Battle of the Bands

Chapter 10

Shoni's POV

I have been to the barn but avoided Logan. It is now Saturday morning and I have to go to the barn and do chores. When I get there is see Luke out riding, I never thought he would be much of a horse person but he is here and out riding quite often.The other day I found out, his father owns part of the barn and some of the horses including the black, that they call El Diablo, meaning the devil.

I have never seen anyone even try to ride that horse. He just stands in his stall all day and never has any attention, except what I give him when I get done the chores. Today I manage to get done earlier than usual. Once I am done I go and stand outside of Diablo's stall and watch him. He is very tense and I can tell he does not want to be there. I decide to take his halter and put it on him and take him out for a walk.

I end up taking him to one of the out door pens and let him go. When I take off his halter, I let him just run. He runs and bucks and just acts like a horse not being caged all of the time. Not being in that stall is a good change for him. I just sit there and watch him run and look over the fence at the other horses. It's good to see him out and not just flipping out or moping around his stall. After a while I hear someone walk up behind me. It is Luke and Logan. "What do you two want?" I ask still totally pissed with Logan and a bit nervous because Luke is here.

"What do you mean?" Logan asks acting oblivious as to why I'm so unhappy.

"Oh, I don't know maybe the fact that you lead me on like I actually have a chance, and then go and get with one of my few friends who I see everyday, and is impossible for me to avoid, you just have to turn my already shit life into an even worse hell hole." I yell, Diablo sensing that something isn't right comes running to the fence Luke just stands there not knowing how to react to what he had just witnessed. Logan reaches out to put his arm around me and by now I'm so worked up I just can't take it. I sucker punch him, right in the jaw, he drops like a ton of bricks. With that I turn and run for the barn.

I stay hidden in the hay stack until I know that Logan has left, I then go back out and catch Diablo, taking him back to his stall. When we get there he starts to act up. I know how he feels, trapped in a dark place that he can't get out of, it sucks. Once I get him calmed down and in his stall I decide to stay and watch him for a bit. When I'm there running my hand down his wide head I again hear someone walking up behind me. I turn and see Luke standing there,"I have never seen that side of you before. It was almost scary, it was like you blacked out or something." he explains for once he is the one who is nervous not me.

"I know I flipped and when I hit my breaking point and start throwing fists I black out and most of the time don't know what I'm doing, until I have done it. I have to work really hard to control it." I explain.

"So what even happened?" he asked looking genuinely concerned.

"I don't really want anyone else in this especially you." I tell him.

"What is that supposed to mean?" he scowls at me.

"You have bullied me since the day that I moved here, Calum tried to defend your case, but I just don't think I can trust you." I inform him. With that Calum drives into the yard, honking his horn, informing us he was there, with that Luke turns and walks out of the barn. I stay there for a few moments then head home for afternoon band practice.

...

Luke's POV

I sit in Calum's car going over what had happened today. I mean I have been in a lot of situation like that but never had the feeling that they are never going to stop, as soon as he tried to put his arm around her there was something in her eye, and when she explained after I really got the creeps, but what she said about me being her bully, I didn't even realize what I doing or that it bothered her, guess that proves how smart I am, so self centered. I am pulled from my thoughts by Ash telling us about this battle of the bands thing, yes we have a band, but we are not all that good. I play rhythm guitar and and am lead singer, Mike pays lead guitar and sings, Cal plays bass and also sings, and Ash plays the drums. 

"Luke, mate, pay attention," they remind me, it's almost as bad as being at school. 

"Yeah sorry, I was just thinking," I tell them. we sit there and talk about it for a while and decided that our round one song will be I miss you by Blink 182, round two which is a mandatory cover we decide to do Teenage Dirtbag and for our original we decide to do a new one that Calum wrote called Gotta Get Out. After we have gone over them a few times and played FIFA for a while everyone leaves and I drive home from Mike's. 

When I get home of course mom's not home she had to work late, and my brothers are out. I go up to my room and listen to music and just thinking. I end up falling asleep lost in my thoughts. 

I wake up the next morning to my mom yelling, grate I slept in. My older brothers walk in and jump on me. "Good morning sleeping beauty" they both say, I decide to go against the odds against me and take a swing at one of them, turns out it is Jack and I'm down and out in just under three seconds. "Okay, Okay, Mercy," i yell and they both get off. 

"What we hurt poor little Lukey?" They tease I just ignore them and get ready for my day. I throw on ripped skinny jeans, a Nirvana band tee and my red plaid, grabbing my leather jacket as I walk out the door. Not even bothering to tell anyone that I left. I sit in silence the hole drive to school. I'm getting my lip pierced sometime this week and I really don't care what anyone thinks, my mom has tried to talk me out of it for whatever reason but they are all just a load of bull. I walk in the school and immediately run into Shoni. 

"Watch where you are going," I mumble. I hear her mumble a sorry. I walk down the hall to where the boys are standing talking to a few girls. I recognise them from somewhere but I can't figure it out. 

"Hey man," Mike greets me with a bro hug. 

I reply with a simple hey, they introduced me to the two girls that they had previously been deep in conversation with. Shyanne, and Shealynn, then it clicks they are Shoni's friends, I immediately remember ur conversation from the yesterday. They continue talking, Ash hitting on Shae, and Cal hitting n Shy, Mike and I end up talking about video games and shit until the bell rings and we all g t class. After they day passes insanely slowly I get out and head to my car the boys are there with Shae and Shy, we talk for a while Ash and Cal asking the girls if they wanted to go out, or hang out, of course they say yes, they head out and Mike has a family thinks I'm left alone. I get in my car and head t the barn's in need t clear my head. 

Of course when I get there Shoni is there mucking out stalls and doing chorus and I have to pass her like ten times, before I can head out to the arena and ride. I ride English and jump, but I also enjoy just riding western and trail riding. After a while I see her come out of the barn leading a crazy black horse and taking him t the round pen. I get off Tarbaby and walk over t the round pen and watch as she chases a big muscular black horse, that could easily take her out, around the pen. she gets him to jog and lope and he tries to turn around on her but she gets after him and gives him hell until he turns reluctantly and obeys, she keeps him going until he gives in and licks his lips, with that she releases her pressure and draws him in. Then turns him on a dime and sends him out the other direction  and does the same. She this time when she draws him in she puts the halter on him she then proceeds to move his hip around and get him to be totally tuned in to her, you can see how concentrated the two are on each other. I am just awestruck, no one has been able to do anything like this with this horse. When they are done she notices me. "How long have you been there?" She asks. 

"A while," I say chuckling at how she is all of a sudden really nervous but then I see how the horse is reacting the same way and picking up on her feelings. I decided to just give her some space and not bother her too much, but can't resist asking a few questions. "So where did you learn to do that?" I finally ask. 

"From my great uncle Tom and my dad," she replies simply. You can still see that the horse is nervous but she gets him calmed down and just walks away. I put my horse away and head home.