Seizing The Day//A Modern Day Newsies Story//COMPLETED

Everest

TW: Mention of nightmares, alluding to PTSD, alluding to a traumatic experience, alluding to a past injury

Elmer POV
I watched as Crutchie's eyes widened. Okay, so he knows where we are going. I noted. I pulled into a parking spot and stopped the car, before looking at Crutchie.

"Surprise." I said, waving my hands a tiny bit. Crutchie looked over at me, his face showing how shocked he was.

"You- this is. I." Crutchie sputtered.

"I know that you have be having lots of trouble with nightmares based on this and I wanted to see if this could help you get over them. If you ever feel uncomfortable, we can leave. But I did rent a special horse for you." I quickly explained. I got out of the car and went to his side, slowly pulled him out.

We walked silently, side by side, down the worn dirt path. I counted the stalls until we came to number 38. The one labeled Everest. My nerves were now through the roof, wondering if Crutchie would hate me or love me or have a panic attack. I was ready for all of these cases.

"Everest." Crutchie breathed, one of his hands covering his mouth. Upon hearing her name, Everest turned around. Her ears perked up when she looked at Crutchie. Does she remember him? I wondered. Crutchie tentatively put a hand forward, toward her nose. Everest met him halfway, accepting the pets gratefully.

"I haven't seen Everest this happy in a while," Someone commented from behind us. I turned and saw someone around our age looking at the horse.

"Really?" I asked, to which they nodded.

"She got really sad after bucking off one of her riders." They explained.

"She didn't buck them off. She tripped after a jump." Crutchie replied tensely.

"And how would you know?" The person asked, their face twisting into a smug smirk. I was about to punch them.

"Because I was the rider who fell." Crutchie snarled through his teeth. He turned around and glared at the person. Their face fell into a shocked one as they saw Crutchie.

"Charlie?!" They gasped.

"Yeah. Everest did NOT buck me off. It wasn't her fault in the slightest. It was an accident." Crutchie growled. That's my boyfriend. I thought in awe. The person quickly apologized, before running off.

"So." I started after they had left. "We have her for two hours, more like one hour and forty-five minutes now, but still. What do you want to do?"

"I want to ride her." I was completely shocked at Crutchie's answer. "I think that this is already helping with my fear, but riding her will help even more. I don't want to ride any other horses though." He said, laying down the rules.

"Do you even remember how to ride?" I asked.

"I never forgot. C'mon, lets get the tack and see if I can borrow a pair of riding boots." Crutchie ordered. I followed closely, not knowing where anything was. Crutchie picked up a pair of shoes you were able to borrow and then grabbed Everest's "tack".

He grabbed the saddle and saddle blanket before handing me what he called the bridal. He was able to easily carry the saddle on one arm, which I found very impressive. I saw some people whispering slightly and pointing at Crutchie and I as we walked by, but decided to ignore it for now.

"Do you need help?" I asked. "I could carry that."

"Oh, you couldn't." Crutchie answered without missing a beat.

"It doesn't look heavy, I bet I could." I countered.

"If you say so." Crutchie said, before handing me the equipment. And boy, was I wrong. That saddle felt like it weighed a hundred pounds.

"How did you carry this on one arm?!" I asked incredulously, and the only answer I got was a smirk. I watched as Crutchie expertly put everything on Everest, moving so quickly you would think both of his legs were fine. His leg. I suddenly realized.

"What about your leg?" I asked.

"If she doesn't respond to one leg, which she should because she is a very well trained and cooperative horse, then I won't be able to ride her. But I was to try." Crutchie explained. I nodded and he grabbed a mounting block, placing it a little away, before taking Everest out of the stable and towards it. He handed me his crutch and got on.

A/N: This could be very different than other people with traumatic experiences, this is just what I think works best for this story and moderately makes sense. DO NOT DO THIS TO/FOR SOMEONE BECAUSE YOU READ IT HERE.