Finished in the kitchen, River climbed up to his room and with good intentions, spread his schoolbooks out on his mattress and his notebook on his lap. He hadn’t decided yet whether to stay in school or not; although if he did quit, he definitely did not plan to work for his father. He would see how he did by the end of the quarter. If he could pass his exams; well maybe…for João’s sake. As he looked down at his page, the throbbing headache that had abated while working at the stable now returned. His eyelids drooped as he tried to read, and he fell asleep.
*****
“Hey, gay cousin,” Laila spoke softly as she entered his room, jolting him back to wakefulness. Storm thumped her tail in greeting but didn’t even raise her head, recognizing the visitor as welcome.
“Hi, not girlfriend,” River smiled, very pleased she had come.
Laila plopped down next to him and leaned over for a kiss. “What are you doing?” she asked, picking up his notebook where it had fallen from his lap with his notes spilling out.
“Trying to do homework; I never get very far,” he answered grimly.
“I’m not surprised,” she murmured as she skimmed a page of his history notes, most of which were unreadable and didn’t make sense. “The light is horrible in here.” She flipped through a few more pages; his math problems and English notes. “You need help. Come on, we’re going somewhere where the light is decent. I’ve got a car.”
“Right now?” River asked, touching her shoulder.
“Well, maybe in a little bit.” She let him pull her down onto the mattress, pushing the books aside.
*****
After the disastrous prom, Sierra thought Luke would no longer have an interest in her. So she was surprised when he called her Sunday evening to ask how she was feeling.
“Pretty bad this morning,” Sierra told him, “but I’m better now.”
“I’m so sorry,” he apologized again. “I just finished talking to Justin. I told him I didn’t appreciate the dirty trick he pulled on you. He says he’s really sorry.”
“He should be,” she said, however she didn’t believe that Justin was sorry.
Luke laughed. “I think he’s learned his lesson. While he was spiking other people’s drinks he was doing the same to his own. He said when he got home he spent the night puking in the bathroom.” He laughed again.
Sierra didn’t find that funny; a fourteen-year-old drinking so much he was sick all night. She seriously doubted Justin had learned any kind of a lesson; especially if his friends all thought it was funny.
Over the next few weeks, Luke sought her out at school, called her in the evenings, and asked several times if she would stay for his JV games. He even asked her to the next school dance. But Sierra declined all his invitations. Her interest in Luke had simply died after the prom. She still liked him and considered him a friend, but his easy acceptance of what his friend had done to her and his desire to cover it up, somehow left her feeling devalued. The idea of being his girlfriend no longer appealed, and she definitely did not want him to kiss her again. Luke finally gave up, and Katrina told Sierra he had taken another girl to the school dance.
The time at the stable more than compensated for the loss of a boyfriend. River was consistently in a good mood; really the happiest Sierra had ever seen him, and working with him was the best it had ever been. He helped her with Fiel every time she rode him in the arena and she felt like she was back on track in developing her ability to communicate not only with Fiel, but with the other horses she rode as well. They spent time every day with Corazón; grooming, feeding him treats, and just being around him as they hand-grazed him. Soon, the black horse seemed as much at ease with Sierra as with River.
*****
“Allison,” Sierra said a few weeks after the prom. “Why don’t you have your mom drive you to Pegasus after school? Then you can apologize to River and you can meet Fiel.”
“Good idea,” Allison agreed. Even though Sierra and River had reconciled, Allison still felt she needed to apologize to him, but they never saw him at school.
The next day, Allison and her mother drove into the stable yard just as Sierra came back from trail riding Silver, her assigned horse that day. Sierra waved and Allison got out of the car to walk with her as she led Silver into the crosstie bay.
“What a beautiful horse,” Allison exclaimed. “Is this Fiel?”
“No, this is Silver, Gloria’s horse. He’s a Dutch warmblood, a different breed than Fiel, and he’s also much taller,” Sierra explained.
Allison timidly came forward to touch Silver on his nose and neck. “He’s so soft and silky,” she said in surprise. Silver snorted, spraying wetness from his nose and Allison jumped back with a small screech. “He doesn’t like me!”
“He just snorted,” Sierra laughed. “They do that a lot after a ride and it’s a sign he’s relaxed.”
Sierra finished grooming Silver and then led him to his stall with Allison following. They passed the indoor arena where River was working Pendragon (nicknamed Penny), a warmblood bay gelding in training with Tess for dressage. At that moment, River rounded the upper corner of the arena and moved Penny into a left half pass to the center of the arena and then right half pass back to the rail. Penny arched his head gracefully as he moved laterally with legs crossing, his tail swishing rhythmically. On the rail with invisible signals, River moved him around the arena in medium trot, and then practiced the half passes again.
“Unbelievable,” Allison breathed out on a sigh as she watched wide-eyed.
“Stay here and watch while I put Silver away.” Sierra took Silver to his stall and then joined Allison back at the rail, her friend still mesmerized watching the horse and his rider.
