A/N: Totally going to be late to work now, but I wanted you to have this update now and not have to wait until tonight!
Enjoy!
Elena yawned as she pulled her barn boots on and made her way outside. She had been up every few hours to feed her calf and after a few days of keeping that schedule, she was starting to feel the exhaustion.
Stefan was already in the barn, preparing grain buckets for all of his horses. He had six total now. Red, his ranch horse, Orion his competitive horse, and his four youngsters, Cowboy, P.J., Hannah and Fiona. She couldn't tell you who was who, but she knew those were the names of the young ones. Rebekah rode Fiona, but Elena was sure that Stefan favored Hannah. Elena thought P.J was the cutest and Stefan had caught Elena on more than one occasion sneaking extra treats to him. Cowboy tended to keep to himself, and Elena thought he looked lonely.
Elena grabbed a handful of grain and walked to P.J.'s stall to feed him. "You're spoilin' him" Stefan said, coming to stand behind Elena.
She just smiled. "He's a good boy" Elena mentioned, scratching behind his ear.
"He's almost solid on his walk, trot and canter now" Stefan mentioned, handing Elena his grain bucket to give to him. "You can ride him on the trail soon. I need to start takin' Cowboy out too" Stefan said.
Elena whipped around. "Wait, are you serious?" she asked. P.J. was young still, and the only horse she had ever ridden was Red who was well trained.
"I'm serious" he told her, walking back by her to give Red his grain.
Elena watched him and could tell that he was feeling better after yesterday's accident. Well, he was probably doing a better job of hiding how he was feeling. She knew he was worried about Katherine though, and as much as Elena didn't like her, she knew Katherine was hurting too. "Okay" Elena said to appease him. Truthfully, she was excited to get to ride P.J.
"Hey Elena?" he asked, tossing all of the horses a flake of hay as he walked back by her. "Thank you for last night. I guess I needed to talk about it" he told her.
Her back was to him, but she could feel his eyes on her. He was being nice and thanking her. Her defenses went up and she just shrugged. "It was no big deal" she said, brushing him off. It wasn't until she felt his hand on her arm, turning her to face him that she knew she wasn't fooling him.
"I know it wasn't easy for you, so thank you" he said simply. Elena was at a loss for words, but she did manage to nod her head. "Okay" he said, smiling shyly as he squeezed her arm.
Elena watched him grab a saddle off of its stand and she wondered who he was going to ride later. "Hey Stefan?" she asked, causing him to turn around and stop. "You should go and see Katherine. She probably needs a friend right now" Elena said quietly. Mentally, she was kicking herself. He'd probably go over and comfort Katherine and then fall in love with her. Maybe that was for the best though. Elena knew she wasn't planning on sticking around after the summer anyways.
"Yeah. I might do that" he said, giving her a curious look before continuing on his way.
Elena sighed, shaking her head at herself. This new caring side of hers was strange. Elena checked her watch and figured she could take her calf for a walk to get the mail. Stefan had bought her a calf halter, in pink as requested, and she figured she should start using it.
Elena grabbed Bessy and slipped her halter over her head before clipping a lead rope to her. Then she led her out of the barn towards the driveway. It was going to be another beautiful day out.
Ric was standing at the sink, washing dishes from breakfast. He happened to look out the window to see Elena walking down the driveway with a calf. He quickly shut the water off and walked outside. Stefan was loading his truck up and Elena was out of earshot. Ric whistled and got Stefan's attention. "What the hell's that?" he asked, pointing towards Elena.
"Elena's gettin' the mail" Stefan answered, ignoring Ric's real question.
"What's she doin' with one of my calves?" he questioned, walking towards Stefan.
"Damon gave her to Elena to foster and Elena wanted to keep her so I bought her off a Damon" Stefan explained.
Ric looked dumbfounded. "That's a beef cow. Not a pet" Ric reminded Stefan. "We ain't got time or room for a pet cow" he insisted.
Stefan leaned against his truck and sighed. "Like I told Damon. Elena's not used to this whole ranchin' business. She's been takin' real good care of that calf and she's fallen in love with it. I paid Damon a fair price and I'll be financially responsible for her care from here on out" Stefan assured him. He was proud of Elena for her responsibility. It was only fair.
