The Bud That Blossoms
The club was alive with the sound of cheering and the thunderous applause as hooves clopped upon the wooden floor. The spotlight beamed down on the mare of the hour – the one who had just rocked the world of many a pony. Her signature purple shades hid her rose colored eyes as sweat dripped down her brow, making some of her two-toned royal and electric blue mane stick to her face. Vinyl (or as she was known on stage) “DJ Pon-3” stood behind her custom turntable, a cocky grin plastered on her muzzle. Little did anypony know that just behind her shades, was something other than confidence. Inside, she was filled with nothing but anguish.
The thundering applause soon started to take on a different sound; it began to fade into a growing buzz with a steady rhythm growing progressively louder and more obnoxious. Vinyl squinted through the glare of the spotlight in an attempt to find the source of the annoying buzzing sound. Too late did she notice that the light above grew brighter along with the repetitive buzzing. She groaned and flung her hooves up… and felt the sudden sensation of falling…
Vinyl's head hit the floor hard and she moaned throatily. She opened her eyes to see her bedroom door and nearby dresser at a new angle as her flank rested on the bed. With a sigh, the master mixer twisted around and pulled her body into an upright position on the floor beside her disheveled bed. “Ugh… it’s too early for this crap,” she muttered under her breath and looked toward her still buzzing alarm clock. Her hoof flung up and pummeled it judiciously, silencing the infernal contraption until further notice.
The pony DJ rose to her hooves, wriggling her rump out of the loving embrace of her blanket and made for the bathroom. She spent a little longer freshening up than usual and made sure to brush her mane and tail a little. The end result was hardly noticeable but it was the thought that mattered. Once the morning bathroom ritual was accomplished, Vinyl went downstairs and retrieved an apple and some toast for a light breakfast.
As she sat down to enjoy her meal, Vinyl’s roommate, Octavia, wandered down into the kitchen. Octavia caught sight of her friend and offered a warm smile. “Good morning, Vinyl,” she greeted in a cute and sophisticated manner. Then a slightly puzzled look crossed over her features. “You’re up quite early, today. Do you have something going on?”
Vinyl swallowed a mouthful of toast, wondering if it was too late to get a glass of juice to go with the meal. She shrugged her shoulders and gave Octavia a little grin. “Nothing worth mentioning. I’ve been wanting to chat with a friend of mine about some sweet new mix ideas. They’re usually up early, so I figured I’d catch them during the daytime.”
Octavia chewed on that little tidbit before nodding her head. “I see, well I hope your endeavor is fruitful. Forgive me for not staying to talk with you more. I’ve got a meeting to get to about a new venue. It would seem there has been a request for the orchestra to play all the way out in Las Pegasus, of all places. Have a good day, Vinyl,” Octavia said and gave a wave goodbye before she left.
Vinyl sat at the table for a few minutes. She looked at her untouched apple, sighing sadly. For some reason her appetite had just vanished, much like the fake smile she had on for her friend. The unicorn forced down the last bite of her toast before levitating the untouched apple back into the fridge. Maybe she could enjoy it later.
With another soft sigh, Vinyl made her way out the front door and down the street. As she walked she pulled out her headphones and slid them over her ears. With a flick of her magic a playlist with some of her favorite pieces of dubtrot began to play. The music filled her with a calmness that almost made the rest of the world insignificant. There were few other things, or ponies for that matter, that could draw her out of her peaceful musical realm.
An enticing, soothing aroma filled Vinyl’s nostrils as she entered the small market streets. The smell brought a content smile to the white unicorn’s face and she made a slight adjustment to her path. It did not take long for the scent’s source to come into view. Vinyl casually walked up to the small flower booth and smoothly leaned against it, sliding up her shades and offering the cream yellow-coated mare behind the counter a playful smoldering expression. “So how’s my favorite flower girl doing this fine morning?” she said with a waggle of her eyebrows.
The mare, a pony by the name of Roseluck simply reciprocated with a smirk. “Good morning to you too, Vinyl. You’re up a little early,” she said with a subtle wink.
Vinyl shrugged her shoulder lazily and tilted her head curiously. “It’s not that early, Rosie. Besides, do I need a reason to pay your lovely stall a visit?” she teased.
Roseluck giggled and shook her head gently, her two-toned pink mane slightly whipping about. “You’re always welcome to stop by. Did you want to buy something or is this another one of your ‘I’ve got something on my mind' moments?”
Vinyl’s playful antics lost a little of their luster as she let her shades slip back down to cover her eyes but she maintained her grin. “Kinda the latter, honestly. Mind taking a short walk with me?” she asked with a slight tone of nervousness.
