Applejack was pretty certain her Farm Business Management course was going to be the death of her. All those damn charts and spreadsheets… She wondered if Granny Smith had ever bothered with even half of what she was learning. Even Ma and Pa had only graduated from community college.

I just had to be the special one.

She sighed as she exited the Ag Tech building, her body mindlessly following the stream of her fellow classmates before she realized she had exited on the wrong side.

Applejack sucked at her teeth with annoyance and tugged her hat down hard, but she continued walking along the pale concrete path right up to the building’s landscaped sign, and there she made a hard right.

“See you, cowgirl!” Someone hollered behind her.

She looked back quickly to see Ace High waving at her with a massive grin on his cinnamon face. He was a tall boy, broad in the shoulders, with cracked cowboy boots, faded dirty blue jeans, and a white tee that seemed to strain to contain his blue-collar muscles. A friend he was walking with ruffled his mop of black hair, and he shoved at them, blushing, before looking back at Applejack with a sheepish grin.

She allowed for a pursed smile and waved back, but increased her walking speed.

Ace High had been making eyes at her for weeks after a presentation she’d given about her family’s business. He’d even invited her to a party, but she’d refused. To her dismay, that hadn’t dampened his efforts in the slightest.

Sometimes, Applejack really hated being in the closet.

It was a comfortable place, though. A safe place. If she was going to be the new head of the family, that meant she couldn’t put their livelihood at risk. Coming out as a lesbian was sure to do that, and she just didn’t have the confidence she could ensure the farm’s survival under those circumstances.

Not like I can be with the one I want anyway… she thought glumly.

Applejack rounded the corner of the building and veered off the path across the manicured lawn. It was lunchtime, and as usual she’d brought her own food… But before she felt like she could sit down to eat, she needed to tend to a niggling need.

Within a few minutes, Applejack had reached College Drive. She looked up and down the busy road furtively, before making a mad dash between the break in cars. Campus speeds were slow, so she wasn’t worried about getting hit. She was more concerned about getting caught jay-walking by a campus monitor again.

Any other day and she would have taken the time to cross at the crosswalk, but she was antsy today. Her mind was turbulent with thoughts of last night, when she’d met with her friends. Pinkie Pie had suffered an unimaginable loss that cut AJ to the quick. Not solely because she cared deeply for Pinkie, but also because…

Cuz I dunno if I’ll ever be a mother myself.

This bothered her more than she dared to admit. Oh, she was perfectly aware there were many ways to become a mother. She just wanted to do it with a partner. The longer time wore on...the less hope she had this would ever be possible.

Stop moping. She scolded herself with a scowl. You ain’t got no place feeling sorry for yourself after what Pinkie’s been through!

She neared parking lot LL, out near the squat Automotive Center. Behind the building was a small lawn area. In it was a large elm tree, and next to it, a picnic table.

Seated there were two familiar faces, Torque and Chassis, both dressed in beige work overalls. She’d met them her freshman year, and they’d been friends since. They had even helped her fix her truck more than once.

Chassis saw Applejack first. Her face lit up under her strawberry blonde bangs and she raised a hand in greeting. Between her index and middle fingers was a lit cigarette. “Yo, AJ! Sup?”

Torque turned his dark spiky-haired head with a curious blink, a cigarette pinched between his lips. “Oh? What’s our favorite cowgirl doing over here so early? Don’t you usually eat in your truck first?”

“Not today,” she huffed, a little winded for having speed-walked the whole way. She set her bag down on the grass next to the table, then pulled out her own pack of cigarettes. “Needed a fix real bad.”

“Rough day, huh?”

“Try a damn week,” she mumbled around the cigarette filter. She struck her lighter on and lit the tip. Even just the starting puffs helped the tension in her shoulders to ease a bit.

Applejack closed her eyes and exhaled hard through her nostrils, smoke streaming toward her boots. It was a bad habit, she knew. She promised herself she’d quit.

Maybe after college.

“So listen, AJ,” Chassis said, giggling. “Torque fucked up torquing a Wagon Bug’s spark plugs yesterday. I mean, can you believe it? It’s his namesake. How do you shit the bed on that one?”

