Scootaloo is a pretty funny sounding name. It kinda just rolls off the tongue. Scootaloo. What the hell even is that? It’s not like Windy, like a windy day. It’s not like Bow, which has like a million different definitions. It’s not like Rainbow, Rainbow Dash, Rainbow Blaze—I fucking hate my name.
Scootaloo. I kinda like it.
The piece of loose skin beneath my nail is sticking out. I mindlessly gnaw on it like a zombie.
“So what’s it gonna be?” Bow turns around in the driver’s seat. We’ve been parked here just sitting in silence for an unknown amount of time. I don’t keep count, I don’t care. “You gonna talk to us now?”
I can see that cozy little pregnancy cottage staring me in the face like a bad opinion. We’re here. We’re actually here, and they are really gonna throw me away. There’s two large duffle bags beside me full of clothes and other shit from when I still did track. I scribbled my symbol on the front of it with a permanent marker so people know who owns it. Rainbow Dash; the fastest chick alive. “I can turn this car around and we can all go home if you just goddamn cooperate.”
“Stop,” Windy smacks the arm that’s bandaged from the dog bite. “You’re making it sound like a punishment.”
“It is a punishment!” Bow isn’t classy about raising his voice like Ms. Luna. He just amps up his base like a hollering caveman.
It winds Windy up every time. “Don’t you yell at me!” And now they are arguing again.
I see this pink girl in the cottage window. She spots me and waves with this strange enthusiasm as if I know her. There’s this ungodly smile on her bubblegum face that should’ve made me cringe, but instead I find myself smiling too. She notices, lights up as bright as a bulb, then ducks out of view. I’m expecting that to be the end of it, for her to just disappear into the house, but she pops back up like she’s made of springs, and now she has a whiteboard in her hands. She scribbles something down then presses it against the window. It says, Hi! New Friend! With a smiley face. She then rubs her bare pink arm against the surface, scribbles something again, then flips it over. I’m Pinkie Pie! She’s super pink, so I think it suits her.
I wonder what AJ is up to. I wonder if we’re still friends, or if she hates me forever. I should’ve known better than to get her brother in trouble, and maybe I’m wondering about Mac too. I doubt he loves me anymore. I doubt his whole family even likes me anymore after I was a big baby about staying with Braeburn, and I sent him to jail, or whatever. I wonder if AJ feels scared of him too. Probably, but AJ is the toughest, strongest, girl I know. She’s not scared of anything.
“I’m done talking about this!” Bow slams his fist on the steering wheel, causing the SUV to let out a loud honk. “Can’t you see we’re trying everything and you just seem to get worst by the minute!” He’s talking to me, I know he is, but I don’t know why he’s so upset. I haven’t said a word the whole car ride here.
“Oh, my little Dashie! We love you so much,” Windy breaks down into a pile of tears. I thought we went over this already? “Why won’t you let us make it better?!” She’s snotting into her cardigan, and though she has a pixie cut, her hair is all over the place. I know she didn’t sleep last night. I know I couldn’t when I was yelling at her to leave me alone. “Please just talk to us so we can go home.”
Ms. Luna is slowly climbing down the stairs. She has this uncomfortably polite grin on her face as she debates coming closer towards the car. I notice she has someone following after her, and I will admit that I feel a bit more relieved when I realize it’s Rarity. She is a familiar face, so maybe I won’t have to be alone. I immediately want to ask if she lives here too, but I think that’s pretty obvious at this point. It would explain why Bow just sorta accepted her mom vacationing in the Crystal Empire while her pregnant 16 year old is home alone. Is that more or less depressing?
“Are you listening to us?” I’m not. “You’re making your mother cry.” I sigh.
There’s someone on the roof. I can barely make her out, but I can see the smoke from her cigarette and her equally fiery hair. I squint to make out her facial features when she sticks her tongue out at me and flashes the devil horns.
Okay, so this place might not be that lame.
“All we want is a name!”
I manage to get that piece of skin from under my nail. It slices me with a sharp pain, it peels my flesh back a little, it barely bleeds, not like my nose this morning. Now that hurt. AJ packs a powerful punch. I fucking miss her already.
“Rainbow Dash—“
I open the door and grab my bags. Both Bow and Windy look shocked as if they didn’t just bring me here to abandon me. I don’t say a word to them. I’d shove my middle finger through their snouts if I cared enough to, but I so don't. Whatever, I fucking hate them.
I hate them so much.
The concert is in an hour. Both Mac and I are gonna miss it. I don’t even know the name of the rapper who’s gonna be there, but I still regret not going.