9 – Only Two, Not Three
Rarity | 7:48 PM:
>Is everything okay? I would have
expected you’d have an answer by now.
Rarity | 8:21 PM:
>You HAVE to have asked by now, have
you not???
Rarity | 8:55 PM:
>Sunny, this is getting ridiculous.
You | 9:02 PM:
>hey!! sry for the wait. she said yes!!
but there’s way more to it than that.
im omw over now. ill explain then
You would think that, after a mostly sleepless night, I’d be completely out of energy by this time tonight. You would think that, after all the emotional turmoil I’d been through earlier this evening, I’d be absolutely exhausted. With all of this taken into consideration, you would think my mind and body would have agreed they should both start shutting down to let me recover due to these two factors.
And yet, just north of 9 PM, I was brimming with energy. I felt invincible. Despair would never find me, and even if it could, there’s no way it could have caught me. As I weaved through traffic on the streets of the city, I couldn’t help but hold my head up high. That said, I made the effort not to. Crashing into something would’ve dampened this euphoric fixation quite thoroughly.
Just a little while ago, I was standing on Twilight’s porch. We held hands as I said goodnight to her. Neither of us wanted to let go, but I had to. It was getting late, and I could tell Twilight was very tired after everything. Plus, I was keeping someone waiting. After one last hug, I kissed her goodbye and made my way to my bike, still parked in her driveway.
That’s when I texted Rarity. I was so excited to tell her about almost everything. The outburst I had was going to be a little awkward, but with how everything worked out, I’d get over myself. I wanted to hear what she had to say about it and everything else. I wanted to see what kind of outfit she’d drawn up for me and Twilight, and how I looked in mine. Even if I knew there were a few things she was going to endlessly tease me about, nothing was capable of knocking me down from the cloud I was on.
Before I knew it, I was parked in her driveway. I hurriedly took my helmet off, placed it in the saddlebag, then ran up to her doorstep. As my hand reached to knock on the door, it swung open for me. Rarity was waiting, and she was scowling.
“You’d better have a good excuse for keeping me waiting so long! You had me downright worried!” she scolded.
I grinned sheepishly, scratching the back of my head. “I know, I know! But I swear I sent you that text the moment I was ‘in the clear’, so to speak.”
She rolled her eyes. “Well, then, don’t just stand there. Come in, we have much to do and talk about before the night’s over.” She stepped to the side and welcomed me into her house.
I followed her down the hall, turning a couple corners before ending up in a large, round room – Rarity’s bedroom, which doubled as her design studio. There were mannequins of all shapes and sizes lining the walls, different-sized sewing machines, stacks of fabric – anything needed for her to create her designs was in this room.
It made her bed look somewhat out of place by comparison. Every time I saw it, I had no idea how she managed to sleep in a room with that many mannequins. It was the reason I slept in her living room when we held sleepovers at her place.
Rarity grabbed a few things from one of the many cupboards that lined part of the wall. “Now, stand up on that pedestal. While I’m taking your measurements, I want you to explain everything. In vivid detail!”
I removed my coat, followed by my shirt. Every time we go through this process, I think of the first time I ever had my measurements taken. It felt really awkward. Not because she could see me almost naked – before I came here, I’d spent most of my life not wearing clothes at all. That was never an issue for me.
It was because I could almost see myself naked.
For a long time, I avoided looking at my body because it felt so alien compared to what I’d known for years before. I was happy to wear clothes while in this dimension because it helped me not think about how strange my body was. Pony bodies felt so much less detailed than human ones.
Every time there was even a minor event, though, Rarity insisted on designing an outfit for me and the rest of the girls. When she did, she always took measurements. Even if it had only been a week since the last time she did so, we had to go through this each and every time. Going through this process so much helped me come to terms with how my new body looked. Even if it was still a little weird, all the exposure I had to it made it feel as close to normal as it ever would.
As I stood up on the stool, I explained everything to her from the beginning. The hour I spent staring at a book wracking my brain, the walk we took to the park, the moment when we got to the bridge. It was hard to recall the details after that. My memory wasn’t failing me or anything, it was just not fun to remember all the details of my violent outburst, the breakdown that followed, and the concrete belly flop that punctuated it. At least the part that came after was nice.
