I rode to the airport by myself. I sat in the terminal, waiting with the other passengers with my back to the windows so if Brie showed up, I’d be the first one to see her. Still, something dark in me thought she wasn’t going to come. I folded forward and dragged my hands through my hair, trying to convince myself it wasn’t the end of the world if Brie walked away from me, from us. I was going to Texas for noble reasons. I would arrive in Austin, rent a car, and drive the short distance to my parents’ house. I would walk in and hug my mom, tell her how much I’d missed her in the last few years, and then I would turn to my father and hug him too. If my mother had been honest about how remorseful he was, the conversation wouldn’t be so hard. He’d tried to reach out multiple times. I’d even read a letter or two where he apologized for everything he’d put me through, but this time it was different. This time, I was open to hearing an apology, and I knew by the end of the day, my family and I would patch things up as best as possible.
All of that should have made me happy, but Brie was still the only thing on my mind.
“Now boarding first class passengers,” the attendant called out from behind the podium.
I stood up, slinging my backpack over my shoulder and scanning for Brie. I lingered in the back of the line, letting the other passengers rush forward. We had assigned seats; it’s not like it mattered who boarded first. I hovered until there wasn’t any more time. Brie still wasn’t there and the attendant was waving me forward, insisting I was holding up the boarding process.
I handed her my pass, walked down the long tunnel, and tried to fight the need to vomit. I’d never been lovesick over a woman before, not like this. I nearly laughed at the idea of boarding a plane for such a long flight at the exact moment my stomach’s contents wanted to revolt. What perfect timing.
“Here you are, sir,” the flight attendant said, directing me to my seat in first class with a gentle smile.
I’d upgraded Brie’s seat too. She was supposed to occupy the seat directly beside me, but it was glaringly empty and would remain that way for the next few hours, until we landed in Texas. I tossed my backpack onto her seat and sat down, rifling through the seat-back pocket in front of me for a vomit bag. Just in case.
I listened as the other passengers boarded the plane behind me. Soon everyone would take their seats and they’d close the plane doors, locking out the possibility of Brie joining me.
“Warm towel, sir?” the flight attendant asked, already holding one out for me.
I shook my head and waved her away. She smiled and proceeded to remind me to turn off my electronics or switch them to airplane mode before making her way to the next passenger. I reached in my pocket to turn my phone off and caught sight of the calls I’d missed, ten in total, the last one only a few minutes before. Every single one of them was from Brie. I hurried to call her back, pressing the phone to my ear just as a soft voice filled the first-class cabin.
“You know, it’s kind of rude to stash your stuff on someone else’s seat.”
Warmth radiated through my body as I turned my head and saw Brie standing in the aisle. Our eyes collided, a mix of blue and brown so full of emotion, I felt dizzy. She was beautiful, standing there with messy brown hair framing her face. Her hand was pressed to her chest; she was trying to catch her breath. I assumed she’d had to run to catch the plane in time and my body flooded with relief that she hadn’t missed it.
Her eyes were wide and expressive, and though she tried to play off the moment with an easy, playful smile, I could see her nerves eating away at her. She smoothed down her shirt and fidgeted on her feet, glancing down the aisle toward the back of first class and then back to me with a question in her eyes.
I reached for my backpack so she could take a seat, and she did so with a long exhale, not looking to me right away. I wanted