Finding My Soulmate

[ScarDolphin]

Finding My Soulmate

Please don't post on this thread, thank you! I will gladly
accept critique, but please send it to me on a PM c:
Also open to ideas for the story, but again would
greatly prefer PMs rather than posts here c:

[ScarDolphin]

Introduction

When born into this world, a necklace is handed to you at
birth. The necklace is the shape of a half heart. Once turned 18,
and counted officially as an adult, you may seek the person who has
the other half of your heart; your soulmate.

[ScarDolphin]

Chapter 1.1

5 days left. Grace was looking at her calendar on the wall for the thousandth time this month. But she couldn’t help it. After waiting for so long, now there was only 5 days left until she was no longer seen as a child. She gripped the necklace she wore tightly in her hand, but her warmth did not seem to travel to the cold silver the necklace was made of. The necklace had been given to her at birth. It was the shape of a half heart. When she had gotten a little bit older, she realized everyone had a necklace. She tried matching hers to her parents, then her friends’ necklaces, but none of them clicked together. She had seen her parents click theirs together and hoped that one day, she could find who had the other half of her heart.

“Grace, I need you to take these tourists on a hack!” Her mother, Amanda, called from downstairs.
“I’m coming mum!” Grace put her phone in her pocket and rushed down to the kitchen. “Who am I taking and where are we going?” Grace’s parents owned White Oak Ranch together. Her dad stood for most of the mucking out, cleaning the barn, fixing things, while her mother stood for attracting tourists and, along with Grace and her sister when they weren’t at school, took them out on hacks in the area. The small village they lived in was perfect for tourists to spend their summer. White Oak Ranch’s neighbour was called Greenland, where Grace’s best friend, Alyssa, lived. They had summer cottages close to the lake that split White Oak and Greenland’s land. That way, both ranches could benefit from tourists. Their small village wasn’t too far away from the city either, and easy to get to.

“Take them round the Star Trail. They’re confident enough to walk and trot, and maybe a little canter. Not any faster, though,” Her mother replied.
“Alright, who am I taking?” Grace asked as she put her boots on.
“I was thinking you could take Midnight. She could use getting out a bit and with Patches and Peaches on the trip, it shouldn’t be a problem.”
Patches and Peaches were two look-alike rescue horses her mother had found, both paints with markings almost the same places. They were slow, steady and took care of their riders. They were also inseparable, and refused to leave each other. Midnight was a gentle mare, but she could be quite fresh, and due to being on box rest after an incident, she wasn’t quite into work again yet, and only very experienced riders got to ride her.
“Have a nice ride!” Her mother called as Grace rushed out to the barn. WIthin 5 minutes she had tacked up Midnight and led her outside, where Patches and Peaches stood with their riders on top. Grace swung onto Midnight’s back and let herself get comfy in the saddle.
“Hello! I’m Grace, I’ll be leading you on the trail ride today,” Grace smiled at the tourists. “Follow me.”
She turned Midnight and they headed down one of the trails in the forest behind the barn.

[ScarDolphin]

Chapter 1.2

After an hour she halted Midnight back at the barn, who was drenched from sweat from being so excited on the trail. She had been prancing about while Patches and Peaches luckily had followed steadily behind. Grace jumped off and tied Midnight to the post, before going take the horses from their tourist riders.
“Thanks for the ride!” One of them said.
“No problem! I hope you enjoyed it, and do come back!” Grace smiled. She knew she had to be polite for the business.
“Hey, let me help you,” her dad came out from the barn.
“Thanks dad, are these two getting used again?” Grace asked as she handed Peaches’ reins to her dad.
“No, they can be untacked and come back out in the field.”
Grace took the saddle off and hung it on the post next to Midnight.
“I’ll be back in a minute,” she promised the black mare, before leading Patches down to the field, followed by her dad with Peaches.
She took the bridle off and watched as the two horses trotted down to join the rest of the herd, which were Spartan and Captain, the two bay geldings, as well as Pepper the dappled grey mare. Autumn and Onyx, the two chestnuts, were out on the last trail of the day.
A whinny came from behind Grace as she turned and walked away from the field.
“I’m coming Midnight,” Grace laughed a little at the mare, eager to want out. She dumped the saddle on the post and led Midnight to the field. As she opened the gate, the first thing the mare did was lay down and roll.
Typical Midnight, Grace thought as she closed the gate and went up to put the tack away.

