Raising a Foalby The Brony WriterChaptersCh. 1 - Beginnings of a FatherCh. 2 A Little DysfunctionalCh. 3 - Warming of the HeartCh. 1 - Beginnings of a FatherBeginnings of a Father The father talks in a Southern accent. Just letting y'all know. It was just another Saturday night. My last paycheck went into my bank account, I had done all my shopping, and I had crashed in front of the TV in my Alabama hotel room. It wasn't the best Saturday I'd ever had, but it was far from being the worst. My Little Angel sat on my lap, sucking on the bottle of formula the clerk at the store had recommended. Thankfully she seemed to like it and didn't complain. But my Little Angel hardly ever fussed. In fact, now that I think about it, I've only ever heard her cry when she was hungry or tired. I've had to set her down, sometimes, but she doesn't cry for me to pick her back up. Sometimes, I wonder if she knows I'm gonna come back for her, because she gives me a smile that could melt Old Man Winter’s heart once I do. I still haven't given her a name at this point, but I haven't exactly had the time. My Little Angel has been good for now, but I know that ain't going to fly forever. I look at her and think about it a bit. Anything I think of doesn't seem to fit one way or another. Naming a pony like her is a lot harder than you think, and all the craziness hasn't made it easier. She's looking at me now. Can she sense my worry? I wonder. Her startling emerald eyes make me think so. I find her precious with that little Stetson of hers that perfectly fits her tiny little head. I wonder what I did that made whoever sent her mistake me for a good enough person to take care of her. Looking at where I am right now, it looks like they screwed up big time. Actually, looking back further, it looked like they messed up from the start. I mean don't get me wrong, I love her with all my heart. But how could you expect a 17 year old farm boy to take care of a baby? I barely even know how to take care of myself! Why I'm not dead from exhaustion yet is still a mystery to me. My train of thought is suddenly interrupted when my Little Angel starts squirming. Usually, that means that she needs to be burped. I rest her tiny body on my shoulder and pat her on the back several times. I’m expecting her to burp until I hear a loud brrrrrrt. Yep, she farted on me. She even giggles a little bit afterwards. Why me? I think to myself. Putting my frustration aside, I get up off the couch and set her on the bed. As I undo her diaper, the smell hits me like a train. I start gagging and I almost have to run to the bathroom. Of course, my Little Angel doesn't know any better. She laughs at the faces that I'm making. Even though the smell is still there, I manage to crack a smile. I make a mental note to pick up some Febreze the next time I'm at the store. And a Hazmat suit. It took me weeks to learn how to change a diaper. Now, I'm like a pro at it. She then settles back down and lets out a cute yawn. I guess it's those little moments with my daughter that give me the strength to carry on. I pick her up, sit down on the bed, and lean back. This way, she can fall asleep in my arms. And I can catch some sleep if I need to. My mind flashes back to when I first saw her. God, it seems like it's been forever. But, it's only been a couple of months since that day. It was a scene straight out of a movie or a book. Find a baby in a basket, and take it inside out of pity. She was probably no more than a few months old at that point. I didn't know what I was going to do. The last thing that I wanted was to become a father overnight. But my logical mind knew better. If anyone else found her, then her life would be a living hell. It's not everyday that you see an orange-colored baby pony. I don't even want to think about what could’ve happened to her. When she looked at me in the eye for the first time, she smiled at me. Maybe she wanted me to be her daddy. Either that or she had pooped her diaper. It was proven to be the latter a while later. Being the Good Samaritan that I am, I decided to keep her there until I could figure something out. That first night, I didn’t sleep at all. I just sat on my bed in silence and my eyes would sometimes glance over to her in the baby bed next to me. So many questions were wandering through my mind. What is she? Where did she come from? Why and how did she end up here? For that matter, why was I the one stuck with her? It actually kinda intrigued me how human-like this baby pony was. It was like she had come straight out of a cartoon or something. She only cried once that entire night. It was a low voice, even for a girl baby. My knee-jerk reaction was to just scoop her up in my arms and rock her back to sleep. When I first held her, I began to feel something. It wasn’t pity, or anger, or even sadness at this point. It was all replaced by a feeling of love. Real, fatherly love. Of course, I still had my doubts about this whole thing. And I’m pretty sure my folks wouldn’t like it. But, I didn’t care. That was when I knew that I would take this child, whatever she was, to be my daughter. It almost felt like God Himself had sent His most precious angel to my side. I’d have to decide on a name later, but I knew what I would call her until then. She was now my little world. My little reason for living. My Little Angel. I finally manage to drift off to sleep with my daughter’s tiny heart beating against mine. I rarely ever dream anymore, but this time I do. And I dream of the one thing that I don’t wanna see: her. A knock comes from the door. My eyes jolt open in fear. This is the time to hide my daughter away from curious eyes. I can’t let anything happen to her. Slowly, I get up off the bed, set my daughter in her little car seat in the corner hidden from sight, and go to the door. I peer through that little peephole to find that it’s one of the hotel maids. I set the bolt on the door to keep anyone from opening it all the way and open it. “Housekeeping?” “No thank you. I’m fine. You can go on.” And I close the door. As I’m walking away, she knocks again. Harder this time. “Housekeeping, por favor?” “No thank you!” “House. Keeping,” she says with a little more force. It then occurs to me that, chances are, she can barely speak English. And I barely speak Spanish. I open the door again and do the best I can. “Senora…uh, yo no… quiero… housekeeping.” Way to butcher it, I think to myself. Luckily, she gets the gist of it. “Lo siento, señor. Mi Inglés no es tan bueno.” I have no idea what that means, but she goes on so I’m guessing she said sorry. I turn my attention back to my daughter and find that she’s still asleep. She’s even snoring a little bit. My heart is just bursting with d’aaaawww. Thank God she’s a heavy sleeper, or else we’d be in trouble. To help calm myself down, I flip on the TV. I rarely watch anything anymore, but I turn to the news every so often to see what’s going on. “Massive floods in Louisiana continue to destroy thousands of homes, leaving thousands of people homeless. The White House has sent much needed help to the region to assist in finding shelters for the homeless and providing food and water for those that cannot reach it. No one knows when the state will be able recover from this disaster. In local news, residents at a roadside hotel continue to complain to the managers that they have seen strange behavior in one of the guests. The attendant has been described as being reclusive and has been living there for almost a month. Many have often thought that they might be hiding something, possibly an illegal substance. K-9 units are on their way to investigate the scene as we speak and we will have updates on that later. Still to come, a popular TV show with a fanbase of more than 2 million has announced its final season. Check back with us to-” I have to shut the TV off. I’m scared outta my mind. The cops are on their way here?! We need to get out of here, now. I gather up all my stuff, making sure to not leave anything behind, put it into a trash bag, and scoop my daughter up in her little car seat. I also grab the card key to my room. I’ve already paid my dues for the week, so I just have to drop off the key. I rush out the door, put all my stuff into the truck, load up my daughter, cover her seat with a blanket, and run to the front desk. I give them back the key and I thank them for all they did for me. I jump back in the truck, start her up, and go off. Of course, I wanna seem unsuspicious so I drive the speed limit to keep the cops from coming my way. Just as I pull out, the cops show up in the parking lot and they don’t speed towards me. I breathe a sigh of relief knowing that we’re safe. For now. We’re about fifty miles outside of town before I pull over to the side of the road. I’m tired and I wanna go to sleep, but the adrenaline pumping through me ain’t helping one bit. Sleep was one luxury that I could rarely afford now. Not until we found a safe place to settle down at. The only problem is that the news is probably spreading fast all over the state about a strange guy getting away from the police. Now, I’m pretty sure that I got no other place to go to. My parents’ house wouldn’t work since they kicked me outta there themselves, and the apple farm was all the way in Washington, about 2,500 miles from where I was at. No way that I’ll make it there in this hunk of junk. I don’t know where the hell I’m supposed to go now, so I guess we’ll just have to keep moving until we can’t move anymore. -Two days later- I don’t know how much longer I can keep doing this. Running across the country like some kinda outlaw carrying precious cargo. It ain’t the right thing to do at this point, but I can’t help but wonder what my life would be like if my daughter had never come into my life. I’d probably still be working on my grandparents’ apple farm for a decent wage. I’d see all my cousins, and uncles, and aunts, and close friends that came by almost daily. Never a dull moment in that place. Now I’m starting to miss it. My Grampa Jack giving me sage advice while we picked apples, the smell of the pies that my Granny Smith would make, Cousin Mel and Cousin Burney always competing with me, having to keep an eye on all my nieces and even that lil' Collie pup Winona nipping at my leg from time to time. Those were the days alright. And now, here I am going down the highway in a beat-up old Silverado acting like my life’s normal as normal could be. I don’t even know where I am at this point. The only stopping I made was for my daughter, my truck, my tired eyes, and pit stops. I’m trying to save as much money as I can, so it’s all been going towards my Little Angel and gas. I haven’t eaten anything in two days, and my stomach is growling like some kinda wild beast. It doesn’t help that I’m running out of money fast and gas is starting to go up again. I just have to stop and figure out what to do. I pull into a corner store parking lot and I look around for any sorta sign. Finally, I saw a great big sign that said, “Welcome to Michigan! Great Lakes! Great Times!” My jaw drops at the sight of it. Had I really been driving for that long? At first, I’m relieved because the cops in Alabama wouldn’t go this far for one suspicious character. But, it quickly turns into despair because now I’m even further away from home than I was before. I bang my head on the steering wheel at my act of stupidity. If my daughter wasn’t in the car with me, I’d be cussing worse than a stranded sailor. As if to add to my anger, my daughter has a toy in her hand – I mean hooves, and throws it right at the back of my head. I glare at her and I swear I saw a smug look