Free Comeback by Jessica Burkhart

hint of
     coolness. The stickiness of summer was gone, but the midmorning sun blazed in the sky. A
     few thin, wispy clouds lingered in the sky, allowing most of the brilliant blue sky to
     be as visible as possible.
    I put on my helmet and mounted. I’d just raked my fingers though my
     wavy hair when a horse and rider emerged from the stable.
    â€œHi,” Drew said, looking up at me. “Ready to
     ride?”

PLAYING GAMES
    â€œHEY,” I SAID. I LOOKED INTO HIS
     BLUE eyes—bluer than almost anything I’d ever seen. I got goose
     bumps and was glad I’d thrown on a light gray jacket.
    Whisper reached her muzzle toward Polo. The gelding stretched his muzzle
     back, and they huffed at each other. Whisper blinked, batting her long eyelashes and
     turning her head slightly to the side.
    My horse was a better flirt than I was!
    Drew mounted, swinging a leg over Polo’s back and settling into the
     saddle. He looked parfait . His ease with Polo made it hard to
     look away, not to mention the T-shirt that matched his eyes, black zip-up jacket, and
     tan breeches.
    â€œI’m glad you were free today,” Drew said. “I
     neededto get out of the stable. Trail riding is like
     running—it’s a stress buster.”
    â€œSame for me,” I said. “I’m glad you asked me and
     my friends. We kind of need a break too. Stressful week.”
    Drew made a face. “Sorry. But this will make you forget about
     it.”
    â€œHellooo!” Lexa said, leading Honor. She was flanked by Clare
     with Fuego and Khloe with Ever.
    All three of them shifted their eyes between Drew and me. I shot them a say-anything-and-die look, and when Drew’s eyes
     weren’t on me, I made a slashing motion across my throat.
    Khloe started to laugh but covered it with a cough.
    â€œThanks for inviting us,” Clare said.
    â€œYeah,” Khloe added, mounting Ever. “I would have a
     mental breakdown if I had to do one more spiral in the arena right now.”
    â€œMental breakdown, huh?” Drew said, looking mock serious.
     “We better get on the trail fast.”
    â€œDef,” Lexa said. “Khlo, you know I love you, but
     you’re already this close to crazy. I don’t want
     to see what happens if Khloe Kinsella is pushed over the edge.”
    We all laughed.
    â€œLet’s go!” I said.
    The four of us turned our horses away from the stable
     yard and headed for the woods on the outer edge of the campus.
    I somehow (ahem, thanks, Khloe) ended up next to Drew, with Lexa to my
     right and Clare beside her. Whisper’s body language changed the second she
     realized we weren’t going into the arena. I felt her muscles loosen, a swing fell
     into her stride, and she shook her head, sending her mane scattering.
    I laughed. “Someone’s happy not to be practicing.”
    â€œI’d shake my mane too,” Khloe said, grinning.
     “This feels so good!”
    The four of us let our horses trot, and we posted as we left the stable
     behind and headed for the trees and the woodland area. The campus, beautiful from every
     angle, looked especially très belle from here. We were
     headed down a gentle slope, and all that was visible of the campus were tops of
     buildings and streetlamps.
    â€œI’m so glad to leave everything behind,” I said.
    â€œMe too,” Drew said.
    â€œThe campus is like its own city,” Clare said. “Know
     what I mean? Our entire lives are contained in this one spot where we do
     everything.”
    Everyone nodded at that.
    â€œWe can’t escape the people we’re
     with. Ever. We may have separate dorm halls or rooms from
     people we see in class or whatever, but it’s like living in a small town. It feels
     like there’s always the possibility of running into someone.”
    â€œI get that,” I said, easing Whisper to a walk as we
     approached the line of trees