Welcome to Hickstead, home to both Seven Oak Stables, and Blue Acre - two rival stables. Both offer opportunities for their clients to reach the highest level of excellence. Each stable differs from the other, so choose wisely and never forget, loyalty is everything... Meanwhile as the stables battle it out, there's trouble brewing at the university. Be careful, if you don't pick a side you may get caught in the cross-fire...
This is an chilled out rpg with a super friendly and relaxed atmosphere! Remember to sign up with your characters full name in all caps and don't forget to do your claims! Thank you and Welcome, we've been established since 10th March 2009 but unfortunately have had to close guest view of our boards due to multiple sites ripping off our hard work, such a shame! Come chat to us in Discord before joining if you like!.
Amber couldn't help feeling like this was a terrible idea. She'd barely slept last night after making the call, even wrapped in Mik's warm embrace it hadn't been enough to starve off the anxiety. She hadn't been able to face eating this morning either, her stomach too turned over in knots to contemplate the idea of sustenance. A coffee was all she'd been able to choke down before standing under the hot spray of the shower for what felt like an hour, almost hoping it would drown her. She didn't like this one bit, but now it was all set she couldn't exactly back out. Everything was in motion, and she was already placing one foot in front of the other to meet Tristan.
He'd been surprised by her call, she could hear it in his voice, his attempt to smooth it over with cold threats that this had better not be a trap and how she was a good girl for admitting she was wrong and for owning up to her mistakes. Words she had not told Mik he'd said. Nor the part about how she would pay for all this bullshit he had put her through. She'd almost laughed at that. Almost. All the shit she had put him through. Laughable really. But he would never see his own faults. He didn't have flaws in his mind. How she had ever been stupid enough to fall for his crap she didn't know, young and impressionable seemed a pathetic excuse given the obvious asshole be presented himself to be. Stupid didn't cut it when she thought of her past self. But now it was time to rectify those mistakes. She just hated the fact she was using Mik's money to do it, putting his things on the line, but there was nothing she could do to stop this.
She'd told Tristan to meet them at midday. She had stipulated Mik was to come with her, even when Tristan had tried to argue. It was him or no money. In the end she'd won that small victory at least. It was the only thing keeping her together, a vice like grip on Mik's hand as they took step by step toward the dragon's den. Neural territory it may be, meeting at the park, but it still felt to her like she was being lured into the Pit. "I really don't like this." she finally admitted out loud, as if her face and her tense posture hadn't said it loud enough. She glanced up at Mik and then away across the park, scanning constantly for a sign that Tristan was already there. "It feels like a trap."
She smiled at his grin - naturally. It was hard not to with him, he had an infectious smile and it tended to melt her just a little - unless her mood had crossed that impassible line. "Make sure you do." She raised a brow at him. "I could even make notes for you!" amber gave a small chuckle at that. "You think I need notes, do you? I'm not sure if I should be offended. I thought I knew most of what you liked by now." She admitted, well aware he was joking, but wondering if he'd come out with something else of a surprise to her. She was a pretty open minded person, and she'd always been one to take constructive criticism if it was needed - though she wasn't aware of any complaints, especially from Mik.
"Should I be taking notes?" She smiled again and gave a slight shake of her head. "You're very hot on note taking all of a sudden. Is there something you wish to tell me? am I missing a few tricks?" She teased, her own humour responding to his in the way it often did. "You know me. I'm all about having fun!" amber made a noise of ascent, glancing at him with a little disapproval, but it was all for fun like he said. It had at least helped her mood, and she was thankful for it. She hated moping, or feeling down, but there were times when it couldn't be avoided.
She tried not to think of his grin as a victorious one - as that was by far not what this was all about, but it was hard not to think it just a little bit. "We should at least get a breather from him." Idealy, she wanted him long gone for good, not just time for a short breath. She wanted to finally be able to get on with her new life with Mik, not have to look over her shoulder anymore. amber returned to kiss, letting it make her feel better once again. "I'd better get to work. Are you going to join me for a run at lunchtime?" She thought about it for a moment, considering no, knowing her head was still somewhat all over the place and she needed to get it straight, but then perhaps a run would be good for it. She nodded after a moment's deliberation. "Okay sure," If only to make sure Mik didn't overdo it and she could keep an eye on him. Plus, she guessed it would help settle him to know she hadn't done a runner whilst he was working. "Have a good day at work."
