“What do you think, man?” I asked enthusiastically. I was in the middle of showing Tyler the orphanage; a wide, two-story building with a flat roof, lime green siding with a lining of bricks across the bottom, and a small flower bed near the front door. A bright white, wooden fence with a door was standing on the sides of the building and wrapped around to the back. I presented it as if I was showing off a new magic trick. “We just had it refurbished not too long ago. Pretty cool, right?”
“Yeah. It’s nice,” Tyler responded in a monotone, giving a weak smile. Quickly realizing that the presentation itself wasn’t working too well, I thought up another thing to show him.
“Oh! This part we added just recently.” I walked over to one side of the fence and drew Tyler’s attention to a bunch of ovals of many different colors with names written quite messily under each one. “After we fixed the fence, we let the kids put their hoofprints across it and signed them. The kids loved it!”
“Sounds like a fun time,” Tyler said, his tone still not changing. I sighed and dropped my smile. Walking up to him, I placed my hand on Tyler’s shoulder and looked into his eyes. They were sulky, just as the day I had first left.
“Tyler, I know it’s been rough for you these past few months, but I can only do so much by myself. You’re my friend, and I care about you. That’s why I brought you with me. I sincerely believe that this is what you need to help get you back to your old, cheerful self.” Tyler took a moment to glance back at the front door of the orphanage. I continued, “So, can you please promise me you’ll at least try to give this place a chance?” Tyler looked back at me, and then looked left and right. It was clear that he was thinking hard about it.
After a minute of silence, Tyler sighed, turned back to me, and said, “Alright, Jack. I’ll try.”
“Great,” I said happily, a new surge of hope shooting through me. I let go of Tyler and walked forward toward the front door. “C’mon! Let me show you the inside.” I pushed the door opened and beckoned Tyler to enter, which he slowly did.
The inside was pretty standard for a orphanage. Amidst the plain, cream-colored walls, there were photos of past fillies and colts who had stayed there, arts and crafts taped all around, and so on. Tyler glanced around at the pictures, paint splattered on some and crayons scribbled on others, before looking down each of the hallways.
“Let’s see…” I said, looking around before pointing toward an official-looking door with the sign “Main Office” on the front. “There’s the office, where we have interviews with future parents,” I pointed down the left hallway and Tyler’s eyes followed it nonchalantly, “bedrooms and study are down that way,” I pointed towards the back door, “the playground’s out back,” I pointed down the opposite hall, “that way leads to the playroom and bathrooms…” Right as I had said that, the door that lead to the boys bathroom opened and a small, unicorn colt came out. His fur was sky blue, and he had a short, scruffy, brown mane with a dark blue baseball cap on his head. He was just turning to go back out to the playground, when he caught sight of us. Instantly, his face broke into a smile.
“Mr. Jack!”
“Hey, Slugger!” I greeted cheerfully as he ran up to me. I knelt down just in time for him to wrap his front legs around my neck. I happily returned the hug. “Good to see you again, bud! How’re you doing?”
“Great!” Slugger said as he broke the hug. “Yesterday, w-w-w-we were playing ball, a-a-a-and I hit it over the fence and got a home run!”
“That’s awesome!” I said, rubbing the top of his hat. “Looks like that cutie mark is really paying off, huh?” Slugger looked at his flank for me to see a hat, bat, and glove on it and puffed out his chest proudly. I smiled and stood up again. It was then that I realized that Tyler was still next to me. “Oh! Tyler, this is my little buddy, Slugger. Slugger, this is my human friend, Tyler.” Slugger smiled at him and Tyler smiled back, but only faintly.
“Hello,” he said softly.
“Hi!” Slugger greeted back more happily before turning back to me. “Wait till I tell the others that you’re here!” He then turned and bolted as fast as he could out the back door toward the playground.
“Slugger!” a voice shouted from the left hallway, making Slugger stop mid door opening. From the other side of the hall came an official-looking, unicorn mare in her 40s. Her fur was peach, and her mane was dark pink which was pulled in a tight bun. She was wearing thick-rimmed glasses and her cutie mark was two hearts joining together. “No running inside, please,” she said gently, but firmly to Slugger, who nodded obediently and continued out the door. The mare then turned toward us and lit up instantly when she saw me. “Mr. Jack!”
“Hi, Miss Care!” I greeted, walking up and bending down to give her a hug.
