My Country Love Story

70- Life is Demanding

~Three months later~

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Everyone is back home. Blake finished his basic training and Leah won all around most improved cowgirl for the season.

Blake works two jobs now; one with the army, two weekends every month, and the other at the convenience store up the road. He does this so he can save up money so both him Leah, and her horses, can move out of their parents' houses and into a place of their own.

Leah on the other hand has no idea of Blake's plans and just continues to work to save up for college next year and to take care of her horses. Since Blake is already graduated and is in the army they pay for his schooling.

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_Leah's POV_

It's been a downward spiral for me with my parents lately. Now that I'm back in school, my senior year of high school, I don't have any free time anymore. I get up early feed my horses and go to school, and then I change and go to work for at least eight hours. Once I get home I feed my horses again, take a shower and go to bed. Any homework I work on early in the morning at school before class starts.

I know that's not the ideal way to study and get things done but it is the only time I can spare. I have to work to be able to feed my horses because I don't want to lose them.

Ever since I stopped having spare time to myself my parents have started to get mad at me. I'm not able to help out with house chores, and they think that because I am working so many hours that I could at least pay for the electricity used by the barn.

The money I make at work goes into my gas tank for my truck and to buy hay, feed, and shavings for Cosmo and Mars. What else am I supposed to do? I can't pick up at second job; I already don't have time to myself as it is.

One would think that winning all around most improved horse and rider team of the season would earn me a generous portion of prize money, but it didn't. I was invited back to show again with the Wrangler Nationals Rodeo team next season but I don't think I'll be able to go. Prize money is very hard to win and I can't afford to trailer my horses all across the states all summer long. For now I told them I would think about it, so they let me keep the flashy red trailer they lent me.

Every morning that I go outside it just sits there parked next to my truck. A huge reminder of why I work as hard as I do.

_Blake's POV­_

I can see all of the trouble that my Leah is going through lately with work and school. Not that I'm not going through the same things. I just haven't had the immediate need to move out of my house like she has. Unlike her parents mine don't care if I live with them all of my life or not. They've worked hard all of their lives to be able to afford and enjoy the rest of it comfortably.

With Leah not having any free time, for me or her horses, I try to help her out as much I possibly can. Working two jobs while having four college classes worth of homework is pretty demanding too. Granted my job with the army doesn't give as many hours as my one at the convenience store as well as the fact that I don't have school for eight hours and work for eight hours every day like Leah does.

She works really hard for what she has and I don't mind helping her by feeding her horses either in the morning so she can sleep in or at night so she can shower and go to bed. The physical stress she is putting herself through is noticeable. That is why I am working the two jobs so I can by us a house with a barn so she can get out of her parents' house and not have to worry about it.