"So, there I was, my hair all combed up in that special way I like when I talk to her. I go up, I say my usual stuff, and she just says she has someplace to be. Can you imagine?"
Flash had been listening to Zephyr for some time now, and had, like many others, basically gotten used to him going on like this. So, taking another slurp of his soup, he simply nodded. "Yep, I think I can imagine, Zephyr."
Zephyr himself, having apparently not processed that response, leaned back into his chair, looking around at all the other students having their lunch here in the cafeteria. For a moment, Flash, who was sitting on the other side of the table from him, silently hoped that maybe this was it. Maybe he'd finally come to the end of his weekly talk about having been turned down by Rainbow Dash for the umpteenth time. Alas, the musician didn't have that kind of luck, and Zephyr leaned forward again and looked him right in the eye. "Honestly, I just don't get it, buddy. I mean, I'm a decent, nice kind of guy, right? I'd treat her right, right? I let her know how hot she is pretty much every time we meet."
Flash gave a single nod after having gulped his latest spoonful of soup. "I know, Zephyr..." He cast a quick glance up to him before again focusing on his meal. "...And so does everyone else for that matter."
As usual, Zephyr hadn't picked up on that subtle jab at his actions, and so carried on, blissfully unaware of just how much his conversation partner didn't want to be listening to this right now. "You know...maybe I shouldn't be getting so worked up about this."
To that, Flash halted, looking up to the guy with curiosity. "Oh?"
Zephyr folded his arms, giving a hearty nod and, of all things, smiling. "Yeah! I mean, I've done this quite a few times by now and not once has she shown any interest. That sends a pretty clear message, Flash. And I think I've finally understood that message."
Slowly, Flash set his spoon aside, looking to Zephyr with a degree of hope in his eyes. Was this really happening? Had Zephyr, after all this time, finally come to realise what had been going on with him and Rainbow? Was this the start of him coming to learn what everyone already knew he should be doing? Zephyr looked to Flash confidently, speaking to him with the most self-assured tone the other boy had ever heard him speak in. "You see, I've been looking at this whole mess the wrong way! For a while, I actually thought I might be the problem!"
And just like that, Flash started to frown. "...What?"
Zephyr nodded again. "It's all so clear to me now! All the stuff I've done to try and impress her, and she's just not wanted me! I should've known sooner, but I think the problem might be with her!"
Flash, upon hearing that, took a deep breath, then exhaled. "With her?"
"Yep," Zephyr confirmed.
"You think Rainbow is the problem?" Flash enquired further.
"You got it, buddy!" Zephyr confidently replied. The blonde looked away from his classmate for a moment. "I mean, come on! All the affection I've showered on her and she doesn't even try to like it? What's up with that?" He snorted briefly. "She can't honestly expect to go around, being as hot as she is, and not have people try and go to her like that, right? I mean it's just basic common sense."
Flash, raising both hands, began to rub his temples, as if nursing the biggest headache he'd ever had in his life. Though to be fair, that's probably what he was feeling right now. After along and very uncomfortable silence, Flash felt sufficiently calm enough to be able to speak to Zephyr. "Zephyr...I'd like to talk with you about something."
Zephyr was, at this point, clearly incapable of picking up on changes to tone, for he heard those words and assumed absolutely nothing wrong was coming his way, as evidenced by the wide smile he wore as he again looked to Flash. "Sure. What's up?"
Flash took another deep breath, leaning forward and looking Zephyr right in the eye. "I've got some things to say to you, and I want you to promise me that you'll listen to them. And I mean really listen to them, Zephyr."
Zephyr gave him another oblivious smile, complete with a thumbs up. "No problem, dude."
Flash took another moment of quiet, making sure he had Zephyr's undivided attention, before finally saying what he'd been wanting to say. "Rainbow Dash...does not...owe you...anything. Least of all a relationship."
Zephyr simply stared at him, keeping that smile of his. "Hm?"
Confident that he was at least going to be quiet enough to not interrupt him, Flash continued. "Look...you're attracted to Rainbow, right? You think she's 'hot', yeah? Well, you're not alone. I think she's attractive too. So do a lot of students here. You seeing her that way is all well and good." He raised a finger "However...you being attracted to her does not mean she's under obligation to be attracted to you. The way you talk about her makes it sound like she's actively choosing to not be into you. And that, Zephyr, is not the case."
