The ursine was one of the few teachers who still taught by lecture. It was a fact that annoyed many of his students, who were much more used to other styles of learning. It was also the only class where the students were required to sit next to someone of the opposing gender.
The two girls went to opposite sides of the room. Lucy saw Arskan at his usual spot in the double-sided desk and decided to join him. Arskan was one of the few boys whom the girl got along with other than Chris. The river otter was a year older than his river otter counterpart. The boy had been held back when he was very young as his parents thought he had a bit of a hearing problem. The boy was the biggest otter in the grade and many of his peers, other than Lucy, were rather intimated of him.
Arskan was a shy boy and never made the first move to talk, even when amongst his friends. Lucy sat down next to him and the sea otter smiled at her but said nothing. It wasn't long before old Benson started class. His usual routine of skipping attendance and going straight into whatever he had in mind. Today's lesson was to surround the Three Mouseketeers. An old tale that was one of his favorites.
The students were informed of their task. A character comparison chart of the three characters. They were supposed
to have read the first two chapters of the book. Something which Lucy had completely forgotten about. She'd been so involved with hanging out with Chris that she completely forgot about the homework. She hung her head low believing that she'd get a bad grade on the assignment.
"Did you read the book, Ark?" She looked over at the bigger boy hopeful this was the case.
Arskan looked back at her and nodded softly. "Yeah."
"I didn't….do you think you could help me out? Please." Lucy clasped her paws together and pleaded with him.
The sea otter looked at her with disappointment on his face. "You forgot to do your homework? What were you doing instead?"
"Hanging out with Chris…" She muttered softly.
The bigger boy hesitated before responding to her again. "You're spending a lot of time with him lately. What's the deal?"
"I dunno. He's different than all the other boys. I mean don't get me wrong…I like you but you know…Chris is different." Her eyes glazed over a bit as if she was thinking about the fox again.
The older cub smirked at her. "You like him, don't you?"
"Of course, I like him…he's my friend. What's that supposed to mean?" The smaller girl folded her arms defensively.
Arskan rolled his eyes. "I mean more than that…you know as your mate."
"Um…" The girl blushed profusely at the use of the word in association with Chris.
The sea otter poked her playfully. "See? Told ya. You wouldn't have blushed if it wasn't true. "
"I guess…he is neat and stuff. I can't wait til I see him at lunch." The smaller cub looked up as if daydreaming again.
The bigger boy chuckled at her before nudging his friend. "Earth to Lucy…"
"Erm…sorry." The river otter looked back at him trying to stay focused.
The older cub smiled at her. "No problem. I'll help you but you owe me."
"Deal…Thanks, Ark." She regained her normal composure as she had pushed the fox out of her mind for the time being.
The two cubs got back to work after a short discussion of who would do what. Of course, that discussion didn't last long since Arskan was the only one who'd read the book. Lucy ended up being in charge of organizing and looking up references while the boy kept their thoughts together on paper. It took the river otter much longer than she would have liked to contribute she knew she shouldn't have forgotten to do her homework.
When the assignment was done, it was far from the best turn-in the team had ever put to paper. Arskan's side of the work was neat while Lucy's was rushed and a mess. Still, it was better to turn in something than to give way to scrap paper or an otherwise incomplete assignment. Lucy thanked Arskan for his help and the boy simply nodded to her. The older boy headed off in a different direction as they separated ways once the class was over.
After class, Lucy had to make her way through the busy halls. This time of day was the busiest and she knew there was an off chance that she'd see Chris. She began looking around for him in hopes of catching him sooner rather than later. Yet with the number of mammals around, it made it difficult to see who was who and she gave up after only a mere moment of searching. Continuing to her next class.
Her next class of the day was her least favorite math. Math was one of those things that Lucy just never understood no matter how hard she'd tried in the past. Her parents had even gotten her a tutor for the subject but even that didn't help very much. She groaned with disgust as she arrived outside the class and stood out there in hopes of relieving her of the general disgust she got from even being around the class.
One of her friends, Ulysses was nearby and couldn't help but overhear her exasperation. The bigger boy came over to her to see what was wrong.
"Math-itis again, Jules?" The bigger cat asked her while standing next to her.
She looked over at him and sighed. "Yes…I am so sick of Math."
"Maybe you should go to a doctor…seems to have been a problem for a while." The serval boy smirked at his joke.
Lucy rolled her eyes at him. "Very funny…ha…ha."
"It won't be that bad…It's not like we have a test or anything…at least I don't think we do." The serval tried cheering her up.
