"What?"
"My dad," Samuel explained. "After it was announced that he was found again, I ran up into my room instead of meeting him. My mom tried to get me out, but I ended up running here."
Samuel plucked a piece of grass from the ground and slowly shredded it. The tiny specks of green floated to the ground and disappeared among the sea of green.
"Are you going to?" I asked.
"I don't know," Samuel said and tore another piece of grass and shredded it. "It's so sudden. One day he disappeared and the other he reappears. It's like magic."
Though I wasn't in Samuel's shoes, I could understand his feelings.
"Hey, it's going to be alright," I told him softly. "At least you got your dad back, right?"
Samuel smiled softly, but it wasn’t filled with joy. Instead, it was filled with years of worry and sadness. "Yeah, you're right."
He leaned back, propping his hands on the ground behind him, and tilted up his head and look at the sky.
"But my mom and siblings seem really happy," Samuel said. "So, I guess, I'll go meet him soon."
I didn't know why, but a tiny part of me felt disappointed. Maybe it was because I really wanted him to come to watch my game.
"You should," I told him firmly though I didn't want him to. Samuel looked back down at me and gave me a small smile.
"Thanks, but..." he held up his wrist and checked the time on a faded watch strapped on his wrist. “Isn't it almost time for your game?"
I shook my head. "It's okay. I'll just show up late."
"Eleanor." Samuel touched my hand gently and butterflies fluttered in my stomach. "Go. Don't worry about me. I don't want to keep you from doing what you want."
"But-"
"Eleanor." When he said my name, I immediately shut my mouth. Samuel put his forehead against mine and said softly, "Please. Go. Do it for me."
I swallowed. "O-Okay. I will."
Samuel smiled. "And don't forget to win."
"I won't."
~*~
The changing room was silent. Everyone had already changed and was on the court warming up. I was the only one who was still lingering behind.
I didn't mind the silence in the room. I was actually thankful that I had the entire room to myself. I didn't think I could take loud noises right now.
I knew Coach Wayne would scream at me for, and I quoted, a 'lazy pig that won't get a move on'.
But I didn't care. If I stepped out of this room and onto the court where all of the people who came to watch were cheering up in the bleachers, I thought I would have a mental break down.
Marisol and Chloe promised to come to get me when the game was about to start. But I didn't want the game to start. Ever. At least, not until he came.
I knew I was being very selfish, but my heart was hammering hard and loud in my chest and tears were threatening to spill. I breathed in and out slowly, trying to contain in all of my emotions and feelings.
But you promised...
My phone rang, but I didn't bother to pick it up. I put my head in my hands and kept it in my lap. My head was swarming with thoughts and pounding as hard as my heart.
My phone stopped for a moment and rang again. The ringtone played for a while and then went silent. Before long, it rang again.
Who was calling me at a time like this? Whoever it was, they didn't seem to be giving up.
After the third time my phone rang, it went dead silent. Somewhere within my heart, something shattered. I wished the person would keep calling me, even though it might be the wrong number. The ringtone was the only sound that filled up the silence and emptiness of the room.
The doorknob to the changing room rattled and suddenly opened. Must be a late player, I thought bitterly.
I didn't bother to look up. I waited for them to pass so that I could go back to feel sorry for myself.
"Eleanor?"
My head jerked up immediately at the voice.
It couldn't be.
I turned to see who it was. My eyes widened as I recognized the brown, floppy hair, milky brown eyes, and tinted red cheeks.
I slowly stood up, still not believing my eyes.
"Samuel?" The name left my mouth unbelievingly.
"Oh my gods, Eleanor," Samuel whispered and rushed to pull me into a hug. "Oh my gods. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry."
The tears spilled then. I couldn't keep them in any longer.
I cried and cried into Samuel's chest. It had been forever since I last cried. To be honest, I couldn't even remember the last time I cried.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Samuel repeated over and over again as he rocked me back and forth. I forced myself to catch my breath and get a grip.
I sniffled and wiped away my tears.
Samuel pulled back and helped me wipe away the rest of the tears.
I had mixed emotions storming inside of me and I wasn't sure what to feel. Happy that Samuel was here or angry?
"Why are you here?" was all that I managed to say. How are you here?
"I didn't want to meet my dad in the end," Samuel said and gave me an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry. I know, I broke all of our promises. I said that I would meet him, but I didn't. I'm so sorry."
I took a gulp of air to calm myself. Everything rushed back into me and I felt like myself again. Samuel was here, standing right beside me. There was no reason for me to feel sadness anymore.
"Why didn't you come sooner?" I said in my best scolding voice, ignoring what he had said, and pulled him into another hug. I just really needed hugs right now.
Samuel laughed softly and hugged me back, wrapping his arms securely around me.
"Sorry," he whispered into my hair. "I'll try to next time."
