Off Pitch

I'm trying to hold my breath
Let it stay this way

Time slowed as she forced herself from the ground, outstretched. The stadium lights flooded her vision. A shock of force ran down her arms, their origin centered in both of her white gloved palms. The lights provided the perfect backdrop to the deflected zebra colored, hexagon designed ball fleeing her vision. Just her and the ball. Whenever an attacker drew near, the rest of the world faded out. The sounds of the cheering crowd, the weight of her own body, even the one in control of the ball rushing for that final euphoric moment of seeing the net bulge behind her. The ball was all she could see. Watching the slightest movement of the foot, the ball would be slung to her left or right.

With the ball out of harm's way, her nerves were shocked with an increase in volume of the jeering crowd for her acrobatic save. Her body made contact with the dampened grass below. Using the momentum, she hurled a leg around and planted the spikes of her boot into the soft earth to quickly return to her feet in front of goal. To her relief, the ball had crossed the back line for a corner kick.

She gave her fist an excited pump and an inaudible jeer as her fellow defenders approached the penalty box to set up for the corner, praising her for her incredible save. All of the power of the attacker had been thrown behind that one shot, just to be deflected by the pink haired keeper. The dive was pure instinct, a natural instinct that landed her a spot on the junior varsity team in her first year of high school.

Here she was, the first game in the Canterlot High varsity team, senior year. Her own goal remained in sight through her four years in high school: to be recruited by a professional soccer club. If it were not for this goal, she wouldn't have bothered even trying to place in varsity. Her sophomore year, this idea was a distant dream only to have the doubts fanned away by a news report she watched when getting ready for her morning commute. Hope had filled her heart after hearing the news. With the flame in her spirit rekindled, she planned on not stopping until her heart was in the correct place.

As of that year, the World Football Association had passed a set of surprisingly progressive regulations. One of these regulations being the diminishing of gender specific professional football. That a coach may send recruiting officials to recruit any male, female, or other specified genders for their club. Within that year, the first female midfielder took the spotlight of the world by being placed on the Klugetown Dusters' starting lineup. This midfielder, Midday Snow, had impressed the coach with her outstanding performance by the age of twenty. Since then, Fluttershy, the humble keeper for Canterlot High, had her idol. Her inspiration. Her competition.

She trained hard from then on, also wanting a spot on a world recognized football club. Sharpening her killer defensive instinct during practice one save at a time. Her teammates did not go easy on her, but that's just what she wanted. Every day, the ball became slower and slower. The black and white refused to meld together into a blur. Instead, it whispered secrets of its next move. She could hear it tearing through the air, spinning wildly until it either landed into her gloves for a catch, or was parried out by the sturdy force of her powerful arms.

She was an ironic character, however. The next day, when the rush of the pitch is no longer upon her, she became this stammering, hair-twirling, nervous wreck. Even amongst her teammates, she remained quite recluse. They had taken a liking to her rather calm and timid composure and never once let it get in the way of their team. However she could voice her opinion with her teammates without fail, albeit in a low volume. On the pitch, she becomes this confident, strong, football playing machine. A nearly impenetrable keeper, some may call her. Calling shots during the corners and free kicks, giving no less than one hundred percent on penalties, and being this overall monster of a player.

When away from the team, she'd be with her second group of friends. Where she could let loose from the strain of practice. Letting her long, pink hair down from its competitive ponytail. She could then wear relaxing, athletic school colors, sticking out like a sore thumb amongst her friends. Even when not on the pitch, she wanted to show pride in her school and team. While this second group were all diverse in their activities, it didn't stop them from being so close.

Pinkie Pie, junior, room leader in home ec. Rarity, junior, student council member and lead athletic uniform designer. Applejack, junior, pinch hitter on the Canterlot junior varsity softball team. Twilight Sparkle, senior, currently top of the class and a part of nearly every academic team. And finally, Sunset Shimmer, sophomore, still trying to find her place within the wide social ladder of Canterlot High.

They are a home away from home to Fluttershy. And a breath of fresh air from the pace of the locker room.

~

"So if I integrate this... slope?" Fluttershy cautiously said aloud to her vioket haired friend, trying not to make a mistake in her vocabulary, "Then that means it will give me the original equation?"

"Exactly!" Twilight exclaimed from right next to her in the booth of the ice cream shop.