"Jesus Christ Stefan" Ric said, shaking his head.
Stefan sighed. "Just trust me on this one Ric" he told him. "That calf will be a good thing for Elena. She's shown a lot of responsibility already" he assured him. "And just think" Stefan added with a knowing smile. "If Elena starts talkin' to Jenna 'bout how happy she is with her new pet, that's surely gonna look good for you" he added with a grin. Stefan swore Ric blushed under the scruff hiding his face. Ric loved Jenna, and that was obvious. "I have to run into town. You need anything?" he asked.
"Yeah. I need a few fence posts to replace the ones on the south end of the property" he told him.
Stefan nodded. "Sure thing" he said, jumping into his truck.
Ric took his hat off and walked back to the house, cursing under his breath. It was absurd for a cattle rancher to have a pet cow. If the other ranchers got wind of it, they'd be giving him hell until the day he died. But if Elena was happy, and that made Jenna happy, then he would be happy too.
Stefan drove towards Elena, slowing down as he approached. He rolled his window down. "I'll be back later" he said, waving to her.
"Okay" Elena said, smiling at him as she walked with her calf. "Can you pick me up some candy?" she asked. She knew Stefan liked to feel needed, so she figured she could give him something to do for her. "Gummy worms would be good."
Stefan nodded. "I can do that" he told her. "Can I ask you for a favor?" he asked her. Elena nodded. "Can you turn my horses out when they finish eating? They can all go into the pasture behind the arena."
"I can do that" she told him. He made it sound like he wouldn't be back all day and that kind of disappointed her.
"Thanks" he told her. He nodded as he moved his truck forward again, waving at her one last time.
Elena watched his truck disappear behind a cloud of dust as she continued walking.
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Stefan wasn't sure what he'd find when he walked into Katherine's house later that day. Her parents had told him to go on up to her room. She'd been in bed all day and they said she'd appreciate the company. Stefan wasn't so sure though.
Rebekah and Damon had been with Katherine the night before until Katherine's parents arrived back home. He wasn't worried about the support they would give her. Katherine's parents on the other hand were another story. Her mom and dad meant well, but their solution to every one of Katherine's problems was to throw money at it. And Stefan was pretty sure that Katherine sometimes just wanted someone to talk to.
As he finished climbing the stairs, he turned down the hall and walked towards her room. The entire upstairs was actually Katherine's. The first room he passed was her "study" room, which was more like a full-fledged office. Computers, printers and supplies. Katherine did all of her research on barrel racing and competition in there and probably little homework.
The second room he passed was filled with horse stuff. Saddles and ribbons Katherine had won. There were also photos of her and Daisy and a hundred others things related to that horse. Stefan quickly walked past that room and towards the room Katherine actually slept in. The large room at the end of the hall with the view of the horse pasture.
Katherine's door was shut and it was quiet. Stefan tapped on her door, but there was no answer. Did he really expect one? He turned her door handle and opened the door. His heart sank into his chest when he saw Katherine laying on her bed, on her side, facing the window that had the curtain drawn. Stefan shut the door quietly and walked over to her bed, sitting down by her feet. "Katherine" he said softly, waiting for an answer.
She didn't reply, but he could see her eyes staring ahead of her. Stefan placed his hand on her knee, and still, nothing. Stefan moved further onto her bed and lay right behind her. It was entirely too quiet and he hated it. Katherine was always so full of life, laughing or singing when they were together.
Slowly, Katherine turned around to face him. He could tell that she had been crying earlier. Stefan stared into her eyes, letting her know that he got it. He knew how she was feeling and how much she was hurting. "I'm sorry this happened" he whispered.
A single tear slid down her cheek as she listened to him. "The vet said it was an aortic rupture" she whispered sadly. "She was only six years old" she added as a few more tears fell.
He could tell she felt guilty, that she blamed herself. Stefan reached over and brushed them off of her face. "They don't know what causes those" he said, reminding her gently. "You did everything right" he said softly.
She let to a quiet sob as she felt her tears gearing up for another round. "I pushed her too hard" she said, thinking back to how hard she had worked Daisy.
