A blink.
Two blinks.
Your eyes adjust themselves to the soft, yellowish light that filters into your room, illuminating the dust particles that roam freely through the air around you. You take in a deep breath and exhale slowly, stirring up the countless specks of matter and turning their usually mundane patterns of travel into anything but. It's a change that only lasts for a few seconds though, as it isn't before long that the dust begins to settle back down into its former state. You're sure that there's a metaphor or some piece of philosophy to be made about life in there somewhere, but you don't exactly see yourself as the pony to be the one to make it. At least, not this early in the morning. Hell, it's only...
...Only...What time is it any ways...?
In search of an answer, you turn your head to the left, expecting to see an alarm clock on the night stand beside your bed. To your dismay, however, no time piece is to be found. Instead, you observe a by-product of the past night; broken shards of glass scattered atop your night stand, or the remnants of what was once your bedside lamp. You note that the lampshade is not amongst the debris, and figure that the clock and the lampshade -along with other parts of the lamp- must have taken a tumble and landed on the floor together, but at the moment you find yourself too lazy to investigate the matter, opting to instead turn your head back to its original position, and fix your gaze upon the ceiling of your room. You cannot help but feel a little sad about your lamp though, as not only was it a rather nice looking lamp, but it also carried with it a bit of nostalgia, being one of the first pieces of décor you bought for your home when you first moved in. That, and you did drop 35 bits on it, which you didn't exactly consider to be a light sum of money. However, when taking into consideration all else that had happened the previous night, the breaking of your lamp was something you were fairly willing to overlook.
And what, exactly, had happened the previous night?
Well, you had been on a date. Your third one, actually, with a mare you have been seeing for several weeks. A date that included a train trip through a beautiful countryside, an amazing dinner at a high end Canterlot restaurant, a moonlit walk through empty Ponyville streets, and a fair bit of intimacy that resulted in your busted lamp.
Your mind starts to recall those events of the past night; a mischievous grin forming on your face as it begins recalling some of those more intimate events that took place. You would have liked to continue the naughty little images that had begun to play about in your head, but a slight shifting to the right of you on your bed snaps you out of your daydreaming.
Craning your neck ever so slightly to the right of you and shifting your eyes, the featureless white ceiling you had been staring at is all but replaced by a matted mess of pink mane that belongs to your bedside companion. Your eyes fixate on its cotton candy-esque appearance, and you smile at the sight of it, knowing full well the mare it belongs to.
Pinkie Pie
You heave a smitten sigh at the thought of her name, reciting it a couple times in your head. Her parents made a rather fitting decision to name her that, given the extreme pink-ness of both her coat and mane. You can't exactly say the same about yourself though, as your coat and mane give no indication as to your own name. Not that it bothered you or anything, as a simple observation was all that it was.
Speaking of observing...
Since turning your head to face Pinkie, all you had been facing was the back of her head, which admittedly, does not provide much of a view. That being the case, you carefully readjust your position on the bed so that you can view the rest of her, twisting your body so that while your lower half lay on its side, your forelegs rest behind you propping up the upper half of your body. It isn't exactly the most comfortable position, but the slight discomfort is worth it for the view of your sleeping lover.
Looking at Pinkie, the results of your heated night together are evident. For starters, neither of you are covered by bed sheets. Those happen to be crumpled up at the foot of your bed along with the mental note that they will endure either a very thorough washing or an equally thorough burning later on. As far is Pinkie is concerned though, her appearance is just as one would expect out of a mare who had a rather fun night; a dishevelled coat with matted spots of fur and a frazzled mane and tail, complete with random strands of hair popping out each and every direction. It's a rather humorous sight and you can't help but smile at it, though realise at the same time that your appearance is more or less the same. Despite the hectic appearance though, her sleep is one of serenity. About the only movement her body makes is the rising and falling of her midsection as she breathes. Considering how energetic she normally is (and in situations otherwise, wink wink), it's a rather bemusing sight to see her in such a dormant state. Still, that isn't to say that her mind isn't busy thinking about things though. It might even be working double time to cover for her current lack of consciousness. A quick look at her confirms such musings to some degree, as she currently wears a smile on her face, more than likely dreaming about something pleasant. You wonder if you're in her dreams though, and if you are, you wonder what exactly she's dreaming of; that smile having momentarily turned into what looked to be a bit of a smirk.
