Trip to Town

All three friends were riding along the trails, but Gunner had to leave. His father texted him, needing help on his ranch. He had to be there to get the horses ready for his next rodeo. 

“Do you want me to drop you off at home?” he asked Faith, who was looking at her friend, curiously. She shook her head, politely rejecting his offer. 

“No, I will stay with Palmer for a little longer,” she replied. Gunner pulled his horse near hers, raising his hand to put a curl of hair behind her ear, causing goosebumps on her skin as she felt his hands brush her earlobe gently.

“Take care,” Gunner said before he headed towards the Wright's ranch to drop the horse off. As he was riding away, Faith couldn’t help but gaze at him. She couldn’t deny how handsome the track star looked on that horse. Why was she still fighting her feelings for him? 

It was fun to argue with him and to play hard to get. That much Faith knew. But she was also afraid to think it could be too late by the time she finally admitted to him she liked him.

With a sigh, Faith caught up to Palmer. They both chatted while enjoying the beautiful, sunny day and the fresh countryside air. 

“So, are you planning on meeting that mysterious new student?” 

Palmer shrugged her shoulders and smiled at her. Faith smiled back, shaking her head at her friend’s perseverance. 

“Of course I am. I won’t give up,” Palmer replied, giving Trigger a little tug so he could stop and graze. 

“Be careful, Palmer. You don't want to scare the poor guy away,” Faith frowned, knowing her friend too well. Palmer waited for Trigger to finish before getting him to trot again, staying silent for the rest of the ride as she thought about Faith’s words.

Once back at the ranch, they dismounted the horses. James walked out of the barn, wiping his hands clean. He was taking care of one of the pregnant mares inside the stall.

“Hey, Dad. Were you checking on Misty?” Palmer asked excitedly. 

“Yes, sweetheart. She’s close to giving birth, so we have to keep an eye on her. I was wondering if you wanted to take turns when you arrived home from school. After doing your homework, of course.”

She squealed and hugged him. “I would want to! There is no way I’m missing it.”

After the wave of excitement, Faith and Palmer put the horses and the saddles away before she offered Faith to stay for lunch. Of course, her friend wouldn’t say no. She was a fan of Daisy’s cooking and free food.

Daisy had made some delicious spicy beef and onion Pasty, one of the most popular pastries in their town. It was Palmer and James’ favorite. 

They all sat down, not wasting any time, digging into the food with gusto.

“So, are you girls excited for the pep rally?” she asked. The girls nodded, not being able to talk with their mouths full. Palmer swallowed her food and sighed.

“Yes, Mom. Although I’m nervous. Let’s just hope they can perform well.”

They spent some time chatting, mostly about Misty and her foal and what to expect when it arrived.

When they finished, James offered to take Faith home since he was heading to town anyway, and her house was on the way there. Palmer helped her mom wash the dishes while she put away the leftovers in the refrigerator. 

“Did you have a good ride?” she asked. 

She shrugged one shoulder, staying silent. The ride didn’t go as she expected.

“What happened?”

“Nothing. I wanted to meet Christopher, but his mom said he couldn’t come out to meet us. Maybe he’s just too embarrassed to be seen the way he is.”

“You have to understand, give him time. He might surprise you and want to get to know you. Although knowing you, I’m sure you won’t give up on trying.”

Palmer shook her head. “Of course not, Mom. He needs a friend, and I’m the perfect person for it.”

“Well, I’m proud of you, and let’s hope he accepts your friendship, and who knows, maybe something more?”

Palmer looked at her mother as if she had grown two heads. There was no way she could fall in love. She was still young and wanted to focus on her dancing and singing, along with her studies. 

“You never know. Trust that in the future, love will knock on the door. You just need to teach him our ways. City folks are not used to this kind of life,” Daisy mentioned as she handed Palmer a plate for her to dry. For a minute, she was deep in thought about the whole situation.

“He won’t even let us see him. I think he’s too shy,” Palmer scowled, drying the plate angrily, making Daisy think she would break it.

“You’ll see him at school. He’ll want to be friends, eventually. Don’t lose hope.”

They both finished the dishes. Daisy asked Palmer to go with her to town and pick some groceries and food for their chicken. She believed the trip might take the thoughts away.

