Uplift

by TheLegendaryBillCipher

Rating: everyone
Tags: Slice of Life, Wallflower Blush, Pinkie Pie (EqG), Romance, Equestria Girls
Length: 1514

Sometimes love lifts us up, sometimes it keeps us grounded.

Sometimes those we love help lift us up.

Sometimes those we love help keep us grounded so we don't float away.

Author's Note: My attempt at an exercise in showing more than telling.

My entry for the 2023 May Pairings Contest.

A thank you to Thesmokingguy and SwordTune for proofreading before publishing.

Cover art by me!

Published 2023-06-01 02:30:01 UTC
Last updated 2023-06-01 02:30:01 UTC

Uplift

“I can’t believe the Shadowbolts invited us to a party,” Sunset remarked, looking at the text on the screen of Twilight’s phone. Twilight peered over her shoulder and nodded.

“Well, ‘least it’s nice to know things between us ain’t so rough,” Applejack said, hands on her hips. There was a general consensus among the group.

“Isn’t it great?” Pinkie exclaimed, tossing pocket confetti in celebration. She then abruptly stopped and nibbled her bottom lip. “Wait, what time did they say the party was at?”

“Nine tonight, why?” Twilight turned to her.

“Oh, shoot. Sorry girls, I can’t go,” she said flippantly.

The rest of her friends all stared at her.

“Pinkie, you sick or something?” Rainbow Dash asked. “You’ve never turned down a party before. You’re the one who usually starts them.”

“I’d love to go, but I just remembered some super-duper important plans and I just can’t miss them,” Pinkie said with an apologetic smile. “But I’ll see you all tomorrow and you can tell me all about it, alright?”

“Well, alright, darling,” Rarity said. “But it certainly won’t be the same without you.”

Pinkie nodded, waving goodbye to her friends as she skipped out of the school’s parking lot, looked both ways before crossing, and crossed the street to the School’s Community Garden.

This late in the afternoon, no one else was working the garden. The formerly overgrown lot that had sat across from the school for years was looking much nicer these days, with rows of flowers and bushes along the paved stone paths. It was only here when Pinkie slowed down to look at all the plants.

And near the heart of the garden is where Pinkie found its hardest worker.

Kneeling next to and bent over a fresh bed of flowers was Wallflower Blush, her usual sweater and jeans switched out for a t-shirt, overalls, and a pair of gloves.

When she didn’t seem to notice her, Pinkie gently cleared her throat. Wallflower’s attention snapped to behind her, and a brief look of surprise was changed to a smile. “Oh, hey Pinkie. I’ll be done in just a sec.”

“Whatcha up to?” Pinkie asked as she watched Wallflower pack some more soil around the new flowers.

“Getting the last of some new spring flowers in the ground.” Dusting her gloves off, Wallflower got to her feet. Pinkie was quick to bound toward her for a hug, but Wallflower gently stopped her with a raised hand.

“Sorry, I was helping transplant some hydrangea bushes earlier and it got a little messy.” She looked down at her dirt-smeared coveralls. “Don’t want to get you dirty too. I’ll go get changed in the locker room and come back, alright?”

“Okie dokie lokie.” She followed Wallflower back to the school and into the gymnasium. She opted to wait outside the gymnasium door for Wallflower to return, humming to herself as she bounced on her feet.

When Wallflower finally emerged minutes later, she was immediately snared into a hug, giving a startled squeak. With a blushing smile, she hugged Pinkie close before they pulled apart.

“So, what did you want to do this evening?” Pinkie asked, rocking on her feet.

She watched Wallflower’s eyes light up briefly, before she stumbled over her words, eyes averting as her mind race.

“Uh… well… maybe the… arcade?” Wallflower offered. “That sounds like a nice place for a date, right?”

Pinkie hummed to herself at Wallflower’s forced smile. “Alright,” she said, slower than usual. “Let’s head to the arcade then.”

The arcade was lively with people ready to cut loose on a Friday afternoon. There was a constant thrum of chatter over the beeps and blips of the various games.

Wallflower stood, much to her name, against a wall near a row of arcade cabinets while Pinkie was engrossed in her game. It was some kind of rhythm dancing game, and Pinkie was demolishing the computer player she was up against.

A soft smile at Pinkie’s enthusiasm crossed Wallflower’s face, but her eyes constantly flicked around. She rubbed her arm absently, and Pinkie soon took notice.

“Did you want to give it a try, Wallflower?” Pinkie asked, forfeiting her current game by stepping off of it. Wallflower winced at the “Game Over” sign on the screen.