“What brings you back to our neck of the woods?” she asked. “And so soon?” I broke the hug and smiled to her.
“Well I’ve got a couple coming in to finalize their adoption. Plus,” I leaned in a bit, “seeing and hanging with the kids is always a plus! I’ll be here for a few weeks! Hope you don’t mind.”
“Not at all!” Miss Care chuckled. “I know the kids will like that!” She then looked over my shoulder and pointed towards Tyler. “Who’s this?”
“This is my best friend, Tyler,” I replied. I waved for Tyler to come closer, which he did. “Tyler, this is Miss Lovin Care. She runs the orphanage.”
“How do you do?” Tyler stuck out a hand. Miss Care reached up and the two politely shook...well...limbs.
“Delighted!” she responded with a smile. “Any friend of Jack’s is a friend of ours! The kids simply adore him!”
I smiled back and placed a hand on Tyler’s shoulder. “Then I think the kids are in for a real treat! Tyler has a knack for taking care of children as well!” I gave Tyler a reassuring smile, but only received half of one from him in return. Miss Care glanced at both of us and broadened her smile.
“Well, we could always use the help! They’re all out back if you want to see them!” She then trotted past us toward the office door. “I’ll be in my office if you need me!”
“Thanks!” I called as she disappeared into the office. Then, turning towards the back door, I turned to Tyler. “C’mon, buddy. Once you see these little buggers, you’ll never wanna leave.”
“Whatever you say,” I heard Tyler mutter as I opened the door leading to the playground.
As soon as we stepped onto the lawn, every little pair of eyes turned to look at us. Fillies and colts then galloped up from all over with big smiles on their faces. Some just said hi while others wanted a high five, or hoof bump to them, or a hug. I quickly introduced Tyler to the kids, and they happily greeted him. Tyler smiled just enough to say hi back, but I knew that it wasn’t his usual reaction to meeting some new kids. He was always so enthusiastic when new kids were brought to the daycare back home, but now it was just a pale imitation of what once was. Once I had introduced Tyler to the other helpers as well, I was instantly called over by Slugger to play some ball. I looked over at Tyler, hoping that he would want to join as well, but he said that he’d just sit for a while. Deciding to give him some space to take everything in, I quickly joined Slugger and some others.
Half an hour later, however, Tyler was still just sitting on a bench in the corner, watching the kids play with a monotone expression. For all the times I had looked over, he didn’t even look interested in trying to join in on anything. Realizing that just hoping that he was gonna make the first move wasn’t working, I decided to try some enthusiastic persuasion again.
“Tyler,” I called, walking up to the bench. Tyler looked at me, his gaze unexpressive. “You’ve been sitting here all afternoon. Why don’t you come play with some of the kids?” I drew Tyler’s attention over to a pack of children who were running around while one tried to catch them. “Rosie May just started a game of tag. I’m sure they’d love to have you join!”
“No thanks,” Tyler responded with a sigh.
“You wanna play a game of Red Light, Green Light? That’s always a favorite here.”
“Maybe later.”
“Well, how ‘bout-”
“Jack!” Tyler snapped. I instantly shut my mouth and straightened up from the sudden outburst. His tone wasn’t really angry, but rather exasperated. Seeing the look of shock on my face, Tyler took a deep breath and sighed. “Look. I appreciate what you’re trying to do for me. I really do. But being surrounded by all these kids is…” he paused as he looked at the smiling, laughing fillies and colts running around, and when he spoke again, his voice cracked, “well...it’s still too soon for me.”
“Oh.” That was the only word that left my mouth. I suddenly felt extremely stupid. I was trying to cheer my friend up from the loss of his wife and child, and I surround him with more children? What kind of bonehead move was that? Tyler must’ve been reading my thoughts, cause he then reached up, placed a gentle hand on my shoulder, and sighed again.
“I’m sorry, Jack,” he said, and he did sound truly sorry. “Thanks for looking out for me, but...I think I might just catch the next plane home tonight.”
“N-no it’s ok,” I replied quickly. “I understand.”
I then turned around and walked back toward the other side of the yard. My insides felt like they were suddenly filled with lead; very guilty lead. I had thought that having him surrounded by what made him so happy back then would help him move on. Though during my ingenious thought process, I didn’t stop to think that maybe trying to help him forget the loss of his child by showing him other children, or in other words, what he almost had, might’ve not been the best idea. I was so mad with myself at the moment that I didn’t accept Slugger’s offer to rejoin their game. Instead, I just resorted to supervising. Looking up and down the yard, I occasionally glanced over at Tyler, who was still just sitting and watching gloomily. At that point, I didn’t blame him for wanting to leave as soon as possible, not after my brainless move.