She heard his chuckle and her smile was automatic once again, unable to help herself. He always had that ability, unless she was really really mad. "The difference, is that I like it when you slap me." Amber's eyebrows rose curiously and she gave him a pointed look. "Well, I'll make note of that then," She admitted, filing it away for future reference. Not that she had intention of slapping him around the face. Usually she would have made that comment out loud and fallen into their flirty banter she enjoyed so much, but her heart wasn't in it in that moment, and her head wasn't helping much either.
"Does it have to be the middle of the afternoon, or can I do that at any point?" She gave another smile, an eyebrow arching once again without even realising it, curious as to whether he had something in mind. "I would encourage any point, there's no specific time." She watched him for a moment, shifting a little in her chair. "I'm wondering if it would be more fun if I don't..?" Amber gave a small chuckle and a shake of her head. "I think we can find plenty of fun easily enough," She retorted, knowing damn well how much fun they could have together from previous experiences. But now was not the time, the topic was serious and they had other things to focus on for the minute. Fun could come later, when her mood hopefully improved.
She saw him shake his head, and she hoped to God he wasn't lying to her. She frowned at the raising of his finger, wondering what he was going to come out with next to try and placate her and her concern. "I kind of threw myself into your issues." She sighed but didn't make a move to argue this time, she didn't think that was true at all, she felt that she'd dragged him into it, but she was tired and feeling low, and didn't want to keep batting the 'blame' back and forth. Suddenly, she was pulled to her feet, and she let him, surprised by his sudden kiss but returning it easily enough. "I couldn't think of a better way to be living my life." Amber kissed him again, feeling some of the tension leave her with it. "I got you!" A slight smile again. "I know you do." And she did. "Alright, I'll let you do whatever you need to do." As if it was her choice anyway. "Not that I like it any better." She added with a firm look.
She managed another smile as he laughed, glancing over at him as she sat back in her chair, finishing off with her breakfast. "While that's great in theory, Naomi's more likely to slap me on the upside of my head and tell me to straighten up my clothes." Amber raised a brow, "And here I was thinking I was the only one allowed to slap you upside anything," She retorted, though she had no real aversion to his boss being involved in that way - she knew how things worked in a business, appearances were everything and you had to dress appropriately to show the right image of the place. She didn't really expect a yard to be any different, though she couldn't imagine things being like that at her cousin's.
Her eyes flickered toward him at his thoughtful look, wondering how he'd take things. She had no issue with planning things, sometimes you had to plan or factor in alone or intimate time with the other half, life got busy and you had to work to make things work. But, she did like spontaneous, a fly by the seat of your pants approach to things too. "Spontaneity?" Amber half smiled, a slightly secretive smile. "Yeah, you know that whole... grab me by the shirt in the middle of the afternoon because you just can't be without me type of thing." She joked, though there was some curious element of truth to it. "Yeah, I think I can work with that." Her smile widened a little, "I hope for your sake, you can." She was only teasing though, she would have him however she could get him.
"Well, technically it's in a spray can. The spray is invisible to to the eye, and picked up under UV-light. I put it on all my horse gear, and my tack trunk has a sticker on it warning people that I have used the dots. Yes, I'd let the police know that it's been stolen and let them deal with the recovery. I'll bring the kit home with me today and you can have a look at what I'm hashing up while trying to explain." She nodded slowly as she listened to him, she didn't care how it worked in particular, as long as it was something she supposed - she just wanted him to be able to get his money back, otherwise she'd be selling her body parts for cold hard cash. "Okay, maybe that's the way to go." It seemed relatively fool proof, or to her at least.
She didn't quite understand his grin, wondering what the joke was - she was being serious. "Contrary to popular belief, it's been something I've been thinking about for a while." Amber watched him take his meds, pleased to see he was still following guidelines in that respect at least. "I think all of... this... Has given me the push I need." She sighed, "Don't say this for my benefit," She said, still unsure if he was trying to make her feel better about things, and not wanting him to be forced into things because of her own stupid past. "Think of it this way, if I come clean, then it should save me from the rumours of why I've been hiding who I really am. The main thing that stops me though, is that you will probably get dragged into my family issues." She rolled her eyes, "As if you haven't been dragged into my issues," She said with a shake of her head. "I guess you can at least control the way the news comes out rather than a surprise.. but I still don't like it. I've turned your entire life upside down." Her lips turned down at the corners, still frustrated with the whole situation.
