Sunset had been sent home early due to the assault, she was laying in bed staring off at the wall wondering if it would be better if she'd ended her life when the opportunity presented itself.
She shut her eyes tightly and sniffled, she felt awful all around and didn't want to be alive and she knew for certain that her school mates didn't want her to continue living either. The pinging and buzzing of her phone alerted her that there was a new text from Fluttershy likely asking how she was doing.
Sunset groaned and took a moment to sit up in her bed, reaching for her phone on the nightstand next to her, she gently pressed on the power button and watched as the phone screen came to life.
'Hello Sunset, are you feeling any better?'
She chuckled bitterly, so very tempted to tell her that she was maybe one minor inconvenience away from committing the unthinkable. 'Ya. Im going to be sore for a long time tho cause yk, assaulted by a dumb dumb walking pride flag. Such a disgrace to pride flags smh'
She grabbed her phone and walked downstairs, she hadn't bothered to change into her pajamas since there wasn't a need for them and nobody was going to judge her for wearing clothes in her own home, she slowly sat down on her couch and turned the TV on, there was nothing but boring news and daytime TV on but she didn't really care as she simply required the backround noise.
'Rainbow's being expelled, her parents are furious at her for what she did. I don't really know if it helps you feel better but you're getting justice.'
'It does Flutters, thx for telling me.'
'Np.'
Sunset sighed sadly and stared down at the text, she felt comfortable enough to tell Fluttershy that she was incredibly close to ending herself. 'Hey Shy? Can I tell u smthing personal?'
'Sure!'
'I've been thinking about everything- I just wanna die, I don't wanna live anymore bc who'd wanna be friends with a bully and demon? Dash said some things and I'm slowly realizing she's right. I should've died in the crater when u guys blasted me in the face with that weird friendship gay laser. I guess I'm just not happy with the person that I am, I've been sitting in my room counting down the hours until I finally kill myself Fluttershy. I never can bring myself to go through with it because I'm not only a bully but a demon and a coward, it'll be better if I die and u get ur friends back bc u can say I forced u into hanging out w me.'
She winced and re-read her wall of text after she'd sent it, it read like a whiny little brat complaining that she was facing the consequences of her actions and it only served to make her feel worse, she set her phone on the couch cushion next to her and held her head in her hands.
It was a mistake to tell the very kind girl that she was about to kill herself and she knew it, it would only make her worry and Sunset wasn't ready to lie through her teeth and say she'd be fine.
Her phone buzzed but she didn't move or look up, she sat there and thought about what she was going to say to Fluttershy to reassure her that she'd be okay even if she planned on being dead by next week. She eventually looked up and grabbed her phone, hesitating for a good few moments before unlocking it and starting to look over the wall of text her friend sent in response.
'Sunset you're not a coward, bully, or demon! You're changing for the better and I'm so proud of you, what Rainbow did was wrong and will never be right and I'm so sorry that you want to die, I love you Sunset. So SO much, you're a kind, empathetic, and sincere person and the fact that nobody else is willing to give you a chance is telling that they're lacking in character.'
'I am. I ran away from home bc I couldn't handle not being a princess, I tore ur friendships apart, and then I tried to freaking kill u and ur friends. All bc I wanted to make princess Celestia proud of me so she would see me as an equal not as a subject.'
'Princess? Also former friends, remember?'
'Long story, I'll tell u tmrw. And srry, keep forgetting.'
'You'll still be alive tomorrow for school?'
Sunset's fingers were hovering above her phone's keyboard as she prepared to type her reply, she hummed and looked blankly at the wall behind her TV, if she was going to be honest with her she didn't know if she would be alive tomorrow or not. 'Sure. I'm sorry Flutters I just don't feel good rn. I think I just need to get some sleep..'
'Alright. If you need anything or even want to talk I'll always pick up unless I'm asleep.'
'Thx Flutters, gn.'
'Good night Sunset, pleasant dreams.'
Sunset chuckled and sent a thumbs up emoji back and turned her phone off, she stared at the device in her hands and wondered if she would be able to return to Equestria one day so she would be able to apologize to the one mother figure who ever truly cared about her.
