Ring.
With the bell, the hallways were immediately flushed with the students of Canterlot High. It marked the end of the day, as well as the start of a downcast afternoon. Grey clouds filled the skies; clouds that also seemed to hover above every pony’s head as they all worried anxiously about their upcoming final year exams. Many hurried out of the school or into the library with textbooks that substituted as in-class makeshift pillows in their hooves.
Vinyl had more to worry then mere numbers on papers. Carrying more than a heavy backpack, he trudged past lockers, occasionally glancing in front of him to make sure he wasn’t going to bump into any pony. He wasn’t sure what to make of it; one thing he knew for sure was that he dreaded what was going to happen.
“Twenty-four days left,” he muttered to himself. He slid his back down the pale yellow walls of the school and sat on the floor. He arched his back and rested his head in between his hooves. He shut his eyes, fearing that a passer-by would see his redden eyes and the drop of sentimental liquid flowing down the side of it. “They should know the truth.”
“What truth, Vinyl?” asked a familiar voice. Vinyl raised his head up and slightly opened his eyes. In the little slit of light, he could make out what was the visible features of an alicorn—a horn and wings.
“Nothing, Cadance. I… you won’t understand.” He shut his eyes again. No pony understands me.
“You can trust us.” This time, the voice was much lower. He recognised this voice anywhere; it was the same voice that was there when he was picked on by Soarin’, when they laughed at jokes and pranks and when he asked him about inviting Cadance to prom. “We’re your friends.”
Friends?
“Loser, loser, Vinyl Scratch’s a loser!”
“No one likes you, Vinyl. Go away.”
“Who let him here?”
“Vinyl, the mare changeling!”
“You suck. You can’t even change into other forms.”
“Hey, I’m hosting a party. I’m inviting all of you but that Vinyl Scratch over there. Ha!”
“You have no friends, you worthless piece of junk.”
Friends?
Vinyl mustered enough strength to look up and open his eyes. There were two ponies in front of him with two grim lines for mouths staring at him. “Friends?”
Cadance and Shining Armor nodded their head in unison and tried to smile, but Vinyl could easily make out their worry behind those up-curled lips. After all, he had spent his childhood life trying to make out what people felt and thought about him. Reading emotions, other than it being a changeling’s capabilities to do so, had been second nature to him.
He could see it. The sadness they bore reflected against him. Their eyes showed concern, but enough to show fear and distress. He stared in front until the pair disappeared from his sight.
“Friends.” He felt two hooves placed on his shoulders. He glanced left and right briefly and saw that they had merely repositioned themselves, one on each side of him. His heart grew heavy and he sighed. Without any warning, he was being squeezed in an embrace he grew accustomed to. He liked it. It always made him feel better.
Vinyl sobbed softly, but just audible enough for Cadance and Shining Armor to hear it. As if it was on cue, they patted his back and whispered, “It’s going to be alright.”
He hoped that they were right. That things were ultimately going to be alright.
“I think you’ll hate us for this.”
“The Queen approves your request of an extended deferment until the original end date of your study pass.”
“Wait, what?!”
“Well, I figured since I’ve some power in the QUEEN, I might as well try my luck. Gor mer Queen jel er upio-prastaco. Pre seb namet yell tras. (Thank the Queen I’m well-favoured. Nearly had to beg for it.)”
“… You could have told me from the start instead of giving me this mini heart attack.”
“Now where’s the fun in that?”
“Grr. I hate you dad.”
“Love you too, son.”
“Hey, what about me?!”
“Hate you too, mum.”
“Hmph.”
The trio sat there in an embrace, none daring to breathe a word out. They lay still as dozens of ponies whizzed by them, some occasionally giving them stares. Even the janitor who often rushed his job so he could go home earlier graciously avoided them as to give them some privacy. “I’ve never told you this, but... I’m going back to my hometown in twenty-four days.”
“What?” His two friends voiced in unison, not loudly enough to alarm any pony around, but soft enough to give that warm, concerned voice they intended to show.