Ulysses was Lucy's only male friend besides Chris and Arskan. He was a serval cat who had recently relocated from South America. He was a surf nut who many of his friends knew as one of those people one simply could not dislike. He had longer fur the most, untamed and uncut. To those who did not know him, they thought did not groom himself. But the boy spent much more time worrying about how his fur looked than most boys his age.
Lucy shrugged. "I guess…It's not like I have a choice."
"Nope…you don't. Unless you want another detention with Mrs. Barber." The boy stuck his tongue out at her and combed back his head fur with his claws.
Mrs. Barber soon came out of the room to announce to the students that they could come inside. Mrs. Barber was a younger female. One who had recently come out of college. She was one of the closest to her student's age. However, despite her inexperience, the sloth was a no-nonsense type of teacher who put up with nothing that even closely resembled mischief. She waited for the students to come inside before going in herself.
The students made their way to the desks. Unlike most classes, this one seldom had group work. Mrs. Barber had a very individualistic type of style and believed that Math was best learned through practice. She soon began the lesson today. A new topic about pre-algebra and exploring the various topics to do with variables and how they worked. Of course, all of this went right over Lucy's head who the teacher may as well have been speaking a foreign language to.
The assignment was soon given. Yet another worksheet that each of the students was tasked with. Lucy looked at it as the paper was put on her desk. 20 questions of absolute horror and suffering looked at her as she stared at it blankly. She tried to force herself to do the first question, thinking it would be the easiest one on the paper. Even still, she couldn't quite understand the equation in front of her.
She fought through it for a while before caving in and asking for help. Mrs. Barber came to her desk to give her another solo tutorial. When she did, Lucy understood it a bit more. With a bit of trial and error, she was able to overcome the first few problems. When the class came to a close, she only had finished 5. She showed the Sloth teacher who allowed her to take it home since she was at least putting in effort for a change.
Lucy filed out of class and stashed the paper back into her backpack without a second thought. The girl was glad that math was over with. She felt like the day could only get better now that the worst was over. Once she was back in the hallway, she began looking for Chris again in hopes that she might find him. The otter cub wandered around the school a bit, not paying attention to where she was going.
Just as she was turning around one of the corners, she ran into someone. The young otter girl was sent reeling and so was the fur whom she ran into it. Lucy looked in front of her, realizing who it was. It was Chloe. The slightly larger river otter collected herself and got up before offering her best friend a helping paw. Lucy got up and looked at her friend, not seeming willing to speak at first.
"Sorry, Lu. I wasn't paying attention much." The bigger girl shrugged it off as neither one's fault.
Lucy smiled lightly at her. "Neither was I."
"Did you study for the History test?" Chloe hoped the other girl had she hadn't bothered to do it herself.
The smaller cub muttered. "N-no…"
"Drat..I was hoping you had. Oh well…guess it's the good old Christmas Tree method for both of us then." She put her arm around her best friend.
The smaller otter girl simply nodded and said nothing. She was feeling awkward around Chloe as she was certain the popufur would have heard about her hanging around with Chris. Yet the bigger otter was still being friendly with her so she began to wonder if that was the case or not. They made their way together to the next class, which was history. The two walked in together and sat down together, as they often did.
History class was the one class where group work was almost expected. The middle-aged lupine teacher believed in the power of collaboration. The male was extravagant, often going out of his way to role-play things for his classes. Though since today was a test, the wolf hadn't bothered to do anything out of the ordinary and stuck to business casual as most of his fellow teachers wore.
Chloe looked at him as they passed by his desk. The bigger otter stared at him intently. The male was her least favorite teacher, more because of her prejudices than anything else. Yet, she knew that she couldn't just get out of the class as she'd tried several times before. Now she just put up with it, though her grades and lack of focus on the content showed how much she cared for his lessons.
The wolf soon handed out the test. many of the students had forgotten about it, despite the teacher telling them more than enough times when it was going to be. Each of them was given a scantron with a question sheet. They were to be expected to remember content and extract information from passages. It was just a different way for them to hone their reading skills and few of them enjoyed the material, so the class averages were rather poor.
Lucy groaned when the test was given to her. She was nervous about that now. The nervousness she felt about it replaced the uncertainty she felt about being around Chloe. She began reading the questions of the paper. They only seemed vaguely familiar. She remembered talking about them but the details of each of the events listed on the paper escaped her. She continued leafing through in hopes she might
find a hint or otherwise remember something. Yet…it was no good.
The smaller otter began to work through the test. Most of it was pure guesswork. She hadn't prepared. She was much too busy hanging out with Chris to occupy herself with that. Thoughts of the fox boy began to fill her mind as she sat there darkening the bubbles on the sheet. She wasn't focusing on the task at hand. Her mind very much wandering to other things. It wasn't long before Chloe recognized her friend's test hadn't been filled out except for the first few questions.
