Date: Fri, 28 Dec 2012 18:54:59 -0500
From: Andrew Todd <atodd867@gmail.com>
Subject: Riding Lessons-Lessons Learned Chapter 2

This is a continuation of my first story, `Riding Lessons'. As always, if
you have any issues with romantic relationships between young men, please
do not proceed. I appreciate any and all feedback and constructive
criticism.

Riding Lessons: Lessons Learned

By

Andrew Todd

Chapter 2

"CJ?!?" Spin, of course, spoke first. "I thought your name was Charlie?"

CJ grinned. "Well, it's like this. My parents insisted on giving us boys
Spanish names and Americanized nicknames... so Pedro became Pete, Mateo
became Mattie and I, Carlos, became Charlie. They thought this would make
us more accepted in school, but when you are the only Latino kid in a sea
of very Caucasian ones, life can be difficult... for me, being Charlie,
meant that with my skin tone, I was often referred to as `Charlie Brown."
Not very original, but I didn't exactly go to school with the best and the
brightest. I was saddled with that name, amongst others, from kindergarten
on, until I was smart enough to start insisting that everyone call me `CJ',
since I am Carlos, Junior. Now, everyone calls me `CJ', except a certain
little brother." He rolled his eyes at Mattie.

"I try, but you are always `Charlie' to me," Mattie answered. He looked at
his older brother with a look of pure devotion that did not go unnoticed by
his friends.

CJ reached over and grabbed Mattie in a huge bear hug. Everyone could feel
the fierce love the two brothers had for each other.

Mattie pulled back, a few tears glistening in his hazel eyes. "Ok, CJ," he
said, grinning at his idol. "This is..."

CJ held a hand up to stop him. "Let me," he said. "Red hair and big
mouth... you must be Spin." CJ held his hand out to a sputtering Spin.

He turned to Dusty. "Handsome, Native American cowboy... you must be
Dusty." Dusty grinned and shook the offered hand.

CJ turned to the last of Mattie's friends and simply stared.

"CJ, are you all right?" Mattie asked.

"Huh?" CJ shook out of his reverie. "Oh, I'm sorry, you must be Zak. I'm
really sorry for staring, you just remind me of someone I used to know and
it shook me for a minute. Mattie tells me that you and he are going to give
my little girl in the trailer a go."

Zak's eyes lit up. "Can we see her?" He was shaking with so much excitement
that Dusty and Mattie thought he looked like a blond Spin.

CJ laughed and looked at Mattie. "He's the one who's only been riding a few
months?"

Dusty and Mattie both laughed and nodded.

"He took to it faster than anyone," Dusty said. "He's already light years
ahead of some of the people who have been riding here for years. He just
has a natural affinity for the horses."

CJ walked towards the trailer that was attached to his Jeep. "Wait right
here," he called over his shoulder to Zak. "Have I got a sexy new
girlfriend for you."

Dusty, Mattie and Spin were all laughing as Zak stood there almost
drooling. They all knew that while Onyx was his first love, Zak had a
definite `thing' for Arabians.

They heard CJ talking to the horse in the trailer and heard the horse start
to back out.

"Whoa, girl," they heard CJ call. The horse came flying out of the trailer,
a lead rope swinging from her halter. "Oh, shit!!" exclaimed CJ.

The boys scrambled to keep the scared horse penned between them. The black
Arabian reared up and pawed at the air.

While the other three boys hung back, Zak stepped forward slowly. Dusty
started to move forward to stop him, but Mattie grabbed his arm.

Dusty turned to Mattie with a scowl.

"Look," Mattie instructed him.

Dusty looked on as Zak slowly walked up to the mare, speaking to her in low
soft tones.

"Hey, there, beautiful. What are you so scared of? We're not going to hurt
you. This is your new home, you're going to love it here."

As the horse stood mesmerized by Zak, he quietly and slowly reached down
and grabbed the lead rope that was dangling from the horse's halter.

The mare stepped forward and dropped her head onto Zak's shoulder. Zak
reached his arm up so it encircled the mare's neck and he scratched at her
ears and neck as he continued talking to her.

Something about this horse felt so right and so familiar to Zak, it was
like she knew him.

Without a moment's hesitation, he threw the lead rope over her withers and
swung himself up onto the horse's back. Dusty and Mattie held their breath,
while Spin silently cheered his friend for having the balls to try such a
stunt.

The big horse simply pranced under Zak. He felt her muscles bunching as she
awaited his signal. Zak leaned forward and whispered into the horse's ear
while stroking her curved neck.  Zak gave the mare the slightest signal and
the two took off down the drive.

