The halls of CHS were completely empty as I made my way out of the library. School had ended an hour ago, but I was staying late to study for a world history test I had tomorrow. Most of my classes consisted of material I’d already studied in Equestria, and anything that fell outside of that wasn’t hard for me to wrap my head around. History, however, was an exception.
It wasn’t hard to understand—a lot of it was just memorization—but even with how much I studied, I always felt as though I was missing context. It didn’t help that the further I read into human history, the more unpleasant it became. At first, it didn’t seem all that bad, but learning about the last few centuries in particular made me question whether or not I wanted to stay in this world any longer than I had to.
Yawning as I made my way through the empty building, I thought about taking a nap when I got home. Studying was a draining activity, and the day had already been somewhat tiring. Still, even though I was fatigued, my stride remained unbroken. After all, this was just a dull punctuation mark on an otherwise eventful day. Not even the tedium of poring over the disturbing history of humans could distract from how accomplished I felt.
At lunch, not only did I humiliate my favorite target more than I’d ever done before, but I managed to drive a wedge between her and her stupid friend. It took a few days of planning, and an exhausting amount of effort to set up, but it was all worth it in the end. My lips curled into a smirk as I replayed the events in my head once more.
It wasn’t long before my focus shifted elsewhere, however. My ears perked at a second set of footsteps echoing through the hall.
“Hey!” A voice erupted from behind.
Even before the voice registered in my head, I knew exactly who was trailing me. There was only one person who I could have upset enough for them to stay after school and try to confront me. My smug grin widened, but I bit my tongue to rein it back in. Once it faded, I relaxed my jaw and turned around.
“Hey, Rainbow Dash,” I greeted with false sincerity. “What’s up?”
Mere seconds after I greeted her, she was right up in my face, eyes sternly peering into mine. She breathed a sharp, angry exhale.
“Why?” she asked. “Why’d you do it?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I lied, struggling not to chuckle in her face.
My attempt at concealing my amusement must have been obvious. Immediately after I finished my sentence, she shoved me. After stumbling backward a few steps, I quickly regained my footing and stepped back into her personal space, same position as before.
“I don’t know what your problem is, but if I were you, I’d walk away.” My face bent into a scowl to match hers. “Now.”
“Cut the bullshit, Shimmer!” she shouted, her voice reverberating through the empty halls. “I know it was you!”
“Whatever could you be talking about?” I asked sarcastically. “Did you take one too many soccer balls to the head or something?”
That earned me another shove from Dash, but I barely budged. Physicality is something I always tried to avoid in confrontations. Not only because I considered it beneath me, but because it meant I could surprise anyone who thought I was all bark and no bite. This encounter was a perfect example of that.
When I returned the favor with a shove of my own, Dash almost completely lost her footing, only barely managing to stay upright. Her scowl wavered momentarily as she regained her equilibrium. As soon as she recovered, she got up in my face once more, looking angrier than ever.
“Fluttershy’s mad at me and it’s because of what you did!” she seethed.
“Well gee! That sucks,” I replied sarcastically, “but I don’t don’t know what you’re talking about, nor do I care.”
“Bullshit!” she hissed.
“Look, I don’t see how you getting into a fight with your girlfriend is my problem, so get out of my face or this won’t end well for you.”
Rainbow Dash bumped her chest against mine. “Fuck you.”
Placing my hands over my heart, I feigned offense at her witty retort. “Gosh, Rainbow Dash, you’re really hurting my feelings,” I whined mockingly before glowering at her. “Go throw a tantrum at someone who gives a shit. I’m going home.”
Turning away from her, I attempted to walk away. Rainbow Dash wasn’t willing to stop there, however. After a single step, I felt her hand grab my shoulder, pulling me hard enough to face her again.
“Where do you think you’re going? I’m not done with you!” she shouted.
Being spun around so quickly left me briefly disoriented. When I came to, I grabbed her wrist, pulling her into me before pushing her into the lockers nearby. The sound of her back meeting hard metal bounced around the empty halls.
