Ch. 14: Close Call
Sunset finds herself behind CHS, near the rear parking lot. She doesn’t know how she got there nor why she’s there. She looks around to see if anyone else is around but sees no one. She tries to move but is stuck in place by some sort of force. She tries calling for help several times but no one answers. Is this another form of Equestrian magic? Why can’t she move? Before she calls for help again, Sunset hears voices from around the corner. She tries to get their attention but there is no response. She hears them getting closer, they’ll be able to see her if they can’t hear her.
From around the corner comes Flash and... herself? Sunset is perplexed at the scene displaying before her. Why is there a doppelganger of her with Flash?
“What do you want this time, Flash?” Sunset 2 says with an annoyed and disinterested tone. “I’ve got more important things to deal with.” Flash stops and turns around to face her, he crosses his arms and scowls her. Sunset 2 notices his demeanor but isn’t phased by it, it seems she’s grown used to this kind of behavior. She rolls her eyes and says, “Ugh, what?”
“What the hell is wrong with you?” Flash says scornfully, disgust tinting his voice. Sunset 1, still stuck in place and unnoticed by Flash and the doppelganger, realizes the scene playing before her is the same one she dreamt about a few days ago, only from a different angle this time.
Sunset 2, unamused by his attitude, inspects her fingernails and says, with a smirk, “Nothing really, I’m practically perfect in every way.”
“I heard about what you did at the Fall Formal!” Flash continues, the volume of his voice escalating.
“You’re going to have to be a bit more specific, sweetie,” Sunset says, her head tilted towards the ground but her eyes looking up at him.
“The threats of blackmail, manipulating voters, tampering with the final vote, and for what?” he shouts. “Just to win some stupid crown!”
Sunset 2, still unphased by his anger, steps closer to him and caresses his cheek while feigning pity. “Oh honey,” she says, “that crown means a lot more at this school than you think it does.”
Flash slaps away her hand, “That’s a bunch of bull,” he says with a scowl. He takes a few steps past her, stops, and says, “You know what tops all of this? I realized what I am to you.”
Sunset 2 turns around and crosses her arms, “And what is that?”
“I’m your tool,” he says but doesn’t face her. “An accessory to make you popular. You used me and my reputation to make yourself the top dog of the school. I doubt I was ever really your boyfriend.” A tinge of sadness and betrayal is heard in his voice.
Sunset 2 retains her cross composure but her face changes from annoyed to suspicious. Before she says anything, she contemplates her next move. Her expression and composure soften into something more sympathetic. She slowly walks towards him and wraps her arms around his torso. She leans the side of her head up against his back and nuzzles her cheek into his jacket, trying to provoke a romantic reaction.
“Of course you’re my boyfriend,” she says in a deceivingly comforting tone. “Don’t listen to what the other kids say, I’m all that you need.”
As Sunset 1 watches this scene, a shiver crawls up her spine. She always knew she treated Flash differently than the other students, but to see it for herself… Disgust and discomfort churn inside her as, stuck in place, she watches her old self manipulate Flash.
Sunset 2’s deception doesn’t fool Flash, however. He pulls her arms off, steps forward, and turns around to face her, pointing his finger at her. “Enough of your lies!” he shouts. “I thought we were friends, Sunset. I thought we could have something more together. I loved you and I thought you did too, but I guess I was wrong. I don’t know if you’ve changed or if you were always like this, and I just failed to notice. I’m done, I’m done with the lies, with the manipulation… and with you.”
The second Sunset takes a step back, she’s not used to being confronted like this, especially not with Flash. “Wh-what are you saying?”
“We’re through, Sunset!” he shouts, loud enough that the entire school could probably hear it. Flash takes a deep breath to calm himself. “Go find yourself a new boy toy.” He turns around and walks away from her.
Sunset doesn’t know how to respond. Flash just walked away from her, ending a two-year-long relationship. A few tears begin to well up in her eyes, the sting of a broken heart takes over her. Flash, her first friend, now her ex... no, her enemy. She clenches her hands into fists. The sadness she feels is suddenly replaced with anger, resentment, and bitterness.
“Fine, go! I never needed you in the first place!” she shouts as he walks, tears falling down her cheeks. “You just wait and see what your life is like without me!”
As Sunset 2 yells, Sunset 1 closes her eyes and looks away, trying not to witness the remainder of the scene. Having confronted this dark scene from her past, immense shame washes over her and a familiar fear begins to crawl its way into her. Fear of reliving the past, of resurfacing a pain brought on the both of them. It slowly begins to take over, like ink spreading through clear water
As the fear creeps over her, a voice speaks to her in a deep, echoing tone. “After all the pain you’ve caused, you still go after him. How love can make us foolish.”