The four boys could only watch in awe as Zak and the Arabian galloped
away. A few minutes later, Zak and the mare returned at the same speed. The
horse stopped right in front of the other boys and Zak slipped off her
back.

CJ just shook his head. "I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen
it. She hasn't had that kind of energy since... well, in a long time. She
tolerates me, lets me ride her on the trails, but she's trained for
hunter/jumper and needs someone who will work with her. I think you just
got elected, Zak."

Zak's blue eyes lit up. "I'd love to, but I already have Onyx and Apollo,"
he protested.

Dusty answered before CJ could, "Zak, most trainers have a number of
horses. She'll just be one of your `string'. You can work with her and
Apollo for hunter/jumper and Onyx for dressage and equitation. You can do
it."

"Ok," Zak said quietly. He looked at CJ. "What's her name?"

CJ grinned. "Her name's Silent Angel, but mostly we just call her Angel."

Zak turned and hugged the mare. "Angel," he cooed. "Perfect."

Zak turned back to CJ. "Let me show you the stall we have ready for her and
then I can show you around the barn."

"Cool," CJ answered as he and Zak walked off.

Mattie and Dusty just stared at each other while Spin laughed. "I think you
guys just got dumped," he cackled.

Mattie and Dusty glared at Spin and then Dusty turned to look at Herc.

Spin got a look of panic in his eyes and took off running just as Herc came
bounding after him.

Dusty looked at Mattie and grinned. "Well, that will keep him busy for a
while. But, he might be right; I think you just lost your brother and I
just lost my boyfriend, at least for this afternoon."

Mattie grinned. "I thought that might happen, when Cha... oops... CJ told
me about Angel. The way he described her I knew it would be love at first
sight for Zak."

"It sure was," responded Dusty. "But, there seems to be something more with
this one."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't know what it is, but she seemed to `know' Zak. It wasn't
like with Onyx where he took right to Zak, but he was still kinda
standoffish; even though he liked Zak from the start, he never would have
let Zak just jump right on like that. Everything about her cries out that
she sees something in Zak, like she recognizes him or something."  "How can
that be?"

"I don't know--maybe he reminds her of her owner or something."

"That could be; CJ hasn't told me a lot about him, but maybe Zak does
remind the mare of him. CJ was kinda out of it when he saw Zak, too."
Mattie thought for a moment. "I'll have to ask CJ about that later."

"So, now that everyone else is occupied, what are your plans for the
afternoon?" Dusty asked.

"I think I'll go see how Zak and CJ are doing and then take Ash out for
some work."

"Sounds like a plan. I have some chores to finish up, but I'll find you
guys when I finish."

Each went their separate ways.

Zak was showing Angel the stall that had been prepared for her. CJ was
still in a bit of a daze when he saw how quickly Angel had attached herself
to Zak.

"Hey, Zak, I want to try something with Angel," CJ said.

"Sure, she's your horse after all."

CJ shook his head. "She's never been my horse; I've just been babysitting
for a friend. If anything, right now, she's your horse. But, I want to see
something."

CJ walked over to the stall where Angel was standing with Zak. He took off
Angel's halter and closed the stall door with the mare inside. Angel was
not happy being separated from her new boy.

"I want you to go around that corner there and just wait, ok?"

Zak nodded and walked to where CJ had directed him.

CJ spent a few moments talking to Angel and stroking her neck. She was
calming down, but still her eyes were furtively searching for Zak.

CJ opened the stall door and stepped away. Angel bolted out of the stall
and took off in the direction that Zak had gone.

In a few seconds, CJ heard Zak's voice. "Hey, Angel, you found me," he
heard Zak say. Then he saw what he wanted to see--Zak coming around the
corner with Angel following him, her head right at his shoulder.

Zak walked into the stall, with Angel following and then he stepped out and
shut the stall door.

CJ just stood there with his mouth hanging open. "I can't believe it," he
finally said.

"Can't believe what?" Zak asked.

"I've only ever seen her do that with one other person."

"Your boyfriend?" Zak asked quietly.

CJ looked at Zak and nodded. "Yes," he whispered. "She used to follow him
around like that all the time. If he ever used a halter or lead it was for
show, she never needed it with him. With me, I always need it for her. She
likes me, but she loves and trusts you."

"You miss him, don't you?"

"God, yes. He was my everything. I thought we'd be together forever; we had
so many plans and dreams. Then he just disappeared from my life, like he
was never there. Angel is the only proof I have that he was real."

Zak walked over to CJ, who was on the verge of tears and hugged him hard.

