Chapters

Part 1- Out in the Sun
Part 2 - By the Lakeside
Epilogue

Part 1- Out in the Sun
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Day on the Farm

Part 1- Out in the Sun

They say a little hard work can go a long way. I never took that expression seriously. Why? Well, I'm not the most labor-oriented person in the world. Of course, I'm not an idiot. I'll do things that I'm obligated to do, like get a steady job, go to school, and other painfully mundane activities that we, as citizens, must do in order to live happily in this existential purgatory we call life. Or so the government says.

Anyways, enough of my rambling. I can imagine what you're thinking right now. Why is this guy talking to me? Does he have a story to tell? As a matter of fact, I do. Yep, that's right. Good 'ol Maverick has a story to tell. Weird? Maybe. Epic? Probably not.

A few weeks ago, that day started like any normal Friday afternoon. It was the end of the year, which mean that finals week was on the way. We all know how finals week goes. I was never the intelligent type. You know, the kind of student that goes the extra mile and somewhat overboard to get better grades? Well that's not me. I'm happy with a C.

It was already the end of 4th period, which meant that next period was everyone's favorite class: lunch. There I was, sitting in my Composition class. I had my earphones on since there was only about five or six minutes left to the bell, so I already had my bag all zipped up and packed. The teacher had stopped talking to us, so pretty much everyone in the class was having their own little conversations. As for me, my music would do.

I had my head down as the music played at a comfortable volume, just high enough to drown out everyone else. I was already close to falling asleep, which was not a good thing since there was five minutes left. Eh, might as well take advantage, right? As I settled into the desk to get as comfortable as possible, I felt someone tapping me on the shoulder.

Removing my left ear bud, I turned around to see a pair of emerald eyes staring back at me. A worn, brown Stetson hat rested atop her head, and her golden blonde hair was done into a ponytail that hung over her left shoulder. She had lightly tanned skin, along with a set of cute-looking freckles just below her eyes. Dressed in an unbuttoned, plaid long-sleeved shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her forearms, a white undershirt, tight-looking skinny jeans, and the whole country look complete with cowboy work boots.

There was only one girl who bothered to dress like this: my classmate, Applejack.

"Yo, what's up, AJ?" I asked, removing my other earbud. She flashed me a brief grin before answering.

"You okay there, pardner?" Did I happen to mention that she has the sexiest Southern accent I have ever heard? 'Cause she does. "Ya looked y'all were fallin' asleep there."

I sighed and leaned back against the armrest of the desk. "Yes, in fact I was. Before a certain cowgirl decided to wake me up." I smirked at her. I've known her for quite a while. I think we met in Home Economics class sophomore year. Since then, we've been good friends and always had the same classes together. Though, I don't think I'm as close to her as her other friends. A couple of them are known figures here in the school.

"Well, ah reckon t'aint a smart move to fall asleep a few minutes before lunchtime," Applejack laughed as she crossed her arms. "Anywho, what y'all doin' for lunch? Gonna meet yer buddy Note?"

"Probably." I shrugged my shoulders. "He's got this new game and he wants to talk about it with me. He's such a nerd, heh." Not that I didn't like video games, what guy doesn't, but Note likes them a little too much, spending most of his free time playing. And he wonders why he hasn't got a girl yet.

"Well that's Note there for ya." She laughed once again. Pausing for a moment, as though she had something on her mind, she finally spoke up. "Hey, can ah ask ya somethin'?"

"You already did, but yeah go for it," I chuckled, motioning for her to continue.

She scowled playfully at me before continuing. "Ah was gonna ask ya if y'all were busy this weekend." Okay, that was out of the ordinary. It was a normal thing for us to hang out with each other occasionally, like during lunch or after school, but never outside of school. This I had to hear.

"Can't say I am." I shrugged my shoulders with a casual smile on my face. "My parents are leaving for the weekend and I have to stay and hold down the fort. So no, I guess I'm not busy."

"Ah'm afraid ah can't say the same for myself." She pursed her lips as she leaned forward and placed her hands under her chin. "My brother, sis, and granny are headin' out to Appleloosa this weekend to visit one of my cousins. Problem is, there's a whole field we haven't picked yet, and we need to so that we can get an order for a shipment of apples in so we can meet our quota for this month. And well, ah volunteered to stay behind and pick up the slack for us."

I had an idea on where this was going. "Why would you do that? You already work hard enough as it is. Why put yourself through more than you can handle?" It was true. Many times I've had to wake her up in class because she worked herself too hard the day before. In fact, she's actually missed school a lot because of her job. I remember when I asked her if she planned on going to college after this year. She replied by saying, "Why? I already found something to do for the rest of my life!"

Seems as though picking apples must be exhilarating.

"Cause, someone needs to pick up the slack while everyone else is away." She shrugged her shoulders.

"So what does that have to do with me?" I asked probably a little too rudely.

"Well, ah was wonderin' if y'all would wanna come on over to Sweet Apple Acres and give me a hand with pickin' some apples?" Now here I was conflicted. I'm not sure if I got the point across to you earlier, but physical labor and I do not, I repeat, do not mix. Never liked working myself hard, and now Applejack is asking me to help her out on her farm. Where lots of manual labor takes place. Almost too quickly, I decided to come up with some sort of counter.

"I dunno, you don't have anyone else to help you out?" I asked. "What about your friends?"

"Believe me, I already asked 'em," she rolled her eyes as she said this and I wasn't sure if I should take offense to that. "But they're all busy this weekend. So you're pretty much my only hope for any help this weekend on the farm."

Aw man, she was playing the guilt card. Great. Now I actually have to take this into consideration. "Well, I'd like to help you out, AJ, but I don't know the first thing about working on a farm. I honestly wouldn't be that much help."

"Please, all ah need help with is pickin' apples," she scoffed, smiling at me. "And pickin' apples ain't that difficult, but it ain't easy neither. Get my meanin'?"

Okay, that was a bit of a contradiction.

“Uh, rrriiight.” I looked away from her briefly, scratching my neck while trying to find some sort of answer to give without hurting her feelings. “I really don’t know, AJ. I don’t think I’m really cut out for that kind of work. For all I know, I’d probably mess something up.”

The look that appeared on her face killed me a little inside. She pursed her lips briefly before those beautiful, shimmering green eyes looked down towards the ground in defeat. Applejack seemed to deflate entirely as her shoulders slumped and she leaned on the desk, holding her chin up with her palm.

“Aw shucks, Mav,” she mumbled, not making eye contact with me. “Ah was really hoping you could help me out this weekend. Ah don’t trust anybody else and you’re one of my best good friends. Here ah was thinkin’ I could count on ya.”

Goddesses did that fucking hurt. This girl put her trust into me. And considers me as one of her closest friends.

I am the biggest jerk on the planet. There was no way she would forgive me for this if I just completely blew her off.

Quickly coming up with a response—one that I hoped would not fuck this up even more—I picked up her chin so she would look me in the eyes. To be honest, I had no real clue what possessed me to do that, but it felt right.

“Alright, AJ,” I sighed. “Give me until after school to think about it alright? I still have to ask my parents if I can even leave the house this weekend.”

“So you’ll think about it?” she asked, her face lighting up.

I merely nodded.

“Aw, man!” She chuckled. “You had me goin’ there for a sec!”

Suddenly, the bell rang. And everyone in the class immediately began making for the door. Me and Applejack usually wait for everyone else to leave. It makes things easier to just walk out instead of jostling others around.

All of my stuff was packed into my bag so I got up, stretched, and slung my bag on my right shoulder.

Applejack did the same and picked up her binder that was full of her work from all her classes. Not that she had much in there to begin with.

Like I said, Applejack hardly gives a shit about school. The only thing she really cares about is just waiting for school to end so she can go back home and work on her farm. I couldn’t imagine working on a farm for the rest of my life. Sounds… boring, really.

I don’t know how she does it.

As she stood up, she turned to pick up her binder from the floor. It was this angle I got a really good view of her. Damn was she built.

She had a wonderfully slender form with visible curves running down her hips. Her physique was absolutely stunning. All those years working on the farm paid off nicely. Even with the modest clothes she had on, you could clearly see how toned she was. And those skinny jeans she had on flaunted those luscious, sculpted legs.

It honestly makes me wonder...

“Gettin’ a good view there, Mav?”

I shook my head as her voice broke me out of my stupor caused by that divine body of hers. “Uhh…”

“Uhhh…” she mimicked, laughing as she brushed a lock of her blonde hair out of her face. “Come along now, Mav. Time’s a wastin’!”

She turned me around and began nudging towards the door before I finally regained control of my motor skills and joined her out in the now crowded hallway. We walked out towards the foyer of the school, where her friends, surprisingly Sunset Shimmer as well, were standing around in a circle. More than likely waiting for Applejack.

“So, you’ll think about it, right?” she asked before we reached her friends. Usually whenever Applejack met up with her friends, it would be time for me to take my leave. I would hang out with her and her friends from time to time, but I wouldn’t want to overstay my welcome.

That, and I’m pretty sure they have… ‘girl things’ they often talked about. Like what they’re going to wear to prom. Or something of that nature.

“Yeah,” I nodded, grinning at her. “I think I’ll consider it. But, I’m only doing this ‘cause it’s a favor to you.”

“Aw, thanks, Mav.” She smiled graciously at me, leaning forward to wrap her arms around my lower torso. I responded in kind by holding her back just as tightly as she held me.

Ouch. She’s really squeezing the hell out of me. Our embrace lasted a little longer than usual. Maybe like, four or five seconds longer. Eventually, Applejack released me from her iron grip. “You’re the best. I can’t thank ya enough.”

“Anything for you, AJ.” I smiled.

“Well, I guess I should find some way to repay ya for yer trouble.”

“How so?”

“Hmm.” She pursed her lips and arched her brow, thinking back on something. “Meh, I’ll figure somethin’ out. See you after school in the front?”

I smiled then nodded at her. “You bet. I’ll meet you there.”

“Alrighty then.” She hugged me tightly once more and made her way back to her friends, where they were patiently waiting next to the front door. After reaching them, she turned around and waved at me, and I waved back to her. Usually I don’t pay too much attention to her friends, and by that I mean I don’t really make the effort to go up and talk to them. Mostly because I’m just too lazy to do so.

Getting to know six other girls at the same time is exhausting.

Before I turned towards the cafeteria, I caught brief glimpses of the looks they were all giving me.

Rainbow Dash was smirking deviously at me, like she was hiding something. Rarity had her arms crossed and a hand on her mouth, as if she tried to stifle a giggle. Sunset Shimmer was just smiling brightly at me.

Goddesses, did she have a cute smile.

The others were simply just smiling at me as well. Pinkie looked like she was about to burst out laughing, Twilight had this small smile on her lips, and Fluttershy, well, she had this sheepish look on her face. Applejack was in the midst of it all.

And I wasn’t sure, but I could’ve sworn I saw a hue of red on her cheeks.

Meh. Whatever. I’ll deal with that later. For now, my stomach was getting pretty upset at me for the lack of food. I quickly made haste to the cafeteria, where I could already see the line to the serving area forming.

A long.

Fucking.

Line.

Typical.

I stood in line for fifteen agonising minutes .

After picking up my tray of two slices of pizza, an apple, milk, and the crummy green slop they call a vegetable, I tossed everything except the pizza and apple in the nearest trash. I don’t much care for the other things, so why eat them? I dropped the apple into a pocket on my backpack, zipped it up, and made my way toward the usual spot where Note and I hung out.

The spot was in a mostly secluded area of the school, where all the nerds go to do nerdy things where no one can see them. I’m actually not too much of a nerd myself, but those guys are the very definition of the word. Like, they literally talk about science, play games on their handhelds, or play nerdy card games that have to do with dragons, knights, and other things.

Oh, and FYI, the female population of that sector of the school is utterly and entirely nonexistent.

You get half a guess as to why that is.

Anywho, I finished my two slices of pizza, threw the plate in a trashcan in the hall, and pulled out my apple, taking a large bite. It felt like I was biting into a damn soggy marshmallow. My face wrinkled from the sour taste and looked at it with disdain.

I knew it. The damn apple was practically brown on the inside. Fuck high school food.

The apple disgusted me so much I doubled back to the trashcan where I threw the plate, and I slam dunked that shit in there so hard Michael Jordan would be proud. I wiped my hands of the disgusting juice it left on me and I resumed my trek across the school to the little area on the school grounds, where my nerdy compatriots along with my buddy Note were.

Though I could probably hang out with other people with bigger standing in the social food chain, I didn’t want to. I honestly found solace hanging out with those dudes. Hanging with a popular guy like Flash Sentry or some other A-hole, I couldn’t possibly be myself. To be truthful, one bad move or one terrible joke would be all it would take, and my reputation at Canterlot High would forever be slandered.

And that’s if I actually gave a shit.

When I met Applejack, I didn’t really care about making a crap ton of friends. I didn’t need that really. All I needed was just a couple of friends I knew I could talk to whenever I wanted, and they would talk to me as well. You know, people I knew would never fuck me over.

Now that that’s over with…

At long last, I reached the area on the side of the school near the student parking lot, where the nerds of the school staked their claim long ago. And so it was, this became their hangout spot.

Then there was Notebook, standing above some other guys that were seated at a table, a chessboard draped over the top. From what I saw as I approached, the guy playing as the black pieces was losing. Big time.

“Hey! Douchebag!” I called out. He turned around from the game taking place in front of him and smirked as he saw me approaching.

“Sup, bitch!” Note laughed as he held out his fist which I bumped. “What’s happening?”

“Just finished wading my way through a sea of hungry people to claim the divine treasure that is pizza,” I replied nonchalantly. “Did you get something to eat?”

“Yeah.” He nodded as we turned towards the table where the chess game was happening. “Packed myself a sandwich. Didn’t feel like fighting through the crowd just to get a slice of frozen pizza.”

“Hey the pizza ain’t that bad,” one of the players known as Rooker chuckled.

“He’s got a point there,” his opponent replied. What his name was I didn’t know. Fun fact: I don’t know half the people on this side of the fucking school. They all stood in various spots on the grass or sat down on the few benches that surrounded the area.

We all laughed for a moment before I spoke up. “Yeah the pizza ain’t that bad. It’s better than those damn tacos they give us.”

“Right, right,” Note nodded, smirking to himself. Okay, one thing I forgot to mention, Note was a pretty big guy. He had broad shoulders and stood at least a full head higher than me. I barely reached up to his shoulders and I’m a fairly tall guy. I’m taller than Applejack for goddesses’ sake.

I am jealous of Note’s height and forever will be.

We spent a few minutes of chatting idly, and watching Rooker beat the shit out of the other guy. By the time he won, I finally decided to tell Note of my weekend plans with Applejack. Or rather, if I should even do it.

“So what do you think?” I asked as I leaned against the brick wall of the sciences building. Note stood off to the side, his arms crossed.

“I say go for it,” he nodded at me, pursing his lips. “She’s a friend and she needs you. Just do it, bro.”

