18 

CONFIDENT, NOT COCKY

“WHEEEW,” BRIT SAID. “THAT WAS INTENSE.”

“No kidding,” I agreed. We led two tired horses beside us. “Mr. Conner is always focused before a show, but that was a crazy practice session.”

“Are you taking tomorrow off?” Brit asked. “Or are you practicing?”

“I’m going to do a light workout with Charm, but nothing too stressful. He needs to be rested before the show.”

“I was thinking the same about Apollo,” Brit said, she smiled. “And, it sounds so wimpy, but I’m glad for the break too!”

“It’s not wimpy!” We both laughed. “I’m going to need a break tomorrow too, trust me. You are definitely not the only one.”

We led the horses in slow circles along one of the quiet lanes by the side of the stable.

“How are things with Paige?” Brit asked.

I sighed. “Weird. There’s definitely tension about Callie, and even though I told her I’m glad they’re still friends, I still feel like she’s going behind my back to see Callie. It’s so unnecessary.” I blew out a breath—frustrated. “It’s just hard. Paige and I used to be supertight, and we told each other everything. Things have really changed a lot this semester.”

Brit nodded. “I know what you mean. I had the same best friend from kindergarten until sixth grade. We could have been sisters—we were that close. Then, she fell in with the popular crowd in middle school and I didn’t. I didn’t care about being popular. But she did. She started ditching me to hang out with her new friend and after a while, she didn’t even text me back.”

“Wow,” I said. “I’m sorry. That’s awful.”

“It was,” Brit said. She rubbed Apollo’s neck as we walked. “But it also showed me that I never wanted to be one of those girls who was in a clique or thought she was above everyone else.”

“Honestly?” I said. “When you first came here, I thought you were probably the most popular girl at your school. I was sure you’d join Heather and her friends. Or act like Jasmine—this awful girl who transferred here and made everyone miserable.”

Brit burst into laughter. “Are you serious? You thought I was going to be a crazy popular girl who ran Canterwood?”

“Only until I got to know you,” I said. “Then I realized you’re not cocky and you don’t think you’re better than everyone else. You’re confident. I wish I had more of that.”

Brit and I walked in silence for a few seconds, listening to the even sound of our horses’ hoofbeats over the grass.

Brit looked at me, her expression serious. “You don’t give yourself enough credit for how good of a rider you are. If you saw yourself in the arena, you’d be walking around with what ‘confidence’ you think I have. You’re a great rider, Sash, and it doesn’t matter if you’re on the YENT, at Canterwood, Briar Creek, or any other stable—you’d still be just as good. I’d bet you that the talent was always there and it just needed to be drawn out.”

I kept walking, unsure what to say. “Thank you,” I finally managed. “That really means a lot, especially right before a show. I know we’re on the same team, but you didn’t have to say any of that.”

Brit shook her head, smiling. “I wasn’t saying it as a teammate. I was saying it as your friend.”

We smiled at each other, turning the horses back toward the stable.

“And if you ever want to talk about the Paige sitch,” Brit said. “I’m here to listen. If things don’t get better and you can’t deal, it would be so much fun to be roommates.”

“Thanks so much,” I said. “For both offers. I’ll definitely talk to you about Paige if things don’t get better, but I know we’re going to work it out. But you’re supercool for offering to be my roommate.”

The horses’ shoes clinked as they hit the aisle, and we walked them to crossties. We couldn’t find a pair together and, just this once, I was glad. I untacked Charm and started grooming him on autopilot. I couldn’t even believe it, but I was thinking about Brit’s offer. I knew I’d never move out of Winchester and leave Paige, but right now, living with Brit sounded tempting.