Knowing the Dad was alive, that he hadn't been injured or captured, felt like a huge weight had been lifted from my shoulders.

It had been a weight I tried my hardest to ignore for months until I almost forgot it had been sitting there. After months of waiting for a letter, or some news on Dad, it finally felt like everything might be alright. I knew the war was going to continue, that it would keep going until one side came out victorious, but Dad was alright and if he could survive the Dunkirk rescue, I knew he could survive anything. When the war finished, I knew Dad would be coming home.

With the treehouse finished, and us moving into September, Alec and I returned to the Goodwin farm to work with Juliet. Even though I had been riding and looking after Jigsaw pretty much since I had arrived over a year ago, I still had a lot to learn when it came to horse care. I had no idea how to tell if a horse had thrown a shoe or what normal horse behaviour would look like. If either Juliet or Jigsaw got ill, I wouldn't have been able to tell.

Despite me needing to know the intricacies of looking after a horse, Alec was still adamant that I learn how to jump again. He didn't take no for an answer and I knew he would continue to push once I got more confident riding Juliet.

"Jonathan said that Jigsaw didn't make the jump because he knew I was scared of it. If I'm scared of the jump, Juliet will do the exact same thing," I said, brushing Juliet.

"Then we need to get you more confident on a horse. You were happy to get back into the tree when you almost fell out of it. If you keep trying, you'll get more confident at it. It's that simple."

"I didn't actually fall out of the tree, and you have a strange definition of the word simple."

"You can free-climb trees and onto roofs, but jumping a horse over a small jump is the limit? You amaze me, Syb." He shook his head, smiling.

"I keep saying the same thing," Jonathan said. He appeared at the stable door with a bucket in his hand. "Although Juliet is looking good. You'd definitely make a good riding teacher, Alec."

"Thanks, Mr G."

"Will you be staying for supper?"

"I have to get back home. I promised Mable I'd help with the chickens since she keeps letting them escape."

"Alright. The offer stands whenever you want, just give us a warning."

"I will."

Jonathan nodded and dropped the bucket by the stable door. He turned and headed back up to the farmhouse, whistling to himself as he went. Ever since we had finished the treehouse, Jonathan had been trying to convince Alec to have supper with us and every time he offered, Alec refused. He never gave a reason why and I thought it better not to probe, especially since Alec had never been much of a talker when it came to his family life. If he didn't want to explain he didn't have to and he could very well have been busy.

Once Jonathan had disappeared, the two of us continued the chores in the stable with Alec threatening to throw hay on me multiple times. He helped me to move the straw around and to top up Juliet's feed and hay supplies for the night. Jigsaw and Romeo both snorted at the lack of attention they were getting so we stocked up their hay as well, just to keep them happy. I never wanted to get on the wrong side of Romeo since he was such an imposing-looking horse; keeping him well fed helped to stay on his good side.

We left the stable and headed back out to the paddock where Duchess was grazing, chewing on small tufts of grass just outside the sandy paddock. With an hour or so to go before I had to be up at the house to help with supper and Alec had to go home, he decided to show off a little. He placed the saddle back on Duchess' back and untethered her from the fence post, leading her into the paddock. I walked over to the fence and perched on top of it, wrapping my hands around the painted wood.

Alec set up a few small jumps using the wood placed around the side of the paddock before he clambered onto Duchess and relaxed his hands against the reins.

"I realised that I never actually showed you how to jump. I just talked you through it and let you get on with it. My first downfall as a teacher so consider this a demonstration," Alec said.

"Or a chance for you to show off."

"You think so highly of me." He laughed. "But also that. You were right about horses knowing when you're scared, they're really good at reading emotion, even if you don't know what you're feeling yourself. So, your best bet is to be as relaxed as possible. Remember, your horse knows what it's doing."

"That's all well and good, but how can I be relaxed if I'm about to go flying over several stacked pieces of wood?"

"Think about something else."

"Oh? It's that easy is it?"

"Yes, yes it is. You think too much, Syb. It's part of your problem."

I scoffed and watched Alec as he set himself up for the first jump. Just like the jumps Alec had set up for me on the first day, it wasn't that far off the ground and he and Duchess cleared it with ease. They moved onto the second jump, which was a little further off the ground, with Alec lining up the jump at a little distance. I watched the way he sat back in his saddle, relaxed his fingers on the reins and lightly squeezed Duchess' side to keep her moving until the two of them made the jump.

He made it all look so easy, almost as if there was nothing to it and for him, I guess it wasn't. Alec had been riding horses since he was a child and knew more about them than anyone else, especially when it came to riding them. I watched him steer Duchess around the paddock, seeing how alive he looked on top of the horse, how free he seemed. In the setting sun of the evening, I could have watched him for hours.

Alec turned around and grinned at me, the light catching his tousled hair and casting a shadow over his face. He moved with Duchess and lined her up for the final jump, following the actions he had taken before each open. Despite the height of the jump, he didn't look nervous or on edge at all, in fact, he looked the most relaxed in front of the larger jump. For all I knew, he could have been terrified but he didn't show it.