Grace looked at her watch. 17:49. She’d have to wait with riding Sandy. Apart from giving trail rides, each member of the family had their own horse, Grace’s being a dun named Sandy. The family horses stood in the field next to the trail horses. Grace went inside and cleaned up before dinner. Every night they sat down as a family to have dinner. They started off their usual routine by saying thank you for the food on the table, before they started eating.
“Grace, what are your plans for after dinner?” her mother asked.
“I was planning on taking Sandy for a ride up to Greenland. Why?” She replied, before taking a bite of her food.
“We need to make sure the plans for your birthday are in order, there’s not long to go now. Do you know how many are coming?”
“I think it’s about 20, but I can check afterwards.”
“Good, because we need to make sure we have enough food and seating for everyone.”
“Mum, can we sort it out tomorrow? I haven’t seen Alyssa in a few days and I need to speak to her.” School had been out for almost a week now, so the tourism was as busy as ever. Grace had barely had time to look after Sandy. If she wasn’t out on a trail, she was either helping her father maintain the barn, making the food, or caring for the trail horses to get them ready for their next rides.
“Sure honey, just don’t be out too late.”

[ScarDolphin]

Chapter 1.3

After dinner, Grace went out to the barn. She grabbed her hat, as well as Sandy’s bridle and saddle. She put the saddle on the post and went down to the field behind the barn, where Sandy stood grazing peacefully.
“Sandy!” Grace called, opening the gate.
The mare lifted her head, her ears pricked as she let out an excited whinny before trotting up towards the gate.
“Hey girl, let’s go for a ride up to Alyssa’s,” Grace spoke to the mare as she put the bridle on. She led her out the field, double checking the gate behind her, before walking up to the post. She grabbed a loose brush laying on the ground and quickly brushed Sandy’s back. She then put the saddle on and tightened the girth, before swinging onto the mare’s back.
Clicking her tongue, she turned the mare down one of the paths, that led them towards Greenland.

“Grace! It’s so good to see you!” Alyssa exclaimed as she saw Grace trotting in on Sandy.
Grace halted Sandy and jumped off, giving Alyssa a big hug, “I’ve missed you! Can I put Sandy out in the pen?”
“Sure! I’ll come with you. I have something exciting to tell you.”
“What is it?” Grace took the saddle off and hung it on the wooden fence of the pen.
She opened the gate, released Sandy, then went back out and hung the bridle on the fence as Alyssa spoke, “I think I’ve found my soulmate.”
“No way! Really?” Grace asked, shocked.
“Yeah. There’s this guy staying with his family down in the cabins. My necklace isn’t ice cold anymore and whenever he gets closer, the necklace gets warmer and starts glowing.”
“Lucky! I have no idea how I’m going to find my soulmate,” Grace sighed, gripping the cold necklace with her hand as they walked towards the house.
“Well, the rumor says no one has ever found their soulmate before they turn 18. At least there’s not long until you’ll be able to find yours,” Alyssa replied, opening the door. They went up to Alyssa’s room, and Grace jumped onto her bed.
“True,” Grace said, she was a few months younger than Alyssa. She was surprised that Alyssa had found her soulmate so quickly. “So, have you mentioned it to the guy yet?”
“Well, no,” Alyssa looks away, “I’m too shy. Plus, what if he doesn’t like me?”
“If he’s your real soulmate then of course he’ll like you. Make up some excuse to get a chance to speak to him.”
“Like what?”
“Is he going on a trail tomorrow?”
“Yeah, they booked one in for 10.30”
“Well, come over and come on a trail. I’ll make sure to have an extra horse ready. You can ride Spartan.”
“Do you mean it?” Alyssa asked, excitedly. Spartan was her favorite. He was quite high strung and needed an experienced rider, but Alyssa was perfect for him.
“Of course!” Grace looked at the time. “I need to get home soon.”
“Already?” Alyssa looked disappointed. “We haven’t had time to catch up.”
“I know, but Sandy needs to be back and I need to have a shower before bed. Come by tomorrow, before 10.30, if you can,” She replied as she got up from the bed.
Alyssa followed her downstairs and out to the pen. Grace went in and tacked up Sandy.
“Come on girl, let’s go home,” She said to the mare.
“Bye Alyssa!” Grace waved as she nudged Sandy forward out the yard.

