The Plane to No Where

My eyes flutter open, the sunrise beaming in through the window. I sit up in the large bed, surrounded with thick, plush comforters and pillows. My kids are spread out and asleep in the large bed as well. I watch them lovingly before climbing out of the bed and walking over to the large, lengthy window. It’s beautiful out. The sky is full of orange and pink. The clouds are puffy and drifting by us and around us slowly. I look down and see the distant land below. I can’t believe how lucky we are to be here. I don’t know how long we’ve been here but to be on this luxury flight was amazing. First of its kind, live-in flight. Soar the skies with your own rooms. No different then the trains and cruises with there personal rooms. But how uniquely beautiful it is.

My kids wake up, they are so excited and I am as well. We are floating in this heavenly place, why wouldn’t we be. Why wouldn’t we be? Where were we going again? I try to shake the uneasy feeling and sit down on the bed with my kids. I listen to them chatter about happily. We were going somewhere, we had to be. After watching them for a bit, I decide to walk about our rooms for a bit. The rooms are very modern and lovely. A small section of the plane reserved just for us. However, I still don’t remember us boarding or even accepting an invite.

But I’m sure it is fine.

All the excitement must have my brain in a blur. One of the flight attendants knock on our door as I’m trying to wrap my head around any memories of all this. I still hear my kids chattering in the bedroom as she enters. She says hello but then just stands there, smiling at me and clasping her hands in front of her. I wait a minute and watch her, wondering what she may be here for. Waiting for any kind of verbal acknowledgement. She’s a younger woman, Asian I believe. She’s wearing a navy dress. It looks like a strange mix of a flight attendants uniform and a nurses scrubs. More so nurse than flight attendant though. It is quite strange. But who am I to judge. After an awkward moment of us just kind of staring at each other I ask, “Can you remind me, where are we heading again?”

She looks a bit confused but she maintains her composure. “We don’t know yet,” she replies. “But we should know soon.” She pauses for a moment then her smile breaks. “You’re going to be okay,” she says in a suddenly serious and concerned tone. Then she turns and walks out of the room quickly.

“Oh, okay.” I say quietly to myself as she leaves. That feeling of unease drifting over me again. I go back into the now quiet bedroom. The boys are asleep again. That's odd. They are snuggled close to each other, the bed a tangled mess all about them. I walk over to the window again. As I do, my oldest wakes up and looks at me from his cozy spot. “You know, mom? I can still feel it.” he says.

“Feel what?” I ask, looking at him lovingly as he blinks tiredly at me.

“The pain… from the wreck. I can still feel it.”

I look at him confused and concerned as he turns his head away and drifts back to sleep just as quickly as he had woke up. And then suddenly, I had a rush of memories flood back into my mind.

We were going to visit family. I can hear the boys cheerfully talking in the back seat as I was driving along the highway. It was early, the sun was just rising and the sky was beautiful. Then a truck swerved from the other lane into ours. I swerved to try and miss him but over shot it and crashed into the steep ditch line. Then, I'm in and out of consciousness. I see flashes. Paramedics arriving. I see them pulling my still alert, crying children out of the car. My kids are alive? … but in pain. I can see, my oldest is bleeding. I flash back to the present and look over at my sleeping children. My oldest is now bruised, with a small gash in his arm. My youngest, mostly unharmed, with a few scratches but now trembling as if he is scared or in shock.

That’s right. He didn’t seem as injured when they pulled him out. Just afraid and in tears. Then the next flash, of me on my back, on a stretcher? There’s a young female paramedic looking down at me as they rush me to the ambulance. A young, Asian female in navy blue scrubs. “You’re going to be okay,” she keeps saying. So serious, with an occasional forced smile as if to reassure me. The room flashes a bit, it's almost as if it is shaking around me. But it’s not the plane. I see the car's wreckage. Then another flash, and I’m in a hospital room. I am now full of panic and dread. And then just as quickly I’m standing back in the plane’s bedroom, alone this time. As I look around me, trying to get a grasp on reality and what’s happening, I hear a voice. But I can’t see where it’s coming from and I don't recognize it. It’s as if it’s all around me but no where at the same time.

“Where are you going?” It says. “You need to wake up!”