A/N– Somehow in my busy schedule I actually found time to post. Wow. Now I felt obligated (again) to post this chapter because I'm going to be truthful with you. I just ordered 4 more new books, and when I get new books they are all I think about. So they will most likely take me 4-6 days to read (usually one a day...that makes my mom and step-dad mad because I constantly need new books) So anyways I definitely wont be able to post till next week sometime, except hopefully, and finally, I will update 'Hard Times' tomorrow. So enjoy.

Disclaimer: Everything recognizable belongs to Lauren Brooke.

Chapter 5

Next Day: Tuesday

Lou drove Ty home right when he got to work yesterday. She saw his state and told him he would start today instead. He readily agreed. And then I got lectured. I was told that I would give him a ride to work everyday, no matter what. I agreed. She frowned.. She couldn't understand how I had made him walk to work, yet now I was so willingly agreeing to bring him to work every single day instead of just once. She finally let it go and so did I. I was already confused and didn't need to be anymore.

As I walked into school I had my head down in deep though. Ty had apologized for everything he had done to me, and yet I still felt like I should totally despise him. He had been so mean to me, so cruel, that I wasn't sure I could forgive him, even though I said I had. I was nearing my locker when I heard my name being called, I glanced over my shoulder and involuntarily smiled,

"Hey," Ty said breathlessly as he caught up to me.

"Hi," hadn't I just argued with myself over not forgiving him? Did I mention im very confused?

"Sorry about yesterday," he looked sheepishly down at the ground.

"What's with all the apologies lately?" I grinned into my locker.

"Well, I don't know, I want to be friends. And I don't want to mess that up this time with constantly being an ass,"

"That's not likely to change," I crooned, playfully patting his arm as I shut my locker. It was so easy to forget everything he had done and be friends with him. And yet in the back of my mind I felt something poking and prodding, not allowing me to look in his eyes without being ashamed. But for the life of me I couldn't figure out what it was.

"Eh, your probably right. But I can sure as hell try," he smiled that brilliant smile at me, and my knees buckled. He'd never smiled so beautifully, at least not at me.

"Yeah well, good luck with that. Oh and by the way I had to swear on all that's Holy that I will give your rides to work everyday. So be out at my car as soon as possible. Working a horse sanctuary is hard work my friend," I raised my eyebrows at him in question,

"I think I can manage. I mean I am a guy with all these muscles. Its really hard having them and being able to lift so much weight!" he exaggerated the last three words and I laughed at him,

"Oh the manly man come to the rescue of the little weak farm girl. What a hero!" I feigned weakness and admiration in my voice and he chuckled. What a beautiful melodic sound.

"Yes of course. Anything for a damsel in distress,"

"Oh I only bet," he smiled and opened his mouth to speak but the bell rang and students rushed to class, splitting us apart. By the time I got to class he was already situated in his chair and didn't even notice me. Yet when he left for his first period class he glanced at me and smiled. My heart fluttered in response, but as I followed his retreating back I couldn't help but feel that prodding in the back of my mind, once again poking the outer walls of my train of thought.

End of the day

I sat in my car, tapping the steering wheel in frustration. Ty was taking forever to get outside. Of course im usually one of the first person to leave for home. My locker is right next to my last period class and then the doors to the parking lot are merely 10 feet away. In reality it was only 5 minutes after the last bell rung, yet I was getting more angered by the second.

"Finally," I muttered to myself as he exited the school building, an automatic smile lighting my face and he searched the parking lot for me, all angry remarks fleeing my mind.

"Hey," he situated himself into the passenger seat, "Nice car by the way. Too bad its too cold to have the top down,"

"Mmm," I crooned lost in his voice. Was it this easy to fall in love? No wait no. Not love. Fall in friendship. Wow gas fumes can really get to a girl.

"You ok?" his voice held amusement as I snapped my eyes away from his face, his eyes had settled on mine and a queasy feeling began in the pit of my stomach and started to rise, I had to look away.

"Fine," I muttered, cursing my stomach. I wanted so badly to get lost in his eyes, but something kept holding me back.

"Alright," and then we were gone. The school was soon lost in the dust that my tires spun up, and soon Heartland was within view. Time to work.

That weekend: Saturday: Heartland

"Amy?" I heard my voice being called from somewhere outside and I stirred in my bed. I opened my eyes the tiniest bit and groaned. 6:30. I rolled back over and closed my eyes; five more minutes.

"Amy?" I shot up in bed, my head spinning from the sudden movement.

"What!" I cried, disoriented and confused.