“Would you seriously do it?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

“Shit, I would,” he chuckled. “Especially if I’m going to be helping a fine individual like Applejack. Think about it for a sec. A hot girl is asking to spend a weekend with you alone at her farm. The possibilities are endless. It’s highly probable that this will end how your perverted little mind is hoping it will!”

Okay, weird. I frowned at his absurd declaration. “Seriously? You really think Applejack is just using the excuse of her needing help at the farm just for us to end up having sex?”

He then gave this weird little look that he always gave me when he’s trying to get his ridiculous point across.

“I doubt it, man,” I sighed, shaking my head. “I really doubt Applejack sees me that way. I mean, I’m not exactly the greatest. She could literally choose any guy in the school and she chooses me? Why don’t you put that into your little calculation.”

“Aw c’mon, man!” he exclaimed, shoving me slightly. Jeez, he barely made a move and I felt like I was hit by a train. “You are the X that she is trying to solve for! Out of all the variables in the equation, she chose to solve for you! You are the absolute value! The standard deviation! The square root! The-”

“Alright!” I shouted. “Enough with the math metaphors. You’re hurting my head.”

“Well excuse me for understanding math, asshole.”

“Anyways, so you think I should go for it?”

“Absolutely,” he replied. “This is an opportunity of a lifetime. And you’re thinking of passing it up.”

I paused and thought for a moment about things. Applejack is an insanely attractive individual. Even though we’ve been friends for a couple of years, I didn’t think that we were that close. Sure we’ve talked about personal matters and the such, but we hardly ever hung out outside of school.

The thought lingered inside my mind for a moment, before Note tapped me on the shoulder. “Yo, so are you gonna go through with it, man?”

“Now that I think of it,” I began. “I think I’ll just do it. I’ve got nothing better to do with my parents out of the house the whole weekend and it’s a whole lot better than staying up all night playing online with you.”

“Whoa- wait,” Note interrupted, grabbing my shoulder and glaring at me straight in the eyes. “Your parents. Are gone? For the whole weekend? Dude, we should totally-”

“No.”

“Aw c’mon! This is another perfect-”

“Mm mm,” I hummed, crossing my arms.

“But-”

“I said no.”

“Mav, we could do a-”

“We are not a doing a Toga party.”

‘But what about-”

“Or a keg party. We can’t even buy beer.”

“Then how ‘bout-”

“And definitely, for the love the Goddesses, not a party where a bunch of these dudes we don’t even know go over to my house to do nothing, but play video games on my systems that I worked hard for. Especially if there are no girls there. The amount of testosterone packed into my living room would be stifling without some estrogen to cool it off. It would be the biggest sausage-fest in the world.”

“Man, you’re no fun,” Note groaned, folding his arms as he leaned against the science building’s brick wall.

“Well excuse me for not wanting strangers in my house to enjoy my personal amenities,” I scoffed. Before our banter could resume any further, the school’s monotoned bell echoed throughout the school, signaling for all students to cease fun and be herded back into class like sheep.

You could literally hear the whole school groan.

I saw everyone in the Nerd Sector of the school begin to pack up their stuff. “Welp. I guess it’s back to the grind,” Note laughed as he picked up his bag and slung it over his shoulder. “So, what are you doing after school?”

“Well it’s a Friday,” I said, picking up my bag as well. “First, meet up with Applejack. Then I guess take the bus home and prepare myself for this weekend. Goddesses know what kind of work Applejack has in store.”

“Heh, I can think of a few things.”

“Get your head out of your ass will you, Note?” I chuckled. We both then decided to begin the trek back to our classes. I believe I had government next. “What about you?”

“I’m staying in the library this afternoon.”

“The school library?” I raised a brow at him. “Is that even allowed?”

“Uh yeah.” He glanced at me. “Didn’t you know that students can stay after hours?”

“I’ve never cared enough to ask!” The only times I went is when I had research to do. “Why are you staying?”

“‘Cause, finals are coming soon and well, I like to get a head start.”

“Hmph, right.” We eventually made it into the school, where the halls were flooded with students. Some of them were familiar faces, but when you spend the last four years of your life wandering the same halls, you begin to recognize people.

Me and Note had to part ways since we had different classes. He stopped right in front of his math class, where the infamous Mr. Cranky Doodle made his domain. The old man stood outside in front of the door, staring with his soul-burning glare.

“So, see you soon?” he asked, standing in front of the lockers near the classroom.

“Yeah, man.” We bumped fists and he smirked at me. “Don’t study too hard. Might fry that potato you call a brain.”

The two of us laughed briefly as I turned around and made my way down the crowded corridor to my own class. I’d happily skip, but I had enough absences and I did not need my diploma to be revoked.

You know, now that the school year was finally over, it made me think about what the future held. To be honest, I was going to miss the big guy. He was smart so I knew he would probably get accepted to some really fancy school.

Oh well. Time to get back to class.

A few classes later and the final bell rang.

I was among the torrent of young adults pouring out from the exits of the school. Soon enough, I was standing in front of the school statue that resembles a rearing stallion.

So majestic.

Eventually, I saw Applejack walking towards me… By herself? Strange, her usual entourage of her best friends was absent.

“Hey there, Mav!” Applejack greeted brightly as she pulled me into a tight hug. “Have a good day?”

Whoa, where in the world did that come from? “Well, now that the day’s over and you’re here, I feel a little better.” I smiled at her. I feel like what Note said might be getting to me and I’m inadvertently buttering her up.

The farm girl's eyes widened slightly before she blushed and smiled bashfully up at me.

“Aw, shucks.” Applejack glanced away from me, rubbing her neck. “You’re makin’ me blush, Mav.”

Man, she looks cute when she blushes. I could feel my cheeks burning up from the sight alone. No matter what, I had to play it cool. “W-well, I’m...” I cleared my throat. “I’m glad I can flatter you so easily like that. So, what’s the plan for this weekend?”

“Welp, one thing’s for sure, we got our work cut out for us,” she began, holding her binder against her chest as we walked towards the sidewalk where the buses lined up, the students walking to their designated rides. “The whole southern field’s gotta be picked before the summer, and I wanna get through the first half of it this weekend.”

“And uh, how big is this field?” I asked, raising a brow at her.

“‘Bout a couple acres. Give or take.”

Oh, shit. A couple of acres. I knew that was a large piece of land and I didn’t even have to ask Note to calculate that for me. And she wants to do half of it this weekend.

What have I gotten myself into?

“Mav?” She tapped my shoulder.

“Huh?” I muttered, blinking as I shook my head. “What?”

“You’ve been awfully quiet,” she said, a worried look on her face. “You thinking about something?”

Only the pain and suffering I’ll be going through this weekend.

“Uh, n-nothing,” I stuttered. “So, just the two of us are going to be taking on a whole field of apples? You sure we can do this?”

Applejack laughed. “Hah! You kiddin’? Me and my big bro can get half a field done like nothing! All’s we need is two of us. Don’t need much more than that.”

This is crazy. Just the two of us alone on her farm. Picking apples. Hundreds of apples.

“I don’t know, AJ,” I argued. “I mean, I’m not in the best shape of my life. And summer’s on the way. How long would we be going at it?”

“Heh, well,” she chuckled. “We usually wake up at the crack o’ dawn so that way we can get more things done. We then usually work ‘til the late afternoon ‘round four or five. ‘Course, we ain’t superhuman. We do take breaks here and there, Mav. Specially for lunch. Working all morning can work up an appetite.”

“Right.” I nodded. “So, what time do I go over there tomorrow?”

“Oh! That reminds me!” She opened her binder and reached into one of the side pockets, pulling out a small slip of paper. “Here, take this. It has the address for the farm. It ain’t too far away from here. Just about close to the city limits.”

The distance from here to the city limits was at least a twenty-thirty minute drive. Great.

“Well, I guess I could look up the address online.” I pocketed the note. “So, what now? I’m about to head for my bus. What about you?”

“Big Mac’s comin’ round with the truck sometime soon.” She looked off towards the street where parents were picking up their kids. “Ah guess you might wanna head to your bus before it takes off without ya.”

“Yeah, you’re right.” The long line of buses was already running the length of the school. I saw everyone already getting onboard. I really needed to get on mine or else I would’ve been left behind. “So, I’ll be seeing you tomorrow morning? What time you want me to come?”

“Just be there at least before noon.” She smiled.

“I’ll try to be up early then,” I smiled back. “So, I’ll be seeing you tomorrow?”

She only grinned and nodded. “You bet.”

“Alright, then.” I leaned forward and hugged her goodbye, where she squeezed me tightly. “Ouch, not so hard. Don’t miss me too much, heh.”

“Can’t help it.” She chuckled, letting go of me. “You’re just too squeezable.”

Someone from the street honked their horn and we both looked over. There was a red truck with Applejack’s brother leaning out the window and motioning for Applejack to get in. I’ve only ever spoke to him maybe once. He graduated last year and since then, he’s probably just been working on the farm like Applejack.

I didn’t know about her, but I intended to go to college. It’d be a shame if I went off somewhere and never saw her again. But, if she really was going to work on the farm for the rest of her life, I could always visit her.

Another thing occurred to me at that moment. If I was gone and we never saw each other that much, then she would possibly…

“Welp. I gotta go, Mav.” She smiled before turning around and walking towards the truck. I’ll be honest with myself, I stared a little longer than I should have. How could I not? The way her hips sashayed with each and every step, or how her beautiful, golden blonde hair shone in the sunlight.

If anyone saw my face, I probably would’ve looked a little starry-eyed. Before I knew it, she stepped into the truck, and drove away down the road, giving me one last smile through the window and I smiled back.

“All buses are leaving!” I heard a teacher’s voice shout out. Soon, the big, yellow behemoths growled as they shifted into gear and began driving forward.

And my bus was at the front of the line.

Shit.

During dinner, that evening I spoke with my parents about the plans for the weekend. They seemed to be a bit reluctant about me leaving the house, since they were leaving off to another city and wouldn’t be back until Monday. Thankfully, with a little convincing, I was lent the car so I could get to and from the farm.

I also looked up Applejack’s address and copied the route onto my phone. In the morning, I would have to use it as my guide.

After dinner, I went got on my computer and called Note on Skype, where we decided to play a few games online. Oh, and get this, while he was studying at the library that afternoon, Applejack’s friend, Twilight Sparkle, paid Note a little visit in the library, and well…

Things happened.

You can imagine the rest.

At first I didn’t believe it, but after some convincing and extremely vivid details, I decided to appease my friend and congratulate him on cashing in his V-card. But in a library of all places?

I mean, shit, not even I would have the courage to pull a stunt like that.

Either way, he and Twilight are a confirmed couple according to him. Said something about taking her on a date during this weekend. Lucky bastard. I couldn’t help but feel slightly jealous. Notebook, the biggest nerd I know, got laid before me.

In the end, I was happy for the big guy and I promised we would celebrate together some time.

Night fell, and it was time for me to sleep. Applejack was not too specific on what time I should get there. My parents would be leaving at the the crack of dawn to catch their flight. I set my alarm for just after they left so I could get to her farm as early as possible.

Since I was going to be helping her for the whole weekend, I was sure I’d be able to memorize the route there.

That night, sleep eluded me. I laid there for a good few hours, trying to sleep around ten or eleven, even after Note begged me to stay on and called me a “little bitch” when I signed off for the night.

I didn’t know what it was that bothered me. Was it Note’s success in getting a girlfriend? Or maybe my lack of action with Applejack. As I laid there, I started thinking about all those times I should have asked her out. Like for the senior prom, which already passed about the month before.

When I asked her what she was doing that night, she said she didn’t plan on going, so my dumb ass decided not to bother with it and didn’t ask again. Perhaps I should’ve simply asked her out and done something else than spend time and money on expensive dress wear and just went out to go stargaze in a field or something.

So many things I should’ve said.

Now I found myself standing upon the precipice of my destiny. It was that night I knew I had to do something. To make the first move. I debated with myself for a good hour as I laid on my bed.

Finally, I came up with a resolve to take the initiative and make some sort of move on her. I hoped she wouldn’t think I was being creepy or desperate, but then I started thinking about certain… things.

Some weird reason, I began to think about her looks. Those cute little freckles on her cheeks, her fit, toned body. And then about her beautiful emerald eyes. And then… how she would sway those incredible hips of hers with each step. And those long... legs...

Alright, I stopped myself before I needed to make an emergency evacuation. I then began focusing on sleep itself so I wouldn’t be late like an asshole. I closed my eyes and simply thought about nothing.

But then, I began dreaming. Not the kind of dream where you wake up and immediately forget about it. I guess, daydreaming? Whatever it’s called, that’s what happened as I turned over in my sleep. My dreaming included Applejack, however I wasn’t dreaming about perverted stuff. I was just dreaming about her altogether. The two of us sitting on the hood of my car, staring out at the stars.

Or both of us sitting in my room playing games, her laughing as she beat me, but I secretly let her win just to see that beautiful smile light up like a Hearth’s Warming tree.

And then I began thinking about me and her on a date, having a candlelight dinner in some restaurant that I suggested we go to. I knew for a fact that Applejack wasn’t high maintenance, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t treat her like a lady.

While I dreamt about these moments, I could feel my heart flutter when I thought about the two of us sharing a kiss in the rain or under the moonlight. I really wondered what her lips would feel like on mine. To be truthful, I’m not a hopeless romantic, but when it came to someone I loved, I’d do anything to make them happy.

Then something hit me. But, why it didn’t hit me sooner, I had no idea. The thought of me and Applejack together made me extremely happy. Like, all my dreams had come true or something.

It was at that moment in the long night, I realized something.

I liked Applejack. Quite a bit actually. Okay, maybe a lot.

The one thought that occurred to me, before I finally fell into sleep’s comforting embrace, was something that worried me greatly:

Did she like me back?

Morning came much quicker than I thought.

The alarm clock blared its incredibly annoying siren and I pounded on it until the damn thing finally stopped. My eyes felt like they were glued shut as I half rolled, half fell off my bed. With some effort, my eyes popped open and my vision became clear.

Glancing at my clock, I saw that it read about 6:40 a.m.

Knowing Applejack, she probably already started.

The house was empty since my parents left pretty early. The night before, I gathered clothes that I thought would suffice for the day. Nothing too fancy, just a white T-shirt, jeans, and an old pair of sneakers. I didn’t have any boots, so these would have to do.

As for breakfast, I just toasted a few pieces of bread and spread some butter over them. I made sure to drink a few glasses of water. I read somewhere that before hard physical labor, you’re supposed to hydrate your body.

Hopefully orange juice would add to that.

Soon after, I brushed my teeth, put on my clothes, fixed up my hair a bit, picked up my keys, and then went out the door. By the time I left, it was twenty past seven.

The car growled to life as I turned the keys and sped off from my driveway. I pulled up a map on my phone and followed the route I set up to Applejack’s farm.

I hoped it wouldn’t take too long.

So, remember how I hoped it wouldn’t take very long to arrive at the farm? Yeah, well, thing is, it took A LOT longer than I thought it would. Even though I had the damn route planned out on my phone, I still managed to get lost.

And her farm was way out there in the boonies, away from the usual urban landscape.