Stefan shook his head no. "Daisy loved every minute of it. You had the vet out to see her once a month and everything looked fine. What happened … it was sudden. There's nothing we could have done differently" he said quietly. She was listening to him, even as she cried. She rarely listened to anyone. She was the most stubborn person he knew. "You wanna know somethin'?" he asked her. Katherine nodded slowly. "The way Daisy fell, it was to protect you. She didn't want to land on top of you and hurt you" he told her, feeling his own tears start up as he thought about Daisy. "She loved you so much" Stefan told her, wrapping his arms around Katherine and pulling her close.
Katherine wrapped her arms around Stefan too and continued to cry. "I miss her so much" she said quietly.
Stefan nodded. "I know you do. I do too" he told her. "But she's up there, waiting for you to find a new partner and start competing again" he said.
Katherine shook her head. "No. I'm done competing. I'm done riding" she told him. She didn't want to do it without Daisy.
"No you're not" he told her. Yes, she was upset and hurting. But she'd come around. He'd make sure of it. "Daisy wouldn't want that" he added. Katherine didn't say anything, so he continued. "I know everything feels horrible right now, but when you're ready, I want you to come over to the ranch. I've got someone I want you to meet" he told her.
Katherine pulled away from him and wiped at her tears. "I don't want another horse Stefan" she told him. That was the last thing she wanted right then.
"I know you don't right now. But when you're ready, drop on by" he told her. "We miss you 'round there anyway" he added. Katherine looked at him curiously, but she didn't say anything. "I know things go weird between us. But this is us. And I care about you and I don't want you to shut me out" he told her, sitting up on her bed. "So like I said, when you're ready, come over" he told her.
With that, he climbed off of her bed and let himself out of her room. When he closed the door behind him, he let out a long breath. That hadn't gone as terrible as he had pictured, though it had still been difficult. But at least she knew he cared. That was the most important thing to him.
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Two weeks had passed and although they all still brought up Daisy from time to time, it was more to remember her and less to grieve her. Elena was thankful for that, because seeing Stefan being sad was difficult. Especially when he was usually so happy about life.
And now that he was slowly getting back to his old self, he was giving her more responsibilities. Elena stood in the barn, staring at a wall filled with all sorts of leather bridles, halters and other straps.
Her hands were on her hips as she tapped her boot against the concrete flood of the barn. A note from Stefan asking her to do something horse related for him was not sufficient enough for her. She needed instructions. And conveniently, Stefan was not home. Neither was anyone else. Elena tried to think back on the last time they all left her home alone. The answer was never. For all they knew, she could have been getting into Ric's poorly hidden stash of liquor in the basement or Damon's even poorer hidden stash of cheap beer in his room.
But Elena wasn't interested. Lately, she hadn't wanted to drink. She had been so incredibly busy raising her calf and helping Stefan with the horses. Any down time was usually spent with Stefan too. It was kind of weird how easily she fit into his life. But she didn't mind it so much anymore.
Elena looked at Stefan's note that she was holding in her hand, trying to figure out if she was missing something. Why on earth did he think she would know what he meant? "What the fuck" Elena said, looking back to the wall of leather horse tack. It was a lost cause.
Elena turned her head and looked out of the barn when she heard someone pulling up. It was Katherine's deep blue truck. Elena sighed, realizing that she would have to deal with her since no one else was home. She had no idea why Katherine would be showing up, but the point was, she was there.
Katherine jumped down from her huge truck and shut the door. She was wearing her traditional blue jeans and t-shirt with the tan leather cowboy boots she often wore to school. Instead of her cowboy hat, she had on a ball cap sporting the name of the local feed store in town. Her hair was pulled back into a neat ponytail.
She was looking around until she noticed Elena come walking out of the barn. Katherine almost looked surprised to see Elena, but she quickly composed herself, squaring her small shoulders and looking directly at Elena. "I'm here to see Stefan" Katherine stated, making it perfectly clear to Elena what she was doing.
"He's not here, and I don't know when he will be back" Elena replied. Elena wanted to add that if they all had cellphones that worked, mishaps like these would not happen.
Katherine laughed bitterly to herself. "Of course he isn't" she said. She was obviously upset about it and Elena figured that it had taken a lot of effort for Katherine to leave her house and come to the ranch. On the outside, she looked okay. But Elena was willing to bet that Katherine was still a wreck under all that western wear. And Elena found herself empathizing with her. Losing someone you loved sucked. "Tell him I stopped by" she added, giving Elena a command before she turned around to walk back to her truck.
