Scratch One Off - Ch5

   "What the hell!?" you hear Sunset yell from outside your room. You aren't particularly surprised until you notice that Vinyl isn't laying next to you anymore. With a sudden panic spreading over you, you hop out of bed, pants still halfway down your knees. Without realizing it, you trip over your own pants and crash through your bedroom door out into the open Sunlight, letting Vinyl, Sunset, and two other guys you've never seen before get a full view of you below the belt.

    Sunset's gaze averts from the guy not even trying to hide the fact that he's smoking a joint in your living room to your very exposed junk. A blush comes over her face quickly, and she averts her gaze, putting a hand up over her face with an overwhelmed expression.

    "Good a start to the morning as any I guess," Sunset says, a little flustered.

    You scramble to pull your pants back up so that not everyone memorizes the exact size and shape of your dick. The creepier of the two guys walks out of your kitchen after giving a small chuckle at your predicament. Once he notices Sunset however, his expression changes from amused to predatory. He makes his way towards Sunset, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and giving her a confident smile.

    "I'm digging the maid outfit, babe. What's say we find somewhere to take it off?"

    Your eye twitches in anger once you hear that, but Sunset seems to be able to take care of herself. With a quick shove and a very shocked expression, she pushes the guy into the opposite wall.

    "Get off me, you creep. Do I look like some back alley slut to you?"

    The guy shrugs, giving her mostly exposed body another once over with a very delighted smile. Sunset clenches her fist, her face turning red with anger.

    "Vinyl, what the hell are these guys doing here?" you ask.

    "Oh, this is Treble and Cliff," Vinyl says, pointing to the guy on the wall and the couch respectively. "I was just talking to them about getting some new amps. They sell that kind of stuff cheap."

   "Because it's stolen, most likely," Sunset says in a very angered tone, moving away from Treble and towards the kitchen.

    Treble follows Sunset with his eyes, that same wanting gaze on his face. This dude makes you sick looking at your friend like that, but then again you are the one who made her wear lingerie on a daily basis.

    "What's it matter where they came from, babe? I'll give you a flat screen and a hundred bucks for a blowjob," Treble says with all the grace of a mugger, a sick smile on his face all the while.

    Sunset's mouth hangs open in shock. You can't believe someone would actually be that forward either. You joke about it with her all the time, but this guy is just a douche. Sunset narrows her eyes at the guy and reaches for your set of steak knives. You seriously contemplate not even trying to stop her.

    Cliff leans back over your couch towards the two, his dreads undoubtedly leaving a grease stain as they flow across. "Hey, man, let's be cool. Treble didn't mean nothing by it. Keep the good vibes flowing, right?" Cliff says, his mannerism like he just walked out of woodstock. You could smell the pot smoke already, and your temper isn't faring much better than Sunset's anymore. You pick yourself up off the floor and look to Vinyl.

    "Look, Vinyl. I don't care if your friends want to meet up in the parking lot or something, but I seriously don't want them in--"

    Vinyl perks up, interrupting you. "Oh, and Treble had a job for you if you needed some money. What did you say, three grand?"

    Treble slinks his way over to you, putting his arm around your shoulder as well. He leans in close enough that you can smell the cigarette smoke on his tank top. "Yeah, man. Three grand sound good to you? Oh, and are you any good with a gun?"

    Your jaw hangs open for a second now too. You shoulder the guy off of you and yell, "Both of you, get out of my house!"

    Cliff rolls his head back and groans. "Come on, dude. You totally just ruined the mood." His 'mood' quickly returns as he gives you a gentle smile with his glazed eyes as he reaches in his vest pocket and pulls out a little green pill. Treble's eyes almost pop out of his skull at the sight of it, and he makes a beeline for your door, slamming it behind him before Cliff can even set the thing on your coffee table. "This is for the spirit, man."

    Vinyl sees what he has in his hand and jumps to stop him. "Wait, Cliff!"

    Before she can do anything, the hippie sets the pill down on your table and smashes it open with a fist. A tiny pop resounds throughout your apartment. You raise an eyebrow at the tiny stain it left behind. You look between Vinyl, whose eyes are freaking out and has a hand over her mouth, and Cliff, who is just looking at you with a very peaceful expression.