As you admire her though, you cannot help but feel a bit of disbelief in that you actually got to know her in the first place. After all, with such differences in your respective characters, it seemed to be a bit of a wonder that you were able to establish a friendship with Pinkie, much less an actual relationship with her. With Pinkie being a highly outgoing mare who lead a great social life, and you being a rather reserved stallion without much of one, it didn't seem all too likely that a connection between the two of you would spark.
And yet, one did, and you couldn't be happier.
A smile graces your lips as you think about all Pinkie that means to you. All the joy she brings to your life with not only her love, but with her undying friendship. Sure it may sound as cliché and sappy as all get out, but it's nothing less than the truth about how you feel towards her. Celestia be damned if you weren't willing to go through the gates of Tartarus and back in order to preserve the bond you have with her. It's a thought that fills you with a sense of pride and passion; the will to do damn near anything on the behalf of your beloved. The only thing it doesn't do -at least not at the moment, however- is give you energy to stay awake.
You can feel your body tire from holding your position on the bed. Your eyes flutter and your forelegs shiver behind you, having supported the weight of your upper body for longer than they should have. You're not exactly sure why you woke up so early in the first place, but with a tiring body and Pinkie still asleep, there isn't much to do except go back to sleep yourself; you dared not try and get up out of bed and potentially steal her away from her dreams.
Before turning in once more though, you glance over Pinkie one last time. Figuring it to be the gentlecoltly thing and reasoning that your sheets can't be too badly stained, you reach over and grab the bundled heap of bed sheets residing near the foot of your bed and carefully drape them over the both as you lay yourself back down. With your head now nestled in your pillow once again, you allow your eyes to close and a smile to form across your face as the memories of your time spent with Pinkie start to recall themselves.
Later in the day though, you'd definitely have to do something about cleaning your bed sheets.
BEEP BEEP BEEP
BEEP BEEP BEEP
BEEP BEEP BEEP
“ugggggggh…”
BEEP BEEP BEEP
BEE-
*SLAM*
Celestia damn that alarm. Ugggggh…
No matter what time you went to bed the previous night, your mornings were always the same. Loud beeps, annoyed groans, a slamming hoof, and you cursing that blasted alarm clock and the obnoxious song of its’ people. Why couldn’t it be something more pleasant to the ear? Something like the sounds of a waterfall or the sounds of someplace tropical? Or better yet, what if it made no noise at all? That would certainly be nice. The absence of a high pitched series of beeps would no doubt make mornings a lot more of an enjoyable experience for you. You think about it some. Why did you even have that thing anyway? Surely your mornings would be less of a hassle if you just ditched the blasted thing in favor of simply waking up when you felt like it. You could remain in bed, curled up with your sheets and pillows and continue dreaming about Celestia knows what. Actually, scratch that. Some of your dreams would be best if left without Celestia knowing what, especially if those twin mares from down the street were involved. You know, the ones who worked at the local spa. What were their names again? Lotus and Aloe, was it? Yeah, that’s right, Lotus and Aloe...
Eyes half closed, a mischievous smile runs across your lips as you begin to think about the twin mares again, slowly drifting off to sleep once more.
… Allow me to work out the kinks in your backs, girls…
… Now how about I spread some of my aloe on your lotuses?
… Oh how can I say no when you offer to give me that kind of job?
… That kind of job
… Kind of job
Something doesn't seem quite right, and you wrinkle your face in irritation for a moment as you try to figure it out.
… Job... Career... Profession...
... Work.
Your eyes fling themselves open as the realization of what plagued your brain hits you. You have to go to work today, which meant that you wouldn’t be getting the chance to sleep in as you so wish you could. You let out a low grumble, irritated by the thought of having to work for a living.
Ugh... Why couldn't I have been born as Prince Blueblood?
You roll over onto your back and shift your eyes to either side of your position. In addition to your initial disdain of working and waking, you also realize that you were alone in bed, with not a mare to speak of lying beside you. Then again, never in your life had there been, and as far as you knew, never in your life would there be. For the time being, it was just you and your dreams –both pitiful and explicit- dreams. You heave a sigh, feeling slightly put off as you momentarily reflect upon your ‘lack of love’ life.
Again, why couldn't I have been born as Prince Blueblood?