She stood up and walked to where she usually plugged her phone in for charging, the device quickly was plugged in and she walked up to her loft, she all but threw herself onto her bed and groaned loudly, she had no particular reason for groaning, she simply felt like it.
She didn't care that she'd be sleeping in her everyday clothes as she got under the covers and closed her eyes to let sleep overtake her, she just wanted to get to bed and try to salvage what little normal sleep schedule she had left. She was under the blankets one second and the next she heard her alarm very rudely assaulting her hearing and disrupting her happy dreams, it was time to get up and she was not ready for it.
Getting up in the morning never failed to be the extremely difficult part, she opened her eyes and hissed in displeasure, her body was extremely sore and she didn't want to have to go to school in that state.
The girl took much longer than usual to get out of bed and get dressed, she sighed and contemplated skipping school for the day so she wouldn't be forced to deal with the people who'd inevitably try to start a fight with her in her weakened state.
But alas she was legally required to attend school so she got up and out of bed pretty much blindly since she had just woken up and was not nearly alert enough to do much of anything, walking downstairs somehow without injury to brush her teeth and get out the door. She didn't bother to brush her hair or take a shower, she didn't think she looked or smelled all that bad so there was no point in cleaning herself that day. It was good she didn't smell because she didn't give enough of a crap to bother showering anyways.
The drive to school was as peaceful as it could be in a bustling city, honking horns, car alarms, and people down the street yelling was what she heard for most of her short ride to school.
Sunset had barely taken a step onto the perfectly kept school lawn when she heard her name called out by her friend, she took a deep breath and turned towards the direction where she thought Fluttershy was coming from. "Hey Flutters, good morning."
Fluttershy jogged up to her and wrapped her in a tight hug. "I'm so glad you're here today!"
"Thanks.." She chuckled bitterly, gently returning the embrace. "Here's to another day of hateful words being thrown my way and if I'm unusually unlucky then hands will be thrown too."
"Don't say that, only Rainbow was the one who thought it was a good idea to attack you."
"I guess." She freed herself from Fluttershy's hug. "I still don't necessarily want to go to school today though."
"Do you want to ask principal Celestia for the day off?"
Sunset took a deep inhale and nodded, of course she did but she didn't think that the principal would just let her skip school for a few days unless absolutely necessary. "Yeah.. But I can't go up and say yo let me skip school for a week, so I'm just going to power through the day and see what happens."
The pale yellow girl nodded and hummed, she knew Sunset was right but it didn't stop her from attempting to suggest a course of action. "You're right, but you should at least have some time to recover. I'm sure principal Celestia would understand."
"Well.." Sunset paused and put her hand on her chin in a thinking gesture, it was something she often did when she was contemplating her next steps. "I could try, but I feel fine right now so let me make you a deal. If I start feeling crappy during the day I'll ask principal Celestia for some time off, deal?"
"Deal, but I'm still worried about you. You might accidentally hurt yourself or- Uh.. Sorry."
"Or what? That I'd get attacked again?"
Fluttershy nodded sheepishly and decided to stick with that narrative, in truth she was extremely worried about Sunset's mental health since their conversation last night where she admitted that she wanted to die. "Mhm.."
To the pale girl's surprise Sunset started laughing softly, she gently wrapped her arm around her shoulder and smiled. "Hey now, I'm not some weak girl who gets blown over by a gust of wind, and considering how well I can hold my own when I fought back against Rainbow, I'll be okay Fluttershy."
"You promise?"
"I promise." Sunset said uncharacteristically gently, bringing her arms back down to her sides. Something about how Fluttershy sounded so vulnerable when asking her if she promised made her decide that her friend was precious and would be protected at any cost and it caused a strange fluttery sensation in her stomach. "Now we probably should get inside, I really don't want to be the cause of you getting lunch detention."
"Right, we have second, third, and fifth period together so I'll see you in an hour or two!"
"C'ya then."
Sunset watched Fluttershy and her peers go inside the building to get ready for school, she sighed and took several deep, calming breaths before putting on a mask of cruel indifference as she walked towards the doors to the main campus.
It took an incredible amount of self control to not run the opposite direction and skip school for the day, she knew she had to remain seemingly unshaken and not let them clue into the fact she was close to breaking, the harassment would only increase if they knew their torments were cutting deep into her heart.
