//------------------------------// // Days 28 - 35 // Story: Adopting Fluttershy // by Flutterpriest //------------------------------// Day 28 – Friday Morning Well, Journal. This is going to be a big day. Fluttershy and Applejack just headed off for school. I get to go into work and face Cherilee. Hopefully the new tasks will keep me busy enough to not notice the time. I've got less time in the morning's now, so I'll make this one quick. I'll tell you how everything went with that and the Apple dinner tonight. See ya, Journal. Day 28 – Friday Evening Hey, Journal. Man it's been a packed day. Where do I even begin? The day at work flew by with all the new responsibilities I've taken up. I also might have nailed down some repeat customers with the walk ins I did today. You never know though, those can be flaky as hell. Anyway, next thing I knew, it was time for Cherilee's appointment and she came to check in while I was at the receptionist table. I felt like a deer in the headlights when she looked at me with a wide smile and said she was ready for her appointment. The other workers eyed me weirdly as I checked her in and headed back to the room to set up for the massage. I had to admit, a part of me didn't expect her to come in. I mean, I need the business, but still, I imagined she would still be a little heartbroken. She came into my room and it just didn't feel right. Cherilee hopped on the table as if nothing ever happened. She talked and made playful banter. She seemed as happy as could be. It was really, really weird. I asked how Fluttershy was doing in school and she said she was doing great. Cherilee talked about how she grouped Applejack and Fluttershy in a group exercise and they really managed to take off. She added how the two would play together at the school yard and learn more about each other. Fluttershy was slowly becoming a little more courageous in class and even raised her hoof once. I thanked her, but at the same time I wasn't sure what to say. I was so happy that Fluttershy was branching out more, but at the same time, something felt very off about Cherilee today. Her muscles were extremely tense, and not like the stress that you get from a rough week. It was as if her muscles were being flexed, which made me have to put even more strength into every rub and stretch of her pelt as possible. Yet, she made these moans as I did it. I was... angry. Was she getting something out of this? This didn't feel right. Finally, I just stopped. I sat down in a chair and asked what was up. She just looked at me long and hard and I saw a look in her eye that I recognized. It was the gaze of someone who wanted something very, very badly, but knew they couldn't have it. I asked if she should really be here right now. She paused, when I heard a drip onto the floor. That was enough. I politely asked her to leave and not come back until she was able to handle all of her emotions. Cherilee just lied on the table for a moment and gazed at the ground, full of reflective thought. Her tail drooped and her ears fell flat as she rose from the table and walked out the door. I can only wonder what in the world she was thinking. I had an idea, but it was a terrible idea. Maybe she was trying to make sure Fluttershy's friendship with Applejack blossomed because she thought she could win me back? I can only hope that it's not the case. I wish I knew, I really do. I left the building in a huff. There were a few things that I hadn't gotten done today, but screw it. At this point, I was mad. And... honestly, Journal. I was kinda sad. It hurt seeing her again. It really did. … I don't want to get all mopey on you. I've already rehashed the Cherilee stuff till the end of time. Might as well focus on something that might be more interesting. Once I got home, Fluttershy was all excited for the dinner with the Apples, and honestly I was too. I never really made a lot of pony friends in this world, for one reason or another. Either I wanted to be left alone, or couldn't find a pony that I could relate to, or there was only around eight stallions in town... You get the picture. I was looking forward to seeing the orchard up close and meeting the family. Shy and I headed straight for their home as soon as I got back from work. Fluttershy was so excited that she was hopping around everywhere and her wings were flapping like crazy. Silly filly. Once we got to the orchard, I was really taken back by the magnificence of the trees. There were so many and all were ripe with delicious fruit that was just ready to be harvested. Applejack scurried up to meet us before we even got halfway down the path to the home. She excitedly told us about the wonderful meal that Granny had been workin on all day just for us. My mouth as already drooling at the idea of some home cooking. But my mind was still stuck on Cherilee. As I entered the home, I told myself that I was going to fully