River had transitioned up into canter and was riding figure eights with a flying lead change in the center of the figure. Sierra studied River intently, trying to detect when he signaled Penny to change the lead, but whatever communication River gave remained invisible to her eyes. He brought Penny from canter to walk and gave the reins, allowing the horse to stretch his head forward and low. Penny snorted, his ears flopping; a relaxed, happy horse. River reached down and petted him on both sides of his neck.
“I had no idea,” Allison breathed out. “That was incredibly beautiful.” She impulsively clapped her hands in appreciative applause.
River glanced at the girls and a frown darkened his expression when he noticed Allison.
“Oh dear,” Allison said. “I probably shouldn’t have made so much noise.”
“No, it’s fine; that’s just River. Come on.” Sierra pulled her away. “He’s going to let Penny stretch and cool down; then he’ll bring him to the crossties and you can talk to him there.”
“What are you doing here?” River spoke sharply to Allison as he passed the girls, leading Penny into the crossties.
“River,” Allison began. “I’m here to say I’m sorry and I was wrong for giving you test answers.”
River finished pulling off the saddle and pad and then unfastened the splint boots on Penny’s legs before he finally responded by turning to glare at Allison again. “Yes, you were,” he confirmed.
“Please,” she said again. “I’m sorry.”
River, if you make her beg, I’ll…Sierra thought but really didn’t know what she would do.
River studied Allison, as if judging her sincerity. Then much to Sierra’s relief, he nodded and said, “Okay.”
“Can we be friends?” Allison asked.
“Why do you want to be friends?” River picked up a brush and began grooming Penny.
“Because you’re Sierra’s friend. You’re very important to her.”
“Okay, fine,” he answered, though begrudgingly. He looked over at Sierra and when he saw the relieved look on her face, he softened his expression and allowed his mouth to slightly turn up into a weak smile.
And that was that; apology accepted.
Allison gushed to him about his fantastic ride; how much she admired him on
the horse and that everything Sierra had told her didn’t even come close to the reality of such beauty. She trailed after River and Sierra as they finished chores, and barraged him with questions. When River decided her inquiries were genuine, he lightened his attitude and willingly answered and even volunteered information, always at his most verbal when discussing horses.
“You know, I could help you with homework. It wouldn’t be cheating,” Allison offered just before saying goodbye.
“No thanks,” River said abruptly.
*****
River would never have accepted help with his homework from Allison, but he did find it a bit ironic that she had offered her help when he truly didn’t need it. The night Laila had looked over his disastrous notes she had stepped into the role of his tutor. She had her own car now, and two to three nights a week she came up to his room, allowing him to pull her willingly into his arms and onto his mattress where they entwined eagerly together in insatiable, youthful lust. Then she drove him to a coffee shop near the university that had good lighting and an atmosphere conducive to studying.
Tonight they sat side by side at a table with River’s books and papers spread out on its surface amidst coffee cups and napkins. Four other tables were occupied by college students plinking away on laptops, blending in with soft, unobtrusive music in the background.
“River, you are really irritating me,” Laila said in exasperation. “Answer the question.” She repeated the question, speaking slow and distinct as if to a child. “The first battle of the American Revolution took place where?”
“I don’t…”
Laila made a noise meaning for him to stop, and shoved his shoulder. River had answered ‘I don’t know’, so many times that she had devised a rule. “Either you use that underused muscle between your ears and come up with an answer or say, ‘I’ll look it up’, or ‘let me research that’. No more ‘I don’t knows’.”
River leaned forward with a groan, grabbing his head. “Bunker Hill,” he answered.
“You’re guessing and that’s as bad as ‘I don’t know’. River, you just wrote the answer; it’s in your homework.”
River sighed and sat up straighter. “I’ll look it up,” he said in resignation and shuffled through his homework answers.
Laila pressed her lips tight together, waiting.
“The battle of Lexington and Concord,” he announced, finding where he had written the answer.
“And the date?”
“April 19, 1775,” he read off his paper.
“Correct. I know Mr. Kennedy; he’s a fair teacher. All the questions on his tests are in your homework. All you have to do is study your homework answers. I’m going to ask you these same questions the night before your test, okay?”
“Okay,” he replied submissively.
“Good; I think you’ve done enough for tonight.”
River breathed out in relief and gathered up his books and papers. His brain felt strained from Laila’s aggressive coaching, but he also felt proud of what he had accomplished tonight, even though it had taken over three hours. For the first time in his life, he was consistently completing all his homework assignments.
“Why does Steve say you’re gay?” Laila asked, switching from homework topics and leaning back in her chair.
“I don’t know,” he replied, zipping up his backpack.
“River,” she said in an exasperated tone and punched playfully at his shoulder again.
“Ouch, you’re bruising me, and that’s not a homework question so it doesn’t count,” he defended himself, laughing.
“All questions count…so?”
“Let me think for a minute.” He dropped his backpack onto the floor and took a sip from the dregs of his coffee cup. Her eyes that he found so startlingly green, watched him impishly from the blackness surrounding them. “Probably because I like horses.”
“So?”
“And the way I ride.”
“How is that?”
River thought for several minutes, finding it difficult to explain. “It might be different if I lived on the east coast or in Europe, but if guys around here like horses at all, it’s usually because they want to be cowboys.”
