As Rough as Troubled Waters

Chapter 1: Humble Beginnings

I held my hand over my mouth as I lay under the bed, trembling in fear as I listened to footsteps traversing my dorm looking for me. The footsteps stopped dead at my bed and it got even harder to breathe as I held my hand tighter over my mouth, my ears pinning back as pure raw fear ripped it's way through my body. I braced myself for a grip on my neck, expecting a stranger to drag me out from under the bed.

"Jupiter? come on, out from under the bed you idiot" A voice spoke as the figure crouched at the end of the bed.

With my tail practically stabbing me in the side I peaked out to see if I recognised whoever was standing above me. Vira was stood above me, looking down at me with the most over it face she could muster. I slowly climbed out from under the bed and felt her throw her arm around me, causing me to stumble slightly from the weakness in my leg. She lead me out of our dorms and down to the role call area, everyone was lined up for role call and Vira and myself walked through them straight up to stand by Cooper's side.

Cooper gave me a stern glare which caused me to wince away from him. I felt my anxiety rising the more I stood in front of the many eyes watching me although Bailey told me I needed to find a way for myself to calm when I was doing my job, a healthy way to cope with it... One of the many things my job included was being brave in front of the soldiers in the base. I settled for biting my cheek as I stood there, listening to Cooper call the names of the soliers out.

"Morningstar!" Cooper yelled, earning a 'present sir!' from Vira beside him.

When it came to my own surname being called out, I'll admit... I didn't respond because my mind at the time was plagued by the thoughts of all their eyes watching me. It wasn't until Vira replied for me that I realised he had called me which caused me to wince more when he turned to me and growled to meet him in his office. Vira gave me an empathetic look before she headed off to take the PT training that morning. With a gulp I followed after Cooper, my hands shaking due to my anxiety and my thoughts beginning to flash back to the events with my father's drug suppliers.

"Jupiter I'm sick of standing up there every morning, calling your name and you not responding to me. Do you know how that makes me look?" Cooper snarled at me, taking a seat at his desk and glaring daggers at me.

I bit my lip as I braced myself for the verbal abuse I would recieve from him for making him look bad in front of his soldiers and the entire time I was stood in his office, proved to be extremely difficult even if he didn't trigger my anxiety as much as the soldiers did. He sent me to the medic tent to help out with getting them supplies when he was finished chewing me out.
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"Hey J, you alright? you look like you've been chewed out by the big boss" Malibu joked, trying to lighten the mood.

I just gave Malibu a whimper in response. I heard him and the other medics chuckle at me as Dr Gaster lead me back to the resources they had just been delivered. Dr Gaster noticed me limping slightly as I walked behind him and much to my dismay, he pointed it out quickly to draw my attention to it.

"You've been getting pains in it again haven't you?" he asked, cornering me so that I couldn't avoid answering it.

I just accepted my defeat and gave him a nod, keeping my eyes to the ground to avoid feeling more embarrassed than I already was. He signalled me to sit down in the seat, setting the box of equipment down beside him as he knelt down to feel my leg.

I sat there, tense as anything due to the embarrassment I felt about the whole scenario with my boss however when Dr Gaster tried to feel around my leg for tension, he instantly noticed my tense body which caused him to stand up and pull my chin up so that I would be looking straight into his eyes.