by Nicole Ellis
Sam smiled. “Thanks.” She checked her watch. It had already been thirty minutes since she’d entered the office, and Meg would probably be wondering what had happened to her. To transport everything Sam needed in the dorms, they’d borrowed a minivan from their older sister, Libby, and loaded both the van and Sam’s car to the roof. Meg had remained outside while Sam signed the paperwork for the apartment. “Would it be okay if I wait for Mandy outside? My sister drove up with me to help me move, and I’d like to let her know what’s going on.”
“Sure.” The woman nodded. “Mandy will see you if you wait right outside.”
“Thanks.” Sam twisted the key ring around her fingers, the plastic coil stretching like a Slinky as she pulled at it. The woman returned to her desk and quickly became engrossed in something on her computer.
Sam shaded her eyes from the sun as she exited and scanned the lawn outside of the administration building. Her sister sat at the base of a tall oak tree, her face tipped up toward the sky and her eyes closed.
When Sam had nearly reached the tree, she called out, “Meg?”
Meg’s eyes flew open and she sat forward, her hair catching on the rough bark. “Ouch! That hurt.” She winced and freed her hair, then stood up, rubbing the back of her scalp. “How’d it go?”
Sam shrugged. “Okay, I guess.” She’d kind of expected the woman in the office to be a little more welcoming – not that she’d been terribly unfriendly. “The other housemother is supposed to meet me here to give me a tour of the dormitory.” She glanced back at the building’s entrance and saw a woman about her own age hurrying toward it. “That might be her now.”
They walked in the woman’s direction, Meg several paces ahead of Sam. In her nervousness, Sam’s feet seemed to stick to the lush grass as if she’d walked through thick sap. All around her, multistory brick buildings studded the forested grounds, and she felt like she’d been transported back to college – though she’d graduated many years ago.
Well, she’d wanted a change after breaking up with Brant and losing her job at the local public high school, and now she definitely had one. She took a deep breath and caught up to Meg as they reached the front door. The woman standing there looked up and smiled. “Is one of you Samantha?”
Sam flashed her a grin and stuck out her hand. “I’m Sam, and this is my sister, Meg. She came up today to help me move in.”
“I’m Mandy. Nice to meet you.” She shook Meg’s outstretched hand, then Sam’s, and surprised Sam by giving her a quick hug. “I’m so glad you’re here. Donna had been filling in after the previous housemother left at the end of last year, but she’s pregnant and her doctor wants her on strict bed rest. Her husband is deployed with the Navy, and her baby isn’t due until April, so Drew thought we had a little more time before we’d need to find a replacement.”
Sam nodded. Andrew Hodgins had filled her in a bit on what had happened to her predecessor when she’d interviewed for the position.
“Is she planning on coming back to teach next year?” Meg’s eyes darted toward Sam, then back to Mandy.
Mandy shrugged. She motioned for them to follow her and started walking down a blacktop path that wound its way through the trees. “I think she was, although obviously she wouldn’t be back as a housemother. But, last time I spoke to her, it sounded like she might be having a change of heart. Her husband may be moving on to a new duty station and she wants to spend time with him and the new baby.” She veered off the main walkway and onto another path, which led to a brick building with glass double doors that resembled the dorm Sam had lived in during college.
“It sounds like she has quite a few changes coming up in the near future.” Sam was achingly familiar with how stressful new jobs and living situations could be, but she couldn’t imagine having a newborn on top of that.
Mandy flung open one of the doors and stepped in front of it, gesturing for Meg and Sam to enter. After moving past her, they found themselves in a small lobby with a U-shaped desk against one wall. A girl in her older teens sat behind it, dressed in jeans and a t-shirt and engrossed in a fat textbook. When she saw Mandy, she straightened and smiled at them.
“Hi, Mandy.” The girl’s eyes filled with curiosity as they roved over Meg and Sam. “Is this our new housemother?”