invest myself into their hospitality if it was the last thing I did. For the most part, it worked. I immediately met Granny Smith, the custodian to Sweet Apple Acres. Granny is at that sweet spot in life where you can tell she's had a good number of years on her, but she isn't "Old" per-se. She was more than welcoming and very kind. I could tell there was a slight shrillness in her voice, and perhaps a bit of wariness as well. I introduced myself and Fluttershy to her and brought our own token of hospitality, the carrot cake. She seemed to be surprised. Granny immediately commented that we didn't have to bring anything at all, that they had fresh apple cobbler that was in the oven and that Macintosh was working on churning some ice cream right now. At that point, I insisted they take it anyway. We let the fillies run off to play as I offered Granny some assistance in the kitchen. She smiled and commented on my good manners, but she added she wouldn't mind the company. I sat at the table and started up conversation as Granny stirred several pots of mashed potatoes, corn and other delights. Of course, the same old questions came up. She asked about what it was like to live in Equestria compared to Earth, what it was like to be human, and why I decided to become a father. Granny also regaled me with tales of her youth and talked extensively about the farm. Overall, it was a really, really nice chat, and it wasn't long before a young, red stallion entered the kitchen, holding a large bowl of ice cream on his back. Wordlessly, he placed it into the freezer and turned to look at me. I said Hi, but he didn't respond. Granny piped up and said not to mind Mac. He was just a quiet boy. I couldn't help but feel concerned for him though. Cherilee told me this family's story, but they hadn't told me it directly yet. So, I tried to act as if I knew nothing. And I didn't intend on bringing up a sore subject. It was kind enough of them to invite me into their home as it was. I remember walking to the window and watching the fillies outside play some sort of game of tag through all of the luscious apple trees. I asked how the farm was doing. It was the wrong thing to ask. Granny sighed and said that business wasn't doing well. Granny and Mac couldn't pick enough apples to meet demand, and some were going bad on the trees, but they couldn't afford to have a full-time helper. So, they were just doing the best they could in the meantime. At least, until Applejack grew strong enough to buck trees. I turned back to Granny and assured her that if she needed anything, I'd be happy to help. She said that we didn't owe her anything, and that the Apple family had persevered for generations. A little hardship wasn't going to change anything now. But, I brought up that I did owe them. Applejack becoming Fluttershy's friend was a massive load off of your mind. It stopped Fluttershy's bullying at school and really picked up her spirits. So, if there was anything I could do to help out, I would be more than happy to do it. Because, I did owe them. Granny seemed to give me a cautious look and turned away from the food she was cooking to scrutinize me. I felt kinda... violated. What was this all about? She asked if I knew the rumors that were flying around about me. I looked at her curiously and told her that if it was about Cherilee, that it was all taken care of. I cared too much about Fluttershy to let my private desires get in the way of being a good father. She seemed kind of shocked by my words, and said she saw the truth in my face. She said the Apples have a knack of knowing if a pony is lying or hiding something. Granny just said she was happy the rumors weren't true and began to set the food on the table. I called in the girls for food and Mac followed behind the girls. We sat down to the spread of food and dug in. Oh my God, Journal. The food was so good. This was the best thing I've eaten since I've arrived here. I was instantly worried our cake wouldn't be good enough. Overall the dinner talk was mostly listening to Applejack and Fluttershy talk about all the games they play at school. Tag, Hide and Seek, Hopscotch, and Jump rope. Pretty standard stuff. Mac didn't say a single word. But, he seemed to be casting glances outside to the trees and back to his food. At one point Granny told him to focus on dinner. That there were guests here tonight, so there wouldn't be anymore bucking today. He huffed and ate his food. I noticed Fluttershy kept giving him glances that... Well. She's just a filly. Then again, fillies get crushes, right? It's possible she has her first crush. If so, that's kinda adorable. I looked up at Granny at one point and she seemed to give a knowing look as well. After all the wonderful food, Mac went to his room, the girls went to their room while Granny and I worked on dishes together. I asked why Mac was so quiet and I got to hear the family's story