~~
He fiddled with his neck pillow, fluffing it and adjusting
it before settling back into his seat. He closed his eyes for a moment, if
that, before fiddling with the pillow again. He reached for the packet of gum
tucked into the seat pocket, purchased from a stand in the airport. He fumbled
with the packaging, dropping the first piece onto the floor, before he popped
one into his mouth. He chewed it quickly and aggressively, so much so that his
jaw quickly grew sore.
He
jerked back in his seat as the plane moved forwards, gaining speed quickly. He
gripped the edges of his seat, so hard that his knuckles turned white and the
tips of his fingers went numb. He kept his eyes focused on the TV screen in
front of him, his destination outlined on the map.
His
eyes darted to the side only once, and he took some comfort in the fact that
the young woman beside him looked just as nervous as he felt. Perhaps, he
mused, he was not the only one new to flying.
~~
This
wasn’t her first time on an airplane. Her family travelled to Florida when she
was seven, again when she was ten. She flew to Mexico at age fifteen, and back
and forth from the West coast once she started college at eighteen.
Her
nerves didn’t derive from the sudden jolts of movement, or the force of gravity
as they lifted up into the air. She twisted her hands nervously in her lap,
afraid that this plan was futile; that he would find her, no matter how far she
went. She was scared that she had left behind some clue, or that he would
notice her absence too quickly. He had held his grasp on her for so long...a
part of her didn’t think she could get away.
Another
part of her didn’t want to.
~~
Until later,
- Justyne
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