Big Mac’s Confrontation
Chapter 2: Inseparable
How could this be happening? Just moments ago, Caramel had been staring wishfully at that beautiful stallion, yet now, they seemed to be a world apart. Everything he had ever loved was gone, just like that.
This can’t be real. It just…can’t. Dreaming. I must be. That’s the only explanation. Yeah I’ll close my eyes and when I open them again, I’ll be back in my bed, ready to start a new day. This is just one…big…ugly nightmare.
He clenched his eyes shut, straining to close them as far as they would go, in the vain hopes that he could squeeze the dreams out of his mind. Just as his luck would have it though, he opened them and nothing had changed. They were red and puffy from what felt like an eternity of continuous streams of tears, though he knew it had only been a matter of minutes since the stallion that he had loved; the stallion he thought he still loved, had abandoned him in the orchard. He wanted to hat him, but his heart said no. When he felt like loving him, his head denied him of that too. It tore him up inside. The constant conflict within him stretching him too thin, like butter spread on too much toast.
Caramel stood up. He wanted to cry but he couldn’t. He was beyond crying; beyond showing any emotion. He walked back. He wanted nothing to do with this farm, Ponyville or any of the ponies who lived there. It was as if he had given up on any thoughts of happiness. It was too much. He wanted to run and never come back; leave everything behind and never look back. As he walked out of the gate to Sweet Apple Acres, he passed Applejack. Big Mac’s oldest sister. Though were different in so many ways, she still reminded him of what he had lost. The sight of her made Caramel’s heart clench. He didn’t want to speak to anyone, especially not Applejack.
“Caramel? What’re you doin’ out at this time?” He said nothing, walking past her without so much as a sound escaping his lips. “Mel?” He hated that word. Never before had he felt so…empty. Okay so everyone called him that, but it was a nickname that was given to him by the very stallion who had just stomped over his heart. That word only sought to empty him even more of what little emotions he felt he still had.
What in the hay is up with that li’l guy? Big Mac said that he was comin’ over to help on the farm. Maybe the little guy is just ready to hit the hay! I woulda loved to ‘ave seen that! I dunno why though. He sure ain’t a farm pony. Can’t exac’ly say nope to that kina offer though! He’s a trooper if nothin’ else! Maybe Big Mac knows what’s up.
As Caramel walked down the dusty, dirt road that lead to the marketplace in his quiet little town of Ponyville, his mind wandered to old times; years ago, when he was only a little colt. Him and his best friend; a small colt with bright red fur and a golden mane.
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“Big Mac look here!” The little yellow colt yelled to his best friend, holding up a drawing he had spent all morning making for him.
“That’s uhh…good…ah guess.” The red colt replied, unsure of what he was looking at. He could see a pony that looked like Caramel. The other shape looked like a pony, a bright pink pony. “What in the hay is it though Mel?”
“It’s us.” Caramel smiled. “We’re hugging because we love eachother!” He was too young to understand what love was, but he had heard his mum and dad use the word. He knew that it meant he really, really liked him though.
“Wha-! Caramel, mah fur ain’t pink! Ah look like a stupid filly!” Big Mac looked embarrassed, his head hanging low, pouting.
“Well they were all out of red so I…Look! I got you’re cutie mark and everything!” A big smile crossed both of there faces, ear to ear, as they looked at the crudely drawn cutie mark of half an apple, bigger than the flank of the cartoon Big Mac itself. “I wish I had my cutie mark like you”
“Maybe…you can get it by bein’ one of them drawing people! What are they called? An Artis’!” It was a half hearted idea, but they were so compelled to find out what their special talent was and gain their cutie marks, that they were trying anything and everything. Big Mac had just got his after bucking his first apple off a tree. He was so thrilled that he had invited his best friend over to celebrate.
“You mean an artist? Maybe! Oh you can have this drawing though. It’s for you!”
Big Mac took the drawing of the two colts, hearts floating in-between them. “Ah’m gonna go show mah Granny Smith!” He rushed down the stairs, bounding round the corner to find a young Granny Smith sitting in her rocking chair. A smile spread across her face at the site of her grandson.
“What ya got there ya li’l whippersnapper?” Big Mac handed the drawing to his Granny, a huge smile on his face. If he was any happier then even Pinkie Pie would have trouble trying to “out-smile” him!
