Dream Pony Frenzy Page 3

  My first reaction was to say no, but then I thought that was just being silly. Of course I was desperate to have a ride and wanted to get to know Charlie as well. I knew that it was up to me to join in and become a part of the group. So I hopped up on Bailey and we took off into the open paddock for a canter while Cassie ran along after us.

  After a while, we dismounted and sat down in the shade of our favorite tree, while the horses grazed beside us. Bella was very interested in the newcomers and had trotted on over to the fence line to say hello.

  Charlie and Kristy both commented on what a beautiful pony I had and were amazed at what had happened in the storm, agreeing with how lucky I was that Bella hadn’t been seriously injured.

  They had moved into their new house during the week following that bad weather, so they’d missed it completely, which was very fortunate timing for them and their horses.

  As we chatted, we talked constantly about horses and pony club and then made plans to do lots of riding together. “Hopefully, Bella will be completely healed really soon,” said Cassie, smiling towards me. “So you’ll be able to join us!”

  “What are you doing tomorrow, Cassie?” Charlie interrupted. “Do you want to come to our house for a ride after school?” Then almost as an afterthought, she added, “You should come over too, Julia! You can have a ride on Milo if you want!”

  Cassie squealed with pleasure at the thought of another fun afternoon with our new friends. “That would be awesome!” She said happily. “I’ll have to ask my mom to drop me over. I don’t usually ride on Wednesdays.”

  “I won’t be able to come,” I replied, the disappointment obvious on my face. “I work at the stock feed store in town every Wednesday afternoon.”

  “Oh, that’s a pity,” said Charlie. “Well, you can come another time, then.” And without skipping a beat, she continued excitedly on about having Cassie and Bailey at their house the next day, explaining all the details of the fabulous jumping course that they had set up in their arena.

  I sat listening with envy as Charlie and Cassie made their plans for the following day that I obviously could not be a part of. It seemed that show jumping was Charlie’s main interest and it was something she was keen to excel in. Milo was clearly a very good jumper and I was sure she would do really well on him.

  Kristy had been quietly patting Bella who was hanging her head over the fence interested in the newcomers to her paddocks. So I stood up to join her, leaving Cassie and Charlie engrossed in their conversation. Jontie then lifted his head and approached Bella, nuzzling up to her. It was the cutest thing and I wished that I had a camera to take a photo of the two of them. Kristy and I laughed at how sweet they were, but Cassie and Kristy didn’t take any notice.

  Then they decided to go back to the barn as Cassie’s mom would soon be arriving to pick her up. So they hopped back up on their horses and trotted alongside each other. Meanwhile, I put Bella’s halter on her and led her through the gate, Kristy walking alongside me on Jontie.

  I looked ahead at Cassie and Charlie, trying to keep my spirits high. We were lucky to have other horsey girls who lived close by to ride with. These were the thoughts that I tried to console myself with but I could not seem to overcome the feeling of gloom that had taken over my senses.

  With a huge effort, I concentrated on chatting with Kristy, but all the while keeping my eyes on the other girls and the close connection that had already seemed to have formed between them.

  Forcing a smile, I hugged Cassie goodbye a short time later and watched as they all headed down our driveway.

  Then I turned towards the barn to say goodnight to my one true friend, Bella who was munching happily on her bucket of feed, completely oblivious to the afternoon’s events and the thoughts racing through my head.

  “Stay positive!” Julia, I whispered forcefully to myself. But the tears that suddenly rolled down my cheeks were proof of the dismay I was really feeling.

  After one last huge hug for my beautiful girl, I headed silently into the house for dinner.

  Upset…

  I didn’t see Cassie the next afternoon as I always hopped off the bus in town and went straight to the stock feed store to start work. Then by the time I got home she had already left. So, I decided to call her to find out how the afternoon with Charlie had gone.

  “Julia, it was so much fun!” she exclaimed, the excitement in her voice evident. “They have the nicest property! And their jumping course is amazing!! I watched Charlie jump Milo over some really high jumps. He is such a brilliant jumper. Charlie said that they’re going to go to show jumping classes as well as pony club. Apparently they’re held at the show grounds in town every second week and its perfect because they’re on the alternative week that pony club is held. I talked to my parents and they said they’re happy for me to go!” Julia prattled on excitedly, barely drawing breath until finally telling me that she was being called for dinner and had to hang up.

  Dejectedly, I wandered into the dining room to set the table and sat down quietly with my family. Even though Mom had prepared my favorite meal, I had no appetite and just picked at my food.

  “Aren’t you feeling well, Julia?” my mom asked, looking at me with concern. Usually I finished every crumb on my plate and was asking for seconds, especially when it was Mom’s special pie that I loved so much but I really had to force myself to take even a couple of bites.

  “Maybe I’m coming down with something,” I explained quietly. “May I be excused, please? I think I need to go to bed.”

  “Yes, of course, Julia,” Mom answered, the worry showing on her face. And I could feel all three pairs of eyes following me as I left the table and climbed the stairs to my room.

  “I’ll check on her shortly.” I could hear my mother’s voice as I quietly closed my bedroom door, followed by my father’s suggestion to make an appointment at the doctor for me the following day if I hadn’t improved by the morning.

