Another page turned as her tired -if not bored- emerald eyes scanned the contents of "How to deal with an unwanted relationship". Funny, as she couldn't recall ever needing this book in the house, or how it got here for that matter. It was strange what you could find on the Apple Family's shelves.
"If a mare or stallion decides to pressure you with unwanted attention, you must firmly grasp the situation and your surroundings. What is around you? What can you use to calmly excuse yourself away? This book will give you the confidence you need to find the courage to say 'No.'"
Hmm, now this looked interesting! She couldn't help but lean in closer.
"The first step is to..."
As a rasping knock came to the door, she now growled as she tried to dig her face ridiculously close to the book. "I'm busy!"
"Oh, ok, I'll just go...I didn't mean it I'm sorry..." The voice whispered behind the door, making it impossible for AJ to hear more, which obviously meant...
Great, just great.
She placed the book underneath the covers before turning back to the door. "Fluttershy, I know that's you, you can come in."
"But you said..." More words were heard but they were again too quiet, so now, she groaned.
"Ah can't hear you Fluttershy..."
With a small step of hooves as the door opened and closed, a weary looking pegasus walked in, already apologizing immediately but the orange pony just rolled her eyes.
"Now what did I tell you about apologizin'?" She gave a calm smile, trying to reassure her friend but she babbled on anyways, of course.
"Well I just, you know, you're sick and I-"
She couldn't help but snap now. "Shy! I said, its fine."
It was really, even though she hated lying through her teeth to an element bearer like herself no less, she was just glad th-
Suddenly applause was heard from absolutely nowhere, as a calmly dressed draconequus walked in with a suit and tie, his mane groomed in a sixties hair fashion statement, yet despite the appearance, he couldn't be bothered to wear any pants. No surprise of course, as he was naked most of the time.
He then opened his arms out wide to her as he exclaimed. "AJ I'm home!"
The applause became laughter once more from the hidden speakers and yet all that was running through the earth ponies mind was how many ways she could kill a draconequus, hiding her face and body underneath the covers with her hooves, glaring despite the small rose tint on her face.
He waited for a response more or less, not from the laughter but from Applejack herself and he couldn't help but make a face as he snapped the charade away. "You could at LEAST say hello to me."
Her eyes narrowed. "Not for you."
"Oh, so you're not suffering from lung cancer! Good to know~"
Fluttershy pouted up at Discord who soon became defensive, raising his arms up. "What! I was just trying to lighten the mood."
"Get him out of here." She warned now, giving Fluttershy the same look of not only desperation but anger.
To where Fluttershy realized, there was no calming the mare down before her, so she looked to Discord and spoke calmly. "Discord, could you p-"
"Don't even have to say it! I know when I'm not wanted!" He held his arm over his face dramatically as he walked out like a drama queen. "I'll just suffer without my beautiful Applejack to save my wounded soul!" His body then disappeared but then he peaked his head through the door to push it even more. "Alone."
A pause, then.
"With no on-"
"Discord!" Fluttershy's glare came into play, even though it had no effect on the draconequus. Yet it must have worked because he groaned and soon left. A mumble of "Fine fine..." being all that she could hear.
A sincere face of worry crossed the pegasus' mare's features once more as she trotted up to Applejack. "I'm so sorry about Discord, he can be a real handful sometimes."
"I'll say." She responded sharply, her eyes looking away from the shy mare. She didn't need to show more on her face then needed.
"So uh, I heard you were sick... So I brought you some stuff to help you feel better." As she spoke, she turned to her side to show a pack on her, sliding it off to show the contents within. Personally, Applejack was happy with just her boring, stupid book on how to rid of bad relationships.
"Aww, shy, there was no need t-"
Yet it didn't stop her.
"I got you some medicine for all sorts of symptoms, such as headaches, dizziness and stomach aches. I also brought you some books to read-"
She couldn't help but hide her book just a bit more under her covers as she said that.
