//------------------------------// // Gilda // Story: My Crazy Ex // by 23 KM To Nerdiness //------------------------------// [DAY 1] I'm Kura Raibana, stallion pegasus and aspiring DJ. My friend Jeff Letrotski was in the bowling league and, one night he asked if I could sub for one of his teammates who'd just quit. I haven't bowled since I was eight, but I guess I had a hidden talent for it that I didn't expect. Jeff and his other teammates on the other hoof..... Not so much. They weren't the best on the league, but I didn't care. I wanted to help a friend out and maybe have a little fun. "Woo! Who's the best griffon in this league?" someone shouted. "THIS one!" "Hey, who's that?" I asked. "That's Gilda, my dude." Jeff nodded. "She's the best bowler in the league. Everyone calls her the 'Her-minator'." "Please tell me you didn't come up with that name." As terrible as the nickname was, she could really bowl. And she was cute. Kinda loud, but cute. I didn't really hinted to stay after the game, but when I spotted Gilda at the snack bar, I figured I'd stick around. "Hey, you were pretty enthusiastic out there." she said. "Y-You saw that, huh?" I chuckled. "I like to keep an eye on the competition." "So how was I?" ".......meh." Didn't have a problem with a little criticism, so I'm used to others being a little blunt. And I think that's one of the reasons why I fell for Gilda. "Guess I'll never top the 'Her-minator'." "Ugh, I absolutely HATE that name." "Heh, I'm Kura." "Name's Gilda." We talked for a while and she seemed like this really cool, down to earth kinda griffon, so I thought I'd try to impress her with something I was good at. "Well, you may be a legend at bowling. How are you at pool?" That was probably a mistake. She beat me there mercilessly. "I see.........that answered my question." I huffed. "Whataya say we make this next game a little more interesting?" she said with a cocky smirk. "What do you have in mind?" "I win, you take me out for some grub." "And if I win?" "You.......GET to take me out for some grub." "Rack 'em up then." So, yeah, she beat me again, but it didn't matter. All of a sudden, subbing in for bowling that night seemed to be the best decision of my life. [DAY 16] Gilda and I started seeing each other alot. She was really competitive, but mostly in a fun, harmless kinda way. Most of the mares I've dated never drank cider, watch sports or even know what heckling meant. Hanging out with Gilda was like hanging out with the guys. Except that she was a gorgeous griffon. [DAY 17] By that point, we've been dating for a few weeks and I was back at the bowling alley on Jeff's team again. After we finished a game, we stuck around and watched Gilda and her team play. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Gilda hollered. "WHAT THE BUCK WAS THAT?! THOSE WERE THREE GUTTEE BALLS YOU JUST DID!" "What the hell?" I muttered. "BOWLING IS BUCKING LIFE!!!" "Pfft, that's nothing." Jeff scoffed. "She's letting him off easy." Competitive was one thing, but she looked like she was gonna rip this guy's head off. "I don't know, Jeff, it's like she's a different griffon here." "WINNING IS EVERYTHING! TAKE YOUR BALL SACK AND GO HOME!!!" Maybe Jeff was onto something. That night... "Kura, I don't know why you're making SUCH a big deal about this." "Because it's kind of a BIG deal, G." I sighed. "You treat this league like it's life or death, but it's really just a game." I thought she would apologize immediately. But she was still fired up, even when we got home! "Do you think I'm the only griffon who takes this seriously?" she growled. "I have seen teams reduced to TEARS in this league. It's not a joke." "That has nothing to do with you." "But you-" "Or US." If Gilda and I were gonna make this work, I needed to know that this was not gonna be an issue. Probably because I was afraid one day that temper might be aimed at me. "Look, I like you alot." "I like you alot, too." "But if I'm honest, I'm a little worried how you'll handle losing. It's frightening." ".....I know." she sighed. "Sometimes I flip out. I guess I'll........work on that a little." "Ahem..." "Ugh, okay, ALOT." I figured that was the end of uber competitive Gilda. And for a while, it was. [DAY 28] The next time we were at the bowling alley, I kept a close eye on her. I could tell it was hard for her, but she was actually being a good sport. And I was pretty impressed, especially because Gary, her griffon teammate, was SO bad. [DAY 31] A few days later, Gary got kicked out of the league. Apparently, he was rubbing sandpaper on the bottom of his bowling ball, which makes it grip the lane better or something. I couldn't believe they'd even check for something like that. How the hell do you get caught? "Now we have no shot at the title!" "Gilda, it'll be fine, you could just replace him, right?" "With WHO? Every other decent player are already on another team.......unless..." As soon as she said that, I knew I was screwed. "Come on, you're such a good bowler, you could totally help us win." she snickered. "I-I just don't think that's such a great idea." "Please?" Up until then, I refused getting involved with the league, but she was my griffriend. How could I say no? "Alright, I'm in." "Yes, SCORE!!!" It seemed harmless. [DAY 52] I've been playing on her team for a few weeks and we were the one's to beat. We made it all the way to the playoffs and we were one game away from the championship. And throughout our entire run, I didn't notice one minute of the old ultra competitive Gilda. She was just having fun. But, then again, we were winning. [DAY 54] The night before the championship, it felt like things couldn't have been better. Yeah, I was looking forward to the game, but what I was more excited about was my relationship with Gilda. But then......there could've been a valid reason for Gilda to have sandpaper at her house. But it was way too coincidental, my mind started racing. Could she actually have set up her teammate and have him kicked put of the league so that I could replace him? Was she capable of being THAT manipulative? [DAY 55] It was finally the championships, I came into the alley right after work and Gilda was already there. I was up all night thinking about her and the sandpaper.......and then I had an idea. I was gonna bowl like crap. On purpose. Here was my plan: I had to see if Gilda had really changed, or if she was using me. "Hey, you okay?" she asked. "Uh.....sure." I uttered. "'Sure'? Get your head in the game." The championship was the best out of three games. So, I thought throw the first one, get my answer, then come back and win. That was the plan. But, I guess I haven't thought of it well enough. Frame after frame, I threw nothing but duds, but Gilda still kept her cool. The better she bowled, the worse i had to bowl. "That's okay." she clapped awkwardly. "Y-You'll get it next time." I gotta tell you, she was really keeping it together. Eventually, I started thinking I might've been overthinking things and was totally wrong about her. By the time we lost the first game, I felt like a complete jackass for throwing it. "Gilda, I-I'm so sorry." She worked really hard for this and I was screwing it up because of a stupid hunch. "It's fine, maybe you need a new ball or something." she stated. "Y-Yeah, that could be it." Then, when I go to reach for a ball... "This is for the TEAM!" THUD!!! After that, I had my answer about Gilda. But, it turns out I was wrong about a couple of things. That sandpaper? She never used it to set up Gary, he just started cheating because he couldn't take anymore of Gilda's rants. Also, Gilda wasn't using me. She actually liked me, but when she saw me slipping under the pressure of the championship, she completely LOST it. I couldn't prove Gilda knocked me unconscious, so she got a sub, won the last two games and finally got the championship trophy. Hey, I know I played a part in this by throwing the game, but she nearly CRACKED MY SKULL with a bowling ball!!! Kura eventually married a synchronized swimmer; a sport that doesn't allow stallions. Gilda went on to win the league trophy an unprecedented seven times. She had to forfeit all seven trophies after the league found out she was doping.