    You open your mouth to say something, but then it hits you: the most god-awful smell that has ever passed through your nostrils. It smelled like you just got dropped into a sewer full of rotting meat and burnt hair. You cover your mouth immediately to keep from throwing up. Sunset, however, isn't so lucky. In a flashback to a few days ago, she turns around and fills your sink with whatever she had for dinner last night.

    Cliff gets up, completely unfazed by the putrid stench assaulting your senses. He walks over and puts a gentle hand on your shoulder, a dazed smile still on his face. "That should help clear out your chakras or whatever, dude. Just embrace it. You'll be at peace soon," he says before following Treble out, leaving you, Sunset, and Vinyl in what might just be your burial chamber if you stay too much longer.

    Not seeing much more choice, you run over to the kitchen and grab Sunset before she passes out, then carry you and her out the door, Vinyl right behind you. The three of you gasp for fresh air once you slam the door behind you. Sunset is looking too green to even yell at Vinyl, so you take the honor once you catch your breath and manage to hold down the contents of your stomach.

    "Vinyl, what the hell!?" you say, bent over and still gasping.

    "Sorry, man. I hate it when he does that," Vinyl says, propping herself up on the railing.

    "Why were they over here in the first place?" you say, not bothering to hide the anger in your voice.

    Vinyl looks a little hurt at you almost yelling at her. "Hey, dude, chill. I didn't know he was going to do that. It's not like he set fire to your apartment or anything."

    "Treble was sexually harassing Sunset and was about to ask me to kill somebody! I don't want thugs and junkies in my apartment, Vinyl!" you say, really letting the anger show in your tone. Vinyl backs away from you slightly, legitimate remorse on her face.

    "I... I didn't know," Vinyl says, choking up slightly. "Cliff's stink bombs usually only last like twenty four hours, it should be alright by then."

    You don't answer her, still pretty mad that you're homeless for the next day unless you wanted to suffocate. You look to Sunset, and she's still looking too sick to be angry. Vinyl steps toward you, looking apologetic. "Look, man. I'm really sorry. I just--"

    You shake your head. "Nothing we can do about it now, except maybe go find a hotel or something."

    Sunset perks up from her hunched over position. She clears her throat and tries not to sound like she just threw up. "You guys can stay at my place if you don't want to spend the money."

    Both you and Vinyl look to her, surprised. Sunset barely let you stay over there; actually offering to house Vinyl is almost groundbreaking for her.

    You let out a sigh. "Yeah, that sounds good. Now I just need to go back in and grab my keys and some clothes I guess."

    Vinyl gets off the railing with an apologetic smile. "Hey, I'll help you."

    You mostly ignore her, facing towards the door. "Whatever. Let's just grab some stuff out of the dresser and get out of there as fast as possible."

    Vinyl nods, lining up behind you like you're about to breach and clear your living room. You're not really in the mood for it right now, and just open the door and jog in, holding your shirt over your mouth as your eyes start to water. You make a break for your room, Vinyl close behind you. Before you throw up, you manage to grab a few bits of clothing and stuff it into a backpack that Vinyl tosses you out of your closet. After a quick run through your bedroom and bathroom for the essentials, you sprint back out the front door. Vinyl grabs her two bags and pulls them out with her, closing the door behind her before the smell follows the two of you as well.

    Vinyl lets out a laugh as she bends over to catch her breath. "Heh, I'd almost forgotten how bad that stuff was. He never would tell me what he made it out of."

    You look over and glare daggers at Vinyl between gasps of fresh air. Once she catches your gaze, she shies away from you, her smile fading somewhat.

    Sunset looks between you two, slight concern on her face aside from the sickly expression. You give her your own concerned expression; she still looks like she might throw up. “You gonna be alright? You don’t look so good.”

    Sunset waves you off, coughing a few times and trying to put on a smile. “I’m fine, just a lot to take in first thing in the morning.”

   “You’ve got that right,” you say in an irritated tone directed toward Vinyl.