straight from Granny's mouth. I nodded along and was as sympathetic as possible, trying to react in all the right places to ensure it sounded like it was the first time I heard it. At least I don't have to pretend to not know anything anymore. After we wrapped up the dishes, we both went and sat on the porch as Fluttershy and Applejack danced with the fireflies. Applejack slowly approached some and attempted to leap at them to claim her prize. But Fluttershy waved a hoof, walked up slowly to them, gently cooing to them. Then, two of them flew up and landed right on her hoof. Applejack just watched in astonishment as Fluttershy then told one of them to go to her friend, and it flew right on top of Applejack's nose. The orange filly went cross-eyed, trying to examine the green-blinking creature, but not wanting it to fly away. The inner turmoil was written all over her face, and I had to keep myself from giggling. Fluttershy, did not. Neither did Applejack after her friend started. Watching the two of them interact just warms my soul. I found myself nodding off in one of the wooden rocking chairs that was on the porch. I figured that meant it was about time to call it a night. The girls said their good byes and promised to see each other soon and I assured to Granny that if they needed anything to let me know. She nodded and wished us a good night. I could see the tiredness written all over Fluttershy, so I picked her up and held her in my arms as we returned home. I asked her if she had a great time, and she sleepily muttered a 'Mhm.' About halfway home she was fast asleep. I'm sure she was just tuckered out after such a long day. I tucked her into bed again and just sat at her bedside, watching her for a little bit as she slept soundly. A part of me wondered what she was dreaming about. Whatever it was, it was making her smile awful wide. Maybe I'll be sure to ask her about it tomorrow. I'm going to make sure she has a good weekend. I think I could use a good weekend too. Day 29 – Saturday Morning Morning, Journal. I can't tell you how refreshing it was to do something different last night. You know, be social. And stuff. I'm not sure if you know this about me, but I'm pretty boring, all things considered. Well, actually, I'm sure you do. I've written in you ever since I came to Equestria. You know first-hand how much I keep myself inside and rarely do anything social. I really like this Apple family though. I think they would be some really good influences for Fluttershy. I'm still worried about that Macintosh though. I wonder if I can get him to open up a little more. I suppose it's not really my place, but I wouldn't mind the guy out. In a way, he reminds me of myself. You know, the quiet, reclusive type. Anyway, onto other things. I have no idea what Fluttershy wants to do today. In typical fashion, I figured we'd take today to have fun and then take tomorrow to get some work around the house done. For all I know, she could want to play with Applejack again. In fact, it would only make sense. She smiles so much more now that she has a friend. I also noticed the shy streak is still strong around new ponies she doesn't recognize though. It must just be a matter of putting her in social situations. I should be able to do that, right? Right? Shut up, Journal. I can be social if I want. I just don't typically want to. Anyway. I think I'm going to make some pancakes and see what Fluttershy wants to do today. Talk to you later, Journal. Day 29 – Saturday Evening Well, today was a roller-coaster. Let's start with the highs. I asked Fluttershy if she wanted to go to the lake again and her ears perked up. With a smile she asked if Applejack could come, to which, of course I agreed. After changing into a bathing suit and getting Shy's floaties, we headed off to the Apple's farm to see if Applejack would like to join us. I noticed as Fluttershy trotted along, she would leap into the air and flutter her wings a bit, as if testing if she were able to take off. I asked her if she was trying to fly and she nodded eagerly. Looks like those flying lessons will be coming sooner than I thought. When we got to the farm, Applejack ran out to greet us. The two fillies leaped about playfully as I spotted Granny and Mac in the field, working up a sweat. I approached them and asked if we could abduct AJ for the day and spend some time at the lake. Granny smiled and said it 'Wouldn't hurt nuthin,' which made the girls squee with excitement. Waving goodbye, the two girls trotted eagerly to the lake, talking to each other about what sort of water games they could play. I had to jog just to do my best to keep up with them. We finally got to the lake and I noticed that with AJ by her side, Fluttershy had no fears about immediately getting in the water and swimming. I honestly was shocked and a little worried that she didn't have her floaties, but honestly, I figured that if