Big Girl Boots

Thirteen

Heyyy, everybody!

Here's your Wednesday update! This is another chapter I'm actually pretty happy with!

Before we begin, I'm going to tell you a little bit about the Snake River Stampede. This is a real rodeo in Idaho, it's actually is kind of famous, and the competition is professional. The real events take place in mid-July, but I wanted this to be the last rodeo of the season, so excuse me for my inaccuracy. It's a work of fiction, right?

Anyhow, enjoy!

--Lindsey

***

By the time we rolled into Nampa, it was nearing ten o'clock. It didn't help that we'd gotten a flat tire half an hour out of Starton, or that we'd been running late to begin with. Coupled with the ridiculous amount of traffic on our way to the hotel and the accidental detour that had gotten us lost, there wasn't a single happy camper in Uncle Mark's pickup.

"Alright," Mama Callie sighed, finally stepping out of the rig, "everybody get your stuff and go to bed. It's gonna be a long weekend and I'm not in the mood to argue."

I shrunk into myself somewhat when she shot me a pointed look. Even though I was grumpy, too, I wasn't about to start a fight with my aunt. I couldn't say the same for Kellan, but for her sake, I'd try to keep things civil.

It was Wednesday night and we'd left directly after school in order to truck it down to Nampa, Idaho where the Snake River Stampede was being held. This was a huge rodeo, even for me, and I wasn't sure if I really wanted to be there.

Since we didn't figure on placing very high anyway, we'd opted to skip the Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday performances and just compete on Thursday, Friday, and then both Saturday events. That way Kellan, Coda, and I didn't have to make up quite as much school work. As we'd found out from the Caldwell Night Rodeo, a week worth of missed school was a whole lot to try and get done in time. Kellan was the only one with decent grades, so missing out on just a few days was probably the best thing for us.

When we filed into the lobby lugging our bags, other people were still streaming in, probably turning in for the night since the rodeo was over. Mama Callie looked even more frazzled when a large wave of people entered through the doors, shoving us mercilessly in an effort to be the first at the elevator.

"I got this." Whispering in her ear earned me a wary look but I shoved my way to the front desk anyhow.

"Hi, we're here to check in."

A dark skinned gal with a pile of dreadlocks on her head glanced up when I nearly shouted in her face. "Name?"

"Mark Dace. We should have two rooms."

She typed a few things into the desktop computer and ignored me completely for what felt like an eternity. I was just getting ready to say something when she pulled out a stack of room keys. "You guys are in rooms 304 and 305. Enjoy your stay."

"Thanks," I flashed her a grin, taking all four plastic key cards and waving them triumphantly at my family. "You're welcome."

Mama Callie took two room keys, handing one to Kellan. "Get your butts in bed as soon as we get up there."

I nodded and passed my remaining card to Coda. She gave me a wan smile and followed to the elevator where most of the crowd from earlier had cleared out. Now there were just a handful of people drinking coffee in the lounge and visiting quietly.

The two of us lumbered in first and waited impatiently for Kellan and his parents to follow. The main thing holding them all up was the heavy bags they were trying to fit through the doors. I was suddenly grateful that I'd stuffed everything into a single duffel.