"Get up, you've overslept!" It was Lou and her voice was frantic in my mistake,

"Overslept!" I bolted out of bed and flew into my bathroom. I had to feed the horses, groom them, work Daisy...the list went on. And all before noon when I was supposed to go out on a trial ride with Ty. I quickly showered and towel dried my hair, having no time to do anything more, I ran back into my bedroom, hell bent on getting clothed in the first thing that I touched. On my mad dash to the closer I caught a glance of my clock and stopped mid grab for the closet door. 6:40.

"Ugh," I shrieked in frustration, dropping down onto my bed. I had literally taken a 5 minutes shower, so I'd overslept 5 minutes, "Lou I'm going to murder you with a smile!" I yelled, glaring at my clock as I heard her laugh as she walked out of the house.

I lay on my bed for a few more minutes, willing my eyes to shut, just to spite Lou. But the scared reaction of oversleeping had me wide awake, and no chance of sleeping in the near future, so I decided I'd look nice today. I was going on a trail ride with Ty after all...

I skipped into my bathroom, suddenly perky. I blow dried my still wet hair until it glistened and fell in straight sheets down my back. I then took a few tufts of hair and pinned them back into a barrette. I applied no makeup and then looked at the towel that was tied around me. Time to change. I pulled on a pair of light jeans and then a beige turtleneck, that would help against the cold.

I walked down stairs and looked around the kitchen. Refrigerator, stove, counter, table, muffins, ne...SCORE. I grabbed two blueberry muffins and floated towards the door. I pulled it open and slipped through before it could bang shut on me. I looked around the yard and smiled, noticing Ty was already here. Work didn't start until 730 for him on the weekends and yet here he was, an hour early.

"What are you doing here?" I asked over the stall door, watching as Ty performed T-Touch on Daisy.

"Working," he looked at me like I was mental,

"I know that loser. I meant why so early?" I rolled my eyes.

"Oh, I don't know. I was up and bored, so I decided to come to work."

"Oh, whatever. Well I'm going to feed the.." Ty cut me off

"Done."

"Groom the..."

"Back barn is done, the front still needs to be done."

"Exactly how long have you been here?"

"I told you. Its these muscles. They work overtime." I glared at him and set to work grooming the horses, which steadily turned into working Daisy and Caramel. By 1:00 my jeans were covered in manure, the wheelbarrow had tipped over, and my shirt was soggy from perspiration.

"Hey, you ready?" Ty came around the corner into the tack room, glanced me up and down and smirked, "Guess not."

"Be quiet. Ill be right back," he nodded his head and absentmindedly started to play with a bridle hanging off of a hook, I looked at him and reconsidered "You can come get a drink if you want..."

"Hm?" he had been thinking about something, and when he heard me he glanced up and stared into my eyes, I dropped my gaze and blushed. What was wrong with me?

"You can come into the house and have a drink while I change...if you want," he smiled slightly and nodded his head, walking beside me as I walked towards the farmhouse.

I ran up the spiral stairs and into my room. I flung open my closet and rummaged through it, knocking various things down until I found a large stack of clean jeans. I looked throughout them and finally picked out a pair of dark jeans with a rip along the knee and one on the other thigh. I slipped them up my legs after discarding of my dirty clothes. I then dove back into the depths of my closet to search for a suitable sweater. I pulled out a white one that buttoned up the middle, so I slipped on a light pink tank top and then buttoned the sweater over it. I quickly ran into the bathroom and brushed through my hair, tying it up into a loose pony tail at the base of my neck, then letting it drape over my left shoulder in a graceful arc.

"Ready," I breathed, stumbling into the kitchen, almost tripping over a pair of shoes. Ty smiled at me from over the rim of his cup and nodded. We walked out to the yard and went our separate ways. I went to the back barn to tack up Sundance while Ty tacked up Daisy in the front barn. Daisy had come to Heartland to overcome he habit of bucking, and now, a few weeks later we thought it was safe to ride her on the trails. Ty had only been there for a week and had accumulated a bond with Daisy that made everyone think he was the best man for the job.

"Hey slow poke, hurry up!" I had paused while about to mount Sunny, lost in my train of thought. I lifted my foot into the stirrup and mounted, swinging my leg gracefully over and into the saddle.

An hour later

I laughed, my head held back in ecstasy as I cantered along the field, my hair flying loose from its pony tail, the band flying off never to be found again. I glanced over my shoulder at Ty, still smiling. I saw him only a few feet behind me and gaining speed, about to overcome me. I smirked and started to slow Sunny down, eventually coming to a stop and watched as Ty kept cantering, not noticing I had halted. I shook my head at him, chuckling, and then walked over to the edge of the field. From here you could see Heartland in all its glory, rolling hills surrounding it like its protector. I sat there, reveling in the beauty of it all when I felt a hand touch my arm, I swung around and was in Ty's arms. I blushed as I looked up into his eyes, overcome with a tingling that was spreading throughout my whole body.

