Imagine getting your yearbook and being the only one to notice an obvious mistake. At first you try looking through your friendsâ books to compare, and while you find the same issue over and over again, they canât figure out what has you so worked up.
           âThereâs no picture for him!â You point to the blank space above the name Robbie Goodfell. âHe did skip a lot this year, but they book retakes for anyone. I mean lookâthey included his friend Megan and sheâs going to boarding school now. Thatâs kind of weird, right?â
           Again, your friends shake their heads, this time looking a bit more worried. They rationalize Meganâs photoâshe had actually been a student at the school. If anything, the mistake isnât the missing photo for Robbie, itâs that his name is there in the first place.
           By the last day of school, youâve stopped bringing up the weird photo mistake. None of the teacher supervisors were able to give you any answers since they couldnât remember who you were talking about. At first, they thought it was a prank, but you realized if you asked anyone else theyâd probably ship you off to a therapist. There hasnât been a chance to ask Robbie about it eitherâyouâve only seen him a couple times since he started coming to school again, and itâs not like you share a class with him. Besides, with all the pre-summer goodbyes and yearbook signings, Robbie and Megan have slipped your mind.
           You make your way to the bus stop with a group of friends, each one buzzing about summer plansâshort-term jobs, tropical vacations, visiting family. Youâre happy to listen and nod along, making your own plans mentally. Out of the corner of your eye you spot something back at the school grounds. When you turn, Robbie is hopping onto one of the low half-walls surrounding campus, looking through his own yearbook. The scene looks incomplete without Megan beside him. It hits you that youâve never seen Robbie without Megan, or even with anyone else for that matter.
       Robbie doesnât seem to notice you approach, but as you get closer he yawns and wipes his face with the sleeve of his green sweater. It doesnât make his eyes any less puffy or red, but you ignore that and hop onto the wall beside him.
       âNext year they should hire a new yearbook company,â you say, looking at his open pageâthe page with his name. âOr at least get a new page editor.â
           âHard to add a picture when one wasnât taken.â
           âRobbie? Camera shy?â You put your hand over your heart. âWhy, I would have never thought youâd be afraid of a little camera.â
           He offers a small smirk and looks back to his page. You feel the conversation slipping, so you drag out your own yearbook and swap it for his. Robbie looks as though heâs about to protest, but when he sees you offering him a pen he just raises an eyebrow.
           âIâll sign yours if you sign mine?Â
           Robbie grabs the pen and actually cracks a small smile. âDeal.â
           You turn to the back of his book, keeping tabs of the page without his picture, only to find several blank empty pages waiting for you. Trying to play off your surpriseâno one signed his book? At all?âyou bring out another pen and get to work. You donât know him that well, so you give him a somewhat generic signature with a small surprise at the endâyour cell number. Stomach twisting, you flip back to the page with his empty space and attempt to draw him in the blank space. âDrawâ is more of an exaggeration here, as your picture pretty much resembles a stick figure with a fantastic head of messy hair.
           When you make a move to exchange yearbooks, you look up to find Robbie looking between you and his book, his face a mix of emotions. You look away from his gaze and swap yearbooks again.
           Hopping off the wall, you give him a smile before running off to catch your bus. âDonât feel pressured to send a text or call if you donât want to, I just thought it might help sinceâŚâ
           Robbie nods and shoves his book in his bag. âNo need to explain. Donât be surprised if you start getting texts at 4 am, though.â
           âLooking forward to it.â
           He laughs. You turn around, and as you walk away from the slouched over boy you swear you can hear a faint thank you.