//------------------------------//
// Blue's Crush - Part II 
// Story: Blue Skye's Story 
// by Skyfire Storm 
//------------------------------//

The very next day...
Blue left home for school a bit earlier today, since he wanted to cool off after what went on yesterday. Along the way to school, Blue kept thinking about Meadow, and also about what his mom and dad said about not rushing into the relationship. He eventually managed to calm himself down and looked to see Meadow walking on the opposite side of the street. Blue trotted across the street to join her. 

"Hey there." Blue said as he walked alongside Meadow. 

"Oh, hey Blue. How's it going?" she asked.

"It's going good. What about you?" he replied.

"Yeah, it's my second day of school...and I'm quite excited!" Meadow replied with a sarcastic tone in her voice.

"You are?" Blue asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Well, to be honest... not necessarily." she replied. "I'm still pretty nervous about this school."

"Meadow, I've felt the same way as you do now when I first joined Cloudsdale Elementary." Blue explained. "And believe me, with the help of some friends I got used to it." 

"Really?" Meadow asked. 

"Yep. Say, uh... would you like to be my friend?" Blue asked. 

"Of course I would." Meadow replied. 

"You'd be my friend?" Blue asked.

"Yep. You seem like a cool guy." she said, smiling. 

"You seem quite cool as well." Blue replied, only to receive a friendly smile from her. Blue grinned back, before bumping into a large, black-furred pegasus. A pegasus whom he recognized very well. 

"Hey, watch---Blue?" the Pegasus asked.

"Hello, Thunder Clap." Blue replied. "Long time no see. And yeah, it is Blue."

"Who gave you that name?" Thunder Clap asked, chuckling. "It suits you well!" 

"My parents, you idiot." Blue replied, with a less-than-pleased face. Meadow nudged for him to come, but Blue remained standing in his place. "Who gave you the name 'Thunder Clap'?" Blue asked. Thunder Clap glared at him.

"My parents did." Thunder replied. "Are you saying that my name is stupid?"

"Potentially." Blue said. 

"Blue, come on. Let's go. There's no point in fighting him." Meadow said, urging Blue to move away from Thunder Clap.

"Oh. Who's that? Your marefriend?" Thunder Clap chuckled. 

"No, we're just friends." Blue said, embarrassed. "I mean, we just met yesterday."

"Yeah, sure." Thunder Clap replied. Before the conversation between Blue and Thunder Clap could continue, the school bell rung. "Catch you later, Blue. And don't bother annoying me." he said and walked off, leaving only Meadow and Blue.

"Who was that guy?" Meadow asked.

"Oh, him? We knew each other since Middle School. He was a bully towards one of my closest friends..." Blue replied. "If he threatens you in any way, he's gonna regret it." Meadow simply smiled.

"You know what?" Meadow asked.

"What is it?" 

"You're, uh... kind of cute." she awkwardly replied. Blue was lost for words. 

"Thanks..." Blue replied. 

"Hey, listen. I uh, better get to class and so should you..." Meadow said. "I'll catch you later, Blue. See ya!" she said, trotting off. Blue was left alone.

"She thinks I'm cute..." Blue said to himself. "She really thinks I'm cute." Blue's unsure face slowly begun to turn into a grin as he walked towards the entrance of the school.

At lunch...
Blue, Singer, Rainbow Dash sat beside each other, as usual, however this time joining them was Violet Petals, a certain Pegasus filly who had a crush on Singer, although never admitted it. Whenever Blue or Dash weren't around to hang out with Singer, Violet would play with him. While Singer and Violet were talking with each other and Dash, Blue was lost in thought. He was busy thinking about Meadow and what she said to him before she trotted off to her classroom. Nopony has ever called Blue cute before; he has been called "handsome" several times at family gatherings, but cute? Never. Blue even begun to have thoughts about asking her out on a date, but tried to block out those thoughts. 

"So, what I'm trying to say is that Singer should concentrate more on athletics rather than his singing. I think he has a pretty bright future in athletics." Dash explained to Violet.

"Well, Dash. I think that Singer may be good at athletics, but his quirkiness, his voice... that's what truly stands out according to me." Violet countered. While Dash continued explaining to Violet that Singer should get more involved in sports, Blue simply looked at Meadow, who was sitting at the table opposite their's. Meadow turned to face him every once in a while, giving him a small smile, which he gladly returned. While Dash was continuing her talk with Violet about what Singer should do once they leave high school, Blue continued looking at Meadow. Due to Meadow's seating position, it looked as though Blue was looking at Dash.

"Well, Dash. I think Singer should do what he wants to do, not what you think he should do." Violet said.

