Sensation (SFW Version)

by Vivid Syntax

Chapter 21 - Las Pegasus Never Sleeps

Las Pegasus never sleeps. It's too busy wringing money out of everypony that comes through town, but dammit, there's no place like it in Equestria. I get to be whoever I want there – if I wanna play celebrity, I can schmooze at a club and sign autographs on the street. If I wanna blend in, I can keep my head down, dye my mane, and have fun at the casinos.

I wanted Braeburn to have that, too, and I wanted to be right there with him. He deserved it. After all the shit I'd put him through with the media and the yelling and everything, he deserved a good memory, and I wanted to give it to him.

Just… promise you won't judge me, okay?

We made a quick transfer at the Canterlot station. While we were there, Braeburn bought the tickets to Las Pegasus and picked us up a few raincoats to cover our cutie marks. I wanted to go with him, but he said he was happy to help out. At least he let me pay.

It was kinda nice traveling with somepony that isn't a celebrity for a change – they have a lot more mobility, and they're a lot less conspicuous than the managers or security that usually have to do stuff in public for us. For the time being, at least, his face hadn't hit the papers, and nopony was on the lookout for him. It made that first train ride way easier.

Me? I hid in the bathroom. I'd snuck into the first one I could find, wrapped up in Braeburn's vest and sweaty white shirt and hat. Meh. You do what you gotta do.

We'd gotten another personal sleeper car. Decent price, too. Ponies flock to Las Pegasus every day of the week, especially once spring rolls in. Fortunately, demand was low enough for the Monday 6AM train that we were able to nab something nice. The ride took all day, but we were able to keep ourselves entertained. Braeburn did still have the best ass this side of Canterlot, after all.

The sun had long set by the time the train came up to Las Pegasus. Braeburn noticed the weird glow on the landscape, and as we began to pull into town, he set his hat on the seat and stuck his head out the window. I remember his words exactly. "Whoa, Nelly! That's just too many lights!" He shouted back inside, "Soarin', you gotta come see this! Look!"

"Oh, I'm looking," I said, grinning. He had his forehooves hanging halfway out the window, and I was getting an eyeful of one of my favorite parts of him.

With the window open, I could hear the brakes on the train begin to squeak. The smell of cigar smoke and stale air rolled in through the window, and Braeburn pulled himself in when he began coughing. "Hoo!" He hacked again, and I reached over to shut the window. "Air seems a mite toxic, though."

"Eh, you'll get used to it. Just don't take too many deep breaths. Las Pegasus is a lot bigger than Appleloosa."

"Heh. Yeah, well…" The smile on his face faded. "I'll, uh, I'll try." He sat back in his seat and stared out the window, motionless. His body was rigid, like he'd seen the train go off the tracks and couldn't turn away.

I cocked my head to the side. "What's up?" When he didn't answer, I scooted a little closer and put a hoof on his shoulder, but he still didn't move. "Braeburn, what's wrong?"

He sighed. "Do you think they'll be okay, Soarin'?"

"What, the Appleloosans?" I set my hoof back down. "Yeah, they'll be fine. Most of the paparazzi have probably already left, and the rest won't take too long to realize there's nothing to report on there."

"Well, yeah, but who's gonna manage the orchard? Or write the letters to Canterlot?" He turned back to me with his head hung low. "What if they need me?"

'I need you,' I thought.

He kept looking at me.

"I…" The train was pulling into the station, and I felt myself frown as I searched for anything to say. "…am really, really bad at making you feel better, apparently."

Braeburn chuckled and smiled weakly. "Oh, might as well give it your best shot."

It took me a moment, but I found my voice. "They're resourceful. Yeah, they're definitely going to miss you, but they'll be okay for a little while until you come back. Besides, there's nothing you can do about it now, especially since contacting them could tip off the media. Might as well enjoy yourself and have a little vacation while you don't have any other choice, right?"

A warm nose brushed against my cheek, and Braeburn sat up a little straighter. "See? That wasn't bad at all."

I grabbed my saddlebag and put on my raincoat, and Braeburn put on his. Luckily for us, it was drizzling outside, so they didn't look too out of place. We switched hats, and nopony could have picked us out of a crowd.

Especially a crowd that size! Even on a Monday night, there were tons of ponies crowding and pushing past each other to get off the train and into the station. Braeburn pressed his side against mine as we stepped outside. Even through our rain gear, he was warm. He leaned in and shouted over the noise, "Best stick together, nice and close. Right, Big Blue?"