But enough of that. Work is a-calling, so you had better get yourself 'a-crawling' as it were. Of course, however, things are often easier said than done, and you find yourself still glued to your mattress, hardly even attempting to pry yourself out of your state of comfort. You lie there for another minute staring and thinking about nothing in particular before making the decision to at least turn on your bedside lamp to illuminate your fairly darkened room. After a fair bit of fumbling around for the switch with your left hoof, you manage to connect with it; the sudden brightness of the lamp causing you to squint your eyes and flutter them open and closed a few times as you adjust to the change. You then turn your head to the left and look at your arch nemesis, the alarm clock, undamaged despite the countless amounts of times your hoof violently connected with the snooze button atop it. Perhaps it was designed with heavy-sleeping, hoof-smashing consumers in mind, you ponder, checking the time as you do.
6:05am
You reach over and flip the alarm switch into the off position before it can continue with another set of dreaded beeps. With that now taken care of, the next task at hoof became getting out of your ever so comfortable bed, which was arguably the most difficult part of your mornings (the term arguably, though, as you weren’t too sure whether or not having to get out of bed was worse than being rudely awoken by the sounds of your alarm). Nevertheless, you push yourself into an upright sitting position at the edge of your bed and stare into the mirror situated above your dresser.
“Yeesh… I better get cleaned up…”
Getting to your hooves, you step into the bathroom and switch on the lights, then head to your shower to turn on the water. A quick passing of your hoof through the water soon finds it to be of proper temperature, and you fully step in afterwards, letting the warm droplets immerse you, turning your mane, tail, and body darker shades of their respective colors. After a few minutes of showering, you turn off the water and dry yourself off with a towel, neatly folding it over a rack once finished. As you stand in front of your bathroom counter grooming yourself, a chuckle escapes you as you think about your previous day's work at the "Green Leaf Cafe", one of Ponyville's most popular eating establishments. You recall two mares sitting at a table; one with her face buried in her hooves as the other one droned on about these things called ‘humans’ or something of the sort. You figure the topic was brought up fairly often, as not every day do you see somepony react to a conversational topic with such utter disdain. At least she didn't decide to drag you into the 'discussion' though.
After a quick brushing of your teeth and a combing of your mane, you turn out your bathroom lights and step back out into your room. You trot over to the window on the opposite side and pull back the curtain, revealing the morning sun as it begins to peak over the mountains. You recall yesterday’s pegasi weather report for today saying something about minimal clouds and a temperature in the mid to upper 70’s, accompanied by a gentle breeze. In other words, it will once again be a perfect day weather-wise, and you can’t help but smile at the thought of it, even if you will be forced to enjoy it from the confines of a cafe.
Author's Note
So yeah, an update. Nothing much happened in this chapter, but at least y'all know that I'm alive and writing (when I can, that is).
Also, ponyponyponyponyponypony.
-Werdna
Now normally your morning routine consists of waking up, getting ready, and then having breakfast before you leave. Today, however, you forgo having breakfast and decide to leave for work a bit early, throwing your work apron over your back and exiting your home. After locking the door behind you, you stand on your doorstep for a moment to survey your surroundings, taking a breath of the crisp morning air as you observe the beautiful landscape before you. Over the silhouetted horizon, the glow of Celestia's golden sun emanates, turning the sky into a blend of blue, pink, and orange hues. Off in the direction of the Everfree Forest, you observe a formation of birds; small black dots situated against the backdrop of an endless sky. It's all so peaceful to look at; nature in the early morning going about its business, just as you would eventually have to be going about yours. As you start your walk into town, you observe the occasional early morning jogger here or there, going along their routes as usual. One of them sees you and nods his head in acknowledgement of your presence, continuing on with his jog as you continue on with your walk. Ponyville is a fairly quiet town in general, but without a doubt early mornings proved to be the quietest of times during the day. With the markets and shops closed and school not yet in session, the whole of the town is very still. As much as you didn't like waking up early, you certainly had no qualms with the early morning atmosphere that came with an early morning rousing.
As you near the centre of town, about the only other pony you see is a young papercolt going about his duties, tossing copies of the local newspaper onto doorsteps -or in the case of this young fellow, the lawn, the bushes, as well as a rooftop, even. Odds are that he hadn't fully woken up yet, though as long as he doesn't send a paper through a window, you suppose it's okay if his aim is a bit poor.
Soon enough, you arrive at the front doorstep of the cafe and give the door a quick knock to alert whoever was inside to your presence. You wait a few moments before the door opens up to reveal the owner and manager of the establishment, albeit with a look of curiosity upon his face. Nevertheless, he proceeds to greet you before welcoming you inside.
"Well good morning there!" He chirps. “You’re in rather early!”