She pretended to ignore his look as she worked on her toast, though the bread tasted somewhat like cardboard with her hollow state. "So, note to self, I'll look good heading to the nightclub, but could be wearing all my clothes inside-out, and back to front, when heading to the barn" Amber smiled, a little more genuine as she finished her coffee with a final slug. "exactly right, but maybe I'm hoping they'll send you home to me if they see you looking so out of sorts." she teased, trying to slot right back into her usual humour. She felt like she'd need to talk to him about it at some point though, about her trying to leave him, about how she did love him and that was why she'd wanted to run. It was hard to think the words let alone say them, and she couldn't promise she wouldn't be a flight risk and try again some other time.
His grin made her smile, he was too damn boyish when he did that. Looked at her like that. As if she could say no or be mad or sad when he looked at her in that way. "I'll take that. Before or after the movie?" Amber raised a brow at that. "How about some spontaneity?" She suggested. She knew it couldn't be like that all the time, as adults you had to kind of schedule things in around work and life if you wanted to make time for each other. But she liked it best when things just happened...as they often did with Mik, given that she couldn't help herself most of the time.
"That's the things with plans though, isn't it? We don't always know if it is going to work." Amber bit her lip. She would rather this one did work though, so she didn't have to worry about owing Mik thousands of pounds along with everything else he'd lost because of her. "I'm sure that we can dust enough of the money that he'll have some on him when he gets caught, and I can have someone shadowing him once you've given him the bag." She frowned slightly. "What's dusting?" She asked. "Is that like when they dye money? Like in films? Couldn't we call the police and say it's stolen if you did that?" she asked, trying to wrack her brain to work out how they did this crap in movies and TV. Such bullshit. She sighed as he kissed her knuckles, knowing something sweet was coming her way. "I want to do this, because of what's happening to us. It's probably about time I grew up, and stopped hiding from my parents like a rebellious teenager." She shook her head. "But then I've forced your hand. It shouldn't be that way. You wouldn't have been considering it if this hadn't happened. You shouldn't have this force you to change your life. It's not right."
A ghost of a smile as she watched Mik fall for her joke, taking another large swig of her coffee, and then her smile widened as he pouted. He looked ridiculously cute when he did that and a heart string tugged. "I'm now worried that if I had put my top on wrong, you wouldn't say anything." She gave a small chuckle at that, "Of course I'd tell you... if you about to be seen with me." She teased, feeling a flicker of humour as she took a bite of toast. "Don't be, it looks great on you! It would look better on the floor, but I need to head to work soon, so maybe later?" A raise of an eyebrow, her mood was still scattered, but even then she felt a flush of heat at his question. "Yeah, I think that could be a possibility." Not something she would usually turn down with Mik, she relished the chance to be all over him - and had been very good holding off whilst he wasn't well - but the night before's antics still hung over her head.
She took a bite of her toast, chewing as she watched Mik work out his response. "Haven't quite worked all that out yet, but I think my plan might work." She tilted her head, "don't you think it's worth knowing?" She asked, in case they couldn't get it back. Then she'd owe him - whether Mik would admit it or not. She sighed as he took her hand, though the gesture of his thumb soothed her somewhat. "I think we both have that curse. I'll watch your six if you watch mine. I still think that I need to tell people who I really am. At least the people I work with." Amber chewed her lip for a moment, deliberating before answering. "That's your call, but I don't want it to be anything to do with what's happened with me." She said eventually. "I'll feel worse if you do this just because of me, that's not how it should go."
"I get told that quite a bit these days. As long as I don't put my clothes on inside out, I think I'm doing well." Amber gave another half smile at that, "You might want to check your shirt then," She said with a nod toward an imaginary label - he hadn't put it on wrong but she figured she'd mess with him a little; bring back some humour. It felt a bit flat, but she was trying at least. Her smile was a little brighter at the kiss on her cheek however, and she knew it couldn't be bad what he was about to say. "You're wearing the t-shirt that I was sure I had lost at work. It looks much better on you." Amber's eyes almost twinkled a little at that, "Oh, yeah I thought it might be yours... sorry." A tribute to how vulnerable she was still feeling - Amber did not apologise for stealing clothes, especially Mik's.
