A Ray of Sunlight

Those Three Words

A couple days after Christmas, Twilight was at Sugarcube Corner with her friends. They were all enjoying the time off from school, though Twilight couldn't help but feel slightly out of place amongst the other couples without Sunset next to her. She absentmindedly checked her phone. Upon seeing no new messages, she replaced it in her pocket. A gentle hand on her arm made her jump.
     "How's she doing?" Fluttershy asked.
     "Last I heard she was going to a movie with her mom and uncle. I was just checking to see if they were out yet."
     "And?" The shy girl pressed.
     "No dice." Twilight said glumly.
     "Dice? I thought you were waiting on a text!" Pinkie said from a few seats over.
     "No Pinkie, it's just a... you're joking. Sorry, my mind's not right at the moment. I guess I miss her more than I thought I would."
     "Come on Twilight, it's only been a couple days. You'll be fine without her till she gets back." Rainbow slapped her back jovially.
     "You're one to talk, remember a couple years ago when Applejack went to that family reunion and you-" Pinkie's mouth was stuffed with a cupcake before she could finish her sentence.
     With a hearty laugh Applejack pressed the issue.
     "Ah didn't know about this. What'd you do sugarcube?"
     "Nothing! It doesn't matter." Her cheeks were flush with color at this point.
     "Now, ah know you wanna tell me." A sly smile spread across her lips as she started tickling Rainbow's sides.
     "Hey, stop that! Come on, this isn't fair." She said between laughs.
     "You know how to make this stop." AJ teased.
     "Alright, alright. Just stop tickling me!" She cried once she could catch her breath, "I had a hard time when you went to see your family a few years ago. I missed you, and there was other stuff going on that compounded the whole thing." She looked away embarrassed.
     Applejack squeezed her tightly. "Ah missed you too baby. It's nice to hear that you had a rough go of it. When ah came back you didn't look especially bothered."
     "I don't wanna talk about it anymore." She huffed.
     "Oh don't be like that." Rarity chided. "It's nice to see you being vulnerable. You're always so brash and overly confident."
     "Stop developing my character!" She buried her face in her hands. "I'm awesome and that's all anyone needs to know!"
     The table erupted in laughter. This all helped to brighten Twilight's mood considerably. She looked around at the smiling faces of her friends and thought back to when she first started at CHS. She had prepared to go through this whole year friendless and alone. Now, she had a group of the best friends she could ask for and a girlfriend she cared for so deeply.
     She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket and smiled.
     "Just finished the movie! Babe, when I get back we're going to see it! I know you're not big on musicals but The Greatest Showman was amazing!"
     "Alright, but I get to choose a movie you might not be crazy about!"
     "Deal! How's everyone else? Tell them hi for me! I miss all of you! But I miss you the most ;)"
     "Sunset says hi!" Twilight said with a smile.
     "Hi Sunset!" The group said in unison
"They say hi back! When are you coming back? I miss you."
     "I should be back in time for New Year's Eve. Keep me informed where and if the group is having a party :) gotta go, we're going out to dinner now. I'll talk to you when we're done."
     "Alright, tell your mom hi for me. Talk to you later."
     "Sorry, didn't mean to ignore you all." Twilight apologized.
     "It's alright, we understand." Cheese chuckled as he wiped a bit of frosting from Pinkie's nose.
     "Thanks everyone." She smiled.
     They took the next few hours to talk about their individual Christmases and their favorite gifts they received from their parents and significant other.
     "I just adore my new winter coat!" Rarity beamed when it was her turn.
     "How come you didn't wear it?" Pinkie asked.
     "That's easy darling, I knew I was going to order a jelly donut and there was no way I was going to risk sullying the lovely coat Fluttershy gifted me." She took a bite of her treat.
     Fluttershy kissed her cheek which caused Rarity to blush.
     "What was your favorite gift Pinkie?" Fluttershy asked through her giggling.
     Pinkie told them about the anime series she received from her parents and how she was excited to watch them with Cheese. He explained that he hadn't ever really gotten into anime, but was willing to give it a shot.
     "I trust Pinkie's taste, so we'll see how it goes."
     The conversation wound down until Applejack spoke up.
     "Alright y'all, Granny Smith asked that we find a different location for this party. She's still finding decorations from Halloween." She arched an eyebrow at Pinkie, who rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly.
     "I guess I did go a little overboard." She said.
     "Luckily, I asked my parents if we could use our house and they gave me permission to host our New Years soirée." Rarity said happily. "They will be at a party of their own so the only stipulation is that we don't burn the house down." She turned her gaze toward Pinkie.
     "What?" She said, her mouth full of cookie.
     The group talked about who would bring what to the party. Rarity pushed for a semi-formal dress code.
     "I want to see skirts or dresses. No pants." She said sternly. "Oh, except for you Cheese."
     "Darn, now I have to find a whole new outfit." He joked.
     They cleaned up their area shortly after that and parted ways for the day. Twilight wandered the town for a bit, stopping at the shopping center to browse one of the multiple stores she had gift cards to. Not finding anything she wanted she made her way back home, catching a bus just in time. On the ride home, she thought more about what Cadence had said.