Another few minutes passed by, and I was just making my rounds back toward Tyler, when something caught my eye. One of the kids was walking, rather timidly I might add, up to the bench where Tyler sat. Luckily, I was close enough to hear her when she opened her mouth.
“Um...e-excuse me, mister.”
Tyler straightened up and looked down to see the earth pony filly in front of him. She was smaller than most of the other children with mint green fur and blue eyes. While she didn’t have a cutie mark, her most prominent feature was her mane and tail. They were long and pink, and her mane was covering her right eye. The way her mane and tail drooped down to the ground made it look like melted gum. Tyler’s expression instantly softened when he met her gaze.
"Yes?” Tyler asked.
“Y-you’re sitting in Mr. Snuggleworth’s spot,” the filly responded, pointing to the spot on the bench where Tyler sat. She spoke in a timid tone, and from the sound of her voice, she was one of the younger kids.
“Hm? Oh!” Tyler looked down at his seat and then back to the filly with an apologetic look. “I’m so sorry. I didn’t know.”
“Don’t be sorry, mister,” said another filly who had trotted up to them with white fur and a long, silver mane pulled back in a ponytail. She had a real snarky tone when she spoke. “That’s just the name of Bubblegum’s imaginary pet cat.”
The filly named Bubblegum’s brow furrowed as she turned to the other. “He is NOT imaginary! He’s real!”
“Yeah right,” the filly laughed teasingly. “Just another fantasy of Bubblegum Mush!”
“Stop calling me that, Silver Star!” squeaked Bubblegum. Even from where I was, I could tell that she was building up some tears. Tyler watched intently as the two fillies continued their verbal battle.
“Stop having a mane that looks like melted bubblegum then.”
Bubblegum gripped her drooping mane as her lip started to quiver. “I-I can’t help it!”
“Just like you can’t help having an imaginary cat?” Silver Star mocked.
“He is NOT imaginary!” Bubblegum stomped her front hoof in defiance as she spoke, her lower lip sticking out and more tears starting to appear in her eyes.
“Sure he is,” Silver Star snapped before turning to Tyler. “Right, mister?”
Now at first I had thought that Tyler was just going to shrug the kids off or send them to another adult. He definitely looked like he wasn’t up for handling bickering children. However, when he spoke, he didn’t sound as monotone as before.
“Now wait a minute,” he said, leaning forward and looking toward the ground. It almost looked like he was staring at the dirt. When he spoke again, it wasn’t directed at the fillies. “What?” He paused. The fillies didn’t answer, and either did anything else, but then Tyler continued, like someone had answered him. “Well I’m sorry, Mr. Snuggleworth. I didn’t mean to sit in your spot.” Another pause. Though Silver Star still looked confused, a small smile started to appear across Bubblegum’s face. I felt my mouth curl into one as well, for I had just figured out what Tyler was doing.
“What was that?” he asked the ground again. “Oh thank you so much.” He then looked back up at the fillies, or more specifically, Bubblegum. “He says that he forgives me. That was very nice of him.”
“W-what?” Silver Star had finally found her voice. She looked absolutely flabbergasted. “But he’s not even real!”
Tyler didn’t answer her, but then looked back to the ground, as if Mr. Snuggleworth had gotten his attention yet again. “What, Mr. Snuggleworth? Oh, you think so?”
“What did he say?” Bubblegum asked excitedly.
“He wanted to tell Silver Star that just because you can’t see something, it doesn’t mean it’s not there,” Tyler answered. Bubblegum had started to giggle slightly as Silver Star looked from the ground, to Tyler, to Bubblegum, and back to the ground. Her mouth opened and closed, words failing her. Finally, she found something to say.
“You’re both weird.”
And with that, she turned and stamped away back to the other kids. As soon as she was gone, Tyler sat back up. Bubblegum had burst into a fit of laughter.
“That was great!” she exclaimed, looking up at Tyler with admiration. “Thanks, mister!”
“You’re welcome,” Tyler answered, and for the first time in a long time, he had smiled. Bubblegum then leaned upward, beckoning Tyler to lean down again. When she spoke, it was in an almost whisper.
