Sunset was startled from her afternoon nap by her phone going off. She checked her notifications and was happy to see a message from Twilight.

Sparky today at 5:23pm
I’ve landed safely, and Shining’s offering to take my suitcase home for me
Do you want to maybe meet up or something?

Sunset felt a rush of excitement, though it was quickly followed by a wave of anxiety.

TheShimmer today at 5:24
Yeah that sounds great
Have you had dinner yet? We could meet up at the cafe!

Sunset bit her lip for a moment, hesitating before sending the next message.

TheShimmer today at 5:25
There’s also something I should really talk to you about

Sunset got up and started getting dressed.

Sparky today at 5:27
It’s a date! ;)

Sunset quirked an eyebrow at Twilight’s response, but shrugged it off with a smile.

TheShimmer today at 5:27
Alright, see you there

Sunset got to the café first and saved a table for the two of them. She picked a secluded booth near the back and ordered their usual drinks while she waited.

She spotted Twilight through the windows, just coming out of her brother’s car. Their eyes met and Twilight gave her an excited wave before rushing inside.

Sunset got up and greeted her with a hug.

“I’m so glad you’re back, Twi,” Sunset said, enjoying the wonderful feeling of Twilight’s embrace. She’d missed this more than she’d realized.

“I’m glad to be back,” Twilight said, ending the hug and looking at Sunset with an excited smile.

Sunset cocked her head, looking the other girl up and down. She was still dressed for the warm Miami weather, since she’d come straight from the airport. What was most surprising to Sunset was that she was wearing a little more makeup than usual.

“You look great, Twi,” Sunset said, taking her seat again. “And I see you’ve become more comfortable with more revealing clothing,” she added, taking a sip of her coffee.

“Yeah,” Twilight shrugged. “It was really hot there, so I had to get used to wearing a lot less clothing in general,” she said with a giggle.

Sunset nearly choked on her coffee. She grabbed a napkin to clean up the mess around her mouth. “R-right, of c-course,” she croaked out between coughs.

Twilight looked at her worriedly “A-are you okay? Was it something I said?”

Sunset shook her head, finally managing to clear out her throat. “No, no. It just went don’t the wrong pipe. Don’t worry about it.”

Twilight shrugged. “Okay. Hey, have you heard from the other girls recently?”

Sunset shook her head. “Not really. I’ve been so busy with my two jobs. Besides, they’re all coming back in a few days anyway, so I’m sure we’ll get the full story then.”

Twilight held her own coffee in both hands. “To be honest, I’m kinda glad I got back before them. It’s nice to have a relaxing time just the two of us,” she smiled.

Sunset smiled back. “Yeah, I know what you mean. They can be pretty overbearing. And I’ve seen how uncomfortable that makes you feel.”

Twilight nodded, blushing, then took a sip of her coffee. “So,” she started, bashfully. “You wanted to tell me something?” she looked up and Sunset could see the excitement brimming in her eyes.

Sunset cleared her throat. “Yeah, I did.” She looked away bashfully before continuing in a slow voice. “I… know what you were actually doing in Miami.”

There was complete silence between them. Sunset looked up to see Twilight’s reaction. The joy and excitement had been instantly replaced with shock and horror.

Sunset took a deep breath and continued. “I know you were actually doing porn.” She chuckled. “It came as a big shock, though. I never would’ve seen that coming from you.”

Twilight didn’t say anything. She barely moved at all.

“When I found out what you were really doing,” Sunset continued, “I was worried sick. I had no idea if you were safe or if you were doing this by choice. When you called me today, crying your eyes out…” She sighed, letting the implication hang.

Twilight reached out and took her hand. “It wasn’t like that. There was a big misunderstanding, but then when I got there I decided that it might be fun to try it, and I…” her voice softened. “I never meant to worry you.”

Sunset pulled her hand out of Twilight’s. “Why did you lie to me?”

Twilight’s eyes filled with tears. Her mouth opened, but it took her a few tries to get any words out. “I…It’s stupid. Everything I did was stupid.” She wrapped her arms protectively around her middle, shrinking away. “I felt like I was in this magical place where everything was new and exciting, and I was free to do whatever I wanted. Free to explore this new world and myself. I thought that if I told you, the spell would be broken and reality would come flooding back.”

Sunset crossed her arms, her brows furrowing. “So instead you jumped into the arms of a girl you barely knew and left me in the dark?”

Twilight balked. "I didn't ‘barely know her,’ we were close friends!"

