A few hours later Charlie came into Willy's hospital room. Willy was lying on a bed, his leg in a cast and supported by a sling hung from the ceiling. "How are you?" Charlie asked.
Willy jumped slightly, then turned to Charlie. "In pain," he said, "but that's to be expected. They've given me medication for it, so it's not that bad." Then he asked, "How's Cocoa?"
"He's okay," Charlie said. He was surprised that Willy cared. He thought Willy wouldn't want to have anything to do with the horse now. "I took the bridle and saddle off and brushed him before putting his halter on the way you showed me the other day."
"Good," Willy said. Then, almost as if he could read his friend's mind, he said, "You shouldn't blame him for what happened, Charlie. He was scared. He didn't know what he was doing. I certainly don't blame him."
Charlie looked at Willy and said, "This wasn't the first time a horse ran away with you, was it?"
Willy sighed. "No," he admitted, "It wasn't. Back when I was learning how to ride I was on a trail ride with my aunt. A bird flew out of a patch of grass right in front of my horse and startled him. He halted abruptly, throwing me over his head."
"Were you hurt?" Charlie asked.
Willy lifted his hair on the left side of his head, revealing a scar. "See that scar?" he asked, pointing to it. "I landed on the edge of something metal." he let his hair fall back into place. "Had to go to the hospital to get stitches for it. Fortunately for us it happened not too far from my aunt's house. We rode back to the house, Uncle took care of the horses while she took me to the hospital. After we got back she made me get back on a horse and ride around a bit."
"Why'd she do that?" Charlie asked.
"She didn't want me to lose my love of riding because I was afraid," Willy said. "She said I had become quite the horseman and it would be a shame to let the skill go to waste. Plus she could tell that I enjoyed it and she didn't want to see me stop doing something I enjoyed just because of an accident." Then he giggled and added, "Even so, I still sometimes felt nervous riding. Not enough to hold me back, but enough to send a tingle down my spine. It almost made it more fun." Then he yawned, "S'cuse me," he said. "I think the pain medication is making me sleepy."
"I should probably go," Charlie said, "Let you get some rest." Then he left. Willy sank down against the pillows and dozed off.