The New Life

by Going The Distance

7: First day of work..

7.

ONE WEEK LATER...

The rooster cockled at the crack of dawn. The sun rose hazily over the horizon.

Big Macintosh opened his eyes. He rubbed them and yawned. He then sat up and pulled the covers off of him. He rubbed his long ginger hair and looked outside to look at the sunrise. He then stood up and stretched, cracking his back as he does. He looks down to where Chris sleeping. It was a simple mattress but for the first few nights, Chris slept in it like a baby. He slept peacefully, breathing softy. Big Macintosh slowly walked over, yawning as he does. He then bends over and yanks the blanket off, reavealing Chris in his boxers. He lets out a small gasp and jump a little at the sudden movement of his blanket.

"Rise and shine!"

Chris rolls on his back and groans. He rubs his face with his hand and opens one eye. He looked at Big Macintosh.

"C'mon sleepy head, time to get up" Big Macintosh ordered. Chris moans a little as he sits up groggily.

"What time is it..." he croaks.

Big Mac looks over to his digital clock on his bedside table.

"4 am.."

Chris rubbed his tired eyes. "Jesus... that's early" he mumbled, yawning in between his sentence. He then stubbornly got up from his mattress, he stretched, popping a couple of vertebrates in his back. He looks over to Big Mac, who was also in his boxers.

"Bugsy toilet first"

Big Mac looked over with his sleepy eyes, scratching his beefy chest.

"Sure...Don't be too long, I'm busting for a piss..." stifling a yawn as he speaks.

Chris then turned and walked to the en-suite, scratching his crotch as he does. When he walks in, he closed the door partly. Chris looked at himself in the small, grubby mirror above the sink. He ran the tap and splashed the cold water on his face to try wake himself up. After drying his face, Chris inspected his stitches on his arm, to check for any sign of infection. The wound was healing up nicely, almost ready for the stitches to be taken out. His Pneumonia also cleared up and Chris wasn't coughing any more.

After he was satisfied, Chris turned around to face the toilet and started to pee, aiming down the middle of the pan. He let out another big yawn. As he was finishing, Big Mac knocked on the door.

"Hurry mate, I'm about to burst here..." he moaned.

"Hold your horses..." replied Chris. After giving his knob a shake, he pulled up his boxers and opened the door, where Big Macintosh stood beside it. Chris gestured to him and he brushes past him quickly. Chris walks over to his folded pile of clothes. He takes off his old boxers and slips into a fresh pair. He then hears Big Macintosh piss in the middle of the pan, letting off a big sigh of relief as he pees. Chris slips into his denim jeans. The orange sun rays then shines into his eyes. Chris shields his eyes with his hand, almost stumbling over his mattress.

Big Macitosh walks out of the en-suite, blowing out a sigh of relief. He walks over to his bed and starts getting ready. Chris puts on a blue polo shirt and then slips into his new work boots. After Big Mac brushes his long ginger hair, he turns around to Chris.

"Ready?..."

Chris kneels down to pick up his tin of Cigarillos and lighter next to his mattress and puts them in his pocket.

"Yep...lets go..."

Both men then quietly walk out of the room, then down the narrow hallway, trying not to disturb the rest of the household. Big Mac walks down the stairs like he just woken up hours ago, but Chris goes down heavy footed, trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes. He looks at Big Macintosh with amazement. He looked so alert and ready despite waking up literally minutes ago. With Chris however, his eyelids felt heavy and could use a few more hours sleep.

'He's probably more used to it'...Chris thought.

Big Macintosh looked into a cupboard, searching for some breakfast. He then got out two large circular objects. He held out one to Chris.

"What is it?" he asked, taking what looks like a large biscuits, about the same size of a CD and about thick as his thumb.

"Oatmeal rusk..." Big Macintosh explained, taking a bite out of his. "Try it..."

Chris takes a small bite out of the large rusk. It tasted sweet and it dissolved easily in his mouth.

"Not bad..."

Big Macintosh then goes into the fridge and bring out two small bowls of fresh milk. He places them on the kitchen counter and slides one to Chris.

"If you dip it in the milk, It'll literally take a few minutes to eat" Big Mac explained. Chris brought the bowl to his lips and sipped some of the cold, creamy milk.

"These are perfect for breakfast..." Big Mac continued. "That way we can set off quicker" chewing his biscuit as he explained.

Chris gave nod as he dipped the large rusk in his milk.

After the two men finished their breakfast, they walked outside. Big Macintosh told Chris to wait as he fetched the tractor. Chris stood on the wooden porch, looking around the land that stood in front of him. A low haze of mist was seen across the whole farmland. The sun peeked over the horizon, illuminating the land orange. Not a cloud was seen in the sky. Chris Looked up and watched a flock of starlings fly overhead. He took this opportunity to have his morning smoke. Chris lit his Cigarillo and watched the smoke curl up and disappear into the crisp, morning air.