on her little face. I reach down into the side of the seat to get her toy out, and my hand feels something else down there with it. It feels like paper, but a little thicker. I pull out the toy and the other thing and I see that it’s a photo. I hand the toy back to my Little Angel and look closely at the photo. “You clever little sneak,” I say to my daughter. She gives me a giggle in return, almost as if she can understand me. I don’t know whether it was a coincidence or an Act of God, but I can’t say that I expected to see a picture of me and my ex-girlfriend. I could’ve sworn that I burned every picture of us, but apparently not. Her name was Laurie Faustus and she used to be the best thing that ever happened to me. Now, she was just another pain-in-the-ass memory. I open up the window and I’m just about to throw the picture out the window when something pops into my head. I remember the day that she left me. “I’m sorry,” she said to me, “but I have to go back home with my dad.” “All this time that we’ve spent together, and you have to go now?” “Hey, it’s not like it’s my choice! It’s not like he would let me stay with you!” “Why don’t you just stay with my grandparents? I’m sure they wouldn’t mind!” “No, I can’t do that to them. That would just make me feel guiltier.” I really didn’t want to say it, but I knew that I had to say goodbye to her. I was really going to miss her. “So, where are you going off to?” “Michigan.” It finally clicks. I’ve accidentally driven to where she last lived! It’s slim, but it’s still a chance. If I can find her, then maybe she can help me out! But then I consider what might happen when she meets my daughter for the first time. Then again, we had some good moments in the past. Maybe she’ll understand. I don’t know anymore, so I guess I’m just gonna have to take that chance. I park the car close to a pay phone, put the blanket over my daughter’s seat, and go over to the phone. Luckily there’s a 2012 phone book in a little slot. I quickly take it and go back to the truck. I flip through the pages looking for the F’s. When I find them, I find Laurie’s name first. I write down her address and call her house. Luckily, the phone rings and I’m expecting her any second. It rings four times and I hear it pick up. “Hey Laurie, it’s been a long time since I-” “Hi there. You’ve reached Laurie Faustus at home. I’m sorry I can’t come to my phone right now. But, if you’ll leave your name and number, I’ll call you back as soon as possible. Thank you and have a wonderful day.” BEEEP! “Hey Laurie. It’s me. Been a long time since we talked, huh? I know this is all of a sudden, but I need your help. I’ve got a certain someone with me that ain’t exactly something you see every day. I’ve been running around the country trying to keep her safe and I’m pretty much outta options. I know that our history together isn’t the best in the world.” Meaning that you turned into a total bitch after you left me, I think to myself. “But, even you have to remember all the good times that we had. So, can we just put the past behind us for now? I literally got nowhere else to go! So if everything’s okay, then please for the love of God, give me a call back at this number. If you don’t call me back, then I’m gonna be in trouble. I have almost no money left cause of the damn gas prices and taking care of this kid. Hope to see you again. Bye.” And I hang up. This may turn out to be either the best decision that I ever made or the worst decision I ever made. I can only pray to God that this doesn’t bite me in the ass like everything else. I glance back and notice that my Little Angel is asleep again. That does it, I think. I’ve got to find a new name for her...Eventually. I need to keep my mind focused on the task at hand. Wanting to pass the time, I flip on the radio. “And now back to The Classics 94.5! This next one is an oldie, but a good one! It’s a little diddy by Dolly Parton called Applejack.” Applejack? That. Is. PERFECT! Ch. 2 A Little DysfunctionalRemember y'all. Main character --> Southern accent A Little Dysfunctional I’ve been waiting for hours for Laurie to call me back. Does she really hate me that much? Does she think that I’m kidding? Of course, if a past lover called me and told me they needed help, I’d probably do the same thing as her. I don’t know why I’m doing so much to hide Applejack from the world. Maybe it’s just because she’s a pony. With all that’s happened, she’s probably better off with someone else than a homeless 17-year-old. But, there’s just a part of me that just wants to keep her with me until the day I die. I don’t even know why these thoughts are plaguing my mind. Maybe I’m just afraid that Laurie won’t call me back and I’ll have to give lil AJ away. Ugh! It makes my heart ache just thinking about it. Suddenly, I hear a ringing. Since I don’t have my own phone, I get out and look for the source. My eyes go straight for the payphone and it turns out that the ringing is coming from there. I rush over to it, and pick it up. "Hello?!" "How in the hell did you get this number?" I can't help but chuckle a little. "First time I've talked to you in two years and that's the first thing you say to me?" "What does it matter? What do you want?" "Well, hate to jump right to it, but I need your help. I've literally got no one else to turn to but you. I'm tired, I'm hungry, and I've driven all over the country all while taking care of a little baby girl." "Wait a minute! You have a daughter?!" "Yep." "And you're asking me for help?" "That's the gist of it." "Okay, you are not making sense.Why ask me instead of her mom?” “Well... technically she’s not my real daughter.” She starts to chuckle a little. “So, what? You found her on your doorstep?” “...... Actually, yeah!” An awkward silence breaks its way in. It takes a while before I get an answer back. “So you’re serious about this? You really just found a baby out of nowhere and you took her in as your own?” “Eeyup.” "... Fine, you can stay for the night. But after that, you're outta here." "If that's the best you can give me, then I'll take it. Where do you live?" She gives the address, tells me how to get there and says goodbye. It's actually not that far from where I am now and it’ll only take me about five minutes. I go back to the truck and start her up. "Okay, Applejack,” I say to my daughter. “Get ready to enjoy your first taste of a real home." I make it to Laurie's address and see that it's actually a pretty nice house. Two stories, a nice green lawn, something that only a lucky bastard could afford these days. I park the truck on the side of the road and put the blanket over Applejack to make sure that no one sees her. Force of habit. I get her in her seat and go to the front door. I ring the doorbell and wait for a while. The door opens and I see her, just as beautiful as ever. "Hey," she says without a smile. "Hey," I answer back. She motions for me to come in. I set the car seat down inside and take in my surroundings. When I get a good look at the inside of the house, I'm taken aback. It's even more fancy-looking than the outside! "Somehow, I always knew you'd find me again." "Well, what can I say? Once I set my mind to something, it's hard to stop me. But, I gotta say this place is pretty fancy for you to-" BAM!! Out of nowhere, she socks me right in the jaw with more force than I thought possible from her. "I didn't say that I wanted to see you again," she says coldly. "Why do you always blame me for everything that happened?" I ask while rubbing my chin. And mending my ego. "I was young, everyone makes mistakes at that age! And I guess mine was falling in love with you." "There you go again! You always look for something to blame and it's me most of the time! What's next? You're gonna blame me for global warming?!" "Tempting, but no. I have more common sense than that." "Well, what about your dad? If anything, blame him for you having to leave, not me!" She suddenly grows silent and turns away. She just walks towards what looks like the kitchen. "Speaking of whom, where is that old coot anyway? There's no way that you're living here by yourself." But, Laurie doesn't answer. She just keeps on walking. Sensing that something's wrong, I run after her and grab her by the arm. "Laurie, where's your dad?" “I don’t wanna talk about it,” she says quietly. “Come on. It can’t be that bad.” “I said I don’t wanna talk about it!” She gives me another punch to the face, this time right in the nose. I let go of her and put my face in my hands. She starts to walk away again when my nose starts to bleed. "What the hell is wrong with you?!” I shout as I reach for a tissue. I tear it in two and stuff them up my nostrils. “If you’re going this far to tell me nothing’s wrong, then there’s something wrong!” She’s perched up against a bar, like she’s trying to keep herself upright. “Now, I’m gonna ask you one more time. I don’t wanna hurt you; I’m just trying to help. Where. Is. Your dad?” I finally notice that there are tears streaming down her cheeks. "My dad's dead." And I just turned into a total douche. I immediately regret ever bringing him up. My mind went blank and I didn’t know what to do, so I just put my arms around her and give her a squeeze. She doesn’t respond, almost like she’s completely numb on the inside. "I'm sorry", I tell her quietly. "Do you even know how long it took me to get over you?" she says, her voice breaking. "I can only say ‘I’m sorry’ so many times.” "Well then, say it again anyway!!" she shouts while pushing me away. "I'm sorry,” I say with a little sarcasm. "Yeah, everyone's sorry for something. And just so you know, I'm serious about you staying one night. After that, you’re outta here.” “Any particular reason?” “Do I look like I need a reason?!!” she screams. Our argument is suddenly cut short when we both hear crying. “Oh great. You woke her up! Thanks a lot!” "Her?” “That kid that I told you about.” I rush into the living room to get little Applejack. She’s bawling her eyes out and her orange face is turning red. I undo all the straps, pick her up, and set her on my shoulder to try and calm her down. “It’s okay, it’s okay, Daddy’s here”, I whisper. I’ll protect you from the wicked witch. I turn around and Laurie’s gaze goes right to Applejack. She’s completely speechless. A few awkward moments of silence go by before I speak up. “Oh! Where are my manners?” I adjust AJ a little to where she’s cuddled up in my arms. “Laurie Faustus, I’d like you to meet my baby girl, Applejack.” “That thing is your kid?!” "Hey! She’s not a ‘thing’! She’s a baby!” "Babies don’t have orange skin. Or stubby arms. Or tails for that matter!” Applejack starts to cry again. This time, I don’t know what for. Desperate, I hand Applejack to Laurie and, luckily, she takes the baby in her arms. I then rush out to the truck to try and get something to calm her down. I grab everything in there; her apple plush toy, her pacifier, everything! I burst through the door and spread it all out on the floor. I try the pacifier and it doesn’t work. I try the plush toy and it doesn’t work either. I’ve gone through pretty much everything except the applesauce that she loves so much. Of course! She’s just hungry! I think. I take Applejack out of Laurie’s arms and go over to a nearby couch. I’ve got her in a position to where she’s resting against my belly and I try spoon-feeding it to her. But, she won’t open her mouth. “Come on, darling. You need to eat up.” But she still won’t do it. Laurie goes over to us and gets down on her knees. “Here, let me help.” She takes the spoon from me and dips it into the applesauce. “Come on, little one. Here comes the choo-choo train!” She