money & 342 posts
— (@jenn)
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Post by jenn on Jun 5, 2017 18:39:45 GMT -5
Maisie walked into the barn lounge, the riding gear she wasn’t wearing in a duffle over her one shoulder and a brown paper bag in her other. She was several hours early for her lesson with Howie, her lesson wasn’t scheduled until later that afternoon. But, after standing in the shower for 30 minutes, trying to wash the smell of booze out of her pores for the night before, she had sat around her apartment and become bored. So, haphazardly throwing her riding clothes on, she grabbed a bottle of vodka from her fridge and a pair of sunglasses, knowing she would need at least a shot to get through the day, and headed to the barn. It was one of the few places she actually felt like herself, not some fake trying to fit in with the cool kids. Although she would never tell anyone that, least of all Howie. He gave her enough shit for her drinking habits. If he only knew what was going on in her head.
Maisie kept her sunglasses on inside the small lounge. The light wasn’t even that bright, but she was still a fair amount hungover from the night before. She made a beeline for the fridge, and quickly put her bottle of vodka in the back. Technically, the fridge was supposed to be used for lunches and water, but Howie never distinctly told her she wasn’t allowed to bring alcohol to the barn. She guessed it was pretty irresponsible, knowing that the Academy used the farm as well. Maisie paused for a second, her hand still on the bottle. But, after careful consideration, she just pushed it towards the back, hiding it behind a case of water. It was still visible, obviously, but only if you really looked for it.
Maisie closed the fridge and stepped back, but as she did, her stomach growled. She hadn’t eaten anything since lunch yesterday. Maisie knew she should have at least had something in her system before she drank last night, and completely recognized that she was the reason that she was currently hungover. But, she hadn’t been able to stomach anything after her light lunch, the thought of calories scaring her away from anything. And, quite frankly, she wasn’t quite sure her stomach could have handled solid food this morning. Pausing for a moment, she returned back to the fridge and grabbed her bottle. She opened it and murmured to herself, “Hair of the dog, right?” Maisie then took a slug, wincing as the liquor burned the back of her throat.
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money & 1,053 posts
Baby, feel the love. I just want to feel the love
— (@ostrich)
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Post by Ostrich on Jul 23, 2018 22:26:20 GMT -5
The door creaked open only slightly before the boisterous youngest Porter clamored in, just in time to see her take a swig of the liquor.
"I'm pretty sure that if that's in here, it's for the horses."
He had seen the girl around before, but didn't know her name. She was one of Howie's students, he knew that much, though was not quite as promising a student, or as hard working, as Paige. He frowned, walking toward her and snatching the bottle from her. He wasn't really the best at psycho-analytics, but if she was risking Howie walking in on her then something was obviously very wrong. He looked to the label, and shrugged, taking a swig himself. It wasn't bad, but it burned like a sinner going to hell. He wiped his mouth off, setting the bottle back down but out of her reach.
"What's the matter that you would risk being thrown from the barn?"
He was going to be quite blunt about it. There wasn't really any reason not to be, it was posted everywhere that no drinking was allowed on the barn grounds. (Even though he was sure that both Howie and Eddie had broken that over some stupid woman, part of the reason he had decided to return.)
He slammed his hand down on the table, trying to gauge how sober she was. If she jumped at all, then he was going to have to cover for her and tell Howie she was sick. He wasn't the best at lessons regarding class and shit, but he was damn good at connections to the horse. Or maybe go on a trail with her, who knew what things would fall into place. All he knew was he had to hide that bottle before Howie walked in.
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money & 342 posts
— (@jenn)
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Post by jenn on Jul 24, 2018 15:50:04 GMT -5
A male voice appeared out of nowhere, sounding suspiciously like Howie. It was enough to make Maisie sputter a little bit on the remnants of vodka that was still in the back of her throat. She quickly got a look at him, though, and immediately realized he was not Howie. He had to be related somehow, between the accent and the similar facial features. Maisie just wasn’t sure how. It wasn’t like she and Howie had a lot of heart to hearts talking about family. Still coughing a little bit, the young man grabbed the bottle from her hand and took a swig, she muttered sarcastically, “Sure, go ahead and help yourself.”His next question took Maisie off guard. She really didn’t have a good answer for him. And even if she did, she wasn’t likely to tell a complete stranger. Maisie had been walking this path of self-destruction for so long, she couldn’t even remember how she’d gotten here, let alone why. But the strangers words struck a chord, at least for now, because Maisie didn’t know what she would do if Howie kicked her off his property. She didn’t have a backup plan this time and riding was the only thing that was keeping her afloat. Before she could figure out some semblance of an answer, however, the young man slammed a hand on the lounge table. To Maisie, it felt like she had jumped a foot in the air, and while her startle was obvious, there was no way she had actually jumped that high. Her heart was pounding and she could feel the sound echoing in her head, exacerbating the headache she already head. She quickly exclaimed, “What the hell was that for?!” She pushed her sunglasses back up onto her face, which had slipped slightly, exposing her blue-green eyes momentarily to the dull fluorescent lighting that lit up the lounge. The vodka had been starting to curb the pain she had caused to her body yesterday, but she could feel it coming back full force. So much for hair of the dog. Tagged: Ostrich Word count: 347 Notes: Oh this is going to be a lot a fun XD |
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money & 1,053 posts
Baby, feel the love. I just want to feel the love
— (@ostrich)
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Post by Ostrich on Aug 6, 2018 16:29:37 GMT -5
"Well, you sure as hell aren't getting a lesson today."