As he took a couple of puffs, he saw Big Macintosh drive out of the garage, pulling a large square hay trailer. He stopped and looked over to Chris.

"Hop on"

Chris put his Cigarillo in the side of his mouth and bit down on it to stop it falling out. He then jogged over to the tractor and sat next to Big Mac. Big Macintosh put the tractor into gear and started driving.

He followed a well worn track, taking them over hills and past the herds of cows that started to wake up. Chris looked at the grass that passed him. The dew sparkled as the sunlight shone through it, almost looking like late autumn frost. Big Mac looked over to Chris, who was still looking over the landscape. He then spoke to Chris.

"Today, we're gonna be stacking hay bales and storing them in the barn next to the house..." he explained, pointing in the direction of the barn. Chris turned around and saw the large barn, about a hundred metres away from the house. He looked back to Big Mac. He took his Cigarillo out of his mouth, spitting out a piece he bit off.

"How long will that take us?" he asked.

Big Macintosh shrugged his shoulders. "Half a day maybe...Depends how quick we shift it"

Chris nodded, taking a drag of his cigarillo. He stretched his neck to look at the lake in the middle of the field.

Soon, they drove into a large field. Chris got off and looked across the large patch of grass. He noticed the tall stacks of rectangular hay bales. Chris looked over to Big Macintosh, who was stepping off the tractor.

"How big is the field?" asked Chris.

"About half a square mile..."

Chris threw his Cigarillo butt on the floor, and stamped it out.

"That's not too bad actually..."

Big Mac walked up next to Chris. "You do know we've got to do this one and another ten other like this?"

Chris shot a glance at Big Macintosh's Green, soulful eyes. "Ten?!"

"Eeyup!" he said, placing a wheat stem he just picked in his mouth. He then started laughing when he saw Chris's face. He gave him pat on the back, knocking Chris's off his balance a little.

"C'mon, lets get to work!"

*

It was about Ten O'clock in the morning, and both men have been working non-stop. They where on their fourth field. Chris had the job of passing the bales to Big Macintosh as he loaded them onto the trailer. Even though it was quite early in the morning, it was already reaching twenty-five degrees Celsius. The sun beated down on Chris, who was already dripping with sweat. Both men had their shirts off. His arms ached from hauling the heavy hay bales to Big Macintosh. His lean and athletic physique was no match for Big Mac's strong and powerful body, built up over the years from working on the farm.

"That's it, heave!..." he said to Chris, as he stood on 3 stacks of bails. Chris then lifted the heavy bail over his head. The veins in his lean arms bulged as he lifted the bail up to Big Macintosh, gritting his teeth as he tries to fight the fatigue in his already tired arms.

"Just a little further...That's it" Big Mac said as he grabbed the hay bale effortlessly. He then placed it in a empty spot and jumped down.

"That's the last one for this field" he said to Chris, who was already sitting on the hard bake ground, leaning against the trailer. He had his eyes closed. He panted heavily whilst sweat ran down the side of his face. Big Mac gave Chris a little pat on his sweaty shoulder.

"Your doing great job, especially for your first day" he said to Chris, impressed with his work. Chris looked up to him. His eye met with Big Mac's godlike ones.

"Thanks..." he panted. He asked if he can have a smoke. Big Mac said yes. As Chris was about his light his up,when the young farmer sat down next to him and pulled out a pouch of Cutter's choice tobacco, along with some rolling papers and filter tips. Chris slowly put his Cigarillo down. Big Macintosh's green eye's looked at him. Chris smiled.

"Crafty smoker?"

"Eeyup..." he said as he placed a filter tip in his lips. He then started placing the loose tobacco in the rolling paper.

"You know your going to get caught one day..." Chris warned. Big Mac raised an eyebrow at Chris.

"So your telling me after three years of secretly smoking I'm gonna get caught?" he pointed out. Chris raised his eyebrows, impressed by what he heard.

"Three years? how do you hide your stuff?" he asked.

"See those paint cans in the garage...One of them is empty. That's where I keep my tobacco. The girls never use the paint cans, so it's perfect.." he explained, licking the gummed part as he speaks.

"You sneaky...". Both men laugh. They sat there and smoked, chatting to one and another. When they finished, the dropped the load off and started working on the next field.

At around midday, the two men where nearly finished on the final field. The midday sun beamed down on both of them, and the temperature nearly hit thirty Celsius. When Chris hauled the final hay bail to Big Mac, he jumped down from the stack and looked over their hard work. Not a hay bail was in sight.