“Yep.” Mandy grinned at her, then pointed to Sam. “This is Samantha Briggs. She’ll be teaching middle-school physical education, in addition to her role as housemother.” She turned to Sam. “This is Ashlynn, one of our upperclassmen.”
Sam gave the girl what she hoped was a warm smile. “Nice to meet you, Ashlynn.”
“You too.” Ashlynn smiled back at her. She cocked her head to the side as she regarded Meg. “Are you a new teacher this year too?”
Meg laughed. “Nope, far from it. I’m Sam’s sister. I came up here to help her move in.”
“That’s nice of you.” Ashlynn looked down at the book in front of her and frowned.
“We’ll let you get back to studying for that chemistry midterm,” Mandy said to her. She led them over to a set of stairs and up to the second floor. At the top, she stopped in front of a door labeled “Housemother” and said, “In the girls dorm, there are housemother apartments on the second and third floors. All of the communal areas are on the first floor, including the lounge, study area, and a small kitchen where the girls are allowed to cook. They’re also permitted to have mini-fridges in their rooms in case they get hungry when the main cafeteria is closed.”
Sam eyed the door. “Is this my apartment?”
“Yep. I’m on the third floor, right above you. Do you have your key?”
Sam fished the key out of her pocket. It turned easily in the lock, and she pushed the door open, butterflies flitting in her stomach. This was going to be her home for the foreseeable future.
The apartment was small, but still bigger than she’d expected. A galley kitchen ran along one wall, complete with an apartment-sized fridge, a two-burner stove with a microwave above it, and a toaster tucked neatly into the corner of the counter.
Sam turned to examine the other side of the room. A double bed and chest of drawers had been placed against the wall on the other side of a half-height partition. An open door revealed a bathroom with a shower, pedestal sink, and toilet. Serviceable, but not luxurious – not that she’d been expecting anything different. All in all, she liked it.
“This is really nice,” Meg said appreciatively as she peered out one of the four wide windows along the exterior wall.
“It is,” Sam agreed. “I like how light it is.” The row of windows let a lot of natural light into the space – although if she ever planned to sleep in on the weekends, she hoped the blinds would block out some of the brightness.
Mandy leaned against the door frame, letting the two of them check out the apartment. When they’d finished the tour of the small space, she asked, “Would you like me to show you around the rest of the dorm and campus now, or would you prefer to get settled in first?”
Meg checked her watch, and Sam remembered her sister saying she’d wanted to be back to the Inn at Willa Bay by early afternoon to help out with an event.
“I think it would be best to move my stuff in first. Can I take a raincheck on the campus tour?”
“Of course,” Mandy said brightly. “How about I stop by your room at five-thirty tonight? We can go to dinner together and I can fill you in on what you need to know about being a housemother.”
“Sounds good.” Sam smiled at her. She appreciated the warmth and kindness Mandy exhibited, and she had a feeling they were going to be good friends. It was reassuring to already have that positive connection as she started her new life at the school.
“Do you need help moving in?” Mandy asked, then glanced furtively at the round analog clock on the wall.
Sam looked to Meg to see what her sister thought, but Meg just shrugged.
Sam smiled at Mandy. “I think we’re good, but thank you.” She’d just met Man
dy and didn’t want to take up all of her time. Besides, with Meg’s help, it wouldn’t take too long to unload everything.
Mandy seemed relieved. “Okay, then. I’ll see you in a bit for dinner.” She turned to Meg. “It was nice to meet you.”
“You too,” Meg said.
Mandy left, and Sam took a closer look at the room. The decor was plain, but a colorful bedspread and a few pictures on the wall would jazz it up quite a bit. Maybe she’d even buy a new rug to cover up some of the tiled flooring. High-pitched voices floated up the stairwell, and Sam was thankful that Mandy had closed the door behind her. As much as she was looking forward to meeting all of the girls over the next few days, she wanted to get settled into her new place first.
When the girls had passed, Meg asked, “Are you ready to start moving things in?”
Sam took another look around the barren room. With any luck, it would soon look like home. “I think so.”
