The Summer of the Horse

Chapter 7

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I sat on a bucket in one of the many feed rooms placed throughout Barn A, talking to Kael. As soon as Tori had left, Kael had said that he had finished all of the work for the day, so we just decided to sit and talk for a while.
"So what'd you do to get in here?" I questioned. I thought it important that we get to know each other better, since we would be working together for a while.
He let out a long sigh and his eyes filled with sadness. "Well, my sister was kind of depressed, and she ran away to try and commit suicide one night. She left me a note, and as soon as I found it I left to find her. My parents weren't home or anything so I went over to a car dealership and stole a car to get there faster, since the place was about a half hour away and I didn't have much time. Of course, I was speeding, and when a cop saw me and tried to pull me over, I just kept going. Eventually I had multiple cops chasing me, but I refused to stop for fear that I wouldn't be able to save my sister. When I finally got to the spot on the note, it was too late," A tear trickled down his face, "Of course, they were going to throw me in jail. But I was given a choice: prison, or Camp Second Chances. I think it's obvious my decision." I nodded solemnly.
He sighed, "So enough about me. What brought you here?" Of all of the ways I could tell my story, I decided to be blunt and straightforward.
"My dad died when I was eleven and my mom was abusive, so I ran away. I had no other family to take care of me and had to resort to a life of crime in order to survive. Sophie and I teamed up to steal from a jeweler. We were going to sell what we got and live off of it for the rest of our lives, but she ruined everything. She didn't even check for alarms or anything before entering the room, and the police were there before I could run. As soon as I get out of here, I'm gonna steal something really expensive to sell and live off of that for the rest of my life." I finished up quickly, and Kael got the idea that I didn't much like discussing the subject. A tear slid down my cheek. I had had a rough past, and sometimes I felt like I would be forced to live like this forever. Kael was the first person I had ever confided in, and, for some reason, even though I had just met him, I felt like he could be trusted. At this point, I was crying, and Kael opened his arms to me. I ran to him and was wrapped in a tight embrace. I continued to sob into his shirt, and when I pulled away it was all wet. He hugged me tighter, but even when I was okay again he kept me wrapped in his arms. He rested his chin on my head, and in that moment, I wished we could stay like this forever.
"It's 6:30. I think we should go back to the house for dinner." Kael whispered into my hair. I nodded and we separated, heading back up to the house.
"So what do they usually have to eat here? Prison camp food isn't generally outstanding, but this isn't your ordinary prison camp." We both laughed.
"Uh, I think we're having spaghetti or something. Do you wanna sit with me? Or you might wanna sit with Sophie since you guys are sort of friends..." He trailed off, his cheeks tinged pink.
"Kael, I'd love to sit with you. Sophie will probably want to sit with Tori or something, and I don't really like her that much." He nods, looking relieved, and we continue walking, the large farm house looming closer and closer in the dim light of dusk.
At dinner, I got my tray of spaghetti at the buffet area and surveyed the dining room, looking for Kael. The tables were numbered, and I saw Sophie at table seven sitting rather close to an attractive dirty­blonde haired boy. Tori was there too. I knew she would make friends. I spotted Kael at table ten and went over to sit with him. The tables were organized in rows, and turned so that there would be as much sitting area as possible. As I was setting down my tray, my fork fell on the ground, and I bent over to pick it up quickly before sitting down. A guy sitting across from me who looked to be about forty was gaping at me, and Kael shot him a dirty look. The man jumped to his feet and slammed his hands down on the table, glaring at Kael. I glanced nervously between the two. Kael jumped to his feet and continued to stare down the man, his fists clenched at his sides. The man sized Kael up, and they stood and creeped around each other, preparing to fight. The man was the first to charge, throwing his full body weight right at Kael. The man was huge, over twice the size of Kael, but he was quick. He darted out of the man's grasp, throwing the occasional punch or kick. The large man started to tire out quickly, and Kael advanced, pinning him to the ground and punching him repeatedly in the face. I was just sitting there helplessly, my mouth hanging opened. Finally, after over a minute of being beaten into the ground, the man cried for mercy, blood mixing with his tears. Kael got up and dusted himself off. To my surprise, his only injury was his busted lip, which was dripping blood down his chin slightly. He slammed himself down next to me, and viciously took a bite of his bread.
"Sorry you had to see that," he muttered through clenched teeth, "he was looking at your butt." I groaned.
"So that whole fight was because that guy was looking at my butt? That's ridiculous!" I threw my hands in the air, exasperated. A med had come and gotten the man. It looked as if his nose had been broken, and he would need a few days of rest.
"Well I don't want anyone looking at your butt but me. I'm the only one allowed." I snorted.
"You're such a pervert. You know that?" We both laughed. I rested my head on Kael's shoulder and closed my eyes, letting all of the noise from around me fade away. If only my whole life could be this simple; this perfect. I wanted to pause this moment and keep it this way forever, sitting here in a prison camp with a boy I just met the other day. It sounded crazy, but if you knew what crap my life usually was, you would long for this too.