"Oh. Wow, okay." Fluttershy surprised herself that she herself understood the concept. Twilight smiled at the sight of Fluttershy's grasping of the topic. "Here, let me try the next one on my own." She began looking over the next problem while Twilight gave her a nod and scooted away towards the window.

Their entire group had been present in the ice cream shop. Pinkie worked here part-time after school, so she'd always be behind the counter across a column of tables and chairs seperating her from the booth. Sunset sat across from Twilight in the opposite window seat. Light taps from her fingers were making contact with her phone from playing a game. Rarity sat on the aisle seat to the left of Fluttershy, carefully applying nail polish to her natural nails. Applejack slouched into the booth next to Sunset, her stetson tipped down to shield her eyes from the shop's bright lights.

"So," Twilight spoke to the entire group, "How's everything going girls? This is the first time we got to hang out all together this school year and it's already October."

"Well, we have been quite busy with school activities." Rarity said, examining her work on her nails. "It is still the beginning of the year..."

"Yeah! Home ec had a lot of starting work to do in order to bake enough sweets for Senior Sunrise!" Pinkie exclaimed, leaning over the counter where she worked. "We couldn't decide on whether to go with a whole bunch of small sweets like cupcakes or a few bigger ones like whole cakes." She giggled. "In the end, we just went with the small ones to get the freshies interested in the program."

"Well, that's good you've been having fun there, Pinkie." Twilight said with a smile, turning her attention to the slouching Applejack. Twilight pursed her lips, wondering if she should disturb her southern friend. "And you Applejack? How's softball going?" Applejack lifted her stetson to reveal her emerald eyes. They seemed indifferent. She shrugged.

"Same old, same old." She let the stetson fall back down over her eyes. "Ah'm still not all that great at fieldin', so coach put me as pinch again."

"Did you want to field this year?" Twilight prodded. Applejack nodded slowly. "Oh, I'm sorry if this isn't something you want to talk about."

"Oh no, it's alright, sugarcube." She lifted the stetson again to make eye contact with her friend sitting across the booth. "You didn't hurt my feelins none. Ah'm just in the dumps a bit cause ah didn't make it onto the field."

"I don't understand." Sunset said, still glued to the game in her phone. "Why won't coach let you play? You're fast and strong. You'd be at least good in right field, right?" An explosion sound eminated from Sunset's phone as a fanfare played, signaling a game over. "Crap." She hit the power button on her phone and slipped it into her leather jacket, turning herself to face the once again slouching Applejack.

"This year's harvest was a big one back at the farm. So ah couldn't make it to many important summer practices." She seemed to slouch further into her seat. "'Lotta the girls said I wasn't committed enough." She huffed. Fluttershy looked up from her homework with a worried frown. Although focused on her calculus homework, she made sure to listen to everything said.

"But you were helping your family." Fluttershy said, frowning. "Don't they understand that?" Applejack glanced at Fluttershy from behind the brim of her stetson and gave the pink haired girl a satisfied smirk.

"You'd think they would, right?" Applejack said, "But ah guess they're different than ah expected." She shrugged at the thought of her teammates understanding her predicament. The ultimatum of her family's income or the effectiveness of the team.

"Tch," Sunset scoffed, "what a bunch of two-faces. When they need you, they're gonna pray that you save their precious game with one of your crazy good hits." She gave Applejack a playful punch on the shoulder. Applejack seemed to be feeling better, as she was grinning bashfully under her leather hat. "They'll be eating out of the palms of your hands."

"Aww hush it, Sunset. You're gonna make me blush." Applejack gave a small chuckle, "Ah suppose you're right. Yeah! No need for me to be mopin' in front of you girls." She sat up, raising the brim of her stetson and leaning forward with her arms crossed on the table. "Enough about that nonsense, then." She landed her attention on Fluttershy who was about to return to her homework, which Twilight couldnt keep from analyzing from her current spot. "Now, what about you, sugarcube? I hear you're givin' 'em hell on that soccer field."

"Oh! Umm, yeah... I guess?" Fluttershy timidly said, her cheeks tinting a rose color. "I-It's going good."

"I hear she's got top keeper in the district right now!" Pinkie said loudly from the counter. The rest of the girls reeled back as Fluttershy retreated behind her long, pink locks.

"It's only the beginning of the season..." Fluttershy said, almost inaudible.

