//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 // Story: Player Number Three // by Candy-Sweets_12 //------------------------------// The following weeks were tough for the couple, Sweetie Belle would always be found sitting on the edge of the windowsill, starring out at the sky as day after day, the sun would pass by over head. Button took notice of this and did his best to persuade her to come out. Once he saw that she hardly ate during their meals, and Button's pleading became more urgent for her to come out of the room. "Sweetie Belle, I know that you're upset and all, but the doctor said that we could always try again, that the damage wasn't permanent. Please come out." He received no reply. "Please come out for me Sweetie Belle, don't let this come between us." Button placed his head on the door. "Please..." He immediately felt the door move back and was thrown into the middle of the hallway as he felt arms wrap around his neck. "I don't want this to come in between us, I just wanted to be strong for you, I didn't want to let this loss break me, I didn't want to cry in front of you, I see now that it only made the situation worse. I'm sorry Button." Sweetie Belle choked. "It's ok Sweetie Belle, I don't mind if you cry, it's natural to do it. Just know that you can count on me to be your shoulder." He said as he hugged the crying Sweetie Belle. "I'm sorry Button, I just wanted to be strong for you." "You're the strongest mare I know, and you don't have to hide our feelings to be strong, I admit, I need you here with me to help me through tough situations, but I don't want you to suffer for it." Sweetie started to sob into Button's shoulder. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." She kept saying. Button was relieved that Sweetie Belle was finally letting out her thoughts, he feared that she would never let her emotions out, he knew that they would eat at her until she finally did something drastic. He was happy that he wasn't going to lose Sweetie Belle like he lost a foal. "It's ok, I'm here now, everything will be ok." Sweetie continued sobbing into his shoulder while they just stood there, Sweetie completely getting her emotions out. The following day the two were at home when they received a visit from their friends. "Surprise!" They sang out as Button opened the door to see Scootaloo and Rumble with Pipsqueak and Apple Bloom. "Hey guys, what's the big deal?" Sweetie Belle asked when she saw her friends wearing scarves in the late autumn day. "We have a surprise." Scootaloo said. Sweetie looked at them and gestured for the group to come inside. "I'll get some refreshments." Button said as he walked to the kitchen. "Girls, what's going on?" Sweetie Belle said. "Well, Pip and I are doing just fine at the farm, the cider sales will be through the roof this season." Apple Bloom said as she took of her red and orange scarf. "And Wonderbolts training is as intense as usual, and I'm still making the routines as usual." Scootaloo said. "That's nice, I have a show in Manehattan next month, I was hoping that during that weekend we can visit Babs." Sweetie Belle said. "That'd be awesome! Thanks." Apple Bloom said as she took a cup of tea from Button Mash. "So what's the big surprise?" Button asked as he sat next to Sweetie Belle. Rumble and Scootaloo looked at each other. They seemed to be having a wordless dispute about who would tell the good news. Finally Scootaloo gave up and decided to tell Sweetie Belle. "Well, I'm pregnant. I figured out a few days ago." Scootaloo said. "That's great Scootaloo! Congratulations." Sweetie Belle said. "That's not all," Apple Bloom said. Sweetie looked at her. "What's the other surprise?" Sweetie asked. "I'm pregnant too. I found out a few weeks ago." Apple Bloom said. "Wow girls, that's great!" Sweetie Belle said. "Congrats guys." Button added. "Do you have any honey?" Apple Bloom asked. "Let me go get it." Sweetie said. For the next few hours, the bunch caught up with each other and what had been going on recently in their lives. Pipsqueak and Apple Bloom saying they were living in there own house now in the orchard since the farm was getting bigger. Rumble and Scootaloo saying that they were going to move into a cloud home instead of staying in Cloudsdale. Soon, it was getting late and the bunch went home to rest for the night. "I can't believe that my best friends are going to be parents together." "Is it just me or does it seem like a really big coincidence that they're both pregnant?" Button asked. "I guess so, but maybe or foals will be cutiemark crusaders. There's only a few months difference between me and my friends. I guess that it's just destiny." Sweetie Belle said as she headed to their room. Within the few weeks after, Sweetie Belle would constantly visit her friends' houses whenever she got the chance. Apple Bloom would ask how to deal with the headaches, while Scootaloo would rant on and on about how she's not sure if flying would be a good way to travel until her foal was born. But then complain on how not flying would make her uncomfortable. And when she heard Rumble giggle at this, the next day Sweetie found him with a bandage on his head. "Wha-" She began. "Don't ask." He said. He then jumped when he saw Scootaloo enter the room as well. It wasn't until later in the week that week that Sweetie Belle had to check back in with the doctor to make sure she had healed that she received the greatest news. "Well, I have good news and bad news Mrs. Mash." The pegasus said. "What's the good news?" Sweetie Belle asked. "You're going to be a parent, congratulations." "That's great news! How could it be bad?" The mare looked down, she hated this part of her job, giving the heart-breaking news that something bad was going to happen. That was the thing she didn't like about her job, she loved to see the smiles on ponies faces when they were healthy, to be the main cause for that happiness. But it was this part of her job, a part that she had to approach many times before; that still brought her to tears when she saw the once beautiful smiles disappear as tears took their place. It could be telling a parent their foal was very sick, or explaining to a father why his wife didn't make it through a birth, even after those years of experience, it still kept her up at night wondering what she could've done to stop it, and how to prevent it from ever happening again. At this very moment, she will have to tell the heart-breaking news to the now lively and optimistic mare. "I'm afraid..." She began after a long pause.