Finally Home

43. Samantha

I am on the airplane!!!  I'm going to California!  It's Christmas break and I'm off to California to visit Uncle Brendon and Aunt Sarah, Uncle Pete, Uncle Patrick, and whoever else would tag along.

I still had my one crutch, but I didn't need it as much as I had. Mom had said I should bring it for Disney and maybe the basketball game because there'd be a lot of walking involved, and my leg could tire out pretty quick. It was a lot better than it had been. I could make it through the school day without it, but if I walked home from school without my crutch, it was really uncomfortable by the time I got home. Really tired feeling. The crutch helped.

Mom, Dad and Rosie had driven me to the airport after school.

"I go wif Sammy?" Rosie asked.

"Nope. You stay with momma and daddy and Sammy goes to California," Dad said.

"No. I go wif," Rosie said.

"I will bring you your Christmas present from California," I said to Rosie. "But you have to take care of Momma and Daddy for me, okay?"

"Okay, Sammy!" Rosie smiled and hugged me. I smiled. Mom and Dad kept saying our bond just kept getting stronger. Rosie was not the 'annoying kid sister' to me. She was a trusted friend, someone I hoped she felt she could turn to at any time. Someone I would protect fiercely.

"Okay Nugget," I said to Mom's belly. "Be good to Momma."

Mom smiled and hugged me tight.

"Gonna miss you, kiddo," she said.

"I'm gonna miss you guys too," I said.

"No you aren't," Dad said. "Don't lie. You're going to have an amazing time with your uncles and aunt. You'll completely forget about us."

"Well," Sam said. "Not completely. Because I have no doubt you'll be texting or calling every day to make sure I come home."

We laughed. Sure. It wasn't a joke when Mark tried to get me to stay in England. But we could joke about me not coming home from California, because every once in a while I asked to move there. Less than I used to because Uncle Josh and Aunt Debby live in Ohio now, but Uncle Brendon and Aunt Sarah are in California, and I want to be closer to them, too.

Finally, it was time for me to get checked in and so I hugged my family once more, and went through security.

I showed my boarding pass and was directed to the airline lounge where I sat and waited for my flight to be called.

When it was, I grabbed my backpack and got on the plane. I could barely contain my excitement.

"Hey. How's it going?" Dad texted. I rolled my eyes.

"I literally JUST got on the plane!" I texted back. "So I would say it's going fine."

"Miss us yet?"

I laughed to myself.

"How could I? You haven't given me a chance to miss you! It's been, like, five minutes."

"Sue me. I love you and I miss you. And don't forget to come home."

"I'm going house hunting while I'm in LA," I said.

"No you aren't. We aren't moving to California. Nice try."

"I COULD put an offer in on a house."

"No you can't. You're a minor. Nice try."

"I'll get Uncle Brendon to help me."

"No you won't. Because I'm texting him now to tell him not to."

"You suck," I texted. "🤣"

"You suck more," Dad said.

The flight attendants said it was time to turn off electronics so I told Dad I had to go.

"Have a good flight. Use the wifi if you can."

"👍🏻."

I watched as the attendants did their pre-flight stuff and listened to the what to do in case we crash. Then I plugged my earbuds in and sat back and watched as we pulled away from the gate and taxied to the runway.

Before I knew it, we were up in the air. I had put my phone on Airplane Mode and turned on the wifi.

Immediately I had a dozen texts from Dad already. I read through them and smiled. He was being goofy. Already three of the texts reminded me to come home at the end of the week. I shook my head.

For the rest of the flight I tried to watch the movie, but it sucked. So I listened to music and played on my Switch. I had a window seat, so I looked out the window a little bit as well.

We had a snack on the flight and Uncle Brendon had said we'd go out for dinner tonight.

I kept getting more and more excited the closer we got.

I had basketball tickets, Uncle Brendon was taking me to Disneyland again, plus the Fall Out Boy concert. And just hanging out with my aunts and uncles.

The lady beside me seemed unfazed by my restlessness.

"First time flying?" She asked me.

"No," I said.

"So you're not fidgety from nervousness?" She smiled at me.

I laughed a bit.

"No. I'm just excited. I'm visiting my aunts and uncles and it's been a while since I've seen them."

"I see. I hope they have plans to keep you busy," she said.

"They do," I smiled. "We're going to Disneyland, to a Lakers game and to a concert."

"Sounds like a fun time. Your aunts and uncles sound like a lot of fun."

"They are," I smiled.

Finally, we were making our descent into LAX. I put my stuff back in my backpack and watched as we landed. The palm trees made me smile. I was here! 

I waited somewhat patiently as the plane rolled to the gate and as they started letting people off.

"Enjoy your visit," the lady beside me said.

I smiled and thanked her as we headed down the jetway into the terminal.

I found my luggage easily and pulled it off the carousel.

I didn't need a lot for a week, so just the one bag and my backpack and I was good to go.

I walked out of the baggage hall and into the terminal, looking for Uncle B or Aunt Sarah.

I didn't see anyone I knew.