The shade under the bleachers within Canterlot High's sports field was one of Fluttershy's favorite places to spend her afterschool hours. It provided her the comfort of a relatively hidden environment, leaving her to her own devices without fear of interruption. Not to mention the various nests of critters that would be made over the course of the year.
Most of her friends thought it rather odd, though, as its tranquility would seemingly be ruined by any of the various sports matches played in the field. It's calm, quiet nature being disturbed by the thousands of cheers that would roar overhead. It would have been a problem for Fluttershy, if she wasn't cheering right alongside them from her safe haven.
She never particularly cared for professional sports. She was always up to play a friendly game with the rest of the group, even if she was terrible, but something about taking it so seriously always drew her out of the fun. Perhaps it was because of all the attention and pressure it put on her to play well, or maybe it was the over-competitive nature of the whole debacle. Some people did anything to win in these games, and it never sat right with her.
But she stayed and watched anyway, cheering for the sole student who somehow managed to be on every sports team the school ever offered. That sole student was already in the field, practicing for the upcoming soccer tryouts when the school year started.
Fluttershy wondered if Rainbow had ever noticed her through the gaps in the bleachers. She believed not, convincing herself that she was more than likely hidden by everybody else's legs or something like that. Yet it seemed like at every major game, whenever Rainbow pulled off the impossible, she would look directly in Fluttershy's direction, tempting her to run into the field to celebrate with her. She was certain it was just a trick of the light. Nevertheless, here she was, with no one to hide behind, watching her best friend simply kick a ball against a pole and back.
Best friend... yeah... It was no secret to herself that she had a crush on Rainbow; she had long since admitted to it. It wasn't anything like the sweeping amount of love that Twilight and Sunset seemed to share, but it was there regardless. She had been trying to work up the courage to say something to Rainbow ever since the end of the last year. They only had one year of high school left, and if that was all the time Fluttershy had to date Rainbow, she was going to use every last bit of it.
She continued to watch Rainbow trying to perfect her cross-field kick. It was something Rainbow had decided to work on over the summer, as too many games were lost because she didn't have enough time to reach the goal. This, of course, meant that she was closer to the bleachers where Fluttershy was hiding, and if she turned around for any reason, she was sure to spot her. Fluttershy didn't mind, though, more content to just watch Rainbow do her thing.
A cheer from the rainbow-haired girl brought Fluttershy's sense back to reality. It seems Rainbow had finally scored a goal from over halfway across the field, and Fluttershy decided to throw in her own silent cheer for good measure.
She never imagined her cheer could call back a soccer ball.
Without any warning, Rainbow felt the soccer ball strike the back of her head; it didn't have enough force to knock her down, but it definitely caught her attention. She spun on her heels to verbally assault the perpetrator, only to find Applejack tossing another soccer ball between her feet, a smug grin crossing her features.
"You did that on purpose." Fluttershy could hear her say.
"Someone's gotta knock that big head down a notch."
"Then how about we see if you can beat me, one on one."
They did their signature spit handshake, and began their game. Under any other circumstance, Fluttershy would have a hard time keeping track of what was going on, but her eyes were drawn to Rainbow with such precision that she could always tell whether or not she had the ball. She never thought a one-on-one soccer match would be all that interesting, but seeing how the two moved about the field to compensate for the lack of support was rather astounding. She'd almost mistake it for a complex dance.
Theirs was a game up to five points, as per usual, and throughout most of the match the score stayed relatively neck and neck, with Rainbow using her precision to slide some narrow shots through Applejack's defense, and Applejack using her own (normal) strength to nail the cross-field shots Rainbow was desperately trying to attain herself. Fluttershy continued to cheer, her voice elevating slightly each time Rainbow scored. Soon enough, the score was tied at 4-4, and the game had come to a stand-still.
The ball stayed relatively centered, each of the girls trying their hardest to capitalize on the others mistakes, but neither made one. Back and forth, the ball flew, always caught by the defender before it reached the goal. Both Rainbow and Applejack looked worse for the wear, but Fluttershy knew that Applejack was the hardier of the two; if Rainbow didn't end this soon, she was sure to lose.
It was a silly little contest, sure, but that didn't stop Fluttershy from wanting to see Rainbow win. It was worth dealing with her gloating later if it meant she could witness Rainbow's ecstatic expression when she actually managed to pull through. With that in mind, Fluttershy took a deep breath, and gave Rainbow the loudest cheer she could muster.
"GO, RAINBOW DASH!!"
The intrusion caught Applejack off guard, giving Rainbow her opening. She slipped her foot over the ball, spinning it into the air, then followed with a frontflip kick that sent the ball careening straight into the opposite goal. Rainbow was bouncing up and down at her victory, laughing as she caught Applejack's wide-eyed expression.
Fluttershy was just about as excited as Rainbow, not only because of seeing her win, but being able to witness one of the crowning jewels of Rainbow's prowess. That move was a signature of Rainbow's, but she didn't use it often. As far as Fluttershy could tell, she only pulled it off when she was at the peak of her confidence, and to think, her cheer did that for her! It sent her into a small bout of giddy squeals before being pulled out of her hiding spot by Rainbow.
"You can thank Flutters here for teaching me that one," She said as she pulled Fluttershy to her side.
"Really? You taught her that?"
Fluttershy pulled her head back, her hair settling naturally over her right eye. "Oh, I only taught her how to do a front flip. She was the one who made it a soccer move."
Applejack chuckled to herself. "Figures you'd take something so simple and turn it into another chance to show off. Anyway, good game Rainbow."
Rainbow shook her hand again. "You too, AJ."
"Well, ah'll catch you two later. Gotta get back to the farm and start the harvest. See ya around!"
As Applejack left, Rainbow turned her attention to the shy girl still in her arm. "It's always nice to know I've got my own personal cheering squad at the ready."
Fluttershy's only response was to turn her head away, blood rising to her cheeks and a massive smile spread across her face. "It's nothing really, I just love seeing you when you win."
Rainbow let her go. "Why don't you ever just hang out on the bleachers with everyone else? I wouldn't mind seeing you so excited at every one of my games."
Fluttershy began to fidget. "Oh, I don't think I could, I just wouldn't feel right."
"Well, as long as you're there I suppose," Rainbow turned to see a confused look on Fluttershy's face. "Oh, don't think I don't notice a small pair of eyes peeking through the bleachers at every one of my games." She earned herself another blush from the young girl. "Say, you wanna come hang out at my place? It's been a while since we've spent time together."
"But we just hang out at the mall last week, and then there was Twilight's party..."
Rainbow brought her back into a one-armed embrace, cutting her off. "I mean just the two of us, silly."
"Oh, ok."
As if Fluttershy hadn't already been giddy enough, Rainbow was giving her the perfect opportunity to confess her crush to her. She had thought she was going to have to jump through all sorts of hoops just to get some alone time with Rainbow, yet here was the chance presented to her on a silver platter. She just had to make sure she was at least somewhat quieter than Twilight and Sunset had been at the party; didn't want Rainbow's family asking any unnecessary questions.
She was sure she could manage.