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~
Living on the road wasn't easy, Sapnap had learned that the hard way. Between the truck stops being the only stops and the chase of the next rodeo, he was getting burnt out; but the grind never stopped. So instead of thinking about it anymore he instead decided to get up. The bus was parked and his friends were already outside and getting the horses ready. So he got up and started getting ready.
As he got out of the bus he made his way to the barn. They were in San Antonio tonight and we're going to be competing in Texas and hopefully getting the remaining points they needed before the National Rodeo Finals in Vegas. Sapnap sighed, though he loved his job it was a taxing one. The steers were tough and when he couldn't catch the calf when he roped with Dream he would get an ear full from Drista after; but he couldn't quit. His friends counted on him to compete with them and his family depended on the money from his winnings. So as he entered the barn and heard yelling he sighed. Another part of the job he hated.
"Dream you can't be serious! It'll kill-" George yelled at Dream, who looked annoyed.
"I'm riding that bull, George!" Dream exclaimed as they started to get closer and more aggressive with each other.
George got into Dream's face, "If you ride that bull, Dream You. Will. Get. Hurt." George emphasized with jabs to the chest. This made Dream blow up.
"YOU can't stop ME! I AM going to ride that bull!" Dream yelled as he shoved George to the ground and stormed off.
George's face screwed up and just as he was about to go back up to Dream, Sapnap stepped in.
"Hey what's wrong?" Sapnap asked. Not only was Dream an amazing roper but he had also started dabbling in bull riding, finding the thrill of the ride more enjoyable than the roping. He had even talked to Sapnap about just doing bull riding. As he put it, 'it's cooler and it brings in more money for us; plus I'm good at it, so why not just switch?' Sapnap had just shook his head. The man had dreams of being the most famous rodeo man but the closer he flew to the sun the more he started to resemble icris.
George puffed his cheeks, face red and brows knitted. "He's going to ride tonight." Sapnap rolled his eyes and shook his head. George was a tie down roper and he also did team roping occasionally, though he much preferred barrel racing but as it happens they don't allow guys to competitively barrel race in point rodeo's. So he was stuck with it.
"Look-" Sapnap started but a loud whistle sounded drawing his attention. They turned to see Drista, Dream's sister and their unofficial manager. Sapnap's face dropped as she called him over.
"We'll talk later" Sapnap said before he walked to the girl. Her hands were on her hips as she waited for him. Sapnap took in a deep breath, it was going to be a long day.
~
He rode, washed, and got his horse ready. His horse wasn't the easiest to work with but they worked well enough together. Sapnap finally finished his pre-rodeo stuff then turned around to go change. Today's fit was a classic for him. It was the first shirt his mom had bought him when he decided to be a professional. He smiled at the memories as he buttoned up the fire red and orange pearl snap. Then he slipped on the dark boot cut jeans and buckled his belt. He looked down at the big buckle smiling remembering how excited his friends were when he had done the fastest time. It was still his personal best and he will forever remember that steer. He looked away as he slipped on his boots with the beautiful leather patterns on them. They were his favorite pair and he felt fancy in them. He smiled at himself in the mirror. The fit was strong today and with his black hat to top it off he knew he'd probably catch the girls eyes tonight and if he was lucky one of them would have a hotel room close. Sapnap walked out of the bus ready to go and he came face to face with Dream. The man was wearing a brand new bright green pearl snap with little stitched patterns on it. He was wearing a bull riding buckle he had won at a little show they had gone to. It wasn't one of the nicest he had but Sapnap knew why. Sapnap smiled at his friend then shook his head.
"George is gonna be pissed." Sapnap laughed as he hopped out of the bus and Dream smiled at him. It was time to go.
~
The first event was George. He sat on his horse and patted on his horse. She let out an excited neigh. The gate opened and they took off. The calf wasn't fast enough to keep up with George's horse and George was able to easily rope him. George and his horse worked in sync and George jumped off of it and swiftly grabbed the front and two back legs before tying them. He held up his hands and the time stopped. The entire stadium roared with cheers and applause. George looked up at his score and smiled. Then he hopped back on his horse and rode back. He had the fastest time of the night. Sapnap patted his back celebrating with him and Dream gave him a big hug and kissed his forehead congratulating him. George frowned at him.
"I'm still mad at you." George glared at Dream. Dream frowned back then backed up to go get his stuff ready.
~
Sapnap was up next with George. He hopped up on his horse and it gave a displeased puff. Sapnap pat his neck and gave a gentle signal to go. He trotted with George to the stalls then they went separate ways. Sapnap held the rope, he was focused and ready to go. He was going to get it this time. The previous rodeo's didn't matter, all he had was now. He took a deep breath as the man came to ask if he was ready. He gave a thumbs up and he pulled the reins to show that it was show time. The gates opened and they took off, Sapnap yelled to his horse to go faster and it did. He stood up and readied his rope. Then he threw it, praying it would catch the foot. It did and he pulled it tight looking up to see if George had also caught the calf. He had and the calf was down. His face broke out with a huge smile. He rode up to George as the crowd cheered and clapped. They didn't have the fastest time but they were solid in second. He jumped off his horse pumping his fist.