“What do you mean by ‘going back?’ You’re gonna leave us?” Cadance eyes grew wide and her mouth was left agape.
Yet all Vinyl could muster was a simple nod. His eyes swelled as he stared into Cadance’s eyes. “I… I have to go soon. And what makes things worse is that I don’t wanna go back.”
“W-why?” stammered Cadance.
“There’s this whole army conscription thing back in my hometown. I kinda have to do it because of some stupid thingy my parents sign.” He grunted, slamming his hooves against the wall.
“Can’t you just stay here or something?” Cadance scratched her head and creased her furrowed eyebrows.
“I can’t. The… umm… Things run differently there. My parents can get arrested and questioned as to why I’m not in the army. I… I don’t want anything to happen to them. Also, there’s this seventy-five thousand bits problem that we deposited to allow me to study here.”
“Seventy-five thousand bits?!” exclaimed Shining Armor. “That’s… that’s a lot of bits.”
“Precisely why I have to go back. I’ve got no other choice.” Vinyl sighed. He felt a weight resting on his left shoulder and shifted his eyes towards it. He noticed something different about him; he saw that Shining Armor was staring like how he would at his parents when he was a mere foal—he had on two pair of eyes that felt like void had consumed all sense of joy and hope. His shoulders dropped and his ears flattened against Vinyl’s shoulder.
Man, this must really be hitting him hard. I’ve never seen the guy like this before.”
He felt a similar response on his right; Cadance had wrapped her hooves around him and had begun to sob, choking on every other syllable as she whispered, “I… I don’t know what—“
“It’s okay. I’ll be back once I’m done. Don’t you guys worry.” Vinyl tried to smile, but forcing it wasn’t going to uplift anyone’s moods.
“I guess,” said Shining Armor as he looked up, trying to put on a smile. “And then we can all hang out again.”
“Yeah. Meanwhile, you two can, and should, spend the time together as much as possible. When I’m back, I’m afraid I’ll be the third wheel,” chuckled Vinyl as he looked at their reddened faces. The laughter was unfitting and short-lived; Vinyl soon dropped his shoulder and sighed.
“Shining, do you remember the first class we were at?” asked Vinyl. He turned around and faced Shining Armor with eyes that reflected his.
”Hello. I’m…”
“… In this class, you darn learn to play. And play good! You too, can make some good ol’ music for y’all two little ears to hear. Work in pairs for this project I’mma issue you now...”
“… Oh this is gonna be so exciting!”
Vinyl turned away and stared blankly in front of him. “Music always drives me forward. Like I… I’ve based my whole life on it. Whenever I was upset, I’d put on some hip hop or rap music, ya know? Then if I needed a quiet space, I’d play some upbeat dance music and move my head with it. It just… brings me along, ya know? Take me out of this world, stuff like that.” Vinyl sighed. “That’s why I wanna study music. I feel like I owed my life to music way too much. It’s brought me to a place I’ve never thought I’d be at.” Silence filled the hallways. “I… I don’t wanna leave. I wanna stay here. But I can’t.”
Shining Armor started singing. “This is the start. The start of a brand new life.” Vinyl ears picked up that tune. He knew it all too well. It was their first song ever made together for music class.
“”We come from different walks of life to show what we are made of.” Vinyl sang the next line and looked at Shining Armor who tried to smile. Except that it wasn’t forced. Vinyl knew music drove him forward as much as it did to himself. It was his passion to sing for smiles. And Vinyl smiled.
“Together we will stand, together hand in hand.”
“A million tries won’t break us down, we’ll make it as…”
“Friends.” The duo sang in unison. Vinyl had the music playing in his head. He knew the key transposed higher at this point, and made sure to change with the music.
“The rain will pour, the sun will shine.”
“But nothing can stand in the way between you and I.”
“Because we will make it as.”
“Friends.” Vinyl glanced at both Shining Armor and Cadance who had put on their all too familiar smiles, and smiled back at them. He heaved a sigh and hugged his two friends. “Let’s not waste these twenty-four days, okay?”
