"Alex! Dylan! Come here!" Austin roared from the kitchen.
Dylan pulled on her cowboy boots and went down the stairs two at a time. She hadn't slept well the night before. Michael was still on her mind. She was angry at her father for letting him train here. He knew that they were enemies. He's even said that she needs to beat him.
So why would he do this?
When Dylan arrived downstairs a scowl materialized across her face. He was here, in her kitchen, talking to her parents.
"Howdy." Michael smiled in her direction.
"Get out of my house." Dylan snapped.
"Do not talk to him like that!" Austin growled, "He is a guest and boarder and this barn and you will show him respect. Do you understand me?"
"Yes."
She actually didn't understand. She didn't want to understand. Dylan's hatred for the magenta colored boy overpowered any sympathy or civil behavior she could have had.
"So as you both know, we run camps for children here." Austin started.
Dylan nodded. Every summer the barn hosts a one week camp for kids between the ages of 8 and 12. Dylan despises the camp week. All of the loud little kids are annoying to her. Luckily, Ashton and Alex are the ones that get stuck running it. Sometimes she's forced to demonstrate or help tack up a horse but other than that she's free to do whatever she wants as long as she doesn't get in the way.
"Well, this year Ashton over scheduled and we have 20 kids coming instead of 10. So, we need twice the help." Dylan's heart sank. She knew where this was going.
"Michael, since you don't have competitions this week," Austin continued, "I was hoping you could help out with camp."
"Of course." Michael answered brightly, "I'd love to. It sounds like fun."
"Great. You three have a lot to help Ashton with. You'd better get down there."
Dylan could feel her father's eyes watching her as she trudged out the door after Alex. She didn't bother arguing with him about camp, she knew she wouldn't get out of it. Michael and Alex were talking cheerfully in front of her. Dylan felt the rage slowly start to take over her body. She wanted to scream at Alex to stop talking to him. If she hated him, than her brother should too. Isn't he on her side? If he's on her side than why is he talking to the enemy?
"I am so glad you guys are here." Ashton rushed over to them as soon as they stepped into the barn. His hair was messed up, jeans were dirt stained, and his bandana hung loosely knotted around his neck.
Meanwhile, kids were all over the barn. They were hanging on the horse stalls and in the feed and tack rooms. Some were even running and playing what seemed like a game of tag. Dylan started to feel incredibly overwhelmed.
"EVERYBODY FREEZE!" Alex yelled. The children stopped in their tracks. The noise in the barn dramatically decreased.
"Come here in front of me and sit on the ground." He said sternly. The children obeyed and sat in a messy semicircle around his feet. Alex nodded to Ashton, who took a step forward and took his role as the speaker.
"Uh, hi. I'm Ashton and welcome to camp." He said slightly awkwardly, "The scary tall guy that just yelled is Alex. He's nice though. I promise. His sister is Dylan, the only girl here, and the dude with the pink hair is Michael."
"Hello children." Michael tipped his hat and winked. There were some giggles from the girls. Dylan rolled her eyes. They must be in the "boy crazy" phase that is common in prepubescent girls.
A girl that was about nine raised her hand, "I like your hair." She shook her own glossy blond pigtails. "I'm getting mine dyed soon."
"Cool!" Michael's face lit up, "Maybe we can talk about hair colors later."
Ashton then split the children into groups. Alex and Ashton's kids got to ride first since they were more advanced, Michael and Dylan were to teach their kids knowledge about horses during that time. Then we would take our kids out to ride and the other groups would come in.
"Um, hi." Dylan said awkwardly. Five pairs of small eyes looked up at her.
"Why aren't I in the group with the pink guy?" The blond girl in pigtails asked Dylan. "I want to be with him." She proclaimed.
Dylan shrugged, "Well, you're in my group. What's your name?"
"Lilly." The small girl said diplomatically, "And I wan to be in a group with Michael."
Besides Lilly, in Dylan's group there were four other children. James, a quiet timid boy. Callie, who was Lilly's slightly less outgoing sister. Last but not least, there was Bella and Sarah; who did not seem particularly excited to be at the barn.
"When do we get to go home?" Bella asked Dylan and tugged on her sleeve.
This is going to to be a long week
