It's Only 8 Seconds

Chapter Sixteen

Three Months Latter

Chrismas had passed and it was finally January, River was turning one in twelve days on the nineteenth. Last year had gone by so fast and most of it was just a blur to me. Austin had spent Christmas with me and I finally let him meet my parents. My mother loved him and my father, of course, was acting all tough and scary, though it didn't work and he came to like Austin as well. I had my first rodeo of the year in two days, it was in Tampa, Florida, a sixteen-hour drive from home so we were leaving this afternoon. Austin had hooked the trailer up to his truck and I began to pack the trailer with the gear I would need. We were only taking Bird with us and one of Austin's horses Fang who now lived at my stables.

''Ail don't carry the feed bag's I'll help you!'' Austin shouted from the front of the trailer, he knew that I would have stubbornly carried the feed bags from the tack room into the trailer. He thought of things before I even did them, and I loved him so much for that. Once I had packed the trailer with my tack and all Austin's tack for the weekend we went back into the house and packed our own bags and River's bag before setting off on the road. We listened to music and sang along while different towns passed by out the window and faded in the distance behind us. River looked out her window fascinated by all the new things that she could see.  

Once we arrived at Tampa early the next morning I could already feel the hot Florida sun burning a hole through my shirt. Austin fell asleep in the trailer while I got the horses settled in; he did drive all through the night so I wasn't bothered. Fang was much taller than Bird and looked like he had a touch of thoroughbred in him, he rested his nose on my back as I wrapped his legs with stable bandages. His jet black coat shone under the skylight above, Fang looked like you had just pulled him out of a fairytale, even his long black mane fitted his fictional appearance. 

''Ail you don't have to do that.'' I looked up from what I was doing, Austin stood at the stall door holding River on his hip. I shook my head at him and finished wrapping Fang's legs. 

The next day:

The rodeo itself started in two hours, and the roping was up first so I helped Austin get Fang ready. I put his sports boots on while Austin swung his saddle over the horses back. I watched him as he adjusted it with precision, it was like an art to tack up a horse. When Fang was tacked up Austin went back to the truck to get his roping gear. I took River up to the grandstand to watch him make his run. This was the first time I had ever seen Austin rope or well compete. I sat there in the stands with anticipation as we waited for Austin's name to be announced. There was a wild look in both Austin and Fang's eyes before they went out into that arena, it wasn't a look that scared me but it was a look full of determination, it was a look that knew what it was doing and Fang knew what his job was before he even set foot in that arena dirt. 

''Austin Wesley everyone!'' Austin gathered his reins and adjusted his rope just as the calf chute opened and the little animal came running out. Austin was right on it's heals as he swung the rope of his head and let it go flying towards the calf. It wrapped around its neck, Austin jumped off Fang and ran over to the calf where he threw it onto the ground and wrapped it's legs all in eight seconds. He got even more impressive each moment I spent with him. Austin threw his hat into the air and blew me a kiss. River waved at Austin and I couldn't help but imagine her growing up with someone to call dad.