Part 3 – Big Girls Don't Cry…But What About Big Boys?
String lingered in the shower, savouring the hot water as it cascaded down his back. He had spent the night on the pull-out bed in Dom's tiny apartment. The three of them had gone out for a Chinese meal the night before, and seeing that today was his turn to take Cait up on her part of the bet, he had asked Dom if he wouldn't mind him crashing on his couch. He had tiptoed into the bathroom and turned the shower on, full on cold, and forced himself to stay under the stinging spray for at least ten seconds before allowing himself to indulge in a hot shower.
"That you, String?"
"Well, who else are you expecting?" yelled back String. "A burglar who takes a shower?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'll put some coffee on, wise arse!" grumbled Dom. String could hear him moving around in the bedroom, and thought that he had, at most, another five minutes before Dom started yelling about using up all the hot water.
String turned the taps off and towelled himself off vigorously. Wrapping the towel round his waist, he padded into the kitchen and perched himself on the little breakfast nook stool next to his friend.
"You ready for today, buckaroo?"
"Geez, Dom, am I going to be listening to your 'Texanisms' all day?"
"Naw, cowpoke!" Dom erupted into a big belly laugh. "I'll leave the 'String-goading' up to Cait today, shall I?"
"Thanks," said String dryly.
"You might wanna think about actually wearing something under those jeans of yours today, String, if you know what I mean."
"Dom, that's none of your bloody business! Anyway, I haven't worn underpants in years," said String in an embarrassed mumble.
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Dom took his time turning the engine off, stowing the headsets and grabbing his jacket before he got out of the Jet Ranger. He could tell that String was on edge, and Cait really wasn't helping. They had just landed at the Ravenson farm, owned by his friend Meg's parents. It wasn't really a ranch, per se, but they did have a few horses. Cait had complained bitterly about not being able to take String and Dom back to her family ranch in Austin, but accepted Dom's substitute when he said that he would enjoy spending time with Meg whilst keeping an eye on the riding lesson.
Dom wasn't sure if today was such a good idea. The previous week, when String tried to teach Cait to ride a motorbike, had been a near-disaster. String hadn't said anything to him, but he had seen String's face when he saw the scratches on his beloved BMW after Cait had proceeded to drop the motorbike on the tarmac a total of three times. She hadn't got out of third gear, even though the bike was capable of speeds up to 180 km/h, and could not get the hang of a slow, controlled acceleration whilst keeping her balance and changing gears at the same time. She had cried, albeit AFTER String had finished the lesson, which won his part of the bet, saying that she had never felt so stupid and clumsy. Cait had been very subdued for the better part of the last week, and String had been unusually quiet, giving the hangar an almost ghost-like feel. "Well, maybe after today they'll both be in a better mood and we'll be back to normal. Mamma Mia, I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm sick of hearing the sound of my own voice!" Dom thought to himself.
A high, clear voice startled him out of his reverie. "Dom? You STILL in here?"
"Hello, Meg! Yeah, just making sure everything's shut down fine," said Dom, as he scrambled out of the Jet Ranger and pulled Meg into a tight hug.
"You OK, Dom? It's not like you not to want to get involved in the action," Meg said, as she wrapped an arm round Dom's waist.
"Yeah, fine, fine, looking forward to seeing String learn to ride a horse."
"Well, I've got coffee waiting, and my folks want to say hello."
"C'mon then, let's not keep your folks waiting!" Putting on a bright smile that didn't quite reach to his eyes, Dom brushed a kiss on Meg's cheek as she bustled him off.
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"OK, String, I'm not going to make you start off by pushing the horse around, but let's practice getting on and off a horse before you actually try one," Cait smiled mischievously at String. She had told herself in the shower this morning that she had enough of moping around. Although she wasn't her normal bouncing self, she noticed that String was as quiet as he had been all week. Wondering what exactly was going on in his mind, she said out loud, "Won't you please grab that saddle, blanket and reins and let's saddle up?"
String grabbed the items she indicated and followed her out of the barn without a word.
"Lord, this is going to be one heck of a fun day!" thought Cait sarcastically to herself.
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String gripped the saddle tightly with his thighs, and tried to relax his hands on the reins. He was hot etand sweaty, tired and dusty, and his muscles were aching. He could feel the tension in his neck, and tried to surreptitiously unclench his jaw.
"You doing fine, String. Now just relax your thighs a little bit, so that you're not holding Betsey in a death grip, that's good. Now GENTLY tap her flanks with your ankles, so that she knows that you want to go." Cait tried her most reassuring tone and patted Betsey on her pretty brown nose, hoping that the mare would do as she was told.
String took a deep breath and dug his ankles in as gently as he could. To his relief, Betsey responded by taking a few steps forward. Pulling on the right rein, he made Betsey turn right. "Phew, this isn't as bad as I thought!" He yanked both reins towards him as Betsey walked next to where Cait was standing, bringing the mare to a stop.
"Very good, String. OK, let's try a little more walking before we do a canter. Remember what I told you, I would like you to take Betsey round the paddock here, once to the right, then once to the left and get her to stop right here by this hitching post. Try to relax, remember that horses can feel the tension through your muscles."
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"That's very good for your first time, String. Remember the further forward you lean, the faster the horse will go. Let Betsey have some water while I saddle up another horse, and we'll go for a longer ride this time."
"OK, Cait," said String. He allowed himself a small smile. He thought he had done pretty well – much better than what Cait had done the previous week with his motorcycle. He could feel the sweat run down his neck, all the way into his boots, but he was actually enjoying the time on his horse. He patted Betsey on her neck as she slurped thirstily at the trough.