"Morning to you too, Mr. Grenlef. Hope you don’t me being here a tad bit ahead of schedule."
He chuckles a bit as he lets you inside, walking over towards the register that sits at the front counter; a large bag of bits sprawled out next to it. With an audible *click*, he opens the register before piping back up.
“Oh that's no problem at all. I always admire an employee who rises up early to come into work.”
Speaking of rising, maybe if I show up to work early from now on I could eventually earn a pay raise...
You log that away in your memory to give you something to think about, though knowing how fond you were of your bed, you figure yourself to be opening up a big box of internal conflict.
"Speaking of which, what prompted you to come in early anyway?"
"Well, I usually wake up early and make my myself breakfast before coming in, but I wasn't feeling hungry this morning. Probably a result of eating later than usual last night."
"Ah, I hear you. Just make sure you do eat something come break time. Don't want you falling over from a lack of proper nutrition while in the middle of serving someone!"
The two of you share a laugh before you decide to ask if there is anything you can do around the place. After all, showing up for work early is a bit meaningless if you don't actually work on something.
"So is there anything you'd like for me to do as long as I'm here early?"
Having voiced your inquiry, you remember the apron still draped over your back, and begin to take it off so you could formally put it on. Before you do so though, you hear Mr.Grenlef speaking back to you.
"Actually…"
He pauses his speech for a moment to finish the knot on a small bag of bits, leaving you to take your own pause in putting on your apron.
"Seeing as how you’re here early, I’d like for you to pick up an order at Sugarcube corner. I was going to pick it up myself, but I might as well make use of your labour.”
"Well I'm happy to help.” You reply, setting your apron down on a bench beside you. “Might I ask what it is I'll be picking up?"
"A couple dozen cupcakes for the cafe here. I spoke with the Cakes from Sugarcube Corner the other day about expanding our dessert menu with some of their product, so today we'll be running a 'test batch' of sorts to see how well they sell. Anyhow, I'll let you get on with the pickup. Be careful with 'em now!"
Shortly after your conversation with your boss, you find yourself knocking on the door of Sugarcube Corner. While waiting for it to open, you glance over your shoulder, noting the still empty streets behind you. Soon enough though, you turn your head back to the door as you hear it unlocking, and are met with the sight of a slightly plump pastel blue mare with a pink mane looking back at you with an inquisitive look upon her face.
“Oh, um, good morning ma’am” you politely speak.
“Good morning to you too. I take it you’re from the café?” she replies, to which you simply nod in agreement. “Pinkie should just about be pulling the last batch of cupcakes from the oven. Do come inside.”
You step inside and are immediately greeted by what you can only describe as the sweetest smell your nostrils had ever encountered. Taking a deep breath, you relish the sweet scent for a moment before the blue mare speaks once again.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I have to check on my young ones upstairs. Just make your way over to the kitchen and Pinkie will be with you, alright?”
Pointing with her hoof and giving you a pleasant smile, the mare proceeds to make her way up the stairs to go take care of her foals, leaving you to once again bask in the wondrous smell that fills the room. Realising though that you had come here on account of work and didn’t want to spend more time than necessary, you decide to head on over to where you would pick up your order of cupcakes, following the blue mare's direction as well as your nose. As you round the corner to the kitchen, your eyes are met with the sight of a bright pink mare. More specifically though, her backside, as she had just opened up the oven and was starting to take a batch of cupcakes out of it.
Woah...
You can't help but stare at her for a moment as she goes about her work, completely oblivious to your presence in the doorway.
“It’s rude to stare, you know.”
... Or so you had thought.
Her tone of voice has the sound of playful irritation. The playfulness more than likely stemming from some self-satisfaction knowing that you would be embarrassed from being caught in the act –to which you are- and the irritation because of the obvious fact that staring at a mare’s backside is rather rude. Caught off guard, your eyes widen and your cheeks work themselves into a noticeable shade of crimson as you nervously stand at attention, frozen in place. Your situation isn't at all helped by the mare deciding to turn and face you, her eyes slightly cocked and a grin upon her -rather attractive- face.
Well this is awkward...
While your mind desires to say something, your mouth isn't exactly willing to cooperate, resulting in the first thing to come out of your mouth a slightly less than intelligent:
"... Dwuauaua???...?"
Your language teachers would all be very proud of you at this moment, that's for sure. The mare before you however pays it little attention, simply offering a short giggle and reply in return.
“It’s my Pinkie sense.”
