Chapter 5
Flash stared hard at the envelope on the table in front of him, almost as though he was trying to will it out of existence. University of Manehattan was proudly stamped on the face of it, and he could tell that Timber had already read its contents based on the clean tear along the top. He didn’t need to read the letter inside, because he already knew what it said. He could feel the lead weight in his stomach as he swallowed, working up the courage for what came next.
Looking up from the letter at Timber, who had been silently sitting across from him, Flash gave a huge, happy grin. “I’m so proud of you, dude. Congrats on getting in.”
With a small smile, Timber nodded slowly. He opened his mouth for a second, and then closed it again, unable to find the words he was looking for. A second more, and he finally responded. A simple “Thanks, man,” was all he could utter.
Flash’s smile melted into a frown, his eyes returning to the envelope. He took a deep breath, choosing his words carefully before speaking again. “You know you don’t have to go, if you don’t want to, Timber.”
“I never said I didn’t want to go.” Their eyes met, both with different kinds of frustration dancing beneath the surface.
“This is your dream school, isn’t it? You should go, I’ll be ok.” Flash tried his best to sound reassuring, but he wasn’t sure if he was reassuring Timber or himself at the moment.
Timber reached out across the table and took Flash’s hand in his own. Holding it tight; not hard enough to hurt, but firm enough to feel his pulse. “It is, and I want to go, but I also don’t want to leave you.”
Laying a hand over his boyfriend’s, Flash tried to smile again, but couldn’t quite manage it this time. He tried to think of what to say, but his emotions were so twisted up at the moment, that nothing came to mind. He so desperately wanted to come up with anything to say that would make this situation better, something that would cheer up Timber, and let them smile together. As much as he wanted that, he knew that it wasn’t going to be so easy. He had known it for the past two months, and he had dreaded it every time they held hands, hugged, or kissed.
“It’s funny, isn’t it? In a screwed up sorta way.” When Flash finally spoke again, his voice was low and cracked from the tightness in his throat. “I wanted so badly to help you get over your break up, that I accidentally set you up for another.”
Timber squeezed Flash’s hand tighter as he shook his head. “No, you didn’t. We-”
Interrupting him, Flash raised his voice, choking out his words. “I mean, I’ve been thinking about it since we started dating. I knew you wanted to go to Manehattan University, and I still agreed anyway. It was doomed from the start.”
“Flash, you-”
“I’m sorry,” he said, his voice just above a whisper, “I just wanted you to be happy.”
The two of them sat in silence for a moment, with Timber still holding Flash’s hand tightly. At some point, Flash started squeezing back, hard enough to actually hurt, but Timber didn’t say anything. They sat like that, the quiet stretching for what felt like forever.
When Timber finally spoke, his voice was tender and patient. “Are you done yet, dude?”
Flash’s face twisted in confusion, tears in his eyes. “What are you talking about? Done doing what?”
Timber gave a weak chuckle, shaking his head. “Being stupid. Are you done being stupid?”
“Am I missing something?” An annoyed scowl was on Flash’s face now as he blinked away the tears. “Are we breaking up or not? Because I’m getting some mixed signals here.”
Taking a deep breath, Timber gathered himself for a moment before shaking his head again. “I don’t want to break up, Flash. I want to figure this out. That’s why I called you over here. So we can talk, maybe think of a solution together. I don’t want to break up.”
Flash let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding, wheezing slightly as he slumped over. “Jeez, you couldn’t have said that before I had a meltdown there? I really thought we were breaking up over this.”
“Sorry, man! I thought you were going to break up with me when I told you. I’ve always been bad at communicating my feelings, you should know that by now!”
The two couldn’t help but awkwardly laugh together, feeling equally relieved over the quickly rectified misunderstanding between them. After a moment of chortling, the pair refocused on the dilemma that still stood at hand.
“So, you want to go, but you also don’t want to break up.” Flash raised an inquisitive brow at his boyfriend.
“Yeah,” sighed Timber, “Which is easier said than done. I’m going to be moving far. Really far. So unless you want to come with me, we’re going to have to make this a long-distance sort of thing.”
Flash bit his lip, thinking about Princess Twilight. Doubts of the validity of a relationship between two people with such a separation between them began to worm their way into his mind. Even still, Flash made an effort to push them aside, because if it meant staying with Timber in the long run, it was worth the difficulties that would come with it.
“I mean, hey… I’m willing to give it a shot if you are, dude.”
“Just keep in mind that means I’m not going to be able to cook for you anymore,” teased Timber with a snarky smirk, “At least, unless you come to visit. Are you sure you’re going to be able to survive without me?”
Flash nodded thoughtfully at the notion. “That’s true… I’m going to have to learn to live without your awesome home-cooked meals. The real question is, are you gonna be able to live without all of this?” replied Flash as he broadly gestured up and down himself.