   “So how about we head out before that smell seeps out of the door and I throw up again,” Sunset says, looking very ready to get as far away as possible. You nod to her, and she slowly makes her way down the stairs, the sickly green tint on her cheeks fading as she got some fresh air.

    In an awkward silence you follow Sunset down, not paying much mind as she walks behind you. Sunset gets in her own car and leaves, leaving you and Vinyl to silently load up in yours and be on your way. Vinyl awkwardly taps against her thighs or looks out the window on the drive. Probably for the better; you don't really feel like talking anyway.

    After a quick drive, you pull into the parking lot of Sunset's complex. It's somewhat nicer than yours, in the sense that the building has a bit more color and the groundskeepers did a better job, but not near as much as a contrast between yours and what Neon and Vinyl lived in.

    Sunset is already unlocking her door once you and Vinyl get out of the car. With a quick jog up the stairs, you go up to meet her.

    As soon as you walk into the apartment the usual smell hits you. It's like sunshine, peaches, and a slight hint of vanilla swirling around her apartment. Her clothes always had the same aroma, but you always thought smelling her for it was kinda awkward.

    Sunset walks into the center of her living room, looking from you to Vinyl, slightly tense for some reason. She doesn’t seem sick anymore, but something about the way she looks at Vinyl has changed; it isn’t anger or disdain like you might expect from her. She looks back to you with a newfound smile on her face. "Well, home sweet home. I'm gonna go change out of this. You guys just don't break anything, I guess."

    You nod to her, a bit sad that she's dropping the maid outfit, but in light of recent events you aren’t too concerned. You look over to Vinyl after the words "break anything" and give her a stern look.

    She drops her bag and puts her hands up innocently. "Hey, man. I'm cool. Just gonna chill on the couch and everything is gonna be fine," Vinyl says, walking past you. She falls onto the couch and puts her feet up on the armrest, bumping her foot against a vase on an adjacent table. Vinyl scrambles forward and wraps both hands around the decoration before it can clatter to the ground. She gives you her best sheepish smile. You just sigh and shake your head.

    You drop your bag on the other couch and take a quick look around Sunset's place. It always felt so much warmer than yours. Instead of the usual white walls, hers is painted in some light yellow color. Sunset told you the name at one point, but you never remembered it. She has flowers decorating the room as well, along with vivid paintings of splashes of color or sunrises hanging on the walls. Those weren't there the last time you were here.

    Sunset emerges from her room, sporting her usual clothes.

    "Hey, where'd you get these paintings," you say, motioning toward them. Sunset's focused more on pushing the wrinkles out of her clothes when you open your mouth, making her perk up at the sound of your voice.

    "Oh, those? I painted them myself." Sunset's face turns uneasy as she looks them over. "I'm probably going to take them down pretty soon though, I think I can do better than that."

    You raise an eyebrow and smile at her. "Are you kidding me? They already look great. They really bring out the room, I think," you say.

    Sunset twirls her hair in her fingers and looks away from you, a slight smile on her face. "Heh, thanks."

    Vinyl on the other hand, crosses her arms over her chest and pouts. You couldn't begin to guess why. You ignore her childish reactions and go to sit on the couch on the other side of the room.

    Sunset leans on the wall next to her bedroom door, looking between you and Vinyl, waiting for someone to break the awkward silence. The three of you sit there for a moment before Sunset finally decides to say something.

    "So, uhh, do you guys want to do anything, or...?"

    Vinyl jumps off the couch, ready to break out of the awkwardness of sitting in Sunset's living room.  "Anything to get out of this place. It looks like a grandma lives here and the smell is making my eyes water."

    Sunset narrows her eyes at Vinyl, but Vinyl just walks right out the front door, leaving you two alone.

    Sunset looks to you, concern plain on her face. "Are you really that mad at her?"

    You get off the couch. "Are you not?" you say as you make your way to the front door. If anyone is going to harbor some sort of grudge against Vinyl for today's incident, you imagine it's going to be Sunset.

    "Well, I didn't like being harassed by a crackhead, but it's not like it did any lasting damage," Sunset says, walking alongside you.

