The crowds were screaming, like always.
The lights were bright and in all spectrums, as always.
He winked at random mares as he played his guitar and sang, as always.
She gazed out from behind the rows of seats, wishing one of those winks could go to her, as always.
But as always, Autumn Sky's large blue eyes never met with his; even though they had been friends since she was little, she could never seem to grasp his attention. With so many doting fans, it wasn't hard to imagine why. She wore a black sweater to avoid distracting the fans, as per an usher had to. She did what she had to get near him, and struggled to keep a part in his life, but unfailingly stayed just another pony in the background.
Her warm-colored mane was pulled back as much as it could be into a messy ponytail by a helpful unicorn in an attempt to change up her look a bit, but of course, he had simply commented that it was new, and galloped enthusiastically onto the stage without another word. Her heart beat a bit faster when she saw him performing, swinging around as he sang like a freshly-brewed storm, a blindingly bright smile on his face. Of course, she tried to cheer the loudest when she could without getting caught, but the opportunity didn't arise often.
At the very end of she show, she had nothing better to do than to clap her hooves and escort ponies out, which wasn't too difficult, considering the theatre was smaller than average with big doors. She liked the comfort of smaller theatres, since most of the ponies attending were close friends or neighbors who lived nearby, which made the crowd more lively. However, the apple of her eye seemed to crave a larger stage every performance, and she was worried about how much longer she could hang around as an usher.
The crowd was soon gone, and the theatre was being cleaned, leaving her an opening to approach her heart's interest; a deep breath, a review on what she'd say to him, and she was galloping up to him enthusiastically.
"Great show, as always, Bright Flare!" she called as she approached him, trying to look relatively cool. She had let her mane down and it was in a fashionably messy muss of hair, which she thought he might enjoy.
"Of course!" Bright Flare replied as he lifted a plastic water cup to his lips with his unicorn magic, "And, as always, thanks for volunteering to help with crowd control. I don't know what I'd do without you!" He laughed lightheartedly, taking no notice of the soft blush that developed on Autumn Sky's cheeks. He always said the same things with such a nonchalant voice, but hearing the words from him was enough for Autumn Sky. Autumn Sky shyly tucked her wings in closer to her body and averted her eyes.
"S-So, any plans for next week?"
Way to open your loud mouth. She grimaced inwardly.
Autumn Sky was determined to act natural around Bright Flare, but she couldn't help blabbing out the beginning to asking him on a date. It wasn't even original; it was probably the most popular start to such a inquiry that she could imagine. Besides, would things between them be awkward if she dated him...? What if he rejected her? Where would they go, her being a pegasis and him being a unicorn? Surely not Cloudsdale, he couldn't walk up there if he tried. Maybe Canterlot, or somewhere less grand, kind of toned-down?
"Of course, I've got a show down in Ponyville for you to work at! It's for the running of the leaves, so I know you'll be busy with regulating the trees, but do you think you could help out again?"
His response cut her grand thoughts like a knife, revealing a very plain reality.
Of course he didn't think she was asking him out, why would he? Autumn Sky considered herself to be a very normal, mundane pony in his eyes, even though they had known each other since they were still in school. Of course a popular idol like him wouldn't even consider the possibility of seeing a run-of-the-mill usher like her. She closed her eyes against her disappointment and blinked them back with a strained smile. "I'd love to help again! Welp, I'd better get back home to Cloudsdale, Luna's scheduled a new moon, and it's gonna be dark. I'll see you next week, okay?" Without waiting for his answer, she turned and headed to the backstage door with a restrained skipping gallop.
She had been mistaken, as always.
Once she was outside, Autumn Sky leaned against the door and looked hopefully up to the sky. "Come on, you stupid filly, open your eyes," she muttered to herself, blinking at the stars that were shining down on her face, "You're just an usher. A background pony. Even if he does notice you, you'll always be a typical mare in his eyes... Just a friend, nothing more."
And no matter how hard she tried to convince herself, she held a twinkle of hope in the stars giggling back at her.
Thus, she spread her wings and took to the sky, longing for the comfort of a dream with him in her life.
As always.
