by Anna Alter
He racked his brain for a reason to cancel. Would she believe he had the flu or that his aunt Doris had dropped by? Then finally, he had it.
Henry climbed up the stairs to the second floor and knocked on Mili’s door. Violet answered. “Hello, Violet. Is Mili home?”
Mili rushed to the door and beamed at Henry. “I was just telling Violet about tomorrow,” said Mili.
“I didn’t realize you had a boat!” said Violet.
“That’s why I’ve come by,” began Henry. “I am really in no condition to go sailing tomorrow. I’ve stubbed my toe badly and can barely walk.” Henry took a few steps to demonstrate. He limped dramatically from his right foot to his left.
“How terrible!” Violet gasped.
“I have just the thing!” cried Mili, opening her hallway closet and digging through some boxes. Pot holders and a dustpan went flying over her shoulder. At last, she came out carrying a set of crutches. “Here you go, Henry! Give these a try. You’ll be good as new in no time.”
“Thank you,” said Henry with a frown. He took the crutches and tottered back to his apartment.
He set the crutches by the door and walked over to his ship once more. Too bad it couldn’t take them anywhere. He picked it up and set it on the sill by the window. Outside, the wind blew leaves across the yard.
There was a knock at the door. Henry opened it to find Mili on the other side.
“I brought you a bowl of soup for lunch,” said Mili, “so that you can stay off your foot.”
“Thank you,” said Henry, looking at the floor. He carried the bowl to his dining room table.
Mili followed him. “You’re not limping anymore,” she cried. “It’s a miracle!”
Henry froze. His cheeks got hot. He had forgotten to limp, and the crutches were across the room. “Um—yes,” coughed Henry, “those crutches really did the trick.”
“I’ll see you bright and early, then!” Mili bounded out of the room, closing the door behind her.
Henry sat down. It would seem that there was no getting out of his promise.
—
He tossed and turned late into the night, dreading the ring of his alarm clock. When it finally came, he was already awake. Henry got dressed and went to the front porch to wait.
When Mili came down, she was wearing a shiny red raincoat and her galoshes. In her paw was a canvas bag filled with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
“Good morning, neighbor!” she chimed. “I could barely sleep, I was so excited about today.”
He put his head in his paws and muttered under his breath, “Mmppfm.”
“What was that?” asked Mili.
“Mfphmm,” said Henry.
Mili furrowed her brow. “I can’t understand a word you’re saying.”
Henry lifted his head and dropped his paws into his lap. “The boat I was telling you about, it is sitting in my window.” He sighed and pointed at the sill.
Mili looked through the glass. She could see the silhouette of the tiny vessel resting proudly on the sill. Then she looked at Henry, who couldn’t look her in the eye.
“Well,” she said at last, “let’s take it out.”
Henry frowned. “What do you mean? It isn’t big enough to carry anyone. It probably doesn’t even float.”
“Come on,” Mili said, waving him inside.
They walked into Henry’s apartment and got the ship. Then Mili led him up the steps to the roof. She set the boat on the ledge and found a picnic blanket to spread on the ground beneath it. She put down her bag and unpacked the sandwiches.
From where they sat, it looked as if the boat was resting on quiet water, floating peacefully in the dark. As the sun began to rise up over the buildings on Sprout Street, its rays burst through the trees, casting long shadows across the yard. Henry held his breath.
When the light reached the ship at last, it lit the sails like a lantern. Soon the entire roof was on fire with the electric yellow light. The boat stood there, regal and aglow, against the big sky.
Henry was quiet. Mili was quiet, too.
Then Henry took a bite of his sandwich. “I’ve never been on a boat,” he admitted, “but I think I know what it feels like to sail out over the water at daybreak. You feel big and small at the same time. Like you’re the only one left in the world.”
“Yes,” said Mili, “just you and your boat.”
“Just you and your boat and a friend,” added Henry.
“Exactly,” said Mili.