"Hey, that's amazing!" Sunset exclaimed. "None of us here are the best at anything really, except Twilight in academics." She pointed a thumb in Twilight's direction, who smiled bashfully as well, pushing her glasses up to the bridge of her nose.

"What about..." Fluttershy asked, scanning her eyes frantically across each of her friends until she saw Applejack and Pinkie simultaneously. At some point in their conversation, Pinkie came from behind the counter and stood outside the booth next to Applejack, smiling wide as ever. "Applejack with her batting? O-or Pinkie with her baking?" Pinkie started to giggle uncontrollably.

"Baking isn't a sport, silly!" Pinkie said, wiping a tear from the corner of her eye. "All it takes is patience, love, ingredients, and some creativity! It's nothing like what you, Applejack, or Twilight have to do."

"I wholeheartedly agree." Rarity joined. She had finished painting her nails a violet color to match her perfectly coiffed hair. "Even though designing, creating, and distributing the school attire, like that tank top you're wearing," she gestured to the turquoise and gold accented, loose racerback with the school's name emblazoned across the front and Fluttershy's name printed vertically down the center of the back, "is quite the chore, I'm not the one actually parading school pride. I simply print the name, and then you make it truly fabulous with your performances on the field. Same goes to you, Applejack." Rarity smiled sweetly in Applejack's direction.

"Yeah," Applejack responded, confused at the praise from the girl who was normally annoyed with the southern girl's mannerisms, "but maybe hitting one softball per game ain't exactly a skill to be too proud of either. Ah don't think it's considered 'parading' if ah only play for five minutes in a game."

"Oh but that's five minutes people like Pinkie, Sunset, or I aren't playing." Rarity countered. Applejack opened her mouth to say something else but was ultimately cornered and shut her mouth with a surrendering shrug.

"See?" Fluttershy said, glad the spotlight wasn't totally on her. "I'm not the only one who's doing good."

"But ya gotta admit," Applejack assured, "you do have one of the most stressful positions on that field. Ah wouldn't be able to stop that ball even if my college tuition relied on it."

"Well..." Fluttershy tried to counter that argument, "I would say the, um, striker or wings have more stressful responsibilities."

*Ding ding*

"Ooh, hold that thought, gotta handle this customer!" Pinkie jumped away from the booth and sped behind the counter as she warmly welcomed the customer who remained out of sight from the booth.

"Well," Twilight said, thinking about what Fluttershy said and her own understanding of the game, "there are disadvantages to both positions. You as keeper have a huge responsibility, that I don't need to iterate for obvious reasons. As for the striker, they are expected to be skilled, crafty, accurate and, above all, confident in their ability. Eyes are always on them, but you as keeper have to make the adjustment to their decisions." She tapped her finger against her chin, deep in thought.

"So, what does that mean?" Sunset asked, genuinely curious about Twilight's take on the two types of positions.

"Personally, I think both positions are quite difficult." She responded with a shrug. "But in the end, the experience is subjective."

Sunset only nodded slowly several times in understanding. Fluttershy took this opportunity to continue working on her homework, hoping it will diffuse the conversation centered around her and her achievements. To her relief, everyone seemed to take interest elsewhere. She was selectively focusing on the problems in front of her, so the outside noise drowned out. Her pencil scribbled numbers and other math forms, occasionally reaching her hand over to type in a few numbers and operations within the graphing calculator Twilight had lent her.

She lifted her head from the paper after doing a problem. Interlocking her fingers, she raised her hands up, stretching her arms and back. When she opened her eyes after the satisfying stretch, she'd locked eyes with a pair of unrecognized ones.

Sky met magenta, as Fluttershy watched the customer who'd entered moments before. Long, frazzled, rainbow colored hair tied in a messy ponytail stuck out and drew Fluttershy's eyes upward. The reddish-purple of her eyes contrasted the lighter colors she wore. The thin sky blue hoodie, the short indigo athletic shorts, and running sneakers all gave Fluttershy the most conflicting thoughts. She could feel her face beginning to become warm, but not quite fully. Just enough to give her cheeks color.

The magenta orbs drifted from the gawking Fluttershy and she continued behind the group to a distant booth. She seemed almost annoyed. Fluttershy was the only one keeping a close eye on the unknown customer while her friends chatted about mundane dramas of high school. To not draw attention, she sat back down and returned the pencil to her hand.

