"You cannot tell my parents under any circumstances!"
"But they should-"
"UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES!"
~•~•~•~•~
Octavia stood up in her bed. She was gasping for air as sweat trickled down her face.
I... I forgot about that.
Octavia shook her head.
S-so what, just because Caramel asked me to, doesn't mean I shouldn't go.
Octavia then felt her hoof hit something. She turned to find Caramel lying down next to her on the bed.
Octavia let out a frustrated sigh before grabbing a pillow and blanket to then leave the room.
She laid the pillow down onto the couch, before resting her head on top. She then put the blanket over her body.
She closed her eyes in an attempt to fall asleep, but the thoughts kept pledging her mind.
Octavia kept rolling around until she let out an annoyed sigh as she got up from the couch. The cellist then put on her coat, grabbed her keys, and left the apartment to take a walk.
Once she opened the door to the building, the air immediately flooded out, causing her mane to fly behind her. She ignored it and continued to walk.
As she walked around the street, she thought about Caramel, Vinyl, and Remedy Cure. She thought mostly, though, about the dream, or more accurately, the memory she just had.
As Octavia rounded the corner, she noticed a couple walking on the street next to her. They were joking, having a good time together. Octavia smiled, it reminded her of Vinyl.
Maybe I should go to Vinyl's apartment...
Octavia shook her head. It would be too dangerous to go there now. She knew Caramel would come back to kill Vinyl if she went back there.
With another sigh, Octavia continued walking.
~•~•~•~•~
"Are you still mad about this?" Bon Bon asked, slightly annoyed.
"Hell yeah, I am!" Vinyl exclaimed, "Octavia trusted Lucky Streak, and he goes behind her back!"
"You don't even know what exactly they were talking about," Bon Bon argued.
"Oh, come on, Bonnie! It's obvious!" Vinyl yelled.
"Guys!" Lyra hissed as she suddenly appeared in the doorway of the kitchen area.
"Lucky Streak could have easily just bumped into him on the street and was asking him why he was working with Caramel," Bon Bon pointed out.
"Yeah well-" Vinyl started.
"Guys!" Lyra hissed again, this time interrupting Vinyl.
"What is it Lyra?" Bon Bon asked.
"Octavia is-"
"What are you two talking about?" Octavia asked as she suddenly appeared behind Lyra.
"Here," Lyra finished.
"O-oh, hey Tavi!" Vinyl greeted, attempting to keep her cool.
"We were just talking about the work we did yesterday," Bon Bon said bluntly.
Octavia's eyes narrowed, "I heard Lucky Streak's name, as well as Neon’s."
Vinyl inhaled sharply, "Oh yeah! We were- um- wondering why Lucky Streak still hasn't spoken to you about Neon!"
Octavia's eyes narrowed, making Vinyl gulp.
"You, me, office, now," Octavia demanded, before turning around and heading towards Vinyl's office.
Vinyl let out a long breath before she hesitantly followed after her marefriend.
"Oh shit, Vinyl's in the dog house,"
"Shut up, Lyra," Bon Bon said with a roll of her eyes.
~•~•~•~•~
"Soooo.... Wassup?" Vinyl asked as she leaned onto her desk.
Octavia raised her eyebrow.
Vinyl grinned nervously.
Damn, why does she have to break me so easily?!
Vinyl sighed in defeat, "Okay fine, I'll tell you what we were talking about."
Octavia smiled, satisfied, "Good."
She kissed the DJ on the cheek as a sign of gratitude.
Vinyl smirked slightly at this before clearing her voice.
"So, yesterday, Lyra, Bonnie, and I were out of the office, just hanging out and eating pizza. When we saw Lucky Streak on the street across from us, speaking to Neon."
Octavia's eyes went wide.
"And then what?"
Vinyl winced, "Er- I kinda... screamed at both of them and left."
Octavia opened her mouth and then sighed.
"Vinyl, listen. I can understand why you'd be upset with him. But you should have at least let him speak."
"Yeah but-"
“Vinyl," Octavia interrupted in a comforting yet stern voice, "You're getting over your jealousy of Lucky Streak, seeing him talk to your ex probably doesn't help."
"Yeah, I guess," Vinyl grumbled.
"We should talk to them, both of them," Octavia insisted.
"Yeah, yeah, I know. But don't expect me to be very nice to them," Vinyl replied.
Octavia sighed, "Could you at least try to be pleasant?"
"Hey, either I go and act like an asshole, or I don't go, your call," Vinyl said, stubbornly as she turned the other way so she was no longer facing Octavia.
Octavia rolled her eyes, then an idea popped into her head.
"Fine, then I guess I'll just have to go alone."
Octavia had to hide her smirk as Vinyl's ears perked up. The DJ quickly turned back around to face her.
