//------------------------------//
// Fallout 
// Story: My perfect world 
// by Lonepone 
//------------------------------//

I wake up to Octavia shaking my shoulder. “Vinyl? Vinyl, are you alright?”

I say some gibberish, my mouth still not fully responding to the signals my brain is sending. I try to stand up, but apparently nothing is responding to the signals my brain is sending. I feel weird, too. 
Octavia walks around the room. My head is screaming ‘Fuck!’ at this point, but I can’t fully remember why. Than it hits me. Literally. Octavia found my pill bottle, and threw it at me.

“What the fuck?! I thought you were better than this!” She screams at me. That, more than anything, is what hurts me. The fact that I disappointed her. “What, did you think that you could just stop anytime? That no one would get hurt, and that if anyone did get hurt, it would only be you? You self centered BITCH! What were you thinking?! Do you not care about anyone but yourself, about the fact that not only is your career now over, but mine is also in jeopardy? What were you thinking? Hopefully you have somewhere else to stay, cause your not living in this house any more! You’d be lucky if I even still talked to you after this! I found out that you did this five years ago, and you told me you’d stop! Well, obviously, you didn’t!”

She might as well have stabbed me in the heart. It would’ve hurt less. I would have rather died than lose my only friend. My pain shows on my face.

Octavia continues. “Don’t think those big puppy eyes will work on me again! I trusted you, and you broke that trust! As soon as you can walk, I want you OUT!” She screams the last part. She storms out of the room, and I can catch a stifled sob as she runs out.

I lay there, my muscles still not responding, as the tears slide down my face. I’m forced to lay there for almost fifteen minutes, laying in my own personal pool of misery. 

Feeling starts to return to my legs, and I stand up. I wobble for a few minutes, before I’m steady again.

I walk across the hall to Octavia’s room, planning to tell here I’ll go to rehab, do whatever she wants, just please don’t kick me out. I think about knocking on the door, before deciding against it and just entering.

I’m greeted with the sight of a spiritually broken Octavia.

“Tavi?” I ask hesitantly.



“Oh, it’s the drugee. What do you want? Finished packing, and want a goodbye hug? To bad. Out. Get OUT! I TRUSTED YOU! I GOD DAMN LOVED YOU! AND I THOUGHT YOU LOVED ME BACK! AND YET YOU BETRAYED ME! GET OUT!!” she collapses into sobs. “get out” she says one last time.

Unbidden, memories from the past leap to my mind. 

Walking along with Tavi down a sidewalk in some large city, about to go see a movie, when I run ahead because the movie theater was just one block ahead of us. I sprint the one hundred or so yards, and stand there, catching my breath from the burst of energy, waiting for Tavi to catch up. 

I hear her scream, and so I turn around to see two large stallions standing in front of here. One is holding a knife. Octavia hands them all here money, then runs to me. She’s by my side now, but my vision, and my thoughts, have focused in on two things. The two large stallions, walking off with my friend’s bits. I run after them.

They see me coming, so they turn around and laugh, underestimating me. I charge into the first one, knocking him over. It quickly dissolves into a full on fight, with injuries occurring on both sides. They quickly subdue me, and pummel me as I lay on the ground. I lay there, unable to move, as I feel their hooves smash into my frame multiple times. A police pony sees and quickly breaks it up.

The scene skips forward a day, to find me laying in a hospital. Octavia is standing over my bandaged and bruised form, saying: ‘thanks, Vinyl. I’m sorry you got hurt though’ I reply with: ‘No prob’ I smile as I lay there. ‘I got your money back, didn’t I?

My thoughts stopped by the fact that I’ve reached my destination. I bang on the door. She has to be here. I wait a few seconds, before knocking again. Someone shouts “Holy shit! Hold up a little, I’m comin” I wait a few more seconds before I hear the sound of the door being unlocked. The manager opens the door.

“Can I help you, Vinyl?” She asks me.

“Yeah, you can. I just got kicked out of my friends house, could I spend the night here until I find somewhere more permanent to stay?” I ask her.

“Sorry, Vinyl, no can do. No room. So why did you get kicked out anyways?” she looks at the uncomfortable look on my face “Never mind. I don’t want to know. I can give you some bits to stay at a hotel here in town though, Ok?”

I feel guilty about taking the money, but I accept, and walk off to find a hotel to stay in.

I can feel my own tears dripping down my face now, so I turn and walk back to my room. I open my closet, grab my saddlebags, and I pack my laptop, my three remaining pills in the bottle, and my bag of bits. I turn to go, when something on the desk catches my eye. A picture of Octavia, with the words ‘Merry X-Mas’ on the bottom of it. I hesitate for a second, reaching out to grab it, before I decide not to.

I walk down to the front door, open it, and walk out. I get to the sidewalk, and stand there. I look back at the house, that only an hour ago was my house, before turning back to the street. I’m unsure of where to go, as I never go anywhere. I decide to start by just going to the club, and talking to the manager, seeing if I can’t sleep in one of the backrooms or something. I get my bearings, and start walking.

This evening would’ve been a great time for a walk, if it wasn’t for the circumstances for why I’m walking. The sun is just setting, casting everything in a magnificent orange hue. There’s a warm breeze blowing in, and the temperature is just right. Everythings perfect. Except for everything else.

I walk, trying to keep my mind from thinking on anything, but, as always, that doesn’t work. She said she loves me, and that statement alone would have been enough to send my mind into turmoil, including the fact that she thinks I would’ve returned it. I don’t know how I would’ve responded to that in a normal situation.