"Oh my goodness oh my goodness oh my-" Fluttershy's racing thoughts were abruptly cut off by the sound of her phone buzzing in her purse. She paused her pacing for a moment as she rifled though the small bag and picked up the phone, which had already gone off two more times. The fact that the texts she had just received were from Rainbow Dash made her anxiety spike once again, and she nervously shuffled her feet before looking at them.
From: Dashie
Fluttershy where r u
From: Dashie
srysly Shy, ive been waiting outside ur house for like 10 minutes
From: Dashie
stop being scared and just come out already its not like im gonna judge u
Fluttershy stared at the last text for a moment before typing out her reply.
To: Dashie
Okay, okay, just give me a minute.
She hit send, then walked over to the full-length mirror that hung on her wall. She wore a long, ice blue dress, and the wavy pink mop of hair that usually hung in front of her face was pulled up into a neat bun on the back of her head, making her facial features visible for once. Large, teal eyes, round face…and one didn't have to look closely to notice the long scar that ran across her cheek. Her phone buzzed again, and this time she managed to pick it up quickly.
From: Dashie
jesus christ fine just hurry up
A small smile formed on Fluttershy's face as she put her phone back in her purse. She checked and rechecked to make sure she had everything before making her way out the front door. The December wind felt frigid on her arms, and she started to shiver almost instantly. However, a pleasant warmth spread throughout her body upon seeing Dash in the driveway, leaning against the door to her car.
"Well well well, she finally decides to come outside. You look nice." said Rainbow Dash, getting up off the car and walking to the front porch. Fluttershy's cheeks flushed at the compliment, and she silently prayed that Dash wouldn't notice.
"T-Thank you…you look nice, too." she replied, shifting slightly, eyes trained on her feet. Rainbow was clad in a strapless, knee-length black dress and her trademark black Converse, her rainbow-dyed hair brushed and neatly tucked behind her ears.
"Thanks, but I fucking hate dresses. They're way too girly for me." said Dash with a shrug, turning and heading back towards her car.
"Hey, Fluttershy!"
"W-what?" gasped Fluttershy, snapping her head up.
"You coming or not?" she asked, her face drawn into an annoyed expression.
"Yeah, I'm coming." Fluttershy skipped across the yard and up to Dash's waiting car, pulling the passenger side door open and sliding into the worn leather seat. Dash quickly followed suit, jamming the key into the ignition and turning on the engine. All through the drive, Fluttershy watched silently as Rainbow Dash sang along to the tracks on her favorite mixtape, which seemed to be playing every time she turned on the stereo. Dash cast a glance over at her silent friend, and turned down the volume to a barely audible level.
"Shy, you okay?" she asked, drumming her fingertips on the steering wheel.
"Hm? Oh, y-yeah, I'm fine." It was a terrible lie, she knew, and if Rainbow suspected anything- which Fluttershy was sure she did, judging by the look she gave her- she didn't implore further.
"Mmkay, if you say so." she replied, cranking the volume back up.
……
The pale blue lights of the Winter Formal were both a welcoming and frightening sight for Fluttershy. Whenever she attended any school event, the chances of her being bullied were at an all-time-high, but the fact that she was attending the dance with Rainbow Dash cancelled such things out: she was always there to protect her. Her valiant knight in shining armor, who would always come to save her, the damsel in distress. Ever since the day they met, when Dash had first rescued her, Fluttershy had never felt anything but peace and happiness around the spunky girl, and only recently had her fondness of Dash become something much more.
We're just friends, Fluttershy reminded herself. Just friends. The pair wandered in, and soon they stumbled into Gilda, one of Rainbow's other close friends.
"Dash! What's up, man?" she greeted, squeezing Rainbow's shoulders.
"Ah, nothin' much. Just hanging out with my friend Fluttershy. Shy, this is Gilda. Gilda, Fluttershy." said Dash, gesturing from Gilda to Fluttershy and back. Gilda said nothing to Fluttershy: she just looked slyly at Dash, sporting a smile that was all too familiar.
"Gilda, what the hell are you thinking."
"Nothing, just how cute it is that you don't wanna admit that Fluttershy's your girlfriend." she said, wiggling her eyebrows.
