True Riders (11 page)

After dinner the twins grabbed the TV remote, insisting on watching some dumb animated movie before bedtime. Not in the mood for family time, Brooke headed upstairs to check the Pony Post. There were a couple of new messages.

[MADDIE]
Went to the barn today after school. Aaah, it still feels so good not to have to worry about moving away! Cloudy and I had a great ride. What'd you guys do with yr ponies today?

[HALEY]
Wings gets Mondays off, remember? But I gave him a good grooming—he's a total fuzzball! I'll try to get pix soon. Hoping we can go out on our XC course tmw if the ground isn't too hard.

As usual Brooke loved hearing about what her friends were doing with their ponies. It all sounded so exciting! Thanks to her friends' descriptions and photos, she could practically feel as if she was riding along with them sometimes—leaping over huge cross-country fences with Haley and Wings, ambling along beneath the Spanish moss in some New Orleans park with Nina and Breezy, or exploring the rolling hills of Northern California with Maddie and Cloudy.

Did the others feel the same way about her posts? Brooke wasn't sure. Somehow, riding around the local countryside on Foxy seemed kind of ordinary compared to what the others did. But maybe that was just because she was used to it.

In any case, she couldn't resist sharing, even if today's news wasn't all that great.

[BROOKE]
I rode Foxy again today, but the twins came along and interrupted just when she was doing super well. Grr! Anyway, I got back on after, but it wasn't the same. She was all skittish and distracted, looking for monsters everywhere and not paying much attention to me at all. Double grrr! Adam coached me thru it and things got better after a while. We even jumped some higher stuff at the end, and that went pretty well. But it would be nice if I didn't have to go back to square one every time my little sibs get on and freak her out, u know? Esp. with this show coming up so soon! Triple grrrrrrrrrr!

She sat back after hitting send, already feeling better for having poured out her day to her friends.

She was about to log off when a new message popped up right below hers.

[NINA]
B! Hey, you still on?

Brooke smiled and pulled the laptop closer, typing fast.

[BROOKE]
Hi Nina! I'm still here.

[NINA]
Yay! Just read your post. Bummer about the twins, huh? But it sounds like you're working thru all Foxy's reactions & stuff.

[BROOKE]
I guess. Just wish I didn't have to.

[NINA]
I hear u! But that's ponies for u, right? U should have seen me one time when some jerk decided to beep his horn right when I was riding Breezy down the trail by the street! He jumped straight into the air and I was lucky to still be on him when he came down, LOL!

[BROOKE]
I can't even imagine riding in the middle of the city like u do! I can barely manage out here in the boonies, lol.

[NINA]
Ha! I bet u would do just fine. U and Foxy have a connection, and that's important. She trusts u, right?

[BROOKE]
Yah, true. I think that's the only reason she's not freaking out more over the twins' cowboy rides!!!

[NINA]
Well, you trained her super well, don't forget that. I know u will do great at that show, no matter how many times your lil sibs decide to ride between now & then. And hey, if u start to get nervous, try what I used to do when I got stage fright before my dance recitals—just breathe deeply and count backward from ten a few times.

[BROOKE]
Does that rly work?

[NINA]
Lol, I guess so! At least I never got that nervous after I started doing it. Worth a try?

[BROOKE]
Def! Thanks Nina!

[NINA]
Anytime! Gtg, but make sure to keep us posted on the show!

[BROOKE]
Promise. Nighty-night!

Brooke signed off, still smiling at Nina's pep talk. Maybe Nina was right. Brooke and Foxy had been through a lot together over the past few years. Their bond had to be strong enough to get them through the twins' sudden interest in riding too—and through that show with flying colors!

CHAPTER

ON WEDNESDAY, BROOKE
was deep in thought as she emerged from the lunch line with her tray of chicken fingers. The show was only three days away now, and she was growing more nervous by the hour. Luckily, the twins hadn't come home from their play date yesterday until it was almost dark, so she'd had Foxy all to herself. Foxy had been a little spooky at the beginning of the ride, but with Adam's encouragement Brooke had ridden her through that and the pony had settled quickly.

“Oops,” Brooke blurted out, stopping short just in time to avoid running into Kiersten, who was standing looking around the crowded cafeteria.

The new girl shot Brooke a brief smile. “Sorry,” she said, stepping aside.

“It's okay. I wasn't paying attention.” Brooke suddenly felt shy. “Um, do you need somewhere to sit? I mean, if you want—my friends and I are right over there. You know—it would be cool if you wanted to sit with us.”

She pointed to the girls she usually sat with. Kiersten smiled shyly.

“Sure, if you don't mind,” she said. “I mean, that would be great.”

The other girls were discussing the latest social studies assignment when Brooke and Kiersten sat down. “Hey, guys,” Brooke said. “You all know Kiersten, right?”

“Sure, hi.” Her friend Jana sounded distracted as she shot Kiersten a quick but sincere smile. The other two girls added their own greetings. Then they all went back to their conversation.