- - - Ɵ-Ɵ-Ɵ-Ɵ-Ɵ-Ɵ - - -
The next few days went splendid for the three of them. They spent all their time together trying to piece together the perfect prom dresses and suits. After all, it was going to be in three weeks’ time—three days before Vinyl had to say goodbye. They figured that if they wanted Vinyl to bring back a piece of Canterlot High, it was going to be their prom. It had a reputation of being one of the liveliest parties ever conducted within school grounds; they made their neighbouring schools’ proms sound like they were hosting bingo games.
The next few days went splendid for the three of them, until…
Please go to prom with me.
- - - Ɵ-Ɵ-Ɵ-Ɵ-Ɵ-Ɵ - - -
“What. Are. You. Doing?!” exclaimed a shocked Vinyl in the middle of the school hallways. Murmurs and squeals of excitement rose in the crowd that formed a U-shape behind Vinyl. In front of him kneeled the last stallion he would ever think would resort to such thick-skinned mannerism.
“Please go to prom with me. Please, please, please—”
“Look, I’m not interested, okay?” retorted Vinyl as he started at Soarin’; the stallion had gone down on his knees. One forehoof held flowers, and the other had chocolates. He had on huge puppy eyes that glinted with a hint of hope, and half-frowned, half-pouted at Vinyl.
“C’mon, he’s changed! He will treat you nice!” yelled a pony in the crowd.
“Just walk away, Vinyl!”
“Give him a chance!”
“Break his heart!”
As much as Vinyl wanted to do what half the crowd wanted, he couldn’t bear to publicly humiliate the school’s least-liked stallion. Over the years, the stallion himself had built up quite a reputation: bullying, crying, more bullying, more crying. Ironic fool, hypocrite. These were a few words that many ponies described him as. No one could fathom as to why he behaved this way. Vinyl could guess why, but his views were equally as like-minded as the general populous.
“Can you like, stand up? Sheesh, you’re making a fool of yourself,” commented Vinyl. The crowd giggled and snickered.
“He’s a fool alright!”
“Yeah!”
“Can you guys shut it too?” retorted Vinyl as he swung around and glared at them. Some of them simply rolled their eyes at him, while others shied away. “He ain’t asking you.”
“I rejected him!”
“Me too! Amen, sister!”
“Me three!”
“Ha! Loser!”
The crowd roared in laughter as more ponies started chiming in with remarks and comments of their own, some of which weren’t even related to Vinyl or Soarin’. But Vinyl felt a twinge in his heart—it felt like an old wound reopening. He saw himself in Soarin’s position—not kneeling and begging, but shame and hurt. He saw the once-familiar hurt in the eyes that screamed, “Leave me alone!” He saw the lonely, empty fill in the heart that Vinyl had covered with love and music. His head started playing some blues in his head, and he could see the connection between the music and what was going on.
“Loser!”
The mocking continued; all this time, Vinyl’s mind floated away from his body, and onto a stream of conscious thoughts that felt surreal.
”Hey Vinyl, what can I do for you today?”
"The usual.”
“Down with the blues again?”
“You can say that.”
“School?”
“Yeah.”
“Life sucks, but persevere. You’re a good changeling, Vinyl. You’re not like the others.”
“Heh, it’s just you. No one else likes me.”
“You’ve got to start somewhere though. Here’s your coffee.”
“Thanks.”
“You can’t expect everyone to like you, no matter how much you try. But don’t change who you are for just anybody. Change only for those you care for.”
“Hmph. You’re saying I care about you.”
“Ha. I know you do.”
“… Vinyl? Vinyl? Yo, Vinyl’s gotten loco!” laughed a mare waving her hooves in front of him. He snapped out of his thoughts and snapped at her, causing her to tumble and back out into the crowd again.
“Please?” He heard a familiar plea and looked back down. Soarin’s position hadn’t changed. And even if he did, he had probably moved closer to Vinyl to hide his tears and reddened face from the crowd.
