Oakridge Estates

Chapter 1

Lacey in the pic above

I watch as the rolling hills unfold along the sides of the road. Gravel crunches under the tires of our truck and I can see my horse's head peeking out of the trailer in the rear view mirror. When I turn back around I look up to see my brother Jax laughing at me.

"What?" I ask, glaring at him. "Someone looks nervous," he arches an eyebrow. "Ok well you try competing against twenty nine other people just for a scholarship." I snap. "You're just worried you won't be the best anymore." He says, continuing to laugh. I roll my eyes and go back to staring out the window, but I can't help thinking he's right.

After a few more minutes, we pull up into a gravel parking lot full of shouting owners, prancing horses, and honking trucks hauling giant trailers. Jax pulls into a spot near the edge of the lot and I get my first look at the place that will be my life for the next two years. A huge sign announcing 'Oakridge Estates' with the silhouette of a horse and rider hangs from a gate leading to the lot. Beyond that is a path leading to an enormous building that must hold the dorms. Behind that sits two buildings, one that looks like the school and the other a flashy and polished barn with horses moving in and out.

The pastures and turn outs hold galloping or grazing horses, and whinnies fill the air. "Damn." Jax mutters. "This is legit." I'm too caught up in staring at the property to answer. "We'll come on. Let's get Magic unloaded." Jax hops out of the car and opens my door for me. I turn and grab Magic's lead rope from the back seat then hop out. Magic still has his head out of the trailer window and he is watching all the horses walk by with a curious and somewhat worried look on his face.

"Hi big boy! Come on let's get settled." I urge, trying to convince him to step off the trailer ramp. Once he gets down I give him an apple and begin leading him to the barn. Jax hands me the bag that holds my tack and grooming supplies then gets back in the car to unhitch the trailer and drive my luggage to the dorms.

When we reach the barn a woman holding a clipboard stops me. "Hi! My name is Rachel. I'm one of the barn hands and if you have any questions let me know! Can you give my your name please?" She says in an annoyingly peppy voice. "Lacey," I reply. "Lacey... Lacey... Lacey Malone?" She asks, running her finger down the page to find my name. "That's me." I say. "Alright, stall 15, down the aisle to the left. Have a great day!" Rachel says. "Thanks, you too." I nod at her and continue leading Magic to his stall.

I poke my head into the stall and see how nice it is. It's about 12x12 with another door leading to a small turn out. I smile and stroke Magic's neck. "This isn't so bad, huh boy?" He sniffs at the air then bends his head to the water bucket for a drink.

After I check everything and make sure he's settled, I lock his stall up and take my stuff down to the first tack room. I find a rack with a nameplate for Magic and lift my saddle on to it. There is a hook for my bridle on the wall with a matching nameplate and a row of trunks along the opposite wall. One of them says my name and I open it to find a welcome packet and an extra pair of polo wraps. Once Magic's blanket, fly mask, saddle pads, jumping boots, bell boots, and polo wraps are organized inside I step out into the barn again. I can make this work.

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Hi guys! First chapter! I hope you enjoy it and give me your feedback.

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