She couldn't focus. She'd never felt this before. For anyone. It confused her, to say the least. Occasionally, she'd glance back over the seat, pretending to stretch. When she looked at her, there's was this sense of comfort, but accompanied by hostility. She never considered that she would like other girls, considering none had ever caught her interest or attention like this stranger had. As for boys, much of the same. It was in this moment, Fluttershy thought of all the things couples do. Only now had she been curious about how it all felt.

She always saw the drama and affection of couples from middle school to now. This idea of relationships became a part of her world, but she was never a part of that world. It became common place for her to see Rarity, Pinkie, Sunset, and even Applejack have their share of love interests. Twilight seemed to have no interest in anyone. Fluttershy thought that maybe Twilight and herself were the same in that aspect. Either way, she tried to deny the feelings she felt now. She argued that after today she wouldn't see this girl again, and everything will go back to normal.

Getting only halfway done with her work, her friends began to leave in pairs. Applejack got a ride with Rarity, Sunset took Twilight home on her motorcycle, while Pinkie stayed to finish her shift. The shop had become silent. Only the occasional muffled tack tack coming from the mystery girl scooping amounts of plain vanilla ice cream into her mouth.

When beginning another question on her homework sheet, she genuinely needed to stretch. So she did. When she raised her arms and arched her back, she only gave a glance over her shoulder at the girl. To her shock and horror, the girl was walking in her direction. Fluttershy quickly sat back down and became interested with nothing in particular outside the shop.

Hearing the sneakers rapidly approaching, her shoulders tensed up more and more. She bolted her eyes shut, praying that the girl hadnt noticed anything. That was, until the steps passed her booth. Through the locks of hair in front of her face, the stranger had gone to throw away the paper bowl that her ice cream was served in. Fluttershy let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. She picked up her pencil to continue working, hoping to distract herself from the now leaving girl.

"Hey," a high pitched but ragged voice said from the head of the booth, "if you're gonna keep staring at me, you could just take a picture, you know?" The voice chuckled teasingly.

Fluttershy gave a small gasp at this, and, by nature, immediately avoided eye contact. She felt mortified. The girl seemed to know about her peeping over her shoulder. Fluttershy considered the obviousness of her peeps, as she'd never actually "checked somone out." Unsure of how to handle the situtation, she handled it like she did any other.

"I-Im sorry..." She said extremely quiet, almost too quiet for herself to hear. Her hands had receded under the table as her nails began to dig into the skin of her thighs, cursing herself mentally for her uncontrollable curiosity. She could feel the stranger's eyes piercing through her curtain of hair. She shifted herself in hopes that the extra strands would stop the seemingly judgemental eyes.

"Tch." The girl scoffed and rolled her eyes with a smile. "Hey, I'm only joking, you know?" Fluttershy didn't respond. The other girl sighed, knowing she made her observer uncomfortable and knowing this kind of personality. "I hope you don't mind if I take a seat." Fluttershy unconsciously shook her head. "Alright then." The girl slid into the booth on the opposite bench. "So," she interlocked her fingers under her chin and smiled, hoping to pull this recluse out from behind her social shield, "the name's Rainbow Dash. What about yours?"

"Um, I-I'm F-Fluttersh-shy." Her voice began audibly and then depressed to an almost silent squeak. To her surprise, the girl known as Rainbow Dash responded.

"Fluttershy, hunh? That right?" Fluttershy nodded slowly, still hiding behind her locks of hair. "Well, that seems scarily...fitting." Rainbow cleared her throat. "Well, I see you go to Canterlot High, right?" She gestured to the racerback currently on Fluttershy's person. Fluttershy answered with another slow nod. "Nice, nice. I went to Crystal Prep before moving here. So I've been going to Cloudsdale High since. I've heard a lot of cool things about your school. Winning all kinds of awards and championships and all that stuff. You have a part in any of that?" Rainbow seriously doubted it. She knew this type. Probably a part of some obscure club like art or something. She didn't have any problems with people like that, just that she knew people like that and that they all seemed to follow some sort of social pattern.

"Y-yes. I h-have." Fluttershy stammered, just wanting the conversation to end. Ironically, her answer brought the total opposite reaction she intended. Rainbow blinked, surprised that this pattern was proven inaccurate today right in front of her.