"Sorry," I mumbled, coming to my senses and starting to move backwards, away from his encircling arms. But he wouldn't let me, he kept me in a penetrating, searching stare, his arms gently pulling me back as I backed away. And then that familiar pounding in the back of my head started again, telling me to back away, back away before I got hurt. Got hurt how? I fought with myself, fought to keep his eyes, fought to get lost in them, and then they dropped. I dropped my eyes from his angelic face and my body went lip with defeat.

I felt his arms stiffen

"Why cant you look at me?" Ty's voice sounded hurt,

"I do look at you," I answered, startled,

"Not in the eye you don't. Why not?"

I thought that question over, swishing it through my head until I finally found the answer, the one I'd been trying to stifle, the reason my eyes dropped from his when I dared look at him, "You slept with Ashley,"

I instantly saw his face fall, guilt written all over it, "Oh,"

So he had. He'd gone all the way, they hadn't stopped. I turned and walked away, tears prickling the back of my eyes, jerking my arm away as Ty's hand settled around it. I started to gain speed and before I knew it I was sprinting towards Sunny. I leaped into the saddle, jerking the rope from around the tree, tears pouring down my face. I pushed Sunny into a run, faster and faster until all I saw was Ty, leaping into his saddle, and then everything went blurry. The trees whipped past me, and I suddenly realized how fast I was going. I tried to slow down but there was no time, in front of us was a large trunk right across the trail, in fear I gave the signal for Sunny to jump, but realized my mistake and tried to hold him back, but it was no use. Sunny leaped over the trunk, but he was going to fast. His back feet clipped the trunk and he tilted to the side. The last thing I felt was my head hitting a tree, blood seeping into my vision, and then it was black.

Ty POV

Her eyes lifted to mine and she swallowed, long and hard, "You slept with Ashley,"

I could feel my face fall, I could feel it as my mouth drooped. I could feel it, "Oh,"

She looked at me, her eyes burning with anger and rising with tears. My heart twisted and turned within my chest, anger building in my body as I realized I was making her like this. I had slept with Ashley, a stupid, stupid thing to do. I was drunk, she was drunk, we had sex. I hadn't wanted it to happen, I hadn't meant for it to happen, it just happened. When I woke the next morning and turned over I saw her there. Her golden hair glistening in the sunlight that shone through the library window. We were on the ground, naked under a afghan, our clothes thrown mindlessly in the heat of the moment. And then her eyes had opened. She'd smiled and run her finger down my chest, her fingers slipping under the covers and in-between our warm bodies. I had felt sick, sick to my stomach, and not from a hang over. I jumped up and dressed as quickly as possible, cursing myself as I left a stunned, rejected Ashley behind.

This was the worst mistake id ever made. Of course I wasn't a virgin. Thank God I hadn't been a virgin...not being able to remember. No I had made love with my first love at the tender age of 15. No, the worst part about everything was, that as I undressed Ashley, all I could think about was Amy. I pictured that it was Amy under my burning hands as they traveled over Ashley's body. But it wasn't Amy, it was Ashley. Damn beer.

And now, it was coming back to bite me in the ass. Amy turned from me and walked towards Sundance. I tried to grab her, tried to explain., tried to keep her in my arms, but she jerked her arm away and ran to Sundance. I ran after her, needing her to know it had meant nothing. Absolutely nothing.

As I sped through the trees I remembered an upcoming jump and instantly slowed. I saw the trunk up ahead and got ready to jump when I stopped dead in my tracks. Sundance was on the other side of the trunk, her back leg hanging limp as she stood farther down the path. I frantically searched the forest for Amy. I jumped from Daisy and ran over the truck, frantic eyes searching. And then a flash of hair hit my eyes. I snapped my head to the side of the trail, a little way into the forest lay Amy. Her head slumped onto her shoulder. She was leant up against a tree, her limp body leaning towards the side.

"Amy, Oh God, no, no, please Amy, wake up, please," tears were falling down my face in hot streaks, my eyes sore from looking at the blood oozing from a rip in her scalp. I tried to wake her desperately, and then swooped her up in my arms, being careful not to hit her head I brought her over to Daisy and laid her on the ground, stripping my shirt off and wrapping it around her head, putting pressure on the wound. She flinched in her unconscious state and I grimaced,

"I'm sorry baby, I'm so, so sorry," I could barely see I was crying so hard, my face a picture perfect sculpture of pain, sorrow, and love. I carefully lifted her into the saddle, holding her there as I mounted. I cradled her in my arms as I cantered towards Heartland, forgetting Sundance in the mad dash of desperation.