"All ready to go, String?"
"Yeah."
"OK, you go first, let's go slowly to begin with, the ground around here isn't exactly as smooth as the paddock, so practice holding yourself steady in the saddle. Let me go behind you so I can make sure you're OK," said Cait, relieved that String seemed to be less tense.
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String could feel the cool air on the back of his neck. It was a lot more pleasant out in the countryside, and his sweat was beginning to dry. He could, however, feel the seams of his jeans stiffen with dried sweat, and hoped that he would not regret not taking Dom's advice and putting on an extra pair of shorts or something under his jeans.
His sharp ears picked up an alien sound off to his left. Straining his eyes to see what was causing the sound, he inadvertently leaned forward in an effort to see better. Betsey, thinking that he wanted her to go faster, picked up her pace to a canter.
"String?! What's up?" shouted Cait.
"I heard something!"
"Don't lean too far forward, String!" shouted Cait. "Betsey'll think you want to go even faster!"
Distracted, String tried to adjust his posture and seating position whilst trying to keep his balance. To make matters worse, his sweat-dried jeans were now beginning to chafe his most delicate areas. Betsey's cantering didn't help, as he was now being jostled and slammed into the saddle with each step. "Dammit!" he thought to himself, thinking that he had better stop the mare before he ended up with his delicate area being mushed. He yanked quickly on both reins, hoping that Betsey would stop. She did – so quickly that he lost his balance and tumbled over her back.
"String!" Cait screamed as she reined in her own horse and tossed the reins over her stallion's head as she scrambled off and towards him.
Cait winced as she approached String. He had, unfortunately, landed in the middle of a patch of thorn bushes. Betsey was looking anxiously into the patch, wondering if her rider was alright. Cait pulled her reins over her head, like she had done with her stallion, in an attempt to prevent both horses from running away if spooked. Setting her teeth, Cait tried to pick her way through the thorn bushes at what she thought was the thinnest and least thorniest part.
"String?! You OK?"
"Yeah…..no….."
"Lie still, I'm coming," said Cait, hoping that he wasn't too badly hurt. After fighting her way through what felt like kilometres of thorn bush, she found him on his back with his legs tangled in a thorny branch.
"OK, OK, let's do this slow. First things first, we gotta untangle you from this branch. Just relax, and don't fight me, I can see where the thorns are and you can't. Are you hurt anywhere?"
Cait could see that String was fighting to keep his emotions in check. She could see his Adam's apple bob up and down as he tried to swallow before replying.
"Everywhere's sore, Cait. But I haven't broken anything, and I'll live…I think," he said quietly. "Just get me outta here."
Cait smiled to herself and applied herself to the task at hand. She managed to free him quickly enough, and offered him a hand to pull himself up with. Smiling gratefully at her through his trusty aviator sunglasses (which were miraculously unharmed), he took her proffered hand and tried to pull himself to his feet.
Just as he got to about a half squat, String cried out. "OWWWWWWW!" He promptly let go of Cait's hand and fell back onto his back.
"God in Heaven, String, you've really hurt yourself!"
"It's in my jeans…"
"What?!" Cait couldn't believe her ears. She could see tears forming in String's ice blue eyes.
String's hands scrabbled at the zip of his jeans. Cait couldn't decide whether she should pitch in and help him. As he yanked his jeans open, Cait realised that he wasn't wearing any underwear at all. A red hot blush crept up her neck as she tried hard not to stare.
"Something's digging into me, Cait, and I can't see it. Help!" said String through clenched teeth.
Cait could see that his delicate parts were chafed almost raw, and that two wicked-looking broken-off thorns were the cause of his distress. "OK, String, I see the thorns, you gotta hold still while I pick them out, OK?"
"Mmmmm…. hurry, Cait!" String fought to keep from screaming, as tears streamed from his eyes.
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String limped, bow-legged, into the farmhouse kitchen.
"You OK, son?" asked Dom, concerned.
"Yeah…sort of."
"You took an awful long time, it's almost dark out."
"Yeah, well – you can tell Everett that he lost his part of the bet."
Dom's eyes widened as he took in String's dishevelled appearance, and the tell-tale tracks of dried tears down String's cheeks. "Where's Cait?"
"Putting the horses away."
"Come and sit down, String. Take a load off," Delia, Meg's mother patted the chair next to her invitingly. "Meg, get String a cool drink, won'tcha please?"
String shuffled awkwardly. "I'd love to sit down, but I'm afraid I won't be able to get up again. Thanks, Meg," the last aimed at Meg who had come up with a tall glass of cool lemonade.
Dom wisely bit his tongue, thinking it best that he ask Cait for the whole story. He couldn't believe that String had broken down in tears whilst learning to ride a horse.
"String, do you think we could stay here tonight – give us a chance to visit a bit with Megan and her folks, and we can fly home tomorrow?"
"We can offer you a hot bath, and a good rubdown with some liniment that'll take away some of the bruises and aches," added Delia.
"I'm not sure that liniment'll help with the pains that String has at the moment!" giggled Cait, as she walked in.
"Cait, sweetheart, there's nothing my liniment can't cure!"
"Chafing burns and thorn sticks in delicate places?!" added Cait, wickedly arching an eyebrow at String. String tried to struggle to his feet to escape the concerted shout of laughter, but couldn't get up fast enough.
"Well, there's only one way to find out?" said Delia, handing Cait the bottle of liniment.
THE END