Wonderful Lies, Fruitful Truths

Soarin sat slumped over, tapping a pencil against his desk. The lights were much too bright for his eyes. It made his head pound. He groaned, rubbing his fingers across his temple.

His stomach ached, making him keel over farther. Soarin knew he was meant to be working, but if he stood up, his legs would give out under him.

Ugh, he should not have drunk so much. Though it wasn’t responsible for him to drink before work, what was he meant to do? He had nothing better going on.

Soarin could feel the eyes of his coworkers on him. He could feel their judgment. It made his stomach feel worse than it already did.

He knew he looked like a mess with his unkempt hair and uneven pants legs, but they didn’t have to stare so hard.

Spitfire slammed her hands on the table, causing him to flinch back in his seat. She glowered down at him.

“The boss said to get back to work. You’re not paid to sit around.” She scolded. Soarin rolled his eyes, scoffing.

“You get back to work. You're not even my boss.” Soarin mumbled. Spitfire's wings flared up, and a nasty scowl spread across her face.

“Excuse me?” Spitfire asked. Soarin sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“Sorry.” He bluntly apologized. Spitfire lowered her sunglasses, glaring at him. She lifted her glasses, gliding past him.

“Get back to work.” She ordered. Soarin sighed, rolling his eyes once again.

“You alright?” Someone asked, breaking him from his trance. He looked up, seeing Rainbow Dash standing over him.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” He responded, leaning back in his seat.

“I heard you broke up with Zephyr.” Rainbow Dash commented. Soarin sat up, staring at Rainbow with wide eyes.

“Not so loud!” He hissed through gritted teeth. He looked around, checking if anyone heard. “...How did you know?” Soarin whispered. He was sure that he had kept this whole thing under wraps. Was he that obvious?
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, crossing her arms.

“I’m dating Big Mac’s sister.” She stated bluntly. Soarin blinked in surprise. It felt odd for Rainbow to just admit something so…personal. He furrowed his brows, shaking his head.

“It doesn’t matter that we broke up. It’s none of your business.” He huffed. Rainbow gave him a sympathetic look. Soarin rolled his eyes. He didn’t need her pity.

“You’ve just been acting so…weird lately.” Rainbow pointed out. Soarin huffed, crossing his arms.

“I’ve been acting normal. You’re the one who’s acting weird with all these questions.” He deflected. Rainbow sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose.

“Look man, if you wanna talk about it, we can meet up at a bar after work.” Rainbow Dash suggested. “First rounds on me.”

Soarin weighed his options. It was free drinks, wasn’t it? Besides, he needed to go out more.

“Yeah, sure.”

Soarin walked into the bar, adjusting his sunglasses against his face. He scanned the room, his eyes landing on his rainbow-haired friend. She was leaned back, her arm draped across the back of the booth.

In her hand was a glass of what Soarin assumed was scotch.

“Hey.” Soarin greeted, plopping across from Rainbow. She slid a bottle of beer.

“I already got you something.”

Soarin hummed a thanks, bringing his drink up to his mouth. He stared at the table, trying to avoid Rainbow’s gaze.

“Do you wanna talk about anything? I can tell somethings eating at you.” Rainbow spoke up. Soarin glanced at her, quickly looking back at the table.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.” Soarin brushed off. Rainbow eyed him curiously, arching an eyebrow.

“You sure? Didn’t seem so fine at work.” She pointed out. Soarin pursed his lips and furrowed his brows. Who was she to ask about his personal business? At this point, he might as well shout it to the world.

“Fine, fine, I was dating a man, and I got broken up with. You can laugh now.” Soarin huffed. He squeezed his eyes shut, preparing for ridicule.

“…Dude, no one cares that you’re gay.”

Soarin blinked in surprise, staring at Rainbow as if she had sprouted an extra head.

“What do you mean no one cares? It’s weird!” Soarin practically shouted.

“Watch it, asshole. I’m gay, too.” Rainbow scolded, jabbing her finger into Soarin's chest. She took a sip of her drink. “Besides, I already knew. Zephyr used to gush about you all the time.”

Soarin blinked in surprise.

“If you knew, then why didn’t you say anything?”

Rainbow shrugged.

“It wasn’t my business.”

Soarin stared at Rainbow, his mouth agape. She knew this whole time? Rainbow took another long swig of her drink.

“I know breakups are hard, but you can’t lash out at everyone.” She advised.

“Yeah, like you would know. You can get any girl you want.” Soarin leaned into his seat, huffing.

“Ugh, don’t even get me started on my breakup with Twilight.”

“I don’t know what happened. One day she had a break, and she just snapped. She attacked me, and I tried to help, but…” Rainbow trailed off. “I said some things that I shouldn’t have, and she left.”

A tense silence filled the booth. Soarin felt his heart strain. Rainbow went through much more than he had, and she was still thriving.

“But…after some time, I found Applejack. And things got better.” Rainbow smiled. “I think you should put yourself out there. It’ll be good for you.”

“How?”

“Leave town or something. Talk to new people.” Rainbow said with a shrug.

Soarin hummed in acknowledgment. He could at least try.

Soarin walked down the streets of Canterlot, taking a breath of the fresh air. Rainbow Dash was right; a new setting was exactly what he needed. Canterlot was a new opportunity for him. Sure, he had been here before, but only for business. Today was about him.

He entered a cafe, feeling the cool air on his skin. A cup of coffee and a snack would be good for him. He stepped on line, looking at the building.

Soarin scanned the cafe. It seemed fancy, just like most Canterlot things were. His eyes landed on a rather handsome man. He sat at a table, tapping away at his phone. He had gorgeous blonde hair and bulky white sunglasses. Soarin’s breath hitched.

Soarin began to pick at his hands, his mind racing. He couldn’t take his eyes off him.

The more he looked, the more he noticed. In front of the man were various plates of food. With every bite, he said something to the person across from him. He pointed at the food, looking like he was telling the other to take notes.

His flamboyant mannerisms reminded him a lot of Zephyr. Soarin couldn't just let this opportunity pass him by.

Just put himself out there, just like Rainbow said. No one would care that he was flirting with a man. Heck, no one would even notice. Soarin stepped off the line, making his way to the table. He adjusted his shirt and patted down his unruly hair.

Soarin approached the table, leaning against a nearby wall.

“Hey, cutie, you got a name?” Soarin asked, lowering his sunglasses. To his surprise, no one stared. No one laughed or screamed in disgust. The man simply smiled, much to Soarin's relief.

“If you would like to know, I’m Trenderhoof.” He said, shaking Soarin's hand.

“Well, how about I take you out for dinner.” He responded. Trenderhoof rolled his eyes.

“Oh, please. You’re not fooling anyone with that tough guy act.” Trenderhoof scoffed. Soarin’s face burned red. Was it that obvious? Trenderhoof eyed Soarin, a smile creeping across his face.

“But…you’re cute.” Trenderhoof complimented. He turned to the person sitting across from him. “Vestine, clear my 2’oclock.”

Soarin's heart sped up. His luck was turning around.