I didn't argue.

We got out of the station without any problems, and the drizzling night rain couldn't put a damper on Braeburn's spirits as we turned down the brightest street in town. We'd arrived at the strip, the main drag of Las Pegasus, and it had more swank than you could experience in a lifetime. "My stars! Look at it all!" Braeburn froze in place, and his lower jaw nearly hit the dirt. His eyes darted from a glitzed-out replica of the Neighful Tower to the big, pyramid-shaped hotel to the colored lights advertising everything from "the best buffet in town" to "Mares, Mares, Mares!" I had to nudge him to keep him moving out of everypony's way, and he practically shook as he took those small steps. A wide smile threatened to break out of both sides of his face. "They've got everything here! It's even better than the pictures!" Music spilled onto the street from every building, and after a minute, Braeburn swung around to me. "Can we see it all, Soarin'?"

He was already threatening to break our cover by using my real name, but I couldn't say no to that face. I threw one forehoof around his shoulder and made a big, sweeping gesture with the other. "We're not just gonna see it, dude. We're gonna take it!"

He snorted. "You goof," he squeaked out through a bunch of loud laughter.

"Hey! Don't wreck the moment."

"Fine. YEE-HAW!" Braeburn reared up and flailed his forelegs out in front of him, and before I knew it, we were galloping down the strip, laughing and drinking in all the lights and sounds and smells Las Pegasus had to offer.

Yeah, I'd planned on going straight to the hotel. I knew everything that we had to do: get to our room, call room service for some temporary mane dye, tell Braeburn about all the ground rules… but I didn't care. Braeburn was going ballistic with excitement, and I wanted to ride that high for as long as we could. We could remember our troubles later.

One of the great things about Las Pegasus: no matter what you do, you won't look like the craziest pony there. Sure, we were in cheap rain gear and pushing past everypony late at night, but in the first few minutes, Braeburn had already asked me about the doomsayers and street performers.

One thing really caught his eye. "Is that a gold statue? It looks so real!" It was one of those living statue guys – an earth pony was standing under an awning, covered in gold dust or paint or something.

I managed to keep a straight face. "I dunno. Is it real gold?" As we trotted over, I added, "Probably shouldn't touch it, though. Security might freak out."

"Oh, okay." He was barely listening. He was leaning in and sticking his nose real close to this guy. I saw his eyes squint and his head turn as he walked all around it. "Why they got a statue in the middle of the walkway?"

The statue pony was great at his job. He stood there with one hoof raised, eyes closed, and clothing that was baggy enough to hide his breathing but tight enough that it didn't blow in the wind.

"Hey, Braeburn?" I asked. I wanted him to get the full experience.

Braeburn was back in front of the statue, and he turned his head toward me. "Hm?"

I nodded. It was gonna be great. "You gotta be careful around here."

The statue guy cracked an eye and flashed me a grin from behind Braeburn. He knew what was up.

Braeburn was totally buying it, and he didn't look away. He flinched a little, and his voice got shaky. "W-Why's that?"

"Well…" I said as the statue began to shift slightly. The drizzle muffled all the noise he made. "This place is crawling with thieves."

Braeburn shrunk just a little. "Oh, sorry." He'd let his guard down, and that was all it took. "Should I–"

Statue guy moved like gold lightning! He nabbed the sports cap off of Braeburn's head, placed it on his own, and was back in his original position before Braeburn could even yelp.

"Hey!" Braeburn must have jumped a meter into the air before landing and whipping around. His head darted everywhere, but he didn't notice the yellow hat on the statue right in front of him. "Where'd he go! What was that?" He hopped around in place, totally frantic.

I started snickering and pointed. "Dude, look."

Braeburn did a double-take. He squinted his eyes and got his face right up close to the statue. "How in the hell…"

And all at once, the statue pony's eyes opened wide, and he flashed a big smile.

"GAH!" Braeburn jumped back and tumbled into the street.

I dashed over, worried he'd gotten hurt, but by the time I was helping him up, he was already laughing his ass off. "Ahahaha! Soarin'! Hahah! Didja see it? Hehehe… Ahaha!" Braeburn clutched his stomach and could barely look up at the statue pony.

In one smooth motion, the statue pony took the cap off, bowed low, and tossed the cap back onto Braeburn's head, smiling the whole time.

