//------------------------------//
// Chapter 4 - Stargazin' 
// Story: Blooming Love. 
// by Meow Mix 
//------------------------------//

Thanks to PolarisFlare For editing!


Blooming Love.



Chapter 4 - Stargazin'


The day went on till the afternoon, 4:47 PM to be exact. You had been cleaning up the house and all sorts of other chores. To be honest, it wasn't that bad. In fact, it felt quite... good. You take a deep relaxing breath as you admire the refreshing scent of cleaning chemicals. But after all that, There was something hanging at the back of your mind all day. Something that involved you going somewhere. Moments later, it started to annoy you.

“Ugh! What was it!” you said in frustration.

What was it? You knew it had something to do with yesterday. You tried to think back about what happened at school.

"Come on! What did I do yesterday, let’s see uh... School, then walk home. Find App—"

Apple Bloom!

You had completely forgot to go see her! And if that made it worse, it was also becoming a little dark. You galloped to the kitchen, almost slipping on the tiles that still haven't dried from the water. As you make it to the kitchen, you tried to find the piece of paper that your mom left. You looked left and right, above and under the benches and chairs. During your hasty search, your eye catches a piece of white paper slowly falling to the ground.

“Really?!” you yelled in frustration, bucking the air.

You picked up the blank paper with the tip of your mouth, placing it onto the bench with full force. You quickly picked up a pencil that was placed near the sink, then you began to write, ignoring how messy it is.

Dear m-mom,
Going to Sweet Apple Acres,
I will be back late, Please don't worry, i'll be ok.

You dropped the pencil on the table along with the note, and headed straight to Sweet Apple Acres, hoping Apple Bloom wasn't too upset.

* * * * *

Apple Bloom tiredly stares out of her window, getting a good view of the orchard and entrance. She had been in her room all day, still saddened of what happened yesterday. She knew it wasn't right to stay inside the house all day, but what good would it do if she was to leave? Scootaloo was spending the weekend with Rainbow Dash at a Wonderbolts performance in Canterlot, and Sweetie Belle was spending the day with her parents, so why was she still staring out the window since high noon? Apple Bloom gave out a deep melancholic sigh and spoke to herself.

“Ah guess he forgot... Ah don't blame him,” she said as her ears dropped. The day had almost come to an end and her hopes started to fade away.

Apple Bloom slowly placed her chin back onto the window sill. A single tear fell from the corner of her eye. "I'm just a waste of time..." she thought to herself. As she closed her eyes, a series of loud hoof steps could be heard. It wasn't Big Mac or Applejack. Her ears popped straight up in joy, and then she looked out of the window.

“Is..is it really him?”

* * * * *
Sweet Apple Acres started to come into view. Its orchard of apple trees started to surround the area that you were in. Every single hoof that was placed onto the rocky soil brought you closer to your destination. The entrance had a sign saying, "Welcome to Sweet Apple Acres" and another one with big red letter saying, "Do not steal apples or any other items that belong to the land."

You eventually made it into the orchard. All the trees look similar to the one in front of them. The only thing that is separating you and thousands of trees was the little dirt path that lead to the residence of the Apple Family. The sky had gone a dark orange and the sound of crickets were starting to ring in your ears. You had an idea. Something that was going through your little colt head. Something that you'd think Apple Bloom would like, and make her feel a little better from recent events, but first, you had to get to her. The Apple Family's house started to come into view and a few lights could be seen from various windows, but what brought your attention was the sad face of a filly looking down upon the orchard.

Finally making it to the front door, you took deep breaths of air due to the continuous galloping. Even if you made it quickly to her house, it was still a far distance away. As you gained back your composure and wiped off the remaining dirt that made it to your cyan blue coat. You brought a hoof to the door and gracefully began to knock, but when the first knock registered, you were tackled to the ground into a hug by a yellow figure.

“Ah knew you would come! Ah knew it!” she said with glee.

“I-It’s good to see you too, Apple Bloom” you said, recovering from the impact.

“Come inside! We c—”

“Actually, Apple Bloom, I want to show you something, and I think you'll like it,” you said, cutting her off.

“What do ya mean? Yo-you mean outside?” She said with confusion.

“Yeah, I-I mean if you are okay with that.”

