Heartbeat

I threw Daphne’s reins over her head, holding her steady as Lauren scrambled on her back. Sidney just watched as I tossed her the leather reins and she took off.

“It’s really not that hard, all you have to do is keep your balance.” I said, leaning up against the Lemieux’s fence. Mario had gotten out of the pool to get a drink and nodded, putting his hand on Sid’s shoulder.

“It would really help with your conditioning. Balance is very important.” He said with a smile and Sidney nodded, watching Lauren ride around the yard. I jogged up to the jumps, taking them down to about a foot high before returning over to the fence.

“Okay Lauren, you’re good!” I shouted and the three of us watched as Daphne skipped over the jumps. “See, and all you have to do is lean up and press and she’ll jump. And hold her mane—that’s the hair on her neck—but don’t drop the reins. Keep your weight down through the heels. “

“Wait, what? You want me to jump that?” He asks, pointing to the makeshift crossrail jump. I nodded.

“Well, not exactly. I’m only going to let you do flatwork because you’ve never been on a horse before and I don’t think your coaches would appreciate you being thrown off.” I said and Mario laughed. Sid just watched as Lauren trotted back to us, a little unsure.

“Did I do good, Lily?” she asked and I nodded, giving her a high five. “Remember to keep your back down, though and remember to give her lots of rein so she can stretch her head. You’ll be up to one and a half footers in no time!” I said and Mario grunted.

“I guess that means we’d have to get her lessons or something.” He replied to my comment begrudgingly as his daughter slid down from Daphne and tried to clamber over the fence.

“Or my own horse.” She said with a smile, sitting on top of the fence. I patted Sid’s shoulder and pushed him forward a little.

“Your turn, cowboy.” I said and brought Daphne closer so that he could use the fence as a mounting block. “Just hop on.”

He struggled to get on top of Daphne’s back, causing her to give a snort in frustration. But he finally managed to get on top and I tossed him the reins, trying hard not to laugh. It was so strange, seeing a hockey player on top of a hose.

“Okay now just squeeze a little with your legs and give her a small kick.” I instructed and he obeyed, the two of them moving easily.

“Uh..Lily…Lily?” He said, a little panicked and I jogged up along side them.

“Don’t be a baby.” I said and gave Daphne a slap, causing her to increase her pace and Sidney to grab at her mane wildly.

“Okay now just lean forward a little, she’ll do the rest of the work.” I said as they moved closer to the logs on the grass. Daphne skipped over them with precision and I smiled to the two of them as they came back over to the fence. He looked more confident, relaxing noticeable on the canter back over to the fence. Mario clapped as I held Daphne’s nose when she stopped.

“That was pretty impressive, you’re actually good. Maybe hockey isn’t your calling.” I teased as he slid down from the horse.

Sid brushed his jeans off and grinned at me. “That was actually pretty fun.” He said and I laughed. I knew the feeling. That feeling you get when you’re riding, when you feel so liberated and free and wild that the world slipped away. I could be with Daphne for three minutes or three hours and I’d get that feeling.

Mario leaned over the fence with Stephanie bundled up in a fluffy towel, looking at us with a grin.

“You kids clean up, I think breakfast is almost ready. Lauren, go help Lily with Daphne.” He said, motioning to the mare. I heard Lauren exclaim yes to herself, this was her favorite part. Getting to brush all the dust and dirt off of Daphne. Sidney patted her back and looked over at me.

“I’ll help too.” He said and we all wandered back into the barn area.

“So is this what you do?” Sid asked as we walked Daphne over to the barn. Lauren looked up at the two of us with a smile.

“I’m going to be right back! Start without me!” she said before scrambling off across the lawn to her house. We both watched her run quickly away from us before I turned back to Sidney.

“Yeah, pretty much. I mean it’s not a big sport or anything here but I don’t know. “ I said with a shrug. “It’s not a bad sport and just a hobby. I’m not going pro.” I replied with a quick laugh, pulling Daphne into the barn. I clipped her in the crossties and began unbuckling the saddle.

“No, no. It’s surprisingly fun. It should be a bigger thing here. My sister used to want to have a pony for the longest time. She had a poster of uh- “ he paused, trying to recollect something as he watched me put the leather saddle on the bench. “- Beezie Madden, I think. But then she got into hockey.”

“Taking after her big brother?” I asked, unhooking Daphne from her bridle. Sidney laughed and leaned up against the wall of the tack storage area.

“I guess. It’s not a bad sport either.” He said with a smile and I quickly brushed Daphne off and led her down into her stall. I shut the door and turned back to Sid, making our way back to the Lemieux’s.

“You know, I’ve lived next to Mario for awhile—since I was ten. But I’ve yet to go to a single hockey game. Honestly, I don’t even think I know how the sport works.” I confessed as we were walking back. Sid stopped and turned to me with an incredulous look on his face.

“You can’t be serious.” He replied and I laughed.

“Pathetic right?” I said with a grin as we ventured closer to the Lemieux home. We walked through the gate and through the back door from the pool.

“That’s amazing. You’ve lived next to a hockey legend for eight years and haven’t even seen a game?”

“Hey hey, no judgment.” I said, trying hard to contain my laughter. Sid made a face and I could tell he was trying hard not to laugh either.

“Too late for that.” He said as we wandered into the kitchen.

“Can we help?” I asked Nathalie and she pointed to the counter where there were several platters and dishes.

“You can take those to the table.” She said as Mario came in, grabbing the napkins to bring to the breakfast room. He looked the two of us over as we grabbed platters to take in.

“Jokes and laughs already? Do you befriend every hockey player I bring home?” he asked and I laughed.

“In my defense, Marc would have been friends with anything and anyone.” I replied and Mario laughed.
“Marc-Andre Fleury?” Sid asked as we put the dishes down on the table, arranging them so that was room for everything. I nodded.

“Yeah, have you guys met?” I asked and Sidney shook his head.

“Not yet, but I hear he’s a really nice guy.”

“Do you know when he’s coming back to Pittsburgh, Lil? It would be nice to have him over so him and Sid can get to know each other.” Mario said to me as we headed back to the kitchen.

“Soon, I imagine. Plus, he promised me lunch and I’m going to want to collect before the season starts.” I said with a laugh and Mario shook his head, smiling. Sidney just looked lost and grabbed another dish.

“Blind dates?” Mario asked and I turned to him, confused. He just shrugged.

“Alex mentioned it during golf. Made for a good story.” He said with a grin.

“Marc has horrible taste in boys.” I said as we carried the final dishes into the dining room. Mario laughed and set the plates and forks and knives.

“That’s comforting to know.”