Nothing Really Matters

Chapter Five ~ It's A Hurdle We Can't Jump

Three weeks on from Jack accepting the job at James Winters yard and all is going well. I've been riding out Jack's horses on Thursdays and Fridays and although you'd miss his humour from the yard I know he's doing well elsewhere. It's the last Saturday of September and another race day. Unfortunately I'm not attending. Paddy offered but I passed up the oppurtunity to do more studying. Madness, I know! But I have been to about six since I came here. Jack and Peter were the usual jockeys on board four horses at the racecourse in Limerick. The yard was buzzing. Paddy asked me to prepare the bag that needed to be brought with the saddles and bridles etc. He says it was because I did such a good job last time but secretly I think it's because he doesn't want to do it. Slinging the bag into the back of the jeep I close the door. Jack was walking over to his car.

"Alright see you later then." I called over. He spun around instantly a smile on his face.

"You could come with me?" He gestered towards the passenger side of his Golf.

"Don't tempt me. I need to have some work done for college. I sometimes forget why I'm here. You're too much of a distraction Longwood." I tease although it's all true.

"But you love it Conway." He winked at me before sliding into the drivers seat.

I looked through the papers of Paddy's horses for about the hundreth time. It's all just statistics. Numbers. It doesn't really tell you what the horse is like. Horses are like humans. They all have different personalities and different strengths, and yes they can be generic but they can also be very unique. Deciding that I wouldn't learn anything by looking at paper I headed out to the yard. I went straight to the stall that I know holds a lot of personality. I looked at the name plate on the door. Imperial Dust. This horse is something special. Thoroughbred's are bred to race. He seems to know the ins and the outs of racing, like he's been here before. He goes about his business like any other horse but he has his own little quirks. The night before a race, a horse is fed their last big meal so that it will be digested come race time. When he gets his last big meal the night before he automatically knows he's racing the next day. He'll pace his stable, whinny at the passing stable hands and be a handleful for anyone who has to deal with him. Don't get me started on when he's in the box. He kicks on every turn without fail. Travel boots are rather expensive when it comes to Imperial Dust but that's who he is. That's what he does. I can read a horse no bother but how does that help my research? I inhale deeply before returning back to the house.

I said I'd do dinner tonight seeing as Jack would be home late so I made a light fish pie. I not only have to cook like a jockey but eat like one too. I suppose it'll benefit me in the end. Hearing a car pull up outside I took the fish pie out of the oven. In trudged the two jockeys with fowl faces on them.

"Jesus Jack! What happened to you?" I rushed over to him as soon as I saw the purply blue bruises on his face. I gently placed my two hands on either side of his battered face. He looked into my eyes and I could see he was in agony. "Well?" I pushed for an answer.

"He fell." Peter piped up while grabbing a plate and serving himself. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. He fell. Well if that doesn't sound familiar.

"Here, there's dinner on the counter. I'll check the press for panadol, it might ease it a little."

"It's fine." Jack played down the obvious pain he was going through.

"Yeah, and the grass is blue." I replied sarcastically, looking for pain relief tablets.

After dinner Peter went into town with a few friends and Jack and myself stayed at home. Jack was watching telly while I was watching Jack. The whole right side of his face was bruised. From his forehead to his chin. I couldn't comprehend how he managed to fall that way. Who did he fall off? I took out my phone and clicked into the racing post app. I checked his first race, 3rd. Okay so it wasn't that one. I checked his second race. 6th? He only rode in two races today. He never fell. So that leaves me to wonder what happened.