CJ was taken aback by Zak's act of compassion, but something about this boy
comforting him felt so right. CJ embraced Zak and cried silently.

"It's all good," Zak whispered to CJ as he rubbed the bigger man's
back. "This place heals. If anyplace can make you whole again, you're at
it."

CJ took a deep breath. "Thank you, Zak." He released Zak from the hug and
stepped back. "I got a feeling from all the times Mattie mentioned you that
you were a special guy and I was right."

Zak blushed. "I'm not any more special than the other guys."

"I don't know about that. I know that Mattie loves Spin and that he and
Dusty are best friends, but he speaks about you with such reverence. You
have helped him so much."

"I don't understand how you think I've helped Mattie. He is twice the rider
I'll ever be; he knows martial arts; he's strong and brave; he's everything
I'm not and that's why he and Dusty get along so well--they are so much
alike."

CJ shook his head as he looked at Zak. "Zak, you didn't know the Mattie I
grew up with. My parents had me and Pete pretty quickly; my dad wanted a
girl, so they made one last try and got Natty. As far as my dad was
concerned, that was it for kids. Mom had other ideas, so along came
Mattie. Pete and Natty could not have cared less about another baby; they
are both far too concerned with themselves. I was five when Mattie came
along and I always felt it was my job to protect him. He was so shy as a
kid, quiet all the time. Most days, I was the only one he spoke to. Part of
the reason he learned martial arts, was an attempt by my dad to `toughen
him up'. He never understood Mattie; he always thought Mattie's quiet and
shyness was weakness. It wasn't... Mattie's one of the strongest people I
know. When I left for school I was so scared that he would crawl back in
his shell. I think for a while he did, then when he started coming here,
his e-mails and phone calls were so different. The light was back on, he
was so happy. You did that; Spin and Dusty helped, but I know from what
Mattie's told me, that you did a lot of it. So, thank you."

Zak took a deep breath. He was trying to keep his emotions in check. "I
wonder if Mattie knows how lucky he is."

"What do you mean?" CJ asked.

"To have a big brother who looks out for him and who loves him so much,"
Zak answered wistfully. "I've wanted that all my life."

CJ smiled warmly at him. "And now you have it. I'm planning to stick
around, so I'll be here for Mattie and for you and Spin and Dusty, too if
they want me."

"That will be great," Zak said as he again hugged CJ.

"OK, enough of the sappy stuff," CJ laughed. "Let's leave Her Majesty here
to get used to her new home and you can take me on that tour."

"Sounds good, c'mon."

Zak's first stop was, of course, Onyx. CJ had heard about the big Friesian
from Mattie, but he was still not prepared for the huge horse.

"Beautiful, isn't he?" Zak asked, his blue eyes sparkling, as he stroked
the horse's neck.

"He's amazing," CJ agreed. "Just amazing."

CJ and Zak continued touring the barns with Zak introducing him to each
horse, but of course paying special attention to those that were special to
the boys.

About halfway through the tour, Spin and Mattie caught up with them. Spin
took over and introduced CJ to Marty and Revanche and then Mattie showed
off Whisper, who was supposed to be CJ's horse, and finally Ash.

"Magnificent," CJ whispered as he stroked Ash's neck. "Mattie, have you
done any research on his bloodline?"

Mattie shook his head. "No, I haven't thought much about it. He only became
mine a couple of weeks ago. Why?"

"Well, look at him," CJ answered. "I wouldn't be surprised if he had some
connection to the Andalusians grandfather bred in Spain. It would be
fascinating to find out his lineage."

Mattie lit up. "That would be great if he was. But, I'm just happy to have
him. Hopefully, we'll be able to use him to start a new line of horses on
your new ranch."

CJ laughed. "I think you are getting a little ahead of yourself, but that's
a plan I like. And, you're wrong, it's not `my' ranch... it will be `our'
ranch." CJ thought for a second. "I am curious about one thing. You guys
all ride together, right?"

All three boys nodded.

"Why?" asked Mattie.

"Well, most people would be fascinated by the fact that three of you are
riding stallions and they are all behaving around each other. In most
cases, there is only one stallion to lead a herd. You'd never see them
getting along."

Mattie laughed. "You're not the first person to raise that question. And
honestly, we don't have an answer. They all get along when we are with
them. When they are alone here, we keep them in separate barns. Everyone
has their own theories. I like to think it's because they all adapt to our
personalities and since we all get along so great so do they. We just are
all happy that Revanche is a gelding, cuz he has already adopted Spin's
personality and if he was a stallion, we'd all be in trouble."

Spin looked at Mattie and pouted. "You know, you're gonna give me a
complex, if you guys keep picking on me."