Braeburn kept laughing and clopping his hooves. "That was amazing! You really had me going."

As the statue pony resumed his position, I walked up to him, said, "Thanks, buddy," and dropped a few bits into a cup by his feet. And just like that, he was a statue again.

I turned back to Braeburn, who shook his head with a huge smile on his face. "That is somethin' else."

I brushed some dirt off his rain coat. "Ready for more?"

"You bet!"

We walked along the strip, and Braeburn kept babbling about the statue. "How's he even do that? Don't think I could ever be that patient. He was all gold, too! Every part of him! What's that stuff made of? Think it's expensive? Can't be real gold, right?" I could tell he wasn't paying attention to the rest of the scenery, but I didn't care. He was like a little colt, and his energy was infectious. It wormed its way through my body, and soon I was hopping right along with him.

He rambled on like that for a while, but eventually, his voice died down, he trotted at a slower pace, and he looked at the ground.

When he stopped in place, I nudged him over to the sidewalk again, next to a guy that was trying to sell us loose cigarettes, and asked gently, "Still thinking about home?"

Braeburn kicked at a small rock. "Yeah."

The cigarette guy was being pushy, so I rolled my eyes and threw a wing up to give us a little privacy. "Do you… want to call it quits tonight?" I was a little shocked by my own words. Like, you see yourself as this guy who parties hard and leaves everypony else in the dust, and nothing can make you stop. But then you go with your gut and say what's on your mind, and you find that maybe there are more layers to you than you thought.

Braeburn shook his head. "Oh, I don't wanna spoil your good time."

"Braeburn, this isn't about me having a good time." I lifted up his chin with my other wing. "It's about what you want. So, we can go straight to the hotel, buuuuuut I don't think that's going to help." I pictured him unable to sleep, instead just tossing and turning all night. "You'll just keep worrying about it, and if anypony in Equestria deserves a night off to have fun, it's you."

Braeburn peeked past my wings to look back at the strip, and I snuck a glance, too. Every bright color you could imagine lit up the place like daylight. Ponies of all kinds and moods and ages and speeds moved from building to building, whooping it up with their buddies or cursing their bad luck in the casinos. A few more shuffled past us, hardly paying us any attention.

"Yeah. Okay. You're right." Braeburn turned back to me. "You know, you really outta give yourself some credit. You're a lot smarter than you seem at first blush."

I put down my wings and cocked an eyebrow. "Thanks, I think?"

"Don't worry about it." He leaned in and kissed me softly on the muzzle. "So, what's next?" He was smiling again.

I liked seeing him like that – shoulders relaxed and eyes bright – and I rubbed up against him. "Whatever you want, babe."

His face lit up brighter than all of Las Pegasus combined. I didn't know it at the time, but he wasn't just excited about having free reign over the evening. Without thinking, I'd used a pet name for him. He told me once that he'd been waiting for it, that he knew right then that I was something special. He hadn't… heh heh.

Okay. Derailing the story train for a sec. It's crazy how big the little things can be, you know? He told me once that calling him "babe" had been the highlight of our time in Las Pegasus and the second best thing he'd heard on that whole Equestria-wide tour of ours.

You know, I can still feel where he nuzzled me. He'd stood up straight all of a sudden, let out this happy little whimper, and pressed his head to my shoulder. After probably too much affection for public, he took half a step back and said, "Anythin' I want?"

"Name it. And don't worry," I said, flaring out my wings. "Everything's on me tonight. No arguments." I had enough bits for one good night, and I figured I'd have to stop at the bank the next day anyway.

Braeburn paused and looked to his left to a big sign advertising the "World-Famous Bourbon Bomb." He turned back to me with a crooked smile on his face and slightly furrowed eyebrows. "Then… I wanna cut loose. No regrets. Just for tonight. Just to help me forget for a little while."

…

Remember, you said you wouldn't judge me. You didn't see the way he looked at me, and you hadn't seen the panic and heartbreak in his eyes when the paparazzi had threatened his town. You weren't there, and you don't know how hard – no, impossible – it was to say no and take away what might have been his only night of complete and total fun in months.

I cocked my head back and gave him a smirk. "Only if you think you can keep up, country colt."

"Ha! Watch your mouth, mister," he said as we walked into the bar. "Or one of these days you'll find yourself pukin' under the table. Might just have to have a little contest sometime to see who's the real stallion. Haha!"