Applejack smirked as she removed her cigarette from her mouth. “Oh, yeah?”

“I didn’t know I was dealing with aluminum heads, okay?!” Torque snapped. “If I’d known they were aluminum, I would have hand ratched them instead!”

Chassis’ giggling turned into all out cackling as she leaned on her knees, her cigarette withering at the tip till ash dusted her dark work boots. “You… you used an impact wrench! Teach was screaming so loud they could hear it out to the soccer fields!”

Applejack chortled. She always could count on these two to take her mind off things.

“Aw, don’t beat yourself up too much, sugarcube,” she said to Torque with a wink. “Wagon Bugs are reliable, but a pain in the tush to fix up.”

“Fucking Germans.”

“Say what you will, but it’s a solid car.”

Torque exhaled smoke through his teeth in a hiss. “Y’know what else is solid? My shit.”

Chassis hummed, nudging Torque with a cat-like grin. “I, for one, plan on never letting you live it down!”

He looked at her with narrowed eyes and a sarcastic smile. “Thanks, pal.” He lifted his cigarette to his mouth, but paused, his face clearing as something caught his eye past Chassis. “Hey, you see what I’m seeing?” Torque asked, suddenly sitting up with interest. He tugged at the lapels of his work overalls and gingerly checked his gelled spiky hair.

“What?” Chassis said, turning to see what he was looking at.

“There’s this Betty walking this way, and she’s totally eyeing me!” Torque slouched in his seat, apparently trying to look nonchalant.

Chassis just stared at him dryly. “You know she just saw your panicked preening, right?”

“I’m not panicked,” Torque snapped, casting her a quick glare.

Applejack, who had only been half paying attention, finally lifted her head to see what the pair were talking about. She nearly dropped her cigarette, her eyes growing wide.

“Sunset Shimmer?”

Chassis and Torque looked at her in confusion.

“You know her?” Torque asked.

“Yeah,” Applejack murmured. She tilted her hat back on her head and lifted a hand in greeting as Sunset neared… but her posture slouched and her mouth turned down at the corners.

Damn it. I’ve been caught… again.

Applejack was ashamed of her smoking, and she’d worked hard to keep it a secret, especially from her family. None of her friends had known until just three nights ago when Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle had caught her in a moment of weakness. Now Sunset knew too…

“Hello, Applejack,” Sunset said with a pleasant smile. She had on dark slim jeans that fit into tall black boots, topped with a soft orange shirt and one of her usual leather jackets. Nothing out of the ordinary...although…

Her hair looks a mite on the wild side today. Like AJ, Sunset rarely styled her hair differently, so the misbehaving locks and the touch of frizziness to her friend’s head was practically a dead giveaway to what had to have been a harried start to the day.

Applejack nodded at her. “‘Lo there, Sun.” She pursed her lips and held up the cigarette. “Cat’s out of the bag now I guess, huh?”

Sunset smirked. “Oh, what? About you smoking? Puh-lease.” She waved a dismissive hand, her smirk morphing into a full smile. “I’ve known for months now.”

Applejack frowned. “How?”

Sunset’s smile curled as she pointed across the street to a set of tiered buildings past a large park area. “See those buildings there?”

“Yeah?”

“Those are the Science buildings.” Sunset crossed her arms and cocked a hip. “I could see you from the windows.”

Applejack blushed, flabbergasted she’d failed to account for this.

“I thought about coming over and saying hi more than once… but I always figured you wanted your space.”

Applejack looked at her with a pout. “And now?”

“Now…” Sunset stepped closer and held out a hand, her head tilting to the side. “I was wondering if you’d let me bum a cig?”

Applejack stared. "You smoke?"

Sunset shrugged a shoulder. "Used to, when I was new here. Quit after I became friends with you and the others.”

The cowgirl seemed to need an extra moment to process this, then slowly she pulled out her cigarettes and held it out. Sunset delicately selected one from the pack. (Hmm! She likes Elk 100s. Not bad.) Then with practiced ease, she held it between her fingers.

She smirked. “Can you light me?”