"Hey Katherine" Elena said awkwardly. What in the hell was she doing? She hated Katherine. "I'm sorry about Daisy" she found herself saying. And it sounded sincere.
Katherine's recognition of Daisy's death did not go unnoticed by Elena in that moment. For those few seconds, Elena wondered if Katherine would break down and cry, but she didn't. She stood up straighter and tipped her head lightly. "Thanks" she said uncomfortably. It was hard to not like someone who was being polite and sincere about a hardship you had faced.
Katherine reached for her truck door when she heard Elena call out to her again. "Look, Stefan left me this note and I have no idea what he's talking about" she said quickly, walking towards Katherine and holding the note out for her.
Katherine looked at Elena strangely for a moment, wondering what was going on. Elena was acting as if things were good between them and was even asking her for help like she was a friend. Still confused, Katherine took the note from Elena's hands and read through Stefan's horrible handwriting. "He wants you to oil the leathers on the wall above the grain bins" Katherine told her.
Elena nodded. "I know what he wants me to do. I just have no idea how to do it" Elena told her. "I've never oiled anything in my life" she admitted.
Katherine just stared at her for a moment before laughing at her. "God you city folk are a whole other breed, aren't ya?" she asked. She shook her head as she walked past Elena into the barn. Elena stood there for a moment, trying to decide if it was okay for Katherine to laugh at her or not. But laughing was better than crying she supposed.
When Elena made it back to the barn, Katherine had taken down every piece of leather on the wall and laid it out. She had grabbed rags and a bottle of what Elena assumed was leather oil. Then she sat on a bale of straw nearby and went to work. Elena awkwardly grabbed a rag and the bottle of oil and came to sit down next to Katherine. She sat there, unsure of what to do. "Just put a few dabs of oil on the cloth and rub it over the leather" Katherine instructed, taking pity on her. How did people everywhere else live? "You're looking more comfortable here in the country" Katherine mentioned after a minute or two.
Elena concentrated on the reins she had, but she did manage to answer Katherine. "I'm not exactly a city girl" Elena pointed out.
Katherine raised her perfect eyebrow at Elena. "What do you call yourself then?" Katherine asked.
Elena shrugged. "I'm from the suburbs. But I spent a lot of time in the city" she explained.
A silence passed over them, but Elena could tell that Katherine wanted to ask her something. Katherine turned towards her and kept her voice quiet. "Did you really steal a car and crash it into a store?" she asked.
Her eyes were filled with so much curiosity that it made Elena laugh. "What?" she asked. "Where did you hear that?" Elena asked.
Katherine shrugged. "Everyone talks 'round here" she said.
"Ah" Elena replied. "So what else are they saying about me?" Elena asked. On the ranch, no one ever said anything mean about her. And Stefan never asked her about her past in a judgmental way.
"That you've tried every drug invented" Katherine added. "Is it true?" Katherine asked. "I tried a cigarette once but it was really gross and Damon threatened to make me smoke the whole pack if he ever caught me doin' it again" she said quickly.
Elena really had to feel sorry for Katherine because she was so innocent. "My aunt thinks I was using drugs" Elena stated. "I smoked pot a few times, but it wasn't for me" Elena admitted. "Drinking was my biggest problem" she added.
Katherine grabbed for a new set of reins. "Do you like drinkin' like that?" Katherine asked.
Elena wondered just how much she wanted to tell Katherine. She didn't really know her, and she didn't really like her. "No" Elena answered honestly. "But when your parents die suddenly, it seems like a good idea to just numb yourself."
Katherine slowly stopped working on the reins she was holding and looked over at Elena. "I'm sorry" Katherine told her quietly. It had been insensitive of her.
Elena shrugged. "Don't be" Elena said, focusing on her set of reins. She knew she had done some pretty stupid things the past year.
Katherine could tell that Elena was done with the conversation. "So, you have a lot of designer clothes, right?" Katherine asked. "I mean, being a city girl and all" she added with a smirk.
Elena was thankful for the change in the subject. "Have you ever seen a pair of leather Prada boots?" Elena asked.
Katherine's eyes lit up. "In a magazine" she told her.
