>Be an extremely long day of training
>Got reamed out by the drill instructor again for...don't even remember
>Made me do lap after lap around the air course
>When I finished the laps he chased me down to the ground
>Yelling the entire way
>Every muscle in my wings ache
>Accidentally say that aloud instead of think it
>Sergeant jerkface makes me do pushups in the mud for another half hour
>Miss dinner, covered in mud, cold and tired
>Just want to have a shower and go to sleep
>Get to my room, push the door open
>"Hey Buddy!"
>I grumble something incoherently
>His happy look changes immediately to concerned when he sees the condition I'm in
>"Oh shoot...what happened?"
>He trots over in a hurry
>Nuzzles my neck despite the mud and my disheveled appearance
>Smile very weakly and give him a wing-hug
"Stonehoof was pissed today..."
>He nods and pulls me for a kiss
>I gently push him away
"I need a long shower and...I don't think I can do that stuff tonight."
>He nods, a little disappointment on his face but he understands
>Still teases me with that round butt of his
>But I'm in way too much pain to properly enjoy it
>When he turns around, his seductive smirk fades into worry
>I don't say anything else, just zombie to the shower and turn on the water
>The hot water...oh sweet Celestia's royal rump it feels good
>I don't even scrub for a few minutes
>Just stand there and let it soak every inch of my body
>So relaxed I don't even hear the door creek open
>Or the sounds of slow, steady hoofclops to the shower
>I do catch the shower curtain pull open though
>There's my roommate
>With his big shower basket of soaps, brushes, shampoos the works in his mouth
>Before I can say anything I see Shining Armor's horn light
>And a scrubbing brush float to my back and begin its work
>A quiet moan escapes my lips and my wings go limp
>More of his brushes and soaps begin to levitate around me
>Bars of soap scrub the mud from my hooves and wings
>My mane and tail are covered with shampoo
>I feel it lather on its own, his magic ruffling and caressing my hair
>My eyes close and my knees buckle a little
>He must have seen this because the next thing I feel is his body next to mine
>And his gentle nuzzling against my neck
>"Just relax, buddy, I'll take care of you tonight"
>I nod weakly and feel his hooves begin to massage my back muscles
>All while he keeps his magic focused on all the bath supplies
>It's a miracle I didn't collapse right then and there in the shower
>Eventually its just his hooves and my back
>My mane is cleaner than it has been in days, my fur soaked but shiny
>But the water is still steaming hot and his hooves find every knot and tense muscle in my back
>I can do nothing but stand there and enjoy every second
>He begins to go past my flanks for something a little more frisky but I shake my head
>It's not him, we've been having sex every night since that first time
>But I'm too spent, too tired and now far too relaxed to think about doing that
>He understands and slides his hooves off me
>His magic turns off the water and I feel more than one towel float around my body
>One wraps my mane up over my head
>I feel his body slide along mine as he comes back for another nuzzle
>I turn slightly and give him that kiss he wanted earlier
>It's the least I can do...especially after all this
>Its a long, slow kiss, the kind you usually save for after a long romp in the bedroom
>But its the best I can do right now
>As our lips part, he sees just how exhausted I still am
>My eyes barely staying open, my legs still quite wobbly
"Thanks, pal...I really needed that"
>He smiles and nods, giving me a gentle shove with his shoulders to leave the bathroom and walk with him
>I wrap a damp wing over his back and comply
>He's all smiles the entire way, telling me a bit about what he did when his day ended
>I tried to listen but I was in a haze
>Just wanted to get to my bed and...
>....oh son of a camel...
>My bed was nothing but a mattress
>I remembered right then, I was supposed to pick up my laundry on my way back from training
>Back when training was over at 1600, not three hours past sunset
"...I...don't have sheets...."
>I'd never admit it
>Not even to Spitfire
>But I was a second from crying
>It would have been a stress cry, ya know the kind you get when after a long hard day full of crap
>Then you drop a glass or lose something
>But before I could
>Shining Armor motioned to his bed
>It was the same size as mine, but somehow it always looked fluffier and nicer
>Freakin' unicorns...
>Freakin' unicorns dating princesses letting them sneak all kinds of nice stuff into basic
>But then again, after the shower I just had with all his products...
>"You can share mine"
>He says it without a hint of seduction or slyness
>Just a genuine concern for his friend, partner and occasional fuck buddy
>We've been in the same bed before but it was more out of necessity
>Or sheer tiredness causing us to end up that way
>Never a gesture of affection or anything like that
>I blinked a few times
>Come on, Soarin' when did you become an emotional pegasus?
>You're the best flier here, someday the best in the world!
>Get it together!
>"I'll sleep anyway you like, I'm not really-"
"Thanks, I think I'll take you up on it"
>Shining Armor smiles a little wider
>He's always had a thing for taking care of the other ponies in our squad
>Seen it a bunch, first time I've been on the receiving end
>It's...really nice
>I blink a few times again
>Damned soap must be in my eyes...
>His horn glows softly and the down comforter pulls back along with the flannel sheets
>Holy hell it looks so soft...
>"Get comfortable, buddy. I'll work with whatever you leave me"
>He chuckles a little as I take my wing off his back and move toward the bed
>On a normal day I would have thrown myself in that bed
>But I'm in a lot of pain so its more like a slow crawl
>I pull my upper body and my back legs wobble again when I try to get the rest of myself in
>His magic lifts up my rear and gently plops me in
>I manage a small laugh but it turns into a low groan as I sink into his bed
>He must have a featherbed under his sheets or something because clouds aren't this soft
>There's no way this is the same twin piece of junk I sleep on every night...
>I lay on my side, my legs twitching slightly as they're finally relieved of duty
>The rest of me turns to instant mush
>My eyes get heavy by the second
>"Comfy?"
>I nod really slowly
>I'm facing away but I know he's smiling again
>The bed begins to creek as he gets in
>Guess there is a mattress under here somewhere...
>I'm too sleepy to think about it anymore
>Or about him draping a hoof over my body
>And pulling my limp body against his
>He's nearly as plush as the bed beneath me
>Smells really nice too
>He nuzzles my neck as his magic pulls the sheets and comforter over us
>I mumble something but even I can't make out what I said
>His covers are so warm...
>So's his body
>I find the energy to wiggle back against him
>I push back a little more, his back legs slipping around my hips
>He's so warm...
>My breathing is getting slower
>But I feel him swallow and shift a little
>I would have wondered why but the answer is already poking me in the small of my back
>Can never spoon for very long no matter how tired you are
>He sleepily mumbles and apology but I shhhh him
>He chuckles again and kisses the back of my ear
>I'd love it to go further but I couldn't move if I tried
>He strokes my mane with his hoof
>Whispers something but I can't make it out
>For the first time tonight I'm fighting sleep
>But it's winning
>Come on just
>Five more minutes
>Let me enjoy this a little more...
>I push against him more, despite the awkward position, just to feel his soft, slightly chubby body against mine
>He lets me, nuzzling my neck and tightening his hoof around my chest
>I can't stop myself from yawning
>Just...five more...minutes...
>I must have said that cause he replied
>"Just go to sleep, hon"
>I nod, barely, wrapping my hoof around his
>Squeezing his leg with what little energy I had left
>He returns the squeeze
>My legs go completely limp
>Even my wings loosen from around my sides
>I feel my breathing slow and...
>The last thing I remember
>Was him whispering
>"Sweet dreams, Soarin'"