You shoot her a confused glance as she continues, one of her back legs closing the door of the oven.
“My left ear twitched twice, and when it does, it tells me that somepony is behind me! And that somepony was you!”
You let out a nervous chuckle before she speaks once again, giggling a bit as she does.
“You look so silly right now!”
She grabs a reflective pie pan from a counter and holds it in front of your face, revealing in its faint reflection your embarrassed complexion. Not that you really needed to know what you looked like embarrassed, but for better or worse, there your reflection stands anyways.
“Heh, I guess I do look a bit silly.”
As she sets the pan back on the counter, you take the time to apologise for your behaviour. Much to your relief though, she takes it in stride, surprisingly free of any hard feelings. Perhaps the fact that there was an order that needed to be taken care of has something to do with it.
“So you’re here to pick up some cupcakes, right? Ms. Cake told me that somepony would be coming by early this morning to pick up a batch, so that somepony must be you!”
You nod your head in response, along with a small “mhmm” to go with it.
“Okie dokie!” She cheerfully replies. “Let me just put the frosting on top of the last tray and they’ll be good to go!”
"Heh, can't have a cupcake without frosting, I suppose". You reply jokingly, hoping to turn the air of awkwardness surrounding you into something more pleasant.
It didn't really do you much good though.
"Well DUH!" She exclaims, turning around to meet your startled gaze. "Of course you can’t, silly! Because if you did it wouldn’t be a cupcake and it would just be a plain old muffin and nopony likes muffins. Well, except for Derpy. She likes muffins but cupcakes are better because they have frosting and are sweeter and much more fun than just a boring old muffin don’t you think?”
Her final sentence was punctuated by her body extending towards you, her head mere inches away from yours with an expectant smile adorning her face. It was like being under a spotlight, except for the fact that an actual spotlight would probably be more comfortable to be under at the moment.
"Umm... Y-yeah...?"
Truth be told, you actually prefer muffins to cupcakes. Not like she needs to know that though, as your answer is apparently satisfactory enough for her to pull her head back away from yours and return to frosting the last of the cupcakes that lie on the counter. Looking over her shoulder, you can see there's only a few left to go, which she proceeds to quickly finish up in no time at all.
"Welp, that's the last of 'em! Mind giving me that box over there?"
You oblige, picking up the large pink box that sits on the opposing counter and give it to her so she can put the cupcakes inside. Soon thereafter you find yourself with a large box full of cupcakes resting atop your back, ready for the short trip back to work. With everything in order, you proceed to thank the pink mare, and tell her to extend the thanks to Ms. Cake while making your way out the door. Before you can get too far, however, the sound of her voice stops you in your tracks.
“Wait!”
You wince, muttering to yourself a “so close” before turning your head back towards the bakery. In doing so, you see the pink mare approaching you, and notice on her back a small white paper bag.
“I forgot to give this to you. It's just a little something for yourself.” She says, hoofing the bag over to you with a smile.
You peer inside of it, seeing the picture-perfect coating of white frosting that tops the treat, which admittedly looks quite delicious. Once again, you proceed to thank her.
“I… well… uh… thanks, for this. It looks quite good.”
She giggles as you stand there, still staring into the bag.
“It’ll be the bestest best cupcake you’ll ever have, because Pinkie Pie’s my name, and baking cupcakes is my game!”
Another giggle escapes her before she changes her tone and appearance to a more inquisitive look, putting her left foreleg up to her chin to signify thoughtful process.
“Which reminds me. I’m Pinkie Pie! Who are you? I know everypony in Ponyville, but I haven’t met you before. Or at least I don’t think I have... Have I?
"Um, no, I've lived here for quite a while. I just don't get out too much, heh. Nice meeting you though, Pinkie Pie. And thanks again for the cupcake."
With the flash of a smile, you then turn around to once again leave, eager to get back to work. Just as you do though, your attention is called once again, and you turn back toward her.
"Yes?"
“You still haven’t given me your name, silly!”
Oh, right...
You give her your name to which she recites once more, adding a “hope to see you soon!” to the end of it before heading back inside the building to continue on with her day. As the door shuts, you go about doing just the same.
Author's Note
Toooooooootally didn't realise that the last update was back in March. Kinda screws up my whole 'one chapter a month' thing I had going on...
Anyhow, have an update, and know that I'm still working on this story. I'll try to get chapter 3 out sooner to make up for the absence of updates. Ciao for now!
