Meet Me at Taylor Park (5 page)

Their intimate moment was over. She had ruined it. She was both sad and glad.

Brandon took a sip of his water. “Hey, so I was wondering if you were seeing anyone right now.” He looked right at her, but then his eyes darted away.

“Are you?” She did not look him in the eyes.

“No, nothing serious. None of the girls I’ve dated wanted anything serious. No one since you.” This time, his eyes were focused squarely on her.

She shifted in her seat, tugging at her collar.

“What happened with them?” she asked. She was glad that she had dodged the question.

“I got unlucky, I guess. They just wanted a fling. None of them wanted anything real.” He looked down, then laughed wryly. “One of them broke up with me in public.

Everyone was watching. She said I was too passionate.” He chuckled. “I can’t live without passion.”

In the semidarkness, she looked at him and sensed hurt in him, just a tiny wound.

She reached out to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. He looked up, and managed a weak smile.

They locked eyes for the second time. In that moment, they both felt something inside, something that was trapped and banging against the cage, begging to be freed.

Before they could do anything about it, the plane began to tremble, like an earthquake tremor.

They looked at each other. Around them, they heard confused voices.

“What’s going on?”

“Owww, my head.”

“Miss, I need another glass of water.”

At that moment, the plane began to dive down abruptly.

Katie and Brandon felt their stomachs heave, as though they were on the roller coaster.

They gripped each other’s hands.

The alert began to blare like a police siren and the fasten seatbelt sign glowed a blood red.

The loudspeaker crackled on. “Attention, all passengers. Please do not be alarmed. We have hit some turbulence, but we should be alright in a few minutes. Please remain calm.”

Brandon looked at Katie and saw that she had her eyes closed. He gripped onto her hand even tighter, and together, they braved the turbulence.

The plane flew steadily for the next little while, but then, it dipped again. Screams from the other passengers filled the entire cabin.

Katie looked at Brandon.

Brandon patted her hand. “It’s alright,” he said.

“Are we going to die?” The lights were beginning to dim, but she could still make out Brandon’s reassuring face next to her.

“No, we’re going to be fine.” He motioned at himself. “Come here.”

Katie hesitated, reminding herself that she now had a fiancé.

The plane rocked again, and she found herself all too willing to accept Brandon’s embrace.

Brandon held Katie’s warm body, relishing the feel of it against his. It had been so long since he had a girl’s body wrapped against his. He could almost hear the rapid beating of her heartbeat.

He stroked the side of her head. “It’s alright. It’s gonna be alright.”

She was so close that he could smell her scent. It was a pleasant fresh-out-of-the-shower shampoo fragrance, with a hint of vanilla.

He felt his own anxiety peter out as he held onto her.

The aircraft dove again, and they still heard cries around them, but safe in each other’s arms, they were calm.

Katie snuggled into Brandon’s arms and enjoyed the way he held her. She felt a little guilty that she had not told Brandon about being in a relationship, but with Steven hundreds of miles away on the ground, she felt that he did not exist. It was just her and Brandon in each other’s arms, just like old times.

*

They drifted off to sleep. When they awoke, they were both acutely aware of being all snug and warm, as though they were under layers of blankets on a bed.

When Katie opened her eyes, she was surprised to find something wrapped around her. She rubbed her eyes, and then realized she had fallen asleep in Brandon’s arms. She was even more surprised at how snugly their bodies fit together, like the right key in a lock. Her first thought was to go back to sleep – the comfortable warmth encouraged more sleep– but she forced her eyes open. She looked up and saw Brandon looking down at her.

He put a hand to her forehead, brushing her bangs out of her face. “Did we fall asleep?”

She nodded. She looked around and noticed that the plane had steadied itself.

Brandon yawned, and then stretched. “What time is it?”

The screens in front of them flashed on. They looked at it.

It read, “Time to destination: 4 hours.”

Brandon opened the window shade, and a glorious sight greeted them. They saw the faint outline of the sunrise above the clouds. Tiny golden rays were caressing the wispy clouds.

Katie could not take her eyes off the spectacular sight. It was not every day that she saw views like this.

Brandon gazed at the magnificent sun too, but kept one eye on Katie. She was mesmerized, just like she was watching another Disney classic.

He pulled her closer. “Isn’t that beautiful?”

She nodded, and looked at him.

He smiled. “You remember when we last saw the sunrise together?”

Katie did, but she said, “I don’t recall.”

His disappointed look said it all.

He tried to hold her closer, but she pulled away, but then she headed straight into his arms again. She looked at him, torn. Guilt. It was consuming her inside, eating her raw. Steven was good to her. He didn’t deserve this.

The decision was made for her when Tina the future sister-in-law came over. She looked at the couple with shock.

“Katie,” she said. “I just wanted to check in on you and let you know that the turbulence is over.” Then, she frowned. “But I can see that you two have been comforting each other.” She stared at them until they were uncomfortable, then left.

Katie let go of Brandon’s hand, and hurried after Tina. She finally caught up to Tina near the cockpit.

“Tina,” she said, tapping her on the shoulder.

Tina spun around and pursed her lips. “I thought you were engaged to my brother.”
 

Katie took a deep breath. “I am.”

“Then why are you cuddling with a stranger?” She pointed toward their seats.

Katie shuffled her feet. “I just fell asleep. And he did too.”

Tina crossed her arms, and then shook her head, her bob hairstyle bobbing back and forth. “I don’t buy that. I’m not an idiot.”