makes the sound effects and starts making funny faces. It’s almost like she speaks baby-nese because Applejack actually opens up her mouth and gobbles it down. “How did you do that?” “I used to have a babysitting job. Duh.” Oh yeah! I can’t believe I forgot about that! “Well, whatever you did, it’s working!” We finished feeding her a while ago. Laurie's just getting back from a local Taco Bell with dinner for me and her. We sit at the table with Laurie on one side, and Applejack and I on the other. I've got her balanced on my knee and steadied with one hand, and my burrito in the other hand. There's another awkward silence as we're eating. We're really not sure what to say to each other. "Curious question," I finally start. "I'm not trying to open old wounds or nothing, but how can you afford this place?" "That kind of question I can tolerate. You see, when Dad... passed away, he left everything to me. The house, his car, his money, everything. Since my mom died about a decade ago and her family won't speak to us, he had no one else to give it to except for me." "Well, that was awful generous of him. I'm still sorry that I brought him up like that." "It's ok. I'm the one that should be sorry for giving you a bloody nose." We both share a chuckle. I’ve noticed that Applejack has her hoof on my burrito and trying pull it towards her. "Oh come on! You just finished eating darling! Besides I wouldn't give this to you anyway. I don’t want that room smelling tonight!" I finally manage to get a hearty laugh out of Laurie which I happily join. We even get a little giggle out of Applejack, which only makes us laugh even more. In that moment, a strange mix of emotions flowed through me. I was happy that we finally had something to laugh about, that we even had a moment to laugh, and that we were almost like any normal family. But, I was also feeling depressed because I knew that it wouldn’t last forever. It’s now a little past AJ’s bedtime, so I take her up to the room that I'm supposed to be staying in and set her on the bed. I put a pile of pillows around her to make sort of a makeshift crib. Not the best way to sleep, but it'll have to do. It’s better than what she had before, at least. Right now, I'm too exhausted to even think. I go downstairs and plop down on the couch again. Ah, it feels so good to rest with my legs stretched out! But, just as I'm about to drift off, I feel something poke at me. I open my eyes to see Laurie hovering over me with eyes wide open. "Can I ask you a serious question?" "Oh sure!" I say with a heavy dose of sarcasm. "I've got nothing better to do." "Look, I know you're tired but this is serious." Wanting to get it over with, I listen closely. "Why?" My mind goes blank. “Huh?” "Why do you do so much to take care of ‘Applejack’?” I already know where she’s going with this. “Why don't you just give her to someone else?" "What does it matter? She needed help, so I gave it to her.” “This isn’t something that you would have done when we were together. Why now?” I don’t answer her. I just pretend like I've already fallen asleep, hoping that she’ll just go away. That plan backfires when she starts poking me again. She just keeps doing it, and doing it, and doing it. I finally push her hand away and look her dead in the eye. “I’m not stopping until you answer me.” "Fine! Because I'm the only one who can!" I snap back. That's the first time I've ever yelled at her like that. I get up off the couch to try and get away from her, but she’s on me like a dog to a bone. "I know what this is all about,” she says smugly. "What the hell are you talking about?" "You couldn't stop me from leaving, you couldn't stop your mom from kicking you out, you couldn't even stop your parents from divorcing!" "Shut up." "So you took her in because you want to control something in your life. You want to play God!" "Shut up!" I put myself against the wall to hide my frustration and tears. "You didn’t do all of this because you love her. It was all for your own selfish pride." "I said shut up!!" I shout as I punch the wall. A massive jolt of pain shoots through my arm, but I didn’t care at that point. It's a miracle that it doesn't wake up Applejack. Laurie stops dead in her tracks with a look of pain and regret pasted on her face. “Just leave me alone. I’ll need all the sleep I can get if I’m gonna leave in the morning.” And with that, I go back to the couch with the pillow on my face. I don’t know what Laurie did at that point, but I assumed that she went to her bedroom to get some sleep. The last thing I remember thinking is what I’m going to do when Laurie kicks us out tomorrow. I wake up right at the crack of dawn. My mind is rested and ready to go, but my back is killing me. On a hunch, I go to what I think is the medicine cabinet in one of the bathrooms. I find some Motrin, sip some water from the sink, and down two pills. Hopefully, that’ll help in a little while. I then head into the living room to gather up Applejack’s stuff. Once I've gotten it all, I set it by the door along with the car seat. I'm thinking that leaving early would be best for me and Laurie. So, I head upstairs to get Applejack. But, right when I get to the door, I hear something. It sounds almost like... singing. Curious, I open the door quietly to the most beautiful sound I’ve heard in years. Laurie's got Applejack curled up in her arms like a real mom would do for her daughter, and she’s softly singing a little lullaby. I take a minute to watch the heartwarming scene. I start to listen to the song, and I remember the one that she’s singing. Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight Just a touch of the fire burning so bright No I don't want to mess this thing up I don't want to push too far Just a shot in the dark that you just might Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life So baby I'm alright with just a kiss goodnight She finishes, still not noticing that I’m in the room now. I start to clap slowly for her little performance, and the look on her face is just priceless. “You never told me that you could sing like that.” I can tell that she’s embarrassed due to the red on her cheeks. “Well, you never asked,” she says with a shaky voice. “Laurie, there’s nothing to be embarrassed about. You’ve got a talent that I could never hope to have. You should be proud of yourself!” She finally gives me a little smile. “That’s very sweet of you. Thanks.” “No problem at all.” Yet again, another awkward silence. The words that I dread the most can’t help but pass my lips. “So... I guess we’d better hit the road, huh?” “No!” she says louder than I expected. “I mean, you don’t have to leave right now. It’s still early and I can give you some more time. If you’d like, that is.” Now, this is something that I never would’ve expected from her. Especially after I kinda forced this on her in the first place. In fact, I’m taken aback that she would give me something so precious as ‘extra time’. “Well then, if you’re willing to put up with me for a while longer, then I’ll be glad to!” She gives me a warm smile, something that I haven’t seen since forever. I quietly shut the door and go back downstairs. It occurs to me that Laurie must be getting pretty attached to my daughter to stop us from leaving at the crack of dawn. She’s already been such a big help to me. And I know the perfect way to thank her for that. Time to brush up on my cooking skills. Here's the lullaby song that Laurie was singing! Author's Notes: I just want to say thank you to my brother, The Conflicted Writer. He's helped with this so much, and I can't thank him enough. I also want to thank you guys for reading my story. I hope y'all are enjoying it and expect many more chapters in the future! And here's a cute little pic that I found on deviantart! Ch. 3 - Warming of the HeartCh. 3: Warming of the Heart Finally, I'm finished. A meal fit for a king and queen, and a princess of course, hath been prepared. Eggs, pancakes, freshly squeezed orange juice, blueberry muffins; the typical American breakfast, but I haven't had one like it in months. No bacon since Applejack’s... you know. I'm actually surprised that Laurie had all this stuff in her cabinet. Once again as if on cue, I see Laurie coming down the stairs. She's got Applejack in her arms, and when she first sees our feast it’s like a kid opening presents on Christmas morning. “What’s the occasion?” “Well, it’s the least I could do. This’ll make up for having to take care of my sorry ass AND my daughter for more than a day.” “Who said I was complaining?” “Says my jaw. The one that you gave a good punch to.” I don’t know whether I should go to see a doctor about it or not. “Would you believe me if I told you that I was sorry for that?” I think hard for a moment. “Hmmmm... nah”, I say with a wink. “Now, come on. We’d better eat before it gets cold.” The three of us sit down at the table, with Applejack perched on my knee. We say grace and dig in. I guess putting a lot of hard work into it made breakfast better than I expected. I’m just happy that Applejack seems to like it. By the time we’re all done, her whole face is covered in syrup from the pancakes and little bits of blueberry muffin are stuck to it. Laurie and I share a laugh for once in a long time, and Applejack looks up at me with an innocent look on her face. “It’s alright darling. You didn’t do nothing wrong.” With that, I tickle on her little orange belly and she gives a hearty chuckle. But, I don’t do it too much so she won’t upchuck her breakfast. I learned that lesson after our first few days together. “You really should get her cleaned up. You do that, and I’ll clear the table.” “You sure? Cause I can clean the kitchen up.” “I’m sure. Use the bathroom upstairs if you don’t mind.” I give a mock salute and take lil’ Applejack upstairs to get cleaned. As I expected, there isn’t anything up there for her to play with except a rubber ducky. ‘You gotta make due with what you can’, a wise man once said. I fill the tub up a little bit since I don’t need much to get the job done. The mess comes right off with a little bit of water. As I’m finishing up, she slaps the water with her hoof and splashes me right in the face. At first, I think she didn’t mean to do it until I see that smug little grin on her face. I lightly splash her back, which she responds with another stronger splash. In a few seconds, we’re having a father-daughter splash battle. We’re both laughing up a storm and just having a merry good time until we hear someone clear their throat. Laurie must’ve heard it down in the kitchen since she’s standing in the doorway with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. It’s almost as if she’s asking why I’m having all the fun. Stealthily, I take a handful of water in one hand while holding Applejack steady with the other. Like a flash, I whip my hand around and I get her right on her shirt. She yelps and jumps back a little before she realizes what just happened. I start to laugh my ass off and she joins in shortly. I even hear her snort a few times. Then, it’s all silenced when I hear a tiny grunt. Applejack’s got one of her hooves hooked onto the edge of the tub with my hand still holding her steady. She’s peeking her lil’ head over the edge and pointing her other hoof at Laurie. It sounds like she’s struggling to say something, but she can’t quite get it out. Finally, she manages to say one word that would accidentally start a new life for me. “Mama.” The most awkward silence fills the air. You could cut it with a knife it’s so thick. I don’t say a word and neither does Laurie. I just finish drying Applejack off and lift her up on my shoulder. The