It's Complicated

Chapter Three

My alarm blaring at 5:25 the next morning rips me from the clutches of a fabulous dream, the details of which are slipping away the more awake my brain becomes. Groaning, I reach over to snooze the damn noise away only to find that my phone is not where I left it last night. Reluctantly, I open my eyes, blinking blearily as I search the nightstand beside me.

"Looking for this?" My mother asks, lifting my still beeping phone.

   "Yes! Please turn it off!" I grumble, grabbing the extra pillow beside me and bringing it down over my head. The offending noise abruptly stops, making me sigh in relief.

   "Get up, Honey. You have a horse to look after." I groan again and shake my head, despite knowing that she can't really see me. The next second later, my mom rips my covers off, allowing the cool air of the room to immediately cause goosebumps to erupt all up and down my bare arms and legs.

"Mom!" I complain, dragging out the 'O'.

   "Get up, Abby. We're leaving in twenty minutes." I listen to her feet disappear into the bathroom, the door closing softly. Heaving a sigh, I toss my extra pillow aside and haul myself out of bed. My body complains tiredly as I bend down to grab a pair of jeans, a t-shirt, hoody, sports bra, and a clean pair of socks and underwear. I change quickly in the room, just slipping my hoody on as my mother reappears in the bathroom doorway.

   She shoots me a sympathetic smile, which I ignore, as I slip past her into the bathroom. I quickly apply deodorant before doing what I came in to do. After washing my hands, I step back out and look at my mom, who is just finishing up packing the cooler with several water bottles and a few snacks.

"Ready when you are." I tell her through a yawn. She looks up and smiles.

   "Okay. You good to carry this?" She gestures at the cooler she just finished packing and closing up. I nod before slipping my runners on and crossing the room to grab the shoulder strap attached to the small blue cooler. I deposit it on the bed for a brief moment while I slip a jacket on over my hoody. It'll warm up later, but right now I know I will freeze in just a hoody.

   "Okay, let's go." My mom says as she zips up her coat. "I'm assuming we're stopping for breakfast and coffee on the way?" I nod vigorously. Waking up this early would be sheer torture without some form of caffeine.

Despite the cooler weighing down my shoulder, I still opt for the stairs. It's much too early to fight off motion sickness right now. My mom follows me, not even giving the elevators a glance as we pass them by. My footsteps sound heavy and loud in the quiet of the stairwell, and I silently apologize to the other people staying in the hotel who don't have to wake up at obscene hours of the morning. Once in the lobby, I let my mom take the lead, sleepily following her out to the SUV. I open the back passenger door and place the cooler carefully on the floor where it can't fly around and cause damage. Once the door is shut, I slip into the front, immediately dialling up the heat, and flicking my heated seat on.

I sink drowsily into my seat as my mom turns the key in the ignition and starts backing out. I can feel sleep pulling at me, so I force my eyes open, watching uninterestedly as we make our way to the small coffee shop we always stop at.

   "The usual?" My mom asks, turning to look at me as she parks out front. I give her a sleepy nod to which she replies with a nod of her own. She leaves the vehicle running as she hops out. I watch her pull open the door and disappear inside, pulling out my phone once she's out of view.

I quickly check Facebook, scrolling through the few more words of encouragement and statements of 'Good Luck' that I've received from friends and family since I checked my page last night. What peaks my interest is the pending friend request notification. With growing curiousity, I tap the little red number one, instantly disappointed when I see 'Isabelle Kooper'. Rolling my eyes, I tap her name to bring up her profile. Of course her picture is her and Baby Bleu, a long red ribbon hanging from the mare's bridle to match the perfectly white grin on the rider's face. I scroll down only to find pictures, videos, and normal posts all gushing about how well they're doing and how great her horse is. I close the app in disgust, not even having the patience to decline the request first.