Company

Beautiful Samantha was a very lonely 60-year-old. She had never married and was without any children. Being so alone like this made her very depressed. She wanted to have some more company in her life rather than the little dust bunnies underneath her bed and placed upon her lampshade. The little clumps of dust made her lamp light dimmer. Samantha still did not count these cute, little balls of fluffy dust as company. That little spot of comfort that company provided was missing. That was part of the sadness in her heart.

Something was keeping her going. Yet, she did not know what it was. It was in the back of her mind just waiting to be set free.

These days of being alone made the time go by very slowly. Almost as if every second was to last for minutes.

She spent most of her time stuck up on her chair watching as the birds landed on her windowsill. The fat little robins stared at her with what looked like sympathy. Even they had their mates and baby birds. She wanted that. (The company of children and a husband. Not baby birds. Although it might be fascinating to own such an adorable baby creature.)

The very few times when she would actually be happy was when she found out her milk was not yet expired. Samantha often thought that her “non-expired milk stories” would definitely not be a great story to tell her grandchildren. If she even had any.

Samantha realized that only the best years of her life went by the fastest. This was not that time. No, the best years of her life were her high school, West Mania High School. 

She knew almost everyone and almost everyone knew her. She was at the top of all of her classes a made it into the decathlon. She even won a couple of years! Yes, those were the days that brought her the greatest of smiles, the biggest of laughs, and the largest part of joy. When Samantha was around 15, she met someone who made her one of the happiest people in her whole entire high school. Her first and last partner. She couldn’t remember his name, though. They would do everything together. She eventually forgot how they got out of touch, and memories fade just as well as friendships. Even the best of them. She hadn’t moved on from him and she had never found love again.

After high school of course came college. She had just made it into the University of New York. Samantha wanted to be a teacher at West Mania but since her father and mother were both successful businesspeople, there wasn’t really any point in trying to earn more money. So when both of her parents recently passed away, she was left with their house and most of their money. Having so much money, she decided not to work at all. This is part of what was making her life not very exciting at all. At least something to keep her occupied. 

She was thinking about making her life different. Or more interesting to put it in more realistic words. She wanted to get a cat. Only one. She did not want to be seen as a lonely, boring, crazy cat lady. There were enough of those in her neighborhood. Just one cat would do the trick of adding some “spice” into her life. Maybe having to take care of something would make time go by faster. Might it make those minutes actually feel like minutes? 

Should she get a friendly feline?

Will she ever have any more company than pesky, little bunnies of dust?

Should she buy more non-expired milk?

Will she find the thing she has been looking for and actually know what it is?

These were the questions that overwhelmed her day by day. 

Samantha finally decided. She was going to get a cat. Just one, and only one. She thought that she should try it out for a little while, and just see what would happen. And that is what she did. She went to the local pet store to pick up a light gray tabby.

She picked out just the right kitten. Tiny and sweet. Exactly the way she wanted. She had pondered about it for a while, and she decided to name her kitten later. Once they got to know each other better. 

The manager she found, was a tall, old man. With gray hair and a fairly average body. To Samantha’s old mind, he looked somewhat familiar. Like someone,  she used to know.

“Excuse me, sir,” Samantha said to the man, “ where can I sign the paperwork to adopt this kitten?”

“Right over here, Miss.” The manager said to her, “I just have a few questions to ask you.”

Samantha became very worried. She was not what one might call a “people person”. She often got very nervous when questions were asked of her.

“Okay, then” Samantha nervously responded.

“What is your birthdate?” He asked

“March 19th, 1958,” She said.

“I was also born in March of ‘58. The 7th I believe” He said

“That date sounds very familiar,” Samantha said in a very curious tone.

“Huh. Interesting.” He said. 

Silence. There was a long, awkward pause in the room. They could hear the clock ticking. But not in the way she usually heard it. It didn’t feel like minutes passed between each one. They felt like seconds. Actual seconds. Time felt like it went by faster in this area. 

