Chapters Chapter 1
Since the time I was just a little kid, I was told that imaginary friends were not real. I was told that they were just a figment of my imagination. I’ve always had a vast fantasy. I couldn’t help but to zone out and daydream in my overactive mind. My grades started failing the day I started first grade. I would barely slip past each class with enough scores to pass to the next. I had always dreamed to be an astronaut. I would fantasize about cutting through the clouds in my shuttle going faster than anything man has ever made, making my way to the sparkling sky ahead. My grades caught up with me. I was unable to get a good enough GPA through high school to be an astronaut. I was crushed, and my imagination was crushed as well.
I sat on the couch staring deep into the dark unlit corner of the room where my moving boxes were. I had just started staying at my deceased grandmother’s house. The house felt weird without my grandmother there. I would call her name only to realize I was alone. I finally snapped out of my trance and looked to the Sunday paper on the coffee table. I promised myself I would look through it to find a job. I flipped through the pages and saw that the grocery store was hiring a bag boy. I pondered whether I wanted to bag groceries for the rest of my life. I folded the newspaper and went right back to staring at the corner.
After a couple of minutes of looking, the phone rang. I let it ring a few times before picking it up. “Hello?” I asked lightly. “Hey Nick!” It was my mother, “How‘s the new house treating you?” she asked. I was silent for a few seconds. “It’s alright, I guess.” I responded. “Is everything okay?” She could tell something was wrong. “Yeah, everything is fine.” I tried to mask my sadness with a joyful tone. “Alright, just tell me if you need anything.” She still sounded as if she thought I was upset. “Alright mom.” There was a silence. My ears rang from the sudden change in volume. “I love you sweetie.” She said sweetly. “I love you too mom.”
As soon as I hung up I heard a noise in the kitchen. My heart sank. “H-hello?” I said hesitantly as I quickly got on my feet. I grabbed the nearest thing to me, which happened to be a table lamp. “Whose there?” I began to slowly walk towards the kitchen. My heart was racing. I quickly opened the door only to realize there was nothing there. I lowered my weapon in relief. To my surprise there was nothing out of place. I looked at the door and saw that it was locked.
I haven’t been able to sleep lately. I got approximately 6 hours of sleep from the past 3 days. I would just lay in bed thinking or I would watch My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. I would hear voices in the hallway. I linked the voices to the sleep deprivation I had been suffering, so I wasn’t too worried about it. I felt as if something in my life was missing but I just couldn’t put my finger on it.
It was a small white mare with a beautiful red and black mane. Her huge red eyes gave me a friendly look as I stared into them. I stumbled back and hit my spine on the hard porcelain sink. “W-what’s going on?” I yelled. Her smile grew as she giggled at my reaction. “What? Never seen a pony before?” I was stumped as to what was happening. Was there any scientific theory to explain what was happening? “I have but not in real life.” She smiled and raised her hoof to me “I’m Star Shine” I bent down to meet her hand with mine. “I’m Nick.”
The smell of grass and rain woke me up this morning. It’s Saturday. I just felt like sleeping in today. Cuddling with a sweet sleeping mare like Star Shine made me never want to get up out of bed. I turned to my side towards her and pet her. She looked up at me already awake. “Good morning.” She said with a yawn. “Morning dear” I responded. “What do you have planned for today?” she said while stretching. Today’s Saturday, so sleep. She giggled at me. “Don’t you have friends?” she asked playfully. I looked down and frowned. “Not really.” I mumbled. It was silent for a few seconds with nothing but the pitter patter of rain on the roof. “She reached out and gave me a hug. “It’s alright Nick, you have me.” I felt warm and fuzzy inside, thanks to the sweet pony. “Now let’s go!” she stood up and hopped off the bed. “Wait, where are we going?” I said as I stumbled out of bed. “We’re going to have fun!”
When I finally got out of bed, the mare made her way to the kitchen. The banging of pots and pans told me she had no idea what she was doing. “Come on Nick!” she yelled from the kitchen. “I can’t do this alone!” I finally reached the kitchen when I saw the pony standing in a pile of flour reaching for something in the cabinets. “Almost.” She mumbled. She was falling off balance and standing of her back hoofs. “Star Shine, what are you doing?” I yelled. She stumbled backwards and ran into the table, spilling a glass of freshly poured orange juice. “Oopsie.” She knew she was in trouble. “I’m sorry Nick, I’ll clean this up.” A wave of my hand stopped her attempt at cleaning up her mess. “No, It’s okay, I’ll clean it up.” I was slightly frustrated, but I tried to hide it. I couldn’t be mad at her, not for an accident. She smiled sweetly at me as our eyes met. “Thank you Nick.” The sweet look in her sparkling eyes reminded me of the stars. The very thing I fantasized about as a kid and strived for in my fantasy world. I was silent for a few more moments. “You’re welcome Star Shine.”
