Chapter Text
Rhett Abbott pushes the door of the bar with no expectation but to find solace in a forgetful evening. The noise of the bar, the people talking loudly over the music, the glasses clinking together, are almost enough to drown the buzzing in his head. But almost isn’t enough, not after a whole day of working around the ranch with his dad, moving cattle from a pasture to another just because the old man said so. So Rhett comes to the bar and plans on getting so drunk that this time maybe he will be able to let go of some hurtful words that sit too heavily on his chest. But as his boots make way towards his usual stool, his breath catches in his chest. Sitting there, at his place, is a girl he is pretty sure he has never seen in his life. And that, in Wabang, is as close to a miracle as it comes, because novelty is a rare currency in a place where everyone knows your name and the mistakes that still haunt you.
“This seat taken?” asks Rhett, voice low and gruff as he takes off his hat and runs a hand in his hair, pushing them back.
“No.” The girl frowns and looks at him from head to toe, smiling knowingly at the hat. “All yours.”
She observes in silence as he sits and then she goes back to her note pad, eyebrows scrunched up together as she chews absentmindedly at her pen, eyes surveying the page. Rhett silently signals the barista and gets a beer, painfully aware of the presence at his right. The mere fact that this girl is here is like a knife twisting in his chest, a sudden reminder that the borders of Wabang are not as impenetrable as he convinced himself they are. As he drinks slowly, he can’t restrain himself and looks over a few times, the girl too focused to even acknowledge his curiosity. When she finally seems to find the detail that was bothering her and starts correcting her page of odd numbers and equations, Rhett can’t stop himself from smirking slightly.
“What’s so funny, cowboy ?” the girl asks, voice taut with frustration.
Rhett blinks a few times, taken aback by the sudden question, thinking his observation had gone unnoticed. “One could argue that doing maths in a crowded bar isn't the smartest choice.”
“Are you implying that I’m stupid ?” The girl lifts her eyes towards Rhett with her eyebrows raised, an amused grin dancing on her lips, her pen tapping the notepad in rhythm with the song playing in the background.
“Wouldn’t dare.” mutters Rhett, feeling warmth creep up his cheeks as he tries to escape the girl's eyes, in vain, as she tips her head sideways and huffs a laugh before extending her hand. “I’m Kate.”
“Rhett.” he answers offering a lopsided smile. They shake hands and the pressure of her colder hand in his feels like a tether, an anchor. “So, where you from, Kate?” he asks, watching as she takes her hand back, her name rolling off his tongue, the sound unfamiliar yet comforting.
“Sapulpa, Oklahoma.” She finishes her glass of lemonade, making Rhett smirk teasingly.
“They don’t drink in Sapulpa ?”
“They do, but I don’t.”
Rhett stays silent at that, challenged by the simple declaration, the way she says it like it doesn’t matter that she refuses to comply with outside rules. Like it's as easy as breathing to just stand up for what she believes. If Kate notices Rhett spiraling, she says nothing, instead going to ask for a refill at the barista who nods in acknowledgment.
“So, Rhett, what do you do for fun around here ?” asks Kate, turning on her stool to face the man.
Rhett swallows and blinks a few times, trying to come up with an answer that will not betray how little fun he has been having in the last few years. “Rodeo is pretty big in this town, but we sometimes get fairs and stuff like that. Nothing big or fancy, I must warn you. Why ? Are you planning on staying here for a while ?”
Kate nods and hums in agreement. “We’ll see. Do you ride ?” she then asks, curiosity clear on her face.
“Yes, ma’am.” Rhett says, trying his hardest not to stand up taller and straighter under her questioning look. “Do you ?” he asks, even if he already knows the answer just by the way she sits and moves.
“No. Not my kind of adrenaline. Even if my friend said that what I do feels pretty much like riding.”
“And what is it you do ?”
“I chase tornadoes.” she says, and Rhett can see a fire lighting up in her eyes as she says it, her whole face getting brighter under the dim light of the bar. He is so entranced by the change in demeanor, the unabashed joy on her face, that he almost doesn’t register her answer.
“Oh so you’re just like us, a little adrenaline junkie.” Rhett groans, teasingly. Kate stays silent, a shadow passing over her face as she turns away from Rhett and plays with her pen, fingers restless. Rhett recognizes himself in the gesture and it makes his heart clench in his chest, he tries to fight past the shame of not choosing his words more wisely and makes the rest of his beer twirl in his glass before he says softly: “How comes someone smart like you ended up in Wabang ?”
