Author's Notes:

Fun fact: I actually wrote this chapter when drunk. Like, as I'm writing this note, I'm drunk.

Tee hee.

You never thought in your life that Shaky's would ever be considered a place for more-than-friendly occasions.

Dinner dates, you mean. Dates like that, you believed, always revolved around fancy establishments, complex dinners, high bills, and fancy clothing—even though most ponies don't wear clothing all that often. So the fact that Shaky's provided that same setting for an average amount of bits satisfied not only you, but your pouch.

Shaky's, contrary to what anypony would assume from the name alone, was a tavern famous among local folks among Cloudsdale and neighboring towns, no more than two-hundred years old. Its customs were simple—fill your bellies, get drunk, and go home happy.

You and Rainbow Dash sat in a private booth near the back, far from the common chatter of ponies that had since grown quieter for the night. The two of you were having a laughing fit over Rainbow's retelling over an incident during the Running of the Leaves.

"—And then Applejack actually had to get me out of the tree with honey!" Rainbow remarked, even as she blushed in embarrassment. "Like, I would've preferred her using spit to slide me out. It took over a month for the fur I lost to grow back."

You snickered, hiding your laughter behind a hoof. "I would've loved to see that."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow in a semi-deadpan. "Oh, I bet you would love to see my flanks ripped down to the skin, wouldn't you?"

"Hey, you said it, not me," you laughed, holding your hooves up defensively. "Personally, I'd also take the honey route instead of being lathered head to hooves in someone else's saliva."

"... Ugh, point taken," Rainbow grimaced. Nonetheless, she couldn't help but eventually laugh along with you.

The two of you had already chowed down a set of hayburgers and were now on your fourth cups of cider. It wasn't as potent as Applejack's brand of cider, but there was still the kick you wanted.

After you two calmed down, Rainbow looked up at you. "So I've been wondering something."

"What?"

Rainbow laughed. "Okay, so a few months ago, I saw the picture in your room of that wedding you went to—the one you told us about from Las Pegasus?"

It took you a second to remember, but when you did, you couldn't help but laugh and cringe all at the same time.

"Yeeeahh... I remember. What about it?"

"Well," Rainbow shrugged her shoulders, "you never really talked about it in detail. Like, what was she really like other than a 'bitch?' What was everypony else thinking? You know, that juicy gossip gunk."

"Have I really never talked about it that much?"

"I mean, if you have, I might not have been around to hear it... Sorry."

You waved a dismissive hoof at the apologetic mare. "Nah, it's fine. Uhm... well, where do I start?"

"The bride, for starters. What was she like?"

With a trill of lips, you simply stated, "She was a bucking nightmare. Complaining about every little thing she didn't like, complaining about what she wanted, complaining that the groom didn't look the way she wanted him to look. And that's just a couple things."

"How so?"

"Well..." you paused, taking a sip of your cider. "Did I tell you about when she went on this huge tantrum and smashed the wedding cake in front of everypony?"

"You're kidding!"

"Nope. In front of everyone, including her parents. It was like... It was like looking at a filly or a colt crying because their parents wouldn't let them have a toy or a candy bar. Only it wasn't a kid. We're talking about a full-grown mare. Like, older than you and me, and she's screaming at the person she's marrying, the caterers... Ugh. It was just not great."

"Please don't tell me they still got married."

"No. The moment she did that, he called it off. Him and I actually got pretty drunk that night. We were doing nothing but playing Go Fish the whole night and listening to music. Have you ever listened to music drunk? It's so weird, like you know you're listening to it, but it sounds so... not."

"Trust me, I know the feeling. One too many ciders can really mess with my head."

"Yeah... heehee—" You paused, letting out a hiccup. "That's actually the reason we didn't go to the Wonderbolts show that night. We got so drunk that we actually forgot about it. I'm pretty sure he's still kicking himself too these days.

"But... I'm glad I didn't go," you smiled. "Tonight was fun."

"Yeah," Rainbow remarked, "it was. I mean, it still is, you know. But the show itself was great. I can't remember the last time I was that excited for anything."

You found yourself gently rubbing your waist. "I'm guessing a long time?"

"Something like that."

Rainbow finished downing her fourth cup of cider, as did you. Her face was starting to show the familiar symptoms of intoxication: Red face, somewhat distant eyes, and the tendency to giggle at nothing. It was cute.

But eventually, Rainbow's giggles stopped and her smile faded, if only a bit.

"So..."

"So...?"

"... What do you think?"

"About...?"

"Us. You and me," she explained, eyeing you and then her hooves, then back to you.

You had completely forgotten what you talked about with her yesterday until now; you were so busy having fun, it slipped your mind. But now that you were thinking about it again, it forced you to recap the entire day—even if the two of you spent mainly the evening together.

"Uh..." You froze, trying to process your thoughts. Regardless, Rainbow recoiled.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up, I was—"

"No no no, it's okay. It slipped my mind till now. But... you deserve an answer. I just need a moment. Okay?"

