An Unnamed Love Story

by OCisbestpony

Chapter Eight: An Honest Yellow

Chapter 8:
An Honest Yellow

“I'll see y'all in a bit, Fluttershy,” Applejack said as the nurse pushed the wheelchair into the room, “I gotta make my legs go hurt for awhile.”

“It's not that bad Applejack,” she said, “look at it this way, the more we practice the less it will hurt right?”

“If you say so...” answered Applejack, devoid of any excitement. She grunted as the nurses helped her into the chair, and she bid Fluttershy a parting farewell as they wheeled her out of the room.

She was alone again. She liked this alone time. She loved her friends dearly, but she was also one to like her quiet time as well. She managed to get plenty of it while she was working on the farm, but since the accident, she's spent most of her waking moments in the company of Applejack. She was a great friend, but even friends sometimes need a little time away from each other.

As she sat there, she reflected on the past few months. It had been a good long while since they first all moved to town. Her life before then seemed almost like a lifetime ago. She thought about what it had been like living on the farm with Applejack's kind uncle. How he always treated both of them as guests and family, giving the best of both worlds to them. Well, to her at least. He never really asked much of her. Almost everything she did around the place she had volunteered to do. Then again, technically speaking, she was there as a vet-in-training, and Applejack was there to help run the place. Still, she couldn't just sit around and do nothing when she could help out. She chuckled, the animals certainly kept her busy. But there would be times when they just plain didn't need a doctor and she would have nothing to do. So she began helping where she could.. At first it wasn't easy. She would have to ask Applejack over and over again how to do this or to do that. But after some time, she stopped being in the way and started being a help. Though the time it took for that to happen did test Applejack's patience a little bit.

Her thoughts drifted from the farm to those first few nights at school. Twilight, unsurprisingly, knew all of the answers. She's always been such a good student. Pinkie Pie had already made several new friends, several of which she made in the parking lot on the way in, or just calling random numbers in an old phone-book she had found. She remembered how it took some coaxing to get Rainbow to go. She's never really been one to sit in a classroom, so the idea of sitting in one on a perfectly good Thursday night was not gonna work. Thankfully, Pinkie had found out that they had a tradition of playing basketball after class. It was that fact alone that had sold her on the idea of going. Rarity enjoyed the social aspect of it. She enjoyed showing up in nice outfits and getting the boys to fawn over her. Whether or not she actually paid attention or not to the lessons, Fluttershy was unsure of.

Then there was Taylor. She had been content to sit there, behind the wall of her friends, and simply remain quiet. She had hoped to meet someone (in a non-romantic sense), but when the lesson had ended, she had changed her mind. But he had broken through. He was really the only one to attempt to talk to her like he did. Everyone else was nice. They said hello, but she had remained quiet until they went away. He had not. And he did it, over and over again. Even after the crash, he, outside of her regular friends, was one of the few people who came to visit on a regular basis. Week after week he would come. Most of the time he would chat with Applejack, but it was pretty clear that he wanted to chat with her. He rarely came alone, he usually came along with a group or one of her friends. He came almost every week. And on the rare occasion, twice. She slowly grew to like having him around. He was nice. Though she could tell that he was troubled. As time went by, his face seemed to grow just a little darker, but when he would look at her, his face would get just a little brighter. Though he tried to hide it. He would try and avoid eye contact when he would enter the room, and even during their conversations he often tried to look either out the window or elsewhere. This was a fact that Fluttershy appreciated. She often had a hard time looking into his eyes as well. She couldn't quite describe it. She felt a burning when they would make eye contact. And almost as if doing so was some great sin, they would snap their heads away from each other as soon as it would happen.

Applejack noticed how this would happen more and more. She noticed how his face would shine a little brighter each time he saw her. And every time they would break their gaze, she would crack a knowing grin. Fluttershy wished she wouldn't do that, it just made her blush all the deeper. She also didn't hesitate to bring it up to the others, but thankfully she only did it once. It had been like the car-ride all over again, only worse, and this time she had asked Applejack to not bring it up ever again. Applejack didn't want to stop, but she finally agreed when Fluttershy put her foot down.

It had actually surprised her when she had done that. Before, Fluttershy would have just cried a little bit, but eventually she would have been fine. But there was a resolve in her voice that had told Applejack that she was not kidding around with this. Applejack had never really known her to be that assertive before, and it caught her off guard. What it did however, was lead into a talk about him.

The whole thing had started just after he (and a few others) had left one day. Fluttershy was still blushing just a little when Applejack turned and looked at her with that grin of hers. Fluttershy didn't notice at first, but when she caught it, her face suddenly turned bright red and she looked down at her blankets.

“Well, well, little missy,” she could almost hear Applejack's grin grow bigger, “if I didn't know better, I'd say we got ourselves a right ol' crush happenin' right here...” She let that hang in the air for a second, “If I didn't know better, I'd say you've started 'ta like him...” her grin was ear to ear, like some sort child planning their next fit of mischief.