Without so much as batting an eye, Alec and Duchess made for the largest jump, clearing it just as easily as he had all the others. He circled back around to where I sat on the fencing and grinned at me.

"How was that?"

"You make it look so easy."

"That's because it is. As I said, you overthink everything, make it all more complicated than it needs to be. We'll start you off small this time, I promise."

"Are you ever going to take no for an answer?"

"When it comes to the horses? No, I won't. You got back into the tree after the branch snapped so you can at least try to jump again. If, after a few attempts on the smaller jumps you don't want to try any of the bigger ones, I'll accept defeat. But you only jumped twice and fell once which isn't enough attempts."

"So if I try it one more time, you'll stop asking?"

"You can have my word on that one. Just one more try at jumping and I'll move on."

I sighed, knowing he wasn't going to give up any time soon. "Alright, fine. One more go."

Alec punched the air, somehow managing to knock his glasses askew at the same time. "Victory is mine! We'll work more with Juliet before we try it, make sure you two have a decent bond or she will throw you off."

"That's reassuring."

"You'll be fine. You have the best riding coach this part of the country has to offer."

Alec swung his leg over the side of Duchess and dropped to the floor, readjusting her reins so he could walk her back to the fence. Duchess whinnied, as though expecting something from having put on a spectacular jumping show on a course she had never done before. Not wanting to disappoint, Alec and I headed back up to the stables to grab some oats and hay for Duchess. She ate the oats right out of Alec's hand and chewed on the hay.

When Duchess had finished eating, Alec tethered her back to a nearby post and the two of us took a seat on a small patch of grass off to the side of the stable. We sat in silence and stared at the sky, watching the patchwork of clouds move across with the slight breeze that had moved in. With the summer months out of the way, the weather already felt like it had started to change, albeit only slightly. There was more of a breeze in the air and it didn't feel nearly as stuffy as it had just a week or so before.

I stared at the sky, watching the different colours inter-mix with each other until it looked like the entire sky was on fire. Reds, yellows, pinks and oranges all mixed together with clouds spotted around them. It could have looked like a painting were I not looking at it myself. I couldn't remember the last time I saw the sunset in London since most of the streetlights and smoke from chimneys blocked out the light and made it all look murky. The beauty of the country continued to amaze me, even after a year.

"I wish I had a camera," Alec said, not taking his eyes off the sky.

"Why?" I asked, turning to look at him.

"So I could take a photograph of his moment and remember it for all time. A sky like that appears once in a blue moon."

"I don't think a photograph would do it justice. To be honest, I doubt anything would after we've witnessed it with our own eyes." I turned away from him and looked back at the sky.

"Still. This is a moment I never want to forget."

"Me neither. Everything's so quiet."

"Syb?"

"Hm?"

I turned my head back to him. Alec stared at me, his green eyes twinkling in the fading light. There was a slight nervousness on his face, a small twitch of his eye and he chewed on the bottom of his lip, as though thinking about something. His dark hair fell over his forehead in its usual mess of curls. Alec ran a hand through his hair, somehow making it messier than it had been to begin with and he quickly turned his attention to the ground.

"What?" I asked, slightly worried with the usual silence and the slight nervousness I had never seen before.

"I, erm, I think -" He dropped his hands to his lap and started to twist them together. "I think I like you."

I stared at him, blinking a few times as I tried to process his words, what they meant. Eva had been right. "You think you like me?"

He nodded. "For a while, actually. I just ... I couldn't find the right words, I guess? I don't know."

"Oh." I paused. "Well ... I think I like you too."

Alec's face brightened. "Really?"

I nodded.

"Phew. I thought I might have said something that would ruin our friendship and then I'd have to go back to spending all my time with Mable and I don't think I can deal with any more fake tea parties. She even makes fake biscuits and I need the real thing if I'm to survive."

"You're rambling."

"Sorry. I do that when I'm nervous."

I laughed and stared at him. Despite the repeat denials to Eva, to Jonathan, and even myself, I didn't think I could deny the inevitable much longer. The feeling I got when I was with Alec was like nothing I had ever felt before. It felt right and sometimes I didn't want to part with that moment, I wanted to stay in it forever. Just the two of us building the treehouse or riding horses in the paddock was all I needed. I didn't realise it until Alec said it.

Neither of us knew what to say next and Alec returned to knotting his hands together. We didn't know what to do next or what to say, I think Alec even forgot how he should act. As our luck would have it, Jonathan came to the rescue.

"Sybil! Supper!"

"Is it that time already? Mum's going to kill me," Alec said, jumping to his feet. He quickly untethered Duchess and climbed onto the saddle. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

I nodded. "'Course you will."

"Alright. Great. Bye, Syb."

"Bye Alec."

With a small smile, Alec set off down the path. I watched him go until his and Duchess' shadows disappeared, but the smile on my lips remained. Everything felt right.

~~~

A/N - Ahh! It happened! The confession happened!! We have six chapters left before we move on to the sequel!

Questions!

Are you glad Alec and Sybil finally confessed to one another? Do you think everything is going to stay happy?

Comment below!

First Published - March 2nd, 2022