I kept a close eye on the two of them, that everything would be fine. I called out to them to not swim out too far, just in case. The two girls splashed at each other, giggled wildly and played water tag with each other. Applejack ended up losing her red-hair scrunchie in the water, but she didn't seem to be too worried about it. I was pretty proud when Fluttershy's fishy friends swam up to her and said hi. Fluttershy introduced each of them to Applejack by name, and it seemed like AJ felt a little awkward talking to fish that she wasn't sure quite understood her or not. Watching them is so serene, and occasionally Fluttershy would look back at me and just give me this warm smile. I'd wave my hand and then the two of them would continue playing. As I acted as the lifeguard for the two girls, I couldn't help but feel like something was amiss. It was a nagging feeling. Something in between the stove being on and being unsure if you had everything you needed to pick up from the grocery store. Except, it was focused hard on my back, and gave me the chills, even in the middle of the warm summer day. I looked around, but I didn't really see anypony else around. Just me and the two girls. I scanned the water to see if there was any sort of weird creatures, but I didn't see any. To be fair, if there was a weird creature threatening to attack us, I doubt just looking at 3-4 feet deep water would reveal it's presence. That's not really the point though. Despite the girls were having a great time, I couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. As I scanned the horizon of trees that lined the lake, I ended up seeing something move in the distance. I watched it carefully to see if it might have been an animal or something like that. Well, a non-pony animal. I thought I saw it slowly move just behind the tree lines closer towards us. Just about the time I thought I had a good bearing on where the figure was, I looked to the girls. Both of which were underwater. I panicked and immediately dove in. I tried to open my eyes under the murky lake water, which I immediately regretted as a mistake. Rising to the surface, I rubbed my eyes and looked around. Extending my arms forward in the water, I felt around to find any sort of form as my heart raced. I cursed under my breath, upset that they didn't listen to me. I cursed myself for not forcing them to wear the- And then they rose to the surface. "I held my breath the longest!" said AJ. "N-no I did!" replied Fluttershy. Freezing in place, I looked at the two and felt the world slow back down. Immediately I felt a little silly, but I was still upset. I suppose if I was paying them my full attention, then that wouldn't have happened. Shaking my head, I told the girls that they went out too far and to come in closer to the shore. They agreed, not thinking twice, until I saw my swimming trunks float slowly past me. I gasped, grabbing them and forcing them on. The two girls giggled as I laughed, passing it all off as a big joke. At least everyone was able to laugh it off instead of being embarrassed. I mean, I'm not embarrassed. Why would I be embarrassed? That's just silly. Anyway. After the two were tuckered out from the lake, we invited AJ over for dinner. Shy and AJ ended up pulling out a few board games while I prepped dinner for us. I could still feel a bit of a sting for not paying enough attention to them at the lake. I began to wonder to myself how in the world I could do that... Sure, it ended up fine today, but what about in the future? What if I'm not paying attention when it counts? What if I haven't been paying enough attention before today in general? Maybe I'm just getting myself into a fuss over nothing, but I'm concerned I could be messing something up here. Dinner wasn't anything special. Just breakfast food. Eggs and Bagels. Besides, the girls were deep into their game. I knew when I was a kid, that I'd want to eat and then get right back to play. After dishes, I sat down in the living room with them, and watched as they played a 2 player game. If it were three, maybe I would have asked if I could have joined. Then again, I wouldn't want to make the game 'boring' by a grown-up joining. Heh, maybe they are still a bit too young for that. So, I spent my time watching them reading more of my parenting book. I've been learning a lot of interesting things about filly development, and especially pegasai. It looks like what Shy was doing on the way to the farm was a natural sign of showing that a filly is ready for flight lessons. I might have to talk to my neighbor about that soon. I lost track of the time and realized it was time for AJ to be heading home. Being the party-pooper, I told the two girls pack up their game and get ready to take AJ home. However, AJ said she was fine going home alone. I was about to retort, when I realized that it really was common for the young ponies in town to walk