We never did.

The Bourbon Bomb wasn't anything special. Not that I was expecting it to be, of course. It's Las Pegasus – everything's fake. It got the job done, though. That shit was strong. It came in this stupidly tall glass, and after we'd both slurped ours down, we were well on our way to Tipsyville.

After another round, we tumbled out onto the street. Braeburn's head darted around, looking for the next big thing, and it wasn't long before he'd found it. "Holy moley! They've even got a big ol' roller coaster!" He hooked my neck and pointed to it, a giant, twisting structure that wound in and out of one of the bigger hotels.

I blew some air out of my lips. "Pfft. You forgetting something?" I stepped back and puffed out my wings a little under my raincoat. "I do speed for a living."

He slumped a little. "Yeah, I suppose you've already been on all of 'em."

"Well, no." I looked back at it and gave a little sneer. "I just, like, never saw the point."

Braeburn cocked his head back and gave me a grin. "Oh, so you're scared, then?"

I rolled my eyes. "Dude, I've gotten myself out of a terminal-velocity tailspin. A freaking roller coaster's nothing."

"Wanna bet?"

Buck me, was I wrong! That thing is crazy! When we crested the first hill, my stomach practically dropped out of me. It was like I was free-falling, but I didn't have any control! Do you have any clue how terrifying it is to go that fast without any control? No, you don't! My wings reflexively started squirming and trying to flap, but they were fastened to the safety equipment. Everything in my told me to fly away, and I started screaming like a colt.

Braeburn held onto his hat and just yelled, "YEEEE-HAW!" and started laughing and laughing at the look on my face.

I grabbed his hoof with mine when we went over the second hill, and I thought my insides were all going to fly out of my mouth when we got jerked down again. It wasn't a thrill ride – it was a punishment! There was nothing natural or smooth about it – you got pulled in whatever direction the track went, and you had absolutely no control.

I don't remember the rest of the ride. I think my brain blocked it out.

The car pulled back into the station, and I was too stunned to move.

The laughing next to me died down. Instead, a soft voice cooed at me as a hoof stroked my neck. "You okay, pardner?"

"A-ah… ah…."

"Heh heh. No more rides, then?"

I was shaky getting off the coaster, and it took me two bags of mini doughnuts before my stomach had settled. I nibbled on the inside of paper feedbag, trying to get all the cinnamon onto my tongue. Honestly, the sugar probably did more harm than good, but it took my mind off of the fear of death for a while. A couple tequila shots helped, too.

But once we'd gotten back out into the noise of the strip, Braeburn was quiet again.

I nudged him a little. "Hey, c'mon. We're gonna have a good time tonight, right?"

Braeburn smiled, but I think it was just for my benefit. "Sure. It, uh, might just take more than a roller coaster ride to keep my mind occupied."

My voice raised in pitch, and I pretended to be offended. "Oh, so you're saying I need to step up my game, then? Not enough for you? Well maaaaaybe I need to pull out the big guns." I had no idea what the big guns were, of course.

He gave me a sly smile. "Do your worst, Big Blue."

I gave the strip a quick scan, and Las Pegasus didn't disappoint. Within moments, I'd found exactly what I needed, and I turned back to Braeburn with a squinty-eyed, toothy grin.

* * * * *

Soarin' pauses and twists up his face a little. "You know, I hope all the gay stuff doesn't gross you out."

I feel my ears flick, and I raise an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Well…" He scratches his chin. "You know. Just, like, the details and everything. Some guys feel weird hearing other guys talk about guys."

I'm not really sure why he's bringing this up now, but I might as well be honest. "Oh. No, not at all." My chest rumbles with a small laugh. "I've seen my share of stallions."

"Oh! Okay." His wings flare out for a second. "So, you like stallions, then?"

Close, but not quite. I shrug. "I like anypony that's hot."

Soarin' smirks and extends a hoof. Smiling back at him, I give it a small bump.

* * * * *

I was sure Braeburn had never been to a gay strip club before, or at least not one that let you touch the dancers. When he saw where we were heading, he stopped cold, and his eyes went wide. His cheeks flushed, and he grinned and shook his head. "Aw, no. No no no. Ain't it a little weird to bring a date to one of… these places?"

I fluttered up next to him. "Aw, is Braeburn scared of–"

"Well, if you insist!" He closed his eyes and happily pranced through the big, dark doors of the Iron Shaft.