I was grateful that, through the duration of her taking measurements and writing things in her little notepad, she didn’t say much. No smartass comments, no playful ribbing – just pure focus from her. If she had interjected, it would have made telling certain parts of this story a lot harder than they needed to be.
When I finally finished, she was already hard at work sketching out a design for my outfit. In spite of that, however, she was still able to talk with me. I admired her ability to multitask so effortlessly.
“So you know what I’m about to say, don’t you?” she asked
I let out a dry laugh. “Let me guess: I told you s–”
“I told you so!” she exclaimed, “Oh sweet, sweet vindication!”
We both laughed. “As much as it pains me to feed your ego, I have to admit you were right about everything, Rarity.”
She scoffed. “How many times must I tell you Sunset? I’m always right about everything!”
“I know, but for real,” I replied, “If I hadn’t accepted your help and listened to you, this wouldn’t be happening.”
She laughed upon hearing that comment. “Could I record you saying that later tonight? I could use the testimonial next time I can’t get one of the girls to listen to me,” she joked.
“I guess I do owe you for all of it, huh?” I sarcastically remarked with a grin.
“Yes, you do,” she replied sarcastically, “But in all seriousness, there’s really only one thing I could ever ask you to do in return.”
“That would be?”
She turned away from her sketch table and faced me with a smile.
“Make Twilight the happiest girl she can possibly be.”
Then she winked before turning back around.
“I’ll do my best,” I answered.
For all the sarcastic remarks and sometimes overly playful prodding, I often felt amazed at the depth of Rarity’s sweetness. In the beginning, I tried really hard to shut her out. I thought she was just interested in the potential gossip she could spread about me and Twilight. I was always under the impression that’s how she got her entertainment. Instead, she spent months proving the opposite.
When I tried to tell her I didn’t need her help when I very clearly did, she persisted until I accepted. When I felt like it was all over after Camp Everfree, she went out of her way to convince me it wasn’t. When I felt down on myself, she was there to remind me that there was more good in me than I gave myself credit for. If not for her, I would never have had any plan at all. I’d be aimlessly wandering through life, looking for the “right time” that never seemed to come.
Rarity had done so much for me. And at the end, here she was, making me yet another outfit – something that would more than likely take her until the sun rose – and all she asked in return is I make my girlfriend happy.
I felt myself blush at that last thought. I still can’t believe she’s my girlfriend. I hope I never stop feeling giddy about that. I don’t think I ever will.
Still, as I stood there in her room and watched her work, I felt my curiosity build. I thought back to the day she brought that bottle of wine to my apartment. Before we drank, I tried to get her to tell me why she was helping me. She only gave me one reason, though. After that, we made a deal: if things worked out, I wouldn’t ask her what the other motives were. Her end of the deal was satisfied, and now the onus was on me to keep my end of the bargain.
I silently and aimlessly wandered around her room, trying to distract myself by looking at all the various tools, fabrics, and knick knacks that lined the many shelves on her walls. But the questions still burned in the back of my mind. Generosity was one thing, but the sheer lengths she went to all on my behalf left me perplexed. We’d only been friends for about a year, so perhaps I was missing some perspective, but I’d never seen her go out of her way to help any of the other girls as much as she did for me.
Then I thought a little more. The fact that we’d only known each other for as long as we had only drove home my point. She’d known the other girls since middle school. Maybe there were things she did for them back then I wasn’t aware of. Still, that didn’t change the fact that she had done so much for me. Someone who she loathed just a year prior. Someone who was terribly mean to her for months before then. It didn’t add up. But it wasn’t my place to ask.
I wasn’t going to ask, either. Instead, I thought about another question to ask. Perhaps I could spark up a conversation and use that to push all these thoughts into the back of my mind. If nothing else, I could always try to ask one of the other girls if they knew anything later on.
“Hey, Rarity,” I began, “Have you designed your outfit for the formal yet?”