Wilbur sat at a table for one in Arlene’s Chinese Garden. Every Friday, he treated himself to lunch at Arlene’s. He liked to relax over a plate of good-luck tofu and gaze out the window at the people walking by.
When he was done with his meal, the waitress brought him the check and a fortune cookie on a little black tray. Wilbur cracked the cookie and pulled the tiny paper fortune from the center. He held it in front of his nose and read it out loud:
“Something wonderful will happen today.”
Wilbur popped a piece of cookie into his mouth. He put the fortune in his pocket, placed some money on the table, and waved goodbye to Arlene.
Outside, his bicycle waited. He unlocked it and climbed onto the seat. Something wonderful seemed just around the corner.
Wilbur watched his friends and neighbors bustle down Elm Street, ringing his bell at them as he passed. Mr. Ashby nodded through the window at the hardware store. Ca-ling! went Wilbur’s bell. When he turned onto Maple Street, Ms. Thornbush waved from Edie’s coffee shop. Ca-ling!
As Wilbur got closer to Sergio’s, he could see a crowd gathering outside. On Friday, Sergio baked fresh bread, and a long line of customers waited to buy it. At the end of the line was a familiar face.
“Afternoon, neighbor!” Henry said, waving. Next to him was his cousin Theodore. “Notice anything different?” Henry put his paws on his hips and stepped forward.
Wilbur slowed his bike to a stop and rested his foot on the sidewalk. He looked Henry up and down. On his feet were a pair of brand-new green suede loafers with a penny in the top.
“Aren’t they elegant?” Henry beamed. “Theodore bought them for me this morning. They were on sale at Emerson’s Shoe Galleria. And they match my wool blazer!”
“Wonderful,” Wilbur offered, giving Henry a pat on the arm. He thought about how nice it would be to have someone buy him a new pair of shoes. Then he reached in his pocket and felt for the fortune. Pushing off the sidewalk, he continued down the street.
As he approached the New Valley Theater, something caught his eye. Outside was a large marquee that read It Takes Two to Tango. Underneath was a poster of a dog and a cat dancing together under a streetlight. He slowed down to take a closer look.
Ca-link-a-link! The front door swung wide, and people streamed out in a cloud of chatter into the bright sun. Two of those people were Violet and Fernando, walking arm in arm, laughing and swinging their jackets.
“Hi, Wilbur!” they called out together.
“You would not believe the play we just saw,” cheered Violet.
“Full of dancing!” cried Fernando. “And the costumes! It was like we traveled around the world and back.”
“We’ll always have New York!” sang Violet. Then they both burst into laughter.
Wilbur didn’t get the joke. “Wonderful,” he said, rubbing his toe on the sidewalk. Though he was beginning to feel a little less wonderful himself. He wondered if he might be the only one spending the day by himself.
Violet and Fernando went to get ice cream, and Wilbur headed home. He pulled up to 24 Sprout Street to find Emma standing with her tai chi class in the yard. They were moving their arms slowly up and down. It looked as though they were dancing to a tune he couldn’t hear.
“Howdy, Wilbur!” shouted Emma from across the lawn.
Wilbur waved, then decided to keep going.
“Wait, I have something to tell you!” she called.
Wilbur pretended not to hear. He was not in the mood to learn about t
he wonderful time his friends were having. Instead, he pedaled down Sprout Street, lost in thought.
He reached the bottom of the street and turned left onto Cedar Hill Road. As he climbed up the hill, he had to stand to push the pedals down. His breath sped up as the bike slowed. He held the handlebars tightly.
At last, the hill became too steep to climb. Wilbur slowed to a stop and got off his bike. He tried to catch his breath. His feet hurt and his legs ached. It did not seem to be such a wonderful day after all. He reached into his pocket for his fortune.
But it wasn’t there. Wilbur reached inside again, feeling around, then tried his back pocket to be sure. The little slip of paper was gone.
SWISH! Just then, a bike whirred down the hill at top speed. The gust sent fur flying into the air and Wilbur backward onto the ground.
The other biker screeched to a stop. She looked over her shoulder, shading her eyes from the sun. “Wilbur?”