"Pssh, someone as shy and scared as you? Winning awards?" Rainbow questioned unintentionally aggressive. Fluttershy would hide deeper in her hair if she could. "What did you do then, Fluttershy?" She asked, her tone turning to a more playful one after realizing how mean she may have sounded.

Despite how extroverted and playful Rainbow was, Fluttershy couldn't help but get a little bit more comfortable with her. She was obviously making an attempt at making a friend, so who was Fluttershy to deny that from Rainbow? As a side note, she particularly enjoyed hearing her name come out of this new girl's mouth. She dug her nails deeper into her skin, mustering courage to tell her this little fact.

"U-um, I play s-soccer, s-so..." She barely got that out. To her genuine surprise, the other girl's hands were on her shoulders, shaking her out of her protecting hair, making her face completely visible. Rainbow had sat up and reached across the table just to invade Fluttershy's personal space. And for some unknown reason, she didn't mind.

"No. Fucking. Way!" Rainbow iterated slowly. She had this beaming smile in her face that almost forced Fluttershy to smile herself. She was so in shock that she just sat there with a dumbfounded look. "I play too! What's your position?" Rainbow was dying to know.

"Oh, uhh, keeper?" She quivered, almost asking herself if her answer were true. Her eyes remained locked onto Rainbow's, that is until Rainbow released her shoulders and sat back into her seat.

"Daaang, now that's a hard spot. Takes a lot of strength and guts." Rainbow said in awe. "Respect." She pounded her fist twice on her chest to put emphasis on the word. Fluttershy made no response, only continuing to stare at the girl across from her. "Yeah, depending on what coach needs, I'll play either mid or striker. But mostly striker since my defensive game isn't exactly top notch." She laughed nervously, rubbing the back of her neck. "But I bet you're amazing at all the stuff that I'm not, right? Defense, and all that. That's pretty good considering I'm awesome at nearly everything." She ended with a boast, puffing out her chest.

Fluttershy giggled to herself at how big Rainbow made herself look. "I-I'm not too sure." Fluttershy said. She realized that her eyes were still gazing into Rainbow's, so she tried to be casual and returned her hand to the half finished paper before her. With less of her hair in front of her face, she smiled slightly. She enjoyed this conversation. So far, she's warmed up quicker to Rainbow than she did with any of her current friends when she first met them.

"Oh, come on!" Rainbow exclaimed, crossing her arms, "even though you seem so shy on top, there's a good reason your coach put you there. You're obviously good at what you do." Rainbow sighed again. "Look, if you're playing this year, maybe we might end up playing each other. Then I'll know for sure. You're varsity, right?" Fluttershy nodded once again.

Suddenly, Rainbow shoved her hand into her pocket and pulled out her buzzing phone. After a swift swipe, she began typing away. Once she seemed done, she slipped the phone back into her pocket. She slid out of the booth and stood at the head of the table.

"I gotta go, my PO's calling me." She said flatly. Fluttershy's eyes widened slightly.

"Y-you've been in trouble? Before? Like...with the police?" Fluttershy asked in a meek tone, almost not wanting to know the answer. When Rainbow started laughing, Fluttershy was as confused as ever.

"No!" Rainbow said, her voice cracked through the laughter. "It's my mom. She's telling me to get home so I can help unpack." She wiped out the final tear in her eye along with a deep breath. Fluttershy could only look away, her cheeks turning beet red. "Whoo, Fluttershy you're a riot, you know that? Look, you're pretty cu-uhh cool," Rainbow stammered, rubbing the toe of her shoe against her ankle nervously. "Maybe we can hang out again?"

"Oh!" Fluttershy said, surprised that Rainbow would want to get together again and hang out. She was able to finally make eye contact with the rainbow haired girl after her own face turned relatively back to its normal color. "Um, I'm okay with that. If that's fine with you?"

"Totally!" Rainbow exclaimed, louder than she'd wanted. She pulled her phone out once more and began typing again. Fluttershy sat with a curious expression as Rainbow's thumbs moved in a blur. "Here," she handed the phone to Fluttershy who jumped at the confidence of the hand-off, "put your number there and I'll shoot you a text in a little while so you can save mine."

"Oh... okay." Fluttershy said, gently taking the phone between her hands as she looked at the display.

"Fl-Flutters"??