Katie looked around, making sure that no one was within earshot. It was just her and Tina in that cramped hallway.

“Brandon is, was, my first love.” She swallowed, trying to dislodge the lump in her throat. “High school sweetheart.”

Tina’s eyes widened. She said nothing. The mole on her chin seemed to have tripled in size.

Katie waited for a response.

Finally, Tina said, “What are the odds?”

Katie looked Tina in the eyes. “Are you going to tell Steven?”

The flight attendant said nothing, once again. Instead, she narrowed her eyes, and pursed her lips some more. Katie thought that Tina’s lips might burst from the pressure.

Tina sighed. “Probably not. But I don’t want you cheating on my brother.”

Katie nodded. “I won’t.” She turned around and went back to her seat. She could feel Tina’s eyes glaring at her as she walked.

When she returned, Brandon looked up and smiled. “Is everything OK?”

“Yeah, it’s fine.” She looked at him closely. “Did we fall asleep?”

“I think we did.”

“No, that’s not what I meant. Did we fall asleep, as in together?”

Brandon’s eyes bore into hers. “You mean in each other’s arms?”

Katie nodded. “You know what I mean.”

“We did.” He leaned in close, so close that she could smell his cologne. “And I liked it.”

Katie could not believe the boldness of his statement.

He put his hand on hers, and she let him. Then, she yanked it away.

Brandon stared at her with a wounded look on his face.

He leaned in close, and whispered in her ears, “I still dream about you.”

Katie felt like she was about to melt.

She had this dreamy look on her face, but then she stood up. “You know what? I can’t do this here. Not now. Now on this plane.”

She marched along the aisle, her breathing irregular.

Brandon stood up and followed her.

He stopped in front of a curtained washroom area. He brushed past the curtain and stood in front of the door to washroom. Where Katie was.

Katie had her head turned away from him, looking at a stain on the floor.

Brandon took a step toward her. “Katie?”

She held up one hand. “Don’t. Just don’t.”

He grabbed her hand, but she jerked it out of his grip. “Don’t,” she repeated, her voice sharper. Her eyes were intense, like a volcano just before an eruption. He looked closer and for a moment, he thought he could see just a tiny tear in one of her eyes.

He took her by the hand, but this time, she allowed him to hold it. “Katie, when the plane shook, I thought I was going to die. It made me think. I don’t want to live my life without love.

It’s too short not for us to be together. And you know we should be together.”

The first thing Katie did was compare Brandon’s speech to Steven’s. Brandon had said, “Life is too short for us not to be together.” Steven had said, “Life is too short not to be the girl I love.”
 

Katie felt her defenses cave in. She started to tremble. “What happened to us?” Her face was now contorted as she quivered. She lowered her head, refusing to look at Brandon. When she looked back up, her cheeks were a deep scarlet. Her eyes were full of passion. Her mouth was a thin line.

Brandon took this as a sign to keep advancing. Putting both hands on her shoulders, he gently pinned her against the walls. He felt and heard her heartbeat, beating rapidly like a war drum.

“Why did you leave me?” he said softly. “I didn’t get to say goodbye to you.”

Then, he moved in. He could see the excitement and fear in her eyes. He could smell the faint hint of vanilla on her body.

He leaned in until his mouth was right to her ears. He whispered, “I still dream about you.”

Her eyes were closed. She was trying not to shake again.

Then, he kissed her. He brushed her lips, then massaged them, starting with the lower part, then the upper part, then both at the same time. It tasted like strawberry lip gloss.

She received his kiss passively, but then grew more aggressive the longer he kissed her. She kissed him back as though she were starving to the point of death.

After a while, Brandon pulled his face away. He looked at the girl, the same girl that he had fallen for in high school.

There was just one light above the washroom sign. In the semidarkness, he could see that her face was relaxed, but still contained a fiery passion.

Using one hand, he brushed a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. As he did so, he kissed her earlobe and said, “I’m gonna give you all the love I didn’t get to give you.”

Unable to help herself, Katie shivered as though she were naked in the cold.

They stayed in there for a long time.

*

Chapter 5

 
“Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We are beginning our descent into Vancouver International Airport. Please fasten your seat beats and do not take them off until the seatbelt sign is off. Thank you for flying with us.”

Back in their seats, Katie looked at the man next to her. Brandon looked flushed. Even his hair was a mess. He smiled shyly at her, as though he were a teenage boy in love for the first time.

The plane began its descent and Brandon held onto Katie’s hand. She did not pull away. She merely enjoyed the moment.

When the plane came to a complete stop, they retrieved their carry-ons from the overhead compartment, and then got in line to exit.

Katie saw that Tina was greeting the passengers as they left the aircraft.

“Bye, bye. Thanks for flying with us. Have a good day. Bye bye.”

When it was Katie’s turn, Tina looked at Brandon suspiciously, and then shot Katie a dirty look. “I hope there wasn’t any trouble on the flight.”

Katie shook her head. “No, no trouble at all.”

“Good, we’ll be in touch.”

Katie felt Tina’s eyes burning a hole on her back as she left the plane.

The two of them strolled into the airport in silence, thinking about their time in the curtained washroom area.

*

When they entered the main terminal, the sounds of hustle and bustle greeted them. Passengers and staff were milling around everywhere in the glaring light.

They walked toward the exit in silence. Then, Brandon’s cell phone rang. He looked at Katie apologetically. She shrugged.