"-And I also brought you some of my best made honey from the bees harvest this year, so you can soothe any sore throat problems you may be ex- ...What are you looking at?"
Did she catch her!?
"N-Nothin'! Just thinking about work tomorrow."
"Oh no Applejack, you must rest as much as possible before you get back to work. Who knows what could happen if you kept working while sick! Why, that be just plain awful!"
"Awful, ye, right... Of course!" She then began coughing and sweating a bit from her nerves to express so. She did need more time to swallow all of these new feelings in after all. Wait, what feelings? She had none! That's what really mattered.
"Oh you poor dear." The shy mare's eyes beaming with the motherly eyes of Granny Smith's whenever Applebloom needed treatment. It almost made AJ look away in guilt, almost.
"Here, let me get you some medicine."
Great, now she needed to take some vile, gross, elixir for her totally fine throat. Ah well, she went into this lie, she needed to carry on with it. Even if she hated doing so.
"If thing's get worse and you run out of supplies, me and Discord will make sure to get you a new batch as soon as possible!"
Hah! Like she'd be sick for that long... She rolled her eyes just in time to see the pegasus shove the spoon to her throat, that was rather forceful for such a timid pony.
As she expected though, it tasted like acidic reproduced cherries, forcing her to close her eyes as she swallowed the vile treatment. Which all in all made it worse.
"Yuck! Water.. I need water!"
Yet as soon as she said that, a glass was handed to her via mouth by Fluttershy, quickly being grabbed in return to drink and sip away at. She swore she spilled some all over her blanket but she didn't care, she needed this down and quick.
"Oh dear, you got water everywhere, here, let me change the sheets."
'Wait. Oh, buck no!'
Yet she was too late, as soon as she yanked the sheets, out came flying the book she was using as her salvation from this whole ordeal. The sweat was really starting to pour now as she tried to grab for it but Fluttershy soon caught wind of the title just as she grabbed it.
"How to deal with an unwanted relationship?" She whispered under her breath, giving worry and uncertainty to the cowgirl mare. "Why would you need a book on that?"
"O-Oh well you know how Big Mac get's all the ladies! Heh, he just rallies them up like sheep and cattle!" She swung her hoof to express so but the doubt was too easy to read off her face. Yet Fluttershy, being the kind pony she was, had no heart to meddle in her best friend's issues, she didn't want to be a nuisance and instead forced a confused smile and nodded. A blush creeping on her face.
Still didn't explain why she was reading it though.
"Y-Yeah, I guess so?"
The grins they shared at that moment were beyond uncomfortable and awkward, so Fluttershy just placed the bag down and began walking out. "Well, I guess I'll leave you to your reading and I'll just leave you to getting better. Oh!" She then paced herself back to AJ's closet and pulled out a fresh blanket, placing it over her friend's body before returning once more to the door.
"I hope you get better soon. if you need anything, just try and contact me or Discord as soon as possible."
"Thanks, I'll remember that!" Another forced grin appeared, plastered on the orange mare's face.
"Well, I guess, I'll be going now..." The soft steps of her hooves guiding her awkwardly out, yet before she could properly exit herself out, she peaked her head in once more to see a sighing Applejack who went back on alert. "Are you sure you're ok?"
"Yeah, everything's just fine 'Shy, now you go on with yourself."
Discord needs you more then I do.
Wait, where did that come from? Stupid, stupid buckin-!
"Well, alright, bye." And with that, a shut of the door was heard softly as the hooves of her friend left the room. A real sigh escaping the cowgirl this time as she slunked shyly into bed, her emerald pupil's leading back to the book by her side.
"Now even Fluttershy's onto me... Why is this happening to me?" She searched ahead of her bed for some answer and instead of receiving one, she could only grab her sheets and pull them back up her face, a red glow appearing once more.
___
"So..." Began the abomination known as Discord, floating alongside Fluttershy, a smile pushing through his lips. "'How to deal with an unwanted relationship' huh?"