By now she’d moved on from her drawing board, her eyes scanning over a shelf of various fabrics.
“I have not,” she answered.
I was taken aback by that. How had she not come up with something yet? The thought crossed my mind that perhaps she was just going to go with what she wore last year, but Rarity would never wear an outfit twice. Especially not to the same event.
If she didn't have an outfit for herself yet, why was she designing something for me instead of herself? I could easily throw together my own ensemble before the formal. It wouldn’t be as glamorous, sure, but my personal style was pretty versatile and easy to work with. By that I mean I have tons of cool band shirts and 3 pairs of skinny jeans that range in quality from "ragged" to "sorta nice".
“How are you going to make one in time?” I inquired. “The formal is tomorrow night.”
She didn’t answer for a few seconds. Instead, she reached for a high up shelf to grab something. As she retrieved a long piece of fabric, she opened her mouth to respond.
“I’m not going,” she stated. The fanciful tone that she almost always spoke in was absent. Instead, she sounded dry and very matter-of-fact.
“What? Why?” I asked.
“I’m not going to have time to make myself an outfit, and I’m more than likely going to be awake until the morning. I’ve got one to make for Twilight as well, after all.”
I gave her a confused look. “Then make yourself something instead! Twilight and I can figure something out on our own.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it, darling. This is your first date together, and I want you both to look stunning.” I would have expected some excitement in her voice, but once again her tone was mostly deadpan.
She continued to work, walking from cabinet to cupboard, grabbing tools from drawers and placing other ones back.
“If that means that you aren’t coming, we’d be fine with it. I don’t want you to miss out, and I don’t think Twilight or any of the other girls would want you to either.” I appealed.
“Sunset,” she insisted, “I’ve made up my mind, and I would appreciate it if you'd just accept my answer.”
There was something she wasn’t telling me. Rarity had reminded me the Fall Formal was coming up a week ago. I was surprised when she did, and she’d been keeping better track of the date than I had. If she was aware it was coming up so well in advance, there was no reason she shouldn’t have already made herself something.
Unless she was never planning on going to begin with.
But why? Why wouldn’t she want to come? It didn’t make any sense. All this work for me and Twilight just to not see the fruits of her labor? I couldn't accept that answer. What kind of friend would I be if I did?
“You’re one of my best friends – you’re all of our best friend. It just won’t be the same without you.”
“Sunset.” She sounded annoyed this time. “I am not going. Please just accept my answer and drop it.”
No. There was more to this than she was letting me know. I may not have questioned why she was so willing to help me, but I wasn’t going to let this go.
“I just don’t understand. If you don't want to go, then fine. Why can’t you just tell me why?”
Suddenly, she placed everything in her hands down onto the top of a nearby bureau. Then she stood still for a few seconds. The tension in the air was thick. What had her so worked up about this?
She scowled as she looked over her shoulder at me. “I am not asking you to understand. I'm not asking you anything at all. This is not a request. Stop asking me why and just drop it. After everything I’ve done to help you, the very least you can do is not interrogate me.”
Interrogate? Was that what this was to her? All I was doing was asking why she wasn’t coming to the Fall Formal. It shouldn’t be that contentious.
“I agreed not to ask why you helped me, but this is different! Why are you being so combative about this?” I contended.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then she fully turned around to face me.
“You will either accept my answer and I will continue to work on this for you, or you will get out of my house and figure out your own outfit. This is not a discussion I’m having with you, Sunset. Just. Drop it.” Her glare intensified.
I’d never seen Rarity get so hostile with me, or anyone at all. Even the times in which I tried to get on her nerves, she never got this way with me. She may have seemed angry, but it was always in a jokey, light-hearted kind of way. Right now, she was genuinely angry. And it didn’t seem like she wanted to be like this.
I didn’t care. Something was wrong. Maybe I was overstepping a boundary, but I couldn’t let her do so much for me just to back down when she needed help.
I stood firmly in place. “You can do what you want, but I’m not going anywhere until you tell me what’s wrong.”
