JACKS POV

"Hey there" I said as I walked to María. She looked a bit shoked, but she grinned at me.
"Hi" she said, "I didn't expect you here"
"Yeah, that was the point, actually" I smirked. She chuckled a bit and looked up to me. "Where were you going?" I asked. I hope I didn't sound like a stalker because that would've been very awkward.
It was pretty obvious, to be honest. Tall boots, a helmet in her hand, trousers with a weird pattern around her butt and with a weird thing between her knees... She was definitely going to see her horse.
"I was going to Sant Cugat, to see Stella, wanna come?" she asked me, blushing a bit and looking away. My face lit up as I felt my smile widen.
"Yeah!" I shouted in excitement, a bit too excited. She smiled and walked to the driver's seat as I sat next to her. "Mind if I hold that for you?" I asked, referring to her helmet.
"Oh, yes, thankyou!" she handed me her helmet, full of scratches and dust. The straps looked a bit used and the colour was a bit wasted. I noticed a bit of dry blood inside of her helmet.
"What happened here?" I asked, surprised, she looked at me, confused. "There's a bit of blood here" I pointed the spot. Her face went paler than it already was as she thought or tried to remember what happened.
"I don't remember, actually... sorry. This helmet and I have had lots of things going on in the past years" she smiled at the end of it. I couldn't agree more, it looked used and wasted and beaten up.
"I kind of noticed that, it looks beaten up, poor helmet. What did you do it?" I asked, opening my mouth a bit mocking a sad and dramatic expression.
"Well... you know... just lots of bad balanced jumps, bucks offs, unbalanced turns, kicks, just usual stuff" I laughed. Just? Usual stuff? Yeah, right, like that was normal. Well, I couldn't actually know it, I've never tried to ride a horse as a hobby or anything, just casual, short walks.
"How long have you had this helmet?" I asked, still laughing.
"Hmm... ten years, I'm waiting for it to rot or break in half to buy a new one"
"Well, don't wait any longer; I already know what I'll buy you for your next birthday" I joked. She chuckled, a bit forcefully maybe. Like she was saying "Yeah, if I get to my next birthday alive"
I hesitantly put a hand on her thigh and squeezed it slightly. She looked at me for a second and smiled, before looking at the highway again. She turned to a curve to the right, and followed a path surrounded by trees, she soon came to a roundabout and turned to the first exit, she looked mature when she was driving, even sexy.
Jack, stop it, you're only friends and hardly know each other. Lies, we've been texting each other for two months. So what? That doesn't mean you know, like truly know her! True. I sighed, catching her attention.
"Don't worry, we're closer" she said, smiling a bit. We're closer. Closer to what? Oh, shut up, Jack!
She parked in a small parking lot in front of a stone entrance, full of flowers and ivy climbing up the walls. We got out and I followed her inside and handed her helmet. We climbed up the stairs into a small square.
To our right we had what appeared to be the equestrian center's reception and to our left some kind of entrance to a living room. In front of us there was a creme wall, a bit to the left there was a big iron door, at the other side there was a terrace with tables and chair, probably a restaurant. A bit to the right were some other steps going down, we went that way until we were in an outdoor corridor, full of stables to the left side and a steep ramp and some stairs to the left, just in front of a big arena where a few horses were already trotting and cantering around with their riders.
María took me down the ramp which led us to an open space, with a little hill at the end with a smaller arena and two sets of stables beside it. In front us, a bigger arena, not as big as the first one, in front of us. And just beside us, next to the stables there were some sets of paddocks. There were trees everywhere. We walked all the way up the hill and the small hill and passed the other set of stables until we got to an area with five paddocks.
She sped up a bit and I smiled a bit, she turned to a little house in front of the paddocks, and grabbed a black head stall with small fabric roses here and there. She turned to me with a big grin on her face.
"Come on" she grabbed my hand and guided me to a cute 20x40 paddock at the end of the field, next to the forest, that had an open stable at the end of it with a sprue beside it.
A dample grey horse looked up at us. I realised she was a female. Her eyes looked wary when she looked at me, as she pinned her ears back. Her thin mane started off being black but turned blonde at the ends of her hair, like her short, unevenly cut tail. She galloped toward us, as María opened a bit the fence, her expression relaxed when she met María's touch. Yeah, that was definitely Stella.
"Don't be scared of her. If she sees you're not scared, she won't kick you or try to scare you. " María adviced me. I had to try. María was still holding my hand, which Stella realised and tried to bite me. I, instinctively hissed at her, quickly rising my other hand near her eyes, she backed away and stared at me. I couldn't describe how she was staring at me now. Was it... respect? Her ears relaxed, pinning up. María giggled. What was happening?
