“Good evening passengers of Flight Twenty Three Forty Five. We appreciate your patience this evening and will be boarding shortly. Please listen carefully for your seats to be called so that we can board quickly. Again, thank you for your patience and we look forward to serving you on your flight back to the DFW-Dallas/Ft.Worth area.”
Digging through her oversized Coach bag searching for Dramamine, she noticed there was no text or missed calls on her phone. Not that that was surprising or anything. Talking on the phone was overrated anyway and she was not usually ever in the mood to talk to anyone unless it was her parents. And even that wasn’t by choice usually, but more like an obligation.
Her work trip was long and getting home was her main priority. Thankfully she did not have to work the next day. The idea of watching Sex and the City reruns all day in her pajamas sounded like bliss. A day of inactivity was in order after the hellish week she’d just finished.
Thankful she had just enough of her Starbucks caramel macchiato coffee left so she could take Dramamine. She would soon be on her way to an induced coma like state on the flight. As she walked to the trash can nearby, she noticed a gentlemen standing by the bar. He was leaning over the bar as if trying to catch the bartender’s attention. His stance was broad and suggestive. He was wearing what looked like a suit and had a Burberry wool coat resting on his forearm. The color caught her attention even more. It was a deep, dark plum color. Any shade of purple was Zoe’s favorite, but on a man it was almost flawless. Not that Zoe was a fashionista or anything, but thanks to her mom’s brand name mini lessons during her thrift store hunts, she became all too familiar with clothing styles, both men and women.
Zoe’s focus was almost like a camera zooming in getting ready to start a photo shoot. She continued to fixate on his movements and assumed he was on the same flight with her. Flying was not something she enjoyed and if she could help it, she would prefer to be knocked out until the plane arrived to their destination. But if Mr. Deep-Dark- Plum-Burberry-Suit-Wearing man was on the plane, it would help to ease Zoe’s anxiety or at least lessen it.
The gate agent made another announcement:
“Passengers on Flight Twenty Three Forty Five, it is time to begin boarding. Please have your tickets out and ready for the agent at the gate. We will begin boarding with seats in first class.”
Zoe began to gather her belongings and make her way to the gate. Eight C was her seat. As she began to make her way through the crowd, she noticed the man from the bar was already getting his ticket scanned and making his way down the runway. She may not be in first-class, but she was close enough to maybe get a peek of her flight distraction for the next hour or so.
The agent was quickly calling the rest of the seats. Zoe finally made her way down the runway and was anxious to get to her seat. As she walked down the aisle, she was careful to not bump into anyone who was already seated. Then, she saw him seated in first class. Zoe made a mental note of his seat number. He was sitting in an aisle seat reading a newspaper. The seat next to him was empty. Surprisingly, for such a crowded gate area, the plane wasn’t as full as she originally anticipated.
Zoe placed her belongings under the seat in front of her. Thank goodness for packing light. There was a passenger seated by the window, but the middle seat was empty, thank god. She had some elbow room.
The woman by the window pointed to the middle seat and stated,”This was originally my seat, but the flight attendant said I could sit by the window to give us more room.”
“That’s good! I’m surprised the flight is as empty as it is. I figured it would be full.”
She smiled and nodded, “Better for us.”
Absolutely. Zoe thought to herself as she laid back and closed her eyes.
“Would you like a beverage?” she heard the flight attendant say.
Zoe opened her eyes and realized she must’ve dozed off. The plane had already taken off and flight service was already in progress.
“Yes. A Diet Coke please,” the woman by the window answered.
“No problem. And for you?” the flight attendant asked as she handed her a napkin.
“I’ll have the same.” Zoe released the tray in front of her and placed the napkin on it. She could not believe she had fallen asleep and not even notice the plane taking off. She took a sip of her beverage and glanced out of the window from where she sat. The night skies were the only sites visible. Her Dramamine had definitely kicked in. Flying at night was so much more relaxing, almost exotic and she was at ease.
Zoe looked down the aisle towards the back of the plane and noticed the flight attendant was still serving beverages. She needed to go to the restroom but obviously either had to wait or make her way to the front of the plane since it was clear of aisle traffic. That also meant walking by Seat Six C.
She began to unbuckle her seat belt and carefully pulled herself up. Oh, she needed the good stretch. Zoe began walking down the dimly lit aisle. Immediately she noticed his seat was empty.
Hmmm, maybe he was in the restroom too.
As Zoe approached the bathroom she noticed both doors read “VACANT”. Unsure of what conclusion to make, she shrugged her shoulders and opened one the doors. He was standing in front of the mirror washing his hands.
“Oh my gosh, I’m sorry!” she blurted and shut the door. Her face felt hot from blushing with embarrassment.
He immediately opened the door and smirked. “No worries, love. I was just finishing up. You might want to use this one though. The flight attendant said the other is broken.”
His green eyes had Zoe in a trance. He was even more handsome than she recalled. His dark hair, sun kissed skin, strong jaw features and facial scruff about sent Zoe into a heated frenzy.
Zoe quickly tried to gather her thoughts and composure just enough to respond, “Oh, okay.