Keller and Callahan

Chapter 8

Tap.

Olivia sank lower into her bed subconsciously as the slight noise outside caused her to stir. She had just slid into sleep not too long ago, her conversation with Sam the other day in the Rec Center replaying over in her mind. It broke her heart that Sam didn’t think he could make more of himself. He had worked so hard over the years and deserved to get a degree in a field he was passionate about. She only hoped that him staying here at the campground would make him happy, because of all the people that deserved happiness, it was Sam Callahan.

Tap.

Shooting one eye open, she waited to see if she were dreaming the sound.

Tap.

Ok, she was definitely NOT imagining the sound. It was coming from her second story bedroom window. Throwing the blankets to the side, she hopped out of bed and cautiously peeked out. She didn’t realize she had been holding her breath until a huge whoosh of air released from her lungs.

“Sam! What the hell are you doing here?” She whispered as she threw open the window.

“Can I come up?” He answered back, ignoring her question.

“Yeah, but my dad will kill us if we get caught.”

“I’ll take my chances,” he deadpanned as he started climbing the trellis that ran alongside the house. He scaled the building in no time, and seconds later he agilely hopped into her room.

Instantly noticing Sam’s puffy face and the blood on his shirt, she rushed to his side. “Oh my God. What happened to you? Let me get some ice.”

“I’m fine, no ice necessary,” he said as he gently lowered himself onto her bed.

This wasn’t the first time he had been in Olivia’s room, he’d been in here countless times, but tonight was the first time he’d been in here after dark, and seeing her bedsheets strewn about, it somehow felt sacred and caused a stirring deep in his belly.

“BS. You look like Bozo the Clown with those lips. I’ll be right back.”

She slipped out of the room silently, and Sam took the moment to catch his breath. He hated himself that he had come to her, to soil her with his dirtiness and problems. A person that was so full of light and goodness like Olivia deserved to sleep dreamlessly in this cozy bed, without being woken up in the middle of the night with the heaviness that Sam always seemed to carry around him. But he couldn’t help it. She was his safe haven. She always had been.

Olivia was back a couple moments later carrying a pack of frozen peas wrapped in a towel and a glass of water. Holding them both out to him, her eyes inspected his face in closer detail, shifting from one injury to the other. Despite the darkness of her bedroom, she could easily see that his face had been battered by someone who was full of rage. He was a bloody mess. His eye was already starting to swell, blood was flowing from his nose, and his lip was split on the left side where blood was trickling slowly down his chin.

Reaching for the glass, Sam fixed his eyes on the window trying to avert Olivia’s scrutiny, knowing what would be written all over her face. Her beautiful blue eyes were wide as she bit down on her lower lip to stop it from trembling so he wouldn’t see. Sam noticed the conflict in her, seeing her want to be the source of strength for him, mixed with the raw need to weep.

“Thanks,” he said after downing the water as he gingerly held the peas to his face. “Don’t tell anyone about this Liv, not very ‘solid-I’ll-save-you-I’m-a-lifeguard-like.” He attempted a half smile but grimaced through the pain shooting through his lip.

“Sam, who did this to you?” Olivia whispered as she sat down gently beside him.

When he didn’t answer, she reached out to him and linked her fingers through his hand that was laying in his lap while the other held the peas.

“Was it your dad?” Sam nodded his head ever so slightly, communicating to Olivia what she already knew.

She squeezed his hand tighter and sat there in silence with him. The scars of the beating were evident right there on Sam’s body, but they also seared inside his heart. Those scars would remain long after the bruising on his face was healed. There was a sadness in his eyes, a heaviness that weighed him down, robbing him of his usual easy smile and carefree attitude. The knowledge that his own father could do such a thing to his own son broke something inside of her. A sudden flash of gratitude for her own father washed over her before she refocused all of her attention back on Sam.

Feeling the rage bubble up inside her, she willed herself to keep her emotions under control. She knew that she had to be strong for him, to let him know that he was safe with her. She felt her anger being pulled taut like a rubber band and instead of letting it snap and unleash, she did her best to loosen it, to show Sam that she could handle this.