  “I’m not sick!” I thought to myself as I slumped down on my bed. “I’m just upset!” And as I hugged my favorite teddy to myself, I could feel the tears roll down my cheeks.

  Turning my face into the pillow, I closed my eyes and fell into a restless sleep; visions of Cassie, Charlie, Bella, pony club and show jumping, all racing around and around inside my head.

  My dream picture…

  The following day dawned bright and clear and the sunshine streaming through my bedroom window certainly helped to improve my mood.

  I’d woken early and as I laid there thinking about the conversation I’d had with Cassie on the phone the night before, I suddenly noticed a flash of bright pink on the floor underneath my desk. Curious as to what it might be, I jumped out of bed and reached underneath my desk to retrieve it.

  As soon as I realized what it was, I could feel a familiar tingle of anticipation run down my spine and I eagerly sat down at my desk to examine the forgotten treasure more thoroughly.

  Flicking through the pages of my dream book, I wondered how I could have forgotten that it even existed. Memories of the problems I’d had with my friend, Millie, the previous year came flooding back. And along with them, the discovery of this very special book and the magic that it held.

  In an instant, I knew that I was meant to be reading this book again. It had helped me so much in the past and I knew that I just had to get my thoughts back on track again. I also knew deep down that I had two choices. I could mope around being upset and depressed, worrying about losing my best friend and having no horse to ride. That would all lead to being totally miserable. Or the other choice was to focus on being positive and think about actually riding Bella again while still having Cassie as my best friend. It was really hard to do, but I knew which choice I had to make.

  Taking a deep breath, I sat for a moment visualizing in my head, the outcome I wanted to happen…Bella and I were flying over a jump and yes, it was 90 cm high. That was what I had been aiming for. Her glowing coat shone as her legs stretched ou
t in front of her, her ears pointed forward and her flowing motion was an absolute pleasure to watch. As she cleared the jump and cantered towards the next one in the course, I could feel my heart thumping with absolute pleasure and confidence, knowing deep down that the blue ribbon was ours. At the end of the course, my best friend Cassie stood cheering loudly, her arms waving wildly in excitement and her eyes shining with genuine admiration and support.

  That dream picture in my mind caused tears of happiness to flow down my cheeks and as I brushed them away the feeling of joy that was seeping through me was so real, that I thought I would burst.

  I took a snapshot of the wonderful image I had created and filed it away inside my head so I could draw on it throughout the day. Then, feeling totally full of optimism, I skipped down the stairs for breakfast feeling eager to start the day.

  The weekend was only a couple of days away and the vet had said I’d be able to get back into a routine with Bella which included some much bigger work outs. And if all went well, I’d probably even be able to go to pony club the following Sunday.

  Scoffing into my bowl of cereal, I grinned at my brother who was complaining about how little I had left in the box. “First in, first served!” I exclaimed as I munched happily on my breakfast.

  “Well, I can see that you’re certainly feeling better today,” Mom commented. “So I guess I had better add cereal to my shopping list.” Obviously relieved that I had made a miraculous recovery, she proceeded to cook bacon and eggs before Matt complained any further about how hungry he was.

  When I boarded the bus for school, I thought once more of the vision I had created in my head earlier that morning and it was with a positive motion, that I made my way down the aisle to look for a spare seat. Smiling to myself as I stared out the window, I thought about the weekend and the training I had planned for my baby. I knew that Bella would be happy to be ridden regularly again and I could hardly wait for Saturday to arrive.

  Just like we used to be…

  As I tightened the girth and hopped up into the saddle, I could see Bella’s ears point forward with expectation. I think she knew that today was special. She’d sensed my feelings of excitement and was responding with her own enthusiasm. With a slight nudge, she progressed to a trot and I focused on the workout that I had planned, looking forward to seeing her being back to her original self.

  I could feel in her gait as we continued around the perimeter, that she had made huge progress. There was no sign of any weakness and she seemed to be enjoying herself immensely. Breaking into a slow canter, I worked on her transitions, keeping her on the correct lead and then practiced lead changes.

  It was as if she had been doing this all her life and I was overjoyed with the smoothness and fluency of her movements. As Dad watched from the arena railing, his beaming smile said it all. “She’s looking fabulous, Julia!” he exclaimed. “In fact, I think she looks better than ever!”

  I grinned happily in response, loving the feeling of being able to ride again. I mean, really ride, with no fear of further injury or concern about her progress. Bella had fully recovered, of that I was sure and as Dad helped me to set up some low jumps, I couldn’t have been happier.

  Cassie had arranged to come over that afternoon along with Charlie and Kristy so that we could all ride together. I’d managed to keep a positive outlook and reminded myself to focus on simply having a good time.

  I was so happy with Bella though that nothing could upset my mood and as she cleared each of the low jumps smoothly and easily, I knew that the day could only get better.

  Although I could have kept riding for hours, I eventually forced myself to stop. Then after untacking Bella and hosing her down, I put her back in her paddock to graze. I certainly didn’t want to overdo our first proper ride since the storm and I wanted her to rest so that she’d be fine for when the girls arrived later in the day.

