Free Stable Hearts by Bonnie Bryant Page A

of the paper lanterns.”
    They stood in the middle of the floor, holding hands and smiling at one another.
    “It’ll be perfectly romantic,” said Stevie.
    Phil looked at her expectantly. “Now are you going to tell me?” he asked.
    Stevie frowned. “Tell you what?”
    “That you’re coming to my dance. That’s why you wanted me here this afternoon, isn’t it? Because I wouldn’t be able to see the barn otherwise. Thanks, Stevie. It’s a great surprise.”
    Stevie couldn’t believe her ears. “The surprise is what a jerk you are!” she said. “This was supposed to make you want to come to my dance!”
    Phil’s expression changed to fury. “Well, I don’t!” he said. “I want to go to my dance!”
    “Then go!” Stevie shouted. “I’m not going with you! I hope you have a great time dancing with all the other girls!”
    “Fine!” Phil turned on his heel and went back to his mother’s car. He slammed the door.
    “Fine!” Stevie shouted after him, but she’d never felt worse in her life.

C AROLE FITTED THE earpieces of Max’s stethoscope into her ears and set the end of it gently against Dime’s belly. “Listen,” she said, taking the earpieces out and handing them to Lisa. “He really does sound rumbly. It can’t be colic.”
    “But he’s still not eating,” Lisa said sadly. She patted Dime’s flank, and the pony gave her an angry look, his ears pinned against his head. Carole held Dime’s lead rope firmly.
    “Feel his ribs,” Carole said. “They’re starting to stick out. He’s losing weight. Poor pony. Red made him a bran mash today, and he didn’t even eat all of that.”
    “I asked Max what Judy said,” Lisa reported.“He said she couldn’t find anything wrong either, but she drew some blood to send away for tests. She’ll get the results back in a few days.”
    Carole nodded. “Good. That’ll tell us if there’s any infection or—”
    “I hate him!” Stevie flew into the stall, howling with sadness and rage. She threw her arms around Dime and sobbed into the pony’s mane. “He is such a jerk! I hate him!” she cried between sobs.
    “Oh no,” Carole said. “What happened?”
    “He’s going to his dance with someone else!” Stevie sobbed harder. Dime, for a change, seemed sympathetic—he turned and nuzzled Stevie’s shoulder. Carole and Lisa looked at each other in shocked silence.
    “With someone else?” Lisa asked.
    “How could he?” said Carole. “That’s horrid!”
    “I just hate him,” Stevie replied. “He’s such a jerk. It’s over between us, entirely over.”
    Lisa patted her on the back. “I can’t believe it,” she said indignantly. “Who’s he going with?”
    “Oh, I don’t know.” Stevie wiped her eyes on the back of her sleeve and smoothed Dime’s rumpled mane. “He thought—he actually thought that I asked him to come see the hay barn because I was going to his dance. He said he didn’t wantto come here, and I said I didn’t want to go there and that I hoped he had fun dancing with all the other girls, and I know he will and I hate him, I really do” She hiccuped back another sob.
    “So he didn’t actually ask anyone else to his dance?” Carole said.
    “Well, no, of course not! But he’ll probably meet someone else there he likes better—I mean, it’s obvious he doesn’t care about me.”
    “Oh, Stevie.” Carole slumped against the wall of the stall. Dime pinned his ears back at her, and Lisa grabbed his lead rope and spoke sharply to him. She couldn’t believe Stevie had made such a mess over what really was a little dance. Well, no, she could believe it—Stevie sometimes made big messes over small things. Lisa tried to imagine whether she would get this worked up if John Brightstar, her friend out West, had done something similar. She didn’t think so. She seldom got as upset over anything as Stevie did. Lisa sighed. She wished she could go to a Valentine’s Day dance with John. She’d go to his