three of us walk together to the nursery and we still don’t say a word. By the time we get to the door, AJ’s starting to fall asleep. I lay her down in her makeshift crib and she’s out like a light. I guess all that fun and saying her first word has her plum tuckered out. Laurie and I leave the room and leave a little crack in the door in case she wakes up. We’re down in the living room on the couch. I don’t know what’s floating through her mind, but I know that this could be really bad or really good. I mean, how would you feel after something like that? I decide to break the silence. “So... now what?” She doesn’t answer. I try again. “Not every day that something like that happens, huh?” I chuckle. She still doesn’t answer. At this point, I feel like I’m digging myself an early grave. I’ve gotta change the subject quickly. I try one more time; an all-or-nothing Hail Mary pass, so to speak. “Remember when your brother found out we were dating?” Finally, she manages to crack a smile. She says, “He had a Liam Neeson moment when we called to tell him the news.” “Remember like it was yesterday.” I shifted my voice to a deeper tone. “If you make it work, then I’ll let it be. But, if you hurt my sister, I will look for you. I WILL find you... and I will beat the crap outta you.” Laurie tries her best not to laugh since she doesn’t want to wake up Applejack, though a few giggles manage to escape. Probably not because I remember what he said, but because I sounded exactly like him. But her brother Mac ain’t no joke, I tell you what. From what I’ve heard from Laurie, he’s a bodybuilder that trains in MMA. Put him and I together and you’ve got a one-sided bloodbath. I can only imagine what kind of unholy wrath was brewing in his 200 pound heart when he found out Laurie and I couldn’t work things out. “That reminds me. Why didn’t he do that when we... you know?” She calms herself and says with a warm smile, “I told him not to.” This is the moment where everything would change. I instantly see something different about Laurie Faustus, one of the most beautiful girls I’ve had the pleasure of knowing. She’s looking at me with genuine happiness, something that I haven’t seen since... since the day we first met. I can finally remember what it is that attracted me to her so much. When she looks at me with a smile, I see what true beauty is. Only when she’s happy can I see it for myself. I can’t really explain it, but I don’t think there’s any way that I can. I’ve got no idea that we’re slowly edging towards each other on the couch. It ain’t until we get within a few inches of each other that we realize it. Acting on pure instinct, I start to lean my head forward. Laurie edges even closer and mirrors my actions. Time seems to slow down for us as our faces get closer and closer. I can’t believe that this is actually happening, but it feels too real to be a dream. My heart starts to race out of my incredible nervousness. But, I manage to steel myself out of anxiety and throw all doubt out of my mind. I feel my face heating up and a cold bead of sweat runs down the back of my neck. My hands start to feel clammy and cold, but I push through. And finally, after what seemed like an eternity... DING DONG The doorbell rings. For a moment it snaps us out of our romantic trance. But, we ignore it and go back to where we were. The doorbell rings again and again and again. Now it’s just plain annoying, and if that wasn’t enough we hear Applejack crying. Even though we both wanted this moment to last, it would have to wait for later. I quickly say, “I’ll get the baby if you get the door.” The rest of the day goes without a hitch. There hasn’t been anything good on TV, we had crappy leftovers for dinner, and it’s been raining nonstop for the past six hours. Laurie’s already gone to bed and Applejack’s down for the night. I don’t know why I’m still awake at this point, so I decide to hit the hay since it’s getting late. As I'm heading up to my room, I notice that the door to Laurie's is cracked a little. Curious to see how she's doing, I open the door and peak in. Her red hair is frayed all around her and she’s curled up into a ball under the covers. How she manages to get even more beautiful when she goes to sleep is beyond me. Of course, I didn't say goodnight properly so I can’t just leave her like this. I tiptoe over to her and sit on the edge of her bed. I push some of her long hair out of her face with a stray hand. How someone like her managed to fall for a hopeless schmuck like me, I’ll never know. I lean forward and give her a kiss on her forehead while whispering, “Good night”. But as I’m turning away, I feel a sudden jerk that pulls me back. I stumble and fall back on the same spot on Laurie’s bed. I look down to see that she’s got a good grip on me. I look back up to see that her eyes are wide open. “How long have you been awake?” “The whole time.” I’m screwed, I think. “And you really think that you could leave me with just that?” “What do you mean?” In a flash, Laurie lurches forward. Finally, for the first time in a long time, our lips lock together. At first, I’m surprised at her forwardness. Eventually, I accept and push back into the kiss. At that moment, the two of us aren’t paying any attention to the outside world. All that matters is what’s happening right now, and I don’t want it to ever end. A stray thought runs through my mind saying that I don’t have to worry about my daughter’s future anymore. As long as I’m with Laurie, I feel like I can do anything. I don’t know it yet, but the rain has stopped falling and the clouds have parted to reveal the moon. With the curtain blinds open, a ray of moonlight envelopes us as we finally break away. We look deep into each other’s eyes and just smile. I break the silence by asking her something that I should’ve had answered. “So what now?” She just shakes her head, “I don’t know.” “Well, whatever happens in the future, as long as I’m with you I think I’ll be okay.” “Same here.” And with that, she draws me in for another kiss. I respond by pushing her back and laying her down on the bed while still in liplock. This night would turn out to be one of the best I’ve ever had. Six Months Later I sigh, “Remind me again to never have a Christmas party at our house. Ever.” “I second that notion”, Laurie comments. A lot has happened in the time since I came here. Applejack’s starting to talk and she’s been walking for a good while now. Since she’s a pony and everything, she walks on all four hooves naturally. Speaking of whom, she’s down for the night and Laurie and I can finally have some peace and quiet. We had had this big Christmas party with the neighbors and we had a blast even though it was hard work. A while before that, though, we had called a neighborhood meeting to introduce everyone to Applejack. To our surprise, they had actually taken kindly to her even though she’s a pony. I’m not sure why, but I ain’t complaining anytime soon. Of course, we all vowed to keep her our little secret since we don’t know how the outside world would respond to her. Of course, the introduction part was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done for fear of what would happen to my daughter. But, I’m getting better about being so paranoid. And we have playdates with the other babies of the neighborhood so that Applejack can finally have some interaction with people other than me and Laurie. It’ll be good for her in the long run. One of the better things is that I managed to do something that should’ve been done a while ago. I managed to contact my parents one night to talk to them. Apparently, they cleaned up their act after I left and started going to church again. Every day, they would pray that I was safe and that I was okay. Of course, as my parents, they know that I keep true to the commitments that I make. Even though they missed me, they told me that they would always support me in any way possible and couldn’t stop saying sorry to me. I told them that all was forgiven and, to be honest, I had to thank them. If I hadn’t left almost a year ago, I wouldn’t be here right now. I never would’ve met Laurie again and fallen back in love with her. And since Applejack has a mommy now, that just makes it so much better. I told them about where I was and that AJ and I were living with Laurie. They really wanted to see me for Christmas and get to know their granddaughter better, but they wouldn’t be able to with the price of gas and everything. So, they sent us their presents to us by mail and we had a good talk using that Skype thingy. We had a good time talking and finding out what was happening with them. They even commented about how much I’ve grown up in such a short time. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but it’d be pretty awesome if it was. I hope I can see them again before AJ grows up. I’ll bet they’d make awesome grandparents. Lastly, I’ve found a job here in Michigan, so I guess I’m one of the lucky ones. Everyone knows that it’s getting harder and harder to find jobs in this tough economy. I’ve managed to pull my weight for my family, and to save up my money to buy presents for Laurie and Applejack. I’ve even got something special for my darling girlfriend, and I’ve got this whole plan together that’s gonna blow her outta the water. Right now, I’m sitting on the couch while Laurie’s resting her head on my lap. We’re not doing anything, so might as well put my plan into action. “Hey. You think we could celebrate Christmas early?” She responds with a confused glance. “I mean, how about we give each other a present early?” “Any reason why?” “Build up anticipation for tomorrow?” She thinks for a minute and shrugs her shoulders. “Might as well.” We get up from the couch and go over to the Christmas tree. She picks up a large box with my name on it while I pick up a small box for her. We trade gifts and she lets me go first. Carefully, I tear the wrapping paper off and reach for what’s inside it. I take it out of the box to find that it’s a light-brown Stetson hat. There’s a note attached to it that says, ‘For the cowboy in you. Love, Laurie.’ “How the hell did you know?” “Come on. It wasn’t that hard to figure out. ‘A cowboy feels naked without a hat’? You told me that!” “Oh yeah.” I try on my new hat to find that it fits like a glove. I give Laurie a big squeeze which she responds in kind. “Merry Christmas, my big strong cowboy.” “Merry Christmas, my darling angel.” With that we part the hug and give each other a quick kiss. My eyes then shift to the tiny box in her hand. “And just so you know, it’s not what you think. Here, I’ll open it for you.” “I’m perfectly capable of opening my own presents.” “Well duh, I know that. It’s just... it’s a really special gift and I want to surprise you properly with it.” Laurie raises an eyebrow and cautiously hands me the box. I turn my back so she won’t see it until the opportune moment. When I get the wrapping paper off, I turn back around and hide the little box behind my back. “Now I’ve thought about this really hard and I’ve taken every possibility into question. But, I don’t care what anyone says because it’s something that I should of done a long time ago.” I slip off the couch and get down on one knee. “Laurie Faustus.” Her face fills with joy and she puts her hands over her mouth. “Ever since you found it in your heart to take me into your home, I’ve always looked for a way to make it up to you. So, this is what I came up with. If you ever need me, anytime or anywhere, I’ll be there for you. I’ll stay by your side until the day I die. But before I can do any of that, I have one question for you.” Her eyes start to tear up as I open the box to reveal a beautiful diamond ring. "Will you marry me?
