Hobbyhorse by Bonnie Bryant

heels were down, like they were supposed to be, and I felt pretty balanced. And then for a second it was really fun to be going that fast. And then I saw the road with all the cars on it just ahead, and I thought,
No, I am going to die.
” She slurped another spoonful of sundae.
    “Then what?” May asked impatiently.
    “Well,” said Amelia, “I thought,
I don’t really want to die
,so I sat back, pulled on the reins, and told Star she had to turn in a circle. And she really is a nice horse, even if she did try to run back for her dinner, and she slowed down and turned. I was in front of the rest of the class, and when Star stopped the other horses stopped, too. Nobody got hurt and nobody fell off. But one of the other girls was crying. I didn’t feel like crying. I thought,
When I get good, I’ll ride that fast on purpose—only not toward a highway!”
    Everyone at the table laughed. Lisa looked at Amelia’s excited, transformed face. Despite her brattiness, there was suddenly something likable about her.
    Apparently the Pony Tails thought so, too. “That’s a great story,” May said contentedly. “I like to ride fast, too. Maybe some day this week you could come over to my house and see the horses my dad is training. He’s got a gelding that just came off the racetrack. It’s wild.” May took a sip of water and gave Amelia a saucy grin. “You can’t ride him, though, so don’t ask.”
    Amelia turned a little pink. “I’d like to see him,” she said. “That sounds fun.” She took a deep breath and added, “I’m sorry I made fun of your jodhpurs, May.”
    “That’s okay,” May said cheerfully. “When you’ve been riding long enough, yours will look just as disgusting.”
    Lisa could tell Amelia had never thought of it like that. She couldn’t believe the change this one conversation had seemed to make in her cousin. Amelia was acting like amember of the human race.
Maybe she just needed a little help making friends
, Lisa thought.
    “And I’m sorry I said Sam was funny-looking, Corey,” Amelia added in a rush. “He’s really cute. I wish I had a pony just as cute.”
    Corey grinned, then asked Lisa what time it was. “Gosh,” she said when Lisa told her, “we’ve got to be back at Pine Hollow in half an hour, and there’s this great new pony training book at the bookstore. I wanted to go look at it while we’re here.”
    “Let’s go!” Jasmine said, pushing back her chair. “C’mon, Amelia!” The younger girls all jumped up and clattered out the door.
    The Saddle Club looked at the four empty chairs and four empty sundae dishes. “Here’s your check,” the waitress said cheerfully, slapping it on the table.
    “I think we just got stiffed by the Pony Tails,” Stevie said with a groan. “And I’ve only got three dollars. Carole?”
    Lisa slapped a twenty-dollar bill on top of the check. “You can’t have forgotten that this is my treat,” she said. “Or, more precisely, my mother’s treat. My mom gave me that this morning in case Amelia or I needed anything today.”
    “I think a celebration sundae was definitely necessary,” Stevie said.
    “I’m sure Amelia will still be a brat,” Lisa said.
    “But now she’s a jumping brat,” Stevie said.
    “Carole,” Lisa said softly, “I can tell something’s wrong. What happened?”
    Carole covered her face with her hands. After a long moment she steadied herself, dropped her hands, and set them firmly on the table. She looked at Lisa and Stevie. “I don’t know anything yet,” she said. “But I think it must be awful. Judy left me a note to call her, and she didn’t say what was wrong.”
    “That doesn’t mean it’s bad,” Stevie argued. “She just might have been in a hurry and didn’t want to take the time to write.”
    “Maybe she needs to give you instructions on how to take care of him,” Lisa suggested, “and it was too complicated to write down.”
    “Or maybe she just wants to break the bad