Addison Parker: The Trials and Tribulations of an Equestrian

Chapter 5

*beep* *beep* *beep* *beeeeeeeep*

Addy groaned and sat up in her cocoon of soft blankets and pillows. She looked over at the light blue alarm clock and turned it off. "It is way too early to be awake." she mumbled sliding into her chocolate brown ugg moccasin slippers as she headed downstairs for something to eat. After inhaling a bagel and some orange juice, Addy came back upstairs to pull on her well worn tan Tailored Sportsmans and a light blue polo tucked into a soft leather belt. She grabbed her Toms, sunglasses, iPhone, and keys and left the cozy brownstone. 

15 minutes later, Addy pulled into what she considered her real home, Wheatland Farms. The endless acres of pasture spotted with gleaming chestnuts, bays, and grays, accompanied by the sweet smell of horses and- 

"Ahem. Are you going to keep staring into space or give your good ol' trainer a welcome back?" Brian Hamilton said, crossing his muscular arms across a well-fitting navy polo. 

"BRIAN!" Addy shrieked, jumping out of her car and throwing her arms around him. Brian wasn't the typical A-Circuit hard-ass trainer that most of the junior riders dealt with; he was more like Addy's older brother that she never had and he was the first person she went to for advice, horse or otherwise. "How was Germany? Did you find anything nice? We need to talk about George.. I don't really like him. And there's this new girl..." Addy gushed, finally stopping to take a breath. 

Brian laughed, "Alright calm down we can talk later. You, my friend, have horses to ride. I need you to hop on Charlotte, Pip, take Cally around a couple courses to get her ready, annnnd I might have someone come to look at Nike tomorrow so I need you to get on him and give him a tune-up." Brian quickly said the last part, smiled, and turned on his well-oiled boot heel. 

"Okay that sounds goo- whoa whoa whoa!" Addy said, "Nike's not for sale. Ever!" 

"I know that." Brian explained, gently, "your father wants to explore the possibility of leasing him out to a girl that's looking for a pony jumper to qualify for Pony Finals. He has the experience and the speed. She's a good little rider. I'm not talking about this now, okay? We'll talk later." He walked off to the arena to give his 8 am lesson, leaving Addy standing there speechless. 

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"Steady now," Addy whispered to the enormous bay gelding as they approached the 3'6 swedish oxer. Pip perked his ears and tried to open his stride, but Addy firmly half-halted, forcing him to wait. The gelding listened and took off perfectly, popping with his hind end for emphasis. Addy felt her mouth curl up into a smile, just like every other time she found the perfect distance. She collected the gelding underneath her to support him as they made a tight turn to a huge roll top. This time Pip sucked back, intimidated by the bigger jump. Addy squeezed, adding a little spur of encouragement and Pip soared over it, snapping his knees up. She loved a responsive and pliable horse like Pip, but he had other riders to take care of around the show ring. Addy gave his gleaming chestnut coat a pat and cooled him out before hopping down. After untacking him, Addy threw the sweaty saddle pad into the wash bin and led Pip to a wash stall to rinse him off. 

"Ads," Brian called as his boots clacked towards the wash stall, "..change of plans! I need you to hop on Nike right now. The girl I was telling you about earlier is going to be here in 10 minutes just to see him- don't freak out- nothing is set in stone yet." Addy reappared from behind the big bay and Brian pulled her into a hug. "I know it's not what you want, but he'll be happy working again. I'll make it up to you. Movie night?" He winked at Addy as he walked away. She felt butterflies fluttering around in her stomach but quickly shook them off as Braden appeared around the corner.

"Hey babe! Go get on your boy, I'll finish Pip off for you," he said flashing his megawatt smile. Addy mumbled her thanks and sped off, not sure what was going on in her head right now. Braden, Brian, her first pony possibly leaving... it was all just too much to handle. She needed Nike, ironically, when it was time to show him off. She sighed and grabbed all of her tack to get the gelding ready. 5 minutes later she finished adjusting his figure-eight bridle and headed out to the lower ring. Addy hopped on and started warming up the excited pony. She was so focused on him that she didn't notice the 11 year old blonde girl standing at the fence with another big name trainer and Brian. 

"Addy! Pop him over the 2'6 roll top then find a couple bigger fences when he's ready!" Brian's voice pulled Addy out of her safe haven and she nodded, wondering how long they had been there. Nike snorted, sticking his nose in the air, as if he was offended Addy's attention had drifted, even if only for a second. She smiled and settled him into an easy canter. He was a little too excited the first time through the smaller roll top, so she took him back to it a couple times before getting a perfect distance. Addy patted his gleaming bay coat and looked at the other side of the ring towards a 3' vertical with a 2'9 fence ready to be rolled back upon. She sailed over the first jump perfectly, bending easily towards the next fence, when all of a sudden there was a crash. Nike stopped on a dime leaving Addy sailing towards the fence by herself. 

"Addy! Can you hear me?" Brian asked feverishly as he kneeled over her.