“I’m waiting for a friend of mine, we picked Wabang as a meet-up point for our next trip.”
Rhett can’t fight the small amused laugh that escapes his lips. “I sure hope you won't get bored to death before that.”
“If tonight is anything to go by,” says Kate, looking around “I’m pretty sure I won’t.”
Rhett nods and they finish their drinks in a comfortable silence, Kate being the first to get up and call it a night. “I will see you around, Rhett.” she says and leaves the man looking at her back as she crosses the bar and makes her way outside. The simple exchange has left him confused but also reeling with the immensity of possibilities that just seem to have resurfaced with the encounter.
He is a man who prides himself in self-control, in always keeping a tight lid on things he wishes he could be, on dreams he dares to have. On things he wants. But seeing Kate, free and wandering around as if the world is nothing but a big expanse of opportunities, Rhett can feel the noose around his throat tightening, choking him as he slowly pushes away the terrible realisation that what he needs is an insane amount of bravery, and the impulse to just go for it and stop finding himself in excuses on why he hasn’t left yet. Kate is the reminder that Rhett is not only betraying himself, but also suffocating the man he could be with the mask of you he has to be, as long as he stays here.
When they cross paths again, Rhett is walking around town, running errands, so lost in thought that he almost misses her. But suddenly he turns his head before crossing the main street and recognizes her blonde hair. A small smile tugs at his lips as he makes his way towards her.
“Kate.” he says in a soft voice. Kate, eyes fixed on the screen of her phone, lifts her head in a sudden move, sending her hair flying around her surprised face. “Wow there, everything okay ?” he asks, taking a step back, eyebrows raised in a questioning look.
Kate laughs softly and puts away her phone. “Yeah, sorry.” She tucks her hair behind her ear and looks at Rhett “Just not paying much attention to my surroundings apparently.”
“Well, you’re lucky it was just me and not the Wabang serial killer then.” jokes Rhett, a mocking smile stretching his lips as he comes closer again. Kate shakes her head at that and spots the billboard across the street, advertising the rodeo happening that evening. “You’ll be riding ?” she asks.
“Yes. You coming ?” Rhett shifts from one foot to the other, suddenly feeling very self-conscious and like his skin is too tight to hold all his hope.
“Maybe.” answers Kate with a smirk, her eyes lighting up with something akin to mischief.
“Then maybe we can grab a drink after ?” Rhett hears himself ask, fighting the urge to widen his eyes at his own audacity, his heart almost crashing itself against his ribs in panic. Kate looks at him intently and he feels his cheeks warm dangerously under the stare. She tilts her head slightly to the side before she answers: “Yeah, I'd like that.” Rhett lets the words settle in the air between them and smiles sheepishly as he nods and looks at the ground to hide his blush, embarrassed.
“Okay, then I’ll see you tonight.” he adds, before he flashes her a grin, making his way to the post office, his stride a little more determined and assured.
The evening rolls around, the stands filling up with regulars and some visitors from nearby towns just here for the show. As he glances over to the stands, hoping to catch a glimpse of Kate or Amy, Rhett is desperate for a way to ease his nerves as he waits for his round. His vest feels a little too tight, and the overwhelming sensations that come with the anticipation of waiting behind the arena’s fences make his skin tingle all over. He barely registers the words that are echoing out of the speaker, the crowd cheering fading to the back of his mind. He tugs on his vest uncomfortably and when someone calls his name, he straightens a bit, closing his eyes for a second, listening for his own heartbeat, as electricity runs through his veins. He takes the few last steps towards the chute, climbs up and onto the bull, feeling its warm skin under his legs, the power coiled tight in its muscles. Letting out a breath, Rhett signals to his spotter and starts to wrap the rope around his gloved hand, adjusting his position until it feels just right. A quiet sense of calm washes over Rhett as the chute opens and his round begins. Riding has always been the only moment when everything just quiets, as if the emotions run so high he cannot even process them. It’s a few seconds of pure silence during which he doesn’t bear the heavy burden of his family name, when nothing can touch him and he feels invincible. Because when Rhett rides a bull, he doesn’t have to hide, he is allowed to let go and let his treacherous thoughts fade to nothing. All his senses are narrowed on survival and survival only, because as soon as he’s sent flying, he has to be aware of how he lands and quickly get out of the way.