Rainbow nodded her head slowly and waited in silence. During the brief silence, one of the workers came by and refilled your and her cups. You both thanked her as she walked away.

You found yourself biting your lip slightly. It was just a habit of yours, but you couldn't help but feel annoyed by it; regardless, it kept you busy until you were ready to talk.

"I regret it."

The silence was deafening. Rainbow Dash shrank into her seat.

"W... What?"

Immediately, you realized how it could've been interpreted and rushed to correct it. "I-I mean, leaving you. Not tonight, I don't regret that. It's been fun. I meant... I regret leaving you."

"You do?" she asked slowly, rising back from the seat and resting her hooves on the table. You could only sigh and close your eyes, as if ashamed to look at her. But when you opened them up, there was no shame from her. Just those hypnotic, magenta eyes begging for more.

"Yes. Up until now, today was the first time since then that I was able to stop thinking about it. I mean, even when we hung out and just did stuff like right now, I couldn't get it out of my head. I couldn't get you out of my head." Rainbow said nothing, leaving an incentive for you to continue. "And the longer it went on, the more I realized... I just destroyed our relationship because I jumped to conclusions."

"Hey," Dash called out to you, resting her hoof on yours, "anypony would've reacted the same way you did."

"By getting angry and storming out without letting the other party explain?"

"I mean, it's happened. I'm sure Applejack and I had some fights in the past because one of us wouldn't give the other a chance to explain themselves. We'd stop talking to each other for a couple days, then say our piece, and make up. It just happens."

You looked up to Rainbow Dash, and couldn't help but sigh through your nose. "What I saw was no excuse to throw all of that away. To throw us away. I should've stayed. It would've been better to just get it all out in the open right there and then instead of dragging it on for days. I can't imagine how you must've felt after all that."

"... I almost gave up." You looked up silently at Rainbow, questioning what she meant by it. "I didn't leave the house for days. I didn't see you because I was afraid it would just make things worse—or worse, push you away altogether. And it was eating me alive. I thought I ruined everything and none of it could ever be fixed.

"It got to the point where I was just considering leaving Ponyville for good. Give Tank to Twilight or Fluttershy and hightail it out of there." She sighed. "But I knew I couldn't do that. Not to Tank, not to Twilight or Fluttershy... not to you."

Rainbow rested a hoof against your cheek, and almost instinctively, you nuzzled it.

"If things weren't gonna be the same, then I was gonna be damn sure I at least tried instead of wussing out."

You gave Rainbow a faint smile, and she to you. Tears began to well in her eyes, but she wiped them away with a free hoof. She lowered her head, sighing—and perhaps contemplating another swig of cider—and resting in silence. You couldn't help but brush her mane gently, to comfort her.

Before you could open your mouth to say something, she beat you to the punch.

"I love you. I mean it. I love you so much. I've never been the type of mare for mushy stuff before, but... I guess it was just that way growing up. But I know that right now, I wanna be with you. I want us to try again. I wanna hold you at night, kiss you, cuddle up when it's cold, be special someponies on Hearts and Hooves Day, scare ponies together on Nightmare Night, and give each other presents for Hearth's Warming. I want those moments in my life to be with you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you right next to me. I want you back."

For a moment, the two of you said nothing to each other. You looked at Rainbow and saw that hopeful anguish in her eyes, that yearning. Every word she said, she meant. You saw that. It left you speechless.

You knew you had to say something. You wanted to, before it was too late. But no matter how hard you tried, you couldn't say anything—because you believed it wouldn't be enough for her.

So you kissed her instead.

Leaning over the table, you held Rainbow Dash close to you and pressed your lips against hers. A surprised moan escaped her throat, but she didn't pull away. She didn't want to; you felt it in her shoulders. And soon enough, she eventually sank into the kiss too. Rainbow caressed your cheek with a hoof, while your own hoof rested against the crook of her neck.

Your lips brushed and slipped against hers, and sometimes both your lips would sit there for a moment, taking in each other's warmness. You never wanted to pull away, and you knew she didn't want to, either. But your bodies begged for oxygen, so there was no choice in the matter.

The two of you pulled away from each other, silently catching your breath. You were lucky this backroom was empty, otherwise the moment might've been ruined by countless tavern-goers ogling the sight. You laughed at the thought, and Rainbow realized almost the same thing with a glance.

"Sorry," you whispered to her.

"Don't be," she responded, a hoof rested against your lips. "I wouldn't care either way."

Eventually, you and Dash sat back down in your seats. Your hooves rested together, never parting from each other. A blush grew on her cheeks, and no doubt one was growing on yours. But the two of you just couldn't look away. Rainbow giggled, almost as if embarrassed.

"Do you... wanna get out of here?" she asked you in a shaky and rushed tone, and her breaths were slightly labored. She was eager to leave.

So were you.

"Okay. Your place or—"

"My place. Unless you wanna go to your place. I'm fine with either, hehheheh~"

"Uhm... I guess since it's closer, we could go to your p—" You couldn't even finish your statement before Rainbow was dragging you by the hoof out the tavern.

At least you left a tip.