Ch. 1 - Beginnings of a FatherBeginnings of a Father The father talks in a Southern accent. Just letting y'all know. It was just another Saturday night. My last paycheck went into my bank account, I had done all my shopping, and I had crashed in front of the TV in my Alabama hotel room. It wasn't the best Saturday I'd ever had, but it was far from being the worst. My Little Angel sat on my lap, sucking on the bottle of formula the clerk at the store had recommended. Thankfully she seemed to like it and didn't complain. But my Little Angel hardly ever fussed. In fact, now that I think about it, I've only ever heard her cry when she was hungry or tired. I've had to set her down, sometimes, but she doesn't cry for me to pick her back up. Sometimes, I wonder if she knows I'm gonna come back for her, because she gives me a smile that could melt Old Man Winter’s heart once I do. I still haven't given her a name at this point, but I haven't exactly had the time. My Little Angel has been good for now, but I know that ain't going to fly forever. I look at her and think about it a bit. Anything I think of doesn't seem to fit one way or another. Naming a pony like her is a lot harder than you think, and all the craziness hasn't made it easier. She's looking at me now. Can she sense my worry? I wonder. Her startling emerald eyes make me think so. I find her precious with that little Stetson of hers that perfectly fits her tiny little head. I wonder what I did that made whoever sent her mistake me for a good enough person to take care of her. Looking at where I am right now, it looks like they screwed up big time. Actually, looking back further, it looked like they messed up from the start. I mean don't get me wrong, I love her with all my heart. But how could you expect a 17 year old farm boy to take care of a baby? I barely even know how to take care of myself! Why I'm not dead from exhaustion yet is still a mystery to me. My train of thought is suddenly interrupted when my Little Angel starts squirming. Usually, that means that she needs to be burped. I rest her tiny body on my shoulder and pat her on the back several times. I’m expecting her to burp until I hear a loud brrrrrrt. Yep, she farted on me. She even giggles a little bit afterwards. Why me? I think to myself. Putting my frustration aside, I get up off the couch and set her on the bed. As I undo her diaper, the smell hits me like a train. I start gagging and I almost have to run to the bathroom. Of course, my Little Angel doesn't know any better. She laughs at the faces that I'm making. Even though the smell is still there, I manage to crack a smile. I make a mental note to pick up some Febreze the next time I'm at the store. And a Hazmat suit. It took me weeks to learn how to change a diaper. Now, I'm like a pro at it. She then settles back down and lets out a cute yawn. I guess it's those little moments with my daughter that give me the strength to carry on. I pick her up, sit down on the bed, and lean back. This way, she can fall asleep in my arms. And I can catch some sleep if I need to. My mind flashes back to when I first saw her. God, it seems like it's been forever. But, it's only been a couple of months since that day. It was a scene straight out of a movie or a book. Find a baby in a basket, and take it inside out of pity. She was probably no more than a few months old at that point. I didn't know what I was going to do. The last thing that I wanted was to become a father overnight. But my logical mind knew better. If anyone else found her, then her life would be a living hell. It's not everyday that you see an orange-colored baby pony. I don't even want to think about what could’ve happened to her. When she looked at me in the eye for the first time, she smiled at me. Maybe she wanted me to be her daddy. Either that or she had pooped her diaper. It was proven to be the latter a while later. Being the Good Samaritan that I am, I decided to keep her there until I could figure something out. That first night, I didn’t sleep at all. I just sat on my bed in silence and my eyes would sometimes glance over to her in the baby bed next to me. So many questions were wandering through my mind. What is she? Where did she come from? Why and how did she end up here? For that matter, why was I the one stuck with her? It actually kinda intrigued me how human-like this baby pony was. It was like she had come straight out of a cartoon or something. She only cried once that entire night. It was a low voice, even for a girl baby. My knee-jerk reaction was to just scoop her up in my arms and rock her back to sleep. When I first held her, I began to feel something. It wasn’t pity, or anger, or even sadness at this point. It was all replaced by a feeling of love. Real, fatherly love. Of course, I still had my doubts about this whole thing. And I’m pretty sure my folks wouldn’t like it. But, I didn’t care. That was when I knew that I would take this child, whatever she was, to be my daughter. It almost felt like God Himself had sent His most precious angel to my side. I’d have to decide on a name later, but I knew what I would call her until then. She was now my little world. My little reason for living. My Little Angel. I finally manage to drift off to sleep with my daughter’s tiny heart beating against mine. I rarely ever dream anymore, but this time I do. And I dream of the one thing that I don’t wanna see: her. A knock comes from the door. My eyes jolt open in fear. This is the time to hide my daughter away from curious eyes. I can’t let anything happen to her. Slowly, I get up off the bed, set my daughter in her little car seat in the corner hidden from sight, and go to the door. I peer through that little peephole to find that it’s one of the hotel maids. I set the bolt on the door to keep anyone from opening it all the way and open it. “Housekeeping?” “No thank you. I’m fine. You can go on.” And I close the door. As I’m walking away, she knocks again. Harder this time. “Housekeeping, por favor?” “No thank you!” “House. Keeping,” she says with a little more force. It then occurs to me that, chances are, she can barely speak English. And I barely speak Spanish. I open the door again and do the best I can. “Senora…uh, yo no… quiero… housekeeping.” Way to butcher it, I think to myself. Luckily, she gets the gist of it. “Lo siento, señor. Mi Inglés no es tan bueno.” I have no idea what that means, but she goes on so I’m guessing she said sorry. I turn my attention back to my daughter and find that she’s still asleep. She’s even snoring a little bit. My heart is just bursting with d’aaaawww. Thank God she’s a heavy sleeper, or else we’d be in trouble. To help calm myself down, I flip on the TV. I rarely watch anything anymore, but I turn to the news every so often to see what’s going on. “Massive floods in Louisiana continue to destroy thousands of homes, leaving thousands of people homeless. The White House has sent much needed help to the region to assist in finding shelters for the homeless and providing food and water for those that cannot reach it. No one knows when the state will be able recover from this disaster. In local news, residents at a roadside hotel continue to complain to the managers that they have seen strange behavior in one of the guests. The attendant has been described as being reclusive and has been living there for almost a month. Many have often thought that they might be hiding something, possibly an illegal substance. K-9 units are on their way to investigate the scene as we speak and we will have updates on that later. Still to come, a popular TV show with a fanbase of more than 2 million has announced its final season. Check back with us to-” I have to shut the TV off. I’m scared outta my mind. The cops are on their way here?! We need to get out of here, now. I gather up all my stuff, making sure to not leave anything behind, put it into a trash bag, and scoop my daughter up in her little car seat. I also grab the card key to my room. I’ve already paid my dues for the week, so I just have to drop off the key. I rush out the door, put all my stuff into the truck, load up my daughter, cover her seat with a blanket, and run to the front desk. I give them back the key and I thank them for all they did for me. I jump back in the truck, start her up, and go off. Of course, I wanna seem unsuspicious so I drive the speed limit to keep the cops from coming my way. Just as I pull out, the cops show up in the parking lot and they don’t speed towards me. I breathe a sigh of relief knowing that we’re safe. For now. We’re about fifty miles outside of town before I pull over to the side of the road. I’m tired and I wanna go to sleep, but the adrenaline pumping through me ain’t helping one bit. Sleep was one luxury that I could rarely afford now. Not until we found a safe place to settle down at. The only problem is that the news is probably spreading fast all over the state about a strange guy getting away from the police. Now, I’m pretty sure that I got no other place to go to. My parents’ house wouldn’t work since they kicked me outta there themselves, and the apple farm was all the way in Washington, about 2,500 miles from where I was at. No way that I’ll make it there in this hunk of junk. I don’t know where the hell I’m supposed to go now, so I guess we’ll just have to keep moving until we can’t move anymore. -Two days later- I don’t know how much longer I can keep doing this. Running across the country like some kinda outlaw carrying precious cargo. It ain’t the right thing to do at this point, but I can’t help but wonder what my life would be like if my daughter had never come into my life. I’d probably still be working on my grandparents’ apple farm for a decent wage. I’d see all my cousins, and uncles, and aunts, and close friends that came by almost daily. Never a dull moment in that place. Now I’m starting to miss it. My Grampa Jack giving me sage advice while we picked apples, the smell of the pies that my Granny Smith would make, Cousin Mel and Cousin Burney always competing with me, having to keep an eye on all my nieces and even that lil' Collie pup Winona nipping at my leg from time to time. Those were the days alright. And now, here I am going down the highway in a beat-up old Silverado acting like my life’s normal as normal could be. I don’t even know where I am at this point. The only stopping I made was for my daughter, my truck, my tired eyes, and pit stops. I’m trying to save as much money as I can, so it’s all been going towards my Little Angel and gas. I haven’t eaten anything in two days, and my stomach is growling like some kinda wild beast. It doesn’t help that I’m running out of money fast and gas is starting to go up again. I just have to stop and figure out what to do. I pull into a corner store parking lot and I look around for any sorta sign. Finally, I saw a great big sign that said, “Welcome to Michigan! Great Lakes! Great Times!” My jaw drops at the sight of it. Had I really been driving for that long? At first, I’m relieved because the cops in Alabama wouldn’t go this far for one suspicious character. But, it quickly turns into despair because now I’m even further away from home than I was before. I bang my head on the steering wheel at my act of stupidity. If my daughter wasn’t in the car with me, I’d be cussing worse than a stranded sailor. As if to add to my anger, my daughter has a toy in her hand – I mean hooves, and throws it right at the back of my head. I glare at her and I swear I saw a smug look on her little face. I reach down into the side of