"I'm not saying he should do athletics when he leaves school. It's merely a suggestion!" Dash explained, facehoofing at the end of her sentence.

"Oh, right.----Dash, look!" Violet gasped. Dash turned around and found herself facing Blue.

"Blue!" Dash shouted, lightly slapping him in the cheek.

"I'm sorry, Dash! I wasn't looking at you, I swear. I was looking at Meadow..." Blue explained. 

"Yeah, sure..." Dash replied and turned around to notice her sitting there. "You must really like her, huh?"

"Yeah... I guess." Blue replied. 

"Well then, talk to her! Tell her how you feel." Dash said. 

"It seems like the only logical thing to do, but no Dash. I like to take things slow..." Blue replied. "I don't want to be too awkward." Meanwhile, at Meadow's table, she was eating a sandwich, when Thunder Clap came over.

"Hey there. You're looking fine...The name's Thunder Clap. Yours?" Thunder Clap said. Blue turned to face him and stood up.

"Be right back!" Blue said and trotted up to her table. 

"Hey, Thunder Crap! Leave her alone!" Blue shouted. Meadow stood back behind him. Everyone in the cafeteria went silent and turned to face them. 

"Did you just call me 'Thunder Crap'?" Thunder Clap asked. 

"Blue, don't..." Meadow said.

"Uh... yeah. I just did." Blue replied and grinned, before being pulled up by the wing by Thunder Clap. "AUGHHH!" Blue screamed as the bully pulled on his wing.

"Dude, please! I'm sorry!" Blue shouted at Thunder Clap. 

"Thunder Clap! Please!" Meadow pleaded. 

"Why should I?" Thunder Clap asked. The principal then came over and noticed Thunder Clap holding Blue, who was trying to keep himself from screaming in pain, by his wing. 

"Because I said so." the principal replied, with a stern face. "Thunder Clap, a word please." he said. Thunder Clap replied by dropping Blue onto the floor. Singer, Rainbow Dash and Violet trotted over to him, while Meadow helped him up. Within moments, the entire cafeteria stopped looking at them and they all returned to their own things.

"You alright Blue?" she asked.

"Yeah... I think I am, but my wing..." he said, turning his head to face his bruised wing, and gently trying to move it. "GAAHH..."

"Is it broken?!" cried Dash.

"No, no. I don't think it really is." Blue explained. "I think he's just pulled a muscle. I'll be alright. I just... had to take a stand against him..." he said. 

"That was very brave of you, Blue." Violet said. Meadow simply smiled.

"You did that for me?" she asked.

"Yeah, I thought he was giving you trouble..." Blue replied. Meadow replied with a reaction Blue did not expect from her; she gave him a kiss on the cheek. Blue's jaw dropped and he blushed furiously.

"Oops... sorry." she said. "I guess... you didn't... expect that, huh?" she asked. "Well, thanks for standing up for me."

"It's not... that I didn't expect it, but I've never been kissed before." Blue stammered. 

"Me neither." replied Meadow. They both made eye contact and looked at each other and chuckled.

"Ugh, enough of this mushy stuff!" Dash complained. "Lunch is almost over."

"Yeah, I guess." said Singer. "See you guys. Come on, Violet." Violet waved back and followed after Singer, only to be joined by Dash, leaving Blue and Meadow standing between the two tables.

"So, Meadow?" Blue asked. "Are we still friends... or are we more?"

"Uh, I... want us to be friends, Blue. I think you're cute and all, but I still don't really know if I'm ready for the next step." she explained. 

"I can understand that. Me neither, to be honest. " Blue said. "So, you uh, want to hang out after school?"

"Sure. I'll just have to talk to my mom and dad about it." Meadow explained. "Oh, and by the way, we better go. Lunch is almost over." She then trotted off to join Dash and the others. Blue again, was dumbfounded. He had no idea that this particular filly actually thought that he was cute. Blue then decided to join the rest of the group and follow them to class.

After school...
A few hours after school, Blue left home to head to the park, where he was supposed to meet up with Meadow. Despite it being only the end of summer, already it begun to feel much cooler in the afternoons than it usually is, but the weather didn't stop him from going to meet his new friend. Along the way, he kept thinking about what Meadow had said about him. Was he really what she said he was? Blue didn't really know, but he tried to keep those thoughts at bay for now. Eventually, he reached the park and noticed Meadow hanging around on the teeter-totter. 

"Hey." Blue said.

"Hey, Blue." Meadow replied. "So, why are we here exactly?" she asked.

"I thought we could hang out together." Blue replied. 

