I didn't know how... but it felt like the stars were telling me that Sam would show up. I wasn't doing anything different, just casting my line over and over off the pier by Willy's shop... but I looked up at the stars and my heart got the feeling only that golden-haired skater boi could give it.

And what did I hear maybe an hour later... but familiar footsteps on the wood around the corner?

"Hey," said Sam as he rounded the corner. "Seb and Abigail are doing their own thing at Seb's house, so I'm all alone."

"And I'm the only one to talk to, right?" I joked... at least partly.

"W-Well, I mean..." Sam replied, sitting down beside me. "Yeah, but, like... i-it's not like I had no choice or something like that! I-I like talking to you!"

"It's okay, it's okay," I laughed. "I'm glad you're here!"

His face was kinda red. I tried not to let it get to me.

"So how's your day been?" I asked.

"...Exhausting," he sighed. "Geez, I hate it at JojaMart. I got yelled at today because I wasn't scanning items fast enough. I'm sorry I haven't memorized where barcodes are on every single item in the world! I swear, we're just slaves who just so happen to be getting paid! If there was literally any other way I could make money in this town, I'd do it, no questions asked."

"Damn..." I said. "I'm sorry you gotta go through that."

"...You've been through it, too, haven't you?" he asked. "You worked in corporate, right?"

Since I'd stepped foot in my house here for the first time, my time with Joja had been a complete blur. No kidding, I pretty much forgot it had happened.

"Yup," I remembered aloud. "Just trapped in a gray metal box. No mental stimulation but the sound of typing and phone calls all around me, just... pushing buttons that didn't mean anything."

"Wow, poetic," he replied.

"Well, it's true," I shrugged.

I then felt a bite on my line and proceeded to reel in an anchovy.

As I was putting it away, Sam said something that honestly threw me for a bit of a loop.

"Sometimes, it feels like I'm the only one who doesn't have my life together."

His voice was laced with enough sadness for my heart to hurt a little. Was everything okay?

I looked at him, giving him my full attention, and asked "What do you mean?"

"I feel like everyone else has got something going for them," Sam continued. "Sebastian's got the programming talent to develop Game of the Year someday, Abigail's taking online classes to further her education... Elliott's gonna be an award-winning author, Alex is gonna win all sorts of gridball bowls, Leah's gonna have her art in all sorts of museums..."

"You're an up-and-coming musician, right?" I said. "I think you and your band are going to find the people that love your music and make a name for yourselves."

"I gotta admit, I sometimes get some doubt about even that," he said. "Some days... I just don't feel the drive to make music. But if not that, then what? What do I have going for me? What am I doing with my life?"

In the effort to think of a way to bring Sam some comfort, it hit me.

What did I have going for me?

I'd gone to school for one thing, was doing another thing by the time I'd dropped out, pushed buttons in a gray metal enclosure thinking that was all I had going for me... and thinking of nothing but the present, I'd moved here. But now that I was here, established and welcomed... now what? Was my future... going to be any different from the present? Was I going to go fishing every day for the rest of my life?

I only knew one thing for sure, and I told Sam about it.

"Society sort of sets this obligation for us to know what our future's going to look like," I said. "To have a grandiose goal, to put ourselves to use. I've put the same sort of pressure on myself, too... despite telling others not to worry about it. Heh, how hypocritical, right? But... it's seriously okay to not always have a long-term goal. Besides... if you force yourself to achieve some kind of future... you won't really be happy with that future. That future will be filled with goals you only achieved because you forced yourself to."

I went quiet, realizing I was rambling. There was silence between us for a good ten seconds.

Finally, Sam said "I... never thought about it like that."

"I hate to say to wait for stuff to happen, but... the future you'll be happy with is one that'll come to mind naturally," I said. "And... that's really all I know. And if it makes you feel better... I've got no clue what the fuck I'm doing with my life, either."

"Really?" Sam asked, quickly aiming his gaze from the water to me as if I'd shocked him.

"Really," I shrugged. "I haven't really thought about the future since I started college. Well, more accurately, maybe it was when I applied for Joja... thinking their company was all I had going for me. Since moving here, I've only thought about making my present as joyful as possible."

I then realized I was wrong. There was one type of future I thought about constantly. He was sitting right beside me. Not that I wanted to place the stock of my future solely into another human, but... I had to admit, it was true.

"I mean, I guess I've got a bucket list," I continued. "But as far as a career goes... I got nothing."

"And here I thought you'd be the source of most of Pelican Town's food or something," said Sam.

...Was he on to something?

"But... whatever you do in the future..." he continued. "...You're gonna be amazing at it."

"I..." I replied, quite honestly floored. "You think so?"

"Yeah, I do," Sam nodded.

"...I think that's the best compliment I've ever received," I joked. At least, I thought it was a joke.

Then, another bite on my line. We were both silent as I reeled in some seaweed.

"And..." he started to say as I threw the seaweed back. "...Ah... never mind."

"Hm?" I replied reflexively.

"...I was just gonna say something super cheesy," he explained.

"I love cheesy," I said without thinking.

I silently realized what I'd just said and reeled in embarassment. As I did so, Sam gave me a look as if he was contemplating going ahead with what he was going to say. His face was still tinted with a bit of pink.

Then, go ahead with what he was going to say, he did.

"If you go out and do amazing things... don't forget about me. Er, us."

That had to have been the sincerest request... no, plea... Sam had ever given me. He was staring down at the water again, his hands in his lap and his face now redder than before, as if he thought so, too.

Had... Had someone forgotten about him? If so, I hoped karma would bite them in the ass.

Either way, though, I told him what I knew to be true. I also set my pole off to the side so my arms would be free.

"If I'm going to be honest, you've been one of the best parts of life here," I said. I knew it bordered on forward, but it wasn't enough to where I immediately cared. "I'm never going to forget how much more peaceful you make fishing. Or how you made sure I wouldn't feel unwelcome when I arrived here. Life here wouldn't have been quite the same without you... and forgetting that would be like forgetting my own name."

My confidence then ran dry, and I shuddered from how forward that all was. In an effort to move on from it, I quickly picked my pole back up and dropped the line right in front of me.

As soon as I did, though, I noticed that Sam was now looking at me. With a smile.

After a few seconds, though, he said a sincere "Thank you."

"No," I said. "Thank you."

Then, something bit at my line pretty hard. It pulled the line both left and right, and when I reeled it up to the surface of the water, its final little fight created splashes so intense that specks of water landed on both our faces.

I reeled up a super cucumber.

"Woah!" I reacted. "Have I gotten one of these before?"

"I dunno," said Sam. "But it's cool-looking. What is it?"

"A super cucumber," I answered. "It's a type of sea cucumber. Damn... I don't know if I want to sell it. Maybe I'll keep it as a pet."

"Yeah, keep it," he agreed excitedly.

So I put it in the bucket of water I'd brought. But now I'd have to do research on how to keep a super cucumber alive.