around without any sort of supervision. Isn't that kinda weird? How could they go unattended for so long? Couldn't they get in trouble? Or what if trouble struck? Wouldn't they be vulnerable? She seemed more than confident, so I thought... well, why not? The filly walks to the Apple Farm everyday from school and it wasn't too far from my home. I decided not to argue and decided that if it was the wrong move, then I'd just have to face the consequences. I'd do the same for Fluttershy anyway. Except, Fluttershy is more introverted and much more nervous. She likes having the companionship. After Applejack left, both of us got ready for bed and now I'm just about to read more of my book before I head to bed. Night, Journal. Today was just what I needed. Okay, Journal. It's been, like, an hour. I was reading my parent book... when I came across something that just hurt a little part of my soul. I got to the area about the birds and the bees for fillies... and. Well. The book says fillies usually attain sexual maturity at 12 to 15 months of age, but some reach puberty as early as 9 to 10 months and others as late as 18. … Fluttershy is 5. I feel like I could throw up. How is her body ready for these things? That's not okay. It's not okay. I'm sitting here thinking about those glances she gave Macintosh at the dinner table with the Apples. And... those carrots. Those freakin carrots. It's so wrong. She's so young! SHE'S SO INNOCENT! WHAT IS THIS?! WHY IS THIS A THING? … I don't know if she's gotten the talk. Apparently it's supposed to happen early in their development. You never know with orphanages. I-I... don't know what to do. This is going to be awkward. I'm going to have to talk to her about the birds and the bees. Maybe I can just to it tomorrow and get it over with. Oh God. Why? I wasn't ready for this! IT'S ONLY BEEN A MONTH SINCE I ADOPTED HER? I get that ponies age faster. I do. And then they "level out" at some point. But I did not think I would have to do this. I thought about asking the nice neighbor... but this should be something I do. … Anyway. I thought you should know. I'm just gunna go to bed. Night, Journal. Day 30 – Sunday Morning Okay Journal. Okay. I can do this. Apparently this talk needed to be done a long time ago. But I can do this. I mean. I have parenting books. I have development books. They have diagrams. I mean, worst case, I can just read to her what the book says, right? And inject whatever else needs to be said. I just need to give her the talk. IT FEELS SO WRONG THOUGH. HUMANS NEVER GET TOLD THESE THINGS AT SUCH AN EARLY AGE. I mean, she's not a human. But it's like she has the personality of one. I guess I've just been here long enough to just think of them as people. … I gotta do it though. As a single father, it's my duty. Right? Wish me luck. I am totally not uncomfortable. I totally got this. I will make a good breakfast, then get it out of the way immediately. Day 30 – Sunday Evening Well. I learned a lot today. And I really, really did not expect that. I sat down at the table with her as she ate the oatmeal I made. Once she finished, I said that we needed to have a talk. Her ears perked, she looked at me curiously, and asked 'what about'? I sighed and explained that she was a growing filly, and that she needed to learn about some of the facts of life. She then looked at me weirdly. "Uhm... Dad, a-are we going to talk about... sex?" she asked. I sighed and nodded. "Uhm. The ladies at the orphanage already told all the fillies about that when I was really little," she said meekly. I just stared at her in amazement. She was clearly uncomfortable about the topic, and kept looking away. I confirmed if it was true, and she said that even school went over it and stuff. I looked down at the table and thought carefully. "Well, I don't want you doing that till you're older," I said confidently. She looked at me in shock and said that was gross. Shy explained that most of the ponies wait until they are older or married until they began to think about doing those things with somepony else. Just because their bodies were ready for it, didn't mean they were going to. I just kinda stared at her, feeling like everything she told me should have been obvious. With a sigh, I placed my head on the table. And began to laugh. I told her she had no idea how nervous I was to have that talk. Shy asked if that was everything, and I told her that it was. She smiled and flicked away her hair from her eyes, getting ready to do her Sunday chores. Then I realized one last thing. I told her that if she got urges and needed something... that she should throw away the carrot when she's done. Her face went flat red. I mean, cherry red. Her ears folded and her eyes went wide. "O-okay," she whispered. Then I told her that it was okay and she wasn't in trouble... it would just make me a lot more... well. Comfortable. The last thing I want to do is