[ScarDolphin]

Chapter 1.4

When she got home, she put Sandy back out in the field and locked up the barn. During the summer the horses stayed out all the time, but in winter they came in when it got dark. Grace went inside to find her mother sitting at the table with the schedule for the next day.
“Hey Grace, it’s your turn to get the horses in and feed them tomorrow morning. I need Peaches, Patches, Pepper and Midnight ready by 9am for a 1 hour trail. Do you want to take that one or should I ask your sister?” Her mother asked.
“Ask Gillian please, I don’t want to be stressed all morning. I’ll take the next one,” Grace replied, and at the mention of her sister’s name, she looked up from the tv.
“What?” Gillian asked.
“Can you take the 9am trail tomorrow? It’s only an hour,” Her mother asked.
“Sure!” Gillian turned back to watch the documentary on the tv.
“Grace, you can take the 10.30 trail. Spartan, Captain and Onyx can go on that one.”
“I promised Alyssa she could come on a trail tomorrow, so can I take Autumn as well?”
“I need Autumn at 12, and the trail you’re going on is a two hour one.”
“Alyssa can lead the trail, then I can stay and get the others ready.”
“Okay, that’s fine,” Her mother smiled.
Grace headed up to her room and got ready for bed.

Grace jumped out of bed as her alarm rang. Grabbing some clothes from her closet and shoving them on, she went outside. She unlocked the barn and opened all the stalls, before going to the field..
“Come on horses!” She called, as they started heading up towards the gate. She shut off the opening and opened the gate. The horses were disciplined enough to know where to go. They trotted into their stalls and Grace ran after them, closing their stalls after them. She got the buckets out and started making the feed as the horses impatiently snorted and whinnied.
Grace fed the horses and started giving them a quick groom. Gillian came out and helped her tack the horses up. Soon enough, the tourists arrived and Grace helped them on, before they left for their trail.

Grace headed inside to get some breakfast. Her mother was sitting down at the table working on her computer.
“Honey, do you have the list of people coming for your birthday?” Amanda asked her daughter.
“Let me go get it,” Grace went upstairs to her room and grabbed a sheet of paper from her desk, before going back down and handing it to her mother. She took some bread out the fridge and made herself a sandwich, before sitting down at the table next to her mother to eat.
“Thank you, I'll order the stuff right away,” Grace’s mother told her.

[ScarDolphin]

Chapter 2.1

“Happy birthday!” Grace was greeted with this when she came downstairs.
“Morning,” She replied.
She took a deep breath in. Her father's cooked breakfast filled her nose. “Smells good!” She found her father in the kitchen and gave him a hug.
“Are you ready for the guests to come?” He asked, as he turned to watch the food.
“I think so. There's no trails today, right?” She answered, collecting some plates from the cupboard and bringing them over to the table.
“Nope, we cancelled them so we can be there for your birthday.”

After stuffing herself with her dad cooked breakfast, she went outside. The horses had already been fed and were out in the field again, enjoying their day off. She spotted Sandy standing next to her younger sister's horse, Starlight, a pinto mare.
“Happy birthday sweetheart!” Grace turned, startled, as she saw her grandparents approaching.
“Grandma! Grandpa! Good of you to come and help out.” She hugged them both.
“Of course Gracie,” Her grandmother replied. “Is your mother inside?”
Grace nodded. “I'm waiting on dad to come out with the tent.”
As on command, her father approached from behind the house.
“Let's get this thing set up, shall we,” he smiled as he saw her grandparents.
“Let's do it!”

It was a busy morning for Grace and her family. Grace, her father and grandfather set up the tent outside, and got the table and chairs ready, whilst Gillian, her mother and grandmother were in the house fixing the food. At 3pm, the guests started arriving. The first was Alyssa and her family.
“Hey birthday girl!” Alyssa gave Grace a big hug. “I have a present for you.”
Grace took the small beautiful wrapped gift. She nearly didn't want to open it, but in the end Alyssa convinced her to just rip the paper off. Underneath the paper was a small, neat box. She opened it and found a beautiful necklace with a horse on it.
“I love it!” Grace breathed. “Help me put it on.”
“I have one too, look,” Alyssa pointed to the two necklaces she had around her neck.
“Girls! Can you please help move this table?” Grace's mother asked, pointing at a table.
“Sure mum,” Grace replied, throwing the paper in the black plastic bag her mother had hung on the fence.