Amber took a swig of coffee, watching Mik work on his toast whilst hers cooled a little, not particularly hungry. "If this works though, I'll get my money back, and he won't be bothering us again for a while." Amber frowned, confused about his words as she finally took a bite of toast, chewing slightly. "I don't follow.." She sighed, shaking her head. "How will you get it back? He's not going to just return it - if anything once you pay him, he'll keep coming back for more.""It's money out of my trust fund, so technically it's coming from my parents, not me. If nothing else, I want you to be free to live your life. You shouldn't have to live it, always looking over your shoulder." Amber glanced at him but then looked away, down at her plate instead. "You still shouldn't be paying for my mistakes. I'll always be looking over my shoulder for something, Mik."
"I pick boring films? I'm sure that you do most of the movie picking." She managed another half smile at his words, "I think you're confused," but honestly he was quite right; she tried to get him to pick as often as she could but he frequently handed her back the report and refused it. She had enjoyed watching things together with him though, finding a TV show that they both equally enjoyed and settling down to catch up with it tucked into his side.
She caught the raise of his eyebrow at her attire and frowned slightly, glancing down at herself as if to already remind herself of what she'd put on. "What?" She asked, though not annoyed, just wondering what it was about her clothes he was looking at. She mooched over toward him all the same as she asked about helping. When he nodded to the toaster, she changed direction toward it instead. "Can you grab that and take it to the table?" Amber nodded and took the toast out, bringing it over to the table and popping it on to a plate all set up.
Amber hadn't yet sat before Mik spoke again. "Going back to our conversation last night. I still think offering him a pay off is the best way to end his reign." She tensed at first with his words, wondering if he was about to bring up the whole thing about her trying - and failing - to run. She wasn't ready to discuss it yet, still a turmoil of emotions. She swallowed and picked up her mug, taking a long, slow swallow of coffee as an excuse to take her time to respond. "We've been through this before though... I can't afford to pay you back, and once he's got that kind of money, he'll only come back for more..."
She caught the eye brow raise but didn't comment when he didn't - as if they both didn't know it was true. They couldn't keep going round in circles about it though and she wasn't ready to accept anything other than this being her fault. She heard the growl of his stomach as she mentioned food and she managed a small smile from it. At least his body approved of the idea. She knew she'd likely stew on things all day but if anything was going to take her mind off things if was something like that. "I'll even let you pick the movie, even if you won't stay awake for the entirety of it." She managed another smile at that, well aware that it was a terrible habit of hers to fall asleep about ten minutes in. "I can't help it if you just lull me to sleep...and pick boring films." she teased, some of her humour returning. It wasn't true either, apart from the lulling to sleep part, cuddled into him with her head on his shoulder or chest and his arm around her she found it easy to drift off. Unless he was taunting her with her hands and then she was very much wide awake. Not recently though, she wanted him to concentrate on healing.
She raised a brow at his pouting, knowing how much he hated it but how firm she was going to stand by the doctors orders. "You could come by the barn around lunchtime, we could go for a run?" She contemplated it for a moment, and then nodded. "Okay, yeah that would be good." She agreed, at least then she might be able to run some of her thoughts out and she could keep tabs on how hard her boyfriend was pushing himself. "Coffee and toast it is." Amber nodded and gave a brief smile as she returned his kiss and watched him head to the bathroom. Whilst he got himself ready she did too. She didn't think she'd be able to stew whilst he left for the day and she pulled on some clothes - just a loose t-shirt she thought might have once been Mik's and a pair of baggy joggers. She always went comfy clothes on a bad mood day.
Amber followed her nose to the kitchen, a faint headache banging behind her eyes as she begged for caffeine. "You sure I can't entice you in some scrambled eggs?" She shook her head and slid into a chair, wanting to help but seeing that he'd already done everything that was needed. "No thanks, I don't think I can stomach anything more right now. Can I help?" She asked, knowing he was going to say no but needing to ask as she watched.