Elena set the reins down and stood up. "Come on" she said, motioning for Katherine to follow her.
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Stefan's heart began to race when he saw Katherine's truck parked in his driveway. Elena was home and the two of them together was bound to be a disaster.
He checked the barn and didn't see anyone. Then he walked towards the house, thinking maybe Katherine was waiting in there. When he got inside, he could hear voices upstairs. He quietly climbed the stairs and saw Elena's bedroom door open. Elena was sitting on her bed, smiling and Katherine was standing in front of her, wearing a pair of really tall boots. And not cowboy boots either.
Both girls turned when they saw him approach. "What's uh … what's goin' on?" Stefan asked. His face showed his confusion. Why were they not pulling each other's hair out?
"Elena's showin' me her city girl clothes" Katherine smiled. "What do you think?" she asked, walking towards Stefan. She tripped and fell forward, thankful that Stefan had caught her.
"I think you'd best stick with your cowboy boots" Stefan told her, setting her back up right.
Katherine just laughed. "So I can borrow all of these?" Katherine asked, turning back to Elena and pointing to the pile she had made on Elena's bed. It wasn't like Katherine couldn't afford those kinds of clothes. She just never had any interest in buying them when her money could be spent on jeans and saddles.
"Go for it" Elena said. She looked up at Stefan who still had his "what in the hell is happening here" look going on. Elena just shrugged. She and Katherine were bonding. And it was going really well. Katherine wasn't half bad, actually.
"When you're done doin' your girl stuff, you wanna meet me at the barn?" he asked Katherine.
She grinned. "My girl stuff?" she asked. "Just because you watched me run around barefoot with no makeup all these years don't mean I don't have a girly side" she told him. Katherine picked up the clothes she had picked out and kicked the boots off. "I think I had better say no to the boots" she added, walking past Stefan.
When Katherine was out of sight, Stefan smiled. "She looks happy" he said. "And you two aren't killin' each other" he added.
"She should be happy. She's carrying thousands of dollars worth of clothes right now" Elena grinned. "And we aren't killing each other because we get each other now" she told him.
"You're fixin' to tell me after only a few hours, you two are friends?" he asked.
Elena stood up and stopped right in front of him. "Amazing what clothes can do to two people, huh?" she asked.
Stefan laughed softly. "I suppose so" he told her. Elena moved around him, intent on going back downstairs. Stefan grabbed her elbow though and stopped her. "I am borrowin' a nursin' cow from a buddy of mine. Her calf died, but I thought she might nurse your calf. That way you don't gotta get up throughout the night" he told her.
"Thanks" Elena told him. "It will be nice to sleep through the night" she smiled, walking off.
Stefan went back outside and found Katherine standing on the fender of his trailer, looking in. "A cow?" she asked.
Stefan nodded as he walked by and opened the back of the trailer. He untied the cow and carefully led her out. "We have an abandoned calf in the barn" he explained, walking with Katherine back to the barn.
Once he got the cow situated in the stall, he turned his attention back to Katherine. "I'm glad you came over" Stefan told her. "I want to show you somethin'" he added, grabbing her hand and leading her toward the back of the barn. Stefan gave a whistle and a pretty strawberry roan horse put her head over the stall door and gave a soft nicker. "This is Hannah" Stefan said, introducing Katherine to the horse.
Katherine stopped. "I told you Stefan, I don't want another horse" she reminded him.
"She's three" Stefan began, ignoring Katherine. "I rescued her off of a feedlot up north. I've got her patterned around the barrels and she's fast. She's still learnin' and she'll grow a little more" he added.
"No Stefan" she told him, crossing her arms.
Stefan placed his hands on her shoulders and leaned in close to her. "I want you to have her. She needs her own person, and I know for a fact that you would be perfect for her" he told Katherine. "I know you're still hurtin'. But I also know that Daisy would want this" he told her.
Katherine scoffed. "And how do you know that?" she challenged.
Stefan smiled. "She told me" he said. "We talked and stuff" he added.
It got Katherine to smile though. "You're ridiculous" she told him, looking at the horse. "I just don't know that I'm ready" she sighed. Daisy had only been gone two weeks.