She grimaced upon impact. When she recovered, her face was lit up with rage. Lunging forward, she grabbed my shoulders with both her hands. I responded by grappling with her the same way. Both of us were fighting to push the other back, but we soon found ourselves locked in a stalemate. Our foreheads were almost pressing against each other as we struggled for dominance.
“You’re making a huge mistake,” I snarled through bared teeth. “Let go and walk away before I make you regret this.”
That only made Dash push even harder, causing me to lose a few steps worth of ground.
“Like I’m afraid of you!” she scoffed, voice audibly strained from exertion.
This was infuriating. Most students wouldn’t dare get this confrontational with me, let alone physical. Even after I warned her multiple times—more than she deserved—she refused to listen. If reasoning wasn’t going to work, then I’d have no choice but to show her how serious of a mistake this was.
With a low growl, I thrust all my weight forward. The sound of my boots clacking against the linoleum floor resonated through the hallway as she steadily lost more ground. With a white knuckle grip, my fingers dug into her shoulders, my thumbs pressing into her collar. As her control faltered, so did her bravado.
Before long, I had her back pressed against the lockers. Her grip over me loosened until she let go of my shoulders, choosing instead to grab my wrists in a desperate attempt to pull me off of her. While her thumbs dug into my wrists, I relaxed my fingers, pressing my open palms against her shoulders until her back was flat against the wall. Her hands dropped from my arms as I pressed my body weight against her.
My breathing grew heavy—half because of the physical effort I spent to push her back, and half from how livid I was. This was unbelievable. She had the nerve to lay her hands on me not once, not twice, but three times. Of course, Dash wasn’t known for her intelligence, but I didn’t think she was this stupid. She had no idea who she was messing with, but after this, she would learn.
As I held her against the wall, the look on her face told me she was starting to understand her mistake. The aggression in her gaze didn’t waver, but the color drained from her face as we glared into each other’s eyes. Dash was masking how she truly felt, but I could smell the sweet scent of fear. She knew as well as I did that she didn’t stand a chance.
I wanted to laugh and gloat, but the rage burning within me incinerated any mirth I felt. I should have been reveling in this, but I could only focus on how badly I wanted to hurt her. The amount of violent thoughts that flashed through my head as she writhed in my grasp should have been concerning, but I was too enraged to care.
This should have been when I truly made her regret this, but something else inside of me kept me from going any further. Second thoughts began to dilute my fury. The longer I looked into her eyes, the more I could tell my message to her was loud and clear. She knew she’d messed up.
If I were to escalate things beyond this, there was a chance I'd get in trouble. That could jeopardize my ultimate plan, and I couldn’t risk her running off and tattling to the principal. Even if the chances of me being caught were slim—even if no one would believe her over me—I’d come much too far to let someone like her to ruin everything.
Just as I couldn’t bring myself to start wailing on her, I couldn’t let her go. My mind was grappling with itself, the same way we were moments before I pinned her to the wall. The loudest voice in my head was telling me to let loose and beat her senseless. It was after school hours, most of the school faculty had gone home, and the ones who were still here weren’t anywhere near us. So what if I gave her a black eye or a bloody nose? There’d be no way to prove it was me. No one would believe her. I was untouchable.
But the longer I held her there, the more wrong all of this felt. Part of me was relishing in the fear she exuded, but another part of me began to wonder why I was doing this. Sure, she attacked me first, and I had every reason to make her pay for that. Maybe I would be able to get away with knocking her out, but this was beneath me. This wasn’t who I was.
Right?
With a growl, I pulled her forward a little bit just to shove her back again—this time even more forcefully. Her face scrunched in pain as she made contact with the lockers a second time, the back of her head bouncing against the wall of steel. As she slid to the floor, I stood over her triumphantly, smirking down at the crumpled mess she had been reduced to.
“Next time you think you can stand up to me, remember this,” I spat.
Content to leave her wallowing in her overwhelming defeat, I made my departure. Perhaps it was foolish of me to turn my back on her, but I figured if she had a brain in her thick skull, she would sit down and think long and hard about the events that had just transpired.