After I had finished cleaning the mess my pony friend had made, I walked into the living room where Star Beam was. She was in my chair. I didn’t mind, I wasn’t going to make her move. “Come sit with me Nick.” She said as she had her eyes stuck to the T.V Screen. Without a word I made my way to the recliner. She hopped on the arm rest giving me all the room I needed to get comfortable. I sat down in the creaky chair and set my eyes on the television. Star Shine surprised me by hopping from the arm rest onto my stomach. She laid down and rested her head on my chest. “Is it okay if we watch this?” She asked. I glanced at the T.V and saw that it was on the Science Channel. “Sure, what is it?” She grabbed the remote and pressed the guide button. “Into the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman.” She looked at me and flashed her puppy dog eyes. Damn it, I can’t say no to those eyes. “Alright.”
It’s not that I have anything against the show, it just reminds me of my fantasies I’ve had when I was a kid. They were cursed memories, they did nothing but bring me down. “Star Shine?” I asked. “Yes?” I looked at the comfortable black, red, and white pony. “What’s your special talent?” She looked at the cutie mark on her flank. “Well, believe it or not, I’m the one who makes the stars in the sky shine. Hence the name “Star Shine”. I also love space and star gazing.” She explained. Deep inside I still knew I still wanted to be an astronaut. I just didn’t have the guts to admit it. I didn’t know how to respond to my mare’s explanation. “I love the stars.” I cringed the minute those words uttered my mouth. She looked up towards me and smiled. “Nick?” She began blushing. “Yes” I responded. “I love you.” My face grew red hot and my glasses began to fog up. Nobody, or pony, has ever told me they loved me. I didn’t know how to respond. I froze up. The mare was waiting for a reply and I was frozen with shock and fear. “Screw it” I thought. I opened my mouth and tried to utter those four words. “I love you too.”
I couldn’t help but to feel this was going way too fast. The mare and I told each other “I love you” which was odd enough. Were these feelings love or just strong emotions? I decided not to question it along with the fact that I had feelings for a cartoon pony.
Weeks passes before I realized those were just words of comfort. True love finally set in a few days later. I decided to treat her to a picnic in the back yard. The sky was supposed to be clear tonight so we could star gaze. In the kitchen, Star Shine and I were cooking a vegan meal. She was looking through the fridge while I was staring through the oven at the cooking delicacy. “What’s this for?” Star Beam pulled out a bottle of flax seed oil. “Oh that’s to help prevent cancer.” I responded. She had a look of confusion on her face and put it back. “Thanks for doing this Nick, it’s going to be a lot of fun.” I looked at her and smiled. “No problem dear.” Ding, The meal was done. I grabbed the oven mitts and pulled it out. “Well that smells good!” Star Beam hopped over and looked at the meal. I let it cool for a few minutes and put it into a plastic Tupperware. We were ready for our picnic.
The blanket was scratchy but it didn’t seem to bother Star Shine. I dished her up and we began eating. She went muzzle first into the main dish as if she hadn’t eaten in ages. “Oh my! This is great.” She said in between bites. I was glad she liked it. The only time I cook is when I have company, which isn’t that often. The sun was going down. A red sky came out before we finished eating. “Look at that, it’s so beautiful.” She stopped eating to admire the colors. “I know, just wait for the stars.” We waited another ten minutes before the first star came out. “Ooh look!” She pointed to the sky with her hoof. “It’s Jupiter!” I looked up and sure enough, it was. “Did you know in the middle ages Jupiter was called Jovian which means happy?” I was impressed. “How do you know this?” She looked at me and gave a big happy smile. “I know all there is to space.” She looked back at the sky. Several more stars had appeared already. “There’s Orion, Neptune’s father.” Okay, now I was impressed. She knew everything there was to know about the night sky. “Can I tell you something?” I sat up and supported my body with my arm. “I don’t see why not.” She responded, eyes still lost in the stars. “I’ve always wanted to be an astronaut.” My lips quivered “I just never had the grades. She looked at me with a strike of confusion. “When you showed me how much you know about the stars I felt this feeling of comfort and a warm fuzzy feeling.” She giggled and blushed. “Took you long enough.” Scooted over towards me and nuzzled my cheek. “I’ve felt that way for a week.” She whispered. “I think this is love.” she continued. I smiled and laid back down. She rested her head on my chest and squeaked. I’m in love With a pony. It was too crazy to be true.
My sleeping situation had gotten better but the voices I heard continued to echo through my home. I decided to go to the doctor, leaving Star Shine alone at the house for the first time since we met. I sat in the waiting room filling out some papers, when the nurse called me back. I waited in room 112 for twenty minutes before the doctor came in. “Good afternoon Nick.” The doctor stuck his hand out to shake mine. “What’s the problem today?” He sat in his chair “Well I’m hearing voices. I thought it was because of sleep deprivation, but when I finally got some sleep, they still continued.” The doctor looked at his papers. “Do you see things?” I thought for a minute. “No.” He took out his pen and a prescription pad. “I’m going to put you down for Pristiq and Zyprexa. He signed his name at the bottom and handed me the piece of paper.