Timber blushed slightly, rolling his eyes. “You’re an idiot, have I mentioned that?”
“A few times, I think,” responded Flash, with an amused grin. The expression didn’t last though, as the weight of the situation resettled in his stomach, pulling down the corners of his mouth with it.
Chewing on his cheek, Timber was quiet, trying to work out the logistics of the problem at hand, along with potential solutions. He knew that there wasn’t going to be any easy way around it, no simple solution. As fun as it was to joke about it, long distance was no laughing matter. It was a deciding factor that would make or break most relationships, and he knew that his was no exception.
Flash watched his boyfriend mull it over in his head in silence for a moment, trying to think of some way to contribute. He knew he wasn’t the smartest guy in town. He wasn’t even the smartest guy in the room. Even still, Flash knew that he had something to offer that was invaluable here. Rainbow Dash might be the Element of Loyalty, but he was the next best thing.
Standing up, he kept a firm grip on Timber’s hand. At first, Timber looked perturbed by the sudden movement, but when he saw Flash’s calm expression, he too was calmed. Flash gestured towards the bed, with a nod of his head, and Timber rose from his seat to follow.
Flash towed his boyfriend over to the bed, and laid down first before dragging Timber down beside him. He wrapped an arm around Timber and pulled him close, holding him tight against his chest.
The two laid there like that, with Timber tucked in Flash’s arms, resting his head on his boyfriend’s chest. Listening to the steady, strong heartbeat, like the very first time that Flash held him like this, two whole months ago. It wasn’t exactly the same though, because last time it felt hopeful, as Timber had imagined how many times in the future he would hear that rhythmic thump-thumping.
This time, it felt foreboding, and Timber found himself treasuring the beats as if they would suddenly just leave him at any moment. They were a palpable reminder of just how close Flash and Timber had become over the past few months, and it was something he would miss dearly.
“You know I love you, right?”
Timber hesitated for a second, before quietly answering. “I know.”
“Not just in a ‘I love you bro’ kinda way.”
Timber managed a small chuckle, before nodding. “Yeah, I love you too, you dork.” He pushed his face into Flash’s chest, taking comfort in the familiar scent.
“Do you have a plan?” When Timber didn’t respond, he said, “In that case, here’s mine. First, you go to Manehattan.”
Timber looked up at Flash expectantly, his brow furrowed with concern. Before he could interject however, Flash continued.
“Secondly, I’m going to stay here and get a job.”
“What kind of job?”
“We’ll see, that’s not important right now. Third, I’m going to come visit you, one week out of every month. I’ve got a car, I can make the trip.”
Timber opened his mouth to retort, but chose not to, instead letting Flash finish first.
“Lastly, I’m going to wait for you to finish University and come back. And when you do, we’re going to live together. How’s that for a plan?”
A moment of silence passed between them before Timber finally smiled, saying, “That’s not really a plan, dude.”
“It’s good enough for me. How about you?”
He could have thought about all the problems with Flash’s “plan.” All the ways that things could go wrong, or the situations where things might not work out. However, Timber couldn’t help but feel inspired by his boyfriend’s simple bravado. The boldness of the claim gave the illusion of certainty. After all, if Flash was so certain it would work out, who was he to refute it? Surely if they both believed it together, it would come to replace whatever other reality they face.
“If it’s good enough for you, then it’s good enough for me.”
And so the two laid there, together for the rest of the evening, only getting up again to eat dinner together, before falling asleep in each other’s arms like they had done so many times already. Like how they would so many times more.
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10/10 without reading it because that’s a genius pairing I’ve never thought of
Very cute, good pacing too.
Always great to see genuine effort and passion put into these less common ships.
11550798
Thank you kindly! I did actually put quite a bit of effort into this one... More than I expected to, really. I'm very happy to hear you enjoyed it!
Honestly, I ship this more than either of them with Twilight.
11550953
I am a firm believer of SciSet Supremacy, and that is my go-to ship to write about. However, I figured I'd try something a little different with this fic. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!
Howdy, hi!
This was fun. Always glad to see more gay flash. Solid slice of life with a bunch of cute moments. It does feel a bit disjointed and too quick paced at times, but the feel good core is a blast. Thanks for the read!
Fluffy and sweet.
I do feel it runs a bit too fast though, some time to breathe with all this would be great.
11551015 11551027
Thank you both for your feedback. It was a bit difficult to build up the story how I wanted, considering the contest has a word limit of 15k. Originally, this was a small, 3k word project that quickly blew up to 10k as I tried to shape it and improve the pacing. Ultimately, I agree it still ended up a little fast, but despite that I hope you still had fun reading it.