We grabbed a few more rounds from the bar before we sat down in the small theater. There were eight rows of plush benches on each side of a center aisle, and they all had high backs to them so you couldn't see what anypony was doing with their hooves. I usually like getting right up front for these things, but Braeburn wanted a little space to breathe. "No worries," I whispered to him as we sat in the third row and took off our raincoats and hats.

The room smelled like stallion. It was dark, obviously, and even with the small size, it felt more intimate than cramped. Enough room to have just a little privacy, though. Those places are never very full, especially on Mondays, so you usually get some space all to yourself.

Three other ponies sat scattered around the room. They kept their heads down. You can understand why, though, right? I certainly didn't want to be noticed, either.

The stage was dimly lit with a warm red light. We'd come in during a break, but on the side of the stage sat a drum set and a piano. Before long, two earth ponies – artsy types with round sunglasses and tiny beards – came and sat down, one at each instrument. They started playing a hushed, jazzy song with lots of light cymbal crashes. A saxophonist came out, too, and the music got even smoother. It was mellow and sultry, just what you need to get in the mood and open your wallet.

Braeburn was breathing heavily and rapidly tapping his hoof, his eyes focused directly on the stage. He exhaled, drained one of his whisky sours, and whispered, "So how's this work?"

"You'll see," I whispered back, settling into my seat. When I felt a quick jab at my side, I added, "Just let me know which ones you think are hot."

Braeburn settled down, and the red light grew brighter, revealing a long chaise. In no time, a limber unicorn sauntered out.

His coat was a light purple, smooth and silky, and his hooves were manicured to a bright shine. He walked slowly with a lot of wiggle in his step, flicking his minty green tail even few seconds. He was skinny, but not in a bad way. Slight, I guess? He wasn't all small, though. Braeburn sucked in a breath when he noticed. The unicorn bit his lip coyly and slowly scanned around the room, making fleeting eye contact with everypony there.

He eased up to the chaise and threw his front half on it, exposing himself to the audience. The music played on, and the unicorn moaned and swayed his hips back and forth. He looked over his shoulder and panted as he writhed in front of us.

He leaned forward and dragged his body along the front of the chaise before lying down on it. With another look out to the audience – I'm pretty sure he was staring at Braeburn – the unicorn licked his hoof and ran it sensually down his side, all the way down to his flanks. As he began delicately massaging himself, he gasped and arched his back, and he kept moaning and squirming for a few minutes, letting us all soak it in.

Yeah, I totally would've gotten with that.

After he'd given all of us a taste, it was time to earn his paycheck. He got up and started moving towards a small staircase at the edge of the stage so he could give one-on-one dances to anypony that would pay for them.

I leaned over to Brae and whispered right next to his ear, "Sooooo… What do you think?"

Braeburn was practically drooling. "Dammit he's gorgeous." His head whipped over to me. "Uh, but he's got nothin' on you, of course." He grimaced.

I laughed quietly, reached my foreleg around him, and kissed the side of his face. "It's fine, babe. I'm not the jealous type."

Ugh! I had a hell of a lot of faith in myself, didn't I? You never really know about yourself until you're tested.

The unicorn had stopped by somepony in the front row and was mostly out of sight.

I spoke a little louder. "Didn't think you'd go for the submissive type, though. You like to top?"

Without the dancer to distract him, Braeburn had nowhere to focus but our conversation. His cheeks were red, and he shifted his legs to try and conceal how excited he was getting. "Well, variety's the spice of life. Heh heh. You, uh…" He peeked up. "You like takin' it?"

"Eh, I dunno. I've tried it a couple times, and it hasn't been my thing. I've kind of given up on it." I saw his face falter a little, so I nuzzled him again. "For you, though? Sure. Might be nice. Maybe you could…" I whispered a few suggestions in his ear.

Braeburn nuzzled back, and a wicked smile flashed across his face. "Well, now. Sounds like somepony wants a ride, western style." He leaned in, narrowed his eyes, and licked his lips. "And maybe he wants it a little rough."

"Take me if you can." I licked his ear and got a quick flinch. "So, that unicorn's gonna be back here soon. Like what you see? Wanna spend some time with him?"

"Dunno. I–" Braeburn's jaw dropped.

