Fluttershy watched ahead miserably, drinking a out of several glasses as Flitter danced around Grif, clinging to him as if she was going to fall at any moment. Rainbow Dash and Tucker had attempted to stop her from drinking more, but she just shook her head whenever they told her to stop. Fluttershy knew Rainbow Dash knows about her feelings, but she didn't understand how hard it was for her to admit her feelings. Eventually, Tucker got up to go to the bathroom, leaving the three mares together.
"Are you okay, Flutters?" Cloudchaser asked when all the drinks at the table were nearly gone, moving over to the spot next to her, noticing she was down.
"Yes, I am," she mumbled in return, finishing another one of the larger drinks. "I'm just fine, thank you."
"Are you sure? Because you're drinking like it's your last day in Equestria," Cloudchaser chuckled. "Rainbow Dash and Tucker seem to be drinking more just so you have to drink. Tell me what's up."
"You wouldn't understand."
"Come on, don't be like that," she said, but frowned when Fluttershy turned away from her. "Listen, Flitter doesn't know."
"Doesn't know what?"
"That you like Grif. Duh," Cloudchaser chuckled. "It usually would be obvious to her, but she's drunk more than you have. Plus since Grif is sorta the life of the party right now, she's all over him. And don't try to deny it, I saw the way you were looking at him when you first came in."
"I... I guess I do like him," she said.
"I keep telling her to tell him that, but she won't," Rainbow Dash sighed.
"Guess we'll just have to give her a little push then, won't we?" Cloudchaser said, smiling with Rainbow Dash.
Before Fluttershy noticed what was happening, she found herself halfway between the table and Grif, being pushed by both Cloudchaser and Rainbow Dash.
"What are you doing?" Fluttershy gasped, trying to stop.
"You're going to tell him that you like him right now," Rainbow Dash said firmly.
"Yeah, and we won't let you sit down or go near another drop until you do," Cloudchaser added.
"But what if he doesn't like me back?"
"Love is a gamble," Rainbow Dash grunted. "It always is. Now listen, you're an awesome pony, and Grif obviously likes you back. You have nothing to be worried about."
"Also, you've drank a lot, so now's probably the best time to tell him," Cloudchaser added again, but with a sly smile. "Now we're going to sit back down and watch you do this. You can do it, girl."
Before Fluttershy could continue arguing, Rainbow Dash and Cloudchaser went back to the table, then smiled reassuringly at her as she stood there, feeling lost. Fluttershy then turned to Grif and saw him bounce around lazily. She took a deep breath and made her way over to him. Once she was next to him, she cleared her throat and tapped his shoulder, hoping she could have the volume to speak over the music.
"Oh, hey," Grif said when he turned around and saw her. "What's up, Fluttershy?"
"Grif, I have to say something to you," Fluttershy said firmly, but her legs quivered violently. "If I don't tell you now, I don't know when I'll be able to."
"Sure, what is it?" he asked.
"Well, I..." she mumbled, shaking her head in an attempt to focus. Once she was satisfied, she took a deep breath and looked into his eyes. "Grif, I know this might s-sound silly, but I... I think I'm..."
Grif narrowly stepped out of the way as Fluttershy threw up on the ground and began wobbling back and forth. He quickly dove to her side as she began to fall, then helped her gain her balance back.
"Were you about to warn me that you were about to throw up?" he laughed weakly as she shook in place, struggling to stand. Turning to Flitter, he tilted his head towards his friend. "I should probably take her home."
"No problem," Flitter said, giving him a nice nod. "Maybe we can get a rain check on the dance. Maybe grab dinner or something too."
"Maybe," Grif grunted, putting his head under Fluttershy's right foreleg, hoisting it around his neck to help support her.
"She's lucky to have a friend like you," Flitter said with a wink.
"Yeah. Catch you later, Flitter," he said, walking back to the booth with Fluttershy.
Once they got there, Fluttershy grabbed a napkin and wiped her mouth, feeling embarrassed. She had not just puked because of the drinks in her system. She also puked because of her nerves. Even when she was drunk she couldn't work up the courage to tell him her feelings.
"We told you not to drink too much," Rainbow Dash grunted, smiling sheepishly at her friend. She looked towards Grif, assuming he was going to bring her home. "Want us to come with you?"
"Nah, you guys stay here. The night is still young for you guys, but I think it's time for us to hit the hay," he said, readjusting himself so he could support her more and be more comfortable. "Would be cool if we could do this again sometime. Except maybe next time we can keep her away from the booze."
"When she wakes up tomorrow, I think she'll stay away from it on her own," Tucker laughed. "I think she drank as much as Dash and I did combined."