The room went silent as we stared each other down. As I looked in her eyes, her expression looked pained. Like the rage she was displaying was purely out of defense. I was cornering her, and this was her last warning before she lashed out.
“Are you going to make me beg? Is that what this is? Are you so hellbent on an answer to such an irrelevant question that you’d make me get down on my knees and plead for you to drop it?!” she seethed.
I flinched at her sudden increase in volume. Her voice sounded choked. My normal response to someone raising their voice at me like this was to do the same, but she looked hurt; almost fearful. I had to be calm. I needed to be delicate.
“That’s not at all what I want, Rarity. I’m just worried about you. I’ve never seen you get like this, and I don’t understand why. You helped me, now let me help you,” I said in the softest voice I could.
“You’re just going to force a confession out of me, aren’t you?” she barked.
“Rarity, please. I don’t know what you’re talking about. If there’s something wrong, I just want you to talk to me about it,” I appealed.
She growled in frustration. I could tell my attempts at placating her were a resounding failure.
“Just how much of a blithering idiot can you be?!” Tears began to flow from her eyes.
I recoiled, looking at her in shock. “What?!”
She smiled, letting out an empty laugh as she did. “Sunset, your beauty is only matched by your sheer obliviousness.”
Rarity looked away from me as she wiped away the tears in her eyes. I could hear her laugh a little more as she did. I couldn’t even begin to form a response. Instead, I just stood there, completely dumbfounded, before beginning to ask again.
"Wha–?"
She banged her fist on the bureau behind her. “I’m in love with you, you dimwitted slut!” she hissed.
Oh. Oh.
A plane could have crashed through the roof and hit me square in the stomach, and it would still have less impact on me than her words. I wasn’t even upset by her insult. It just completely stunned me. I could barely think, but with what little brainpower I could summon, I immediately started putting pieces together in my head.
“Why do you think I spent months on this with you?! Everything I did – all of it – was because I love you! I love you and I know you don’t love me! But I don’t care that you don’t love me! I just wanted to see you happy! There! Is that a good enough answer for you?! Or do I need to spell it out for you, too?! Should I draw some pictures and diagrams?!”
I felt like I should be more insulted, but I just felt bad for her. Her shouting got weaker with every word. Her voice was wavering, and I could hear her struggle not to choke as she said them. The thing that struck me the most was how familiar some of her words were. It wasn’t but a few hours ago I was shouting something incredibly similar at Twilight.
It made me feel incredibly stupid.
“Seeing you happy is what makes me happy. But now that we’re here, now that we’re at the end, I feel empty inside. How could you expect me to go to the Fall Formal?! Just the thought of seeing you happy with her instead of me is... is–”
Rarity coughed as the choking finally caught up with her. She buried her face in her hands as her back hit the bureau behind her. As it did, she slowly collapsed to the ground, her knees went up at an angle as her back slid down the drawers behind her. She curled up into a ball and sobbed loudly.
“Rarity, I–”
I could see Rarity’s eyeliner trailing down her cheeks as she looked up at me again. “And now, after this, y-you won’t need me anymore. You have the girl you’ve always wanted! And even though I gave you the storybook ending I’ve always wanted, all I’ll ever be is a footnote!” she wailed.
I was almost glad she interrupted me. There wasn’t much I could think to say to make things any better for her. I wanted to comfort her, but what was there to say?
The familiar feelings of shame and regret flowed through me once more. Everything she’d done for me flashed through my mind. All the times she would let me gush about Twilight for hours on end, all the conversations we had that would eventually gravitate back toward Twilight with no protest from her. This whole time, she was feeling the same way about me that I felt about Twilight. Yet all I could ever focus on was Twilight, so I never noticed. And I knew how awful it was to hear about someone you love talking about someone they love more than you. It was excruciating.
And I’d been doing that to her all along.
I felt so incredibly stupid. Rarity was right, I was an idiot. An oblivious one at that. It was all so painfully obvious. Maybe not at the beginning, but I should have been able to tell when she didn’t tell anyone my secret. I should have been able to tell that night she brought the wine over. I should have been able to tell a thousand times after that. She was less subtle than I was with Twilight, yet I somehow never picked up on it.