"Damn, we worked hard on that. And done it quicker than I expected!" he said happily, panting a little. He looked over to Chris, who was laying on the floor completely exhausted. Big Macintosh wiped the sweat off the forehead and walked over to his partner. Chris groaned. His arms where on fire and his shoulders ached. Big Macintosh helped him sit up.

"Nice work buddy, that's it for today"

Chris gave a weak smile. "Oh...thank...god...for that...Jesus I'm fucked..." he panted. Big Mac looked up and saw Applejack in the distance, riding on a horse. She trotted over to the tired working men. She had a leather satchel on her side.

"Howdy folks" she greeted. She got off her horse. "You two finished already?" she asked, slightly suspicious of there quick work.

"Eeyup" said Big Macintosh looking at his sister.

"Boy, you two make a great team!"she said with a smile.

"Eeyup!, Chris here has done great for his first day..." putting his big arm around Chris and giving him a small shake. Chris looked up, sweat dripping off his nose.

"Aww, you must be exhausted sugarcube"

Chris nodded his sweaty head. Applejack then opened her satchel and pulled out two brown paper bags.

"Here you go boys, made ya some lunch"

Both men grabbed their bags. Chris looked in his. inside it was a cheese sandwich with an apple, a banana, and a slice of freshly baked apple pie, along with a cold bottle of water.

"Thanks AJ..." Chris said greatly.

She put her hand on his sweaty shoulder. "That's okay sweetie" she replied, giving him a warm smile. She then looked over to her brother, who was already tucking into his lunch. She walked over to him and looked over the huge orchard in the distance.

"The Apples will be ready soon Big Mac..." She said, shielding her eyes from the bright sun.

"Eeyup..." he said, taking a drink from his water bottle.

Chris looked over his shoulder and viewed the orchard for himself. He was amazed at the size of it, and thought about the possible amount of apples that could be harvested.

He turned his body around to face the two siblings.

"How do you manage to harvest all of the apples before they go off? I mean... the orchard is huge!"

Applejack smiled at him. "We always get them in on time, the girls also help us pick them aswell" she explained.

"Must take a while..." he said, taking a bite of his sandwich.

"Well, we've got an extra pair of hands so it shouldn't take too long". She gave a wink at Chris. He smiled back.

Applejack then walked back to her horse and saddled it.

"Well, better get goin'. The eggs aren't collect itself." and with that she galloped off into the distance.

After the two men finished their well deserved lunch, they both hopped onto the tractor and drove off.

*

Chris laid on his mattress, staring up to the celling. He felt tired and exhausted. His arms felt like jelly and his shoulders ached. Chris laid with one leg stretched and the other bent. He let out tired groan, before putting an unlit Cigarillo in his mouth. His hand flopped besides him. He hasn't worked this hard in years. Chris was waiting for Big Macintosh to finish his shower in the en-suite so he could have his. Chris closed his eyes and listened to the splashes of water from the shower and the occasional whistle from Big Macintosh.

Eventually, Big Macintosh came out of the shower, drying off his ginger hair. Steam poured out behind him. Chris turned his head to face him. He rolled the Cigarillo in the corner of his mouth and bit down on it.

"Finished?" he asked.

"Eeyup..." Big Macintosh replied, wiping his face with his towel. Chris took his Cigarillo out of his mouth and placed on top of the tin, next to his mattress. He then sat up slowly, still achy from the days work. He then stood up and slipped out of his boxers. Big Mac walked past him with the towel wrapped around his neck.

Then, the door opened...

"Hi boys, just to..."

Both men spun around, the front of their body's in full view.

"OH GOD!..." shrieked Applejack, before quickly looking away. Big Macintosh quickly pulled the towel off his neck and covered his private parts. Chris simply covered it with both hands.

"You should've told me Big Macintosh! What if it was Applebloom instead of me?" she shouted.

Big Mac looked over to Chris. His cheeks had turned a little red.

"At least Applebloom knocks!" he pointed out, sounding slightly annoyed.

Applejack let out a frustrated huff. "Supper is ready soon so don't take long."

"Fine, close the door..." replied Big Macintosh. Applejack walked off down the hallway, grumbling a couple of things to herself. Chris looked over to his room mate. Big Mac looked back.

"She does that all'a time..."he said, shaking his head. Chris then picked up his towel and walked to the en-suite.

Chris put the towel aside and jumped into the shower. He turned it on and let the stream of hot water run through his hair and over his aching shoulders. Chris ran his fingers through his hair, letting the water hit his face. He let out a blissful sigh.

After his shower, Chris got dressed and walked to the dining room for dinner. He saw that Applebloom and Big Macintosh was already sitting at the table. Applejack walked in from the kitchen holding two steaming plates of food. She wore her orange shirt and a short denim skirt. She didn't wear her trademark Stetson hat. She set the plates in front of her brother and sister. She then looked up to Chris. She gave a small awkward smile.