I got home to Star Shine and sat my medication on the kitchen counter. Like I expected, she was in the living room sitting with her hooves in front of her watching the T.V. Like a child. I smiled and tip toed over towards her. “Hi Nick!” she turned around and pounced at me attempting to tackle me but just ended up hugging my leg.. “I missed you!” She giggled. “I missed you too.” I wrapped my arms around her, she was warm and fuzzy. I finally felt at home. I felt… Happy. “I really do love you Star Shine.” She looked at me and blushed. “I love you too.”
“Why does Morgan Freeman have an earring in his right ear?” Star Shine pointed at the screen. She was right, He had a hoop earring in his right ear. My eyebrow raised. “Well, well, well.” I chuckled to myself while Star Shine let out an occasional giggle. It was getting late, and we were getting tired. “You ready for bed dear?” She shook her head. “Can you carry me?” she asked. “Of course dear.” I held her in my arms like a mother holds her child and slowly stood up. “I’ll be sure to carry you to bed tomorrow night.” She joked. I walked into the room and flipped the switch with my shoulder. My feet slowly took me to my bed as I slowly set her down on the bed. “Thank you Nick.” She turned towards me. “For everything.” She continued. I looked into her big red eyes and felt our souls connect, almost as if we were one being. “You’re quite welcome.” I walked over towards the light switch and turned it off. I then remembered to take my medication. I headed to the living room and picked up the bottle, took one of each and swallowed the large pills. I walked back to the bedroom. It was really dark. This made it very difficult to get into bed. After tripping over several objects on the floor and stubbing my toe, I finally reached the bed and crawled under the sheets. I put my arms around Star Shine and nuzzled her head. I felt her turn around. It was too dark to see anything. She stirred before I felt something touch my lips. “She kissed me.” I thought to myself. “I love you” She whispered. “I love you too Star Shine”
I awoke the next morning to an empty bed. I imagined she wanted to try to make breakfast. I immediately got out of bed worrying there would be a mess. She wasn’t in the kitchen. “Star Shine?” I said nervously. No response “Sweetie?” I continued. Still nothing. I checked the whole house. She was nowhere to be seen. A tear had dripped from my eye. I knew in my heart what had happened but I didn’t want to admit it. She was a hallucination, Just a figment of my imagination. I got on my knees and cried and saw a small not on the recliner in my handwriting.
“Nick, I don’t have long. I just want to say that I love you. I will always be with you, weather it feels that way or not. Goodbye, and don’t ever forget me. Yours truly, Star Shine."
I decided to stop taking my medication in hopes that Star Shine would return to me. three months have passed and I have yet to see any trace of her. She was gone for good but the feelings I had stayed with me. I was able to socialize with people now and even got a job working at an auto repair shop. She changed me. She may not have been real, but what she made me feel was as real as you and me. I guess in the end, it really was, too crazy to be true.
In dedication to Star Shine, the best friend I could ever ask for.
My hand met with her soft furry hoof, my heart melted. “What are you doing here?” I asked. She lowered her eyebrows. “What do you mean?” She responded as she pulled her hoof from my hand. “I mean, how is this possible?” She looked at the ground, then at me. Her eyes glistened. “I honestly can’t answer that question, I don’t know myself.” Her eyes began to tear up. “I really have no memory from before I got here” she continued. She leapt towards me and hugged my thigh and began to cry. I didn’t know really what to do. I’ve never been in the situation where I had to comfort a pony. I decided a comforting hug might help, so I knelt down and embraced her hug. She rested her head on my shoulder and sobbed harder. “it’s okay.” I told her. “You can stay with me for a while.” Her sobs stopped. I felt the hugs embrace getting lighter. She finally pulled back. “Really?” she wiped her eyes with her hoof. “Even though you just met me?” She stared me in the eyes. It would take a cruel heart to make this pony sad. “Of course, I’ve always loved ponies just like you!” She gave me an odd look but shrugged it off.
As I took her to the guest bedroom the realization of what was really going on hit me. There is a pony from My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic… Here! With me! I couldn’t help but to show a big goofy smile on my face. This was amazing! “So this is where you will be sleeping.” I told her as I opened the door. She walked past me and hopped on the bed and sat down. “Ooh this is comfy!” She began hopping on the bed in excitement. “Oh, Nick?” she stopped hopping. “Yes?” She sat down and stretched her back. “Thanks for letting me stay.” I smiled. “You’re welcome dear.” She went under the covers and popped her head out. “Goodnight.” She said before yawning. “Goodnight Star Shine.” I said quietly. I flipped the light switch, and closed the door, Letting the little pony get some sleep.
I looked at my watch; it was 1:30am. I chuckled to myself as I headed to my room. My mind was still racing. “Star Shine, what a beautiful pony!” How was this happening? There must be some scientific explanation for this, yet I didn’t question it. I got into my bed and got comfortable, and I slowly drifted off to sleep.
I awoke as a loud crack of lightning struck nearby. It was freezing, but there was something warm next to me. I look and saw a black and red mane snuggled up close to my side. She must have gotten scared. Star Beam was so cute when she was asleep. I put the blanket over her to warm her up. She stirred and squeaked as she buried her muzzle into my side. At this point in time, I was truly happy.