Mattie hugged his boyfriend. "Spin, you know we love you, but you do have
more energy than ten people some days and it can get on our nerves."

Spin grinned and nodded and he melted into his muscular boyfriend. He knew
that he could get on everyone's nerves, but he was always afraid that
someone would take Mattie away from him and the last thing he wanted to do
was drive him away.

CJ spoke up, "Hey, guys, why don't you saddle up so I can see what Revanche
and Ash can do?"

Zak looked hurt. "What about Onyx?"

CJ laughed, "Well, I want to see what he can do, but I thought you'd want
to give Angel a go as well."

Zak was torn now; Onyx was his `baby', but the thrill of seeing what Angel
could really do was getting to him as well.

"Let's try Angel, first," Zak suggested. "And then while these two are
showing off, I can get Onyx."

"Sounds like a plan," CJ agreed.

Zak and Spin ran off to change into their riding gear. While CJ and Mattie
took Ash and Revanche to the crossties and began grooming them. Spin showed
up a few minutes later and took over from CJ.

Spin and Mattie looked up in surprise as they watched Zak walk up to the
grooming station with Angel walking calmly beside him; the mare wore no
halter or lead.

Zak stopped at the grooming station and Angel walked in and stood stock
still, while Zak began to groom her.

"I don't fucking believe this!" Spin shouted.

"What?" Zak grinned.

"You always luck into it, don't you?" Spin smiled at his friend.

"I didn't teach her that," Zak said.

"No," CJ interjected. "But, I've only ever seen her do it for one other
person. She won't even do it for me and I've been around her for the last
three years."

The boys hurriedly got the horses groomed and tacked and then led them and
CJ to the outside arena.

They all decided that Zak would have first go, so he could then get Onyx
ready.

Zak led the mare into the arena, while everyone perched themselves on the
fence. The mare continued to fascinate Zak. She had taken the bit from him
like she wanted it with no fuss or problems. Now when he was tightening the
girth she made no attempts to puff up or expand her stomach to keep the
girth loose. He pulled down the stirrups.

He loved the new saddle that Mattie and Spin had given him for his
birthday. Since he was the only one who used it, he didn't have to play
with his stirrup lengths like he always used to.

Once everything was set, Zak put on his helmet and gloves. He bounced a
time or two and then hopped up catching his foot in the stirrup and pulling
himself up.

Zak held his breath for a second. He felt a connection with Angel that he
didn't even feel with Onyx. He could not explain it. It was an emotional
connection he had never felt before.

Zak could feel Angel waiting patiently for a cue from him. Gathering his
reins and steadying himself, Zak moved her out at a walk to get her warmed
up.

For the next half hour, Zak and Angel put on an impressive show for their
audience. The horse and rider performed as a seasoned team. Zak had Angel
going over a number of jumps and the big mare was thrilled with her new
boy.

When Zak stopped Angel in front of the area where everyone, including Dusty
who had been there almost since Zak started, was waiting, he noticed a
faraway look in CJ's eyes.

"CJ, is everything ok?" Zak asked.

CJ nodded, tears glistening in his hazel eyes. "Yes, Zak, everything is
great. I haven't seen Angel move so well in months. I promised Danny I
would take care of her, but she misses him so much, we both do. I'm so glad
she has you now."

Zak nodded. "Thanks, CJ. You'll have to tell me about Danny some day. If he
had the connection to Angel that I am feeling, he must be something."

CJ smiled. "He is. Some day when it doesn't hurt so much, I'd love to tell
you all about him."

The boys spent the rest of the afternoon showing off their horses and what
they could do for CJ. At their insistence CJ took a turn, showing them what
he could do with Ash.

The boys were impressed. CJ made Ash perform in ways they had never
seen. He was definitely ahead of Mattie when it came to the Spanish riding
that Ash was bred for.

Finally, it was time to take care of the horses and the evening
feedings. With five of them doing the work, they were done rather quickly.

As they were all leaving the barn and heading towards their cars, CJ asked,
"Is it ok if I leave the trailer here? I just don't want to haul it all
over town and I need to find a motel to stay at. I'm sure they would prefer
if I didn't park the trailer in their lot."

Mattie looked at CJ. "What do you mean a motel? Aren't you coming home?"

CJ shook his head. "Mattie, you know they still think I'm in school. If I
show up now, it will bring too many questions and I can't give Father any
motive to screw things up for me."

"I thought the trust was irrevocable?" asked Zak.