“It’s me and Caramel! He drew it fer me! Ain’t it nice Gran? There are hearts because he says we love each other. When ah grow up, ah’m gonna marry Mel cause he’s mah bestest friend!”
Just as he finished speaking, a large wooden object came whirling round, bashing the back of his head with an unbelievable amount of force for a woman of Granny Smith’s age.
“AH DON’T EVER WANNA HEAR YA’LL TALKING ‘BOUT OTHER COLTS LIKE THAT AGAIN!” She screamed, throwing his drawing into the fire, letting it crackle in the heat of the flames that seemed to eat away at the heart of Big Mac itself. He had never heard Granny Smith so angry, her voice like a sudden storm approaching rapidly. It died down just as quickly as it had started however, and she calmly carried on. “Tell Caramel that he better be headin’ home. Ah don’t want him round no more. He ain’t right Mac. Now listen hear and listen well. Colts DON’T kiss other colts. It ain’t right; unnatural is what it is”
Tears running down his cheeks, Big Mac ran out into the orchard, leaving a stream of salty tears in his wake.
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He had finally reached his little cottage, nestled deep in the market place of Ponyville. It was usually teeming with stalls and ponies trotting along either to shop or get to their jobs, already rushing and close to being late. The smell of home-baked apple pies still filled the air around. It reminded him of Big Mac; how his mane had always had the faint smell of apple, even over the musk of a stallion who had bucked trees for hours on end. Caramel had always savoured the few times that he had managed to get a quick and unnoticeable whiff of his crush’s flowing golden mane. However, Celestia’s sun was being drowned out in the mountains in the distance, burning the sky with dark oranges and reds. The sky looked like it was being torched by the pegasi. Caramel found himself shuddering at the thought. A world without the sun is no world at all.
As Caramel opened the door, he was greeted by his sister, Toffee. She too was named after the colour of her coat, a light brown which seemed to give every stallion in town a sweet tooth. In honesty, Caramel envied his sister’s ability to find love in any and every stallion she could get her hooves on. He had yet to find just one, yet now he felt like even that felt more impossible than ever.
“Howdy Li’l bro! How was the bucking?” Once again, Caramel walked past without so much as a peep. “Well now ah don’t give two hoots if ya ain’t willin’ to chat, but ignorin’ me? That’s just plain rude Mel”. She was ready to bring a barrage of anger down on him. If there was one thing Toffee hated more than people picking on her little brother, it was being downright ignored. Now though, she saw the despair in his eyes. They were empty of the deep ocean blue that once filled them, always seeming to portray how happy he always was, always glimmering like bright blue stars. She had never seen her brother like this. He was always happy, always putting on a brave face. Now she saw…nothing, his entire being devoid of anything but sorrow.
“Mel. Do you wanna chat ‘bout somethin’ on your mind?” She worried for her little brother more than anything. She’d do anything to help him and she wasn’t about to change that just now. There was an eerie silence that filled the air. Toffee stared into her brother’s eyes, trying to show him that she was genuinely concerned for his wellbeing and she wanted nothing more than to see him happy.
“Is it about…that thing?” She asked, her voice trembling. She hoped to the heavens above that it had nothing to do with what crossed her mind. He wasn’t ready to say it and she respected that. She didn’t want to force it out of him but if it came to it; if it was the only way she could find out what’s wrong with him, she wouldn’t hesitate.
“Wha-what are y-y-you t-talking ab-bout?” Caramel managed to splutter, fresh tears rolling down his still moist cheeks, dampening the fur beyond what it already had been. He knew what she meant, and he was pretty sure that she knew about his secret. It wouldn’t be a complete surprise.
“Gosh darnit Caramel, ah know about yer. Yer dun have to hide it from me. Ah’m yer sister for pity sake!” She had known for years in fact. Call it…sister’s intuition.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about Toffee. I’m tired and I want to go to sleep. I’ll see you in the morning” He replied sombrely, his voice almost as droll as Big Mac’s. His own didn’t carry the concern or happiness that came with Big Mac’s did though. It was empty. Everything about him was empty.
“Damn it Mel! So what if yer like stallions! It ain’t nothin’ to be ashamed of yer hear me?” At this, Caramel’s ears perked up. How did she- It didn’t phase him that she knew. She had been hinting at it for years after all. “Ah’ve known fer years Mel. Why’d yer hide it from me? Ah love yer Mel. I always will. Yer my li’l brother.” Tears began to build up in her eyes. She had hoped she wouldn’t have to be the one to say it, but she hated seeing him like this, his old self lost in a sea of emotions, battling to break through.
