Silver Opportunity

Chapter Twenty-Eight

"You've been what?" Hannah asked, crossing her arms and staring me and Molly down. "Do you guys know how dangerous that is? Especially on a horse like Titan!"

"I know the risks," I told her. "Trust me, we were being safe and we've made a lot of progress. Please just help us, Han. It's for Leo."

She blankly glared at me. "You two were being completely idiotic."

"I know."

"And could have gotten seriously injured."

"I'm aware."

"But wow, you really love that boy, don't you."

"With everything I have," I admitted. "Which is why I'm willing to do anything, even ride my horse blindfolded, for him. We need your help, Hannah. We don't know what to do next."

"Fine," she sighed, uncrossing her arms and standing up straight. "I'll meet you guys in the indoor in twenty minutes. But I'm not happy with you two for doing this behind my back."

"Thank you," I said, watching as she spun and left the kitchen. I turned to Molly. "Let's go get him ready."

Twenty minutes later, Molly and I had Titan in the indoor. I was on him with my blindfold hanging around my neck, waiting for Hannah to walk in any minute. Seconds later, she walked in with her riding gear on.

"Alright, show me what you've got."

I grinned at her and pulled the blind on. I did our usual routine - walk, trot, and canter in one direction before switching to the next. I could tell we struggled to stay on the rail and with placement in the ring, but we did our best and I was pleased with the work T and I did.

"Alright, I'm impressed," Hannah finally said. "You've completely changed this horse for the better, Emily. I'm really proud of you."

"Thanks Han," I smiled at her. "But we're not done yet."

"You're right. So, what do you need me for?"

-

Ten minutes later, we had poles, cones, a bridge, barrels, and L-bends set up and Hannah was on Titan. Her suggestion was that we do all sorts of weird things to be able to easily communicate to the rider. Since Hannah had yet to ride T, she was the obvious choice to be our impaired driver.

"Alright," Hannah said, pulling her blindfold down. "How do we do this?"

Molly and I grinned at each other before focusing our attention back on Hannah. We soon had her trotting around on Titan, who now more willingly stayed on the rail. We oriented her by letting her know what letters she was passing and when she was approaching corners.

Once she got used to the blind riding, she asked for our help going through some of the obstacles. We decided to begin with the cones so we could work on steering.

"Coming up on your left is your first cone," I called out. "They're about two canter strides apart."

Hannah slowed T down to a nice collected trot. She trotted forward, and Molly called out when she passed the first cone. With Molly's guidance, she turned slightly and went to the other side of the next cone. T stepped on the next two cones but Molly was able to help Hannah correct him and finish the weaving exercise.

"Wow, okay," she said as she pulled off the blindfold. "That's really difficult. But, he has a solid start and a team thats dedicated to reaching this goal. We can definitely do some work here. What do you guys have planned the rest of the day?"

-

"I'm getting dizzy less often," Leo said. "And, I can distinguish shadows a bit better. But other than that, I'm still blind."

"Some improvement is better than none," Molly added as she combed through her wet hair. After hours of working with Titan, we were both sweaty and exhausted so we decided to shower before we visited Leo.

Leo nodded his head but stayed silent. After a moment he asked, "Can I talk to Em? Alone?"

"Sure," Molly nodded, sending me an odd look. As she left the room, I gently grabbed his hand.

"Hi, Leo," I said softly after she shut the door behind her. He tangled his fingers in mine and leaned his head back, sighing deeply.

"Em," he began, "I know we haven't really had the chance to talk since... well, you know."

He had a blank look in his eyes. His usual sunglasses had been long removed since it was now completely black out and he no longer needed the shades. But the look in his eyes is what killed me the most. They were devoid of all emotion. He looked like his soul had been removed from his body, leaving an empty shell of the person he used to me.

"Keep talking," I urged on.

"I don't know exactly how to say this," he continued. "But, from the sounds of it, this blindness won't be a temporary issue. So that's why I'm giving you a way out."

"A way out?" I repeated. "Leo, what are you talking about?"

"Em," he said seriously. "Look. When we started dating, you didn't sign on to someone with brain damage and blindness. You don't have to stay with me if you don't want to."

"Whoa," I shook my head quickly. "Where is this coming from? Is there something I'm doing that makes you feel like I don't want to be with you?"

"No it's just," he sighed again before pausing. "Don't feel obligated to stay with me just because you feel bad."

"Leo," I choked out, wiping away some tears that escaped my eyes. "Why would you say that? I don't care what happened to you. You're my Leo. I love you with all my heart and nothing, not even blindness can take that away from either of us."

He stayed silent, his only response his fingers slightly adjusting their grip on mine.

"I understand your entire life just got flipped upside down. I'm not going to even start to imagine how that feels. But just because something terrible happened to you doesn't mean you get to give up on us. I care about you too much."

He was still quiet, which was making me a bit nervous.

"Please, Leo, say something," I begged, more tears falling. I just watched as he turned his head away, attempting to hide his own tears from me. Finally, he said something.

"Em," he began. "This has been so incredibly hard for me. Not just physically. I'm reminded of my dad's accident. The pain. The loss. The uncertainty and confusion. I lost... everything when my dad died. My father, my friends, my family. And now that I'm in a similar position to my dad, I feel like I'm going to lose everyone again."

"That's why I'm not letting you give up on us," I said, taking his hand in both of mine. "You need your support more than ever, and none of us are going to give up on you. I can guarantee that."

"Em?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you so much."