Now, because of me, she was a shriveled mess on the floor. What could I say? What could I do? There were no winning moves. There was no path forward to make her happy. All the work she’d done, and this was how I repaid her. Even when I didn’t try to, I was still exceptionally good at hurting people.
Then, an even more immense sense of guilt washed over me again. Not only was I responsible for hurting her, I was just standing here feeling sorry for myself. The girl who had spent months helping me achieve something she so desperately wanted was in so much pain, and all I could think about is how it made me feel. Just like earlier, I wanted nothing more than to run away. To turn around and never look at her or anyone else here ever again.
But I wouldn’t. Maybe I didn’t know how to make it right, but I had to try. Rarity needed me to do something. And I would be a coward to abandon her. I had to set aside my feelings. It wasn’t about me.
I approached her slowly as she continued to sob into herself. Every step I took, I’d pause for a moment before taking the next. She had been trying to recover from her hysteria for a minute or so now. Her breathing was more stable, but she was still struggling.
“Go away! Get out!” she shouted.
I winced, but I didn’t listen. I just kept walking toward her.
“Just leave me alone! I hate you!” she hissed.
I flinched again. That really hurt to hear, but I had to let it roll off. She’s just hurting right now. She doesn’t mean it.
I hope.
Finally, I was close to her. I knelt down and got on my knees. Steadily, I wrapped my arms around her, resting her head under my chin. For a few seconds, Rarity didn’t respond. She just kept crying, occasionally coughing and choking on her own throat. After half a minute or so, I felt her unravel herself as she pushed herself into me. I sat on the ground as her arms wrapped around my waist. Her face was buried in my stomach. Immediately she began to sob again.
“I’m so sorry, Rarity,” I whispered, “Just let it all out.”
And let it all out she did. I don’t know how long it was. I just sat there; holding her close and rubbing her back as she cried. I don’t know if I’d ever seen her or anyone else cry this long and hard before.
I thought back to this evening. When I was inconsolable after everything with Twilight. How she guided my breathing like I often did for her when she panicked.
I breathed deep. Inhale for seven seconds, hold for three, exhale for seven, hold for three, repeat. I did it just loud enough for her to hear me, though she could probably feel my diaphragm relax and contract from where her face rested. Eventually, Rarity caught on and tried to mimic my breathing. It took a few minutes, and there were a few moments where she relapsed, but after a while she got the hang of it.
Once her breathing was stable, she unlatched her hands from around my waist and pushed herself back up. As her face left my stomach, I looked down at my blouse. Her eyeliner had left smears of black all over it. When I looked up at her face, her cheeks looked like ink blots. I stifled a giggle, biting my tongue to do so. As I tasted blood in my mouth, I realized I bit the same spot earlier in the evening when everything happened with Twilight. If I needed to stop myself from smiling again any time soon, I might accidentally give myself a tongue piercing. I made a mental note not to do that for a few days.
Rarity sat up, crossing her legs and leaning back against the bureau again. I could tell she was embarrassed. Her swollen eyes looked everywhere around the room except at me. I looked into her eyes, though. It was a simple gesture, but I was hoping it would convey to her that I wasn’t upset at her.
Things were quiet for a little bit. I wasn’t sure exactly what to say, and I couldn’t imagine she had much either. Instead of trying to think of what to say next, I just sat there and waited for her.
“I-I’m… really sorry, Sunset,” she trembled, “I didn’t mean to get like that.”
I gave her a comforting smile. “It’s okay. I’m sorry, too. I should have dropped it before things escalated.”
She shook her head. “It’s not your fault. I knew you were oblivious. I should have known better than to think you were trying to pry a confession out of me.” She let out a half-hearted chuckle.
Then things went quiet again. She continued to look around the room.
“So,” she began, “What happens now?”
I shrugged. “I was hoping you’d be able to answer that, honestly.”
Rarity scoffed, “I’m so frazzled I probably couldn’t tell you what day of the week it is.”