She felt him shrug and she knew what his answer was going to be - not good. "On an off." She frowned slightly, her brow furrowing. "You need to rest," She said gently, he was still healing after all. "There was a lot going on in my head, so I let them fight it out. The battle was epic." She bit her lip, taking a moment to look at him. "That's my fault, I'm sorry." She took a moment to gather her own messy thoughts. "Maybe tonight we'll have pizza, movie and early night?" She suggested, and it was her way of letting him know she wasn't going to be running. She couldn't do it, she didn't want to leave him. She couldn't promise she wouldn't think about it again, but Amber didn't think she'd ever be able to go through with it unless he told her to leave.
"How about we get up, I cook us breakfast and we work out a game plan, then I'll head to the barn and you can come back to bed? I wonder if Naomi will allow me to do any heavy lifting today." She gave a nod, a game plan would help, it might make her feel better about what was going on for them. "Naomi shouldn't allow you to do any heavy lifting." She added, and though bed sounded good for her, she didn't think she'd be able to do anything other than wallow and feel restless. "I'll probably get some chores done," She said, thinking of the washing pile and such that could do with sorting. She watched him stretch and sit up, returning his kiss with a fleeting tired smile. "I still think the idea of setting him up would be the best way. What do you want for breakfast?" She gave a small nod and then went to sit up herself. "It's probably the only way, we'll just need to get this right to make sure we win." Knowing how Tristan was, it had to be a solid plan. "I don't know if I can eat right now, maybe just some toast. Coffee would be good though."
She had assumed he was sleeping. Throughout her disturbed sleep of being in and out, she had heard his deep and even breathing, and felt the stillness of him tucked into her side and had assumed that he was out. She'd wanted him to be asleep, she hated the idea that she'd given him a restless night. He still needed to rest, he was still healing and he didn't need this on top of everything else. She'd thought she'd known the change to him when he was asleep - it was something you tended to pick up when you slept beside someone every night. You got to know their patterns, and the difference between them being asleep and not. Maybe not, either that or she had managed to wake him by shifting - she felt his gaze on her before he spoke.
"Did you manage any sleep?" She turned her head to look at him, feeling the well of yesterday's emotions rush up to meet her when she looked at his handsome face. She shoved them back, expelling what she could with a heavy sigh. "I slept a little. Did you?" She asked, glancing at the appearance of slight bags under his eyes. Maybe not. She raised a hand from under the duvet and touched his cheek gently, shifting again to roll onto her other side so that she was facing him, peering at him with her head still pressed against the pillow. Her lips turned down at the corners though as those thoughts that she couldn't get rid of kept bumping the front of her brain. "What are we going to do, Mik?"
"I know." She heard him say, though she knew he knew - she was going to leave for him, she wasn't doing ti for herself. She wouldn't care so much if she didn't love him more than anyone she'd loved before. She was relieved when he reached out to her. She shifted back toward him, wiggling into his arms, her back pressing against his front. She curled her arm over his, drawing him closer. "Sleep. Now it's my turn to keep watch over you, like you've watched over me since I got out of hospital." She wanted to, but also she didn't. She was scared to see what would come in the morning, if she might be able to go through with leaving and if not, what to do with herself.
It took her time to drift off. Even secure in his arms, she still felt the anxiety and the high emotions of her evening thrumming through her. Her blood was up, her heart still pounding, her limbs finally began to relax one by one and at some point her eyes closed. She woke what felt like only a couple of minutes later, but it was at least a couple of hours. She hadn't moved, though that didn't surprise her - she hadn't wanted to move from Mik's arms, afraid to be without them. A yawn escaped her as she blinked open her gritty eyes and shifted, stretching out her muscles a little. She knew she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep now, her brain began to buzz back and forth almost immediately, trying to figure out what to do. Even the morning light hadn't fixed anything for her, and she rolled carefully, not wanting to stir Mik as she rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling.
The bed felt cold as she curled up under the covers, it felt weird for some reason - perhaps because usually they went to sleep together, or on the nights they didn't when one was working, the other would slide in and wake them up pulling them close. They rarely fought, nothing more than the odd tetchy snipe at each other after a stressful day, or a domestic about washing and tidying up. This hadn't even been an argument but Amber was a tidal wave of emotions still, despite being exhausted by them. They swept her this way and that, pulling her from angry to despairing to upset and couldn't decide where to settle. She felt ashamed for trying to run, for try to run out on Mik after everything, for giving in to her ex, but then angry that she hadn't done it when she needed to, and then upset that she hadn't, upset deep down that though she knew Mik wanted her to stay, he hadn't said it. Stay. She'd do anything for him really, even that.