Applejack blinked. “Uh…”

“I can—!” The young man at the picnic bench started to rise up, his hand jamming into his pocket, but his female friend pulled him back down roughly with a loud, Shh!

Applejack pulled out a lighter, but just as she held it out as if to give it to her friend, Sunset placed the cigarette between her lips and stepped closer.

When Sunset realized the mistake, she removed the cigarette from her mouth and held out her hand. “Whoops!” at the same time the other girl said—

“Shoot,” Applejack blushed and lifted the lighter. “Sorry. Lemme—”

The pair froze, and Sunset’s cheeks burned a shade to match Applejack’s, her hand still held out.

AJ let the lighter dip a little, her eyebrow quirking. “Looks to me like we’re outta step!”

Sunset snickered. “Oookay. This doesn’t need to be complicated!” She returned the cigarette to her mouth and gestured at it meaningfully, her lips tugging upwards.

Applejack let out a single chuckle as she struck up the flame.

Sunset let the tip meet the heat, giving the cig a small drag to help the leaves ignite...and as she did so, her eyes caught something. Something on the inside of Applejack’s left wrist, previously concealed under her long rose pink sleeve.

Are those… scars?

Her brow furrowed, but she stepped back.

Don’t assume. Maybe it’s a rash or something.

But she didn’t know of any rashes that came in the form of concentrated enflamed red circles with white raw centers… It didn’t even look like chicken pox.

Sunset Shimmer set the observation aside with effort. This wasn’t what she was here for. She just wanted to be a friend, not a counselor. It wasn’t like she had all the answers. This past weekend was a testament to that.

She grimaced a little as she took a long drag, the ease with which she picked up her old habit almost alarming.

Okay, so maybe I was also just really stressed out and wanted an easy fix.

Being with Applejack was a definite plus, though. Sunset had truly missed her. Since senior year of high school, they hadn’t had as many opportunities to talk much.

Sunset licked her lips, glancing furtively at her friend. The cowgirl was still looking at her expectantly, like she was waiting for Sunset to say something.

She did have something to ask, but she wanted to wait till she could get Applejack alone.

Instead, she asked, “So, you gonna introduce me to your friends?” Sunset Shimmer asked with a nod at the auto students at the picnic bench.

Applejack jumped a little. “Shucks! M’sorry. Where are my manners?” She looked at the others. “Guys, this here is Sunset Shimmer. We been good friends since high school.” Returning her attention to Sunset, she pointed at the two automotive students with her cigarette hand, smoke trailing through the air. “This twitchy ol’ jackrabbit is Torque, and next to him is sweet lil’ Chassis. We bonded over mutual bad habits last year. Ain’t that right?”

“Yep!” Torque jumped up, his hand held out.

Sunset shook it with a small laugh. “Nice to meet you!”

The man leaned in with a smirk. “I fixed AJ’s truck up a bunch of times—”

“One time,” Applejack snorted.

“—So if you ever need help with something, lemme know!”

Chassis elbowed him out of the way. “Hi! Don’t mind him, his head gets fucky every time the opposite gender shows up.” When they shook hands, the blonde’s smile turned crooked. “Y’know, it’s really neat meeting you! I don’t think Applejack’s ever revealed much about her life before.”

Sunset mirrored the smile and leaned in. “Oooh, well I got some juicy stories for you if ya wanna hear?”

Applejack paled. “Now hold on a minute—!”

Chassis giggled, hopping on the spot. “Tell us, tell us!”

“Actually, AJ, you might like this one,” Sunset said after a quick drag. “Remember that time you wanted to take a Christmas card photo with all of our friends…?”

Thirty minutes later, they were all sitting together at the picnic table, lunches out.

Applejack had gotten halfway through a chicken sandwich. Sitting next to it was a container of apple turnovers. The food sat forgotten for the moment as Applejack wiped tears of laughter from her eyes. “So… So then Sunset Shimmer says, ‘He was not cute enough for five flights of stairs!’”

Sunset choked on the water she’d been drinking as Chassis and Torque laughed across from them. She wiped her chin, weak from giggles.

Applejack’s voice had become a thin breath fighting to be heard through her amusement. “The look on Rarity’s face! Priceless!”