Of course, Dash wasn’t known for her intelligence.
Before even fully rising to her feet, Dash charged directly at me. I turned to react as I heard her footsteps, but before I could do anything, she threw her fist into the center of my stomach, knocking the wind right out of me. As I leaned forward, I felt her hands angrily grip my collar, ramming me into the lockers, our positions now flipped. Her hands trembled with rage as her knuckles pressed against my throat.
Still trying to catch my breath, I watched Dash draw her fist back. My body was still too much in shock to retaliate. Breaking free was not an option, but I still had a plan. She may have gotten the drop on me, but that just meant I’d have to beat her the way I beat anyone else: getting under her skin.
“Go ahead… hit me… as hard as you can,” I sputtered between labored breaths. “After all, you know… what the penalty for fighting… on school grounds is.”
“There’s no one here, and you won’t be able to prove anything!” she argued.
“Proof? Like that matters.” A grin spread across my face. “Who do you think Principal Celestia will believe? The smartest, most popular girl in school, or the hotheaded, dimwitted jock?”
“Just keep talking shit.” Rainbow Dash pulled me forward, slamming my back against the lockers behind me. “It’ll make this even more satisfying.”
She was still trying to intimidate me, but they were empty threats. The fact that she hadn’t thrown an actual punch yet made it obvious she was having second thoughts.
My eyes narrowed, my wicked smirk widening as I continued. “You know if you hit me, you’ll be suspended. And suspension means you’ll be kicked off of every team you’re on. And if that happens, what will you do without that generous grading curve?”
Rainbow Dash squinted. “What are you even talking about?”
“Come on, Dash! Everyone knows you’re dumb as dirt. The only reason you’re passing any of your classes is the preferential treatment you get by being the star athlete of every team,” I explained.
As I kept going, I couldn’t help but chuckle. “It’s just like what Applejack said about you: ‘quick as a whip, sharp as a marble,’ I think it was?”
“Shut up!” she shouted as her knuckles pressed harder into my neck.
I knew the mere mention of Applejack's name would strike a nerve. The tough facade she desperately clung to was falling apart before my eyes. It gave me such a rush.
“Think about it, Dash. You might get the satisfaction of hitting me, but you’ll fail all your classes without that curve. After that, they won’t let you back on the team unless you pull your grades up. And if you can’t manage that, you’ll probably have to repeat the school year, too! From special treatment to special ed; what a fall from grace.”
“Shut the fuck up before I knock your teeth down your throat!” she screamed.
Rainbow Dash was trying so hard not to cry. I wanted so badly to cackle as I watched her squirm, but I had to maintain control. Her hand may have been at my throat, but I had her right where I wanted her. Even from such a disadvantageous spot, I held all the power in this interaction, and she was slowly unraveling in front of me.
“What are you waiting for then?” I goaded. “Why don’t you go ahead and hit me? I know you want to. Do us both a favor and get it over with.”
Dash’s face was burning with anger, but the tears close to spilling from her eyes threatened to extinguish her fiery rage. Both her fist and the hand holding my collar were shaking. She was a ticking time bomb, and after a few seconds of silence, she looked ready to detonate. Whether she was going to fall apart or lay into me didn’t matter anymore—I had already won.
Suddenly, her fist flew forward. Instinctively, I flinched, turning my head as her hand rushed toward my face. A loud slam echoed down the halls.
My eyes shut tight as I waited for the pain, but it never came. Was I dead? Had she hit me hard enough to kill me instantly? That wouldn’t make any sense. I could still feel my back against the lockers, her hand gripping my jacket, her knuckles slightly compressing my windpipe.
Upon opening my eyes, I got my answer. Her fist had landed on the locker right next to my head, her strike having left a noticeable dent in the steel door. When she pulled her hand away, there was a small, red stain on the surface of the locker. A short trail of blood dripped down from her knuckles. As hard as she tried not to show it, I could tell how bad that punch must have hurt. It made me wonder if she’d broken her hand. Wouldn’t that have been the cherry on top?