She got to her locker and opened it swiftly, she wasn't interested in being late nor being harassed by any bitter students who decide it would be a great time to mess with her, she grabbed her books and powerwalked through the nearly abandoned halls in a semi-frantic attempt to make it to class on time, unfortunately for her she was unable to get to class on time and Mr. Kelp had already began speaking when she sauntered into the room and took her seat.
"Miss Shimmer, may I have your reason why you were late?"
"I had trouble getting the lock off of my locker, it won't happen again I will make sure of it."
Mr. Kelp nodded and picked up his clipboard, marking something down on it. Sunset knew it was likely him marking her down as tardy but she couldn't care less, at least he was one of the nicer teachers she had and she was glad he seemed to understand her predicament.
Now the amber teen had the great joy of sitting through a class that was so easy that it was mind numbingly boring, she spent most of the class fiddling with her hair and pretending to be busy so she wouldn't be given more work that she would never have the energy to finish, or even start for that matter.
The ringing of the school bell assaulted her ears suddenly, causing her to jump and look up from her long completed worksheet. She remained silent as she gingerly picked up her paper and walked to the front to hand it in to Mr. Kelp for grading.
"Sunset, could I speak with you?"
Sunset had turned around and had taken a few steps towards the door when she heard her teacher call her name, she inhaled sharply and silently prayed to Celestia before turning back around to face him. "Yes sir?"
"I would like to ask you if you'd ever considered asking principal Celestia about being put into advanced algebra, your performance in this class is remarkable and you seem like you would be perfect for an advanced class."
"I've thought about it, yes, but I don't think now is the right time. Maybe next semester." Mr. Kelp nodded and opened a drawer in his desk, pulling out a late pass for the girl. "Here, this'll save you from being marked as late, and don't worry, I know how finnicky the locks can be at times and I understand completely why you were late today. They were such a pain when I attended this school so it would be unfair to punish students for something they can't necessarily control."
Sunset nodded and took it gratefully, she said nothing else as she left the room. She just wanted to get the day over with so she would be able to go home and play some Tirek's Revenge for a few hours.
The rest of the day was relatively peaceful for her due to the fact that news of her encounter with Rainbow Dash spread around the school and nobody dared to bother her, once the final bell rang she beelined it for the exit stopping only when Fluttershy called out to her.
"Sunset!"
Sunset stepped to the side as to not be in the way of the other students who were simply trying to leave school, she turned and scanned the crowded hallway for any glimpse of her friend.
To say she jumped a foot off the ground when she felt someone tap her shoulder would be an understatement, she spun around and only began to calm down once seeing that it was only her. "Goodness- You scared me!"
"Sorry, I didn't think that-"
She smiled and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It's okay Fluttershy, I've just been extremely tense and on guard because of everything that's happened recently so it's not your fault."
"You shouldn't have to be so on guard, what's been happening to you just- Just isn't right! Even if you hadn't changed you still wouldn't deserve it."
"That doesn't change the fact that it still happens, but don't worry 'bout that, do you wanna get out of here and go for lunch?- No dinner- Wait no, ugh whatever meal of the day it is."
"Of course! I'd have to tell my parents where I'm going so they wouldn't worry though, please give me a few minutes."
Sunset grinned and gave her a thumbs up gesture in response. "Sounds good, if they say to not go, would the weekend be a good time for lunch?"
"Mhm! I'm going to have the weekends all to myself since the people I thought were my friends.. Aren't."
"I'm sorry Fluttershy, I wish things could've been different where you were still their friend and maybe even I could've become a friend as well."
"Speaking of." She paused and looked up from her phone that she'd since pulled out of her skirt pocket when Sunset wasn't looking. "I had a dream the other night that they listened to Twilight and you joined the group."
"Really?"
Fluttershy chuckled and hummed, pausing for a second to think of her next words. "Mhm, we were all at Sugarcube Corner laughing and discussing movies, games, and Rarity's work. We all seemed to be so happy." A sigh escaped her as she finished tapping the text to her parents. "I don't know why I had that dream, but it was pleasant to see everyone getting along. Even if it was only a dream."
"Eh, princess Celestia used to say that sometimes dreams could be windows into alternate realities."
"Really? How?"