“Back to the questions.” The man said. “What is your legal name?”

“Samantha Louise Baker”

“Hello, Samantha, I am Keith Campbell.”

“Next question. What will the kitten’s name be?”

Samantha paused. “I haven’t decided yet. I want to get to know her better.”

“Oh! Okay then.” He said with a shocked look on his face. “I have never heard anyone say that before. You know, usually, they just name them right off the bat. Snowflake, Potato, all of the generic names. But I have never heard that before. You actually want to get to know her before you name ‘er. To understand her personality. That is very nice.”

She blushed. “Thank you.”

“Well, that about wraps it up! Great job.” The old man said to her.

Samantha paid her dues for the new pet, got her carrier, and rushed out the door with kitten in hand.

When she got home, she went straight up to her attic. Maybe she would find something to entertain her new kitten with. She came across an old box marked “OLD STUFF”. She thought that there might be some old toys or something to keep her cat happy. Inside the box, she found her old high school yearbook. She picked it up and brushed off layers of dust. It was titled

              WEST MANIA HIGH SCHOOL

                                            Class of 1976

She randomly flipped open the book and it landed on the “K”s. She turned the pages looking through all of the names and faces. All of the memories came back to her. She stopped. She saw the name. She found it! She found what she was looking for!

She ran back to the pet store to see the manager.

“Keith! It is me! Sam Baker!” She said to the man.

The manager walked out of his office to see Samantha entirely out of breath. Panting.

“Sam Baker, is it?” Keith said.

“Yes! Do you remember me?”

“Yeah, of course. You were the one who purchased that gray tabby.”

Samantha’s shoulders sank. “No, from high school!”

“I do not remember you.” Keith was starting to look uncomfortable in the conversation.

“Oh. I guess I will be going now.” She said.

She walked out of the store and back to her home, to see her yearbook on the ground.

Bing! She had an idea.

The next day, she went back to the pet store. Yet again. Bringing her yearbook.

“Here! Look! Here is our high school yearbook!” Samantha flipped through the pages until she landed on the “S”s. “See? Here I am! Sam Baker! Then she flipped through the pages again until she landed on the “K”s. “And here you are! Keith Campbell! Now, do you remember me?

“Sam Baker, is it really you? Really?” Keith said.

“Yes! That is me!” Her face finally came into what she hadn’t done for a while. Samantha Louise Baker actually smiled!

Keith stared at her in surprise as well. His smile slowly got larger and larger too.

They spent the rest of the day catching up, remembering people and teachers. Laughing non-stop. Once they were done, Keith walked Samantha back home.

They said their goodbyes and promised they would meet each other again. When she closed the door, she sighed with the biggest sigh of relief she had ever.

Fast forward 10 years.

Samantha's dress was long, white, and absolutely stunning. Her hair had flowers all over it in many different colors. She was loving it. The vineyard was covered in white and pink roses, and people were all dressed up. For her wedding day. 

She was very nervous. She had never been married before. Her cat, which she still hadn’t named yet, was right next to her at the wedding. Even she looked nervous. 

Keith on the other hand, the groom, was almost entirely calm. His black tuxedo was shiny and had no wrinkles. He was waiting underneath the arbor with the pastor next to him.

Samantha walked down the aisle with her long, white dress trailing behind her. It was one of the happiest moments of her life. She was not going to waste it.

She made it to the arbor and saw the pastor and her fiance waiting there. 

“In the name of God, do you, Keith Campbell take you, Samantha Baker, to be your wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until parted by death?” The pastor asked.

“I do,” Keith said.

“And you, in the name of God, do you, Samantha Baker take you, Keith Campbell, to be your husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish, until parted by death?

“I do,” Samantha responded.

“I may now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”

At that moment, Samantha realized what she was missing about being alone. Hope. Now she had it. What she was missing all along.

Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.

-Dale Carnegie