Roseluck quickly picked up on the shift in her friend’s tone, already getting an idea of what might be on Vinyl’s mind. She calmly cast her olive gaze to one of the nearby vendors - another flower seller. “Daisy, could you mind my stall for a few? I won’t be long,” she said with a warm smile.
Daisy, a pink mare with a bright green mane and tail turned to Rose and gave a big smile in return. “Of course!” she chirped happily. Upon noticing whom Roseluck was with her smile widened a pinch more. “Take your time, there’s still time before the morning rush.”
Roseluck nodded gratefully and turned to Vinyl. “Alright, let’s go,” she said and followed her blue-haired companion.
Vinyl led Roseluck a block away to a quiet little park. Once there she turned to Rose and sighed quietly. She was about to open her mouth to speak when she felt a gentle nuzzle from her friend.
“You’re pretty down today, Vinyl,” Roseluck said softly. “What’s gotten you so down?”
“Well…” Vinyl trailed off as she thought of how to best word her woes. She sighed and cast her gaze down to the ground. “It’s kinda hard to put into words, ya know?”
“Does this have anything to do with your roommate?” Rose asked with a look of slight worry.
Vinyl went to deny the minor query, but stopped with a defeated slump of her shoulders. “Yeah,” she answered weakly. “We’re still good friends, but it’s been… hard to get over my crush. It’s even…” Vinyl’s voice faded as a look of deep sadness crossed over her muzzle. She looked at her cutie mark (a double eighth note) and sighed heavily.
Roseluck sighed and gently placed her hoof on Vinyl’s shoulder. “It’s been affecting your music, hasn’t it?”
Vinyl’s breath hitched and she stared at Roseluck. “H-how did you know that?” she asked in mild shock.
“Because I’ve watched your shows over the past few years,” Roseluck said with a wistful sigh. “You haven’t had anything new since you confessed your feelings to Octavia. That, and you've lost some of your zealousness on stage.”
Vinyl sighed and cast her gaze away from Rose. It really had been a long time since she could make anything new. Everything she had created in the past had been brought into its acoustic life through inspiration. When she admitted to loving her friend, Octavia, and being politely rejected (not that it softened the blow much) Vinyl lost a major part of what inspired her music.
“I just don’t know what to do anymore,” Vinyl admitted softly.
Roseluck looked at her friend for a long moment. She bit her lip in thought and eventually found the nerve to speak her mind. “Have you, perhaps thought about moving on? I know it might seem difficult or unfathomable, but you could look for somepony else to love.”
A flicker of anger flashed through Vinyl’s face for a split second only to vanish just as quickly as it came. Of course it did nothing to stop the glare from behind her shades… but even that could not linger for long as Vinyl came to grips with what Roseluck was saying. “I… really haven’t found anypony else,” Vinyl muttered. “It’s not like there are more like Octavia out there. I was… well, kinda still am hung up on her because she just fit my tastes so perfectly,” she said and stole a quick glance to Rose, an act that was hidden behind her shades.
Roseluck gave Vinyl a small smile of understanding. “I see… so you still have hope that she’ll come around – knowing that she’s already being courted by a stallion? You’ve really got it bad… and I would know,” she said with a soft sigh as she looked away from her friend.
Vinyl winced inwardly. She recalled a conversation from a few months back that she had with Rose. The poor girl tried to help Vinyl see things from a different perspective by sharing some of her own relationship problems. Rose said she had her sights on somepony and had been smitten with them for quite some time, but that they had never even known about her feelings. To make matters worse for Rose, her somepony had gone off and confessed to another. Vinyl mustered her courage and put her hoof on Rose’s shoulder, smiling sympathetically. “So you’re still set on that other pony?” she asked.
Rose chuckled humorlessly. “Yeah… and they still have no idea that I love them. And I know this might sound hypocritical coming from me, but… well… you might want to consider looking for somepony else. It just gets harder the longer you wait.”
Vinyl went to reply, but the sad look in her friend’s eyes kept her quiet for a few moments longer. A feeling of guilt started to build within the white unicorn and she took in a deep breath. She gently pressed her hoof a into Rose’s shoulder. “You’re right, Rosie. And… well, I’ve kind of been a selfish friend in all this. You’ve always tried to help me get through my relationship woes, but I’ve never tried to help you. Ya want to talk about it?” she said and pulled her hoof back to rub the back of her messy blue mane.
Roseluck looked shocked for a moment, her eyes locked onto Vinyl as if she had grown something on the side of her face. Then, like a balloon losing its air in a quick fashion, Roseluck deflated and looked away toward the flowers of the park. “I don’t think you could really do much to help me with my troubles,” she said quietly.