Fluttershy was quiet for a moment, then she began to stutter in little more than a whisper, “I...I...”

“And ya know what I think?” Applejack said, taking far too much glee in this, “I think he's-”

“No! Don't say it!” Fluttershy cut in, doubling over and burying her face into her knees. This surprised Applejack.

“Aw, come on sugercube,” Applejack responded, somehow missing the urgency in Fluttershy's voice, “Lighten up! Why, I'd bet he's thinkin' about you right now. Why, I wouldn't be surprised if he asked you to be his girl-”

“No! I don't wanna talk about that right now! So stop it right this instant!” She commanded. Applejack was stunned. Rare was it so her to be so assertive, and this was a rare moment of a rare moment. “Please, I-I-I just don't wanna think about that, ok?” she then pleaded.

Applejack realized the hurt in her eyes, but also saw something else. A look that said that Fluttershy was hoping that Applejack was right, or at least that's what Applejack thought she saw in her eyes. “I-I'm sorry Fluttershy. I didn't mean ta hurt y'all's feelings...” she could feel the guilt from the crash coming back to her, but she clenched her teeth and swallowed it.

Fluttershy's look softened, and then she glanced down at her bed again. “It's just that … well … never-mind. M-maybe we should just let it go...”

“Well hold on here darlin', I didn't realize that it was such a touchy thing. Why don't we talk about it for a bit?”

“Well, it's just that … oh never-mind...” she trailed off, glancing away from Applejack.

Applejack was going to have none of that. “Oh come on, please? If not for me, than for ya'self?” Applejack pleaded.

“H-he's a nice boy. And … and I think...” he face started to recede a little in its red hue.

“Yea, go on.” Encouraged Applejack.

“I-I-I think that … he's... well...”

“He's what? Come on girl, spit it out.” Applejack said, but in an encouraging tone. One that said, 'it's ok, I'm here. You're safe to say what you want, so feel free to say it.'

“I-I-I think I...” she began to redden again.

“Yes?”

“I-I...”

“Yes?” Applejack asked a little louder, leaning towards her a little.

“I...”

“YES?” Applejack asked with wide eyes and with great anticipation.

“He's … nice.” Fluttershy spit out.

Applejack's sigh of exasperation was almost painful. “Oh come on girl! That's not what it was!”

Fluttershy whimpered a little, and then mumbled something.

Applejack smiled a bit, “Whatcha' say? Didn't hear that one.”

Fluttershy was suddenly reminded of the moment when she first met Twilight. She mumbled yet again, but this time slightly louder.

“Nope, still didn't hear that, gonna hafta speak up!” Applejack said, once again with that mischievous glee.

“I … I...” she began, but the rest was lost in more low mumbles.

“Come on sweetie! Just spit it out!” Applejack almost exclaimed with joy.

Her head suddenly shot up, and as if she were shouting to the heavens (or at least the tiled ceiling) said said with eyes hard shut, “I THINK I LIKE HIM!” And then she suddenly changed.

What both had expected to happen was this: she would suddenly turn bright red again, bury her face into her knees once again, and Applejack to start laughing up a storm.

But that didn't happen. Rather, Fluttershy slowly opened her eyes. She suddenly felt a great calm and a peace inside of her. Applejack must have noticed, for she simply sat there with an expression of awe on her face. No laughter, no joking. She just sat there, almost looking as if she were looking at an angel.

To be honest, Applejack wouldn't have been surprised if Fluttershy suddenly grew wings and flew out of the room. There was an aura about her. Not that Applejack could actually see any sort of aura, but there might as well have been. She suddenly looked so delicate. She radiated light, and for a moment, she seemed perfectly at peace. Applejack didn't want to speak. She didn't want to break the fragile feeling in the room. Fluttershy, just as stunned as Applejack by the sudden turn of events, slowly turned towards her friend until they made eye contact. Applejack could see it. She was just as confused, but yet, she was happy.

She was happy. It was a kind of happy she had never felt before. It wasn't the bubbly, jumpy kind that Pinkie had. It wasn't the kind that Twilight had when she solved a difficult problem. Nor was it the kind that Rarity had when she knew that she had made something beautiful. It was, warm, gentle. It was almost like when a sick animal would get better, or when parents would pair up and form a new family. But yet, it was different. She felt as though a great burden had been taken off of her shoulders. And that weight had been replaced with peace. “I … I feel … so good. Applejack, I … I feel so happy! What just happened?”

“I … I don't know...”, she answered, “I'm just as lost as you are.”

“What does this mean?” she asked.

“I dun know Fluttershy. But I think it's a good thing. Ya know what I think? I think that it means that it was meant to be.” Applejack was surprised that she was saying this, but she was sure that it was right.

“Wha-what should I do?” Flutteshy asked with both a note of panic and hope.

“Whatever yer heart tells ya next time ya see him.”

“I hope you're right...”

Author's Note:

Better that then her nose, eh?

*ahem* Anyway...