"Uh, okay..." Meadow said, although she was pretty unsure. "What can we do in the park but?" she asked. 

"I don't know..." Blue replied. "Maybe we can just talk and stuff." he said and led her to a bench, where they sat down at. The park wasn't empty, but there weren't many ponies in that specific area, so Blue and Meadow can talk with each other in peace.

"Yeah, but what?" Meadow asked.

"Uh, I don't know. Anything you want." Blue replied. "What was life back in Baltimare like?" he asked her.

"It was, well, nice, but I didn't really enjoy city life to be honest." Meadow replied. "Neither did my parents. So, my dad moved his business to Cloudsdale and we came with him." she explained. "I'll ask you the same question, Blue. What's it like living in Cloudsdale?" she asked. 

"It's quite calm and peaceful and there's lots of open spaces for ponies to fly around." Blue explained. "Trust me, a week or two and you'll get used to living here. You're pretty nervous, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, I kind of am." Meadow explained. "It's like the first day of elementary school all over again, but only in a new place." 

"I know how you feel." Blue said. "When I joined Cloudsdale Elementary, I was very nervous. I had no idea whether I was going to do good in my lessons and make any friends." he explained. "But my friend helped me to calm myself. Sadly, he probably lives in some kind of large mansion in Canterlot."

"Oh." Meadow said. "He moved?"

"Yep." Blue replied. "His dad's some kind of businesspony. I get to visit him once every two weeks."

"Right." Meadow said. "So, you think I can get settled in here without any hassle?"

"Yep. All you need is a friend to help you fit in." Blue explained. "Maybe I can help." he suggested.

"If you want." Meadow replied. "You know, you're probably the realest friend I have." she said.

"Really? What about those fillies that sit beside you at lunch?" Blue asked.

"Well, them? They hang out with me only at lunch." Meadow explained. "So, I get pretty lonely after school." Blue felt sorry for Meadow and felt obliged to put his wing around her. 

"I'll be your friend, Meadow. You don't have to sit beside them all the time if you don't like them. I'll be a better friend than they'll be." Blue replied and turned to give her a smile, which she returned. 

The next day...
It was lunchtime again, however this time, Blue was sitting alone with Meadow, while the rest of his friends were sitting at the other table. The two were joking together and generally enjoying each other's company, while Dash was sitting at the other table, along with Singer. She turned her attention several times to look at Blue and Meadow talking to each other.

"Hey, Dash." Singer went. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, yeah." Dash replied. "I'm fine... I'm just wondering why Blue isn't here sitting with us."

"Relax, Dash. He's just enjoying Meadow's company and she's enjoying his." Singer explained.

"But still, he should be here, talking with us, not with Meadow." Dash said. "I'm starting to think that Blue doesn't want to be our friend any more."

"Look, Dash. Just because Blue is spending time with Meadow more now doesn't mean he's going to stop being our friend." Singer explained. "I mean, we've been good friends with each other for over four years and it doesn't look like Blue wants to stop being our friend."

"Well, still..." Dash said. "I'm just nervous. Should I go talk to him?" she asked.

"Your choice." Singer replied, shrugging. Dash stood up and walked over to Blue's table. 

"Hi Dash." Blue replied. "Everything the matter?" he asked.

"No, it's fine. I was just gonna ask if you can sit beside us." Dash said. 

"Sorry, Dashie. Not today. I'm trying to help Meadow fit into the school." Blue explained.

"Alright then." Dash replied. "When'll you sit beside us again?" she asked.

"When I finish helping Meadow. I'm thinking... Wednesday or Thursday." Blue replied.

"Okay." Dash said and went back to her seat.

"What did he say?" asked Singer.

"He said that he'll sit beside us once Meadow gets comfortable with the school, or about Wednesday or Thursday." Dash explained and the two returned to their conversation about Singer's future aspirations. On the other hoof, Blue and Meadow continued their conversation about Blue's early life.  

"So, you really learnt how to fly at age five?" Meadow asked.

"Yep. I realize it must be different in Baltimare, but here in Cloudsdale, you can learn to fly from age five." Blue replied. 

"And you're training to be a weather pony?" asked. Blue simply nodded.

"Exactly. Either that or I'm becoming a Royal Guard." Blue replied. "What do you wanna be?" he asked.

"To be honest, I don't really know..." Meadow explained. "I just want to have a good job when I grow up." she replied.

"If you want, you should enlist in the Weather Team." Blue said. "I mean, my mom and dad are working there and---" Blue was cut off by a light tapping on his back. It was Thunder Clap. Blue turned around, only to notice Thunder Clap standing behind Meadow, whom he also tapped. 