When they were back in the parking lot, Meg unlocked the minivan and slid the side door open, blinking at the contents as though it was the first time she’d seen them. “How do you even have this much stuff?”
“I’m not sure.” Sam had left most of her furniture in a storage unit in Willa Bay, but she’d brought her own nightstand, table lamp, and her favorite reading chair. “It didn’t seem like so much when it was in my apartment.”
“Is it all going to fit?” Meg eyed the furniture and boxes doubtfully.
“I hope so.” Sam bit her lip as she stared at the vehicle.
She’d been trying to keep a positive attitude about the big changes in her life, but so much change at once was making her head spin. Even finding a new teaching position at Bayside Prep had been a shock. She’d cast a wide net with her job applications, never expecting to be hired at a private school. She had more experience with high school students, but now she’d primarily be teaching middle schoolers, and in her role as housemother in the girls dormitory, she’d be responsible for girls as young as eight.
“You okay?” Meg peered at her.
Sam shook her head yes, then no. “I don’t know.”
Meg stepped closer. “What’s wrong? Is it nerves? This must be a big change for you.”
“It is.” Sam took a deep breath and met Meg’s gaze. “What if I’m not good with the younger kids?” She’d always been able to develop a good rapport with her high school students, but little kids were a whole different ballgame.
“What do you mean?” Meg tilted her head to the side. “You’re great with Libby’s kids. They adore you.”
“That’s not the same thing. I’ve known them since they were babies.” Sam pressed her lips together so tightly that they ached. She’d tried to suppress her fears that this wouldn’t be the right job for her, because she didn’t have any other career prospects. It wasn’t that she disliked the idea of working at the private school, but her role would be so different than what she was used to. As a housemother, she’d be responsible for not only educating her students, but attending to their social and emotional needs as well. In the last few months, Sam’s own life had exploded – was she really equipped to offer advice or assistance to others?
“You’re going to be fine,” Meg said firmly. “You’ve always known the right thing to say to every kid you’ve met, even the ornery teenagers. I have no doubts in your ability to do the same here.”
Sam looked at a group of both male and female students sitting on the grass about twenty yards away. “I hope so.”
“I know so.” Meg gave her a quick hug. When she released Sam, she scowled into the van. “Now let’s get everything unloaded before we get a ticket for parking illegally.” She shook her head. “I swear I’ve seen about twenty signs since we got here about needing a parking permit.”
Sam laughed and relaxed a little. “I totally forgot to bring the permit for my car out with us, but I’m sure we’re fine for a bit. Anyone who looks in the van or my car will realize someone is moving in.”
“I hope so.” Meg winked at her. “I’d hate to tell Libby she was banned from visiting you because of unpaid parking tickets.”
Sam’s eyes widened. “She’d be so mad!”
“I know.” Meg shot her a wicked grin. “It would almost be worth it to get a ticket and leave it in the van, just to see her face.”
They both chuckled at the idea, then began unloading Sam’s furniture. It took the two of them about an hour to carry the rest of her belongings up to her room, mainly because they weren’t able to park very close to the building.
When they’d moved the last load, Sam followed Meg back to Libby’s van. “Meg?”
Her sister withdrew the car key from her pocket and looked up at Sam. “Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
“Of course.” Meg gave her a genuine smile. “I’m always here for you. Although, I do have to say that I hope you keep this job for a while so we don’t have to move it all again in a few months.”
Sam screwed up her face. “I hope I don’t have to move anytime soon either.” She locked eyes with Meg. “But I wanted to thank you for helping me move – and for calming me down. I guess I hadn’t realized how stressed I was about this job until today, when it all became very real.”
Meg nodded. “You seemed excited about it before, and I think you’ll feel that way again once you get used to living here.” She hugged Sam tightly, then held up the key fob. “Now, I’d better get going before I find myself in trouble with Zoe for missing what Shawn refers to as our ‘pre-event formation’.” She made air quotes around the latter and gave Sam a wry grin before getting into the driver’s seat.