    When you stop to think about it, you aren't necessarily mad at Vinyl, but for some reason you've developed some sort of disdain for her in the past day or two. Maybe it's because of last night. "I'm not really super pissed at her, but... I don't know."

   Sunset looks away from you, slightly downtrodden. "Maybe you should give her a break, I think she needs some good friends in her life," Sunset says in almost a whisper, actual pity audible in her voice.

    Before you turn the doorknob you look back at Sunset, perplexed. This is coming from the girl who couldn't stand Vinyl two days ago.

    Sunset laughs when she looks back and sees your face. She pushes you playfully. "Don't give me that look," she says, her tone going from playful to somber. "I just... I think she went to Canterlot High with us."

    "What? Really?"

    "Yeah, I remember seeing her in the halls a few times, and I she even helped us during that whole battle of the bands disaster. I guess I didn't recognize her before since we never really spoke. I don't think anyone at school ever even said her name."

    "Huh. Are you sure? I don't remember her at all," you say, searching through your high school memories.

    "Yeah, she never really hung out with anyone. She was always by herself listening to her music," Sunset says, sounding like she's sorry for her. "I don't think she graduated with us either. I think she dropped out our senior year."

    You stand there at the doorway for a moment, just thinking of what all this meant. "So what are you getting at?"

    "I'm saying that Vinyl could use some friends like us. People with some stability that aren't criminals. You saw those two guys; they can't be good influences on anyone."

    You sigh. "I guess you're right. I mean, she is already living with me, so that’s a step in the right direction.” You turn to open the door, but look back to Sunset. "So why the sudden concern?"

    Sunset's face turns slightly darker, and she looks away from you. "I think you know why."

    It wasn't that many years ago that you hated the sight of Sunset walking through the halls, and all of your fellow students held the same sentiment. The girl didn't have a friend to her name back then. You know how much it bothers her to think about that time in her life, so you never really bring it up. At finally remembering, Sunset must've found some common ground with her otherwise arch rival on the job.

    "Well then, how about we take you out to make a friend."

    Sunset gives you a gentle smile as you open the door for her. "Sounds good to me."

    As the day goes on, you try to let go of your anger towards Vinyl. The more you try, the more you realize you aren't actually mad at her. As annoyed as you are about the day's earlier incident, there isn't any lasting damage and you know Vinyl isn't one to go against your wishes intentionally. You deducted it must be from last night. Actually having some semblance of sober sex made you guilty for some reason, and every time you look at Sunset the feeling grew even worse.

    The three of you waste the day as any normal adults in that town would: you go out to eat, explore a few of the local shops in town, follow Sunset as she drags you through department stores for things she "needs" but never actually buys anything. Surprisingly, Sunset and Vinyl actually get along for the most part, with Sunset having more patience with Vinyl's antics than usual.

    From what you can tell, both girls seem to enjoy themselves throughout the day, and they even gang up on you a few times in some friendly banter. After a long day of doing a whole lot of nothing, you and the girls head back to Sunset's apartment, down a couple bucks and laughing all the way.

    A couple of hours after the sun finally disappears behind the horizon, the three of you pour through the front door. Sunset is still laughing from the conversation her and Vinyl were having on the way up the stairs.

    "You really aren't supposed to ride those things! The weight limit is only like eighty pounds."

    Vinyl waves her off. "Oh come on. It could totally handle me for like a minute. If you had let me borrow a quarter anyway, you cheapskate."

    "I wasn't about to give you a quarter so you could ride the mechanical dolphin in the mall," Sunset says with a teasing smirk.

    "Dolphins are cool as hell though. How can you tell me you don't want to ride a dolphin?" Vinyl asks.

    "Riding an actual dolphin and breaking a ride for toddlers in the mall is not going to be the same thing," Sunset says, crossing her arms over her chest with a smile still on her face.

    Vinyl elbows you in the arm. "Jeez, we need to get this girl out to have some actual fun, huh?"

    You let out a laugh with them. "Heh, she could probably use it."

    Sunset raises an eyebrow playfully at you. "Oh, so now you're on her side?" Sunset's questioning smirk dies down to make way for a quick yawn. She glances over at the clock on her wall, then looks back to you two. "Well, I'm about ready for bed. What about you guys?"

