Chapter 8

Reed

       Resting in my motel room was starting to get very boring, and I had only done it for a day. I couldn't even imagine how it was going to be like me doing this for the next two weeks. I didn't even leave the motel room to eat anything. Jonah always had to bring me food.

       I tried going out to eat, but the chairs at the diner was way too uncomfortable to me and I didn't even last five minutes sitting there.

       The doctor did tell me that I should walk around for a bit to help with my breathing, so I did that.

       I just went a bit further than I should have, but I couldn't help it. I wasn't feeling that great, and there was only one thing in the world that could cheer me up.

       Well, two things, but Fate would definitely do the trick.

       It was a bit painful to walk the distance from the motel to the stables, but I knew it would be worth it in the end.

       I got to the stables and I immediately saw Lyric, who was brushing her horse in the stall beside Fate's. She soon spotted me, looking concerned. "Whoa, what happened to you?" she asked. "How did you get that cut near your eye?"

      "It's... a long story," I said. "Let's just say I got into some sort of altercation."

      "Are you okay?" Lyric asked.

      "Yeah, mostly," I said. "My ribs are bruised too, but the doctor said I should walk around for a bit, so I came here."

       "To see Diablo?" Lyric asked. "Uh, I mean, Fate?"

       "If that's okay," I said.

       "Yeah, of course it's okay," Lyric said. "He used to be your horse, and he doesn't listen to anyone else. It will do him a lot of good for him to see you regularly. Speaking of, weren't you supposed to be back on the road?"

       "We ended up extending our stay by two weeks," I said. "Jonah thought it would be best for me to stay in one place while I heal."

       Lyric raised an eyebrow. "Really? I mean, no offense to him, but by the way you told me about he, him seems like the kind of guy who wouldn't have cared and said you could heal fine if you're back on the round."

       "Honestly, he was like that," I said. "But he changed, believe it or not. He's finally accepting me into his family."

       Lyric smiled softly. "That's great, that he's giving you a chance. By the way, Fate needs to be brushed, so can you do that?"

       "Of course," I said. "Anything to spend time with him."

       Lyric showed me where all the supplies were, and I grabbed a brush before heading into Fate's stall. I didn't immediately start brushing him, though. He seemed really happy to see me, and I was definitely happy to see him so I gave him a hug and pet him for a bit before starting to brush him.

       All the movements I was making was hurting my ribs a bit, but I pushed through the pain. I would do anything to spend time with Fate because I thought I would never see him again, all because of my dad's selfish behaviour.

       "So, where do you live?" Lyric asked.

       "About half an hour away from here," I said. "I used to live closer, about fifteen minutes away, but that was before I was fostered so I'm a bit further."

       "Half an hour isn't too far," Lyric said.

       "Yeah, true," I said. "Why?"

       "Well, I talked to my grandparents, who own the stables by the way, and they both thought it would be great for you to visit here as much as you can, even when your trip is over and you're back home," Lyric said. "For starters, Fate doesn't like listening to anyone, so you coming by often might get him to warm up to others. And that you, you can still own Fate since you had to sell him when you clearly didn't want to."

       "Are you serious?" I asked. "You'd be fine if I just come here whenever I want?"

       "Yeah," Lyric said. "And like I said, still own Fate. He'd still be your horse. He'd just be living here. My grandparents are huge horse lovers, and they know what it's like to have a special bond with a horse. They don't want your and Fate's bond to go away because of whatever happened that caused you to sell him. So what do you say? Sounds like a plan?"

       "Y-yeah, of course," I said. "Thank you so much. Normally, I'd hug you, but I don't really do hugs and it would hurt my ribs."

       "It's fine, anything for a fellow horse lover," Lyric said, giving me a smile. "That, and it should calm down Fate and he wouldn't be close to kicking my brother again. Even though I kick him at times..."

       "Lyric?!" a woman suddenly called before someone walked over. "Have you seen my glasses by chance?"

       "I have," Lyric said. "They're on your head, Abuelita."

       "Oh, oops," the woman, Lyric's grandmother, said before reaching on top of her head to grab her glasses and put them on. "I don't know what I would do without you." She then caught a glance of me still brushing Fate. "Ah, you must be Reed. Because I don't think that horse would allow anyone else to get so close."

       "I am Reed," I said. "Nice to meet you."

       "You too," she said.

       "Reed, this is my grandmother, Maria," Lyric said before looking back at her grandmother. "Reed's really happy you said he can visit as much as he can and still own Fate."

       "I really am happy and I really appreciate it," I said. "Fate is one of the few things that made me happy, and I don't think I had been this happy since he was sold."

       Maria smiled. "Of course. I would never want to keep a horse away from the one person it bonds with. Fate has been a bit calmer since you showed up. Well, he still doesn't like anyone going near him, but he didn't go as wild. He just fidgeted a bit. If you don't mind me asking, why was he sold?"

       I sighed. "That's a really long story I don't like talking about."

       "Well, then I won't ask you again," Maria said. "After you're done brushing Fate, would you and Lyric like to come inside for some cookies? I just baked some."

       "I'd love to, but I unfortunately can't stay long," I said. "I'm should to be resting because, another long story, my ribs are bruised and I was only supposed to go on a short walk. My brother will probably kill me when he finds out how far I walked because he's been stressing about me resting."

       "Well, I hope you get better soon," Maria said. "Another time for the cookies?"

       "Oh, definitely," I said.

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I love it now when Reed and Jonah refer to each other as brothers. <3

Someone help me. Every time I typed Maria I typed Mario. MARIO. THE O ISN'T EVEN CLOSE TO THE A. MY MIND WAS THINKING MARIA AND MY FINGERS WERE LIKE, "NAH IMMA HIT YOUR WITH THAT PLUMBER."

I should be getting to bed lol.