“Vinyl?” begged Soarin’.
“How ‘bout you cry for her? Maybe she’ll take you then!” mocked a stallion. The crowd’s laughter rose in volume.
“Or take her lunch money!”
“Or tackle her!”
“Just go away! No pony wants you!”
“Enough!” yelled Vinyl. “Leave this guy alone!” Vinyl’s face reddened—not in shame, but in anger. He gritted his teeth and lit his horn up, firing a beam of magic at the ceiling. There was a flash of light; the moment it subsided, every pony around Vinyl opened their eyes in fear.
“What did you do?” asked a pony with her hooves trembling.
“I casted a spell, and you don’t want to find out what will happen if I cast it one more time now, do you. So shut it,” insisted Vinyl. Murmurs of disapproval and worry came from the crowd, but Vinyl just shrugged it off. He had a bigger predator to worry about.
“You.” Vinyl pointed his hooves directly at Soarin. “Give me a reason why I should say yes. If I don’t like it, you’ll give me two times more of reasons until I’m satisfied. So tell me, why?”
Soarin’ trembled and searched around frantically as if the answers were around him. “Uh, uh, because you’re pretty?” His remarks caused the crowd to snicker.
“TEH! Wrong answer! Now give me two other reasons.”
Soarin’ sighed and looked down. He scratched his head and tapped against the floor. “I… I think you’re funny and fun to be with?”
“That counts as one. And I didn’t like it. So, TEH! Four now.”
“But—”
“Oh come on,” yelled a pony amidst the crowd, “you don’t have to resort to this, Soarin’. Get up and walk away!”
“No, no, I can do this,” said Soarin’. “Okay, how about this. One, you’re unique. I haven’t seen a mare like you. Two, I like your guts. Three, I like the way you laugh. It’s cute. Four, you’re not scared to be rough. Uh, is it good enough?”
Vinyl laughed inside. As much as he wanted to put this poor pony out of his misery, he wanted to milk the situation out a little. It was probably hereditary, but Vinyl wanted to get a good laugh before he made up his mind.
“Well? Yes? Please?” begged Soarin’.
“Go away! She’s just toying with you! She doesn’t want to go with you!”
“Save your breath, loser!”
“Hey! I said, shut it!” Vinyl fired a beam of light up in the ceiling again. This time, when the light subsided, they realised that two ponies had mysteriously vanished.
Vinyl stared at Soarin’. This time, Vinyl knew he moved. He was down on one hoof and had propped his flowers and chocolates in the air. His eyes still bore the same emerald green he always had, although Vinyl swore it may had been tinted a little red. It could have been the lighting too, but Vinyl knew where the red mostly came from.
“Soarin’…”
“Loser!”
As if on command, Vinyl shot that same beam of light. Just like last time, one pony had disappeared from sight.
“You guys don’t learn, do you?!” grunted Vinyl as he glared at the crowd once more. This time round, the crowd went silent. “Good. Now remain silent, or else.” Vinyl pretended to shoot a beam of magic out, causing the crowd to flinch.
“Now Soarin’,” Vinyl turned and faced him, “To be honest, I liked your answers. All of them. But you’re annoying. You’re a player. Every pony knows that. And you’re inconsiderate, selfish. The list goes on.”
Soarin’s mouth was agape from the shock he received. He clenched his hooves and shut his eyes almost immediately as Vinyl stopped commenting on his flaws. The flowers in his hand looked like it was wilting, and him crushing them in his hooves certainly sped the process up. He dropped his hooves and looked away.
“Enough! Leave the loser alone!” Immediately, a pony stepped out from within the crowd and rushed towards Soarin’. Vinyl almost casted his magic when he recognised the pony that stepped out.
“Spitfire,” said Vinyl, “Now, I don’t have a grudge against you, but you better give me a good reason before I turn you into a necklace like the others.” Vinyl growled at her.
“What?!” exclaimed the crowd.