Eventually, and I mean eventually, hundreds of lines of trees came into view. I turned my head to see them as they blurred past the windshield. I could only assume who those trees belonged to. Quite obvious since I spotted red shapes amongst the branches.

Further down along the freeway, I spotted a wooden fence that ran for about half a mile until I came across a sort of gateway. I hit the brake and skidded to a halt.

Hanging above the gateway, I saw a large insignia adorning the wooden board: A large, red apple inundated with vines and flower petals. Below that was a wooden sign hanging by chains that read “Sweet Apple Acres” in big, red letters.

I stared at the sign for maybe a moment or two, before I turned to the right and drove past the gate, where it led onto a dirt road. The drive into the farm was truly something.

Trees surrounded the road as I drove, rays of sunlight seeping in through the branches.

I opened the window of my car and allowed the breeze of the early morning to flow through my hair and against my face. It felt nice despite the fact that it was a hot day. The sun was shining brightly and there was not a cloud in the sky.

Great. This ought to be the funnest day of my life.

The dirt road led to a clearing, where I could see a farmhouse resting comfortably in the midst of this jungle. I could smell the strong smell of wet, dewed grass, and the sweet scent of the apple trees was intoxicating. Finally, after taking in everything, I reached the farmhouse, and guess who just happened to be there, rolling in a wheelbarrow full of apples towards the barn?

No, seriously. Go on, guess.

Of course, it’s Applejack, you sillies.

And good goddesses, my mouth dropped to the floor as I saw what she was wearing. She wore her usual boot cut jeans but these looked more tattered and dirty. Either way, she could pull them off. She also wore an orange plaid shirt with the hem rolled up past her midriff and tied up to keep from sliding down as well as the sleeves which were rolled up close to her elbows. Underneath was a plain white tank top which seemed a little too small for her since it could barely cover her lower stomach.

Not that I minded.

Of course, she wore her hat and hair was tied into the usual ponytail that hung over her shoulder. Her skin was glistening from the early morning humidity and it seemed as though she was glowing like an angel.

She smiled as I pulled up in my car, walking towards the driver’s seat window.

Oh boy. I swallowed hard as she approached, trying my damnedest to play it cool.

“Mornin’ there, Mav!” Applejack called out as I lowered the window. “Had a good night's rest?”

“Uh, y-yep!” I grinned. “Sorry I’m a little late. Got lost on the way here.”

“Oh that’s fine,” she chuckled, waving her hand dismissively. “The farm can be a bit difficult to find. Go ahead and park there next to my truck.”

Nodding my head, I rolled up the window and drove over to where her truck was parked, right in front of the porch of the big red farmhouse. I switched it off and pocketed the keys, and stepped out where Applejack was waiting.

She moved forward and quickly wrapped her arms around me in a tight bear hug and I reciprocated the gesture, wrapping my own arms around her lower back. I didn’t even care that she was practically damp from the sweat.

“Thanks for comin’, Mav,” Applejack sighed in my ear before pulling back, a soft smile on her face. From this distance I could see a thin layer of dirt on her clothes and face. “I honestly didn’t think you’d show up at first.”

“Well, I’m glad to see you have faith in me.” I scowled playfully, crossing my arms. “If you want something to blame, blame the broken GPS that led me halfway around the world before I finally arrived here.”

“Like I said, it’s fine.” She rolled her eyes. “So, you ready to get started? Now that you’re here, we can probably get more work done than I could do alone.”

“Sure.” I nodded my head, smiling as I rubbed my hands and popped a few knuckles. “Just point me in the right direction, boss.”

“Follow me right quick.” Motioning for me to follow, I wasted no time in catching up to her. The two of us walked back to where the wheelbarrow rested. “Mind helpin’ me take that there wheelbarrow to the barn? I need to dump that load there before we head back out into the field.”

“Alright.” I gripped the handles of the wheelbarrow and lifted with a grunt. To be brutally honest, the damn thing was pretty heavy. I didn’t want to look weak in front of Applejack, so I put on a stoic face and drove the thing with all my might.

To her, however, I wasn’t hiding my struggle good enough. “You okay there, Mav? The thing too heavy for ya?”

“Nah,” I replied, my voice cracking a bit. Goddesses, she probably noticed that. “I’m good. Let’s keep moving.” A millennia passed before my eyes before we finally reached the barn, and I dumped all the apples into a pile on the floor, next to a sizeable mound of apples. “So, what do you do with these dumped apples?”

“We gather ‘em and put ‘em into barrels,” she explained, leaning against the barn door. “Then we ship ‘em off to whoever wants to buy some or sell them at the local flea market.”

“Huh, right,” I grumbled, grabbing hold of the wheelbarrow. “So, what’s the objective for today?”

“Welp, we got our work cut out for us, that’s for sure,” She pursed her lips, looking back towards the orchard. “I wanna get most of the South field picked before my family gets back on Monday. But for today, let’s get at least more than a quarter through it.”

“And what’s my job?”

“Your job, is to help me carry that wheelbarrow so I won’t have to do double the work. I pick the apples, put ‘em in a bucket, dump ‘em, and you roll it back to the barn. Easy right?”

“Pfft, too easy.” I chuckled as we began our trek to the enormous field of apple trees.

“Alrighty then.” She rolled her eyes. “Oh and FYI, ya probably should’ve brought a hat. Protect your eyes from the sun. We gon’ be out here for a little while until it’s time for lunch.”

“Oh, really.” At that moment, I kind of figured I was fucked. Out of everything I could have forgotten, I forgot that we were going to be out in the sun for an extended amount of time. A hat of some sort would’ve done wonders. Now I had to endure the heat of the early morning without any kind of protection from the sun.

“Heh! And I reckon we’ll be putting those muscles of yours to work!” She clapped me roughly on the shoulder, and the recoil caused me to fumble with the wheelbarrow. “By the time this weekend is over, you’ll probably be as strong as Big Mac!”

She chuckled heartily and I laughed as well, though a bit uneasily. We were now close to the endless trove of trees, and I felt as if I was about to meet my horrible heatstroke-involved fate. I began to pray to any kind of God or Goddess that was listening at the moment.

I was going to need it.

So, I wasn’t quite certain what I was feeling at the moment. Pain? Regret? Probably both. Perhaps it was greatest pain of all time: the pain of regret. Mixed in with some self-loathing and the incredibly strong urge to go back in time and prevent my conception. If only that were possible at the moment. Anywhere, but here would be better.

“You alright there, Mav?” Applejack asked as she climbed down the ladder that was leaning against the tree we were working on. The wheelbarrow was currently halfway full, and the tree was just about fully picked. Prior to this one, we’d gone through about maybe thirty, or forty, or I didn’t really know at that point.

The ability to process things such as numbers was heavily impaired. Applejack worked quickly and I had to keep up with her. It was tedious, really. Strenuous. Now it was clear to me that Applejack could do this kind of work almost too efficiently. Then there I was struggling to work at her pace.

“Uh, y-yeah!” I gasped, as I leaned over the wheelbarrow, sweat dripping off my cheeks and forehead. My shirt was practically drenched with sweat and my whole body felt like a Hot Pocket fresh out of the microwave. Bits of grass clung to my hair and my arms, and there were dark dirt stains on my pants and shirt. My sneakers were white and black when I came here.

Now they were brown.

“You uh, sure you’re okay?” Applejack’s expression softened into one of confusion and concern. “If you wanna stop and rest for a bit, I understand.” I wanted to stop around fifteen minutes in. However, I didn’t want to lose face. To my idiotic mind, Applejack seemed like the type of girl to fall for a man’s man with unbreakable machismo. An unyielding force of nature!

Yet here I am with her. A kid who has his head up in the clouds most of the time and plays video games too much. Back then I was such an idiot. I was an idiot for thinking that way. Believing that a guy like me could never have a girl like her in my arms.

Even then, the fact of the matter remains. Of all the guys she could’ve picked, she picked me. One thing I wanted to know, was why? That would have to come later.

“How long have we been at this?” I asked, wiping away the sweat from my forehead. “Feels like years.”

“Oh don’t be exaggeratin’,” she scoffed. I saw her look up to the sky, squinting as she did something with her hands. “It should be about noon by now. Wanna head in to grab some food?”

Did I fucking ever. “Sure. Ready when you are.” With that, she climbed back up the ladder and began picking the remaining apples off the tree, dropping them into a large, wooden bucket below her. When she finished, I grabbed the bucket and dumped its contents into the wheelbarrow, making it heavier in the process. Thus, making the trip back to the barn more difficult.

“Alright, let’s get goin’!” She clapped me lightly on the shoulder and I followed her back to the barnhouse. Okay, I’ll admit. That hurt a lot more than it should have.

“So, whatcha think?” Applejack asked, smirking as she arched her brow at me coyly. “You like it?”

My eyes gleamed with hunger. “Oh man. It looks great. And delicious.”

“Why don’t ya give it a try?” She giggled.

“Gladly!” I took a bite of the sweet deliciousness that was her homemade apple pie. In the past, Applejack has always told me about the legend of Apple family pies. I never quite believed her, but tasting this heavenly morsel of crispy, appley goodness, I now understand why she bragged so much about it.

Before we dug into the pies she made for us, Applejack had cooked some stew for us to chow down on. It was some sort of mix that was composed of cabbage, chicken, carrots, and mixed with various spices. In all honesty, the stew was pretty damn good. Simple, yet satisfying. Along with the soup, we drank a few glasses of refreshing ice tea.

“Wow,” I muttered, still chewing on the syrupy piece of pie in my mouth. “This, is something else, AJ. I kinda feel mad you never let me have a pie like this before.”

“Well that’s your own fault for never giving the farm a visit, ” she laughed as she started on her own slice of pie. “I would’ve gladly baked ya one if you ever came on by.”

“I guess it is my own fault.” I swallowed the piece of pie in my mouth and forked another. “I’ll be honest, I never really thought you’d be okay with me visiting out of the blue.”

“Why wouldn’t I be?” she asked. “I mean, I like ya enough.” I felt my cheeks burn. Looking back up at Applejack, I saw her cheeks gain a slight tinge of red. “I-I mean, uh, I sure as heck wouldn’t have minded sharing a piece of pie with ya.”

“Y-yeah, I feel the same way,” I replied as I stuck in another piece of pie into my mouth. Then, it occurred to me what I said and I almost choked. “Uh, I mean, you’re fun to hang around with as well.”

I felt my whole body tense up.

“What do you like about hanging with me?” She might as well have dickpunched me with that question. I was severely unequipped to answer this, and if I said the wrong thing, I might set off this powder keg. Applejack tilted her head as she waited for my response. The fatigue from working on the field was still present. I’d actually have to think about what I should say.

Treading carefully, I gave her my answer. “Well, I guess I can say you’re a cool friend that’s for sure. And you sure know how to make a damn good pie. I would’ve come a lot sooner than this.”

Alright, that sounded much better in my head. Instead, I probably made myself sound like an ass.

“Why didn’t ya?”

I paused again, ceased my chewing and swallowed. “I dunno what to say really. I just, never thought about coming. Despite the fact that I’ve known you for so long. Can I be honest?”

“‘Course ya can.”

“I never knew if you’d be okay with me visiting, you know?” I looked down at my plate. Whatever she was thinking, I couldn’t bear to look her in the eyes. “I just didn’t know how comfortable you are with me.”

A few moments of uneasy silence passed. Neither of us knowing what to say next. I was clueless on what to do next. What was she thinking?

Finally, I heard her sigh as she stood up with her plate in hand. “It’s almost time to get started up again. I’ll give ya about fifteen minutes or so to do what you gotta do. Bathroom’s down the hall and second door on the left. Meet me in the living room when you’re ready.”

I watched her place her unfinished plate of apple pie in the fridge, and she walked out of the kitchen without another word. With that, I pushed back my plate and pressed my hands together in frustration.

“Urgh, how am I going to go through with this?” I grumbled to myself. “Think.” I thumped my head against my hands.

“Think.”

thump

“Think.”

thump

“Think, you idiot, ugh.” I thumped my head one last time before I finally slammed them on the table… right into my apple pie. “Agh, sonuva- man!” I looked around the kitchen table to see if I could spot some napkins.

Sadly, there were none.

Left with no other option, I simply began licking all of the crust and syrupy apples off my wrists. I may have looked like a child, but hell, the pie was too good to simply wipe off with a napkin. When I finished cleaning up, I got up and threw the paper plate into the trashcan.

I finished my business with the porcelain throne, and walked back into the living room, where I found Applejack sitting on the couch next to the screen door.

“Well,” I cleared my throat, putting on the best smile I could muster. “I’m good to go, AJ.”

“Alrighty then, partner.” Applejack thankfully smiled back. “Let’s get goin’.”

This half of the day was not as bad as the first half. Though it was the afternoon, the morning humidity had finally worn off. Now it was just dry heat. Not only that, but Applejack seemed to work even faster, leaving me struggling to keep up with her. Apples fell from the trees quicker than I could dump them into the wheelbarrow.

Not to mention, there was hardly any conversation. The most we would talk was when she asked me to do something or move the bucket this way and that. However many trees we went through, this time I kept count.

At twenty three trees in, she stopped.

She placed the ladder against the tree, leaning on it with a hand on her hip. To me, it looked like she was thinking of something. I dropped the wheelbarrow, a few apples falling off the edge. Without her asking, I grabbed the bucket and stood next to the tree, waiting for her to start the picking.

“Something up?” She refused to meet my gaze and I was dying a little on the inside.

“It’s nothin’.” Oh for fuck’s sake. I was no expert with women, but when they say ‘nothing’s wrong’, it means you fucked up somehow and must find a way to fix it without putting yourself in deeper shit. Right now I’d say I’m ankle deep.

“AJ,” I muttered. “What’s going on?” Seriously, I just had to ask.

“I said it was nothin’, Mav,” she snapped. “Let’s just get to work.” I watched her step away from the ladder and move next to the tree trunk. What happened next shocked, and somewhat terrified me. Applejack about faced the tree and delivered a sharp roundhouse kick to the side of the trunk.

The impact reverberating throughout the whole tree and several apples fell helplessly from their branches and onto the ground, where she began to pick them up.

Meanwhile I stared at her slack-jawed. As she was about to pick up one right in front of me, she stopped and arched a brow at my expression. “What?”

“You just, you-” I coughed and regained my voice. “You just roundhoused the tree and literally all the apples came off. How did you do that?”

Instead of giving me a little smirk like she always does, her expression flattened as she placed a hand on her hip, apples still in hand.

“How long you think I’ve been doing this?” she asks. “I know these fields and trees like the back of my hand. You didn’t bother to think I’d gained some sorta skills from doing this?”

“Well to be honest, I kinda perceived apple farming to be brainless work, really.” I felt a rift open up somewhere in the fabric of the universe after I said that. My blood ran cold as Applejack began to glare at me. I really hope she took that as friendly banter.

“Really, Mr. Comedian?” My body loosened up as her familiar smile returned. “I seem to remember a certain someone sweating like an overworked pack mule earlier this morning.”