Another stallion had shown up on stage. Giant, buff earth pony. I'm talking totally ripped, and his muscles glistened in the red light. Artificial sweat, probably. He swaggered across the stage, and unlike the unicorn guy, this one moved with slow, solid steps and his head up high, and his black coat and silver mane looked absolutely yummy.

Braeburn leaned over again, keeping his eyes on the stallion. "Do… do you get to touch 'em?"

"Yeah. Just, you know, don't make 'em call security."

"Then I want that one." He downed his other drink.

The purple unicorn had finished with the guy in front and was moving lazily towards us. While Braeburn focused on the earth pony on stage, I gave the smaller stripper a quick head shake. He just smiled and didn't miss a step as he moved past us to the next customer. Hard to find professionalism like that these days.

The earth pony on stage had his own thing going. He lay on his back with one hind leg over the back of the chaise, showing off every part of himself while staring at members of the audience with a big smirk. He didn't want to mess around, though. It didn't take long for him to get up, and soon he was strutting down the center aisle towards us in time with the smooth music. He locked eyes with Braeburn, who was barely breathing and practically bouncing in his seat.

"Soarin', this is so sinful," Braeburn whispered, shaking his head.

"But you're having a good time, right?"

"Damn straight."

The black earth pony walked into our row. He spoke gently, but his voice still had a lot of power behind it. "Evening. Always nice to see two coltfriends doing something wholesome together." His voice was low and warm and mellow and damn, dude! Guy was hot!

Braeburn snapped out of it for a second. "Oh, uh…" He looked my way, and his eyes searched mine. "I… don't know if we're really… officially anything, yet… maybe?"

…

Labels are weird. They've got all this baggage attached to them, and they make you think. They make you feel, too. Even in the middle of the sleaziest city in Equestria, watching hot stallions show themselves off while I had the pony of my dreams next to me in a dark room with sexy music, all I could think about was that Braeburn didn't think he was my coltfriend yet. And it stung.

I mean, if you'd asked me at the time, I probably would have said the same thing. C'mon, we were at a freaking strip club drooling over hot guys. Who the buck brings their coltfriend to a place loaded with competition? I'm pretty open-minded about sex, so why did I suddenly feel like I'd violated something important? But then, I didn't even know what Braeburn was to me.

'Friend' didn't seem right, and 'friend with benefits' was way off, too. How do you describe what we were? I cared about him. Like, way more than I probably had any right to. And I think he cared about me, too. I dunno. All this stuff was just flying through my head for, like, three seconds. I didn't think about it for the rest of the night, and got I back to having fun, but that's… that's probably where I started…

…

Look, you would have gotten possessive, too, okay!? Here was everything I needed wrapped up in a yellow earth pony, and once you have somepony like that, do you have any fucking idea how scary it is to think about them leaving!? Fuck, I'd been through that a million times before, but I'd gone ahead and attached myself to Braeburn at the first sign that it would be different! He'd made me feel better. He'd taken my mind away from all the shit with the 'Bolts and everything was fine with him around! I needed him!

And I couldn't just let him get back together with Bronze or some other asshole. I knew how that would all go down. I cared too much. Yeah! I was right! I…

Dammit.

Dammit! I'm sorry, I just… I…

Ugh. Sorry for yelling.

I know I should be over it by now, but it's hard. It's hard to forgive yourself and move on with your life. Even when everything feels like it's going right, feels like you're healing and making progress, you still feel guilty. You feel guilty about all the things you've done wrong. You feel guilty because everything seems like it's your fault because you see how stupid you were, and what the hell was I thinking, anyway? First night out of Appleloosa, and I was already getting him drunk and risking getting photographed by the media and bringing all these complications into everything, and for what? Fun?

Well, yeah, I guess. I wanted him to have fun. I wanted to see him smile and forget all his problems and have a good night to remember, and I wanted to feel like I was being the good guy for once, the guy that cared and knew what was what. But no. I had no freaking clue. I had no idea how easily fear could sneak into your brain when you have somepony you care about that you've opened yourself up to.

Sorry. Can I just… take a second?

One…

Two…

Three…

…

…

Anyway, there we were in the club, and there was this big, black stallion with a perfectly-sculpted body. "Aw, look. You're making him frown." The stallion moved in front of Braeburn and loomed over him.

I took back my foreleg. I wanted to see what the big guy was gonna do, and I really wanted to see how Braeburn would react. I grinned wide and scooted away a little.