“Don’t worry, they’ll be returned back to normal with no recollection of what happened to them while they were my lovely necklaces.” Vinyl flashed the necklaces at the crowd. There was a ribbon, a tennis ball and a bowl of noodles hung around Vinyl’s neck.
“Well, well. Loser certainly strikes a chord with you. But he’s my loser to worry about. Who are you to pick on him?” growled Spitfire back at him.
All Vinyl did was stare at Spitfire, back straightened and head slightly tilted. He smirked and chuckled softly.
“What’s so funny?!” asked Spitfire whose face turned slightly red. “I-I mean like, he can be such a pain in the butt sometimes, but… he does not deserve this!” Spitfire flashed her fist at Vinyl as if she tried to insult him or his mother. “I know you guys don’t like him, but he has really changed for the better.” She turned and grabbed Soarin’s hooves. “You don’t deserve this. Let’s go.” Immediately, she tried to help him up, but Soarin’ refused to move.
Soarin’ looked down, his eyes now open and fully reddened. “You’re right, Vinyl. I’m inconsiderate. I’m mean. No pony likes me.”
“But I do!”
“It’s just you Spitfire. I-I can’t get any other pony to like me. Even…—” Soarin’ sighed and sniffled, “—even Cloud Kicker left me. Said I was the most selfish pony ever.”
“Who cares about them?! Argh?! You’re such an idiot sometimes, you know?” whined Spitfire whose cheeks were even redder than before. “Stand up. Now!” Spitfire screamed at him as she tugged at him, but he refused to budge.
“’Cause you’re mean!” voiced a pony in the crowd.
“And you are selfish!”
“And a lazy pony! I have half a mind to tear the homework you gave me to complete.”
“Argh! I can’t take this anymore!” A pony screamed, but it wasn’t Vinyl. Instead, a lavender pegasi stepped out from the crowd and came rushing to Soarin’s side. Vinyl recognised her easily. She too, had a reputation of infamy hung around her head.
Soarin’ looked up at the pegasi beside him. He saw that familiar angry face she had put on and stared in shock.
“Cloud…”
“Retard!” Cloud Kicker smacked him in his head. “Who said you could mention about me, short-stick?”
Soarin’ blushed and looked away. “I… I’m sorr—,”
“I’m not done yet!” And Cloud Kicker smacked him again. “Who said you could bring yourself so low as to beg?! Who said you could show some humility?!” Tears swelled in her eyes. “You’re a loser, you now? You’re. A. Freaking. Loser!” Cloud Kicker smacked him one last time and stared at the red marks on his face. She huffed and growled at him.
“You…” Cloud Kicker dropped her shoulders and sighed. She stared at him, her angry scowl slowly turning into a sad frown. “You…”
She dropped her hooves around him and hugged him. “This is the Soarin’ I used to know.” She squeezed him even tighter. “What, it took you two broken hearts to realise your pride’s as worth as what’s down there?”
Vinyl stared incredulously at Soarin’ and his inflamed cheeks. He had only seen one other pony blush this red, and that was when his dad flirted with his mum in front of him. However, what he saw wasn’t shame, pity or anger. It was something far more powerful than anything else: Love.
It hadn’t struck to him until he left home. In the initial stages of his departure, he felt empty. He cried for nights, not knowing why.
When school started, only did he start feeling better. Then he found two ponies who he considered his friends. The void started shrinking until it was eventually replaced with a sense of joy. And he was happy, not knowing why.
Yet he could feel the love resonating from the two ponies who stood by Soarin’. He felt the strength seeping into him, and he realised he had been accidentally draining their love. Shrugging it off, he watched as the duo helped Soarin’ up. For the first time, he obliged. That, and the crowd was unusually silent.
“Let’s go,” chimed Cloud Kicker, but Vinyl was quick to react.
“Wait!” His heart skipped a beat as he called out. He felt a chilly breeze travelling from one end of the hallway to the other and his hooves froze.