  Impatient for the afternoon to arrive, I passed the morning by mucking out the stables and picking up manure in the paddocks, all the while, Bailey and Bella grazing nearby. Cassie usually helped me with this job on the weekends, but I was feeling so happy, that I decided to surprise her so that we wouldn’t have to worry about it later and could simply enjoy our ride together.

  When I finally spotted Cassie’s car making its way down our driveway, I ran out eagerly to greet her. I felt so grateful for the genuine smile she gave me as she hopped out of the car and we exchanged a huge hug. “I’m so excited to be riding with you again, Julia! It’s been too long!”

  “I know,” I replied, reassured by her friendly greeting. “I couldn’t wait for today to come! And guess what!! I did some workouts on Bella in the arena this morning and she was perfect. We even did some jumping and she seems completely healed.”

  “That is such great news, now we can all ride together. You’ll have to come to Charlie’s with me, Julia. You’re going to love their place! Maybe we can go there tomorrow!” I couldn’t help but respond to Cassie’s enthusiasm and eagerly we headed out to the paddocks to catch our babies so we could tack them up ready to ride.

  When I was finally up in the saddle, with Cassie and Bailey right by my side, it felt just like old times and I could not wipe the smile from my face. “I’ve missed riding with you so much!!” I exclaimed as we broke into a trot and rode alongside each other.

  “Me too!” Cassie replied. “We always have so much fun together, Julia. It’s been way too long. I’m just so glad that Bella is better now!”

  And as the afternoon wore on, we slotted into our old routine, enjoying each other’s company so much that we didn’t realize a whole hour had passed by and the other girls still hadn’t arrived.

  “I don’t know where they could be,” Cassie said thoughtfully. “They should have been here an hour ago.”

  “Maybe something came up and they couldn’t make it,” I added.

  “Yeah, maybe,” Cassie replied. “Or perhaps they got the time wrong? Do you think we should go for a ride down to their place and see what’s happened to them?”

  For a minute I faltered. What I really wanted to do was continue riding with my friend, the way we had always done; just the two of us hanging out in the paddock having fun with our babies. If I was going to be honest with myself, that was the scenario that I longed for. Not involving another girl who clearly didn’t want me around.

  I just didn’t know what to do!

  Totally unexpected…

  Although I was really keen to just continue riding alone with Cassie, I decided to go along with her suggestion. I knew that if we were going to all get along together, then I needed to make an effort to join in. And now that I was riding Bella again, things would probably be different. I convinced myself to think that way. “Positive thoughts only, Julia!” I whispered silently. “Everything will work out for the best.”

  As we headed down the driveway and along the dirt road, Cassie and I chatted about the week we’d had and what had been going on at school. Apparently, there was this new cute boy in Cassie’s class and she proceeded to tell me all about him. I laughed when she shared the embarrassment she’d felt at tripping over in the lunch area a few days earlier. She said that she’d been looking in his direction where he was sitting with a group of boys from their class. Then all of a sudden she’d tripped over a lunch box that someone had left lying carelessly in the middle of the walkway.

  Cassie said it had been the most embarrassing moment of her life. She had gone flying forwards almost landing flat on her face. But the worst part had been when one of the boys in the group, who had watched the whole scene, had burst out laughing at her. She said she’d felt every pair of eyes in the lunch area looking towards her. The worst part was that the new boy, whose name is Josh, was staring at her as well.

  “OMG! It was so humiliating, Julia!! You have no idea how embarrassed I felt!”

  I continued to laugh at the picture in my mind and told her that it was her fault for being so concerned with what Josh was d
oing.

  “Yeah, but he’s so cute!” she explained. “I couldn’t help it!”

  I rolled my eyes at her and shook my head. “Oh, Cassie!” was all I could say in response.

  Still laughing, I followed her down Charlie’s long dirt driveway and towards her arena, where to our surprise, we saw Charlie jumping her beautiful bay, Milo.

  What was even more surprising was that she was proceeding around the jumping course along with an older girl on a large Arab.

  “Hi, Charlie,” Cassie called out eagerly, when Charlie eventually came to a stop near the arena gate where we stood watching. “We’ve been waiting for you to come riding with us and thought we’d come down here in case you’d forgotten or something.”

  “Oh, hello,” replied Charlie in a standoffish tone.

  Feeling very uncomfortable, I said hello in return.

  “That’s my friend, Jackie,” said Charlie, indicating the other girl who was cantering over towards us. “She lives nearby and I invited her over to ride with me today.”

  Cassie looked confused. “Did I get our plans mixed up, Charlie? I must have misunderstood because I thought we’d actually arranged to ride together with Julia, since Bella has fully recovered. But now we’re here, we can all still ride together if you want, unless you’d rather leave it for another day?”

  “Jackie called me this morning so we decided to hang out,” replied Charlie, not really explaining whether Cassie had mixed up the arrangements or not, although I suspected that she had simply changed her mind after getting the phone call from Jackie.

  “You guys can ride here too if you want,” Charlie’s invitation didn’t seem very convincing and I felt as if we were in the way, but I decided to just go along with whatever Cassie preferred to do.