She heard him return, felt the change in the room. Her back was to him but her breath hitched, wondering if he might now be mad at her for what she'd done, like earlier. She'd never seen him mad before. Another day, another time, she might have pulled him to the bed for it instead, but not today - the mood wasn't there for that. Her eyes felt dry and gritty despite the well of tears that clogged her throat. Why wasn't he coming to bed, was he going to sleep in the spare room? Perhaps she should have instead. It felt like an age until he came over. "I think this is the time when I'm supposed to say some crap about going to sleep, and that everything will look brighter in the morning." If she could have, she would have laughed, but it wasn't in her. She bit her lip, somehow doubting that anything would look less bleak in the wintry morning life. "I love you." It nearly broke her again, those words, and she had to swallow hard twice before she could find her voice to respond. "I love you too," She croaked, clenching her eyes shut tight against the sudden onslaught of more salty tears. She wanted him to hold her; so tight she couldn't escape, but he didn't. She hated it - the not touching, but she couldn't bring herself to turn around and close the gap, so tensely caught in her fixed fetal position.
"Shows they were doing their job properly then." Amber would have smiled if she was in a better frame of mind, but she got what he meant. A part of her wondered if it was another thing she didn't know about Mik, but she dismissed the thought - he'd been more honest with her than other people, and she knew that to be true from what they knew about his past and his family. She couldn't imagine having bodyguards, she felt like her ex had been suffocating enough, controlling enough - perhaps that was similar to how Mik had felt, being watched all the time.
She knew he wanted to argue, she could see it, but she was so tired of arguing, and she was tired of running - she was tired of her past always coming back to bite her in the ass. Just tired. Maybe it would be easier for her to give up, to roll over and let whatever happened to her, happen. "I'm alright though." Yes he was, but it didn't make it any better, or any easier to accept; it should never have happened. It felt like no time at all had passed but at the same time hours before he returned, a tray suddenly on the ground beside her. She felt like she was stuck in some kind of half dream, deep down knowing it was the exhaustion of the emotions and everything that came with her, her mind shutting everything down.
"I'm going to go and have a shower. I'll need to go and have a talk with Moses. If nothing else, I need to make sure he's not buying into anything that's being said about me." She nodded vaguely. "I'll make sure they know it's because of me." She wouldn't let him lose his job for this, if she couldn't leave, then she'd shoulder the blame - even if it meant losing her job. She didn't realise the weight around her shoulders was a blanket until she went to move. She managed half the mug of hot chocolate before she had to give in; even that chocolatey goodness couldn't fix the vast knawing hole in the pit of her stomach, and she put it aside and rose. She didn't make it far, though her eyes looked to the door, she couldn't do it. Berating herself for being a coward, she slipping beneath the cover of the duvet instead, still fully clothed, and curled up on her side.
"Did you know I was being shadowed when I first arrived here?" She shook her head, "No, I didn't know." Refraining from adding 'why would I know that?' They had not known each other then, having become friends over time during work shifts, before things progressed to the odd run together and then hanging out in general. It showed how much he must have relaxed in the town, if he had known he was being tailed, but her ex had managed to get the jump on him. "We could attach one to the stacks, as well as putting one on the inside of the bag." She nodded, a little blankly as her emotions were spent, feeling drained and somewhat hopeless as her mind began to empty. She didn't know what more to add to his idea and so, did not speak further.
She felt a slight weight on top of her head, and she didn't want to admit it was comforting. She wanted to be wrapped in Mik, to not have to think about leaving him anymore. "Yeah, a grown ass man who would have ended up back in the hospital if you hadn't been here. You keep me grounded. We keep each other grounded." She swallowed at his words, true for her that he kept her grounded, on a good day, but she couldn't help but feel like nothing but turmoil and trouble for him. "It's my fault that you were even in the hospital, Mik." All of it was her fault, and it couldn't be denied. Whether Tristan was a grown man who made his own choices or not, she had brought him into their lives - Mik's life.
Amber felt his absence as he left, but she didn't make a motion to move. "I'll be right back." She nodded a little, shifting to bring her knees up to her chest instead, and then wrap her arms around them for comfort. Maybe it seemed juvenile to sit there, but she didn't want to move yet, it felt like admitting defeat. She was supposed to have left, and she couldn't even get that right.