The black stallion had Braeburn hypnotized. "Too bad, too. Mr. Blue looks like he's up for some fun." He reared up and threw his forelegs over the back of the bench, shoving his thick, chiseled chest into Braeburn's face. He started rubbing up against Braeburn's exposed stomach. "And you look like you could handle both of us at once."

Braeburn's eyes were so wide, I thought they'd fall out of his head. His smile quivered, and he took shaky breaths. "Oh… oh, my…" He turned to me, and then back to the wall of stallion right in his face. "C-can I…"

The stallion gave a toothy smile. "Go ahead, cutie. It's all yours."

Braeburn fixated on the monster of a pony in front of him. With a little hesitation, he reached out and lightly brushed along everything he could.

The stallion rolled his head back. "Mmm… You sure know how to please a guy. Right there, cutie. Yeah. That's what I like." What did I tell you? Professionalism.

I'm serious. The more he talked, the more Braeburn explored. It's tough to make somepony relax in a situation like that.

Meanwhile, I was just enjoying the show. A smile took over my face, and my chest swelled at seeing Braeburn get to sit and explore. My blood felt hot, too, and I didn't feel bad about letting my mind go wild with ideas.

Braeburn shuddered again and kept feeling, but he kept looking up and making eye contact with the black pony for about a second at a time. "So, uh, what's your name?" he squeaked. He was trying to use his mayor voice. It wasn't working.

"Oh, just call me Stud." Stud leaned forward and blew a hot breath past Braeburn's ear.

Braeburn went tense, then slumped back with a moan and goofy smirk. Yeah. I'd certainly brought out the big guns, and from the way Braeburn kept getting bolder, I knew he was enjoying himself.

When Stud was done performing and I'd given him a sizeable tip, Braeburn said he'd had enough for a first time. We put our gear back on and left the theater.

Braeburn's mouth was off again once we'd left. His words were a bit slurred, and his accent came through pretty heavily, but he still spoke faster than any intoxicated pony should have been able to. "Geez, Soarin'! That was something' else. Think they enjoy that kinda work? Gotta imagine all sorts of creeps get in there. 'Spose that's what security is for. Ooh, my skin's all tingly, and I don't mind sayin', Stud really got me goin'. Surprised I didn't do anything reckless."

I stopped. We were only a few paces into the street.

"Soa– uh, buddy?" He turned around and cocked his head to the side. He pulled his head back a bit. "You've got a look in your eye…"

"Weeeeell…" I sauntered up to him and whispered in his ear. "How reckless you feeling?"

Braeburn looked around. Even late at night, the street was pretty busy, but everypony was either too drunk or too tired to notice us. He smiled and bit his lower lip. "What did you have in mind?"

I didn't say anything. I started walking, and Braeburn followed close behind. We turned down a side street, then another one, and finally down an alley behind a bar. I flew ahead and scoped it out for addicts or anything. When I got back, Braeburn was shaking his head. "We're gonna get caught."

"Not if you're quiet. Unless you didn't want to cut loose?"

He walked up to me. "You're gonna ruin me, Soarin'." He leaned in and gave me a long, wet kiss with lots of tongue. When he pulled back, his eyes were half-lidded. "…but I'll give you three minutes."

I have no idea how long it took me – a cop could have walked right up to us, and I wouldn't have noticed – but it didn't take long. We took care of me, too, and we shared another big, sloppy kiss.

Trashy? Totally. Worth it? Hell yeah.

When I'd started coming down from my high, I panted out, "Still got a lotta night left. Dance?"

Braeburn smacked his lips. "Drinks first? My mouth's kinda bitter."

"Kay. I'll get something with pineapple, then."

He blinked rapidly at me. "…What?"

We had a long conversation about flavoring on the way back to the strip. I don't know if it was the booze or the afterglow, but we were all over each other. In retrospect, we were putting a lot of faith in raincoats and hats. I'm still surprised we didn't get caught.

We did some shots at another club. There were even more colorful lights, and the music was loud enough that it felt like it was punching you in the chest. We didn't talk much, but we didn't hold back on having fun, either. I think I tried to teach Braeburn how to dance to more pop-style music. He might have been pretty good at it, but I don't really remember. There was a lot of grinding, though. A lot of grinding.

Honestly, most of the night after that was a blur. We kept our eyes on each other, but other than that, the alcohol flowed, the sweat dripped off of us, and we laughed and shouted and danced on and on. Whenever we'd get tired, we'd go outside for air, end up in another club, and start all over again until my bits were almost all gone.