Remembering her trip to Equestria, what Flash told her about facing her fear. She lifts her head and confronts the voice. “I’m no longer that person,” she calls out. “I’ve changed drastically since then.”
The voice chuckles. “Oh please, we both know that’s a lie.”
“It is not, I’ve made my atonement with my friends, the school, and Flash. I’ve begun anew with everyone else in my life, why shouldn’t I begin again with Flash?”
“Have you already forgotten the scene that played before you?” the voice asks, frustration growing in its tone. “Have you forgotten the misery you caused him when you were together?”
“I will never forget what I did to him,” Sunset says with regret. “But it doesn’t matter; if I have to face my past every day, for the rest of my life, just so I can be with him, then so be it. I deserve a chance to start over.”
The voice snickers, “Such ambition, but it won’t make a difference. This isn’t one of your silly games, there is no ‘starting over.’ You can’t change the past.”
“Maybe not, but I can still learn from it,” she says. “We both can learn from our past, move on, and grow together.”
“Learn all you want,” the voice mocks from behind her. A clawed hand crawls onto Sunset’s shoulder, “You can never escape who you truly are. You are just one slip away from becoming me!” The hand spins her around to face the being before her: Demon Shimmer. Sunset freezes in fear of the monstrosity before her. The creature flares a Grinch-like smile.
Sunset jolts up from her bed, breathing rapidly, her heart pounding a million miles a second. She rapidly looks around the room, hoping she’s back to reality. Though it’s hard to tell in the early morning light, relief washes over her when she realizes she’s back in her loft. She rubs her hands through her hair and holds them behind her head. She breathes in, holds for three seconds, and lets it out, she repeats the process two more times. “What the hell was that dream?” she mutters to herself after calming down.
She turns her head to the right to look at her digital alarm clock, it reads 6:15 AM. “Might as well start the day now,” she says with a tired groan. Sunset pulls the covers off and proceeds with her morning routine. She tries to keep the dream off her thoughts but it doesn’t go away. The words that were spoken to her keep repeating over and over.
Sunset goes into the bathroom and begins her shower. As she lets the warm water pour over her body, the first phrase her other self said returns to her. Is she really being a fool for pursuing Flash again? She doesn’t deny in the slightest that she has hurt him in the past, but that was a different time, a different Sunset. This time, it won’t be the same anymore. She genuinely cares for him now, one could say she’s in love with him. But are her feelings blinding her from the potential damage she could cause or are they another example of her changed nature?
Once she exits the shower and gets dressed, Sunset goes to the kitchen and prepares some eggs and toast. Is she being honest with herself at this moment, or is she justifying another falsehood? It’s not like she hasn’t lied to herself before. She knows she’s changed: she’s no longer the cruel girl she once was. There’s no way this could be a lie; too much has happened for it to be one, right?
When she finishes breakfast, she grabs her backpack and helmet and goes down to the street to get on her motorcycle. If she has changed for the better, is she one slip away from falling back into her old self? There’s no way she could fall back into wickedness. Then again, she’s seen others fall into the same trap for different reasons: Twilight to learn more about magic, Gloriosa to save her camp, Wallflower to make a point… There were many examples, and the motive was always different. Is she just as vulnerable?
Sunset pulls up to the school and parks her bike in the east parking lot. She doesn’t get off, not yet. She takes off her helmet, shakes her hair out, and leans up against the handlebars. She thinks about what her demonic self said right before she woke up. ‘You’re one slip away.’
“Don’t let her scare you, Sunset,” she says softly to herself. I’m not going to let her get to me, she thinks, I don’t care what she says, I’m a better person now. I won’t hurt Flash because I won’t treat him the same way again.
“Sunset!” someone yells out to her. She breaks from her thoughts to find the source of the voice. She looks to her left and sees Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Twilight, and Soarin running towards her. Hearing the urgency in Rainbow Dash’s voice, Sunset gets off her bike and runs to meet them halfway.
“What’s going on?” she asks when they meet up with each other. The four students form a loose semi-circle facing Sunset.
“We… have... a problem,” Soarin says as he catches his breath.
“Flash knows we’re up to something,” Twilight says rapidly.
“What are you talking about?” Sunset asks.
Soarin takes a deep breath and says, “The operation. Flash confronted me yesterday after I slipped up and said something that gave it away. He kept me from leaving his house until I told him what was going on.”
“And did you?” Sunset asks.
“Thankfully, he didn’t,” Rainbow interjects. “He texted me what was happening and I dashed over to Flash’s house to get Soarin out of there.”
“We got lucky this time,” Applejack says. “But I reckon we won’t get another chance like that again.”