    Vinyl stretches her arms over her head, then falls backwards onto one of Sunset's couches, careful of the vase this time. "Yeah whatever. I call the longer couch."

    Sunset perks up, stepping towards the closet as she opens her mouth. "I'll get you some--"

    Vinyl cuts her off by pulling the blanket laying over the back of the couch as decoration over her body, and snuggling into the pillow on one end.

    "Or you could just sleep in that. As long as you don't crawl into bed naked with me I guess you're alright," Sunset says jokingly.

    Vinyl rolls back over to face you two. "Don't worry, princess. I'd let you know if I wanted to scissor with you."

    Sunset doesn't seem to know how to respond to that one. Instead of letting her sit there confused, you speak up.

    "I guess I'll take the other couch. You have some extra sheets or something?"

    "You could just sleep in my bed with me," Sunset forces out quickly, looking away from you when you meet her eye. She almost winces at your gaze.

    You look over to Vinyl expecting some sort of sarcastic quip out of her, but instead she just scowls slightly, then rolls over away from the two of you with some force.

    You rub the back of your neck. "Yeah, that would save us the trouble of messing up your other couch. Sure."

    "Are you... um, tired now?" Sunset asks.

    "Tired enough. Lead the way, 'princess'," you say with a smile, quoting Vinyl.

    Sunset leads you into her bedroom. She quickly disappears into her bathroom, giving you the moment to shut the door and change into something more appropriate for sleeping. She emerges from her bathroom, a pair of orange sweatpants and an old t-shirt replacing her usual attire. She looks almost nervous as you stretch out, mentally preparing to hit the sack.

    Sunset moves over next to you and pulls up the sheets on her neatly made bed for both of you. Sunset looks to you a few times as she crawls into bed, but never for long enough to make actual eye contact. She looks like she wants to start some sort of conversation, but it dies in her throat every time. You don't really feel like talking anymore anyway. Your jaw hurt from smiling with her all day. You move over to flick the light off and crawl into bed next to her, not really thinking much of it.

    Sunset stirs a few times next to you, but in the complete darkness of the night, you assume she falls asleep pretty quickly. Once you settle in, you marvel at how immaculate her sheets actually are. The soft cotton felt like heaven against your skin, and the mattress sank in just enough for you to lose yourself in it. You have to ask Sunset where she got all this tomorrow, right after you enjoy it yourself.

    That is until Sunset rolls over and lays an arm over you in an unconscious daze. You aren't sure what to do at first; you've never even shared a bed with her before--barring one near-naked couch spooning session--and you aren't sure how well she'd react to you wrapped up with her in her own bed.

    Sunset's unconscious form wearily grabs at you, as if you're some teddy bear she's trying to drag towards her. You almost brush her off, turn over and forget about it, but then that smell hits you. Her scent of sunshine and peaches changes your mind. That sweet smell and her soft skin. If she woke up you could probably explain that you were just sleeping too. As slowly and carefully as you can manage, you give Sunset a grip on your back, and wrap your arms around her as well.

    As she snuggles into the crook of your neck, she lets out a tiny coo of delight. You smile at the sound, and sink into the feeling of being so close to your best friend. She's so soft and warm, you feel even more relaxed with her so close to you.

    You take a moment to reflect on just how great the girl in your arms is. She's never let you down in the entire time you've been friends.Every little joking advance and tease has been met with a playful laugh or at least was quickly forgiven.  She’s always been so sweet and helpful when it called for it, and joking and playful when it was appropriate. You can’t remember a time after she changed that you’ve ever seriously been mad at her. Even after high school the two have you have been as tight as ever, when all her other friends went their separate ways. She's so talented, smart, and nice, you feel almost jealous of the guy that she finally gives her heart to.

    Speaking of hearts, you can feel Sunset's beating intensely inside her chest. You'd have to remember to tell her about that in the morning too. That doesn't seem like a healthy resting heart rate at all. For now though, you enjoy the comfort of being wrapped in her arms, and quickly fall asleep in her embrace.