“Man, I don’t deserve you.”
Sunset sighed as she hugged her girlfriend’s back. The two girls were relaxing on Twilight’s bed. Twilight was reading a book, and Sunset was content with simply laying her chin on the other girl’s shoulder. She was half-skimming through the book in Twilight’s hands, half-watching her girlfriend’s captivated expressions with a tightness in her chest.
Twilight raised her head from her book at her girlfriend's statement and turned slightly to glance at Sunset out of the corner of her eye. “What? Why would you say that?” she asked with a frown.
“You’re too good for me, Sparkle. And that’s just a fact.”
Twilight pressed her lips together in a show of disapproval. “No, I’m not. If there were an argument to be made about one of us being out of the other’s league, you would probably be the one who’s too good for me. You’re the cool kid, and I’m the nerd.”
“Bully? Raging she-demon? Terrorizing the entirety of the school for three years? All that stuff?” Sunset reminded Twilight with a smirk.
Twilight huffed. “Doesn’t matter anymore. That was a long time ago. You’re a different person now,” she rebutted with conviction.
“I’m not that different. You’re literally the only person in this world I don’t wanna punch,” Sunset offered as a counterargument.
“That’s a lie. You don’t want to punch the rest of our friends.”
She shrugged. “I guess. Except maybe Rainbow a little bit. And Pinkie when she’s too clingy. And Rarity when she’s acting like a b—”
“Sunset!” Twilight cut her girlfriend short with an indignant cry. “You’re incorrigible!”
“See? Told you, I’m the worst,” Sunset asserted with a playful glint in her eyes.
Twilight humphed. “That’s just not true. I think you’re the best.”
“Of course you do! You’re my girlfriend! Plus, you didn’t know me at my worst. You’re probably the only one who thinks I’m not completely insufferable.”
“I’ll let you know that I’m not the only one who thinks you’re great, Sunset. All of our friends do!”
“Alright, I’ll admit it. Maybe I’m a bit of a drama queen,” she relented.
“Thank you,” Twilight acknowledged before returning to her book.
“You’re still too good for me.”
Twilight jumped from her bed and escaped the redhead’s embrace. She pivoted to face Sunset and looked her directly in the eyes. “Sunset! Stop messing around! I’m not too good for you. Stop saying that!”
“See, I’m even making you upset! I’m a terrible girlfriend!” She exclaimed overly cheerfully while she put a hand to her forehead in a dramatic fashion.
Twilight deadpanned. “Now you’re just doing it on purpose to annoy me, aren’t you?”
“Maybe a little bit. It’s pretty fun,” Sunset admitted with a grin.
“Are you done now?”
“Yep! I’m done,” she announced, satisfied.
Somewhat convinced, Twilight took her original place. She sat on Sunset’s lap and went back to her reading. They settled back in their routine for a while as Sunset stroked Twilight’s hair absent-mindedly.
However, Sunset had now planted the seed of doubt in Twilight’s mind.
“But seriously though, Sunset. You don’t actually think I’m too good for you, right?”
No answer came from her girlfriend.
“Sunset?” she called once more.
But the redhead just hugged her tighter.
“Sun... Sunset?”
“Sorry, I just need a moment,” Sunset reassured her girlfriend in a surprisingly calm voice.
“Do you... Do you need to talk?”
“I’m so lucky to have you,” she murmured.
“Wh... What?”
“I’m just happy that you’re my girlfriend,” she sighed. “Even though I don’t understand why you’re going out with me.”
“Sunset, stop it. You’re a different person now,” Twilight repeated. She grew a blush on her face before adding, “I’m going out with you because I love you.”
Sunset smiled sadly. “I know.”
Twilight furrowed her brows. “Then why do you say those things?”
“I don’t know— I just... I don’t know,” she admitted.
They both stayed silent for a few seconds. Twilight took Sunset’s hand and gently rubbed the other girl’s palm with her thumb as she waited for her girlfriend to find the right words.
“It feels like I’m gonna mess this up in some way.” Sunset choked up a little bit. “And… And we’ll break up once you realize you could do so much better.”
She looked away to avoid Twilight’s eyes, blinking back tears as she gripped her t-shirt tightly.
“Sunset?”
“Yeah?”
“Look at me, Sunset. Look me in the eyes,” Twilight instructed. She raised her hands to cup Sunset’s cheeks and gently direct her girlfriend’s attention to her.
Twilight smiled tenderly. “You’re a great person. You’re kind, mature, reliable, and just the right amount of sassy,” she continued, the last part getting a chuckle out of Sunset. “You’re not perfect, you’ve done things in your past that you’re not proud of, and you have some serious self-deprecating issues. But I love you. I love you for who you are. There’s no ‘deserving’ or ‘not deserving’. Relationships don’t work that way. Admittedly, I don’t know how long we’ll stay together. Hopefully forever, but I have no illusions that it is wishful thinking on my part. But if you’re okay with it, I want us to make this work. I want to help you, and I want to be with you. Is that okay with you?”
Sunset rubbed her eyes to wipe the tears threatening to run down her face.
“Yeah, sure, that’s fine by me,” she said with a small smile.
“Are you better now?” Twilight asked kindly.
“Yeah, I’m good,” Sunset confirmed, her smile growing into a more self-assured one. “Thanks. For the pep talk and everything.”
“I’m glad I could help,” Twilight said with a nod of her head.
“Seriously though, I’m impressed,” Sunset said with a smug expression. “When did you get this bold, Sparkle? I thought you were the awkward one in this relationship.” She leaned toward her girlfriend, their face only apart by a mere few inches. “Trying to steal my spot as the cool girl, are you?”
Twilight grew a teasing smile as she raised an eyebrow. “Who said I wasn’t the cool one already?”
“Wow, okay, Sparkle! You’re on fire tonight! I gotta say, that’s pretty hot.”
“I have a good teacher!”
They both giggled, happy to release some of the previous tension with some friendly banter. Sunset snuggled closer to her girlfriend.
Sunset heaved a sigh of relief. “All joking aside, thanks for sticking with me. I really, really like you, Sparkle. You’re one of a kind.”
“The feeling is mutual. You won’t get rid of me that easy.”
“Hey. Thank you. Really,” Sunset said sincerely.
Twilight kissed her on the cheek. “Don’t ever hesitate to talk to me if you ever need someone to get through your thick skull and tell you how amazing you are.”
“This.”
“What?”
Sunset grew a devilish smirk. “This is why I don’t deserve you!”
“Sunset, I swear to God, I’m going to kill you.”