It was as if Richard had the ears of a dog, because he could hear Howie coming down the aisle, doing his daily routine of telling hello to all the horses. It made him appear more...in tune with them, even though he didn't understand them like Eddie did. Richard looked to Maise.
"Step out of this room, and I'll tell him what's really going on."
Richard didn't want to have to play babysitter to a drunkard today, but it appeared he didn't have much of a choice. He had to hide her from Howie. Get some sort of food in her, and get her the hell away from whatever it was that was keeping her on the downward spiral. Mostly, because, he needed something to keep his mind off of his own problems. He left the room and ran his hand through his hair.
"Oh, there you are Howie. I've been looking everywhere for you. Your lesson cancelled; said she had a stomach bug and was confined to the bathroom...in not so short of words."
There was a nod and a grimace from Howie. The one thing that Richard knew Howie couldn't stand was descriptions, so he nodded instantly.
Howie proceeded to turn around and start heading toward the house.
"Guess I'll go have myself some real lunch then. Wish she had called sooner, but, she was probably hoping it would go away-she's a hard working one."
Richard sighed in relief; he didn't realize he'd been holding his breath the entire time. He walked back into the lounge, closing the door.
"Now, let's have a little sit down talk about what the hell you think you're doing."
He looked to the woman, he didn't know her well and he didn't know if tough love from a stranger would do her any good. But, something had to give before his brother found out.
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money & 342 posts
— (@jenn)
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Post by jenn on Aug 7, 2018 15:11:30 GMT -5
Immediately, Maisie became angry at his words. Who was this man, and what authority did he think he have to tell her that she wasn’t lessoning today? Maisie didn’t like to be told what to do, especially not by complete strangers. Maisie was getting ready to give him a piece of her mind when he paused, clearly hearing something. Moments later, she heard it, too: Howie’s voice coming closer and closer. If he saw her with the bottle of vodka in her hand, he would kick her off the property for good, and then she was totally screwed. Maisie nodded silently at Howie’s relative as he gave her instructions. She remained frozen in place as he walked out, unsure of how she even got in this situation.
A knot of apprehension appeared in the pit of Maisie’s stomach as she heard the stranger lie for her. Would Howie buy it? Thankfully, he did, but his response made Maisie feel even worse. Howie thought she was hard working? Of course, Maisie killed herself during every lesson. She demanded perfection from herself, even when she was hungover. But Howie was a man of few compliments and she hadn’t realized that he had noticed how hard she was working. Maisie could feel tears beginning to sting her eyes, but she quickly blinked them back when the young man walked back inside and closed the door. Maisie didn’t show weakness.
Any ounce of vulnerability she had previously been feeling was suppressed when the stranger suggested they talk. Her initial defense tactic against anyone getting too close was to brush anything personal off with a joke. Maisie smirked a little, although if she wasn’t still wearing her sunglasses, it would be easy to see that the smile didn’t reach her eyes. She shrugged a little and then said nonchalantly, “I had a little too much to drink last night and was hoping an extra shot this morning would help to stave off the hangover until after my lesson.” Her issues ran way deeper than that, but how was she supposed to tell a complete stranger that she was a disappointment to everyone who met her, and that drinking helped her forget that? That she was so desperate to make it big, that she was willing to shrink herself, both physically and mentally, to get there? Desperate to change the topic, Maisie than asked, “How’d you get Howie to believe you so easily?”
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money & 1,053 posts
Baby, feel the love. I just want to feel the love
— (@ostrich)
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Post by Ostrich on Aug 7, 2018 15:29:46 GMT -5
Rick had learned one thing in his time away, and that was to get to the point. He could tell now when someone was not telling the whole truth. His brother's hadn't gotten out of him why he'd really moved back, but he wasn't ready to talk to them about that. He raised a brow at her, and just shrugged at her response. He wasn't going to tell her much of his story, why would she want to tell him hers? He wondered back to all the people he had met here, and cringed slightly at the thought of Grayson...the man he thought he had loved. It wasn't that he was really that awful, he just...hadn't told him the whole truth. They'd fallen out of love and one thing led to another...the fighting, the drinking, the cheating...everyone thought they were perfectly happy. Finally though, Rick couldn't take it anymore. He packed his things and came back home to the estate. He hadn't even told him goodbye, just left a note. He sighed, and shook his head-this wasn't about his problems though, it was about the girl.
"I'm his brother, he thinks I can't tell a lie. I'm the innocent one."
He rolled his eyes at the statement, half joking. He glanced outside. The girl's head might be pounding, but she was calm enough.
"Want to go for a trail ride? I might not be Howie's level, but at least that'll get you in the saddle and out of his eye. Then maybe you'll loosen up and tell me what's really going on."
