“Well, she has to be loving, logical, and lovable,” he explained.
“Nope. I’ve read that in books a million times. Be honest. What kind of girl do you like?”
“Well, uh. She, uh–” He was interrupted by the engine of the plane starting.
“Oh, God,” I said out of fear.
“Don’t worry. Did you know that plans are safer than cars?” Joe asked.
“Yeah. My parents used to tell me that when my mom would go away on business trips,” I said in a distant tone.
“Oh. Here,” he said as he held out his hand, “hold on.”
I took his hand and gripped onto it as hard as I could. I was so scared and I wasn’t sure if the reason was merely my first flight, or something even more frightening. I had tried to force my family situation out of my mind, but it just kept on nagging me. This time, I couldn’t fight the silent tears that came so often now-a-days.
Jonathan placed his arm on my shoulders, observing my sadness. I leaned on him, and before I knew it, we were flying. It was really peaceful, but the thought of the airplane plunging into the ground recurred in my mind. I closed my eyes, and with Joe’s hand in mine, I fell asleep.
When I woke up, I didn’t open my yes. It was dormant in our aircraft, so I figured everyone else had fallen asleep. I would have done the same, but I had this feeling that I was being watched. I opened my eyes to see Joe staring at me.
“What?” I said, wondering why he was looking at me.
“Did you know that you were smiling in your sleep?”
I tried to recollect anything I may have been dreaming, but I couldn’t think of anything. “Oh, really?”
“Yeah. You looked really, uh, content,” he said quietly. I sat upright and Jon, still asleep, took his arm off of my shoulders. Joe still had a grasp of my hand, and I wasn’t about to let go of the only sense of security that I had.
“Content,” I repeated to him, matching his stare.
“Yeah, content.” He kept admiring me with a soft smile, and I could do nothing but melt at the sight of this tender, caring, blue eyes. He just sat there and didn’t say anything, but it was Donnie that broke the silence.
“You guys want something to drink? We’ve got another hour and a half on this airplane,” he said.
“What do you want?” Joe asked me.
“A Coke.”
“Here, Donnie, I’ll go,” Joe said as he excused himself.
“Get me some milk, will ya?” Donnie yelled, evidently waking everyone else up. “How’s it goin’?” he questioned as he took Joe’s seat.
“Okay, I guess,” I said.
“Just okay? I couldn’t help but see the dreamy look on your face when I interrupted you guys. What’s with the hand-holding?”
“Well, I was nervous about the flight and stuff, so…”
“Yeah, okay, whatever,” was Donnie’s reply to my lame answer.
“Now, Donnie, I’m gonna ask you a question, and I want a straight answer from you. Be honest. Why didn’t Joe want me to stay at his house?”
“How’d you know about that?” he asked, shocked at my question.
“I have ears, you know, and Joe said it pretty loudly. I honestly tried not to listen, but I couldn’t help it,” I explained.
Page 11 | ©1990 Lori L. Otto | Pages 13-15
This story was written when I was in high school. I am now the author of the women’s fiction series, Emi Lost & Found. Read the first 2.5 chapters of the first book, Lost and Found, on Amazon.com! Lost and Found, Time Stands Still, and Never Look Back are available in paperback, or for your Kindle reader and Nook!
*waits for the answer with bated breath*
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