Chloe nudged her and Lucy came back to earth. The test in front of her blurred together as a giant text blob. She began filling out the bubbles as she knew it didn't matter in the end. After all, it was pure guesswork for her since she hadn't prepared at all. When she was done she snorted at it before turning the form over on it's back. The otter girl was frustrated and didn't want to see the test anymore.
Lucy remained silent for the remainder of the class. Silence was normal practice for classes during examinations and she wanted to, at the very least, obey the rules so she didn't get in trouble. She folded her paws together and began to think about Chris again. The boy's silver-furred face filled her thoughts again. She still didn't quite understand why she continued to think about the other cub and yet it still brought a sense of calm to her.
When the class came to a close, she got up and turned in the test. Lucy didn't bother to look at the teacher as she was much too ashamed of herself. She carried on her way out of the class, waiting for Chloe to rejoin her. It wasn't long before the bigger otter appeared from the room. She seemed rather proud of herself despite not being prepared for the test. Lucy joined Chloe once she was outside.
A crowd of other students was all around them, making it difficult to hear anything. Lucy decided this was as good a time as any to spill the beans. She faced the bigger girl and looked her eye with the utmost sincerity in her gaze.
"Hey, Chloe…can we talk about something that's been bugging me?" Lucy hoped her best friend would pay attention to her and not go running off to one of her various cliques.
The bigger otter looked over at her. "Hmm? What's up? You've been acting a bit weird today."
"Well…what are your thoughts on Chris?" The smaller other twiddled her fingers together in a fit of nervousness.
Chloe's eye twitched a bit. "The fox boy in group B? Or who are you talking about?"
"Yes…the fox boy in group B. What do you think about him." Lucy looked down as if ashamed of herself.
The bigger otter clenched one of her fists. "He's a fox…he's not worth my time."
"Well…what if I told you I was hanging out with him? Would that bother you?" The smaller girl looked back at her best friend.
Chloe's mouth opened a bit in astonishment. "But…why?"
"He's a nice boy…I sort of think he's cute. We have some things in common…I was hoping you would be alright with it." Lucy tried pleading with her in hopes it would change the other girl's mind.
The bigger otter shook her head. "Unacceptable. He's a fox. There are plenty of otter boys you can hang out with. Why not hang out with one of them?"
"Because I like him. He's super fun and interesting and…"
Chloe interrupted her. "Enough. I don't want to hear any more about this. You need to rethink your friendship with that…fox. Otherwise, we can't be friends anymore…I can't be seen hanging around with someone who associates with….them."
'But Chloe… you are my best friend. Please?" Lucy's eyes watered a bit as she was hurt by the other girl's words.
The bigger turned away and walked down the hall away from her so-called friend. To Chloe, Lucy may as well have stabbed her in the back. Yet, it wasn't over for either girl just yet. Lucy had been given one last opportunity to "right her wrong". But for the smaller otter, this just didn't make sense. She still wanted to hang out with Chris and no threat, even from her own best friend, was going to change that.
For her next class, Lucy was a bit distraught. The discussion with Chloe had gone just as she expected. She sat down next to Julie for Science but she was in no mood to talk. Lucy was in a bit of a funk. Her mind was clouded partially by her disappointment in Chloe. Still, her thoughts occasionally drifted to the fox boy and when they did, she began to feel at least a little bit better about her situation. Eventually, she shut out the thoughts of Chloe and focused only on that, chippering up a bit once she did.
When Lunch rolled around, Lucy was all too happy to be done with her core classes the rest of the day. After lunch, she had her electives and she enjoyed those for the most part. Once her Science class was released, she plowed out of the room with the rest of the cubs. She had all but pushed Chloe out of her mind. Her thoughts on lunch and of possibly seeing Chris. Of course, she still didn't want to have her best friend see them together so she came up with a workaround.
The Cafeteria was one of the busiest places in the entire school. It was lined with tables that were spaced out so the students could walk between. Teachers were assigned to watch their grade levels so that mischief didn't get out of hand. A huge line filed around the right side of the room leading to a serving counter where cafeteria workers served up food. But Lucy didn't have to put up with this waiting since her mother made her a meal every day.
Once Lucy was inside the Cafeteria, she looked around. The amount of students around made it difficult to see who was there. She recalled that Chris had told her that he usually hung out with the school baseball team. Still, she had no idea who was on it as until he told her about it, she had no clue it even existed. The girl began walking around the cafeteria in hopes of finding Chris, or anyone, that she might know.
