Applejack's POV

I had just kissed Rainbow Dash.

And she had kissed me back.

Holy hell.

I pulled away, breathing hard, heart slamming against my ribs.

Rainbow blinked at me, stunned.

Silence stretched between us.

The air was thick.

Heavy.

Charged.

"...AJ?" she whispered.

My chest tightened.

Because I knew what she was asking.

What now?

And the truth?

I didn't know.

I swallowed hard. "I-I don't know what happens next, Dash."

She exhaled, rubbing the back of her neck. "Yeah. Me neither."

We both stood there, staring at each other like idiots.

Like two people who just jumped off a cliff without checking how deep the water was.

I ran a hand through my hair, frustrated. "I-I meant what I said. I don't wanna push you away anymore."

Rainbow let out a short, breathless laugh. "Kinda hard to push someone away after you kiss 'em, AJ."

I blushed.

"Yeah, well... you kissed me back."

Her ears turned red. "Yeah. I did."

Silence.

My stomach flipped.

I had never seen Rainbow this nervous.

She was usually so loud, so sure of herself.

But now?

Now, she looked just as lost as I felt.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!"

A deafening scream shattered the moment.

We both jumped.

Then-

Pinkie Pie BURST out of the bushes.

"YOU KISSED!!!"

Rainbow's face drained of color. "OH CELESTIA, WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?!"

Pinkie vibrated with excitement. "GUYS. GUYS!!! IT HAPPENED!!!"

Before I could react, Rarity, Twilight, and Fluttershy appeared out of nowhere.

Twilight adjusted her glasses, smirking. "Huh. Interesting."

Rarity was fanning herself. "Oh, this is the most romantic thing I have ever witnessed in my life."

Fluttershy was hiding her face behind her hands. "O-oh my..."

Rainbow made a horrified noise. "HOW LONG HAVE YOU ALL BEEN THERE?!"

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Long enough to see you two finally stop being idiots."

I groaned. "Can we have a single moment alone?!"

Pinkie clapped her hands. "NOPE! THIS IS TOO IMPORTANT."

I buried my face in my hands. "I hate y'all sometimes."

Rarity sighed dramatically. "Applejack, darling. We're your best friends. Of course we were going to spy on you."

Rainbow looked betrayed. "FLUTTERSHY. EVEN YOU?!"

Fluttershy shrunk back. "I-I was just... um... curious..."

Rainbow let out a strangled noise.

Twilight smirked. "Sooo... are you two dating now?"

I choked.

Rainbow sputtered. "WHAT?! NO-I MEAN-I DON'T KNOW-WAIT-"

Rarity squealed. "Oh my stars."

Pinkie wiggled her eyebrows. "Sooooo, when's the wedding?"

Rainbow turned bright red. "PINKIE."

I grabbed my hat and pulled it over my face. "I hate all of you."

Twilight snickered. "Yeah, yeah. But seriously. What are you two now?"

Silence.

Rainbow and I looked at each other.

And for the first time...

Neither of us had an answer.

Rainbow Dash's POV

I was losing my mind.

One second, Applejack was kissing me like she meant it.
The next second, our friends were SCREAMING about it.
And now?

Now, I was standing alone with her, trying to figure out what the hell we were supposed to do next.

The others had finally left us alone. (After much screaming, giggling, and Twilight saying 'I told you so' about five times.)

Now, it was just me and Applejack.

Standing under the apple trees.

Awkward as hell.

I kicked a rock. "Sooo..."

Applejack rubbed the back of her neck. "Yeah."

Silence.

I huffed. "Okay, seriously. What do we do now?"

She exhaled slowly. "I dunno, Dash. What do you want to do?"

I looked at her.

And suddenly-I knew.

I didn't want to go back to pretending.
I didn't want to keep avoiding this.
I didn't want to run away.

"...I wanna try."

Applejack blinked. "Try?"

I swallowed. "This. Us. Whatever the hell we are."

She stared at me, like she was making sure she heard me right.

Then-

Her face softened.

"...Me too."

Something in my chest clicked into place.

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"So... we're doing this?" I asked, voice shaky.

She smirked. "I reckon we are."

I grinned. "Well. I do like a challenge."

She laughed. "Oh, you're impossible."

And before I could say anything else-

She kissed me again.

It was slower this time.

No running.
No fighting.
No tension that neither of us understood.

Just us.

And for once?

I wasn't scared of it.

I pulled her closer, smiling into the kiss.

And for the first time in forever...

Everything felt right.