Vinyl blinked, realizing that she had said something foolish and made her friend sad. She quickly closed the distance and hugged Roseluck. “I am so sorry. I didn’t mean to make you so upset. I just thought I could help you like you do for me… but I don’t understand. Why can’t I help?”
Roseluck tensed under Vinyl’s embrace but she eventually got her nerves under control and sighed, getting a whiff of Vinyl’s smell (of old records with a hint of blueberry). Rose took in her friends scent slowly, the aroma having a strangely calming effect. A battle of conflicting emotions suddenly filled her as she realized what she had done, and wanted to do again. Her mind ran rampant for a long while but she gave in at the end, burying her face into Vinyl’s mane to get another slow inhale of the scent.
Vinyl squeezed Roseluck a little tighter misunderstanding the action and offering her support for her friend. She then caught the scent of Roseluck’s mane – the undeniably pleasant aroma of Rose’s roses. The smell brought a smile to Vinyl’s face. “Come on, Rosie. Let me help.”
Roseluck sighed and pulled away, albeit reluctantly. “You can’t help. It’s sweet of you to offer, but I must decline your offer. I’ll just keep… doing what I always do to show her my affections. She does love my roses,” she said quietly, then she whispered again under her breath as if she wanted to at least speak her heart’s desire but have nopony hear it.
Roseluck may have thought that she had spoken softly enough but even with her headphones on, Vinyl could hear quite well. The two white dishes on the DJ’s head picked up four important words; ‘She even wears them’.
Vinyl stared at Roseluck as the gears in her head ground in overdrive. Key thoughts fell into place and Vinyl put the puzzle together piece by piece. Every time Vinyl talked to Roseluck, whether it was just a random topic or to provide a thoughtful ear, Rose would end the encounter with a very interesting gesture. Roseluck would always take the best rose of the daily harvest, the one she always kept behind her ear, and give it to Vinyl. As their relationship progressed over the months it had gotten to the point that Roseluck would gently place her rose behind Vinyl’s ear for her to wear…
“Is… is it me?” Vinyl asked with some trepidation.
Roseluck’s eyes widened to the size of dinner plates with a sharp inhale. The two mares stared at one another for a long time. Vinyl started to feel as though she had been foolish in asking such a question until the shock faded from her friend’s face to be replaced with a despondent look.
“Yes…” Roseluck said in a whisper. “I’ve loved you for a long time, now. But it doesn’t matter.”
Vinyl balked. “What? How can you say that?” she asked.
“Because… I’ve never stood a chance at catching your eye,” Rose replied eerily calmly.
“That’s-” Vinyl cut herself off as she realized what she was about to say. Then she sighed and gave Roseluck a small smile. “That’s not entirely true,” she said and her smile turned a little sheepish. “I may have held back a little of the truth when I said that Octy was the only one that fit my tastes. I filtered out the part that I… well, I kinda fancy you something fierce, too. I didn’t say it before because I thought you were interested in somepony else…”
Roseluck’s eyes widened again and she brought a hoof up to her mouth. Her cheeks flared with a deep blush as she took in her friend’s admission. She slowly lowered her leg. “Does that mean… that you like me?” she asked in a whisper, as if she was afraid everything was just a dream.
Vinyl’s horn lit up with her light blue magic and her purple shades lifted away from her face. She gave Roseluck a smooth and sultry look, but ruined the effect with her signature smirk. “Rosie… if I had your permission I’d take you out on a date this very moment and lavish you with kisses until you begged me to stop.”
Roseluck stared at Vinyl for a moment in disbelief. Then her face lit up in pure joy and she reached out to bring her friend into a hug. What she failed to realize was that Vinyl had not finished displaying just how she really liked her. Where Rose went in for a happy nuzzle, Vinyl went in for a tender smooch – one that landed right on the rose selling mare’s lips.
The two stared into each other’s eyes for a moment until the gentle kiss intensified with a passion that had been held in check for too long. Rose pressed into Vinyl with a whimpering moan of elation, a few tears forming in her eyes. Meanwhile, Vinyl took the backseat to let Rose lead the pace and responded in earnest. Their hooves snaked around each other and soon they were fighting playfully with their tongues.
The long overdue kiss came to an end all too soon for the pair but they remained firmly fixed to each other in the warmth of their embrace. Roseluck leaned in and placed her forehead against Vinyl’s while a big smile plastered itself across her face. She looked into Vinyl’s eyes and sighed happily. “I love you, Vinyl,” she whispered.
Vinyl smiled widely back as her eyes watered. “Love you too, Rose.”