Pas(sade) de Cheval

Liverpool

Ryan reclined back on the grass, stretching his legs out in front of him, and studying the way Brendon's body moved. The steadiness of his hands and legs staying exactly where they're meant to be, as his hips rolled in time with the rocking of the horse, had Ryan hypnotized. 

Brandy was certainly quick as she flew around the ring, cutting corners and over jumping everything by a decent amount. It was impossible not to see that they were a perfect match for each other. He couldn't imagine a better horse for Brendon, or any other rider on Brandy. They were simply a pair. 

Brendon finished his ride, easily coming under time and not having touched a single rail. The crowd exploded into applause, louder than they'd been for any other ride. Ryan grinned and clapped, noticing when Brendon turned to look at him. He wasn't sure how Brendon had spotted him, but he got the impression that he'd always known he was there. Ryan nodded his approval, feeling like giving him a thumbs up was just a little bit too cheesy. Brendon winked in response before leaning forward to listen to one of the people that had run up to him. 

Brendon moved to the centre of the ring, and waited while the other riders came in and lined up beside him on their horses. Sisky stepped into the ring, holding a wireless microphone that flug his voice out over the audience. He really seemed to enjoy having that kind of power. 

One by one he handed out the ribbons, starting with eighth place and working his way down the line to Brendon. Ryan thought it was funny how the people in seventh and eighth were happy to get a ribbon, but the people in third and fourth looked disappointed that they hadn't done better. "And finally," his voice rang out, "finishing in first place, Brendon Urie and Strike Up the Brandy!" He hooked the red ribbon onto Brandy's bridle, and Brendon leaned forward, picking up a canter and going for a victory lap around the ring. The others followed him, racing at a decent pace around the jumps they had just had to go over. The ribbons attached to each horse flapped majestically in the wind, and Ryan was zoned out staring at them. He felt emotionally exhausted from all that had happened in a few days.

Brendon looked almost guilty as he passed Ryan. His eyes lingered on him, and his smile waned just enough to be noticed. Ryan tried to refrain from rolling his eyes and grinned. He raised his hands up in front of him and clapped along with the crowd, trying to show him that he was proud. Brendon was allowed to be happy of his accomplishment. 

Brendon smiled bashfully before finishing his ride and exiting the ring. As he dismounted, swarms of people approached, all wanting to congratulate him and give him a pat on the back. He looked shocked but pleased as he accepted the warm welcome. Ryan couldn't help but imagine how awkward he would have been in that position. He probably would have slipped away as quickly as possible, whereas Brendon seemed to be enjoying the spotlight. 

Ryan spent a few more minutes watching him interact with people from across the ring before the jumps started being adjusted for the next level of riders and he decided to go find Spencer and wish him good luck.

He picked his way slowly back behind the booths and the crowds of people. He could hear snippets of conversation drifting over, and his name seemed to be coming up more than he would have liked. He wished he still had his phone and could have put in his headphones and ignored all of the people and their stupid opinions. 

By the time he made it to the barn and found Spencer tacking up Bay, he was in a horrible mood. He felt like there should be a visible storm cloud over his head, because the sunny weather just didn't seem to fit with the rage that was brewing inside of him. When Spencer caught sight of him, he managed to keep his face neutral enough that the average person wouldn't have noticed the flinch. Ryan however, felt like the sympathy hit him full force and should have made him stagger backwards. Seeing that shadow of an emotion on Spencer's face almost made him break down in tears right then and there. He really wasn't sure how he managed to keep it together, but instantaneously it felt real for the first time since it had happened. He really failed. This wasn't a nightmare he was having. 

Zack and Shane were sitting on tack boxes at the side of the aisle and they pointedly ignored his presence, which he was admittedly grateful for. He took a few steps closer down the aisle, and Spencer closed the distance, slinging an arm around his shoulder and giving a firm squeeze. The words that accompanied the motion were completely off topic, and Ryan wondered if it wasn't for the benefit of the other people in the stable who he noticed were glancing in their direction every few seconds. "We're sleeping over for another night, right? I'm way too beat to try to drive the six hours home after this." 

Ryan started to talk before realizing his voice was scratchy from disuse. He cleared his throat and tried again. "Yeah, that's fine. I don't have lessons to teach until Thursday, so there's no hurry." Having to think about returning to daily life as if nothing had changed suddenly seemed like a massive hurdle. He taught a few lessons a week, but only to more advanced riders, and only because he was able to charge so much money per hour. He was suddenly struck by the feeling that he wasn't good enough to teach. Who would want to take lessons from someone that couldn't even remember a show jump course?

He was snapped out of his line of thinking quite literally. Brendon was standing in front of him, snapping his fingers with a worried look on his face. He vaguely remembered nodding when Spencer left, and he must have been standing in the aisle staring into space for- how long had it been? He turned to Brendon in a panic. "Did I miss Spencer's ride?" 

Brendon shook his head. "No, we can make it if we leave now." He took Ryan's hand and lead him out of the barn. 

Ryan's head was spinning from having zoned out like that, and now, hey, Brendon was holding his hand! Wait, he was definitely forgetting something. "Congratulations on winning." He probably should have said that sooner. 

Brendon grinned. "Thank you. After cross country I'd really resigned myself to a low placing, so I kind of don't feel like it's real." 

Ryan nodded, knowing exactly how he felt. "You deserve it. Your ride was impressive, and you'll do a great job representing us at the Olympics." 

Brendon blushed and ran his thumb along Ryan's knuckles. The sensation sent shivers up his spine. "That honestly means so much coming from you." He paused, and his mouth seemed to quirk as if he was holding back a smile. "You know, since I hadn't planned on doing so well at this event, I had all my hopes set on the qualifier for the group events..." His voice trailed off, and Ryan wasn't sure what reaction he seemed to be waiting for.

"Well, you still could?" Ryan said. It came out with an upward inflection, since he was unsure why Brendon was mentioning it.

"Yeah, but so could you." Brendon stopped walking and turned to look at him. "I get that you're a solo type of person, but we could go out for the team event together."

Ryan's mind started whirling with the possibility. He'd been so set on qualifying for the Olympics in the solo category that he hadn't even considered going out for the team division. He supposed it was really only his pride making him discount going out for the team, and in that moment, his pride definitely wasn't an issue. 

His smile slowly grew to match Brendon's. He slowly nodded. "Okay, why the fuck not." Brendon happily flung his arms around Ryan's neck. His laughter tickled Ryan's ear, and Ryan felt himself laughing along as he hugged him back. 

They heard Sisky announcing Spencer's name over the PA. Correctly, Ryan noted without surprise. They took off at a run, dodging the people on the path as they went against the flow of the crowd. They arrived just as he was approaching the first fence, and Brendon lead him around the bleachers to where he'd been seated earlier. Ryan sat down with his legs stretched out, and Brendon wiggled his way onto his lap, leaning his back against Ryan's chest. 

They watched Spencer's run, cheering obnoxiously louder than anyone else in the crowd. Jon joined them, nodding in Ryan's direction as if he'd expected to find Brendon in his lap. With their powers combined, Spencer was receiving the loudest cheers of any of the riders. He went clean with only a few seconds of time penalties, but it didn't affect his ranking. He waited outside of the ring while one other rider rode the course, and then lined up to receive his third place ribbon. He grinned and patted Bay's neck as they followed the first and second place finishers around the ring on the victory lap. 

Ryan placed a soft kiss on Brendon's temple as they sat on the grass with Jon, watching Spencer's happiness, and feeling like maybe everything was going to be alright after all.