One Fateful Day

Nobody believed in me. That was their first mistake. Admittedly, I don’t really blame them. I wouldn’t have either. I was supposed to be long gone by now. That’s what the fates seemed to be writing for me anyway. However, with a little bit of luck, love and second chances, today, there is a sea of people, sending waves of cheers with my name my way ; Onyx.

No, I was not cool enough to have come up with that name on my own. Up until a few years ago, I was 49082601-WX. I was on my way to the slaughterhouse. Nothing was wrong with me. In fact, 9 times out of 10, there was nothing wrong with any of us. Mainly healthy, mostly strong, all ready to work. It’s never fully understood by us why we are here. Rumor has it jobs have been decreasing for our kind over the years, especially since the war. With less people turning to farm work and more of those big guys showing up to do our jobs as fast as lightning, farmers talk about not needing us like they once did.

As much as I didn’t want to be there, I had no idea that this was the moment that would change the trajectory of my tragic end. It’s when I met him.

“Alright folks, you know the drill. We have some fine young horses for you today. Any and all sales are final unless discussed amongst ourselves otherwise. Cash and checks only. Proper identification will be needed before the horse will be passed along to your possession. I’ll be your ringman on this fine day. All bids start at $5.00. Let’s get going, gents. Let’s meet our first horse.”

The farmhand retrieving us for show was heading straight for the first victim. We locked eyes. I knew I was up next. It’s not like there was any way for me to escape this but to be the first one? Absolutely not. I promise, I am one tough stallion. I can pull and plow like you’ve never seen before. But, let me remind you, I was the first. I don’t like being first. Dead last is not such a bad spot to be. And, besides, I like to be prepared. Sue me. So, I did what any horse would do in a panic; I ran. They can’t sell me first if they can’t catch me.

“Someone better get that there ‘stang or it’ll be you in ‘is place,” I heard the farmer yell at his young farmhands. Them boys ran at me as hard as they could. But their little legs were having a hard time keeping up. The starting point of our race was in the middle of fields near the farm. In the distance, more open fields with a little body of water in the middle. There were a bunch of those boxes that courteously take humans from one location to another (one job I’m sometimes thankful they took over for us after a long hard day's work). Unfortunately for me, these boxes made a bit of a labyrinth for me to reach the choke point that was the opening of the fence; the gate to freedom.

I couldn’t quite see where the boys were but I couldn’t hear their footsteps very clearly. I could, however, hear their incessant screaming for me to stop. It seemed quite far from me. A bit embarrassing for them, isn’t it?

As I was coming up to those boxes, a little girl with curly blonde hair perfectly pinned back with a white bow in a flowy pink dress made one of the highest pitched screams I’ve ever heard in my life. I halted my hind legs from running at once and reared my front to avoid trampling over her.

“Anne-Marie. Oh lord, Anne-Marie. Are you okay, darling? ” says the man who I am assuming was responsible for this little girl named Anne-Marie. He darts his glances between me and at the boys who have finally managed to catch up, out of breath and profusely sweating in the deeply penetrating heat of the day. “Now what in the Sam Hell is going on here?”

The shorter of the two boys, trying to will words between trying to gulp in the air said “Sorry…sir…we was…um…just getting him.” He leant over posture disrupted by gesturing towards me with a wailing arm in my general direction.

“Oh my daddy! What a pretty pony!! Have you ever seen anything like him?” Anne-Marie said. One tough girl I will say. I would assume she would be on the ground kicking and screaming. Wouldn’t have blamed her either. The way I towered over her, especially on two legs, would’ve scared anyone out their boots. “He’s the one!”

“Anne-Marie, what are you saying to me?” The man said to the little girl.

“That’s my new horse!” she said.

“Now, listen darling. You sure you don’t want to look at other horses before deciding?” he said, leveling with her.

“Daddy, you said any horse, remember?” she says in a whiny but sweet tone.

“How is this horse with riding?” he questions in an attempt to find a flaw.

“Fine,” the taller boy says.

“See, daddy! The boys and girls will love him!” Anne-Marie exclaims.

“Now, settle sweetheart. I like him, too. Especially his eyes. Like he’s really thinking intelligent thoughts,” he says while looking into my left eye, capturing a moment of trust between us I haven’t felt with a human before. “Anne-Marie, do you think the kids would like riding a big black horse? You don’t think that he looks a little…I don’t know…intimidating?”

“Daddy, don’t be silly. I’m 10 now! I don’t think my friends would find a horse scary,” she says with obvious annoyance.

He catches my eye one more time. He approaches me with a hand out. Normally, this would be the part where I would’ve scattered. But I could tell he was one of the better ones. So, I let him put his wet palm on me. He pats lightly a couple times. I don’t shy away which quells concerns he had about my being around humans.

“Alright, well. I guess this is him. Would $80.00 do?” he says, pulling out the payment.

The boys stare between each other, their big white saucers bursting out the socket. “I think that will do, sir,” the taller boy says, trying to get at the money before the man has a chance to think this through fully.

He passes over the money earnestly and with pride. The boys shake his hand and found a renewed sense of energy to run back to the farmer with their winnings of the day.

The man loads me onto the trailer, while the girl rambles and babbles on about how much her friends will be so thrilled upon my arrival. The man chuckles and shakes his head with a smile he tries his best to hide. Her excitement was his prize of the day.

“Well, buddy, this looks like the start of a beautiful friendship,” the man says to me, stroking my back after he’s secured me in place.

“Now, Charles, why do you think this big horse is any way inviting for children?” a woman of a short stature says to the man.