I giggled. “It’s Thursday, for what it’s worth.”
That got an actual laugh out of her. “Gosh, you’re so stupid,” she joked.
Another bout of silence followed. Once again, I just sat and waited.
“I guess since my secret is out now, I can ask this: what do you think of me?” asked Rarity.
That was a hard question to answer right away. Rarity was one of my best friends, and I’ve always liked her a lot. However, it occurred to me that I’d never given much thought about what I liked about her and why. Sure, she’d done so much to help me out of the graciousness of her heart, but that didn’t really count, did it? That wasn’t what she was asking for, either.
She wanted to know how I felt about her. And after a bit of contemplation, I gave her my best answer.
“For starters, I think you’re absolutely gorgeous. Twilight says she thinks I’m the prettiest girl in school, but I think you have me beat by several miles,” I answered.
“I’m surprised you’d say that about me instead of her,” she said with an empty laugh.
I shook my head. “Twilight is cute. While not mutually exclusive, pretty and cute are two entirely different categories to me. My preferred type just happens to be cute.”
That got a smile out of her. It made me smile too. I was making up for how far behind I was on friendship points.
“Aside from that, you have a level of emotional intelligence I’ve never seen in anyone else. I know I’ve said it a few times tonight, but I still can’t believe you were right about everything. That’s seriously amazing. Just saying, I think you'd make an amazing therapist. Or psychic.”
With a blush, she chuckled and looked away. That just encouraged me to keep going.
“You’re the most caring person I’ve ever met, too. We might have been friends when this all began, but I was still kind of a jerk to you. You were just trying to help me, but I pushed you away for months because I always assumed the worst about you. At any time, you could have labeled me the same jerk you used to know and given up on me, and I wouldn’t have blamed you,” I explained.
She turned to look at me. Her expression made it seem like I’d said something offensive.
“I would never!” she exclaimed.
Up until now, everything she said had a tint of dejection. It took me by surprise how animated her response was.
“After the Fall Formal, I saw how hard you were trying to be a good friend. Not just to me, but to all of us. Often at your own expense, no less. Then, when Twilight transferred, you doubled that effort. You made her feel welcome in a way the rest of us struggled to figure out, and you did it so easily!” she asserted.
“To be fair, it’s hard not to form a bond with someone who has the extremely specific experience of turning into a magic demon,” I contested.
“Fair point, I suppose,” she surrendered.
We both got a good laugh out of that.
“Back to my main point, though: you did so much for me out of the goodness of your own heart. You didn’t have to, and it even inconvenienced you on more than one occasion. And you were doing it all knowing it meant if everything worked out, the person you loved would end up with someone else. That’s something I would never expect out of anyone,” I explained.
Rarity looked down, an empty smile on her face. “If I’m honest – and you never heard me say this – I was never absolutely sure I was right about anything.” Then she paused for a moment. “Oh, except for the fact that Twilight was a lesbian. I knew that since before you two got close.”
I chuckled. “If you’d never told me that, I’d have been none the wiser. But I appreciate the honesty.”
“It feels terrible to admit this, but as much as I love to be right, there was always a small part of me that was hoping I was wrong. The whole way through, I thought if things went terribly wrong I’d have my chance. That’s why I made the deal with you. If you and Twilight weren’t meant to be, I could finally admit my feelings. I didn’t know if you’d ever feel the same way about me, but it’d be the perfect opportunity.”
She turned to the side again, letting out a deep sigh. “I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.”
I put my hand on her shoulder. “I don’t want to lead you on or anything, but if things had gone that route, I don’t doubt I’d have said yes.”
“You don’t have to worry about leading me on, darling. I’ve long since accepted that we would more than likely never be an item. I always hoped for the best, but always prepared for the worst just the same,” she replied.
I smiled at her. “For what it’s worth, I don’t doubt you’ll find a girl even better than me. It could be tomorrow, it could be a few months from now, but it will happen. You’re too good for it not to happen. When you find her, she’ll make you much happier than I could ever make you.”
She blushed again. Then, for the first time in a while, the room went quiet. After about a minute, I decided it was my turn to speak up first.