[ScarDolphin]

Chapter 2.2

One by one, the guests started arriving. Grace's big family came; first her aunt and uncle, then her other grandparents, and then family friends and school friends came too. Even some of the guests staying at Alyssa's camp came, including the boy she felt was her soulmate. Altogether they ended up being almost 40 people. Grace rushed around greeting everyone, and placed the gifts on an extra table. She'd have to open them later. Grace's mother took the food out and placed it on a table for a buffet. Her father was standing at the grill with her uncle, grilling the food whilst laughing and chatting along with her uncle.

Grace tapped on a glass with a fork a few times until it was quiet. “Thank you for coming everyone! You may start taking food, and then sitting down wherever there's space.”
Voices filled the air shortly after Grace stopped speaking, as the guests headed up towards the buffet. She followed them, getting a plate and standing in queue to the grill. Alyssa's lover came up next to her.
“Happy birthday,” he said, nervously.
“Thank you,” Grace smiled. “You're staying at Greenland, right?”
“Yeah. I saw you talking to Alyssa earlier, so I figured you were close with her,” he replied.
“Of course, what's up?” she asked, taking a few steps forward in the queue.
“Well,” he began. “I think she's my soulmate. I can feel my necklace warming up whenever I'm near her, and it was so fun to get to know her on the trail ride last week. But what do I do?”
“We're going to dance after we've finished eating, so why don't you ask her to dance with you?” Grace suggested. She took some food on her place and turned to look at him. “And plus, she feels the same way,” Grace smiled at him and went to sit down with her aunt.
“Gracie!” her aunt exclaimed, using her nickname from when she was younger.
“Hey Pauline,” she greeted her. “How's Dory and Nemo?”
Dory was the mare they had, who had given birth to a colored colt which they named Nemo. It had been a difficult birth, and unfortunately Nemo was extremely weak at birth, but the vet kept a close eye on him and he slowly grew stronger.
“They're good! Nemo is a little rascal, and Dory is as good as gold, as always. She's a brilliant mother for him. I can't wait to see how Nemo is when he grows up!” Pauline laughed. “How's Sandy doing?”
“She's doing great! We haven't jumped in a while, but we've been practicing some tricks which she has responded well too.”

[ScarDolphin]

Chapter 2.3

One by one, the guests started arriving. Grace's big family came; first her aunt and uncle, then her other grandparents, and then family friends and school friends came too. Even some of the guests staying at Alyssa's camp came, including the boy she felt was her soulmate. Altogether they ended up being almost 40 people. Grace rushed around greeting everyone, and placed the gifts on an extra table. She'd have to open them later. Grace's mother took the food out and placed it on a table for a buffet. Her father was standing at the grill with her uncle, grilling the food whilst laughing and chatting along with her uncle.

Grace tapped on a glass with a fork a few times until it was quiet. “Thank you for coming everyone! You may start taking food, and then sitting down wherever there's space.”
Voices filled the air shortly after Grace stopped speaking, as the guests headed up towards the buffet. She followed them, getting a plate and standing in queue to the grill. Alyssa's lover came up next to her.
“Happy birthday,” he said, nervously.
“Thank you,” Grace smiled. “You're staying at Greenland, right?”
“Yeah. I saw you talking to Alyssa earlier, so I figured you were close with her,” he replied.
“Of course, what's up?” she asked, taking a few steps forward in the queue.
“Well,” he began. “I think she's my soulmate. I can feel my necklace warming up whenever I'm near her, and it was so fun to get to know her on the trail ride last week. But what do I do?”
“We're going to dance after we've finished eating, so why don't you ask her to dance with you?” Grace suggested. She took some food on her place and turned to look at him. “And plus, she feels the same way,” Grace smiled at him and went to sit down with her aunt.
“Gracie!” her aunt exclaimed, using her nickname from when she was younger.
“Hey Pauline,” she greeted her. “How's Dory and Nemo?”
Dory was the mare they had, who had given birth to a colored colt which they named Nemo. It had been a difficult birth, and unfortunately Nemo was extremely weak at birth, but the vet kept a close eye on him and he slowly grew stronger.
“They're good! Nemo is a little rascal, and Dory is as good as gold, as always. She's a brilliant mother for him. I can't wait to see how Nemo is when he grows up!” Pauline laughed. “How's Sandy doing?”
“She's doing great! We haven't jumped in a while, but we've been practicing some tricks which she has responded well too.”