Her grip on my collar loosened as her hands fell. Without another word, she stomped away furiously, hyperventilating as she did. Rainbow Dash, the star athlete of CHS, storming off in a child-like hissy fit. If it weren't so hilarious, I might have felt bad for her.
“You made the right choice, Rainbow dunce!” I shouted at her.
More than likely too embarrassed to acknowledge me anymore, Dash continued her walk of shame. In one day, I’d driven her and her best friend apart, and had a chance to humiliate both of them. My only regret was that there was no audience to witness her utter defeat. As she walked away, I couldn’t help but laugh at her pathetic tantrum.
A sudden chill in the air brought my laughter to a sudden halt. At first, it felt like an unpleasant draft had blown by, but the air around me quickly became frigid. I looked around for a reason why, but found none. The school's ventilation system was quiet, so it couldn’t have been the air conditioning, and I was too far from any doors or windows for this kind of air to blow in. Before I could spend much thought on that, my body stiffened as I felt and heard a breath at my ear.
“You’re not really going to let her get away with that, are you?”
Whipping my body around, I saw no one behind me. Reaching my hand up toward my neck, there was nothing there. Despite this, my whole body tingled as I felt the sensation of fingers gently dragging down my spine, a sharp sting spreading across my back in their wake. It felt as though my skin was being unzipped.
“If you don’t make an example out of her, she’s just going to walk all over you in the future.”
My heart stopped as I suddenly became acutely aware of everything. This wasn’t reality. This was a memory—a highly detailed, uncomfortably realistic reconstruction of what had already happened. Upon this realization, the disgusting voice in my ear began to chortle loudly, enough to make my ear ring.
With my fingertips against my temples, I breathed deep. “This is just another stupid nightmare,” I muttered as I exhaled. “None of this is real.”
Even if this was a nightmare, I could still feel Her teeth at my ear. “Oh, but it was real. Those weren’t my words—those were your thoughts. Don’t you remember?”
“I don’t care,” I quivered. “I-I didn’t do anything after this. That’s all that matters. This isn't me anymore.”
"Who are you trying to fool me, or yourself? Because I don't think you're convincing either of us."
I didn't respond. Communicating with Her never did me any good. I just kept frantically telling myself to wake up in my head.
“Are you going to pretend you don’t feel humiliated after today? After all, you were right—she is walking all over you. Just like you said she would.”
A jolt shot through my spine and spread throughout the rest of my body. I shivered momentarily, and when I stopped, I was unable to control any part of myself anymore. As my body involuntarily turned to face the direction Rainbow Dash went, I noticed she was still storming away. The gap between us remained the same regardless of how many steps she took. Dash was frozen, perpetually walking in place, but she didn’t seem to be aware.
“Why don’t I show you how things would have gone if you weren’t so spineless?”
Her words made my blood run cold. I wanted to protest, run away, scream—do anything at all—but my body refused to respond. A familiar feeling of abject powerlessness washed over me.
No matter how much I told myself none of this was real, it didn’t make any difference. Even if it was just a dream, every sensation and emotion felt like reality.
Red scales crept over my body, each one feeling like a searing hot needle burrowing and twisting itself into and under my skin. Every tooth in my mouth erupted in agony as they reshaped themselves into razor-sharp fangs. A metallic taste filled my mouth as the tip of my tongue split down the middle and became forked. Every single nerve ending in my body gradually ignited in blistering agony.
My body begged for a reaction, but none came. Even if I couldn’t do anything to stop what was happening, I was desperate to scream. The sliver of reprieve it may have offered would have been welcomed. Instead, I was painfully relegated to a prisoner within my own mind. And in this realm, it was a much crueler fate. At least when this happened at the Fall Formal, she could only control my body. But here, reality itself was her domain. Whatever she willed is what would be, and I was nothing but a horrified spectator.
The only thing left to do was hope. Hope that I’d wake up soon.