“There’s one more thing I wanted to address,” I remarked.
She looked me in the eye. “What is it, darling?”
“You said I won't need you anymore, but that couldn't be further from the truth. Just because Twilight and I are together now doesn’t mean I won’t need you. If anything, I need you now more than ever. Do you know how many girls I’ve dated? None! And you, more than anyone, know how clueless and oblivious I am.”
She looked away again and let out an uncomfortable laugh. In hindsight, that probably wasn’t the best thing to say at the moment.
“But even if you don’t want to help me, that’s fine too. You’ve done more than enough for me, and I couldn’t ask for any more than you’ve already given me. I don’t just need you because you’re helpful – I need you because you’re Rarity. You’re my best friend. I haven’t spent this much time with you just for me to give it all up now. You said it yourself: we have history.”
Rarity looked toward me and smiled. Whew, what a recovery.
“Thank you, Sunset. Even if we can’t be together, I still feel so lucky to have you in my life.”
I leaned forward and hugged her. “And thank you, Rarity. I feel just as lucky to have you, too.”
We held that hug for a few minutes. It felt just like it did with Twilight. Neither of us wanted to pull away. But I knew it was getting late, and tomorrow was a big day. Once again, I had to be the one to get things moving. I pulled away and stood up, and she followed my motions not long after.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I probably won’t be able to finish your outfit in time for the Fall Formal,” she said apologetically.
I shook my head. “Not a problem. I’ve got an idea for an outfit for myself, and Twilight prefers to keep things modest anyway. Plus, you’ve got to make something for yourself, right?” I said with a wink.
She looked around her room. Not aimlessly like when we were sitting on the floor. This time, she was thinking.
“If I want any hope of sleeping tonight, I’ll more than likely just have to make edits to last year’s outfit. But I think I’ll manage,” she confirmed.
She smiled, and I smiled back. Then we stood there silently for a bit. I looked into her eyes, and she looked into mine. As we stared, I got a crazy idea. One that could totally backfire. One that might not be the right thing to do. Twilight may not be that happy about it, and Rarity might outright reject it, but for the first time in a long time, I gave in to an impulse.
“I’m so sorry if this is weird,” I quickly remarked.
“Wh–”
That was all Rarity could say before I grabbed her and pulled her into me. As she stumbled forward, our lips met. At first she was surprised, but as she realized what I’d done, she began to relax. I held that moment for as long as she wanted to. After a few seconds, though, she pulled away. I followed her motion.
“Wh– I just– Uhm…” she stammered. Rarity’s face was burning up as she stepped back.
“I’m… really sorry if that was inappropriate.” I apologized.
For a few moments she just stood there in a blushing stupor. For the first time I could remember, Rarity – Rarity of all people – was completely speechless. No smartass comments. No witty retort. Just dizziness and stuttering.
“Th-That wasn't, uhm… I-It… th-thank you.” Rarity smiled wide, the redness of her cheeks was visible under the stains of her eyeliner.
I gave her a few moments to snap out of her trance and regain her composure.
“I’m gonna go ahead and bounce now,” I said, “Unless you want me to stick around a little while longer?”
“That’s fine, darling. I’ll be okay. Besides, you’ve got a big day tomorrow. I don’t care if it makes you late for school, you’d better get enough sleep!” she exclaimed.
“Sure thing, mom,” I prodded. She stuck her tongue out at me.
I waved as I made my way out the door. “I’ll see you at school tomorrow!”
“See you then, dear!” She waved back, immediately turning back toward her work materials once more.
When I’d arrived at Rarity’s, I’d felt full of a seemingly infinite amount of energy. As I made my way out her front door and to her driveway, I felt the exhaustion of everything that had happened through the day catch up with me. The rollercoaster of emotions I had, both with Twilight and now this, made my brain feel like it had been sitting in a deep fryer for a few days. As I sighed, I almost doubled over in pain. I could really feel how bruised my ribs were now.