walk around the house and randomly bump into... that. She agreed nervously, then scurried off to do her chores. The rest of the day was a little awkward between us, but at least I can rest with that load off of my mind. I'm still not going to try and think of Shy as... well. Mature. But, at least I know that she knows what she's doing. And what's happening to her body. In fact, she probably has a better idea of what's going on than I do. Time to read up, I guess. But, all of this talk has me really really curious about something. I get the feeling she likes boys, cause of that glance at Macintosh. However... the amount of mares in Equestria outnumber stallions at least 60/40. Do ponies only fall in love with the opposite gender? Is bisexuality and homosexuality a thing in Equestria? I suppose that's something that's in my book too. … You know what? On second thought, it really doesn't matter, Journal. At the end of the day, she's my daughter. I don't care if she prefers a different species. I'm going to love her for who she is. I mean, sure, I hope that species can at least talk and be sentient. Well. To me. Since she can talk to animals and stuff. … On second thought, scratch all that. I hope it's another pony. Day 31 – Monday Morning Mornin, Journal. Last night, I had the worst night sleep. It was like... I'm not sure. I had this feeling that something was wrong. That something was wrong in the house. I got up multiple times to check the house and checked on Fluttershy even more times. When I finally woke up in the morning, the living room window was open. I didn't remember it being open. It's so weird. I'm going to have to do a better job really watching the house and making sure everything's closed. Anyway, today's the first real day of my new responsibilities at work. Hopefully I can do a good job and get to a point where my boss isn't concerned about me being a loose cannon. It's all a game of trust, and I'm willing to play it. Wish me luck, Journal. Day 31 – Monday Evening Evening, Journal. God, I'm tired. I might just call it an early night. I had no idea that the boss would have so many different manual labor jobs to do. They make it look so easy with unicorn magic. My muscles feel like they are about to burst. Anyway. At dinner Fluttershy was telling me about a new friend she and Applejack made. Apparently there is some filly in the class that the others consider to be a bit hard to get along with. The new filly friend got into a bit of a fight during recess and ended up eating alone at lunch. Fluttershy decided that they should invite the unicorn to eat lunch with them. She mentioned that Applejack wasn't really keen on the idea, since the unicorn rubbed her a bit the wrong way, but Fluttershy insisted that they give the girl a chance. So, that was how Fluttershy made a new friend today. I'm going to be interested and hearing more about this 'Rarity' unicorn. From what I can capture, it sounds like she's very fru-fru and can be a bit of a drama seeker. It seemed like Shy did a good job at making the unicorn feel welcome, though. I wasn't sure when I might get the chance to meet this filly, so I tried to subtly inject the idea of a sleepover to Fluttershy. I think she got the hint. Especially when I said 'You know, you should invite them both over some night. Maybe even have a sleep over.' I should get a medal or something. Fluttershy said she would ask if this weekend worked for them and I said if she wanted it to be this weekend, then it would be perfect. Well then, I'm exhausted, Journal. If I think of anything I left out, I'll try to add it into tomorrow's entry. Night. Day 32 – Tuesday Morning Hey, Journal. Another night of that feeling. I wish I knew what it was. At this rate, I'm gunna be late. See ya. Day 32 – Tuesday Evening Evening, Journal. It was a hell of a day. Got into work late and I just seemed to work non-stop. I'm not sure how much I really got to say. Fluttershy mentioned at dinner that she'd like to do a sleepover this coming weekend with the girls. I said that wouldn't be a problem at all. I think it would be nice. Fluttershy told me about her day and more about the Rarity filly. Apparently she had been joining up with the dynamic duo and have been meshing together as a trio. Applejack apparently isn't sure how much she likes the frilly, delicate unicorn and I got the impression that she bossed Fluttershy around. Was she the one bullying Fluttershy? It wouldn't really make sense... that she would want Rarity to be friends with the two of them if Rarity was a bully. Wouldn't the two of them want to distance themselves from bullies? Maybe it's one of those 'turn the other cheek' things. Either way, I'm sure I'll find out eventually. I didn't really press at dinner. My mind was a bit focused on a note from Cherilee that Fluttershy brought to me. All it said was: "We should really talk soon." And I had to reread it a few