After her sister had carefully edged the minivan out of the parking spot and maneuvered it onto the main street, Sam hung the forest-green parking tag on the rearview mirror of her own car. She stared at the tag for a minute, reading the text on the front of it. Staff. She was the newest staff member of Bayside Prep, whether she felt ready for it or not.
3
Cassie
“This looks like one in Minecraft!” Ten-year-old Jace’s face lit up as he studied the square-shaped pumpkin he held in his arms.
Cassie took one look at it and burst into laughter. “You’re right, it does.” They’d been in the pumpkin patch for only a few minutes and, somehow, her son had homed in on one that resembled something from his favorite video game. Her eleven-year-old daughter, Amanda, had wandered about twenty feet away to search for the perfect pumpkin to carve with her friends.
“Can I get it?” Jace looked hopefully at his parents.
“Sure. I think that one is a good choice.” Cassie’s ex-husband, Kyle, reached his hand out toward their son. Jace handed the pumpkin to him as carefully as though it were made out of glass. Kyle set it gently inside the plastic bag they’d brought to carry their squashes out of the muddy field.
Cassie aimed her phone camera at them and snapped a photo of the exchange. Her heart filled with happiness as she watched them. Although she and Kyle had been divorced for several years, due to the two of them growing apart and Kyle’s almost obsessive focus on his work as a CPA at a local accounting firm, they’d recently rekindled their romance and had been working on becoming a family again.
Her mood darkened as negative thoughts crept in. Things with Kyle had been good – maybe too good. Lately, he’d been focusing on her and the kids rather than work, and she’d been the happiest she could remember in a long time. But a small part of her held back, as though waiting for the other shoe to drop. What if Kyle couldn’t keep up his devotion to his family, and he went back to his old ways?
She shook her head. If she wanted to move forward, she couldn’t dwell on such concerns. Kyle was trying hard now, and that was what counted – and what she and the kids needed.
Cassie glanced at Amanda, who was busy turning over yet another pumpkin to evaluate its worthiness for carving into a masterpiece. “Amanda!” Cassie called out. “How are you doing over there?” As their daughter entered her pr
eteen years, they’d been trying to encourage her sense of independence. Cassie didn’t want to intrude on her selection process unless she was needed – but she didn’t want to be out here forever either.
Amanda’s head bobbed up and she squinted at her mom. “I can’t find the perfect pumpkin.” Her voice held a hint of whininess and Cassie pursed her lips. She could already tell the teenage years were going to be challenging.
Nevertheless, Cassie forced her pursed lips into a smile. “Okay, you can have a few more minutes, but the rest of us have found ours and are ready to head into the warming hut for some apple cider and treats.”
Amanda nodded and wandered a few more feet before rolling another pumpkin on its side to assess it.
“Is she done yet?” Jace asked. “I’m getting hungry.”
Cassie yawned. “Not yet.” Although she’d recently hired someone to help her at the Sea Star Bakery, the business she’d owned since June, she’d risen before the crack of dawn that morning to start the day’s baking. On normal work days, she’d gotten into the habit of taking a short nap after her assistant arrived in the middle of the afternoon, which helped her conserve enough energy to get through the rest of a long day at work, followed by making dinner, helping with homework, and getting the kids to bed. However, with the exception of this morning’s baking, she had today off, and wouldn’t have time for a nap – but it was worth it to have a whole day with her family.
Coffee. That’s what she needed. A jumbo-sized cup of coffee to go along with an apple cider donut.
“I found it!” Amanda sang out. Her boots made sucking sounds as she slogged through the mud back to where the rest of the family was standing. When she was close to them, she held it up. “See? Isn’t it perfect?”
Cassie nodded solemnly. She definitely wasn’t going to mention anything about the odd splash of green on the back of the otherwise well-shaped pumpkin. Besides, once it was carved and on their porch, no one would see its imperfection. Kyle helped Amanda place the pumpkin into a plastic bag. She twisted the bag’s handles until it resembled a gray, upside-down balloon.