Brooke wasn't particularly interested in talking about social studies, so she glanced at Kiersten as she opened her milk carton. “So I've been meaning to ask,” she said. “You said you used to ride. What kind of riding did you do? Like, English or Western, or what?”

“Actually, I was a jockey at the racetrack,” the new girl said. As Brooke's eyes widened, Kiersten giggled. “Kidding! I rode English. Hunter jumper stuff, mostly, plus a little dressage.”

“Cool.” Brooke picked up a chicken finger and took a bite. “So did you ever do shows?”

“Uh-huh. My whole barn showed pretty often, mostly the local circuit up there in PA.”

“Wow. So did you have your own pony?”

“Yeah.” Kiersten's face went gloomy. “We had to sell him when my parents got divorced, though.”

“Oh! Sorry.” Brooke blushed, feeling bad for bringing up a sad subject.

Kiersten glanced at her with a small smile. “It's okay. My trainer found him a really good home, and I'm friends with his new owner on Facebook so I can still see pictures of him, so it all worked out. Sort of.” She sighed. “Anyway, that's why we moved here—my mom and me, that is. She wanted to be near her family after my dad left, and well, I didn't get a vote.”

“Sorry,” Brooke said again. “So are you going to get another pony?”

“Doubtful.” Kiersten poked at her green beans. “Mom can't afford it right now, since she's in school to be a nurse and only working part-time. I'll be lucky if I can scrape up enough to take a lesson now and then.”

“You don't have to,” Brooke said impulsively. “You can come ride Foxy anytime you want.”

“Really?” Kiersten's face lit up. “Oh wow, that's so nice of you, Brooke!”

“Anytime after this Saturday, that is,” Brooke added hastily. She smiled. “That's when our show is. Remember? The one Adam was talking about the other day?”

“Oh, right.” Kiersten nodded. “That's so exciting that you're doing a show! Where is it? Maybe I'll come by and cheer you and Foxy on.”

“Sure, that would be great,” Brooke said, though a shiver of anxiety ran through her at the thought of it. She was going to be nervous enough as it was without a bunch of people she knew watching!

Kiersten squinted at her. “What's wrong?” she asked. Then she laughed. “Wait, no, don't tell me—show nerves?”

“Show nerves?” Brooke echoed. “Is that a thing?”

“Totally! I used to get them every time I showed. Don't worry, it gets better. It just takes a few shows to get used to the nerves so you can, like, channel them into positive energy or whatever.” Kiersten shrugged and grinned. “That's what my trainer used to call it, anyway. And I guess it worked, because after a while I hardly got nervous anymore.”

“Oh, okay.” Brooke couldn't imagine not being nervous before something as stressful as a show. But she hoped Kiersten was right. In any case, just knowing that getting nervous was normal made her feel a little less anxious about the coming show.

“So did you decide which divisions to enter yet?” Kiersten asked, reaching for her milk.

“Not yet. We're just sort of working on everything right now.” Brooke thought back again to yesterday's ride. “If Adam had his way, we'd spend all day, every day jumping.”

Kiersten giggled. “Typical boy!”

“Yeah.” Brooke smiled. “Anyway, my friend Haley is an eventer, and she has her pony on a schedule where they only jump once or twice a week. She says it's better for him mentally and physically. So yesterday I convinced Adam that we should just do flatwork.”

“Sounds good. Who's Haley? Does she go here?” Kiersten glanced around the crowded cafeteria.

“Um, no.” Brooke felt sheepish, not quite ready to explain her “imaginary friends” to the new girl yet. “She lives pretty far away.”

“Oh.” Kiersten poked at her chicken. “Well, if you need me to help you get ready for the show or anything, I'd be happy to do it.”

“That's okay. Adam will be helping me.” Kiersten's face fell, and Brooke quickly added, “But I'd love it if you came to the show on Saturday to watch. You can meet Foxy then too.”

“Cool.” Kiersten looked happy again. “It's a plan.”

More storm clouds rolled in that afternoon, and Brooke had only been riding Foxy for twenty minutes when it started to rain. “Bummer,” Adam said as they dashed for the shed. “We didn't even get to start jumping!”

“That's okay.” Brooke patted the pony, then reached up to unbuckle her bridle. “Foxy did great, and she could probably use another day off from jumping since we'll be doing a lot of it for the next few days.”

“Okay.” Adam pulled out his cell phone to check the time. “You okay putting her away and stuff? I should go.”

“Sure. See you tomorrow, right?” Brooke pulled off the bridle and hung it over the half door leading into the people part of the barn. “Are you going to take the bus home with me again?”

“I can't,” Adam said. “I have something to do right after school. But I'll get someone to drop me off as soon as I'm done.”

Brooke was a little surprised; until now, Adam had been talking as if he planned to spend every spare moment helping her train for the show. “Try to get here as soon as you can, okay?” she said. “We have a lot to do if we're going to be ready for Saturday!”