Minutes later, sooner than though possible, I cantered into the yard, slowing as I came to the doors to the house. Lou came rushing out as I screamed her name, all color dropping from her face as she saw Amy,

"Oh good lord," she breathed, frantically searching her pockets. She found her phone and dialed 911. Not 10 minutes later I stood in the driveway of Heartland. Tears running dry as I watched the ambulance taking Amy away, Lou and Jack in tow.

I walked like a zombie towards my car, my keys somehow in the ignition I started the car, I drove home in a state of disbelief and sadness. As I entered my home I saw my mother carrying a basket of clothes up the stairs, she turned instantly away from me, a usual reaction lately. Our fight was in full blow, but I couldn't deal with that now. My tears had started again and I sobbed as I watched her retreating back, just like Amy. She swung around, dropping the clothes and she ran to me, seeing her son in need. She wrapped her arms around me and hugged me to her, my teas instantly making her white shirt see through at the shoulder.

"Honey what happened?" my mother crooned, worry evident in her voice.

"A---- Am—Amy was I----in—an—acc—ident," I hiccuped through my tears, hyperventilation starting to take control of my body.

"Oh honey, im so sorry," I nodded against her chest, and that when I heard the door.

"Hun I've decided that job isn't right for Ty. I went there today and talked to his boss, him and the girl that works there were out on a ride. I looked around and no son of mine will be mucking God damn stalls, I decided to just give him the money, maybe he'll forgive us," my father broke through my sobs. He was in the other room and hadn't seen them yet.

My eyes dried at that, they now were burning with a new emotion, "Why the hell isn't it right for me dad?"

"Oh, Ty. Didn't see you there..." he paused, "Were you crying?"

"Answer me!" I roared.

"Well its just that I don't want you with people like that..."

I cut him off in a calm manner, "Like what?"

My dad mistook my calmness for understanding, "Well their so...low. I mean I'm sure their nice people its just I don't want us, high society people, mingling with them. Their not high in social status if you know what I mean,"

My whole body shook with fury, "No dad I don't know what you mean. Their better people then you, their ten of you. So take your cocky fucking personality and shove it up your ass. I'm out of here, don't wait up, im not coming back. Fuck no," I walked out the door, slamming it, hearing a crack as I stalked towards my car.

I headed towards town, wanting to get out of here, out of anything close to here. My fury was bubbling up even more and I didn't want to do something I'd regret. On my way out of town I passed a sign: Hospital. Without thinking about it I turned into the parking lot and parked. I walked into the ER and asked about Amy Flemings, a friendly nurse gave me a room number and I somberly walked towards the direction she had pointed. As I neared her room I heard Lou talking to a doctor,

"Internal bleeding?" Lou asked, her voice weary.

"Yes. Her head hit the trunk and was broken open. We stitched that up quite nicely, but there was also some internal bleeding. We were able to stop it, but we have to watch her for a while to make sure that we stopped it successfully. Nothing else seems to be wrong, only a couple of bruises and cuts. She's a lucky girl. If you don't mind me asking who found her?"

"Our stable hand Ty Baldwin. They were on a ride together, I don't know why he wasn't with her when it happened, but he found her and brought her home,"

"Did you place the shirt around her head?"

"No that was also Ty," Lou's voice was definitely drawn out.

"Well you should thank him when you see him, what he did might have saved her life, she lost a lot of blood from the cut, its lucky he found he when he did," the conversation ended as Lou thanked him and went into the room. A tall doctor passed me in my hiding spot around the corner. I walked towards Amy's room, feeling better knowing she was ok and that I had helped her somehow. I stepped up to the door, about to open it when I saw it was already half way open. I glanced in the room and saw Amy. He head had a large bandage around it, blood stains evident. The left side of her face was badly bruised and cut up, her head limp as it lay on the pillow. She was awake and looking at Lou as she talked. Her eyes glanced at the door and caught mine, my eyes instantly filling up, she glanced back at Lou,

"What are you looking at?" Lou had asked, turning in her seat to look at the door, I quickly was out of sight.

And then I heard Amy and my heart broke,

"Nothing, nothing at all,"

I walked back to my car and drove out of town, tears silently pouring down my face.

A/N– So? I had to update also because Steph (Akers2) mentioned me in her new story Beau for Short and told me to update. So I had to...