Oof. Low blow. “Yeah, well I,” I groaned and wiped a bead of sweat off my brow. “I mean, this is the first time I’ve been out here. Not to mention, I ain’t exactly an athlete.”

“Right, well let’s get back to work.” She turned away and looked up towards the sun where she did that thing again with her fingers, almost as if she was lining them up with the sun. “Alright, it’s about three in the afternoon. We’re making pretty good work. Only three hours and we’re already a quarter of the way done with this field.”

“Really? Huh.” I slumped my shoulders as I leaned on the wheelbarrow. “How much longer til we call it a day?”

“Well,” she placed a hand on her hip as she rubbed her chin in thought. “Since we got some good work done today, I’d say we can call it about an hour early.”

“What time do you usually finish?”

“We finish up around six in the evening.” Applejack took off her hat and wiped off some sweat. “Work any longer than that and we wouldn’t have any energy for the next day.”

“Oh. Well then.” So we still had a good two hours to go from here. Even though we had an hour to rest, I still felt fatigued from the morning.

“Don’t worry, Mav.” I felt her hand on my shoulder as I looked up and saw her emerald eyes staring into mine. My whole body tensed up at the feeling. I could only stare back, and no matter how badly I wanted to, I didn’t look away. “The worst part is always the mornin’. Even for me an’ Big Mac.”

“Right.” I nodded, gulping. What was making me so nervous around her now? Did I fuck up that badly with my smart remark? Last night when I came to a realization about my feelings for her, I didn’t think it would affect me this much. I felt as though I was walking on thin ice.

“What’s wrong? You’re looking pretty sick.” To be honest, I was feeling a little under the weather at the moment. Actually, really under the weather. When the hell did that happen? I felt my face and arms were tingling. I started feeling dizzy. “Mav, you alright there?”

“Yeah I’m alright, AJ.” I felt the wheelbarrow come out from under me and I fell to the ground in a heap. Apparently, I leaned a little too far on it.

“Mav!” She knelt down next to me, the sun shining behind her head. It almost made her look like an angel sent from the heavens. “Mav, can ya hear me?”

I stared blankly at her. “Kinda… yeah.”

She pressed the back of her hand against my forehead. “Aw, shit. You’re burnin’ up big time. You feelin’ dizzy?”

“Yeah.”

“What about weak?”

“Yeah.”

“And are your arms and face all tingly?”

“Uh huh.”

“And do you feel chills?”

“Yeah?”

“Gosh darn it, you’re getting heat stroke.” Applejack pursed her lips. “Let’s get ya inside and cool ya off before you keel over.”

“Ungh, gotcha.” I felt her pull on my left arm and I got to my feet. She slung my left arm over her shoulder and held on to the right side of my back. “AJ, I uh, think I can walk on my own.”

“Just lemme help ya walk for cryin’ out loud,” she scolded as we began the long walk back to the farmhouse. As I took a few steps, my legs almost gave out. They felt like goddesses damned rubber. “Ugh, ya see? Told ya you couldn’t walk on your own like this.”

“Alright, alright,” I grumbled. “I see your point.”

“Good, now let’s get back to the farmhouse, now.” Applejack said, pulling me along. “I’ll fix you up good, and I’ll come back out here to finish cleanin’ up. Looks like we’ll be callin’ it a day a bit more early than I thought.”

“AJ, we need to get work done, I can just-”

“No, Mav,” she interrupted. “We gotta get you better first.”

I didn’t want to argue anymore after that. Not like I had the energy left. My whole body felt like it was on fire. Why I didn’t realize what I was feeling sooner is still a mystery. However, even through the dizziness, cold sweat, and the fatigue, a smile crept its way onto my face.

My head was bowed so she wasn’t able to see me smirking. I tightened my grip on her shoulder, but only slightly. Almost as if I was holding her. Hell, she was practically in my arms already. She held my left hand in her grasp so I wouldn’t slip off. Not like I was going to.

I didn’t want to be anywhere else.

I managed to utter a single phrase. “Thanks, AJ.”

She tightened her grip on my wrist and back.

“You’re welcome, sugarcube.”

End of Part 1

Author's Note

So yeah. Here is the Applejack fic I've been working on for almost six, seven months. I abandoned it for a while to work on other things like the previous chapter for Lost in the Rhythm.

This thing was already clocking in at ten thousand words so my editors and I decided to divide it in half and work our way towards the second half. I also have a little something special planned in mind for the next part. It should be out within the month. I won't give a date since I don't like to set deadlines for this type of stuff.

Especially with school work on the line.

Either way, I'd like to thank Eppie Genetic, Alcatraz, and Duelist96 for helping me fix this up. Couldn't have done this without you guys. That's all for now, folks. Enjoy the story.

Part 2 - By the Lakeside
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Day on the Farm

Part 2 - By the Lakeside

Part 2 - By the Lakeside

As I stirred, my senses slowly came back. Everything was pretty quiet, save for the soft crackling of what sounded like a fire. I was laying on something soft and comfortable. For some reason, I also felt quite damp around my shirt collar.

I opened my eyes. The haze in my vision cleared up and I swiveled my head around to scan my surroundings. From what I could see, I was in the living room of Applejack’s house. The flame in the fireplace illuminated the room with a soft orange glow, the shadows of the flames dancing in the background. Upon sitting up, I discovered I was laying down on a sofa, a pillow on the armrest I was leaning against.

“Ah, dammit.” I groaned as I rubbed my temples. A sharp pain ran through my head as I sat up. In fact, my whole body was hurting. My arms and legs felt like they were on fire, and my back was no better. My clothes felt extremely damp from what I deduced to be sweat.

To be honest, I didn’t remember how I got where I was. Everything after I collapsed in the apple field was a bit of a blur.

I rubbed my eyes of sleep and yawned deeply. Fuck was I tired. At that moment I really wanted to find a bed and collapse on it. But firstly, I needed to shower or wash really bad. I stank like a tuna sandwich left out in the sun and then stuffed into a plastic bag to ferment. Analogies aside, I remembered the way to the bathroom despite my disoriented state.

Stumbling through the hall, my eyes half closed and my vision a bleary haze, I tried my hardest not to trip and fall on something. If it was up to me, I’d fall down and collapse on the floor to sleep. Just so you can gauge my exhaustion.

The hallway was dark and quiet. No sign of Applejack anywhere. She probably went to sleep already. It was a clear moonlit night, white light shining through the windows, illuminating the hallway before me. Thank goodness I had something to see with or I would’ve knocked shit over.

I finally reached the bathroom Applejack told me was the one that contained a bath. I honestly couldn’t wait to undress and walk into a hot shower. But before that, I needed to wash my face and look into a mirror. I wanted to see what the day did to me.

To my right was a door with three apples on it. Applejack identified it as her room, so there wasn’t going to be any walking in there. Especially if she was asleep. To be honest, I was in no state to drive back all the way home. I was sure she wouldn’t have minded if I stayed over.

What struck me as peculiar was the fact that the bathroom light was on, the orange-looking light seeping out from the corners. At the time, I didn’t think much of it, I merely thought that Applejack had left the light on.

The wooden door was unlocked and ajar, so I pushed it open with my left hand and pushed past it. Strange, the bathroom was oddly steamy. Eh, she probably had just gotten out of the shower and left to her room. To the right beyond the door was a white porcelain sink that sat upon a wooden counter top. The faucet was a simple-looking steel top mount faucet with two handles for hot and cold water. The toilet sat right next to it on the left.

I gripped the cold water handle and turned it, placing my hands underneath the icy stream of water. It pooled in my cupped hands and I brought my face down into my palms. The water felt so good against my sticky face as I rubbed the water into my eyes and cheeks. Sweet relief.

This process repeated a few times until I regained full consciousness. Blinking my eyes a few times, I could see the world clearly again.

And… from what I could see… the bathroom mirror was completely fogged up and I couldn’t see a damn thing.

Odd…

Eh, whatever. I wiped off enough fog to be able to inspect my face.

Huh, I didn’t look too different from how I looked at the beginning of the day. Super. Not that it was a good thing. I didn’t have the prettiest mug.

Upon closer inspection of my face I noticed-

‘Wait a sec,’ I thought, as a realization struck me. ‘Why do I hear the shower running if Applejack is asleep?’ Slowly, with a weary hand, I wiped away more of the fog, revealing exactly what, or rather who, was standing behind me.

It was also at that moment, I really wanted a meteor to hit the Earth. Or if I could at least get sucked into a vortex leading to another dimension.

Or maybe just not be here at all.

My blood ran cold and my heart might as well have stopped.

In the reflection of the mirror, I saw the shower stall. It had a clear glass sliding door and a showerhead that was mounted high on the wall opposite of the door.

And literally the only other person in the house was occupying it.

In any normal situation, I probably would have stayed a little while and marveled at her beauty. Her undone hair was utterly wet and lay flat on her shoulders. The shower door was heavily fogged so I couldn’t really see much else.

I know this sounds ridiculous, but that was a good thing in this situation.

Either way, it didn’t stop me from seeing part of her midriff and most of her shoulders and arms covered in hot, soapy water. Her body was glistening from the steam and the warm water cascading over her entire body. Without clothes on, you could definitely see how toned she was.

I wanted to enjoy the view more, but the internal panic attack I was experiencing proved to be too much.

Applejack didn’t react the way I thought she would. We both kind of just stared each other down, but neither of us said anything. My jaw hung open slightly and my eyes were widened. I couldn’t move. I was stuck in place. Frozen. My fists clenched so tightly that they turned white, and my lungs began to burn as I had suddenly forgotten how to breathe correctly.

After a star’s lifetime passed, she finally spoke:

“Mav, ya mind lettin’ me finish before you can have a turn? There’s enough hot water for both of us.”

I only nodded, and quickly sidestepped my way out of the bathroom and out into the hallway. After closing the door, I turned around and leaned against it, letting out the deep breath I had in my lungs.

“Gaahhh!” I gasped as I placed my palms on my knees. “Oh my fucking, fuck, fuckery fuck, shit, dick, motherfucking, cock in the asshole!” My panic attack finally surfaced as I cursed silently to myself.

I slid down the wooden door until I was in a seated position, my elbows on my knees.

“What in the fuck have I done?” I grumbled to myself, rubbing my temples. “Great, now she thinks I’m a freak and a perv. Maverick, you fucking idiot.”

Picking myself up, I made the walk of shame back to the living room, where the fire had somewhat faded, but burned brightly enough for there to be light. I walked past the couches and into the kitchen, where I switched on the light and sat down at the table.

Welp. I was dead.

All I could do then was wait until she came out so I could face the music. Though I was doubtful at the time. If she was truly pissed off at me, she probably would’ve reacted a whole lot more violently. And I’d probably be buried six feet under next to a tree in the back of the farm.

Minutes went by before I heard soft bare footsteps coming towards me. I dared not look back as I waited for her to appear in front of me.

“Mav.”

She appeared to my right.

Well, well. Applejack had a pretty uh… interesting set of pajamas. Not in that way, though. She wore green pajama pants which was spotted with cartoonish apple printings. Cute. As for the rest, she wore a simple navy blue t-shirt which rose slightly above her hips. Her hair was still damp and stringy as it hung loose behind her back.

“Mav, you alright-”

“I swear I didn’t see anything!” I slammed my hands down onto the table. “I’m sorry for barging in on you like that, I didn’t think you’d still be up at this hour…”

“Mav.”

“...And I barely woke up, like, fifteen minutes ago and I was really damn sleepy and I wanted to shower up and…”

“Mav.”

“...Ugh, Goddesses you probably think I’m a freak for walking in while you were showering like that I should just leave shouldn’t I-”

“Mav!” She grabbed my shoulder and I looked up at her despite the embarrassment. “Mav, listen to me. It’s fine. I ain’t mad at ya.”

“You- you aren’t?” I asked, furrowing my brow. It was then I already knew the answer. The look on her face was all I needed to know. You know that look you get when you did something wrong as a kid, but your mom said it was alright? This was similar to that.

Her expression was soft as a cloud; a small smile on her lips and eyes half-lidded.

“No, I ain’t mad,” she replied. “Trust me, you’d know if I was mad.” And I believed her on that one.

“But why? I walked in on you showering. That’s incredibly… creepy?”

“I know it is, but I trust ya, Mav. I know you wouldn’t do that on purpose, ever. Besides, when ya walked in, you looked pretty dead.”

“Did I?” I scoffed. “I didn’t notice. By the way, I don’t remember much of what happened before. Mind filling me in?”

“Well, ya did pass out after I helped you cool down. I placed your feet in a bucket of ice water while I put a wet, cold towel on your shoulders. You guzzled down about five glasses of water, then fell asleep on the couch. After that I cooked up some food and ate dinner. I sat back and kept an eye on you for a few hours until ‘round eight o’clock. And, well, you know the rest.”

“Really...” I covered my mouth as I let out a deep yawn. “I didn’t realize I was that tired.”

“Your muscles feeling sore?”

“Hell yeah.” I laughed. “Right now all the muscles I never knew I had are hurting pretty bad.”

“Why don’t I heat you up some grub?” she asked with a thoughtful look in her eye. “I bet you’re pretty darn hungry right now.”

“I just really want to sleep honestly-”

Was there a dog growling in here? It sounded pretty angry. Oh. Nope. That was my stomach. My very hungry stomach.

My face flushed as I grinned sheepishly.

“Need I ask anymore?” she chuckled.

“Nope. Food sounds good about now.” I smiled at her and she grinned back, turning around and making her way over to the fridge, where she opened it up and pulled out a huge pot of what seemed to be stew.

“I cooked up some beef stew after you passed out,” she said as she walked over to the stove and placed it onto the skillet. “Want me to heat up some of that?”

“Yes, please.”

She got a bowl from the cabinet above the stove and used a ladle to pour about three scoops of the delicious-looking stew. Instead of wasting time to heat it up on the stove, she walked over to the microwave and punched in a few numbers. The microwave began humming as she pressed the start button.

“There, I put it in to cook for a few minutes.” She walked back to the huge steel pot and carried it back over to the fridge. “I hope ya like the stew. Granny taught me the recipe. Told me it’s a recipe that’s been in the family since before she was ever thought of, haha!”

“I think I’ll like it,” I replied, leaning my chin on my palm as I watched her sit down in front of me. “If it’s anything like the stew from today I’m sure it’ll be good.”

“So you really like it, huh? I didn’t notice by the way you swallowed it like a starving barn mouse in the middle of winter.”

Okay. That one made no sense at all to me. Sounded funny though.

“Hehe, really now.” I chuckled. “Can you blame me?”

“Nah, I can’t honestly blame ya,” she replied, leaning back against the chair. “You should see Big Mac after a full day of work. Granny makes double for us since we all eat like horses after working on the farm. Mac’s usually the reason why she makes so much. I don’t gotta a big an appetite as him, but I still eat pretty good.”

“I can’t really tell,” I teased coyly. “You look pretty fit to me.”

“Well I guess it’s ‘cause I burn off more than I can eat. A full day’s work here can burn off a good few pounds. Working here for nine whole years has done a lot of good for me. Just gotta be careful though. Don’t wanna go hurtin’ myself.”

