The loud ring of the school bell echoed throughout the many hallways of the place, and before long, the inevitable happened. All of the classroom doors burst opened almost simultaneously, leading to a veritable flood of students leaving their various classes. The end of the day brought with it the expected look of relief on the faces of many of them, and while the teachers began to get to the business of collecting papers and assignments, the students simply went their own ways, joining their friends or just outright heading home. Among those getting ready for the latter were Sunset and Flash, who walked together to their respective lockers, each bearing a look of general tiredness about them.
"Ugh! Just when you think those pop quizzes couldn't get any more difficult questions, boom, they throw in another one!" Flash remarked.
Sunset giggled slightly.
"I wouldn't worry about it. You've been doing pretty good on those things lately."
The boy looked to her with a smile.
"Yeah...still doesn't help having to do them though."
Before long, the young couple found themselves right in front of their lockers, which, by good fortune, were relatively close to one another. Soon, they were both opened, and their respective owners were now occupying themselves with getting their books and other school items away safely. When the lockers closed, however, Flash turned to his lover with a more genuine smile.
"So, looking forward to meeting up with the girls?"
Sunset nodded, smiling back to her boyfriend as she answered.
"You know it. Pinkie always gets excited when she has some new recipe she wants us to try out. Maybe I'll even convince her to set some aside for you."
Flash chuckled.
"I'd definitely like that."
Sunset opened her mouth to speak, only to stop when, to the surprise of both of them, there was the clear sound of somebody clearing their throat. Turning, the couple soon looked upon a somewhat nervous-looking girl nearby, with bright purple hair that was tied up in pigtails. After a few moments of silence between then, this new girl finally spoke up.
"Um...hi?"
Sunset cast a glance in Flash's direction, before regarding the new girl once more.
"Hi. Can...can I help you?"
The newcomer clasped her hands together, looking very unsure about something, but nevertheless gave a nod.
"Well...I hope so."
Folding her arms, Sunset looked the girl over more carefully.
"I'm not sure we've spoken before, Miss...?"
The girl hesitated, but only for a moment.
"Oh. I'm Starlight."
To that, Sunset seemed taken aback.
"Starlight? As in...Starlight Glimmer?"
Hearing that, Starlight took on a look of confusion.
"Er...no? It's just...Starlight?"
For a time, Sunset took on a look of embarrassment, scratching the back of her head in a nervous manner.
"Oh, sorry, my mistake."
Unbeknownst to the former unicorn, Flash was looking at her with some curiosity after this little bout of confusion. But he said nothing for the time being, electing to stay silent as Starlight began to speak up yet again.
"Well...anyway...I was wondering if I could ask you something? Something...important?"
For just a few seconds, Sunset glanced at her boyfriend, and he to her, before looking again to Starlight.
"Sure. What's the problem?"
Starlight looked as if she were about to answer, only to stop when she instead decided to look around them first. It was as if she were scouring the area, terrified that somebody might come along to hear her speak, much to Sunset and Flash's bemusement. When the girl was done, she set her eyes squarely on Sunset.
"Well...I was wondering if you could give me some advice on...um...asking a guy out?"
Silence fell, and for a time, Sunset looked to Starlight as if she was expecting a "gotcha" to come from her lips at any time. But when it became clear that such a thing was not going to happen, the Equestrian instead took on a more shocked look.
"Wait...you're asking us for tips on romance?"
Starlight nodded.
"Sure. I mean...you are Canterlot High's hottest couple."
Again, the two youngsters before her looked to her with surprise, before then looking to one another.
"We are?" Flash remarked.
Again, Starlight nodded.
"Of course you are! You're the ones everybody always talks about!"
Sunset looked to her with some discomfort.
"Just so you know...that's not exactly the kind of thing that puts me at ease."
Sighing, Starlight placed her hand against her forehead.
"Look, I just...I just need some help. There's this guy I like and...well..."
Taking in the way the girl was talking, so full of nervousness and uncertainty, Sunset's expression softened, and she instead started to smile a little.
"You're worried about asking him out?"
Looking to her, Starlight gave a nod, leading to Sunset moving closer and placing a hand upon her shoulder.
"We'll help you, Starlight. But you gotta know...we're not exactly experts on romance."
Here, Starlight chuckled somewhat.
"Yeah, right! If two people like you can overcome all the baggage that went between you in the past and actually work out a new relationship, I'd say that makes you the closest thing to love experts this school has got!"
To that, Sunset was, for a time, lost for words. Instead, she turned to her boyfriend, who, in a similarly lost-for-words manner, just shrugged his shoulders.
"You know...she does have a point."
Annoyed at having lost that particular round, Sunset looked to Starlight, electing to just come out and ask the question that, frankly, she probably should have asked from the start.
"So, this boy...who is he?"
Like before, Starlight glanced around, making sure they were alone, before finally giving her answer.
"It's Micro. You know, Micro Chips?"
Sunset raised an eyebrow, looking over her shoulder to Flash.
"I think I know him. Isn't he one of your friends?"