The moment I jolted awake, I could feel my heart nearly pounding out of my chest. Immediately, I sat up, a dizzy spell following my sudden movement. Even after the dizziness passed, I still felt lightheaded from how hard I was panting. My eyes darted around the room, and soon I realized I was in my apartment, laying in bed. Assured I was safe, I started taking deeper breaths.
For a few moments, my stomach churned with nausea. I did my best to swallow it back. There was no way I could have made it to the bathroom in time. Even if there was nothing solid in my stomach, I’d still rather not regurgitate bile onto myself or my bed.
My body was freezing cold and clammy all over. Looking down at myself, I noted how sweat-soaked my clothes, pillow, and sheets were. But as I examined my bed, I noticed my phone was buzzing incessantly. That was probably the thing that woke me up. As my eyes met the screen, I realized I was receiving a call. It was Flash.
Without giving it much thought, I answered the call, putting the speaker up to my ear.
“Hello?” I slurred, still groggy from my abrupt awakening.
“Hey, Sunset,” Flash greeted, “is everything okay?”
“Yeah, why? What’s up?” I answered, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes.
“Are you sure? You sound pretty rough.”
I swallowed, trying to relieve my dry, scratchy throat. “I just woke up, that’s why.”
He chuckled. “A little early for bed, don’t you think?”
“I didn’t go to bed, I just fell asleep after I got home from school.” As my sleepy eyes regained their ability to focus, I looked out the window, realizing how dark it was outside. “Wait, what time is it?”
“Can’t you just look at your ph–”
“Just tell me,” I snapped.
“A little past seven.”
Pulling my phone away from my ear, I checked to see if he was right. For a few seconds, I just stared in disbelief. Sure enough, the time read 7:08 PM. That might have been the longest I’d slept in months, but it certainly wasn’t restful sleep.
“Okay, wow, yeah, I’ve been out for a bit,” I remarked, stunned at the fact I’d been asleep for nearly eight hours. “Anyway, why are you calling me, exactly?”
“Jeez, I didn’t know I needed a reason to call a friend,” he answered, his tone jokingly defensive.
Letting out a quiet exhale, I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Sorry, I’m just a little on edge, and really not a morning person.”
“It’s nighttime.”
“You know what the fuck I mean, smart ass!”
Flash chuckled. “Chill, chill. I’m just messing with you.”
He may have been joking, but I was in no mood for it. When he realized I wasn’t going to dignify his playfulness with any form of response, he awkwardly continued the conversation.
“Anyway, I called to check on you,” he explained. “I heard about what happened at school, and wanted to let you know I’m here if you want to talk about it.”
A wan smile spread across my lips, but quickly faded. His concern for me was endearing, but it left me feeling conflicted. After all, I wasn’t exactly a victim in what he was referencing, and it made me feel bad about being such a bitch when I answered his call.
“I don’t really want to talk about it, no," I answered, "but I probably should anyway."
"So, what happened?" he asked.
"Actually, why don't you tell me what you heard first," I replied. I was almost afraid to find out how everyone else thought this morning went.
“Well, word around the school is that Dash snuck up behind you and shoved you face-first into a locker. After that, you tried to get into a fight with her, but she pushed you again and walked off.”
The only response I could muster at first was an empty chuckle. “That sure makes me sound pathetic,” I remarked.
“Kinda, yeah. That’s sorta why I get the feeling that’s not how it went down.”
“Astute as ever,” I replied sarcastically.
“So, what really happened?” he asked.
At first, I thought about saying that’s how it happened just so I could get off the phone sooner, but I decided against it. If he was willing to not only check up on me, but give me the benefit of the doubt, it was only fair that I told him the truth about everything. With a deep sigh, I recapped the events of the morning yet again, hoping it would be the last time I would ever need to.
“So now do you believe me when I say Dash isn’t just joking around?” I asked after I concluded the story.
“Hard to argue there, yeah,” he agreed. “I gotta admit: most of the reason I didn’t believe that’s how things went is because I couldn’t believe Dash would do something like that, but what you told me isn’t much better.”
