Free Riding Class by Bonnie Bryant

Carole orderedhot fudge sundaes. Stevie ordered a brownie and pistachio sundae, just as she’d described.
    “I’ll have a brownie sundae, too,” Emily announced. “Only I’ll have mine with lemon sherbet, caramel sauce, and some of those neon Gummi Bears sprinkled on top. Oh, and a maraschino cherry.”
    Stevie’s jaw dropped open. Carole and Lisa stared. The waitress stopped smiling. “Another one!” she muttered to herself, and stalked away.
    “What?” Emily asked. “What’d I do?”
    Stevie snapped her jaw shut. “Nothing,” she said. “I knew we had a lot in common.”
    The waitress brought them glasses of water. Lisa played with the paper wrapper on her straw. “Emily,” she said tentatively, “we’re sorry about Veronica. We’re sorry anything had to happen today to make you feel uncomfortable.”
    “We really wanted you to have a nice time,” Carole added. “We wouldn’t have invited you otherwise.”
    Emily smiled ruefully. “You don’t need to apologize. I’m not upset with you guys. And I’m sorry, too. I’m sorry I sulked. I
was
sulking.
    “I’m used to walking slower than everybody else,” she continued, “and I’m used to crutches and wheelchairs, and curbs that are too high—none of that bothers me too much. But I can’t get used to attitudes like Veronica’s.Plus, what she said really hurt.” Emily leaned forward. “There are a lot of things I can’t do,” she said emphatically, “but I know I can ride.
Really
ride.” The waitress brought their sundaes, and Emily leaned back so that hers could be set in front of her. “I’ll get even with her,” she concluded when the waitress had gone.
    “How?” Stevie’s ears perked up. Getting even was her specialty.
    “Don’t get mad, get even,” Emily said. “That’s what my father always taught me, ever since I was a little kid. He doesn’t mean that I should actually get revenge on anybody, he just means I should work really hard, so that I know the person who insulted me isn’t right.”
    Emily took a big brownie–lemon sherbet–and–caramel sauce bite. Carole tried not to look.
    “Like, instead of believing Veronica,” Emily continued, “what I’ll do is focus on how well I can ride. I’ll work harder in my lessons, and I’ll concentrate on how much I can learn if I keep trying. I’ll think about what I can do, instead of what I can’t.”
    “We-ell,” said Stevie, considering, “that sounds fine, but I think revenge would be nice, too.”
    Emily took another bite. “I totally agree,” she said around a mouthful of brownie.
    Carole started laughing. “You two really are birds of a feather!”
    Lisa scraped her spoon around the rim of her dish to catch some drips of hot fudge. “What kind of revenge?” she asked practically.
    “What if we stick a pin in Veronica’s saddle?” Stevie suggested. “When she goes to mount, it’ll stick her right in the—”
    “Not negative revenge,” Emily objected. “Positive.”
    “Like showing Veronica how well you can ride,” said Lisa.
    “Like showing everyone how well you can ride,” said Stevie.
    Carole laid down her spoon and spoke very softly. “Like riding in the handy hunter competition.”
    Emily beamed. Lisa let out a long sigh.
    “That’s it!” Stevie said. “That’s perfect!”
    “I’d love to,” said Emily. “Wow, would that be cool.”
    “It’d show Veronica,” Lisa said.
    “Particularly,” Carole added, “if dear P.C. beats Danny.”
    “I don’t care about that,” Emily said quickly. “I probably won’t even be able to place, but just finishing—just trying, even—that would be like a victory. It would be a victory to me.”
    The four girls finished their sundaes in silence, thinking hard.
    “Do you think I can do it?” Emily asked at last.
    “Of course,” Stevie said promptly. Lisa and Carole nodded.
    “We’ll help,” Carole offered.
    “Whatever help is necessary,” Lisa said, and they all smiled. On