“Sam, I’m so sorry. I know that doesn’t make it any better, but you do not deserve this. It kills me to see what you have to go through.” She started to gently caress her thumb back and forth over his knuckles in an effort to soothe.

“I’m sorry for coming in the middle of the night, I just felt like I had nowhere else to go, and no one else I wanted to be around.” He hung his head in shame, and looked out the window so she wouldn’t see the anguish in his eyes.

“You can always come here. You know this place is your home.”

They sat in silence for a few more minutes, neither knowing what to say. As much as Sam wanted to shield Olivia from the ugliness, the strength of her hand clutching tightly to his, he felt as if she was the one piece that was holding him together.

“This was the first and only place that has ever felt safe to me. And I’m pretty sure it has nothing to do with the campground but everything to do with you,” he said so softly Olivia had to lean in closer to hear him. “Even floating in the middle of the lake, not knowing how to swim, I felt safe because you were there. You have been the only safe haven I have ever had. And I hate that I’m bringing you into my darkness.”

“Sam. Before we even met, I had an idea of what your background was, what kind of life you must be living but I didn’t care. I knew just looking in your eyes that you weren’t dark, all I ever saw was goodness. Never apologize for your circumstances, because it’s not your fault. And I don’t care about any of it. All I care about is you, and I’m worried about you.”

“But that’s the thing,” Sam exasperated as he stood up and started to pace her room. “I don’t want you to worry. You shouldn’t be sucked into my shit. You have an amazing family, and so much ahead of you. I’m like a black rain cloud that just follows you around, when you are pure sunshine.”

“Ok, you are spewing a bunch of bullshit right now, and I’m going to chalk it up to the fact that you probably have a concussion, so I’m going to let you say it, but we’re going to forget about it tomorrow. But bottom line Callahan, you are the most important person in my life, and just because you have shitty parents doesn’t mean I’m going to abandon you because of a black eye and a bloody lip. And frankly, I should be pissed you think so low of me, but tonight, I’m going to let it slide.”

She was still sitting on the bed, and Sam thought she had never looked more beautiful. Temper flaring in her eyes, her hair blowing in the open window air with the moonlight filtering in around her. She was the first person to ever stand up for him, fight for him, and damn did it feel good.

“God Liv, I don’t even know what to say to you. There are so many things I want to say, but somehow it doesn’t seem to be enough,” his eyes pleaded with her, as so many emotions were swirling in his deep green eyes, Olivia felt overcome with passion.

Despite the heart breaking circumstances that led him to her bedroom in the middle of the night, she couldn’t ignore the fact that her insides were stirring, that her skin felt as if it were on fire. Watching Sam’s silhouette move about her dark bedroom made her wonder what his silhouette would feel like moving above her in her bed. Trying to shake some sense into herself, she made the decision to do whatever she could for this beautiful boy standing in front of her.

“Then no more words tonight, let’s get some rest, and we’ll figure out this shit show in the morning. Normally I’d go make up the couch for you, but tonight I’m going to say screw it, and you can bunk in here. I’m willing to take on the wrath of my dad. After the night you’ve had, you need to sleep in a bed. And I’m not leaving you alone.”

Olivia’s eyes were soft and full of compassion, and without saying anything more, she scooted up to the top of her bed and made room for Sam. His eyes flashed between Olivia and the empty space next to her in the bed, and he could swear sparks were about to start flying with all the electricity in the air.

Taking a deep breath, he made his way to the bed and kicked off his sneakers by her small night table. He climbed in next to her as she fed him some of the blankets and he pulled her cozy comforter around them both. Olivia seamlessly turned towards him, and laid her head on his chest as his arm instinctively wrapped around her and pulled her closer.

Sam closed his eyes, inhaled through his busted nose and despite the pain in his face, he swore he’d never been more content in his life. He had dreamt of sleeping next to Olivia for more years than he could count, but his dreams didn’t even come close to the real thing. Her hair was still damp from her evening shower, and her usual scent of vanilla was much more powerful and filled his nostrils like the best drug on the market. She seemed to fit perfectly against him, like that was where she belonged, and even in the midst of one of the worst nights of his life, he felt nothing but happiness.

Pulling Olvia just a little bit closer, he closed his eyes and drifted off to the deepest sleep he’d had in weeks.