"Jesus, and you guys didn't stop her?" Grif muttered.
"We tried, but she really wanted to drink more," Tucker said defensively.
"That doesn't really seem like her," he said, then looked at her when she let out a soft whimper. "Oh well, I'll ask her when she's in a better mood. I want to at least get outside before she throws up again."
"Good idea," Rainbow Dash said quietly, sighing as her friend looked up at her with half-closed eyes. "Fly safely."
"I'll try," he said, going towards the door. "See you guys later."
Once Grif brought her outside, he quickly managed to find his way under her and throw her over his back. Barely awake, Fluttershy instinctively wrapped her hooves around his neck and buried her face in it, only to fall asleep seconds later. Grif quickly flew back to her cottage and went into her bedroom, carefully putting her back down on her bed. Once her head hit the pillow, her eyes fluttered open and she saw him leaving the room.
"Before I go, I just wanted to thank you," he chuckled as he opened the door, noticing she was awake. "That was some quick thinking back there. You really saved my ass."
"I... did?" she asked quietly.
"Yeah. Dancing really isn't my kinda thing. In fact, I think it's pretty stupid."
"Then why'd you say yes?"
"Well, she did sorta bring me my fries," Grif said with a smile. "You know I love my fries. But I care about you more."
"You do?" she asked, cheeks growing red.
"Yeah. It's just... it's nice to have someone to look out for again."
"Look out for?" she asked quietly, a sinking feeling her stomach. "You mean... like your sister?"
"Kinda," he nodded. "I guess you put up with me just like my family did, so I sorta see you as family now too. And if there's one thing I am besides lazy and always hungry, it's protective. I don't want to see you get hurt, you know? You really are like a sister to me."
"Oh," she said, looking down, realizing he did care about her, just not in the way she had hoped.
"You know, you remind me a lot about her."
"I do?" she asked, looking back up, she saw that he was beginning to get a strange look in his eyes.
"Yup. She was pretty stupid. Always going into danger recklessly. She was also an embarrassment and kind of a slut," he said, then stopped when Fluttershy looked at him strangely. "I guess you don't really have a lot in common."
"She must have had other qualities," she said.
"Yeah, but..." he began, but sighed and shook his head. "I really don't want to talk about it."
"Why?" she pressed slightly. "It sounds like she was close to you. You saved Tex because you thought she was your sister when Discord had you and the others in his maze."
"We were close, it's just... complicated..."
"Is it because you never got to say goodbye?"
"She's not fucking dead," Grif growled, shooting her an icy look. "She's more resilient than I am. I don't care what the fuck Lopez said. You saw me save Tex, so you know what happened to her before. Kaikaina's been in worse situations than that, and I was always there to help her through them! Every time that idiot got in trouble, I got her out of it."
"Grif..." Fluttershy said quietly. Looking into the eyes of the trembling eyes of Grif, she saw that he wasn't angry at her for talking about his sister. He was angry at himself. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay, just-"
"It's not your fault," she said, interrupting him.
"Of course it's not my fault. I didn't shoot her," Grif grunted, not sure what she meant.
"I know you didn't. I just know what you're going through, and it's not your fault."
"Why do you keep saying that? I know it's not my fault," he said irately. "And how would you know what I'm feeling? You aren't being told every day that someone close to you was killed."
"That may be true, but I know you, Grif. You say you were always there for her when she got in trouble, but then one time you weren't," she said, making Grif freeze up. "You weren't there to protect her that time, so you blame yourself for her death."
"I..." he started, but stopped and shook his head, looking at the ground. "I miss her."
Fluttershy watched silently as Grif trembled with confusion, anger, and self-pity. She flew off the be as best as she could and made her way to Grif, hugging him tightly, supporting him like he had her.
"I was supposed to look after her," he sniffed, burying his head into her mane as she tightened the hug. "I was supposed to look after her and I didn't. My parents told me to look after her, and I failed."
"You looked after her as best as you could," she said soothingly, patting his back. "You couldn't be expected to look after her forever."
"I know..." he mumbled. "But-"
"No buts," she said, releasing him from the hug. "You should probably go catch up on your sleep now. I know how much you've missed already, and I don't want to keep you up longer."
"Yeah..." he said, starting towards the door, only to stop when he took two steps. "Uh, Fluttershy?"
"Yes, Grif?" she asked, stopping in front of the bed.
"I know it's weird, but... do you think I could crash in your bed?" he said, smiling awkwardly. "Again, it's a strange, I know, but I'm not really in the mood to nap alone right now..."
"Of course," Fluttershy said with a soft smile, doing her best not to smile too much. She knew that he did not want to nap in the same bed because he liked her, but because he needed her support just as much as she did his.