“Why wouldn't I be? Let’s go! Oh-ah wait, Ah need to tell mah sis first. Come in!”

You walk into the warm cosy house, it was filled with the sweet scent of apples and other kinds of sweet smells, but what brought your attention was the tall frame that had a stallion, two mares but the other mare seemed to be older, and a small yellow filly with a red bow. You knew almost all of the ponies that were in the picture: Applebloom, Applejack and Granny Smith. But the tall red stallion didn't seem to come to thought. Perhaps he was an older brother or something.

The rest of the house seemed to be all other sorts of pictures. On your right was a set of stairs, and in front of you across the hallway appeared to be a kitchen. A mare seemed to be making some kind of batter. The mare then heard the door close with a "cling" and turned her head into your direction.

“Applejack! Me and my friend are going out into the fields. Is that okay?” Apple Bloom yelled.

“What? Why in tarnation would you want to go out at this time?” Applejack replied.

“My friend wants to show me something that I would like.”  

“And what would that be?” Applejack asked as she started to get suspicious.

“St-stargazing...” you said in a flat tone. Her suspicious glare vanished and turned into a face of approval.

“Well it is a clear night, and you have been stuffed in the house all day, Apple Bloom. Sounds like a great idea! Be back in an hour.  Ah don't want you getting into trouble 'n' all.”

“Wait, What's stargazin'?” Apple Bloom said in confusion.

“Oh, your friend will show you, and Ah'm sure you’ll like it.”

“Thanks, sis!” applebloom said as she hugged her sister.

As the two of you made it out, you had an even better idea.

“Hey, um, do you have an open area without all these trees?”

The two of you were now walking through the tall grass field the Apple Family owned. The large open area was void of any trees that cover the night sky. It was the exact thing that you needed to show Apple Bloom. The sun had just gone down a few minutes ago, but a few orange strains were visible across the distance.

“Well, we're here. Now what was it you wanted to show me?” she said with a bit of annoyance. A few moments ago back at the house, she was eager. However, when you mentioned about needing a good view of the sky, she was hesitant to go. You brought your hoof to her chest and pushed her to the ground. It wasn't too hard to hurt her, but hard enough to knock her to the ground. “What the hay?! What was that fo—”

“Look up, Apple Bloom” you instructed.

“What do ya me—”

What little rage that was inside Apple Bloom was completely gone. It was instead replaced with amazement. Her eyes grew to the size of saucers and her ears perked up. The expression on her face was the exact thing you were expecting.
“It’s... beautiful! Is this what you wanted to show me?” she asked in awe.

“Ye-yeah. I mean you were still upset and all, so I thought this would make you happy.”

“Well, it worked,” she said with a smile.

The two of you sat, looking at the shining stars that scattered the sky for about half an hour. Discussing things like what lies beyond the stars and talking about life. The moon was providing light, and the grass were swaying left and right. Apple Bloom's head started to rest on your shoulder. You blushed a crimson red, but to your relief, she didn't notice. You decided not to tell what she was doing, but as a result of slightly moving, she noticed and quickly backed away. She also blushed and faced away from you, looking at the other part of the sky. She took it as a misunderstanding.

“So... um, how have you been feeling since... you know, yesterday?” You asked softly.

“Oh, well I'm a little better, but every time Ah think about... him! I feel sad again. I don't know what to do! Ah can't stop thinking 
of Aero!” she cried out.

Apple Bloom sounded like she was about to cry. Her eyes started tear up.
“It’s ok. Everything will be alright. You know what I do when I need to get something off my mind?” you asked.

“What?”

“I do this: stargazing. But I don't have a open area like you do. Sometimes I just look into the far depths of the sky at night and just stare at all the things that glow in the sky. It can be relaxing...”

A moment passed before a gust of wind blew across the field, sending a cold chill down your spine. The crickets no longer doing their usual chirps.

“To be honest, right now I've never felt so relaxed in my life for a long time. It’s really nice, ” Applebloom said.
After a few more minutes of looking at the night sky, the wind really started to pick up. It was the point where the both of you started to shiver.

“Hey, Ah think we should head back. I-I mean, I would love to stay all night and look up at the beautiful night sky, but Applejack might start to worry, and i-it’s started to get Ah little cold,” she said sheepishly.

“Sounds like a plan,” you said with a smile.