Every pony stared in silence, daring not to move. Only did three move. And they did just to face Vinyl, two with a scowl, and one with a surprised look. Yet Vinyl just chuckled.
“Yes,” said Vinyl as he sighed and walked towards Soarin’. “Yes, I’ll go to prom with you.”
“What?!” yelled every pony around, including the trio. Vinyl watched Soarin’ as his frown turned upside down, and for the first time, spoke without begging.
“What? You mean it?” asked Soarin’ as he stared into Vinyl’s eyes. Vinyl saw a glint in it, and smiled earnestly at him. He knew that glint; it wasn’t the same glint as before. It wasn’t pity or hope. It was joy. Happiness. It reminded him of home. Of when his parents bought him the things he wanted after hours of begging. Of course, he knew he hadn’t deserved it. His parents loved him.
Vinyl knew Soarin’ didn’t deserve it either, but he knew neither did he not deserve love.
“Yes. I mean it,” said Vinyl as he leaned forward and threw his hands around him. Soarin’ was slightly shocked; after a short delay only did he return the favour.
“Oh. Ha. Ha!” Soarin’ started giggling. It soon escalated into deep laughter, and Vinyl just stared at him, much confused with his outburst. “Thank you! Thank you!”
“Well…” Vinyl broke off from the embrace. Only then did he notice the mixed cries of cheers and jeers coming from the crowd behind him. “Yeah. I guess. Uh, I’ll see you on that night?”
“Definitely! Here,” Soarin’ shoved the slightly-crushed flowers and still-intact box of chocolates into Vinyl’s hooves, “These are yours.”
“Uh, thanks. They look, uh, wonderful.” Vinyl tried to sound as genuine as possible as he stared at the flowers and realised they were fake. “Look, I got to go. Oh and…” He shot a beam out of his horn and engulfed his surroundings with a white blast of light. When it died down, three ponies stood with a confused look in front of him.
“Huh? What happened?” The three ponies scratched their head.
“Laters.”
“Wait!” Soarin’ called out as Vinyl was about to leave. Vinyl spun around and noticed Soarin’ walking towards him. “Let me walk you home.”
That prompted Spitfire to rush to their side. She grabbed Soarin’ by his hooves and yelled at him, “Wait! I mean, we’ve got plans. Right, Soarin’?” She elbowed him and growled at him.
“Oh, yeah. I was supposed to hang out in the park with you today.” Soarin’ pondered for a while before he spoke again. “Um, let me just walk her home first, ‘kay? I’ll meet you there later. Same spot?”
“No, no, no!” Spitfire shook her head. You promised!”
“And now I promise I’ll see you there, ‘kay?” reassured Soarin’, but Sptifire spun around with her hooves folded across her chest. She let out a slight ‘hmph’ before storming off.
“It’s me or her! You choose!” yelled Spitfire as she dashed away from them. She turned a corner and was barely out of sight before Vinyl called out.
“Spitfire, wait!”
"See what you did, small-balls? Ugh!" Similarly, Cloud Kicker stormed away and disappeared past the corner. "Spitfire, wait up!"
“It’s okay, Vinyl,” said Soarin’ as he caught Vinyl who nearly started running after her. “She’s like that. She’ll be okay once she cools down.”
“Bleh. I was gonna tell her that it’s fine. You two can go on your date.” Soarin’ flinched slightly at the word.
“Oh, we’re just friends.” Soarin’ blushed, “And besides, wouldn’t it technically be me cheating on her if I asked you to prom?”
“Heh. Whatever man.” Vinyl turned around and headed towards the school door. “You should go after her. It’s fine. I can walk home by myself.”
“But—” retorted Soarin’, but Vinyl quickly interrupted his speech.
“I’ll understand. She needs you. Now.” And Vinyl disappeared into the crowd of ponies who either laughed at her or high-fived her.
Soarin’ stood there rooted for a moment. He stared at the crowd, then behind him, then at the crowd once more. She needs you. Now.
He made up his mind; Soarin’ ran for the corner.
