Page 75 of Sing it, Sam

“I was living in the dark,” Sam sings and then hums a beat. “Then in came Wonder Woman.”

A wide smile stretches across my lips. “Awwww. Did you just make that up?”

Sam nods.

A dog barks loudly in the distance. I glance at my watch.Right on time.

“Let me try,” I say and clear my throat, starting the same clapping pace as before. “Two friends torn apart too so-on … now will finally be unit-ed.”

Sam frowns.

The barks grow louder. A dog with a mass of strawberry blond hair flowing behind it darts towards us. It’s mesmerising watching each pounce of its legs, its long pink tongue dangling to the side.

I turn back to look at Sam. His jaw has dropped, and his eyes are fixated on the approaching animal. “Ed?” he whispers in amazement.

Seconds later, the ginger dog is licking at his face. His tail whips around every which way. Something between a growl and a high-pitched whine breaks free from the dog’s mouth.

“You did this?” Sam says, choking on his words.

A tall lady in the distance with long dark hair waves to us. I nod, and blow her a kiss. Kim returns to a nearby white four-wheel drive and vacates the car park. It won’t be long before she’s back. I’m just grateful for any time she was willing to give us.

“We only have him for an hour. I hope that’s okay?”

Sam ruffles the hair behind Ed’s ears and kisses his head. “Hey, I’m happy with anything. Shit. I thought I’d never see him again.”

“He lives close. The owner is really nice. I’m sure seeing him again wouldn’t be a problem.”

I must get Kim a bunch of flowers and some wine for this. And hugs. I’ll be hugging the crap out of her later. That’s a given. There’s an award-winning smile on Sam’s face. I don’t think Kim truly knows how much her kindness has affected him.

“Well it’s not like I can walk him or anything. Maybe someday, but I can dream.”

Seemingly over the excitement of seeing his former owner, Ed rests his head in Sam’s lap, and Sam and I snuggle into the pillows. Birds chirp overhead and the breeze skirts around us, sending the occasional discarded autumn leaf to blow onto the rug. Today couldn’t have been more perfect.

“This. This makes me wanna write songs again,” Sam says, and stares deep into my eyes. “You. You, Janie, make me want to put pen to paper.”

I have that effect on him?I press a soft kiss to his lips. “What was the last song you wrote?”

His brows draw together causing aVto form between them. “It was for Felicity … my ex. We were supposed to be forever. That’s what I wrote about. Didn’t end up being too accurate.”

“Oh, that sucks.”

“Ha. Yeah. It did. I’ve learnt to dealt with it though. I figure if the woman I was planning on proposing to couldn’t handle this”—Sam motions his hand up and down his body—“then we weren’t meant to be.”

I swallow down the growing lump in my throat.Wow. That’s tough. What a way to learn someone’s true colours, when at the time he would’ve needed all the support he could get. I press my hand against his chest, revelling in the feeling of his heart beating.

“You can handle this, though,” he whispers.

I raise my shoulders and drop them. “Sure. Why wouldn’t I? I mean, GBS doesn’t define who you are. It’s just a setback.”

He closes his eyes for a beat. When he opens them, they’re glassy. His smile wavers. “Yeah, well not everyone sees it that way. When I was diagnosed, everyone except Ben pretty much left me for dead. I couldn’t walk, couldn’t write, and had trouble singing. Didn’t do much for my confidence, hey.”

“Getting better slowly, right?” I say, and bump my fist against his shoulder.

We continue to talk and laugh as we lie together, occasionally throwing a stick for Ed to retrieve. Most of the time though, Ed is happy by Sam’s side. It’s sweet the way he’s protective over him. I take a selfie of the three of us to send to Sam later. I’ll send a copy to Ben too, as I’m sure he’ll get a kick out of it.

Kim is late returning, which suits us fine. I’m in no hurry to return to work. Especially when Kathleen said I could make up the time later.

“Okay, so think about all the songs in history, the millions out there,” I say to Sam.

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