Eventually, we stumbled out of a club and saw that none of the lights were lit anymore. I was hammered, and I spent a long time squinting at the signs. The letters seemed to swim in my vision. "Uh… Power's out?"

Braeburn snorted and smacked my ass. "Naw, ya' simple? Sun's up!" He started giggling and didn't stop. He dropped to the ground, threw his hooves over his face, and kept snickering.

"Oh, yeah." I tried to whistle for a cab, but I just managed to blow a raspberry. A pony-drawn cab still picked us up, though. The ride was bumpy and the world spun, but it was still too short. Braeburn and I made out the entire way to the hotel, sloppy and gross as it probably was.

We got to the hotel, the Palomino, and I managed to get us through the giant glass doors and into the massive lobby. There were chandeliers everywhere but not many ponies around. The receptionist was a saint: all I had to do was show her my Wonderbolts ID (no small feat digging it out of my bag), and she called a bellhop to show us up to a celebrity suite. You know those luggage cart things? I might have ridden one to our room.

The bellhop left us with a few gallons of water, and we stumbled into the room only barely aware of our surroundings.

Before anything else, Braeburn staggered over to the window and shut the shades, making sure there was no way to see in from the outside. "Heh. Not gonna get us again!"

I, meanwhile, had collapsed onto the bed. It was king-sized, and it was super comfy. I'd already started dozing off when I felt a big warm earth pony crawl up onto me and feel around the back of my head. I opened my eyes and smiled. Even though I could barely see him in the dark, a few thin rays of light came in through the cracks in the shades, and they highlighted every beautiful curve of his face.

Braeburn was stroking my mane. He spoke softly, and he shaped all his words so I could hear clearly. "Thanks for takin' me out tonight, Soarin'. Gonna remember this night forever. I'm… I'm sorry about what I said in front of Stud."

I blinked a few times at him. I'd completely forgotten. "What do you mean?"

"The coltfriend thing. I mean, are we…" He stopped petting me, and his words began to run together. "It's just that I don’t know where we are, and you're doing all these nice things for me and I don't know how I'll ever repay you. And you're really sweet, but I can't help feelin' like we're just stumblin' through whatever the hell is going on, and maybe I'm too weak-minded, but I just want to know. I-I suppose you're not used to bein' all serious, what with bein' a celebrity and all, and– Oh, and there I go making assumptions. I shouldn't–"

I held a hoof up to his lips and stopped him. Maybe I didn't understand everything he was saying, but I'd heard him say he wanted something, and on that night especially, I wanted to give him everything. "Babe, we can be whatever you want. All you gotta do is ask." I took my hoof away.

Braeburn's eyes softened. "But it can't be that easy, can it? There's so much that–" He suddenly stopped and chuckled. "Aw, hell. I'm bein' stupid." He put a hoof on my chest and looked straight at me. "Soarin', would you do me the honor of bein' my coltfriend?"

Labels are weird, but when they don't do any harm, when they help somepony be happy and help you grow closer to them, I guess they're pretty alright.

I smiled and nuzzled the hoof on my chest. "Totally."

Braeburn sank down onto me and wrapped me up in a big hug. "Thanks, Soarin'."

I breathed in that smell some more. It soothed my mind and made my heart skip a beat, just like the first time. "For what?

"Everything. The shows, the experience… Heck, even the alley. Tonight was great."

"Heh. Wanna make it perfect?" I grabbed his hips and started grinding up against him. He let me go on for a bit, but we didn't get anywhere. Too drunk and way too tired. We both burst out giggling again.

Braeburn rolled off of me and rubbed my chest. "Tomorrow, Big Blue."

I poked his side. "It's already tomorrow."

"Oh, just get some sleep, ya' beautiful idiot."

You know, even if I might have been enabling him a little, I don't regret it. I think you only get so many days like that, days where you just get to have fun and forget all your problems. Okay, yeah, I know. It sounds just like what I was doing before I met Braeburn, back when I was trying to hide my pain in parties and booze. Old habits are hard to break.

Geez, that sounds even worse.

What I mean is, Braeburn was happy. I was happy. We'd spent a night growing closer and being together without worrying about all the things that tried to weigh us down, and just like him, it's a night I'll remember for the rest of my life. That's gotta be worth something, right?