Sunset waved her hands. “No, no, no! That’s not even the best part! Rares lifted her nose at me and said— ‘Neither was his big-eared roommate, but you still gave him your number, darling!’”

The four of them broke down into hoarse laughter, unable to say a word. Other students gazed at them curiously as they passed. Applejack pounded a fist on the table while Sunset leaned on her, trying to catch her breath.

“The worst of it was, I never did get to use the bathroom!” Applejack said after their laughter eased. “I held it all the way back to Rarity’s all on account of the fact that those two bozos’ toilet was busted!”

Sunset nodded emphatically, one hand over her eyes. “After five flights, they ended up admitting to us they used the bathroom at the pizza place across the street.”

“The fuck?” Torque chuckled. “Those guys were desperate!”

“Sounds familiar…” Chassis muttered next to him. He elbowed her.

“Rarity cited ‘health reasons’ for not letting me go back to the pizza joint’s bathroom.” Applejack shook her head. “Boy, I tell you, I was hollerin’ all the way back to her house! ‘Shame on me for wanting to protect you from tall, dark, and dimwitted!’ Who, by the way, was there to take a damn piss when we showed up!”

“I thought for sure you were going to punch him, AJ,” Sunset said.

“You shoulda!” Chassis chimed.

Applejack grinned. “I almost did! I mean heck, we were putting up with enough humoring Rarity’s latest goldarned love chase, but that horny jerk strung us along hoping for a quickie, and my bladder was fit to burst!”

Torque grinned and cut a side glance at Chassis. “Reminds me of this time when Chassis tried to hook up with this performance artist during Mardi Gra—-aaaaah!!”

Chassis, without looking at him, reached over, pinched his arm, and twisted. Through a tight smile, she said, “Say anything else, and I will fucking fold you.”

Applejack snickered. “Careful Torque!” then, as a way of refocusing the conversation for Chassis’ sake, she said to Sunset Shimmer, “That was one heckuva night we had.”

Sunset leaned on the table with a smile. “But at least we got the pizzas!”

Applejack smirked, picking up her sandwich. “Cold pizzas. Rainbow Dash would not quit complaining.”

Sunset winced. “Drinking an entire bottle of wine kinda takes off the filter.”

“She needed that filter,” Applejack added dryly.

“To be fair, it was the one and only time she ever did that.”

Applejack shook her head with a frown. “Her hangover was somethin’ else!”

Sunset’s smile became muted as she looked at the others. “Rainbow was coming off a bad breakup. The sleepover was us trying to cheer her up.”

“Yeah, well… She got over it pretty quick,” Applejack muttered. Even as she said this, she felt a small spark of envy flare up in her chest. Rainbow Dash had dated a whirlwind of girls after Lightning Dust. She went through them so fast, Applejack gave up trying to remember their names.

She wondered what it was like, being able to find company so easily. Even cheap company.

Feeling her good humor flee her, Applejack went to take a bite of her sandwich… but stopped when she realized something. Sunset had no food. She hadn’t taken anything out since they’d sat down.

“Hey, you just waiting to eat, or…?” Applejack asked.

Sunset Shimmer waved a hand. “Nah, I usually eat later.”

“So you do got food?”

“I’ll, uh, figure something out.”

Applejack could’ve just been imagining it, but the way Sunset said that didn’t sit well with her. Maybe it was the way Sun didn’t make eye contact. Maybe it was the lack of conviction in her voice.

The cowgirl looked at the sandwich gripped in her hands. Even just half of it was a decent meal to most people. She just had a big appetite. Once upon a time, though, she brought extra just to share with friends.

“Here,” she said, replacing her sandwich on its napkin and sliding it to Sunset. “Why don’t you have some of this? I didn’t bite it, yet.”

Sunset gave her a pursed smile. “Thanks, but I don’t eat meat.”

Applejack could feel her cheeks heat up as she slid the sandwich back. “Darn! That’s right, m’sorry.” She rubbed the back of her neck and looked at her food container. “Well how about my apple turnovers?”