Sunset felt her temper rise. “I’m your friend too, Twilight! I thought I was your best friend too, but now I’m not so sure.”

“Sunset, of course you’re still my best friend!” Twilight pleaded. “I didn’t replace you with Adagio, I promise. A-at least, I didn’t m-mean to. I just-” Twilight was cut off by a sob. Then another. And another. “I… Oh god, I ruined e-everything,” she cried.

Sunset’s anger faded as she watched her best friend curl up into a ball in the corner of the booth. As she watched, Sunset noticed Twilight’s eyes were unfocused, her breathing was erratic and she was shaking all over. Recognizing the signs of another panic attack, Sunset cursed. She quickly got up and moved to the other side of the booth, sliding in next to Twilight.

“Twilight, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean what I just said.” Sunset desperately thought back to the last time she’d seen Twilight like this. “Twilight, I’m here for you. Just breathe, okay? Just breathe.” She hugged Twilight as best she could. “You’re gonna be okay, Twi. Just breathe for me, okay?”

Sunset kept whispering any calming words she could think of to Twilight until her breathing finally settled into a calm rhythm. A few people in the diner gave them odd looks, but Sunset ignored them.

“How are you feeling?” Sunset asked once Twilight found her bearings again. She pulled away a little to give Twilight some space, but she kept a hand on her shoulder.

“Better,” Twilight said. “Thanks,” she added in a small whisper.

“Of course,” Sunset rubbed her neck sheepishly. “ And, uhh, I’m sorry for snapping at you like that. I didn’t mean to give you a full on panic attack.”

Twilight shook her head. “It wasn’t just what you said.” She took a deep breath, looking away. “Adagio said that… that you liked me.”

Sunset felt her mouth go dry. Caught off guard, she hesitated. When Twilight turned to look at her again, she swallowed and spoke. “Well, I guess that girl was smarter than she looked.”

“So, it’s true?” Twilight asked.

Sunset nodded, suddenly aware of how close the two of them were.

Twilight bit her lip. “I’m really sorry, Sunset. I’m sorry for not noticing sooner. I’m sorry leaving you alone for the summer. And I don’t even know how to begin apologizing for what I did with Adagio despite knowing how you felt.”

Sunset rubbed Twilight’s back soothingly. “Don’t beat yourself up so much, Sparky. Just having you back here makes me feel so much better.”

Twilight chuckled humorlessly. “Hey, Sunset, can you do me a favor?”

“Sure, anything,” Sunset replied warmly.

“Never call me Sparky again,” Twilight laughed.

Sunset joined in, shaking her head. “Why did you even pick that name to begin with?”

“I didn’t!” Twilight groaned. “One of the other girls came up with it and I didn’t really think it through, so I just got stuck with it.”

“You know, for someone so smart, you sure make some silly choices,” Sunset said, ruffling Twilight’s hair.

“I’m not as smart as people make me out to be,” Twilight grumbled. “And speaking of smarts, how did you figure out I was doing porn?”

Sunset choked on her laughter, turning it into a cough. “I, uhh…” she looked away. “I recognized Adagio.”

Twilight leaned forward to see Sunset’s face. “Are you blushing?”

“No!” Sunset insisted.

Twilight crossed her arms, locking eyes with her.

“Okay, fine. I am blushing.”

Twilight smirked victoriously. Then started blushing herself. “Actually, that brings up a pretty awkward question, but one that I think needs to be answered. Did you watch any of my porn?”

Sunset said nothing, but she could feel her blush deepen.

Twilight gaped at her. “Oh my god, you did!” she devolved into more laughter.

“I’m sorry, Twi! I wasn’t going to, but it was just too tempting!” Sunset pleaded.

“Which ones did you watch?” Twilight asked, arms crossed, holding back even more chuckles.

“J-just one. I only watched the one with you and Shining Style.” Sunset held her breath, waiting for Twilight to reprimand her.

Twilight smirked. “Hmm, good choice. You might also want to see the one I did with Dagi once it comes out. Seeing as how you’re a fan of both of us,” she giggled an winked playfully.

Sunset gaped. “You’re okay with this?”

Twilight shrugged. “Well, it’s not so bad since it’s you. If my parents ever saw any of that, I would actually die of embarrassment, though.”

They both chuckled and fell into a comfortable silence. Sunset eyed their abandoned coffees as she thought about everything that had happened.