“I know, I know. But, I can’t say no to that little girl, not now,” Charles says, almost making it through that sentence without his voice shaking. The woman looks at him with a knowing look and proceeds, “Well, I can understand that. But, you can’t make up for it by buying her everything she wants. It’s not going to fill the space of her mother.”

“Goddammit, Cheryl, does your heart have to be so callous all the time?”, the woman taken aback by his outburst for a moment, softens her face to listen to him deeper. He continues with, “That little girl has put on a brave face for all of us. She smiles and giggles as if everything is right as rain. But, what you seem to forget is that every night, I hear her pray to God asking to tell her mother that she loves her and to watch over me. And then, once she’s done, she hops into bed and cries herself to sleep. Now, this here horse was brought to us. I am not sure why. But, my little girl hasn’t genuinely smiled like that in too long. This horse might not be our training horse for the kids but it is her horse. If I have to go find a new horse, I will. As for now, he stays,” Charles states, ending the discussion right then and there.

“Well, fine then. It comes out of your wallet.”

“This whole place comes out of my wallet,” he says with a meek smile, trying to bring some levity to the short outburst that felt like he was sitting on it for some time. Cheryl, disarmed by the exchange, smiles warmly back at him.

“You know I love her as much as you do. I want to see her happy, too. And if it’s this horse then by all means, he can stay.”

“Thanks, Cheryl,” he says.

My training with the children was going well. This place was the home I had always dreamed of. You get treated like royalty on this ranch. It’s not too shabby when your days are spent sprinting and jumping around. Before, it was hauling and pulling. This place wasn’t just comfortable, it was fun. Anne-Marie and I are real close. In fact, we’re so close she decided to name me after a stone she had been reading about in her gem book. She reads to me a lot at the end of the day. She was telling me all about how this book was one her mom gave her after she was inquiring about all her mothers jewelry, most having been from her father. Her mom thought she could start telling her about gems instead and gave her this book to kickstart her journey. She then looked at a mesmerizing black stone and shrilled with glee, “That’s it! You’re Onyx!! I found your name! Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!,” she ran out of my stall to tell her father the good news. Boy, did her happiness fill me with a sense of pride. Onyx was a beautiful name given to me by the loveliest of girls.

Charles and I grew quite close. He only ever rode me. He said at first, it was to ensure I would be safe around the kids. After a while, he came up with excuse after excuse as to why he was always on me. To me, it was as obvious as a red stain on your pearly white shirt why he was riding me; he liked me. And I have no shame in admitting I liked him, too. One time, when he took me a few farms down from our home for a weekend so he can do some work on the farm without spooking me, I escaped and jumped over fences with ease to get myself face to face with him. In all fairness, I thought he was selling me as he didn’t key me in as to why I was there. I am embarrassed by my obvious sense of affection but he’s got another thing coming if he thinks he could get rid of me now.

That day sparked a sense of curiosity in him. He started talking about training me for racing, claiming he’s never seen a horse run as fast as I do. The escape really made him see the urgency I can bring to a race.

The following spring, after months of daily training and exercises, he had entered us into a major race not too far from us. The excitement of it all was tantalizing as much as it was terrifying. I’ve never been around this many people, especially around this many loud people. However, as long as Charles was near, I knew I was safe.

“Can you believe he’s racing? He said he was retired after his big blunder 10 years ago,” a woman with a big, ridiculous green hat that had an array of feathers and flowers peaking out. They let the people walk past us while other races went on for not only entertainment purposes for the regular folk, but for the other riders to scope out their competition in a modest way. “Heavens, is that the same Charles Gallaway? I wonder how badly he plans on messing this race up with this creature,” another robust woman with an equally ridiculous purple head said. I sneezed all over them when she said that. They cleared out quickly with disgust and irritation all over their faces. Charles looked at me from afar in his riding gear with a look of faux disappointment. I knew he was proud but he couldn’t let anyone else onto our secret.

He brings me to the starting gates. My heart is dancing around wildly in my chest. “Remember boy, run like you’re staying over at Watson’s farm again and we are walking out of here champions.” He pats my neck and adjusts himself into the ready stance.

The gun goes off (Charles prepped me for this due to my skittish disposition) and I knew we were off to races. As I started off with the crowd I knew I can pace this straightaway out correctly if I take my time and let the competition tire themselves out in front of me. As I watched the other horses in their lanes tuckered out midway, I knew this was ours. And so, I pushed. I brought myself to the day he left me at that farm where I thought I was surely being abandoned. Neck low and legs out stretched wide, I dug deep and ran. I ran faster than I even thought I had the ability to do. Coming around to the closing loop, I was neck and neck with the gray speckled horse. He looked at me with his icy blue eyes in shock and dug deep as well. But it was too late. Once I’m activated, I cannot be stopped. So with a second or two behind me that gray horse got 2nd. I heard the announcer say something about a comeback kid and heard my name sprinkled around in cheers. None of that mattered. What did matter was Charles whooping and hollering on my back, to my right at the gates Anne-Marie jumping and waving her hands in utter amazement and Cheryl with a big red smile. This collection of reactions filled me with a sense of warmth I haven’t been able to replicate since.

Charles and I would run about 20 more races together. I would earn myself the nickname of the “Cinderella Horse” which tickled Anne-Marie pink and Charles would secure a legacy he told me was long gone years ago. My forever family stepped in on what was supposed to be my last few days. But, I like to think that fate tricked me. That this was always meant to happen. That we were always supposed to find each other. To think my darkest day turned out to be brighter than anyone could’ve ever dreamed.