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KATE
“Surprise!”
The word washes over me. I stare, dumbfounded.
“Happy birthday, Mom!” Carter, arm draped around Jenna’s shoulder, grins at me.
“My mama is officially old.” Reed emerges from the crowd and crushes me in a bruising hug, lifting my feet off the ground. He twirls me in a half circle and plops me next to the kitchen table.
In the center of it is a large chocolate cake. A paper plaque sits on top, the words Over the Hill written in black marker. Beneath the words is the number 40.
“Guess who made the cake?” Jenna jerks a thumb at Reed.
“Hey.” Reed puts his hands on his hips. “I had to make the cake when Mama Bear was sleeping. I dare any of your asses to make a cake on a barbeque with a headlamp for light.”
“I was talking about the decoration on the cake,” Jenna replies.
“Oh.” Reed cocks his head at the paper plaque that looks like it was drawn by a third-grader. “I’m pretty much the next fucking Picasso. Ya’ll better save that. It will be worth millions someday. Do you like it, Mama?”
“I—” I sputter, trying to find words. “How?”
“How did we know it was your birthday, or how did we pull off the surprise?” Johnny asks.
“Both.”
“It is your birthday, right?” Caleb frowns.
“Of course, it’s her birthday,” Carter says. “You didn’t think I’d forget, did you, Mom?”
I shake my head, still in shock over the surprise. I turn on Eric. “You were a distraction.”
He shoves his hands into his pockets with a grin, not bothering to deny it. “How’d I do?”
“You’ve officially tipped your hand. I now know you’re a grade-A bullshitter.”
Everyone chuckles, crowding forward to hug me or clap me on the back. I catch sight of Ben at the back of the gathered crowd. He wears his general gruff expression, arms folded over his chest, but he gives me a wink when our eyes meet.
“I hope I’m in good shape like you when I’m old,” Evan, the little boy, tells me.
“Hell, I’m already old,” Margie says. “If Kate doesn’t give me a heart attack during training, I might get in shape one day.”
“Heart attacks are half the fun,” Johnny tells her.
“Says the punk who’s on a recovery cycle,” Margie grouses.
“I’ll be passing you in another week. Just you wait, old lady.”
“Gary made a special casserole,” Susan tells me. “He’s been working on the recipe for days.”
“We had to break into the student store to get powdered potato cups,” says Christian.
Since arriving, the former PE teacher has helped me add new strength training routines to our workouts. He’s shaved off his beard, revealing the face of a man in his early thirties. Christian wasn’t exaggerating when he said he ran the 400 and 800 meter sprints. Reed is still our fastest runner, but Christian chases his heels anytime I make them race.
Gary and Susan bring out his casserole, which turns out to be the apocalypse version of shepherd’s pie. The top is covered with the powdered mashed potatoes. The bottom is a gooey mixture that bears a loose resemblance to cream of mushroom soup with caramelized onions and peas. I may have turned my nose up at it prior to the zombie apocalypse, but tonight, on my birthday, it’s the best thing I ever tasted.
It turns out Gary has a sense for seasoning. He’s made some pretty interesting and delicious canned food casseroles on the barbeque. In comparison to Lila, he’s practically a gourmet chef, though I would never disrespect Lila’s memory by saying that aloud.
After dinner, Reed prepares to cut the cake. “Someone get a candle or something,” he yells. “Anything flammable. Oh, and make sure there’s forty of them for our Mama Bear.”
Jenna produces a potpourri candle with three wicks. “This is as good as it’s going to get.”
“Peppermint scent?” Reed makes a face.
Jenna shrugs, lighting the candle with a book of matches.
“One more person wants to sing you happy birthday.” Johnny holds up the ham radio. “Foot Soldier, are you there? Over.”
“Wandering Writer, this is Foot Soldier, over. Where’s Mama Bear?”
“She’s right here, Foot Soldier,” Johnny replies. “Get ready to bust out the birthday melody!”