"Hello---Thunder Clap?" Meadow gasped. 

"Hey, if you're uh, free tonight, would you like to go out with me?" Thunder Clap asked.

"No." Meadow replied. "I mean---"

"Stay away from her." Blue said to Thunder Clap.

"Or what?" he replied, staring down into Blue's face.

"Or, uh... I--I'll mince...you?" Blue replied, before being pulled by his wings and held in mid-air. Meadow gasped, while the entire cafeteria turned to face them. 

"Hey, let go of me!" he cried. 

"This is what foolish little colts like you get when they try to stand up to me and make fun of my name. Meadow is my mare, not yours. I'd be a far better coltfriend than you'd ever be. " Thunder Clap said and prepared to punch Blue. 

"Who says I'm your mare?" Meadow countered.

"Look, dude. I don't want any trouble. Just leave us alone." Blue said.

"So you do like each other?" Thunder Clap said, with a grin slowly forming on his face. Blue and Meadow turned to look at each other and blushed. 

"No, we're just...friends." Meadow said, blushing. "Now, please. Drop him."

"Yeah, you do. Don't bother hiding it!" Thunder Clap said and dropped Blue onto the floor, who got up a moment later.

"Look, Thunder Clap. You leave us alone, alright?" Blue said.

"No, I won't leave you alone Blue." Thunder Clap replied, and came over to Blue. He pulled out his hoof and prepared to punch Blue in the face, when the principal came over and noticed the two fighting.

"Thunder Clap? Blue Skye?" the principal asked. "Come with me." 

"Nice going, Thunder Clap. You got us both in trouble." Blue said. 

"Shut up, will you?" Thunder Clap responded. After the talk with the principal, Thunder Clap was placed in detention, while Blue was sent back to class. He made it just in time to his class before the bell rang and sat down beside Meadow. 

"Hey." Blue said.

"Hey Blue. So, how did it go?" she asked.

"It went good. Thunder Clap is in detention... and yeah." Blue simply replied.

"I just wanted to thank you for sticking up for me..." she explained. 

"Hey, it's fine. You don't have to thank me. I couldn't let him taunt you like that." Blue explained. "And plus, I want to ask you a... little question." he said.

"Sure. What is it?" Meadow asked.

"Would you... like to go out with me?" he asked.

"Go out with you, as in, like a date?" she asked.

"Well, sort of." Blue replied.

"Of course." Meadow replied and smiled at Blue, who calmed down and returned the smile. 

"I was thinking next week. Monday evening most likely." Blue explained.

"Why Monday evening?" Meadow asked.

"I wanted to take you to the Wonderbolts' show. It's next Monday at 6:30 PM." Blue explained to Meadow, who slowly begun to grin.

"You're taking me to a Wonderbolts' show?" Meadow asked.

"Yep." Blue replied.

"Thank you! I've always wanted to see them!" Meadow replied. "Thank you so much Blue." she said, giving him a tight, but short hug, which he gladly accepted. 

"You're welcome, Meadow." he replied.

That same evening, Blue returned home joyful. 

"Hey, sweetie!" Summer said, who was holding Firestorm in one of her hooves. "My, my. You're happy today."

"Yeah, hey mom." Blue replied and ruffled Firestorm's mane, only to receive giggles. "Hey, little bro. And yeah, I am pretty happy today. I actually have something important to say." he explained.

"What is it, son?" Summer asked.

"I've asked... Meadow... out on a date." Blue explained.

"That's great son! I'm so happy for you." Summer replied. "When is the date?" she asked.

"I'm wanting to take her to the Wonderbolts show next week." Blue replied. "Who knows? Maybe she'll enjoy it."

"My son has a marefriend... I'm so proud of you!" Summer said and nuzzled Blue, who blushed furiously.

"Mom!" he shouted. "I'm still not sure whether it'll work between us or not."

"You have to hope for the best, Blue." she replied.

"Yeah, I guess..." Blue said. 

"A date?" Firestorm asked.

"Yeah, little bro. It's like, a really special day when two special someponies get together and spend their time together." Blue explained. "And for me, that day will be next Monday evening. I just hope it impresses her somehow." After eating his dinner, Blue went upstairs to his room and opened a notepad, which served as his diary. As Blue begun to write down his diary entry, he begun to think about the day. 

Dear diary,
Today, my friendship with Meadow Breeze blossomed into something else; I asked her out on a date. I hope I can somehow impress her on the date and make sure our relationship lasts. Even if it doesn't work out, I also hope we can both still stay friends. 
~ Blue Skye