Sunset shook her head. For some reason, her eyes grew large. “No, no! AJ, I couldn’t—”

“Sun, you ain’t fooling me. You look hungrier than a tick on a teddy bear! Come on, just have one.” Applejack started to remove the lid on the container.

Sunset slouched. “Look, I don’t want to be a bother—!”

There was a loud, squelching growl. Everyone paused to look at a blushing Sunset as she slowly hugged her stomach.

Applejack smiled softly. “Thought so.” She pushed the container over. “Don’t trouble yourself, sugarcube. I’m happy to share with friends.”

Sunset mumbled her thanks as she picked up an apple turnover.

The truth was, she was starving. In a recent effort to save money, she had taken to only eating a full meal at dinner. Even her ‘breakfasts’ tended to consist of a snack with coffee. She thought she’d read somewhere that dinner was the real important meal of the day, anyway.

It wasn’t so bad, except for lunchtime. She’d hoped the cigarette would curb her hunger enough to carry her the rest of the day. All it had really done was make her want a full box of cigarettes.

But she didn’t want to seem desperate. Applejack was watching her as she ate her sandwich. Sunset took a small bite of the apple turnover and just managed to stifle down a groan. She couldn’t help the way her expression melted with relief, though. The next bite was bigger. The next bite was sooner.

Before long, the apple turnover was gone and she was reaching for another.

“Good?” Applejack asked with a little grin.

“Shut up, you know they are,” Sunset answered with a pout.

Applejack chuckled.

“So Sunset, you seeing anybody?” Torque asked. He’d already finished his bowl of BBQ chicken and was reaching for another cigarette.

Chassis rolled her eyes next to him. “Oh go find a nice bush to nut into, ya randy big balled fuck!”

Torque held up hand. “What? Geez, I asked you and Applejack the same thing the first time we met!”

“Yeah, and I told ya to go sit on an air hose,” Applejack said with a cocked eyebrow. She looked at Sunset Shimmer. “Told ya he was a twitchy jackrabbit.”

Sunset smiled patiently. To Torque, she said, “I’m not really looking for a new boyfriend right now.” It was a truthful answer, even if it didn’t really address his question.

The others seemed content with it, though.

Torque sighed dramatically. “Oh well!” He pulled out a lighter and lit up the cigarette in his hand. After a long drag on it, he said with a smoky smile, “Well if ya ever change your mind!”

Sunset winked at him. “I’ll think about it.”

The thing was, she really would. He looked like just the sort who could stay detached if she asked him to. The real question was, could he keep a secret? She’d get to know him and see.

Experience told her that it was useful to keep such prospects in mind. Most she passed over, but sometimes...

They shared stories long after their meals were finished. Sunset’s favorite was perhaps when Chassis regaled her with a humorous anecdote of the time she lost an hour to a car trying to figure out why it was making a clunking noise, only to learn that the customer had a loose bowling ball in the trunk.

A clocktower chimed once somewhere on campus. One o’ clock. Everyone gathered their things.

“Hey, it was nice meeting you, Sunset Shimmer!” Chassis said with a wave. She was backpedaling toward the auto center.

Torque simply nodded at her with a smile as he followed. Apparently his interest in her had cooled after learning she wasn’t ‘available’.

“I like them,” Sunset said as they walked away. “They’re funny.”

“I know they can get a little crass, but they’re good people.” Applejack shouldered her backpack. “They’ve actually calmed down a bunch. From what they tell me, they used to be wilder in high school.”

“I can believe it.” Sunset slipped her hands into her pockets. “Thanks again for the food.”

“Shucks, don’t worry about it.” Applejack pointed one way, then the other. “Um, where ya headed? We can walk together for a bit before I get to class.”

Sunset winced and thumbed behind her. “Back to the science building. That’s out of your way, right?”

Applejack shrugged. “S’fine. I got plenty of time.”

They left the picnic table and started up the sidewalk. Neither spoke for a while.

“So this is you checkin’ on me, huh?” Applejack eventually asked, looking at Sunset sidelong.

Sunset returned the look. “Kind of.”

“I’m telling ya, I’m gonna be fine.”

“I know you are.” Sunset looked at her seriously. “Because your friends are gonna be there for you, to help you through it.”