"Here" he said, taking her hand and slowly approaching Hannah. Katherine reluctantly pet the horse before her. "She likes you" Stefan concluded.
Katherine smiled at him. "She's pretty" she mentioned. "Gentle eyes" she added, tilting her head and studying the young horse. "I'll have to think about it. And I should be going" she told him.
"Okay" Stefan said, nodding his understanding. He walked out with her, opening her truck door for her like the gentleman he was. "So you'll be by tomorrow to take her for a spin?" Stefan asked as Katherine climbed into her truck.
"Wow, subtle much?" she asked him. "I said I'd think about it Stefan" she said, shutting her door.
"See you tomorrow!" Stefan called out as she backed up some and then turned her truck around to head back home. He waved to her as he watched her. Then he sighed. He knew he was pushing Katherine. He also knew that the longer she went without riding, the greater chance there would be for her to stop riding altogether.
Stefan wandered back into the barn to check on the cow he had brought home for the calf. The calf was nursing and the cow seemed to be content. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn't. But he was glad it had in this case. "Should I feel replaced?" Elena asked, walking into the barn. She stopped next to Stefan and watched.
Stefan smiled. "Nah. This is just temporary. Until she can eat grass" Stefan told her.
"It was really nice of you to do this" Elena said, looking up at him.
He just shrugged, like it was no big deal. "I figured you could use a break. You've been doin' such a good job takin' care of her" he told Elena. They were quiet for a few minutes, just watching the cow and calf in the stall. "Thank you, for what you did for Katherine today. She's been pretty down the past few weeks. I haven't seen her smile until today" Stefan said.
Elena took a turn to shrug, like it was no big deal. "I didn't do anything really" she said.
Stefan disagreed though. "Yeah, you did" he told her. Elena looked up at him, after hearing how serious he sounded. "It means a lot to me. I know you and Katherine don't exactly get along, and I'm willin' to bet it wasn't Katherine who reached out today when she came over" Stefan said.
That was true. Elena had been the one to reach out. "She's not so bad I guess" Elena said. They had talked a lot about different things, ranging from clothes to school to traveling. Elena almost forgot what it was like to have a friend like that. "I know what it feels like" she added. To lose someone she loved.
Stefan smiled. "Look at you bein' all compassionate and empathetic" Stefan said, lightly teasing her.
Elena rolled her eyes. "I'm not compassionate or empathetic" she replied. She had had a weak moment where she had reached out to Katherine. "I'm going to take a shower" she told him.
Stefan grabbed her hand before she could walk off. Before Elena knew it, he was pulling her close and leaning down to kiss her. She grabbed his t-shirt to steady herself, finding that she was leaning into him anyway. She loved those moments where he took charge and just kissed her. She wished he would do that more. "You are compassionate and empathetic" he whispered, having leaned back slightly. "You just like to make people think otherwise" he reminded her.
Elena still had a death grip on his shirt as her eyes focused on his lips right in front of her. "What are you, a therapist now?" she asked quietly.
He shook his head no. "I've been watchin' you. Studyin' you. You don't fool me, Elena. I know you're a genuine, loving girl under that rough and tough façade you put on" he told her. He had seen it. Glimpses of it.
She didn't quite know what to say to that. And maybe she didn't even care that he had her so figured out. "Are you done?" she asked him. She had things to do, that did not include him psychoanalyzing her.
Stefan stepped forward, grabbing her face and moving in to kiss her again. Elena stepped back, hitting the stall door as he came to stand against her, pinning her between the door and him. She wasn't sure if it was the fact that they were in a barn that had her so turned on, or the fact that it was him doing this to her that was driving her crazy. Maybe a little bit of both. She wanted more, and she was pretty damn sure he wanted more too. She was about to say something, but a horn honking made her lose her confidence. And it had done the same to him too apparently because he had jumped back away from her.
They both were breathing heavily, and anyone who had walked in right then would have known they were up to something. "Let's go for a trail ride tomorrow night. I want to show you something'he told her quietly. They could both hear footsteps coming towards the barn.
Elena nodded and Stefan turned to leave. She leaned back against the stall door, her hand over her heart trying to calm her breathing. She smiled at the thought of what Stefan wanted to show her. And the fact that it would be at night had all sorts of things running through her head.
A/N: Stefan. I just love him.