Apples and Sweets

Drink

“Never?”

Big Macintosh blinked his large emerald eyes and stared down into the golden drink sitting in his mug. He swished it around and listened to the sounds of the bar and ponies talking loudly. He moved his eyes up to look at the tan stallion before him and rested his head on his hoof. The pony was looking at him with a curious expression, though a smile lay on his face when he took a sip of his drink.

He could hear the sound of a creaking floorboard, and the workhorse noticed Caramel squirming in place. Big Macintosh giggled, and his lover looked even more curious than before.

“Nope.” Big Macintosh shook his head.

“But you’ve been here with me before!” Caramel’s voice sounded like he was nearly about to whine. Big Macintosh could feel a smile tug on his lips and it only seemed to make Caramel’s annoyance grow. He grumbled and looked into his own drink before he took a large sip and gulped it down.

“Ah’m tellin’ ya,” The workhorse took a drink from his mug. The sweet taste of cider hit his tongue before he wiped his lips with the back of his hoof. “Ah ain’t ever been hungover. Ah always wake up at seven sharp and get ta workin’.” Big Macintosh nodded his head. “Ain’t never felt sick from gettin’ a little tipsy.”

“I don’t believe you…” Caramel grumbled under his breath. He looked like he wanted to be annoyed, but when Big Macintosh threw him a smile he hid one of his own quickly by taking a drink from his mug.

“Ah only drink when Ah’m with ya,” Big Macintosh reached out his hoof and tapped it against Caramel’s mug. When Caramel lowered it Mac tapped his nose. Caramel giggled, and Mac smiled back. “Ya ain’t nothin’ but a bad influence.”

“Y-Yeah, that’s me. Bad boy your parents warn you about.” Caramel was blushing at his own words. He rubbed where Big Macintosh’s hoof had tapped him and giggled again. “But come on, you get so weird when you drink. You’ve had to have gotten hungover.”

“Nope.”

“I’ve seen you drunk before…” Caramel mumbled under his breath. He looked out of their little booth and watched several mares and stallions drink and talk loudly in the dim light of the bar. “You’re always happy and less shy and… y’know…”

“Ah know?” Big Macintosh questioned.

“Grabby… I mean…” Caramel trailed off.

“Ya say Ah’m grabby when Ah’m not drunk.” Big Mac reminded the stallion. He tried his best not to let a smirk hit his face when he reached out his hoof from the cushion he sat on and brushed it against Caramel’s leg. He could feel his own face grow warm, and that was when he decided to gently push away the cider. “Ah don’t need ta get so drunk to get a hangover that I need ta grab ya.”

Caramel pushed away Mac’s hind leg and let his crystal blue eyes roll. He pushed back his mane with his hoof and continued to stare down into his drink. “I don’t know how stuff like that doesn’t embarrass you… Being grabby and all.”

Big Macintosh shrugged his shoulders at Caramel. He could see Caramel’s foreleg rub back and forth, and the workhorse could only assume that his boyfriend was rubbing the area he was touched in circles.

“That why ya ain’t sittin’ here with me, Sugarcube?” Big Macintosh tilted his head in question. He could see Caramel’s eyes widen and snap to his attention, and soon he began to violently shake his head.

“N-No, I like sitting near you. You’re warm and you let me lean on you and you smell nice most of the time,” Caramel babbled and gripped at his mug with both hooves. He took another drink and Mac could see his cheeks flush crimson. He wasn’t positive if it was fully out of embarrassment or if the cider was beginning to go to his head.

“Most of the time?”

“W-Wait, no, I mean…!” Caramel was beginning to look flustered. He was squirming in place again. He finally bit on his lip and began to ruffle his own mane. He gave up on his words and simply let out a quiet whimper.

“Sugar?” Big Macintosh frowned at his boyfriend, who was now frowning into his mug. “Ya alright?”

“You smell nice…” Caramel mumbled. His eyes looked out into the bar once more. “Most of the time really, even after you work…”

“Thank ya kindly.” Big Macintosh grinned again, though it was short lived when Caramel squirmed in place once more. The creaky floorboards seemed to draw even more attention to him. “But that ain’t what Ah meant.”

“I know,” Caramel shook his head and rubbed at his temple. “You just get grabby when you have a few drinks.”

“Ah do?” Big Macintosh raised his brow. “Ya don’t like that?”

