Sam was at the store with his mom standing in the line, inspecting the different flavours of gum when he heard strange voices coming from the family standing two places behind them in line. Sam turned around inconspicously to catch a glimpse of the odd sounding people. There was a mother and a father and a little boy that looked younger than Sam. A lot younger, maybe he was four years old like Sam's cousin. Sam tugged gently on his mother's sleeve.
"Mom, why do those people sound funny?" Sam asked quietly, gesturing towards the family. Sam's mother glanced over his shoulder to see what Sam was talking about.
"Ah, they're probably not from America, Sam. They have an accent from where they used to live. Ireland, maybe." Sam considered this.
"The boy looks lonely." Sam finally whispered.
"Maybe he misses home." Sam mother suggested as she paid for the purchases. Sam looked back at the family one last time before leaving the store.
Sam was playing at the park the next day. His house was right by the park, so he was allowed to go there alone as long as he came home in time for supper. Sam looked up from where he was digging a hole in the sand to see a family of three walking up the path. Sam looked back down at his hole, not really paying attention to the newcomers until he felt someone looking at him. Sam looked up to see a pair of bright blue eyes staring at him. Blushing, the other boy looked away. Sam watched as the boy walked across the sand and carefully selected a patch of sand about five feet away. Sam resumed to his work, busily digging. He only looked up again as he felt the other boy staring at him again. Sam cocked his head at the smaller boy.
"Do you want to help?" Sam offered. The smaller boy looked surprised at the offer, but nonetheless accepted.
"I'm Sam." Sam announced. "What's your name?"
"Rory." the other boy said cautiously, not quite sure what to think of the blonde boy.
"Rory? Is that how you say it?" Sam said. Rory shrugged a shoulder. It wasn't quite right the way Sam said it, but it sounded cool.
"Rory." Sam repeated. "I like it." he decided. Rory cracked a toothy smile, immediately feeling less guarded around this American boy. The two boys messed around in the sand a bit, digging holes and making piles of sand. Eventually, Sam got a little bored and stood up, brushing the sand off his pants.
"Want to go play on the slide?" Sam asked, grabbing Rory's hand. Rory followed the older boy around the playground for another hour as Sam showed him his favourite swing and the best slide. It was almost supertime when Rory's parents called told them Rory had to leave. Sam pouted slightly.
"Aw, we were having fun, right?" Sam hugged Rory. "Are you coming back tomorrow, Rory?" he asked eagerly.
"No, sorry Sam." Rory said disappointedly. "We're going back to Ireland tomorrow."
"What? We were going to be best friends!" Sam exclaimed sadly. Rory nodded in agreement.
"Maybe I'll come back to visit." Rory suggested as his parents led him away.
"Yes! Come back and visit! Visit my house! It's that blue one over there!" Sam pointed towards a blue house that backed the park.
"Okay. Bye!" Rory called.
"Bye!"
*** Eleven Years Later***
"Mr. Pierce? I was wondering whether you could give me a ride to Carmel." Rory asked hesitantly. "I want to visit a friend I haven't seen for a while. You know, reconnect." Brittany's dad smiled.
"Sure thing, Rory. And for the last time, please call me Derek."
Rory thanked him before slipping his shoes on. Closing his eyes slightly, he pictured the park and the blue house and the blonde boy named Sam.
"So, Rory." Mr. Pierce looked over at the Irish boy sitting next to him, hands folded in his lap and blue eyes downcast. "Where do you know this friend from?"
Rory looked up his hands. "Well... we met when about ten years ago, when we were six or seven years old." Rory said simply. Mr. Pierce raised his eyebrow at Rory.
"So... why have you decided to meet him now?" he prodded, very curious. Rory shrugged, staring out the window.
"I'm not sure. We weren't very close before..." Rory trailed off. Mr. Pierce glanced at Rory again but didn't pursue the topic. Rory appreciated it, leaning back in his chair.
Why had he decided to meet him now? Why had he suddenly wanted to meet with his childhood aquaintance? A childhood friend that he had met once and never seen again. Sam had probably forgotten about him by now anyway. Is it too late to ask Mr. Pierce to turn back? Why on Earth had he thought this was a good idea?Rory had half the mind to ask Mr. Pierce to turn back to Lima when Mr. Pierce pulled the car over to the side of the street.
"Here we are, Rory." Mr. Pierce gestured at the park. Rory brought his head up to see the park, just as he remembered. The same slide and swings and sandbox. The left swing squeaks, Rory recalled Sam telling him seriously. Rory climbed out of the car slowly, walking towards the sandbox. He closed his eyes, picturing Sam's finger pointing towards a blue house. Rory found the house quickly and ran up to the driveway. He slowed down before walking up to the door, only hesitating for a couple moments before ringing the doorbell. Exactly eleven seconds later, a Chinese woman opened the door. Rory was surprised but quickly regained his composure.
"Hello, my name is Rory. Is Sam here?" Rory asked politely, wondering if he had gotten the wrong house.
The woman shook her head. "Sorry, Rory. Sam doesn't live here. Do you know his last name? Maybe he lives on this street."
Rory paused, realizing he didn't know anything about Sam. "Um... I don't know what his last name is," Rory confessed. "He's blonde haired... um... yeah." Rory fumbled. "I met him when I was young, see?"
The woman smiled. "Ah, well, I moved into this house just over a year ago, and a nice family lived here before. All blonde haired. They had a son that looked slightly older than you." she told Rory. Rory nodded.
"So I guess they don't live around here anymore, huh?" Rory said embarrassedly.
"Do you want me to get you their new address? I have it around here... somewhere..." the woman frowned. Rory shook his head quickly and backed away from the door.
"It's fine, thank you m'am. Sorry I bothered you. Have a good day!" The two said their goodbyes and Rory made his way back to the waiting car.
"He isn't home?" Mr. Pierce asked as Rory climbed back into the seat.
"Nope. It's okay though." Rory told Mr. Pierce as they drove back home. This is the way it should be. Rory thought. It saved me the embarrassment of talking to a person who probably forgot about me a long time ago. Still, Rory couldn't help feeling sad, like he had lost a friend. He longed for the reassuring smile of the boy who had been so nice to him the last time Rory came to America.
As they pulled up onto the driveway, Rory pushed the thoughts of Sam to the back of his mind, trying to forget about him. And it kind of worked.
***In Glee Club the next day***
Rory was sitting on the chair with Kurt when Finn walked into the room.
"Not if I can help it!" a new voice spoke up.
Rory looked up to see a blonde haired boy walk into the choir room behind Finn. The room erupted in cheers and shouts as Mike sprinted into a hug with the newcomer, knocking his chair over in the process. All the older Glee Club students joined suit, greeting the blonde with thumps on the back and tight hugs. Rory got out of his chair as well to join the excitement.
"Who is that?" he asked Kurt.
"His name is Sam Evans." Kurt told him, smiling. Rory nodded and turned back to look at Sam. Their eyes met and Sam smiled briefly before turning back to Quinn and Tina. Suddenly, Rory realized where he had seen that smile before- back in the park ten years ago.
Wait... Sam?