Save Me

Accidents Happen

            “Tanya, are you serious?” I questioned as I walked out from behind the dressing room curtain. “I look like I should be one of Barbie’s friends.”

            Tanya laughed. “I know. I just got it to see you try it on.”

            “Ha-ha.” I laughed sarcastically. “You’re such a comedian.”

            “Why thank you. Now here’s the one I wanted you to try on.” She stated handing me a black bag that held another dress.

            “Fingers crossed.” I stated before disappearing behind the curtain again. I heard Tanya laugh at my hesitation. I rolled my eyes, knowing she couldn’t see me, and unzipped the bag. My eyes fell on a beautiful dress that was a tannish pink. The top of the dress was rimmed with rhinestone gems and it was just breathtaking. Carefully taking the dress in my hands I slid into it slowly before getting a little help zipping it up. I pushed the black curtain aside before stepping out. “How does it look?” I did a little turn as Tanya gasped.

            “You look breathtaking.” She gushed with her hand over her mouth. “And you doubted my taste in dresses.”

            I laughed. “After the hot mess of a Barbie dress you picked out, you wonder why?”

            “Alright, alright that was just funny.” I rolled my eyes playfully as I went to takeoff the dress before Tanya paid for it. “Jace is so going to love you in that dress.” She commented as we exited the store and walked to her truck.

            “Jeez, when did it get so cold out?” I asked as I pulled my jacket tighter over my body.

            “I know I’m freezing!” She gasped as another frigid wind blew causing both of us to jog the rest of the way to the car.

            Pulling up to the barn, I looked out at the pastures that were currently deserted and I knew it was because the winter blankets probably weren’t ready to be used. “Thanks Tanya!” I yelled as I ran into the house to put my dress away before running into Jace. If he saw me, he’d probably try and get a little sneak peek and I wanted it to be a surprise.

            Sprinting up the stairs I quickly stored the dress in the closet before calmly walking down stairs. “So have you seen or talked to Jace today?” Tanya asked as she sat down to enjoy her freshly brewed tea.

            I shook my head and peered out the kitchen window. “Nope, I haven’t seen him or dad today.”

            “Their probably out checking the pasture fences and the trails before winter starts because your father probably doesn’t want to be outside for hours when it’s snowing.” She said flicking her wrist. “That or he’s checking out new horses for – ”

            She stopped midsentence causing me to raise an eyebrow. “Check out more horses for what?”

            “Me! Yea…me. I felt like Hitch needed a buddy since a few of our borders left. Yup, my horse.” She said again earning a incredulous look from me.

            “Alrighty then, I’m going out to check on Romance. Don’t go crazy or anything while I’m out.” I said giving her another weird look before walking out into the cold yet again. I shivered ducking my head as I walked to Romance’s barn. When I entered the barn, I was pleased to find that it was slightly warmer than outside. “Hey Romi.” I cooed as her ears twitched at the sound of my voice. I smiled and hugged her nose feeling her hot breath warm my frozen hands. “Thanks girl.” I said as I smile. Romance looked at me and I knew exactly what she was thinking. “It’s so damn cold out there, but you’re worth it.” I stated picking up her tack from its rack next to her stall before tacking her up. She stood patiently as I fastened the girth and put her bridle on. Grabbing the reins in my hand, I opened the stall door and lead her out of the barn.

            I found that the wind had died down a bit, but there was still a slight chill. I continued to walk on towards the ring when a soft wind blew through my ponytail. I shivered a little before actually getting into the ring and onto Romance’s back. Heaving myself onto the saddle, I held Romance in the center of the ring before letting her walk out by the fence. Letting her stretch her legs and warm up her muscles a bit, I asked her to trot. When I gently squeezed her sides, she picked up her pace before she got her gait up into a trot. “Good girl.” I cooed as I patted her neck for a good transition.

            Feeling like Romance was ready to pick up the pace a little bit, I asked for a canter. Applying more pressure to her sides, I got a transition right on demand. Patting her neck again, I led her around the ring once before eyeing a jump that was set up from one of Tanya’s earlier lessons. Giving Romance the inside rein, I led her off the fence and towards the jump. She aligned herself perfectly in the center of the jump and I could feel the anticipation building at the thought of jumping.

            Approaching the jump, I felt Romance speed up just slightly. Sitting deeper into my saddle to slow her down, I pulled back on the reins. “Whoa girl,” I said as she picked up more speed. We were just feet away from the jump before I felt her jolt forward. I felt Romance’s body lean far too forward. I felt my body being hurled to the ground before hearing the sound of wood hitting wood. We didn’t make the jump.

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Hey guys! So I thought that it would be a good idea to post this before break ends. I go back to school tomorrow and I figured that I would be busy this upcoming week studying for midterms. So hopefully you like this little chapter! I got the inspiration for this one from my last horseback riding lesson on Sunday. I got thrown off haha. It'll happen. 

Also, I wasn’t sure if skipping to Friday (homecoming) would be a good idea or not. Let me know your thoughts! - Hayley