♥♥♥♥♥♥

Christopher looked out the window as the three friends disappeared from his sight. Grace walked inside when she saw him and stood right behind him, staring at the horizon like he was.

“You know, she was very excited to meet you. Why didn’t you want to come out?” 

“I was scared, Mom. What if they made fun of me?” he asked, walking away from the window and heading to the kitchen to get some water. The day was hot, and it wasn’t even noon.

“Well, she doesn’t seem to be the type to judge, Christopher. So how are you supposed to know if she will make fun of you if you don’t give yourself a chance to meet her?” 

“I guess I’ll meet her at school on Monday, Mom. There’s no need to rush it.”

Grace took a deep breath when her cell phone rang, and to her dismay, it was Bill, her ex-husband.

“Hello, Bill,” she answered with a melancholy tone. She wasn’t expecting him to call, and to be honest, she wasn’t looking forward to it. 

“Hello, Grace. I called you because I came by your apartment, and I was told you were gone. Where are you?” 

She walked out to the porch to continue with the call. There was no way she could let Christopher listen to their conversation.

“How dare you call me, huh? We kicked you out of our lives, and now you think I would want to talk to you? What were you doing at the apartment?” she asked, her voice rising.

“I just want to apologize, love. You have the right to be mad at me. I was a jerk with you and Chris, but I want to make it up to you. Please, tell me where you are so I can find you, and we can talk in person.” 

Grace couldn’t help but laugh. The screw-you-and-your-apology kind of laugh.

“We don’t need you in our lives and please don’t call anymore. It’s time for my son and me to start fresh, and I won’t let you come and ruin it for us!”

Grace hung up, not giving Bill a chance to talk anymore when Christopher appeared behind her.

“It was him, wasn’t it?” he frowned.

Grace nodded with a sad smile. All Christopher wanted was for his stepfather to accept him. After his father died, he looked forward to having some quality time with her mother’s husband, to feel that fatherly love he missed.

But it never happened. All Christopher’s step-father did was yell at him and keep repeating over and over how much of a freak he was. How embarrassed he was to have Christopher in his family.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart, but I don’t want him in our lives. He was pretending to come and make amends. You come first in my life, and I won’t let him or any man come in between us, okay?” 

Christopher nodded, but he didn’t want his mother to be alone forever. All he wanted was someone worthy of her love. Someone who could accept him as his son without looking at his physical appearance, but at how much he could offer.

“Now, what do you say we go to town and ask around to see where we can find some hens? I heard fresh eggs are the best to have,” she said, trying to lighten the mood. Christopher smiled a genuine smile for the first time in a while. It surprised Grace to see him happy, but she didn’t complain. She waited for it to happen for years.

He hurried to his room, applied some sunscreen on his delicate skin, and put on a hat and some sunglasses before they drove to town. 

When they arrived, Grace parked her car in front of a garden shop and bought some flowers and plants for the front porch. She also asked where she could find the hens, and the store attendant was happy to tell her.

Outside, Christopher was waiting for Grace in the car when a few boys approached him. They were curious to see who the kid in the hat and glasses were and why he was hiding his face. 

“Look, Hunter. Someone let Casper out of the haunted house,” one boy said.

Hunter approached the car, but Christopher didn’t dare look at them. He prayed that his mother would come out of the store already.

“Hello, you must be the new guy in town. Name’s Hunter, what’s yours?” He greeted, extending his hand. Christopher ignored him. They all looked at each other with shock. No one dared ignore Hunter and left without crying. 

“It’s okay, guys. I’m sure we’ll be seeing him around in school. Won’t we, Casper?”

“What the hell, Hunter?” Palmer appeared out of nowhere with her arms crossed on her chest and her foot tapping on the ground. She was upset, and she didn’t tolerate bullying.

“What? We’re just having some fun. Aren’t we, whatever your name is?” He asked. Christopher nodded before they finally left, but he had a feeling that was not the end of it. 

Palmer tried to turn around and see Christopher, but Grace came out of the store, catching her attention. Grace waved at her before getting in the car. Unfortunately, all Palmer could see was the bottom half of his face before they drove away.