She received a wry grunt in response.

Sunset’s brow creased. “I mean it, Applejack. I want to be around more. I’ve been too caught up in my own life, and… I could’ve reached out.” She waved a hand at the approaching science building. “Heck, I saw you almost every day!” Looking lost. Looking alone. Looking like Sunset felt. “After this weekend with Pinkie, I’m not just going to hang back anymore! I want you to know that I’m around!”

“I know you’re around. I know you all are,” Applejack said through tight lips. Her eyes were searing. “Sometimes that’s the problem!”

Sunset flinched.

AJ let out a rough sigh. “Sunset Shimmer, I don’t mean to say it like I want you all to vanish. I only meant—”

Sunset chewed a corner of her lip as she watched Applejack’s eyes cast about in frustration.

“I only meant that sometimes I wish I could vanish,” Applejack finished quietly. She tugged her hat low and looked away. “My cousin Braeburn got me this scholarship. I don’t want to squander it. But there are days when I just wanna quit and stay in my own little world.”

Applejack threw up a hand. “Running into the girls every once in a while is fine an’ all. Like today with you was really nice. But there are days when I catch sight of Rainbow Dash acting all high n’ mighty, or when I’m out in the quad and I see… her.”

Sunset’s lips thinned. Fluttershy.

Applejack swallowed audibly and shook her head. “I can’t think of my friends without thinking about her too. Even that story we shared today… I remember how she kept looking at Rainbow Dash that night, Sunset. Like she was caring for a wounded animal or something.”

“That’s why you volunteered to get the pizzas with us,” Sunset murmured. “We only needed two people to carry those boxes, but you wanted to come anyway.”

“I felt bad,” Applejack said with a little nod. “I knew Rainbow was really hurtin’. I felt like she was waiting for me to say something to her all night. ‘It’s gonna be okay.’ ‘You’re better off without her.’ ‘We’re best pals, and I’mma be right here—’” Her words cracked.

Sunset felt her heart tighten as Applejack quickly put a hand to her mouth and ducked her head.

When the cowgirl looked up again, it was with an expression of cold control. “I didn’t say any of that to her. I watched her spiral, and I still kept quiet. Cuz’ all I could think was… nothing’s stopping her from getting Fluttershy now.”

“Sometimes, it’s not easy being a friend,” Sunset whispered. Nervously, she reached out a hand and touched Applejack’s shoulder. It felt tight. “We can’t always be perfect.”

They slowed to a stop.

Applejack looked at her, the same cold expression on her face. “I wasn’t no friend. Not to Rainbow. It’s been like that ever since.” She bared her teeth and turned her back, leaving Sunset’s hand hanging in the air as she pulled away. “That’s my fault! I let my envy get the better of me!”

Sunset shook her head. “Applejack, you were in a tough situation! You still are! And you know what? Rainbow thinks it’s her fault. You’ve both got to see that the truth is somewhere more in the middle. It’s not on any one person.”

Applejack peeked at her from over her shoulder but said nothing.

Sunset approached her side. “I know that being with your friends is a mixed bag right now… but honestly… has being alone been any better?”

Applejack scowled and crossed her arms. Sunset tilted her head to the side. “Fine. Let’s do something easier. How much have we hung out? Just you and me?”

“Not much,” Applejack admitted with a raised eyebrow.

“And how long have you known me?”

“Not as long as everybody else, I guess?”

Sunset gave her a slanted smile and shrugged one shoulder. “Would you say I come with a lot of baggage or complicated feelings?”

“Uh… no?”

Sunset laced her hands behind her back as she carefully stepped in front of Applejack. “In fact, of all of our friends, I’d say I’m probably the least complicated person for you to see right now!”

Applejack’s mouth turned down. “I think you been hanging out with Twilight too much.”

Sunset giggled and gave a broad smile. “Probably! But maybe before we bring all of our friends around again for Rarity’s insomnia cure, we can take baby steps and just hang out, the two of us?” She raised her eyebrows. “Cuz I really don’t wanna leave you alone while you go through this, AJ.”