A single blink from Zephyr, and Flash carried on.
"More than that though, Rainbow's probably got a lot of experience with you by now, so she's fully aware that you're going to be unhappy by being turned down as much as you have been." Slowly, Flash frowned. "But even with that being the case, it's not her responsibility to just pretend to be interested in you. She's not going to act like she might see you as a possible date just because saying otherwise would make you feel bad." He planted his index finger firmly in the middle of the table between them. "Rainbow doesn't want to upset you, Zephyr. But she won't force herself to feel the same way about you that you feel for her just to avoid that."
Flash looked over his shoulder, and could actually see Rainbow off in some far corner of the cafeteria, talking with the rest of the school's soccer team, after which he returned his gaze fully to Zephyr.
"Those times she's spoken to you? Gotten involved in conversations with you? Those were not, as you probably think, signs that she had some secret and unspoken interest in you. Talking with you does not equal attraction to you." Slowly, Flash developed a more angry look than before. "And as for your final feelings on the matter? Thinking there's a problem with her? No, Zephyr. There is not. Rainbow is not turning you down out of some sense of meanness, or whatever you want to call it. She's not doing it because she wants to see you unhappy. You want to know why she is doing it? Because. She. Is. Not. Interested."
Raising his hand, he pointed straight at the other boy. "If you've spent this whole time feeling that you're entitled to her simply because you've complimented her or tried to act decent around her, then allow me to inform you that you are very...very much mistaken."
At long last, silence fell, and Flash sighed deeply. Neither of them said anything to one another, and in all honesty Flash just looked completely exhausted by the whole experience. Zephyr, for his part, looked more-or-less as he had done since this conversation started, save for the occasional eye-flicker. But then, after Flash finally regained some semblance of calm, he looked up to his lunch partner, speaking softly.
"Tell me, Zephyr...has anything I've said gotten through to you?"
Slowly, Zephyr nodded, a small smile appearing on his lips. "Yeah...I think so."
Flash raised an eyebrow, looking to him warily. "Really?"
Zephyr nodded again. "Yeah. You're right. I was wrong to see Rainbow as the problem here. I shouldn't have said that."
Flash breathed a sigh of relief, feeling at least a little bit better. "That's...very good to hear."
Zephyr smiled to him. "And you were right, maybe things on my side weren't as good as I thought they were. Maybe...maybe I needed to just have someone say all this to me so I could finally know what I was doing wrong."
Flash clasped his hands together, his smile widening. "Yes...yes! That's exactly right!"
Getting out of his chair, Zephyr placed his hands upon his hips, looking out with confidence. "What I need to do...is try even harder to win her over!"
And just like that, Flash's hope was once more snatched away from him. "That...no, Zephyr. That isn't what I was saying," he said weakly.
Reaching forward, Zephyr gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder. "Thanks, buddy. This was a good talk."
Flash watched, blank-faced, as Zephyr walked off. Where he was going, Flash didn't know, and he probably didn't actually care at this point. All he did was unleash yet another deep sigh, staring down at what remained of his soup. "A good talk? No...I don't think it was."
He buried his face in his hands, desperately trying to hold back the stress-induced scream that threatened to burst out of him. And in this moment, he felt a gentle hand placed on his shoulder. At first, he feared it was Zephyr again, but he sensed almost immediately that this was a far softer touch than his, and so Flash looked up to see, of all people, Fluttershy. CHS' resident animal-lover smiled sweetly to him, giving him a sympathetic look as she finally spoke. "You know, if it makes you feel any better, I've been trying to get that message through to him all his life."
Flash chuckled, but it was a dry and empty one. "Surprisingly, Fluttershy, that does not make me feel better."
The two shared a tired-sounding laugh, ending when Fluttershy gestured to the door of the cafeteria. "Do you want to help me feed some of my animals while the lunch-break is still going? Angel is especially fluffy today."
Flash, considering that, offered her a smile of his own. "Yes...I think I could do with that right now." Getting up from his chair, the boy looked to his friend with obvious admiration. "Has anybody ever told you that you have the patience of a saint, Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy, after thinking that over, gave a quick shrug before looking to Flash with an uncharacteristically sly smile. "You could stand to mention it a bit more."