I got on my bike and started making the ride home. I was grateful for the fact that Rarity lived closer to me than Twilight did. There were no highways to ride on, no exits to take. Just navigating the streets of Canterlot City. At this time of night, hardly anyone was driving. The streets were clear, and I could maintain the speed limit without the push and pull of traffic acting as an obstacle.
It wasn’t long before I pulled into the familiar, dingy parking lot that sat behind my apartment complex. An ugly sight to behold. Considering my exhaustion though, it was very welcome. I parked my bike, put my helmet away, struggled up the stairs and unlocked the door to my apartment. As the door shut behind me and I locked it again, I felt an immense relief. Home at last.
The final hurdle before me and the rest I so desperately needed was just a handful of yards and a ladder away. I undressed myself as I walked toward the loft my bed sat upon. Every rung of the ladder was twice as hard to climb as the next. Once I finally rose to the top, I faceplanted onto the bed. I should have felt relieved that I’d finally made it. However, I could feel all the nerves in my abdominal area light up at once.
Right. I tripped. How could I forget?
I flipped over onto my back, lazily tossing my blanket over my body. One of my legs was still exposed, but I didn’t care enough to fix it. Moving was too hard. Thinking was too hard. Everything was too hard.
I knew it wouldn’t take me too long to fall asleep, but for the last few moments I was still awake, the events of the day began to pass through my head. As stressful as it all was, I was still very happy. Tomorrow, I’d go to school and get to see my girlfriend again. Later that day, I’d get to take her out to our first date. I was so excited, and even in my exhaustion, I still felt giddy as the words "my girlfriend" passed through my head over and over.
For once, everything felt good. Except for my abdomen, of course. Falling onto the surface of my plush bed a few seconds ago was still more than enough to remind me of my bruises from when I kissed the concrete.
But I also kissed two girls. All in all, I’d say that’s a pretty fair trade.
Apologies if this isn't the ending you wanted for Rarity, but it's the one that worked best for everyone in my mind.
This is the penultimate chapter! (9/15/22 EDIT: Or, it was until I wrote the next one) That means there's one more left to go. That said, I have a silly little epilogue I want to write after that too, but I don't know if it'll be ready immediately after the next chapter. The final chapter will be out soon, though!
Also, unrelated to anything, but this chapter pushes this story to the highest word count of anything I've ever written. Yay me!
1/23/23 EDIT: Thanks again to EileenSaysHi for editing this chapter! This one in particular needed quite a bit of work.
As always, thanks for reading! 
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Sunset had better come clean to Twilight about all of that . .
Kind of surprised we never got a confrontation between Timber and Sunset.
Still, very cute and fun.
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Not to spoil anything, but there is one chapter left!
Just when I thought the previous chapter was emotional.
It was heartbreaking that Rarity was willing to let Sunset and Twilight be together, even though she missed her chance. But at least Sunset still cares for Rarity as her best friend.
I've always hated poly endings because they feel like a cop-out. I do feel bad for Rares though. Maybe AJ might be receptive.
thank celestia, even if rarity couldnt be with the one she loved, she still got to know how much sunset still values her and cares for her. And to top it all off, she got a kiss from her too! I bet she'll be having that on her mind quite a lot, hell it'll be on my mind too. So sudden, but so sweet
Now, on to the fall formal!!!
I think you should remove 'last' in the first sentence as it makes no sense with it there.
Is Sunset afraid of them or something?
Actually she has a few times in Eqg.
https://m.Agreed.
Good for you Rarity.
https://m.Lol
Still can't believe Sunset did that.
I KNEW I ALWAYS KNEW
applejack 🤨🤨🤨
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You'll see. Someday Soon™️
i will say, it is deeply sad, and yet, incredibly show-accurate for rarity to be in unrequited love with someone, lmao. This is such a normal daily occurance for her on the actual canon, but it certainly does not make it any sadder here
I will say i don't mind sunset's kiss with her in the slightest; mostly 'cause like; that girl worked so damn hard. too generous for her own good. at the very least, that kiss can serve as a well deserved reward for her hard work. Still extremely happy about Sunset n Twi getting together though!
Great work as usual!