Applejack screwed her mouth to the side as she stared hard. Eventually she rolled her eyes shut. “I mean, heck, sure… We can hang out more till then.”

Sunset thought her smile was at its biggest until she heard those words. Then her cheeks ached from how hard she beamed. “Great! How about we have lunch together from now on?”

“Sure, sure…”

Sunset took a breath. Now was as good a time as any to ask what she’d wanted to ask earlier. “Applejack, are you free Wednesday night?”

Applejack blinked at her. “Uh, maybe? Why?”

Sunset ran a nervous hand through her hair. “I was wondering if you’d come with me to blues night at this bar nearby? I know the bartender, so we can get in no problem.”

“Blues night?”

“Yeah. Have you listened to much blues?”

Applejack shook her head.

Sunset shrugged. “Well they do it twice a month at this bar, and it’s pretty cool. They always have a well-known blues artist come in and play their hits. I think this week they’re having Red Rooster play.” At Applejack’s persistent blank expression, Sunset started to speak faster, her skin heating up. “I, uh, could send you some tracks if you’re on the fence? I just thought it might be, y’know… cathartic for you?”

The cowgirl turned her eyes down to her boots.

Sunset swallowed and rubbed an arm. “If you don’t want to, that’s fine—”

“I’ll think about it, Sunset,” Applejack said. She didn’t lift her gaze.

Sunset nodded quickly. “Okay! I could send you some of Red Rooster’s songs. If you don’t want to do blues night, we could do something else. No biggie.” She smiled crookedly. “Honestly, I’m kind of just looking forward to the chance to get to know you better.”

Applejack fixed her with a raised eyebrow. “Really?” her voice was flat.

“Sure!”

“I ain’t exactly a ray o’ sunshine right now, Sun.”

“Granted. But come on, think about it. We have a decent sized group of friends! We all have varying degrees of closeness, right?” She held up her hands and started ticking off fingers. “I’ve gotten to know Twilight and Pinkie really well. Rarity and Fluttershy are like two peas in a pod. You, Pinkie, and Rainbow, uh—” she felt her heart quicken as she tried to hasten past this sensitive subject, “I just mean that within every group, different connections are made. Sometimes, those connections are made later, like for Pinkie and Rarity. After they got into the sorority together, they became like sisters! It’s textbook psychology!”

Applejack smirked. “Now I know you been hanging out with Twilight too much.”

Sunset could feel her skin light on fire. “My point is that I want to get to know you better! Even...” her expression softened. “Even if you are feeling down.”

Applejack’s brow tensed. After a long moment, she asked, “You said blues night was Wednesday?”

Sunset perked. “Yeah!”

The cowgirl took a deep breath. “All right. I’ll try and go.”

“Really?”

“Yep.”

Sunset grinned and started to backpedal toward her building. “Just have an open mind, okay?”

Applejack watched as she went. She seemed rooted to the spot. “What time is this thing, anyway?”

“It starts at eight.”

“Look, I might have to cancel on account of work, all right?”

Sunset bobbed her head, a little smile on her lips. “I mean, sure. But isn’t Rainbow coming to help you on Saturday? Maybe I could do the same this week! That way you can still come?”

Applejack’s eyes went wide like she hadn’t expected this response. “I, er, suppose you could?”

Sunset winked. “Good! Then it’s settled.”

“N-Now wait a minute, it still ain’t no guarantee!”

“Mmm, hmm! Whatever you say, AJ!”

“I’m serious!” Then Applejack scowled at her suddenly. “And listen here, don’t you go buying more cigarettes! I don’t need you picking up that bad habit on account o’ me!”

“Yeeeah… ‘Bout that. I’ll try not to!” Sunset batted her eyes sweetly.

Applejack crossed her arms, her gaze taking on a stern edge. “Sunset, I mean it!”

“Then come with me to blues night!” Sunset laughed.

“Gosh darnit, woman—!”

Sunset spun around and took off at a brisk walk. “See ya, AJ!” she sang over her shoulder.

“Sunset Shimmer!”

Sunset didn’t stop, her lips spreading wide in a smile.

She didn’t stop because she could hear the laughter breaking through Applejack’s stern voice.