Romance in the Sky

“Welcome aboard, this is our nonstop flight from London to JFK. If you look forward as our attendants go over the safety features of the aircraft while we get prepared for takeoff…” the voice of the captain over head started to trail off as Josh put his earbuds in. A frequent flyer, he had heard this time and time again. This was just a normal flight for him and he just wanted to zone out and get some rest as he makes his way home. After his week long vacation overseas, it was time to try and sleep. He knew that he most likely wouldn’t but it was worth a try.

Luckily this flight was not a full one, so Josh could stretch out a bit. The women next to him was the only other one in the middle section of the airbus so they both took aisle seats for some extra room. He looked over at her with a nod and a smile, as if he were saying that they were lucky to get all of this space. Josh knew that this flight was normally pretty full so he knew just how nice it was. The woman looked a bit nervous but smiled back shyly. Josh closed his eyes to relax for take off, only to be woken up by a tap on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry. Do you mind if I sit a seat closer? I just get nervous during take off,” the woman said. Josh replied, “Oh yeah. That is perfectly fine. I don’t mind.” He then smirked and jokingly reached out his hand saying, “Need someone to hold your hand?” She actually reached out and grabbed it saying, “yes, if you insist.” He blankly stared at her, making sure she was serious and introduced himself after deciding he didn’t mind holding her hand. In fact, he found this woman to be beautiful. He could tell they were around the same age and her amber eyes made him pause a bit longer than he anticipated.

“Nice to meet you Josh. I’m Amber,” the woman responded. Josh paused, thinking if he should make a comment about her eyes but was too nervous to be that forward with someone he just met. Instead he just responded with, “Nice to meet you as well.” Josh then turned, sheepishly, forward as the plane was planning to take off. Oddly enough, neither let go of the other’s hand. Even once they were fully in the air. They just stared forward, trying to not be fully awkward. It wasn’t until the flight attendant came by with drinks that they even realized that they were still holding hands. They released and each reached out for the drink that they requested.

Amber decided to take out her headphones and listen to her music but was struggling to untangle them. Josh noticed and asked, “would you like me to help with that?” Amber said, “you can try. They are pretty knotted up.” She handed them over and as Josh began, she said, “I also wanted to thank you. I feel a lot calmer thanks to you.” Josh smiled in response and with a couple more seconds, the headphones fully unraveled. Amber’s jaw dropped and she exclaimed, “I have never seen anyone do it that fast!” “Yeah, well I have had a lot of practice. That is the main reason I have these now,” he said as he pointed to his wireless earbuds.

Amber smiled and asked, “do you mind if I actually lay out across the seats?” Josh didn’t seem to mind and knew he wouldn’t be able to fit across the seats. Amber was quite a bit shorter and more slender than he was. So Amber started to put the armrests up and grabbed the complimentary pillow and blanket to lay across the open three seats. Josh put his seat back to get as comfortable as he could and started to fall asleep.

When Josh woke up, he noticed that he was holding Amber’s hand again. It seemed like she reached her hand under the armrest and they both grabbed the other’s hand. He couldn’t tell if she was awake or just laying there, so he squeezed lightly. She returned the squeeze and Josh began to feel his cheeks turn red. It was so strange. They hadn’t really talked much but there was just chemistry. He had never felt this easy of a connection. It was like they already knew each other and were just enjoying each other’s presence. No need for all the questions to get to know each other. It was just simple.

Feeling embarrassed, and using natures call as an excuse to run, he let go and went to the back of the plane. Squeezing into the bathroom, Josh washed his face and looked at himself for a moment. His cheeks were still flush and butterflies were fluttering in his stomach. He took a couple deep breathes and then headed back to his seat to find that Amber was sitting up now. She was rummaging through her bag looking for something when he sat down.

She pulled out her water bottle and shook it to see how full it was. Then she looked at Josh and asked, “would you mind taking this and filling it up for me?” Josh paused and followed up with, “get it filled? Where?” She pointed towards the back of the plane and he remembered that there are big bottles of water that the attendants use on the cart. He smirk and said, “I don’t think I can do that for you.” Amber’s lips pursed and she exclaimed, “well why not?” Josh smirked again and said, “well we just met and I already kept you calm and unraveled your headphones. Can’t have you too dependent on me.” Then he stuck his tongue out and winked slyly. She quipped, “oh, is that right?” Then she got up in a huff and went to the back of the plane.

When she got back, they both giggled to themselves and she ended up sitting next to him. Every touch was intoxicating to them both. Amber slowly rested her head on his shoulder and they held hands yet again. Tracing their finger tips across each other’s arms until their fingers laced together. Amber reached across with her other arm and grabbed his forearm. The rest of the flight was just the two of them on the entire plane. The world had shrunken down to just this moment. Two people finding something most rarely find.

The plane landed in what seemed like minutes. The passengers were told that they would be preparing to get off soon and Josh and Amber backed away from each other and just stared for a moment. They both knew without words and sighed. With just one look, they knew that their lives were going in different directions. They knew that this was an incredibly special time but it didn’t have the ability to continue. They both smiled at each other and separated to their respective aisles as their row’s turn was coming close.

Amber’s line was moving quicker and she gave one last look back towards Josh as she exited the plane with a faint smile. He simply nodded and smiled back as she walked out of his life. There was no sadness attached to her departure. To Josh, a fond memory was made. He would surely remember her for quite some time and chase after that type of connection again. It was just that this time the chemistry was meant to stay at 36,000 feet. Up in the clouds where their hearts were for a few hours.