"Uh, really? I mean, shouldn't I come if you're going to talk to my ex?" Vinyl questioned.
"Well, yes," Octavia agreed, "but I don't see the point if you're not going to let them tell their side of the story."
Even through her glasses, Octavia could see Vinyl's eyes fill with worry as she contemplated what to do.
Octavia waited a few more minutes for Vinyl to say something else. When she didn't, the cellist shrugged before kissing her marefriend on the cheek.
"I'll be back soon enough, Vinyl," Octavia said as she left the room.
Once Octavia was outside the room, she parked herself next to the door and waited. After a few seconds, Vinyl came rushing out, frantically looking around. Once her eyes caught Octavia, she visibly relaxed.
"Hey, uh, I think I'm going to come," Vinyl said, trying to sound calm and collected.
Octavia tilted her head, a smirk planted on her face, "You think?"
Vinyl blushed slightly, "I mean, yeah, I'm coming."
Vinyl then puffed her chest out, "I mean, you need somepony to protect you from those stallions if they are working for Caramel."
Octavia rolled her eyes, the smirk still on her face, "Why yes, I need somepony strong and fearless like you to protect little old me."
As Octavia started walking away, she poked Vinyl in the side, causing Vinyl to jump back.
Octavia let out a laugh while Vinyl glared slightly at her.
Octavia continued walking towards the recording studio, only to hear Vinyl say,
"Wait... you planned for me to come back! Didn't you!?"
Octavia's facade broke as she started to laugh. Vinyl pouted at this.
"Aw," Octavia said through her laughter, "I'm sorry. It's just so easy to trick you into coming with me, I had to try."
"Jeez Octy, you really are becoming like me," Vinyl pointed out with a grin.
"That's not necessarily a bad thing," Octavia purred as she nuzzled her face next to Vinyl's.
"You want to know the best part about this?" Vinyl asked as they continued nuzzling with both their eyes closed.
"What?"
Vinyl grinned as she opened her eyes, "That everypony is watching us."
Octavia's eyes snapped open, revealing that most of Vinyl's employees were, in fact, watching them share their affection.
Octavia's face became completely red as she pushed Vinyl away from her, making Vinyl laugh.
"You are insufferable!" Octavia exclaimed as she marched towards the studio.
"Ha ha, still got it," Vinyl said to herself as she turned back into her own office.
~•~•~•~•~
Lucky Streak stopped washing his mane as he heard his phone go off in the other room. He sighed in annoyance.
Why do ponies only want to contact me when I'm in the shower?
Lucky Streak quickly got out of the shower and dried off his mane as he walked towards his phone.
For the past two days, Lucky Streak had been spending his time at a hotel in Manehattan. He wanted to go here for some time since he knew this was where all of the Caramel drama roamed.
He grabbed his phone and was sadly not surprised to see who was texting him.
"Octavia," Lucky Streak said to himself in a sad voice.
He knew this text would be coming after Vinyl saw him with Neon Lights the other day, and he had been dreading it.
Lucky Streak hesitantly opened the message.
'Hello, Lucky Streak. It's been awhile since we've last spoken. Vinyl said she saw you yesterday with Neon Lights. Now although Vinyl has insisted that you have bad intentions, I know you better than that. Which is why I would like to see both you and Neon for lunch today at Manehattan Cafe, at around 2 pm. I shall see you then.'
Lucky Streak blinked. He was pleasantly surprised by this message.
I guess that's what I get for assuming Octavia would be like Vinyl and completely turn me into some kind of villain.
Lucky Streak shook his head as he responded to Octavia's message.
'It's nice to hear from you Octavia. I would love to see you today for lunch, and 2 pm sounds fine. I will see if Neon can come as soon as possible, and I assume Vinyl will be there as well. Other than that, I'll see you soon enough.'
Once he finished texting Octavia, Lucky Streak quickly switched over to Neon's contact and started calling him.
"Yo," Neon greeted, his voice slightly croaky.
Lucky Streak sighed, "Of course you were drunk. Anyway, get yourself ready, we're going to have lunch with Octavia and Vinyl."
"Oh shit," Neon replied, "Cool, uh, shit, when?"
"At two pm today," Lucky Streak answered.
"Uh, why so early? Can't we do like, two.... am?"
Lucky Streak rolled his eyes, "No, now get ready, I'll pick you up at one."
And with that, Lucky Streak hung up the phone.
"This is going to be one long lunch," Lucky Streak said to himself as he continued his morning routine for the day.
~•~•~•~•~
"So, what are you going to do if Lucky Streak is lying and he IS working with Caramel? He could be sending intel to Caramel or… something" Vinyl asked as they walked down the street.
Octavia just shrugged, "Well then he better not be lying," Octavia paused, "Intel? Vinyl you have been watching too many spy movies."
"Well, what else am I supposed to do while I'm at work!" Vinyl whined.