Soon she overheard her voice being called. She saw Julie sitting next to the fox boy. Her face instantly lit up as she made her way over. Making sure to sit down next to Julie so no one suspected anything. The bigger otter took out her lunch bag and delivered it to the table in front of them. Taking the stuff from inside it, she discovered her mother had made her favorite tuna sandwich.
"Hey…Lucy. How were classes?" The fox boy asked her from across the girl between them.
The otter girl snorted. "Fine…we had a history test today. That didn't go well. How about yours?"
"It was fine. Just some reviews and some silly books in literature. Do you have any plans after school?" Chris asked her as he chomped down on his meal.
Lucy thought about it for a moment. "No. I don't think so. Why?"
"I was thinking…maybe…would you like to go to my baseball game after school? The team is playing the seagulls today." He looked over at her with a hopeful smile on his face/
The smaller cub hummed. "Hmm…I'd have to ask my mom. Do you think your parents could take it home when it's done?"
"Probably. My Dad always picks me up after baseball practice and probably wouldn't mind." Chris sipped on a small carton of milk.
Lucy nodded. "I'll ask my mom after school. I don't think she'd care though."
"Alright, cool. I'll plan on seeing you there." The fox kit smiled widely at her with a goofy grin on his face.
Lucy and Chris went back to eating before long. Their desire for something to eat overrode any more want of conversation between the two. The fox's school meal was nowhere near as appetizing as the otters. It looked like slop that had been under-prepared at best. Every so often Chris would look at the otter girl. His gaze drifted to her as his thoughts deviated from his food since it wasn't that appetizing.
Eventually, Lucy caught him looking over her way. She couldn't help but wonder what he was staring at while she was holding the last bit of her sandwich.
"Did you want some?" She asked as if mind-reading the other cub's inner thoughts.
Chris muttered under his breath before blurting out. "Um..."
"You can have some if you like...The school food doesn't look that tasty." She guided the last slice of tuna sandwich over towards him.
The red fox looked at it a moment, contemplating his thoughts. His inner dialogue tells him that he shouldn't. Yet, he hadn't eaten very much of what he'd been given to eat. Slowly he reached over to take it from her, feeling slightly guilty about doing so. Looking at Lucy, the girl had a soft smile on her face as if giving him a sincere look to tell him that it was alright to eat.
"Thanks.." He took a single bite of it, that was more than enough to finish it off.
The taste of it was much better than the school meal. A smile crept up around his face as it settled down his stomach a bit. He couldn't help but want more of it and yet he knew there wasn't any more to be had. He looked over at her with a look of satisfaction on his face. The fox took the cookie from his cardboard tray and offered it to her to see if she wanted it. It took her a second to realize what he was doing.
Lucy looked over at his paw and considered it for a moment. She'd never had school food before, not even the treats. Yet, she wasn't about to turn it down. The otter took it from him and held it up to her snout. She smelled it. The confection smelt stale and dry. Still, the girl took it into her maw to taste it. Taking a single bite of it to be nice, she put the rest down on the tray in front of her.
"Wow...this is what the school serves? It's so...bland. But...thanks for letting me try it." Lucy still wanted to try and seem grateful for what she'd been given.
Chris nodded at her and frowned a bit. "Yeah, my parents said they don't spend a lot of money on school food and instead use it on sports or whatever."
"Does that mean your team has nice equipment and stuff?" She began sipping on the juice carton
enjoying the sweet flavor of apple.
The bigger boy smiled wider. "Yeah, we got a new weight room and stuff but we can't use it without the coaches or trainers being there.
"Oh neat. You'll have to show me sometime." She finished off her drink and tossed the carton out in a nearby trash can.
The fox kit shrugged at her. "I don't see why not though I'll have to ask the coach since it's usually off-limits."
"Alright cool." Lucy wiped her snout with her paws.
The two finished their meal without many more words between them. Chris was still hungry as he hadn't finished most of the meal he'd been given by the cafeteria. He decided he could go without and grab a snack bar from the coach as he normally gave them out before games anyway. They made their way out of the cafeteria and went about the rest of their days like normal.
The last two classes of the day for Lucy were graphic arts and gym. She didn't like physical education much but it was the one time of day she got to see the fox kit other than lunch. Graphic Arts was the one class she truly enjoyed as it was the one class that allowed her to express her creative muscles. She was a budding artist and tried to sketch when she could often whatever she worked on would be confiscated by a teacher.
She made her way into the art room. The tables were much higher in the class with stools on the side of them to accommodate for their elevation. Lucy padded her way over to one of the tables. The other cubs already at the table were in a different grade than her so she didn't know them quite as well as her peers. Still, Lucy tried to be amicable around them and sat with them despite their age difference.