"LETS FUCKING GO BRO!" He yelled and George giggled. They hugged and when they pulled apart George was looking around. Dream was nowhere to be seen. George frowned.
~
Sapnap was up for his last event. Steer wrestling.
He had looked at them and they were big this time around. He gulped praying his didn't have big horns but as luck would have it his had horns bigger than he was comfortable with. His was also the biggest of the bunch. He gulped nervous but he needed to chill. He patted his horse and it gave a lazy neigh. He snorted and signaled they were ready to go. The gate opened and they were off. The calf was fast and strong, but Sapnap was faster. They galloped after the calf and then they were upon it. He threw himself off and reached out to the steer. He caught it and pulled it down with him and it fought him to the ground. He wrestled with it and then he pulled down hard and then it was over. He let go and looked up to the score. Currently he was the fastest but he knew it wasn't fast enough. He ended in 5th. George reached out and hugged him and told him he did awesome. Sapnap smiled but he was disappointed in himself. He looked to his friend and then Dream was there. He gave a weak smile but Dream wasn't going to have that.
"Dude that steer was massive, you did awesome!" Dream said trying to cheer Sapnap up but it wasn't exactly what he wanted to hear. He moved from them to go put his horse up and start packing up.
~
Finally it was Dream's turn and they had gotten good seats to see him. George was upset but he still watched intently. Though they had their disagreements, George loved Dream and he didn't want to see him hurt. It had taken them forever to get together but once they had it was clear there was no splitting up. Dream had been enamored by George the first time he saw him and insisted on meeting the skilled barrel rider. It wasn't long after that, that George joined their group.
The announcer broke Sapnap's train of thought as he announced the first rider. They watched and all Sapnap could think was how tough these bulls were. They were all aggressive and big. He could tell George was nervous as they got closer to Dream. Then he was up.
"Now introducing Dream, he's going to be riding the roughest bull here tonight, Maverick!" The announcer said and the audience cheered as he was let out of the gate. The clown was hiding in his barrel as the bull bucked. Dream was smiling big as the bull jumped and bucked. It was strong and the seconds felt like hours. Sapnap and George held their breath then the time was up. George let out a relieved cry and Sapnap jumped up fist in the air. For a second they had forgotten in that second that just because the time was up didn't mean the bull was going to be calm for him to dismount. The rodeo clown was up in his barrel trying to get the bulls' attention as dream attempted a smooth dismount; but of course that didn't happen. Dream was slung off the bull as soon as the bull caught eyes with the barreled clown. Dream fell on the ground with a sickening flop and in some sick twist of fate this drew the bulls' attention. The clowns tried their best but there was no changing the bulls mind as he charged Dream. He jumped and bucked and almost completely crunched Dream. Dream was disoriented but he could feel all his senses come back as the hooves struck the earth beside him. It jumped and bucked and then it struck his leg. He let out a pained cry as the bull's attention had finally been caught elsewhere and was successfully out the gate. Then the men on the ground crowded around him. He was still on the ground and the audience was silent. George stood beside Sapnap still, eyes wide and mouth a gap covered only by his hand. Sapnap grabbed his shoulder and stood up leaning as close as he could to see his friend. Then the nurse was called and a stretcher was brought out. Sapnap felt George turn quickly behind him and Sapnap followed as George raced to where they knew he would be.
When they got to the makeshift hospital tent they found Dream in immense pain, his leg being touched carefully and examined. It looked bad. The leg looked to be obviously broken and somewhat dislocated as well. George gasped and ran to Dream with tears in his eyes.
"You absolute idiot! I don't know why I put up with your shit when you always do shit like this!" George lectures Dream through tears as he punches his arm. Dream let out an obviously pained laugh and Sapnap could tell there was more to it than just a broken leg. Though they didn't have time to consider because the on duty nurse informed them the ambulance was there and that he needed to be moved immediately. So Sapnap and George were forced to move away from their friend to let him be loaded up. Once out of the tent Drista was there in a car.
"Get in losers."
~
Once at the hospital Dream was put through several tests and it turns out he was partially paralyzed. When he fell on his back like he did something happened in his spine and it shocked his nerves so bad he couldn't move his body properly. Though his leg was definitely broken and Sapnap was right with the thought that it was also dislocated. The doctors worked through the night and Dream ended up in a cast and needing months of PT to relax and get his body back right. George the whole time was over his shoulder worried but also in a constant state of 'I told you so'.
So instead of attempting to get to the Nationals this year they would have to work on getting their "star" back into good condition and training their best for next year. Sapnap felt like a ton of bricks had fallen on him, and he couldn't help but think;
Is this really the right place for me?
~
End