My biggest urge had been to reach up and try to stroke his face, but I refrained from doing so. I took his gentle snuffles as a thank you for the hay and water and retreated back to my corner. When he started eating the hay, he chose to move fully inside the barn, in the shade, and appeared nothing but chilled and relaxed.

I felt like I'd just discovered aliens, or a foreign language, and I wanted to run and tell everyone what had happened. Then it dawned on me that I had no one to run and tell anything to. In a matter of days, my world had changed from worrying about Archie and the tricks the little shit might try and play on me to worrying about making friends with a strange horse. It went without saying which world I preferred.

With my stomach grumbling yet again, I ate another biscuit and found myself needing a nap soon after. I cut open another hay bale and used it to fluff my bed of straw up. The instant I sank into it, I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

***

I woke up at some point during the late afternoon. The heat had started to fade and the sun hung low in the sky. Blue stood in front of the hay, his head dangling just above the floor with his bottom lip drooping, his eyes closed, and a back leg resting. If only I had a camera. Taking a picture of this right here would be a picture I'd want to treasure forever.

My time with him was limited, I knew that. It could come to an end at any given second and there would be nothing I could do about it. This strange little bubble we'd created between us though was something I didn't want to let go of. I'd become rather addicted and attached to the plucky little stallion. He'd given me a reason to live, a reason to want to do something, a reason to feel good and happy.

But ultimately, he belonged to someone else and would be found soon enough and taken back to his immaculate stable with his rich owners. Until then though, I could pretend this was our life and ignore the real world outside of our small, idealistic one.

"Hey, Blue," I whispered, stretching my legs out.

He flicked an ear forward and then back but otherwise didn't acknowledge my movement. I wondered if it would be too brave to try and address his injuries. Looking at the state of his knee, it couldn't really be left any longer. Not without going to get some help. I didn't want to do that as it would mean my inevitable trip back to social services but if I had to in order to help Blue, then I would.

I stood up and waited for him to react. Nothing. I smiled to myself as I wondered if he'd stuffed himself so full, he'd gone into some sort of food coma. I'd done similar myself over the years. Whenever I'd been on the run and picked up by the authorities, I'd cram every last little bit of food into me that I could, then fall asleep as my body struggled to cope with it all. One time I'd eaten so much I'd thrown most of it back up but after living out of rubbish bags for three weeks, everything tasted like heaven and I'd wanted it all there and then.

Making my way over to the other bucket with the second bottle of water inside, I picked it up, making the handle rattle. Blue opened his eyes briefly then closed them again. I washed the bucket out, tipped some water in and headed back to the sleeping beauty. I grabbed my Savlon and took off my socks. They needed washing anyway so would be more than ok for washing his wound. I turned them inside out and then sucked in a deep breath.

With the bucket and antiseptic cream in hand, I approached him. I sat down on the floor and dipped my sock in the water.

"Who's a good boy, Blue?" I said, reaching my hand up to touch his leg.

I held my breath and waited for the explosive reaction. As my fingertips met his silky soft coat, I almost shrieked in delight. He didn't move an inch. I'd done it. I had managed to calm a skittish horse. It was such an amazing feeling and my heart swelled with pride at the fact that this beautiful creature trusted me. Me, the messed up runaway kid who couldn't get anything right.

I spoke to him all the time, telling him what I was doing and why, made suggestions to him as to how he might have done this to himself, and tried to keep him calm and relaxed. It was only when I picked off a massive clot of congealed blood that he woke up. He lowered his head and sniffed my hands. My instincts told me to freeze, in case he bolted or bit me or something, but I fought against them and carried on cleaning his cut.

When I got rid of the clot, I could see the cut right across his knee bone. It was deep, but not bone deep. I cleaned it out as best as I could, even getting my little finger in there to get the little bits of dirt out. He didn't flinch once.

I opened my Savlon tube and spread a good amount onto my index finger. Still talking to him in a soothing voice, I dabbed it into his wound. After a couple of seconds, he bobbed his head up and down and lifted his leg in the air.

"I know it stings but that's a good thing, means it's working. It'll feel so much better, I promise."

I put my free hand on the front of his leg, and he placed his foot back on the floor. I cooed to him and told him what a brave boy he was. Amazingly, he let me finish applying the cream to the rest of his knee.

"We good to do your shoulder?" I asked him, putting my hand on his shoulder.

He moved away from me and snorted.

"Ok, ok. We'll do that one later or tomorrow then. We got the worse one."

He licked his lips and started chewing. Then he wandered over to his water for a drink and started munching hay again.

I felt like I'd climbed Everest and sailed back down the other side.