“No I…” Caramel’s cheeks turned pink. Big Macintosh reached out his hoof and laid it over Caramel’s, earning a smile in return. “I… obviously like it when you grab me.” He squirmed again, but this time his face didn’t appear nervous.

“Oh really?” Big Macintosh asked. Caramel looked like he wanted to reply, but he shut his mouth for a few moments as if realizing he might just feel more embarrassed if he dwelled.

“You always kiss me a lot when we’re in town… it was really scary at first, you kissed me when you felt like it even if we were watched by a few dozen ponies,” Caramel chuckled and ruffled his own mane a bit. “You only get grabby in public if you drink some though… you touch my belly and legs a lot and I get nervous ponies might stare.”

Caramel tried to laugh, though Mac noticed his hoof was tapping down on the table.

“And… I’m glad you like me enough to want me like that, I am.” Caramel swallowed a lump in his throat. “But Mac, I just… I don’t like the way ponies look at us when you’re like that… and I really like you being like that, so I get scared that they’re right.”

“Look at us like what?” Big Macintosh frowned.

“Like we’re some dirty couple… or that I’m just your…” Caramel couldn’t finish that last part. He did however hug his legs around his body briefly and look out into the bar. “Sorry, I’m being dumb.”

“No ya aren’t, Sugar,” Big Macintosh said quickly. Caramel gave him a weak smile. The way his eyes look made Big Mac suddenly feel cold. “Now yer the one actin’ silly because of a drink.”

“I like it when you drink though,” Caramel admitted. “Not too much though, just enough where you loosen up some… You flirt sometimes and it makes me feel…”

Big Macintosh raised both eyebrows and leaned into his seat.

“Y-Yeah,” Caramel chuckled. He went to take a sip of his cider and his eyes widened when he realized it was empty. The tan stallion shook his head and rubbed his forehead. “Sorry Mac, I’m being silly.”

“Ya really aren’t, Sugar.” Big Macintosh reached out his hoof and grabbed Caramel’s. “Ah’ll try not ta get grabby over a drink or two, just gotta let me know if ya feel uncomfortable.”

“T-Thank you, Mac.” Caramel smiled at his boyfriend.

Big Macintosh grinned back, though he could feel his expression turn to stone when he saw a yellow mare with a red mane approach the two.

“You two cuties done with these?” A mare in a green apron walked up that caused Caramel to jump. She had walked up from behind him and settled a hoof on his shoulder. He nodded his head quickly but looked like he couldn’t open his mouth to get answers out. His cheeks were still crimson after Mac’s words.

The mare smiled at the two of them and picked up both of the mugs with her hooves and put them on a tray. She set down a piece of paper on the table that Big Macintosh glanced at before he began ruffling through a bag of bits.

“Ya like me being grabby if nopony can see?” Big Macintosh asked. Caramel seemed to stop breathing for just a moment, and Big Mac could swear his heart skipped a beat at the way his face flushed. He couldn’t answer in anything more than a nod and eyes that darted away. “We can just leave if I start gettin’ too grabby Ah reckon.”

“I guess, I don’t mind that. I like it when you get like that, I mean. S-Sometimes I want more, just not in public.” Caramel’s eyes moved up to stare in Big Macintosh’s own. There was a short Silence, and Caramel blinked three times before his eyes widened. “O-Oh you mean now?”

The workhorse took out four bits and laid them on the table with a slap of his hoof. “I reckon we don’t gotta go very far where ponies can’t see us.”

“W-What’s wrong with going home?” Caramel asked. He was holding a hoof over his chest over his heart and squeezing gently.

“The cider’s startin’ ta tell me yer mighty cute t’night.” Big Macintosh got up from his seat and leaned over the table. He grabbed Caramel’s hoof again and pulled on it.

“I’m not letting you fuck me in an alley…” Caramel mumbled under his breath. His eyes looked into the crowd. “A-And I’m not doing you in one either. It was your turn last night, anyway.”

“Apple fields are closer than home.” Big Macintosh couldn’t help but chuckle when he saw Caramel smile. He slowly nodded his head and let Big Macintosh pull him up from his seat. The shorter stallion sighed, but it soon turned into another giggle when Mac kissed his warm cheek.

“You’re impatient, you know that?” Caramel was pulled along a few steps by Mac’s tug.

“Eeyup.” Big Macintosh nodded his head.