times. What was this? How am I supposed to take this? I dunno, Journal. I'm not sure if this is a good sign. Should I talk to her? Maybe it's something important. Or... maybe she's mad after what happened last Friday. I dunno, it's hard to think. I'm tired too. I'm sure tomorrow is going to be a big day. Maybe some sleep will give me the answer. Day 33 – Wednesday Morning Morning, Journal. I can't seem to get myself moving at the right speed this morning. I've been thinking about Cherilee's note. I've decided that the best action to take right now is to not respond. Maybe she doesn't mean it like I thought she did. Whatever. Time for work. Day 33 – Wednesday Evening Hey. It was a hard day at work. Fluttershy went to go play at the farm and came back as it got dark. I sat at home and read for awhile. Honestly, I tried to read, but kept nodding off. I keep getting stuck with all the shitty things at work. What am I? A janitor? Even janitors don't get treated this way. But I need the money to ensure food gets on the table. I have a filly now. I can't afford to quit. Calling it a night. Day 34 – Thursday Morning Shit. I'm running so late for work. At least Shy will be on time for school. Entry tonight. Day 34 – Friday Morning I hate my job. I seriously do. I'm so tired of this bullshit and being pushed around by my boss. When I got home, I sat down on the couch, since I managed to get home before Shy. Since I've been so tired lately, I thought I'd just close my eyes for a little bit. When I woke up, there was a lamp on and the clock was ticking towards 3AM. I checked my surroundings, sitting up and wiping drool from my chin. I was covered in a blanket from the closet and laying beside me was my little yellow pegasus, tucked into a little ball. Sitting on the coffee table was a half full glass of room-temperature orange juice along with a, nearly overflowing, soggy bowl of cereal. A little note sat beside it, that, with crude red crayon, said 'Dinner for Daddy in case he wakes up.' My heart stopped a little when I saw that. I fell asleep and didn't make her dinner. I didn't ask her how her day was. Only after I began writing this entry did I realize that the girls were going to have their sleepover at the house tomorrow. I couldn't believe it was Friday. I had to go back and reread the old entries of the journal to see what happened this week. Honestly, I don't remember. Parts of it was a blur... Nothing in here talked about how Shy's day was... In fact. Going back even further... I've talked so much about myself and my own private fears... you almost wouldn't guess I had a filly. It's like I'm not even taking this seriously. After I got up off the couch, I began to clean up Shy's spills in the kitchen, when I saw a drawing on the refrigerator done in watercolor of Fluttershy and I at the lake. I sat down in my chair when I realized I had no idea when it was put up there. I don't think it was earlier this week. It wasn't in any of the other entries... How could I have possibly have paid so little attention. I ended up going back through the journal to see if there was anything else I might have done wrong. In fact, I have. Day 32 in the evening, why didn't I just ask Fluttershy more about Rarity?! Or, even worse! On Day 12, here she comes home, and I can clearly tell something is wrong with her. She goes to bed without supper. And I do fucking nothing. Nothing. What is wrong with me? Well, no more. The passiveness ends now. I need to pay more attention to my daughter and do this shit right. I went to the couch and picked her up carefully, as not to wake her. Her hair was frazzled like crazy from where she nuzzled her head on my lap. I gently placed Shy in her bed and pulled the covers up over her. She gave a light yawn and opened her eyes a little and let out a light groan. 'Daddy?' she asked. I told her to go back to sleep, in the softest voice I could. My little sweetheart asked if I liked my dinner. I told her it was fabulous, which gave her that smile that I love to see. She looked up at me and asked why I was crying. I wiped away tear streaks from my eyes and smiled as I looked down at her. "Because Daddy loves you very, very much," I said. "I love you too, Daddy," she replied. I told that silly filly to go back to sleep and she rolled over as I sat beside her, studying her features carefully. I made my decision. I'm going to begin searching for something else to do for money. I can't do this job anymore. It's taking too much away from me. I will be a good father. Life comes first. Family comes first. Day 35 – Friday Afternoon I'm fucking done. Fuck waiting. I'm drawing the line. There is no way in hell that I'm going to be forced to do favors for Cherilee under the table. I'll find a new job. My savings will be enough to tide us by for awhile. I'm taking Shy out to dinner tonight and then calling it an early night. I'll talk to you in the morning.