1000 Ships, 1000 oneshots, 1000 followers

*Shorange

Shore and Orange had been friends since the beginning of time. Well, that was probably a bit of an exaggeration if Kelp was being honest, but Ander had agreed with him, so it was probably factual. The two dragons were inseparable, and had been for longer than either of them could remember. Kelp loved the friendship between the two of them- it was always nice to have friends.  But then, at one of the Rainforests' many fiestas, Kelp had caught something.

Orange was dancing with a bunch of other dragons, laughing and having a blast, as everyone usually did. But Shore wasn't dancing with her.

No, he was standing at the edge of the dance floor, watching her with a look Kelp recognized all too well. A longing, adoring gaze that had Kelp forcing back a smile. He should've known that this would happen sooner or later. 

He walked over to Shore as his son kept staring at Orange, and Orange, naturally, remained entirely oblivious.

"So how screwed are you?" Kelp asked, snapping Shore out of his trance.

"What?" Shore questioned, confused. "What are you talking about?" Kelp nodded towards Orange.

"I think you know exactly what I'm talking about."

"No, I don't." Kelp rolled his eyes, smirking at the thought of breaking the news to him.

"You like Orange." Shore's eyes widened and his jaw hit the floor. 

"NO I DON'T!!!" He yelled, loud enough that a few dragons turned to look at him. His face went red and he lowered his voice to a hiss. "No I don't!" Kelp tried not to laugh.

"Oh, you are head over heels already, I'm afraid. I can tell."

"Orange is my friend," Shore said defensively. "Nothing more."

"Uh huh. Then why were you watching her like that?"

"She's my best friend- I can't watch her have fun without dragons assuming I like her?"

"Of course you can, but you can't look at her like THAT and have dragons assume you don't like her."

"I have no idea what 'looking at her like THAT' is supposed to mean." Kelp stifled a laugh.

"You just have this look when you were watching her. Like she's some fascinating gem that only you know about."

"That's gross." 

"It's true."

"I don't look at her like that!"

"Oh, yes you do." Shore was getting more defensive.

"Well how would you know?" He demanded.

"Because," Kelp smirked. "It's the same dewy eyed look I give your mother. I know it when I see it."

"EW." Kelp started to laugh.

"You just have to accept it, Shore. You like Orange."

"Of course I like Orange, but NOT LIKE THAT!"

"Why not?"

"What do you mean, why not? She's my best friend!"

"Exactly. That's how it starts sometimes." Shore clamped his talons over his ears.

"I'm not listening to this anymore. You are SO WRONG. Just because Orange is nice, funny, my best friend, and super cute DOESN'T MEAN I LIKE HER as anything more than a friend."

"Uh huh. Hey Shore?"

"What?"

"How many of your friends have you ever called 'super cute?'" Shore paused, lowering his talons as a look of horror passed over his face.

"Oh moons no." Kelp grinned.

"There it is."

"But- But I CAN'T LIKE HER!"

"Why not?"

"Because she's my best friend! She'll never want to date me! IT'll ruin our friendship!" Kelp shrugged.

"Sometimes it does, I'll be honest. But other times? She says she likes you back and then you're both happy as can be. You can't let the fear of failure stop you."

"You're only saying that because you got lucky and Mother liked you back."

"No, actually, your mother and I were a little different..." Kelp admitted. "But I suggest you talk to Rainkeeper. He fell in love with his best friend, and he's happy as can be." The look of horror returned.

"NO. NONONO- It's ONE thing to say I LIKE Orange, but it's COMPLETELY DIFFERENT  to say I LOVE her. I am NOT in love with her. That's disgusting. Will NEVER happen."

"We'll see." Shore stumbled for a response.

"I-I mean...." He looked back out onto the dance floor, where Orange was still laughing and spinning around. "I don't know if I like her like that."

"Well, you've got all the time in the world to figure it out," Kelp insisted. "But if you do decide that you love her, you have to tell her."

"WHY?"

"Because she deserves to know, and you deserve to know her feelings in return."

"That is the most terrifying idea I've ever heard."

"Trust me, there are scarier things."

"Like WHAT?" Kelp raised an eyebrow.

"Just be glad you won't have to ask Deathbringer for permission to date her." Shore stared.

"How are you still alive?"

"Believe me Shore, I ask myself that question every single day." He smirked. "Good luck with Orange." He walked away, sending Shore into turmoil.

Did he like Orange as more than just a friend? The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. He always wanted to hang out with her more than anyone else, but he thought that was just apart of them being best friends. But now that he thought about it....

He'd never considered the idea of kissing her before, but now he did, and he found that he didn't hate the idea. The idea of kissing any of his other friends made him want to puke in disgust, but with Orange.....

She was very pretty. Shore knew that, even if other dragons never acknowledged it. There was just something about the way the sun hit her scales. And the way she was dancing and the sound of her laugh....

Shore swore under his breath, realizing that his father was completely right.

He was in love with Orange.

And, as per usual, Ander popped up at that moment, as if sensing he'd had a major mental breakthrough.

"I'll save you the trouble of sleepless nights that the rest of the universes suffer," Ander declared. "She likes you back. Twice as much as you like her right now, actually. She's just better at hiding it. Make you feel better?" Shore covered his face with his talons and groaned. 

"NO." He whined. "Somehow that's WORSE."

"Wow. You are stupid." Shore let out a pained screech, because now there was no excuse.

He'd have to tell Orange how he felt at some point.

"Tell her now," Ander urged.

"NO." Shore decided. "No. I'll wait several years, and tell her on her deathbed." Ander stared at him.

"....you're lucky that'll work." She muttered, wandering away.

Shore had no idea what that meant, but he didn't care. The best way to avoid discussing his feelings was to never speak of them again, and just pine from afar. Orange smiled at him from the dance floor, and his heart melted.

Or.... maybe it was a bad idea to hide his feelings....

Orange ran over and pulled him onto the dance floor, and Shore's worries faded away.

He'd figure out the emotion stuff later. Right now, all he needed, and all he had, was her.

It was always her, after all.