MSRA ↠ Back Again

1 ↠ academy bound

Today was the day. The day I got to see my friends again.

I haven't seen any of them since Florida. Or since the school year ended.

Mabel, my cousin, had stayed with us the night before. We were trailering her to the academy as well.

It was almost eight, and we were leaving by nine. I pulled myself out of bed and got dressed into leggings and my old MSRA sweatshirt. I took three trips from my bedroom and the truck, packing my bags in. When Mabel woke up due to all the noise I was making, she started doing the same. I grabbed an apple and bit into it as I headed out to the barn. By the time I reached Moose, all cozy in his stall, it was just the core left, so I handed it over to him.

Over the summer, Moose and I had gotten into peak cross country condition. I pushed him harder than I pushed Hope, but we pulled through alive together.

I started bringing all his tack into the trailer, but after all of my stuff was in, there was barely any room for Mabel, so I set up the saddle racks in the dressing room of the trailer.

By nine, we were all packed and ready to go, Moose and her horse Titan in the trailer.

"You excited?" I asked Mabel as we climbed into the truck.

"Yeah," she smiled, looking back at the trailer. "More than excited."

"You'll do great there," I said. "The dressage trailer, Mason, is amazing."

"Oh, Mason wasn't my trainer," she said. "In my acceptance letter, it said Ryan or something like that."

"Oh?" I asked. "He was the main dressage trainer last year. That's odd."

Mabel and I were both out within minutes of being on the road. When I woke up, we were parked at Dunkin' Donuts, my Mom missing from the car.

"Hey, sleepyhead," my Dad said, smiling at me from the rear view mirror. "We're about ten minutes away."

I got a text from Noah saying he just got to the school. I replied, saying I'd be there soon. Mom came back with something for everyone, and I happily took a sip of my frozen Dunkaccino. (I highly recommend).

When you're waiting, ten minutes feels like an eternity. It felt like hours before we pulled into the academy, pulling up to Student Support. I showed Mabel everything she needed and we got our folders from the front desk. Again, I was in Acacia, as were all the other juniors at the school. Mabel, being a sophomore, was in Iris.

We headed to Iris first, helping her unpack all of her tack at the barn. After we dropped her bags off in her dorm room, we had to leave.

"Text me if you need me," I told her. "I'm just a house away."

"Okay, thanks!" she said excitedly. Her roommate was already here, and they were both beyond excited.

We went to Acacia, and I unpacked Moose with the help of my parents. I didn't see Mason or any of my friends at the barn, but I saw Bridget's new horse, Mason's horse Comet, and Abby's horse Mojo all happily in their stalls, munching away at some hay.

I got to the dorm and was instantly greeted by all my friends.

"Bridge! Abby!" I exclaimed as they hugged me.

"Hey Noah," I said, letting them go and heading over to him. I gave him a kiss before hugging him. "Long time no see."

"Long time no see," he repeated. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too," I said. My parents starting bringing my bags in, so I ran out to the truck with Noah and he helped me bring the remainder of my bags in. I looked around my dorm, admiring the room I had last year. Bridget had already unpacked, her familiar duvet covering her bed.

"Bye, Kathleen," my parents said, hugging me. "We'll miss you."

"Bye guys," I said. "Be safe on your ride home."

Just like that, they were gone, and I was left alone to unpack my room.

About an hour later, everything was organized, unpacked, and put exactly where I wanted them. I sat on my bed, looking around. This year was going to be a good year.