“But that doesn’t mean we’re out of the danger zone,” Twilight says. She turns to Soarin, “You’ve got to get him off the scent, Soarin. No matter how difficult it may be.”
“I know, Twilight, I know,” Soarin says. “I won’t make the same mistake twice. Flash won’t know about anything.”
“But is it so bad if he finds out?” Sunset asks, prompting curious looks from the others. “I mean, what we’re doing is for the benefit of the both of us, right? Would it be so bad if he knows?”
“If we were operating under normal circumstances, sure, it wouldn’t be the end of the world,” Twilight explains.
“But we’re not,” says Rainbow Dash. “We overstepped our boundaries with Flash last time, and just look at what happened after that.”
“It’s best to play this whole thing safe and quiet,” says Applejack. “If he finds out about this whole operation, I’m not sure he’ll be as forgivin’.”
“He won’t,” Soarin says, decisively. “I’ve known him the longest and I can tell you that Flash may be a good guy but he’s not a fool. He might have barely forgiven you girls after what happened last Friday, but he’s going to be a lot less forgiving if he thinks we’re meddling again. If you defend your case and explain yourselves well enough, you might be able to win him over, but he’s likely to think you’re overstepping boundaries again. Sunset and I probably have a better defense for our actions: me being his best friend since kindergarten, and Sunset, well, what she said yesterday might as well have given her immunity.”
The three girls look at Sunset with bewildered looks and tilted heads. “What’s he talking about, Sunset?” Twilight asks.
Sunset, uncomfortably, rubs the back of her neck and looks off to the side, color rising to her cheeks. “I might have,” Sunset covers her mouth and mumbles, “told him how I felt.”
“What was that?” Applejack asks.
“I told him how I felt!” Sunset blurts out, throwing her hands up in the air. Applejack and Rainbow Dash’s eyes widen slightly and exchanged concerned looks. Twilight, on the other hand, looks as though she’s witnessing a shocking tragedy play out before her.
“That’s not all you did,” Soarin adds. They all look Soarin, who turns his head to the side and taps his cheek with his index finger. Sunset purses her lips and glares at Soarin like an aggravated parent.
The other three girls are confused for a second, then they realize what he’s implying. Twilight’s mouth and eyes are wide opened in shock and horror, fearing that her beautifully crafted plan is falling before her eyes. She turns to face Sunset, holding her expression, and shouts with horrific intensity. “Sunset!”
“Well, um,” Applejack clears her throat, “things sure seem to be speedin’ up.”
“I agree, and that’s me saying that,” Rainbow Dash says, pointing to herself.
“Why would you tell him that!?” Twilight exclaims, looking as if she’s on the verge of a heart attack.
“Okay, first of all,” Sunset points at Soarin, “that’s enough out of you. Second, I was improvising. I was worried he was going to walk away thinking something else, and telling him how I feel was the first thing that popped into my mind. But I told him I need a few days to figure things out before I can give him a definitive answer. And yes, I kissed him on the cheek to show that I was being serious. Any of you would’ve done the same thing in my position.”
“Nooope,” Soarin says, holding up his hands. “No, I wouldn’t.” Sunset rolls her eyes at him.
Twilight takes off her glasses and rubs her eyes with her thumb and index finger. She lets out a frustrated sigh, “Just so I understand, you essentially gave him a love confession but said that you need a few days to figure things out first, correct?”
“Well, I’m... not sure I would say it was a ‘love confession,’” Sunset says, shifting her feet in discomfort. Soarin smirks and snorts in disagreement, having heard what Flash told him. Sunset glares and points at him, “Shut up.”
“Just answer the question please,” Twilight bluntly requests. “Is that more or less what you told him, yes or no?” Sunset hesitates a moment, then nods. Twilight puts her glasses back on and takes a deep sigh to calm herself. “Alright, I think we can still work with this. He knows you need to think it over, which will give us time to work through the rest of the plan. In the future, Sunset, try to keep the improvising to a minimum. And Soarin, you really need to make sure that Flash doesn’t catch wind of what’s going on.”
“You got it. Speaking of which,” Soarin trails off as he pulls back his left jacket sleeve to look at his watch. “Flash’s going to be here any minute, I better go meet him.” He begins to run off towards the north-facing side of the school. As he leaves, he shouts, “I’ll see you guys later! See ya Applejack!”
The four girls wave goodbye to Soarin, only Applejack is the one to shout back, “You take care now, sugarcube!” Sunset and Rainbow Dash are caught by surprise at what she said and give her curious looks. When Applejack turns back to face them, she’s confused by their expressions. “What? Is there something in my teeth?”
“No, your teeth are fine,” Sunset says. “It’s just, since when have you called anyone outside of close friends and family ‘sugarcube?’”
