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"Speaking of being best friends..." He paused to lick his lips. "You know my birthday yet?"
"No?" Was it coming up or something?
"November twenty-seventh," he said. "Sometimes it's even Thanksgiving. Think ya can remember that?"
"Yeah, why?" Because that wasn't close. "Are we doing a party for your big twenty-ninth? I mean, you got a year before you're over the hill."
He huffed out a laugh. "Also unlocks my phone, hun."
"Oh."
Ok, that had me confused. I mean, it made sense. Most people used dates or something else they'd remember. I just had no clue why J.D. was telling me this. Did he want me to look something up? I had my own phone for that.
"Just figured my best friend should know it," he explained as he looked out to the arena again. "Ty made me think about it."
"Ty?"
"Well, Disco Breakout." He shifted a bit, almost like he was embarrassed. "I know yours. Seen ya unlock it enough. Just figured if you go down, I can call your daddy, but ain't no one to call my mama but Doc."
"Oh." I nodded. "Yeah, if you get hurt, I promise I'll give her a call."
"Good," he breathed. "Because it's time."
Riders had been going out. Too many had hit the dirt, but that wasn't uncommon. Usually we had a two-thirds split. Two-thirds of us got a score and a third ate dirt. Tonight, it was starting to feel like a bit more than that, but it made sense if the bulls were getting harder.
And with the Unleash the Beast competition ranking the bulls for their own year-end awards, that meant the top animals would be making more appearances. Speed Bump had been number two in the world standings. Disco Breakout was up there as well. I didn't have all of them memorized, but the best bulls tended to be the ones hardly any of us could stay on.
These animals were big. They were powerful. They were trained to buck and rewarded for it. The vast majority of them were big babies when they weren't at work. Some of them, like Disco Breakout, got a little hyped up and could put the hurt on a person. Others would stop at the sound of the buzzer because they knew that was all they had to do.
They were just animals, though. We didn't want to hurt them, and they didn't want to get hurt. Once they were out of the arena, these bulls were pampered and spoiled worse than most people's children. Granted, they also earned a hell of a lot more money than most people's kids did, so it made some kind of sense.
I was thinking about that as I followed J.D. down to the end of the row. He was early. The last rider on the previous set was still in the arena, and then there'd be a commercial break. The bulls weren't even loaded in over here, but J.D. was getting in the zone.
"Hey?" I asked as I trotted up a little closer. "You ok?"
"Yup," he promised just as one of the middle gates opened.
I paused to watch the system. The bull chutes were like an alley. Between each one was a divider that worked like a mini-gate. It opened up, the bull was encouraged to go through, then it closed behind them. With four chutes in a row, the first bull in had to do that a few times to get into his spot.
The last divider opened and a big brown beast surged into view. Each of these animals looked unique, but this one had that unassuming coloration, yet he was so big. I knew I'd seen him before. The problem was I had a damned good idea where.
"J.D.?" I asked. "That's..."
"Without Ado," he finished for me. "Yep, I know."
"That's who you drew?"
"Number one bull in the Unleash the Beast competition," he pointed out. "The best of the best, right?"
"And no one's ridden him!" I snapped. "He's known to..." I didn't even finish that before turning with the intention of flagging down the bullfighters.
But J.D. caught my arm. "I already told 'em," he promised. "And yeah, I know he comes back for his pound of flesh. Still, if anyone's gonna ride him, I'm gonna be the one to do it."
"He dumped me at five and change," I shot back, meaning the time on the scoreboard.
J.D. simply shrugged. "Gotta prove I'm still a step ahead of my rookie, right?"
"Shit," I breathed. "Ok. Just make sure you land on your feet this time?"