“Hello, Mili,” Wilbur said with a nod. He stood up slowly, his legs shaky.
“Wilbur!” Mili cried as she pushed her bike back up the hill. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you there! Are you okay?”
“Yes, I think so,” sighed Wilbur.
“What were you doing on the side of the road?” she asked.
“I was looking for the fortune from my cookie,” said Wilbur. “I seem to have lost it.”
“Then I will help you find it!” said Mili.
“All right,” said Wilbur.
Mili hopped back on her bike. “Let’s retrace your steps.”
They turned around together and coasted down the hill, watching the sidewalk for the missing fortune.
“Where were you last?” she asked as they reached the bottom.
“I came from Maple Street,” he replied.
So the two made their way up Sprout Street, toward Maple. Mili began to sway back and forth on her bike. “Let’s play I Spy!” she called out. “It will help us find what we’re looking for.”
Wilbur didn’t see how that would help, but he was fond of the game. And he was glad to play it with Mili. “Okay,” said Wilbur. “I spy the oak tree.”
Mili looked over at the tree in front of 24 Sprout Street.
Beneath it stood Emma, moving her arms like a bird flapping its wings. “I spy a pigeon,” teased Mili. Wilbur looked at Emma and chuckled.
On the corner of Sprout and Maple stood Henry and Theodore, each holding an armful of baguettes. Wilbur looked at Mili. “I spy my afternoon snack!” said Wilbur. This time, Mili laughed.
As they got closer, Wilbur held out his paw. Henry saw him and nodded, holding out a loaf.
“Thank you!” called Wilbur, snatching it up as they zoomed past. He broke it in half and gave a piece to Mili.
They continued up Maple Street, snacking on the baguette. Soon Violet and Fernando were walking toward them, eating ice cream cones. “I spy dessert,” Mili said with a grin.
“Great minds think alike!” said Wilbur. This time, they stopped, parked their bikes in front of Sergio’s, and got two cones to go.
Back outside, Mili took a bite of her cone. Then she turned to Wilbur. “Do you want to keep looking for your fortune?” she asked.
“That’s okay,” said Wilbur. “I don’t think I need it anymore.”
By the time they got back to Sprout Street, the two were laughing like old friends. They climbed down from their bikes and rested them against the porch, then sat down to finish their cones.
“Wilbur!” shouted Emma, running toward them across the yard. “You dropped something before!” She reached into her pocket and pulled out the fortune, placing it by his feet.
“You found it!” cried Mili.
Wilbur picked it up and read it out loud. “Something wonderful will happen today.”
“Well, did it come true?” asked Emma.
“Yes,” Wilbur said, looking at Mili, “I think it did.”
Mili walked into her living room and set a box down on the sofa. It was the last one to unpack. She had been putting things away in her new home for months, and her apartment felt cozy and full.
She reached for a pair of scissors and cut the tape on the top of the box. As she pulled it open, Mili thought of the day she’d left her island home, far, far away.
The sun had beamed down on her shoulders as she flip-flopped down the sidewalk. The bus to the airport waited at the curb. It was February, but sunny and warm. A soft breeze blew the leaves of the palm trees that lined the street.
It had taken three weeks to pack up all her things and ship them over a wide ocean and across the country to her new home. When the boxes were gone and her apartment was empty, her neighbors came over to say goodbye. They sat on overturned baskets, ate sliced pineapple, and danced under strings of jasmine flowers.
Mili reached into the box and pulled out a red tin wrapped in twine. She tugged the string and opened the creaky top. Inside was a stack of photos. On the top was a picture of Mili surrounded by her old friends. She was wearing a lei around her neck and smiling. On the back, it said, “Bon voyage!” and “We’ll miss you!” and “A hui hou!”
Suddenly Mili’s apartment wasn’t feeling so cozy. It felt cold and empty. Outside, snowflakes fell from a gray sky, making the yard look like the moon. Mili shivered.