A question popped into my head. “By the way, what are you gonna do after graduation? I think me and Note are gonna hang out somewhere. Probably find a way to acquire some sort of alcoholic beverages.”

“Ehhh, well, about that.” She leaned forward and placed her chin on her palm. “I don’t think I’m gonna graduate this year, Mav.”

What the fu-

*BEEP~! BEEP~!*

The microwave beeped loudly as it finished cooking the stew.

Before I could say anything, she got up from the table. “Lemme get that for ya, Mav.” She grabbed the bowl from the microwave and brought it over, setting down a spoon right next to it. “Here, eat it up before it gets cold.”

I watched the steam rise and dissipate into the air from the bowl. It even seemed to be boiling still. I bet this thing wasn’t going to cool down anytime soon.

But the smell was intoxicating.

Want. Food. In belly. Now.

“Alrighty, then.” I grabbed the spoon and dipped it into the thick, brothy, soup. Upon lifting it, there was a sizeable chunk of meat on it alone with bits of potato. My mouth watered. I put the bit of soup into my mouth and devoured it.

Big mistake.

“Mmm!” I screamed internally as the piping hot stew scalded the inside of my mouth. I didn’t want to spit it out at all, so I trudged through the burning pain and swallowed. Felt like I swallowed hot lava. “Gah, good goddesses. That was hot.”

“I’ll get ya some water.”

She went to the sink and picked up a cup, filling it with some water from the tap and brought it over to me; I took two huge gulps and it cooled down my now raw throat and mouth.

“Whew, thanks.” I breathed out a sigh of relief.

“I’d blow on it next time.” She laughed as I made to scoop up another bit of soup. “Otherwise you’ll burn yourself again.”

“Right, I got it.” A few moments of silence passed. Applejack lounged in the chair as she watched me eat my dinner. When the bowl was near half-empty, I finally gained the courage to ask what she meant before. “So, what did you mean you don’t think you’ll graduate? You’re so close already.”

“I know, but my counselor told me if I fail any of my final exams, I won’t be eligible for graduation. And if I don’t graduate this year, then I might as well drop out. Ain’t got no use for school since the farm is all I need.”

I knew that Applejack didn’t care much for school, but failing something as simple as high school was frustrating to hear.

“Look, AJ.” I put down my spoon. “If you want help with studying for exams, me and Note can help you out-”

“You don’t gotta do that, Mav. I know you and Note are probably gonna head to college and all that. Like I said before, I gotta stay and take care of the farm.”

“I know that, but I…” I paused, trying to tell her what I was feeling at long last. “...I don’t wanna go anywhere, if you’re not going with me.”

“Whaddaya mean by that?” She glanced away from my gaze, obviously flustered.

I reached forward with my hand and grasped hers. It was honestly now or never. Here we both were, completely alone. No distractions, no interruptions.

This was a gutsy move, but I had to go all in. She had to know how I felt about her.

I laid all my cards on the table.

“I want you to graduate with me. I couldn’t bear the fact knowing I’m leaving you behind like that. You worked too hard to just give it up at the end. The Applejack I know is stubborn as all hell, but you never give up on anything.”

Her eyes were wide as I spoke to her, her hand being held by mine. It wasn’t surprise or awkwardness that gleamed inside those emerald gems she had for eyes, but understanding. She understood what I was saying.

And it was in that moment, I feel like she already knew my true meaning when I uttered those words.

I stared into her eyes with all the seriousness and courage I could muster.

“Applejack… I want you to graduate. You and I have come too far. I don’t want to go off to another college knowing that you’d never get the same opportunity. Hell, if you don’t want to graduate, then I won’t.”

“Urgh, Mav, don’t be stupid!” She took her hand away from mine and stood up from the table. “You know school’s never been my thing and you don’t gotta go and risk your whole future for me like that!”

“You don’t understand!” I shouted back as I stood up and stared her down. “You don’t understand how… how important you are to me. I would do anything for you. Anything in the world.”

“Mav, you’re smarter than that.” Her expression softened. “You’re too smart to do something as stupid as risking your future for some old country girl like me.”

“You’re not just some country girl to me,” I replied. “You’re my friend. If not my best
friend. I don’t wanna see you fail. Ever. If staying close to you meant staying in this town for the rest of my life then I’d do it.”

“Why?” she asked the big question.

“Because, I…” My words failed me. A lump formed in my throat and I couldn’t speak anymore. I felt like I was overplaying my hand. I should fold while I had the chance. “...Nevermind. I’ll tell you when you’re old enough, heh.”

I close my eyes as I picked up my spoon and resumed eating.

She only rolled her eyes, smiled back and stood over me as I ate. “Alright then, I wanna hear what you gotta say. I guess finish up and I’ll show you where you’ll sleep.” Without warning she jabbed my shoulder.

Why did she feel the need to go and do something like that?

“OUCH!”

I nearly knocked over the bowl of soup from the pain that erupted from my sore shoulder.

“Oof! Oww! That hurts!”

“Would ya stop squirming? Hold still!”

“That burns! Ooh, wait! Ahh right there! Yep, that’s the spot!”

“That feels better then?”

“Yeah, sort of.”

Applejack massaged the pain cream into my back and shoulders gently, being sure not to cause me any more discomfort than I was already feeling. When I had finished eating and showered up, Applejack offered to wash my dirty work clothes and lent me some of Big Mac’s pajamas. They consisted of red, plaid pajama pants that were too loose without the waist string tied, and a white t-shirt that was a little too big, but fit alright.

For the night, I would be sleeping in Big Mac’s room, which didn’t have much in the way of luxury. Just a simple room with a bed, nightstand, a dresser that held clothes, and a closet as well. Just to the right of the bed was a window through which moonlight shone through.

I sat on the edge of the bed while Applejack sat on her knees right behind me, applying the IcyHot cream on my skin. A lamp on the nightstand illuminated the room, allowing her to see what she was doing.

Mostly, anyways. I was glad it was still dark enough so she couldn’t see the mad blush on my face as she massaged me.

Not to mention, I had a real hard time with the engineers in the downstairs department from raising the shields.

“Hmm, there I think you’re good.” She closed the bottle cap and placed it on the nightstand. “Tomorrow, if you’re still hurtin’, I’ll get you some pain medicine so we can get through the day, alright?”

“Alright then.” I grabbed my shirt and slid it back on. The sour smell of the cream filled my nostrils. Applejack got off her knees and sat by my side, where she then placed her head on my now hot, cold shoulder. Either way, the coldness definitely made the pain go away. “So, tired?”

“Yeah.” She let out a deep yawn. “We should be gettin’ to bed. It’s about nine o'clock and we should be asleep already. We need as much sleep as possible for tomorrow.”

“That we do, heh.” I placed my arm around her shoulder and squeezed. “I guess… I’ll be seeing you tomorrow morning then.”

“Mhm, well, I guess I’ll be headin’ off.” I felt goosebumps form on my skin as she leaned forward and planted a kiss on my cheek. Whoa, boy. I placed a hand on my cheek and rubbed the spot she kissed. Why’d she do that?

What a stupid question that was.

“That all you’re leaving me with?” I chuckled as she opened the door and stared back at me with a sly smirk on her face.

“Maybe I can leave ya with a little something more tomorrow night.” She giggled a sexy little giggle that made me wanna get up and do sex things to her. “For now, it’s late. Nighty night, Mav.”

She blew a kiss at me and I pretended to catch it and place it in my pocket. Applejack only laughed as she closed the door behind her.

I pulled back the sheets and settled into the cool bed covers. A wave of relief rushed over my sore muscles as I laid my head on the soft pillow. Soon, I started thinking about things. Mac had an alarm clock which ticked silently as the night went on. It hit me that I never bothered to set the actual alarm, but I assumed that Applejack would be waking me up.

The way she kissed me, though. She’d never really done that before. Ever. It’s as if what I told her might’ve had a more severe effect than I thought, but then again, I laid everything I had on the table and spilled my guts.

Well, mostly.

I didn’t want to tell her my absolute feelings just yet. Even then, I had a feeling the right moment was fast approaching. The question was, would I be able to pull it off when it came? Would I choke? Would I fuck it up?

The feelings I had for her were strong indeed. As I laid in bed, the thought of us sharing a kiss excited me greatly. My heart felt like a 747 taking off on a cross-country flight whenever I thought of it.

But soon, oh so soon, I resolved to make it a reality.

Sleep eventually took me. Before that, I leaned over to the nightstand and switched off the lamp. My eyelids grew heavy and my body was grateful that it gained the chance to rest for a few hours.

You know how I said I liked Applejack a lot?

Well, I’ll have you know something.

I really fucking hate her right now.

“Mav~! Wake up, sleepy butt~!” Was all I heard right before I felt her belly flop right onto my stomach. All the air in my chest was knocked out and my eyes snapped open. After I regained my senses, I could see Applejack sitting on my stomach, her arms crossed as she smirked down at me.

Why, oh why did I pick this girl? I felt the incredible urge to knock her off if it weren’t for the embarrassment. My face grew red and I gripped at the sheets tightly. Not to mention, she was sitting painfully close to my crotch.

“Gah! Applejack! What the hell?!” I shouted, leaning up on my elbows. Okay, now our faces were even closer. “Why’d you do that?! What time is it?” I asked as I furiously rubbed my eyes.

“Oh it’s about four thirty in the mornin’.” She shrugged casually. “I figured we’d get an earlier start today. We start around five, we can get done around four or five in the afternoon.”

This woman, with whom I am in love, is insane beyond all measure. Inhuman really. What kind of mortal soul has the ability to awaken at this hour?

“W-what the- four in the morning?” I slurred drowsily. “You are just, I- just wow. Honestly. Why are you sitting on me?”

“Heh, reasons.” She smiled. “Now c’mon, get up we’re burning daylight. Uh, you okay there, Mav? You look a little red there.” Oh now she was doing this on purpose. I felt her press her ass down harder on my stomach, almost as if she was sliding backwards onto my-

Oh you clever little she-devil.

She reached forward and pressed the back of her hand against my forehead. “Oh my,” she drawled softly, but I could hear the sarcasm in her voice. “You’re burnin’ up ain’t ya?”

Yes and something else was too. “Oh, Applejack whatever do you mean,” I said as I arched a brow sleepily and rubbed one eye. “Could you please get off?”

“Hold on, now.” She then started feeling around my chest area and shoulders. “You feelin’ better? Muscles still sore?”

Fucking depths of oblivion. The way she was running her soft hands over my upper torso felt heavenly. Good. Goddesses.

She was just toying with me now. “Alright, alright, quit it now.” I tried grabbing her hands but she swatted them out of the way. “H-Hey, c’mon. Let’s just get dressed already.”

“Hold up, I need to see if you’re feeling better!” She laughed as she deftly avoided my hands. We fought for a while before she finally grabbed my wrists and pinned them back against the mattress. My embarrassment multiplied ten fold. “Now, are you gonna let me do what I gotta do, or do I have to tie ya down?” she said as she leaned down and looked me right in the face, our noses almost touching.

Somehow, the tying me up part turned me on more than it freaked me out.

“Uhh,” I looked away from her. “S-Sure. Just be careful.”

A few minutes went by as she applied pressure on several spots on my shoulders and chest to see if I was still in any pain. Or so she told me. For all I knew, she was doing this just to mess with me.

Finally she stopped and crossed her arms again. “Welp. I think you’re good to go. I’ma go and start up breakfast. Your clothes are in the washroom down the hall. Meet me down in the kitchen when you’re ready, ‘kay?”

“O-Okay.” I nodded. She nodded back and finally got off my stomach, strutting over to the bedroom door. From what I remember, she put more emphasis on her hips as she walked.

This girl, was an absolute tease. I knew for a fact she was taking an advantage of what I said. She knew what I meant. I could tell she knew that I liked her. Quite a bit.

And now I was paying for it. But, whether she felt the same, was a mystery. Applejack was always a bit of a teaser. During school she would sometimes play little practical jokes on me.

What she did there, was plain cruel. I could handle jabs on the shoulder, or her telling me there was a bug on my shoulder, or hell, even some elaborate prank would’ve been okay.

But that… ho boy. THAT. Was not, nice. At all.

I would get her back somehow. When the time came.

That would come later though, as I got up from the bed, now fully awake from the little fiasco.

Eventually I got all my clothes on. I threw Mac’s pajamas into a hamper in the washroom and got my jeans and t-shirt back on. My boxers were clean as well, thankfully. I went back to the bedroom and picked up my sneakers, trudging my way back downstairs to the kitchen where I could smell the scent of fried eggs being made.

My stomach rumbled madly.

Sneakers in hand, I walked over to the sofa and sat down, putting on my shoes and lacing them up.

“Hey, sugarcube.” Applejack stood in the entryway of the kitchen, spatula in hand as she leaned on the corner of the wall. This time she was clad in one of her signature red plaid shirts with a black t-shirt underneath this time. Her feet were bare of her usual boots. Her hair was already tied up into a ponytail, which hung off her shoulder as it always does. “You feeling good for today?”

“I feel a little more refreshed than last night, yeah.” I chuckled as I finished lacing up my shoe. I arose from the couch and stretched before I walked past her into the kitchen, where I sat down at the table to await breakfast. “What’s for breakfast?”

“Eggs, toast, bacon, and orange juice,” she replied, going back to the stove where the food was cooking. “That sound good?”

If the smell was anything to off of, then hell yes it was good. “Yeah, sounds great.”

She served us up some food, which we both ate pretty quickly. I forked all my eggs and shoved them into my mouth and munched on the toast. Table manners were all but forgotten.

Eventually we both finished around five-fifteen so we were making good time.

I walked back into the living room to check on my shoes to make sure they weren’t damaged. Upon inspecting them, the soles of the shoes were quite worn and the bottoms were torn up to hell. There was even a hole forming on the side where my pinky toe goes.

“Agh, AJ,” I muttered and she walked over to me, hands on her hips with a curious expression adorning her face. “My shoes. They’re all torn up from yesterday. I dunno if I can use them without giving myself some bad blisters.”

“Darn, well, hold on a sec.” She pursed her lips and looked up at the ceiling in thought. “I got it.” Snapping her fingers, she turned around towards the hallway behind her and walked over to a closet, where she shuffled through its contents. “Aha! I got em!”

She returned to me with a pair of black work boots that looked incredibly sturdy.

“Here ya go, try ‘em on!” I took the heavy boots from her and took off my worn sneakers, tossing them off to the side. The boots were lace up ones so hopefully they would fit well. I slipped on both of them and they seemed to fit my feet good, if only slightly loose. After I laced them up, they fit like a glove. “Well, how do they fit?”

“Wow, they fit pretty good.” Rising up from the couch, I walked around with the clunky boots, my feet thudding loudly against the rugged wooden floor. “Thanks a lot, AJ. Whose boots are these?”

“Oh they were Granny’s before she stopped working in the field for good.” she laughed, waving her hand slightly.

Oh, great. I was wearing old lady boots.

“Oh. Well, uh,” I scratched the back of my neck. “Tell her I said thanks when you see her again.”