Grace helped her father move some of the tables and chairs to the side to make some space. She tapped her glass a few times as people quietened down.
“I just wanted to say a big thank you to all of you who are here today to celebrate my 18th birthday. Also thank you to those that have helped get ready for this big day. The floor is cleared up here, so Mark, if you would kindly start the music,” Grace pointed to her uncle, who was the DJ for the day. “Then let's get this party started!”
A cheer went around as Mark turned on the music, and people started pouring out onto the dance floor. Grace noticed Alyssa and her soulmate dancing and smiled to herself. She was happy for Alyssa but she couldn't wait for her soulmate to come by.

[ScarDolphin]

Chapter 2.4

As the night came forward and the sun started to set, the families with younger children started to go home.
“Would you like to dance, Grace?” Jacob, her cousin, held out his hand.
“Sure,” She let herself be guided onto the dance floor.
“Let’s pretend we’re a couple,” Jacob but his arms around her as a slow song came on.
Grace laughed, “Whatever you say, Jaccy.”
Grace and Jacob were close when they were younger, but since Jacob and his family moved away, she hadn't seen much to him.
“Well, you need to learn how to dance for when you find your soulmate,” he winked. He was 23 and his girlfriend was his soulmate. Grace was a little excited to find hers, but she knew it would take time. Her mother and father never found each other until they were in their 30s.
“Jacob! You're supposed to dance with me!” A young woman with light blonde hair huffed.
“Hey Alice,” Grace recognized her cousin’s girlfriend.
Jacob laughed, “Don’t worry darling, I was just teaching young Grace some tricks. Let’s have this dance, shall we?” He let go of Grace. Taking Alice’s hand, he guided her a bit away. Grace shrugged and went to sit on the outlines.
There weren't many people left, only her grandparents, her aunt and uncle, and Alyssa who was waving goodbye to the guy.
“Hey Grace, he's just so nice!” Alyssa blushed as she sat down.
“I've barely seen you all night! First of all, what's his name? Where's he from? I want all the details!” She replied, turning the chair to face her.
“Alright, alright,” Alyssa laughed. “His name is Craig and he's from California, but came here to Texas for a holiday because apparently his father is a music video director for some big bands.”
“So they’re here looking for places to film?” Grace asked.
“I'm not sure, I think they’re just visiting different places. Apparently they're going to New York next. They're leaving in two days,” Alyssa sounded disappointed.
“You should get his phone number and keep in touch!” Grace attempted to cheer her up.
Alyssa’s smile brightened, “I already have, and he promised he’d keep in touch and come and visit as much as he can. I'm going to save up so I can be with him too, but you know what the money’s like around here.”
Grace nodded. She knew well enough that they barely had enough money to keep food on the table, never mind luxuries. Grace had just finished high school and was going to help on the farm. The money just wasn't there for her to go to college.
The song switched to an upbeat pop song, and Mark, Grace’s uncle, came over.
“What are you pretty young ladies doing sitting there? Get out on the dance floor!” He slurred and showed off some pathetic attempts at dancing.
Grace and Alyssa laughed, before joining him out on the dance floor.

A few songs later, everyone was tired out from all the partying, and the rest were heading home. Grace hugged Alyssa goodbye and went to help her parents tidy up. Gillian had already gone to bed, as it was approaching 11pm.
Along with her dad, Grace helped to lift all the extra tables back in the large storage behind the house. It was almost 12am by the time they had put the chairs away too, as well as packing the tent down. Grace’s mother was inside, washing up the dishes in the kitchen.
“I'm going to bed mum,” Grace said as she entered the house and took her shoes off. “Thank you for today.”
“You're welcome Sweetie, sleep well,” her mother replied.