Previous Chapters
Close
Letters From Far Away1,603 words
From the Sheriff's Perspective1,653 words

From the Sheriff's Perspective

Author's Note:

I loved this story so much, I had to write another chapter from Hitch's point of view.

Dear Hitch,

Formal much? Is this a letter to a friend or an official report? We’re literally best buds. But hey, I appreciate the sentiment.

I hope this letter sent by my trusted Cloudpuff finds you well amidst the challenges in Maretime Bay. Things here are a bit chaotic, as expected. I can’t leave Zephyr Heights yet, Mom needs me to help to calm everypony and Pipp down. The outage has everypony on edge, but I’m managing. Your offer to help is sweet, but we've got it covered.

~~Been thinking about you.~~

Sincerely,
Zipp

Hitch neatly folded the letter closed after reading Zipp's latest letter. A smile crept across his face. Her sparkling wit and bold honesty never failed to make his day brighter, until he read the line that looked purposefully scribbled out.

She was thinking about him.

‘But maybe she’s just used to having me around?’

He unlocked his phone and glanced at a picture they took together - Zipp flashing a confident grin during one of their shared adventures. Hitch sighed, a familiar longing rising within him. How he missed that grin. How he missed her.

Hitch took a steadying breath, pushing down the affectionate words that threatened to spill from his pen. Their duty came first. He couldn't lose himself admiring a friend, no matter how alluring her spirit.

His smile faded as he dutifully described how he planned to solve the outage in Maretime Bay. Still, a small part of him yearned to unveil his true thoughts to Zipp, but afraid she didn’t feel the same way.

Hitch was abruptly awoken by the incessant knocking on the station’s door at nearly 1 a.m. in the morning. Despite being disgruntled, he calmed and prepared himself to answer any complaints about the outage to the angry pony outside.

As he opened the door, he saw no pony outside, but Cloudpuff, sending another one of Zipp’s letters. Releasing the letter from the Pomeranian’s muzzle and thanking him for a job well done, he read the contents of her letter.

Dear Hitch,

Sorry to hear that you’re going to have to learn the network of the system, I know how much of a pain in the ass that can be.

Thanks for asking about Zephyr Heights. You know how it is when ponies don’t have access to Canternet for minutes, let alone days (don’t get me started on Pipp). But we’re doing our best to keep everypony calm.

I’ve asked Pipp to sing for the public to entertain them in the meantime, but she insists on hiding in her room and crying in her bed for the past few days. So I’ve just decided to perform some parkouring and flying tricks for them, it’s the least I could do.

It’s been tiring lately, doing the same tricks over and over again. I’m not even sure if they care about my tricks anymore. The entertainment situation is tough.

The only thing keeping me sane is reading the letters you send to me every night, and me replying back to them. Everytime I read your letters, I can hear your voice reading the words off the letter. My voice of reason. My voice that tells me everything is gonna be alright.

I’ll admit something. I miss you. I miss having the detective adventures with you. I miss having you by my side. If these ponies didn’t care about Canternet for a second, I would leave this place in a heartbeat. Just to see you again. All I can think about is you.

I hope you get the outage fixed, keep me updated. It’s nice getting some things off my chest.

Take care,
Zipp

Hitch's breath caught at her confession - not only had she been thinking about him, she’d been missing him too. He read it again and again, scarcely believing his eyes.

Could she possibly return the fondness he'd secretly hid from her? The fondness that made him linger over her letters into the late hours, that quickened his pulse whenever she grinned at him playfully?

He itched to respond to reciprocate his feelings for her. But uncertainty held him back. What if she regretted that admission? He couldn't risk their precious bond.

In the end, he would just text her back the next day, when he finally fixed the outage problem. But what wondrous dreams those words inspired as he laid in bed that night.

TEXT MESSAGE TO ZIPP:

^{Hitch (9:32pm)}
I fixed the Canternet.
Sparky’s dragon fire turned some wires into oranges.

^{Zipp (9:33pm)}
Great work, Sheriff!
Does this mean no more letters?

Hitch grinned down at his phone, lighting up with Zipp's witty banter. Her vibrant spirit never failed to make him chuckle, even in the exhaustion following this outage ordeal.

Though the rational part of him knew their duty came first, a whisper of longing stirred as he typed his reply, admitting how much he cherished her letters. Would she notice the hidden meaning in his words? That it was her fiery spirit he missed most of all?

^{Hitch (9:35pm)}
Yeah...
I loved them tho. ;(

^{Zipp (9:36pm)}
You did?
Even the part about missing you?

^{Hitch (9:38pm)}
Especially that part.
It made me smile. :)

….

^{Hitch (9:40pm)}
You wanna know something?
This outage could’ve been solved yesterday if I wasn’t so caught up thinking about you.