Today's assignment was to be a group assignment. One where they would make a collaborative painting of nature. They were given a picture as a reference and expected to reproduce it as best they could. Lucy's group was given one of the local mountain ranges, one which few of them had ever visited. It's frosty peaks pining through the fjords of various valleys. A dimsy fog spread out in between it, obscuring an otherwise clear sky.
Lucy's group began working on it. Each cub took a different aspect of the painting. The otter girl focused on the background since that's what she was best at. Soft blues...grainy greys...and gentle greens were chosen as her medium. Of course, she started with line art and outlined what she thought the wind pattern looked like...how the trees flowed...and how the birds soared against the skyline.
So they continued to craft their painting. Lucy was much more intricate with it than her peers were. Her background popped with the most detail. When they turned in the thing, they were awarded some commendation from the teacher who even commented on the background. This made the girl all too proud that it was her work and she felt much better about it than she did previously, as she was always a bit self-conscious about her painting skills.
They were soon dismissed from class for the final one. It was a mandatory gym class for her grade. She didn't hate physical activity or sports but there were more than enough occasions where the coaches would assign them something and she simply didn't like it. The only sport that she had discovered she enjoyed playing was tennis and it was very rare that the school used that as an activity since the gym classes were far too large to accommodate on tennis courts.
As such, the only times where she got to practice her tennis form was when the students were given "free activity days." That day was no such thing. Instead, she found out that kickball was an activity to entertain the students. She figured it was better than dodgeball and participated with little argument. After all, it was a mere hour away from after school and that was really what she was looking forward to.
Gym class flew by like nothing. The dodgeball game was fast and fervid, as it often was. Lucy had only gotten to kick twice, but it didn't matter to her. The entire time her mind had been on the end goal. She asked the coach if she could leave early so she could inform her mother of her plans. The girl found the older female had no issue with her staying late to see the baseball game, especially when she learned who would be involved.
By the time the bell rang, Lucy was just getting off the phone with her mother. She was more than happy that she'd get to stay. This would be the first time that she'd be staying for something other than art club. She'd never been to a baseball game before and couldn't help but wonder what it would be like. She waited a few moments as the rush of kids plowed by the door to the front office, where she waited patiently.
When the foot traffic slowed down a bit, she filtered out into the hallway with the rest of them. Lucy was fully aware of where the baseball field was, despite not having gone there before. It was one of those attractions that the school had that sort of just stood out. She made her way in the opposite direction of everyone else and headed out the back door. As she expected, she saw some of the other cubs carrying duffel bags to the baseball field in the distance.
The otter girl picked up pace in hopes that she might see Chris. She ran as fast as her paws would take her. The girl's excitement had piqued. This was the moment she'd been waiting for the entire day. A chance to see Chris and perhaps even to spend a bit of time with him. Once she got to the baseball field, she found the fox boy was nowhere to be seen. The girl huffed and panted as she tried to catch her breath.
Eventually, the red fox kit came reeling out of the locker rooms to the outside. The boy saw that Lucy had already arrived. The pep in his step had picked up all too readily upon realizing it. He rushed over to her. The boy had already changed into his baseball uniform; a blue and white striped jersey with matching trousers. On the back and sleeve of it, he wore the number 14 with some local advertisements plastered all over the back of it.
He reached to her from behind, trying to get her attention. "Hey, Lucy. Glad to see you could make it."
The girl turned around and smiled warmly upon realizing who it was. "Hey, Chris. You look nice in your outfit."
"Thanks, Lu. Do you still want to see the training room? I checked with the coach and she said it was alright." The bigger boy blushed a bit at her comment.
Lucy nodded. "Uh-huh. That would be cool."
The fox kit offered out his paw and the girl all but gladly took it. The two walked paw-in-paw toward a small shack in the back of the school building. The old structure looked fairly new with the school's mascot and name on the side of it. Lucy had never seen it before so she assumed the thing had to be fairly new. Chris led her to the left door that entered into one half of the building.
Once inside of it, Chris showed around Lucy. Everything inside of it was brand new. The lockers still had their fresh coat of paint on them. The wooden benches were almost entirely without cracks or other blemishes. The room smelt of a mixture of air freshener and body odor. It was apparent it had been sprayed recently. The fox showed her to the training room which was littered with all sorts of exercise equipment.
There was no one else inside the training room. A small TV hung at a few of the corners with a radio churning out some pop music. Lucy had never seen so much exercise equipment before. Even in the school gym itself, there didn't appear to be as much as there was here. Still, she couldn't help but gawk at it as she was surprised by the sheer amount of stuff there was. Chris smirked at her, glad to show her around a bit.