“But you know what?”
“What?” Tyler whispered back.
“Mr. Snuggleworth can’t talk.”
Tyler chuckled. “Well, I don’t think even Silver Star can tell anymore.” He and Bubblegum laughed together. At that point, I was grinning from ear to ear watching those two. After they had calmed down a bit, Tyler stayed leaning and said gently, “And if you want a personal opinion, I think you’re mane is very pretty.”
Bubblegum gasped slightly as a bright pink blush appeared across her face. “R-really?”
“Of course!” Tyler said calmly. It was the same caring voice I remember him using to the kids he was cheering up back at the daycare we worked at. “It’s so unique. I doubt that anyone else in the whole world has a mane like yours. That makes it very special!”
Bubblegum’s smile widened, and the blush deepened. “W-wow, thanks! N-nopony has ever said that to me before” She stared at Tyler with wide, admirable eyes for a few seconds before speaking again. “M-my name is Bubblegum Brush.”
“Nice to meet you, Bubblegum,” Tyler greeted with a smile. “I’m Tyler.” Bubblegum giggled again.
“That’s a silly name.”
Tyler chuckled heartily. “I guess I’m unique too. Just like you!” Bubblegum blushed again before turning to the spot where her invisible cat was no doubt sitting.
“C’mon, Mr. Snuggleworth,” she said as she turned back toward the playground. She paused, looked back at Tyler, and waved. “Bye-bye, Mr. Tyler.”
“Bye, Bubblegum,” Tyler waved back cheerfully, and Bubblegum skipped off, a much lighter and happier spring in her step. At that point, I walked up beside Tyler, who was still looking over at Bubblegum, who was talking to Mr. Snuggleworth. I was delighted to see that Tyler was still smiling. I coughed loudly, which got Tyler’s attention.
“Well, looks like you found yourself a friend,” I said with a raised eyebrow. Tyler chuckled and turn back to watch Bubblegum.
“Oh, Jack, she’s adorable!” he said. He then turned back to me and asked, “How long has she been here?”
“As long as she can remember,” I answered, dropping my voice a bit. “Miss Care told me how she was left here when she was just a foal. That was six years ago. Couldn’t find any traces of her real parents. She never knew them.”
Tyler’s face fell. “How sad.”
I then leaned closer and nudged Tyler’s shoulder with a smile. “She must’ve seen something in you though, Tyler.”
“What do you mean?” Tyler asked curiously.
“Well,” I replied, sitting down next to him, “from what I’ve be told, Bubblegum is kind of timid. Doesn’t really talk much. She’s also really sensitive. Miss Care said she has had trouble with some kids picking on her cause of her mane.” Both Tyler and I looked back at Bubblegum, who was, as expected, sitting by herself on the swings. “Poor thing. Because of that, she mostly sticks to herself.” I then turned back to Tyler. “I think you’re the first person she’s smiled at.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.” Suddenly, as we sat there, an idea popped into my head. An opportunity that I couldn’t pass up. Trying to sound as casual as possible, I nudged Tyler again and said, “Hey, Tyler. Why don’t you go talk to her some more?” Tyler looked at me for a second, then back to Bubblegum. I could see the wheels turning in his head. While on the outside I stayed calm, on the inside, I was practically screaming, “C’mon! C’mon! Go for it!” Finally, after what seemed like a minute, Tyler’s face scrunched up in a determined look. He then got up, not taking his eyes off of Bubblegum, and then...
“You know what? I think I will.”
I watched intently as Tyler walked over to the swings where Bubblegum still sat. Though I couldn’t hear above the other kids, I could see Bubblegum notice him. Tyler then pointed to the vacant swing next to her. Bubblegum nodded, and Tyler sat down on it and started to talk to her with a soft smile. I felt my own smile widen as well.
To my satisfactory amazement, Tyler and Bubblegum spent the rest of the day together. During the rest of playground time, Tyler had taken to pushing Bubblegum on the swings. I could hear the giggles from across the yard. Afterwards, when it was time for the kids to go inside for lunchtime, Bubblegum led Tyler to her own little corner, where they ate together. During that time, Miss Care had come up to me and said in astonishment how she had never seen Bubblegum so happy before.
“I told you Tyler had a knack,” I said cheerfully.
