Roommates

You wake up with your head on the couch, covered in a blanket from your bed. You hear humming coming from the kitchen and look over, spotting Sky with her hips swaying, a happy tune coming from her.

You catch yourself looking at her rear, where an image of a sunset sits. You've heard that ponies have special talents that are somehow tied to their butt-mark-thingies, but you can't figure out what hers might be. Despite the confusion it causes you, her- cutie mark was it?- is certainly beautiful.

She turns her head and spots you staring, it takes her a moment to think before her cheeks start burning a crimson red. Your cheeks follow suit, even though you know your intentions weren't in any way wrong. Fortunately, Sky seems happy to simply continue baking, ignoring you.

A few minutes pass before curiosity gets the better of you and you walk into the kitchen, wondering what Sky could be making. It looks like she's busy preparing a cake, just a simple one, but you're surprised nonetheless, both by the food and how she holds things, you couldn't imagine having 6 limbs. What could she be baking a cake for, you wonder.

"So, what's the occasion?" You ask, making sure you have her full attention, you see her ear twitch as she turns to you, a big smile on her face.

"To celebrate, of course!" She answers as if it's obvious, you tilt your head slightly and give her a weird look. She looks confused for a second before she figures you out.

"I'm making a cake to celebrate us moving into this apartment." You would think she was being silly if it weren't for the genuine smile on her face as she speaks. It's infectious and you soon find yourself smiling too, rolling your eyes at the nature of ponies.

It takes a while for the cake to be finished, including icing. In the end, it looks delicious and you can barely stop yourself from diving right in. Sky grabs her phone, deciding that this moment should be captured. You both pose in front of the cake, great big genuine smiles on both your faces. After the photo is taken, you both chuckle a bit at the poses and she returns her phone to where it was.

You take the cake to the lounge room, Sky following close behind you. It's obvious that you're both eager to try it. When you finally take the first bite the flavour overwhelms you, it's been too long since you had cake. You look over and see Sky with her eyes closed, humming in satisfaction.

The cake is small and you quickly finish it together, picking up any crumbs you possibly can. You both sit there for a while after it's done, staring between the wall and each other. It's a magical moment of relaxation. Eventually, though, you have to get up and wash up the plates, Sky offers to do some of the cleaning but you insist on doing it all after she went through the trouble of baking the cake.

When you finish with the washing up, you return to the lounge room. Sky is laying on the couch fidgeting with her hooves boredly. You place yourself down beside her, looking over at her. She's completely focused on her hooves right now.

"Do you think I'm cute?" Her voice cuts through the silence with ease, snapping you to attention. You're caught off guard by the question, unsure what to say.

"Yeah..? Why?" You finally say after a bit of thinking, confused by the pony's query. Sky doesn't say anything, but you can see a faint smile on her face, even though she's trying to hide it. Her cheeks are burning as well.

Without thinking you reach out and gently rub the top of her head with your hand. She goes stiff for a moment, her ears standing straight up before her eyelids droop and she relaxes. You shift your hand over to her ear, eliciting a satisfied hum from her. As you continue to rub her ear she leans her head into your hand.

Sky's mane and fur are the softest things you've ever felt. You think to yourself that it might be a magical thing. You're distracted from your thoughts by the flick of Sky's ear. You gradually move your hand under her chin, causing her to lift her head. Ponies act a lot like cats when being pet, you observe.

You're not sure how, but by some means Sky has ended up laying across your lap, your hand slowly rubbing her slightly plump belly. You had meant to ask for permission, but seeing how she's actively seeking your affection at this point, you don't bother. With your other hand, you carefully rub her ears, bringing a dreamy smile to her face.

You're not sure when, but at some point, Sky falls asleep on your lap. You'll never admit it to another soul, but she looks adorable. You stay there, letting her sleep in peace. You hope she wakes up quickly, but you wouldn't mind if she didn't.

Sky wakes up two hours later, yawning and stretching. She lays still on your lap for a minute, seemingly unaware of her position. When her eyes finally focus on you something visible clicks behind her eyes and her cheeks turn a light shade of red. She snaps into a sitting position, avoiding eye contact.

"How do you feel?" You smile at her, waiting for the embarrassment to wear off. Eventually, her blush calms and she turns to you.

"Amazing. Thank you." Sky returns your smile with her own, then surprises you when she wraps her forelegs around you. It takes a few seconds for you to recognise the hug, but you soon reciprocate. The embrace lasts a few minutes, you enjoy the warmth. Sky sighs contently as she pulls away. You can see that she's less tense, she must have really needed that.

The rest of the day disappears in a blink, none of it can top that moment of peace. Sky doesn't sleep on the couch that night, thank god. You wish each other goodnight, both heading to bed. You fall asleep faster than you did last night, thinking about petting Sky. Something about it puts your mind at ease.