“No, that’s ok. I’m not very coordinated,” Wallflower replied, sending another forced smile Pinkie’s way.

Pinkie worked her jaw but still said nothing. She went to the next cabinet, which was a platformer game.

“How about this one?” she asked, before adding in a singsong voice. “It has room for two.”

“No thanks, Pinkie,” Wallflower said. “You have fun.”

Pinkie turned to the arcade screen with a pout. Her mind proved too distracted to get very far, and it wasn’t long before she lost this game too. She hopped off that game and returned to Wallflower, still against the wall.

“Is there any games you wanted to play?” Pinkie asked, her voice sincere.

“N-No, not really,” Wallflower said, her eyes darting around the arcade behind Pinkie. “Maybe we could get something to eat at the snack bar?”

“Okie dokie!” Pinkie chirped, taking Wallflower’s hand and leading her to the arcade’s snack bar. She inwardly squealed as she felt Wallflower’s grip tighten.

Fortunately, the line to the snack bar was short. When it was Pinkie’s turn, she ordered before the words could leave Wallflower’s open mouth. “Nachos and two sodas, please.”

Wallflower blinked as Pinkie picked up their food and the two found a quiet booth in the corner.

“Nachos?” she asked, sipping her soda.

“Of course! It was what we had on our first date, remember?” Pinkie asked, taking a chip loaded with cheese and plopping into her mouth.

A satisfied smirk tugged at the corner of her mouth at Wallflower’s quiet blushing and averting of her eyes. Direct hit.

“So, what did you want to do after this?” Pinkie asked after swallowing, plucking up another cheesy chip.

“Honestly… maybe we could go to your place and just watch a movie?” Wallflower offered, along with a shy smile.

“Sounds like a plan to me!” Pinkie agreed.

Wallflower found a throw for the two of them and was just curling into it on the couch when she noticed Pinkie appear with a DVD case she recognized.

“I didn’t know you liked cheesy romcoms,” she remarked. “I have that one at home.”

Pinkie bounced over and plopped down on the couch with the remote, picking up a bowl of popcorn from the coffee table and smirking at Wallflower. “And I didn’t know you liked arcades,” she replied playfully.

Wallflower retreated into the throw with a blush, pulling it up to her nose and focusing on the screen as Pinkie hit “Play.”

They spent the next minutes in silence, save for the movie of course and the crunching of popcorn. Wallflower settled against Pinkie’s side and helped wrap the throw around the both of them.

“Hey, Wallflower,” Pinkie asked, not looking from the screen. “Why do you like these kinds of movies?”

The non-judgmental tone, much like the tone in the arcade, made Wallflower glance at her. “Well… I guess if I’m being perfectly honest.” She swallowed. “I know the plots are totally predictable and… well, cheesy. But I’m also a little envious.”

“Envious?” Pinkie raised an eyebrow.

“I always wanted that kind of romance, and… I could never have it.” She pulled the throw tighter around herself, but squeaked when Pinkie suddenly booped her on the nose.

Pinkie grinned at the little squeak. “Well, you don’t have fancy dinners or luxurious vacations on the beach, but you do have a Pinkie,” she replied.

Blushing, Wallflower mumbled a concession to Pinkie’s point as Pinkie snuggled up close to her. The warmth and proximity kept her blushing going until the movie ended and the credits rolled. She sat upright and stretched, while Pinkie took care of their now empty bowl.

When she returned, Pinkie slipped an arm around her and glanced out a nearby window. “It’s kind of late out now. Did you want to spend the night?” she asked.

Wallflower shifted uncomfortably. “Um… sure. I guess I could stay on the couch.” She looked down at the comfy cushions.

Pinkie playfully booped her again, grinning at another Wallflower squeak. “Is that what you really want?” she asked.

Wallflower’s face turned a shade of beet red and it took a few tries for her to get the words out. “W-Well… I wouldn’t mind cuddling with you… in bed…”

Pinkie giggled, hugging her close. “That’s my cheesy Wallflower.”

Author's Note

Date of Creation (D.o.C.): 05/31/23

Talk about cutting it close. Literally planned out one day, written another.

I wanted to experiment with this story a little, do a little more showing than telling. I hope it came through alright. And cut back on my ellipses too...

The song I listened to while writing this one was "Tour Yoshi's Island" from the game Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

-yours truly,
The Legendary Bill Cipher, Equestria Enthusiast
פsʌ O˙˥˙l˙ʞ˙ʞ˙ ƃszɯdɥ qlɟ nlᴉ qlɟᴉ ʞzƃᴉlɯzʇʌ˙