She put the photo on her fridge with a magnet. Then she pulled the door open to get a slice of cheese. But her refrigerator was empty.
Mili picked up a shopping bag and walked to her closet. Inside was a thick alpaca sweater. She pulled it over her head. Looking out the window at the sea of snowflakes, she shivered again. “Surely I will freeze with just one sweater,” she thought. So out came a second, which she wrapped around the first. On top she layered a puffy green vest, zipping it tightly over the sweaters.
Waddling to the coat rack, Mili squeezed a thick, fleece-trimmed parka on top of the rest. Around her neck she wrapped a long wool scarf, and finished it all off with a hat knit by her cousin Betsy, two pairs of earmuffs, and some mittens. Mili looked like a small mountain.
She wobbled down the stairway, one step at a time, holding the railing so as not to lose her balance. She was not used to moving underneath so many layers of clothes. At last, she arrived at the front door.
Mili waddled into the cold. As she reached to close the door behind her, a gust of wind knocked her to the floor of the porch, and she rolled back inside like a billiard ball. Mili pulled herself up. This time, she fought the wind with all her might and forced the door shut.
Two figures moved back and forth in the yard. Next to them was a small mound of snow. When the wind died down, Mili made her way toward them.
“Happy New Year!” shouted Wilbur as she got closer. He was patting a handful of snow on the snow mound. His cheeks were rosy, and his breath made little clouds in the air.
“Is that Mili under there?” asked Violet. She put down the snowball she was rolling and squinted in Mill’s direction. “Happy New Year!” she said at last. “Are you coming to my party tonight?”
“Yes, I think so,” said Mili, adjusting her earmuffs. “What are you making?”
“A snow cat!” answered Wilbur with a grin.
“Care to join us?” added Violet.
“No thanks,” said Mili. “I have to go get groceries. Besides, I wouldn’t know how. We don’t have snow like this in Hawaii.” Mili threw her scarf over her shoulder and turned to go.
She made her way across the yard and down the snowy sidewalk toward Maple Street. She lifted each foot high into the air, then dropped it, ka-PLUSH, into the snow ahead. A wobbly trail of footprints spread out behind her, as though a coconut had bounced down the hill.
By the time she made it to Sergio’s, she was huffing and puffing like a steam train. She exhaled little cotton puffs into the great, snowy sky. She stopped to rest.
Above the entrance was a hand-painted sign that read Have a Happy New Year! Mili watched it shift back and forth in the icy wind. She reached for the door.
SPLUSH! A little well of snow that had collected on the sign fell smack on top of her head. It slid slowly down her back and, kush, onto the ground. She was starting to think it would not be such a happy new year.
Inside, the store was full of bundled shoppers filling their carts and leaving snowy trails behind them. Mili walked to the bread aisle and chose a loaf of cinnamon raisin. The chill from outside faded, and it began to heat up inside Mili’s sweaters. She started to roast.
Fanning her face with her shopping list, she bobbed toward the produce section. She had to step very carefully over the slushy pools at her feet.
“Hi, Mili!” cried a voice from behind her. She whipped around to see who it was. Thwish! Her foot sailed through a puddle, then flew straight up into the air. Mili lay in a soggy pile on the floor.
“Are you okay?” asked Emma, running over.
“I think so,” said Mili, her cheeks turning pink. “It’s just that I’m not used to dressing like this. In Hawaii, I wore a sundress all year round.”
“I would like that very much,” said Emma. “I don’t care for the snow.” Emma was stuffed into a parka that reached her ankles and wrapped in a scarf that covered her face up to the nose.
She helped Mili back to her feet, and they shuffled to the register together. Sergio rang them up. Emma took her bag and went to chat with Ms. Bunkerstein by the deli. Mili took hers and headed out the door. It was a world of white.
Mili walked and walked, swinging back and forth on the sidewalk like the pendulum of a clock. Her fingers began to tingle, and little beads of ice formed on her scarf. “I must be close to Sprout Street by now,” she thought. But the street sign wasn’t anywhere to be seen.
