Kay sat on the log looking out at the field. She didn't know what to do with her life anymore. As usual, she tried to hold back her tears but failed. Everything was going wrong. As she sat there, she heard horses running and then saw them. She stood up and walked to the field. She stood at the bottom of the hill and watched them run. She looked to see what they were running from and saw nothing.
Weeks passed and everything seemed to stay the same. Bradin and Kay seemed to get closer and become friends. Kay and her relatives were always fighting. The wild Mustangs appeared every few days. Kay arrived at the stables after getting her cast of. Her arm was fully healed after having a cast for over six weeks. She got out of her car and walked into the stables to talk to Bandit.
"Hey boy," she said as he stuck his head out to her. Once again, he nibbled at her shirt. "You are too smart for a horse," she said as she fed him a carrot, "I can ride you again starting tomorrow. You get to go out more than you have within the past eight weeks." He snorted making her smile. "I'll come by later."
She turned and jumped when she saw Bradin standing there. He laughed noticing how much he scared her.
"I'm sorry," he said laughing, "I didn't mean to scare you. How's the arm feel?"
"Lighter," she said, "It feels weird but hey, it's better."
He smiled and opened his arms asking for a hug. She looked at him and pointed at his clothes. "You do know that you're dirty," she said.
"So?" he asked stepping closer.
She stepped back. "So, when you're clean, I'll hug you."
"Kay," he whined.
"Brae," she whined mocking him.
"Oh you're going to get it," he said.
She looked around and back at him. "Should I run?"
He grinned causing her to turn and run from him. He laughed and chased her. She just reached the outside of the stable doors when she got tackled right into a mud puddle left from the rain the previous night.
"Bradin!" she yelled. He laughed evilly.
"I'm sorry," he said, "I didn't mean to get you dirty."
"Riiight," she said, "Get off of me."
"Will you give me a hug?" he asked with a smile.
"If that's what it takes to get you off of me then yes," she said. She pushed him off and stood up not wanting to wait for him to get off of her. He stood up and wrapped his arms around her from behind. "Let me just tell you that you are soo lucky that these clothes are old," she told him. He smiled once again and let go of her.
"At that moment back there," he said as they began walking to her house, "I felt like a kid again. I always use to tackle my siblings into mud puddles back in Kansas on our farm. Again, thank you for letting me work here."
"Oh!" she said, "Speaking of letting you work here, I have something for you." Bradin waited by the front door for Kay who went into the kitchen. When she walked back out, he notcied how pretty she looked even with all of the mud on her clothes and body. "Here," she said handing him some money.
"Kay, what did I say before?" he asked.
"And what did I tell you before?" she asked. "No one works on this ranch without getting paid."
"Kay," he said.
"Bradin, please."
He sighed and took the money. That night, Bradin walked into his house and shut the door behind him.
"Hello, sweetie," his aunt said, "How was it today?"
"It was good." Bradin walked into his room, got clothes, took a shower, and headed back to his room. When he headed to the kitchen, he sat down in a chair.
"What's wrong?" Johnny asked from the living room.
"It's Kay," he said softly, "She pays me when I told her that letting me work on a ranch again is all I needed. I want to pay her back."
"Invite her to dinner," Susannah said.
"I don't know," he sighed.
Kay sat at her dining room table with her laptop. She was looking at an e-mail that was sent weeks ago about her father. She was also looking at pictures of him and her when she was younger. She could feel tears coming to her eyes. She sighed and sat back in her seat. She looked out a nearby window and heard Bandit. She stood up and walked outside to the stables. She walked up to Bandit's stable and he calmed down.
"What's wrong boy?" she asked.
She watched as he walked deeper into his stable and layed down. She smiled. He began to shake his head and make noises.
"I can't stay out here," she said. He made more noises. "Boy, another night. I promise." She gave him a few carrots and headed back into the house.
Bradin walked up to the stables the following day and saw the other guys standing in a circle. He walked up to them and stood next to Hank.
"What's going on?" Bradin asked.
Kay's uncle walked up to them. "Everything is fine," he told them.
Bradin ignored what was going on and began to work. Around lunchtime, he began to wonder what Kay was up to. She always came out to check on them around ten. Today, she didn't. He knew that she needed to be alone for a while. Bradin sat on a stack of hay and sighed.
"You okay, boy?" Hank asked sitting beside the teenager.
"I'm just tired," Bradin replied.
Then, the two heard Jay yelling. "Kay!" Jay yelled. The both looked and saw Kay riding Bandit into the woods. In the distance, they could hear more horses running.
"Shit," Hank said standing up, "Come on, Bradin."
Both boys ran up along with the other guys. They all got on horses and followed Kay. It seemed that Kay would be going faster and faster each time the guys were catching up to her. They arrived at the open field and saw the wild Mustangs. What was wrong thought was that Kay was following the horses.
"Kay!" her uncle yelled.