“Will do, sugarcube.” she nodded happily. “Oh! I forgot about one thing!”

“What?”

“Do me a favor,” she began before walking back to the hallway again. “Close your eyes right quick!”

“Uh, why?” I asked, utterly confused.

“Just do it will ya?” she demanded, her voice echoing from the hall. “And don’t you dare peek! It’s a surprise!”

“Alright, I guess.” I shrugged my shoulders and closed my eyes tight. My heart raced from the sheer curiousity as I wondered just what the hell she was planning. Of course, my perverted eighteen-year-old mind came up with several scenarios that I dare not speaketh of.

The sound of her boots impacting the floor reached my ears. I felt her footsteps through the floorboards get closer and closer; my heart raced evermore quickly. The suspense was killing me. I really wanted to snap my eyes open, but I didn’t want to upset her. Ever.

Finally, the moment came.

“Alright, now hold out your hands.”

I did what she said and held out my hands with open palms.

“Turn ‘em over.”

I flipped my hands palm-up and waited for what she was possibly about to give me.

And then, she placed what felt like an unwrapped box in my hands.

“Alright, go on and open ‘em up.”

My eyes popped open and there she was standing no less than inches away from me, grinning from ear to ear, her bright green eyes twinkling in the light of the fireplace. Looking down, there was a brown box with the flaps open, but they obscured the view of its contents.

I looked up at her. “What is it?” I asked.

“Don’t stand there and ask, ya dummy.” She chuckled, shoving me lightly. “Open it up!”

“Okie dokie.” I shrugged and sat down on the sofa, the box in my lap. I carefully pulled back the flaps of the box to see what was inside…

Inside… there was a… a hat. A black Stetson cowboy hat.

“Applejack....” I asked warily. “What is this?”

“I dunno, what’s it look like to you?”

“A hat.”

“Well it’s sure as hay a hat!” She laughed.

“Whose is it?”

“Why, I dunno, Mav,” she drawled sarcastically, but also with a hint of sincerity. “I think it’s yours.”

“Mine?” I blinked owlishly at her. “What do you mean? You- did you get this for me?”

“Sure, I did.” She sat down on the sofa arm next to me, a small little smile on her face. “Last night after you passed out I figured ya needed one. So I went down to a hat store owned by a cousin of mine and he gave it to me free of charge. I even got it embroidered right there, see?”

I flipped the hat over and just under the brim of the hat was my name in white cursive stitching. Something warm burned in my heart. Like, that feeling you get when you see the waiter bringing your food. It was a lovely feeling. Almost as if, my heart suddenly took off on a runway. What was this feeling?

“Wow.” I grabbed the hat and felt its rough texture. “This hat looks great, AJ!”

“You gonna try it on?”

Gripping the hat, I turned it over and placed it gently on my head, pushing it down so it fit snuggly around my cranium.

Perfect fit.

“Man, it fits perfectly!” I chuckled as I continued adjusting it.

“I’m glad ya like it.” She laughed as well. “Hold on, lemme fix it for ya.” Reaching forward, she pushed back the brow of the hat until it was out of my sight and up above my forehead. “There, now ya look like a real cowboy.”

“Well thank you, little lady.” I tipped my hat as I attempted to use my southern accent.

“Easy there, roadhouse.” She rolled her eyes. “Now c’mon, sun’s about to start risin’. Wanna come sit outside to watch before we start workin’?”

“Sure thing, ma’am,” I said with a pseudo southern accent and tipped my hat again, causing her to thump the brim of my hat and bringing it down over my eyes.

“Jeez, give a man a hat and he’ll start thinkin’ he’s king of the world.” She chuckled, pulling down her hat from a rack near the door.

“Heh, only if you would be my queen.” I chuckled slyly, pulling up my hat to smirk at her.

Hah! Her face was as red as an apple.

“V-Very funny, cowpoke,” she shot back, the blush on her cheeks betraying her tone. “C’mon, let’s get outside.”

She opened the screen door that led out onto the front porch, where I followed suit and closed the door behind me, allowing the cool early morning breeze to flow over my body. This time, I felt equipped to handle whatever the day had to throw at me. My soreness from the previous work day was now all but gone.

I guess this hat she got me has some sort of magic power.

There we both stood on the wooden porch of her farmhouse. The sun was just about to peak over the trees of the orchard. I looked over at Applejack, looking content as can be as she took in the peacefulness of the late spring morning. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, oblivious to the fact that I was staring at her.

It was hopeless for me. I couldn’t help but gaze at her every chance I got and marveled at every little feature from her beautiful golden blonde hair, the cute little freckles on her cheeks, her luminous smile or those gorgeous gems she had for eyes.

“It’s beautiful ain’t it, Mav?” she said as the sun rose over the top of the trees, a rooster crowing off somewhere in the distance. I pulled down my hat and glanced over at the sun. Its bright light was soon cast over the farmhouse, and the day had fully begun. “Mav? I said, ‘ain’t it beautiful?’”

I turned back to her and nodded.

“Yes, yes it is.”

Yes, you are beautiful.

“Alright, well let’s get down to it shall we?”

“Right behind you,” I said, smirking at her. We stepped off the porch and down onto the dirt road leading to the barn.

We had a long day ahead. And we were just getting started.

The day went by smoothly. Much more smoothly than the previous one. I didn’t know why, but my body felt as though it had adapted to the situation and improved itself. Almost as if I leveled up or something. Whatever it was, I moved with vim and vigor, the likes of which I had never seen.

And neither had Applejack. More than once she commented on how fast I was moving.

We worked together as a team, picking apples and taking them back over to the barn so that they would be ready for sorting later. I counted at least thirty five trees were done before we decided to take our first break.

“Whew!” I breathed as I removed my hat, using my shirt sleeve to wipe off a good amount of sweat. “How long has it been?”

Applejack did the usual thing of lining her fingers up with the sun and measuring how much time has passed.

“Seems as though it should be close to ‘bout ten o’clock,” she said as she leaned against a tree. I figure we work for a couple more hours than head back in for lunch. I think we still got some apple pie. I also think I could make us some roast beef sandwiches or something. Don’t got enough ingredients for a whole stew.”

“Aw, really? I like that stew.”

“Maybe later tonight.” She laughed, walking over to me and placing her hand on my shoulder. “Now c’mon, let’s finish up our work.”

“Got it.” I nodded and we both continued our work.

Lunchtime soon came.

“Say uh, you want this well done or what?” Applejack asked over the sound of meat sizzling on the stove.

“Yeah, sure!” I replied, chopping up some vegetables for us to top our sandwiches with. If there was ever one thing that I knew how to do, it was how to cook. More than once I’ve had to cook my own meals and I got quite good at it too. I’ve even gone online to look up recipes and cook them up in my kitchen.

I carefully cut the lettuce into small slices, as well as the tomatoes. The knife she gave me was pretty damn sharp so I had to be careful not to cut myself.

By the time we finished preparing the food, we got down to making our sandwiches. She had pre-cooked roast beef in the fridge, but wanted to warm them up on the stove. I slathered some mayo on the wheat bread and made myself a good ol’ fashioned roast beef sandwich with lettuce and tomato.

Applejack had some non-alcoholic cider in the fridge and popped the caps off the bottles. They were just some store-bought brand known as Red Deliciousness. For most of the time we ate in silence, chewing thoughtfully on our food, stealing a few glances at each other before smiling and going back to our sandwiches.

I was about halfway through mine before she spoke up.

“So, Mav…” a chunk of lettuce hung from my mouth as I looked up at her. “You said that Note and y’all could help me study for my exams right?”

Pulling the piece of lettuce from my mouth, I quickly swallowed the chunk of food I was chewing. “Well yeah, of course. I’d do anything to help you out.”

“I know that for sure.” She giggled, leaning her chin on her palm as she stared right at me, her trademark little grin on her face. “Otherwise you wouldn’t be here would ya.”

“You’re probably right about that,” I shrugged casually. “But, I guess I have to thank you.”

“For what?”

“For giving me something else to do besides sit on my ass all day at home,”

“Heh ha ha!” She snorted, looking down at the table as she laughed for a brief moment. “Then you’re welcome. And I think I owe ya a bit of thanks too. Without your help I wouldn’t have gotten as much work done as we have together. I guess you’re not completely useless after all.”

I arched a brow as I smirked coolly at her. “Oh really? What about those times I let you cheat off me in Algebra II junior year? Or how I helped you write and edit those numerous essays in Comp IV?”

“Okay I guess you are pretty useful,” she drawled, rolling her eyes.

“That’s what I thought.” I smirked triumphantly as I crossed my arms.

“But, either way, I appreciate you comin’ here.” She reached forward and softly grasped my free hand. My hand twitched when I felt those soft, yet calloused little digits of hers curl around the back of my hand. “I don’t know what I would do without you.”

I pulled back my hand slightly only to wrap my fingers around hers. Next thing I knew we were outright holding hands, smiling at each other. Though, our smiles held a little something else behind them. A certain softness that one could not really call “friendship”.

No. This was something else. Something stronger. Warmer, fuzzier even. I didn’t know what to call it at the time. I wanted to think that it was love. The way we looked at each other was just something more than the way two friends would.

Maybe, just maybe there was a chance. A chance that perhaps she felt the same way I felt about her.

“Mav?” she asked, still looking directly into my eyes.

“Yeah?”

“Can I ask ya something?”

“Sure, go ahead.”

“Do you li-”

Her words were cut off by the ringing of my phone. I forgot I had the damn thing in my pocket and I could only guess who was calling me.

“Urgh, hold that thought.” I groaned as I reach into my pocket and pulled out my phone. Upon reading the screen, I saw that it was indeed my mother calling me from their trip.

I walked into the living room and swiped right, and began talking to her.

“Hello?”

“Maverick? Is everything alright?”

“Yes, ma, everything’s fine. Just having a little lunch before we get back to work.”

“You’re not overworking yourself are you?”

“A little, but I’m fine.”

“Alright, just be careful okay? I don’t want you getting hurt. How’s the house?”

I actually forgot that I haven’t been home in a day. I had no idea how the house looked. Not that she needed to know that.

“Eh, it’s fine. Don’t worry I’ll make sure it doesn’t burn down.”

“Okay, good. You wanna talk to your father?” I looked back at the kitchen where I saw Applejack picking at her sandwich.

“I can’t actually. We’re about to get back to work already. I’ll be sure to call back later tonight okay?”

“Okay then, Mav. Be careful okay? I love you~!”

“Eheh, love you too, ma. Have fun on your trip.” With that I hung up and pocketed my phone, and I sat back down in front of the kitchen table. “Sorry about that. It was my mom.”

“I know, heh. How they doin’?”

“They’re doing okay, I guess,” I replied, taking a swig from my cider bottle. “What did you wanna ask by the way?”

“Ah it’s nothin’.” Goddesses, slap me in the face why don’t you. “It’s about time to get back to work. I’ma head off to the bathroom and wash up. What about you?”

“The same I guess. I’ll handle the dishes.” I stood up and grabbed both of our plates. I placed them both in the sink and turned on the water, washing off the crumbs and dumping the leftover bits of sandwich into the trashcan. I heard Applejack march off into the house and most likely to the bathroom.

The whole time I washed, I wondered just what she wanted to ask me.

What would my answer have been?

In the end, things always reveal themselves.

“Wow.”

I could not find any words to say. The amount of apples we had picked was astounding really.

“Did we really pick all these apples in just two days?”

“Pretty much,” she agreed, leaning her elbow on my shoulder. “What do ya think?”

“I think I’m tired.” I sighed, closing my eyes and letting out a deep breath. My shirt was once again covered in sweat. My hat was now officially broken in, the damn thing covered in sweat and dirt. The boots I had on were covered in dirt once again, but thank the Goddesses I didn’t have to wear my sneakers for this.

The two of us put in a massive amount of work, and a sea of apples lay in the barn, ready for sorting and packaging.

We stood in the entryway of the barn, the sun was now going down for the day and twilight was setting in. Our shadows cast over the piles and piles of apples.

“So, now that we’re finally finished,” I began, wrapping my arm around her shoulder. “And I’m not dying from heat exhaustion, what do you wanna do now?”

“Well, now that we have time, wanna do something fun?”

“What do you got in mind?”

“I got a little idea.” She smirked. “C’mon. Follow me!”

She grabbed my hand and dragged me along. We half-jogged together around the back of the barn. There she led me down a trail that ran a ways away from the barn, and out into the outer limits of the farm.

And we walked quite a distance until we finally reached a medium-sized lake. Suddenly I had an idea what we were about to do and I immediately initiated the panic mode protocols.

I had nary a fucking idea how to swim.

“So, you ready to cool down, Mav?” Applejack asked as we reached the wooden dock on the edge of the lake. “I know I am.”

“Uh, y-yeah, heh,” I agreed nervously. Oh fuck me. She wanted to go for a swim and I had no idea how to. Not only that, I didn’t bring my swim clothes. How in the hell did she wanna go swimming?

I’m not as good as Note when it comes to math, but I put two and two together and…

Skinny dipping. Did she seriously want to go skinny dipping?

I found that thrilling yet terrifying at the same time. I knew this day was going somewhere.

“So, uh, what now?” I asked as we reached the edge of the deck. “I didn’t exactly bring any swimwear.”

“It’s fine, just swim in your skivvies,” She took off her hat and stepped out of her boots, placing them off to the side. “That’s what I’m gon’ do.”

“Wha?” Before I knew it, she actually started to strip right in front of me. She started unbuttoning her plaid shirt and I could only watch. About halfway through taking off her shirt, she stopped and looked back up at me.

“So, you just gonna sit there and watch me get undressed? Or are you gonna get undressed too?” I felt my cheeks burn up as I blushed and my whole body tensed up.

“Uh, no!” I replied, looking away from her. “I just uh, um…”

“Mav it’s okay to look.” She laughed. “I don’t mind. Heck, I ain’t ashamed of nothin’. Are you?”

I felt a little ashamed. Yes. “No. Just- just a little unusual is all it is. Never really seen you quite like this before.”

“Yeah, well, it’s no big deal,” she said casually. She resumed her undressing, and next thing I knew she completely unbuttoned her shirt, exposing her abdomen and navel, revealing a white bra underneath. “So, go on. Get undressed.”

“Uh, yes, ma’am.” I didn’t know why I said ‘Yes, ma’am’, but it felt appropriate. I started with taking off my hat and unlacing my boots, placing the two articles on the ground and off to the side. Next I lifted up my shirt and placed it next to my boots and hat. Before I started working on my pants, I took another peek at Applejack and- holy sweet Goddess of Love in the heavens resting in her bedchambers.

Applejack was practically naked save for her white bra and underwear. Good Goddesses. Her body was something that other girls wish they could have. The muscle tone on her arms, legs, abs, and hell even her shoulders were clear as day. For a farm girl, she had the body of an athlete.

Either way, she was glorious.

“Enjoyin’ the show, Mav?” Her voice broke me out of my adoration of her body. “You know, nobody gets this show for free.”

“Well, I’d pay anything for a show like this,” I blurted out before I even realized what I was saying. “Uh, I mean, uh… you look, good?”