And as he does, the buzzer sounding somewhere far away, piercing through the fog of the competition, Rhett feels the sand under him. The fall forces all the air outside his lungs and he is vaguely aware of something cracking as he rolls over and gets on his feet, slightly swaying. A hand guides him back behind the fences and he shakes his head to chase away the rush of adrenaline that blurs his vision, his blue eyes zeroing on the results board, seeing his name on the second row. A smile tugs at his lips and it’s almost enough to ease the pain he feels in his ribs. Taking off his glove and shoving it in his pocket, he takes off his hat and pushes back his hair before putting it back on, a relieved sigh escaping his lips.
“Good ride, Abbott.” someone says on his right and Rhett’s jaw clenches at that, the urge to just bite back that he can be called by his first name almost overpowering the instinct to just nod and grumble a thank you. As he makes his way towards the medical tent to get his ribs checked out, Rhett spots Kate’s blonde hair at a drink stand. An ache unrelated to his fall blooms in his chest, making it hard to breathe for a second. Closing his eyes and breathing through the usual rolling emotions that threaten to overpower him every time he tastes the fathom of freedom on his tongue, Rhett keeps going, his steps guiding him towards the tent. Once they made sure it was just cracked and not actually broken, the medical team let him go, Rhett gulping down a painkiller to numb the flaring pain in his abdomen.
“Rhett !”
Stopping in his tracks, Rhett smiles softly before he turns on his heels, eyes meeting Kate’s. She is dressed in a red hoodie of the University of Oklahoma, cheeks flushed and eyes glinting. At the sight of her, Rhett smirks and nods towards the logo on her chest.
“Not scared of retaliation I see.”
“You all seem pretty civilized towards newcomers. Also I'm running low on clean laundry.” Rhett raises an eyebrow and grimaces jokingly at that. Kate narrows her eyes, chuckling. “I picked a beer for you, figured you would be thirsty after all that.” She suddenly says, gesturing towards the arena with her hand as she holds the beer, tipping it to the side dangerously. Rhett’s reflexes kick in before he can think and suddenly his hand gently catches Kate’s wrist before she makes any of the liquid overflow.
“Don’t want a good deed go to waste.” he mutters, looking at her intently as she blushes and nods, handing him the plastic cup, keeping hers in her other hand. “Thank you.” says Rhett, searching for her eyes, a soft smile on his lips. Kate smiles back and clears her throat, looking away, trying to regain composure by pushing her hair behind her ears.
“That was some impressive riding. Did you hurt yourself ?”
“Nothing a good night of sleep can’t fix.” answers Rhett, swallowing with some difficulty. He doesn’t say that his ritual after a good riding night is to get drunk and often end up in a random girl’s bed just to keep the rest of his life at bay for a few more hours. He doesn’t admit that the high of riding doesn’t last long enough for him to get a deep breath in. Because admitting that would unravel the character he built for people’s eyes and would raise a lot of questions he sure as hell doesn’t want to answer.
“It was pretty scary,” says Kate, frowning. “Your family must be tense the whole time.”
“They’re used to it by now.” answers Rhett, hiding a slight flinch caused by the mention of his family, but Kate notices the change in tone and turns her head to look at him intently, a silent question in her eyes. Rhett evades her eyes, a muscle ticking in his jaw. She doesn’t press and maybe Rhett is imagining things but it seems she walks a little closer to him after that, their shoulders almost touching. They end up picking hot-dogs at a food stand and share a plate of fries as conversation shifts towards storm chasing and bull riding. Rhett learns that Kate’s ex is a rodeo cowboy and he stores that information in a corner of his mind, too captivated by her stories to ask questions. She learns that Rhett broke 8 bones in his life and his brother Perry was the one to break his nose when they were kids playing ice hockey. The anecdote makes her laugh so much she starts crying and the sight is so raw and spontaneous that Rhett stops breathing for a second, the sound ringing in his ears long after she stopped. Without even noticing, they spend a good portion of the night just sitting on either side of a sticky table, trading random pieces of their past and who they really are.
When they call it a night, Kate gives her phone to Rhett, waiting for him to write down his number, something akin to hope blooms in his chest and he can’t barely remember a time where he felt so comfortable in his own skin. The tightness in his muscles has eased a fraction, and he can breathe slightly better, the sentiment so foreign he doesn’t know what to do with it. So he holds onto that precious silver of joy he found in Kate all the way back home to his childhood bedroom, not daring to let go of it.