Little White Lies

Chapter 18

I spend the next week throwing myself into preparations for the Virginia Horse Show Association (VHSA) final horse show in Lexingtion, Virginia. There's plenty to keep me busy; training rides on client horses and tune ups on lesson horses, manes to fix after clients pull them poorly, lessons to teach, tack to clean and baths to give. We're leaving Wednesday after school gets out with two trailers packed full of horses and gear. We will have four clients trailering horses up on different days and Autumn will be bringing a trail load for us on Thursday. We have a total of eighteen paying clients coming and nineteen horses total. I'll be showing three horses over this long weekend. So, plenty of distractions.

I jump a little when I feel someone tap on my shoulder the following Wednesday. I look up and Ali is standing there looking down at her feet, "Um, could you come look at this for me?" she asks.

"Yeah, sure," I stand up and walk across the art room to where she has been working on a layout for the yearbook. "What's the problem?" I ask studying the layout she's pointing to.

"I'm having trouble with this layout for the baseball team," she gestures at the page. "I can't decide which works better," she sighs. "I have these artsy pictures, but I only have a few really good ones, and I have plain shots that are decent."

I can see what she means. Our class decided on the theme A Picture is Worth 2020 Words, which is literally one of the stupidest things I've ever heard. But the class voted and here we are. "The artsy ones kind of fit the theme better, maybe we can do a combination since we don't really have enough of them though. Why not try artsy here," I point at the top right, "then normal over here," I say gesturing to the other side of the page. "I just don't want it to look cluttered."

"Yeah, that might work," Ali says setting down the rest of the pictures she was holding. "I feel like I've barely seen you these last couple of weeks," she says quietly, not looking up from the paper.

"I know, I've just been so busy. And you've been busy too," I add. "I'm glad to see you so happy with Greg."

"Thanks. I," she pauses, glancing over her shoulder at the rest of the class.

"What?" I ask even though I think I may know what's coming. It's going to be something about Autumn.

"I can't help feeling like you've replaced me with her," Ali finishes.

"Who? Autumn? I haven't replaced you. Autumn is great, I think you would really like her," I smile encouragingly.

"I guess," Ali grumbles. "I mean I do sit with her at lunch. I feel like I have a good feel for her at this point. At least I'll have you to myself this weekend. No boys, just us."

"So, yes, and no," I tell her. Clearly she hasn't read any of the emails about this horse show. "No boys, but Autumn is hauling school horses up for us tomorrow evening."

"Great, I'm the last to know everything. Next thing you're going to tell me is that Mark moved in and I missed that too," Ali says dejectedly.

Well, this is awkward. "Don't yell, we'll get in trouble. He did," I admit.

"What?" To her credit, she didn't yell, but she did say it loud enough to draw the attention of several near by people.

"Yeah, last week. Long story, I'll tell you on the drive," I say glancing around to make sure everyone has gone back to their own lives.

"We have SO much to talk about," Ali agrees.

"I can't believe you're going to be gone until Sunday," Andy says, pulling me back in for another kiss. We're in the empty high school parking lot waiting for the kids be let out of school.