11551030
Oh I did, it just feels like it could have been 3 different fics.
1. The lead up and consumation of the romance.
2. The double date, both lads feelings and the outcome of Twilight asking for a foursome.
3. TImber and Flash coming to terms with college
11551072
Oh... I hadn't even considered that as a possibility. I suppose I got tunnel vision thinking solely about the contest, and tried to cram all of the beats into a single story, but you're right. It probably would have been a lot better as multiple.
Eh, oh well. Live and learn. I'll definitely keep this in mind for the future though.
Just wanted to say that I love this story a lot and it's so cute and fluffy ahdbdjdbdjfbdjsjns Thank you for making such masterpiece ✨✨✨✨✨
11552623
Thank you, truly. This story totally flopped, and I've been feeling pretty bad about it the last few days, but I'm very happy to hear that you like it so much!
And thank you again for letting me use your absolutely adorable art for the cover! I really do love your art, and I only wish this story could have been more successful, so that more people could have appreciated it.
11552632
Like it? I love it! It's actually the best timberflash fic I've ever read in my life. You're doing amazing, don't worry. If you think that people don't appreciate much of this story, just remember that I love this story a lot and think that you're truly awesome ✨✨✨✨✨
11553009
Ha, I meant was actually talking about people not appreciating the art you provided... But I really do thank you for the kind words. I was actually just speaking with my partners a moment ago how your first comment really helped cheer me up today, and here you are again giving me yet another dose of good feelings. I am deeply grateful for it, and I think I'll be riding these positive vibes as I begin my next project. Thank you again very much for reading, and for the bountiful encouragement.
Sorry for the late comment, was meaning to read this story the second I saw the artwork but my work pulled me away.
Anyways, this story was a genuine delight to read, there are so few FlashSpruce fics out there so it’s always wonderful to see new ones added. There were plenty of heartfelt moments that made the story enjoyable and entertaining. I will agree that there were a couple of moments that seemed a bit too fast paced, but it didn’t devalue the overall enjoyment of story in my opinion.
The college part was definitely my favorite, it’s cliche I know but it hits close to home with me because a good friend of mine went through the exact same thing and made his relationship work. Some advice if you want it you could’ve shown a chapter of a week when Flash is visiting. Have Timber give Flash the tour of his campus and dorm, have Timber show off his hot Boyfriend to all his new college classmates, and have Flash and Timber spend a video call with each other when Flash gets back.
Also, my favorite parts from the previous chapter
Nice to see I’m not the only one that headcannons Flash knows how to ice skate. Love the idea that the guy who has next to no depth perception is somehow a master on the ice.
There’s a “falling down, I’m yelling Timber!” Joke in there somewhere.
I’m blabbering, I know, so in summary this story made my week and you should be proud that you made it. Thank you so much for this fabulous fic.
11553962
I will be sure to be more mindful of pacing in the future, considering how many people have mentioned the fast pace. Who knows, I may just rewrite this someday without the constraints of a contest word limit, but no promises there. Hell, maybe I'll do more with this ship and write a sequel or something. I won't lie, the idea of Timber boasting to his classmates about Flash brought a smile to my face. As always, I am delighted to hear that someone read a story of mine and enjoyed it. Thank you for your comment, and for your positivity. That brightens my week.
11553992
Looking forward to a sequel if you decide to do it. Feel free to use any of the ideas I suggested. And I’m glad I was able to spread that good ol’ positivity
In around 9k words, which in reading it felt like only a thousand from how quickly I pored over it because I simply could not tear my eyes away, this story has cemented itself as one of my favorite gay romance fics on the site. The praise I can give to the relationships I have already said before, but I must reiterate and stress that Timber and Flash were REALLY good together. You've breathed such loving life into both of them that is truly commendable for two guys who generally aren't seen as such. To elevate these two, and their love for one another in this way speaks volumes to your writing ability and your romantic instincts!
While I understand the critique coming to this story, I also understand as a fellow competitor of yours in this contest that we're never given as many words as we need hahaha. You had to compact a lot of this story down, which I can understand as a reader needing room to breathe, but I also understand as a reader as well that sometimes stories just have a fast pace like this. It's not that these are the only events going on in their lives, but I got the sense that the events we saw, and the events we heard about, would've gotten in and been given the same life you breathed into our two lovely protagonists. In other words, the ones that we saw were the most important ones that shaped Timber and Flash's relationship, but also their reconciliation with their exes, and their exes with them in turn. It might read a bit swiftly, but I also say that nothing is lost from such quickness!
This is all to say, this story should have performed exceptionally well, and it is a great crime that it hasn't for this is truly a fantastic fic that I will (and have through the course of reading) recommend to my friends and partners!