the seat to get her toy out, and my hand feels something else down there with it. It feels like paper, but a little thicker. I pull out the toy and the other thing and I see that it’s a photo. I hand the toy back to my Little Angel and look closely at the photo. “You clever little sneak,” I say to my daughter. She gives me a giggle in return, almost as if she can understand me. I don’t know whether it was a coincidence or an Act of God, but I can’t say that I expected to see a picture of me and my ex-girlfriend. I could’ve sworn that I burned every picture of us, but apparently not. Her name was Laurie Faustus and she used to be the best thing that ever happened to me. Now, she was just another pain-in-the-ass memory. I open up the window and I’m just about to throw the picture out the window when something pops into my head. I remember the day that she left me. “I’m sorry,” she said to me, “but I have to go back home with my dad.” “All this time that we’ve spent together, and you have to go now?” “Hey, it’s not like it’s my choice! It’s not like he would let me stay with you!” “Why don’t you just stay with my grandparents? I’m sure they wouldn’t mind!” “No, I can’t do that to them. That would just make me feel guiltier.” I really didn’t want to say it, but I knew that I had to say goodbye to her. I was really going to miss her. “So, where are you going off to?” “Michigan.” It finally clicks. I’ve accidentally driven to where she last lived! It’s slim, but it’s still a chance. If I can find her, then maybe she can help me out! But then I consider what might happen when she meets my daughter for the first time. Then again, we had some good moments in the past. Maybe she’ll understand. I don’t know anymore, so I guess I’m just gonna have to take that chance. I park the car close to a pay phone, put the blanket over my daughter’s seat, and go over to the phone. Luckily there’s a 2012 phone book in a little slot. I quickly take it and go back to the truck. I flip through the pages looking for the F’s. When I find them, I find Laurie’s name first. I write down her address and call her house. Luckily, the phone rings and I’m expecting her any second. It rings four times and I hear it pick up. “Hey Laurie, it’s been a long time since I-” “Hi there. You’ve reached Laurie Faustus at home. I’m sorry I can’t come to my phone right now. But, if you’ll leave your name and number, I’ll call you back as soon as possible. Thank you and have a wonderful day.” BEEEP! “Hey Laurie. It’s me. Been a long time since we talked, huh? I know this is all of a sudden, but I need your help. I’ve got a certain someone with me that ain’t exactly something you see every day. I’ve been running around the country trying to keep her safe and I’m pretty much outta options. I know that our history together isn’t the best in the world.” Meaning that you turned into a total bitch after you left me, I think to myself. “But, even you have to remember all the good times that we had. So, can we just put the past behind us for now? I literally got nowhere else to go! So if everything’s okay, then please for the love of God, give me a call back at this number. If you don’t call me back, then I’m gonna be in trouble. I have almost no money left cause of the damn gas prices and taking care of this kid. Hope to see you again. Bye.” And I hang up. This may turn out to be either the best decision that I ever made or the worst decision I ever made. I can only pray to God that this doesn’t bite me in the ass like everything else. I glance back and notice that my Little Angel is asleep again. That does it, I think. I’ve got to find a new name for her...Eventually. I need to keep my mind focused on the task at hand. Wanting to pass the time, I flip on the radio. “And now back to The Classics 94.5! This next one is an oldie, but a good one! It’s a little diddy by Dolly Parton called Applejack.” Applejack? That. Is. PERFECT!
Ch. 2 A Little DysfunctionalRemember y'all. Main character --> Southern accent A Little Dysfunctional I’ve been waiting for hours for Laurie to call me back. Does she really hate me that much? Does she think that I’m kidding? Of course, if a past lover called me and told me they needed help, I’d probably do the same thing as her. I don’t know why I’m doing so much to hide Applejack from the world. Maybe it’s just because she’s a pony. With all that’s happened, she’s probably better off with someone else than a homeless 17-year-old. But, there’s just a part of me that just wants to keep her with me until the day I die. I don’t even know why these thoughts are plaguing my mind. Maybe I’m just afraid that Laurie won’t call me back and I’ll have to give lil AJ away. Ugh! It makes my heart ache just thinking about it. Suddenly, I hear a ringing. Since I don’t have my own phone, I get out and look for the source. My eyes go straight for the payphone and it turns out that the ringing is coming from there. I rush over to it, and pick it up. "Hello?!" "How in the hell did you get this number?" I can't help but chuckle a little. "First time I've talked to you in two years and that's the first thing you say to me?" "What does it matter? What do you want?" "Well, hate to jump right to it, but I need your help. I've literally got no one else to turn to but you. I'm tired, I'm hungry, and I've driven all over the country all while taking care of a little baby girl." "Wait a minute! You have a daughter?!" "Yep." "And you're asking me for help?" "That's the gist of it." "Okay, you are not making sense.Why ask me instead of her mom?” “Well... technically she’s not my real daughter.” She starts to chuckle a little. “So, what? You found her on your doorstep?” “...... Actually, yeah!” An awkward silence breaks its way in. It takes a while before I get an answer back. “So you’re serious about this? You really just found a baby out of nowhere and you took her in as your own?” “Eeyup.” "... Fine, you can stay for the night. But after that, you're outta here." "If that's the best you can give me, then I'll take it. Where do you live?" She gives the address, tells me how to get there and says goodbye. It's actually not that far from where I am now and it’ll only take me about five minutes. I go back to the truck and start her up. "Okay, Applejack,” I say to my daughter. “Get ready to enjoy your first taste of a real home." I make it to Laurie's address and see that it's actually a pretty nice house. Two stories, a nice green lawn, something that only a lucky bastard could afford these days. I park the truck on the side of the road and put the blanket over Applejack to make sure that no one sees her. Force of habit. I get her in her seat and go to the front door. I ring the doorbell and wait for a while. The door opens and I see her, just as beautiful as ever. "Hey," she says without a smile. "Hey," I answer back. She motions for me to come in. I set the car seat down inside and take in my surroundings. When I get a good look at the inside of the house, I'm taken aback. It's even more fancy-looking than the outside! "Somehow, I always knew you'd find me again." "Well, what can I say? Once I set my mind to something, it's hard to stop me. But, I gotta say this place is pretty fancy for you to-" BAM!! Out of nowhere, she socks me right in the jaw with more force than I thought possible from her. "I didn't say that I wanted to see you again," she says coldly. "Why do you always blame me for everything that happened?" I ask while rubbing my chin. And mending my ego. "I was young, everyone makes mistakes at that age! And I guess mine was falling in love with you." "There you go again! You always look for something to blame and it's me most of the time! What's next? You're gonna blame me for global warming?!" "Tempting, but no. I have more common sense than that." "Well, what about your dad? If anything, blame him for you having to leave, not me!" She suddenly grows silent and turns away. She just walks towards what looks like the kitchen. "Speaking of whom, where is that old coot anyway? There's no way that you're living here by yourself." But, Laurie doesn't answer. She just keeps on walking. Sensing that something's wrong, I run after her and grab her by the arm. "Laurie, where's your dad?" “I don’t wanna talk about it,” she says quietly. “Come on. It can’t be that bad.” “I said I don’t wanna talk about it!” She gives me another punch to the face, this time right in the nose. I let go of her and put my face in my hands. She starts to walk away again when my nose starts to bleed. "What the hell is wrong with you?!” I shout as I reach for a tissue. I tear it in two and stuff them up my nostrils. “If you’re going this far to tell me nothing’s wrong, then there’s something wrong!” She’s perched up against a bar, like she’s trying to keep herself upright. “Now, I’m gonna ask you one more time. I don’t wanna hurt you; I’m just trying to help. Where. Is. Your dad?” I finally notice that there are tears streaming down her cheeks. "My dad's dead." And I just turned into a total douche. I immediately regret ever bringing him up. My mind went blank and I didn’t know what to do, so I just put my arms around her and give her a squeeze. She doesn’t respond, almost like she’s completely numb on the inside. "I'm sorry", I tell her quietly. "Do you even know how long it took me to get over you?" she says, her voice breaking. "I can only say ‘I’m sorry’ so many times.” "Well then, say it again anyway!!" she shouts while pushing me away. "I'm sorry,” I say with a little sarcasm. "Yeah, everyone's sorry for something. And just so you know, I'm serious about you staying one night. After that, you’re outta here.” “Any particular reason?” “Do I look like I need a reason?!!” she screams. Our argument is suddenly cut short when we both hear crying. “Oh great. You woke her up! Thanks a lot!” "Her?” “That kid that I told you about.” I rush into the living room to get little Applejack. She’s bawling her eyes out and her orange face is turning red. I undo all the straps, pick her up, and set her on my shoulder to try and calm her down. “It’s okay, it’s okay, Daddy’s here”, I whisper. I’ll protect you from the wicked witch. I turn around and Laurie’s gaze goes right to Applejack. She’s completely speechless. A few awkward moments of silence go by before I speak up. “Oh! Where are my manners?” I adjust AJ a little to where she’s cuddled up in my arms. “Laurie Faustus, I’d like you to meet my baby girl, Applejack.” “That thing is your kid?!” "Hey! She’s not a ‘thing’! She’s a baby!” "Babies don’t have orange skin. Or stubby arms. Or tails for that matter!” Applejack starts to cry again. This time, I don’t know what for. Desperate, I hand Applejack to Laurie and, luckily, she takes the baby in her arms. I then rush out to the truck to try and get something to calm her down. I grab everything in there; her apple plush toy, her pacifier, everything! I burst through the door and spread it all out on the floor. I try the pacifier and it doesn’t work. I try the plush toy and it doesn’t work either. I’ve gone through pretty much everything except the applesauce that she loves so much. Of course! She’s just hungry! I think. I take Applejack out of Laurie’s arms and go over to a nearby couch. I’ve got her in a position to where she’s resting against my belly and I try spoon-feeding it to her. But, she won’t open her mouth. “Come on, darling. You need to eat up.” But she still won’t do it. Laurie goes over to us and gets down on her knees. “Here, let me help.” She takes the spoon from me and dips it into the applesauce. “Come on, little one. Here comes the choo-choo train!” She makes the sound effects and starts making funny