"You better."
Samuel laughed again, his voice vibrating on top of my head. I smiled to myself as I pulled back just as the whistle blew in the gym, signaling the game was about to start.
The door leading to the gym burst open and Marisol and Chloe tumbled in. When they saw us, they squealed and snickered. I shot both of them a glare.
"Come on, love birds," Marisol chirped happily, pretending not to see my glowering stare. "Time for the game to start! Coach Wayne will be mad if we're late."
As if to prove her point, Coach Wayne's voice screamed across the court, "Get you butt here, Fyer! And you too, Kennedy! Hustle, girlies!"
I rolled my eyes as Marisol yelled back, "We're coming, Coach! But next time use your microphone. I could barely hear you over the roar of the crowd."
"Don't give him any ideas," I warned. Marisol laughed and gave me a wink.
"Well? Hurry up! We have a game to win!"
She and Chloe laughed and ran out again. I was about to follow them when a sudden thought stopped me. I turned on my heel to face Samuel.
"Wait, since you're here, you're going to watch the game, right?"
Samuel nodded. "Of course. From beginning to end."
"How will I know which one is you in the crowd?"
Samuel smiled. It was almost as if he had prepared his next sentence since the beginning of time.
"You'll know because I'll be the one cheering the loudest for you."
EPILOGUE: A New Life, A New Beginning
"And that concludes our lesson today," Mr. Clarkson announced and everyone started to pack their things the moment the last word left his mouth.
I stuffed my pencil bag into my overflowing backpack filled with books. I smiled at the sight. Each time I put things into my backpack, it brought back memories of when Samuel and I were in High School. Back to the days when he was my tutor and I was his student.
Two years had passed since the day I met Samuel. The memory of our first encounter was still fresh in my mind. Now, I was finally in college. And better yet, Samuel, Marisol, and Chloe were in the same university as me.
I ran out the room along with everyone else and jogged down the steps to the Geo-science center.
I didn't know why, but I seemed to really enjoy studying the Earth. I
thought that it was lame and was going to change the area that I majored in, but Samuel found out and forced me to 'follow your dreams'.
I was glad that he said that because I had fun during class, something that never happened in the past.
I adjusted my bag in my hands, the books inside thudding against each other as I walked a block to next door where Samuel's class was just about to finish.
Samuel had told me that he wanted to become an astronomy scientist. But due to the instability of his family, his parents disagreed at first. They wanted him to become a lawyer, something Samuel wasn't fond of. The main problem was the financial problem. In the end, my family helped support the Rose family and things worked out between us.
I reached the building with the big golden words "Astronomy" engraved over the arch of the door just as all of the students poured out. I moved out of their way to avoid getting squashed and waited for Samuel to come out.
Samuel didn't always come out immediately. Being the top student, even in college, he needed to stay behind for a few extra minutes to talk to the teacher. Sometimes, he even taught when the teacher was absent, making him quite admirable.
This time though, Samuel trotted down the step as the last of the wave of people subsided. This marked the earliest he had come out before.
I pulled my scarf a little tighter around my neck to block out the slicing cold air of December and waved to Samuel. Samuel saw me and waved back. He jogged down the last few steps and gave me a hug.
When he pulled back, he smiled apologetically and asked, "Sorry, did you wait long? It's cold out here."
I shook my head and linked my arm in his.
"Nah, you were quicker today than usual," I assured him as we began to walk to our apartment.
Samuel slightly shivered in the cold as he thrust his hands deeper into his pockets. Upon seeing this, I dug around in my bag for a moment and pulled out a pair of mittens.
"Here," I said and handed them to him. Samuel accepted them with a small mumble of thanks and he quickly slipped them on.
"Better?" I asked.
"Never more," Samuel answered as he rubbed his gloved hands together and smiled.
As we entered the apartment building, the first flakes of snow began to fall. I watched as the little specks of white danced in the sky in a tumbling motion until it touched the ground and melted into a glittering spot of white.
"Oh my gods!" someone yelled, breaking my concentration. "It's snowing!"
Marisol laughed as she caught some snow in her hands.
"And they're so beautiful this year, too!" another voice with an unforgettable accent that I had come to love chimed in.
"Oh, come on guys," I huffed and set my hands on my hips in a playful way. "You act like little kids that have never seen snow before. Earth to Marisol and Chloe! We're college students by now!"
Samuel laughed beside me. "Your friends seem really happy!"
"We are!" Marisol confirmed in a serious way. "This is our first time annoying Eleanor with snow."
"If you weren't way over there I would have punched you," I told her. She just laughed.
"Aside from that, today's the end of the school semester!" Chloe announced happily. "Christmas break, everyone!"
She and Marisol cheered. I rolled my eyes as Samuel cheered along with them.