“You don’t look so bad yourself.” She giggled, placing her hand on her chin.

What she saw in me I’ll never know. I hardly ever exercised. My body was mostly thin with hardly any muscle tone. The only reason I wasn’t so pudgy was the fact that I didn’t eat so much.

“So, you gonna swim with your pants on or somethin’?”

“Uh, right, heh.” I undid my belt and slid my pants down to my ankles and kicked them off. So, there I was, as half-naked as she was. “So, now what?”

“Gee I dunno, Mav,” she drawled, placing a hand on her hip. “I think now that we have our clothes off, maybe we should play some checkers.”

“Okay, sarcastic,” I deadpanned as we both walked to the edge of the dock in our pseudo birthday suits. “So, we uh, gonna jump in?”

“You first, pardner.”

“No no, I believe in ladies first.”

“Hey, Mav.”

“What?”

“Look over there.” she pointed behind me.

A classic trick. One that I fell for.

“Where?”

“There.” I felt her push me from behind and I fell head first into the cold depths of the lake.

Again, why did she feel the need to do that.

I heard the faint sound of laughing as I struggled with all my might to stay above water, my arms and legs flailing wildly against the resistance of the water. No matter how hard I fought, my body sank deeper and deeper into the water. Next thing I knew I was underwater, deaf to the world as I held what little breath I had in my lungs and fought my way to the surface.

A losing battle. My lungs burned as my breath finally ran out and I opened my mouth while submerged in an effort to get oxygen into my chest. The water was murky as hell, so I couldn’t see anything and my eyes burned.

I thought I was going to drown cause of a harmless practical joke Applejack pulled. She didn’t know any better since I failed to tell her I couldn’t swim for shit. Maybe she and I weren’t meant to be. Maybe she was supposed to go off and marry some tough guy from the football team. I guess this was the Goddesses’ way of telling me ‘nice try’.

Before I passed out from lack of oxygen, I felt a pair of hands wrap around my chest and pull me up up to the surface of the lake. Boy this day has been a doozy. The moment I opened my eyes again, I saw two emerald eyes staring back at me only inches away.

I regained coherence of the world and discovered that Applejack had pulled me away from Death’s door. She held me pretty tightly under my armpits and close to her own body. Underwater I felt her legs kicking to keep the two of us afloat.

“Mav! You okay? Ugh, you scared the living shit outta me!” she yelled in my face. “Why didn’t you tell me you didn’t know how to swim?! I woulda helped you!”

First I coughed all the water that was in my lungs before I spoke. “I… I didn’t want to look weak?”

“You idjit, do you know you coulda drowned?!” she asked, her face contorted into a concerned, yet angry expression. “Mav, you don’t gotta impress me. If you didn’t know how to swim you shoulda said somethin’!”

“I’m sorry, AJ,” I muttered, looking away from her embarrassed to all hell. “I just… I don’t know what to say.”

“Mmm, well thank the Goddesses you’re light as a feather.” She chuckled half-heartedly. “Otherwise I don’t think I’d be able to hold you up like this. By the way, first lesson in swimming: Kick the hell outta your legs if you’re in deep water like this.”

“Heh, right.” My hands found their way around her waist as I held on for dear life. Even underwater her skin felt smooth and soft. “Thanks for saving me by the way. I thought I was a goner.”

“Not on my watch, you ain’t gettin’ off that easy.”

There we floated in the water for a little while. Just holding onto the other, not wanting to let go for a second. Her grip on me tightened, her fingernails digging into my skin. Almost automatically, my hands wrapped themselves tighter around her toned lower back. So badly did I want to simply touch her and feel her rippled skin under my fingers. I fought back the urge to run my hands up and down her body.

My heart was racing as I stared into her eyes. My head was slowly inching forward. I could feel her breathing on my lips. I glanced down at her lips, those luscious lips of hers. How they would feel on mine was something I wanted to find out.

“Hey, Mav,” she half-whispered to me. “You doin’ okay?”

“Yeah,” I whispered back. “But, I feel weird.”

“How so?”

I leaned closer to her, pressing my body tightly against hers.

“Like… there’s butterflies in my stomach.”

“You too?”

“You feel it too?”

“Yeah. I do.”

Time slowed down. We floated aimlessly in the calm, cool water of the lake. I felt weightless. My heart was beating a mile a minute and my stomach was doing cartwheels. What was this feeling?

“Mav?”

“Yeah?”

“Remember when I was gonna ask you something?”

“Uh huh?” Our faces were mere centimeters apart, our noses almost touching.

“Well, mind if I ask it again?”

“Go right ahead, AJ.”

This feeling. My body felt so warm in the cold water. I could only describe as passion? Lust? No, not lust. It was something more than that.

“Do you like… no, I mean to say…”

Her words echoed in my head as she uttered the next phrase.

“Do you love me?”

I couldn’t speak. I was far too mesmerized by her already. Therefore, I did the one thing that I felt was necessary to do.

Without uttering a single syllable, I quickly closed the distance between us and pressed my lips against hers. She gasped as I pulled her even closer, my eyes shut tight. Her arms clenched around my chest and I felt her lean into the kiss, a satisfied moan echoing from her.

So she wanted this as bad as I did.

I get it now.

This feeling.

Love. That’s what this feeling is.

Our first long-awaited embrace lasted for quite a while. Our bodies floated in the lake, neither of us willing to let go of the other. I felt like this was how things were supposed to end up. All those years we’ve known each other, every moment I’ve spent with her, every laugh we’ve shared all led up to this.

I knew right then and there, exactly how she felt about me. She didn’t need to tell me, I could already feel it. Not to mention, her lips are so soft and sweet. I had very little knowledge on how to actually kiss correctly, but she seemed to be doing most of the work.

She moaned silently as our lips glided over each other. I pulled back only for a moment, before I moved down to her neck and began kissing and pecking at it. To be honest, I was only doing what felt natural and right. And sweet Goddesses did this feel right.

Her moaning increased in volume as I buried my face into her neck, the smell of apple-scented shampoo filled my nostrils, increasing my desire for her. Her wet, golden hair tickled my face as I began using my teeth to softly bite down on her supple flesh.

I felt her hand cradle the back of my head and she pulled me in for yet another kiss, this time, however, she stepped up her game. Her tongue pressed tenderly against my lips, asking kindly for entry, but she didn’t need to ask. Parting my lips slightly, her wet muscle slid its way into my mouth, and began poking at my own tongue.

At first, I was a bit nervous and didn’t know what to do. I fought back gingerly, trying my best to keep up with her, our embrace deepening with every movement we made. My hands made their way slowly down the small of her back, and I could feel every line of muscle tone along her spine. Finally, they reached her hips, and I grew courageous.

They slipped down past her waistline and grabbed onto her taut rear. I squeezed gently, her round, tight ass giving slightly. I heard her gasp as we tongue-wrestled, wrapping her other arm around my neck. How she could do this and keep us afloat I’ll never know. She pulled back from the kiss for a moment, only to bite down hard on my bottom lip.

I groaned loudly, opening my eyes halfway to see her eyes full of desire, staring back at me. Behind those emerald gems, there was the fire of passion and love. Sucking on my bottom lip, I felt her kicking increase and the two of us drifted off from below the edge of the deck off to the shore of the lake.

I closed my eyes again, I pulled away from her grip on my bottom lip and resumed my assault on her lips. This time, I used my own tongue and snaked it into her mouth, feeling it clash with hers was a feeling unimaginable.

The fire burning in my chest grew to an inferno as my want- no, need for her grew. And I sought to convey that feeling, as did she. Before long, I felt my feet slide against the dirt of the shore, and then my back soon landed ashore, with Applejack on top of me.

How she kicked us all the way over here, while kissing the hell out of me is unknown to this day.

She straddled my legs and sat atop my stomach, her arms wrapped around my neck as we kissed. My own hands held onto her hips, slowly running up and down her now damp body. Her braid had come undone from the water and it flowed over my face, its sweet scent making my mouth water.

Minutes went by before we pulled back, only to gaze into each other’s eyes.

I only had one thing to say.

“Yes.”

A grin cracked on her lips, as she laughed and hugged me for all I was worth. I hugged her back as well, holding her tightly. I couldn’t help but smile too, a lump formed in my throat.

This moment, for the both us, held more meaning than you could ever know.

We were two lost souls swimming in a fishbowl, until we found each other at last. I know it sounds cheesy, but I felt a strong urge to cry. The love I felt for her was strong. What I thought was simple admiration, turned out to be so much more.

And I think she felt the same way at that moment.

After we cuddled on the soft, wet dirt of the lake shore for a few minutes, with her lying on top of me as if I was a pillow, Applejack sat up on top of me. A very different look on her face. A look that almost scared me, if I wasn’t so turned on.

She bore an intense look, her eyes half-lidded and brow furrowed, a sly almost predatory smirk appeared on her lips. But behind that, there was a sliver of desperation in her eyes.

A want. A need.

She wanted me. She needed me.

“Mav,” she whispered.

“Yes, beautiful?”

“I’m real sorry, but I want you really bad. Right now.”

“I’m all yours.”

Her smirk turned into a grin as we resumed our heated makeout session. It wasn’t long before I felt her begin to grind her ass on my crotch. My arousal hit the roof. My wet boxers immediately became too tight for me to wear. I wanted them off.

“Mmm,” She moaned into my mouth before pulling back. “Hold on a minute, lemme get these off.”

I couldn’t get a word out before she got off my lap and sat back on the sand.

Oh, fuck me.

She slid her fingers under the waistband of her white bikini briefs, lifted her hips up off the ground, and promptly slid them down past her knees and kicked them off her feet.

Holy fuck. What.

“I’m sorry, Mav,” she muttered, before kneeling down in between my legs. “But, I don’t quite got any time or patience right now for teasin’.”

“Fine by me.”

So there she was now a third of the way naked. And yes I stared. Oh fucking hell did I stare.

Next thing I knew, she was pulling down my boxers until they were well past my knees. My ass was getting covered in wet dirt from the shore. I didn’t care though.

She didn’t really say what she was going to do. Her actions spoke loud enough. With her hand she started to stroke me, softly at first just to get me going. Goddesses it felt good. Amazing even.

This was something I had never experienced before. I had never been with a girl prior to this, so the feeling was foreign, but good nonetheless. Faster she stroked, and I felt myself stiffen even more, all the while she looked into my eyes with that sly, naughty grin.

“That feel good, Mav?”

“Oh yeah.” I groaned, my fingers digging into the sand. My head was thrown back in ecstasy as I stared up at the sky. I wondered, was this what heaven felt like? Without any warning, I felt my member become encased in something warm and wet.

Was she…?

Yes in fact she was. Hello.

Applejack was practically swallowing my length like a madwoman. I quite literally hardened to my full length almost instantaneously. Man, this was something else. She then started bobbing her head up and down my length, from the tip to about halfway into her mouth. In the middle of a stroke, she went all the way down until my tip was already touching the back of her throat, and I heard her gag slightly before pulling herself off with a loud *schluck*.

She then looked back up at me, stroking me with one hand. “You’ll pay me back for this right?”

I didn’t need much of an excuse to go down on her and eat her out like an apple pie.

“S-sure thing.”

“Good, so,” she straddled me once again. “Ready for the next part?” Her ministrations on my now hard length did quite a number. Already I could feel a tingling sensation in my lower stomach which pretty much signaled I was nearing my limit. Thankfully, she didn’t suck me off enough to cause any type of explosions.

I only nodded. She grabbed my length and placed it flat against my stomach, where she started grinding her sweet-looking mound up and down my cock.

“Gah! Augh!” I groaned, grabbing onto her thighs. “Fuck…”

“Mmm, you like that, don’t ya?” She giggled.

“Yeah.”

“You wanna fuck me pretty bad, right?”

“Yes.”

“You really want to?”

“Fuck. Yes.”

“Tell me how bad you want me,” she ordered with a demanding tone, but I could see the mischievous look in her eye as she stared down at me. Here she goes again. Messing with me like always.

“I thought you were the one who wanted me. Right now,” I imitated her tone from before we began.

“I know, but that don’t mean you ain’t gonna work for it.” She grabbed my wrists and pinned them back over my head. “Now, c’mon. Tell me.”

“I want you. Really bad.”

“What do you wanna do to me?”

“I really want to fuck you.” I grunted, grinding my hips under hers.

“Mmm, that’s exactly what I thought, sugarcube.” She leaned forward and licked my lips ever so gently, but she got away quickly before I could counter her tongue with mine. “Let’s see what we can do about that.”

Lifting her hips up, she grabbed my cock and straightened it out, lining it up. After acquiring the right angle, she lowered herself down ever so slowly.

“Mmph. Aah!” She moaned as I filled her out with my own masculinity. “Oh, Mav. You’re a pretty big one. Ya know that?”

“Ahhh…” I groaned loudly, throwing my head back. Applejack placed her hands on my chest as I bottomed-out inside her. My length going as far in as she would allow. This was another feeling altogether. I could feel everything. Every little twitch, every movement, every tug and pull.

It was as if she herself was pulling me in. Her love canal squeezed as she began grinding back and forth on me. My cock slid in and out only slightly since she didn’t quite lift her hips. She had a vice grip on me. She was in complete control. She was practically dominating me the way she pinned me down on the sand.

And I couldn’t have been more thrilled.

“Ah! Ah! Oh, Mav!” she moaned out.

“Applejack.” I growled as I grabbed her by the neck and pulled her in for an intense kiss, all the while she never ceased her feverish grinding. Our tongues engaged in a furious battle for dominance. Now that I had a modicum of knowledge of what I was doing, I fought back more vigorously. I used my hand to slip one of her bra straps, and she merely pulled off both straps, pulling down both cups until her luscious breasts were finally exposed.

I then began to kiss, nibble, and suck on them like there was no tomorrow.

“Mmm!” she yelled, causing me to look up at her. “Oh my! I’m gettin’ there.”

“Me too,” I grunted back. This time I decided to put in some effort of my own and began thrusting my hips upwards. The force from my thrusting caused her to begin bouncing upwards, and a loud smacking noise from our impacting hips echoed around us.

“Oh! Oh Mav! More! Harder!” My hips began burning from the amount of effort I was putting into it. My body was still fatigued from the day of work. Nevertheless, this girl wanted me to fuck her.

And by the Goddesses, fuck her I would.

I sat up from the ground until we were face to face. I wrapped my arms around the small of her back and held on tight. From there, I began hammering my hips against hers, burying my face in her neck.

That familiar burning sensation became stronger with each thrust. My end was near, but I didn’t know about hers.

“Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh!” She moaned with every single stroke. Our pace was slow and steady, but deliberate. I really wanted her to get a good finish too. “Oh, Mav! Get on top of me!”

She twisted our bodies around until she was lying on her back, her legs hooked around the back of my knees. I did only what my instincts were telling me to: thrust hard.

I held onto her legs and began thrusting my hips in and out. My cock slid seamlessly along the inside of her tunnel, her walls constricting tightly with each rep.

By the time I knew what was happening, it was getting near that time.

“Gah! Fuck I’m gonna cum!” I groaned, pausing to catch my breath.