"Looks like someone didn't let you scare them, right Stella? " she pushed her a bit, teasing her with her smile and released my hand to turn around and put Stella the head stall. She connected a rope to the head stall and we got out of the paddock, closing the fence behind us. I walked beside her, slowly holding her hand again. I saw a smile appear on her face, and slowly blushing. God, she was so beautiful! Not only cute, but truly beautiful.
I watched how she tacked up Stella; changing the head stall for a bridle and putting a black leather saddle on Stella's back, covering her withers. She was about to girth her when I saw Stella eyeing me with kind of playful expression, I don't know how she did it, but she did look at me like that. She was holding her breath, that's why María couldn't girth her. I noticed four eyes looking at us, but I didn't turn to see their faces.
"Hey, you need help there?" I asked, standing up from a box of brushes I'd been sitting on.
“Hmm, yes actually, can you please pull this up?” she asked, with a frown.
“Yeah, sure” I walked to Stella, who slightly pinned her ears back, and started to move a little. I knew what game she was playing; she was just trying to prove María that a horse could scare me off. Well, not any horse, but María's little cutie. I wasn't having any of that. I got closer to Stella and pulled the straps up quickly, which caused Stella to let go the air she was holding and let me girth her. I did the two straps and turned to María, who hugged me, a spark in her eyes.
"Thanks" she mumbled against my chest. I smiled.
"No problem" I answered. She pulled away, still smiling, and sighed.
"I think I'll have to go to class soon" she said as she looked at some riders leave the big arena, as a man, who I suppose was María instructor, entered the arena. "If you don't wanna wait here, there's a café inside..."
"No, it's fine, really" I looked up at her "I prefer to stay here and witness an epic Staría class" I winked at her. Did I just make up a nickname? W-wait, did I just wink at her? What was going on with me? Why did I feel so flirty and shameless, but shy and overwhelmed all the time? God, this was mind blowing. I noticed María was blushing and looked away, and I repeated her same words the day we met and I turned away while blushing:
"Aww, María, you're blushing!" I smirked, "Don't hide, it's cute!" I put two fingers under her chin and made her look into my eyes. "Seriously, you do look cute when you blush" that made her blush harder. She smiled and I saw her eyes moving around my face, studying it carefully. She stopped at my lips and bit her lip a bit. She noticed her small gesture and let go her lip, looking into my eyes again.
"María!" two girls shouted across the corridor I mentioned before. She broke eye contact and turned around. There were two girls jogging to us and hugged María. They started to speak spanish.
"¿Qué tal estás?" the taller one asked.
"Bien, aquí, preparándome para ir a clase, ¿vosotras?"
"Genial, encantadas de verte otra vez" the tanner one said happily.
"Oye... ¿quién es ese?"
"Oh, éste es Jack" I looked up, hearing my name. I looked confused, when María saw my expression, she quickly added, "'el és americano así que tendréis que hablarle en inglés."
"Ah, vale" the taller one answered, to no one or nothing in particular, she turned to me, "Hi, I'm Adriana, but you can call me Adri. I have class with María, now" she presented herself.
"I'm Montserrat, call me Monste, if you want to." Fuck, these names. They spoke to me with a very obvious spanish accent. You know that kind of spanish accent which even sounds annoying? That kind. Hopefully, María's english accent was cute and a bit british, since she lived a few years in Bristol.
We talked for a while, until they went to get their horses whilst María and I stared at each other again. Then she saw her friends entering the arena and she grabbed her helmet, she made sure the girth was tightely put, but before jumping up and sitting on the saddle, she came to me and kissed my cheek. She jumped up, and pushing forwards with her hips, started walking Stella to the arena.
A man closed the door for her. And I sat down on bench in the shade and watched. She looked concentraded, happy and extremely hot when she rode; when she walked, she pushed the saddle with her hips; when she trotted, she either had to got up and down all the time or try to keep her butt on the saddle all the time; when she cantered, she had to push with her hips again, at the same time as Stella. I didn't want to have a boner right now, I just wanted to enjoy her class, well, I was enjoying it, but, not in that way. Wow, Jack Barakat not wanting to think of anything sexual, wow, this was new.
Stella and María made a great team, you could clearly see how they followed each other. They mirrored each other's actions, carefully choosing how to put them. They looked like a single creature, a big feather floating harmoniously around.
When the class was over, María came sweaty and quite tired. She showered Stella and brushed her body and her mane and tail. She checked her hooves and left her in her paddock again. We were driving back, when I said:
"Hmm, María?" she hummed in response, "I... hmm... I... I don't have a place to stay, really. I just came in kind of a rush here. I was wondering if... I could... stay at yours?" I asked, a bit shyly.
"Yeah, sure. We can order a pizza if you want to, although I'm not very hungry and I need a shower" I giggled. She did need a shower.
"Well, I'm ok with a pizza, if you want, I can save a small slice for you, in case you're hungry?" she nodded as I smiled, remembering her kiss on my cheek. Why did she do that? I blushed a bit.