“Twilight?” she said, recapturing the other girl’s attention. “You keep talking about all the mistakes you’ve made and about how stupid you are — which, incidentally is totally false — but the thing is, everyone makes dumb decisions.”

Twilight scoffed.

“Let me finish,” Sunset admonished. “Granted, most peoples’ dumb decisions aren’t so… dramatic. But that doesn’t mean anything. Besides, you’re a teenager, making dumb decisions is what we do!”

Twilight crossed her arms. “It’s not that simple.”

Sunset narrowed her eyes. “Isn’t it though?”

Twilight’s stance loosened a touch, her expression turning somber. “No it isn’t. I… I hurt my best friend. And I don’t know how to make it up to her.” Her voice cracked.

Sunset was caught off guard by that answer. She watched as Twilight gave her a small smile, though she could tell that the other girl was barely holding back more tears. She slid towards her and pulled Twilight into a hug. She didn’t know what to say, so instead she just hugged harder.

Twilight’s tears flowed freely now.

“I… I d-don’t know if I c-can be a good girlfriend for you right now,” Twilight sobbed. “I still really miss Dagi.”

“It’s okay,” Sunset cooed. “No one said you weren’t allowed to miss her. And we don’t have to do anything before you’re ready.”

Sunset ended their embrace and placed her palm on Twilight’s cheek, wiping away the trail of tears there. “You’re still my best friend, Twi. That’s what I care about most.” She smiled as Twilight’s sobbing went away.

Without warning, Twilight darted forward and caught Sunset’s lips in a kiss. Despite her surprise, Sunset didn’t back away. As much as she was worried about Twilight’s current emotional state, her heart leapt at finally kissing the girl of her dreams.

Twilight looked so adorable pressed up against her, her eyes closed and her hands desperately holding Sunset by the jacket.

After a moment, Twilight’s eyes opened in shock and she slowly pulled away.

“Or we could just do that,” Sunset chuckled. She could feel her cheeks burning, but she didn’t care at this point.

Twilight fidgeted in her seat. “I, uhh… Sorry. I don’t know what just came over me.”

“No need to apologize. I didn’t mind,” Sunset replied softly. “But what do you say we take things a bit more slowly. You’ve only just come back from your magical trip to pornland, after all,” she smirked.

Twilight looked visibly relieved at the idea. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. I need some time to settle down and relax.”

Sunset’s face lit up. “I have an idea. Why don’t you come back to my place and we can watch a movie together? That always used to relax you before when we did it.”

Twilight narrowed her eyes at her, not saying anything.

Sunset chuckled. “Okay, I realize that sounds like the intro to a porno, but I do mean just watch a movie together. Don’t give me that look, I just said we should take things slow.”

Twilight burst into laughter. “Yeah, I knew what you meant, I just wanted to make sure you realized what that offer sounded like.”

“So, it’s a date?” Sunset asked hopefully.

Twilight nodded, beaming. “It’s a date!”

Author's Note

I want start off by apologizing for two things. Firstly, how long it took to get this last chapter out, and secondly for the ending being so abrupt.

I do hope you enjoyed this story, but for me this whole experience has been a fiasco. I originally had a different ending planned, but halfway through posting the story one of my beta readers helped me realize that what I had planned just plain boring. No drama, no stakes, no consequences. Everything just turned out great. Which, annoyingly, is my default mode when writing endings and I have to consciously make myself write them more dramatic or sad if that's what the story needs.

This situation was further worsened by me suffering from burnout with this story. Frankly speaking, I just wanted this to be done and over with.

But I digress. overall, I've enjoyed writing Sparky Selene, although I'm still amazed that I decided to try writing something like this to begin with. It was a lot of fun to try my hand at a different style and setting.

I also want to give an additional thanks to Nyronus for his invaluable help with this story. It would have been a complete mess without him, but thanks to him it's only a somewhat of a mess.

Before I go, I'd like to give you an idea of what I'm planning next! There are a couple of projects I'm working on, the first and smaller of the two is another fluffy SciSet story that I hope will be much less... out there than this fic was.

The other project I'm working on for NaNoWriMo! It's an original story this time, so I won't be posting it here. I will however make a blog post about it for those interested. It's also not a young adult romance story if you can believe it! It's actually going to be a horror mystery. I'm going out of my way to try something very different for this project. Hopefully it goes well.

And with that all out of the way I want to thank you all for sticking with me through this mess of a fic, and I sincerely hope you enjoyed it despite its... Everything

Hope to see you next time