The cottage was still wrapped in early-morning hush, just before the sun had fully risen and Ponyville’s streets began to stir. Outside, birds were only beginning to stretch their wings, and dew clung to the petals of the window box flowers like little diamonds

Inside, everything was calm — save for the soft shuffle of hooves on the wooden floorboards and the faint clink of a teacup being set down in the kitchen. Doctor Stable moved through the routine like clockwork: glasses cleaned, saddlebag packed, scarf knotted neatly at his neck. He always left early to prep charts and boil fresh herbal water at the clinic

But no matter how early he rose, how much work waited, or how quiet the house was — he never left without one small ritual

He stepped back into the bedroom where you still lay beneath the covers, curled in the warm nest of your shared bed. The soft rise and fall of your chest told him you were deep in sleep, your mane tousled across the pillow like a watercolor wash. You looked peaceful. Dreaming, maybe

Doctor Stable smiled

He padded closer, hooves quiet on the rug, and leaned in gently. Careful not to wake you, he lowered his muzzle to the crown of your mane — right where it parted naturally — and pressed a soft, lingering kiss there. His breath brushed your fur like morning breeze through lavender

“I love you,” he whispered, like a promise. Like something sacred. Even if you couldn’t hear it

Especially if you couldn’t

He lingered for a moment longer, letting his nose rest just beside your ear, taking in the warmth of your scent and the quiet of the room you’d built together. Then, with a final nuzzle and a flick of his tail, he turned and trotted toward the door, his hoofsteps fading softly behind him

And though the day ahead would be long, filled with patients and charts and the familiar buzz of clinic life — it always started with that kiss

Because no matter how many ponies he cared for, you were the one he never stopped loving. The one he always came home to. And the one he’d kiss every morning for the rest of his life