"G-girlfriend!?" stuttered Rainbow, taking a step back, her face flushing red. "Y-you-you're an ass, Gilda." she retorted, shoving her friend. Gilda just laughed, placing a hand on Rainbow's shoulder.
"I know, but oh my god Dash, you should see your face- you're blushing like-" she managed to say between bursts of laughter, drawing the attention of some other students. Fluttershy, who stood off to the side, covered her face with her hands in an attempt to hide her massive blush, which made her entire face as red as a cherry.
"Shut the hell up, G! She's not my girlfriend, alright? Look, you freaked her out!" said Rainbow Dash, pointing at the madly blushing girl. "She's got enough to deal with already, and neither of us want to listen to your bullshit."
"Jeez Dash, You don't have to get all defensive." Stormy just glared at her. "Fine, fine, whatever, I'll leave you guys to it." Gilda chuckled, winking at Rainbow before walking away to join another group of friends. Dash turned to face Fluttershy with a huff of annoyance.
"Sorry about her," said Rainbow Dash, wrapping an arm around Fluttershy's shoulders. Despite the awkward situation, her heart fluttered with joy at the simple contact. Without thought, she leaned into the shorter girl, resting her head in the crook of Dash's neck. "she can be a royal bitch at times." all Fluttershy did was nod, hands still covering her face. Rainbow noticed this, and looked at her with concern.
"Hey, are you alright?" she asked, turning to stand in front of her. Gently, she took hold of Fluttershy's wrists, and lowered her hands back down to her sides. She smiled when she saw that the taller girl's cheeks were pink. "Don't be embarrassed. She was just messing with you, I swear. She doesn't mean a damn thing she says." Once again looking at her feet, she noticed that the toes of Dash's ratty black Converse were less than an inch away from her own. She looked up, and felt her breath hitch. They were so close…all Fluttershy had to do was lean forward, and she would finally find out what she'd been missing.
But instead, she let the moment slip away as she always did, let her fears get the better of her, and took a step backwards.
You weren't supposed to do that… she thought as she stepped away, Rainbow's hands letting go of her wrists. She missed the touch as soon as it was gone. The other girl's smile faltered, and Fluttershy felt like crying. T-This…it wasn't supposed to happen…I wasn't supposed to be a coward..
"Shy, seriously. Come on." she said, once again taking hold of Fluttershy's wrist only to drag her to the back of the room, away from everyone else.
"Talk to me. You've been acting weird ever since I came to pick you up. And don't give me any of that 'I'm fine' crap. I know you, and something's up. So spill it." she said, crossing her arms and tapping her foot on the floor. Fluttershy was stumbling over her words, only managing to get out a series of "Um", "I", and "Well…".
"Fluttershy." said Dash firmly, cupping her friend's heated cheeks in her hands. At this, Fluttershy fell silent, her teal eyes locked with Rainbow's pink ones. This is it… thought Fluttershy, slowly bringing her hands up to cover Dash's, once again relishing in the shared touch. Just say it, Fluttershy. Be brave.
"Rainbow Dash, I…"
"Yeah?"
"Will you…"
"Will I what? C'mon, Shy, just say it. You can tell me anything, you know that."
"Will you dance with me?" she asked, her frail voice trembling, tears beginning to mist her eyes. Rainbow's eyes widened for a moment, then fell back into their usual carefree gaze, a smile spreading across her features.
"That was it?" replied Dash, laughing quietly as she pulled her hands away from Fluttershy's rosy cheeks.
"You just wanted to dance with me?" Fluttershy nodded, smiling as well.
"You could have just asked instead of being so weird about it."
"I…I know, I just-"
"Was being shy, yadda yadda yadda. I get it. Now come on-" she said, offering her hand to Fluttershy. "Let's get this over with. Lead the way."
"Well, you see, I don't really…um…know how to dance…" Dash then looked up at Fluttershy, her expression practically screaming 'are you fucking kidding me'.
"Seriously, Shy? Really. You're seriously telling me you don't know how to dance, even though you're the one who asked me to? Really?" Her cheeks blooming red again, all Fluttershy could do was offer a shy nod.
"Well then." She huffed, putting her hands on her hips. "I guess I'll just have to teach you."
"N-no, Dashie, you really don't have to-"
"Too late. You asked, so there's no going back now. We're doing this." taking Fluttershy's hand in her own, the two friends headed out onto the dance floor, where other couples could be seen dancing to the slow classical music.