After lunch, the kids went to the playroom down the hall. It was a large room with toys, puzzles, and crafts scattered all about. Even as I helped out with the rest of the kids, I occasionally glanced over to see Tyler and Bubblegum happily playing a game of chutes and ladders, or acting like frogs just for the fun of it. It had been such a long time since I had seen Tyler act so silly, but have so much fun with it. As I watched him and Bubblegum hop around and make ribbit sounds, it was like seeing my old friend all over again, and I loved it. My plan was working perfectly.
Before any of us knew it, the sun was starting to descend upon the pony landscapes of Canterlot. Miss Care had given me her utmost thanks, while also thanking me for bringing Tyler, and I went over to him, who was currently watching Bubblegum draw.
“Hey, you two,” I greeted. Both turned to me and smiled widely.
“Hi, Mr. Jack,” Bubblegum greeted back. “Look what I made!” She held up the paper she had been drawing on. It had a big, yellow sun in the corner, flowers all across the bottom of the page, and two crudely drawn figures right in the middle. One was so obviously a pony, while the other was tall and had two stick legs. Above the two figures were the labels, Me and Mr. Tyler.
“That’s beautiful, Bubblegum!” I exclaimed. Bubblegum beamed.
“Mr. Tyler helped me make it,” she said quickly.
“Don’t give me all of the credit,” Tyler chimed in, rubbing the top of Bubblegum’s head. “I just handed you the crayons and told you how to spell Tyler.” Bubblegum giggled and playfully swatted Tyler’s hand away, who retaliated by poking her in the side. Bubblegum broke into a fresh fit of giggles as she squirmed to escape the ticklish attack. The sight was too adorable, but then I remembered why I had come over.
“Hey Tyler,” I said, gaining his attention. “I think it’s time for us to get back to the hotel.” Tyler nodded and stood up, stretching his legs. Bubblegum’s smile fell instantly.
“Y-you’re leaving?” she asked, her eyes going wide.
“I’m afraid so,” I responded apologetically.
“Will you be back tomorrow?” Bubblegum asked hopefully.
“I will,” I answered, “but Mr. Tyler’s going home tonight?”
“Oh…” Bubblegum’s ears drooped as she hung her head slightly. Both Tyler and I watched as her lower lip stuck out again and started to quiver, like she was ready to cry.
“Now wait a minute!” Tyler quickly said, turning to me. “I said I might go home tonight.” He then leaned down toward Bubblegum and lifted her chin so her eyes met his. “Don’t worry, Bubblegum. I’ll be back tomorrow!” Immediately, Bubblegum’s ears perked up again and she wiped her eyes as the smile reappeared on her face.
“Yay!” she cheered. Tyler smiled and stood back up. He started to turn back to me when Bubblegum spoke again. “Wait! C-can I have a bye-bye hug please?”
Tyler blinked. I don’t even think he was prepared for how Bubblegum looked up at him so adorably with her puppy-dog eyes nailing into his heart. I chuckled softly. Maybe I should’ve warned him about the eyes. Slowly, Tyler’s smile widened so much, it was in danger of stretching off of his face.
“Well...sure you can.” He knelt down again and opened his arms. Bubblegum didn’t waste any time in leaning into his chest and wrapping her front hooves around him as far as she could. Tyler draped his own arms around her, easily covering her entire midsection, and squeezed her gently. I saw Bubblegum nuzzle against Tyler’s chest as they held the hug for a few seconds, which was almost too much to watch without having a cuteness overload. Finally, they broke apart, though it was apparent that neither of them wanted to. Tyler stood back up again and followed me to the exit.
Before we left the room however, Tyler turned back one more time and waved to Bubblegum. “See you tomorrow!”
“Bye-bye!” she called back. As we walked down the hall toward the front door, I had turned to Tyler with a raised eyebrow and a smirk. He quickly noticed.
“What?” he asked confusingly. My expression deepened amusingly. Tyler nudged me hard and quickly changed his tone to defensive, while still having the traces of a smirk on his face. “Don’t look at me like that! I said I might! You heard me!”
“I didn’t say anything,” I responded, laughing and raising my hands in surrender. I didn’t need to say anything though. It was too clear that things had worked out much better than how they had started out. Maybe it was because Bubblegum was somepony he could relate too, or maybe it was just two broken souls that could help mend each other, but one thing was for certain; those two meeting had lit a spark that would, with no doubt, grow into a blazing friendship.
Another thing was certain; it was nice to see glimpses of my old friend again.