"It is, but since the lawyer works for Father, he could misfile some
paperwork or find another reason to put off me getting my inheritance. I
need everything to go smoothly so I can get away from Father and so that I
have a place for Mattie if things go south."

"CJ, instead of staying in a hotel, why don't you come and stay at my
house?" Zak offered. "We have a spare room and I like the idea of
`borrowing' Mattie's big brother for a few days."

CJ grinned. "Are you sure it's ok with your parents?"

"Well, it's just me and my mom, but she won't mind. Let me go give her a
quick call." Zak grabbed his phone and walked off to make the call.

Zak came back a few minutes later. "It's fine. She loves Mattie's ass, so
she'd do anything for him."

Mattie blushed. "Well, if you can't come home, at least you'll be more
comfortable at Zak's house than in a motel."

It was decided that Dusty would take Mattie and Spin home, and CJ would go
with Zak. They were going to leave CJ's Jeep at the ranch for now so he
wouldn't have to park on the street by Zak's house.

Dusty would come by in the morning to pick up Loki and CJ, and CJ would
spend the day at the ranch with Dusty.

Zak and CJ waved as Dusty's truck drove down the driveway with Herc pacing
in the truck bed.

Zak loaded Loki into the back seat of his SUV and CJ got into the passenger
seat.

When they got to Zak's house, Zak gave CJ a quick tour of the house and
showed him to the guest room.  While CJ unpacked and put the few belongings
he had away, Zak sat on the bed.

"Why don't you have more stuff?" Zak asked.

"Well, I don't have a lot to begin with," CJ answered. "My apartment was
rented furnished, so most of what I had was clothes. There are a few boxes
in the back of my Jeep and in the trailer. But most of my stuff is in the
house here, so Mattie will have to help me sneak it out before the big
day."

"Do you really think your dad will disown you?"

CJ nodded solemnly. "Yes, I do. He's too old school. To him homosexuality
is an abomination and he will never accept it in any of his children. You
know as well as I do, that it's not something that you can turn off and I'm
not about to marry some girl just to make him happy."

"Do you hate your father?"

CJ thought for a minute. "No, I don't hate him. I love him--I think no
matter how bad your parents are, it's very hard to hate them--but I don't
like him and I hate what he stands for."

"It's not fair," Zak said tearing up. "Dusty and I don't have dads and
yours is an asshole."

CJ barked out a laugh. "Sorry, but your description of father is succinct
and accurate. I'm sorry about you and Dusty, but from what Mattie tells me,
your moms are incredible."

"They are. They've both done everything they could to support us both
growing up and since we got together." Zak contemplated for a moment. CJ,
do you believe in God?"

"Yes, I do," CJ answered. "I believe in an ultimate power, but I don't
believe in organized religion. I think that too much evil is done in this
world in the name of God."

"Why does God hate us?" Zak cried.

CJ sat on the bed next to Zak and wrapped his arm around the smaller
boy. At this contact with Zak, a small electric charge went through
CJ. "Why do you think God hates us?"

"He took away my dad and Dusty's dad and he made yours an asshole and he
made us all gay so that everyone would hate us."

"I like to think that God chose to make things more challenging for us,
because he knew we were strong enough to handle it," CJ said. "God didn't
make people hate us. God gave us free will; he set us on a path but most
people veer from that path. When they spew hate and ignorance, they are not
doing as God wants, they are doing as they want."

"But, why do people hate us so much?"

"Most people hate what they fear. They are scared of anything
different. But the way I see it is if being gay was `unnatural' then God
wouldn't have made any of us gay in the first place."

The two boys just sat there for a minute. CJ continued to hug Zak.
Something about his brother's friend was really getting to him. It was so
easy for him to talk to Zak. He was a good kid and he was beautiful, almost
as beautiful as Danny.

CJ pushed the thoughts of Danny out of his mind. Danny was in his
past. Danny had left him with no explanation. It didn't make any sense for
him to waste the rest of his life waiting for Danny to come back to him.

After a few minutes, Zak stood up.

"Thanks for talking to me," he said to CJ, smiling. "I can see why Mattie
worships you so."

CJ playing bopped Zak in the head with a pillow. "Don't say things like
that--you'll give me a swelled head."

Zak laughed. "Well, I'll let you finish and see if I can rustle something
up for dinner," Zak said as he left the room.

When he returned about a half hour later to see if CJ was ready for dinner,
he found his friend's brother fast asleep on the bed.

Zak figured it had been a long drive and a long day for CJ. He walked over
to the bed and pulled the comforter up over CJ.

In his sleep, CJ reached out and grabbed Zak's arm. "Danny, come back," CJ
mumbled. "I love you so much."