We got to her small and messy apartement. She did a mini tour of her house before heading to the shower. I walked to the kitchen to order a pizza. There was hardly anything but water, whiskey and vodka in the fridge and two ice-cream pots in the freezer. María went to shower as I ordered a pizza, calling to a number María had given me. The pizza came in a few minutes later. I called María a few times, threatening her to eat the whole pizza if she didn't show up, and as she didn't, I ate it all. María came out of the shower a few minutes later with a big football shirt and I guess she had her underwear beneath it. The shirt was blue and white and I managed to see the logo, which consisted in a golden crown on top of a circle with white and blue diagonal lines inside. She sat down on the couch, beside me. We were watching some weird reality show on Mtv.
"What team is this?" I asked, curiously.
"RCD Espanyol. It's a soccer team. I'm quite a fan myself since I was a kid, thanks to my siblings" she giggled, "Maybe the RCD Espanyol is not the best team, but it's still my team" she had a tiny sparkle in her eyes again. I smiled, she looked so beautiful with that tiny spark in her blue eyes.
"What's the team's mascot?" I asked casuallly.
"A parakeet" I chuckled.
"What are laughing at?" she asked, smiling.
"It's quite funny, my favourite baseball and football teams are represented by some kind of bird" I chuckled again, she just stared at me softly, "Baltimore Orioles and Ravens" I said, proudly.
"What are you trying to suggest here?" she asked, in a low sexy voice. Was she talking to me like that on purpose? If she kept talking to me like that I bet she'd turn me on. I concentrated on her question.
"A raven and a parakeet, just think about it" I smirked and let out a chuckle. I'm sure I looked like a little kid right now.
"You're such a pervert, Jack..." she whispered. I turned to her, she was falling asleep. Now I understand why her low voice.
I turned off the TV and carried her bridal style to her room, when I lay her down, she whispered something again. I went to the living room and made myself comfortable on her couch. It was 2am when suddenly I heard something coming from her room.
When I opened the door, I found her sitting on her bed, hugging her legs, her phone at my feet and tears going down her rosy cheeks. I walked to her, softly and wrapped an arm around her waist.
"Hey, María, are you okay?" I asked in a concerned tone.
She shook her head no. I heard her sniff and let out a small sob.
"Hey, it's gonna be okay, understand me? Hey, look at me" I put two fingers under her chin and made her look me in the eye, "You are going to be safe, yeah?" I smiled a bit.
"Wanna talk about it?" I asked a few minutes later. She shook her head, "It's okay, I won't force you to tell me, now get some rest"
She smiled me back and nodded. I pulled her to a hug and kissed her temple. I froze a second realizing this, but she didn't seem to care, so I relaxed.
"Jack, will it sound too sexual to ask you to sleep with me, please?" she almost begged. I smirked a bit at her pettition. I lay her down again with me, pulling her to my chest. She put her head on my chest comfortably, as I placed friendly kissed on her hair and temple.
A few hours later we both fell asleep.

Notes

Ok, it's kind of very late update. But here it is!
Sorry for that spanish part, I had to put it somewhere sometime!
Thanks for the +130 views!

Title credit: Team by Lorde.