“Yeah, I didn’t even know Soarin was, I don’t know, ‘worthy’ enough to be called that,” Rainbow says with air quotes around “worthy.”
“Well, um,” Applejack’s cheeks blush slightly pink, her eyes darting side to side. “I consider Soarin to be a close friend.” Sunset, intrigued, gives her friend a sly look, but Rainbow Dash looks at her with concerned suspicion. “And I-I-I’ve called plenty of people ‘sugarcube,’ not just close friends and family.” Her defense would’ve been more believable if her cheeks retained their normal color, but they become pinker by the second.
“Let’s move on to the task at hand,” Twilight says, whipping her backpack around, unzipping the main pocket, and pulling out the binder. “Having avoided two crises, we should move onto phase two this afternoon, after school.”
“Remind me what phase two is?” Applejack says, trying to get the attention away from her.
Twilight opens up the binder and flips through a few pages. She stops on the targeted spot and holds it out for her friends to see. The top of the page has the words “Phase Two: Footloose” in 16 point, underlined, Arial font. “Since Prom this Friday is a crucial part of this operation, and the couples’ dance is one of the biggest events that night, you need to learn how to dance.”
“I already know how to dance,” Sunset protests.
“But do you know how to dance with a partner?” Twilight asks.
“Fair enough,” Sunset concedes. “But prom is in three days, who’s going to teach me to be a master dancer by then?”
“I will,” Rainbow says. Sunset gives her a look of surprise; she wasn’t expecting Rainbow Dash of all people to be her dance instructor. Rainbow Dash shrugs. “Coach Spitfire has the soccer team take dance lessons to improve our foot coordination. I know enough to teach you the basics, at least. We’ll cover the details after school.”
The first bell of the day rings. The girls wish each other a good day and split off into pairs. Rainbow and Twilight, who share first block, dash off to the north side of CHS. Sunset and Applejack go into the east entryway, their first block is in the same hall but separate classrooms.
As they walk, Sunset gives Applejack a playful nudge and an expression of intrigue. “So, Soarin huh?” she teases.
Applejack’s back straightens up. “Nothing is goin’ on between us!” Applejack blurts out. “We’re just close friends, nothing more.”
“I tried that same defense with you girls and didn’t work out,” Sunset remarks. “Look, there’s nothing to be ashamed about liking Soarin, he’s a sweet guy.”
“I know he is, I’ve had a slight crush on him for a while,” Applejack admits as she relaxes.
Sunset walks in front of Applejack and turns to face her with a look of surprise. “Hold up, since when?” she asks, holding her hands up in front of her.
Applejack strokes the strand of hair hanging over her left ear, her cheeks turning pink again. “Since the Fall Festival last year,” she says. “He kept coming up to our table for a slice of pie, every time he did, we would talk together. Every conversation was a new topic: my country life, the family business, me, it was very sweet.” A small smile appears as she remembers that day.
Sunset walks back around to Applejack’s side and they continue their walk down the hall. “Sounds like a creep who wants to study you,” Sunset jokes.
Applejack snorts and shakes her head. “He wasn’t,” she says. “I could tell he genuinely wanted to learn more about me. I found it rather surprising that someone outside of my friends and family wanted to give me their attention. It felt weird but also nice to be on the receiving end of that type of kindness. The boy had me feeling kind of helpless afterward.”
“Well, what’s keeping you from telling him how you feel?” Sunset asks. “It seems evident that you like, and I’m willing to bet he likes you as well. There’s nothing wrong in wanting to form a closer bond.”
“I know, I know, look can we talk about this another time?” Applejack says, appearing wanting to avoid the latter topic. As they approach Applejack’s first block classroom, they stop right outside the door.
“Sure, but before I go, could you tell me just one more thing you like about him?” Sunset teasingly asks. “A characteristic, a good deed he did, maybe a physical quality?”
Applejack looks off to side briefly, then turns back with a gleeful smirk. She motions her hand to bring Sunset in closer and says in a low voice, “He’s got a cute butt.” Sunset’s jaw drops and gasps with laughter. She playfully pushes her friend's shoulder. They both wish each other a good day and go off to their respective classes.
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Ooh nice, I see you fleshed out the ending scene since I proofed it. It really does work better!
LOL Applejack
Very nice. All paths are coming together...
Also a great idea for another series, Applejack x Soarin
Nice work. I look forward to seeing how this story comes together! ^_^
I'm slowly starting to ship AppleJack and Soarin
Now if that ain't irony I don't know what is because is that where is that not the same damn reasons why he fell for her
added bonuses effect that she wasn't the only one checking out his ass he was checking out hers