“On three,” Carter calls, plunking the peppermint the candle in front of me. “One-two-three—”
The entire room bursts into song. My gaze passes over each and every one of my companions. Carter. Jenna. Reed. Johnny. Eric. Ben. Caleb. Ash. Susan. Gary. Leo. Christian. Todd. Margie. Stacy. Little Evan and Kristy. And Alvarez, two hundred miles away. Everyone here, for me. My heart swells with love.
I blow out the candle, sending a silent wish out in the world. Protect my people. Keep them safe.
After everyone has cake, Carter taps a spoon against a glass. “Alright, everyone, time for Mom’s birthday present.”
“Presents?” I ask. “On top of food and cake?”
“One more,” Carter says. “This one took a lot of planning. Jenna and I may have gone on a super-secret mission with Ben back to a certain brewery.”
My mouth falls open. “You what?”
“Don’t worry.” Ben holds up his hands in self-defense. “I took enough grenades to take down a large village in China. They were perfectly safe.”
I narrow my eyes in mock scowl. “No more super-secret missions.”
“Don’t say that until you see what we have.” The crowd parts as Carter lugs a box in his arms. Glass clinks inside.
He plunks the box in front of me. It’s wrapped in Hannakuh paper.
“I found that!” Kristy jumps up and down, beaming. “I was playing hide-and-seek with Evan and found it under a bed!”
“It is the most beautiful paper ever,” I tell her, tearing into the gift.
The lid to a cardboard box pops open as the wrapping paper falls away. Brown bottles with beer caps fill the interior. I lift one out, my body going still as I take it in.
On the front of the bottle is a hand-drawn label in the shape of a half-ellipsoid. A green mountain fills the upper curve, bisected by what is clearly a trail. On the trail is the silhouette of a runner. Over the top of the mountain are the words Over the Hill.
Carter can’t contain himself any longer. “Jenna designed a beer label for you!” He beams at his girlfriend.
“And Carter made a special brew for you,” Jenna says. “It’s a lager.”
I pop the top of the bottle. The glass is cool in my hands. Not ice cold like the good old days when we had refrigerators, but cool like it’s been stored in a dark closet.
The first sip washes over my tongue. I close my eyes, letting the taste carry me back to a different time. To a time when Kyle and Frederico were still alive. To a time when my free time was spent training for ultramarathons and researching races to see where my next adventure would take me. To a time when running wasn’t something I did for self-preservation.
To a time when the world wasn’t overrun with the dead.
“It tastes like a finish line.” My voice is rough with emotion.
Carter and Jenna gather me in for a hug. I squeeze the two of them, holding them close. My love for them threatens to explode out of my chest.
This is, by far, the best birthday I’ve ever had.
*
HOURS LATER, I LEAVE the party and make my way back to my room. I have a slight buzz from the beer. Everyone else had one bottle, but I got three—on top of a couple of shots of moonshine that Reed and Johnny have been brewing. I feel happy from the inside out.
To top everything off, I don’t have watch tonight. Leo took my shift as a birthday present. I might have insomnia, but at least I’ll be warm and comfortable in my own bed.
Flinging open the door, I switch on the light—and freeze.
Gone are the Grateful Dead postures, the baskets of stinky boy laundry I never got around to moving, and the cluttered desk of a college kid.
Every surface area is spotless. The window is open, letting in fresh air. And did someone spray pine air freshener? Where did someone even find pine air freshener?
Even the stained bedspread is gone, replaced with a graphic quilt. It depicts the silhouette of a howling wolf with a full moon hanging overhead.
But the part that really takes my breath away is the walls. Covering every square inch—the ceiling, the walls, and even the bulletin board on the back of the desk—are pictures of nature. Trees. Rivers. Waterfalls. Deserts. Hillsides. Wildflowers. Oceans.
For the first time in months, I feel like I’m back on the trail. Like I’m surrounded by the beauty and serenity I’ve missed so much. A piece of my old life gifted to me.
Another birthday gift. And I know who it’s from.