As an aside, I found the more sexual jokes in the story to be the ones that landed the most precisely and got the loudest laughs out of me. Sunset is truly a riot, and her making those kinds of jokes and suggestions is perfectly natural and excessively funny! Really, and I mean this so honestly, this was immaculate. I look forward to reading your other work!
11578036
Firstly, thank you so much for reading! I always appreciate comments and hearing input from my readers! That aside, I must admit that beyond the scope of memes, I never understood why people just straight up hate Flash and Timber. I only ever got the impression over the course of EQG that they're two really sweet guys who are really good and loyal friends. After writing so much SciSet over the past year, it just felt right to give some love to the two poor lads. I think they both deserve some love and happiness, so I decided that the best way to do that is to have them give it to each other! Shame that so many people just hate them on principle, but at least we few can enjoy this ship.
11578047
I'm glad that you caught onto the little details in the interactions that I slipped in there. I know it's plain as day from the tags and art alone, but I wanted to be subtle about the budding romance. Give them time to become better friends organically before they became lovers.
11578069
And you know, I'm very happy to hear that you got lots of belly butterflies from this story, because that's really why I write romance. I've found that of all the genres, I do cutesy-feelgood romance best, and I gotta say, I totally get butterflies while writing it too. If I can deliver that giggly, giddy feeling to my readers as well, then I'm happy.
11578094
I like to imagine that Sunset and Flash had a really rough breakup, and he was probably bitter about it for a while, but when he saw that she was really working to improve herself, he was probably one of the first to approach her to amend their friendship. Considering how often Sunset and Flash were spotted hanging out together during the EQG shorts, it seemed pretty clear that they had repaired their friendship and were on good terms again, and I wanted to reflect that here. Even though they had some bad history together, they are both adult enough to move past it and maintain a healthy friendship going forward.
11578107
It's always super important to me to hear what my readers have to say about my work, and nothing makes me happier than big ol' walls of text like yours. I really am glad that you enjoyed the pacing, and especially my somewhat more raunchy jokes. I found them to be realistic and genuine, which is something I really strive for in my characterizations. I really am beyond happy that you enjoyed this as much as you did, and who knows, I may write more of these lads someday. I wasn't planning to, but I'd be lying if I said that these wonderful comments haven't swayed me a bit. Whether or not that comes to pass, I thank you again for reading and giving the lovely feedback, and I hope you enjoy my other works if you decide to read them!
I really like the premise of this, and Flash and Timber get some solid banter throughout. It’s a fun idea to have a story that does lean into to the nature of this ship as something of a “pair the spares” and them going on an outright double date with their former partners is inspired. Unfortunately, as you’ve noted, it does feel like this story suffers from its pacing, which tries to capture too many moments from their relationship in too little of a wordcount. There were a few instances where it felt like the writing was fast-forwarding using paragraphs quickly summarizing what happened, where a clean break between scenes might have worked better. But this was a fun tale regardless (I absolutely would not call it any kind of failure, and my opinion isn't representative of all the judges) and I did appreciate the myriad of ways you gave these two to bond. Thank you very much for the submission.
11589325
Oh well. Not every story is going to be a winner, and I'll have to keep what I've learned in mind for my next story. I'm glad you enjoyed it though. Maybe sometime I'll rewrite it without the word limit to better match my vision, but we'll see.
Let's be honest. Neither one ever stood a chance with either version of Twilight.
11625998
No, but they weren't supposed to. It's better this way, I think.
11626004
Oh I agree. Just needed to say it.
To the author - Omg i haven't seen nor read a timberflash/flashspruce fic in a long while!
i like that the story you wrote gave us (the readers) certain little details like of how they met up, got together, then falling in love & dating each other.
this is just a personal opinion: i can't see flash sentry being a rich kid! it doesn't fit with him because of the high school rocker vibe that he's got going on.
Lastly...please write more stories for this couple/ship it's so severely needed!
11649505
Thank you for reading! It's always nice to hear that people still enjoy my stories. As for Flash, my decision to make him a rich kid came from two places. Firstly, his pony counterpart lived as a soldier in Canterlot. It's a very prestigious position, and likely a result of his family coming from either nobility, or a long line of soldiers. The second reason being that I found the idea of a punk rocker coming from a rich family to be enticing in a character building sense. He probably feels a lot of pressure from his family to live up to certain expectations befitting his social status, and so he relieves that pressure through his music. Someone who had their life planned out for them before they were even born would have a lot of reasons to be anti-authoritarian.
All this being said, I do plan to write more of him and Timber someday. High on that list is to rewrite this story and flesh them both out a bit more, and make this story read a little better. That is on the horizon, however. I'm spending some time on original works, and I'm not sure when I'll come back to ponies. But I promise I will!