The amber girl shrugged. She really didn't know, if she had the ability to universe hop she would conduct extensive research to attempt to find out why some dreamers can temporarily view other universes, but unfortunately she didn't so she would have to settle on coming up with theories. "Dunno, me and her always used to bounce theories off one another about them but we'd always end up coming up with something that would debunk it."
"That's incredible!- Also terrifying.."
She chuckled and let a comfortable silence hang between them, she couldn't deny that she loved spending time with the kindest girl in school, she truly was deserving of her element.
Sunset looked around at the now nearly empty hall around her and hummed in thought, a frown slowly spreading across her face. She wasn't falling in love with Fluttershy, was she?
"Oh, hey my parents said I could go!"
Fluttershy's sudden speech brought Sunset back down to Earth with a slight jolt, she turned and nodded. "After you, do you have a place you'd want to eat at?"
"Not really, my mom and dad usually cook, but when we do eat out it's usually fast food."
"So you've never gone to a restaurant?"
"Oh no no, I have, but rarely because restaurants are usually for celebrations."
"Well I usually like to go to a place called Silver Court, very good food and it's not that formal. Do you want to try that?"
"Sure! But isn't it pretty far away?"
With a smirk and a soft giggle Sunset reached into her jacket's pocket and pulled out a key. "I've got a motorbike~"
The look of pure wonder and barely contained joy caused the redhead's heart to skip a beat, she wondered if her shy friend had even gone on a motorcycle ride, but if she hadn't, she will soon. "Oh goodness, you drive a motorcycle? Since when? I've never seen you drive it to school!"
"Eh, you probably just weren't paying attention, I drove it since I got my license." She moved her hand to scratch the back of her neck, it was something she did when she was flustered or nervous.
She knew she was indeed falling for Fluttershy, and she was falling hard for her, she was never going to confess her feeling, it was too dangerous.
She couldn't risk to jeopardize her friendship with the only friend she had in the human world and it made her nervous that she may one day accidentally let it slip and ruin everything.
"Fair point, I don't necessarily pay attention to what cars people drive unless I'm expecting them."
"Yeah that makes sense, though are you ready? I'm starving."
"Oh! Right, sorry. I'm ready when you are."
"We were probably about to be kicked out anyways, come on, my bike's out front. Only one in the lot so we can't miss it." Sunset gestured to the door and started walking, she made her way over to her bike and mounted it. "You'll have to wrap your arms around my waist tightly so you won't fall off, but you'll be okay I promise."
"I've never been on one before, could you please go slow? I-If you don't mind."
"Not at all, if you feel I'm going too fast please tell me and I'll slow down." The sheer willpower it took not to make a not so innocent joke about first times was indescribable and the biker girl was amazed by her own ability to stay safe for work.
She put the key in the ignition and turned it, the motorcycle's engine revved to life which caused the butterscotch skinned passenger to yelp in surprise. "You okay?"
"Y-Yes, it just.. Startled me." Sunset hummed and waited for her friend to wrap her arms around her torso, it took a few moments for her to get the hint and move to hold onto her, but once she made sure that she wouldn't tumble off the moment they started moving she backed her bike up and revved the engine, deciding to do a few slow circles in the empty school parking lot simply to get Fluttershy somewhat used to being on a motorbike. "Do you feel a little more comfortable now?"
Sunset didn't get a proper reply, she instead heard Fluttershy giggle happily and took that somewhat answer as a 'yes' so she stopped doing the circles and moved onto the main road, she decided to take a slight detour and give her friend a proper bike ride to the restaurant.
"Ahaha! Sunset I know why you drive a motorbike, this is amazing!"
"I know! It's fun to just go for a drive sometimes!"
Fluttershy laughed in response, the adrenaline pumping through her veins made her feel more alive than ever and she loved it, the happy feelings were only amplified by the presence of her best friend. "WOOOO!"
The rest of the drive was peaceful and but quick, it didn't take long at all for them to arrive at the place they wished to eat, but by that time the sun was beginning to set and the temperature was starting to drop and the drive to drop Fluttershy off at her parent's house would be a tad less pleasant.
For the time being they didn't have a care in the world as they parked and entered the restaurant, all they wanted to do was eat and have a nice evening.