Lost Loyalty

Chapter Eighteen

Applejack's P.O.V
We've been waiting five hours...no update on Dash. We're all worried sick, I never guessed she was so miserable that she'd resort to this. Now I wonder how I missed the truth. I thought I was good at seeing it... clearly not. I'm in the dark on why Dash left a letter for Spitfire but I'm not going to ask her. There's more important things to worry about. One of my closest friends might not make it another day. The thought hurts, making an aching pain in my heart. I want her back. I need her back. I need to apologise for hurting her.

A doctor finally comes out. We all look up expectantly.
"She's alive and in a stable condition but won't wake up for a few days- maybe a week." he tells us. Must be pretty bad if it took so long.
"Can we see her?" I ask. He nods and leads us to her room. I feel tears appear in my eyes, a lot of them. She looks so... vulnerable. She looks like she's lost weight...a lot of it. Her arm, matchstick thin, is littered with cuts. Some deep and clear. Some faint, as if drawn with pencil. There's an oxygen mask over her face and her chest rises and falls slowly. There's a heart monitor over her chest, showing she's still alive. Thankfully. Her hair is limp and lifeless. The shadows under her eyes are one of her most potent features now. In sleep she has a slight frown, as if she's dreaming about being pricked by a pin.

I feel terrible. She's changed so much. I thought it was only emotional but it's physical as well. I bite my lip. Sugarcube... why didn't you tell us how we were making you feel? I hear Fluttershy's sad whimper and hug her.
"She'll get ok." I whisper. "Dash is a fighter."
"She was...but she was willing to...you know. What if she tries again?" Fluttershy asks. I don't know how to answer...because that's my fear too.