“I mean it’s not totally her fault,” I admitted, breathing a frustrated exhale. “I did go for a low blow.”
The other end of the line went silent for a few seconds. “How hard did you hit your head?”
“What?” My brow tightened. “The nurse said I was fine, why?”
“I’m just shocked to hear you say that,” he answered.
“What, you don’t think I’m capable of admitting when I’m wrong?”
"I mean, no offense, but if we're going off of history..." Flash then made a noise I could only describe as indecisive. At first, his answer pissed me off, but after thinking about it for a moment, he wasn't exactly wrong.
“Whatever, point taken,” I conceded. “But yeah, we both handled everything pretty badly.”
“I’m surprised,” he remarked. “You don’t sound as mad about this as I thought you would.”
“Oh, don’t get me wrong—I’m absolutely furious at her—but I could have easily walked away, and if I did, none of that would have happened.”
“Yeah, but you can’t totally blame yourself. She didn’t have to act like that in the first place.”
“Maybe” I accepted, “but I have less of an excuse to be acting like that. And, as much as I hate to admit it, Rainbow Dash had a pretty good reason for reacting the way she did.”
Flash scoffed. “Really? What’s that?”
Immediately, my mind jumped back to the nightmare I’d awoken from minutes ago. My stomach started twisting itself in knots as I remembered everything—reliving the memory, the demon creeping up on me, and the horrible things she made me watch afterwards. A wave of nausea washed over me again, and after it passed, my whole body shuddered.
“I’d… rather not get into it,” I sheepishly replied.
“Fair enough. How do the others feel about it?”
“What others?” I asked.
“Your other friends…?” he responded, his voice trailing off at the end.
“Oh, right, them.”
Calling them friends at this point felt a little awkward. I only knew how Fluttershy felt, but just because she was willing to accept my side of the story didn’t mean the rest of them would.
A sense of dread settled in as I remembered we would probably have to talk about that tomorrow. What would they all think? Would they take my side with Fluttershy as well? Or would they sit me down at lunch and tell me they were finally giving up on me? Regardless, I wasn’t excited to find out.
“I don’t know,” I answered. “I mean, I told Fluttershy what happened, but I haven’t talked to the rest of them, so I have no idea what they’re gonna think until we discuss it.”
Which would hopefully be never.
“Well, what does she think?”
“She felt kind of bad for me, I guess?” I answered. “When I told her, she didn’t seem all that upset with me. She seemed pretty angry at Rainbow Dash about it, though.”
“Really?” Flash let out a surprised laugh. “I figured she wouldn’t be happy, but I wouldn’t expect her to side with you.”
My expression soured. “What’s that supposed to–? Ugh, whatever.” I forced myself to ignore his shitty comment in favor of keeping the discussion going. “From what I gathered, the reason she’s mad is because Dash only told her half the story.”
“Guess that makes sense,” he replied. “The fact that she’s on your side is a good sign though, right?”
“Maybe,” I answered uncertainly. “I don’t know if she and the girls are gonna see eye to eye on that.”
“What makes you say that?”
“It’s hard to explain,” I began. “Fluttershy’s been really nice to me since last week. Like, weirdly nice. The other girls still hardly seem interested in talking to me most of the time, but after she invited me to band practice last week, we’ve been talking more. She’s even asked if I wanted to hang out with her multiple times, and I have no idea why.”
“Huh.” For a brief moment, the line went quiet. “Maybe that’s why Rainbow Dash is still acting that way.”
“What?” I snapped. “You said befriending Fluttershy would help with that!”
“Hey, I said it might help, not that it would,” he contended.
This was as confusing as it was frustrating. “So if being friends with her is making Dash act like even more of a bitch, what am I supposed to do? If I push Fluttershy away, that’s going to hurt her feelings, and then Rainbow Dash will be even further up my ass for that!”
“First off, calm down,” he replied. “Yelling at me isn't gonna solve anything.”
Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Right, sorry,” I apologized. “I just don’t get why this would make things worse. None of this shit makes any sense.”
“Don’t sweat it, I understand,” he assured. “Second, maybe Rainbow Dash is jealous. Those two have been friends for years—since we were kids. Maybe she’s just worried that if you two get close, Fluttershy won’t want to be her best friend anymore?”
“That’s fucking stupid,” I responded dryly.
Flash chuckled, the noise from his sudden breath causing the receiver to crackle. “It might seem that way, but those two got into a big fight over something last year and didn’t talk to each other for a while. Maybe Dash is afraid of something like that happening again. It’s just something to think about.”
That made me wonder whether or not Flash knew that I was the reason they didn’t talk to each other for so long. If he didn’t, I certainly wasn’t about to tell him. Just thinking about that made my stomach turn again.
Things went quiet for a few seconds. Eventually, Flash cleared his throat and spoke again.
“Anyway, there’s a couple things I gotta do before bed, so I should probably get going.”
“Yeah, I should probably do the same,” I replied. Running my fingers over the damp sheet below me, I quietly sighed. I was going to have to wash all my bedding again. That, and I probably really needed a shower.
“You gonna be alright?” he asked.
“Don’t worry about me,” I responded. His concern made me feel warm enough to crack a half-smile. “But… Thanks for checking up on me. I appreciate it.”
“Hey, no problem,” he said. “What are friends for?”
My half-smile became full. Friends. Flash was my friend. If nothing else—even if things went south with the girls tomorrow—I would at least have him to fall back on. Thinking about tomorrow still made me anxious, but knowing I would still have him regardless of what happened the next day helped put me at ease.
After we said our goodbyes, I took the phone away from my ear and looked down, holding it in both hands. The screen looked greasy from sitting against my face for so long, so I used one of my blankets to wipe it clean. When I flicked the screen back on, there were several notifications—all of which came in while I was asleep.
One was a missed call from work. It was more than likely Skates calling me in for an extra shift. That was a little disappointing. Had I not been unconscious, I probably would have taken that offer. Unfortunately, the call came several hours ago, so there was nothing I could do about it now.
The second was a text from Fluttershy. Opening my messaging app, I navigated to our conversation history.
>hey, just texting to make sure you made it home alright. still down to hang out after school if you want to!
As my thumb hovered over the text field, I debated whether or not to respond. Considering she had sent that text almost six hours ago, it was probably too late to hang out—not that I particularly felt like doing so. Either way, I figured I should let her know I’m not dead.
>Sorry for the super late response. Doing alright. Just woke up from an 8 hour nap lol.
Closing that conversation, I navigated back to my messages to check what the other unread message was. Strangely, it was from a number outside of my contacts. At first, I thought it was just a wrong number, but I quickly realized it wasn’t.
When my eyes scanned the first words of the text, my stomach dropped through the floor.
>hey its rainbow dash. meet me at the steps before school tomorrow. lets talk just you and me.
As I finished reading the text, I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. Staring blankly at the screen, I read the brief message over and over. When my phone screen dimmed, I realized just how long my eyes had been scanning her words. Something about the way it read made me feel uneasy.
Why did she want to talk to me alone? How did she even get my number? Did Fluttershy give it to her? If she did, did she know Rainbow Dash wanted to talk to me one on one? Was there really anything to be worried about?
Even if it was before school started, there’d be other students there if she tried anything funny. But maybe that’s what she wanted. That would be the perfect place to make an example out of me in front of the rest of the school, away from any staff member’s prying eyes. In the back of my mind, I knew I was just being paranoid, but that did nothing to stop me from worrying. Why did she have to be so vague with her message?
Letting out a deep exhale, I finally stood up from my bed, gathering up all my sheets and blankets into a pile. I would deal with that when the time came. Until then, there wasn’t much I could do. Hopefully, I could find enough things to do tonight to distract me from the trepidation of tomorrow’s unknowns. Hopefully, I was worried about nothing, and tomorrow would be fine.
The only thing left to do was hope.