They returned to the outside before long. Chris told her that they didn't have much time to do a real tour and that he'd do another one later. The otter was allowed to sit with the team on the injured reserve benches. A privilege that only a few other people had gotten to be privy to before. Chris let her paw go and waved to her as he turned to the field to go to his game. Lucy felt a sense of longing build within her as she watched him go to the mid-field.
Chris played shortstop for the team. He was in charge of being between second and third base. It was a defensive position with the responsibility of catching any balls that went his way and making throws whenever a ball was thrown toward him. The fox took his position and waited for the game to start. The referees soon came out to the field and the first batter took their place at home plate.
The whistle was blown and the game began. The first batter was struck out with them not even making a single hit. The second batter, a small lion cub boy came to the plate chewing some bubble gum rather than loudly. Pointing out to the outfield as if he were Aaron Judge. On the very first pitch, he slammed way into the outfield. The cubs who were out there scattered as they tried to catch it with one of them calling that they got it.
They fell short, having to throw the ball back in. Chris caught the ball, with Lucy already cheering him on as loudly as she could. The fox kit threw it to first base with the student there scoring a last-minute out at third base. Already the visiting team had two outs and things were looking good for the home team. The next batter came up to the plate, being nowhere near as show-boaty as the one before him.
The batter hit the ball straight out of the park. The home team groaned in dismay as the cub ran around the bases. The large walrus cub was more than happy with his success and yet he kept a straight face. Not even so much as budging a smile across his snout. The cubs in the mid and outfield looked at him in a state of disbelief. Lucy frowned at the event but wasn't entirely sure what to make of it.
The visiting team soon switched with the home team after the third out was delivered.
It was finally time for the school club to come up to bat. Lucy couldn't help but feel excited by it all. She watched as Chris ran from his position to the dugout where all of the other cubs were filing inside. Once inside she saw the fox kit talking to one of the coaches. Of course, she had no idea what he was saying and could only guess what it was about.
Chris was begging the coach to allow him to go up to bat. The older male wasn't expecting this and was taken aback a bit. As a fellow vulpine, he couldn't help but sympathize with the cub even know the older fox had no idea what it was all about. He caved in and decided to allow Chris to go up to bat during the first rotation of students. The younger boy thanked him heartily before sitting down at an empty spot on the wooden bench.
The first two batters came up to home plate. Most of the school students were no more experienced than the members of the opposing team. The first boy got a single base hit while the second one ended up striking out. Chris was called out of the dugout and told to go up to bat. The coach wished him luck and sent the boy on his way. The fox kit couldn't help but be nervous as he wanted nothing more than to impress Lucy.
Chris stepped up to the plate. The baseball cap on his forehead blocked out a little bit of the sun gazing towards him. Even still, the ever-present glare of streaking light caused him to squint a bit. He chomped on his bottom lips as he prepared for the first pitch. Watching the pitcher in front of him as the boy on the mound soon let go of the ball, throwing it as fast as he could toward home plate.
The fox kit swung his bat forward…the ball sailing just below his bat and giving him his first strike as it was announced by the umpire behind him. Chris grunted as he prepared for the second pitch, trying to refocus himself. Watched again as the ball sailed towards him. This time the ball hit the center of his bat and wailed off into the distance. Lucy cheered at him as the boy began to run down the first baseline.
Chris ran as fast as he could. His hit fell far short of a home run but still made it into the outfield where none of the members of the opposing team could get to it quickly enough. The fox made it to the second base…which now meant there was a person at two of the three bases. All that was needed was one or two more hits and the fox kit would score a run. He began to hope that one of the other cubs would send him running home.
Yet it was not to be…the remaining members of the team's batting lineup were struck out. Stealing bases were not allowed in the school league so the cubs who were on the bases were sent back to the outfield to play defense once again. Of course, Chris was a little upset but the game wasn't over and he knew there was still a chance to impress Lucy. He went back to shortstop and hoped he would make some sort of amazing play.
The rest of the game went much the same way. Neither of the teams had stellar players. The score remained the same for the rest of it. Chris was only allowed to bat one more time but he didn't get a hit the second time. In his mind, the game was a failure despite his first-round hit. But to Lucy, this was more than enough. The girl had seen a budding baseball star in her mind and her affection for him only grew as a result.
When the game came to a close, the fox kit was a bit disgruntled. The cubs all went to center field and began the paw shake line. It was a short but ceremonial ordeal. Once Chris was done with that, he made his way out of the line and over to the bench where Lucy sat. The girl smiled widely at him and got off the bench as she saw him approach. Chris splashed himself with a water bottle he had brought with him. The fox's fur was somewhat matted from the water and he pushed some of it out of his eyes so he could see better.
