You've Reached Sam(43)

Oliver rubs his chin. “Where do I know you from?”

“You came to one of the meetings for the environmental club,” Jay says.

“But you never came back.”

“Oh, that’s right, ” Oliver says, as if remembering it fondly. “You guys were talking about beach cleanups or something. It sounded a little lame, if I’m being honest.”

I nudge his arm. “Oliver. Jay is the treasurer of the club. The beach cleanup was his idea.”

“I’m only teasing,” Oliver says, waving me away. “I’m very impressed with his work.”

Rachel reaches across me and taps Oliver’s shoulder. “Do you want to join our club?” she asks, handing him the form. “We still need six signatures.”

“Of course. What club is it?”

She takes my pen and hands it to him. “The Asian Student Club. We’re hoping to host a movie screening at some point.”

Oliver signs his name without question. “I hope you guys are watching Akira, ” he says. “That’s a classic.”

“I can put it on the list,” Rachel says. “We plan to have a vote.”

“How democratic.” Oliver nods as he hands back the form. “Will there be a vote on snacks, too?”

The table bursts with laughter as we talk about the club. I didn’t expect Oliver to sit down with us, let alone get along with everyone so quickly.

There’s something different about him today. A softer side I’m still not used to seeing. Maybe things are better between us now. Maybe there’s a chance we’ll be friends after all. I’m glad he decided to finally join us.

The bell rings. As I’m packing up, Yuki turns to me. “Have you decided if you’re meeting us later?”

“For what?” I ask.

“We’re going somewhere after school to think of ideas for Sam,” she says. “I sent you a text last night.”

I look around the table, a little confused. “I never got your text,” I say.

“I didn’t know we were supposed to be meeting.” I take out my phone to double check. I’ve had it with me the entire day. Why do I keep losing messages? “When did you send it?”

“It was pretty late,” Yuki says. “You might have been asleep.”

I think back to last night. Maybe the calls are blocking them. I remind myself to check the log of phone calls I’ve been keeping later.

Jay appears beside me. “You should come,” he says. “You know Sam better than all of us.”

“What about Sam?” Oliver asks, looking curious.

“We want to do something special for him,” Rachel says. “With Julie.”

“Like what?”

“We’re still deciding.”

“Oh…” Oliver leans forward, his lips pressed. “Can I … be part of it?”

Everyone turns at me.

“Of course you can,” I say. I look at Yuki. “But I can’t meet you guys after school today. I’m really sorry. I already made plans with someone.” I don’t mention that that someone is Sam.

Yuki touches my hand. “Don’t worry. We’ll get together again. We’ll plan something great for him.”

Although I smile at this, I can’t help feeling a little left out of the group.

It’s been a while since I spent time with the three of them outside of school.

We used to go over to Sam’s house regularly, listening to music together.

Since it’s my last year here, I don’t know when I’ll see them all again.

As soon as school gets out, I head straight into town. Instead of stopping by work like I normally would, I wait at the corner stop for the three o’clock bus out of Ellensburg. I won’t be going too far. Only until the mountain ridges rise into view and the roads become nothing but trees and sagebrush. This is Sam’s idea. He said he had a surprise for me when we last spoke. I’m supposed to call him as soon as I get off the bus.

The bus drops me off near the footpaths where there’s a crowd of hikers, but I wander off the main trail toward the line of trees. I’ve never gone this far off the path before. All around me is nothing but endless woods and mountainsides. I cut through fields of wildflowers, letting my fingers brush along the tops of purple-and-yellow asters. Sam’s voice guides me like a hand over the phone, leading me through a sunlit clearing in the middle of the wood. His voice swells with excitement. It’s the first time I’ve heard him this way since that first phone call.

“I’ve been waiting to show you this forever,” he says.

“But what is it?” I keep asking.

“I told you, it’s a surprise,” he says with a laugh. “You’re almost there.

Keep going.”

Tree trunks thicken as the path he guides me through becomes more wooded and narrower. Rods of sunlight shine at different angles through the high branches. Wildflowers color the ground purple and gold. A breeze blows the low-hanging branches, making their leaves brush gently over my shoulders as I pass beneath them.

“There should be a small creek up ahead,” Sam says. “Once you find this million-year-old log, cross over it and then turn right.”

I can’t believe he can recall all these details. It’s as if he can see it, too.