She swallowed a small bit at the nickname that would be in Rainbow's contact list before she started typing in her cell number. Once done, she stuck her hand out towards Rainbow, phone in hand. When Rainbow grabbed for her phone, Fluttershy felt the tips of Rainbow's fingers lightly slide down the back of her hand. Her fingers were soft and it forced an unseen shiver from her arm to her spine. Rainbow, on the other hand, hadn't noticed a thing as she quickly stuffed the phone in the hoodie pocket.

"Awesome! I gotta run, so I'll catch you later!" Rainbow said quickly before jumping back and running out the door, mounting a bicycle that had been locked to a bike rack outside. She pedaled down the only street leading into Cloudsdale Heights. Fluttershy watched as this new friend sped up the street, past the park, and made a turn down an unseen street.

Now alone, she had time to recollect everything that occurred. From their eyes meeting, to her sneaking glimpses of Rainbow, Rainbow confronting her, them talking, and now she has her number. It all felt so strange to Fluttershy. How easily she made friends with this person and how non-hesitantly she handed her number to her. It took several days of even weeks for her to give her number to anyone else. But with Rainbow, it only felt necessary.

Do I...?

"Wow, seems like you really like her!" Fluttershy jumped at the sound of Pinkie's high pitched voice cutting through the silence around Fluttershy. "Ooh that's so cute!"

"Pinkie! I-It's not l-like that!" Fluttershy retorted with a shocked expression and a little bit more volume, yet still stammering.

"Oh come on," Pinkie turned around to return to the counter, "I saw the whole thing. Both of you, fidgeting to talk to each other." She let out a high pitched squeal with a wide, toothy smile. "You couldnt see it but that Rainbow Dash was just squirming under the table!" Fluttershy sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose, feeling the warmth returning to her cheeks.

"Pinkie..." She said in a flustered tone.

"Okay, okay! I'm just playing around." Pinkie raised her hands up, "But let me tell ya: I have seen enough for me to be confident on how this whole thing will end up." She leaned over the counter, arms crossed at her stomach. "Only a matter of time."

Fluttershy sighed again and began collecting her things. "I need to go, too. I need this homework done by tomorrow." Fluttershy said, almost annoyed. Pinkie only watched Fluttershy with a wide grin. Once Fluttershy placed the last of her belongings into her backpack, she slung both straps over her shoulders and started walking out. "Goodnight, Pinkie." Her tone became more relaxed, already forgiving Pinkie for her fantasizing, giving her a small smile. "I'll see you tomorrow at lunch."

"Okie doki lokie!" Pinkie responded cheerfully. "Ooh! Can I tell the girls about what happened?" Fluttershy stopped and thought for a moment, then turned her head to address the question.

"Sorry, Pinkie," her voice was gentle, "I'd prefer I told them. Okay?"

"Oh yeah, that's a-okay with me!" She smiled and waved her arm goodbye at her shy friend, who was now on the sidewalk outside the ice cream shop.

Fluttershy began making her way down the street when she ended up next to a sign with a printed front shot of a bus with a smiley face on it. After waiting for about fifteen minutes, she heard her phone vibrate with a notification sound. She swung her backpack around to retrieve her phone. Once she had the phone in her hand, she looked at the message.

Unknown 7:21pm
Hey! This is Rainbow

With a few small taps of the screen and a slight grin, Fluttershy saved Rainbow's number under the expected name "Rainbow." A city bus hissed to a stop in front of Fluttershy. After using her student pass, she found a seat at the very back and the bus began to move again.

Me 7:22pm
Okay, I saved your number. It was nice meeting you today. So we'll hang out soon?

Rainbow 7:25pm
Definitely!! Same place? Tomorrow?

Fluttershy swallowed once again. To have another meet so soon after the first? Fluttershy was anxious to say the least. Yet, excitement filled her heart.

Me 7:26pm
That sounds fine. See you tomorrow!

Fluttershy put her phone away after that. She didn't receive another text, assuming Rainbow Dash continuing to unpack. She watched as the city passed by through the window. It was already getting dark, and the lights of the city came to life.

After passing through the much larger, metropolitan looking downtown, the bus ended up going down a long road. On one side were varying housing complexes and strip malls. On the other, open fields with buildings belonging to the military dotted the wide open terrain.

She pulled the yellow cord, signaling the driver to stop. Once stopped at the next bus stop, she disembarked, waving a "thank you" to the driver.