"You played amazing out there, Chris…" The river otter shuffled her feet into the sand as she stood there idly.
The fox kit frowned a bit. "No, I didn't. I didn't even score a run."
"You got a hit though…and you made a few catches. That was pretty neat." She tried to cheer up the bigger cub who was unsatisfied with his performance.
The silver-furred boy looked into her eyes. "You think so?"
"Yeah. I could never have done that…It was cool." She reached over and touched his shoulder.
Chris twitched a moment as if expecting it. "You wanna hang out a little before I call my parents? The game ended early…so…I don't think they would mind."
"Sure…I would like that. Your parents have to take me home anyway." The otter smiled at the other boy with a twinkle in her eyes.
The fox kit offered out his paw in a gesture of leading her. Lucy took it gleefully as she joined her paw with his own. The two walked paw in paw off into the distance away from the baseball field. The sun was just beginning to set so there was still a softening red light to illuminate their way. Eventually, they made their way to a big oak tree near the rear of the school. It was the largest tree in the area and it was a place where the students hung out when it was hot out.
Chris sat down underneath it and patted the spot next to him, coaxing her to do the same. The otter girl joined him without delay, plopping her body right next to the other cub with little space between them. Their shoulders locked against one another. Lucy leaned against him, pushing her head against him as she relaxed into his body. The fox kit couldn't help but squirm, unsure what to make of the alien affection.
"Would you like to hang out more at school, Lucy? I know we don't have the same schedule but still…" The bigger boy was hopeful she would agree.
Lucy hummed softly for a moment. "That would be neat, Chris…I would like that."
No consideration was made for Chloe at that moment. The otter girl's entire thoughts focused entirely on the boy next to her. Without any hesitation, the otter girl leaned against the other cub. Her head lay on his shoulder. Chris couldn't so much as look at her. Her head on his shoulder made it difficult for him to turn his head to look over her. It didn't so much as make him uneasy as it made him feel uncertain.
The fox kit had no body odor about him despite the physical exertion he had just gone through. Lucy was enjoying body warmth emanating from his body. She squeezed his paw tightly as she held it in her own. Butterflies began to churn in the boy's stomach as nerves began to stir within him. The otter girl closed her eyes a bit as she was enjoying being so close to the boy who had dominated her thoughts all recently.
"Are you alright, Lucy? Do you not feel well?" Chris couldn't help but ask at the odd behavior.
Lucy murmured a bit. "Mhm…"
"You're acting weird Lucy…are you sure?" The fox kit kept his voice soft as if to not disturb the girl's restful state.
The smaller cub eventually lifted her head and looked over at the other boy. She instinctively leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. She pecked him but for a moment, her soft lips pressing against his furry face. The fox boy blushed profusely as he was taken aback a bit. It was then he began to realize the girl's true feelings for him. Though…he still had no understanding of what he should do about it.
"I really…like you, Chris…" She said maintaining the soft tone they had already established between them.
The bigger boy gulped. "You do…? Well….I like you too…Lucy."
Lucy smiled meekly as she giggled a bit at him. Of course, she took his affirmation a bit differently than he intended. A bright red blush still adorned the fox cub's face as he sat there idly trying to process it. The otter girl soon began rubbing her paw against the side of his arm, ruffling his fur and the bottom hem of the sleeve of his baseball jersey. He looked at her, unsure of what to make of the sudden show of affection.
Chris' heart began racing. He'd never had a girl this interested in him before. He watched her tread her paw across his arm. Her smooth fur ran easily across his own. Her touch eventually landed at his paw, stroking in between each of his fingers. The girl guided his paw over to her and placed it on her arm. She smiled at him, coaxing it to do the same as if to give him guidance and the certainty to do it himself.
The fox kit soon got the picture and carried on with it himself. Lucy smiled at him, glad to see that he was just as willing to explore as she was. His rough paw pads gritted against her soft fur, threading it between the spaces of each of them. Lucy leaned into him again, pressing her snout against his neck. She nuzzled into him a bit, rubbing her nose against the fur along the crook in the boy's neck.
The bigger cub's nerves began to stir again. His grip tightened a bit before his touch came to an abrupt stop. Lucy began stroking him again as if to coax him back into a more relaxed state of mind. Eventually, she moved her paws over his back, stroking along the cub's spine. Her soft touch therapeutically moved over his rear side she she stroked it back and forth. Chris closed his eyes a bit but remained rather tense about the ordeal.
"Relax…" She whispered into him, her warm breath ruffling the patch of fur that she was resting on.
