Drunk

Feeling Ryan relax a little, Hunter was glad. His move could have backfired on him, but he was relieved it hadn’t. “See? Not so bad, huh?” 

He straightened a little and loosened his grip around her waist. His other hand continued to guide hers. “Right is right, left is left.” He demonstrated steering as Buttons walked to the right and left. “Do it too much and she’ll look like she’s drunk though,” Hunter teased. “She’s really good at stopping too, though.” He showed her how to gently pull back on the reins, bringing Buttons to a halt. “And the gas pedal is a light nudge with your heels.” Sliding his legs forward around hers, he forced her legs to squeeze, and the mare started forward again. “That’s all there is to it.” 

Letting go of Ryan’s hand, he left the reins in her grip, knowing the horse wasn’t going to pull any stunts. He also let go of her waist, but stayed seated right behind her. “There…” He set his chin on her shoulder and grinned. “I knew you could do it.”


Laughing, Travis went outside with Ashlee before anything else changed. Down the steps, he aimed for the trail that would go around the back pasture. Turning his palm, he interlocked his fingers with hers and swung her arm just a little. “That was pretty painless,” he mused. 

Glancing down at her, he smiled. “We’ll get back to riding, yet, huh?” He squeezed her hand a little. “Maybe once they chill a little more, another picnic is in order. After hardly seeing you all week, that sound even better than it did before.”


Scott tucked his hands in his hoodie pockets and trudged through the Elite main floor. He caught a couple glances, but it felt…awkward. The atmosphere was different. Was it his imagination? Or was everyone upset with him?

Keeping his eyes down, he wandered to the hall, and down to his office. Just waiting outside, he peered in cautiously.

“No… no, no no! Gah!” Jamison threw up his hands in frustration, although laughter bubbled over. “I clicked the wrong thing again,” he moaned. He looked over at Dalton sheepishly. Thankfully he hadn’t lost anything important – Dalton was still teaching him. He was learning exceptionally fast, but for him, it felt slow.

Flopping back in his chair, he shook his head. “I’ll get it one of these days.” After a moment, he leaned forward again, unwilling to give up even in the slightest. “Okay. Show me where I went wrong.”

Still in the hall, Scott withdrew. Jamison didn’t have the tech expertise he did but… did they really need him anymore? What if they didn’t want him anymore? What if he worked well with Dalton and there was no reason for him to come back?

“Scott?”

He turned and looked up quickly. What was Justin doing here? “What?”

Justin’s brow furrowed and he set his backpack down in the hall. “Yeah, what. What are you doing here?”

“I was just… checking in.”

“Mm.” Justin nodded to the main floor. “Come here.”

Scott grudgingly followed him, but stopped as he realized they were heading towards the exit. “Wait. Where are you taking me?”

Halting amongst the cubicles – some empty, some not – Justin sighed. “I haven’t released you for work yet, Scott. You’re not supposed to be here.”

Scott’s expression turned into a scowl. “I can come here if I want to.”

“You’re not ready for this.”

“If I think I’m ready, I’m ready! Or do you think they’re not ready for me? Is that it? They’re not prepared for someone like me who might go off the deep end again? Is that it?”

Justin took a deep breath. “Go home, Scott.”

Scott glared at him. “And if I say no?”

Justin set his hands on his hips and stood his full height. “You wanna go there? Huh?”

Scott swallowed hard. “You can’t control where I go or don’t go.”

“No, but you can’t work again until I release you and I haven’t done that yet. So either you follow my orders, or it’s going to be your badge instead of just probation.”

Only now did Scott realize they were standing right near his sister’s cubicle. His face flushed, but his scowl remained. “You can’t keep me from just stopping in,” he hissed.

“Oh?” Justin knew good and well it was not good for Scott to be here right now. Not until he worked through his mental and emotional state. Being here would just make things worse. He pointed to the door. “Out. Now.”

As Scott’s anger surfaced, overriding his good sense. He was hurting, he was confused, he was frustrated, and he felt like he was losing this battle. Without thinking, he lashed out, giving Justin’s chest a hearty shove. “Just back off!”

Having at least the knowledge to handle angry patients, Justin reacted quickly, spinning Scott around and torqueing his arm behind his back. Scott was so lightweight, he was easy to push towards the exit. “You’re leaving, Scott. Right now.” Once they were outside, Scott had little choice but to stalk away angrily. Going back inside, Justin rubbed a weary hand over his face and sighed deeply. He felt like a monster, whether he knew he’d done the right thing or not. He aimed back for the hallway where he’d abandoned his backpack, but his enthusiasm for working with Aaron had vanished. He wasn’t walking as tall now… because it hurt. Working with Scott hurt. He just wanted Scott to get better and he was beginning to think he wasn’t going to be able to do it.


In Sapphire’s cubicle with her, Garret watched Justin walk back by, more interested in his reaction than in Scott. His eyes shifted over to Sapphire, and he paused his work for now. He was sure seeing her brother like that was hard, but he just had to ask. 

“A guy as harsh as Justin… why does he seem so bothered by what just happened? Why does he even care if it’s his job to play the bad guy?”