"I'll bring ours in a minute...sorry about earlier.." she said, blushing a little. Big Macintosh rolled his eyes...

Chris winked back at her. "Don't worry about it" he reasurred. He then walked over to the dining table and sat down at the end of the table. Applebloom looked up.

"How's your arm mister?" she curiously asked. Chris looked down at his stitches.

"Pretty good thanks, the stitches are ready to come out soon I think" he wondered. He looked back her and smiled. Applebloom smiled back before looking down at the table. Applejack then walked back in with her and Chris's dinner.

"Here you go sugarcube, enjoy" she said, placing the dinner in front of him.

"Thanks". Chris looked at his plate. Applejack served him two chicken breast with a jacket potato and sweetcorn with gravy. He then picked up his knife and fork and started eating. He took a bite out of chicken. It was beautifully cooked and succulent. Chris hadn't had a roast like this in years and was enjoying it very much.

Then a piece of sweetcorn bounced off his head. Chris looked up. He saw Applebloom and Applejack eat their meal. Big Macintosh however, looked around the room, trying to act innocent. Chris knew it was him. He then took a spoonful of sweet corn and 'dropped' one on the table. He continued to eat normally. Then, when Big Macintosh was about to take a bite of his potato, Chris gave the piece of sweetcorn a hard flick. It flew and landed in Big Macintosh's ear. He recoiled on the impact, dropping his knife nosily. Chris almost started laughing. Big Mac took the piece of sweetcorn out of his ear and looked back at Chris. He started sniggering too. Applejack looked up from her plate, wondering what's with the sniggering.

"What's up?" she asked.

"Erm...nothing" Lied Big Macintosh. Both him and Chris giggled like two misbehaved school boys. Applejack huffed a little.

"Cut it out, whatever your doing" she said, before returning to her meal. Chris and Big Macintosh grinned at each other before going back to their meals.

*

Chris sat outside, having his evening smoke. The twilight sky illuminated the orange horizon. Chris looked up to the midnight blue sky. He gazed at the many stars that sparkled brightly. Chris took a drag of his Cigarillo. The orange tip glowed brightly in dark as he sucked on it. He watched the smoke leave his mouth and curl up and disappear into the night. He sat on a weathered, wooden bench in a field not far from the house. Chris sat back on the bench and looked over the slopes and hills that stood in front of him. One thing he noticed on the farm, and Ponyville itself was the nights. Each sunset was bright, warming, and beautiful, and the night sky was lit up beautifully. Yet it in Trottingham, the street lights made the night sky a depressing orange colour and very little stars were seen. The only time Chris saw the stars in there true beauty was when there was a power cut to his neighbourhood.

That thought made him think about his fallen town...

He tried to avoid thinking about the disaster and anything on the radio about. Last time he heard about Trottingham...

To put it simply, it was almost impossible to get out alive. Discord and his men have completly sealed off the town. Not a single building or shop was untouched. They had either been burned or simply vandalised. And for the people who's lives where spared by Discord; They would've been better off dead. Slaves; human punch bags or personal sex objects...

Chris shook his head, trying to shake off the thought....

He sat forward, resting his arms on his knees. He flicked the ash of his Cigarillo and sighed as looked sadly at the ground. Then, Chris noticed movement in the corner of his eye. Chris looked around. He saw someone walking towards him. He looked closer. It was Applejack. She looked up and smiled at him, before looking back down and sweeping her hair to the side. She looked pretty, even if she wasn't the most fashionable person in the world. She sat down beside him. Chris gave her a curt node and smiled at her.

"I though' I find you out here" she said.

Chris took a couple of puffs. "Yeah, I really like the nights here...so peaceful" he replied, scanning the hills in the horizon. Applejack smiled and looked out to the horizon. Chris continued.

"I like to come out here to watch the sunset. And think about stuff too..." his voice trailed off. Chris looked at the ground, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Applejack knew what was on his mind.

"Your thinking about...Trottingham aren't ya?" she asked softly. Chris looked at her. Her green eyes stood out and looked beautiful, even in the dim light. He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. Applejack took his hand and held it softly.

"Don't worry...I'm sure it'll be over soon...". She gave Chris a small smile. Chris held her hand back.

"Lets hope so..."he said, giving a small smile back.

Chris then yawned. He felt pretty tired. Applejack rubbed his back.

"C'mon, you better get some sleep. You worked hard today..."

"Might aswell...". Chris said trying to stifle another yawn. He stubbed out his Cigarillo and threw on the ground. He stood up with Applejack. They then both slowly walked back to the house, both looking at the ever dimming horizon as they did.