Escape Route

Two

The strange, shoulder-length haired boy looked at me eagerly and I realized that an answer was expected soon if not then.

"Most would've jumped at the opportunity." he lifted an eyebrow.

I ignored his comment. "How are we going to determine who wins?" I asked carefully. "Rock paper scissors?"

He laughed slightly. "No." He held up his index finger as he scratched around in his jean pocket. He finally pulled out a deck of cards. "With these."

"Uno?" I asked surprised. I haven't played those in a long time. It was my favourite.

"Scared?" he smirked as he pulled out the deck of cards from it's worn-out box.

My eyes went from the deck of cards on the table and back to meet his hazel eyes. A tiny part of me felt curious and itchy to explore, whereas other parts were screaming out loud that I had to get up and forget this nonsense. 

I took a deep breath before answering. I hoped that I was doing the right thing. "Nah, let's play." I sat down in my seat.

"Great!" he answered, shuffling the deck. "Best two out of three."

×

The first round of Uno showed how rusty I really was. As a result, Emerson won. I didn't let that get me down as I came back full force and won in the second round. It was a tie at that moment and we were on the final round. It was anybody's game.

"Get ready to go on that plane alone, dude." I smirked as I glimpsed at the blue 8 and +4 in my hand. I'm winning this.

We were quieting playing throughout the whole round, only making noises if one of us got blocked or had to pick up.

Emerson sat quietly, studying his two cards and the one I put on the deck previously. He showed no emotion until I caught the corners of his mouth curling.

"Get ready to pack your bags, senorita." He slowly placed both of his cards with a blue and yellow 8 on top the deck before quickly yelling, "Uno!"

"What?" I couldn't believe my eyes. He actually won.

"A deals a deal." he shrugged.

My heart started to beat in my throat and I started to become warm. I was so convinced that I would win that I didn't have any room for disappointment. Now, I was going to be stuck with this guy in a foreign country. What did I get myself into?

Just as I was trying to make sense of everything, Emerson's phone vibrated, which brought me out from my daze. He looked pale the moment he read the text. I couldn't even open my mouth before he said, "We have to go." he instantly grabbed my arm. "Now!" he whisper yelled.

We quickly grabbed our belongings. I looked to where his eyes constantly fell and saw a man in a black suit walking up the stairs.
"Wait. Who is that?" I asked squinting my eyes to get a better look.

"Run now, ask questions later." he breathed as he jogged. "Just trust me, okay."

I didn't know what to do except follow him. We started jogging through the food court, down another flight of stairs, in the direction of the check-in desk.

He showed the lady our tickets on his phone and we immediately went through.

"Wait." I said. "Hold up, hold up." I stopped walking and once Emerson noticed, he did the same. "You can't expect me to just pick up and leave. What about my aunt... What about my parents?"

My stomach instantly felt sick. "My parents..." I whispered.

His expression softened. "Don't worry." he breathed, running his fingers through his hair. "Trust me." he held out his hands. "Your Aunt Maggie knows. I'll tell you everything on the plane."

×

With a bit of nerves and excitement the plane lifted off and flew gently across the sky. Since I was a first time flyer, Emerson agreed that I get the window seat, while he sat in the middle.

"My aunt?" I asked loudly, creating a shush explosion to occur. "You're telling me that she planned all of this?"

"She was very convincing." he shrugged and smiled innocently.

"Gosh." I felt my index finger and thumb pinch the bridge of my nose. "That woman always has to stick her nose  in where it doesn't belong."

"But aren't you glad you did it?" he had a charming smile.

All I gave as a response was a 'not now' look which made him shrink in his seat. "You could've told me the truth. Speaking of which," - I quickly tied my curls into a low ponytail- "Who was that man back there?"

He took a breath while running his hand through his shoulder-length hair. "Oh that guy... Works for my dad."

"Why was he looking for you?" I sat up straight now. "Wait, are you running away? Is there something I should know that you're not telling me?"

He chuckled. "What do you mean by running away? If you mean taking a little break from your already planned out life, then yes, I'm running away."

I felt my eyebrows knit together. "What are you talking about rich boy?"

"Well, my father owns a real estate company. Have you heard of Pierce Estate?" he asked and I nodded slowly. "Well that's our family business."

"Now my father thinks it's time I join, but that's not what I want to do with my life." he shook his head. "I want to travel and be happy with whatever career I'm doing. And selling property is definitely not it." 

"Does he understand that?" I asked genuinely curious.

He breathed deeply "No. He doesn't believe that. He says that I'm not serious or mature." he smiled unexpectedly. "Because of his demands, I disappear once a month to any place in the world to escape him. It's kinda fun."

Before I opened my mouth, he spoke, "That's how I met your aunt. We just started talking and she brought you up. About how you've never traveled, but would like to be a pilot, something like that. That's how we got in this situation."

"She's gonna get a earful when I get back." I mumbled. "Is the flight going to be long?"

"Quite a bit yeah." he nodded. "You're stuck with me now. I suggest you make yourself comfortable."

I turned my head towards the window and watched the clouds pass by. Every minute my eyes felt heavier until eventually I drifted off to sleep.

Author's Note:

Hello everyone!

Please don't forget to:

°Vote
°Comment

Stay tuned for more!