She walked a small distance into a trailer park complex. Walking down the asphalt, she approached a double-wide trailer home. The skirts had a few holes throughout, but the paint remained a comfortable gray and midnight blue. Walking up onto the deck and into the trailer home, she announced her presence.

"Mom? Dad? I'm home." She called out, closing and locking the front door.

"Over here, sweetie!" Her mother called from the kitchen.

Fluttershy entered the kitchen to see her mother preparing dinner. Her mother, tall and raspberry haired with teal glasses, was humming away as she was adding ingredients to the stock pot. Fluttershy always found it interesting how her mother would contrast their kitchen. The cabinets barely hanging on by rusty hinges, the small and old refrigerator, the dulled blender. And then there was her mom, a completely opposite entity. A bastion of beauty.

"How was school, sweetums?" She said happily, turning from her work and giving Fluttershy a peck on her forehead.

"It was okay. Just some homework to do." Fluttershy said, bypassing her mother to a thin hallway leading to her and her brother Zephyr's rooms.

"Oh, well can you do me a favor and tell your brother that dinner's just about ready?"

"Mhm." Fluttershy hummed out loud. She approached a fork at the end of the hallway and knocked on the door to the left. After about five seconds, the door was swung open.

Her brother, Zephyr Breeze, held onto the door. Having his long, blond, unkempt hair with five o' clock shadow gave him a sort of bum look, even though he was only a sophomore. Being about three inches taller than her, he barely broke the six foot mark.

She opened her mouth to speak, but he had beaten her there. "I know, I heard her." He said, sounding very agitated, before slamming the door shut.

Fluttershy closed her mouth before entering her own room on the right of the fork, not thinking anything of her brother's attitude. Once in her room, she dropped her backpack beside the door with a sigh of relief. Her walls were plastered with professional football memorabilia. Especially glorifying the legendary Midday Snow, Fluttershy felt at home. She slid onto her firm bed face down.

This gave her time to think.

So I have to finish that calculus work tonight for sure. I can't slack it any more than I already have. Thenthere's that presentation thatI have to get ready for physics. Saturday's practice shouldn't get in the way of it. Oh wait, thenthere's tomorrow with Rainbow. Oh my, Idon't even know what to think. She's so nice and patient. I don't want to be a burden on her. But Iwon't find out if I am a burden unless I hang out with her. Right? I mean, I think being around her might give me clarity on what I want from her. Friendship? Or...something else?

Buzzing began emanating from her backpack. She pushed herself off of the bed to retrieve her phone. Once back on the bed with her phone she laid on her back. Looking at the reason for the buzz, she could see it was Sunset.

Sunset 7:51pm
So I'm not supposed to tell you this, but Pinkie told me about your new friend...

By nature, Fluttershy sighed. Not out of disappointment in Pinkie, but out of relief that she told Sunset of all people. She knew Pinkie would do such a thing, but she's glad she told the one of their group that was the best at keeping secrets. If she had told Rarity, that would've been a whole ordeal on its own. Talking about when she would meet Rainbow and whatnot, thrilling their whole group of friends. Sunset had to be the most honest person in their group other than Applejack.

Me 7:51pm
No, it's fine. I sort of expected Pinkie to tell someone... what exactly did she tell you?

Sunset 7:52pm
Honestly, she makes it seem like you're crushing on this girl...

Am I, though? Fluttershy thought.

Me 7:54pm
You know how Pinkie is. Brash as ever.

Sunset 7:56pm
Well she told me you guys were meeting again tomorrow at the shop. Want me to make sure the girls don'tget ideas of going? Since you obviously don't know how you feel about this chick :p

Not her, too.

Me 7:56pm
It's really not like that. But could you please? I need to know if I can trust her as a friend before anything else.

Sunset 7:57pm
Not a problem.

Fluttershy 7:57pm
Thank you, Sunset. I'm sorry, but I have to go have dinner before it gets cold. Seeyoutomorrow (｡◕‿‿◕｡)づ

Satisfied, Fluttershy got up and out of bed to go have dinner with her family. They talked of the usual things. Fluttershy and Zephyr's school day, news on the rest of their family, why their father would be late that night again. Unknown to them, excitement to learn more about Fluttershy's new friend courses through her all the way up through her shower, the rest of her homework, and until she fell asleep that night.