“Go ahead, Mav,” she urged. “Do it. I’ve been taking my pills. Don’t be scared.”

I trusted her with all my heart. So, I took a leap of faith. Whether I ended up a father from this or not, if there was anyone I’d want babies with, it’d be with her.

“Okay.” I nodded, sweat pouring down my face as we resumed our lovemaking.

“Oh, Mav~!” She took a deep breath before her back arched as she reached around my back and held on, her nails digging into my shoulders. Her inner walls convulsed madly as I reached my own end as well.

“Urgh! Gah!” I gave one final, powerful thrust as I bottomed out once more, allowing the torrent of seed I had built up fill her womb.

For a while, I stayed frozen there. My cock buried deep inside her vagina, the two of us gasping for air. Then, I suddenly felt myself collapse atop her, where I began kissing her neck. We both began whispering soft, sweet assurances to each other.

“I love you, Applejack.”

“I know. I love you too,” she replied, hugging me tightly.

We laid there naked on the shore, and before we knew it, the sun was already going down. I wasn’t sure how long our little romp lasted, but it was the best time of my life. Something I would never forget for the rest of my life.

Before it got too dark, we decided to finally get dressed and start heading back. Now fully clothed, we got back on the trail that led to the farmhouse. We both felt it appropriate, if not necessary, to hold hands as we walked.

“I don’t know about you,” I laughed as we got close to the farmhouse. “But I am in need of a shower.”

“Would ya mind if I joined you?” she asked, with that familiar little smirk.

“Nope. Not in the slightest.”

Author's Note

Okay, so this one took me about a month to write and a few weeks to finish editing. This would've gone up sooner, but my internet would not cooperate. I really do apologize for putting this up so late. I'm sure a lot of you were waiting for the second part. Don't worry though, I'm very sure you'll enjoy this one. Let me know if y'all want to see more of this story. I had an epilogue in mind, but I wasn't too sure if y'all want me to put it up. So I guess let me know what y'all think in the comments. Maybe I'll change my mind about it.

As for everything else, I'll upload a blog post about my future plans regarding my other stories.

Hugs and kisses to my editors for giving this their seal of approval, make sure you go check them out, guys.

Thanks once again,
Jay

Epilogue
View Online

Day on the Farm

Epilogue

This chapter in a nutshell.

"So, I guess this is it, huh?"

"Yep."

"Great."

"I call the room on the left."

"Fine, you can have it."

Note walked forward with his bags in tow, an excited grin plastered on his face. It'd been too long since I last saw Applejack. Far too long. Sure, I'd been texting her the whole trip over to Manehattan, but nothing could ever beat how good it felt to simply hold her in my arms and kiss her softly. A few months ago, the mere thought of me getting with someone as beautiful as she is was only a mere pipe dream.

Now that we're a legitimate couple, being so far away from her hurts. A lot.

After graduation, me and Applejack went steady. To us, steady pretty much meant going over to her farm every weekend, cuddling at night, sex, drinking cider in her barn, swimming lessons in her lake, more sex, and helping on the farm. I tell you, doing all that over the summer certainly toned out all the muscles in my body. All across my chest there were tone lines as well as on my arms, legs, back, and thighs. Applejack seemed to like it, since the amount of sex we had increased exponentially as my muscle tone grew.

Enough about that. We shared a tearful goodbye earlier in the morning. Me and Note had gotten a room together in some apartment building that wasn't far from our university. I still remember when Note told me that we would be going to the same college together. Before that I thought Note would be going to Canterlot University where all the eggheads go, but apparently he had applied to the School of Computer Science at the University of Manehattan while I had gained entry to the School of Liberal Arts.

I'll never forget the look on Applejack's face as she saw get into Note's car and drive away from his house. My parent's had taken me to Note's house in the morning, since he had a car and we'd both be making the drive over to the university. Prior to that, I had told Applejack I'd be living with Note and said that she could come over whenever she wanted. Manehatten was only a three-hour drive so it's not like we were incredibly far away from Canterlot. Nevertheless, being even one or two hours away from the girl of my dreams was one two hours too many.

"Hey, Mav!" Note called from his room. Our apartment was pretty spacious. In the middle of the room was a living area that came with a small black couch and a loveseat. The kitchen was just beyond the front door, where the was an black linoleum island table, a counter top with a stove, sink and refrigerator. The building owners provided all the basic amenities thankfully. Connected to the living area and kitchen were four rooms, each of them with their own bathrooms (thank the goddesses).

The rooms were all locked so that we could have some privacy from each other. From what I knew, Note's girlfriend Twilight would be coming to live with us. I had asked why she didn't come along with us and he told me that she had a few things to take care of before hitting the road. Apparently they both decided to go to the same college together.

Lucky bastards.

Even though I managed to help Applejack pass her finals one by one, she still had so much to do before she could apply to any colleges like passing standardized tests and other things that cause headaches. It would be a while before she could even apply.

"What?" I yelled back, still standing in the living room.

"You should see the view! I can see the college from here!"

"That's great and all," I began as I walked to the left side of the apartment where I chose my room. "But this view is gonna cost us each three-fifty a month! So we better find jobs quick!"

"I already found a job on campus, bro!"

"Fuck you, man!" I laughed, placing my suitcase and backpack on the bed. The room itself wasn't too spacious. It really only had enough room for the desk and bed that came along with it. You could literally only walk in and out. To the right just outside my door was the way to the bathroom. I would be checking that out later for sure.

In front of the foot of the bed, right next to my door was a closet. Nothing too big or fancy, but just enough to fit some clothes.

"Yo, Mav!" Note called again.

"What?"

"Twilight's almost here! She's unloading her car!"

"Does she need help?"

"No! She got uh, another friend to help! By the way, we have a fourth roommate coming in!"

And here I was thinking we'd only be having a third roommate. Thank the Goddesses. I didn't want to be the only one listening to Twilight and Note fuck each other's brains out at night. I really did wonder who else would be living with us.

I unpacked what I could from my suitcase. It held mostly my clothes and my Playstation 4. Yeah that's right. I have a PS4. I wasn't going to leave home without it. Note brought his as well so we could at least play together. My backpack held my laptop as well some choice games I brought with me as well as some school supplies that I might need. The amount of clothes I brought with me would be good for about the whole year until we went back in the summer.

"She's coming up already! Oooh whee!" Note shouted, excitement clear in his voice.

"Don't ever make that noise again," I grumbled. I did what I could and placed all my folded clothes on the bed. I'd hang them in my closet later.

I walked out into the living area. Note was sitting on the couch, the same dumb-looking grin on his face as he looked down at his phone. During the summer we went on double dates a lot. Since Twilight and Applejack knew each other, it wasn't so awkward going out together. Being around Twilight took some adjustments for me though. She was so horribly nerdy. Even more so than Note and that's saying something!

Either way, they were a match made in heaven. It took me a while to get used to her being so anal and precise with everything. Hell, she even got mad at me for being late to a movie we were supposed to see. I mean c'mon, it was only five minutes after the scheduled start time. And even then it takes like fifteen minutes for the previews to finish.

Eventually, I just got used to it along with some tips from Note on how to deal with her. Not to mention, Note hooked himself a good one, really. Despite her slightly annoying tendencies, she was insanely adorable. Plus, it was fun to tease her and make her blush. Thank goodness Note was okay with me teasing her every now and then.

"So, what's the plan for tonight?" I asked, sitting down on the loveseat across from him.

"I figured we go get some food after we finished unpacking," Note shrugged. "And then tomorrow we got buy some groceries for the month."

Before we left, my parent's gave me a good amount of money to buy groceries and anything else we might need. I already paid my tuition for the semester, so anything I had left would go into rent and food. Note would be paying for the gas and his half of the rent. Now that we'd be having four roommates, the amount I had to pay would be a little less.

Suddenly, a knock came from the door. I could only imagine who that was.

Note gasped and hopped off the couch arm. "She's here!" He whispered sharply as shook me frantically.

"Would you calm down and let go of me!" I hissed back and shoved him away.

"You're right, sorry," He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Let's go then."

Note straightened out his hair and strutted over to the door in a goofy fashion.

I scoffed and shook my head.

He unlocked the door and swung it wide open. "Ohh, Twilight, my little china doll you look fabulous today!" I slammed my palm into my face. Fucking hell, Note. Twilight dropped her bags and swung her arms around his neck where he then swung her around in a circle, the two of them giggling.

"I missed you, girl!" Note laughed as he pecked her on the lips. "What took you so long?"

For some weird reason, Twilight looked over at me with a sly smirk on her face. "Oh you know, had to pick up a friend."

She looked back at Note who then looked back at me with the same look. "Oh yeah, that's true," He laughed as they held each other. "By the way, where's our other roommate?"

At the time I was completely clueless as to what the hell was going on and why they were acting so weird.

"Okay, what's going on here?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"Oh," Twilight giggled. "You'll see. Oh new roommate~! Would you come in here please?"

I scowled at the the smirking couple before I peered past the two of them towards the door. And in walked-

My heart stopped. I swear I heard angels singing as she walked through the door. Oh wait, that was Note playing divine music from his phone. But it might as well have been the angels singing because a goddess had just entered into our humble abode.

"Howdy, y'all!" Applejack smiled. "So, where's my room?"

I walked past Note and Twilight and stood right in front of Applejack. She was wearing an orange button up with a white undershirt which was tied up above her waist along with some incredibly short jean shorts and the same pair of orange and white sneakers I picked out for her. And of course, her usual Stetson hat rested atop her head. As for my hat? Don't worry, I brought it along with me.

Slowly and gently, I poked Applejack on the shoulder, causing her to laugh and give me a weird look.

"So, you're not just a figment of my imagination?" I asked, raising my eyebrows. "And, Applejack, the woman I love, is standing right in front of me?"

"Here's a little hint," She beamed at me before leaning forward and pressing her lips against mine. I wrapped my arms around her lower back and she held on to my neck.

The both of us got really into the kiss and I could hear her moaning softly.

"Okay, you guys," Note droned. "I would appreciate it if you didn't have sex in front of us. 'Cause then we'd have to get involved."

We broke apart and both blushed. Twilight thumped Note on the shoulder. "Note, you know we can't do that. Maybe later on." She then kissed Note on the lips, who gained a stupefied expression on his face after the kiss ended. Probably from the fact that Twilight was hinting at a foursome. Hey, if Applejack was up for it, I think that'd be worth seeing Note's dick. Despite the fact that Twilight is unbearably nerdy, Note has told me she can get all kinds of kinky in the bedroom. "Note, can you help me unpack?"

Note snapped out of his stupor. He shook his head and walked towards his room. "What's that? Help you undress? Of course, m'lady!"

Applejack and I both laughed. A moment passed before I reached and pulled her in for a tight hug. Meanwhile, so many questions whirled around in my head. I pulled back to look at her.

"So, how did this come about?" I asked.

"Well, do you want the long version, or the short version?"

"I'll take the short version."

"Alright, well, Twilight pretty much helped me get everythin' I needed in order to apply for college," She explained. "I just got accepted to the school of business at Mane U about two weeks ago."

"So, you kept this a secret from me?"I arched a brow.

"I wanted to surprise ya," She giggled as she bopped me on the nose.

"Well, mission accomplished," I rolled my eyes. "You surprised the hell out of me."

"So, what do you wanna do now?" She asked. "I got a lot of stuff to unpack. Wanna help me out?"

"Of course."

A hour and a half went by. We stayed in our respective sides of the apartment, each of us unpacking our individual suitcases and trying our best to make our rooms as homely as possible. I unpacked everything I had in my spacious suitcase and put away all the clothes I had brought with me. After I finished with mine, I had helped Applejack unpack as well.

Eventually we finished. And boy were we tired from all the unpacking.

"Man, I think that's everything," I sighed as Applejack sat next to me on my bed, our feet dangling off the edge. Seriously that thing was pretty high off the ground. "Well, I guess we'll have to get used to this place. It's gonna be our home for the next few years."

"Yeah," Applejack agreed, laying her head on my shoulder. Her hair was undone and her hat was placed on my desk, where I had placed my laptop, sixteen-inch TV, and of course my PS4 sitting right next to it. "So, what do you wanna do now?"

"I dunno," I looked down at her. "What do you wanna do?"

"Well, I dunno 'bout you," She gets up from the bed and walks over to the door and closes it, locking the deadbolt in place. Turning around, she begins to sashay slowly towards me, putting immense emphasis on her hips with each step. Goddesses her legs so smooth and sexy. The way she looked at me and the way her golden goddess-like hair glowed in the sunlight shining through the window. I wanted to take her so badly.

Suddenly I find her placing her hands on my knees as she looked me right in the eyes; giving me a smile that I knew all to well. A smile that told me exactly what she wanted to do. "I think we should break in this bed of yours. See if it's sturdy enough for the two of us."

I decided to play dumb. Only a little just to get her riled up. She's pretty damn hot when she gets riled up.

"I dunno, Applejack," I shrugged. "If we can both sit on it fine, I don't think we have to break it in or anything."

"Ugh, you poor little idjit," Applejack clicked her tongue before she shoved me onto my back. I suddenly found her face filling my vision as she straddled my waist, pinning my wrists to the mattress. "Mav, I think you know where I'm going with this."

"I think I do," I scoffed as she leaned forward and mashed her lips against mine in a passionate kiss, her tongue darting into my mouth. We stayed like this for a good five minutes, simply relishing in the feeling of her mouth on mine. It'd been about three hours since we'd been this close together.

And that was three hours too long. Yes, I said it again. Shut up, I'm busy.

She pulled away from the kiss at last so we could both get some air; the both of us gasping madly.

"I'm a little pent up from the road trip over here, Mav," Applejack then unbuttoned her shirt and tossed to another part of the room, leaving her white tank top the only thing covering her chest. And she wasn't wearing a bra either.

Good Goddesses.

"Yeah, me too," I agreed as I took the opportunity of attack and twisted our bodies around until she was under me. Her legs wrapped around my waist as I was the one with the power now. And it felt good.

We began our kissing session for the second time. I felt her reach her hands under my shirt and she pulled it over my head, revealing my bare chest to her. She then ran her hands from my shoulders down towards my chest. Feeling her nails glide softly over my skin made me shudder with excitement.

"Oh, I see someone's a little excited," She looked down towards my crotch, where little Mav began attempting to break from his prison that was my gym shorts. "So, now that you're a college boy, you still go what it takes to compete in this rodeo?"

"Let's find out about that shall we?" I smirked before I leaned down to resume our vigorous kissing.

Ah, college. The next four years are going to be quite something, aren't they?

Author's Note

Well this is the end of the story for Applejack and Maverick. Let's all hope things go well for them shall we? Not as vivid or lengthy as the previous chapters I know, but it was meant to be brief.

Didn't take much to write this one so I was able to write it in about a day. I hope you guys enjoyed this story. I put a lot of time and effort into it as well as my editors.

Big thanks to my editors for making this better than ever. I couldn't have done this without them. Most of all thanks to you guys who support my content.

Thanks again, and have a wonderful week. Peace out :)