faces. It’s almost like she speaks baby-nese because Applejack actually opens up her mouth and gobbles it down. “How did you do that?” “I used to have a babysitting job. Duh.” Oh yeah! I can’t believe I forgot about that! “Well, whatever you did, it’s working!” We finished feeding her a while ago. Laurie's just getting back from a local Taco Bell with dinner for me and her. We sit at the table with Laurie on one side, and Applejack and I on the other. I've got her balanced on my knee and steadied with one hand, and my burrito in the other hand. There's another awkward silence as we're eating. We're really not sure what to say to each other. "Curious question," I finally start. "I'm not trying to open old wounds or nothing, but how can you afford this place?" "That kind of question I can tolerate. You see, when Dad... passed away, he left everything to me. The house, his car, his money, everything. Since my mom died about a decade ago and her family won't speak to us, he had no one else to give it to except for me." "Well, that was awful generous of him. I'm still sorry that I brought him up like that." "It's ok. I'm the one that should be sorry for giving you a bloody nose." We both share a chuckle. I’ve noticed that Applejack has her hoof on my burrito and trying pull it towards her. "Oh come on! You just finished eating darling! Besides I wouldn't give this to you anyway. I don’t want that room smelling tonight!" I finally manage to get a hearty laugh out of Laurie which I happily join. We even get a little giggle out of Applejack, which only makes us laugh even more. In that moment, a strange mix of emotions flowed through me. I was happy that we finally had something to laugh about, that we even had a moment to laugh, and that we were almost like any normal family. But, I was also feeling depressed because I knew that it wouldn’t last forever. It’s now a little past AJ’s bedtime, so I take her up to the room that I'm supposed to be staying in and set her on the bed. I put a pile of pillows around her to make sort of a makeshift crib. Not the best way to sleep, but it'll have to do. It’s better than what she had before, at least. Right now, I'm too exhausted to even think. I go downstairs and plop down on the couch again. Ah, it feels so good to rest with my legs stretched out! But, just as I'm about to drift off, I feel something poke at me. I open my eyes to see Laurie hovering over me with eyes wide open. "Can I ask you a serious question?" "Oh sure!" I say with a heavy dose of sarcasm. "I've got nothing better to do." "Look, I know you're tired but this is serious." Wanting to get it over with, I listen closely. "Why?" My mind goes blank. “Huh?” "Why do you do so much to take care of ‘Applejack’?” I already know where she’s going with this. “Why don't you just give her to someone else?" "What does it matter? She needed help, so I gave it to her.” “This isn’t something that you would have done when we were together. Why now?” I don’t answer her. I just pretend like I've already fallen asleep, hoping that she’ll just go away. That plan backfires when she starts poking me again. She just keeps doing it, and doing it, and doing it. I finally push her hand away and look her dead in the eye. “I’m not stopping until you answer me.” "Fine! Because I'm the only one who can!" I snap back. That's the first time I've ever yelled at her like that. I get up off the couch to try and get away from her, but she’s on me like a dog to a bone. "I know what this is all about,” she says smugly. "What the hell are you talking about?" "You couldn't stop me from leaving, you couldn't stop your mom from kicking you out, you couldn't even stop your parents from divorcing!" "Shut up." "So you took her in because you want to control something in your life. You want to play God!" "Shut up!" I put myself against the wall to hide my frustration and tears. "You didn’t do all of this because you love her. It was all for your own selfish pride." "I said shut up!!" I shout as I punch the wall. A massive jolt of pain shoots through my arm, but I didn’t care at that point. It's a miracle that it doesn't wake up Applejack. Laurie stops dead in her tracks with a look of pain and regret pasted on her face. “Just leave me alone. I’ll need all the sleep I can get if I’m gonna leave in the morning.” And with that, I go back to the couch with the pillow on my face. I don’t know what Laurie did at that point, but I assumed that she went to her bedroom to get some sleep. The last thing I remember thinking is what I’m going to do when Laurie kicks us out tomorrow. I wake up right at the crack of dawn. My mind is rested and ready to go, but my back is killing me. On a hunch, I go to what I think is the medicine cabinet in one of the bathrooms. I find some Motrin, sip some water from the sink, and down two pills. Hopefully, that’ll help in a little while. I then head into the living room to gather up Applejack’s stuff. Once I've gotten it all, I set it by the door along with the car seat. I'm thinking that leaving early would be best for me and Laurie. So, I head upstairs to get Applejack. But, right when I get to the door, I hear something. It sounds almost like... singing. Curious, I open the door quietly to the most beautiful sound I’ve heard in years. Laurie's got Applejack curled up in her arms like a real mom would do for her daughter, and she’s softly singing a little lullaby. I take a minute to watch the heartwarming scene. I start to listen to the song, and I remember the one that she’s singing. Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight Just a touch of the fire burning so bright No I don't want to mess this thing up I don't want to push too far Just a shot in the dark that you just might Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life So baby I'm alright with just a kiss goodnight She finishes, still not noticing that I’m in the room now. I start to clap slowly for her little performance, and the look on her face is just priceless. “You never told me that you could sing like that.” I can tell that she’s embarrassed due to the red on her cheeks. “Well, you never asked,” she says with a shaky voice. “Laurie, there’s nothing to be embarrassed about. You’ve got a talent that I could never hope to have. You should be proud of yourself!” She finally gives me a little smile. “That’s very sweet of you. Thanks.” “No problem at all.” Yet again, another awkward silence. The words that I dread the most can’t help but pass my lips. “So... I guess we’d better hit the road, huh?” “No!” she says louder than I expected. “I mean, you don’t have to leave right now. It’s still early and I can give you some more time. If you’d like, that is.” Now, this is something that I never would’ve expected from her. Especially after I kinda forced this on her in the first place. In fact, I’m taken aback that she would give me something so precious as ‘extra time’. “Well then, if you’re willing to put up with me for a while longer, then I’ll be glad to!” She gives me a warm smile, something that I haven’t seen since forever. I quietly shut the door and go back downstairs. It occurs to me that Laurie must be getting pretty attached to my daughter to stop us from leaving at the crack of dawn. She’s already been such a big help to me. And I know the perfect way to thank her for that. Time to brush up on my cooking skills. Here's the lullaby song that Laurie was singing! Author's Notes: I just want to say thank you to my brother, The Conflicted Writer. He's helped with this so much, and I can't thank him enough. I also want to thank you guys for reading my story. I hope y'all are enjoying it and expect many more chapters in the future! And here's a cute little pic that I found on deviantart!
Ch. 3 - Warming of the HeartCh. 3: Warming of the Heart Finally, I'm finished. A meal fit for a king and queen, and a princess of course, hath been prepared. Eggs, pancakes, freshly squeezed orange juice, blueberry muffins; the typical American breakfast, but I haven't had one like it in months. No bacon since Applejack’s... you know. I'm actually surprised that Laurie had all this stuff in her cabinet. Once again as if on cue, I see Laurie coming down the stairs. She's got Applejack in her arms, and when she first sees our feast it’s like a kid opening presents on Christmas morning. “What’s the occasion?” “Well, it’s the least I could do. This’ll make up for having to take care of my sorry ass AND my daughter for more than a day.” “Who said I was complaining?” “Says my jaw. The one that you gave a good punch to.” I don’t know whether I should go to see a doctor about it or not. “Would you believe me if I told you that I was sorry for that?” I think hard for a moment. “Hmmmm... nah”, I say with a wink. “Now, come on. We’d better eat before it gets cold.” The three of us sit down at the table, with Applejack perched on my knee. We say grace and dig in. I guess putting a lot of hard work into it made breakfast better than I expected. I’m just happy that Applejack seems to like it. By the time we’re all done, her whole face is covered in syrup from the pancakes and little bits of blueberry muffin are stuck to it. Laurie and I share a laugh for once in a long time, and Applejack looks up at me with an innocent look on her face. “It’s alright darling. You didn’t do nothing wrong.” With that, I tickle on her little orange belly and she gives a hearty chuckle. But, I don’t do it too much so she won’t upchuck her breakfast. I learned that lesson after our first few days together. “You really should get her cleaned up. You do that, and I’ll clear the table.” “You sure? Cause I can clean the kitchen up.” “I’m sure. Use the bathroom upstairs if you don’t mind.” I give a mock salute and take lil’ Applejack upstairs to get cleaned. As I expected, there isn’t anything up there for her to play with except a rubber ducky. ‘You gotta make due with what you can’, a wise man once said. I fill the tub up a little bit since I don’t need much to get the job done. The mess comes right off with a little bit of water. As I’m finishing up, she slaps the water with her hoof and splashes me right in the face. At first, I think she didn’t mean to do it until I see that smug little grin on her face. I lightly splash her back, which she responds with another stronger splash. In a few seconds, we’re having a father-daughter splash battle. We’re both laughing up a storm and just having a merry good time until we hear someone clear their throat. Laurie must’ve heard it down in the kitchen since she’s standing in the doorway with a smirk and a raised eyebrow. It’s almost as if she’s asking why I’m having all the fun. Stealthily, I take a handful of water in one hand while holding Applejack steady with the other. Like a flash, I whip my hand around and I get her right on her shirt. She yelps and jumps back a little before she realizes what just happened. I start to laugh my ass off and she joins in shortly. I even hear her snort a few times. Then, it’s all silenced when I hear a tiny grunt. Applejack’s got one of her hooves hooked onto the edge of the tub with my hand still holding her steady. She’s peeking her lil’ head over the edge and pointing her other hoof at Laurie. It sounds like she’s struggling to say something, but she can’t quite get it out. Finally, she manages to say one word that would accidentally start a new life for me. “Mama.” The most awkward silence fills the air. You could cut it with a knife it’s so thick. I don’t say a word and neither does Laurie. I just finish drying Applejack off and lift her up on my shoulder. The three of us walk together to the nursery and we still don’t say a