Her voice echoed into his ears. It didn't need to be loud for him to hear it. The fox boy's sense of hearing was just as keen as any other of his ilk. His tension died down a bit as his firm posture loosened. His grip gave way to an open paw as he tried to relieve himself of the stress he was dealing with. Soon he took his paw over towards her and reached over her shoulder before pulling her in as close as she could get to him.
Chris contemplated for a moment to do the same as Lucy was to him. The girl moved her head off his shoulders and gazed up at him. Her eyes were half-glazed over as if in ecstasy from the moment. Her soft smile gave him all
the affirmation that needed. Eventually, he lowered his paw over her back and began to stroke it. The otter cub's grin only grew wider once she realized what he was trying to do.
Lucy was growing more brave by the moment. Her touch soon shifted to his front side. The fox cub's baseball jersey lifted ever so slightly against her constant movement. Chris looked down at her wayward touch with interest. She rubbed across his stomach in one fluid motion, remaining in no one particular place. Shifting from his stomach to his chest and then back again. Gradually she slowed her touch to a stop, right over the cub's heart.
The otter girl could feel Chris' heartbeat. The quick but steady thumping could tell her more than she even realized. Remaining there for a moment before easing both their bodies into a resting state. The fox kit allowed her to control him. Wanting nothing more than to just relax with him and enjoy the moment. Chris squeezed her paw more tightly before giving her a sift lick across the side of her face.
Lucy blushed profusely. The feral but alien affection was not known to her. Yet she understood it all the same. The cub allowed herself to take a deep breath and just lay there under the tree without a word. Their relaxed state of mind remained as such until the fox cub's phone began buzzing in his pocket. He snorted as he dragged it out, finding that his parents were waiting for him at the car loop.
Chris sighed upon reading the text. He wanted to spend more time with Lucy but he also understood that both of them needed to go home. The fox boy got up and helped the smaller girl do the same. The two joined paws once again, walking their way back across the baseball field. By this time of day, the only mammals around were the coaches. The fox kit waved over towards them but didn't divert their direction at all.
They made their way to the car loop. Chris' mother's car was waiting along the sidewalk. The older female was not expecting to have a guest in the car. Seeing the two cubs locked paw in paw made her smile, though to see her son with different species of predator was a surprise, to say the least. She wasn't about to say anything either. She knew from her own mother's teachings that it was best to let kids just be kids.
Lucy and Chris filed into the back seat together. The two of them sat next to each other, despite there being more than enough space to put more between them. The mother smirked at them, no longer annoyed that her son had seemingly dilly-dallied. She knew all too well what was behind it and wasn't about to say anything.
"Sorry, I was late, Mom." The fox cub said from the back seat.
She nodded at him and started the car before long. Occasionally looking back into the rearview mirror. The otter girl was leaning against her son despite being strapped in by the seat belt. She was surprised they seemed so close. Until now she saw nothing indicating their friendship was anything more than that. The older female soon stopped looking back at them and returned her focus to the road.
Lucy had to tell her where to go. The distance to the otter's house wasn't very far. The otter and fox cub remained together for the duration of the car ride. Neither of them seemed willing to separate from the other. The smaller girl was almost restful enough to fall asleep on the boy's arm but having to give directions had kept her from falling asleep. Still, she had managed to get into a much more relaxed state by the time they arrived at her place.
Once they arrived, the fox's mother stopped at a nearby curb. Lucy slowly picked herself up before easing herself across the surface of the seat. The two eventually broke their paw holding as they were no longer in personal distance of one another. Lucy turned away from him before beginning to walk towards her home. Her thoughts were still filled with thoughts of the fox boy. She wanted to spend more time with him but knew it was not to be.
Just as she was about to go inside, Chris yelled at her to wait. The fox kit came reeling out of the car and ran towards her as fast as his stalky little body would take her. He carried himself across the distance in no time flat. The two rejoined each other once more. The fox took the smaller girl into his arms and hugged her. The two shared a soft embrace for a few moments until they finally broke.
When they did…the boy leaned in and planted a kiss on her lips. Lucy was all too happy to accept. Her snout pressed against his own. Their soft noses pressed against one another as they smooshed together. The kiss lasted for a few seconds but for them, it may as well have been an eternity. Their hearts raced in their chest, remaining at an ever-quickened pace even after they pulled apart.
As they separated, the two lingered a bit. Their eyes locked into one another. Each cub smiled at the other. Both seemed fulfilled and happy with what had happened. Lucy watched the fox boy trot off into the distance. Both of their parents had watched the scenes unfold. Neither seemed bothered enough to stop it. After all…young love was to be fickle and better to let them explore than to not. Their futures looked bright and their minds hearkened forevermore…as their love began to flourish and become anew.