“Wha- How? I never told you or ma or pa!” He was flustered. His cheeks began to burn a dark crimson as he stared into his sister’s eyes, pleading her not to go on.
“Ah’m yer sister! I catch onto these things.” She smiled, assuring him that she still cared for him, no matter what. The smile quickly turned to a snirk. The same smirk she could use to turn any stallion into a blubbering fool if she felt like it! “Ah also happened to notice that yer spend a heck of a lotta time with that nice stallion over at Sweet App-“
“DON’T talk about him” He screamed. Fresh tears began to stream down his cheeks, as he didn’t even have the energy to stop them from flowing any more. He looked her dead in the eyes, his own showing some emotion now. “He broke muh heart sis. He took it and he snapped in two”. His light country accent broke through. He was an Appleoosian at heart, yet he hid his accent well, trying to fit in. He surprised himself at how long he had managed to keep it under wraps. In this instant, Toffee embraced him like only a sister could at a time like this. He nuzzled her neck, burying his face, still soaked with his tears, into her fur, letting her fur take the barrage of emotions that gushed from his eyes. His hooves wrapped around her, digging into her sides as he felt lost in the warmth of the embrace. He never wanted to let go. He felt so much safer now than he ever had before. She was his protector. She always had been.
“It’s gonna be okay Mel. I promise it to yer” She mocked a loving and caring voice, sympathy breaking through gritted teeth. She hid it well, but deep down she wanted nothing more than to rip Big Mac in half for what he had done to her little brother, the colt she loved more than any other in all of Equestria. She broke free of the embrace, turning towards the door. As she opened it, a quivering voice came from behind, cracking at intervals through his still apparent sobbing.
“Where are you going? It’s getting late.” Caramel asked, fearing the worst.
“Ah’m goin’ ta pay yer friend a li’l visit. Got somethin’ ah need to drum inter that thick skull of his.” She replied, still acting calm and collected. She walked out, shutting the door carefully behind her. She galloped through the market place and towards the dirt road that lead to the house of the stallion that had broken her little Mel’s heart. Caramel however, had feared this. He walked to the window, watching as his sister, the only mare he could ever come to love as dearly as this, gallop away. He knew where she was headed and he followed her out of the door. He turned right where she had gone left and walked, the road leading out of Ponyville drawing close.
He didn’t mutter a goodbye. It hurt too much. He was leaving his home, his family and his friends, and he was never coming back.
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Big Mac ran from the little cottage, tears in his eyes and a bruise on the back of his head from where Granny Smith’s walking stick had struck him. He ran to a small clearing in the orchard, away from the house, away from everything.
What’d ah do? Ah like the picture, Caramel likes it. Why didn’t Granny? What’d she mean ‘Colts DON’T kiss other colts. It ain’t right; unnatural is what it is’. We never kissed. Ah mean…Is it wrong? Then why can ah kiss a mare? I jus’ don’ get it! It doesn’ sound unnatural!
His face fell into his hooves. He was lying there, sobbing in the middle of an orchard for what felt like hours, when he felt a hoof on his shoulder. It had a warming effect, unlike anything he ever remembered. Looking up, he saw two pale blue eyes, brimming with tears.
“I’m sorry Mac. I didn’t mean to get you in trouble. Honest!”
“Ah know Caramel. Ah jus’ don’ get it. Why’d she say those things? She said she don’ want you round no more Mel” Tears still flowing from his bright green emeralds that were embedded in his skull. “Ah don’ wanna lose my best friend”
Without a reply, they fell into an embrace. It wasn’t a meaningful embrace. They didn’t know what it felt like to have a crush on someone. They were two friends about to be split apart because of some stupid drawing. They were distraught. They revelled in the warmth of each others bodies. They could stay like this for hours on end.
“Promise we’ll never, ever stop being friends?” Big Mac asked in his droll voice. Even as a young colt it was so seep and fascinating. If Caramel had only known that he would come to love this stallion more than anything.
“I Promise” Caramel smiled. There was a hint of hope in his eyes. Big Mac knew that they would be friends still for a long time. Even if it was a secret they had to keep. It would take a war to break these to apart. Maybe something just as terrifying.
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