Puppy Dog (Keegan x reader)

Final Stage

I tear off a branch of a bushy fern that sits heavy as the rain patters down on it. I take the feathered leaf and tie it to me with the thin strings of my ghillie suit. I pluck a few more leaves from the fern, and I pull tall blades of grass from the muddy earth. The rain beats heavily on me, weighing me down as a quietly trudge through the squishy puddles forming on the forest floor. I'm currently in the last stage of training to become a sniper. My marksmanship skills have always been exemplary, and my small stature gives me a good advantage as I'm less noticeable. At first, I wanted to become an infantryman, but there's a certain thrill to becoming a deadly and invisible weapon that the brute force of an infantryman can't replace. At this stage, the other soldiers who had made it this far into training and I were playing the military version of hide and seek. There were multiple watch posts set up in the thick maze that was the forest and the open fields. The "game" had started 4 hours ago, and I still haven't been spotted.

As the greenery around me changes from tall trees and ferns to tall grass, I switch from crouching to crawling. My body was already soaked, and laying on my stomach didn't make much of a difference. I hold my gun slightly above my elbows as I move through the grass to keep it from getting wet. About 500 feet away from me, I spot the wooden structure of a watch post. A soldier stands at the top of the tower, looking down with a pair of beige binoculars around his neck. I couldn't make out his features, but I could tell he's of higher ranking because of the small square of red on the left side of his uniform. I crawl on my elbows until I reach the base of a thick tree. I sit on my heels and pull off the fern leaves and small branches that I fastened to my ghillie. I was about to move through a tall field of grass, so I had to switch my camouflage to match my surroundings. I reach for a bundle of tall brown grass and yank on it, but it's really hard to pull. "What the hell?" I whispered.

"Come on, man. You're literally grass. How are you stronger than me?" I continue, a bit agitated.

I grab a smaller bundle to make it easier to pull. I pull it out of the ground, a chunk of dirt and tightly packed roots coming with it. I begin to tie the tall blades of grass to my person, standing them a bit upright to make them look more natural. As I grab another bundle of grass, a large green bug jumps onto my hand. I look at it for a second before realizing that it's a praying mantis. I'm not scared of many things, but I'm horrified of praying mantises. Their eyes, I just... ugh. "Oh hell, nah." I violently shake my hand, desperate to fling the mantis away.

It flies off of my hand to God knows where. I sigh and now I'm suddenly very happy it's raining or else I would've been heard... but that's when I hear a whistle. I've been spotted. I groan a little and stand up. I was doing so well, I thought I would've won. I walk back through the deep squishy soil, dragging the butt of my rifle behind me to get back to the others. I hear the sound of upbeat voices as I near the area. I was supposed to wait until the "game" was over. My disappointed face quickly turns to an expression of happiness as I spot my friend. I sit next to him on the ground. "What'd you do to your gun?" He asks with an amassed tone.

I look down at my rifle and see a large chunk of mud clinging to the end of it. It collected while I was dragging it across the forest floor. "So how fast did you get spotted?" I ask him.

Archer looks at me with his deep brown eyes. His black hair clings to his face from the rain. "I was spotted like an hour ago when I was going up that one hill."

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah. So how'd you get seen?"

"There was this damn praying mantis crawling up my arm, and I freaked out a little."

"Oh, now you're just making excuses." He punches my arm.

I laugh even though it hurts. "No, it really happened. So, what have you been doing this whole time?"

"Just talking. Oh, my God. We were playing smash or pass with the younger versions of historical dudes!"

"Who?" I laugh a little.

"Hitler, Mousolini, Stalin, the Pope, some other guys but, actually... the Pope, though..." Archer put his hand on his chin and smirks excessively. "Smash."

"Yo, what? You've gotta show me now."

Before I joined the Marines, I never talked like this, I never even cursed before. But being around guys 24/7 almost 365, you start to pick up a few habits. A few of mine are saying "bro" way too much. One thing I do like though is that these guys actually find me funny. The jokes I tell would put me in prison for 25 years, but these guys love them!

Archer pushes his wet hair out of his eyes. "I'll show you during dinner."

"Okay." I smile.

"Y'know, I can't take you seriously with that on." He lifts up the netting on my ghille suit with a suppressed smirk.

"I forgot I was wearing it." I slip the greenery from the knots of my suit and take my helmet off. "Better?"

"Yeah... how are you so damn small? Like, how tall are you? 5 foot?" He starts laughing loudly.

"Not as small as your di -" I can't even finish before Archer starts laughing again.

"AYOO! How would you know that!?" His eyes are wide with mock surprise and laughter.

Another guy named Daniel jumps into our conversation. "What are you two missing your pants about, Archie." Daniel asks obviously with intentions of instigating.

My laughter subsides as I suddenly feel jealous. The only person who ever calls Archer "Archie" is me. I'm not in love with him or anything, but I don't want Archie to replace me with someone else. He's not my only friend but he is my best friend. We're basically like the same person but with small differences in personality.
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More people cone back to the "loser" area for people who've been spotted, and soon enough, the whole team's there. The sun was just starting to set, creating a stark contrast between the orangish-red clouds on the horizon and the gloomy and grey clouds just above them. Our lieutenant comes back shortly after the winner of the "game" comes back. A few other high-ranking soldiers tail behind him. "All right, boys, let's get back to the plane. And since Carter outdid all of your sorry asses by 2 hours and 4 minutes, you'll all be doing his curit when we get back." The lieutenant's voice is scruffy from the years of training and screaming he's been through.

A few groans come from the group as we pack up to load into the plane. I shove a few things into my bag and sling my sniper rifle over my shoulder. We all walk in an unorganized blob back to the plane. "I can't wait to go to sleep." Archie whines a little.

I smile a little. "Me too."
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Thank you for reading my first chapter! Leave a comment and vote! 😁