"Well?" Marisol said promptly. "Let's get packing, people! Time to go back home!"
We laughed and raced each other up the stairs to our apartment rooms. I shared one with Samuel and Marisol shared one with Chloe. We lived next to each other so it was easy to go back and forth whenever we needed something from each other.
I pushed open the apartment door and Samuel and I rushed inside. We pulled out our suitcases and began to pack all of our stuff that we would need to go back to Texas to spend Christmas.
I grabbed the presents that we brought for Felix and Susanna and stuffed them in along with everything else. By the time we were done packing, the bags were overflowing.
"Time to go home?" Samuel asked and came to stand by my side. He put an arm around my waist and I felt like I was 16 and a lovesick puppy all over again.
I grinned. "Yeah, finally."
~*~
"Samuel! Eleanor!"
Those were the first things we heard as soon as we stepped off the plane. It had already been half a year since I last heard those voices so I almost didn't recognize them. The last time Samuel and I called our parents was close to two months ago. I had been too wrapped up in my work that I didn't have time to do other stuff. Stanford, the college that I was accepted into, had high expectation for its students so I had to work the requirements.
Someone tackled me, almost knocking me off of my feet. I instantly remembered those slim arms and chirpy voice. Smiling, I patted Felix's head with my free hand.
"Hey there, big boy," I grinned cheekily. "In the first grade by now?"
Felix pulled back and nodded proudly. "And I'm the knight of my class!"
Samuel laughed and ruffled his brother's hair. "You sound like you're all grown up!"
Susanna walked up from behind Felix to give me a hug. I bent down and wrapped my arms around her.
"Hello, Susanna," I said and pulled back. "You're in the first grade, too?"
Susanna nodded.
"We're in the same class," Felix offered. I smiled and dug out a little black box from my coat pocket.
"Here," I said and handed her the box. Susanna took it from me cautiously and slowly lifted up the lid to reveal a glass pedant rose. Susanna's eyes widened.
"T-Thank you," she stammered out, her cheeks flushing red. I smiled and stood up.
Pouting, Felix asked, "Where's my present?"
"Oh, Felix," Stacey scolded. "Don't be so selfish. Welcome your brother and Eleanor back from college first."
"But it's not fair," Felix huffed. "I want one, too."
Samuel smiled and pulled something out of his suitcase and handed it to his brother.
"Here you go," he said and Felix literally snatched the box from his hands in delight. Tearing open the wrapper, he found a knight costume. Felix squealed and hugged his present to his chest.
Stacey shook her head in amusement. "Well, he'll always be the knight in shining armor anyway."
Stacey seemed stronger, now that her husband was finally back and her family was united again. Ever since Benjamin, Samuel's father, reappeared, Stacey had spent every moment of her life with him. According to Samuel, the two were trying to make up for the time lost when Benjamin disappeared.
Actually, Benjamin didn't exactly disappear. The cruise that he went on suddenly lost signal when a storm crashed into it and got lost at sea. With a wrecked ship and missing supplies, the captain and crew of the ship managed to somehow steer everyone to a nearby island.
Once they crash landed, they wandered around the island, lost and confused. For a whole month, the ship members just wandered from place to place, depending on what was left of the supplies in the ship. After all the food and water ran out, a few of the people, including Benjamin, finally realized exactly how severe the situation they were in.
In order to survive, the survivors began to collect food and water from the island. Because they were the only people to inhibit the land, it was easy to build a temporary establishment and create a plan to survive.
This was how the survivors managed to survive for three years until a French helicopter came by and rescued them and brought them to France. It was actually a coincidence that the helicopter flew by. According to Benjamin, the island that he and the others were stranded on was covered entirely in trees, causing the sky to be blocked out when you were wondering in the woods. Not many planes or ships passed by because the island was so small, no one found any interest to visit it.
As soon as Benjamin reached France, he began to work in order to obtain the money he lost in order to get back to America. When he finally did, he called Stacey to tell her that everything was fine and he was coming back
. The problem was, no one answered the phone. Stacey and the kids had already moved from California to Texas upon hearing Benjamin’s sudden disappearance.
Since then, Benjamin had been searching all of America for his wife and child. He never even knew that Felix and Susanna were already born. As he traveled, he gained more riches and he slowly went back to his old self. But, he felt horrible inside. He had lost his beloved family.
Without giving up, Benjamin ventured on within America. He was close to giving up when he went to the last place, the only place he hadn't searched yet. Houston, Texas. And that was where he found his family.
Felix and Susanna, being little, didn't understand what was happening at first. When they finally understood that their father had returned, they were beyond happy (though Susanna had some trouble showing that).
As for Samuel, he just seemed glad that his mom was cured and was walking strongly on two feet again. I was happy too. As long as Samuel was smiling, so would I.