Fluttershy was no stranger to bad days. In fact, she couldn't remember the last time she had a good one. Constant feelings of nervousness and fear followed her like a looming cloud everywhere she went- especially around other people.

   Fluttershy despised crowds and preferred to be in quiet, calm environments. If there was an option for her to be by herself instead, she'd take it in a heartbeat. She didn't know what it was about people that made her feel anxious, but all she knew was that she preferred not to be around them.

   This didn't mean that Fluttershy didn't have friends. She actually had six wonderful friends, Sunset Shimmer, Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash. This was impressive for a girl who claimed to have general anxiety and social anxiety. She was close to all of them, but Rainbow Dash had always been special to her. This was because they had been friends since elementary school.

   However, despite this, it didn't change the fact that Fluttershy wasn't able to shake those fears. Her friends were used to her constant panic attacks and Fluttershy was relieved that they were extremely supportive.

   Now Fluttershy was locked in a bathroom stall, hugging her knees and trying to stop sobbing. Why am I like this?, Fluttershy thought. Everyone must think I'm so pathetic for running off and crying all the time.

   Fluttershy heard footsteps outside of the stall and saw six familiar pairs of shoes standing at the door of the stall.

   There was a gentle knock. Sunset Shimmer spoke to her, "Fluttershy, are you okay?"

   Fluttershy whimpered. "No. Just go back to class without me. I won't be out for awhile."

   "But sugarcube, we wouldn't wanna leave ya alone," Applejack protested. "We're just concerned, that's all."

   "I know you are and I appreciate that, but I want to be alone," Fluttershy told them. "I like the quiet. I like the calm. I like being alone where there's no people around."

   Sunset Shimmer sighed. "Alright, Fluttershy, but we'll be here whenever you need us."

   "Right," Pinkie Pie agreed. "If you need us, just give us a holler. Or... er... a whisper. Whatever feels right to you."

   She saw five pairs of shoes leave the room, but one pair that stayed at the door. Fluttershy sighed. She knew they belonged to Rainbow Dash. She watched as the set of blue tennis shoes with red laces paced the ground in front of her.

   Finally, Fluttershy knew that she needed to speak up. She sighed. "Rainbow Dash, could you please go now?"

   Rainbow Dash sighed and stopped pacing. "Sorry, Flutters. I just... want to understand. I don't know what makes you so scared all the time and... I'd just like to be able to know why you run off so much... if it's not too personal, I mean."

   Reluctantly, Fluttershy rose from the ground and made her way over to the stall door. She unlocked it and invited Rainbow Dash inside. Once Rainbow Dash came inside the stall, she locked it once more.

   As Fluttershy sat back down, Rainbow Dash took the spot beside her.

   "I mean, you didn't seem to be so frightened in elementary," Rainbow Dash said. "I mean... yeah, you were painfully shy, but not like... this."

   The two friends sat in silence for a moment. Fluttershy was grateful that Rainbow Dash was letting her take her time and not seeming to pry for answers. She found it slightly strange since she liked secrets and always tried to discover what they were, but it was different with Fluttershy.

   Finally, Fluttershy took a deep breath and replied to her, "Rainbow Dash... do you ever feel like... you're trapped when you're around other people?"

   Rainbow Dash shook her head, but continued to listen.

   "It's not a good feeling," Fluttershy continued. "It feels like... everybody is staring at me and silently judging me all the time. No matter what I do, it feels like everybody hates me."

   "But that's not true!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

   Fluttershy flinched at the sudden volume and Rainbow Dash veered back in embarrassment. "Sorry. I get it. That's... just how you feel, right?"

   Fluttershy nodded. "Yeah. But that's why I'm so scared of interacting with people at certain times... because I always think of the worst case scenario and then it begins to feel like the only thing that can possibly happen."

   Rainbow Dash sighed. "That sounds like it'd be hard."

   "It is," Fluttershy said. Tears threatened to spill down her face again. "And the thing is... when I'm in bed at night, the worrying doesn't stop just because I'm alone. It seems like I have to worry about everything. My friends and family too. Sometimes when my parents don't pick up the phone, I panic. When some of you girls don't answer your phones, I panic. And sometimes, I worry that my friends and family don't really like me."

   "Really?" Rainbow Dash asked.

   Fluttershy nodded. "I feel like I'm just not worth it sometimes. I'm always anxious and scared of everything and I don't like myself."

   Rainbow Dash couldn't believe what she was hearing. Fluttershy didn't like herself. But she liked Fluttershy. There was a lot to love about Fluttershy. She was kind, she was caring, and she always tried her best to make sure her friends felt loved. Rainbow Dash began to feel bad that they hadn't done the same for her.

   "Why don't you like yourself?" Rainbow Dash asked her, sadly. "If it means anything... I think you're awesome."

   Fluttershy barely even showed a smile. "I'm not awesome. I'm... I'm just going to let everybody down!"

   Fluttershy buried her face in her knees and began to sob. Rainbow Dash was stunned. She didn't even know Fluttershy had been suffering this much. She knew that Fluttershy always ran to the same stall in the bathroom when she had a panic attack, but she didn't know that she sat in silence and feared that everybody hated her.

   Rainbow Dash thought that anxiety only meant being afraid of certain things. She didn't know it meant living in a world where it felt like everyone was constantly judging you and things were always about to go wrong around you.

   Rainbow Dash wanted to place a comforting hand on Fluttershy's shoulder, but she decided against it. She didn't want to face the possibility of Fluttershy getting even more upset.

   Rainbow Dash just sat beside Fluttershy, feeling guilty and hopeless until the crying began to subside. Once Fluttershy looked up to see Rainbow Dash, Rainbow Dash gave her a broken smile. "I... I'm sorry. I thought we'd been there for you, but... it seems like we weren't."

   "No, you're wonderful friends and you're doing all you can," Fluttershy said. "It's me who's the hopeless one."

   "Fluttershy, you are not hopeless and you are not a burden," Rainbow Dash told her. "And we're sorry if we made you feel like you're burdening us in any way, but you're our best friend." She sighed. "Flutters, I want to help. How can I help?"

   Fluttershy put her head on Rainbow Dash's shoulder. "I don't know. But... you sitting with me was kinda nice."

   Fluttershy seemed to be a lot more calm than she was and Rainbow Dash started to feel relieved. But Rainbow Dash still wanted to do more. Feeling like there was nothing she could do to help Fluttershy was one of the worst feelings in the world. 

(A/N: Oh, wow. This one hits closer to home than the anorexia story I'm writing. I think it's because I have general anxiety too and I understand at least a part of Fluttershy's struggle. That's because I only have general anxiety and not social anxiety. But wow, does it make your life a living hell. I think that's why I wanted to write a story about overcoming it. I like seeing people triumph over something that's difficult to overcome and this is a journey I feel like I can go on as well. 

Also, I hope you like the story so far. I don't want to say enjoy, cause this was one depressing chapter to kick the story off with, but I do hope you stick around for the journey! Thank you for reading! <3)