word. By the time we get to the door, AJ’s starting to fall asleep. I lay her down in her makeshift crib and she’s out like a light. I guess all that fun and saying her first word has her plum tuckered out. Laurie and I leave the room and leave a little crack in the door in case she wakes up. We’re down in the living room on the couch. I don’t know what’s floating through her mind, but I know that this could be really bad or really good. I mean, how would you feel after something like that? I decide to break the silence. “So... now what?” She doesn’t answer. I try again. “Not every day that something like that happens, huh?” I chuckle. She still doesn’t answer. At this point, I feel like I’m digging myself an early grave. I’ve gotta change the subject quickly. I try one more time; an all-or-nothing Hail Mary pass, so to speak. “Remember when your brother found out we were dating?” Finally, she manages to crack a smile. She says, “He had a Liam Neeson moment when we called to tell him the news.” “Remember like it was yesterday.” I shifted my voice to a deeper tone. “If you make it work, then I’ll let it be. But, if you hurt my sister, I will look for you. I WILL find you... and I will beat the crap outta you.” Laurie tries her best not to laugh since she doesn’t want to wake up Applejack, though a few giggles manage to escape. Probably not because I remember what he said, but because I sounded exactly like him. But her brother Mac ain’t no joke, I tell you what. From what I’ve heard from Laurie, he’s a bodybuilder that trains in MMA. Put him and I together and you’ve got a one-sided bloodbath. I can only imagine what kind of unholy wrath was brewing in his 200 pound heart when he found out Laurie and I couldn’t work things out. “That reminds me. Why didn’t he do that when we... you know?” She calms herself and says with a warm smile, “I told him not to.” This is the moment where everything would change. I instantly see something different about Laurie Faustus, one of the most beautiful girls I’ve had the pleasure of knowing. She’s looking at me with genuine happiness, something that I haven’t seen since... since the day we first met. I can finally remember what it is that attracted me to her so much. When she looks at me with a smile, I see what true beauty is. Only when she’s happy can I see it for myself. I can’t really explain it, but I don’t think there’s any way that I can. I’ve got no idea that we’re slowly edging towards each other on the couch. It ain’t until we get within a few inches of each other that we realize it. Acting on pure instinct, I start to lean my head forward. Laurie edges even closer and mirrors my actions. Time seems to slow down for us as our faces get closer and closer. I can’t believe that this is actually happening, but it feels too real to be a dream. My heart starts to race out of my incredible nervousness. But, I manage to steel myself out of anxiety and throw all doubt out of my mind. I feel my face heating up and a cold bead of sweat runs down the back of my neck. My hands start to feel clammy and cold, but I push through. And finally, after what seemed like an eternity... DING DONG The doorbell rings. For a moment it snaps us out of our romantic trance. But, we ignore it and go back to where we were. The doorbell rings again and again and again. Now it’s just plain annoying, and if that wasn’t enough we hear Applejack crying. Even though we both wanted this moment to last, it would have to wait for later. I quickly say, “I’ll get the baby if you get the door.” The rest of the day goes without a hitch. There hasn’t been anything good on TV, we had crappy leftovers for dinner, and it’s been raining nonstop for the past six hours. Laurie’s already gone to bed and Applejack’s down for the night. I don’t know why I’m still awake at this point, so I decide to hit the hay since it’s getting late. As I'm heading up to my room, I notice that the door to Laurie's is cracked a little. Curious to see how she's doing, I open the door and peak in. Her red hair is frayed all around her and she’s curled up into a ball under the covers. How she manages to get even more beautiful when she goes to sleep is beyond me. Of course, I didn't say goodnight properly so I can’t just leave her like this. I tiptoe over to her and sit on the edge of her bed. I push some of her long hair out of her face with a stray hand. How someone like her managed to fall for a hopeless schmuck like me, I’ll never know. I lean forward and give her a kiss on her forehead while whispering, “Good night”. But as I’m turning away, I feel a sudden jerk that pulls me back. I stumble and fall back on the same spot on Laurie’s bed. I look down to see that she’s got a good grip on me. I look back up to see that her eyes are wide open. “How long have you been awake?” “The whole time.” I’m screwed, I think. “And you really think that you could leave me with just that?” “What do you mean?” In a flash, Laurie lurches forward. Finally, for the first time in a long time, our lips lock together. At first, I’m surprised at her forwardness. Eventually, I accept and push back into the kiss. At that moment, the two of us aren’t paying any attention to the outside world. All that matters is what’s happening right now, and I don’t want it to ever end. A stray thought runs through my mind saying that I don’t have to worry about my daughter’s future anymore. As long as I’m with Laurie, I feel like I can do anything. I don’t know it yet, but the rain has stopped falling and the clouds have parted to reveal the moon. With the curtain blinds open, a ray of moonlight envelopes us as we finally break away. We look deep into each other’s eyes and just smile. I break the silence by asking her something that I should’ve had answered. “So what now?” She just shakes her head, “I don’t know.” “Well, whatever happens in the future, as long as I’m with you I think I’ll be okay.” “Same here.” And with that, she draws me in for another kiss. I respond by pushing her back and laying her down on the bed while still in liplock. This night would turn out to be one of the best I’ve ever had. Six Months Later I sigh, “Remind me again to never have a Christmas party at our house. Ever.” “I second that notion”, Laurie comments. A lot has happened in the time since I came here. Applejack’s starting to talk and she’s been walking for a good while now. Since she’s a pony and everything, she walks on all four hooves naturally. Speaking of whom, she’s down for the night and Laurie and I can finally have some peace and quiet. We had had this big Christmas party with the neighbors and we had a blast even though it was hard work. A while before that, though, we had called a neighborhood meeting to introduce everyone to Applejack. To our surprise, they had actually taken kindly to her even though she’s a pony. I’m not sure why, but I ain’t complaining anytime soon. Of course, we all vowed to keep her our little secret since we don’t know how the outside world would respond to her. Of course, the introduction part was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done for fear of what would happen to my daughter. But, I’m getting better about being so paranoid. And we have playdates with the other babies of the neighborhood so that Applejack can finally have some interaction with people other than me and Laurie. It’ll be good for her in the long run. One of the better things is that I managed to do something that should’ve been done a while ago. I managed to contact my parents one night to talk to them. Apparently, they cleaned up their act after I left and started going to church again. Every day, they would pray that I was safe and that I was okay. Of course, as my parents, they know that I keep true to the commitments that I make. Even though they missed me, they told me that they would always support me in any way possible and couldn’t stop saying sorry to me. I told them that all was forgiven and, to be honest, I had to thank them. If I hadn’t left almost a year ago, I wouldn’t be here right now. I never would’ve met Laurie again and fallen back in love with her. And since Applejack has a mommy now, that just makes it so much better. I told them about where I was and that AJ and I were living with Laurie. They really wanted to see me for Christmas and get to know their granddaughter better, but they wouldn’t be able to with the price of gas and everything. So, they sent us their presents to us by mail and we had a good talk using that Skype thingy. We had a good time talking and finding out what was happening with them. They even commented about how much I’ve grown up in such a short time. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but it’d be pretty awesome if it was. I hope I can see them again before AJ grows up. I’ll bet they’d make awesome grandparents. Lastly, I’ve found a job here in Michigan, so I guess I’m one of the lucky ones. Everyone knows that it’s getting harder and harder to find jobs in this tough economy. I’ve managed to pull my weight for my family, and to save up my money to buy presents for Laurie and Applejack. I’ve even got something special for my darling girlfriend, and I’ve got this whole plan together that’s gonna blow her outta the water. Right now, I’m sitting on the couch while Laurie’s resting her head on my lap. We’re not doing anything, so might as well put my plan into action. “Hey. You think we could celebrate Christmas early?” She responds with a confused glance. “I mean, how about we give each other a present early?” “Any reason why?” “Build up anticipation for tomorrow?” She thinks for a minute and shrugs her shoulders. “Might as well.” We get up from the couch and go over to the Christmas tree. She picks up a large box with my name on it while I pick up a small box for her. We trade gifts and she lets me go first. Carefully, I tear the wrapping paper off and reach for what’s inside it. I take it out of the box to find that it’s a light-brown Stetson hat. There’s a note attached to it that says, ‘For the cowboy in you. Love, Laurie.’ “How the hell did you know?” “Come on. It wasn’t that hard to figure out. ‘A cowboy feels naked without a hat’? You told me that!” “Oh yeah.” I try on my new hat to find that it fits like a glove. I give Laurie a big squeeze which she responds in kind. “Merry Christmas, my big strong cowboy.” “Merry Christmas, my darling angel.” With that we part the hug and give each other a quick kiss. My eyes then shift to the tiny box in her hand. “And just so you know, it’s not what you think. Here, I’ll open it for you.” “I’m perfectly capable of opening my own presents.” “Well duh, I know that. It’s just... it’s a really special gift and I want to surprise you properly with it.” Laurie raises an eyebrow and cautiously hands me the box. I turn my back so she won’t see it until the opportune moment. When I get the wrapping paper off, I turn back around and hide the little box behind my back. “Now I’ve thought about this really hard and I’ve taken every possibility into question. But, I don’t care what anyone says because it’s something that I should of done a long time ago.” I slip off the couch and get down on one knee. “Laurie Faustus.” Her face fills with joy and she puts her hands over her mouth. “Ever since you found it in your heart to take me into your home, I’ve always looked for a way to make it up to you. So, this is what I came up with. If you ever need me, anytime or anywhere, I’ll be there for you. I’ll stay by your side until the day I die. But before I can do any of that, I have one question for you.” Her eyes start to tear up as I open the box to reveal a beautiful diamond ring. "Will you marry me?
