A Chance for Change (now published so sample only)

Chapter 6 & 7

Chapter 6

Sam had sent her horse off with a quick pat to his rump when they arrived back at the house. They walked over to the ute and were soon trundling along the road into town. They had driven past a fuming Brandy but for once Sam didn’t care about the trouble she might stir up.

"Why do you have a wild horse as your own?" Chance asked, breaking the surprisingly companionable silence.

She looked over at him and smiled, knowing she had done the right thing. His anger had just melted away into instant forgiveness and she couldn't be more pleased. For once she didn't care what anyone in the school thought about her.

"That is an interesting story." Sam told him.

"Well then please enlighten me." Chance grinned at her and it warmed her heart.

"Alright. After Tony died I started just walking for hours on end in the bush, I guess it just helped to soothe me. Late one afternoon I heard a bleating, so I followed it to find a skinny little foal wandering vaguely around. It kept calling for its mother, so I was careful not to go too close in case she decided to attack me.

“I eventually found his mother, she was dead. I felt so bad for the poor little thing that I carried it all the way home. Everyone was a bit freaked out but I looked after him, reared him and just like magic, now he's Bill." She told him, looking over at him and smiling, so glad that things were back to the way they were.

"You never have simple explanations do you?" He asked with a chuckle.

"Not really. Listen you still can't talk to me at school."

"I'm getting very tired of that." He sighed at her as she pulled the ute over.

"I know and I'm sorry. But I'll give you a lift home if you do it." She bartered and he nodded "Wait outside near the main gates for me okay?"

"Until this afternoon then." He said as he turned to her, he briefly brushed the tendrils of hair off her face before placing a chaste kiss on her forehead and jumped out of the ute, with Sam sighing as he left.

The lunchtime crowds rushed into the canteen as a loud rampaging mob with Chance following behind. For the last couple of days he hadn't felt like eating at all and had barely touched any food, today though he was ravenous. He was organising what he wanted when he heard a voice behind him.

"Hey Man, how's things Chance?" He turned around to find Luke behind him.

"Hi Luke, what's up?" Chance asked hesitantly.

"I thought you might like to sit with us today." Luke said with a grin.

"Yeah sure." He answered, he wasn't sure what Luke wanted and he didn't particularly want to sit anywhere near him but he thought he had better find out.

He walked with him over to his crowd who were roughhousing and yelling for no particular purpose. He observed Luke as he introduced him around the table. He had straight black hair that complimented his broad face and green eyes. He was a stocky build which was probably why he was the football captain. But there was just something about him that Chance didn't trust.

Chance just wanted to know what his motivation was. He sat down opposite him and just waited patiently for what this guy was dying to tell him. Chance knew it would be about Sam, especially after the way he had treated her in class the other day.

"Listen Chance there is something I've been wondering about since you got here." Luke said with an almost keen interest.

"Yeah?"