Laila nodded, waiting for more.
“I ride the way my mother taught me; dressage and jumping, and it’s how I want to ride.”
“Why do you want to ride like your mother instead of like a cowboy?”
“I don’t…” he began but Laila scowled and raised her hand as if to punch him again. He laughed, pulling away defensively. “It’s just better.”
“That is not a satisfactory answer.”
“Really, I don’t…”
She kicked him under the table.
Laughing, River surrounded her with his arms and kissed her to stop her questioning.
Laila kissed him back enthusiastically, but when they had to stop for air, she persisted, “River, I want to know.”
With a deep sigh, but keeping his arms around her, River said, “Let me think.” He fingered the soft ends of her hair at the nape of her neck, the parts not caught up in her stiffly gelled, spiky hair. Closing his eyes, he thought about the times he spent on a horse’s back. How could he explain how it made him feel? How could he put into words the awe he felt when a twelve hundred pound animal did what he asked through just the slightest shift of his weight or touch of leg or hand? No one would believe that sometimes he did nothing at all; just thought what he wanted and the horse knew. He didn’t understand it himself, but it was the most incredible feeling of harmony and trust and always filled his soul with a sense of respect and love for his mount. It wasn’t just riding either. The very sight of a horse or being near one filled him with calmness and a sense of rightness that he never felt anywhere else. He didn’t know how to describe all this to Laila.
“Okay, the way I ride, I have to sort of think like a horse,” he explained. “I have to somehow let him know I won’t hurt him and that what we can do together is fun. It means I have to be aware of how my horse is feeling when I ride. If he’s a little tired or sore, I have to be easy on him. If he’s frightened I have to be patient with him. It’s not a very macho way to ride, but I like how I feel when I get it right.”
Laila leaned back in his arms and brought her hands up to the sides of his face. Looking deep into his eyes, she kissed him softly on his lips. “That’s beautiful,” she said.
*****
Sierra thought the re-establishment of their friendship was the main reason for River’s good moods. Then one day she discovered there might be another reason.
She was helping River and Manuel bring horses in for the night when a car drove up and a strange girl stepped out, looking around. Strange not only because Sierra did not know her, but her appearance was anything but normal. Sierra’s first impression was of someone trying to look like a vampire. The girl’s skin was pasty white and she had thick black eye make-up and spiky dyed black hair with a red and blue streak. She wore a black overcoat hugged tightly around her, its hem skimming the top of knee-high black boots. Light glinted off multiple piercings in her ears and on her face. The coat pulled tightly across her chest emphasized her well-developed shape.
The girl looked around in distaste and shivered. When she caught sight of Sierra gawking at her she called out, “Is River here?”
Just then River emerged from the lane leading Moose and when he saw the girl, he smiled and raised a hand in greeting. “Hi, Laila,” he called out and still leading the horse, walked over to her. To Sierra’s astonishment, River leaned in and kissed the girl on the mouth. Then they spoke in voices too low for Sierra to hear but she could tell River was talking about the horse. Moose waited patiently for a few minutes and then nudged his muzzle at River to remind him it was time to go in, pushing his way in between River and the girl. She actually squealed and jumped back. River led Moose into the barn and the girl got back into her car. Sierra saw her light up a cigarette, holding it in her hand out an ope
n window.
Sierra caught up with River inside. “River, who is that girl?” she hissed at him.
“Just a friend.”
“You kissed her.” Sierra pointed out. “Is she your girlfriend?”
River paused a moment after latching Moose’s stall door and then answered, “No, Laila’s no one’s girlfriend.” He smiled and his color deepened.
“Laila?”
“That’s her name.”
“Like in the song?”
River laughed and nodded.
Sierra had been planning on inviting River to dinner, but when the horses were fed and Manuel was locking up the stable doors, River said goodbye to both of them and got into the car with the girl.
Sierra and Manuel looked at each other as the car pulled away, and Manuel raised his brow in a questioning look.
So River has a girlfriend; sort of. Sierra wasn’t sure how she felt about that, but she definitely did not like that girl. She smokes, and she’s afraid of horses, for heaven’s sake!
*****
Last Christmas, Sierra and River had known each other for only a few months and were still in the early stages of their developing friendship. It had not occurred to her to get him a Christmas present. But this year, they had been through so much together that she wanted to get him something special; something with meaning.
“Anything to do with horses would probably be appropriate,” Allison suggested after Sierra had been musing out loud what to get him.
“I suppose I could get him something for Corazón, like a nice halter. I don’t know though; I guess that’s what I’ll do if I can’t think of anything better.”
Sierra couldn’t think of anything better so she ordered a bright red halter with Corazón’s name stitched in black letters on the cheek piece. In addition, she bought him a pair of warm work gloves, for she had noticed River many times with his hands thrust beneath his armpits, trying to keep them warm. River had already agreed to come to the cottage for Christmas dinner, admitting there wasn’t ever much of a celebration at his house, and Sierra planned to give him his presents then.
The Boy Who Loves Horses (Pegasus Equestrian Center Series) Page 11