"Now, put your hand on my shoulder," Fluttershy did as she was instructed, gently placing her hand on Dash's shoulder. Dash lowered her own hand to Fluttershy's waist, causing the shy girl to squeak in surprise.
"And follow my lead." Rainbow Dash took Fluttershy's free hand in her own and started to move slowly. Her feet shuffled awkwardly, her movement causing their toes to collide.
"Sorry…" Fluttershy apologized quietly, continuing to study Stormy's movements.
"It's cool, no harm done. Just count the steps. One step, two step, three…there, you got it." she replied, brushing up against Fluttershy's side ever so slightly.
"Rainbow, where'd you learn to dance?"
"I saw a scene from movie when I was a kid. I asked my mom about it, and she taught me. Said it was important to know how to 'properly dance with a boy.' Not that you're a boy or anything." she added. Fluttershy's smile grew slightly.
"I'm just happy that one of us knows what we're doing." said Fluttershy, letting out a small laugh. She began to feel more in tune with the rhythm as they continued, their movements becoming more fluid. Either it wasn't as difficult as she thought, or Rainbow Dash was just really good at this. Despite how odd it seemed to most of the other students that the two girls- Rainbow Dash, Canterlot High's resident punk, and Fluttershy, the animal-loving freak- were dancing together, but they were completely comfortable and at ease with one another, taking tiny steps as they moved around the crowded dance floor.
"Says the one who asked." Dash chuckled. Their steps became a bit wider as they both became more confident with one another. Fluttershy continued to smile sweetly, and although they weren’t moving very fast, her heart wouldn’t stop racing. It was the same for Rainbow Dash, and it surprised her, how quickly her heart was beating.
"Alright, I'm gonna spin you." Dash said with mock warning, squeezing Fluttershy's hand before lifting it up and twirling her around. Evangeline laughed again, the rosy color returning to her cheeks. They came together, Dash's hand moving from Fluttershy's waist to the curve of her back, bringing her closer.
"Look at that, you're a natural. You could lead if you wanted to."
"N-no, I couldn't lead. I'd be stumbling and tripping all over the place if I tried." replied Fluttershy, shaking her head back and forth slowly.
"I think you could, if you bothered to try. You should lead next time." Rainbow smiled at her, and the implication of there even being a next time was enough to make Fluttershy's heart skip a beat.
Footsteps known and memorized by then, they just looked into one another's eyes as they swayed to the tune, standing close enough that they could feel the other's breath on their faces as they stepped together.
Fluttershy, full of newfound confidence, was the one to close the remaining distance between them, pressing her body up against Dash's.
"Is this…is this okay?" she asked timidly, wanting to be sure that the other girl was comfortable.
"Yeah, this is good." Dash nodded, her own cheeks flushing a subtle pink.
They both acknowledged that their relationship was now changing, Fluttershy even more excited than the wild Rainbow Dash, now that her dreams had come true for once in her life, but neither of them were completely certain of what it was becoming. Something closer, without a doubt. They didn’t want to question it, though. They went with it, testing boundaries frequently, seeing if the other girl would reciprocate. There had not come a time yet where either of them had rejected each other’s advances.
Fluttershy once again rested her head on Dash's shoulder, the hand that had once been there now splayed across her back. Their clasped hands released each other, moving to circle around their dance partner. Rainbow's arms wrapped around Fluttershy's waist, and Fluttershy's own hands spread across Rainbow's upper back. Their steps gradually became smaller as the song drew near its end, covering less distance.
It was everything Fluttershy had imagined and more. Dancing with someone you cared about, it really did make everything better. For once, her mind wasn't racing, her thoughts weren't focused on everything that could go wrong. It was peaceful.
"Thank you, Dashie," Fluttershy said softly, burying her face in the crook of Rainbow's neck.
"You don't need to thank me, you know," Dash replied, resting the side of her face against the top of Fluttershy's head, continuing to smile. Knowing that she had helped her best friend, the one who had inspired her, who continued to support her and her crazy dreams no matter what, was an accomplishment she valued deeply.
Even as the music stopped and their dance ended, neither girl moved away. They stood, holding each other close, sharing their warmth, not wanting the moment to end.
