Finding Solace

XXXVI

I stood at the sink, watching the water whirl around the bucket, the water level slowly rising. Maverick was in the tack room, putting away his saddle and gathering the tools we needed to clean Rudolph. I sheepishly took in his dirty pants as he disappeared into the room, leaving dusty boot prints behind.

"Won't he get cold if we bathe him outside?" I called out, shutting off the water.

"We have a wash stall." Maverick said as he reappeared from the room, holding a bucket full of supplies. "It's at the end of the hall." I nodded and went to pull the water bucket out of the sink, only to struggle with its weight.
"Here." Maverick chuckled and handed me the tool bucket. "Ill get this." He almost effortlessly picked the bucket out of the sink, holding it with one hand while he led Rudolph by his reins in the other.

As we reached the end of the hall, he set the bucket down and attached ropes to either side of Rudolph's bridle, leaving the horse in the middle of the room. The room was larger than the other stalls, a drain in the middle of the room. It was practically empty, just a hose hanging from the wall along with bottles of soap. Setting my own bucket down, I looked through the various tools.

"This looks painful." I cringed, pulling out the metal tool. It was circular with various circles inside, all with sharp points on them. "What even is this?" I held it up higher, turning around so he could see it.

"That's a curry brush." He said, gently taking it from me, only to put it back in the bucket and began digging through it. "It can be painful if you use them wrong. You can only use them in certain areas which is why," he paused as he pulled something out from the bottom, "we use these. It's essentially the same thing, just plastic." He handed me one while he dug to find another, pulling out a different brush.

"What are they used for." I asked, turning the brush in my hands.

"It's to loosen dirt in the pelt. It also helps stimulate the muscles." He walked over to Rudolph and began rubbing the brush on his neck in a circular motion, showing me how it works. "Do you want to try?" I did as he showed me and he praised me.
"That's great. Now he's usually pretty good with bathing but I'll do his legs, just in case he decides he doesn't like it. Will you be okay working on his upper half?"

"I think I can manage." My arm began to grow tired after a while but I got his back and neck done while he did the legs and back end. Once again, he gently took the brush from me, only to replace it with the one he was using earlier.

"This is dandy brush. It's just a standard brush to help remove the dirt and hair." As I brushed the horse again, I watched as he worked the knots out of his tail, standing more to the side of the horse rather than directly behind him. As I finished, he moved on to brush out the mane.

"I don't know how you do this." I shook my head. "My arms already hurt." He all but laughed as I dropped the brush back into the bucket.

"We're not done yet." He bent down. "Catch." A soft, yellow sponge hit my chest but I was able to catch it before it hit the floor. Bending down, he stuck the sponge into the bucket, beginning to wash the horses face.
"Stay there a moment. He could get agitated." As he brushed the sponge across his face, the horse stirred a bit, pulling at the ropes but nothing too bad.
"Can you grab the soap while I get this water heated up." I did as he asked while he played with the knobs.

"You don't use soap on his face?" I asked, handing the bottle over.

"No." He shook his head, gently spraying water from leg up, getting Rudolph wet. "It could get in his eye and then we'd have a problem." I cringed as he cleaned the private areas before putting shampoo on his sponge.
"Use a little at a time and work it in. Try to work quickly because you don't want it to dry."

He once again worked on his backside and legs, leaving me to do the neck and back. I worked at a good pace, wetting my sponge and applying more shampoo as I worked in sections. Focused on my work, I noticed Maverick moved to wet his sponge as well and I felt a stream of liquid slide down my calf, soaking my jeans.

"Whoops. Sorry." He apologized. I would have believed him if it wasn't for the shit eating grin he was poorly hiding. As he was now working on the leg beside me, I took my sponge and squeezed it over his head.

"Oops." I tried to keep a straight face but I cracked when I saw his bewildered expression.

"Oh really?" He daunted with a playful undertone.

"Mhmm. My hand slipped." I replied with forced seriousness. I watched as he stood, surprising me when he squeezed his sponge on top of my head, soaking my hair.

"Mine slipped to." He mocked me. Laughing, I threw mine, hitting directly in the face, only for it to fall on his shirt, leaving a we mark.
"Oh you asked for it now." Bending down, he made a move to grab the bucket and I turned to run away.

"No!" I felt the water hit my back, soaking my shirt, pants and the ends of my hair.
"You're so on." I challenged him, grabbing the hose, aiming it at him.

"Don't you dare." He lunged at me. Turning on the hose, it hit him in the face, causing him to stop on his tracks and sputter. I moved the hose up and down, returning the favor he just gave me.
"Okay okay." He held his hands up in surrender. "I give up. You win." Turning of the hose, I laughed, admiring my work.

As we finished shampooing and rinsing, we couldn't help but laugh every time we made eye contact. He looked a mess, his hair flat on his head and soaked to the bone. I probably looked no better.

Once Maverick wiped the water off using a sweat scraper, I helped him clean up and return the items where they belong. Returning Rudolph to his stall, we made our way out. Once the cold night air hit my wet body, I shivered.

"I shouldn't have done that." I watched as Maverick shook his head. "You're probably going to get sick now."

"I'll be fine." I reassured him. "Look on the bright side." He looked at me puzzled. "You're not dirty anymore." At that, he playfully bumped my shoulder with his.