Chapter One: A Helping Hand
The sun stood at it's apex, boring down on anybody who'd dare leave the comfort of their air-conditioned homes. Today was a scorching 102° Fahrenheit, and I had the pleasure of lugging a cart full of gems a mile to get back to Ponyville. Yesterday, Rarity had invited me to go hunting for gems with her, and —regardless of the weather— I could not find it within myself to decline.
The way I see it, there's always a silver lining. In this case, it was being able to spend hours beside the woman I had grown to love over the years.
Glancing back I noticed Rarity pulling an umbrella from her bag, smiling lightly. I chuckled slightly as it sprung open, towering above her and acting as a make-shift shield from the sunlight.
"Hey, *grunt* are we almost *pant* there yet?" I asked through baited breaths, my eyes still glued on the beautiful woman.
"Yes. Just a little further and we should be there. You know, Spikey, you don't have to carry all those gems on your own." She paused as I drummed a finger against my chin, contemplating what to say.
"Well, yeah, *pant* but I want to." I stopped pulling the cart to catch my breath.
"Darling, I cannot see how anybody could 'want' to bare such a burden on their own." She deadpanned. I turned away from her as I felt a tinge of pink rise to my cheeks.
"I just... I don't want you to overexert yourself." I turned back to assess her response: The bridge of her nose was scrunched up, and she looked a little bit annoyed.
"Spikey, darling, have you forgotten that I've been doing this since before you've moved to town? I do believe I could handle myself just fine."
"Yeah, yeah... I know that." My eyes found the ground in front of me as I let out a tired sigh; Not being able to tell somebody how you feel sucks.
"Is something the matter?"
Why can't she be mine?
"Spike," This time I heard her, which pulled me out of my reverie. I shot her a weak smile.
Deciding that our little break had gone on long enough, I set to pulling the cart once more. The rusted wheels creaked slightly as it began to slowly trail behind me. "You know you could talk to me about anything, right, Spikey? I'll always be here for you."
"I *grunt* know that. I just don't think you'll understand."
"You underestimate me; I'm fairly certain I'll be able to understand." Her voice was laced with defiance.
"But *cough* I know you won't."
As I went to wipe my forehead, I heard her snort in indignation, which irked me.
Deciding to ignore her, I glanced down at my shirt sighing as I noticed it was completely soaked in my sweat. The shirt itself was nothing special, just a black tee I found sitting around, but the way it clung to my skin was bothersome. My taut muscles stood outlined against it, making me feel a bit self-conscious.
"And what is that supposed to mean?" So much for ignoring her.
"Come on, I don't wanna talk about it." I wanted to drop the topic ASAP, but it seemed she had other plans.
"Spike, as your friend it is my responsibility to help you with whatever bothers you." I groaned, turning to face her.
"Rarity, I really don't think we should talk about this now. Look, we're almost to town," I turned, gesturing to Ponyville. I was right, we were only a few minutes away from our goal. All I received in response was a "Hmph!"
I rolled my eyes, setting the cart in motion with a few steps. Before I could get more than five steps forward, a voice came from behind me, "I swear, Spike, you can be so irritating sometimes!" I growled.
"Oh really?" I spun back with a glare.
"Yes, 'really'!" I groaned in frustration; I really didn't want to argue with her.
"Can we just drop it?" I turned away from her, taking a few more steps towards town. I didn't get very far before her voice rung out from behind me. Again.
"No we cannot!" I heard her —what I had assumed— umbrella closing up as her footsteps grew closer and closer. "Spike," She was right behind me now, "what I don't understand is why you've been able to confide in me before, but now, you suddenly can't. Do you... not trust me?" Oh, sheesh. Her tone of voice caused most of my anger to immediately dissipate, leaving me with nothing but guilt for upsetting her; I hate it when she's sad. I can deal with her anger, but when she's sad,I'm sad.
"It's not that, Rarity. I just... I don't think I can tell you." My voice softened as I sighed guiltily.
"Why not?" Because if I try to I'll just screw it all up.
"I don't want to lose what we have." My voice had dropped down to little more than a whisper.
I pulled forward slowly, meaning for Rarity to follow. She didn't. I glanced back every few seconds only to find her where she was before. I couldn't tell what she was feeling, or what internal conflict she was facing, but what I could tell was that it was still getting hotter by the minute, so I steeled my resolve and pressed forward, watching as she grew further and further away.
But then, the unexpected happened. She ran. She began sprinting back to me, calling my name all the while. I stopped and waited, clearly confused.
"Spikey! Wait!" She wasn't very far now.
I chuckled as she stopped in front of me, her right hand resting on her thigh while the other was held up to signal she needed a second.
"Tell me." I blinked at her words, uncertain what to do. "I promise, I won't let it come between us."
"I... I," I paused as she pouted cutely. That's just not fair! "O-okay, I'll do it. I'll *gulp* tell you." Her expression brightened instantly, while my own was full of uncertainty.
I watched as she stared at me expectantly, the sunlight dimly illuminating her glamorous purple hair. She really was beautiful. I really didn't have a chance with her.
"I'm in love with you." I watched as shock spread across her features. Oh no.
"I'm flattered —I really am— but... I cannot say the same to you," I know you don't. "I'm so very sorry." A gust of hot wind blew against my sweat-laden hair, sending a few drops down my forehead. She shuffled awkwardly as I began to mull over her words. I already knew this would happen, so why am I so surprised?
My eyes trailed down to the straps that bound me to the cart. It would be so easy to just run, to leave her here and forget this ever happened.
Our eyes locked for a moment, before her own found the dirt below us. She brought a closed fist to her mouth before coughing awkwardly.
My eyes snapped back to the ground as I finally found the words to speak, "I-it's okay, Rarity; I already know you don't like me that way. I just —really hoped you would—" I could do little to stop a stray tear from trailing down my left cheek. Am I crying? "Rarity *sniffle* I... I think I should go." I quickly unstrapped myself from the cart and darted away, not hearing her call for me as I went.
My eyes were squeezed shut as I ran away from the woman. Stop running! You can't do this to her.
The dirt kicked up as my feet pounded against it rapidly; leaving a mix of sweat and tears in my wake. You're pathetic, no wonder she doesn't love you; Who could love such trash?
My heart beat relentlessly against my chest; both my legs and my lungs burned, and yet I kept running.
I opened my eyes, watching as the people and buildings of Ponyville blurred behind me.
I didn't care about all the worried voices as I darted by; I didn't care when I tripped, and crashed into the ground; I didn't care about the footsteps that grew closer every second; I didn't care about anything right now. I just layed there, curled up in fetal-position, the ground dampening as sweat and tears slowly dripped onto it as thoughts of Rarity flooded my mind. My mind screamed in protest as I sobbed pathetically, but I couldn't move; my body had been pushed past the limit. All I could do was lay there and break down.
The footsteps drew to a halt just a few inches in front of me. I curiously opened my eyes, only to be greeted by a pink sneaker. My eyes trailed up the pink sneaker, all the way to the concerned blue eyes of a girl I had never met before. She knelt down, offering me a hand, "Hey, are you okay?"