Someone New-Hozier fanfic

Chapter 10 ***

      The morning light shone across my face through the south-facing barn entrance as I woke up and tried to sit up. I didn't get far, as Andy's arms were still wrapped around me. "Andy! It's time to wake up!" I announced, and he groaned. "5 more minutes Alice..." He mumbled groggily. "It's 6:30, time to feed the horses." I told him. I escaped his grasp and got up.
      He opened one hazel eye, "But I don't have horses." I giggled, he was half asleep and still sassy as ever. Bella neighed in a girly matter as I gave her and Benji their grain. I patted them and braided Bella's mane. Her comb was sitting in an old navy blue bucket and I casually picked it up and brushed my hair with it.
      I heard a soft chuckle come from Andy as he sat up. "You just brushed your hair with a horse brush?" He asked jokingly. "You clearly didn't, you're a mess!" I answer and we laugh for a minute. "Do you want to go eat some waffles?" I asked him. "Ehm sure!" He said, and we went up to the house.
      As we ate, we talked about our plans for the tour. The bus we would be riding in had just been fixed, so in two weeks, it would be ready to go. Andy went home, and I decided to start packing my bag two weeks in advance. Why not?
      The week passed very quickly as I spent time cleaning my horses' saddles, bridles, their barn, and my house in preparation for Maeve's arrival. I polished Bella's riding skills so she could carry Maeve safely without issues and Benji and I worked on his manners. I flopped onto my bed and sighed, finally done!
      Maeve texted me:

+Maeve
Hi Alice! I can be over around 10:00. Does that work for u?

+Alice
Yes! See you then! I'm so excited!!

Skip and I snuggled in bed and watched 'Rushmore' together. I hugged him closer. "I couldn't leave to tour without you, Skip. You're my rock." He licked my face and stretched. I turned off my lamp and laid down for the night.
      When 6:30 hit, it was pouring rain and thundering menacingly. Skip whined and I grabbed an umbrella and we went out for a quick break for him to relieve himself. I then put on my glasses and Skip and I ran to the barn, slipping in the muddy puddles along the way.
      The rain actually got worse as we fed the horses, which worried me, as Maeve might not be able to get to my house due to the narrow, minimum-maintenance dirt roads being sloppily turned into mud. I then got an idea. The Ranger! I had brought my grandpa's old Polaris Ranger from America with me just for that purpose of driving on the hellish road.
I called Maeve. "Hi Maeve! It's raining really bad over at my house. Is it ok if I pick you up at the turn onto my road?"
"Yes Alice! My little Volkswagen would never make it on that mudhole of a road!" We talked until the rain slowly died down and I then hung up and ran to the house while the rain was stopped. I picked up some of the stuff laying around so the house would be at least somewhat presentable for Maeve. When it was around 9:30 AM, I got the Ranger ready, putting on its removable windshield and dumping gas into it. Skip hopped onto the seat next to me, and we were ready to go. We pulled out of the gravel driveway, expecting to see a river of mud instead of a road, but it wasn't that bad. The 4-wheel drive kicked in, and even having the horsepower it did, the Ranger slid side to side as I attempted to maneuver it on the sopping muddy road. When the top of the hill was within sight, I breathed a sigh of relief and drove the Ranger into a field. Soon enough, Maeve's adorable, yellow Volkswagen bug came around the corner accompanied by the sound of her delighted shrieks out the window.

She quickly unloaded her stuff into the bed of the Ranger. We then drove back to my flat and I took her to the barn to show her where everything was. I showed her each horse's tack, which I had labeled with each of their names on a leather tag. Maeve was so excited to ride later in the day that I thought that she might explode! We looked over the horse's feed charts, and I had written how much grain to give each one. I also showed Maeve where the Epsom salts, vet wraps, and phenylbutazone (horse pain-reliever) was. As we walked up the hill to the house to watch a movie in the main room, Maeve looked over at me and asked "Why did you pick me to look over your home and horses?" I replied; because you have always wanted an acreage like this and horses like them." I gestured toward the horses, who were happily grazing in their pasture.