He didn't wait for a response. Just flipped his phone out and texted Howie a quick 'taking Moonie out for a trail ride, Gold was sore a little yesterday so I'll pony her' and flipped his phone closed.
"Go get Moonie ready, I'll meet you out the mounting block in ten minutes."
With that, he walked out the door. Hadn't gotten the girl's name, just walked out.
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money & 342 posts
— (@jenn)
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Post by jenn on Aug 8, 2018 14:24:15 GMT -5
A wave of relief washed over Maisie when the young man didn’t push her for more details. Maisie hadn’t told anyone about the chaos that was her mind. She definitely didn’t feel comfortable pouring her soul out to a complete stranger. She laughed a little bit at his next statement, happy that she was getting closer to the stranger’s identity. She hadn’t even realized that there was another Porter brother other than Howie and Eddie. She told him softly, sincerity wrapped around every word, “Well, thank you. I appreciate it.” And she did. It was finally hitting her that her actions were putting her goals at risk, and if she really wanted to pursue an equestrian career, she was going to have to dial things way back.
Maisie’s eyes lit up at the mention of a trail ride. It wasn’t the lesson she had been hoping for, but at least she was still getting time in the saddle. Any time in the saddle, no matter what she was doing, was better than spending time on her own two feet. Nodding, she felt like a little kid on Christmas morning as she said, “That would be great, thank you." Mai wasn’t so sure about the ‘opening up’ part of the agenda but maybe she’d make a friend in the process.
Maisie was getting ready to ask the stranger his name when he left the lounge, not looking back to see if she was moving. She shrugged a little to herself. Maybe this stranger was just as desperate as she was for some company. Peeking her head out of the lounge door, Maisie double checked to make sure Howie was nowhere in sight before darting off to Moonie’s stall.
tag Ostrich word count 287 wearing clothesnotes did you just want to continue this here or did you want to move boards? lyrics Demons by Imagine Dragons credit Rae of Sunshine! of Caution 2.0 made this temp! |
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money & 1,053 posts
Baby, feel the love. I just want to feel the love
— (@ostrich)
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Post by Ostrich on Aug 26, 2018 23:32:21 GMT -5
“Cut me some slack alright Goldie? It hasn’t been easy for either of us.”
Richard was busting himself with his own horse, the palomino he called Goldie. They still hadn’t gotten very advanced in scenting, but their bond was strong. Goldie snorted to him, as if questioning his motives of taking some random girl out for s trail ride. The thing about Goldie was she was pretty open to all people, and didn’t care who her master was with-but she knew he was still hurting from everything that had happened. She had never really liked the guy, just something about him felt off. His horses were alright though. Whatever it was it was too late now and the likelihood of him coming back wasslin to none. So she was stuck dealing with the aftermath, letting Richard cry in her mane and sometimes come sleep in the stall with her. She had never known love except for what she felt for Richard, and if she ever saw that man she’d tear him limb from limb for the pain he’d caused her beloved.
He racked her up the rest of the way in silence, until they got to the bit and she wouldn’t open her mouth.
“Oh come on it’s just a snaffle! I’m not doing what we did last time we both nearly died.”
She was mostly well behaved, unless she got a wild hair to follow in her racing parents footsteps and run off with him. She’d nearly thrown them off a cliff. He couldn’t help but chuckle at the memory though, good times good times. At his chuckle she lipped him-at which point he took the opportunity to shove the bit into her mouth and slid the bridle into place. With her all ready, he headed toward the mounting area behind the barns where they’d be less likely to be seen, mounting up and waiting for the girl.
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money & 32 posts
— (@ninj)
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Post by Ninj on Sept 13, 2018 15:44:46 GMT -5
It was another day for the nineteen-year-old at the barn and he was probably up to no good in the eyes of others like usual no doubt. He was in one of the outdoor rings, perched on the fence as his Nokota cantered and bucked about within the ring. He just watched with headphones on and music blaring as he bounced a knee to the beat, leaning back slightly when his horse zipped by him and nearly grazed his legs. Probably not the smartest or safest place to sit to watch his horse run out his zoomies, but hey he liked to live on the edge. His horse wore a blue halter and the lead rope was currently draped over the fence beside Fadei. He moved to the music that was playing into his ears lightly before he eventually just jumped down into the pen and just made his way to the center while carefully dodging his horse's energetic movements with the lead rope in hand. He danced to the song that was playing as his horse just ran and bucked about around him, completely ignoring the fact that he could potentially get run over or kicked by his own gelding. He had the lead rope coiled up for the most part, the base of the clip in one hand and part of the rope's end just being swung a little as he closed his eyes and just stayed in the center of the ring as he moved to the music a bit. He could clearly feel where his horse was, what with the swooshing of wind and the occasional smack of his tail but as well as the vibration of where his hooves pounded into the ground. At least he was smart enough to leave his boots on, that gave him some protection from his horse after all. He opened his eyes after a few moments and watched his horse start bucking about a little, humming a little as he contemplated on stopping his horse or...potentially getting out of the way from being run over. Who knew, both options were rather good. Words: 354 Tag: Ostrich, jennNotes: Song he's listening to |
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