Must Get Out
Written by: Henry Anthony Courtler
Edited by: Jvizzlez
Aramis and Josh walked into the room; the quiet atmosphere that many would have thought to be unnerving was very peaceful for them. Josh took a seat in his comfy office chair, looking over documents distractedly while his friend found comfort by looking out the window that overlooked a beautiful portion of Ponyville.
"I understand your feelings for her, Aramis, but she and I are together." His eyes closed as a small sigh escaped his lips before he continued, "It's like we're deciding things for her without even getting her opinion." The internal conflict he felt only made it harder to express his thoughts.
"Really, Josh? If we were truly deciding for her, wouldn't we be at each other's necks in a heated argument, not caring when or where it happened? If anything, we are doing things the mature way by talking it out." He could almost hear the laughs and shouts from the Cutie Mark Crusaders in the distance. His eyes glossed over slightly at the two living reminders of his personal grief; the Cutie Mark Crusaders, whom reminded him of his empty childhood he had spent alone, wishing to have had siblings, and his close friend Joshua, whom he felt he was burdening with his feelings for the mare they both loved.
Joshua walked over to the drink and bar stand he recently added to his office and opened the fridge behind the counter.
"Would you like anything to drink?"
"Give me a glass of the best whiskey on the rocks."
"Don't you think it's a little early to sta-"
"Nonsense, Josh. It's never too early to start drinking during the day, unless you have a hangover." Not much else had to be said to end that argument. His close friend wanted to drown out his problems, but knew he wouldn't be able to change his friend's mind. He poured the rather strong-smelling whiskey in a tall shot glass, squeezed some lemon juice into the drink; placing the wedge of it on the rim of the cup and sighed.
"Thanks"
"Not a problem"
The two sat on their stools for a while, neither of them wanting to talk, while Aramis quietly sipped on his beverage. He sat there and stared off into the distance until only crushed ice sat at the bottom of his glass. His friend nodded to himself in agreement, Josh feeling slightly unnerved at his friend's ever so concerning somber moods.
"You're right Josh. You two are quite deeply attached to one another, and clearly it was rude and foolish of me to think I ha-"
"It wasn't foolish, Goddamn it! We're only human for Celestia's sake. We all get caught up in our hearts and minds desires. It's human emotion and none of us can help it."
"That's exactly the point, my friend. Human instinct and emotion does nothing more than leave us vulnerable to be broken— It's for that reason I want you to know that you personally deserve Dashie more than I could ever hope. You met her first and left a lasting impression that established the love you now share with her. I was an honest-to-God fool for ever believing it wasn't too late, and it's my own damn fault for still believing in that." He sat there for what seemed to be an eternity, and then finally managed to quietly stand up from the stool and walk to the door.
"Before you worry if I'm upset or anything, I can assure you that I am not. I merely need to head out and finish some errands Twilight asked me to do for her while she researched something. Do take care of Dashie with all your heart, Josh, because I can see a lot of what I'm sure she sees in you. You mean everything to her world high above the skies, she means to you more than anything you can comprehend, and I could not bring myself to wedge my feelings in between you two and selfishly ruin it for an opportunity with her for myself. In many ways, I do truly wish that some things had turned out differently than what they did, but you know what they say: "you can't change the past so you gotta live with the present"." With that he walked towards the door of the office and bar entertainment room and opened it quietly, stopping to say "hello" to the girl who stood there silently. The one he knew he couldn't be with.
"Good afternoon Rainbow Dash, do pardon me for holding him up for so long." he apologized to her the moment he opened the door for he knew that she would eavesdrop on his conversation, and he wanted her to hear it because he would have never had the heart to say it to her. She stood there numbly and nodded her head in acknowledgement, her legs shaking in fear. The expression on his face was unreadable, but it was his eyes that scared her.
Gone was the bright steel, honey-brown color that looked so deep, so full of mystery and life that anyone could've stared into his eyes for hours without feeling even the slightest bit of boredom, and replaced were the eyes that looked nothing like how she had remembered them. They barely held any color; the liquid honey-brown reduced to a flat and even tone that looked unnatural. The life held by those lovely eyes had died a painfully slow death. His posture, which had always been regarded as being full of class, held new meaning to her. It no longer looked regal, charming, relaxed, and peaceful. If anything it seemed tired and broken; defeated yet hardened, sort of like a veteran who had seen and understood things that no one deserved to experience.
She felt nearly dead inside at the realization. It hit her like a ton of bricks. She was the reason he became so broken. Not because she had not given him an equal opportunity to become as close to her as Josh had. Not because she didn't make enough time for him and her to talk and hang out. Not even because of the failed blind dates she had insisted on setting up for him, but because she misunderstood his feelings for her. She had broken him into pieces because she rejected him for her love of Josh without ever being considerate of his feelings. A lone tear slipped from her eye as he approached the door.
"It's not good for a beautiful Pegasus such as yourself to cry, you know. I wouldn't want anyone to think that you're not 20% cooler than the rest of the competition out there."
Once the door had closed, she sobbed quietly to herself. She had murdered her best friend from the inside out.
Author's Note:
Hello everypony,
Henry Anthony Courtler here with some information for all of you that have taken the time to read the story. The title "Must Get Out" was borrowed from the song Must Get Out by Maroon 5 because of how fitting it was with the story.
For those who are curious and would like to hear the song: .com/watch?v=NAuTK6QIhWw