A/N: Oh my gosh, thanks so much for all your reviews. I hadn't been getting very many lately and seeing all those reviews made me happy. Thanks so much and I hope you like this chapter.
"Bedless With Iced Tea"
When Kris finally was at the racetrack, she told Matt she needed to talk to Flame. The practice jockey pulled Flame over to the fence where Kris was and Kris quickly talked to him. She finished talking and allowed Flame to race around the track one last time.
"Wow, that was his best time yet. That must have been one hell of a talk. You must be excited about something, Kris," Matt said.
"Try the complete opposite of excited," Kris said as she closed the door to Flame's stall after she cooled him off.
She turned around angrily and began to storm off, but Matt grabbed her arm and said, "Let's go get some iced tea in the house."
When they arrived in the kitchen, Matt poured the drinks and sat down across from Kris at the table. He handed Kris a glass of iced tea with multiple ice cubes in it. "Tell me what's wrong," he ordered.
Kris took a sip of her drink and set it on the wooden kitchen table. After a long pause of staring at the ice cubes swirling around in the glass, she finally said, "How could he forget?"
"You mean Junior?" Matt asked her.
"I mean, you would think he would be there hours early to get me out of there. How? Just how?" Kris babbled.
Matt sipped his iced tea and looked deep into Kris' eyes. Then he said, "Maybe he is scared." He saw a look of confusion wash over Kris' face and knew he would have to elaborate. "Look, Kris, he loves you more than air. But I think he is terrified of you getting hurt again. I know he blames himself for both times you got seriously hurt. So maybe he thinks he'll hurt you."
Kris' lips opened slightly in awe. "He blames himself?"
"Well, of course. Kris, when he proposed he promised to always be there to protect you and love you. And in his eyes, he failed even before the wedding."
She fumbled with her fingers. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words emerged. Eventually she managed to utter, "So he thinks it's better to leave me in a hospital and hide from me?"
"I'm not saying that at all. He just doesn't know what to do. He doesn't want to hurt you," Matt explained as he got up form his chair to refill his bare glass.
She held up her glass, signifying she wanted more as she said, "So what should I do?"
Matt filled both glasses and placed the pitcher in the center of the table. He sat down slowly and said, "Honestly Kris, I have no idea. You're caught between a rock and a wall, and that's no place fun to be."
Kris hung her head low and sighed. She got so mad at Junior and never even thought of what he had been feeling. She just jumped to unreasonable conclusions and blew everything out of proportion. But that still didn't make up for him abandoning her in a hospital. But how could she fix this?
Suddenly, Matt noticed her left hand was bare and opened his mouth in shock. "You called off you engagement because of this?"
Forgetting all about that major detail, Kris examined her weightless finger. She sighed heavily again and said, "I accused him of not loving me anymore. I got so angry." She paused as she closed her eyes. "I messed up big time, Matt. And I have no idea how to fix it.
Matt had no idea what to say to her. She certainly was right, everything was messed up. After long thinking, Matt suggested, "I think the only thing you can do is talk to him."
"I can't even look at him right now, let alone talk to him. Being scared is one thing, but intentionally abandoning me in a hospital is another," Kris explained.
"I guess you're right. But Kris?" Matt said as he got up to leave. "Listen to what your heart tells you to do."
"Thanks Matt. You're a great friend."
"That's what I'm here for," was what she heard Matt call out as he shut the door behind him and headed back to tend to the dirty dozen.
Kris put her elbows on the table and dug her face into her hands, groaning in agony. She had no idea how everything got so out of hand. Her life was all falling into place until she fell off of Nosering. But just then, it occurred to her, "Where am I going to sleep tonight?"
A/N: So, I used my least favorite phrase ever, "listen to your heart." Gahh, I hate that phrase, but I felt it fit there. Well, review please, thanks!