Vinyl glanced back briefly, and saw that Soarin had already made up his mind. Casually, he opened the front doors of the school with magic and strutted out.
He stared out as the sun shone on him and the cool breeze blew against his mane. He smiled. Then he took a step and froze in his tracks. He looked back once more, and his smile turned into a cringe. His eyes started twitching and he looked down at his hooves.
“Did I seriously just say yes to another male asking me to prom?” Then he heard a cry for his name.
“Vinyl!” He recognised that voice, and sighed in relief. At least it wasn’t Soarin’.
“Vinyl!” Shining Armor called out as he strutted towards him with a big grin on his face. “Yo, I can’t believe you said yes! And… you don’t look happy about it.” Shining Armor’s face turned into one with puzzlement. “Huh?”
“Well, I just said yes to him.”
“Yeah! I can’t believe you said yes, dude. What in the world were you thinking? Soarin’? Really?” Shining Armor threw his hooves in the air.
“I pitied him, alright?” Vinyl sighed.
“Yo, that’s so nice of you! You should be happy. You made one pony really happy today.” Shining Armor playfully punched Vinyl in the shoulders and smiled at him.
“Yeah,” Vinyl chuckled, “I guess so. But like, I don’t know. It feels… weird.”
“Weird? Shouldn’t you be happy too? You finally got a date for prom.”
“Well yeah,but… I feel disgusted rather. It feels weird.” Vinyl shuddered.
“Weird? You’re weird. Pft.” Shining Armor rolled his eyes at him.
“Like… this was not who I imagined to go with.” Vinyl scratched his head and stared at blue sky. I wanted to go with… never mind. It would never happen. I should stop dreaming.
Shining Armor grinned. “Ooh! Who then?”
“Uh… fine. I’ll tell you something.” Vinyl grabbed Shining Armor’s hooves and stared into his eyes. “Promise me never to tell anyone else. Okay?”
Shining Armor chuckled, but nodded in approval. “I promise.”
“Well… how do I put it?” Vinyl started pacing back and forth, looking down as he scratched his head. “I... I-I don’t find an… interest… in stallions, if you get what I mean.”
“Oh.” Shining Armor knew what he meant and pondered about it. “Oh.” The second one was him in shock when he realised one of his closest friends was a lesbian. “That means you—”
“Yep. Shh!” Vinyl put his hooves to his own lips. “Don’t tell anyone!”
“Okay, okay! Wow” Shining Armor stared at Vinyl in surprise, “I mean… I didn’t see that coming. Since when did you feel this way?”
“Uh, since… since a few years ago. Stallions didn’t really… please me.” Vinyl wasn’t lying. He was never a mare in the first place. He never had to act as a mare before he studied in Canterlot. And he certainly did not have to lie to hide the fact he was male.
“Oh. Uh, that’s cool.” Shining Armor drew tiny little circles in the ground with his hoof and looked down.
“You okay?” asked Vinyl as he put a hoof on Shining Armor. “The news isn’t hitting you too hard, is it?” His question sounded more like a statement. Shining Armor looked up and after a while, nodded his head and smiled.
“Yeah. We’re still bros, right?” He held his hoof out.
“Mhmm.” Vinyl fist bumped it and smiled. “Anyways,” Vinyl threw the box of chocolates and fake flowers into the bush behind him, “You wanna hang out? I’m free, and homework is for ponies who do not pay attention to class.”
“Psh. Homework’s important, Vinyl.”
“Yeah, to be used as—”
“Origami!” The duo voiced in unison. They let out a hearty laugh and walked down the front steps of the school. Wrapping a hoof around each other, they walked out of the school grounds and towards the park. Indeed, they saw Spitfire and Soarin’ in a secluded spot of the park. Spitfire was sobbing and Soarin’ was trying to cheer her up. But the pair left them alone and walked towards another corner of the park.
At that corner, they sat down on the grass and admired the sunset. Then Vinyl spoke.
“I still can’t believe I said yes.”