Octavia raised an eyebrow, "I would presume you would do actual work."
"Actual work is just a conspiracy," Vinyl exclaimed.
Octavia let out an annoyed sigh, "You've been talking to Lyra about humans, haven't you?"
"Nah," Vinyl replied, "I just wanted to rile you up."
Octavia let out another annoyed sigh, making Vinyl smirk.
"Oh would you look at that, we're here," Octavia said as they finally reached the cafe.
Vinyl let out a groan, "Can't we just go on a date or something?"
Octavia rolled her eyes, "The sooner we get done with this, the sooner we can go home."
Octavia opened the door to the Cafe. She paused when she saw Vinyl wasn't moving and instead was sitting there.
Octavia sighed again as she attempted to think of a way to tempt Vinyl into going inside.
Then, an idea hit her.
"Who knows," Octavia started, causing Vinyl's attention to go back to her, "Maybe if you're well behaved, I may consider doing something physical that isn't in relation with cuddling."
Octavia hid her grin as Vinyl suddenly appeared next to her, the DJ's eyes as big as a foal in a candy store.
"Fillies first," Vinyl offered, her voice shaky with excitement.
Octavia rolled her eyes with a smile as she entered the cafe, Vinyl right behind her.
The two mares looked around until they noticed Neon's signature glasses.
"I swear, he bought those glasses from some cheap gas station," Vinyl growled under her breath.
"Vinyl," Octavia threatened.
Vinyl sighed, "Sorry."
As they walked up to the table, the two stallions noticed them.
Lucky Streak greeted them with a warm smile, which Octavia gladly returned. While Neon just grinned at Vinyl, who in return just glared at him.
"Octavia, Vinyl! It's great to see you guys," Lucky Streak greeted as he got up to hug Octavia.
Now, Vinyl’s glare had moved over to Lucky Streak. When Neon noticed this, he smirked slightly.
"Wow Vinyl, I didn't take you as the jealous type."
Vinyl's head snapped to Neon.
"Shut up Lights."
Neon laughed, "Hey hey, calm down. I'm just teasing."
Vinyl rolled her eyes.
Why the hell am I here? I shouldn't be anywhere near these assholes.
Then, Vinyl eyes fell back onto Octavia, who was laughing at something Lucky Streak has said.
She's lucky I love her, Vinyl thought, joy spreading through her as she heard Octavia laugh.
The four ponies sat down at the table. Octavia was next to Vinyl, and the two were across from Lucky Streak and Neon.
"So," Neon started, "Are we going to actually eat anything or?"
Lucky Streak sighed, "This isn't really about the food. But if you want some you can go get it."
Neon rolled his eyes before getting up to order something.
The three watched him leave. Once he was gone, Lucky Streak turned back to the mares.
"First, I'm sorry for how our last encounter ended, Vinyl. I've been meaning to talk to you and Octavia for some time now, but I never had enough time."
Vinyl rolled her eyes, making Octavia kick her from under the table.
Lucky Streak paused when he noticed the slight movement under the table, after a second he continued, "Well, anyway, I wanted to tell you something about Neon, you see-"
"Wait, are you two gay together?" Vinyl asked suddenly.
"Vinyl!" Octavia exclaimed, slightly mortified at the sudden question.
"What?" Vinyl asked with a shrug, "My dad suddenly blurted his sexuality to my mom so I may as well be prepared for it to happen again."
"That doesn't make what you said any less rude!" Octavia argued.
The two paused when they heard Lucky Streak laughing. They snapped their heads towards him.
"Luna, you two already act like a married couple."
Octavia's face turned completely red at that comment, while Vinyl just looked confused.
"No, we're not gay. And even if I was, Neon is definitely a mare kind of pony."
Vinyl chuckled darkly, "You're telling me."
Lucky Streak then cleared his voice, "As I was saying, Neon Lights is-"
"A pretty fucking awesome stallion," Neon finished, causing the other ponies to look over at him in annoyance.
"No," Lucky Streak sighed, "What I was going to say was-"
"Woah! Lucky Streak I didn't know you were gay!" Beauty Brass exclaimed as she suddenly appeared beside the table, "Same thing with you Neon. And you guys are on a double date! That's so cute! We should do a triple date!"
"Oh come on!" Lucky Streak groaned, making Vinyl laugh.
"Nah, I don't swing that way," Neon replied, taking a bite of the brownie he bought, "However, I'll totally take you up on that threesome idea."
Beauty Brass's eyes went wide at what Neon had just implied out of her original offer.
"She said a triple date, Neon," Octavia said, annoyed.
"I know, but only the best kind of dates end with a crazy night in bed, isn't that right Vinyl?"
"I swear to Luna I will smash your face into the table so hard you'll see lights," Vinyl growled, "And by lights, I mean ambulance lights."