Flash nodded.
"He is."
Soon, Sunset developed a somewhat concerned look.
"Wait...isn't he already going out with that other girl? Sweet Leaf, I think?"
To that, Flash folded his arms and shook his head.
"Not anymore. They did go out once, but they realised it wasn't gonna work, so they ended things then and there. Haven't been out again for months. But they're still friends though."
Afterwards,. Sunset looked to Starlight, just in time to hear the latter speak up to her again.
"I've been thinking of asking him out for a while now. I just...don't know how to do it."
Sunset smiled.
"I get it. Asking a guy out for the first time can be hard. But it's not as complicated as you might think."
She considered her words for a time, then carried on speaking in a calm and reasonable manner.
"Just...go to him...tell him you'd like to go out to Sugar Cube Corner or the like. Maybe whenever he's got a free evening."
Starlight's eyes widened.
"What...just like that?"
Sunset chuckled.
"Yeah...just like that."
The other girl looked away, taking in what had just been said to her, and looked more than a little worried throughout. When she looked at Sunset again, her words were tinted with an almost panicked feel to them.
"But...but...what if he says no? What if he thinks I'm coming on too strong? What...what if...?"
Sunset sighed, but she didn't get the chance to give the girl and answer to such questions. For it was here that, to the surprise of the ex-unicorn, Flash took a step past her, looking to Starlight with a neutral expression. For a time, the worried girl regarded him, never saying anything. But the silence ended when the boy cracked a smile.
"Starlight...think of it this way. There are two ways you asking him out can go down. Either he says yes, which means you get exactly what you want. Or..."
He paused, considering things for a time before speaking yet again.
"...or he says no. And if that happens...all that'll mean is that you'll be exactly where you are now."
To say the two girls were surprised by this would have been an accurate description, as they looked to Flash, clearly not knowing how to react to what he'd just said. However, after some time had passed, Starlight, clearly looking calmer than before, let out a long sigh, giving the boy a genuine smile of her own.
"You're...you're right. I guess...I really don't have anything to lose by doing this, do I?"
Smiling once more, Sunset shook her head, giving her answer. However, just then, she looked past Starlight, gaining a slight smirk as she did so.
"You know...they say there's no time like the present."
At first, Starlight had no idea what Sunset was talking about. But as the latter continued to stare at her, her eyes began to widen, and she gained a look of dread about herself. Slowly, she started to turn, and when she finally looked over her shoulder, she saw what it was Sunset was staring at. It was Micro himself, walking along the hall and heading to his own locker. For the time being, he was oblivious to the three who were looking at him, but this was still too close for comfort for Starlight, who turned back to Sunset with an almost pleading look.
"You mean...here?! Now?!"
Folding her arms, Sunset gave a nod, leading to Starlight slumping her shoulders in defeat. As before, she turned around slowly, walking towards Micro with very heavy-looking steps. Sunset and Flash watched her go, and as she finally drew close enough for Micro to notice her, Flash leaned towards his girlfriend and began to whisper.
"Think she'll be okay?"
For a time, Sunset didn't answer, instead watching as the other girl began to nervously speak to the boy she was so interested in. From this distance, they couldn't make out what was being said, but it was clear from the way Starlight was twiddling her thumbs that she was struggling to get her words out. However, a time came when she said something in particular, and Micro appeared to be taken aback. Starlight now fell into silence, while the boy scratched the back of his head. After almost a full minute of saying nothing to one another, Micro shrugged his shoulders slightly, responding to her. And when he did so, Starlight's face lit up into a massive smile, leading to Sunset finally glancing back to Flash.
"Yeah...I think she'll be okay."
Her boyfriend let out a laugh to that, folding his own arms and looking on at the blossoming romance taking place not so far away. But as he took in the moment, a look of curiosity crossed his face, and his eyes drifted down to Sunset again.
"So...who's Starlight Glimmer?"
Sunset looked up to him, prompting him to continue.
"You mentioned her before?"
Realisation crossed Sunset's face, and she just gave a wave to him.
"Oh, don't worry about it. I'm sure you'll meet her sooner or later."
Despite the ominous manner she'd said that, Flash accepted her words. However, after a while, he let out a sigh, once more giving her his full attention.
"You know...I'm gonna miss you."
Sunset joined him, letting out a sigh of her own as she looked up to him.
"I know. And I'll miss you. But...a family reunion is still a family reunion."
Flash's shoulders slumped.
"Yeah...annual Christmas traditions and all that. Mom always loves them. Still...to be on the other side of the country..."
The Equestrian giggled, approaching her boyfriend and, to his surprise, embracing him in a hug.
"It'll just be two weeks. Then...we'll be back together again."
Smiling, Flash returned the hug.
"Now that's a reunion I'll look forward to."
Parting from him slightly, Sunset gained a slight smirk, leaning up and planting a tender kiss upon his lips. After taking a moment to enjoy his surprise expression, she placed her hand gently on the side of his face.
"Think of that as an early present."