Hitch hesitated before typing that text, nerves fluttering in his chest. It was true - thoughts of Zipp's radiant smile had thoroughly distracted him from his investigative duties. But such an admission felt bold, even for their easy rapport. Still, an aching need to share his admiration won out. He held his breath, anxiously awaiting her response.

As the minutes stretched on, doubt crept in. She hasn’t answered in over 10 whole minutes, and doubt started to creep in. Had he overstepped her boundaries?

^{Hitch (9:52pm)}
You haven’t texted in over 10 minutes.
Did I say something wrong?

^{Zipp (9:52pm)}
NO
No, you didn’t say anything wrong.
The opposite, actually.
I just don’t know how to respond.

^{Hitch (9:54pm)}
Maybe texting isn’t your thing.

^{Zipp (9:54pm)}
Maybe…

Hitch let out a deep sigh of relief, his shoulders relaxing. She wasn't upset or put off after all. Buoyed by her reassurance, an eager hope rose within him

Maybe, just maybe, perhaps now was the moment to push their relationship forward.

His hoof hovered uncertainly over the phone screen as he debated asking Zipp to dinner. Of course he wished to see her, to bask in her charming appearance. Yet doubt held him back. What if she still only saw him as a colleague? He couldn't bear losing the special connection they'd built.

Hitch remembered that photo on his phone, and warmth flooded through him. No, he had to take this chance. Zipp was well worth the risk. Before he could second-guess himself further, he rapidly typed out an invitation, adding a wink emoji in an attempt at playful charm.

His breath caught as he pressed send. His heart was still pounding with anticipation. But his admiration for her tenacious soul compelled him forward. He could only hope she felt the same spark of possibility between them that he did. Now, he eagerly awaited her reply, praying she would gift him the honor of her presence tomorrow evening.

^{Hitch (9:55pm)}
Why don’t we continue this convo back in Maretime Bay?
Dinner, tomorrow at 7? ;)

Hitch stared at his phone, willing Zipp's response to appear. But only deafening silence followed his dinner invitation.

As the minutes crawled by, nerves twisted his stomach. Maybe asking her out had been too bold on his part. What if she was horrified at the notion of them becoming more than friends and colleagues?

Hitch anxiously ran a hoof through his mane, doubts assailing him. Fear of losing even the passionate friendship they shared paralyzed him.

The phone screen remained cruelly dark. With each passing moment, Hitch’s spirits sank lower. His confidence from earlier evaporated. Asking Zipp to dinner seemed foolishly presumptuous in hindsight. Perhaps she was crafting a gentle rejection, or worse, choosing to ignore his invitation and ghost him completely. Dejected, Hitch considered resigning himself to merely colleagues. The heavy silence surrounding him only fed him thoughts that he’d aimed too high by dreaming of winning Zipp’s heart.

NEW TEXT MESSAGE FROM ZIPP:

^{Zipp (10:18pm)}
I'd like that. ❤

^{Hitch (10:20pm)}
Great!
It’s a date. <3

Hitch's heart swelled as he read Zipp's text accepting his dinner invitation. The heart emoji sparkled up at him, a symbol of the affection between them. He would never have dared dream that this bold, captivating, beautiful mare would ever reciprocate his admiration. Yet now, miraculously, she had accepted a date with him.

Overcome by elation, Hitch clutched the phone to his chest. The promise of dinner together tomorrow night filled him with nervous excitement. He yearned to sweep Zipp off her hooves, to show her through tender affection how deeply he treasured her. The date marked a new chapter - perhaps their story need no longer be defined by duty alone.

As Hitch curled up in his makeshift bed, reflecting on the lovely evening with Zipp, he spotted the letter that Zipp had sent yesterday in the dead of night. A letter he would cherish and never let go. He would keep it as a token to remind himself that someone was always going to be there for him, even if it seemingly felt that the world was against him. Hitch smiled softly, as he carefully placed the letter into his work desk drawer, preserving its perfect condition.

As he eventually drifted off to sleep, he imagined sharing more of his heart with Zipp, no longer restrained by duty or propriety. Today marked the first step on the journey towards an intimate bond unmatched. Hitch's heart overflowed with hope that Zipp might be ‘the one’. For now, he treasured the step they'd taken, and the potential it held.

502 views

Previous Chapters

Comments ( 6 )

Viewing 1 - 50 of 6
- Newest First
- Oldest First

Jam5022

Jam5022 #1 · Dec 25th, 2023 · 1 · ·

Loved the story

Yoshifan30

Yoshifan30 #2 · Dec 27th, 2023 · · ·

I wasn't expecting this update but hey nice to see how hitch felt as well especially how nervous he asked zipp on a date especially after the crisis going on but hey it was still nice keep up the good work

Mica