"Vinyl," Octavia warned.
Vinyl grumbled something as she shut her muzzle.
"Beauty Brass, would you please leave for now? This is an important meeting between the four of us," Lucky Streak asked in the kindest voice he could muster.
"Alright!" Beauty Brass replied with a smile, "I'll see you guys later!"
And with that, Beauty Brass left the cafe.
"Sooo," Neon started, "Are you going to continue what you were saying, Lucky?"
"No, because every time I do, somepony says I'm gay," Lucky Streak grumbled.
Octavia rolled her eyes, "Don't over exaggerate Lucky Streak, just say it already."
"Fine," Lucky Streak sighed, "Neon is-"
"If you were gayyyyyyy," Somepony started singing from the other side of the window, "That'd be okayyyyy-"
"Oh my Celestia! Shut up!" Lucky Streak exclaimed, making the pony laugh.
"Alright fine, you're no fun. See you later Octavia!" The pony said as they walked away.
Octavia's eyes moved over to see who was talking, she then looked back at her friends, only to snap back to the window, "Moonshine?"
"You know what Neon," Lucky Streak said, exhausted, "Just tell them yourself."
Neon shrugged, "Alright."
The unicorn then paused to take another bite of his brownie.
"Well, I'm on your side. And I've been on it this whole time," Neon explained casually.
Octavia's eyes went wide, "What?"
"Yep, you see-"
"Bullshit!" Vinyl yelled, grabbing the attention of the other ponies in the cafe.
"Vinyl!" Octavia hissed.
"No! Buck this! I thought I could handle this but I can't. No way in hell am I going to believe a stupid story like that!" Vinyl yelled as she grabbed her things and walked towards the exit.
"Vinyl!" Octavia called again.
The DJ ignored it and left the cafe.
"I should go-"
"I'll go talk to her," Neon said in the most serious voice Octavia had ever heard from the stallion before.
Neon then grabbed his own coat and walked out after his ex marefriend.
It surprisingly didn't take him long to find her, as she was standing just around the corner.
"Let me guess, you're standing here waiting for Octavia?" Neon asked.
"Piss off," Vinyl cursed before she started to walk away again.
"Wait, Vinyl," Neon said as he used his magic to grab the mare.
Vinyl's head snapped towards him, "What the fuck do you want?"
Neon paused, before he sighed, "I want to explain myself. And I want to apologize. Can you let me at least do that?
"Let me think. No," Vinyl replied as she attempted to walk away again.
"You won't have to speak to me ever again," Neon called, making Vinyl stop, "Just hear me out."
"Fine," Vinyl hissed.
Neon sighed again, "I... When I cheated on you, I was young and stupid. Sometimes I don't think I've even fully grown up. But, after you left, I learned how hard it was to live my life without you. Sure, it was fun getting to be with a different mare every week, but I missed the feeling of coming home to somepony, you know?"
"So you did all this to win me back or something?" Vinyl asked, turning to him.
"No," Neon said flatly, "I did this to make it up to you. Once I realized how badly I fucked up, I wanted to get you back. But as I saw the way your career grew and how popular you had become, I realized there was no way I could ever get to you. Then Caramel contacted me. I remember thinking how this could finally be my chance to make things right with you, but then Caramel explained Octavia to me, and I realized you'd moved one," Neon stopped as he chuckled, "I mean, you moved on to an already taken mare, but as I quickly realized, Caramel was bat shit crazy. So I decided that if I could sabotage Caramel's plans to ruin your life, then maybe-"
Neon trailed off. He looked over up at Vinyl, who was staring intently at him. He lifted up his hoof, and in a quick motion, took off the mare's glasses.
Vinyl had a serious face, however, tears were streaming down her face.
"Then maybe I could mean something to you. And I know I'll probably never get the chance to date you again, at least I could try to be your friend."
Vinyl looked at the ground, then back up at him. Finally, she put her glasses back on her face.
"I need time," Vinyl stated, "I need time to think about this. This is just so sudden, and I still don't fully trust you."
Neon nodded, "I understand that."
"But, I'll think about it, I swear."
Neon smiled, and for the first time in years, Vinyl returned it.
Then, suddenly, Vinyl let out a laugh.
"Not to break the mood or anything, but could you get Octy out here? I don't think I'll be allowed back into the cafe after my little scene."
Neon laughed, "Sure."
He turned around and then paused.
"Oh, and one more thing," he started, "The mare you decided to replace me with is pretty damn hot."
Vinyl grinned, "Hell yeah she is."
Once Neon was out of sight, Vinyl looked down at the floor in thought.
Can I really trust him? Is this another trick? Or does he really want to make amends with me?
Vinyl's ear twitched as she heard a familiar set of hooves walked towards her, in an almost panicked walk.
Vinyl grinned, Well, I guess I'll just have to wait and see.